Instead of replying by word of mouth to his brother's question, he,
with both hands, took hold of the lance on which he was leaning,
stooped down, placed it on the ground, and, after a momentary
hesitation, proceeded to set it. It is thus, as a rule, that the
Africans indicate a route, or explain the position of any given
place. The exactitude of this kind of compass is such, that,
according to many travellers, the spot so indicated can be reached,
even if it is a hundred leagues off, without any deviation.
As soon as the lance was motionless, we stooped down to ascertain its
direction, and by the aid of our compasses, we perceived that it
pointed to the south-east. This fresh piece of intelligence,
furnished by Degberra, was an additional confirmation of the letter
of M. de Guéran. The Baron had expressed his intention of making for
the Blue Mountains mentioned by Baker, and these mountains lay due
south-east.
We had, therefore, settled a most important point, for M. de Guéran
spoke, also, of reaching Lake Tanganyika southwards, or, if he went
westwards, the provinces explored by Livingstone in his earlier
travels, and leading to Congo on the Atlantic Ocean. It became
evident, from the scraps of information collected in the Monbuttoo
country, that the Baron had decided upon the first of these routes,
by far the most simple, far less complicated than the other two, and
much more rational, seeing that when once he was in Degberra's
kingdom, lying east of the Monbuttoos, he was on the high road to
Zanzibar.
Our host, however, extracted from his brother some details even more
precise. The white man, when on the point of setting out, had asked a
number of questions about the south-eastern tribes, and obtained all
the information he possibly could from all the officers and others
capable of giving any. In addition to this, he had persuaded Degberra
to give him an escort to accompany him as far as the Domondoo
frontier. This escort, after a ten days' march, left him, but saw
that he was continuing his journey towards the south-east.
We could not possibly have obtained any indications more precise,
trustworthy, and in conformity, at the same time, with our private
information, our suppositions, and the probabilities of the case.
Munza, however, was not satisfied yet. He had his own reasons for
mistrusting Degberra, and for taking the evidence of his officers,
adroitly placed out of earshot from the very commencement of the
interview. He accordingly ordered them to be brought before him,
informed them that if they deviated one hair's breadth from the
truth, he would have them beheaded, and, having produced the desired
effect with this mild threat, an advantageous substitute, perhaps,
for the oath enacted from witnesses amongst us, he questioned them
one after the other.
The fear inspired by the King, who was known to be pitiless when on a
tour of inspection in his brother's territory, jogged the memories of
even the most rebellious, loosened their tongues, and made every one
inclined to be outspoken. The additional information gleaned from
these people, served to confirm that already given by their master.
It went further than that; it completed it by clearing up a still
obscure point, and doing away with a doubt which harassed us to such
an extent that we informed Munza of it.
It was difficult to understand how Degberra had allowed M. de Guéran
to set out for the south simply because his guest had paid him
tribute, and made him a few presents. The avarice of the Viceroy was
notorious, but his bad faith was equally so; he would have taken the
tribute and the presents, but would also have forbidden M. de Guéran
to continue his journey. Being fully aware of his brother's policy as
regarded strangers, and sharing his dread of seeing them establish
seribas and depôts amongst the tribes of the Equator, he would have
paid little heed to keeping his word with a foreigner, if, by doing
so, he ran the risk of displeasing his powerful and dreaded master.
But, thanks to the statements made by his followers, we now knew, or,
rather, divined why he had so graciously accorded to M. de Guéran a
right of way through his territories.
The Baron, whilst his musical box was contributing to the pleasures
of the Court, indulged in a few psychological studies, from which he
gathered that Degberra was both sensual and fickle, and that any
chance of a successful appeal to him lay through his passions. At the
same time, the tales which had reached our ears, as I have mentioned
already, were repeated in a far more detailed fashion in the Court of
the Viceroy; it was in everybody's mouth that there was a country
situated at the foot of the mountains, where all the women, so the
tale ran, were far more lovely than the Monbuttoos. M. de Guéran saw
at once the part he had to play, and when he had roused the curiosity
and excitement of Degberra to a proper pitch, he proposed to set out
for the south, make a razzia on these women, bring them captive
northwards again, and exchange them with his host for elephants'
tusks. The idea took the Viceroy's fancy; he put implicit faith in
the promises of the white man, and allowed him to depart under the
guard, be it understood, of an escort, with orders to watch him
narrowly, and if necessary, to bring him back. But when he reached
the Domondoo country, M. de Guéran lost no time in getting rid of the
escort, continuing his journey in solitude, disappearing altogether.
Such was the gist of the revelations made to us, and to them our
imagination contributed in no small degree. But it was impossible to
avoid believing the united testimony of the ministers and principal
officers, more especially as their account tallied so exactly with
the character and passions of Degberra.
We were considerably edified; the King of the Monbuttoos had played
the part of _juge d'instruction_ to perfection, and we felt bound to
show him our satisfaction and our gratitude.
To sum up—there could no longer be any doubt that in the month of
February in the preceding year, M. de Guéran was fairly within those
unexplored regions which are bounded by the Blue Mountains. Had he
been massacred by the tribes amongst whom his escort left him? Had he
died of sickness or fatigue in that land so close to the equator? Was
he a prisoner there? Or, after having reached the Blue Mountains, had
he succeeded in crossing them and reaching the beaten track? In this
latter case he might have gained Zanzibar, have embarked there for
Europe, and be awaiting Madame de Guéran in Paris.
All these hypotheses, reasonable in themselves, could have no effect
on our route. Whether we continued our journey in search of our
fellow-countryman, or made the best of our way back to France, we
had, under existing circumstances, but one road before us, the one
thus pointed out to us. This plan, moreover, appeared to suit Munza
down to the ground, and that was a great thing. Towards the south-east,
he would encounter tribes, on whose possessions he had already
made several razzias, and whom he had intended to attack this year
for the purpose of replenishing his stock of goats and cattle,
animals not to be found in his own country. He was, consequently, not
deviating in the least from his customary line of conduct, and his
army would accept his proceedings as a matter of course. He might,
indeed, have feared being drawn still farther onward in our behoof,
but the negroes, however intelligent they may be, do not bother their
heads about the future.
We did not make a long stay with Degberra, for the King appeared to
have but little sympathy with his brother, and to wish to get away
from him as soon as possible. He was also too wise to expose his army
to the seductions of the country.
The troops set forward on their march with, incessant cries of
_Pouchio_! _Pouchio_! which, being interpreted, means Meat! Meat!
They were marching, in fact, against the possessors of countless
herds of cattle, and against enemies who, in default of oxen and
goats, were good to eat. After consulting with Munza, we decided to
move towards the river Keebaly. This stream, as far as our
information allows us to judge, takes its rise in the Blue Mountains,
and if we can manage never to lose sight of it, it will guide us on
our road, and lead us, as it were, by the hand.
It was decided also that, wherever we went, we should endeavour to
question the chiefs of the tribes as we had done in the case of
Degberra. The King, even if he could not succeed in obtaining any
precise information amongst the neighbouring tribes, counted upon
gaining some from one of his most powerful allies, the chief of the
Maogoos or Maleggas. He did not conceal from us his fear that he
should be unable to proceed any farther, if in this latter country we
failed in discovering him of whom we were in search.
Our route did not admit of our taking a straight line through the
land of the Akkas, a tribe of dwarfs whom Delange, now converted into
an enthusiastic explorer, was very anxious to see. But we marched
along their western frontier, and, as the inhabitants of this region
are tributaries, as well as allies, of Munza, we made the
acquaintance of a number of specimens of this curious race of
pygmies.
Schweinfurth, who saw them at Munza's Court, and not, as we did, in
their own country, suggests that the Akkas are the famous pygmies
mentioned by Herodotus. He does not give any decided opinion on this
point, but he expresses himself satisfied that they are not an
isolated tribe in equatorial Africa, but that they belong to an
aboriginal race scattered here and there from the Indian to the
Atlantic Ocean. I think that the German traveller is right; the
wandering tribe of hunters described by Du Chaillu, whose average
height he says is 4 feet 7 inches, only differs from the Akkas in the
great growth of hair about the body. These pygmies may be connected,
also, with the Matimbos, alluded to in the accounts of Escayrac de
Lauture, the Kimos of Madagascar, and the Bushmen, natives of the
South African forests. All these little beings are incontestably
related to each other, as is also the case with the various cannibal
tribes in different parts of Africa.
Schweinfurth thus relates the manner in which he became acquainted
with the Akkas. "After a few mornings my attention was arrested by a
shouting in the camp, and I learned that Aboo-Sammit had surprised
one of the pygmies in attendance upon the King, and was conveying
him, in spite of a strenuous resistance, straight to my tent. I
looked up, and there, sure enough, was the strange little creature,
perched upon Sammit's right shoulder, nervously hugging his head, and
casting glances of alarm in every direction. Sammit soon deposited
him in the seat of honour. A royal interpreter was stationed at his
side. Thus, at last, was I able veritably to feast my eyes upon a
living embodiment of the myths of some thousand years!"
The European traveller put several questions to him, but, becoming
very soon weary of this examination, the little man made a frantic
bound, and took to flight. He was pursued, and caught; fresh
persuasion was brought to bear upon him, and, his impatience being
quelled, he was prevailed upon to go through a few evolutions of his
war-dance. He was dressed in the rokko coat and plumed hat of the
Monbuttoos, and was armed with a diminutive lance, and a bow and
arrows in miniature. His agility was marvellous, and his attitudes so
varied and grotesque that all the spectators held their sides with
laughter. Our interpreter states that the Akkas jump about in the
grass like grasshoppers, and that, when they can get near to an
elephant, they shoot their arrows into its eyes, and then drive their
lances into its belly. We have never seen them disembowel an
elephant, but we have learnt to our cost, or, rather, to Joseph's
cost, that, most decidedly this trusty servant is predestined to
every kind of misadventure, and is worthy of a special page in this
veracious record, a space which, accordingly, I intend to devote to
him.