CAPTURED BY CANNIBALS.
With a party of young men from the village, I had been for some days on
a hunting expedition, in which we had varied luck. We had sent most of
the meat and skins which we had obtained back to our village for
distribution among the people, when suddenly one of the three men given
to me on the day that the ceremony of my exchanging blood with Karema
had been performed, who had become very much attached to me, and
accompanied me wherever I went, said to me, “Franki, a long time we have
hunted, and both buffalo and antelope are scarce; why do we not go
further into the forest and far from the villages? We shall find more
meat.”
“True, Fumo,” I replied; “but we have been many days in the jungle, and
the men with us wish to go back to their wives.”
“No, Franki,” said Fumo; “there are seven here who wish to go far. The
others who want to go back are women and not men.”
I soon made inquiries among our party, and found that some of the men
said Karema had always said to return in eight days from the time of
leaving the village, and not to go beyond a certain distance; and that
now, if we were to obey his orders, we ought to set about returning at
once.
I was looked upon by all the men as leader of the party, and I knew that
I should have done right in complying with the wishes of Karema, from
whom I had received nothing but kindness. Fumo’s words, however, excited
in me a desire to see more of the country, and a hope that I might find
some way of escape. I had no intention of being so base as to go away
without telling Karema; but I thought the more I became acquainted with
the country, the better I should be able to make my way to where I could
find some traces of Englishmen.
After a long argument we decided that the men who wished to return to
the village should do so, and Fumo and the other seven men who were
willing to follow me should send word that we were going to remain out
for another week, in the hope of finding game more plentiful. We were
under the guidance of one of our number to make our way to a place where
not only buffaloes and antelopes were known to be plentiful, but where
elephants often came.
I knew, if we could get any ivory, Karema would willingly overlook our
remaining away beyond the time he had fixed; but it was because I could
not be sure of his consenting to my going so far from the village that
I determined on going to this place without returning to the village and
telling him of my intention.
Fumo and I with our companions exchanged broken spears for sound ones
with those who were returning, and took all the spare bowstrings and
arrows we could muster. I was the only one of our number who possessed a
gun, and my stock of ammunition was so scanty that I hoarded it with
most jealous care, and had for some time made up my mind never to fire a
shot except in a case of urgent necessity.
As soon as our companions had left us to go back to the village, we
started off under the leadership of a man called Wanda, who said he knew
the road. For the whole of that day we forced our way through almost
impenetrable jungle, and camped for the night on the bank of a small
stream.
Next morning we came into rather more open forest, and we were able to
spread out in search of sport. Soon after we had started, I heard a
great crashing among some undergrowth near us, and immediately
afterwards a large antelope dashed out across our path with a leopard
clinging to his shoulders. As quick as thought I brought my gun to my
shoulder and fired, and the bullet struck the leopard full in the flank.
At once it quitted its prey and commenced to come towards us. My gun
being unloaded, I threw it on the ground, and essayed to pick up my
spear, which I had dropped when in the act of firing; but I could not
find it. Hearing Fumo, whose attention had been attracted by my firing,
calling out, “Run, Franki, run!” I took to my heels, closely followed by
the leopard.
I was running towards two of my companions, from whom I might get a
spear, and with whose assistance I might have a chance of turning the
tables on the leopard, when I heard a roar and a yell behind me. Looking
round I saw that the faithful Fumo had attacked the leopard with a
spear, but from some cause or other his blow had not been successful;
and the infuriated beast, turning on him as he attempted to get away,
had seized him by the back with claws and teeth.
I seized on a spear from the man nearest to me, and hurled it at the
leopard and transfixed it through the loins. It at once let go its hold
of Fumo, who fell forward on his face bleeding from his wounds, and
turned towards its new assailants. We met its onslaught resolutely.
Finding my own and Fumo’s spears, we all three kept stabbing at the
beast as it attempted to tear us down to the ground. Fortunately the
wounds which I had inflicted with bullet and spear had crippled the
leopard’s movements, or we should have fared badly in the encounter.
Except the one or two comparatively slight wounds which I received on my
fore arms while driving my spear into its breast, we did not have any
damage done to us. The rest of our companions, hearing our shouts, came
rushing up, and with their assistance we soon despatched our antagonist.
As soon as we were done with the leopard, I turned my attention to poor
Fumo, who was in a terrible condition, the brute having torn the flesh
off his back so that the bones were visible. I scarce knew what I should
do to dress his wounds, and the only thing possible was to cut great
slices of flesh from the leopard and tie them over the wounds; then, as
he could not bear to be moved, we set to work and built a small hut over
him. As my arms prevented my being of any use, I sat by his side to
attend to his wants. The rest made a camp, cut firewood, and went to
hunt for game to supply our larder.
Poor Fumo! I do not know what might have been done for him if we had had
any knowledge of surgery or any proper appliances for dressing his
wounds. For days he lingered on, not getting either any better or
apparently any worse, and I thought it best to send word to Karema of
what had occurred, and how we might be still delayed by Fumo being
unable to travel. When I mentioned this, I was astonished to find that
some of our companions wished to abandon Fumo to his fate, as it was
impossible for him to recover, and to make our way back with all speed,
for evidently there was some fetich against us.
I was indignant at this proposal, and said all could go if they chose,
but when I returned I would tell Karema that they were not men but
women, and they
[Illustration: FUMO ATTACKED BY A LEOPARD.
_Page 165._]
would be hooted by the women and jeered at by the boys, and never again
would a man trust them as a companion in a fight or a hunt.
When I had finished speaking, the youngest of all, Chaka, a lad of my
own age, rose up and said, “Listen! The words of Franki are good words.
All may return, but Chaka will remain with Franki,” and then he sat down
again.
For some moments there was silence, and then Wanda said, “I have been
waiting to hear the words of those who want to leave Fumo to die. Franki
will stop, and Chaka will stop, and I Wanda, I, too, am a man, and will
stop with my friends when they are in trouble. Go back, and Karema will
take your spears from you, and put hoes in your hands, and you shall
work in the fields with the women.”
No answer was given to this appeal, and soon we saw our recreant
companions packing up their little belongings and preparing to leave us.
This was a most curious phase of the negro character. Here were men who
only a few hours before had been ready to risk their lives to help the
man whom now they proposed to leave to die alone and untended, and this
simply because they had some idea that he was unlucky, or, in other
words, that his fetich was bad. It was indeed fortunate that the two
brave fellows, Wanda and Chaka, had consented to remain with me and
their wounded companion.
Those who had made up their minds to return did not linger over their
preparations; and though they could only make a short distance on their
journey that night, they started off at once, refusing even to help
Chaka and Wanda to make a fence round our huts as a protection against
wild beasts.
When they left, Chaka and Wanda set about this necessary work, and, as
the deserters had collected a considerable quantity of wood and branches
before I had unfortunately proposed sending to tell Karema of Fumo’s
mischance, we were able by sunset to make ourselves tolerably secure,
and have big fires lighted to scare away wild beasts. My arms, which the
leopard had torn, had by this time become so painful that I was unable
in any way to assist in this most necessary work. Poor Fumo was in great
pain, and groaned pitifully. During the whole night I could not sleep at
all, and in the morning I was seized by an attack of fever. For days I
was ill, and conscious only at intervals, during one of which my
faithful friends told me that Fumo was dead.
I was slowly recovering from the fever, and was greatly rejoiced in
finding that my arms were nearly healed, when one day, Chaka and Wanda
having gone out to try to kill some game for our larder, I was sitting
in the door of our hut, and I suddenly heard shouts of “Franki, Franki!”
Thinking that perhaps Karema, hearing of our having remained with Fumo,
had sent men to our relief, I got on my feet to go in the direction
whence the sound came. Walking slowly thither I saw Chaka and Wanda
burst from the jungle, and spears and arrows flying after them.
Evidently they had fallen in with a party belonging to some hostile
tribe. They shouted out, “Franki, get in the camp, or we’ll be killed!”
and poor Wanda, before he could reach that haven of comparative safety,
fell down dead with a couple of spears right through him.
As soon as he reached our little camp, Chaka closed up the entrance, and
then said, “O Franki, Wanda and I had just killed an antelope, and were
busy skinning and cutting it up, when we were startled by some arrows
flying past us, and looking up we saw many men among the trees, and we
ran, and as we ran we called to you.”
The party who had attacked my two friends and killed poor Wanda now
showed themselves all round the open space in which our little camp was
situated. By their arms, shields, and the manner in which they were
decorated with beads and feathers (which was different from anything I
had yet seen), I could see that they were members of a tribe who were
entire strangers to me.
They shouted out to us to come out of our camp or they would kill us
all; their language, though different from that of the Adiana, in which
I was now a proficient, being sufficiently allied to it for us to
understand.
Chaka was evidently in a dreadful state of fright. He begged me not to
resist, but to speak to the strangers and endeavour to make terms with
them, for he said they were a very fierce people and ate the bodies of
those killed in battle. “How dreadful it is to be eaten!” said Chaka.
I shouted that if our lives would be spared we would come out, but if
they would not promise not to injure us we would resist to the utmost.
At first they laughed at us, but when they saw that I was a white man
and had a gun they said they would not kill us. Chaka and I, as soon as
the promise was given, ran to where Wanda was lying, but could render
him no assistance. The spear which had pierced him having gone clean
through his heart, death must have been instantaneous.
We were not allowed much time to mourn over the death of our companion,
for the strangers surrounded us at once, and after seizing our weapons,
bound our arms behind our backs, and then put a cord round our necks.
Having rifled our camp of all that was of value in their eyes, they cut
up Wanda’s body into pieces, which they distributed among themselves,
and then commenced their return to their own camp, which was situated
about five miles away.
Here we found a large body of men on a hunting and plundering
expedition, who had made several captives from neighbouring tribes.
Among these unfortunates Chaka and I were made to take our place, and
large logs of wood were fitted round our ankles, so that it was
impossible for us to do more than hobble along very slowly.
We soon had unwelcome proof that our captors were indeed cannibals, for
before our eyes they ate the body of poor Wanda; and Chaka, becoming
terror-stricken, said constantly to me, “Then you see if we had resisted
we should have been eaten.” I own I did not feel philosophical enough to
argue, and felt quite as much horror at the idea as he did.
Next morning at daylight our captors broke up their camp. We gathered
from their conversation they intended to make the best of their way back
to their own villages, which lay a long way up the Ogowai, on the banks
of which we were to find some canoes they had hidden, and in which we
were to travel up-stream. This was very good news to me; for it was
weary and painful work to hobble along with my leg in a log, which I had
with both hands to lift at every step by a loop of rope made fast to it.
Indeed, in my weak state I was only urged on by fear of being left
fettered and helpless to be the prey of jackals and hyenas, or, if I
escaped from them, to die of thirst and hunger.
My sufferings were intense. My leg, from my ankle to my knee, was soon a
mass of sores; and if ever I halted for a moment, our captors forced me
on with blows and jeers. Poor Chaka, who was tied to me by a rope round
our necks, though faring even worse than I did, kept on trying to cheer
me up by saying that when we got to the river we should be sure to find
means of escaping, or that the people whom Karema would be sure to send
to look for us would manage to release us.
No hope of either entered into my mind. As we wearily dragged along, I
could not help thinking how all this fresh trouble had come on me from
not complying with Karema’s desires, whose slightest wish should have
been law to me, when I considered how great and consistent had been his
kindness to me during the whole time I had lived with him.
I did not think it was possible that Karema could send enough men to
attack our enemies with any prospect of success, for it seemed unlikely
for him to have any knowledge of the fresh misfortunes which had
befallen us. In this I was mistaken, as the event shortly proved.