REVEALS DISCO'S OPINIONS ABOUT SAVAGES, AND THE SAVAGES' OPINIONS OF
DISCO, AND OTHER WEIGHTY MATTERS.
As two or three of Harold's people were not very well just at that time,
he resolved to remain at Kambira's village for a few days to give them
rest, and afterwards to push on to the country of his friend Chimbolo.
This arrangement he came to the more readily that he was short of
provisions, and Kambira told him that a particular part of the country
near the shores of a lake not far distant abounded with game of all
sorts.
To Disco Lillihammer he explained his plans next day, while that worthy,
seated under the shade of a banyan-tree, was busily engaged with what he
styled his "mornin' dooties"--namely, the filling and smoking of his
cutty-pipe.
"You see, Disco," he said, "it won't do to knock up the men with
continuous travel, therefore I shall give them a spell of rest here.
Kambira tells me that there is plenty of game, large and small, to be
had not far off, so that we shall be able to replenish our stock of meat
and perchance give the niggers a feast such as they have not been
accustomed to of late, for it is not too much to expect that our rifles
will do more execution, at all events among lions and elephants, than
native spears. Besides, I wish to see something of the people, who,
being what we may call pure out-and-out savages--"
"Savages!" interrupted Disco, removing his pipe, and pointing with the
stem of it to the village on an eminence at the outskirts of which they
were seated; "d'ee call them folk savages?"
Harold looked at the scene before him, and paused for a few moments; and
well he might, for not fifty yards off the blacksmith was plying his
work energetically, while a lad sat literally _between_ a pair of native
bellows, one of which he blew with his left hand, the other with his
right and, beyond these, groups of men and women wrought at their
primitive looms or tilled their vegetable gardens and patches of land.
"Savages!" repeated Disco, still pointing to the village with the stem
of his pipe, and gazing earnestly at his companion, "humph!"
It is probable that Disco might have said more, but he was an accurate
judge of the precise moment when a pipe is about to go out, and delay
will prove fatal. He therefore applied himself diligently to suck and
cherish the dying spark. Having revived its powers to such an extent
that clouds enveloped his visage, and his nose, being red, loomed
luridly through them, he removed the pipe, and again said, "Humph! They
ain't a bit more savages, sir, than you or me is."
"Perhaps not," replied Harold. "To say truth, it would be difficult to
point out any peculiarity that justifies the name, except the fact that
they wear very little clothing, and neither go to school nor church."
"They wears no clothin'," rejoined Disco, "'cause they don't need for to
do so; an' they don't go to church or school, 'cause they hain't got
none to go to--that same bein' not the fault o' the niggers, but o' them
as knows better."
"There's truth in what you say, Disco," returned Harold, with a smile,
"but come, you must admit that there is something savage in the custom
they have of wearing these hideous lip-rings."
The custom to which he referred is one which prevails among several of
the tribes of Africa, and is indeed so utterly hideous and outrageous
that we should be justified in refusing to believe it, were we not
assured of the fact by Dr Livingstone and other missionaries and
travellers of unquestionable integrity. The ring is worn in the upper
lip, not hanging from it but fitted into a hole in it in such a manner
as to thrust the lip straight and far out from the face. As the ring is
about the size of an ordinary napkin-ring, it may be easily believed,
that time is required for the formation of the deformity. At an early
age the middle of the upper lip of a girl is pierced close to the nose,
and a small pin introduced to prevent the hole closing up. After it is
healed the pin is taken out and a larger one forced into its place, and
so for weeks, months, and years the process of increasing the size of
the lip goes on, until a ring of two inches in diameter can be
introduced. Nearly all the women in these parts use this ring, or, as
it is called, pelele. Some make them of bamboo, others of ivory or tin.
When a wearer of the pelele smiles, the action of the cheek muscles
draws the lip tight which has the effect of raising the ring towards the
eyebrows, so that the nose is seen in the middle of it, and the teeth
are exposed, a revelation which shows that the latter have been chipped
to sharp points so as to resemble the teeth of a cat or crocodile.
"No doubt," said Disco, in reply to Harold's remark, "the lip-rings are
uncommon ugly, but the principle o' the thing, sir, that's w'ere it is,
the principle ain't no wuss than ear-rings. The savages, as we calls
'em, bores holes in their lips an' sticks rings into 'em. The civilised
folk, as we calls ourselves, bores holes in their ears an' sticks rings
into 'em. W'ere's the difference? that's wot _I_ want to know."
"There's not much difference in principle," said Harold, laughing, "but
there is a great difference in appearance. Ear-rings hang gracefully;
lip-rings stick out horribly."
"H'm! it appears to me that that's a matter o' taste, now. Howsoever, I
do admit that lip-rings is wuss than ear-rings; moreover it must make
kissin' somewhat difficult, not to say onpleasant, but, as I said
before, so I says again, It's all in the principle w'ere it lies. W'y,
look here, sir,--savages, as we call 'em, wear brass rings round their
necks, our women wear gold and brass chains. The savages wear anklets,
we wear bracelets. They have no end o' rings on their toes, we have 'em
on our fingers. Some savages shave their heads, some of us shaves our
faces. Their women are raither given to clothin' which is too short and
too narrer, ours come out in toggery far too wide, and so long
sometimes, that a feller daren't come within a fathom of 'em astarn
without runnin' the risk o' trampin' on, an' carrying away some o' the
canvas. The savage women frizzes out their hair into most fantastical
shapes, till the very monkeys has to hold their sides sittin' in the
trees larfin' at 'em--and wot do _we_ do in regard to that? W'y, some
of _our_ women puts on a mixture o' hairy pads, an' combs, an' pins, an'
ribbons, an' flowers, in a bundle about twice the size o' their heads,
all jumbled together in such a way as to defy description; an' if the
monkeys was to see _them_, they'd go off into such fits that they'd
bu'st altogether an' the race would become extinct in Afriky. No, sir;
it's my opinion that there ain't no such thing as savages--or, if you
choose to put it the tother way, we're all savages together."
Disco uttered the last part of his speech with intense energy, winding
it up with the usual slap on the thigh, delivered with unusual fervour,
and then, becoming aware that the vital spark of the cutty had all but
fled, he applied himself to its resuscitation, in which occupation he
found relief to his feelings, and himself formed a brilliant
illustration of his remarks on savage customs.
Harold admitted that there was much truth in what he said, but rather
inclined to the opinion that of the two sets of savages the uncivilised
were, if anything, the wildest. Disco however, contrary to his usual
habits, had nailed his colours to the mast on that point and could not
haul them down. Meanwhile Harold's opinion was to some extent justified
by the appearance of a young man, who, issuing from the jungle close at
hand, advanced towards them.
Most of the men at the village displayed a good deal of pride, if not
taste, in the arrangement of their hair. Some wore it long and twisted
into a coil which hung down their backs; others trained and stiffened it
in such a way that it took the form of buffalo horns, while some allowed
it to hang over the shoulders in large masses, and many shaved it either
entirely, or partially in definite patterns. But the young dandy who
now approached outdid all others, for he had twisted his hair into
innumerable little tails, which, being stiffened by fillets of the inner
bark of a tree, stuck straight out and radiated from the head in all
directions. His costume otherwise was simple enough, consisting merely
of a small kilt of white calico. He was accompanied by Antonio.
"We've be come from Kambira," said the interpreter, "to tell you for
come to feast."
"All right," said Disco, rising; "always ready for wittles if you only
gives us an hour or two between times.--I say, Tony," (he had by that
time reduced the interpreter's name to this extent), "ask this feller
what he means by makin' sitch a guy of hisself."
"Hims say it look well," said Antonio, with a broad grin.
"Looks well--eh? and ask him why the women wear that abominable pelele."
When this question was put to the black dandy, he looked at Disco
evidently in surprise at his stupidity. "Because it is the fashion," he
said.
"They wear it for beauty, to be sure! Men have beards and whiskers;
women have none, and what kind of creature would woman be without
whiskers, and without a pelele? She would have a mouth like a man, and
no beard!"
The bare idea of such a state of things tickled the dandy so much that
he went into roars of laughter, insomuch that all the radiating tails of
his head quivered again. The effect of laughter and tails together was
irresistible. Harold, Disco, and Antonio laughed in sympathy, till the
tears ran down their cheeks, and then returned to the village where
Kambira and his chief men awaited them.
While enjoying the feast prepared for them, Harold communicated his
intentions and desires to the chief, who was delighted at the prospect
of having such powerful allies on a hunting expedition.
The playful Obo meanwhile was clambering over his father's person like a
black monkey. He appeared to be particularly fond of his father, and as
love begets love, it is not surprising that Kambira was excessively fond
of Obo. But Obo, becoming obstreperous, received an amicable punch from
his father, which sent him headlong into a basket of boiled
hippopotamus. He gave a wild howl of alarm as Disco snatched him out of
the dish, dripping with fat, and set him on his knee.
"There, there, don't blubber," said the seaman, tenderly wiping off the
fat while the natives, including Kambira, exploded with laughter. "You
ain't burnt, are you?"
As Obo could not reply, Disco put his finger into the gravy from which
the urchin had been rescued, and satisfied himself that it was not hot
enough to have done the child injury. This was also rendered apparent
by his suddenly ceasing to cry, struggling off Disco's knee, and
renewing his assaults on his easy-going father.
Accepting an egg which was offered him by Yohama, Harold broke it, and
entered into conversation with Kambira through the medium of Antonio.
"Is your boy's mother a--Hollo! there's a chick in this egg," he
exclaimed, throwing the offensive morsel into the fire.
Jumbo, who sat near the place where it fell, snatched it up, grinned,
and putting it into his cavernous mouth, swallowed it.
"Dem's betterer wid chickies," he said, resuming his gravity and his
knife and fingers,--forks being held by him in light esteem.
"Ask him, Antonio, if Obo's mother is alive," said Harold, trying
another egg, which proved to be in better condition.
The interpreter, instead of putting the question without comment, as was
his wont, shook his head, looked mysterious, and whispered--"No better
ask dat. Hims lost him's wife. The slave-hunters cotch her some time
ago, and carry her off when hims away hunting. Hims awful mad, worser
dan mad elerphint when hims speak to 'bout her."
Harold of course dropped the subject at once, after remarking that he
supposed Yohama was the child's grandmother.
"Yis," said Antonio; "she be Kambira's moder, an' Obo's gran'moder--bof
at once."
This fact was, we may almost say, self-evident for Obo's attentions and
favours were distributed exclusively between Yohama and Kambira, though
the latter had unquestionably the larger share.
During the course of the feast, beer was served round by the little man
who had performed so deftly on the violin the previous evening.
"Drink," said Kambira hospitably; "I am glad to see my white brothers
here; drink, it will warm your hearts."
"Ay, an' it won't make us drunk," said Disco, destroying Jumbo's peace
of mind by winking and making a face at him as he raised the calabash to
his lips. "Here's long life to you, Kambira, an' death to slavery."
There can be no doubt that the chief and his retainers would have
heartily applauded that sentiment if they had understood it, but at the
moment Antonio was too deeply engaged with another calabash to take the
trouble to translate it.
The beer, which was pink, and as thick as gruel, was indeed too weak to
produce intoxication unless taken in very large quantities; nevertheless
many of the men were so fond of it that they sometimes succeeded in
taking enough to bring them to the condition which we style "fuddled."
But at that time the particular brew was nearly exhausted, so that
temperance was happily the order of the day.
Having no hops in those regions, they are unable to prevent
fermentation, and are therefore obliged to drink up a whole brewing as
quickly as possible after it is made.
"Man, why don't ye wash yer face?" said Disco to the little fiddler as
he replenished his calabash; "it's awful dirty."
Jumbo laughed, of course, and the small musician, not understanding what
was said, followed suit out of sympathy.
"Wash him's face!" cried Antonio, laughing, "him would as soon cut off
him's head. Manganja nevair wash. Ah me! You laugh if you hear de
womans ask me yesterday--`Why you wash?' dey say, `our men nevair do.'
Ho! ho! dey looks like it too."
"I'm sure that cannot be said of Kambira or any of his chief men," said
Harold.
"Perhaps not," retorted Antonio, "but some of 'um nevair wash. Once
'pon a time one man of dis tribe foller a party me was with. Not go way
for all we tell 'um. We said we shoot 'um. No matter, hims foller
still. At last we say, `You scoun'rel, we _wash_ you!' Ho! how hims
run! Jist like zebra wid lion at 'um's tail. Nevair see 'um after
dat--nevair more!"
"Wot a most monstrous ugly feller that is sittin' opposite Kambira, on
the other side o' the fire--the feller with the half-shaved head," said
Disco in an undertone to Harold during a temporary pause in eating.
"A well-made man, however," replied Harold.--"I say, Disco," he added,
with a peculiar smile, "you think yourself rather a good-looking fellow,
don't you, now?"
The worthy seaman, who was indeed an exceptionally good-looking tar,
modestly replied--"Well now, as you have put it so plump I don't mind if
I do confess that I've had some wild suspicions o' that sort now and
then."
"Then you may dismiss your suspicions now, for I can assure you that you
are regarded in this land as a very monster of ugliness," said Harold,
laughing.
"In the estimation of niggers your garments are hideous; your legs they
think elephantine, your red beard frightful, and your blue eyes
savage--_savage_! think of that."
"Well, well," retorted Disco, "your own eyes are as blue as mine, an' I
don't suppose the niggers think more of a yaller beard than a red one."
"Too true, Disco; we are both ill-favoured fellows here, whatever we may
be elsewhere; however, as we don't intend to take Manganja wives it
won't matter much. But what think you of our plan, now that Kambira is
ready to fall in with it?"
"It seems a good one. When do we start?"
"To-morrow," said Harold.
"Wery good," replied Disco, "I'm agreeable."
The morrow came, and with the early light all the people turned out to
witness the departure of the hunters. Scouts had been previously sent
out in all directions to make sure that no enemies or slave-traders were
at that time in their immediate neighbourhood, and a strong force of the
best warriors was left to guard the village.
Of Harold's band, two half-castes, Jose and Oliveira, volunteered to
stay in camp with the guard, and two, Songolo and Mabruki, the freemen
of Quillimane, remained in the village to recruit their health, which
had failed. Chimbolo likewise remained, the wounds on his back not
having healed sufficiently to admit of the hard labour of hunting. All
the rest accompanied the hunters, and of these the three Makololo men,
Jumbo, Zombo, and Masiko, were incomparably the best and bravest. Of
course the volatile Antonio also went, being indispensable.
On setting out--each man with his sleeping-mat on his back and his
little wooden pillow hung at his neck,--there was a great deal of
shouting and ho-ho-ing and well-wishing on the part of those who
remained behind, but above all the noise there arose a shrill cry of
intense and agonising despair. This proceeded from the small windpipe
of little Obo, who had not until the last moment made the appalling
discovery that Kambira was going away without him!
There was something very touching in the cry of the urchin, and
something which brought vividly to the minds of the Englishmen the
infantine community of their own land. There was the same sudden gaze
of horror on realising the true position of affairs,--the same sharp
shriek and frantic struggle to escape from the grasp of those who held
him back from following his father,--the same loud cry of agony on
finding that his efforts were vain, and then, the wide-open mouth, the
close-shut eyes, and the awful, prolonged silence--suggestive of fits--
that betokens the concentration of mind, heart, and lungs into that
tremendous roar of unutterable significance which appears to be the
safety-valve of the human family, black and white, at that tender period
of life.
Poor Obo! his sobs continued to burst out with steam-engine power, and
his eyes to pour cataracts of tears into Yohama's sympathetic bosom,
long after the hunting party had left the hills behind them, and
advanced into the almost impenetrable jungles of the low grounds.