The rain-season had come and gone, which meant that seven months had
elapsed since our heroes were driven into the city of Ra-bydus.
They understood a good deal, by this time, about the people and language
of Karnadama, for so the land was named, as the city was called
Ra-bydus.
During these months they had been treated as honoured visitors; yet it
was plainly intimated to them that they would not be permitted to depart
until her majesty Isori had seen them. No one else could treat with
them, or decide what course to pursue respecting them, during the great
queen's absence; therefore they were held in a kind of honourable
captivity.
They were lodged in princely quarters and all together. The regiment of
young amazons who had discovered them were placed in charge of them--to
attend upon them, escort them when they went abroad, and were made
responsible for their safety and presence.
No one interfered with their actions so far. They were free to walk,
drive, or ride about the extensive city, provided some of their
bodyguard went with them. They could go out hunting, with the same
escort, sail on the lake, and view the land as far as it could be viewed
between sunrise and sunset. But they were expected to be within the
city walls when the gates were closed. Only in this sense were they
treated as captives.
Ned and his followers did not find the life they led at all irksome. It
might become so in time, but they had no intention of staying here much
longer. The queen was on her way home to her capital; when she returned
they would either get permission to go, or else take French leave.
Meantime they were having pretty much the same kind of time as
blue-jackets have when they get ashore in a foreign port. They were the
heroes of the hour, and were made welcome everywhere, except to the
temple. From that sacred portal they were most rigidly excluded.
Tutors were provided to teach them the language of the higher classes,
so that they might be able to converse with her majesty when she
arrived. She had heard about their advent, and these were her orders,
sent by special messengers. Like President Kruger, no other language
but her own people's was permitted at court. Our heroes made rapid
progress in their studies. While the country was swamped, and the hot
rains made the cool interiors of these the most pleasant places to pass
the time, they had spent their spare time with the teachers, listening
to their explanations, and mastering the meaning and sounds of their
vocabulary. The Matabeles and Basutos, also, were apt pupils in the
oral part of the instructions. As soon as they could make themselves
understood, however, they discarded the male teachers, and took the rest
of their instructions from their amazon guards. Ned, Fred, and Clarence
went further. They practised the letter-writing, which was like
shorthand, to the ordinary hieroglyphic carvings on the walls, and only
practised by the educated class. They also asked many questions
respecting the history, myths, and habits of the people they were
amongst. In this way, and by keeping their eyes and ears open, they
acquired a vast amount of knowledge in a short space of time.
The Karnadamains were a remnant of the older race, who had fled from
Egypt at the time of the invasion of the Shepherd Kings. Like the
Israelites, they had wandered far and encountered many vicissitudes
before settling down on this remote and central portion of Africa. The
history of their wanderings and early rulers was comprised largely, like
that of the Greeks, of legend and myth.
They still retained the principal features of their ancient religions--
that of animal-worship. The serpent, the crocodile, the cat, ibis, and
other animals of certain kinds were considered sacred, and rigidly
protected. To kill one of these marked animals, either wantonly or
accidentally, was a sacrilege, the punishment for which was death. When
our heroes learnt this, and remembered their indiscriminate slaughter of
the pythons, they felt themselves in a mighty perilous position should
any of their friends, the amazons, betray them. Ned took an early
opportunity of sounding Captain Pylea on the subject. She, however,
laughingly reassured him, and told him to be under no apprehension. Her
subordinates were soldiers, not informers; while, as for the slaves who
had removed the carcases, they had been slaughtered to a man, so that
they might not speak of what they had seen.
"It was a terrible crime you committed," she added, with a shudder; "for
these were of the most sacred order, who are fed with slaves. But
enough were left to swallow up the remains of their brethren and those
who might have spoken about it, and we did not see you do the unholy
deed."
Ned shuddered to hear the calmness with which she told this atrocity,
grateful although he was for her and her comrades' kindness to them.
She was a frank, generous, and courageous young woman, but she had not
much womanly mercy in her composition.
"What would you have done, Pylea, if you had been attacked by those
sacred--monsters?" he enquired.
She looked at him with a humorous twinkle in her dark eyes, and touched
her bow and spear.
"Afterwards we'd have, as I advise you to do, forgotten all about it."
"Then you don't pin your faith too closely to this venerable creed of
yours, Pylea?"
"We expect our fathers, husbands, and brothers to venerate the gods, and
attend to their religious, with their other domestic duties, while we do
the thinking and the fighting," she answered significantly.
"Do you know, Pylea, you belong to the emancipated sex. In my land the
order is reversed."
"Ah, so it might be in mine, if our men were like you and your
followers. But look at ours. Could any of them bend my bow or handle
my spear? No; they are too fond of their couches, their pipes, their
dinners, and their wines. They like to spend their time gossiping and
making pretty things. All the exercise they care for is flogging the
slaves, so we leave them to what they like best--to look after the
children, make poetry, pictures, and pretty carvings, and discuss new
dishes, while they fill their empty heads with smoke and strong drink."
"A great number of our men also are fond of the vices you charge yours
with, Pylea," answered Ned, laughing at her indulgent contempt of the
lords of creation. "They also drink, smoke, and spend a good deal of
time discussing fine dishes and works of art and literature. When they
can paint or carve they get mighty conceited about it; but, as a rule,
they don't practise the domestic virtues you speak about."
"Who does this, when there are no slaves?"
"Our women."
"And who does the thinking?"
"Also a good many of our women."
"And the fighting?" asked Pylea, wonderingly.
"Oh, the men are expected to do that."
"I cannot understand it. Once on a time, as our men are fond of singing
and boasting about in their cups, they say our men could fight. But we
who know them do not believe that, or they would never have fled from
the land they ruled over then, according to the legends which they have
invented. No," she continued thoughtfully; "they must always have been
as they are, poor, treacherous, mean-spirited cowards, who dare not face
a woman, but find a pleasure in tormenting slaves. They must always
have been fond of lying upon litters and couches, of wine and tasty
dishes. They never could have been trusted out of sight--not our men,
who are good for nothing honourable, true, or brave."
"Yet you marry them," observed Ned.
"Oh yes; that is the custom. When we feel ourselves getting too stiff
to fight or run, we take a man to keep our house and look after us and
our children. We are always strong enough to make them obedient, and we
never expect too much from them. They are poor things, who do not know
what honour and truth are; only a little more to be tolerated than the
slaves. They like to babble about their paltry pastimes, which they
call work."
Here were the new woman's ideas and aspirations put into a nutshell,
with man the despised placed on his proper footing.
"Once on a time, as our men sing, when they get together and we are out
of hearing, their forefathers owned quite a number of wives, as we now
own slaves. But they are never so far gone as to whisper that lie when
they return home. They dip their bald heads in the fountains on the way
back before they face us. This is about the only wisdom which I think
they have," said Pylea, softly, as she laughingly left Ned with a
military salute.
From what Ned had seen of the amazons, there was not much to fear
respecting the python incident, unless Cocoeni and his comrades raised
their jealousy. He resolved to warn them to be careful, and confine
themselves strictly to brotherly attentions only. It would not be wise
for them to play at love with those tigresses.
What Pylea had said about the male Karnadamains was all true, as he
found out for himself. They were a cringing, lying, vicious-minded set
of self-indulgent sots. When they could, they slunk off in company, and
boasted about their mean vices as if they were actions to be proud of.
A very little of their converse went a long way to sicken and disgust
him. They spoke gently, and were choice in their expressions, for they
were critical and refined over details, and artistic in their tastes.
But the details were nauseating, depraved, and loathsome as slimy
snakes. They were vile objects, without one redeeming virtue and with
as much human emotion as lizards.
As artists, artificers, and musicians, however, he was forced to give
them their meed of praise. They followed fixed and long-established
rules with undeviating and unoriginal fidelity, and never attempted to
break from their bonds.
During these months, the queen had been engaged on a warlike expedition
with her army, raiding some of the neighbouring tribes to the north. It
was from there that the slaves were procured.
While she was absent, the king, Sotu, who was also her brother, was left
at home to look after the royal palace.
Although king, this royal object had no voice in the affairs of the
state, or any rule, except over his male subjects, who were, like
himself, rigidly excluded from all offices of dignity or authority.
The high officials of the temple were priestesses; likewise all the
other positions of dignity were filled by women.
Sotu was king of the minstrels, poets, painters, musicians, sculptors,
and cooks. He was considered to be a great authority on works of art,
literature, and the science of the table. He was a profound gourmand, a
most princely drunkard, and a superb judge of tobacco. He was also
considered one of the best chess-players in the kingdom.
Our heroes and their followers had been entertained at the best houses.
They also had spent one evening with the king and a select number of
aristocrats whose wives were at the wars.
They had here the opportunity of witnessing the prodigality of an
ancient feast with its curious customs. They also saw evidences of the
vast profusion of wealth this nation was possessed of.
The feast was held in a magnificent hall, where stood a throne made of
solid gold, covered with fine carving, and encrusted with diamonds. All
round were richly carved and painted pillars. The walls and ceiling
likewise were a mass of painting and plated gilding. The polished and
tessellated floor was covered, ankle deep, with flowers. The stools
were of ivory and gold; the cups, vases, and dishes were also of the
same material, and like the throne, sparkling with diamonds. King Sotu
came to the feast garlanded, as were his subjects. Candles burned in
golden candlesticks, and the whole air was filled with perfume.
It was a bachelors' feast, for none of the women would condescend to
attend such revels; only slaves, single men, and married ones, who had
stolen from their homes, were present, besides our heroes and their
followers.
About a dozen of the temple male servants were in attendance to begin
the feast with religious ceremonies, and to drag round the mummy-case
before the drinking began.
The viands were multitudinous and exquisitely cooked, and while they
ate, professional musicians played on various instruments. It was
nearly the last night of liberty for the king and his subjects, and they
had made up their minds to enjoy themselves.
Ned and his followers joined in lustily at the eating part of the
ceremony, which caused the dull-eyed, yellow-visaged, and purple-nosed
royal host almost to forgive them for their excessive strength and
stature.
But they completely lost his favour when the serious part came on--the
drinking. Ned sat for a short time, but rose gravely at the close of
one of Sotu's favourite stories, and sternly ordered his followers to
follow him.
King Sotu was too mean-spirited to resent their going, but after they
had departed, and he had swallowed many cupfuls of fragrant wine, he
shouted loudly--
"These cannot be men, for they can neither drink nor enjoy a good joke.
We must get rid of them, or we shall not have the life of slaves when
our wives return."
Poor King Sotu! he felt at this moment brave enough to poison Ned and
his followers.
But when morning dawned and he tremblingly seized the goblet of wine
which his slaves brought him, he quaked in his sandals as he remembered
what he had uttered in his festive mood. A hundred traitor ears had
heard the rash words, and he felt sure they would be repeated to their
wives.
"Oh, Osiris!" he moaned. "If Isori hears of this, I am undone."
After several goblets, he called for his pipe and his whip, and spent
the forenoon exercising himself on the backs of his slaves.