The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-10-25

| tOSFdpHefo WaHUeU Ills llkeHeSS, lney
could photo his followers as often rs they
liked, and the pictures would sell Just as
well, for the white man would buy any
thing. The photo will show Cetewayo to
be an enormous man of little over six
feet high; handsome, over-fed specimen
of humanity, with nothing whatever re-
pulsive about him.
A tape measure round the chest would
probably show sixty inches, and each
thigh half that number of inches; and
this should convey what an immense fel-
low the King is. Yet he is not ungainly
in figure, and there is an unmistakable
dignity about him which, together with
his fits of sociabiEty, have drawn to-
wards him the good feeling of his escort,
He is not unappreciative either of the
duties of his rank, and | mention these
in idents to indicate in some degree what
the Znlu Court was like, and that, bar
barrie as it was, it must have had dig
nifty of its own. For instance, on Satur-
dry last the medical officer in charge in
troduced bis superior officer to the King,
when the latter observed that the medi-
cal attendance during the voyage was all
that could be desired
The whole party evince a very earnest
wish for clothes, and Cetewayo was in
great delight on wearing a suit sent him
by the Commodore, and strutted about
quite proudly with black "tile" which
he had managed to squeeze over his head
ring. He has lately developed wonder
full taste for scribbling, and in a few
months, under the careful tuition of
Major Poole, would probably become a
polite letter writer. Indeed, Major
Poole has the King, excepting the sulks,
which are exceedingly inconvenient,
perfectly under control, and the at
tempts at letter writing are an infinite
source of amusement. The wives of the
King, who are his fellow captives, are
four in number, and are tall, 1.-the, shape
ly women of about twenty years of age.
The photographs are not just to them, for
their attractions seem to be in their vi
vacity and their good temper. Like
their lord and master, they are anxious
about their dress, and at the present rate
of "petting" to which they are INDUCED,
we may expect before long to hear of
their subscribing to some journal of
fashion. Cetewayo was taken on tour
of inspection of Her Majesty's ship Boa
dicea, which visit seems to have given
him terrible shock; such visit year
ago might have saved England some mil
lions of money.
Cetewayo talks very openly about the
war. A few words, the result of my con-
versation on Sunday, may be worth re-
producing. Cetewayo asserts that the
first intelligence he had of the death of
the Prince Imperial was conveyed by
Lord Chelmsford's demand for the re-
turn Of the sword of His Imperial High
ness. The King at once sent to the dis
trict in which the Prince had been
killed, and the sword was sent to him.
1t is difficult, says Mr.. Longcast, to get
an accurate number of the Zulus who
fought at Isandula, because the Zulu has
no idea Of numbers. When they speak
of the strength of an army they say
there were 50 many companies, and mas
much as the Zulu companies range from
so to 200, it is impossible thus to get the
exact figure.
The conclusion | have arrived at, after
hearing many stories, from tue King
downwards, is that there were at least
$4,000 Zulus under Maveummentuwava
and Dabulamanzi at Isandula. The
fight taking place on the day it did was
an accident. To use Katfir metaphor,
the moon was dead. The following day
would have seen new moon, and it is a
Kaflir's superstition never to do any
work or business on the day before the
new moon. The day is always kept as a
holiday. The main body of the army
arrived at the range of the Inqutu, over
looking the valley of Isandula, on the
2lst of January, and the stragg lers only
came up on the morning of the 22d of
January, which was the morning of the
battle; so when we pitched our camp in
this valley on the 10th there were no
Zulus in the neighborhood.
On the morning of the 22d the Zulu
army was about five miles from the
camp, and it was disturbed by the
mounted Basutos, who were sent out by
Colonel Durnford to draw them on. The
Zulu army was sitting in an immense
half-circle, retaining its battle array,
when the left horn was fired on by the
Basutos, the result beirg that the Zulus
rushed to the fight without any order
whatever The two horns were composed
of four regiments of unmarried men, the
chest of the army being older men. The
two horns rushed away to the attack but
the married regiments moved steadily up
to the right until they out-fanked the
British position, when they doubled down
to the left, and then the English were
completely surrounded. The Zulus say
the battle lasted for little while, Ger
tainly not an hour.
They did not lose heavily until the
last, when they get into close quarters,
and they tell with admiration of how
sometimes four or five soldiers would get
back to back, and hold their numerous
enemies at bay for ever so long. One
square of about 80 men defed the re-
peated attacks of 100 of the army, and 50
courageous did it become that the men
used to beckon the Zulus to come on.
| A. loot hu ouarnnxuar ,,r,x, Lo,a 80. L =.