Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1888-03-02
A NATIONS FALL.
AN AFRICAN KING FINDS JOY IN
THE WINE OF THE PALM.

d His PeOple-A Whole Tribe of Negroes
spree-GeneraI Destruction OF
Property.
Not native was to be seen in an up
J right position. Most of them were asleep
under the awning of their miserable DWELL
ings. A few were sitting up, and these
gazed stupidity at the passing raft, and one
or two reached over to arouse their COM
panions and call attention to the presence
of stranger in the neighborhood. But
no one rose and ran to the waters edge, as
is generally the case when European
passes by in raft.
This tribe, " said the native, "is not q
large one and it is steadily diminishing
Once it was powerful and numerous and
given to war and conquest. But not long
ago there was a king of the tribe who
found great joy in the wine of the palm,
no new thing indeed for either king or
common man to do, but with him the Joy
was so exceeding great that he wished con-
tinually to be DRINK, and, as matter of
fact, gratified his wish without stint.
For there are many palms all about, rs
| you see, and all men are anxious to bring
that to the king which pleases him. The
| king drank vast quantities of wine, and
although the royal example would have
been enough to demoralze the people,
they were more strongly urged upon
the downward path by the kings direct
orders. 1t was not enough that he should
himself glow with the fiery excitement,
but he must have company, and as the
| love OF lntoxication grew upon him he
| commanded first all his chiefs and cap
tains, and then his warriors, and finally
the commonest people to drink with him.
And it is said, indeed, that they had fine
times together. They began their drink
! ing as the sun went down, and when it
| was entirely set they were long way
| toward madness. And presently, when
| the moon was well up in the sky, a great
rage seized them all, and they set about
| destruction Of all things within their
reach. In bands Of from six to score
they roamed about the village knocking
down fetiches, tearing up the cooking fire
places before the houses, and even de-
| molishing the houses themselves And it
came to pass that as the habit of madness
grew upon the community it took express
sion chiefly In the destruction of the dwell
ings, and none were spared the disaster
that accompanied each nights debauch
The king himself, with wanton hand, gave
the first blow to the posts of his own
house, and it was leveled to the dust
And in the morning when all were head
weary and as those who awake violently
from the first hour Of Sleep they had
to find shelter for themselves against the
doubly strong rays of the melting sun.
And iii their desperation and repentance
and exhaustion, the best they could do
was to erect such temporary shelter as you
see there upon the shore. 1t is true that not
all the houses were destroyed on the first
great night when the tribe was seized with
palm rage, but one after another they
were all sacked. And it is further true
that with the rising of the sun there were
many who felt deep and sickly repent
ance Of their folly, the more so as they
saw one and another die under the burn
ing rays of that great being which is at
once our cherisher and our bitterest foe.
But the king was stern and resolute in
THIS one thing alone, that all the people
should deluge themselves with wine, and
when any resisted with feeble protest he
had them speedily put to death. Event
ually he compelled even the women
ana children to join in the mad ecstasy
some of the more serious men, indeed.
fled to other tribes, and that only fastened
the downfall Of this one. For the others
at once made conquest. The prowess of
TINS tribe was not so easily weakened by
drunkenness that they yielded with no
struggle. On the contrary, they aroused
from their torpor and fought many hard
lights, but were steadily beaten, and
when finally the men of Wambango, to
which town we shall come in few days,
overcame the remnant of brave and capa-
BILE men in this tribe, they had such re-
spect for the ancient reputation of the
people that they deemed it advisable, in
stead OF putting the king to death, to APP
point him nominal ruler over his old dis
trict, hoping that he would continue in
his habits and thus keep his people from
regaining their old time prowess And
such was the result. To this day the king
drains the palm trees of their juices to |
make wine, and his companions have |
sunk to the lowest depths of baseness.
and continual destruction of ali things |
useful to themselves is continued. One |
by one they rapidly die, and in few
years they will cease to eXistn
The doctor sent word of his arrival to |
the king, and waited for command to |
approach the royal presence. 1t was long |
before it came, but finally, about $50, a |
messenger came to the raft bearing a |
gourd of wine as an offering, and saying
that presently the king would receive the |
white man. A little later DR. Harrison
went up the bank and approached the
nut, hardly distinguished from the squalor
OF the others in the village, where the
KING sat. He was . stupid, cruel looking
African, sitting on a log under his avn
ing, very drunk. The doctor made pro
found salams, and addressed him through
an Interpreter, with friendly greeting.
Good" grunted the king; ''but has
the white man drunk my wine?''
'Oh, king" responded the doctor, 'tthe
white man drinks no wine of any kline
BE pleased, therefore, to accept his friend |
ship ms all the more kindly while he uses
not your gift"
The king was vastly displeased and flew
into rage. He insisted that all men in
his country knew the taste of wine and its
pleasures, and no one was a true friend
of the land who rejected its choicest fruit.
And when the doctor still refused to drink
the king rose to his feet unsteadily. stag
gered to post Of his hut, and leaning
heavily upon it, called out in loud but
roken tones that the stranger should be
instantly put to death. The interpreter
who understood the command did not
wait to translate, but picked the doctor up
IN his arms and ran with him to the river.
followed by the other natives who were
serving as the white mans crew. 1t was
IN easy retreat, for so stepped in wine
we're the kings attendants that they could
make but stupid pursuit.-Congo Letter
n Globe Democrat.
The Kings Head.
The kings head was first used as one of the
iall marks on English silver in 1854 The