The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-09-05

duna, presently. s'It shall be done to
night, IL the lightning does not do i
first"
"a bad lookout for old Indaba
zimbi," said to myself. "They NEAR
to kill him." Then thought no more
of the matter for awhile, the scene be
fore me was too tremendous.
The two storms were rapidly rushing
together. Between them was gulf Of
blue sky, and from time to time flashes
of binding light passed across the
gulf, leaping from cloud to cloud. re.
member that they reminded me of the
story of the heather Jove and hi:
thunderbolts. The storm that was
shaped like giant and ringed with the
glory of the sinking sun made an ex-
cellent Jove, and I am sure that the
bolts which leapt from it could not
have BEEN surpassed even in mytho-
logical times. Oddly enough, as yet the
flashes were not followed by thunder
A deadly stiffness lay upon the place
the cattle stood silently on the hill
side; even the natives were awed to
silence. Dark shadows crept along the
bosom of the hills, the river to the
right and left was hidden in wreaths oil
cloud, but before us and beyond the
oombatants it shone like line of silver
beneath the narrow space of open sky.
Now the Western tempest was scrawled
all over with the lines of intolerable
light, while the inky head of the cloud.
giant to the east was continually suf-
fused with a white and deadly glow
that came and went in pulses, as
though q blood OF fame was being
pumped into it from the heart of the
storm.
The silence deepened and deepened,
the shadows grew blacker and blael1er;
then suddenly all nature began to moan
beneath the breath of an icy wind. On
came the wind; the smooth surface of
the river was ruffled by it into little
waves, the tall grass bowed low before
it, and in its wake came the kissing
sound of furious rain.
All! the storms had met. From each
there burst an awful dazzling blaze
of light, and now the hill on which we
sat rocked in the noise OF the following
thunder. The light went out of the sky,
darkness fell suddenly on the land, but
not for long. Presently the whole land
scape grew vivid in the flashes; it APP
peared and disappeared, now every thing
was visible for miles, now even the men
at my side vanished in the blackness.
The thunder rolled and cracked and
pealed, like the trump of doom, whirlwinds
tore round, lifting dust and even stones
high into the air, and in a low, continu-
Gus undertone came the hiss of the rush
ing rain.
Iput my hand before my eyes to shield
them from the terrible glare, and looked
beneath it towards the lists of IRON
stones. As flash followed flash 1 from
time to time caught sight of the two
wizards. They were slowly advancing
towards one another, each pointing at
his foe with the assegai in his hand. 1
could see their every movement, and it
seemed to me that the chained light
ming was striking the iron-stone all
round them.
Suddenly the thunder and lightning
ceased for a minute, and every thing
grew black and, except for the rain,
silent.
'Itis over, one way or the other, chief"
I called out in the darkness.
"Wait, white man, wait" answered
the chief, in a voice thick with anxiety
and fear.
Hardly were the words out Of his
mouth when the heavens were lit up
again till they literally seemed to fame.
There were the men, not four PAGES
apart. A great flash fell between them.
l saw them stagger beneath the shock
1ndaba-zimbi recovered himself first-at
any rate, when the next flash came he
was standing bolt upright, pointing with
his assegai towards his enemy. The
chiefs son was still on his legs, but he
was staggering like drunken man and
the assegai had fallen from his hand.
3 Darkness, then again q flash, more
fearful, if possible, than any that had
gone before. To me it seemed to come
from the east, right over the head of
Indaba-zimbi. Next instant 1 saw the
chiefs son wrapped, as it were, in the
heart of it. Then the thunder pealed,
the rain burst over US like a torrent, and
saw no more.
The worst of the storm was done, but
for awhile the darkness was so dense
that we could not move, nor, indeed,
was 1 inclined to leave the safety of the
hillside where the lightning was never
known to strike and venture down.to
the iron-stone. Occasionally there still
came flashes, but search as we would, we
could see no trace of either of the wiz
ards. For my part, believed they were
both dead. Now the clouds slowly rolled
away down the course of the river, and
with it went the rain; and now the stars
shone out in their wake.
LET us go and sec" said the old chief,
rising and shaking the water from his
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