The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-07-30
HIS THRONE is A BIG OK WAGON
Peculiar Performances of the Black
King of Mat abela-Land.

Peculiar Performances of the Black
King of Matabela-Land.
From the Ne,o York Tribune.
King Lobenguia is really fine srecimen
of barbarian royalty. He is about 81 years
old. of superb physical proportions, and Of
dignified and courtly bearing He never is
seen in passion, as so many savage chief.
tains are, but when either administering
Justice or meeting foreign ENJOYS always
preserves a dignified composure aud
calm, cool demeanor. lie is ex>
tremely temperate, and altogether alb
stains from spirits; beer he drinks, but
when, as is not uncommon, traders make
him present Of champagne. he always
gives it to his wives. His abstinence, how
ever. does not save him from govt, from
which he suffers greatly. He is man of
libeT al and advanced ideas, ana possesses no
small degree of craftsmanship. His subjects
comprise number of tribes, whom ne gov
ems with rare skill doing wonders to make
! them all one in interests, language, customs
and laws. His administration of Justice
would do credit TO Il much more civilized
commonwealth. The great court consists of
Lobengula himself and six of his chief Indu-
mas, Cases are Brought from all parts of
| the country, and are impartially tried and
decided. The Indunas act as counsel for the
parties, and take tee hnical points with an
| ingenuity which would do credit to British
| queens counsel. and discuss and debate the
| cases with great eagerness. Indeed in
many WAYS the Matabela litigation is similar
to that of England, for although the In
| dumas fercelv urge the claims of a ellen {
while the case lasts, their differences dsap~
near the moment the kings decision ls
given. During the tendency of case,
however. the indunas keep reiigiously away
| from the parties concerned and their
| friends, but as sUOH as the case is over they
approach the sucussstul or defeated party
as if there had 1heen no dispute. TIE king
| very prudently dra ws his assessors 80 turn
| from various partssof the country, aud does
not allow any set If men from long habits
! TO become his masters or too experienced
advisers.
The king lives mostly in big OK wagon.
| Before he succeeded to the throne he wore
European clothes, and spent puch of his
| time travelling about the country with an
| English teamster. But since his accession
| ne has resumed his native costume and
makes his people do likewise. Still he sticks
! to his ox-wagon, for which he has given I'D
all his other residences This is in some
respects a great convenience to hun, for it
gives him travelling court and capital.
| From time ito time he moves
his headquarters, e',inspanning' his oxen
and going Of without any warning. If
asked where he is going be replies, "hollOw
my wheel tracks and see" This is proba-
| bly, partly policy toqpreyent combinations
against him and partly early habit OF imI-
tation of his father, who did the same be-
fore him. He has seventy-eight queens, of
whom ten are royal and the rest concu-
bines, but by none of his royal wives has
the king any son, and it is probable that
when he dies there will be fighting between
the various sons of the other wives
each being supported by the district
from which his mother came.
The wives are scattered over the couu-
try In various kraals, and when a royal
progress takes place the queens do not go
with their lord, but await him at the kraal
ITO which he is going. Gubulawayo, the
capital, may be taken as a specimen of q
large kraal. In the center is the kings
| wagon, and round il his wives huts all cir
cular, built Of mud bricks and rooted with
reeds. Round the central cluster of huts is
an open space Of grass 400 yards wide, and
round this space are the habitations of the
warriors-Said to number 4,000-and their
families; beyond these, again, is the stock
ade, which is several miles in length
Not long ago Lobengula sent couple Of
his ablest ministers on an embassy to Eng
land. He wanted, most of all 10 find out thu
power and general character Of the nation
with which he clearly saw, be would sooI
have important dealings The men brought
back to him a striking account of the lanc
they had visited. They told him that Lon
don was like the ocean a man might wall
aud walk, and walk, and yet never get t
the end of the houses. Ii Englishmen were
killed, they reported, for every droE
of blood in their bodies another
would spring up to take their places
But what most astonished then
was the telephone. They were placed mile
apart and talked together Afterward they
declared that they could imagine such 6
machine might talk English but how il
could be taught to speak Kaffir language
they could not understand. Lobengula was
much interested in their stories, but did not
at first quite believe them. In order tC
nuke sure that they were willing to tell tbs
truth, therefore, he kept them apart, il
solitary confinement, for a week or two
He thought that there was "in vino veritas.
and II under those circumstances theiI
stories agreed they must be true. They die
agree, and then he believed them. 's
| ---4------4- -----------s $500