Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1892-06-16
CHAPTER TX.
THE COUNSEL OF BALEKA.

praised the king with loud voice
ana | went from the Intunkulu, the
house of the king. l walked slowly,
bat when l was without the gates the
anguish that came upon me because of
my burned hand was more than | could
bear. ran to and fro groaning till |
came to the hut of one whom / knew.
There | found fat, and having plunged
my hand in the fat wrapped it round
with skin and passed out again, for |
might not stay still. | went to and fro,
till at length came to the spot where
my huts had been. l walked in among
the ashes; my feet struck upon things
that were sharp The moon was bright
aud looked. They were the blackened
bones of my wives and children. flung
myself down; | covered myself over
with the ashes Of my kraal and with the
bones Of my wives and children.
All! my father, there as | lay among
the ashes prayed to the Amatongo, to
the ghosts of my ancestors. Iprayed
to my Ehlose, to the spirit that watches
lne-aye, and l even dared to pray to the
Umkulukulu, the great soul of the
world, who moves through the world
unseen and unhcard. And thus prayed
that might yet live to kill Chaka as he
had killed those who We're dear to me-
And while l lay thug thcro came a vision
TO me, ID vision that was sent i'll answer
TO my prayer, or perchanHe it was g
madness born OF my sorrows. For, my
father, it seemed to me that stood upon
the bank Of a river great and wide. 1t
was gloomy there, the light lay low
upon the face Of the river, but far away
on the farther side was glow like the
glow of a stormy dawn, and in the glow
l saw a mighty bed of reeds that swayed
about in the breath Of the dawn, and
out Of the reeds came men and women
and children, by hundreds and tens of
hundreds, and plungcd into the waters
of the river and were buffeted about BY
the waters.
Now, my father, all the people that
saw in the water We're black people, ard
all those who were torn ont of the reeds
We're black-there were none Of thom
white like your people, my father, for
TINS vision was q vision of the Zulu race
who alone are "torn out of the reeds. It
Now, saw that of those who swan in
the river some passed over very quickly
and some stood, as it were, still in the
water-as in life, my father, some die
soon and some live for manyyears. And
i saw the countless faces OF those in the
water, among them We're many that !
knew. There, my father, l saw the face
of Chaka. and near him was my own
I
Dingaan, the prince, his brother, and
the face of the boy Ulnslopogaas, and
the face Of NADIA, my daughter, and
then it was for tie first time that | knew
that Umslopogaas was not dead, but
only lost.
Now, | turned in my vision and looked
at that bank Of the river on which
stood, Then | saw that behind the bank
was a cliff, mighty and black, and III the
cliff We're doors Of ivory, and through
the doors came light and the sound OF
laughter Other doors there We're also
black as though fashioned of coal. and
through them came darkness and the
sounds of groans. | saw this also, that
in front of the doors was set scat, and
On the seat was the figure Of woman
glorious to see. She was tall, and she
alone was white, and clad in robes OF
white, and her hair was like gold whicl
was molten i'll the fire, and her face
shone like the midday sun. Then | saw
that thote who came up ont Of the river
stood before the woman, the water yet
running from them, and cried aloud &c
her:
Hail, Inkosazana-y-Zulu! Hail, Queer
o the Hoavons!'
Now, the figure Of the glorious woman
held rod in either hand, and the rod
in her right hand was whito and O!
ivOry, and the god in her LETT hand was
black and Of ebony. And as those who
came up before her throne greeted her
80 she pointed now with the wand OF
ivory IL her right hand and now with
the wand Of ebony in her left hand.