St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1893-05-13


and taken many of our cattle. So when
my mother heard the speech of Unandi
she sprang up in anger. AYou dare to
come here and ask for food and shelter,
wife of dog of a Zu1u!" she cried: "be-
gone, or viii call the girls to whip you
out of our country
The woman, who was very handsome,
waited till my mother had finished her
angry words, then looked up and spoke
slowly: "There is a COW by you with
milk dropping from its udder; will you
not even give me and my boy gourd of
milk?" and she took gourd from her
bundle and held it toward us.
/ II viii not" said my mother.
'tWe are thirsty with long travel; will
you not, then, give us a cup of water:
We have found none for many hours"
II viii not, wife of dog; go seek wa
ter for yourself"
The woman's eyes filed with tears,
but the boy folded his arms on his
breast and scowled. He was a very
handsome boy, with bright black eyes;
but when he scowled his eyes were like
the sky before thunderstorm
| Mother" he said, "we are not want
ed here any more than we were wanted
| yonder," and he nodded toward the
country where the Zulu people lived.
'Let us be going to Dingiswayo; the
Umtetwa people viii protect us"
eyes; let us be going, my son." said
Unandi, "but the way is long; we are
weary and shall fall by the way"
| heard, and something pulled at my
heart. | was sorry for the woman and the
boy, they looked so tired Then, without
saying anything to my mother, Isnatched
the gourd and ran with it to little
donga that was hard by, for knew that
there was a spring of water. Presently
came back with the gourd full of
water. My mother tried to catch me,
for she was very angry; but ! ran past
her and gave the gourd to the boy.
Then my mother ceased trying to inter
fere, only she beat the woman with her
tongue all the while, saying that evil
had come to our kraals from her hus-
band, and she felt i'll her heart that more
evil would come upon us from her son.
Her Ehlose guardian spirit) told her so.
All! my father, her Ehlose told her true.
While my mother talked, and the
COW with the white face stood still and
watched, and the baby Baleka cried
aloud The boy, Unandi's son, having
taken the gourd, did not offer the water
to his mother. He drank two-thirds of
it himself; think he would have drank
it all had not his thirst been slaked, but
when he had done he gave what was
left to his mother, and she finished it.
Then he took the gourd again and came
forward, holding it in one hand; in the
other he had a short stick.
"What is your name, boy?' he said
to me.
"Mopo is my name,'' answered.
'sAnd what is the name of your peo-
ple?'
l told him the name of my tribe, the
Langeni tribe.
Every well, Mopo; now will tell you
my name. My name is Chaka, son of
Senzangacona, and my people are called
the Amazulu. And now will tell you
something more. am little today, and
my people are little people. But l
shall grow big, and my people shall grow
big with me. They shall eat up the
whole world. And when | am big and
my people are big and we have stamped
the earth fat as far as men can travel,
then l will remember your tribe-the
tribe of the Langeni, who would not
give me and my mother cup Of milk
when we were weary. You see this
gourd; for every drop it will hold the
blood Of man shall fow-the blood of
one of your men. But because you gave
me the water | will spare you, and you
only, and make you great under me.
You alone will never harm. That
swear. But for Shat o7oman,'' and he
pointed to my mother, "let her make
haste and die, so that / do not have to
teach her what a long time death can
take to come. have spoken
My mother stood still awhile. Then
she gasped out: 'The little liar! He
speaks like man, does he? The calf
lows like bull. / will teach him an
other note-the brat of an evil prophetr'
And putting down Baleka she ran at
the boy.
Chaka stood quite still till she was
near; then suddenly he lifted the stick
in his hand and hit her so hard on the
head that she fell down. After that he
laughed, turned and went away with
his mother.
went to my mother. Presently she
raised herself from the ground and sat
up with her hands over her face. The
blood from the wound the stick had
made ran down her hands on her breast.
and l wiped it away with grass. She
sat for long while thus, while the child
cried, the COW lowed to be milzed and
wiped away the blood with the grass.
At last she took her hands away and
spoke to me.
"Mopo, my son." she said, 81 have
dreamed a dream | dreamed that !
saw the boy Chaka who struck me; he
was grown like giant. He stalked
across the mountains and the veldt, his
eyes piazed like the lightning and in
his hand he shook 81 little assegai that
was red with blood He caught up
people after people in his hands and tore
them; he stamped their kraals fiat with
his feet. Before him was the green of
summer; behind him the land was black
as when the fires have eaten the grass.
saw our people, Mopo; they Were many
and fat, their hearts laughed, the man
were brave, the girls were fair; CONT
ed their children by hundreds. saw
them again, Mopo. They were bones,
white bones, thousands of bones tu1nbled