Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1895-11-08


fearing man, who would have kept his
uromise though he had promised to his
;oss." was told, in delightful detail,
how he was kept below until the snip
was fairly at her anchorage OIL the
mouths of the river. Then L was told
how, on dark night in July, he was
called and how the English captain babe
him good-by. He was PIT upon boat,
with good store of hard bread and
bit of drb,d beef and, What he priced
more, WHIT we might call carbine,
pouch WITH match and bullets and Hint
and stee!. The captain fell on his
knees on the deck and prayed to his
God and bade Teiega good-by. A sea
breeze was blowing so that the sailors
could put sail on the boat, and when
morning came she was well up the
river. / was told how long they hid
themselves from Portuguese marauders
and then. at length which J. could have
we'll spared, l was told where at last he
was lande1 on the northern bank, not
an hour too early, as it proved.
Tn what followed in this long story,
the reason appeared for his pressing
haste. On the morning of the fourth
day after he parted from his Bristol
| friends, he came out on the hillside,
where / first saw the village. 1t was
wear to day since the wedding process
sion had been interrupted 50 wretched-
lv. He knew that, and he knew what
depended On the passage OF a year. by
ali the customs of his tribe, his sweet
| heart, his almost wife, was widow Tor
| that year But it was for that year
only. When the year was ended she
might be betrOthed again. Telega ala
ut believe that there would be any
careful astronomy in this affair. He
knew very we'll that when twelve moons
we're over every man III the village
would think he hal a right to the pref
tiest girl and the most lovely in the vii
LACE. Here was his reason for refusing
10 wait with the English captain till he
should have gone to Fernando Pc, and
still he should have come up the river
to trade for ivory.
AsI have said he was not an hour too
early.
AS he approached the village no ono
met him. He was afeared, it was so
still" This was Philips phrase to me,
in interpreting. He hurried all the
faster. He passed close grove OF
pepper trees 10 see in it the pretended
ambush Of bridegroom and his men IN
| full dress waiting for the bride s pro-
cession.
Telega had been stealing along as a
cat does, and this merry group did not
see him. But he seems to have seen his
advantage. He passed them on the in
! slant. he went twenty PAGES further, he
! hid himself under heavy tuft OF banana
nlants. and be had not to wait long. Ihe
bride came. wretched enough for all her
bridal toggery. She had Insisted on
wearing two or three sea gull feathers,
which we're tokens of deepest mourning.
She wept as if she were at her husband
funeral. She flung away bunch OF
flowers which the new bridegroom
mother-gave TO her. None the less was
this a bridal procession. Banjos and
tomtoms and the whole village behind
and before made this certain.
A large stone to-day marks the corner
whore Telega, gun in hand, 81 rang out
like a tiger, and, in literal fact, seized
his bride. Pluto was not less expected
in En1a. The girl screamed now To
some purpose, and in a minute was
sobbini, with her head upon his shoul-
der. The banios and the tomtoms were
silent. And bridegroom number two,
with his handsome cohort OF best
man" - hearing nothing after they
should have heard music and song
after a mysterious minute or two came
out from their lair to learn what hao
hindered the procession.
At this point the story, which L hearc
two or three times at least-once as
we went up the river, twice as we came
down-varies in its forms. Who car
wonder. after nearly $50 years? Bu
there can be no doubt that whel
Telega caught his bride with his lef
arm. and when she sobbed upon his
shoulder, his right hand held the
matchbox, and he blew the match to bt
sure that it was live coal. And wher
that braggart, groom No. 2, came up
bowling and storming, Telega turned
over his bride to one Of her women
dropped the gun to a level, and, il
very classical language Of Mandara
told bridegroom No. 2 that, if he did no
keep a civil tongue in his head, HI
would blow his brains out Nay, more
am afraid that Elder Cotton's seet
: had sprouted so i'll that Telega woulC
have done what he said, had there beel
occasion.
But there was no occasion. Th'
! game was played through. There wer
elders in the village who had as muc