The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-31
PRINCE OF FAKIRS
ESCAPADES IN AFRICA OF THE So
CALLED "BISHOP OF
HONG KONG"
ORIGINAL IN HIS CRIMES

Passed CheerfuIIy From One Onensc
10 Another, and as Character
was BETTER Known Than Is Even
cecil Rhodes HimseIf-Saved His
Life Once by an Exhibition Of
Nerve at Il Critical Time.
Inc bishop Of Hong Kong was first
| seen in the Beach hotel at Beira. Portu
| guese' East Africa, where he seemed to
De concerned chiefly in providing himself
| good Christmas dinner.
AS to his real name or whence he
came there was DO answer. Questions
OF that sort are tabooed out there The
man who tells the story of his life is
| considered weak of mind.
On the register of the Beach hotel he
was down simply as the bishop of Hong
Kong, same as the one-eyed man signed
himself Danger and the cavalry SER
geant Boots and Saddles"
BY the black tribes he was known AZ
Mafuta, great man. literally fat
man. So highly did they regard him
north of Sofala that he was made chief.
The bishops exploit there was what
first marked him in South Africa. So
fala, as You may know, is supposed
TO be ancient Ophir, famous in King
/ '0OAOA4AOAA
ivory.
In company with Scotch physician
named Onaire this man went inland
from the Sabi river and after time
reports came of white hippopotamus''
and ''pale-eyed lynx that were living
In luxury in Sabiland. The two scamps
played their hands so we'll that they
got possession of a cave full of ivory,
| enough to make both immensely rich,
| but lost this opportunity of lifetime
| through the bishops spirit of playful
ness.
Allaire, being somewhat Of ply
| sician, carried with him a medicine chest,
and from it enc unfortunate day took a
| seidlitz powder, which the bishop fed to
| a very old induna. Instead of mixing
| the powders, however, he rendered them
! one at a time, rolling on the earth with
| laughter at the old negro's internal sur
! prise.
When the chief died that night, how
! ever, the tribe took it more seriously
| and the witch doctor was commanded
to smell out the culprits, with the result
| that guilt rested on the bishop and the
doctor.
Their position was not enviable. One
| thousand black Indians in war paint
and half drunk on kaffir beer surrounded
them in a great circle, dancing about
with assegais. 1t was only a question
I of time when q nervous mana would slip
and then good by fair earth
In this crisis the bishop summoned all
his dignity and appealed to the oldest
chief, clothing his words IN the usual
linguistic Verdure.
SAVED HIS LIFE.
"The little hyena speaks to the mighty
elephant" he said. Thou alone, 0,
Separator of Bulls, know if I speak wis
DOM MY friend and l are accused of a
crime. Let US prove our innocence or
guilt. At the waters edge will we eat
| of the obuti root. If it kills, then are
you avenged. If not, o, leader of the
| herd, then must We be Innocent
| After a prolonged indaada the chiefs
! permitted this trial. The bishop had no
| intention of eating ubuti, which is so
| rankly poison that it surely kills, but
| when he and Affair reached the Sabi
river they dived in, captured a canoe,
! and under cover of the night escaped.
| Two weeks later they signaied steamer
! off Imam Bane and landed at Beira
| The bishop secured the vestments Of
! 81 missionary who died at sea and from
| that raiment fl was said, arose his
! name He Loudly reproached the heather
| Africans for refusing to hear the word,
! and told how they had repulsed him.
| Bishop of what?" some one asked
! when he announced his high position
| An Australian miner thought he recog-
| nized the man with orders as faro
| dealer from Cool Garlie; but the idenu-
| lication was never complete, and as the
| bishop could rattle off the native dia-
| lects he easily secured a position as
| foreman on the Bcira railroad. This
| gave small latitude for his accomplish
| ments, and one day he suddenly dlsap-
| peared.
DR. Jameson at that time was pushing
| the cape to Cairo wire from UmtaG to
| Tete, and at intervals q caravan started
| from Beira with poles, wires. provisions
and wage money. They were loaded on
| fat cars and sent up over the little two
foot gauge tracks until the train struck
a lion or something and ran off into TIE
sand.
A couple hundred boys then took up
the burden and marched inland under
one of Rhodes leutenants. On this oc-
casion the leader died en- route and the
boys proceeded alone. When near Mes
sikessi the caravan emerged from thick
woods of mimosa. and in the pathway
stood q large figure smiling in a fatherly
way.
BISHOP ON HAND.
AT last, my children. Your father
has been waiting long time" said the
bishop In excellent Zulu for 1t was he
"Hamba' ego on). "Mena Buya" q VII
follow by and by. lie explained that
the Manica Trading company had sent
him to meet the caravan, and that he
would take charge of the money. For
three days the boys rioted in the brandy
distributed, and by that time the bishop
of Hong Kong was far away on the
Inyanga plateau.
A mounted patrol hunted him far and
wide, and Cecil Rhodes offered a reward
for his capture. to avail. Once he
was reported from the Zambesi, where
1t was said a missionary girl had taken
him for a real bishop. A fine mission sta
ton was erected there not long after
ward.
1t was at Messi Kessi the bishop i'm
posed so outrageously on Mr.. Atkinson
a respectable English settler, who had
become rich raising sugar cane. At the
end of the rainy season some scions Of
British nobility came cut to East Africa
for big game. Mr.. Atkinson, who was
entertaining them. arranged a three-
weeks trip along the Pongwee. Hardly
had the party got out OF sight when q
travel stained man turned up and la
mented vigorously on having missed his
uncle"
AS a nephew of Mr. Atkinson he de-
scribed the ancestral home in Devon
| shire, and told Of his trip from England
| by way of Salisbury. He displayed so
| large bank note that no one could