Evening star., 1901-06-01
MYSTERIOUS WHITE QUEEN.
A Woman of Caucasian Type Who
Ruled an African Tribe.

A Woman of Caucasian Type Who
Ruled African Tribe.
| From the New York Evening Post.
For more than half a century the RAIN
maker for all the native tribes south of the
Zambesi river, in South Africa, was Majaje
| the white queen of the Makatese tribe,
which lived in the woodbush in the north
ern parl of the Transvaal, The Zulus, the
| Hottentots, the Kaffirs, the Basutos and
! scores of other tribes recognized her as the
| great rainmaker and whenever there was
drouth in their provinces they sent their
emissaries to her with requests for rain
| The tales which white men heard con-
| cerning her led them to believe that Majaje
was myth, and Rider Haggard elaborated
| the report in his novel She which had for
| its leading character a mysterious white
| woman who ruled over a race of blacks
| somewhere in Central Africa. Haggard
wrote his novel in the eighties, while he
was in South Africa, and long before 1t was
established that the white queen was not
myth. The fact that such a woman really
! lived was proved by three white men who
| talked with her. and one of those men, the
| late Piet Joubert, commandant general OF
! the Beer army, was authority for this ac-
count Of the woman
Henning Pretorius, one of the Transvaars
| first commandant generals, and probably
| the most fearless BOer tndt ever INeu, re-
turned from one Of his frequent journeys
/ into unknown regions of the Transvaal in
! the latter part of 1889 and reported to his
government that he had succeeded in see
| ing Majaje. In volumnous report which
| he made of his Journey he stated that the
! woman was queen of a section of the Maka-
| tese tribe and that her capital sur
rounded by an almost impenetrable forest
| OF small thorn trees. On the outskirts OF
! this forest he was met by large number
of wel-armed tribesmen, who asked him
and his companions to depart from the
| neighborhood Immediately. Pretorius re-
| fused to leave and insisted upon seeing the
| queen
| After dong discussion. during which
! many messengers were sent to the queens
kraal, Pretorius was granted permission to
visit the monarch He was disarmed and
| his companions were left behind under
guard of large number OF tribesmen. he
| was led along a narrow, winding path
| through the bush, and after Journey or
about thirty miles he came to the queens
royal kraal. In his report he described the
| woman minutely and at great length. He
| said that she was absolute monarch over
her people, that she undoubtedly had the
| power of life and death over them, and that
/ she had established a government that was
! far in advance of any negro government he
! had ever seem
The most astonishing part of his report
was that the woman was not a negress. He
described her having straight, soft hair
! of a light brown color thin lips and light
| blue ewes The color of her skin was not
! black, but Wnlte as tnat Oh 1OTluSueSt.
! Pretorius stated that she refused to tell
her age or anything concerning her ante
cedents, and added that she appeared to be
more than 100 years old-perhaps ll3.
In 1894 the Makatese tribe formed an al
lance with Magoeba, the king of the wood
bush Kaff1rs, who lived near the same dis
trict and Majajes people We're dragged
into a rebellion against the Beers. Joubert,
the commandant general of the Boer army.
was sent against the rebellious natives and
he took with him small numbe of Swazis,
who had been drivn into the Iransvaaf
from their native country by Umbandine.
the father Of the late King Bunu, who ac-
ouired the fatal habit of drinking five quarts
Of champagne day.
''betovert' (bewitched) bush the warriors
of Maiaje and Magoeba attacked them and
fought valiantly for several weeks. The ma
tives were defeated finally and fled into the
bush and mountains The Swazls then asked
Joubert for permission to follow the rebeis
and 1t was granted. When they returned.
several days afterward. the Swazis brought
with them the heads Of Magoeba and sew
eral OF his indunas. or headmen, In order TO
prove to the Beers that they had realiy
been victorious.
| Swazis several messengers came from Ma
iate bringing peace offerings in the shape
Of two ivory tusks and beautiful white
OK The en1issaries declared that Ma3a5e
had been misled by Magoeba and that she
had no desire to be an enemy OF the Boers.
Joubert told the messengers to tell their
queen that If she would surrender her arms
Internationally and permit some one to go
to her kraal the war would be ended In
her reply she accepted the first condition.
but declined to allow any one to visit her
kraal. adding. however that sne Woulo
come out and grant an audience to the Boer
Leader.
ed with the beating of drums and the shrill
noises of crude wind Instruments. Fore |
runners emerged from the bush and an |
nounced the coming Of the queen.
When the head Of the procession reached
General Joubert the priests deposited the
palanouin on the ground and drew aside !
the curtains that concealed the queen She
reclned on beautiful quagga skin and
skins, furs and beadwork. Joubert OBJ
served her closely and found that Henning
Pretorius' description Of her was accurate
in every detail; ta ;,r The l woman mad light,
plexion as Hight as that Of the majority Of I
white persons who have lived In the tropics
for many years.
Many persons have attempted to explain |
the mystery Of the queens ancestry. and
the result has been that many strange !
tales are current in the country, each being |
most plausible theory Is the one that Com
mandant General Joubert advanced. From |
some old cfieftafns he learned that there |
was tradition among the Makatese that |
many generations ago a large number Of |
white men had come into the Zambesi re-
eion to dig gold. These men incurred the |
enmity of the blacks, who massacred all
except one or two. General Joubert be-
ieyed, as did the chieftain, that Majaje |
was the descendant Of one Of these sur
vivors, but the native tradition does not
explain the process by which she rose to
the position Of ruler Of the tribe. Proof of |
the fact that gold was dug in that neigh
borhood has been found In scores Of places
along the Zambesi where In recent years
many old shafts have been uncovered.
---->0>--
Apology and Explanation.
From the Kansas City Journal.