The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1908-09-25


rs hard as steel and as cool as fee. 81
mean to work and work and work to
bring this to pass, and to bring that
to pass, until at length it comes to pass
that with these living eyes l behold
Wambe dying the death that he gave
to his child and my child
"Well said,' answered.
SAY, we'll said, Macumazahn-well
said, and not easily forgotten. Who
could forget-oh, who could forget!
See where this dead hand rests against
my side? So once 1t rested when alive
And now, though it is dead, now every
night it creeps from it's nest and
strokes my hair and clasps my fingers
in its tiny palm. Every night it does
this, fearing lest I should forget. Oh.
my child-my child! Ten days ago
held thee to my breast, and now this
alone remains of thee!" And she kissed
the dead hand and shivered, but never
q tear did she weep. "See now," she
went on, "the white man-the prisoner
at Wambe's kraal-he was kind to me.
He loved the child that is dead-yes,
he wept when its father slew 1t-and
at the risk of his own life told Wambe.
my husband-ah, yes, my husband
that which he is. He, too, it was who
! made a plan. He said to me, Go,
| Maiwa, after the custom of they peo.
pie, go purify thyself in the bush
alone, having. touched a dead one,
Say to Wambe thou goest to purify
thyself alone for fifteen days, accord
ing to the custom of the people. Then
fly to they father, Nala, and stir him
up to war against Wambe for the sake
Of the child that is dead
"This, then, he said, and his words
seemed good to me, and that same
/ night ere left to purify myself came
| news that a white man hunted In the
| country, and Wambe, being mad With
! drink, grew very wroth, and gave Or
ders that an 1mpi should be gathered
| to slay the white man and his people
and seize his goods.
! "Then did the 'Smiter of Iron tEv'
| ery) write the message on the green
| leaves and bid me seek thee out and
| show forth the matter, that thou might
est save thyself by flight. And behold
| this thing have 1 done, Macumazahn
the hunter, the Slayer of Elephants
"Ah," / said, 81 thank thee. AND
how many men be there in the Impi OF
| Wambe?"
"a hundred men and half hun
dred.'
"And where is the Impi?"
"There to the north. 1t follows Oh
thy spoor.
81 saw it pass yesterday, but my
self I guessed that thou wouldst be
higher to the mountain, and came this
way and found thee.
Tomorrow at the daybreak will
the slayers be here"
Every possibly" 1 thought to my
self. But they won't find Macuma-
zahn. l have half a mind to put some
strychnine into the carcasses of those
elephants for their especial benefit
though"
l knew that they would stop to eat
the elephants, as indeed they did, to
our great gain, but l abandoned the
idea of poisoning them, because | WAS
rather short of strychnine.
"Or because you did not like to pay
the trick, Quatermain." l suggested
| with a laugh.
/ 81 said because I had not enough
strychnine. 1t would take great deal
| of strychnine to effectually poison
three elephants answered the old gen.
tleman testify.
1 said nothing further, but smiled
knowing that old Allan could never
have resorted to such an artifice, how
I ever severe his strait.
But that was his t|aJ; he always
/ made himself out to he a most unmer
ciful person.
Well Che went on), at that moment
Gobo came UP, and announced that We
were ready to march.
81 am glad that you are ready
| said; "because if you don't march. ani
march quick, you will never marcf
again, that is all.
"Wambe has an 1mpi out to kill us
! and it will be here presently
| Gobo turned positively green, and nj:
knees knocked together.
"Ah, what did say?" he exclaimed
"Fate walks about loose in Wambe'i
country"
every good; now all you have got tt
| do is to walk a little quicker than h'
does.
"No, no; you don't leave those ele
phant tusks behind.
81 am not going to part with them
I can tell you.'
Gobo said no more, but hastily di
rected the men to take up their load
and then asked which way we wer'
| to run.
"Ah," I said to Maiwa, "whicl
way"
"There," she answered, pointing to
ward the great mountain spur whicl
lowered up into the sky some fort,
miles away, separating the territorie
of Nala and Wambe.
(To be contin ..ed9