Chapter Fourteen.
A Talk about Marriage—Zenuta, my Servant—Kaffirs and Fish.
I must now, with the reader’s permission, pass over a period of nearly six months; for to relate minutely my mode of life during that time would be but an useless recapitulation, interspersed by koodoo and fan-elephant hunting, which would become monotonous.
In respect to Metilulu’s protégée, Zenuta, unpleasantly for me, Tugela had prophesied correctly. She speedily brought me again to the chief’s remembrance, and this time he spoke to me in propria persona, and desired me to accept her.
Making my reply as respectful as I possibly could, I immediately answered, as I had to Tugela, that my religion forbade me taking another wife, as I had one living already in England, and that were I to do so, I should, in my own eyes and those of my countrymen, commit a great crime. The reason of my refusal seemed to create unbounded surprise to Metilulu, who gave utterance to many Kaffir ejaculations. Then he said gravely—
“If you have but one wife, how can she do all the work? It is impossible! She must herself object to such an arrangement; she would want other wives to help her.”
Let me here remark that such is the case in Caffraria, where a wife will often urge her husband to take more wives, so that her own labour may be lessened; and this is no wonder, when we consider that the most arduous and incessant toil falls to the woman’s lot, while their lords and masters idle their time away in sitting and smoking in their hut when they are not milking their cows or hunting.
In reply to Metilulu, I informed him that women did not work in my country as they did in his. There the men performed most of the out-door labour, while the women attended to the home duties.
The chief smiled derisively as he rejoined that my England must be a very strange country. He then was anxious to know who ground the corn and tilled the fields—whether the men or the women.
“The men cultivate the ground,” I replied, “while the corn is made into flour by machinery.”
The last word seemed beyond his comprehension, so I tried to explain my meaning, aiding the description by tracing a windmill with my finger on the ground; but I fear when I ended that he had but a poor idea of the mechanism after all.
“But if the men work, who hunts?” he asked, adding, with a laugh—“perhaps the women.”
“No,” I said, “England had never possessed the wild animals Africa had, and those which were native to the soil—such as wild cats, wolves, and foxes—had mostly been exterminated, while the forests had been turned into waving corn-fields; therefore there were no hunters as those he referred to.”
Of course I did not mention our fox-hunters, for he would have thought little of Englishmen’s bravery had he heard that some dozen gentlemen, with the aid of a pack of hounds, pursued one poor little fox. As it was, my last statement seemed to him to put the climax to European ignorance and stupidity, for I saw he addressed anything but complimentary remarks respecting our nation to the warriors about him. Then, returning to the subject of marriage, which I had hoped he had forgotten, he continued, with a twinkle in his eyes, as if by the next question he was going to prove me entirely—whether, as men only had one wife in my country, some, no doubt, never married at all.
I stated that was the case, for some by choice remained single all their lives.
It was the same in his land sometimes, he laughed, when men were so ugly that no girl would have them; then they had to remain “boys” all their lives, without wives or children.
At this I assured him it did not always rest in looks, as, however plain he might be, a man could generally find a wife; but he might be a bachelor from inclination.
“Then,” he demanded quickly, with a gusto at evidently having at last entrapped me, “how could the single men get their work done if they had not a wife?”
I explained at once how in England servants could be hired at a moderate rate, who would do all the work required.
This puzzled him immensely, for in his mind the duties of servant and wife appeared synonymous, and, with all my explanation, he could hardly recognise the difference. So, after a good deal of palaver, he finally asked, I fancy owing to a suggestion of Tugela’s, whether, as I could not accept Zenuta for a wife, I would receive her for a servant.
This I agreed to do, as I had previously determined; for at times I had found it awkward to prepare my own meals, and did not care to join the “boys,” whose cooking I relished as little as I did the odour of their well-oiled bodies when enclosed in the stifling atmosphere of their general hut. So Zenuta—a true type of the Kaffir girl, a perfect form, and a plain face—agreeing to the arrangement, I became possessed of a servant, who speedily and with alacrity saw to all my wants.
Poor thing, she seemed absolutely devoted to me, and would have crushed corn or rolled tobacco all day long if I had permitted her. This crushing corn and rolling tobacco are both most arduous processes. The former is done between two stones—the under large and shelving, so as to allow the boiled maize or corn ears to be pushed off when finished; the upper is a much smaller and round stone, which the worker holds in her hands, and pounds or presses with all her strength. The tobacco rolling is rolling the leaves of the plant between the hand and thigh or calf of the leg—a work that soon renders the skin remarkably tender till it has become hardened by use.
I say Zenuta would have gladly done all this, had I required it, but, on the contrary, I strove to render her life as easy as possible, and, very much to her surprise, I always took care when I had a good meal that she should have one too; for the custom among her people was generally to leave the refuse to the hardworking woman. Perhaps it would have been wiser had I done differently, for all this behaviour but served to increase her affection, which, at times, I confess, grew rather troublesome; till, I tried, by the power I had over her, to direct her thoughts into a different channel, with, I flattered myself, some success. As well as I could, owing to my imperfect knowledge of the language, I endeavoured to instruct her and make her comprehend the forms and pure belief of the Christian religion, and by this means proved to her that we might always be very dear friends, but that I could never take her for my wife. Poor Zenuta! She looked very sad at first, but when I said I would always try to make her happy, and she might remain with me as she was doing then, as long as she pleased, she brightened up, and a short while after, breaking a slight pause, besought me to tell her about my English wife and my own land.
I did so, and very frequently afterwards our conversation turned upon these two topics; till one day, as if carried away by my description, she threw herself at my feet and begged me, if I should ever go back, to take her with me.
This question put a sudden idea into my head. Might it not be likely that, through this girl, I might ascertain how far the white settlements were off? Therefore, giving an evasive reply to the entreaty, I at once began to interrogate her upon the subject, but soon found my hopes chimeras; she knew little more than I had already learned from Tugela and Metilulu. White traders had passed through the kraal, but beyond that she knew nothing, save repeating as had the others, that white people were a long way off. Consequently I had to console myself at the ill-success my efforts had met with in the best way I could. It will be seen from this that my stay in Caffraria for the six months had not been so comfortable as to prevent my trying to return home. On the contrary, that one thought occupied me constantly, and I certainly should have endeavoured to have escaped long before, could I have obtained the least information respecting the direction I ought to take; but, as it was, I felt I might only brave the dangers of the bush to eventually fall into worse hands than those I was already in, from whom up to this time I had received nothing but kindness.
Therefore, till a more favourable opportunity offered, I wisely resolved to make myself as comfortable as I could where I was. By attention and perseverance I had by this time become no longer a drone in the hive, but an useful member of society. I could throw the assagai so well that I need never be without a dinner of meat when I desired it; and by the same means I speedily procured both skins and teeth, which, as I had no wish to deck myself out in them as did my savage companions, I exchanged for two or three cows, and they supplied my servant and me with enough amasi for more than our wants. By doing as little work as I could on Sundays, I had been able to remember and keep that day holy—a proceeding which had finally attracted the Kaffirs’ notice, and on explaining to them why I did this, I found that they possessed some vague idea of a Creator, but that it was deprived of all truth by the heap of ignorant superstitions which surrounded it. It, however, put the thought into my head, to try in a small way to act the missionary to them, and I soon found they would listen attentively enough when I brought the subject forward before a select few, with the liberty of argument—a Kaffir’s passion—granted to both sides, but that when I made an attempt to assemble them together to address them, preacher fashion, I signally failed. Yet the few seeds I did manage to cast upon the unpromising soil, I prayed by God’s grace might take root and bear fruit hereafter, and at least slightly prepare the ground for those brave self-sacrificing men, noble specimens of whom now exist, who make it their work to bring light into darkness.
I had of course during my long sojourn learned much of the habits of the Kaffir tribes, and one peculiarity struck me as very surprising. I found it out in the following manner.
An expedition, I forget now for what reason, no doubt to collect shells for ornament, had been made by a party of “boys” to the sea-coast. I asked permission to accompany them, for I naturally thought it possible that I might sight a passing ship and perhaps make my presence known. For this purpose, on arriving at the shore, I took my place on a rock, and fastening a hook I had made to some thin but strong fibre, I told the “boys” I would wait there till they returned. Having taken for my bait a portion of the flesh of a hyrax I had knocked over with my knob-kerrie as I came along, I threw in my line only to appear occupied, for I never dreamed of getting a bite; but scarcely had I cast my eyes over the broad expanse of waters, which to my sorrow was not even broken by a sea bird’s wing, than I felt a tug at my line, and with some difficulty landed a fish of a tolerable size, but the name of which I did not know. My first success whetted my appetite for more, and thinking how pleased the Kaffirs would be at the rare dinner I was procuring for them, I again threw in my line, and continued to do so, till, by the time the “boys” returned, I had a pretty considerable heap of the finny tribe by my side, which, with no little pride, I showed to my companions, but, what was my astonishment to find that they regarded them with the greatest disgust, as an Englishman might some loathsome animal; while I never saw the same feeling more strongly depicted on any face as on theirs, when I, not to be baulked of my treat, kindled a fire, and grilling some as well as I could on the glowing embers, subsequently made a very good meal.
On enquiring afterwards of Zenuta the reason for this peculiar aversion, she told me she believed it was owing to some superstition—order, she called it—originating many years previously from the prophets, for there were other things they would not eat, unless pressed by extreme hunger, besides fish, such, for instance, as eggs, ducks, and bustards.
Having finished my meal, I threw all the remainder of the fish back again into the sea, as I felt, being their guest, I had no right to take anything to the kraal which was regarded with such repugnance; and as they had got all they required, we started off homewards, but had not got half-way through the bush when we were suddenly set upon by a buffalo, which is the most terrible foe a Kaffir can encounter, for he does not wait to be attacked, as is the nature of most animals, but begins the fray himself, dashing forward at headlong speed through the bush at its enemy. Fortunately for us, we all managed to climb into trees out of his reach, though one of the party narrowly escaped being trampled and rended to death by the furious brute, but the assagais of the rest happily turned him from his prey, who the next instant was far above his reach, and joining with us in taking revenge upon his would-have-been murderer.
It took some time to kill the brute, whose large beautiful eyes glared like balls of fire in its huge head under the shaggy mane; but we succeeded at last, and, descending, soon stripped off the hide, then leaving the carcase for the hyenas and jackals, as the Kaffirs do not care for the flesh when they can get anything else, it being very hard, we continued our road to the kraal, bearing our unexpected trophy with us.
Now having just touched upon the landmarks of my history during the six months, I will take up the thread of the story in the next chapter, and in a few succeeding ones will show how I at last came across my old friends, and finally started for the white settlements.