Miss Beatrice Poles was now, amongst these people, raised to the dignity of a demi-goddess. A box of lucifer matches did this for her. The natives, accustomed to produce fire only after great exertion, by rubbing one stick against another, were overwhelmed with amazement when they saw Miss Poles take a box from her pocket, produce a small match and light it at once. "She can make fire as she pleases," was the general exclamation, and they opened their eyes and mouths to such an extent as to make Joseph shiver in his shoes, for, notwithstanding the impunity which he enjoyed, and the delicacy displayed by the Niam-Niam towards him, he did not like to see their pointed teeth.
We have now given, to a certain extent, a resumé of the journal of the expedition in all that concerns the leading characteristics of the Niam-Niam.
Towards the middle of May, the caravan reached the river which separates the Zandey territory from that of the Monbuttoos, where the serious business of the expedition was to commence, for at last they found themselves in the country where the guide, Nassar, alleged that he had met M. de Guéran eighteen months previously.
CHAPTER XXVII.
"We had scarcely set foot in the land of the Monbuttoos before, thanks to their perfect candour, we knew all about their tastes, for, when we proposed to do a little bartering, they brought us a quantity of bones, hands, jaws, and pieces of heads which must certainly have been the remains of their repasts. From that moment we quite agreed with Schweinfurth in his assertion that 'the cannibalism of the Monbuttoo is unsurpassed by any nation in the world. But,' continues that authority, 'with it all, the Monbuttoos are a noble race of men; men who display a certain national pride, and are endowed with an intellect and judgment such as few natives of the African wilderness can boast; men to whom one may put a reasonable question, and who will return a reasonable answer. The Nubians can never say enough in praise of their faithfulness in friendly intercourse, or of the order and stability of their national life.'"
I have given the opinion of the famous German traveller verbatim; now let us see for ourselves what conclusion should be come to as regards this tribe. It covers an area of four thousand square miles, situated between 8° and 4° north latitude, 26° and 27° longitude east from Paris. This country, which boasts about a million inhabitants, is still, as it was two years ago, when Schweinfurth visited it, under the absolute sway of one single ruler. King Munza, a most despotic sovereign, who reigns in the western division, and who has delegated a portion of his power to his brother Degberra, Viceroy of the Eastern Provinces. But Munza alone is known, and science, we repeat, comes to a dead halt at the country of the Monbuttoos.
The journey we are about to undertake, if, indeed, what we hear about M. de Guéran leads us southwards, will land us in a blank space, about which, as far as we have gone, no one has been able to give us the slightest information. What news shall we gather about the stay of our fellow-countryman in the midst of this people, or about the route he took on quitting them? Is he, perchance, still here, kept prisoner by Munza? We are under one continual apprehension—a perpetual anxiety. If we put a question to a native, we at once think that he is sure to say something in reply about the white man whom he saw before we arrived on the scene, and who could not fail to have been an object of curiosity. But we can only hope to get reliable information from Munza himself, in the midst of his court and in the full splendour of his surroundings, and, in order to reach the royal residence as quickly as possible, we never cease to stimulate the zeal of our escort and bearers.
Madame de Guéran has now taken up her position at the head of the caravan, by the side of the guide, Nassar, to impart, as she says, courage to those behind her. And, indeed, the sight of this brave, young, and perfectly lovely woman, always wearing the strikingly original costume, we have already described, produces a very great impression on our soldiers. To them she is no longer a being of this earth; she gives these infidels an idea of a very different world from the one they inhabit. They have always respected her, but now they revere and love her. She has succeeded in winning the sympathies, as well as in captivating the imaginations of all these Orientals.
All sorts of tales, and even legends, which we have more than once had the opportunity of hearing, are in circulation about her. "She is," say some, "the daughter of a mighty Northern Prince, and her father has sent her to us to travel and instruct herself." According to the Nubians, she is a powerful Sultana, whose husband had been made prisoner by the people of Khartoum; she is now in pursuit of them, and we shall all have to fight for her very soon. Then, with the exaggeration habitual amongst negroes, they relate how she, in the desert, set free two thousand slaves, whom she sent away to her father's kingdom, where they are well-fed and wear beautiful clothes like hers.
We take very good care not to interfere with all this romancing, nor to keep the narrators within the region of fact; on the contrary, we ourselves invent numerous anecdotes calculated to enhance the reputation of our escort, and augment the prestige of our beloved leader. But will she be able to conquer, at first sight, this redoubtable King Munza, on whom our fate depends, in the same way that she has charmed these men, who have known her for six months?