“And wherefore hast thou left thine own country—thou a kehla? Art thou an induna?”
“No induna am I, Black Elephant of the Amendebeli. I have left my country to follow my father here.”
“And the feet of those who pursue thee? When a man forsakes his country, is it not that he may travel faster than the feet of those who run behind him?” said Umzilikazi, with meaning.
“None such are behind me, Serpent of Wisdom,” replied the man. “In due time I return to my own country again, and to my wives. No evil have I done there that I should not return.”
“Ha! Thy wives?” said the King. Then, turning to the white man—
“And thou, stranger? They say of thee that thou art an isanusi—though white—that thou wert making múti of a wonderful and unheard-of-kind?”
“That is true, O King.”
“And wherefore was this múti?”
“Let the King listen,” answered the white man. “When the izanusi of the peoples of the Zulu offer sacrifice of cattle to the spirits of departed chiefs and kings, they do so to gain something. Is not this true, Great Great One?”
“It is no lie,” answered Umzilikazi.