I asked the Masupia servant whom Westbeech had taken with him to Gubuluwayo, whether the Matabele women were handsome? “O, not at all,” was his answer; “they wear no aprons, and are not tattooed.” Their well-built forms and comely features had evidently made no impression upon the man.
Before closing my notes about Tati, I cannot help mentioning an incident that occurred in Pit Jacobs’ house, in February, 1876. Jacobs himself, with two of his sons and his elder daughter, had gone on a hunting-excursion to South Matabele-land, leaving his wife, his younger daughter, just now married to Mr. Brown, his two little boys, and a Masarwa servant in the house. The house was what is locally known as a “hartebeest” building, its four walls consisting of laths plastered over with red brick earth, and covered in with a gabled roof made of rafters thatched with grass. Inside, of the same material as the walls, was a partition dividing the house into two apartments, of which the larger was the living-room, and the other the sleeping-chamber of the family. In the larger room, amongst other furniture, stood a sewing-machine that Mr. Brown had just bought as a present for his intended wife; in the other room, opposite the door, were two beds. On this particular evening, the door of the house, which was made in two parts, had the upper division open; the window in front was likewise open, and a kitten was sitting on the sill. Mr. Brown had just called to pay an evening visit, and Mrs. Jacobs had gone to put the two boys to bed, laying herself down for a few minutes beside one of them.
Now the whole village was aware that a half-starved leopard was haunting the place, trying one cattle-kraal after another, and doing serious mischief amongst the poultry; every fence ought to have been well guarded, but somehow or other the leopard had gained an entrance into Jacobs’ enclosure, and catching sight of the kitten in the open window, made a spring to seize it. The kitten, however, was not taken unawares, but leaping from the window-sill hid itself under the sewing-machine, and the leopard, missing its aim, bounded through the window right into the middle of the room, where the two lovers were sitting.
They called out in alarm, but were hardly more terrified than the brute itself, which, in order to escape, rushed into the bedroom, and under the bed where Mrs. Jacobs was lying. Catching sight of it, she cried out to know what it was, and in order to pacify her, Mr. Brown and her daughter replied that most likely it was a dog. Satisfied in her own mind that a dog would not have made them scream out in such alarm, and concluding that it was a hyæna, she started up, took the child by which she was lying in her arms, and ran into the living-room.
Page 415.
LEOPARD IN PIT JACOBS’ HOUSE.
Finding that she had brought out only one of the little boys, Brown thought it was best to tell her the truth, which made her so agitated that she would have gone back quite unprotected to the other bed, if she had not been prevented by force.
The immediate question now was how the brute could be disposed of. There was a loaded elephant-gun hanging up inside the partition, but in the commotion no one thought of it. Brown took hold of a kitchen-knife, but afterwards it was remembered that the Masarwa servant had an old assegai; the man was soon sent for; Brown took the spear; Miss Jacobs held the lantern; Mrs. Jacobs clung to her daughter, and the servant kept close behind. At the appearance of the light, the leopard was more terrified than ever, and the hubbub of voices, English, Dutch, and Sesarwa, only increased its alarm. Making a sudden spring it lighted on the bed, where the child was sleeping. The little fellow slumbered on peacefully, and knew nothing of what happened until the next morning.
With such an excited cluster of people at his elbow, it was not very surprising that Brown made a bad aim with his assegai; the point merely grazed the creature’s skin, and in an instant it flew at his breast, so that he could feel its claws upon his neck; losing his balance he fell over; the women came tumbling on him, dragging the old Masarwa on the top of them all, the commotion putting the leopard into such a state of bewilderment that it never used a fang, but bounded forth, first into the other room, and then through the open portion of the door.