At first their work consisted in the main of building houses and making friends. All the time they preached the gospel, knowing in their hearts that there was small likelihood of their doctrine winning acceptance, until they themselves had been accepted and had won trust and love.
In the beginning, the women, and by consequence the children, were afraid of Mrs. Lewis, and it was an event in her life, when the first Zombo baby stretched out its little arms in welcome to her, suffered her to nurse it, and was loath to be given up. She did not wait for the women to come to her, but went to them in their towns, exhibiting skilled and patient kindness which could not fail in the end.
Meanwhile the charge, domestic and educational, of the children on the station, and multifarious household duties, kept her perpetually busy. It should also be mentioned that she maintained a regular correspondence with many friends at home, and with several of the missionaries’ wives upon the Congo, in whose work she took the deepest and most sisterly interest, and who were wont to consult her when difficulties arose; and quite commonly the difficulties were at least as frequent as the mails.
Somewhat straitened for human society her affection went out to the tame, dumb creatures about her, and to one who was not dumb, the parrot. Her cat, “Sandy,” whom the mail-man lost on the way to Kibokolo, was brought into San Salvador after many days, and sent on, safely this time, to Kibokolo, to the great joy of his indulgent mistress. “Edward,” Mr. Pinnock’s donkey, was useful as well as handsome, and her friendship with him inclined to weakness; so much so that when one day he walked into the dining-room and eat her last loaf of bread, she merely reminded him in gentle tones that it was wicked to steal. After Edward’s day came Taffy and Queenie, two mules, who were much esteemed, especially Queenie, who died too early; and later a cow and bull, the joint property of Mr. Hooper and Mr. Pinnock. The bull died. The cow pined and took to wandering. Mrs. Lewis was sorry for her grief, and when Mr. Hooper decided to shoot her, to provide beef for a certain feast, Mrs. Lewis was torn between sentiment and prudence. She could not touch such unholy beef, nor could she be sorry that it would feed a hungry crowd.
Her garden was an increasing joy to her, and though she loved flowers with something akin to passion, her dutifulness as a housewife made kitchen produce her first care. When Mr. Lewis and Mr. Hooper, who also had the building gift, much to his senior colleague’s joy, had erected the permanent houses, residential conditions were pleasant enough.
But Mrs. Lewis was not in Kibokolo for pleasure, but for souls; and as the years passed her hunger grew. It was joy to her when she had a decent school once more, and women sitting at her feet to listen to the gospel; and the new chapel and the ultimately growing congregations called forth her glad thanksgiving; but she wanted souls; and when the call to Kimpese came, her lament was that she would not be in Kibokolo when the harvest of souls began, of the coming of which she had no doubt. Even as she was writing this lament, news arrived of the baptism of the first Kibokolo convert, and she took her part in the happiness of Mr. and Mrs. Hooper, and of their common Lord.
Shortly after her return from furlough in 1902 tragical events occurred which desolated the towns about the station, and darkened the immediate outlook of the Mission. But light came again into the sky, and the work went on.
Mr. and Mrs. Lewis were fortunate in their colleagues at Kibokolo: an immeasurable mercy! John Pinnock was their old and tried friend. Mr. Hooper, who came out to them fresh from Bristol College, was made of true missionary stuff, and walked straight into their affections and their confidence. When later Mrs. Hooper appeared in Kibokolo she found waiting for her a great woman’s love, which by God’s grace she knew how to appreciate, to retain, and to deserve. Mr. and Mrs. Bowskill’s temporary sojourn in Kibokolo was also a great joy to Mrs. Lewis, and the friendship formed in the months of its duration lasted to the end of her life.
From Kibokolo she made many journeys with her husband, of which only hints and glimpses can be given to the reader, and one journey without him. The story of this journey and its sequel is so unique and heroic, that I have detached it from the sequence of events, and related it at some length in a following chapter.