We might have heard nothing further about it, at least for a time; but the brother was afraid the crime might leak out, and he still hoped to silence the affair by giving the other chief some cattle. To do this he was not willing to take of his own cattle, which he had taken from the murdered man, but tried to take those of Kaiba, who was a good, unassuming native. Kaiba greatly resented this disposition of his property, and wanted to take the matter to the magistrate at Kalomo. He and Lupata came to inform us of the murder and wished us to inform the magistrate by letter. Lupata said, "I do not want his cattle and I think you should write and tell the Mwami [magistrate] of the murder." Both refused to state who they thought was the murderer.
Brother Taylor wrote an explanation of the affair and Kaiba carried the letter to the magistrate, the brother and two other natives accompanying. This was the first intimation the magistrate had of foul play, and when he put the question to them they readily acknowledged that the man had been murdered. The brother, however, who had always been opposed to everything good, and had a very evil countenance, showed the cunning of his master; and he and one of the men accompanying put the blame on the third. This one acknowledged his guilt, saying that he and the other had killed the chief and the brother had sent them. We were informed later that the brother sent them three times before they became willing to perform the deed. Of course all three were put behind the bars.
It was a case of alleged witchcraft. Several children had died in the kraal under peculiar circumstances, and the blame had been laid by the brother, who was a witch doctor, on the chief. We prefer to think, from what we know of the two, that the brother was the guilty one in each instance, and was desirous of the chief's property and position.
Sisters Engle Crossing the Tuli River in the Matopo Hills.
During this rainy season it was thought advisable for Brother and Sister Taylor to go to Bulawayo and Matopo Mission for a much-needed rest. She went in November and he followed in January, 1911. At the same time David returned with his wife, Mankunku. Mankunku is one of the converts from Mapani Mission. She is a sincere Christian girl, and has proved a great help and blessing among the women and girls at Macha ever since she came. These two, with myself, prosecuted the work at Macha for the next five months alone.
There were at this time forty-six boys and four girls staying at the mission, and it was necessary, not only to teach them in school, but to keep them profitably employed during work hours and out on the farm. Quite a fair amount of land was under cultivation, and Brother Taylor had planted grain, fruit, and vegetables before he left, the care of which gave the boys plenty of work to do during the rainy season. As soon as that was over David made use of them in getting grass and poles together for building, and as permanent buildings were to be erected they tried to secure hardwood rafters.
Although there were so many boys together, yet all manifested a nice Christian spirit. They were not quarrelsome, and they were obedient and faithful in their work. The chief difficulty with natives is that they are inclined to keep their eyes fixed on the missionary too constantly and do not learn to depend on God for their own spiritual needs. The missionary, as he realizes the responsibility resting upon him, often feels like exclaiming, "Who is sufficient for these things?" to lead all in the right way. He may rejoice, however, that he can continually say, "My sufficiency is of God." He must also by every means in his power get their eyes off of himself and fix them on God. Otherwise they will do what is right at the mission and fall when those props are removed.
June 16 I wrote somewhat as follows:
Last Monday the wagon went to the Myeki River (about five miles distant) to get some thatching grass which the boys had cut there the week before. I thought it an excellent opportunity to visit Semani, who has been sick for some time and not likely to recover. I took along three girls and the two six-year-old boys and thoroughly dismissed from my mind home cares. We had a delightful ride over and a nice walk back, but best of all was the visit with Semani. He had accepted Christ while here at the mission and had often accompanied David in his kraal-visiting. He became sick, however, and we seemed unable to help him, so he desired to return home until he was well. He was always hoping he would recover and return to us.
He has pleurisy and is continually growing worse, and it is evident that the end is not far off. He greeted me with a smile as I entered, and while we were speaking, I inquired "Is Jesus here?" The reply, with a bright smile was, "Yes, He is here." We continued to speak of the things of the other world and what the Lord has in store for His children, and through it all he seemed so ready both to talk and to listen. His old heathen mother sat there in sort of a dazed wonder to hear us speaking thus familiarly and without fear of death and transition. For her sake I then asked him if he were afraid to die. He quickly replied, "Oh, no, I am not at all afraid to die; I am ready."
Later, when we bowed in prayer, he prayed, "I thank Thee, God, for Thy help and blessing. I have come through some hard places, but Thou hast given me victory. And, Jesus, if my time has come and You want to take me, it is all right. I'll gladly go with You."
How we could rejoice that here was one who, only two or three years ago, was a raw heathen boy, now so happy in the Lord, and so ready to meet Him. If one soul is worth more than the whole world then our coming to Macha has not been in vain. His people had been wanting to "throw bones" and "smell out" the one who, according to their ideas, had bewitched him, but he steadfastly refused, for he has no faith in those things.