“Ingona—Ingona,” he hissed through his clenched teeth, “the man whom I believed to be the most loyal of all my chiefs, the man who evidently feigned friendship with ’Nkuni only to betray him to his death! But I will make a terrible example of these rebels; they shall die such deaths that—”
“Stop!” commanded Dick. “Is this how the Four Spirits who placed you on the throne of the Makolo taught you to administer justice?”
“Nay,” answered the king. “But this is no ordinary crime; it is as vile, in intention at least, as that of those who conspired against Seketulo and restored M’Bongwele. Those chiefs were not only responsible for the death of Seketulo, but also for the horrors that followed; they were—”
“Just so,” interrupted Dick; “they were all that and more. But even that does not justify you in torturing these men to death. Destroy them, by all means, if you will, so that they may never again have the opportunity to do perhaps irreparable mischief; and let their death be so ignominious that it shall be a warning to all others; but let it be humane. In a word, hang them, even as M’Bongwele and M’Pusa, his chief witch doctor, were hanged. That surely ought to suffice for all practical purposes, should it not?”
“Possibly,” assented the king unwillingly. “The death by hanging and the disgrace of it are greatly feared, and it may be that—”
“Yes,” interrupted Dick soothingly, “of course it will. Then that is settled, eh? Because I want you to understand that unless you definitely promise me that there shall be no torture I shall be obliged to withdraw from this business altogether; moreover, I will take my magic off Sekosini, and then nothing that you can do will make him confess or incriminate the others. You know that, don’t you?”
“Yes, it is true,” admitted the king reluctantly; “Sekosini is very obstinate; and if he were so minded he would refuse to confess, even were he staked out on an ant’s nest.”
“Of course he would,” agreed Dick. “Therefore you see for yourself how futile anything of that kind would be. It would only make of him a martyr, and of you a cruel, revengeful, suspicious brute in the eyes of your people. But if he and his fellow conspirators can be brought to admit their guilt publicly, you at once become the righteous judge, and score accordingly. And I can make them confess if they are really guilty, as Sekosini asserts.”
“Then tell me, O Healer! what do you advise?” asked the king.
“This,” answered Dick. “I advise that you summon the whole of your chiefs to present themselves before you, and when they are assembled, Sekosini shall be called into your presence and commanded to tell his version of the story of the conspiracy in the hearing of all the chiefs. Then, if the chiefs implicated have any excuse to offer, let them offer it; if they have not, let them be hanged as plotters against the authority and person of the king.”