Some of these rumours and many others, circulating at that time and up to the outbreak of rebellion, were either untrue or exaggerated; their mere existence, however, shows the great importance that attached to Dinuzulu in the estimation of Natives far and wide. Here is another sample, taken from a despatch by the Governor to the Secretary of State:[86] "For some little time past, rumours have been current of unrest and disaffection amongst the Natives.... The name of Dinuzulu has been freely mentioned as promoting the unrest, and as putting himself at the head of a Native army to invade Natal proper from Zululand."
To show the strangeness and absurdity of some of the rumours, the following, which (except the last) can be vouched for as widely current in 1906, may be cited: that Dinuzulu was in the habit of visiting Natal incognito, notwithstanding that his physical condition incapacitated him from travelling; that he once visited Pietermaritzburg and went to the top of the Town Hall tower, when he was observed at one moment to turn into a cow, at another into a dog; that, when in Pietermaritzburg, he was presented with a beast by the Government. This was taken to the market square, where some white man fired at it twice without effect, owing to Dinuzulu having charmed it. On Dinuzulu firing, however, it fell dead. Here we have one of the origins of the rumour, subsequently to be referred to, that bullets fired at Natives by Europeans would not 'enter'; that, on the conclusion of the Boer War, the Europeans intended to compel Native girls to marry the soldiers then still in the country, whilst unmarried Native youths would be compelled to serve in the British Army. In consequence of the foregoing, many girls, though still quite young, had their hair done up and were married off before attaining the customary age.
The content of mere rumour is, of course, of no value as history, but, in the history of a Native rising, that rumours of a disturbing or unsettling character were constantly afloat, and nearly always associated with a particular person, is a fact of considerable significance, and, therefore, worthy of record. When any rumour arose likely to agitate Europeans or Natives, it became the duty of the Government to trace and contradict it in the best way it could. This, indeed, was done as effectively as possible on several occasions.
Those who are not familiar with Native character cannot well appreciate the difficulty of dealing with these rumours, especially such as betoken hostility. There is almost always some foundation in fact, but the fact is generally insignificant as compared with the inferences drawn therefrom by the people at large. In many cases, Dinuzulu was nothing more than the victim of circumstances, the mere fact of being the eldest son of the king of a once famous Native state serving to attach to the least of his acts an importance that did not and possibly was not intended to belong to them. Much that was laid to his charge was the outcome of perfervid imagination on the part of tribes in various parts of South Africa ready to espouse his cause. It has also to be borne in mind that the great majority of Natives are unable to read or write; they, therefore, do not, like Europeans, depend on newspapers for their news. It has, from time immemorial, been customary for them to live in a state of chronic alertness, when even the most absurd rumour of a warlike or disturbing character was spread within twenty-four hours over an enormous area. The media whereby this news, or rather warning is spread, are the incessant travelling to and fro of men and women, who again, living as they do under a system of polygamy, have wide circles of relations and acquaintances. Thus a warning brought, say, twenty miles and communicated at a kraal, is swiftly transmitted by the receiver to those within his immediate neighbourhood, only to be borne still further and further by others, leaving the original messenger to pursue his journey, repeating the intelligence as before wherever he goes. It can, therefore, be seen that facts, before long, become greatly exaggerated, leading to extravagant inferences being drawn therefrom.
Natives, as a rule, when employed as messengers, are careful in conveying messages. Dinuzulu probably never employed anyone on an important occasion who was not discreet and thoroughly trained in such duty. Rumours, therefore, are not always a true version of what was originally said, but of what those at a kraal, men or women, believed was said.
It is, we say, right to set but small value on mere rumours, but having regard to their exceedingly widespread circulation, they are apt to be believed and acted upon, as was, for instance, the pig-and-white-fowl-killing one. This characteristic of the great majority of the people should be clearly grasped, and especially the anomalous position in which, at such a time and in such circumstances, a man like Dinuzulu would have found himself. Having regard, however, to his remarkably subtle and far-reaching influence, it can easily be seen how any actually seditious tendency on his part could have been exerted with the minimum risk of detection. Indeed, it is within the power of one like him to pull the strings so as to compass rebellion without the Attorney-General being able at a later date to obtain any tangible evidence which, in a court of law, would be regarded as admissible or, if admissible, as satisfactorily establishing guilt. Thus, though, on the one hand, Dinuzulu might have been the victim of circumstances, on the other, assuming him to have been really at fault, he could have so urged the circumstances in which he stood that the court could not have done otherwise than presume his innocence, although actually believing him to be guilty.
That he was responsible for some of the unrest associated with his name before the Rebellion, will be gathered from the translations hereunder of two somewhat remarkable songs sung at Usutu.[87]
When the "order" about killing off pigs, white fowls, white goats, etc., became widely current and was being complied with by the Natives in various parts, the Government found it necessary to issue the following instructions to Magistrates: "It has come to the knowledge of the Government that numerous disturbing reports concerning the loyalty of the Natives of the Colony are being spread abroad by irresponsible persons, both Europeans and Natives. These reports are most mischievous, causing unnecessary alarm among all classes of the community, and careful investigation has proved that no real ground for them exists. You are, therefore, requested to reassure the people of your district and to urge them to discountenance the spreading of all such reports."[88] In the same month, the Commissioner in Zululand assured the Government of Dinuzulu's unwavering loyalty, adding that the Chief had declared an intention of doing all he could to ensure payment of the poll tax.[89] Dinuzulu, indeed, was one of the first to pay the tax, he paid before being actually obliged to do so.