In African Forest and Jungle

by Paul B. Du Chaillu

"At the end of the day I had made a pair of skin trousers."

Then a great meeting took place. Rotembo was dressed in state, and made a great speech, saying how much he loved me. The crowd shouted, "Great is Rotembo, the friend of the Oguizi! Great is the Oguizi!" Tomtoms beat and guns were fired.

Then I arose, and in the midst of a profound silence I made a speech. "Rotembo," I said, "I love you and your people. When I was hungry you gave me food; when I was thirsty you gave me water. You gave me shelter and nothing was stolen from me." At these words a great shout of joy arose. The tomtoms beat furiously, and more guns were fired.

"You gave me Rogala, your faithful slave," I continued; "I bring him back to you. There are Shinshooko and Alapai also, your faithful slaves, who love you. They with their wives and children have been kind to me. There is Akenda-Mbani, whom we found in the forest. Now, Rotembo, you are my friend." (All shouted, "He is your friend!") "Never let one of these men or their wives be sold."

"I will never sell them," cried Rotembo.

Then the great meeting broke up. Rotembo and his people drank a great quantity of fermented drinks they had made to celebrate my return. There was a grand ball which lasted all night. Rotembo himself danced, and came before me singing and dancing in the midst of vociferous cheers by the people.

The next day I prepared a great feast that Rotembo and I were to eat together. The bottom of our canoe was to be our table. Rogala, Shinshooko, Alapai, and Akenda-Mbani were seated at a table close to ours. Rotembo's wives waited upon us. A mass of people formed a great circle round us, and looked at us, and one of them said: "The great Oguizi loves also Rogala and Shinshooko, Alapai and Akenda-Mbani."

In the evening I called my hunters together, and gave each a new gun, powder, and some iron bars. I gave them beads for their wives also, and the next day I accompanied them to their canoe and bade them good-bye. They felt sad to leave me, and as they embarked, Rogala said: "Oguizi, come again to see us at our plantation."

The people believed that I had killed Andekko and Ndova to take them with me, and wondered why I had not killed my hunters to take them with me also. "When they die," said they, "the Oguizi will take them with him, for he loves them."

Two days afterwards, I bade good-bye to Rotembo. He invoked the spirits of his ancestors, and came to the shore to see me off. He had given me people and a canoe to take me to another part of the great forest, to a great king who was his father-in-law. And with the stars and stripes floating at the stern of my canoe I was paddled out of sight of Rotembo and his village.