Nomusa got out the new bamboo mat her mother had made especially for him and unrolled it on the smooth floor. On this Zitu squatted. He took out of his belt the horn of an ox and some tobacco. After stuffing the horn with the tobacco, he took an ember from the fire and lit his pipe. Silently he began smoking.
Nomusa’s mother now brought out all the good things she had made for her husband to eat. On a large grass plate she put chicken, pumpkin, yams, mealies, roast bananas. Then she brought beer. On Zitu’s lap Makanya placed some tobacco she had grown especially for him.
At first, Nomusa’s father pretended to be indifferent to the food, but the tantalizing smells proved too much for him. He laid down his oxhorn pipe and began eating with great gusto. He ate noisily, smacking his lips and belching from time to time. Nomusa and her mother did not utter a word while he was eating. They sat quietly, moving only when they had to take away his empty plate and fill it again. The Zulu chief ate and ate. Nomusa wondered how he could eat so much. From time to time an extra loud belch came out of him. Then Nomusa and her mother exchanged happy glances. They heard and saw that Zitu was enjoying their food.
Finally he licked his fingers thoroughly, showing he had finished. He looked at Nomusa and her mother smilingly. That was all, but it was enough to make them feel repaid for all the effort they had gone to in order to please him.
Zitu sat on his mat, a strong handsome figure. His muscular legs looked as though they could walk forty miles a day easily. Nomusa had heard that he often walked that much when he was out on a hunt. She wondered, as she kept her shining eyes on her father, whether he would say something about the elephant hunt. She waited and hoped.
Suddenly the chief spoke, pointing to the sleeping baby. “She looks as if she would be worth five cows.”
“Ay, she will be worth more,” answered Makanya proudly. “And Nomusa here, who helps me so well, is worth seven cows already.”
Zitu looked at Nomusa appraisingly; then, taking hold of her firm arm, he said, “She is a strong girl, almost as big as her older brother. I hear she can do anything a boy can. If she were a boy, I would take her on the elephant hunt when we leave at the full moon.”
At the full moon! thought Nomusa, her heart beating excitedly.