The jungle folk of Africa

by Robert H. Milligan

In a tornado his chief anxiety was always for the white man, that he might not get wet, and it was a part of politeness not to protect himself.

An hour later some thirty or forty very angry men, armed with knives and guns, and shouting their war-cry, rushed into the yard. They did not yet realize that I was going to take up the palaver, but thought they had only to deal with the workmen, who were unarmed. Their intention was to kill Makuba and take the gun, which they supposed was in his possession. They ran past the end of my house towards the workmen’s house shouting the name of Makuba. But it chanced that he was at the other end of my house, so they missed him. Immediately returning they saw him but before they reached him I pushed him into the house and closing the door myself confronted them and addressed them from the porch, explaining that since Makuba was in my employ I was bound to protect him; that the palaver was therefore mine, and they would have to fight me first. They first demanded that Makuba be delivered to them, but at length proposed to accept the gun as a compromise. I of course declined the compromise and demanded the stolen goods for the gun.

Finally one of them raised the cry: “Let us kill the white man and take the store.”

This may have been a mere bluff. I am disposed to think that it was; but I did not think so that day, and one cannot be sure. It was in a Fang town much nearer to the coast and to the French government that Mr. Marling was once robbed of his very clothing and left naked in the street of the village.

The idea of killing the white man for the goods in the store became uncomfortably popular. They recounted all the grievous wrongs they had suffered at the hands of white men, and missionaries in particular, from the discovery of Africa down to the present moment. They had at various times respectfully advised that the church be closed and the store kept open all the time, and had been told in reply that the church was more important than the store, and that preaching the Gospel was our chief work. They had come to buy goods and had found the store closed and the missionaries holding prayers with the people. They had advised that we must sell goods only to them and not to their enemies and had been told that we loved their enemies. They had advised that we lower our prices on all articles except those that they did not want and we had seen fit to fix our own prices regardless of their feelings. They had frequently come to the station to beg a little present and the missionaries had affronted them by offering them work. They had requested tobacco of this present white man and in reply he had invited them to Sunday-school.

The situation had become intolerable and they proposed to recompense full vengeance upon the aforesaid white man. The older men, however, advised that if they should attack the white man and the mission it ought not to be done by one town, but that all the adjacent towns ought to be engaged in it so as to spread the responsibility. This advice prevailed and they decided upon an attack that night, and sent messengers to two large towns some distance in the forest, telling them to come armed for an attack on the mission. I did not suppose at the time that we had a single weapon of defense except the old gun that we had captured. It was already loaded, but as far as I knew we had no ammunition. I immediately set out to search the premises, and to my great joy found a rifle, which had accidentally been left there. We found plenty of ammunition both for the rifle and the gun which we had seized. I also ordered the men to catch any native that might come near the premises and to take his gun. They were greatly surprised when they heard the report of the rifle and immediately recognized it as “a white man’s gun,” of which they have a wholesome dread, believing also that the white man has medicine which will make his gun shoot straight and absolutely sure. I was very careful to conceal the fact that I had only one rifle, and they were quite deceived, supposing that I had a sufficient number for all of us. They dispatched messengers a second time to the forest towns to tell them of our preparations. They all came together that night armed for war, and shots were fired continually during the night, but no attack was made. When I afterwards learned how prone they are to experimentation with a new comer, I realized that it might have been a mere bluff. No one can tell; but I had no such thought at the time. Neither did Makuba nor any of the workmen regard it as a bluff.

All the workmen excepting Makuba besought me to give back the captured gun and stop the palaver. I brought them into my house that night; but Makuba with the rifle in his hand insisted upon keeping watch, and walked before my door the whole night. The matter of his stolen goods and his personal danger were quite forgotten in absorbing anxiety for the white man’s safety. I may add that I cut off all communication with the people, refusing to buy their supplies of food, or to open the store, until after several days they returned the stolen goods, and the palaver was finished.

A short time after this I made Makuba the captain of the boat crew. He knew the sea, and everything about boats and was perfectly trustworthy. But these qualifications are more common in Africa than the faculty of discipline and command which is by no means common. Makuba was not altogether wanting in talent for discipline, but when this proved insufficient he procured obedience to his orders by diplomacy and argument; and for that matter, the greatest sea-captain dispenses with argument only because he is given authority to punish and to put in irons, which requires no talent at all.

But all Makuba’s resources of discipline and diplomacy were taxed when I hired Obianga, a young man of the Fang, whose home was near Angom. Poor Obianga is dead; and I would not make cheap jokes at his expense. He was like a wild unbroken colt, full of life, willing to work, and not lazy, but resentful of the bit and reins of authority. For any man, especially one of another tribe, to give him an order was equivalent to calling him a slave; and, representative of his tribe, he seemed ever to be saying: “We were never in bondage to any man.”

When Makuba would shout an order to him, however urgent, even if a tempest were approaching, Obianga would perhaps tell him to “shut up.” Then we usually improvised a little tempest on our own account, Makuba’s indignation being the turbulent factor. But in milder weather he would try persuasion and various expedients, old and new, always prevailing in the end.