"Yes, bwana."
"Do you know the customs of askaris?"
"Yes, bwana."
"H'm," Kingozi commented in English, "nobody would guess it. Then understand this: You are headman of askaris. You take the orders: you report to me--or the memsahib," he added, almost as an afterthought. "To-morrow morning fall in, and I will look at your guns. Bassi!"
They filed away. Kingozi arose and returned the chair.
"Is that all you will do to them?" she demanded. "I tell you they have insulted me; they have refused to move; they should be punished."
"That's all. They understand now what will happen. You will see: they will not refuse again."
She appeared to struggle against a flare of her old rebellious spirit.
"I will leave it to you," she managed at last.
The squatting savages had not moved a muscle, but their shining black eyes had not missed a single detail.