held in the village. Before Kawawa even heard the
defense, he said, "You have killed one of my children; bring all yours
before me, that I may choose which of them shall be mine instead." The
wife eloquently defended herself, but this availed little, for these
accusations are the means resorted to by some chiefs to secure subjects
for the slave-market. He probably thought that I had come to purchase
slaves, though I had already given a pretty full explanation of my
pursuits both to himself and his people. We exhibited the pictures of
the magic lantern in the evening, and all were delighted except Kawawa
himself. He showed symptoms of dread, and several times started up as
if to run away, but was prevented by the crowd behind. Some of the more
intelligent understood the explanations well, and expatiated eloquently
on them to the more obtuse. Nothing could exceed the civilities which
had passed between us during this day; but Kawawa had heard that the
Chiboque had forced us to pay an ox, and now thought he might do the
same. When, therefore, I sent next morning to let him know that we were
ready to start, he replied in his figurative way, "If an ox came in the
way of a man, ought he not to eat it? I had given one to the Chiboque,
and must give him the same, together with a gun, gunpowder, and a black
robe, like that he had seen spread out to dry the day before; that, if
I refused an ox, I must give one of my men, and a book by which he might
see the state of Matiamvo's heart toward him, and which would forewarn
him, should Matiamvo ever resolve to cut off his head." Kawawa came
in the coolest manner possible to our encampment after sending this
message, and told me he had seen all our goods, and must have all he
asked, as he had command of the Kasai in our front, and would prevent
us from passing it unless we paid this tribute. I replied that the goods
were my property and not his; that I would never have it said that a
white man had paid tribute to a black, and that I should cross the Kasai
in spite of him. He ordered his people to arm themselves, and when some
of my men saw them rushing for their bows, arrows, and spears, they
became somewhat panic-stricken. I ordered them to move away, and not to
fire unless Kawawa's people struck the first blow. I took the lead, and
expected them all to follow, as they usually had done, but many of my
men remained behind. When I knew this, I jumped off the ox, and made
a rush to them w