than a
child does on the granite rock which he chips at with a chisel. How many
real Christians are there in Zululand and Natal, and of that select and
saintly band how many practise monogamy? But very few, and among those
few there is a large proportion of bad characters, men who have
adopted Christianity as a last resource. I mean no disrespect to the
missionaries, many of whom are good men, doing their best under the most
unpromising conditions, though some are simply traders and political
agitators. But the fact remains the same. Christianity makes no
appreciable progress amongst the Zulu natives, whilst, on the other
hand, no one having any experience in the country will, if he can avoid
it, have a so-called Christian Kafir in his house, because the term is
but too frequently synonymous with that of drunkard and thief. I do not
wish it to be understood that it is the fact of his Christianity that so
degrades the Zulu, because I do not think it has anything to do with it.
It is only that the novice, standing on the threshold of civilisation,
as a rule finds the vices of the white man more congenial than his
virtues.

The Zulus are as difficult to convince of the truths of Christianity as
were the Jews, whom they so much resemble in their customs. They have a
natural disinclination to believe that which they cannot see, and, being
constitutionally very clever and casuistical, are prepared to argue each
individual point with an ability very trying to missionaries. It was one
of these Zulus, known as the Intelligent Zulu, but in reality no more
intelligent than his fellows, whose shrewd remarks first caused doubts
to arise in the mind of Bishop Colenso, and through him in those of
thousands of others.

Another difficulty in the way of the Missionary is, that he is obliged
to insist on the putting away of surplus wives, and thus to place
himself out of court at the outset. It is quite conceivable that in the
opinion of wild and savage men, it is preferable to let the new teaching
alone, rather than to adopt it at the cost of such a radical change
in their domestic arrangements. As a case in point I may quote that of
Hlubi, the Basutu appointed chief of one of the divisions of Zululand,
by Sir G. Wolseley. Hlubi is at heart a Christian, and a good man, and
anxious to be baptized. The missionaries, however, refuse to baptize
him, because he has two wives. Hlubi therefore remains a heathen,
saying, not unnaturally, that