CHAPTER 11. WE GIVE A SIGN

For a long while--two hours, I should think--we sat there in silence,

being too much overwhelmed by the recollection of the horrors we had

seen to talk. At last, just as we were thinking of turning in--for the

night drew nigh to dawn--we heard a sound of steps. Then came the

challenge of a sentry posted at the kraal gate, which apparently was

answered, though not in an audible tone, for the steps still advanced;

and in another second Infadoos had entered the hut, followed by some

half-dozen stately-looking chiefs.

"My lords," he said, "I have come according to my word. My lords and

Ignosi, rightful king of the Kukuanas, I have brought with me these

men," pointing to the row of chiefs, "who are great men among us,

having each one of them the command of three thousand soldiers, that

live but to do their bidding, under the king's. I have told them of

what I have seen, and what my ears have heard. Now let them also

behold the sacred snake around thee, and hear thy story, Ignosi, that

they may say whether or no they will make cause with thee against

Twala the king."

By way of answer Ignosi again stripped off his girdle, and exhibited

the snake tattooed about him. Each chief in turn drew near and

examined the sign by the dim light of the lamp, and without saying a

word passed on to the other side.

Then Ignosi resumed his moocha, and addressing them, repeated the

history he had detailed in the morning.

"Now ye have heard, chiefs," said Infadoos, when he had done, "what

say ye: will ye stand by this man and help him to his father's throne,

or will ye not? The land cries out against Twala, and the blood of the

people flows like the waters in spring. Ye have seen to-night. Two

other chiefs there were with whom I had it in my mind to speak, and

where are they now? The hyænas howl over their corpses. Soon shall ye

be as they are if ye strike not. Choose then, my brothers."

The eldest of the six men, a short, thick-set warrior, with white

hair, stepped forward a pace and answered--

"Thy words are true, Infadoos; the land cries out. My own brother is

among those who died to-night; but this is a great matter, and the

thing is hard to believe. How know we that if we lift our spears it

may not be for a thief and a liar? It is a great matter, I say, of

which none can see the end. For of this be sure, blood will flow in

rivers before the deed is done; many will still cleave to the king,

for men worship the sun that still shines bright in the heavens,

rather than that which has not risen. These white men from the Stars,

their magic is great, and Ignosi is under the cover of their wing. If

he be indeed the rightful king, let them give us a sign, and let the

people have a sign, that all may see. So shall men cleave to us,

knowing of a truth that the white man's magic is with them."

"Ye have the sign of the snake," I answered.

"My lord, it is not enough. The snake may have been placed there since

the man's childhood. Show us a sign, and it will suffice. But we will

not move without a sign."

The others gave a decided assent, and I turned in perplexity to Sir

Henry and Good, and explained the situation.

"I think that I have it," said Good exultingly; "ask them to give us a

moment to think."

I did so, and the chiefs withdrew. So soon as they had gone Good went

to the little box where he kept his medicines, unlocked it, and took

out a note-book, in the fly-leaves of which was an almanack. "Now look

here, you fellows, isn't to-morrow the 4th of June?" he said.

We had kept a careful note of the days, so were able to answer that it

was.

"Very good; then here we have it--'4 June, total eclipse of the moon

commences at 8.15 Greenwich time, visible in Teneriffe--/South

Africa/, &c.' There's a sign for you. Tell them we will darken the

moon to-morrow night."

The idea was a splendid one; indeed, the only weak spot about it was a

fear lest Good's almanack might be incorrect. If we made a false

prophecy on such a subject, our prestige would be gone for ever, and

so would Ignosi's chance of the throne of the Kukuanas.

"Suppose that the almanack is wrong," suggested Sir Henry to Good, who

was busily employed in working out something on a blank page of the

book.

"I see no reason to suppose anything of the sort," was his answer.

"Eclipses always come up to time; at least that is my experience of

them, and it especially states that this one will be visible in South

Africa. I have worked out the reckonings as well as I can, without

knowing our exact position; and I make out that the eclipse should

begin here about ten o'clock tomorrow night, and last till half-past

twelve. For an hour and a half or so there should be almost total

darkness."

"Well," said Sir Henry, "I suppose we had better risk it."

I acquiesced, though doubtfully, for eclipses are queer cattle to deal

with--it might be a cloudy night, for instance, or our dates might be

wrong--and sent Umbopa to summon the chiefs back. Presently they came,

and I addressed them thus--

"Great men of the Kukuanas, and thou, Infadoos, listen. We love not to

show our powers, for to do so is to interfere with the course of

nature, and to plunge the world into fear and confusion. But since

this matter is a great one, and as we are angered against the king

because of the slaughter we have seen, and because of the act of the

/Isanusi/ Gagool, who would have put our friend Ignosi to death, we

have determined to break a rule, and to give such a sign as all men

may see. Come hither"; and I led them to the door of the hut and

pointed to the red ball of the moon. "What see ye there?"

"We see the sinking moon," answered the spokesman of the party.

"It is so. Now tell me, can any mortal man put out that moon before

her hour of setting, and bring the curtain of black night down upon

the land?"

The chief laughed a little at the question. "No, my lord, that no man

can do. The moon is stronger than man who looks on her, nor can she

vary in her courses."

"Ye say so. Yet I tell you that to-morrow night, about two hours

before midnight, we will cause the moon to be eaten up for a space of

an hour and half an hour. Yes, deep darkness shall cover the earth,

and it shall be for a sign that Ignosi is indeed king of the Kukuanas.

If we do this thing, will ye be satisfied?"

"Yea, my lords," answered the old chief with a smile, which was

reflected on the faces of his companions; "/if/ ye do this thing, we

will be satisfied indeed."

"It shall be done; we three, Incubu, Bougwan, and Macumazahn, have

said it, and it shall be done. Dost thou hear, Infadoos?"

"I hear, my lord, but it is a wonderful thing that ye promise, to put

out the moon, the mother of the world, when she is at her full."

"Yet shall we do it, Infadoos."

"It is well, my lords. To-day, two hours after sunset, Twala will send

for my lords to witness the girls dance, and one hour after the dance

begins the girl whom Twala thinks the fairest shall be killed by

Scragga, the king's son, as a sacrifice to the Silent Ones, who sit

and keep watch by the mountains yonder," and he pointed towards the

three strange-looking peaks where Solomon's road was supposed to end.

"Then let my lords darken the moon, and save the maiden's life, and

the people will believe indeed."

"Ay," said the old chief, still smiling a little, "the people will

believe indeed."

"Two miles from Loo," went on Infadoos, "there is a hill curved like a

new moon, a stronghold, where my regiment, and three other regiments

which these chiefs command, are stationed. This morning we will make a

plan whereby two or three other regiments may be moved there also.

Then, if in truth my lords can darken the moon, in the darkness I will

take my lords by the hand and lead them out of Loo to this place,

where they shall be safe, and thence we can make war upon Twala the

king."

"It is good," said I. "Let leave us to sleep awhile and to make ready

our magic."

Infadoos rose, and, having saluted us, departed with the chiefs.

"My friends," said Ignosi, so soon as they were gone, "can ye do this

wonderful thing, or were ye speaking empty words to the captains?"

"We believe that we can do it, Umbopa--Ignosi, I mean."

"It is strange," he answered, "and had ye not been Englishmen I would

not have believed it; but I have learned that English 'gentlemen' tell

no lies. If we live through the matter, be sure that I will repay

you."

"Ignosi," said Sir Henry, "promise me one thing."

"I will promise, Incubu, my friend, even before I hear it," answered

the big man with a smile. "What is it?"

"This: that if ever you come to be king of this people you will do

away with the smelling out of wizards such as we saw last night; and

that the killing of men without trial shall no longer take place in

the land."

Ignosi thought for a moment after I had translated this request, and

then answered--

"The ways of black people are not as the ways of white men, Incubu,

nor do we value life so highly. Yet I will promise. If it be in my

power to hold them back, the witch-finders shall hunt no more, nor

shall any man die the death without trial or judgment."

"That's a bargain, then," said Sir Henry; "and now let us get a little

rest."

Thoroughly wearied out, we were soon sound asleep, and slept till

Ignosi woke us about eleven o'clock. Then we rose, washed, and ate a

hearty breakfast. After that we went outside the hut and walked about,

amusing ourselves with examining the structure of the Kukuana huts and

observing the customs of the women.

"I hope that eclipse will come off," said Sir Henry presently.

"If it does not it will soon be all up with us," I answered

mournfully; "for so sure as we are living men some of those chiefs

will tell the whole story to the king, and then there will be another

sort of eclipse, and one that we shall certainly not like."

Returning to the hut we ate some dinner, and passed the rest of the

day in receiving visits of ceremony and curiosity. At length the sun

set, and we enjoyed a couple of hours of such quiet as our melancholy

forebodings would allow to us. Finally, about half-past eight, a

messenger came from Twala to bid us to the great annual "dance of

girls" which was about to be celebrated.

Hastily we put on the chain shirts that the king had sent us, and

taking our rifles and ammunition with us, so as to have them handy in

case we had to fly, as suggested by Infadoos, we started boldly

enough, though with inward fear and trembling. The great space in

front of the king's kraal bore a very different appearance from that

which it had presented on the previous evening. In place of the grim

ranks of serried warriors were company after company of Kukuana girls,

not over-dressed, so far as clothing went, but each crowned with a

wreath of flowers, and holding a palm leaf in one hand and a white

arum lily in the other. In the centre of the open moonlit space sat

Twala the king, with old Gagool at his feet, attended by Infadoos, the

boy Scragga, and twelve guards. There were also present about a score

of chiefs, amongst whom I recognised most of our friends of the night

before.

Twala greeted us with much apparent cordiality, though I saw him fix

his one eye viciously on Umbopa.

"Welcome, white men from the Stars," he said; "this is another sight

from that which your eyes gazed on by the light of last night's moon,

but it is not so good a sight. Girls are pleasant, and were it not for

such as these," and he pointed round him, "we should none of us be

here this day; but men are better. Kisses and the tender words of

women are sweet, but the sound of the clashing of the spears of

warriors, and the smell of men's blood, are sweeter far! Would ye have

wives from among our people, white men? If so, choose the fairest

here, and ye shall have them, as many as ye will," and he paused for

an answer.

As the prospect did not seem to be without attractions for Good, who,

like most sailors, is of a susceptible nature,--being elderly and

wise, foreseeing the endless complications that anything of the sort

would involve, for women bring trouble so surely as the night follows

the day, I put in a hasty answer--

"Thanks to thee, O king, but we white men wed only with white women

like ourselves. Your maidens are fair, but they are not for us!"

The king laughed. "It is well. In our land there is a proverb which

runs, 'Women's eyes are always bright, whatever the colour,' and

another that says, 'Love her who is present, for be sure she who is

absent is false to thee;' but perhaps these things are not so in the

Stars. In a land where men are white all things are possible. So be

it, white men; the girls will not go begging! Welcome again; and

welcome, too, thou black one; if Gagool here had won her way, thou

wouldst have been stiff and cold by now. It is lucky for thee that

thou too camest from the Stars; ha! ha!"

"I can kill thee before thou killest me, O king," was Ignosi's calm

answer, "and thou shalt be stiff before my limbs cease to bend."

Twala started. "Thou speakest boldly, boy," he replied angrily;

"presume not too far."

"He may well be bold in whose lips are truth. The truth is a sharp

spear which flies home and misses not. It is a message from 'the

Stars,' O king."

Twala scowled, and his one eye gleamed fiercely, but he said nothing

more.

"Let the dance begin," he cried, and then the flower-crowned girls

sprang forward in companies, singing a sweet song and waving the

delicate palms and white lilies. On they danced, looking faint and

spiritual in the soft, sad light of the risen moon; now whirling round

and round, now meeting in mimic warfare, swaying, eddying here and

there, coming forward, falling back in an ordered confusion delightful

to witness. At last they paused, and a beautiful young woman sprang

out of the ranks and began to pirouette in front of us with a grace

and vigour which would have put most ballet girls to shame. At length

she retired exhausted, and another took her place, then another and

another, but none of them, either in grace, skill, or personal

attractions, came up to the first.

When the chosen girls had all danced, the king lifted his hand.

"Which deem ye the fairest, white men?" he asked.

"The first," said I unthinkingly. Next second I regretted it, for I

remembered that Infadoos had told us that the fairest woman must be

offered up as a sacrifice.

"Then is my mind as your minds, and my eyes as your eyes. She is the

fairest! and a sorry thing it is for her, for she must die!"

"/Ay, must die!/" piped out Gagool, casting a glance of her quick eyes

in the direction of the poor girl, who, as yet ignorant of the awful

fate in store for her, was standing some ten yards off in front of a

company of maidens, engaged in nervously picking a flower from her

wreath to pieces, petal by petal.

"Why, O king?" said I, restraining my indignation with difficulty;

"the girl has danced well, and pleased us; she is fair too; it would

be hard to reward her with death."

Twala laughed as he answered--

"It is our custom, and the figures who sit in stone yonder," and he

pointed towards the three distant peaks, "must have their due. Did I

fail to put the fairest girl to death to-day, misfortune would fall

upon me and my house. Thus runs the prophecy of my people: 'If the

king offer not a sacrifice of a fair girl, on the day of the dance of

maidens, to the Old Ones who sit and watch on the mountains, then

shall he fall, and his house.' Look ye, white men, my brother who

reigned before me offered not the sacrifice, because of the tears of

the woman, and he fell, and his house, and I reign in his stead. It is

finished; she must die!" Then turning to the guards--"Bring her

hither; Scragga, make sharp thy spear."

Two of the men stepped forward, and as they advanced, the girl, for

the first time realising her impending fate, screamed aloud and turned

to fly. But the strong hands caught her fast, and brought her,

struggling and weeping, before us.

"What is thy name, girl?" piped Gagool. "What! wilt thou not answer?

Shall the king's son do his work at once?"

At this hint, Scragga, looking more evil than ever, advanced a step

and lifted his great spear, and at that moment I saw Good's hand creep

to his revolver. The poor girl caught the faint glint of steel through

her tears, and it sobered her anguish. She ceased struggling, and

clasping her hands convulsively, stood shuddering from head to foot.

"See," cried Scragga in high glee, "she shrinks from the sight of my

little plaything even before she has tasted it," and he tapped the

broad blade of his spear.

"If ever I get the chance you shall pay for that, you young hound!" I

heard Good mutter beneath his breath.

"Now that thou art quiet, give us thy name, my dear. Come, speak out,

and fear not," said Gagool in mockery.

"Oh, mother," answered the girl, in trembling accents, "my name is

Foulata, of the house of Suko. Oh, mother, why must I die? I have done

no wrong!"

"Be comforted," went on the old woman in her hateful tone of mockery.

"Thou must die, indeed, as a sacrifice to the Old Ones who sit

yonder," and she pointed to the peaks; "but it is better to sleep in

the night than to toil in the daytime; it is better to die than to

live, and thou shalt die by the royal hand of the king's own son."

The girl Foulata wrung her hands in anguish, and cried out aloud, "Oh,

cruel! and I so young! What have I done that I should never again see

the sun rise out of the night, or the stars come following on his

track in the evening, that I may no more gather the flowers when the

dew is heavy, or listen to the laughing of the waters? Woe is me, that

I shall never see my father's hut again, nor feel my mother's kiss,

nor tend the lamb that is sick! Woe is me, that no lover shall put his

arm around me and look into my eyes, nor shall men children be born of

me! Oh, cruel, cruel!"

And again she wrung her hands and turned her tear-stained flower-

crowned face to Heaven, looking so lovely in her despair--for she was

indeed a beautiful woman--that assuredly the sight of her would have

melted the hearts of any less cruel than were the three fiends before

us. Prince Arthur's appeal to the ruffians who came to blind him was

not more touching than that of this savage girl.

But it did not move Gagool or Gagool's master, though I saw signs of

pity among the guards behind, and on the faces of the chiefs; and as

for Good, he gave a fierce snort of indignation, and made a motion as

though to go to her assistance. With all a woman's quickness, the

doomed girl interpreted what was passing in his mind, and by a sudden

movement flung herself before him, and clasped his "beautiful white

legs" with her hands.

"Oh, white father from the Stars!" she cried, "throw over me the

mantle of thy protection; let me creep into the shadow of thy

strength, that I may be saved. Oh, keep me from these cruel men and

from the mercies of Gagool!"

"All right, my hearty, I'll look after you," sang out Good in nervous

Saxon. "Come, get up, there's a good girl," and he stooped and caught

her hand.

Twala turned and motioned to his son, who advanced with his spear

lifted.

"Now's your time," whispered Sir Henry to me; "what are you waiting

for?"

"I am waiting for that eclipse," I answered; "I have had my eye on the

moon for the last half-hour, and I never saw it look healthier."

"Well, you must risk it now, or the girl will be killed. Twala is

losing patience."

Recognising the force of the argument, and having cast one more

despairing look at the bright face of the moon, for never did the most

ardent astronomer with a theory to prove await a celestial event with

such anxiety, I stepped with all the dignity that I could command

between the prostrate girl and the advancing spear of Scragga.

"King," I said, "it shall not be; we will not endure this thing; let

the girl go in safety."

Twala rose from his seat in wrath and astonishment, and from the

chiefs and serried ranks of maidens who had closed in slowly upon us

in anticipation of the tragedy came a murmur of amazement.

"/Shall not be!/ thou white dog, that yappest at the lion in his cave;

/shall not be!/ art thou mad? Be careful, lest this chicken's fate

overtake thee, and those with thee. How canst thou save her or

thyself? Who art thou that thou settest thyself between me and my

will? Back, I say. Scragga, kill her! Ho, guards! seize these men."

At his cry armed men ran swiftly from behind the hut, where they had

evidently been placed beforehand.

Sir Henry, Good, and Umbopa ranged themselves alongside of me, and

lifted their rifles.

"Stop!" I shouted boldly, though at the moment my heart was in my

boots. "Stop! we, the white men from the Stars, say that it shall not

be. Come but one pace nearer, and we will put out the moon like a

wind-blown lamp, as we who dwell in her House can do, and plunge the

land in darkness. Dare to disobey, and ye shall taste of our magic."

My threat produced an effect; the men halted, and Scragga stood still

before us, his spear lifted.

"Hear him! hear him!" piped Gagool; "hear the liar who says that he

will put out the moon like a lamp. Let him do it, and the girl shall

be speared. Yes, let him do it, or die by the girl, he and those with

him."

I glanced up at the moon despairingly, and now to my intense joy and

relief saw that we--or rather the almanack--had made no mistake. On

the edge of the great orb lay a faint rim of shadow, while a smoky hue

grew and gathered upon its bright surface. Never shall I forget that

supreme, that superb moment of relief.

Then I lifted my hand solemnly towards the sky, an example which Sir

Henry and Good followed, and quoted a line or two from the "Ingoldsby

Legends" at it in the most impressive tones that I could command. Sir

Henry followed suit with a verse out of the Old Testament, and

something about Balbus building a wall, in Latin, whilst Good

addressed the Queen of Night in a volume of the most classical bad

language which he could think of.

Slowly the penumbra, the shadow of a shadow, crept on over the bright

surface, and as it crept I heard deep gasps of fear rising from the

multitude around.

"Look, O king!" I cried; "look, Gagool! Look, chiefs and people and

women, and see if the white men from the Stars keep their word, or if

they be but empty liars!

"The moon grows black before your eyes; soon there will be darkness--

ay, darkness in the hour of the full moon. Ye have asked for a sign;

it is given to you. Grow dark, O Moon! withdraw thy light, thou pure

and holy One; bring the proud heart of usurping murderers to the dust,

and eat up the world with shadows."

A groan of terror burst from the onlookers. Some stood petrified with

dread, others threw themselves upon their knees and cried aloud. As

for the king, he sat still and turned pale beneath his dusky skin.

Only Gagool kept her courage.

"It will pass," she cried; "I have often seen the like before; no man

can put out the moon; lose not heart; sit still--the shadow will

pass."

"Wait, and ye shall see," I replied, hopping with excitement. "O Moon!

Moon! Moon! wherefore art thou so cold and fickle?" This appropriate

quotation was from the pages of a popular romance that I chanced to

have read recently, though now I come to think of it, it was

ungrateful of me to abuse the Lady of the Heavens, who was showing

herself to be the truest of friends to us, however she may have

behaved to the impassioned lover in the novel. Then I added: "Keep it

up, Good, I can't remember any more poetry. Curse away, there's a good

fellow."

Good responded nobly to this tax upon his inventive faculties. Never

before had I the faintest conception of the breadth and depth and

height of a naval officer's objurgatory powers. For ten minutes he

went on in several languages without stopping, and he scarcely ever

repeated himself.

Meanwhile the dark ring crept on, while all that great assembly fixed

their eyes upon the sky and stared and stared in fascinated silence.

Strange and unholy shadows encroached upon the moonlight, an ominous

quiet filled the place. Everything grew still as death. Slowly and in

the midst of this most solemn silence the minutes sped away, and while

they sped the full moon passed deeper and deeper into the shadow of

the earth, as the inky segment of its circle slid in awful majesty

across the lunar craters. The great pale orb seemed to draw near and

to grow in size. She turned a coppery hue, then that portion of her

surface which was unobscured as yet grew grey and ashen, and at

length, as totality approached, her mountains and her plains were to

be seen glowing luridly through a crimson gloom.

On, yet on, crept the ring of darkness; it was now more than half

across the blood-red orb. The air grew thick, and still more deeply

tinged with dusky crimson. On, yet on, till we could scarcely see the

fierce faces of the group before us. No sound rose now from the

spectators, and at last Good stopped swearing.

"The moon is dying--the white wizards have killed the moon," yelled

the prince Scragga at last. "We shall all perish in the dark," and

animated by fear or fury, or by both, he lifted his spear and drove it

with all his force at Sir Henry's breast. But he forgot the mail

shirts that the king had given us, and which we wore beneath our

clothing. The steel rebounded harmless, and before he could repeat the

blow Curtis had snatched the spear from his hand and sent it straight

through him.

Scragga dropped dead.

At the sight, and driven mad with fear of the gathering darkness, and

of the unholy shadow which, as they believed, was swallowing the moon,

the companies of girls broke up in wild confusion, and ran screeching

for the gateways. Nor did the panic stop there. The king himself,

followed by his guards, some of the chiefs, and Gagool, who hobbled

away after them with marvellous alacrity, fled for the huts, so that

in another minute we ourselves, the would-be victim Foulata, Infadoos,

and most of the chiefs who had interviewed us on the previous night,

were left alone upon the scene, together with the dead body of

Scragga, Twala's son.

"Chiefs," I said, "we have given you the sign. If ye are satisfied,

let us fly swiftly to the place of which ye spoke. The charm cannot

now be stopped. It will work for an hour and the half of an hour. Let

us cover ourselves in the darkness."

"Come," said Infadoos, turning to go, an example which was followed by

the awed captains, ourselves, and the girl Foulata, whom Good took by

the arm.

Before we reached the gate of the kraal the moon went out utterly, and

from every quarter of the firmament the stars rushed forth into the

inky sky.

Holding each other by the hand we stumbled on through the darkness.

Read next: CHAPTER 12. BEFORE THE BATTLE

Read previous: CHAPTER 10. THE WITCH-HUNT

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