The Fire-Gods Part 15

In consequence, they reached the Creek in four and a half days. After halting for an hour, they continued their journey to the south, turning to the left from the route which led direct to Hippo Pool. They followed the course of the stream till sunset, and then camped for the night. Another day's march brought them to an open place by the side of the Creek, where the ground was too rocky for vegetation to flourish.

They had been conscious throughout the day's journey of going up-hill, and this was doubtless the foot of one of the spurs of the mountain they wished to gain. It was here they decided to camp.

They pitched their tent, and gathered a supply of firewood in the forest. The water of the stream was clear and good to drink. They were much pestered by insects of all descriptions, but this is inevitable in the heart of an equatorial forest, and not even the smoke of Crouch's tobacco served to keep away the millions of flies, mosquitoes and ants, to say nothing of less disagreeable companions, such as the most gorgeous b.u.t.terflies and gigantic dragon-flies and moths.

The following day the Loango boys departed upon their return journey to the Kasai. As had been the case before, they showed great eagerness to return. It seems that they could not rid their minds of the tales they had heard of the Fire-G.o.ds, and neither Crouch nor Edward could persuade them that the valley was not haunted by evil spirits.

During the days that followed the party suffered from want of meat. They had deemed it advisable not to shoot. Though they were still some distance from Makanda, there was always a chance that Caesar and his Arabs were somewhere abroad in the forest, and they did not wish the man to suspect that they had returned. In the forest they found nothing to eat but manioc, and a continual diet of the tubers of this peculiar plant is somewhat monotonous and is apt to set up a kind of blood poisoning, to which some people are more liable than others. Edward, whose large carca.s.s required a considerable amount of nourishment, began to suffer from some kind of bilious fever.

After a day's rest they set out upon their southward journey. Day by day as they progressed, the nature of the vegetation changed. The forest trees became thinner and not so large. The atmosphere became cooler and more rarefied. The slope grew steeper and steeper, until at last they were confronted by a sharp, rocky bluff which enclosed the jungle like a wall. They followed this to the left, and came presently to a gully, a dried-up watercourse, up which it was possible to climb.

At the top they found themselves upon a hillock--one of those bare, flat-topped eminences which are scattered throughout the whole continent of Africa. Hence it was possible to obtain a bird's-eye view of the country.

To the north, as far as the eye could reach, extended the forest through which they had pa.s.sed. About twenty miles to the eastward they could see the Kasai above Date Palm Island. To the west there was no sign of the Hidden River, which, being narrower and flowing in a direction almost due south to north, was hidden among the trees. To the south a magnificent panorama was extended to their view. The foreground fell away in a valley which, to some extent, had been given over to cultivation; and beyond, in rugged majesty, arose Solitude Peak. The great mountain towered into the sky, its crest wrapped in clouds; and over the valley hung a thin blue mist, above which some great bird of prey hung like a gnat, with outstretched wings, in the very midst of s.p.a.ce.

It was Max who was the first to see the village, half-way up the mountain slope, lying--as M'Wane had described it--like a bird's nest in the forked branches of a tree. He pointed it out to his companions, and then the party began to descend into the valley, one behind the other in single file, following a track which had been made by elephants. An elephant trail can never be mistaken; however hard the ground, the imprints of their great feet remain, and they have a habit of tearing branches from the trees as they pa.s.s, not so much for food, as from pure love of destruction.

It took them several hours to cross the valley, and then they began the steep ascent of the mountain. Suddenly M'Wane, who was leading, came to an abrupt standstill, and stood upon a sharp pinnacle of rock, pointing to the east. There was something n.o.ble in his dark, savage figure, standing upright, straight as a larch, in the midst of these wild surroundings. A moment later he was joined by the two Hardens and Crouch.

There, in the distance, they could discern the broad waters of the lake before Makanda. They could see the granite hills, which were red in the glow of the setting sun. They could see, also, the narrow gorge in the south, and far in the distance was a great range of undiscovered mountains. As they looked, a sound issued from the valley, which, like a long peal of distant thunder, rolled away to the north upon the wind, echoing through the forest.

CHAPTER XIV--"BLACK IVORY"

"The Fire-G.o.ds' thunder!" said M'Wane, in a kind of hushed whisper, with his lips parted and his eyes staring in the direction of the Hidden River.

It was obvious that the man was afraid. He belonged to a wild race that for centuries has roamed the jungle, catching fish in baskets at the waterfalls and setting traps in the forest. Until a few days before he had never seen a firearm in his life. He had heard tales of white men who were traders on the Coast, but he had never a.s.sociated these with the Fire-G.o.ds who inhabited the Hidden Valley, whom he regarded as superhuman.

Crouch looked at Edward. "What do you make of it?" he asked.

Harden was frowning in the direction of the valley. His fingers tugged at the end of his moustache. He was a man of few words, as we know.

"Dynamite," said he.

"I think so, too," said Crouch. "I wonder what his game is!"

In their immediate neighbourhood was a narrow stretch of gra.s.s--the coa.r.s.e, thin gra.s.s that is usually to be met with on the lower slopes of mountains. It was at this moment that Crouch's eye became fixed in the centre of this. He remained motionless for some seconds, and then on a sudden grasped Edward by the arm.

"There's a man there!" said he. "Look out!"

Simultaneously a black form sprang out of the gra.s.s and ran up the hill in the direction of the village. Crouch whipped round upon M'Wane and his Fans.

"After him!" he cried. "A reward if you catch him alive."

The four Fans set off as fast as they could go. The race lasted no longer than five minutes at the most. The fugitive seemed possessed of the agility of an antelope when startled from its midday slumber; he sprang over boulders, he dodged right and left like a snipe. But the Fans were fleeter of foot than he; at every stride they gained upon him, and in the end he was overtaken.

They brought him back to Crouch--a woeful, terrified object who had not the courage to lift his head. Crouch tried him with five languages, but he seemed not to understand, and only gave utterance to a few incoherent grunts. Then Crouch tried the "blood-bond," and this is not pleasant to describe. He took a knife from his pocket, opened a vein in his hand, and the native licked the wound. At that Crouch gave his knife to the man, who in turn inflicted a wound upon himself, and Crouch went through his part of the business with a heroism that Max was bound to admire.

They were now "blood-brothers," and that is a bond which is inviolable in the region of the Congo. Crouch made the man understand him by means of signs, in the art of which he was a master.

"I have one heart," said he, by which he conveyed the fact that he was no traitor, that his word could be relied on. "I wish to speak with the people of your village."

The man, pointing in the direction of Makanda, wanted to know whether Crouch and his companions were allies of the Fire-G.o.ds.

"No," said Crouch. "We are come to make war upon the Fire-G.o.ds."

The man but half believed that. None the less, he agreed to take them to the village. They urged him to set forward without delay, since it had already grown dark.

It was past nightfall when they arrived at a narrow street of small, rounded huts, constructed of bamboo stems and palm leaves. Despite the fact that they came with one of the villagers, the majority of the inhabitants fled at their approach. This wild people were timid, shy as animals; also, as we shall see, they stood in a mortal fear of Caesar and his Arabs.

As they approached the village, Crouch managed to gain the confidence of their captive. Where natives were concerned the little sea-captain had a way with him. The man promised that if they would wait till the morning he would persuade his friends to attend a palaver.

That night they had the village to themselves. The inhabitants--men, women and children--had disappeared into the valley, where they spent the night in fear and trembling. This is the common behaviour of many uncivilized peoples when, for the first time in their lives, they behold the indomitable white man. And these villagers had the greater reason to be fearful, since they a.s.sociated the explorers with the Fire-G.o.ds.

Fortunately, they had fled in such haste that they had left most of their provisions in their huts. Crouch and his companions enjoyed a change of diet. That night they dined upon the flesh of a goat, which they resolved to pay for on the morrow, besides plantains and Indian corn.

They took turn and turn about to keep watch throughout the night, but there was no alarm. At daybreak they stationed themselves upon an eminence above the village, hoping that the inhabitants would summon up courage to return. Below them was the cultivated ground through which they had pa.s.sed the previous evening. The greater part had been given over to the culture of ground-nuts; but there were also small patches of Indian corn and banana groves. The explorer who wishes to succeed with the untutored savage must possess his soul in patience by the hour.

Crouch sat down and lit his pipe.

Shortly before midday, several dusky figures appeared from out of the jungle, and made their way to the plantation. There they remained in a body, frightened to come nearer; and by the aid of his field-gla.s.s, Max was able to make out the figure of Crouch's "blood-brother" who, gesticulating wildly, endeavoured to persuade his friends and relations to return.

Seeing that this was going to be a long business, Crouch suggested that they should walk down to the village and partake of food. Since their hosts were unwilling to entertain them, it only remained for them to help themselves. This they did with liberality, for they had the appet.i.tes of lions.

They were in the middle of their repast when they heard the sound of running feet and a great commotion. Looking up they beheld one of the women of the village running towards them well-nigh panic-stricken, and filling the air with screams. This woman rushed into a hut, and came out again with all her portable belongings.

By then the little street was crowded with old men, women and children, wringing their hands in desperation, and uttering such moans and supplications as were heartrending to listen to. It was remarkable that among the crowd there were not more than five young men at the most; the majority were women, and of the children there were few who were not three years of age.

Crouch looked about him, and caught sight of his "blood-brother," who was no less distracted than the rest. He laid hold of this fellow by the arm, and with great difficulty managed to discover what had happened.

The "blood-brother" had just persuaded his relatives to return to the village; he had explained, at last, to their satisfaction that the new white men were not the servants of the Fire-G.o.ds, when suddenly the Fire-G.o.ds themselves had been seen approaching up the valley. At that, the whole population had taken to their heels. They knew not where they were going, for it was the custom of the Fire-G.o.ds to come upon them from both sides at once, and if they tried to escape they were shot without mercy. The great Fire-G.o.d was there himself--the tall, white man with the black beard--and it was he whom they feared even more than the Arabs.

Crouch looked at Edward. There was a twinkle in his eye.

"There's going to be fun," said he.

"It will come to a fight," said Edward; "and I'm not sorry for that."

"I hope it won't," said Crouch. "There are many things we ought to find out before we come to blows. As far as I can understand from my worthy 'blood-brother,' Caesar is coming here for palaver. They'll hold palaver in the street; and if we hide in a hut we ought to overhear what the advertis.e.m.e.nts in the newspapers call 'something to our advantage.'"

"I see," said Edward; "and if we're discovered, we fight."

"Exactly," said Crouch. "That's the idea."

It so happened that they had placed their "loads" in one of the huts where they would not be seen by Caesar as he entered the village. It was all Crouch could do to explain to his "blood-brother" that they desired to hide, that the Fire-G.o.ds must not be told of their presence in the village. After a while, the man seemed to understand; but, indeed, he stood in such dread of the Portuguese that it was extremely doubtful whether he was wholly responsible for what he was saying.

Crowded together in one of the small huts the three Englishmen and the four Fans awaited the arrival of the Fire-G.o.ds. They were astonished at what they beheld--the abject consternation and alarm of the villagers, who now appeared a cowered and servile race. Never for one moment did it seem to occur to the few men among them to take up arms, in spite of the fact that the Pambala--to whom they were obviously related--are a warlike and courageous people.

The reason for their cowardice was obvious. They did not fear the Portuguese without a cause. They had learnt to their cost that Caesar was a man to be dreaded.