Bones / Being Further Adventures in Mr. Commissioner Sanders' Country

gs in the Ochori country in the spring of the year of Wish. Nor all the facts associated

nd assembled them squatting expectantly at the foot of the little hillock, where sat Bosambo in his robes of office (unauthorized but no less magnificent), t

ent is jealous of self-appointed parliaments, for when men meet together in public conference, however innocent may b

y a handful of ragged soldiers so long as there is no concerted action again

s so filled with his own high plans and so warm and generous at heart at the thought of the benefits he might be conferring upon his

t mountains, from timber cuttings in the lower forest, higher chiefs and little chiefs, headmen and lesser headmen, till the

Notiki nudged his neighbour with a sharp elbow, f

us to give him s

ve of former chiefs of the Ochori, and no

ur, with his shining f

nted but s

because it is good that I should meet those who are in authority under me

three months ago. His audience may have forgotten the fact, but Notiki at least reco

o from you,"

f dismay, but Notiki's voic

spirit will walk these streets every night with big ears to listen to evil talk, and great big eyes to see the hearts of men. Yea, fr

ttered under his breath, "he

e mystery), "my lord Sandi has great need of me. For who of us is so wise that he can look into the heart and understand the sorrow-call which goes from brother to brother and from blood to blood

ur which he might interpret as an expression of his people's wi

ted from an unwilling peasantry; a suggestion of lazy men leaving the comfortable shade of their huts to hurry persp

its horrid lack of heartiness and wa

d the coast-to the land where even slaves wear trousers-carrying with me most wonderful presents that the name of

gathering, twiddling its toes and blandly avoiding his eye. Two moons before he had extr

ed, four and twenty canoes laden with the fruits of taxation had come to the Ochori city, and five only of

n man has seen, such as I and Sandi alone know in all this land. Go now, I tell thee, to your people in this country, telling them all that I hav

happen to such of us headmen who come without gifts in our hands for y

nt, "I shall not blame you, knowing that it is not because of your fault but because your peo

was concerned. He called a council

y farewell of the tribe. Not the least to be counted amongst those things to be done was the

ught than the necessity for so timing his movements that he did not come u

ecting hut tax along the Kisai river and there was also, as Bosambo well knew, a murder trial of great complexity waiting for his decision at Ikan. A headm

in the history of the Ochori when demands were far heavier, and made with great insolence by a people who bore the reputation of being immensely fearful. It had come t

er offerings to his lord. When all the gifts were laid on sheets of native cloth in the great space

Now he would have brought these and laid them at your lovely feet, but the roads through the forest are very evil, and there have been floods in

ed at him, t

that though there come no presents from him to me, I, his mast

ng of Bosambo's dexterity with a stick and fearing that the chief would loo

l visit your father. But because the roads are bad," he went on, "and the floods come even in this dry season," he said significantly, "and the forest is so entangled that he cannot bring his presents, sending only the son of his wife to me, he shall make against my coming such a road as shall be in width, the dis

oing Noti

Notiki se

send to the

which Bosam

aver is

t of the Ochori country from the edge of the river by the cataracts, even to the mountains of the grea

own the river with four canoes, each canoe painted beauti

y headman of an Isisi fishing village. The Zaire came into the river almost as the last of Bosambo's canoes went round the bend out of sight, and since a legend existed on the

rture from his city. His subsequent movements are somewhat obs

f his office-that he embarked with one headman and his wife on a coasting boat due for Sierra Leone, and that from that city came a long-winded demand in

l is going to desert

the Houss

nds which now stands to his credit here," he said. "Bosambo has felt the call of civ

y. "I have had a passionate protest from Notiki, one of his chiefs in the nort

ow parade ground past the Houssas hut in

after a while, as they mounted the broad w

shook

nd the murderer quite a person to be commended in the eyes of the public. The devil of it is," he said as he sank into his big chair with a sigh, "that had I hanged him it would n

u don't touch wood," s

sh stock-and the Scots