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I think, 'Nkos', that if you would go now with me to Mafuta's hut, perhaps taking with you as a gift another handkerchief such as this, the nyanga would be willing to grant your request." "You think so?" I said. "Then in that case let us go."
The week had been not altogether unprofitably spent in other respects, the two white men assiduously devoting themselves, with Mafuta's assistance, to the study of the native language, varied occasionally, on Dick's part, by a little botanising during which he discovered some half a dozen plants that seemed to possess valuable properties and the taming of the lion cub, which, after the first two or three days of captivity, responded with ever-growing alacrity to his young master's advances, until by the end of six weeks he had learned to answer to the name of Leo, to come at Dick's call or whistle, and, in short, had become as tame as a dog.
Then, so gradually that I knew not when the change began, I lost consciousness of everything except the gleaming disk and the sound of Mafuta's voice, from which all semblance of words had passed.
Then the disk seemed slowly to fade out of sight, Mafuta's voice died away to silence, and I found myself seemingly standing upon gently rising ground, with a native village, of such dimensions that it deserved rather the name of a town, about a quarter of a mile distant on my left front.
And with her disappearance the whole scene vanished and I found myself back in Mafuta's hut, with the disk still gleaming brightly out of the deep shadow, and Mafuta still squatting on his heels in the centre of the floor. "Well, white man," he said, as I came to myself, "have you seen aught?"
Here again Mafuta's knowledge proved to be of the utmost value, for he was able to guide the party to a spot where the river was fordable, and where they succeeded in effecting a crossing that same evening before sunset. Once safely arrived on the left bank of the river, Grosvenor and Dick decided to camp for a few days, in order to give the oxen a rest, the grass being good.
For some minutes they remained silent and motionless, waiting for a repetition of the sound, while the camp-fire glittered brightly, lighting up the expressive countenance of our hero, and causing the whites of Mafuta's eyes to glisten. Again they heard the growl much nearer than before, and it became evident that the lion was intent on claiming hospitality.
And, thus saying, the man went and squatted himself upon his heels in the centre of the floor, and began to chant, in a low, monotonous voice, certain words the meaning of which I could not comprehend. For a few minutes nothing particular seemed to happen: the disk continued to shine strongly in the midst of the deep shadow, and Mafuta's low, monotonous song went on.
The unhappy victim, thus "smelled out," would thereupon be instantly taken in charge by Mafuta's followers, and the process would be repeated until all those whose removal was desired had been gathered in. In the present case the victims numbered nearly a hundred, and the finding of them consumed the best part of two hours.
This speech also Mafuta translated, with an air of mingled hauteur and humility which was amusing enough to Dick and Grosvenor. For answer the king stood up and, laying his hand upon Mafuta's shoulder, looked piercingly into the man's eyes for the space of a full minute or more.
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