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Updated: June 16, 2025
N'yamgundu, however, did not think this advisable, and so we went on as we were doing.
I then promised I would do what I could when I reached the palace, but feared to do anything in the distance. I wished to go on with the march, but was dissuaded by N'yamgundu, who said he had received orders to find me some cows here, as his king was most anxious I should be well fed.
This little interruption over, the articles enumerated below were conveyed to the palace in solemn procession thus: With N'yamgundu, Maula, the pages, and myself on the flanks, the Union-Jack carried by the kirangozi guide led the way, followed by twelve men as a guard of honour, dressed in red flannel cloaks, and carrying their arms sloped, with fixed bayonets; whilst in their rear were the rest of my men, each carrying some article as a present.
Arrived there, he sent in to say he had brought medicine, and waited without a reply till nightfall, when, tired of his charge, he gave the quinine into N'yamgundu's hands for delivery, and returned h home. Soon after, however, N'yamgundu also returned to say the queen would not take the dose to-day, but hoped I would administer it personally in the morning.
Now everything had to be told to Bombay, then to Nasib, my Kiganda interpreter, and then to either Maula or N'yamgundu, before it was delivered to the king, for it was considered indecorous to transmit any message to his majesty excepting through the medium of one of his officers.
Without uttering a sound the young man resisted, until N'yamgundu told them to be quiet, for he would hold a court on the subject, and see if the young man could defend himself.
N'yamgundu seeing this, as he knew the young man was not entitled to wear it, immediately ordered his "children" to wrench it from him. Two ruffianly fellows then seized him by his hands, and twisted his arms round and round until I thought they would come out of their sockets.
N'yamgundu delighted me much: treating me as king, he always fell down on his knees to address me, and made all his "children" look after my comfort in camp.
The ruffians then sat on the ground, but still holding on to him; whilst N'yamgundu took up a long stick, and breaking it into sundry bits of equal length, placed one by one in front of him, each of which was supposed to represent one number in line of succession to his forefathers. By this it was proved he did not branch in any way from the royal stock.
The result was, that he waited for the interpretation, and replied that a post would be no use, for no one would be responsible for the safe delivery of the message; he would send N'yamgundu to fetch him, but he thought Rumanika would not consent to his sending boats up the Kitangule as far as the Little Windermere; and then, turning round with true Mganda impetuosity, he walked away without taking a word from me in exchange.
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