United States or Isle of Man ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
There had been no rain for about a fortnight. "Well," I replied, "you are the rainmaker; why don't you give your people rain?" "Give my people rain!" said Katchiba. "I give them rain if they don't give me goats? You don't know my people; if I am fool enough to give them rain before they give me the goats, they would let me starve!
"Just my opinion!" said Katchiba, delighted; "in four or perhaps in five days I intend to give them one shower; just one shower; yes, I'll just step down to them now, and tell the rascals, that if they will bring me some goats by this evening, and some corn tomorrow morning, I will give them in four or five days just one shower."
I shall be grateful should the day ever arrive once more to see Old England." Both my wife and I were excessively ill with bilious fever, and neither could assist the other. The old chief, Katchiba, hearing that we were dying, came to charm us with some magic spell.
If they are so greedy and so stingy that they will not supply him properly, how can they expect him to think of their interests? He must have goats and corn. "No goats, no rain; that's our contract, my friends," says Katchiba. "Do as you like. I can wait; I hope you can."
Now, Katchiba was not a good walker, and his usual way of travelling was upon the back of a very strong subject, precisely as children are wont to ride "pic-a-back."
I replied that we had, every now and then. "How do you bring it? Are you a rainmaker?" "I don't keep mine in bottles, but I have a houseful of thunder and lightning," he most coolly replied; "but if you can bottle lightning you must understand rainmaking. "What do you think of the weather today?" I immediately saw the drift of the cunning old Katchiba; he wanted professional advice.
With all this bluster, I saw that old Katchiba was in a great dilemma, and that he would give anything for a shower, but that lie did not know how to get out of the scrape. It was a common freak of the tribes to sacrifice the rain-maker should he be unsuccessful. He suddenly altered his tone, and asked, "Have you any rain in your country?" I replied that we had, every now and then.
"Do you use whistles in your country?" inquired Katchiba. I only replied by giving so shrill and deafening a whistle on my fingers that Katchiba stopped his ears, and relapsing into a smile of admiration he took a glance at the sky from the doorway to see if any sudden effect had been produced. "Whistle again," he said, and once more I performed like the whistle of a locomotive.
They were therefore compelled to return to Obbo, the chief of which, old Katchiba, had before received them in a friendly manner. Here, in consequence of their exposure to wet, Mr and Mrs Baker were attacked with fever. By this time all their baggage animals as well as their horses had died.
There had been no rain for about a fortnight. "Well," I replied, "you are the rain-maker; why don't you give your people rain?" "Give my people rain!" said Katchiba. "I give them rain if they don't give me goats? You don't know my people. If I am fool enough to give them rain before they give me the goats, they would let me starve! No, no! let them wait.
Word Of The Day