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was made in each arm, both brothers bent their heads, and the aborigine was observed to suck with the greatest fervor; whether for love of blood or excess of friendship, it would be difficult to say."1

During his latest visit to Africa, in the Congo region, Stanley had many another occasion to enter into the covenant of blood with native chiefs, or to rest on that covenant as before consummated. His every description of the rite itself has its value, as illustrating the varying forms and the essential unity of the ceremony of blood-covenanting, the world over.

2

A reference has already been made to Stanley's meeting, on this expedition, with Ngalyema, who, under the name of Itsi, had entered into blood-brotherhood with Frank Pocock, four years before. That brotherhood by proxy had several severe strains, in the progress of negotiations between Stanley and Ngalyema; and after some eight months of these varying experiences, it was urgently pressed on Stanley by the chiefs of Kintamo (which is another name for Ntamo), that he should personally covenant by blood with Ngalyema, and so put an end to all danger of conflict between them. To this Stanley assented, and the record of the transaction is given accordingly, under date of April 9, 1882: "Brotherhood with NgalyeWe crossed arms; an incision

ma was performed.

1 Thro. Dark Cont., II., 286.

2 See pages 26-28, supra.

THE VENICE OF THE CONGO.

31

was made in each arm; some salt was placed on the wound, and then a mutual rubbing took place, while the great fetish man of Kintamo pronounced an inconceivable number of curses on my head if ever I proved false. Susi [Livingstone's head man, now with Stanley], not to be outdone by him, solicited the gods to visit unheard-of atrocious vengeances on Ngalyema if he dared to make the slightest breach in the sacred brotherhood which made him and Bula Matari1 one and indivisible for ever." "2

In June, 1883, Stanley visited, by invitation, Mangombo, the chief of Irebu, on the Upper Congo, and became his blood-brother. Describing his landing at this "Venice of the Congo," he says: "Mangombo, with a curious long staff, a fathom and a half in length, having a small spade of brass at one end, much resembling a baker's cake-spade, stood in front. He was a man probably sixty years old, but active and by no means aged-looking, and he waited to greet me.

Generally the first day of acquaintance with the Congo river tribes is devoted to chatting, sounding one another's principles, and getting at one another's ideas. The chief entertains his guest with gifts of food, goats, beer, fish, &c.; then, on the next day,

1"Bula Matari," or "Rock Breaker," or Road Maker, was a name given to Stanley by the natives.

2 The Congo, I., 383–385.

commences business and reciprocal exchange of gifts. So it was at Irebu. Mangombo gave four hairy thintailed sheep, ten glorious bunches of bananas, two great pots of beer, and the usual accompaniments of small stores. The next day we made blood-brotherhood. The fetish-man pricked each of our right arms, pressed the blood out; then, with a pinch of scrapings from my gun stock, a little salt, a few dusty scrapings from a long pod, dropped over the wounded arms,

. . the black and white arms were mutually rubbed together [for the inter-transfusion of the flowing blood]. The fetish-man took the long pod in his hand, and slightly touched our necks, our heads, our arms, and our legs, muttering rapidly his litany of incantations. What was left of the medicine Mangombo and I carefully folded in a banana leaf [Was this the house of the amulet?'], and we bore it reverently between us to a banana grove close by, and buried the dust out of sight. Mangombo, now my brother, by solemn interchange of blood,-consecrated to my service, as I was devoted in the sacred fetish bond to his service,-revealed his trouble, and implored my aid." 2

Yet again. Stanley "made friendship" with the Bakuti, at Wangata, "after the customary forms of blood-brotherhood"; similarly with two chiefs, Iuka 1 See page 7 f., supra. 2 The Congo, II., 21–24. 3 Ibid., II., 38.

3

AN AFRICAN HERCULES.

1

33

and Mungawa, at Lukolela ;1 with Miyongo of Usindi;2 and with the chiefs of Bolombo; of Yambinga,* of Mokulu, of Irungu, of Upoto, of Uranga; and so all along his course of travel. One of the fullest and most picturesque of his descriptions of this rite, is in connection with its observance with a son of the great chief of the Bangala, at Iboko; and the main details of that description are worthy of repro

duction here.

The Bangala, or "the Ashantees of the Livingstone River," as Stanley characterizes them, are a strong and a superior people, and they fought fiercely against Stanley, when he was passing their country in 1877.9 "The senior chief, Mata Bwyki (lord of many guns), was [now, in October, 1883,] an old grey-haired man," says Stanley," of Herculean stature and breadth of shoulder, with a large square face, and an altogether massive head, out of which his solitary eye seemed to glare with penetrative power. I should judge him to be six feet, two inches, in height. He had a strong, sonorous voice, which, when lifted to speak to his tribe, was heard clearly several hundred yards off. He was now probably between seventy-five and eighty 2 Ibid., II., 68. 3 Ibid., II., 79. 6 Ibid., II., 132.

1 The Congo, II., 48.

4 Ibid., II., 109.

5 Ibid., II., 118.

1 Ibid., II., 171.

8 Ibid., II., 177.

9 Thro. Dark Cont., II., 297–302.

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years old. He was not the tallest man, nor the best looking, nor the sweetest-dispositioned man, I had met in all Africa; but if the completeness and perfection of the human figure, combining size with strength, and proportion of body, limbs, and head, with an expression of power in the face, be considered, he must have been at one time the grandest type of physical manhood to be found in Equatorial Africa. As he stood before us on this day, we thought of him as an ancient Milo, an aged Hercules, an old Samsona really grand looking old man. At his side were seven tall sons, by different mothers, and although they were stalwart men and boys, the whitened crown of Mata Bwyki's head rose by a couple of inches above the highest head."

Nearly two thousand persons assembled, at Iboko, to witness the "palaver" that must precede a decision to enter into "strong friendship." At the place of meeting, "mats of split rattan were spread in a large semicircle around a row of curved and box stools, for the principal chiefs. In the centre of the line, opposite this, was left a space for myself and people," continues Stanley. "We had first to undergo the process of steady and silent examination from nearly two thousand pairs of eyes. Then, after Yumbila, the guide, had detailed in his own manner, who we were, and what was our mission up the great river; how we had built towns

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