KIKUYU POLITICS 193 



lighted a fire half a mile from camp, and had a great shauri. 

 My blood-brother lyutha, who was now a firm friend, said he 

 did not know what would happen, for though his father was 

 friendly, all the neighbouring chiefs were opposed to letting us 

 through their country. He warned us to be careful. He told 

 me that the leader of the malcontents was a chief from a hill 

 named Tuntum, which we should see next day, some distance 

 nearer the sunset than we should pass. After the shauri, 

 Nathan Nyuki and several others came over to say that the 

 people did not want us to go on, and that there was to be 

 another shauri next day. We were, therefore, to stay in our 

 present camp till this was over. I was busy at the time and 

 said I could not be bothered to discuss the matter then, but 

 that they were to return at daybreak. 



The natives kept up a tremendous hubbub round their fires 

 all night. Several times some drunken warriors came near us, 

 to execute a wild dance near our fires. This was bad manners. 

 No native ought to approach a camp at night, except in a 

 case of urgency. So when another drunken Kikuyu came 

 near and prepared to dance, I welcomed him with a little 

 dust shot, fired with half a charge of powder. He returned to 

 his friends more quickly than he came, and we had no more 

 dancers that night. 



Some of the hostile chiefs came into camp at daybreak, 

 and said we were not to go on to Maranga, and must not move 

 till next day. I said I had no objection to the first, but was 

 not going to obey the second. If they preferred it we would 

 go on to Tuntum, as they grew nice pumpkins and fat sheep 

 there. This was the village of the leader of the opposition, 

 who was rather staggered by the suggestion, while the chiefs of 

 the villages along the proper line of march seemed very pleased. 

 This confirmed me in my opinion that we had nothing to 

 fear from the people, and that they were really afraid wc 

 should do mischief to them. It was, therefore, only necessary 

 to be very firm in resisting attempts to delay us, and to let the 

 natives see that we had no intention of robbing them. The 

 elders withdrew for a few minutes' consultation, and returned 

 to say that we must not strike camp without permission. Camp 

 was accordingly struck at once, and we waited to see what 

 would happen. I thought that if we were to be attacked it 



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