AT KAMPALA 129 



at the Fort, I should send a strong body of armed Soudanese 

 to assist his majesty in a thorough search. 



The lady was sent immediately, but accompanied by a mighty 

 following of all the great chiefs, from the Protestant Prime 

 Minister downwards. When the charge was thoroughly proved 

 and the great chiefs had concurred that the accused was guilty, 

 I asked the Prime Minister what sentence in his opinion should 

 be passed on the woman. To this he gave the evasive answer, 

 " She is a queen ; she is King Mwanga's wife." Those who 

 know what is meant by " shauries " with Waganda, can picture 

 the wearisome discussion which followed for hours, the chiefs 

 admitting that the woman was guilty, but declining to pass 

 a sentence on her because she was a queen and King 

 Mwanga's wife ; ultimately a sentence of three months impri- 

 sonment was passed, and confirmed by Her Majesty's Acting 

 Commissioner. 



The Lendu women at Kampala in 1894 went practically naked 

 but for a covering of leaves in the Makraka fashion. They too 

 are benefitting by the British occupation of the country. This 

 can be seen in the illustration of a Lendu mother with her baby. 

 She and her husband accompanied my caravan from Kampala to 

 Luba's on my last journey. Every Lendu woman in my caravan 

 was respectably attired in a white cotton petticoat reaching from 

 the waist to the ankles. Ear-rings, necklaces, bracelets, further 

 testified that they were comfortably well-off. The baby was 

 carried in a peculiar sort of sling plaited out of strips of palm 

 leaves. It supported the baby pick-a-back fashion with one leg 

 dangling free on each side. Fastened by leather straps to the 

 mother's waist and shoulders, the sling left the arms of the 

 mother free. But a queer covering, shaped like a candle- 

 extinguisher, was shoved over the baby's head to shield it from sun 

 and rain. This cone-shaped cover was also made out of plaited 

 strips of palm leaves. Finding that I had photographed her, 

 the woman was not very pleased, and expressed her doubts 

 whether such magic arts of the white man were likely to be 

 productive of a blessing either on her or her baby ; but she 

 promptly changed her mind on the subject, when I gave 

 her a present of a pat of butter which I had watched her 

 haggling for. 



The Lendu at Kampala came originally as slaves and fol- 

 lowers of the Soudanese. The Lendu country lies beyond Lake 



I 



