xxi WILD MAN OF THE GOLAMBEPO MOUNTAINS 209 



it had been a man, but now all human intelli- 

 gence seemed to have departed from the eyes, and 

 left behind only the quick, furtive glance of the 

 wild animal. His hair and beard were long, grey, 

 and unkempt ; his face haggard, weather-beaten and 

 deeply lined ; his form gaunt and wizened with age 

 and privation. Clothes he had completely dis- 

 pensed with, and there was in his attitude and de- 

 meanour that timorous shrinking from contact with 

 man so characteristic of wild nature. Altogether, he 

 was an object of pity, the deeper on account of its 

 hopelessness this creature that had once been like 

 others of his kind ! 



I questioned my men as to how they had come 

 by him and Usufu, my boy, said that they had 

 been into the forest in quest of honey and had 

 found him sleeping ; that he was well known to 

 them as the wild man of the Golambepo, and had 

 often before been caught by others of my men. 

 After some questioning, I managed to elicit from 

 them the whole story of the poor fellow's career. 



Long, long ago, before ever the white man had 

 been heard of, this old fellow had been the head of 

 a big village on the Msinjie River. His people 

 were living contentedly and happy ; there were lots 

 of children and plenty of food, when, without any 

 warning, came disaster, as disasters often occur in 

 this world. One night, when all the village were 



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