44 TALES OF A NOMAD. 



pects of sport at the Umlumazi, the distance to it, and 

 so forth ; but he was totally ignorant of anything more 

 than a day's journey from his own village, and replied to 

 all my queries by saying, " I do not know, we never 

 go there". 



These people seemed to live a quiet, uneventful, isolated 

 existence. The most exciting factor in their lives seemed 

 to be the possibility of being invaded at any moment by 

 the Ngwani section of the Amaswazi. 



The Ngwani people are the military tribe of Amaswazi ; 

 they live in the healthier belt of country just out of, 

 and higher up than, the thorns. They are the king's 

 own people, though he is suzerain over a large extent of 

 country. From time to time he sends his Ngwani 

 Cafifres to invade his vassals dwelling in the thorns, just 

 to remind them that he is still in existence and is able 

 to exercise all the de facto powers of a ruler. Some 

 pretext is always found for invading his vassals. Some- 

 times it is that his cattle have fallen sick if so, it is 

 attributed to spells cast upon them by the natives 

 dwelling in the thorns, and it becomes necessary to 

 invade them and take away their cattle. Or if the king 

 has indigestion it is immediately put down to his having 

 been bewitched by somebody living in the thorns, and 

 accordingly they must be murdered. If any of the 

 royal family die, then a number of the unfortunate 

 thorn people must be killed, in order to produce the 

 amount of genuine weeping which is considered an 

 adequate and respectable accompaniment to a royal 

 funeral. 



Hence the wits of the thorn dwellers are continually 

 exercised to find means of dodging the king's people, 

 and the king's people on the other hand are always 



