272 ASSASSINATION OF CHAKA. 



had for so long a period disgraced the character of 

 the Zoulah Chief Chaka, at length brought down 

 a signal retribution upon him. Unable longer to 

 endure his enormities, a few of his followers, in con- 

 junction with his own brothers, entered into a con- 

 spiracy to assassinate him. His death was in all pro- 

 bability accelerated by the following circumstance. 

 It appears that when Chaka contemplated any mur- 

 derous design, he usually pretended to have dreamt 

 that the parties who were to be his victims had 

 entered into a plot against his life. On this occasion, 

 he had told his most confidential domestic Boper, 

 that he had dreamt of his father being about to de- 

 sert him, and join another Chief, and that he must 

 therefore kill both. The same evening, near sunset, 

 Chaka' s younger brother, Dingaan, exclaimed, " You 

 shall never see the sun rise again," at the same 

 moment thrusting an assagai into his back ; this 

 was followed up by Umslangaw, another brother, 

 and the domestic Boper, until life became extinct. 



The body of the murdered Chief was left that 

 night to be devoured by wolves, but being found in 

 the morning untouched by any beast of prey, the 

 assassins gave it burial, saying that wolves would 

 not devour a Chief. All the holes in the neigh- 

 bourhood were immediately closed, from a super- 

 stitious dread lest his spirit should find its way out 

 and pay them a visit. 



Having remained for some in the Colony for the 



