24 
CONVERSATION ON RAIN-MAKING. 
Chap. I. 
M. I). —But we are distinctly told in the parting words of our 
Saviour that we can pray to God acceptably in His name alone, 
and not by means of medicines. 
R. D. —Truly! but God told us differently. He made black 
men first, and did not love us, as he did the white men. He 
made you beautiful, and gave you clothing, and guns, and gun¬ 
powder, and horses, and waggons, and many other things about 
which we know nothing. But toward us he had no heart. 
He gave us nothing, except the assegai, and cattle, and rain¬ 
making ; and he did not give us hearts like yours. We never 
love each other. Other tribes place medicines about our country 
to prevent the rain, so that we may be dispersed by hunger, and 
' go to them, and augment their power. We must dissolve them 
charms by our medicines. God has given us one little thing, 
wliich you know nothing of. He has given us the knowledge 
of certain medicines by which we can make rain. We do not 
despise those tilings which you possess, though we are ignorant 
of them. We don’t understand your book, yet we don’t despise 
it. You ought not to despise our little knowledge, though you 
are ignorant of it. 
M, D .—-I don’t despise what I am ignorant of; I only think 
you are mistaken in saying that you have medicines which can 
influence the rain at all. 
R. B. —That’s just the way people speak when they talk on a 
subject of which they have no knowledge. When we first opened 
our eyes, we found our forefathers making rain, and we follow in 
their footsteps. You, who send to Kuruman for corn, and irrigate 
your garden, may do without rain; we cannot manage in that 
way. If we had no rain, the cattle would have no pasture, the 
cows give no milk, our children become lean and die, our wives 
run away to other tribes who do make rain and have corn, and the 
whole tribe become dispersed and lost; our fire would go out. 
M. I). —I quite agree with you as to the value of the rain; 
but you cannot charm the clouds by medicines. You wait till 
you see the clouds come, then you use your medicines, and take 
the credit which belongs to God only. 
R. D .—I use my medicines, and you employ yours; we are 
both doctors, and doctors are not deceivers. You give a patient 
medicine. Sometimes God is pleased to heal him by means of 
