The Brave African Huntress (7 page)

As this pigmy was pushing me along in the town,
uncountable
pigmies like himself were shouting on me—“Ah, this is another one of the thieves of animals!” They were making a mock and deriding of me, and it was so I was breathing quickly and audibly because I was so tired that I was unable to move my feet again for the severe punishment which this stern huge pigmy gave me was too much. And as he was pushing me along I noticed that the domestic animals of this town were outnumbered the pigmies and this showed me that they were not killing these animals for their food at all. And I first thought that perhaps these pigmies had no teeth with which to eat these animals and that was the reason these animals were surplus like that, because in the town where the people had teeth the domestic animals never surplus as these.

After a while he pushed me to the palace of their king.
Immediately
he pushed me before the king he left me alone to stand, but I was powerless and I was unable to control myself so that I fell down at the same time and I was throbbing with great fear perhaps the king would give him the order to go and kill me. But luckily after the king heard the story of how he caught me
from the jungle he ordered him to take me to their custody which was behind the town. Then this pigmy handed over my gun, hunting bag, the head of the animal which I wrapped with the skin of animal, the poisonous cudgel and my cutlass to the king and on my presence another pigmy climbed the ceiling of this palace and he put all my property there. The king did not attempt to know the contents of the bag, etc. as well as this stern huge pigmy. I noticed as well that in this ceiling there were many “shakabullah” guns, hunting bags, cutlasses, etc., which were taken from the hunters who had come to this jungle before I too came there. Of course I did not know whether my four brothers' guns, etc., in respect of whom I came to hunt in this jungle, were among these guns, etc.

Before I was taken out of the palace I noticed as well that this king was so old that his eyes could not see well. Because as he wanted to shake hands with this stern pigmy for he brought me to him, he simply stretched his hand to me before he was told that I was not the right person with whom to shake hands of course he did not put on the spectacle.

After he handed my property to the king and another pigmy put them on the ceiling and the king thanked him greatly and advised him as well to be going round the jungle every day and night and bringing all hunters or huntresses he might see in the jungle, instead to tell me to stand up, this stern pigmy simply kicked me mercilessly. As I had already rested for a few minutes, so I had gained more power and I stood up easily. Then he continued to push me along with his usual fearful big navel to their custody. It was like that my gun, hunting bag, cudgel, cutlass and the head of the wonderful animal which was dead but its eyes still had clear light, were taken from me.

As he was pushing me along to the custody thousands of pigmies were surrounded me and they were looking at me with great surprise. Not as I was a huntress but because I was taller
than everyone of them. They raised up their heads and were saying—how a person was so tall as this. Because they
themselves
were not more than three or four feet tall. And I too bent my head downward and I was looking at each of them with great surprise that how a person was as short as this.

As he was pushing me along in the town I noticed as well that everyone of their houses was as small as a hut or not more than a room of about ten feet square and touched one another. There were many big and deep wells everywhere in the town in which they were storing their palm-oil. Everyone of them with his own family were living together in each of these small houses. But I thought within myself that they built their house so small because they themselves were so small or short.

When he pushed me to the gate of the custody, he stopped, he knocked at the door and at the same moment the sound of a cracked bell was heard. After a while the door was opened and one of the junior keepers of this custody came out. When this stern pigmy told him that the king told him (stern pigmy) to bring me to the custody, then both of them took me to the chief keeper of the custody. This chief keeper was enjoying himself with a kind of a drink at that time.

When I was first presented to him he did not talk to me or to this stern pigmy or to this junior keeper. He did not show that he saw the three of us but he was simply enjoying himself with the drink until when he finished it all and that was about two hours since when we had stood in attention before him. These two pigmies, the stern pigmy and the junior keeper, did not talk to one another at all but they stood with fear of this chief custodian or keeper.

After the chief keeper had enjoyed himself with the drink and in the mood of intoxication, he said—“Yes, what is your
complaint
?” Then this stern pigmy told him concisely that I was one of the hunters who were stealing away their animals from
their jungle. When this chief keeper heard like that he sighed in such a way that showed me at once that he was a miscreant. And he hardly winked to this junior keeper when he ran to a big charcoal fire in which there were several flat irons. He took one flat iron from this fire. It was hot-red, and he gave it to this chief keeper as quickly as possible so that it might not cool. Then the chief keeper, without mercy, marked three big “X” on my face with this hot-red iron. When he was just marking the first “X” I felt so much pain that I started to shout greatly. When I could not stand alone in one place, the junior keeper and the stern pigmy held both my arms backward and the chief keeper marked the whole three “X” successively. This meant they gave me the mark of identification. Of course before he could give me these marks the rest two pigmies first bent my head down, because they were too short.

After the marks were given to me he ordered the junior keeper to take me to the right place in the custody. And he ordered this stern huge pigmy, who caught me from the jungle, to go back to the town.

Immediately this junior keeper took me to the inside of the custody, he rang a big bell for three times. At the same time about fifty junior keepers like himself rushed to him from every corner of the custody. Then after he told them my offence, he handed me to them and he went back to the chief keeper at once. These junior keepers were called “Pesters”. Then one of them took me again to the room which was last to the rock. He put me among the captives whom they had captured and put in this custody many years ago.

There was no door in this room but it was surrounded by a very short wall. I saluted those whom I met in there but they answered with a very weak voice, even many of them were in a great sadness so that they could not answer me at all. When I looked at this room right round for a seat on which to sit there was none at all, and there was no mat as well, so I sat on the dirty floor which was full of pits and the smelling refuses.

After I rested for a while, then I raised up my head, I started to look at everyone’s face perhaps I would see my four brothers among them, but I could not recognize them among these
people at all, because the poverty had already changed their former appearances to another thing. Although I was still very young when they (my brothers) went to this Jungle of the Pigmies. The only thing which I knew about these people was that many of them understood my language, they were “yorubas”. And I noticed as well that they were forty-nine in number or when I counted myself together with them we were fifty in number in this small room. Although this room did not contain the whole of us except when some of us sat on the short wall which surrounded the room.

Having waited for about one hour for these poor people
perhaps
they would talk to one another but they did not, then I was quite sure that they were in great punishment and sorrow. After that I went out of this room, I stood in one place, looked right round the whole of this custody and it was at this time I saw clearly that the length and breadth of it was about one-quarter of a mile square. There were more than two thousand rooms and each contained fifty captives. These
captives
, like myself, were hunters whom the pigmies had captured from the jungle when they came there to kill animals. Several of them had been captured since twenty years ago. The families of these hunters believed that they had been killed by the wild animals or by the pigmies when they did not return to them, not knowing that they were still alive and in the custody of the pigmies.

The wall (rock) of this custody was so high that there was no one who could climb it and escape. Even if one of us attempted to do so in the midnight he or she would be killed by the wild animals and reptiles which were on the only road which led to the town. The houses of these pesters (junior keepers of the custody) were built a little distance from the rooms of the captives. Uncountable of leather whips, dried long tails of big animals, long big bones of animals, clubs, cudgels, whips, etc.,
were scattered all over the ground. Uncountable of heavy lump of stones were also scattered all the ground. All these things showed me that there was nothing good in this custody but punishments upon punishments.

Almost all these captives were already naked, for all the clothes which were on their bodies when the pigmies caught them had been torn to rags. Some of those who were not so long since when they were captured still had dirty rags on bodies. They were not barbing their heads at all, so it was hardly to see their mouths, faces, ears, etc., the hairs had covered them.

As I stood in one place and I was noticing all these things and as I was just thinking in mind that in a few months to come, I too would become as dirty and in nakedness as these people or perhaps I would be killed in a few days time. There I saw a very weak man (a captive) who was running about in this custody and one of the pesters was chasing him about with a big cudgel of bone in hand. As this man was shouting with great sorrow it was so this pester was beating him with that cudgel without mercy. It was like that he was beating him until this man fell down helplessly and then died. But when I saw that he was still beating him, and as this was still a new thing or fear to me, so with pity I ran to this pester just to beg him to leave the man. But without hesitation he started to beat me on the left shoulder with great anger as when a dumb beat one who put a leave in mouth on his presence. And with much pain I ran back to my room.

Not knowing that none of the captives must do as I did otherwise he or she too would be beaten to death as well. Then I sat together with my colleagues. I began to think in mind that no doubt I would die in this custody and I trembled with fear for hours. Though several people had died on my presence before but a human like myself was not beaten to death on my presence before.

As I was a brave lady or huntress, after a little time this fear went away from my mind, but I was so hungry that if I saw a tree this time surely I would try to eat some of it because since when the stern huge pigmy had caught and brought me to this custody I had not eaten anything. As I was still thinking of my hunger, there I heard the sound of a cracked bell unexpectedly and then all the rest captives rushed out. As I was still looking on with wonder and expecting what they were going to do or what was going to happen. They were gathering together in a certain spot which was near a mighty stone. After a while there I saw some of the pesters, each of them held a basket with left hand and came to this spot. All of them were throwing a kind of fruits to the captives who were seeking these fruits along with another or picking them about and they started to eat them greedily.

Each of these fruits was as small as a palm-fruit. Not knowing that these fruits were their food for that day and this meant I would not eat till the following day. Ten minutes was given to eat the fruits. After that the whole of us were called out by the pesters. After each of them picked up one of these cudgels, club of bones, leather whips, or split of stones, etc. Then they gave the order that each of us must start to lift each of the heavy stones from one place to another. Whereas each of these stones was heavier than what four persons could even lift up.

So everyone started to take his or her own. But being I was a new captive among the rest and I did not know how to handle this heavy stone. Therefore one of the pesters who held a leather whip stood at my back and he was whipping me continuously. Within a few minutes every part of my back was bleeding. But when I saw that the blood was rushing down from my back in great quantity, willing or not I lifted up this heavy stone and I took it to the right place that the rest captives were taking their own to. And I was very lucky that it was not one of those pesters
who held cudgel of bones stood at my back, otherwise he would beat me to death at once, because several of us who failed to take their own or who were too slow, were beaten to death before we closed for that day.

These pesters never wasted time, because whenever one or more of us were beaten to death, they would tell some of us to carry them and they would escort us to where they used to throw deads. The place was outside of the custody, it was near the town, because they were not burying their deads in this town.

Every year or unexpectedly a large number of us were
sacrificing
to their king’s gods. And this was puzzled me greatly when I remembered that perhaps my four brothers were among those captives who had been sacrificed to the gods or those who had been beaten to death before I was captured. Every mistake in this custody was a great offence and the penalty was to beat the offender to death at once.

It was like that everyone of us was taking each of the heavy stones from one place to another till when it was seven o’clock. Before this time I was entirely tired. But God was so good that when I was just feeling the giddiness and I was about to fall down, the chief keeper came by that moment and he told us to close for that day. Then everyone of us hurriedly went back to his or her own room.

As a new captive who was just come to this custody, I thought that as we went back to the rooms we would sleep till morning but it was not so at all, because as the animals like wolves, dogs, etc., and all kinds of snakes were uncountable in this custody. Therefore immediately there was darkness all over the custody, these creatures came out from their hiding places. They were going from room to room, they were looking for their food. So as we sat down sorrowfully and were resting it was so we were driving them away from us so that they might not eat or swallow
us. If one was too slow to drive them away, they would eat or swallow him or her up at once or if one was napped for one second before the daybreak, these creatures would eat or
swallow
him or her up before he or she would wake.

It was like that the whole of us were in the trouble of these animals and snakes till five o’clock in the morning when we started our usual work. It was this night I knew that as we were in trouble in the day it was so in the night as well.

As I was in this endless punishment, it was so I was thinking in mind as how I would be able to ruin the whole of these pigmies or to see that I drive them away from this jungle. We started our usual work when it was five o’clock in the morning. The punishment which was given to me this morning was more severe than that of the first time. Because I had already tired and powerless to lift up this heavy stone as well as the first time.

When it was about eleven o’clock the chief keeper came to us. He stopped us but before he came there several captives had been beaten to death for failing to lift up the stones as well as the pesters wanted them to do. At the same time that we were stopped by the chief keeper, halve cooked cassavas were
throwing
to us. But as everyone of us was running here and there just to pick up one of these cassavas before they would finish, because they were not sufficient to reach each of us, it was so the dogs, etc., were mixed up with us and they were picking up these cassavas as well. Of course I was so lucky that I did not struggle so hard when a very small one hit my head and I hastily took it otherwise several hundreds of the rest captives who had none at all would rush to me and pick it before me.

It was the same kind of this work we were doing everyday because these pigmies had no farm to take us to, and we were permanently confined to this custody except when some of us were beaten to death, then some of the rest of us would be chosen to carry the dead bodies to the place where dead bodies
were throwing and that was the time when those who carried the bodies would leave this custody for a few hours.

One morning, as we had just started our daily work, the chief keeper came to us. He told us to be in fifties and in a single line and we did so at the same. Then as he was inspecting the whole of us, he was giving sign with finger to everyone that he wanted to come out from the line. So when he inspected to the line in which I was, he gave sign with finger to me to come out and I did so. We were about sixty that he told to come out. After that he ordered one of the pesters to escort us to his office which was nearest to the gate. As we stood before his office, I was saying within myself that no doubt I was going to sacrifice to the king’s gods today. Because whenever some of the captives were selected as this, surely the king was going to sacrifice them to his gods.

When he came back to his office he told me to enter the office and after that he ordered two pesters to escort the rest captives to the palace of the king and they were not seen again except those two pesters who escorted them returned. He told me that as from that morning I became his office servant. He explained to me that he chose me among the rest captives simply because my clothes were clean and I was the youngest of all the rest captives. Although he did not know that I was a lady and all the pesters and the rest captives did not know as well because it were the man’s clothes I wore.

My work was to clean his office and surroundings every morning and after that to be serving him with drinks because he was a pure drunkard. In a few days time when he discovered that I was smart and that I was doing everything to his entire satisfaction, he began to play and joke with me. He stopped to illtreat me as a captive again and he stopped to be fearful to me as before. And he told the pesters to be giving me sufficient food. As I started to eat enough food and I did not
do hard work as before, so I became fat in a few months time.

Each time that I served him with the drink I was draining the little drink that which was remaining in the tumbler but I did not let him know or see me. Thus I was draining the drink little by little until I accustomed to the drink, and at last I was not satisfied again with the little that which was remaining in the tumbler. So whenever he went out for inspection I would drink as much as I could from his drink. As a play and as a joke I became a drunkard. But it was a pity that I had forgotten that if I drank this drink too much it would intoxicate me and by that my characteristic would be changed from when I did not drink.

As I was enjoying my life quite well in this office it was so I was thinking in mind how I could ruin these pigmies. One day, as I was going round this custody, I saw in a certain part of it a substance with which to make gun-powder. Immediately I
discovered
this thing it came to my mind to make a lot of native gun-powder from this substance. And having made a lot of it, then when it was in the midnight I dug several holes round the wall (rock) of this custody. I filled each of them with this
gun-powder
and I covered it with sand and refuses. Then I put in mind that perhaps one day the gun-powder would explode when it caught the fire and by that this custody would be blown off and then we the captives would be able to come out and then escape for our lives. It was like this I buried the gun-powder everywhere in this custody. But it lasted me more than six months before I made enough gun-powder.