giments, shouting his titles in the
most extravagant language. Izimbongi also--that is, professional
praisers--were running up and down before him dressed in all sorts of
finery, telling his deeds, calling him "Eater-up-of-the-Earth," and
yelling out the names of those great ones who had been killed in the
battle.

Meanwhile parties of bearers were coming up continually, carrying dead
men of distinction upon shields and laying them out in rows, as game
is laid out at the end of a day's shooting in England. It seems that
Cetewayo had taken a fancy to see them, and, being too tired to walk
over the field of battle, ordered that this should be done. Among these,
by the way, I saw the body of my old friend, Maputa, the general of the
Amawombe, and noted that it was literally riddled with spear thrusts,
every one of them in front; also that his quaint face still wore a
smile.

At the head of these lines of corpses were laid six dead, all men of
large size, in whom I recognised the brothers of Umbelazi, who had
fought on his side, and the half-brothers of Cetewayo. Among them were
those three princes upon whom the dust had fallen when Zikali, the
prophet, smelt out Masapo, the husband of Mameena.

Dismounting from my horse, with the help of Scowl, I limped through and
over the corpses of these fallen royalties, cut in the Zulu fashion to
free their spirits, which otherwise, as they believed, would haunt the
slayers, and stood in front of Cetewayo.

"Siyakubona, Macumazahn," he said, stretching out his hand to me, which
I took, though I could not find it in my heart to wish _him_ "good day."

"I hear that you were leading the Amawombe, whom my father, the King,
sent down to help Umbelazi, and I am very glad that you have escaped
alive. Also my heart is proud of the fight that they made, for you know,
Macumazahn, once, next to the King, I was general of that regiment,
though afterwards we quarrelled. Still, I am pleased that they did so
well, and I have given orders that every one of them who remains alive
is to be spared, that they may be officers of a new Amawombe which I
shall raise. Do you know, Macumazahn, that you have nearly wiped out
three whole regiments of the Usutu, killing many more people than did
all my brother's army, the Isigqosa? Oh, you are a great man. Had it
not been for the loyalty"--this word was spoken with just a tinge of
sarcasm--"of Saduko yonder, you would have won the day for Umbelazi.
Well, no