n erected, on which a fire burned. Behind it the
king, Simba, was seated on a stool with various councillors about him.
In front of the altar was a stout wooden table, on which lay what
looked like the body of a goat or a sheep. A fantastically dressed man,
assisted by other men, appeared to be engaged in inspecting the inside
of this animal with, we gathered, unsatisfactory results, for presently
he raised his arms and uttered a loud wail. Then the creature's viscera
were removed from it and thrown upon the fire, while the rest of the
carcass was carried off.

I asked Marut what he thought they were doing. He replied dejectedly:

"Consulting their Oracle; perhaps as to whether we should live or die,
Macumazana."

Just then the priest in the strange, feathered attire approached the
king, carrying some small object in his hand. I wondered what it could
be, till the sound of a report reached my ears and I saw the man begin
to jump round upon one leg, holding the other with both his hands at the
knee and howling loudly.

"Ah!" I said, "that pistol was full cocked, and the bullet got him in
the foot."

Simba shouted out something, whereon a man picked up the pistol and
threw it into the fire, round which the others gathered to watch it
burn.

"You wait," I said to Marut, and as I spoke the words the inevitable
happened.

Off went the other barrel of the pistol, which hopped out of the fire
with the recoil like a living thing. But as it happened one of the
assistant priests was standing in front of the mouth of that barrel, and
he also hopped once, but never again, for the heavy bullet struck him
somewhere in the body and killed him. Now there was consternation.
Everyone ran away, leaving the dead man lying on the ground. Simba led
the rout and the head-priest brought up the rear, skipping along upon
one leg.

Having observed these events, which filled me with an unholy joy, we
descended into the house again as there was nothing more to see, also
because it occurred to me that our presence on the roof, watching their
discomfiture, might irritate these savages. About ten minutes later the
gate of the fence round the guest-house was thrown open, and through it
came four men carrying on a stretcher the body of the priest whom the
bullet had killed, which they laid down in front of our door. Then
followed the king with an armed guard, and after him the befeathered
diviner with his foot bound up, who supported himself