t Medicine."

Here was an idea. The description of the article required, a
"spirit-haunted shape of power" that spoke "both of the spirit and the
body of man and yet of more than man," was so vague that it might mean
anything or nothing. And yet----

I turned to Ayesha and prayed her to ask them if what they wanted should
be produced, whether they would follow me bravely and fight Rezu to the
death. She did so and with one voice they replied,

"Aye, bravely and to the death, him and the Bearer of the Axe of whom
also our legend tells."

Then with deliberation I opened my shirt and holding out the image of
Zikali as far as the chain of elephant hair would allow, I asked,

"Is this the holy thing, the charm of power, of which your legend tells,
O People of the Amahagger and worshippers of Lulala?"

The spokesman glanced at it, then snatching a brand from a watch-fire
that burnt near by held it over the carving and stared, and stared
again; and as he did, so did the others bending over him.

"Dog! would you singe my beard?" I cried in affected rage, and seizing
the brand from his hand I smote him with it over the head.

But he took no heed of the affront which I had offered to him merely
to assert my authority. Still for a few moments he stared although the
sparks from the wood were frizzling in his greasy hair, then of a sudden
went down on his face before me, as did all the others and cried out,

"It is the Holy Thing! It is the spirit-haunted Shape of Power itself,
and we the Worshippers of Lulala will follow thee to the death, O white
lord, Watcher-by-Night. Yes, where thou goest and he goes who bears the
Axe, thither will we follow till not one of us is left upon his feet."

"Then that's settled," I said, yawning, since it is never wise to show
concern about anything before savages. Indeed personally I had no wish
to be the leader of this very peculiar tribe in an adventure of which I
knew nothing, and therefore had hoped that they would leave that honour
to someone else. Then I turned and told Umslopogaas what had passed, a
tale at which he only shrugged his great shoulders, handling his axe as
though he were minded to try its edge upon some of these "Dark-lovers,"
as he named the Amahagger people because of their nocturnal habits.

Meanwhile Ayesha gave certain orders. Then she came to me and said,

"These men march at once, three thousand strong, and by dawn will camp
on the northern mountain crest. At