on that is neither dignified nor right. What is worst of
all is that the Zulus are beginning to discover what a shadow he is, and
with this weakened position he has to pit his single brains against all
the thousand and one plots which are being woven throughout Zululand.
The whole country teems with plots. Mnyamane, the late Prime Minister,
and one of the ablest, and perhaps the most influential man in Zululand,
is plotting for the return of Cetywayo. Bishop Colenso, again, is as
usual working his own wires, and creating agitations to forward his
ends, whatever they may be at the moment. John Dunn, on the other hand,
is plotting to succeed Cetywayo, and so on _ad infinitum_. Such is the
state of affairs with which our unfortunate Resident has to contend.
Invested with large imaginary powers, he has in reality nothing but his
personal influence and his own wits to help him. He has no white man
to assist him, but living alone in a broken-down tent and some mud
huts built by his son's hands (for the Government have never kept their
promise to put him up a house), in the midst of thousands of restless
and scheming savages, amidst plots against the peace and against his
authority, he has to do the best he can to carry out an impracticable
settlement, and to maintain the character of English justice and the
honour of the English name. Were Mr. Osborn to throw up his post or to
be assassinated, the authorities would find it difficult to keep the
whole settlement from collapsing like a card castle.

Nobody who understood Zulu character and aspirations could ever have
executed such a settlement as Sir Garnet Wolseley's, unless he did it
in obedience to some motive or instructions that it was not advisable
to publish. It is true that Sir Garnet's experience of the Zulus was
extremely small, and that he put aside the advice of those who did know
them with that contempt with which he is wont to treat colonists and
their opinions. Sir Garnet Wolseley does not like colonial people,
possibly because they have signally failed to appreciate heaven-born
genius in his person, or his slap-dash drumhead sort of way of settling
the fate of countries, and are, indeed, so rude as to openly say, that,
in their opinion, he did more mischief in Africa in a few months, than
it would take an ordinary official a lifetime to accomplish.

However this may be, stop his ears as much as he might, Sir Garnet
cannot have been entirely blind to the import o