FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140  
141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   >>   >|  
el was not so delighted as I expected. He reprimanded me for being late for breakfast, and told me I was lucky to get any. Fred and Will had waited for me, and while we ate alone and I told them the story of my morning's adventure a police officer in khaki uniform tied up his mule outside and clattered in. "Whose buck is that hanging outside the kitchen?" he demanded. "There's some doubt about it," I said. "I've been accused of being the owner." "Then you're the man I want. The court sits at nine. You'd better be there, or you'll be fetched!" He placed in my hand what proved to be a summons to appear before the district court that morning on the charge of carrying an unregistered rifle and shooting game without a license. Two native policemen he had with him took down the buck from the hook outside the kitchen door and carried it off as evidence. We finished our breakfast in great contentment, and strode off arm-in-arm to find the court-house, feeling as if we were going to a play--perhaps a mite indignant, as if the subject of the play were one we did not quite approve, but perfectly certain of a good time. The court was crowded. The bearded professor, his four boys, and two other natives were there, as well as several English officials, all apparently on very good terms indeed with Schillingschen. As we entered the court under the eyes of a hostile crowd I heard one official say to the man standing next him: "I hope he'll make an example of this case. If he doesn't every new arrival in this country will try to take the law in his own hands. I hope he fines him the limit!" "Give me your hunting-knife, Fred!" said I, and Fred laughed as he passed it to me. For the moment I think he thought I meant to plunge it into the too talkative official's breast. First they called a few township cases. A drunken Muhammedan was fined five rupees, and a Hindu was ordered to remove his garbage heap before noon. Three natives were ordered to the chain-gang for a week for fighting, and a Masai charged with stealing cattle was remanded. Then my case was called, very solemnly, by a magistrate scarcely any older than myself. The police officer acted as prosecutor. He stated that "acting on information received" he had proceeded to the hotel. Outside of which he saw a buck hanging (buck produced in evidence); that he had entered the hotel, found me at breakfast, and that I had not denied having shot
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140  
141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
breakfast
 

official

 

natives

 

entered

 

evidence

 
called
 
ordered
 

hanging

 
kitchen
 

officer


morning

 

police

 
country
 

arrival

 
Outside
 

proceeded

 
information
 
received
 

hunting

 

denied


hostile

 

Schillingschen

 

laughed

 

standing

 

produced

 

stated

 

garbage

 

scarcely

 

magistrate

 

remove


rupees

 
fighting
 

charged

 

stealing

 

solemnly

 
remanded
 

plunge

 
thought
 

acting

 
cattle

moment
 

talkative

 
breast
 
drunken
 

Muhammedan

 

township

 
prosecutor
 

passed

 
accused
 

proved