owy f Efli^
TH3B ONif SB CHURCH OF
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L*. 3 i O O U I J
S-urce
BY THE EQUATOR S
SNOWY PEAK
BY THE EQUATOR S
SNOWY PEAK
A RECORD OF MEDICAL MISSIONARY WORK
AND TRAVEL IN BRITISH EAST AFRICA
BY
E. MAY CRAWFORD
(ne e E. MAY GRIMES)
AUTHOR OF A LITTLE SANCTUARY, AND OTHER POEMS
WITH A PREFACE BY
Tke Right Rev. the BISHOP OF MOMBASA
AND A FOREWORD BY
EUGENE STOCK, D.C.L.
LONDON
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY
SALISBURY SQUARE, E.G.
1913
[All Rights Reserved\
MY LIFE WORK
WHAT wilt Thou have me to do, Lord ?
What wilt Thou have me to be ?
Where wilt Thou have me to go, Lord ?
These are the questions for me.
One little life I can yield Thee,
Gladly tis laid at Thy feet,
May I be true to my Saviour,
Make my surrender complete I
Where Thou wilt have me to go, Lord,
That is the country for me.
What Thou wilt have me to do, Lord,
Life s sweetest guerdon shall be.
What Thou wilt have me to be, Lord,
Humble, and loving, and pure,
May I be found to Thy glory,
Seeking the things which endure.
Choosing the things that Thou choosest,
Thinking Thy thoughts after Thee,
Joyfully witnessing, toiling,
This is the service for me !
Seeking the lost and the fallen,
Telling them Jesus has died,
No other life-work so precious,
These are the joys that abide.
PREFACE
TO all who have at heart the evangelizing of
African tribes this book will be of more
than ordinary interest. It describes the widening
influence of the British Empire in large tracts of
the East Africa Protectorate which have been,
until recent years, closed to all but intrepid
explorers. It also portrays vividly, and with
grace and skill, the progress of medical missionary
effort, from the very difficult beginnings in the
face of hostile superstitions, to the days when the
authoress and her husband were overwhelmed
by the demands made upon each day of their
lives by the crowds of eager patients, whose
confidence they had won by their devotion and
manifested kindness, as also by God s blessing
resting on the doctor s successful treatment of the
sick, and of those who had need of surgical aid.
The grand highlands of Kenia Province have
now established in their hills and vales several
mission stations and districts of the Church
Missionary Society. Dr. Krapf, long years ago,
penetrated Ukamba almost as far as the Tana
River, and gazed on the mountain of whiteness,
the snow-capped Kirinyaga, Mount Kenia. That
splendid missionary and explorer had to retrace
2 Krapf s Noble Attempts
his steps to the coast, yet he had a conviction
that a coming generation would witness the
journeys of white missionaries in that region
which privations, sickness and death in his caravan
had prevented him from entering. At the first
possible moment, the C.M.S., faithful to Krapf
and his heart s projects, sent its pioneers to take
their lives in their hands and to evangelize
Kenia and all the wild country stretching from the
River Tana to the extreme north-eastern slopes
of Mount Kenia. The Society, in its discharge of
its responsibility to give full effect to Krapf s
noble attempts to plant the standard of the
Gospel in the highlands which are crowned with
the glorious masses of Kenia and Aberdare, gave
Mr. (now the Rev.) A. W. McGregor the privilege
of first commencing missionary operations in
Kenia, after a year or two of residence in
Kikuyu.
Some of the results which have followed Dr.
and Mrs. Crawford s brave undertaking may be
gathered from the following words of an officer
who holds high rank in the Protectorate :
FORT NYERI,
KENIA PROVINCE,
Dec. 2, 1912.
DEAR BISHOP, It was some years ago that our valued
friends, Dr. and Mrs. Crawford, came into this province
and established a station in the Fort Hall district, where
in the midst of privations and considerable hardships they
carried on a work which has earned the gratitude and
admiration of every officer in the Province.
The Commissioner s Testimony 3
The first occasion on which I saw Dr. and Mrs. Crawford
in harness was when I was passing their station en route
to a camp at Weithaga. The doctor was attending a
crowd of natives, men, women and children, in all stages
of sickness. There must have been at least two hundred at
the time waiting to be treated. The number I believe
was not exceptional. After spending some time at his
dispensary and hospital, I visited the school, which was
under the care of Mrs. Crawford. I was struck with the
discipline which prevailed and the intelligence of the
children, which could only have been brought to light by
the devotion and the extraordinary patience of the teacher.
I only mention this as an example of the good work done
by this devoted couple.
After establishing a station in the Fort Hall district
and putting it in excellent working order, Dr. and Mrs.
Crawford were transferred to the Embu district, there to
continue their good work. Their reputations had gone
before them, and so they received a hearty welcome from the
natives of the Embu district, though these people had only
recently been brought under administration and were of a
very primitive nature. The confidence of the natives was
soon gained, and people from all parts of the district
flocked to Dr. Crawford for treatment. Not only did
he give his valuable services to the people, but he un
hesitatingly placed them at the disposal of the Government,
and many serious cases were sent to him for treatment.
The result of their work is very apparent in the number
of natives of all ages who now attend the church and school
for instruction, and in the good behaviour of the natives
living within a radius of some miles from their station. Dr.
and Mrs. Crawford have gained the confidence, affection
and respect of every official and native with whom they have
come in contact.
Yours sincerely,
(Signed) C. R. W. LANE,
Provincial Commissioner,
Kenia Province,
British East A frica.
To the Right Reverend
the BISHOP OF MOMBASA, D.D.
4 Realities of Missionary Enterprise
Readers will not fail to comprehend what the
difficult and dangerous journeys have meant to a
refined white woman ; they will be delightfully
interested in the narratives of the customs and
habits of the tribes ; they will be thrilled by the
recitals of the doctor s experiences, in and out of
hospital ; they will gaze with deep pleasure on the
many pictures painted in words by the authoress
depicting village life and human need of sympathy
and help ; but more than all they will behold the
workings of the Kingdom of God in purely heathen
people. Very simply Mrs. Crawford lays bare
the spiritual realities of missionary enterprise.
Along with Christian kindness, medical skill, cease
less endeavour to mitigate suffering, patient teach
ing and the exhibition of a Christian home, there
are results visible which are not of earth, and
which come neither from healing in the wards
nor from Christian education in the school.
There are effects which plainly are only wrought
by God, effects which spring from the gift of
eternal life. Young men are steadfastly resisting
what they now know to be evil, though parent,
friend and tribe bitterly persecute them. By
what power ? Men and women are publicly
being sealed as God s children and servants, and
are entering into union and fellowship with Christ
in God.
Krapf looked long and wistfully at Kenia s
gigantic peak and dazzling snows, and then,
overcome by hardships, suffering and bodily
* Spirit, Soul and Body 5
weakness, sorrowfully retreated from the Tana
River and never made known the good news of the
Saviour of the world to the Akikuyu. But between
the place where he stood near the river and the
forests of Kenia there are, on a long ridge, the
C.M.S. medical mission house and hospital near
Embu Fort, from which goes forth the healing for
spirit, soul and body of heathen Africans by
God s blessing ; while many miles away is the
rushing stream at Kahuhia, in a pool of which the
first Christians, the firstf ruits of the medical mission
there, were baptized some years ago.
W. G. MOMBASA.
BISHOP S COURT, MOMBASA,
Jan. 3, 1913.
FOREWORD
I AM glad indeed to have the privilege of intro
ducing to the Christian public my old and
dear friend, Mrs. Crawford. It is now nearly
a quarter of a century since a young lady called
on me at my old office in the Church Missionary
House, and, introducing herself as Miss E. May
Grimes, informed me that she had been unable to
resist the call that had come to her after a mission
ary meeting at Richmond at which I was a speaker,
and that she had come to offer herself to the
Society. I passed her on to the Clerical Secretaries,
and in due course she was accepted for training
and directed to go to The illows at Stoke
Newington, where the authorities of Mildmay
prepared ladies for the mission field. Certain
difficulties which then arose were overcome in so
unexpected and striking a way that one could only
recognize the hand of the Lord in the matter.
Miss Grimes went happily through her training
course, and was appointed by the Committee to
the Japan Mission ; but, to her and my dismay,
the Medical Board declined to sanction her going
out. For, I think, two years she worked at the
China Inland Mission Training Home, and this
naturally drew out her special sympathy for China.
To that great land she would gladly have gone,
but again health considerations barred the way.
Then came an opening in the less trying climate of
South Africa, and she joined the South Africa
General Mission. I was at that time on my travels
in Australia and India, but when I reached Eng
land on a certain Thursday in April, 1893, I found
Foreword 7
I was just in time to bid her God-speed, which I
did at Waterloo Station on the Saturday immedi
ately following, as she left on her new mission.
She left behind her some beautiful hymns and
poems, which have made her name widely known,
particularly A Little Sanctuary and The Master
comes and calls for thee ; and her letters from
Pondoland during the next few years were greatly
appreciated by a large circle of friends.
Meanwhile the Church in Canada was preparing
to supply its own missionaries to the C.M.S. fields
of labour, and among those who were so com
missioned was Dr. T. W. W. Crawford. He was
an admirer of Miss Grimes s poetry, and this led
the way, when they met in England, to his
approaching her with a view to her joining him in
the highest earthly union and in the work to which
he was called. He was appointed to East Africa ;
to their great joy the Medical Board, encouraged
by her lengthened experience already in the Dark
Continent, gave their consent to her going ; and
Dr. and Mrs. Crawford proceeded to the field so
graphically described in the following pages.
So the young candidate of 1889 for foreign
service found her way at last in the gracious pro
vidence of God to the Society which had first
welcomed her. Truly His ways are past
finding out.
I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.
The author of this book, whose personal story
I have thus sketched, has to some extent justified
the original verdict of the doctors by her frequent
bodily sufferings. But Mrs. Crawford, in much
ill-health and amid many privations and perils,
has done a noble work, and set us all a bright ex
ample of faithfulness and devotion. I commend
the book with all my heart.
EUGENE STOCK.
CONTENTS
PART I
Weithaga
CHAP - PAGE
I. THROUGH THE BAMBOO FOREST . .13
II. IN THE HEART OF KIKUYU . . .26
III. A STUDY IN e EBONY . . 36
IV. WHERE ANCIENT CULTS PREVAIL . . 50
V. THE MEDICINE MAN . . . .59
PART II
Kahuhia
VI. ACROSS THE ATHI PLAINS . . .71
VII. OPENING OF THE KENIA MEDICAL MISSION . 77
VIII. THE POISONERS DEFEATED . . .89
IX. ON SAFARI . . . . .97
X. THE LAST YEAR AT KAHUHIA . . .107
PART III
Embu
XI. BEYOND THE TANA RIVER . . ..117
XII. AMONGST THE EMBUS . . . .125
XIII. WITH THE SAVAGE CHUKAS . . .137
XIV. OUT OF THE JAWS OF DEATH . .145
XV. WITNESSING TO TRIBES BEYOND . .156
XVI. FlRSTFRUITS OF HARVEST l68
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
VIEW OF MT. KENIA, AS SEEN FROM THE EMBU MIS
SION HOUSE .... Frontispiece
FACING PAGE
MAP OF EAST AFRICA . . .14
THE AUTHOR IN HER SAFARI CHAIR . 17
A KENIA WATERFALL
A DIMINUTIVE KIKUYU NURSE THREE KIKUYU
GIRLS, SHOWING EAR ORNAMENTS
A MASAI WARRIOR ... .28
A KIKUYU CHIEF AND HIS SIXTEEN WIVES . . 30
A KIKUYU HOMESTEAD
A KIKUYU WOMAN, WITH LOAD OF FIREWOOD . 34,
A KIKUYU WOMAN . . .38
A NATIVE VILLAGE KIKUYU BOYS IN CEREMONIAL
DRESS ...... 42
A MASAI WARRIOR, WITH JAM POT EAR ORNAMENT 46
A KIKUYU WARRIOR, WITH HEAD-DRESS OF OSTRICH
FEATHERS ... .48
WARRIORS IN FULL WAR ATTIRE . . 50
A KIKUYU MEDICINE MAN MEDICINE MAN PER
FORMING CEREMONY OF PURIFICATION . . 59
CHIEF KARURI S VILLAGE KAHUHIA SCHOOL DR.
CRAWFORD AND PATIENTS, KAHUHIA . . 80
9
io List of Illustrations
FACING PAGE
PUPIL TEACHERS AT KAHUHIA SCHOOL . .84
CAMP IN KARURI S VILLAGE MEDICAL ITINERATION :
SERVICE IN CAMP PARAMOUNT CHIEFS IN THE
CIS-TANA COUNTRY . . . .101
WARRIORS OF EMBULAND . . . .125
THE BELFRY, EMBU MEDICAL MISSION MEDICAL
ASSISTANTS AND PUPIL TEACHERS, EMBU . 128
AN EMBU WARRIOR . . . . .130
THE IST EMBU COMPANY OF THE BOYS BRIGADE
EMBU MEDICAL MISSION SCHOOL . .135
SOME CHUKA BOYS ..... 140
Two EMBERE CHIEFS CHIEF KABUTHI HOSPITAL
COMPOUND, EMBU MEDICAL MISSION . .148
MEDICAL ASSISTANTS TREATING OUT-PATIENTS, EMBU
THE DISPENSARY AND OPERATING ROOM, EMBU
EMBU MEDICAL MISSION SCHOOLBOYS GOVERN
MENT BRIDGE OVER THE TANA RIVER . .168
PART I
Weithaga
Look out upon the field, consider well
The gloomy darkness brooding o er the land
Where Satan s seat is set. Ah ! who can tell
The sin and misery on every hand ?
Consider well the field the bondage sore
Of captive souls within the tyrant s power ;
Groaning for liberty yet more and more,
Groping for light, but lo ! a darker hour !
Consider well the field the awful need
Of those who have not heard that Jesus died,
And face the solemn question : Why, indeed,
To millions is the lamp of life denied ?
BY THE EQUATOR S
SNOWY PEAK
CHAPTER I
Through the Bamboo Forest
SEPTEMBER 21, 1904, found Dr. Crawford
and myself travelling up towards the
highlands of British East Africa by the Uganda
Railway. As agents of the Missionary Society
of the Church of England in Canada, working in
connexion with the Church Missionary Society,
we had been designated to labour amongst the
almost untouched Kikuyu tribe, where, in the
heart of Kenia Province, Mr. A. W. McGregor
had been living in great isolation for over a year.
Such a railway journey is full of unique interest.
As the higher altitudes are reached, the traveller
is kept on the alert watching the herds of wild
animals grazing on the plains. Zebras, harte-
beestes and other smaller varieties of antelopes,
giraffes and ostriches may all be seen, and occasion
ally even a rhinoceros or a lion. As the train
steamed slowly on its way through the wilds, the
13
14 Journeying to the Highlands
old caravan road, which crosses and recrosses the
line again and again, was pointed out to us, and
we thought of all the missionary heroes who had
tramped along that weary track beneath the
burning tropical sun. Especially we remembered
those who had never returned, those who had laid
down their lives in the attempt to plant the
standard of the Cross in Uganda.
The journey from the coast to Victoria Nyanza
which used to cover several months is now accom
plished in a little over two days and nights. We
ourselves left the rail at Kijabi, a point rather
less than two-thirds of the entire distance to the
Lake. Here, at the headquarters of the Africa
Inland Mission, Mr. McGregor had arranged to
meet us. Mr. Hurlburt, the Director of the
A.I.M., was on the platform, waiting to wel
come us as we alighted from the train. He
had most kindly brought his mule to carry me,
as the house is about three miles from the
station. We wound our way in and out up a steep
path cut through the jungle until we reached the
mission station. It stands in a clearing of a great
forest at an altitude of 7,500 feet, overlooking the
Kidong valley, and commands a magnificent view.
Eight hundred feet below lies the plain, now
traversed by the iron horse, where big game
still abounds ; and away beyond, the volcano
Longonot, now extinct, stands out in bold relief
with its black-looking crater.
While awaiting the arrival of our future fellow-
EAST AFRICA
\ (.. Ai 6 Stations underlined .
A Terrible Pathway 15
worker we took a trip with Mr. and Mrs. Hurlburt
to Lake Naivasha. The warlike Masai with their
gleaming spears and decorated shields, herding
their cattle in the rich pasture, came about us and
interested us greatly. Hippopotami are numerous
in the lake and may often be seen roaming on the
shore.
Nothing could exceed the kindness of our
American friends, and it was arranged that I should
remain with them at Kijabi for three or four weeks,
while my husband went on with Mr. McGregor to
prepare for my reception at the new C.M.S.
station, Weithaga, in Kenia Province. A caravan
journey of about sixty miles lay before them, over
hills and mountains, and through the dense bamboo
forest which covers the slopes of Mt. Kinangop.
We had heard much of the difficulties and dangers
of this route, and Mr. McGregor himself had not
found it easy to reach Kijabi. His verdict was
that it would be impossible to take a lady through.
When at last a messenger arrived with a letter
from Dr. Crawford this opinion was confirmed,
as he described the path through the forest as a
terrible one. Mr. Hurlburt had most kindly lent
him his mule for twenty miles or so of the way,
and this had been a great help the first day, at
the close of which they encamped on the border of
the forest. The Doctor wrote from Mr. McGregor s
station, which they had reached in safety, though
he was exceedingly footsore and weary. He] said
that as he feared the rains might be beginning
16 Discussing the Route
very soon, he must start to fetch me in a week s
time, and that he would take me another route,
not through the bamboo forest, but across the
Athi plains. Now although this was said to be an
easier road, yet it was very much longer. More
over some of the widest rivers had not yet been
bridged, but had to be crossed on logs, which not
infrequently were washed away in the rainy
season. Some friends who were acquainted with
this route declared that it was a dreadful journey,
and that the heat was also very great on the Athi
plains. In addition to this I was told that it was
a great lion country, and only a few weeks
before a trader on his way to see Mr. McGregor
had fallen a victim to one of these terrible beasts,
which entered his tent one night and carried him
off.
An intense desire to save my husband the long,
weary trudge back on my account took possession
of me, and as both routes seemed to present an
equal number of difficulties there appeared to be
little to choose between them. It will, therefore,
be readily understood that when my kind host
informed me that he had himself decided to take
a safari (caravan journey) through the bamboo
forest in order to see the chief Karuri on business,
I jumped at the idea of such an escort, and felt
that somehow or other the seemingly impossible
would be made possible in answer to prayer. Mr.
Hurlburt himself proposed that I should accom
pany him and the two other missionaries of the
rt
U
I
u
u
A
C
Setting out on Safari 17
A.I.M. who were going with him. They guaran
teed they would get me through somehow, and
their courage was inspiring !
Two men who were traders and hunters, who
knew every bit of the country for many miles
around, were consulted, and all the difficulties
of the way were fully discussed. They said that
there were some parts so steep that it might be
possible for me to surmount them only by hanging
on to the neck of a native ! There were also some
very awkward places where mountain torrents had
to be crossed, but altogether they were inclined
to take a hopeful view of the proposition. Mr.
Hurlburt wished to set out early next morning,
so preparations had to be hastily made. Mr.
Downing most kindly fixed my deck chair to
two bamboo poles, and raw natives were engaged
to carry our tents and luggage. About 7.30 a.m.
on Oct. 4, 1904, the cavalcade might have been
seen winding its way down through the jungle, and
myself borne along in my chair by four almost
naked savages, with four others in attendance as
an extra team, the three American missionaries
never far from my side, watching over me with the
greatest thoughtfulness. Then came a long, single
file of dusky porters, each with a load of sixty
pounds on his back, suspended by a leather strap
from his head. To swell the caravan were a number
of mission boys, all full of excitement over the idea
of a safari.
We made our way down to the railway, and
i8 An Interminable Tramp
proceeded along the line for several miles, then
branched off and began climbing a tremendously
steep hill, where my chair had to be dragged through
dense undergrowth, while at the same time we
were impeded by overhanging branches of trees.
We emerged at length upon the summit, and the
panting porters threw themselves down upon the
grass to recover their breath.
Nearly the whole of the remainder of that day
was spent in traversing an enormous plateau with
Mt. Kinangop looming dark before us in the dis
tance. Elephant tracks were to be seen at intervals
along the road, and we wondered whether we
should see any of those formidable creatures, or
whether a rhinoceros or buffalo would cross our
path. But no, the caravan was too large and noisy
for them to venture near, although we saw herds
of wild animals in the distance, and zebras and
ostriches abounded.
What an interminable tramp it seemed as we
pressed on beneath the burning sun, longing in
vain for the cool shade of trees, or the refreshing
sound of running water ! At noon a halt was
called, and perching ourselves on some rocks we
made a hasty repast, the menu consisting of
potatoes baked on a camp fire, and tea without
milk. Towards the close of the day we neared
the bamboo forest, and there was Kinangop right
overhead waiting to be scaled ! The weary plain
was left behind, trees became numerous and the
whole landscape was very lovely in the soft evening
Struggling through Difficulties 19
light. The swinging of the chair had produced
sensations not far removed from mal de mer,
and so it was an unspeakable relief, when at last
the tents were pitched, to be able to turn in to my
little stretcher bed.
The crackling of camp fires in the early dawn
warned me that the caravan was astir, and, re
freshed by a good night s rest, I quickly joined my
kind friends for a picnic breakfast of boiled rice,
and shortly afterwards we were on the march
again. The path now became very overgrown,
but brushing aside the tangling branches, we
pushed cheerily on into the forest enjoying the
keen morning air. Only one European lady (as
far as we could ascertain) had ever been through
the bamboo forest before. This was the wife of a
Government official from Fort Hall. It is in
parts very swampy, and the natives who carried
me were frequently struggling in deep mud, and
it would require all the additional porters to steady
my chair and guard it from accident. At times,
too, it had to be hauled up almost inaccessible
places, and at others to be dragged through an
almost impenetrable wall of bamboo. Yet through
all the difficulties my poor bearers pressed on with
marvellous patience and perseverance. And my
missionary friends, though they fell again and
again in the muddy swamps, and clambered
panting up slippery and precipitate paths, were
always brave and cheerful, and their courage was
infectious.
20 Over Mt. Kinangop
It was worth a great deal to see that marvellous
forest, with the delicate tracery of the bamboo
foliage, the trailing vines, the lovely begonias
and the wealth of ferns and staghorn moss. At
one point an elephant had just broken through,
tossing some great bamboos across the path, and
leaving his giant footprints deeply embedded
in the soil. Buffaloes are numerous in the forest
glades, and leopards and other beasts of prey lurk
in its deep recesses ; while in the lower altitudes
of the mountain, where many varieties of beautiful
trees cover the slopes with perpetual green, myriads
of long-haired (Colybus) monkeys sport themselves
amongst the lofty branches.
Towards the middle of the day we reached the
neck of the mountain just below the rocky peaks,
an altitude of about 11,000 feet. I had never been
so high up in my life before ! The view was simply
grand ! But we were not through the forest
yet. Very soon we were enclosed in thick under
growth again, and towering bamboos shut us in
on every side. We now began the descent, which
was in places exceedingly steep. Drenching rain
retarded our progress by rendering the pathway
fearfully slippery. Sometimes there was a moun
tain torrent to cross and the chair needed the
most careful handling. Down, down we came,
the porters warily picking their footsteps, until
in the afternoon we emerged from the forest and
began threading our way up and down amongst
the foothills of Mt. Kinangop. It was about
A Kenia Waterfall
In a Predicament ! 21
4.30 p.m. when the tents were pitched for the
night, and oh, how welcome was the rest after the
strenuous travel of the day ! Many of the natives
came round us, all willing to make friends, and
selling us milk, sweet potatoes, yams and bananas.
On the following morning the encampment
was astir very early, and by 6.30 we had had
breakfast (boiled rice again !) and struck our tents
ready for the last day s march. We were en
shrouded in a thick mist which gradually developed
into heavy rain. Yet in spite of this drawback,
our hearts were full of praise to our loving Father
Who had brought us thus far safely on our way.
A series of awkward places now confronted us,
and to intensify the predicament we were all
drenched to the skin ! The rain poured per
sistently down the back of my chair so that I was
soon sitting in a pool of water ! At the time I
think we scarcely noticed these little drawbacks,
so absorbed were we in overcoming the difficulties
of the road.
The path wended its way first of all down a hill
that was almost vertical. How I ever reached the
bottom in safety was a matter of marvel ! A
magnificent waterfall broke upon our gaze, and
just above it the Maragua River had to be crossed.
Great shelving boulders formed the bank. A
more impossible place to carry a lady in a chair
could scarcely be found ! Yet, being but a poor
climber, I could not trust myself on foot ; and so
it transpired that I was borne down over the rocks
22 Crossing a Slippery Log
and across the river in a manner that was truly
incredible. Two of the A.I.M. boys proved as
watchful over me as were the missionaries them
selves, and one could dare a great deal with such
an escort. At the bottom of the next two hills,
which were frightfully steep, were streams bridged
only by a single plank, and indeed the word
plank is altogether too civilized a term to use,
as in each case it was simply the trunk of a tree,
roughly hewn in half, and rendered very slippery
by mud and rain. The second of these was of a
great length, and some eighteen feet beneath it was
a rushing stream with sharp stones jutting out of
its rocky bed. It was to my mind the most
dangerous place of the whole journey. I dared
not venture across such a narrow and slippery
bridge on foot, and, as it must needs be traversed,
I committed myself to God, and remained in my
chair. Had a single porter slipped we must have
been hurled into the river, the balance was so
extremely critical ; but God mercifully kept their
feet and brought us in safety to the other side.
Meeting one of the A.I.M. missionaries a few months
ago he told me that he still held his breath to think
of me being carried across that log bridge !
From eleven to one o clock we halted, and the
boys cooked a brace of partridges for our dinner
which had fallen to Mr. Staff aucher s gun. Natives
crowded around, staring at me open-mouthed,
especially the women and children, who probably
had never seen a white woman before. At first
A Diminutive Kikuyu Nurse
Three Kikuyu Girls, showing- Ear Ornaments
Arrival at Weithaga 23
they ran away in fear, and were with difficulty
persuaded to return. However, an old man came
and held my hand to show them that I was quite
harmless, whereupon they gradually crept nearer,
and were ultimately prevailed upon to come and
greet me. Then they wanted to touch my clothes,
and hair and face, and began to chatter to me in a
language which, of course, I could not understand.
A distant hill was now pointed out as Mr.
McGregor s station, and as the mist and rain cleared
off and the sun shone out we made much better
progress. Up and down we went over ridges
and valleys until we reached the foot of the
Weithaga hill, and as all our hearts overflowed
with thankfulness I suggested we should sing the
Doxology. Out ran Mr. McGregor, all astonish
ment, followed a little later by my husband who,
on seeing such an imposing caravan approaching,
had first rushed to put on a collar, thinking it
must betoken a visit from the Provincial Com
missioner ! But when he discovered the facts of
the case he came tearing down the hill with a face
aglow with surprise and delight !
Mr. McGregor was very much afraid that the
Provincial Commissioner of Kenia Province would
resent the fact of my coming into the country
before the iron house was finished, as he had laid
down the law on the matter more strongly than I
was aware. So Dr. Crawford dispatched a letter
to Fort Hall at once to notify my arrival. The
answer came next morning in the shape of six native
24 A Native Bodyguard
policemen and a corporal, sent to mount guard over
my tent until further orders ! Later on a kind
letter came from Mr. Hinde, the Provincial Com
missioner, saying that he would gladly do what he
could to assist us, and that he had already taken
precautions for Mrs. Crawford s safety by sending
some native askaris (soldiers) to guard her tent.
At the time of which I am writing the Weithaga
station had only been opened a few months, and
being destitute of trees, presented rather a dreary
aspect ; although the magnificent panorama of
hills all around, stretching away to Mt. Kinangop
on the west, and to the snow-capped peak of Kenia
on the norch, more than compensated for the lack
of beauty in the site itself. The altitude being
about 6,000 feet the nights are cold, and even when
the sun is exerting its power there is always a
refreshing and invigorating breeze.
No sooner had we arrived and settled into our
tent than the autumnal rains (if indeed one may
use such a term in this land of perpetual summer)
began in good earnest. No one who has not
undergone the experience could have the least
idea of the discomfort of camping under such
circumstances ! For three weeks we had to endure
it as best we could. Outside the tent, in rain or
shine, paced an askari, with rifle and fixed bayonet,
ready to salute us as we passed in and out ; and
whenever I went for a stroll with my husband at
sundown there was always an attendant body
guard ! At last the little iron shanty was finished,
Under a Roof again 25
and we were glad to be under a roof once more,
although, being destitute of any lining, it formed
but a poor protection from heat by day and from
cold by night. Moreover nothing would induce
the mud floor to dry !
CHAPTER II
In the Heart of Kikuyu
T IKE some solemn sentinel, snow-capped
-L/ Kenia seems to mount guard over the
province that bears its name. Far away up into
the blue it rears its mitre-shaped peak, and eternal
glaciers sparkle in the tropical sunshine, breaking
up into mountain torrents which dash down the
deep rifts and chasms in its rocky sides, to terminate
below in the many beautiful and swift-flowing
rivers which render the country so fertile. Below
the frost line is a wide belt of bamboo, of palest
grey-green. Lower still a yet broader belt encircles
the mountain, of a deeper, warmer hue, and in
this vast primeval forest the lordly elephant reigns
supreme, for the foot of man has seldom penetrated
its recesses. Silhouetted against the pale evening
sky, its snowy pinnacle reflecting the rosy tints
of sunset, Mt. Kenia appears as a vision of glory !
Perhaps it is equally arresting in the stillness of the
early dawn, when, as if awaking out of sleep, the
mountain gradually throws aside the soft, fleecy
clouds which cling around it like gossamer drapery,
26
4 Mountain of Dazzling Whiteness 27
until it stands out clear and majestic in the bright
ening sunlight. There is a perpetual sensation of
loss in the landscape when for months together the
mountain is veiled from view by low-lying clouds
and only an occasional peep is vouchsafed after
some heavy storm or night of pouring rain. Can
it be wondered at that Kirinyaga (mountain of
dazzling whiteness) should be regarded as the
centre of the religious life of the simple savages
who for centuries have gazed at its lofty summit,
declaring that Ngai (God) Himself or Mweni
Nyaga (possessor of whiteness or purity), as they
sometimes call Him, dwells amidst its untrodden
snows ?
Mt. Kenia, which in altitude (17,000 ft.) ranks
after Ruwenzori and Kilima Njaro of all the moun
tain j of Africa, and which stands on the equator, 1
was discovered by the great pioneer missionary of
the C.M.S., Dr. Krapf, in 1849. In constant danger
of his life, and destitute of a tent or any creature
comforts, this devoted servant of the Cross, whose
one ambition was to extend the knowledge of his
Lord and Saviour in the interior of Africa, pene
trated as far as the bank of the Tana River in
Ukamba with the hope of founding a mission
station there. It was the Kamba tribe who
taught him to call the great mountain Kenia,
whereas if only he could have gone farther, and
explored the country of the Akikuyu, it would
doubtless have been known to the world by
1 The equator cuts through its northern slopes.
28 Harassing Foes
its true name, Kirinyaga. But for the white man
to venture into the wilds of Kikuyu until within
a few years ago was to meet almost certain death.
In passing through the border of this country the
caravan of Bishop Hannington was held up,
not only by the fierce Masai, but by the Akikuyu
also, and it was with the greatest difficulty that
they escaped with their lives, being unable to
comply with the exorbitant demands of the people.
Perhaps it was not without reason that the
Kikuyu people resented the coming of strangers.
Inter-tribal warfare was a matter of constant
occurrence and rendered them extremely suspicious.
Their hand was against every man and every man
was against them. On their eastern border the
Akamba oppressed and troubled them ; and the
wild Ndorobo, who inhabit the forests and live
entirely by the chase, were a constant thorn in their
side though it is probable that the Akikuyu
dispossessed this tribe of their territory when
they conquered the country many generations ago.
But perhaps most frequent of all were the raids
of the warlike Masai, who, pouring over the moun
tains to the west and south-west, would sweep
down upon a village at night, carrying off women
and children, and as many cattle, sheep and goats
as they could lay their hands upon, whilst spears
hurtled through the air, and blood flowed freely
on both sides.
Ah ! if the grand old mountain could only speak,
what stories it could tell us, not only of the raids
{Photograph : Binks, Nairobi
A Masai Warrior, with Jam Pot Ear Ornament
Establishing the first Fort 29
of the Masai, but of the coming of the Arab
caravans, of the remorseless cruelty of the slave
dealers, the pitiless lash and thong, and the un
availing cries of those who were torn away from
their homes and kindred never more to behold
them again. Alas ! the Akikuyu, like their neigh
bours the Akamba, learnt at last to sell their own
children into slavery.
But with the coming of the British dawned a
somewhat brighter day for the Kikuyu tribe,
though they were naturally slow to recognize the
advantage. After much difficulty a fort was
established near the Mathioya River on a hill
overlooking the Athi plains, sixty miles from
Nairobi, which was afterwards known as Fort
Hall, in memory of its founder. From this centre
the whole province of Kenia (including roughly
speaking a radius of sixty or seventy miles round
the mountain) was administered by a provincial
commissioner. As the country was gradually
brought into subjection other Government stations
were opened which were presided over by district
officers. At the time of writing there are four
forts in Kenia, namely, Fort Hall, Fort Nyeri,
Fort Embu and Fort Mem. The Tana River
divides the province into two sections ; in the Cis-
Tana section are the Akikuyu proper, to the num
ber of some 450,000, and the Trans-Tana section is
occupied by other tribes which are branches of
the Kikuyu family, speaking different dialects of
the same language, numbering about 550,000,
30 Suspended Bee Hives
making quite a million in all. These kindred
tribes comprise the Ndia, Embu, Chuka, Mwimbi,
Theraka and Meru, all inhabiting the territory
east and north-east of Mt. Kenia. In some of these
districts white men are still prohibited from
travelling owing to the extremely unsettled state
of these savage peoples.
The Tana River, which rises in Mt. Kenia, forms
the principal waterway to the Indian Ocean, and
into it all the lesser streams of the country are
emptied. Being well-watered, Kikuyu is not
only beautiful but exceedingly fertile, and the
soil supplies the natives with a liberal and varied
diet. Maize, millet, canary seed, sweet potatoes,
yams, cassava, bananas and several varieties of
beans, besides tobacco and castor oil trees, may all
be found growing prolifically in the carefully
cultivated gardens which produce two harvests a
year. Honey is greatly prized, so much so that a
fine of thirty goats may be inflicted on any one
who dares to steal a beehive ! These beehives
are made from sections of trees, hollowed out and
closed by discs of wood at each end, cracks being
left for the bees to crawl in and out. They are
suspended from the branches of high trees as a rule.
The altitude of the Kikuyu hills ranges for the
most part between four and six thousand feet.
Although almost on the equator the climate is
temperate, and varies very little all the year
round, the thermometer seldom rising above 80
in the shade, or falling below 50 on the coldest
{Photograph : Under-wood
A Kikuyu Chief and his Sixteen Wives
The Great Primeval Forests 31
nights. The hottest months are from December
to March. There are two rainy seasons, the longer
one lasting from March to June, and the shorter
one from October to December.
The great primeval forests, which must once
have covered a considerable portion of the
province, have gradually been cleared away, except
around the base of the mountain, where they are
so extensive as to require several days to penetrate.
Portions of forest, however, still remain in some
parts of the country, especially in the vicinity of
Mt. Kinangop ; and many fine old groups of trees
have been allowed to stand as sacred groves, where
sacrifices are offered to the White God. Such
places are supposed to be frequented by departed
spirits and are regarded with reverence. All
uncultivated land is densely covered with rank
weeds, coarse grass or tangling bushes, where
leopards, hyaenas and wild cats lurk.
The flora of the country is disappointing, a
lovely crimson lily, with clinging, vine-like tendrils,
being alone worthy of note, unless we include the
begonias of the forest.
Among the endless foothills of the great mountain
nestle the beehive-like homes of this interesting
tribe, peeping out from banana plantations or
obscured by trees and undergrowth. In the old
days of unceasing inter-tribal strife the more
entirely the village could be hidden from view the
more complete would be the feeling of security.
Even the narrow pathway leading up to it would be
32 * Fooling the Evil Spirits !
made as tortuous as possible with the object of
* fooling not only their enemies but the evil
spirits also ! These evil spirits were certainly
not purely ethereal, as even within the precincts
of his own tribe a Mukikuyu dared hardly venture
on his neighbour s hill or ridge such was the risk
of injury and even of death !
A homestead is nearly always built on a hillside,
and is generally surrounded by a hedge of thick-
growing bushes. The size of the village will
naturally depend on the wealth of the owner. A
poor man must content himself with a single hut
for himself and his wife, while a rich man s home
stead may consist of eight or ten little beehive
erections, each of his wives having a home of her
own. The huts are circular in shape, with low
walls, not more than three feet high, built as a rule
of mud and sticks. They are not infrequently
padded with bracken fern, or other greenery, to give
additional warmth. The conical roof is supported
by four posts, on which rest many long, straight
poles, all converging to the apex. Upon this
framework a substantial layer of bracken fern is
placed and then the whole is thatched with coarse
grass. A hurdle forms the door, being lifted into
its place to close the dwelling at night, or during
the absence of the owner. Owing to the doorway
being so low that it can only be entered in a crawling
posture, the interiors are of necessity exceedingly
dark, such an innovation as a window being alto
gether remote from the savage mind !
The Interior of a Hut 33
In the centre of the mud floor is the fireplace,
this being indicated by a slight round depression
in the surface, on which a few hearth-stones repose
for balancing the cooking-pots. The sides of the
hut are divided into several partitions, each of
which contains a rough wooden bedstead (usually
built of sticks or in some cases of a single plank
supported on posts) standing about two feet from
the ground. Low wooden stools, on which the in
mates squat round the fire, are the only other
furniture excepting a few gourds and cooking
utensils. A fire is seldom allowed to die out, but
if it should be extinguished it is soon kindled
again by means of two sticks which are rubbed
together to create friction, one being of hard and
the other of soft wood. Besides the houses there
are the granaries, which are in reality large baskets
on poles, although their thatched roofs give them
the appearance of tiny huts. A stockaded en
closure for the safeguarding of the cattle at night
occupies a part of the village compound, but the
calves, sheep and goats are usually accommo
dated within the huts. It may here be mentioned
that the cattle are of the zebra variety, with a hump
on the back. Should a calf die the skin is some
times removed, and having been carefully sewn
together, it is stuffed with dried grass, in such a
way as to resemble life as far as possible. The
cow will lick it over and, apparently satisfied with
the dummy, will let her milk flow. Without this
ruse it would be impossible to obtain any !
34 A Village Scene
A visit to a Kikuyu homestead at sundown well
repays the missionary who would study the life
and customs of the people. One is generally
received with friendliness, especially if the visitor
can speak to them in their own language. Let me
endeavour to set before my readers a sort of
cinematograph picture of such a scene. If it
be a large village there may be a withered old
granny squatting at a hut door, or one or two aged
men clad in scraps of ragged and dirty goatskin,
warming their skinny hands over a handful of fire
on the ground, and now and then refreshing them
selves with a pinch of snuff from the tiny gourds
which are suspended from their necks. Some little
naked youngsters are playing close by. A mother
with a wee baby tied on her back is sitting on the
ground shelling beans. Standing by her side is a
little girl trying to hush the cries of a bigger baby
with which her small shoulders are weighted. Two
or three women now return home after a day of
toil in the fields, one bearing a basket of maize
cobs, the others with huge loads of firewood strapped
on their backs, a merry little fellow of two or three
years of age sitting aloft on one of the bundles.
Throwing down their burdens the women begin
to prepare the supper which, the evening being
fine, will be cooked in the open air. A big earthen
ware pot is set up on some hearth-stones and a
fire is soon blazing underneath. Peeping into a
cooking-pot we distinguish through the steam
a thick brown porridge made from Kaffir-corn
\ Photograph : Binks, Nairobi
A Kikuyu Woman, with Load of Firewood
Cooking the Evening Meal 35
meal. Some sweet potatoes and bananas are
being roasted in the ashes.
Just at this juncture a herd of sheep and goats
come trooping into the village, driven by the small
herd boys who cast hungry glances in the direction
of the cooking-pot! Presently the cattle enter,
some of the cows lowing loudly for their calves
which have been tied up in a hut, or browsing with
the goats all day, Meanwhile the men of the
homestead having sauntered in, a young warrior
brings a dirty gourd, and squatting down on
his heels, proceeds to milk a cow. But now the
sun is sinking beyond the distant hills, and darkness
will quickly fall upon the landscape. So with the
greeting Tiguo uhoro! (Remain in peace !), which is
exchanged with Thie uhoro ! (Go in peace !), we
hastily pass out of the enclosure and hurry back
to the mission station.
CHAPTER III
A Study in Ebony ;
or, The People of the Tribe
THE most interesting event after our arrival
at Weithaga was the welcome extended
to me by the Kikuyu women. Led by their
chieftainess, Wangu, they ascended the hill in
hundreds to perform a dance in my honour.
Nothing would content them but that I must be
dragged into the centre of the ring, to endure with
as cheerful a countenance as I could muster the
din of their savage song and the smother of dust
raised by their feet. A presentation of a sheep
followed, and after this Wangu seemed to claim me
as her particular friend ! She is quite a remarkable
person in her way, and is the only female chief
we have ever known. Probably she would never
have been recognized by the Government in this
capacity had not her husband, to whom the
authority of sub-chief was originally given, proved
incapable, while Wangu demonstrated herself
to be the better man of the two ! With well-
oiled body, draped with skins, smeared with red
clay and grease and ornamented with an amazing
36
4 Tailor-made * Costumes 37
quantity of beads, Wangu is well able to hold her
own as the leading lady of the country !
Every Kikuyu woman wears a tailor-made
costume, the goatskin clothing being shaped and
sewn by the men ; and she is very particular
about the cut, although the fashion is unvarying
from year to year ! Her skirt hangs long behind,
terminating in two points or tails, and is folded
across a short leather apron in front. A goatskin
cape, suspended by a string from one shoulder,
covers the upper part of the body, but is usually
laid aside during manual work. The women have
their own methods of dressing the skins, which
are rubbed with fat until quite soft and pliable,
when they are frequently smeared over with red
clay. White or coloured beads are sometimes
sewn into the seams and round the edges of these
garments, thus rendering them ultra-stylish !
It is strange how dearly an African loves a
decoration of beads ! The Kikuyu women are
sometimes quite heavily laden with them. Large
hoops of beaded wire hang from their ears ; and
bead necklaces, varying in number according to
the estimation in which they are held by husbands
or lovers, are strung around their necks. Young
girls are decorated with a frontlet of beadwork
over their foreheads, and a kind of corset of blue
and white beads just below the waist. Beads are
not, however, the only ornament. Coils of brass
wire, kept brightly shining, are worn on the arms
and above the ankles, if the woman be a person
38 Distorted Ears
t
of any importance. If she has attained the rank
of mutumia (a married woman with grown-up
children), she must keep her head entirely shaved,
and also insert huge brass rings in the distended
lobes of her ears. The younger women shave the
front and back of the head, leaving only a circle
of hair on the crown. As soon as a girl is able to
take a part in the general work of the village, her
hair is cut in this curious way, and the wretched
custom of distorting the ears begins. Three
punctures are made in the upper edge, into which
small sticks of equal size are inserted. A much
larger hole is made in the lobe, which is continually
stretched by the introduction of chunks of wood.
These are again and again replaced by wedges of
a larger size until the lobe is so extended that it
will sometimes reach to the shoulder. Necklaces
are often threaded through the ears, making it
somewhat difficult and painful to turn the head.
Little girls seldom wear anything but a small
leathern apron, and a string of beads round the
neck.
As I sat in the centre of the ring of merry women
and girls dancing in my honour I could scarcely
realize what strenuous lives they led, but this I
found out by degrees, as we watched them come and
go day by day, and visited them in their villages.
Though practically slaves from childhood they bear
life s burdens very philosophically, and are generally
ready with a laugh and a jest. See the tiny girl
of four or five years trotting bravely along with a
[Photograph . Sinks, Nairobi
A Kikuyu Woman
A Nurse in Miniature 39
baby almost as big as herself on her back ! Look
at her again, as she follows her mother with a
bundle of sticks poised on her slender shoulders, or a
little gourd filled with water from the river ! As
she grows year by year the burdens will become
gradually heavier and heavier, but her muscles
will be so strong that she will usually carry them
cheerfully. We have seen women carrying loads
of firewood that weighed quite 180 Ibs. ! The small
Kikuyu maiden is early taught to handle her
little cultivating knife in the gardens, digging and
weeding all day long beside her mother ; then after
assisting to carry home the produce of the fields,
she must help to cook the food for the lazy men
folk at sundown ! If not engaged in the fields, the
women may be seen busily employed at home,
pounding maize in a large wooden mortar, or
grinding the corn on a smooth slab of stone, by
means of a smaller stone which they work to and
fro with their hands. This latter process, being
accomplished in a kneeling position, must be very
fatiguing.
Sometimes when taking a walk in the cool of
the day we have come upon a number of women
pounding sugar-cane for the brewing of native
beer. For this a large log of timber is felled, and
as it lies on the ground a long row of holes resembling
mortars is carved on its surface. Pestles of hard
wood are prepared, about six feet in length and
each weighing seven or eight pounds avoirdupois ;
with these the cane is pounded to a pulp, which is
40 A Busy Toiler
then carried to a group of men sitting near, whose
duty it is to wring out the juice. This is poured into
large gourds and allowed to ferment. A still more
intoxicating drink is made from honey. Pottery
is an important industry which is entirely in the
hands of the women. They will travel many miles
to procure the right kind of sand, and it is really
remarkable with what skill they will fashion the
large cooking-pots which are so much in demand.
A Kikuyu woman scarcely knows what idleness
means. Her leisure moments are occupied with the
manufacture of string bags which are used for
carrying the garden produce or the ripe corn from
the fields. Even when she has become habituated
to attending the mission service on Sunday, she
may be seen in her place in church busily plying
her fingers as she pulls the threads in and out,
while a half -finished bag lies on her lap. The
twine for these bags is made by a method which
would hardly commend itself to friends at home,
namely, by chewing strips of wild ramie fibre in the
mouth before twisting them into string.
Although the women have no share in the dis
cussion of public affairs, yet in buying and selling
they are experts. Were it not for the native mar
kets which are held every fourth day at recognized
places all over the country, there would indeed be
little to sharpen their wits. But the constant
bargaining over the exchange and sale of their
wares and garden produce tends to somewhat
develop their otherwise dull and torpid minds.
Dancing in the Moonlight 41
The market is a place of social reunion, and
between the hours of eleven and twelve in the
morning, when the fair is at its height, it presents
a seething mass of black humanity.
Of recreation the women and girls have little,
but on moonlight nights they come out to dance
on the open spaces outside the homesteads, and
the hillsides echo with the shrill trilling of their
peculiar song. It is only as a woman advances in
years that she may hope to meet with much respect
from the other sex. Young men are expected to
step out of the path to allow an old dame to pass,
if it be a very narrow one. The head wife of a
member of the Kiama (council of elders) is per
mitted to be present at the tribal councils ; of this
privilege, however, the women seldom avail them
selves. During a woman s existence she passes
through the following stages : (1) Karegu (little
girl) ; (2) kiregu (big girl) ; (3) muiretu (marriage
able girl) ; (4) muhiki (bride or young married
woman) ; (5) wabai (mother of young children) ;
(6) mutumia (mother of children who have attained
their majority) ; (7) kiheti (old woman).
Peeping out from the leather cape by which it is
fastened to its mother s back, a Kikuyu baby gets
its first impressions of life in general ! When able
to use its legs the naked little mite toddles after
her wherever she goes, getting an occasional lift
when tired. A few years later (if a boy) he is
herding the goats on the green sward outside the
homestead, and a very 4 happy-go-lucky, jolly
42 A * Happy -go -Lucky Little Fellow
little fellow he is, with his brown limbs unfettered
by any clothing, except perhaps a tiny piece of
goatskin slung from one shoulder. Small notice is
taken of him until the time draws near for his
initiation into the tribe, which may take place at
any age between fourteen and eighteen years, but
it must be preceded by a ceremony known as the
second birth. His ears are now pierced and
distended by a circular piece of wood, which must
cause him a good deal of pain. Three or four
months before his initiation the boy begins to dance
in company with other youths who are preparing
for the rite. Painting their bodies over with white
pipeclay, they drape themselves with Colybus
monkey and serval cat skins, while at the same time
carrying sticks and small wooden shields which are
attached to the upper part of their arms.
A large concourse of relatives and friends gathers
together to dance on the eventful day, and after a
sacrifice has been offered the boys are initiated.
They are now recognized as warriors, and strut
about with an air of great importance. No work
is expected of them, and henceforth the herding is
left to the younger lads. Idle amusement and
sensuality are the only features which stamp their
present existence. To acquire a sufficient number
of goats for the purchase of a wife becomes the
object of their ambition. The price is fixed
by the prospective father-in-law, and will be about
thirty goats, but it may vary according to the
price paid for the girl s mother ; nothing, however,
A Native Village
Kikuyu Boys in Ceremonial Dress
Wooing a Dusky Bride 43
must be said about the price at the first interview.
If the young man has taken a fancy to a girl whose
elder sisters are still unmarried he will probably be
told that he must either transfer his affections to
one of these, or be prepared to wait until they have
been disposed of, as it is contrary to the custom of
the tribe for a younger daughter to marry before
the elder ones.
When possibly fifteen to twenty goats have been
paid over the marriage may take place. The
young man then presents the girl s father with a
sheep, and the following day, accompanied by his
relatives, he goes to the bride s home, carrying
gourds of beer and clusters of bananas. The girl s
relatives are also assembled, but she herself must
not appear. Festivities open with a beer drink,
and then the two mothers lead off in the Kitiro
dance. After this the respective fathers retire for
a consultation. When they rejoin the company
a sheep is killed, and presently all the men are
squatting round the little fires they have kindled
roasting bits of meat in the flames. Before the
feast begins all the women disappear, as it is not
correct for them to witness the men eating meat !
If the bridegroom is rich, a second sheep is sure to
be demanded for the benefit of the elders who are
present.
A few days later, after other preliminaries have
been completed, the young man waylays the girl
and carries her off struggling and screaming
to her new abode, or he may depute his warrior
44 A Strange Bridal Scene
friends to capture his bride, or even the old women
of his village ! Her girl friends follow her and
live with her for several days, bringing her all the
food she needs, and abusing the bridegroom when
ever he puts in an appearance ! At length to get
rid of them he gives the girls a substantial present
of fat and food, and thus propitiated they consent
to return to their homes.
The bride, meanwhile, keeps up a constant
wailing for over a week, which can be heard for some
distance around the village. During this period she
refuses all the food offered to her by her husband,
and will eat only that which is sent to her by her
mother or girl friends. Custom demands that
during the first eight days after her capture, the
fire must never be extinguished within the new
home or in the mother s hut. At the end of this
time the bridegroom presents her with a new suit
of skins, which he has in all probability shaped and
sewn for her himself. His own girl friends then
appear on the scene, their duty being to deck the
bride out in her new clothes, which they proceed to
rub so profusely with red clay and castor oil that
the costume fairly shines. The young wife s skin
must be treated in the same way, and her head
must be shaved, leaving only the prescribed circle
of hair on the crown. Beaded hoops of wire are
fastened in her ears, and if the bridegroom be
wealthy he will complete the toilet with a number
of bead necklets. Thus attired she is carried in
triumph to her mother s village, the girls taking
Unlucky Twins 45
it in turns to bear her on their backs until they
arrive at their destination. When the visit has
been paid they carry her off again to the bride
groom s abode. She is on no account allowed to
spend a night at her old home, however much she
may wish to do so. Before the conclusion of the
first month after his wedding the young man is
expected to provide a large feast for his own
relatives and friends.
To have only one wife is considered a sign of
poverty. The women themselves are in favour
of polygamy, as they do not care to be left to do
all the work of the village and gardens alone.
The first wife, however, retains her superiority,
and her first child will be regarded as the eldest
even if born after the child of the second wife.
Each wife has her own hut, granary, and plots for
cultivation. A rich man may have possibly six or
seven wives ; the paramount chief Karuri is said
to have as many as seventy !
Twins are considered very unlucky. If they
happen to be the first-born children they must
both be killed. First-born twins of goats and sheep
must also be sacrificed. If a child has had the
misfortune to cut its upper teeth first the poor mite
may have to pay for this calamity with its life,
unless a sacrifice can be arranged. 1
In the Kikuyu tribe the stages of a man s exist
ence are as follows: (1) Kahce (little boy); (2) kihee
1 Since the British Government have taken over the country
such customs have been suppressed, as far as possible.
46 * Different Styles Prevail
(big boy); (3) mwanake (warrior) ; (4) githiga (father
of young children) ; (5) muthuri (elder). When he
enters the githiga class he is expected to give up
dancing with the warriors.
Before the coming of the white man a goat s
skin suspended from the shoulder was the only
covering of the men, but now a piece of dirty
American cotton, sometimes covered with red
clay, is the fashion, or in some cases a coloured
blanket is draped loosely over the body. The
elderly men of the tribe allow their grizzled, woolly
hair to grow quite naturally, and are content to
leave it without ornamentation ; not so, however,
the dandy warrior, who bestows much time and
care on his hair-dressing. Different styles pre
vail in different districts Some imitate the Masai,
who wear a top -knot in front, and a thick
pigtail hanging half-way down the back. To
obtain this result strands of wild ramie fibre are
interwoven with tufts of the hair, those in front
being so firmly bound together that the top -knot
stands out stiff and straight several inches beyond
the forehead. In a similar way the numerous
strands of fibre are tied together into a long, thick
queue at the back of the head. This is wound
round with strips of sheepskin, and the entire
head-dress is then oiled and smeared with red clay.
Another style is to interweave innumerable little
strips of fibre with the native wool in such a way
as to resemble long hair. When thickly coated
with red clay and mutton fat the deception is
[Photograph : Binks, Nairobi
A Masai Warrior
The Dandy Warrior 47
complete ! Yet another method, much in vogue,
is a head-dress of black vulture feathers, each
feather being attached to little tufts of hair.
Red clay and fat are often so liberally smeared,
not only over the head, but over the neck, chest
and shoulders also, as to be literally streaming
down the body when the warrior has completed
his toilet for a dance !
Ornaments, too, must not be forgotten ! Of
these the most important are those for the ear.
Large wooden discs are inserted in the distorted
lobes, or if the young brave can get hold of a jam
pot or a cocoa tin for this purpose, so much the
better ! A metal collar with a fringe of slender
chains adorns his neck ; a few bead necklaces will
probably be added, and some coils of thick brass
wire decorate his arms and legs. A highly
ornamented shield and flashing spear give the final
touch of swagger to his appearance. The old
men are much more simple in their tastes, a
special kind of chain ear-ring, perhaps a brass
necklet, and some coils of brass wire being their
only ornamentation.
In spite of the idle propensities of the sterner
sex, there are some branches of work which fall
exclusively to their share. In the cultivation of
the soil their part is to break up the ground by
means of long wooden stakes, sharpened to a point
at one end ; the women then come in with their
cultivating knives, digging out the grass and weeds,
and rendering the surface smooth and even. Hut
48 A Blacksmith s Curse
building, which has already been described, is
entirely the responsibility of the men folk, with the
exception of thatching. The only really skilled
workmen are the blacksmiths, and these are
regarded with equal veneration as the medicine
men, while nothing is more to be dreaded than a
blacksmith s curse.
We have sometimes peeped into a smithy just
a round shed on poles to watch them fashioning
the iron ore in their primitive but ingenious way.
The forge consists of a hole in the ground, lined
with tempered clay, which is filled with a charcoal
fire. The curious double bellows are made of goat
skins, neatly sewn together so as to exclude the
air, and triangular in shape. Into the apex a
wooden pipe is inserted which, when the bellows
are in use, is securely pegged to the ground, and
to its extremity another small pipe made of baked
clay is attached. This nozzle rests on the edge of
the furnace. To the wide mouth of the bellows
at the opposite end two smooth flat sticks are
sewn. Holding these sticks in a vertical position
the operator opens and shuts the mouth of the
bellows, thus forcing the air into them, and empty
ing them again. It will be understood from the
above that there are two goatskin bodies to the
bellows, but only one nozzle, A boy sits on his
heels between them working each alternately,
so that a continuous blast is the result. Four
solid blocks of granite form the anvils, and the
only other instruments employed are some iron
A Kikuyu Warrior, with Head-dress of Ostrich Feathers
A Kikuyu Forge 49
hammers and tongs. From this crude workshop
quite highly finished weapons, implements and
ornaments are turned out.
As the Mukikuyu grows in years he is held in
increasing esteem, which culminates in his being
admitted to the Kiama, or council of elders, of
which I shall have more to say later on.
CHAPTER IV
Where Ancient Cults prevail
THE Kikuyu race are a branch of the great
Bantu family, of which there are so many
varieties in the Dark Continent. Their manner of
life is precisely the same as that which obtained
amongst their forefathers of a thousand years ago.
As their grandfathers and grandmothers have done
before them so do they, and their minds are
darkened by the same strange and foolish super
stitions which enslaved their ancestors.
The government of the tribe was originally
patriarchal, each elder being the head of his own
village. They were divided into many different
clans, each of these having its own Kiama or
council of elders to whom all affairs of importance
were referred. There were a few chiefs, but their
authority was somewhat restricted, and they were
expected to act in concert with the Kiama. When
the British Government stepped in, much greater
power was given to the chiefs, who were also made
responsible for the collection of the hut tax. The
councils of elders were placed entirely in abeyance
5
Warriors in full War Attire
The Council of Elders 51
until quite recently, when, it having been found by
experience that many abuses had crept in owing
to the arbitrary power vested in the chiefs, the
authority of the Kiama was again restored, with
considerable advantage.
The athuri (elders) are admitted to the Kiama
by election, followed by an initiation ceremony.
They hold their courts in the open air, sitting
on the ground in a circle. The assembly is con
trolled by the president of the Kiama, who has
been specially elected to this office and who acts
in the capacity of chairman, introducing the
subjects for debate, and maintaining order through
out the session. His rank in the tribe is second
to that of the chief. The latter may or may not
be a member of the Kiama, as several of the
chiefs known to ourselves happen to be younger
men, belonging to the giihiga class. The first
speaker holds a stick in his hand, and when he has
finished what he has to say he passes it on to the
next one who wishes to obtain a hearing, no one
being permitted to express his views without it.
By this simple method order is maintained. A
plaintiff when laying his case before the court has
a number of short sticks in his hand, and as each
important point in his argument is reached he
throws one on the ground. A fine of so many
sheep or goats is the most usual penalty imposed
upon offenders, varying, of course, according to the
heinousness of the crime ; but a persistent thief,
or a murderer, or a wizard, used to be burnt
52 A Wizard Burnt Alive
alive or drowned. One such case came before our
notice when a chief who was calling at our station
in passing informed us that he and his people had
just burnt a murogi (poisoner), by shutting him
up in a granary, and kindling a fire underneath it.
This case was tried by the authorities at the Fort,
but, owing to the extreme ignorance of the people
and the fact that they considered they were con
ferring a public benefit, no malice aforethought
could be established. So the prisoners were
dismissed with a warning under any circumstances
not to inflict capital punishment in future, this
being the prerogative alone of the Government.
Members of the Kiama carry a staff of office,
and wear a particular kind of brass ear-ring. They
also have their own peculiar greeting which may
not be used by those outside the privileged class.
It is upon the elders that the duty of sacrificing
to Ngai (God) depends. This is carried out with
much solemnity in the precincts of a sacred prove,
or at the foot of some tree set apart for this pur
pose, and which must never be felled. The elders
march in procession to the spot, one carrying a
calabash containing beer, others bearing firewood,
and a sheep bringing up the rear. While all
present gather round the tree, holding their hands
aloft, the chief, if present, or the leading elder
offers prayer to Ngai in some such language as the
following : O God, we beseech Thee to bless us !
Increase our cattle, and our sheep and goats !
Give us children ! Send rain upon our fields that
A Native Sacrifice 53
we may enjoy a fruitful harvest ! While offering
these petitions he pours some beer down the trunk
of the tree. He then plunges his knife into the
heart of the sheep, which has previously been
stretched on the ground and suffocated. The
blood having been collected in a calabash, together
with the liver and the heart, a long strip of fat is
wound round the tree. A fire is then prepared,
and, after the sheep has been roasted in its embers,
the elders feast upon the meat, half of which,
however, is laid at the foot of the tree as an offering
to God. At the conclusion of the feast all rise
simultaneously to their feet, extending their hands
toward heaven, chanting a song. Such sacrifices
are offered on a vast number of varying occasions.
Sometimes their beer drinks seem to partake of a
religious character. The presiding elder will pour
out a little of the njohi (beer) from a calabash,
while muttering a prayer ; not until then is the
liquor freely circulated. None below the rank of
elder have hitherto been allowed to drink intoxi
cating beverages, except the aged women ; but
this good old custom is gradually being broken
through.
The elderly people of the tribe have a curious way
of bestowing a blessing by spitting on the head of
the favoured individual ! It is also considered a
token of good will to spit on one s hand before
extending it to greet a friend ! It does not do for
a missionary to reject such a mark of friendship,
though it really requires a little nerve to reciprocate
54 Intensely Superstitious
the grip ! Respect for elders and superiors is very
conspicuous, and the reverence that prevails for
parents might well teach the younger generation of
civilized nations a lesson. Beyond this, however,
there is little of an uplifting character in their
morals. True, they are a merry and lighthearted
people, living very much in the passing moment ;
but falsehood, treachery and sensuality seem to be
bred in their very bones, and it requires untold
patience and earnestness on the part of the mis
sionary in seeking to counteract these tendencies
in Christian adherents. Notwithstanding this we
have met with one here and there whose natural
character seemed to be superior to the general
degradation of his neighbours, and who was eager
to respond to elevating influences.
In common with all African tribes the Akikuyu
are intensely superstitious, and give credence to
charms, witchcraft and evil spirits. They have
some vague belief, however, in a Supreme Being,
whom they fear rather than love. In times of
drought, famine or other calamities, they turn to
the great White Spirit, stretching out their hands
in supplication toward Mt. Kenia, or towards Mt.
Kinangop. They affirm that their god is the White
God, but that of the Masai is the Black God !
Almost every form of ordinary disease and
affliction is attributed to the malevolent agency of
departed spirits, by which they are kept in constant
terror, and which must therefore be appeased at
all cost. They believe that after death a man s
Haunted by Ghosts 55
ngoma (ghost) haunts the place of his decease, and
may be continually working them harm. A hut
where a person has died is a place to be avoided,
and a village may be entirely deserted if believed
to be thus haunted by ngoma. There are some
spirits which are said to have passed into forms of
animal life. Amongst these is a curious green
caterpillar upon the track of which, if it enters the
homestead, they rub fat, to break the evil spell.
A particular variety of mongoose is greatly dreaded
for the same reason. Ngoma are said to enter into
hyaenas, and a goat must be sacrificed for purposes
of purification should one steal into a village at
night. There is also a superstition that the spirits
of the departed frequently enter living people.
Madness is generally attributed to this cause. It
is said that ghosts can be heard dancing and singing
in the woods at night. Their actual place of abode
is supposed to be in the depths of the earth, whence
they emerge occasionally to frequent the forests,
or the vicinity of their old homes.
Amongst the Akikuyu exists a mysterious secret
society known as the Itwika, or worship of the
snake. This we have discovered to be nothing
but a huge fraud ! In the Mathioya and Tana
Rivers there are supposed to be enormous black
water snakes, called ndamathia, which are objects
of great veneration. Once about every six years a
feast is observed in their honour when cattle, sheep,
beer and honey are brought to the river. So great
is the awe inspired by the Itwika that no one dares
56 Snake Worshippers
to venture outside the huts on the day of the
festival, except the members of the society. These
go in procession to the river blowing sacred horns.
At the unwonted sound the snake is supposed to
rise to the surface, when a goat trough is at once
launched into the stream loaded with meat, honey,
bananas and beer, as an offering to the ndamaihia.
The reptile, it is said, partakes of the feast and
soon becomes intoxicated ! Some hairs of the neck
are then extracted to be employed as charms, and
after a great banquet on the bank of the river the
whole company march back singing their Itwika
song. None but members of the society are per
mitted to witness the ceremony and the most
absolute secrecy is maintained with regard to all
their doings. Huts are specially erected for the
worship of the snake, in which the sacred horns are
secreted. The object of this ridiculous superstition
seems to be the enrichment of the fraternity by
means of the entrance fees charged, which are pay
able in goats. Directly a new votary has been
initiated he is informed of the deception and
sworn to secrecy. Christianity has no more bitter
opponents in Kikuyu than the followers of this
fraudulent cult. Loving darkness rather than light,
they resent all that makes for progress.
The African is essentially a lover of the dance,
and none more so than the Kikuyu tribe. They
have quite a variety of dances, the principal ones
being as follows :
1. The Mambura, which is confined to young
Kikuyu Dances 57
lads who are about to be admitted into the full
privileges of manhood.
2. The Kibata or war dance. In preparation for
this the warriors paint their bodies with pipe clay
and red ochre, and encircle their heads with huge
head-dresses of ostrich feathers. Around the waist
is strapped a leather girdle, from which depends a
skilfully made sheath containing a sword. Thus
grotesquely arrayed they assemble for the dance,
and to a strange grunting accompaniment they
leap into the air in perfect unison ; then they spring
from side to side, bending forwards and jerking
their heads and bodies in an extraordinary manner.
This is kept up until the point of exhaustion is
reached. 1
3. The Gichukia, a social function, which is
performed around a large bonfire by members of
both sexes at night. One of the performers leads
off in a song which is responded to by a chorus of
voices, the whole company swaying their bodies to
and fro.
4. The Gitiro is the women s dance, and may be
celebrated on any occasion of rejoicing. The most
elderly woman present stands in the centre of the
ring and starts their own special song, each one
dancing up to her in turn, while a curiously high,
trilling chorus and grunting accompaniment is
maintained, all beating time with hands and
feet.
In preparation for most of the dances it is usual to
1 Shields and spears are sometimes used in this dance.
58 Gruesome Scavengers
anoint the bodies and garments very liberally with
red clay and grease.
Of course there are a great many in every
community who are debarred from participating
in the dances and other tribal festivities owing to
physical infirmities. For these, apart from their
own nearest relatives, there is but little help and
sympathy. Indeed, if the disease be at all of a
loathsome character they are regarded with positive
aversion. It is the custom to carry the sick person
into the bush directly they fear that the illness may
terminate fatally. In some cases a relative may
watch close by until death occurs, but, as a rule,
the unhappy sufferer is left alone, without shelter
or protection, and with the gruesome certainty that
the dreaded hyaena is lurking not far off in readiness
to devour his body.
Should a death occur in a village it is custom
ary to throw the body out into the neighbouring
thicket to be eaten by these horrible scavengers. A
chief, or leading elder, or even an aged woman,
may, however, be buried, provided they have sons
who have attained their majority ; but in any case
the persons who have touched the dead body will
afterwards have to undergo purification by the
medicine man.
A Kikuyu Medicine Man, with Stool and Reticule
Medicine Man performing Ceremony of Purification
CHAPTER V
The Medicine Man
A MONGST the Akikuyu there is not a more
1\. interesting personality than the medicine
man. He is, of course, a most shocking old fraud,
but that does not prevent persons of all sorts and
conditions flocking to him for advice. Indeed he
thrives on their credulity, and in his worldly-wise
way he finds his occupation most profitable !
He is naturally much in evidence both in the
religious and social life of these primitive people,
and is known by two names : first, muraguri,
which means fortune teller or prophet ; and
secondly, mundu mugo, physician and priest. It
is supposed that he is called to his vocation by
God, Who appears to him in a dream, or vision,
and tells him he must become a medicine man.
This call he proclaims to the people of his village
next morning. At sunset he disappears into the
woods to communicate again with Ngai, returning
to his village at break of day to announce once
more that he has been chosen by the Great White
Spirit to be a mundu mugo.
59
60 A Witch Doctor s Initiation
Another witch doctor is now called in to initiate
the new candidate, who must be an elder, into
the mysteries of his profession. This personage
arrives on the scene equipped with his leather reti
cule of gourds containing medicines, and a mwano,
a gourd filled with small, round stones, beans,
fragments of iron, etc., with which he professes
to foretell future events. These are presented to
his disciple, who is instructed to go to the river
and gather more small stones to augment his
outfit. A goat is then sacrificed, and a small piece
of the skin is fastened round the neck of the cala
bash as a charm. The flesh is cooked and eaten
by all who have assembled to watch the proceed
ings, whilst native beer is provided for the benefit
of the elders alone.
The candidate is then initiated into the use of
the mwano, and the art of fortune telling and
prophecy. He is also shown how to compound
medicines from native herbs and roots, and how to
concoct charms. After this he is looked upon as
a member of the profession, and as such he may be
consulted. In his office of muraguri he spreads
the skin of a goat upon the ground, shakes up
the stones in the gourd and casts them out like
dice, professing in this way to forecast future
events.
Possibly a young warrior may come to consult
him as to whom he shall choose for a wife. Or if
a man is sick for a long time and the medicines
prescribed have failed to bring about a recovery,
Dispelling Evil Spirits 61
the mwano is cast to ascertain the cause. Should
goats or sheep fall sick and die without any ap
parent reason, the muraguri must be resorted to.
Or if a friend is away for a long time the prophet
is consulted as to his whereabouts, the state of his
health and the possible date of his return. Should
the client wish to take a journey he will probably
go to the muraguri to ascertain the most suitable
season for his departure. The fee for such ser
vices is only two or three pice, equal to two or
three farthings, or their equivalent in kind. But
in any case it must be cash down, as he is dis
tinctly averse to the credit system !
In sickness of every sort the medicine man is
consulted. He is sometimes also called in to drive
away evil spirits from a homestead, or to protect
t against thieves, infectious diseases, witchcraft
or poison. Or should the owner of a village desire
an increase of cattle, flocks, crops and children,
the mundu mugo is summoned, and the wishes of
the elder explained to him. Then, standing erect
in the centre of the village, the witch doctor
elevates his pouch of medicines, and looking away
towards the summit of snow-capped Kenia, he
prays that he may be given wisdom in overcoming
the evils which exist in the homestead, and that
good luck and prosperity may result. He then
seats himself on his stool, and placing several
pieces of dried banana bark before him on the
ground, he puts medicine from his gourds upon
each, his client meanwhile sitting opposite to him.
62 Cleansing a Village
He next produces a goat s horn and after mixing
the different medicines together upon the banana
bark, he proceeds to pour the whole concoction
into it. The open end of the horn is sealed up
with bees wax, which is studded with beads. The
small end is then pierced with a boring instru
ment, and through this hole a fine iron chain (of
native workmanship) is introduced. This is given
to his client to be worn around his neck as a charm,
a means of warding off impending evils, and as an
aid in bringing prosperity. The owner of the
village now presents the medicine man with a ram
or he goat which he drags around the homestead
and gardens. The circle being completed he returns
to the village, and the animal is sacrificed, cooked
and eaten by all present. The great man does not,
of course, forget to collect his fee, which, varying
according to the ability of his client to pay and his
own professional standing, may amount to one or
two sheep.
The Akikuyu have very little sense of sin as
we have been taught to understand it, but they
are very particular about ceremonial defilement.
Touching a dead body, eating the flesh of a fowl,
or of any wild bird, animal or fish proscribed by
tribal custom, handling poison, digging a grave,
the breaking of a cooking pot on the fire, a wild
animal breaking into a hut, and a whole host of
other things are known as thahu, i.e. defilement.
The person who has been defiled sends at once for
the mundu mugo and begs to be cleansed, other-
In the Hands of a Quack 63
wise he is regarded as an outcast, and his wife
will refuse to cook for him.
Thus solicited, the medicine man immediately
makes his appearance, and the sacrifice of a sheep
or goat takes place without delay. Taking his bag
of medicines in his hands, he lifts it up above his
head, and turning towards the mountain he invokes
the assistance of Ngai. Having prepared a small
hollow in the ground, which he has lined with
banana leaves, he places in it the contents of the
stomach and intestines of the animal which has just
been sacrificed. To this offal is added some concoc
tion from his gourds. Then going to the thicket
outside the village he gathers some twigs, which he
ties together in the form of a small broom. He lays
it on the ground beside the hole, placing the front
foot of the sheep beside it, then dips both into the
offal, which, the patient having opened his mouth,
he proceeds to apply to his tongue ! The order
is pronounced, Vomit, whereupon the patient
must spit upon the ground.
While this process is being repeated again and
again a long list of actions supposed to have caused
ceremonial uncleanness is recited. At the conclu
sion the sheep s foot, dipped in the offal, is applied
to the person s tongue, and again he is commanded
to vomit. The twigs are now divided into two
bundles, which are once more dipped into the un
pleasant mixture in the hole, whereupon the mundu
mugo and his patient rise to their feet. Commenc
ing with the top of his head the physician, with the
64 A Thahu is Expelled
bundles of twigs in his hands, briskly brushes the
person s body all over with the offal, ending with
his feet. When this is completed the medicine
man informs him that his thahu is expelled !
Leaving his patient, he now takes the bunches of
twigs, and enters each of the huts of the village in
turn and, proceeding to brush the walls with his
brooms, he pretends to sweep out the defilement.
Last of all he collects the sheep s offal together,
and carries it out into the bush, at the same time
saying, I drive thahu out of this village.
On returning, the medicine man again sits down
in front of his patient, and requests him to stretch
out his hands, palms upward, and close together, as
if in the act of receiving something. Pouring out
some white chalk-like substance from one of his
gourds, he draws a line with it on the out-stretched
palms, as well as on the forehead, nose, throat and
abdomen of his patient, afterwards making similar
marks on his own body. Some medicine is then
mixed in the extended hands, and the man is told
to swallow it. The flesh of the sacrifice is now
cooked and partaken of by all except the patient
himself. It is supposed that his uncleanness would
return were he to participate in this feast. The
mundu mugo then departs, after having been com
pensated for his important services with a sub
stantial fee.
Witchcraft is said to be practised by evil spirits
which have taken up their abode in human beings,
and calamities of many kinds are attributed to their
The Spell of Witchcraft 65
malevolent influence. Should witchcraft be sus
pected the medicine man is called in, and after the
usual ceremony of prayer he draws from his reticule
a small antelope s horn, which has been previously
filled with some kind of 4 medicine and sealed up
with bees wax. With this horn in his hand he
searches in and around the homestead, scraping up
the ground with it at the roots of trees, in the
cultivated plots and by the sides of the dwelling-
houses. Finally he brings forth something which
he declares to be the source of all the trouble. This
may be some debris wrapped in leaves, or a piece of a
human skull, the hairs of a man s head, or a bit of
stick or stone surrounded with leaves. Whatever
it is there can be little doubt but that it has been
secreted there for the purpose by the cunning old
mundu mugo himself ! The discovery affords great
relief to the superstitious minds of his clients. The
usual sacrifice of a sheep is now offered and its flesh
feasted upon, and then the medicine man, having
made some mysterious passes with his little horn,
pronounces the spell of witchcraft to be broken and
the village purified. Two or even three sheep are
ordinarily the price paid for this service.
There can be no doubt that many of the medicine
men are adepts at the villainous practice of poison
ing. Their supposed skill in drugs is used occa
sionally for the injury rather than the benefit of
their neighbours. The word orogi stands for both
witchcraft and poison. Murogi signifies a poisoner
or wizard. While in some cases they may pretend
6
66 A Wizard s Devices
to overcome the spell of witchcraft, at other times
they may themselves weave a yet more deadly spell
around some unfortunate member of the community.
It is said that a murogi will creep out into the bush
where a dead body is lying, and, after going through
some incantations, will command the corpse to
arise. Whereupon it is supposed to awaken and,
sitting up, to inquire the reason why it has been
disturbed. The wizard then commands it to curse
certain people, with the result that sickness, loss of
property or even death is expected to follow.
Another method attributed to the murogi is that
of visiting a corpse in the thicket for the purpose of
extracting some teeth, hairs or nails. These relics
he wraps up carefully in small packets, and secretes
in the village, or in the pathway where his victim
is likely to pass. And so terrible are the fears which
will be instilled upon the discovery of the orogi that
he will immediately fall sick unless a medicine
man can be summoned without delay to offer a
sacrifice and counteract the evil spell. Such cases
where help has not arrived opportunely have often
been known to terminate fatally, so powerful is the
influence of mind over matter !
In common with many other African tribes the
ordeal ceremony is practised in order to determine
the guilt or innocence of a suspected party. For
instance, a crime such as murder, theft or arson has
been committed, and the perpetrator of the deed
is unknown. It may be that several suspected
parties are arrested and brought before the council
Trial by Ordeal 67
of elders with the local chief. The mundu mugo is
then requested to prepare a muma or ordeal, and
several tests may be applied. In minor cases the
suspected person is told to incise his leg with a knife
and then to lap up his own blood from the wound.
If guilty it is expected that he will die very shortly.
Another test is to tell the suspected person to
plunge his bare arm into a large pot of boiling water
(into which the medicine man has poured some of his
drugs) and bring out an axe-head. If guilty he will
be severely scalded, but if innocent no harm will be
done ! Yet another test is to heat a sword red hot
in the fire, putting medicine upon it, and telling
the person suspected to lick it with his tongue. If
innocent he is expected to escape injury ! A goat
is sometimes sacrificed and its blood retained in a
banana leaf to which the mundu mugo adds a con
coction of his own. The suspected culprit is com
manded to lap up the blood, and if guilty his death
may be anticipated, but if innocent he is expected
to escape !
Such are some of the superstitions with which
these simple savages are bound, and in which they
have the most implicit faith. A woman will rather
part with anything she possesses than relinquish
the charm which she obtained from the witch
doctor, and which she usually carries suspended by
a leather thong from the broad leather belt round
her waist. These charms are generally made up of
some of the mundu mugo s so-called medicines
contained in tiny goats horns, and sealed up with
68 The Medicine Man s Influence
bees wax. It will be readily seen that there is
scarcely a circumstance of life amongst these
primitive people in which the medicine man does
not play a part. It is therefore hardly possible to
overrate his influence in the tribe, especially as he
always claims to be guided by Ngai in his decisions.
Naturally enough he is bitterly opposed to the Gospel
of Jesus Christ, though he may veil his antagonism
with discreet politeness. Darkness must ever be
opposed to light. When he discovers that the
missionary has not only come to preach and teach,
but also to second these efforts by medical and
surgical skill which is altogether beyond his com
prehension, and which attracts the people to him
in thousands every week, then the native quack
begins to tremble, realizing that his prestige is on
the wane, and that his sun may presently set, never
to rise again
PART II
Kahuhia
WHAT THEN?
What then ? Why then another pilgrim song,
And then a hush of rest divinely granted,
And then a thirsty stage (ah me ! so long !),
And then a brook just where it most is wanted !
What then ? The pitching of the evening tent,
And then, perchance, a pillow rough and thorny,
And then some sweet and tender message sent
To cheer the faint one for to-morrow s journey I
What then P The wailing of the midnight wind,
A feverish sleep, a heart oppressed and aching,
And then a little water cruse to find
Close by my pillow, ready for my waking
ANON,
CHAPTER VI
Across the Athi Plains
WHEN Dr. Crawford and I first entered Kikuyu
there was not a single Protestant missionary
in the whole of Kenia Province with its million of
souls, excepting Mr. McGregor. Quite singlehanded
he had succeeded in planting a mission station in
the centre of the country, and its influence was
already being felt for miles around. Several hun
dreds of natives crowded into his Sunday service
week by week, and the school, which included
amongst its scholars some of the paramount chief s
own sons, was very well attended. My husband
opened a dispensary which the people soon began
to appreciate ; and all our spare time was taken up
with the study of the language. There were no
books to facilitate our progress excepting a ten
tative Gospel of St. John and a small vocabulary,
for which we had to thank our energetic fellow
worker, who, having been for some years in charge
of a station on the borders of Kikuyu, had acquired
some knowledge of the vernacular. This station,
known as Kabete, and situated nine miles from
72 Off to Kabete
Nairobi, he left to the superintendence of the Rev.
H. Leakey, when he set out on the more arduous
undertaking of pioneering in the wilds of Kenia
Province.
We had only been a few months at Weithaga
when all unexpectedly came an order that we
should proceed to Kabete, to take charge of the
work there during Mr, Leakey s absence on sick
leave. As nearly all our possessions had been
unpacked, no little labour was involved in pre
paring for another long journey. Having had
sufficient experience of the bamboo forest we
decided to take the other route and traverse the
Athi plains. This led us past Fort Hall, where the
government of Kenia Province is administered.
Here we were most hospitably entertained by the
Acting-Commissioner, Mr. H. R. Tate, who rode
out several miles to meet us. After a quiet
Sunday at the Fort we resumed our safari, the
doctor riding his mule, and I being carried in a
hammock. Before leaving the Fort, Mr. Tate
warned us to be especially on our guard against
lions, and we engaged two native warriors to act as
night watchmen, their duty being to keep fires
burning around our encampment.
Winding our way down a long cutting we
reached the Maragua River, which we crossed in a
boat, and toiled up a long, weary ascent on the
other side. The great Athi plains now stretched
before us, teeming with wild animal life. Herds
of antelopes, zebras and ostriches roamed over the
Trials of the Road 73
veldt, sometimes coming close to our caravan.
At noon we lunched under some trees by a rippling
stream, then pressed on again till dusk, when we
encamped under a wide-spreading tree, and a circle
of fires was kindled to guard us from wild beasts.
The third day s safari was a trying one, as my
husband was thrown from his mule and I had
two bad falls from my hammock. The heat was
intense, being the hottest season of the year. By
the time we reached the Thika River in the after
noon we were exceedingly weary. Here some
native policemen were stationed to work a pulley
for the transport of Government supplies and mails
bound for Fort Hall. There was no other means
of crossing the river in those days. A steel cable
was stretched from one bank to the other, and
from this a small board platform was suspended by
iron supports attached to each corner. About
forty feet below flowed the wide river infested (so
we heard) by crocodiles and hippopotami. Only
one person could cross the pulley at a time. I must
confess to a feeling of profound thankfulness when
I regained terra firma on the farther side ! One
by one our trunks and bales and packing cases
were bound on to the plank platform and swung
across. The mule alone had to swim through the
fast-flowing river. A rope fastened round its
neck was thrown across to the opposite bank and
firmly held by several men, while others whipped
the poor beast down into the water. But in a
few minutes she was struggling up the steep bank.
74 A Hunter s Camp
We had already noticed a white man s camp
in the distance. My husband left me to rest
under the shade of some bushes while he climbed
the hill to reconnoitre, and choose a place for our
encampment. As he approached the tents of the
Wazungu (Europeans), out rushed a military-
looking gentleman in khaki, Colonel Lumsden,
C.B., of ; Lumsden s Horse fame in the Boer War,
razor in hand and his chin all lathered with soap !
I hear, he said, that there is a lady at the
river, so I am hurrying to shave !
The lady in question would gladly have
adjusted her own toilet, but there was no oppor
tunity, and half an hour later she was sipping tea
in the Colonel s tent, while he and his friend, Mr.
C. B. Branch, chatted with the doctor. They
were, of course, on a hunting expedition, and their
splendid camp was full of trophies, which were
shown to us in due course. Rhinoceroses and
hippopotami, hartebeestes and wildebeestes, had
all fallen to their guns.
Our tents having been pitched we retired for a
rest and change. The kind and hospitable hunters
had invited us to dine with them, so when darkness
fell and the stars peeped out we made our way
back to their tent, where we spent a very pleasant
evening. Colonel Lumsden informed us that
we had arrived just too late to taste of a delicacy
much prized by sportsmen, rhinoceros-tail soup !
The last thing at night a poor little donkey was
tied up to a tree just outside the encampment as a
Footprints of Lions 75
bait for lions, this neighbourhood being specially
famed for them, and the hunters being very keen
to add some to their bag. Camp fires were blazing
in every direction when we returned to our tents,
and sentinels were already pacing to and fro as a
guard against wild beasts. But although the roar
of lions had been heard a few nights before, no such
excitement disturbed our rest, and the donkey
was still quietly grazing under the tree when morn
ing dawned.
Never shall I forget the burning heat of the plains
this fourth day of our journey. We travelled on
until nearly sundown, covering some twenty-nine
miles, and all the afternoon the sun beat mercilessly
upon our faces. My careless porters again let me
fall from the hammock, a decidedly unpleasant
experience, as the pole comes down with a crack
on your head, while your spine gets a shock from
the too sudden embrace of mother earth. In
passing through some swamps covered with waving
papyrus we detected the footprints of lions, and
no doubt the lordly beasts were lurking among the
reeds at no great distance from our path. I had
been carried through many streams in the course
of our safari, and now, before we camped for the
night, the very awkward drift of the Nairobi
River had to be forded. Then, wearied out, we
soon settled down for another night under canvas.
We were now on the confines of civilization.
We did not, however, enter the town of Nairobi,
but, passing by the outskirts, made our way out
76 Life at Kabete
to Kabete, which we reached in the afternoon,
thankful indeed to have arrived in safety at our
destination.
Here I must pause to pass over the two years
spent at this station years which had their special
trials and difficulties, filled with events which,
however, cannot be of any special interest to my
readers. Carrying on the work of our predecessor,
studying the difficult Kikuyu language, visiting
the native villages around, and (on my husband s
part) dispensary practice amongst the sick and
suffering, the months sped on, and the time drew
near, so long eagerly anticipated, of pioneering in
the heart of Kenia and opening a medical mission
there. During our long stay at Kabete, Dr.
Crawford took two trips to the district beyond
Fort Hall, on the second occasion conducting a
European builder to the site which had been chosen
by the Bishop. A few months later (Dec. 3, 1906)
we were able to bid farewell to Kabete and start
out to take possession of our new Kenia station.
By this time a new road had been made between
Nairobi and Fort Hall, and fine stone bridges were
in course of construction at a point where the
Thika and Chania Rivers converge. Just below the
bridges are two magnificent waterfalls, one with a
drop of about one hundred feet, and the air is filled
with the roar of the tumbling waters and with the
rainbow-tinted spray The Chania Falls are quite
a miniature] Niagara
CHAPTER VII
Opening of the Kenia Medical
Mission
r I ^HE site selected for the medical mission was a
A beautiful one, with a fine view of Mt. Kenia
on the north and Mt. Kinangop on the west, whilst
to the south-east we could look away over the Athi
plains to Mt. Donyo Sabuk. About six miles
westward was the C.M.S. station, Weithaga, where
we had previously lived, and which is quite 300
feet higher than our own site. Fort Hall lies due
east of Kahuhia (the native name for our district
by which the station was afterwards known) at a
distance of about nine miles by road. This road,
which is scarcely more than a pathway, was cut
through by the paramount chief Karuri to connect
his village with the Fort. Although but few native
huts can be distinguished from the medical mission
hill, the population is in reality very numerous, the
Kikuyu villages being nearly all hidden away in
banana groves and thickets.
As we approached our station after our long
safari of nearly eighty miles, many of the natives
rushed out into the road to welcome us. We found
j8 A Diminutive Dwelling-place
the mission house very far from completion and we
had to take up our abode in a tiny store room
(eight feet by ten) a few feet from the main building.
This little room was destitute of any window, so
darkness reigned supreme when the door was
shut. Yet if we ventured to open it ever so little
there was always a crowd of dusky forms grouped
outside with gleaming black eyes, watching every
movement. Curiosity brought the people about
us in hundreds those first days, and they would
sit amongst the debris of the building operations,
apparently fascinated by all that the white people
did and said. They were specially pleased to find
that we could talk their language, though but
imperfectly. Our first Sunday service was held on
the unfinished verandah of the house amid a medley
of building materials. Sometimes I would draw
little groups of women and girls into one of the damp
and empty rooms, endeavouring to make them
understand the first outlines of the message we had
come to bring them, or teaching them a verse of a
Kikuyu hymn. Rank weeds and bushes covered
the hill-top, and for many weeks a gang of men and
boys were at work clearing them away. Grass and
clover seemed to be only waiting to spring up and
spread wherever they had a chance, so it was not
very long before we had a nice green slope all down
to the road, with a wide path cut round in a
semicircle.
The Doctor lost no time in staking out his dis
pensary. Poles were erected in the ground two
Building a Mud Dispensary 79
feet apart along the line drawn for the walls, and
on the top of these other poles were laid hori
zontally. Then several taller posts were set up
across the middle of the square to support the ridge
pole, and from this the other timbers of the roof
descended to the horizontal poles of the wall. The
framework of the roof was then completed by
sticks being fastened from pole to pole, about three
inches apart, by means of strips of wild ramie fibre.
Meanwhile quantities of banana bark had been
brought by the women and children for thatching
the roof. Each strip of this useful commodity is
threaded through the sticks of the roof, the ends
being pulled equal, and so a very good strong thatch
is made, which has a particularly neat appearance
from the inside if the sticks have been tied on
evenly. The walls were now wattled in with reeds
and thickly plastered with mud. Where windows
were required the mud was omitted, and a piece of
unbleached cotton was stretched across the aperture.
When all was finished some boxes were broken
up, and the Doctor made some quite presentable-
looking shelves on which to display his bottles.
Just three weeks after our arrival the opening
service was held. This was on Christmas Eve, and
as a large native dance was going on close by we
had not much difficulty in getting an audience of
six or seven hundred savages together. A very
wild, uproarious set they were, and when my
husband intimated that he wanted me to have the
privilege of addressing them I felt rather like running
8o A Rowdy Congregation
away ! But the next minute I was mounted upon
a packing-case trying to make myself heard. Taken
completely by surprise they quieted down and
listened fairly well while I told them why we had
come, impressing upon them that while they would
now find plenty of medicine to help their bodily
infirmities, we had also brought another kind of
muthaiga, the Word of God, which could heal their
souls sickness too.
No sooner was the dispensary opened than
patients began coming ; some forty or fifty at the
beginning, but by the end of the first month the
number had risen to between one hundred and one
hundred and fifty. A large verandah was added
to the dispensary, and under it the patients were
gathered to hear a Gospel message day by day.
We also held the Sunday services there for several
weeks until a hospital chapel, built in the same way
as the dispensary, viz., of wattle and daub, was
completed. The congregation, numbering two to
three hundred, was as wild a one as could well be
found. The men often would rush in, forgetting to
leave their spears and knobkerries outside, and all
eager for a front seat ! The women were chattering
to each other as they pushed their way in, many of
them with babies slung on their backs. Then came
a crowd of boys and girls with scarcely a shred of
covering, but full of life and merriment, jumping over
the rough benches and filling up all corners. But
every Sunday found them a little more amenable
to order, and the strains of the baby organ always
The First Inquirers
81
helped to quiet them down. On Sunday afternoons
we would visit the neighbouring villages on foot,
sometimes holding services at two or three home
steads in the course of our walk, and always fol
lowed by a troop of boys besides our own native
helpers and servants.
The Sunday evening Bible class brought a happy
day of service to a close. For this all who lived on
the station were gathered together, and very soon
outsiders began attending also. From the time
that the mission house was finished and we were able
to move into it we used the little dining-room for
this and other classes, and frequently it would be
so tightly packed that boys would be crowded to
gether even under the table ! When the Bible lesson
had ended in an earnest appeal, those whose hearts
were touched were invited to remain behind for a
personal talk and prayer. Our cook, Mohea, was
one of the first to respond. He had entered our
employ as a raw Heathen about a year and a half
before we opened the Kahuhia work, and had learnt
to read at Kabete. Together with a young con
sumptive patient who had also been under instruc
tion at the latter station, he stood up one Sunday
morning to confess his faith in his newly-found
Saviour. Mashamba, the consumptive boy, only
lived a month after this happy event. But as he
became weaker and weaker his faith grew brighter.
Just before the end he asked for baptism, which
could not be denied him under the circumstances.
We laid the poor, wasted little body to rest on the
7
82 Some Rapid Progress
hillside near the station; and as one of our
C.M.S. clergy was staying at Weithaga he kindly
came over and read the funeral service.
About this time two other young men were ad
mitted as inquirers ; one of these was Gathu, who
had been our water boy more than two years before
at Weithaga. He re-entered our employ almost as
soon as we returned to the neighbourhood, and
proved so clever and trustworthy that Dr. Crawford
trained him for a medical assistant. The other
one was Gachanja, who after we left Kahuhia
became the Rev. Douglas Hooper s right-hand man.
Several others also came forward and publicly
confessed Christ, declaring at the same time their
determination to sever themselves from all the evil
customs of the tribe. An inquirers class, there
fore, had to be instituted, in which it was the
constant aim to impress upon its members what
following the Lord Jesus Christ really involved.
Later on, a Saturday evening prayer meeting was
started, and it was most cheering to hear the voices
of the young converts raised in prayer.
Meanwhile the day school had been opened, and
all who wished were urged to learn to read the Book
of God for themselves. By a quick system my
scholars were actually beginning to read in the
tentative Gospel of St. John (which was all we had
in the Kikuyu language at that time) at the end
of three months, of course only slowly spelling out
the words. After another month or more, progress
became still more rapid, and very soon they were
Inaugurating the School 83
able to read this portion of the Scriptures with
fluency. We then began teaching them Ki-
Swahili ; this is the lingua franca of East Africa,
and the whole Bible, as well as many other religious
books, have been translated into it. It becomes
therefore a natural vehicle for presenting our ad
herents with the Word of God. Fortunately we
had picked up some Swahili during a five months
sojourn at the coast when we first entered the
country, and the slight knowledge gained then
came in exceedingly useful for the school work.
A daily school service was inaugurated, when a
Bible lesson was given, and a very simple Cate
chism, much used in mission stations in India
(which I had translated into Kikuyu), was ground
into the scholars. They were also taught to
recite the Lord s Prayer, the Creed, the General
Confession, the Ten Commandments, and several
passages of Scripture. All the in-patients were
expected to attend this service, unless too seriously
ill to do so. Having no native teacher, and being
handicapped with frequent illness, it was not
without considerable difficulty that we carried on
the school. When laid up for a week or so at a
time I would send for a few of the brightest scholars,
and give them a lesson as they stood at my bedside,
and then send them away to pass on what they had
learnt to others.
As months flew on we could not but notice the
change that was taking place in those who were
thus regularly under instruction. Seldom were
84 Effects of the Teaching
any of the scholars absent from Bible classes,
services and prayer meetings, and the result
was a turning away from the degrading customs
and enslaving superstitions of their people, and a
gradual acceptation of the precious truths which
alone could make them wise unto salvation. By
the end of the first year of our work amongst
them quite a number had expressed a desire to
follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
From the first the work amongst the Kikuyu
women was a special source of interest. They are
all jealously guarded by their men-folk, who fear
and resent any influence other than their own
being brought to bear upon them. The worker
therefore who would succeed is compelled to go
forward very slowly and tactfully.
About three miles from Kahuhia is a bare hill
top which every fourth day is the scene of an enor
mous native market, when the appearance from a
distance is as if a swarm of locusts had settled down
upon the hill. From one to two thousand people
are gathered together on these occasions, and the
amount of bargaining and haggling is absolutely
bewildering ! All kinds of native produce are
brought to the market for sale or exchange. Loads
of firewood, maize and other grains, bananas,
yams, sugar cane, native beer, pottery, calabashes,
gourds, uchuru (a favourite kind of gruel), therega
(a red earth for smearing their bodies), castor oil
beans, spears, knives and native ornaments of
brass, iron and beadwork, several varieties of
Pupil Teachers at Kahuhia School
A Strange Emporium 85
beans, native potash (used as a substitute for
salt), also goat and sheep skins, these and other
things may all be found at this strange emporium.
Quite early in the morning we used to watch a
steady stream of women passing our station, all
more or less heavily laden as they trudged to
market. It occurred to me that by having the
baby organ carried down to the roadside between
one and two o clock, when the women were re
turning to their homes, I might attract them by
singing some Kikuyu hymns, and thus induce them
to listen to the Old, Old Story. It seemed to answer
very well, and week by week, whenever I was
able, I held my roadside meeting. Full of astonish
ment and curiosity at such unwonted proceedings,
the women would throw down their loads and
listen for a while ; but frequently just at the point
when their attention seemed to be secured they
would pick up their bundles again, and with noisy
chatter and laughter hurry off down the road.
After some months it was deemed advisable to
hold a women s meeting in the school-house instead
of in the open air. By this time many of the
women and girls from the neighbouring villages
began to attend, and the work was most encourag
ing. When the meeting was over a crowd of
them would conduct me back to the house, the
little girls being specially friendly and always
trying to get hold of my hand and run by my side.
The great delight of all was to be allowed to enter
the sitting-room and look at the pictures and
86 A Ghost in the Musical Box
photographs which adorned the walls and tables.
But they could only be admitted in relays of a few
at a time. The musical box would then be set
going, its sweet strains filling them with a sense
of mystery and amazement. Some declared that
there was an animal in the box ; others said, No !
It is an ngoma (spirit) !
Strange to say, the most absorbing object in the
room was a small white marble bust of the late
Prince Consort which came from my old home.
They were always half terrified of it, and would
keep running away, and then rushing back again
whenever it was shown to them. I tried to ex
plain who it was, and would end up by telling
them that the Prince was a very good man as well
as a great one, and that he loved God very much.
After this they always inquired for the Man of
God, and when crowding on the verandah would
shout, Bring out the man of God, to our intense
amusement. So a very happy relationship with
the women was established, and often after the
Sunday morning service two or three hundred of
them would press around me, all wanting a special
and individual greeting.
With the object of still further increasing my
influence amongst them we started a mat industry.
The Kikuyu women and girls are very clever at
weaving bags of all sizes in which they carry their
native produce. Having bought a quantity of
native string we proceeded to dye it different
colours. Then having already learnt the native
The Mat Industry 87
stitch I experimented in utilizing it for weaving
mats instead of the stereotyped native bag, and
we soon discovered that the result would be very
pretty, while at the same time the mats would be
really strong and serviceable. The women readily
took to the work, and all went merrily for a time.
But, alas ! they needed such close supervision that I
found it would absorb all my time to the exclusion
of everything else. When my back was turned
they played all sorts of tricks on me, even cutting
the long warp threads in order to finish their task
the sooner ! The weaving was slow and laborious,
and we very soon found it would be impossible to
make it pay ; so very reluctantly I had to relin
quish the project. We sent a few samples to some
heads of Government departments, however, and
considerable interest was aroused, but there,
unfortunately, it had to end.
Meanwhile the medical work was making con
siderable headway, and many temporary huts
had been put up for the accommodation of in-
patients, who were beginning to greatly appreciate
the skill and care bestowed upon them. Quite
a number of operations were performed, which
filled the natives with astonishment, especially
when chloroform was employed. Gitari kills
people, then brings them to life again ! was again
and again the wondering exclamation. Patients
who remained for any length of time were urged
to attend the school whenever it was at all possible.
The station became a sort of Cave of Adullam,
88 A Refuge in Distress
where those who were in distress, or were despised
on account of physical infirmity, sought a refuge.
Among these was a lad whose leg had been bitten
off by a hyaena. Another had suffered the amputa
tion of an arm owing to a rock falling on him while
hunting for rock rabbits. He was a poor diseased
little fellow when he first came to us, from whom
the other boys shrank away, but under the Doctor s
care he became greatly improved. After some
months he joined the inquirers class.
CHAPTER VIII
The Poisoners Defeated
WE were often grieved at the way in which
chiefs oppressed their people, always en
riching themselves at their expense. One such
case of extortion my husband felt he could only
report to the officials at Fort Hall. Compensation
to the various owners of land now occupied by the
medical mission had been paid over in the presence
of a Government officer, the local chief Kabuga
receiving a special present in money for the help
he had given in the matter. Not content with
this, however, he went round to the elders who had
received payment, and insisted that each of them
should hand over one rupee (Is. 4d.) to him.
The case was tried by the District Commissioner,
with the result that chief Kabuga was proved guilty,
and sentenced to nine months imprisonment. We
really felt sorry for the poor man, as it was certainly
a very severe lesson for him. A council of elders
was held, and one of their number, a man named
Ndangara, was chosen as Kabuga s successor.
Though not a strong character, he was outwardly
go The Hand of the Assassin
friendly to our work, and for a time we were free
from opposition. A year and a half later, when
we were on our furlough in Canada, the sad news
reached us that Ndangara had been poisoned.
Kabuga had, of course, been back at his village
again for some time, and it was the general opinion
in the neighbourhood that he was the culprit,
although at the trial, owing to insufficiency of
evidence, it could not be proved. So strong was
the feeling in the matter, that when Ndangara s
brother was appointed to the chieftainship, Kabuga
was warned by the people that if their new chief
was poisoned they would take the law into their
own hands and Kabuga s own life would pay the
penalty !
Many were the cases of poisoning which came
before our notice, but some of them were reported
too late for effective aid to be rendered. It seems
to be considered a satisfactory way of getting rid
of an enemy. Sometimes the dastardly deed is
perpetrated out of jealousy, or from the desire to
acquire the victim s cattle or goats. Around the
district of Kahuhia, as well as some other parts
of the Kikuyu country, this secret poisoning is
very much practised, and there is one particular
clan of the tribe, called the Athaga, some of the
male members of which are known to be experts
in this horrible custom, who will remove any
objectionable person for a consideration ! During
our stay at Kahuhia several elders were dispatched
by the hand of the assassin. The occasion chosen
Boiled Snake Fangs! 91
is often that of a beer-drink, when the poisoner
awaits his opportunity, and when his victim is
sufficiently under the influence of drink he stealthily
inserts some of his deadly drug into the drinking
horn. Another method is to mix poison with the
food.
There are several kinds of poison, the most
virulent being obtained from the Akamba. It is
said to be extracted from the fangs of a very
poisonous snake, and after being boiled up with
the sap of a particular kind of tree, it is dried and
kept ready for use. Poison is also obtained from
some varieties of strychnos and euphorbia trees.
Yet another kind is found in the form of formic
acid, which is extracted from red ants ; but this last
is only used for arrows, as far as we can ascertain.
One afternoon Dr. Crawford happened to be
told that there was a victim of poisoning at one
of the neighbouring villages. Hurrying to the
place with his mfedical assistant he found a young
man lying in a most serious condition and com
pletely unconscious. His brother, who appeared
to be taking care of him, strongly opposed his
being conveyed to the mission station, but finally
promised to bring him himself on condition that he
might be allowed to remain with him. However,
instead of bringing him into hospital he put him
out into the thicket to die, and the news was
brought to the Doctor early next morning. In a
very short time he was on the spot, and found
that notwithstanding the terrible night of exposure
92 A Treacherous Brother
life was not quite extinct. The man was at once
removed to a hospital hut. His brother seemed
determined to follow, and being such a near rela
tive my husband did not like to refuse. Though
the patient was already cold and stiff there soon
appeared to be some slight response to the treat
ment; he continued gradually to improve, and after
several days of the most watchful care we rejoiced
to find a partial return to consciousness. We left
him in his brother s care as usual for the night, and
he promised to carry out all instructions. What
then was our surprise and distress when we were
informed next morning that he had passed away.
The brother was already hurrying away with the
body ! On thinking it over afterwards we could
not help suspecting foul play, and the more so
when we heard that the poor fellow who had been
so cruelly done to death was the possessor of six
cows which his brother would inherit !
Some time after this, on one of our visits to the
villages the Doctor discovered a young man lying
unconscious and almost at the point of death as
the result of poisoning, and we were told that he
had already been in this condition for quite a week.
Though so far gone that there appeared to be little
hope of saving him, my husband sent for the
hospital stretcher and had him carried to the
station. Fearing that another dose of the deadly
drug might be secretly administered if he began to
revive, Dr. Crawford had a tent pitched on the
lawn at the back of our house, so that no one could
Victims of the Deadly Drug 93
approach the sick man without our seeing him,
and here the rigid and inanimate form was laid.
We tended him entirely ourselves, and every two
hours we would try to force a teaspoonf ul of nourish
ment between the clenched teeth. The treatment,
which was chiefly of a hypodermic character,
seemed to be gradually having effect, and on the
third day there were signs of returning conscious
ness. The mind, however, seemed to be completely
obscured, and he had entirely lost the use of his
limbs. Day by day, nevertheless, witnessed some
slight improvement, by God s blessing, and after
two months of careful treatment we had the joy
of seeing poor Ngwari able to walk home cured.
You must be a god and not a man at all ! was
chief Karuri s exclarrtation, when visiting the
station about this time. No one, he assured the
Doctor, had ever been able to overcome the deadly
native poison in this way before. But promptly
came the answer that the Doctor himself could
have done nothing unless God had given him the
wisdom. Therefore it was to Him alone the
praise should be given. We have lately heard
that Ngwari is under Christian instruction and
that he is attending the Kahuhia school.
One other poisoning case amongst many may
be mentioned ; that of a young man named Kin-
yanjui, who had been on safari beyond the Tana
River in the employ of a European. He arrived at
our station in a very emaciated condition but was
rapidly improving under treatment, when suddenly
94 Death in the Pot
he was seized by a terrible illness, the symptoms
plainly indicating poison. Being on the spot the
Doctor quickly had the case in hand, and very
fervently we prayed that the means might prove
efficacious. Day by day we watched over the
unfortunate boy until we had the great satisfaction
of seeing him come round, but as in the case of
Ngwari the reason was beclouded and the limbs
paralyzed for several weeks, though he eventually
made a good recovery. One evening our house
boys and medical assistants were sitting as usual
round a fire in their hut, cooking their supper, when
a stranger dropped in and squatted down with the
rest, and extended his hands to the blaze as if to
warm them. He was just about to drop something
stealthily into the cooking-pot when he was dis
covered, and a scene of great excitement ensued.
During the boys efforts to capture him he was seen
to throw something into the flames. The case was
tried before the local chief and the culprit was
soundly thrashed.
The Doctor had many calls to go to the assistance
of Europeans as well as natives, sometimes at a
great distance and in the middle of the night. The
most frequent of these calls were to Fort Hall in
the absence of the Government doctor, or for a
consultation with him over some unusually serious
case. On one occasion a settler living on the plains
was attacked and robbed by natives, and left for
dead. After the robbers had departed he somewhat
revived and was just able to crawl to the Fort, where
An Arduous Journey by Night 95
the treatment he received was the means of his
ultimate recovery. Another time a planter was
terribly mauled by a lion, and my husband was
sent for to help the Government doctor. Scarcely
was he out of danger than one of the officials was
brought to the Fort in a most critical condition
owing to the attack of a lion while hunting, and
again the medical missionary s services were re
quired in consultation. One evening a summons
came from a new Africa Inland Mission station on
the borders of the bamboo forest, near Mt. Kinan-
gop, where the missionary s wife lay ill. Hastily
packing up what he deemed might be necessary,
the Doctor started off with his boy. Many ranges
of hills, deep ravines and swiftly-flowing rivers
intervened between the two stations, and nearly
all night he struggled on, though scarcely able
to see the pathway. To have the privilege of
relieving pain and anxiety was sufficient reward
for the arduous journey, which took him nine
hours to accomplish.
Perhaps one of the cases which caused us most
thankfulness was that of a young Englishman who
had become enslaved to the morphine habit.
Greatly wishing to escape from this awful bondage
he came to Dr. Crawford and planted his tent on our
hill. The fight was a stiff one and at times the
patient was almost in despair, but the Doctor was
bent on victory, and encouraged him to bravely
persevere through all the physical suffering which
is unavoidable in such a case. My husband en-
96 The Joy of a Cure f
deavoured to point him to the Great Physician
as the One Who alone could give him complete
deliverance, and after some months of treatment,
in response to many prayers, we had the joy of
seeing our patient entirely cured.
CHAPTER IX
On Safari
THE paramount chief, Karuri, had often ex
pressed a wish that we would pay him a visit,
so in the month of July, 1907, we arranged a tour
that would include his * Great Place as well as the
different C.M.S. sites (most of which are, alas !
still unoccupied). To prepare for an itineration of
several weeks in a country like this, so far from
civilized life, is no small matter ! But at last the
chop boxes were filled, the camp beds tucked
away into the safari bags, trunks packed, tents
folded, medical boxes crowded with bandages and
drugs, and everything ready for a start. Now the
half -naked porters are to be seen fixing their rough
strips of hide on to their loads, then sitting on the
ground to pick them up, and rising with the box or
bundle suspended on the back by means of the
leather strap which passes over the crown of the
head. In this way the weight is well balanced
between the back and the head ; so, although they
stoop beneath their burdens, off they go merrily
enough, and of course in single file ! Farewells are
98 Passing Weithaga
said, the mission station is left behind, and the
whole cavalcade winds its way down to the river,
the Doctor and myself bringing up the rear, he on
his large white mule, and I in a hammock. Slightly
higher than many of the hills just ahead of us rises
a cone-shaped eminence on which trees and build
ings can be plainly distinguished. In a little over
an hour and a half we are ascending its slopes and
greeting Mr. McGregor, who has come out to meet
us and welcome us to his station. There is no
longer a bare hill-top as when we resided here two
years and a half ago, for tall eucalyptus and grace
ful wattle trees now line the walks and lend a
grateful shade. There is also a large church built
of sun-dried bricks, where we attended service
that evening, and again the following morning
before setting out.
Mr. McGregor accompanied us a little way along
our road, which led through one of the loveliest
parts of the country with Mt. Kinangop in the blue
background. Ascending steadily for the most part
all the way, we gazed down into deep and fertile
valleys where the Mathioya and its tributaries
could be seen threading their way. Banana plan
tations disappeared as the altitude increased, and
we noticed that Indian corn, so prolific in our own
district, became poor and stunted. But beautiful
forests enhanced the scenery, and the natives
seemed to be well provided with yams, sweet
potatoes and a root called nduma, a species of arum
lily, all of which they cultivate on the sheltered sides
A Mountain Shelter 99
of the hills as well as in the vales below. In^this
part of the Province of Kenia the road is seldom
ever level for a quarter of a mile at a time, and the
traveller is confronted with a perpetual succession
of hills.
Early in the afternoon we turned off the main
road and followed a native footpath. We now
had steeper heights to climb, and the air became
extremely bracing. Eventually we emerged on to
the summit of a lofty ridge about 8,000 feet high,
where in clear weather both the great moun
tains of East Africa may be distinguished. A
profusion of bracken in varying tints of green and
gold and bronze stretched before us like a carpet ;
and tree ferns innumerable spread their graceful
fronds high above our heads. Amid such sur
roundings we came suddenly upon a little house of
mud and sticks, and knew that we had reached a
C.M.S. site called Keruri, which Mr. McGregor
works as an out-station. A thickly-falling mist
made us glad to find a shelter and quickly kindle
a fire, which had to be kept going continually on
account of the cold.
The next day we were still enveloped in clouds,
and the rawness of the atmosphere no doubt kept
the natives in their villages, as very few came to
see us, although my husband found some sick people
requiring his ministrations. Sunday followed, and
still a drenching mist enwrapped the hills. We
had given out that there would be a service, but
our patience was nearly exhausted before any one
TOO Suffering for Conscience* Sake
came. At length a group of men and girls arrived
from the neighbouring homesteads, and our porters
and boys helped to swell the congregation.
In the evening, when we were sitting reading
by the light of our camp lanterns, there was a
call at our door, and on going out we found a boy
of about seventeen years of age in great distress,
with blood streaming from his ear, and trembling
violently. He sobbed out that he had been
beaten because of the Word of God. The men of
his village were very angry at our coming there,
and said that we came to deceive the people with
our lies. Then the boy, who had learnt to read
at this little school-house in the mountains, stood
up and said it was not so, but that the Word of
God was good, and that we His servants did not
tell lies. Upon this a young warrior picked up
a burning firebrand and belaboured him with it.
His own mother also beat him, so that he fled in
terror. We sought to comfort the poor fellow,
assuring him that God would bless him for suffering
for His sake, and that he must rejoice and not
be afraid. Then we committed him to our medical
assistants care for the night, and the next morning
we found him almost recovered from his beating
and looking more cheerful.
Our caravan was now on the move again, and
all rejoicing to escape from such a cold and
cheerless camp. By a sharp winding defile we
gradually left the cloud-capped mountain top,
threading our way through a forest of tree ferns,
The * Palace at Tuso 101
bamboos and other beautiful trees. In one
place a veteran of the forest had half fallen across
the path, forming a natural arch, which was
completely mantled with ferns and begonias.
The road now became so terribly precipitous that
the mule fairly slipped down on her haunches,
and it was only with the greatest difficulty that
my dusky bearers could retain their footing. Into
the depths of a lovely valley we at last descended,
and found ourselves on the banks of the River
Tuso. The next minute I was being borne across
the most impossible-looking rocks, then over a
long, rough pole which did duty for a bridge ;
and after a short, steep climb on the other side a
sudden turn of the road brought us into the
paramount chief s village.
No more interesting spot than this can be found
in this wonderful country. To us it seemed the
oddest mixture of barbarism and civilization.
The site is like some English park, with groups
of tall, shady trees, and the greenest of pasture
where herds of goats were browsing. Karuri s
own house and stable are solidly built of stone
in European fashion, but in close vicinity native
huts and granaries are crowded together. As
the old man possesses about seventy wives, it
may be imagined what a large village it is !
Women and children soon emerged to stare at
the intruders. The chief himself was away from
home, but as he had heard that we were intending
to pay him a visit, he left word for two sheep to
102 A Hoard of Ivory
be presented to us, and food and firewood for our
men. Our tents were pitched on the grass outside
the village, and sick folk of all ages came to seek
the Doctor s aid.
In the morning (July 30) we strolled into the
village, and some of the chief s sons unlocked
the house and showed us over it. The walls are
nicely whitewashed and the floor laid with cement,
and there is even an attempt at furniture, as
we noticed a wooden bedstead, two tables, a
bench, several chairs, a lantern and a lamp. On
the walls hung a large photograph of Karuri
himself, and two pictorial advertisements of
English biscuits and lime juice ! Opening a door
which led into another room the boys pointed
out a huge box which they said was full of rupees,
and a trap door in the floor leading to a hoard of
ivory. Both treasures were secured by very
strong locks. Outside the house is a place of
heathen sacrifice, and a repulsive-looking vulture
hovers around, seeming to mount guard over the
village !
About sundown we heard the cry, * The chief is
coming ! and presently men began arriving with
his loads, which included a European tent and
chair. Then Karuri appeared, riding his white
mule, and dressed in a suit of khaki, and white
helmet. He dismounted to greet us before entering
his village, and we entertained him with cocoa
and cake under the awning outside our tent. He
came round again in the morning to wish us good-
A Native Market 103
bye, this time looking more regal in a robe of
skins embroidered with white beads.
At noon (July 31) we arrived at Njumvi, another
C.M.S. site. Here a large native market is held
every fourth day, and we pitched our tent in
full view of the market place, which next day
was quite black with its moving mass of human
beings, all busily engaged in driving bargains and
exchanging their produce. Of course we were
the objects of great curiosity, and the people
thronged around us. Sick people came in hundreds
to the Doctor, and large numbers attended our
services, listening very quietly while we spoke
to them of the Saviour s love in dying to save
them, and of the nearness of His coming again.
A lantern service was a great attraction. We
tarried five days at this centre.
At a distance of about two hours from Njumvi
is the village of a chief, named Mungi. Here we
only intended to rest for half an hour by the
roadside, but the chief came out to welcome us,
and implored us to encamp for the night that
his sick people might be attended to ; so we
yielded to his importunity, and my husband and
his assistants soon had as much as they could do.
We also had a lantern service in the evening.
Our next camping place was three hours journey
from Mungi s, in a north-easterly direction, where
a chief, named Wagura, holds sway. We pitched
our tent on mission premises under a fine old
tree, and the people finding out that the Athungu
104 A Dignified Lord of the Soil !
had arrived, our camp soon witnessed a lively
scene. About twenty girls, all highly decorated
with beads and red clay, came and sang and
danced in our honour, and elders and warriors
also crowded around. Then came Wagura himself,
his head and shoulders simply smothered in red
clay and grease. One of his followers carried his
chair, on which he sat with great dignity while
conversing with us ! He was glad to have his
sick people tended, and presented us with a sheep
in token of his good will. The next afternoon we
visited his village, which is strongly enclosed
within three successive stockade fences. Inside
the third fence are the huts of his wives.
Here we found an enormous crowd of savages
engaged in building a large new hut for the chief.
The women were on the roof as thick as bees !
First of all they had laid a quantity of bracken
fern, over which they were spreading banana
leaves, while huge bundles of grass lay around
ready for the final thatching. What an ovation
we received ! The women and girls simply
swarmed around me, all wanting to shake hands.
They laughed and shouted and screamed and
danced, until the babel was deafening and be
wildering. Before leaving we invited them all
to a lantern service, but for some reason or other
the chief kept them away.
August 8 found us at the Government Fort
Nyeri after a heavy journey of three and a half
hours over the steepest of hills. The District
Crossing Log Bridges 105
Commissioner kindly invited us to lunch while our
men were arranging our camp. A cold drizzling
rain made it almost impossible to keep warm
at night, yet we were only thirty miles from the
equator! Very glad indeed we were to be on
the move again next morning.
The following day we pitched our tent, for the
last time, in the vicinity of a chief s village, and
close to another C.M.S. site. Patients and others
soon gathered round, and we spent a very happy
Sunday amongst them (Aug. 11), many no doubt
hearing the Old, Old Story for the first time.
On Monday morning (Aug. 12) we started for
our station at 7 o clock. There were enormous
hills to climb and descend, and twice the Mathioya
River had to be crossed by bridges which it makes
one almost tremble to think of even now ! A single
log, supported by the branches of some accom
modating tree on the bank usually spans the
stream, and in some instances at a considerable
height above it. And when this log is very uneven
and slanting, yet many feet in length, or roughly
joined to another log that comes to meet it, the
feeling of insecurity with which one traverses it
may be imagined ! The way in which my bearers
bore me over many such rough suspension bridges
during our trip was perfectly marvellous, but the
worst and longest one, spanning the Mathioya,
they refused to attempt with me in the hammock.
So there was nothing to be done but to climb up
into the tree which bent over the river, and then
io6 The Greatness of the Opportunity
creep carefully along the log, step by step, with
the help of our two medical assistants, until the
friendly arms of the tree on the opposite bank
offered their support, and another very tortuous
beam led down to terra firma \ It occurred to me
that any missionaries intended for itinerating work
in Kenia would do well to have a few lessons in
tight-rope walking as part of their home prepara
tion ! Men and women and children flocked out
from the villages to see us pass, and then ran along
by our side, full of excitement. It is scarcely
likely that any European had ever passed that
way before.
At length we reached our own hill, and many
were the greetings that cheered us from our friendly
neighbours, schoolboys and house-servants left in
charge. Everywhere during our safari we were
struck with the greatness of the opportunity for
evangelistic work. Thousands and thousands of
these poor savages are as sheep having no shep
herd, and yet the Good Shepherd is yearning over
them, and would fain send His messengers far and
wide over this beautiful Kikuyu country to bring
them into His fold.
CHAPTER X
The last Year at Kahuhia
OUR second year of residence at Kahuhia was
one of progress all along the line, but there
were seasons of intense difficulty and opposition
to be passed through. Chiefs and medicine men
began to plot against us. The medical mission
was becoming a force to be reckoned with, and
many of the young people were making a stand
and refusing to participate in certain evil tribal
customs, which were as the laws of the Medes and
Persians to the Kikuyu elders. Pupils were there
fore withdrawn from the school and sent far away
in search of work, until we were left with an attend
ance of only ten or twelve. Besides this there was
some disaffection within our ranks, which caused
us much trouble for several weeks, and everything
seemed at a low ebb. If only the missionary is
driven to prayer and waiting upon God such an
experience is fraught with nothing but blessing.
Trials make the promise sweet,
Trials give new life to prayer,
Trials bring me to His feet,
Lay me low and keep me there.
io8 The Turn of the Tide
Those who had been causing trouble were two
young men who had been partially trained as
medical assistants, and who had even asked to be
prepared for baptism. They had also been very
useful as pupil teachers in the school. The climax
was reached when they both gave notice and im
mediately left the work, drawing several others
away with them. But from that time the tide began
to turn, and the attendance at the school gradually
rose again until a few months later we had over
eighty scholars. Nine or ten of the earlier pupils
had to be trained to instruct the others to replace
those who had left. These were now able to read
the Swahili New Testament, and some of the
brightest had been taught to give short Bible
lessons in school.
Scarcely a week passed without one or two com
ing forward to declare their faith in Christ, and
desiring to join the inquirers class. A catechu
mens class was also formed for those who had
given some evidence of a change of life and wished
to be baptized. We did not neglect to impress
upon our young converts the duty and privilege
of giving of their substance to the Lord s work.
The first collection was made one Sunday evening,
and great was our joy to see the pice l pouring
into the plate as it was passed around. After this
we had a monthly offering, our adherents always
1 A pice was equivalent to a farthing, sixty-four making a
rupee. The currency has since been changed to 100 cents to the
rupee, and the pice have been called in.
A New Chapel and School iog
responding cheerfully, although the greater number
of them did not earn more than a few pice a week.
At the Sunday evening class the presence and
power of God were often very manifest, and fre
quently several would remain behind for a personal
talk and prayer, telling us that they desired to
become Christians. The Sunday congregation had
long crowded out the little school-house, and it
became imperative to build a large hospital chapel,
capable of seating three hundred and fifty people.
To this a nice airy school-room was added, and it
was with great delight that we took possession of
the new premises on their completion. These build
ings were of sun-dried brick, and, being neatly finished
and whitewashed inside and out, were a vast im
provement on what had gone before. Fully four
hundred people packed in for the opening Sunday
service, while many who were unable to effect an
entrance contented themselves with blocking the
doorways and leaning in through the windows !
It now became necessary to erect some large
hospital wards, providing beds for some forty
in-patients. These wards were also built of sun-
dried brick, and the beds were made after the
Swahili fashion, with a simple wooden framework,
and a crosswise lacing of plaited grass rope, on
which grass mats were laid. Patients were now
coming from great distances, and the attendance
at the dispensary often numbered from two hun
dred to two hundred and fifty a day.
The work amongst the women was developing
no Cheering Signs
wonderfully, and it was not unusual to find one
hundred or even one hundred and fifty gathered
together for their own special weekly meeting.
Many of the women and girls from the neighbour
ing villages began quite spontaneously to attend
also the evening Bible classes and prayer meetings,
sometimes quite forty or fifty flocking in together.
In this land where the weaker sex are often so
difficult to reach, on account of the restrictions
by which they are bound, this was indeed a sight
to gladden our hearts. Sometimes as we sat
together on the verandah of our house after the
class had been dismissed, watching the silvery
moonlight transforming our pretty garden into a
veritable fairyland, we would talk together of all
God s wonderful goodness in allowing us to see
some signs of the coming of His Kingdom, and
then my husband would say, 4 It cannot be because
of anything in us, but because so many of God s
people are praying for us far away in the Home
lands.
I must not forget to mention the industrial side
of the work. We felt very strongly that to develop
the African along right lines he must be taught
to work with his hands, while at the same time
learning to read and write. For this reason,
although numbers of boys now lived on the station,
no money was ever paid out to them for their
support, but only for actual work accomplished.
On this account we endeavoured to find employ
ment for as many as possible. Brick-making
Choosing New Sites
in
house-building, rough carpentering and gardening,
besides the mat industry, kept a large number of
men, women and boys constantly busy for many
hours a day. Returning from school each morning
I was generally followed by a crowd of lads begging
for work ; and two or three tiny mites of four or
five years of age would press up to me, flourishing
their little cultivating knives aloft, and crying
lustily, Hee kawera ! ln.ee kawera ! (Give me a
little bit of work !). The paramount chief, Karuri,
several times paid us a visit, and was always
greatly interested in all that he saw.
During the years 1907 and 1908 three caravan
journeys were undertaken, one of which has been
described at length in the previous chapter. A
short safari was made to a district under a chief
named Kahuria, a few hours journey from our
station. About one hundred and fifty people were
assembled for a Sunday service, and medicines
were freely dispensed, but we have seldom been
amongst a more unfriendly set of natives.
Later on my husband and his brother (the Rev.
E. W. Crawford) went together on a three weeks
tour with the object of choosing new sites for the
C.M.S. in the almost unknown trans-Tana country,
a work which had been entrusted to them by the
Bishop and the local governing body. Three
sites chosen during that journey, as the result of
many negotiations with chiefs and a great deal
of cross-country travelling, are at the time of
writing all occupied as mission stations Kabare,
H2 Charged by Rhinos
Embu and Muitiro. On the return safari they met
with the unpleasant experience of being charged
by two rhinoceroses not far from Fort Embu, and
having no firearms with them, they only escaped
by hastily climbing up into some trees by the
roadside.
As the year drew to a close we began to make
preparations for leaving on furlough, and the Rev.
and Mrs. Douglas Hooper arrived in the middle of
December, having been appointed to carry on the
work during our absence. Christmas with its
glad associations was upon us, and we en
deavoured to make it a day of thanksgiving and
rejoicing. Our neighbours poured in to the Christ
mas service, and learnt, we trust, something of its
sacred lessons. Many little gifts were dispensed,
and the slaughter of a sheep provided an ample
feast for all on the station. Amongst the presents
were a number of dolls sent by friends in England.
These proved a source of great delight, not so
much to the little girls (who were afraid of them !)
as to the boys and warriors, who were each so
keen to possess one that it was impossible to
satisfy them all with the very limited number at
our disposal.
Boxing Day was devoted to sports and games
for our young people, and the whole community
assembled on the hill to watch the fun. Hurling
spears at a target provided keen excitement for
the young men, and pick-a-back and sack races
created a great deal of merriment. But perhaps
Baptizing in a Stream 113
the three-legged races were the most popular, and
in these the women begged to be allowed to join.
A few weeks later came a still more interesting
occasion, the baptism of our first converts. Only
eight of the catechumens were considered suffi
ciently advanced for this important step. They
had all been under instruction for about two
years, and some of them even longer. We had
decided that to have them baptized by immersion
would be a more impressive object lesson to the
Heathen, and to the candidates themselves. The
beautiful similitude in baptism of death to the old
life of sin, and the rising again to a new life in
Christ, had of course been carefully explained, but
we realized that it was the Holy Spirit alone Who
could make it a reality in each individual life.
The Rev. E. W. Crawford performed the cere
mony, which took place at the little river which
flows at the foot of the steep hill below the mission
station. The banks were lined with hundreds of
natives, drawn together no doubt by curiosity, and
all the adherents of our church and school were
also present. Silence fell upon the congregation as
one by one the candidates stepped down into the
stream, where my brother-in-law, standing in his
surplice, received and immersed them. At the
close of the service, clad in clean white garments,
they formed into a procession to return to the
station.
Much sorrowful regret was expressed over our
departure. The women crowded around us saying,
9
ii4 A Sorrowful Departure
What shall we do when our father and mother
are gone ? And indeed the work had become so
dear to our own hearts that it was difficult to tear
ourselves away. Little did we think that we should
never return to labour at Kahuhia again, yet so
it was ordained !
PART III
Embu
A little Sanctuary art Thou to me,
Amongst the Heathen where I dwell with Thee ;
Beneath Thy shadow, folded neath Thy wing,
In deep content my song of praise I sing.
A little Sanctuary art Thou to me
No fabled shrine, but deep Reality I
Thou said st it should be so when at Thy call
I rose and followed, gladly leaving all.
A little Sanctuary art Thou to me !
All joyfully I pitch my tent with Thee,
Or ready still to journey at Thy Word
In thee I live and move, most blessed Lord,
CHAPTER XI
Beyond the Tana River
ON our return from furlough in 1910, it was
arranged that the Rev. and Mrs. Douglas
Hooper should continue our work at Kahuhia,
the latter being a qualified medical woman, and
that we should be sent to the entirely unevangelized
region beyond the Tana River to open up a medical
mission amongst the Embus, one hundred miles
from Nairobi. After many unlooked-for delays
we were at length able to start for the trans-Tana
country in the latter part of August. For a short
time there was a large motor transport waggon
running between Nairobi and Fort Hall, and we
were fortunate enough to be able to avail ourselves
of it. Instead, therefore, of being two or three
days on the road as formerly, we covered the whole
distance of sixty miles in six and a half hours.
Our native servants who travelled with us were in
the most exuberant state of delight and astonish
ment over this, the most wonderful journey of
their lives ! At noon we stopped for lunch at a
little hotel built all of grass, and designated The
n8
Reaching Fort Hall
Blue Post. It stands on the narrow strip of land
between the Chania and the Thika Rivers, where
the two magnificent waterfalls lend such a charm
to the scenery. The Fort Hall road proved to
be in a shocking condition, dangerous wash-aways
occurring in the cuttings, and some of the bridges
being broken. However, we succeeded in getting
through without accident, for which we were deeply
thankful.
The builder who had been entrusted with the
contract for the erection of our new mission-house
formed one of our party, his native workmen
following on foot. At Fort Hall two rooms in an
empty house were most kindly placed at our
disposal by the Government officials, and during
the two days we remained there, while providing
for the transport of our luggage, we were shown
considerable hospitality. At last we were able to
dispatch our loads by native carriers, and to
arrange for our own journey farther into the
interior. Our new trap, which had been given to
us by the Women s Auxiliary of the Church of
England in Canada, had been drawn out from
Nairobi by natives, and with our white mule
inspanned was ready to carry us to Embuland.
The first day our destination was Kabare, the C.M.S.
station opened by my brother-in-law in the midst
of the Ndia tribe, to whom he was the first mission
ary, as we were to be the pioneers to the Embus.
We had not gone far on our way when the mule
had to be unharnessed and led down a terribly
A Haunt of Hippopotami 119
steep and rocky hill which terminated in the valley
of the Mathioya. When we reached the bank of
this broad and beautiful stream we found to our
dismay that the bridge was too narrow to take our
trap, so my husband set to work to detach the
wheels, and it was then hoisted up on to the
shoulders of a dozen natives and carried safely to
the farther side. After two hours of exceedingly
rough travelling we reached the Tana, the prin
cipal river of East Africa, which is the home of
innumerable hippopotami and crocodiles. Vast
plains stretch as far as the eye can see in a south
easterly direction, and being a veritable zoological
garden it is a favourite resort of big game
hunters.
Having driven across the fine suspension bridge
with which the Government has spanned this
river, we proceeded on our way, every now and then
meeting with some little stream which was hurry
ing along to empty itself into the Tana. These
were bridged with such frail structures of mud and
sticks, that it was sometimes just touch and go
as to whether they could bear the weight of the
trap, and generally both cart and bridge had to be
carefully measured to ascertain whether the width
was sufficient to admit of driving over. On one
such flimsy bridge the wheels actually slipped over
the edge, first on one side and then on the other,
but were caught by projecting sticks, and thus the
trap was saved from being overturned into the
brook below. At noon we drew near to the River
I2O An Awkward Place
Thiba, which is approached by an extremely pre
cipitate and narrow defile. The mule had to be
led down apart from the cart. My own mode of
transit was not exactly enviable, first of all hang
ing from my husband s neck and then on the back
of a Ndia woman who happened to come along !
Once more our little vehicle was borne shoulder
high by natives over the all too narrow native
foot-bridge. Just after this we left the main road,
and turned down a pathway cut by the paramount
chief, Gutu, who bears rule over a great part of the
Ndia tribe. Again the Thiba had to be crossed,
and as we found only a hollowed-out trunk of a
tree connecting with the opposite bank it proved
a terribly awkward place to negotiate. There
was nothing for it but to remove the wheels of the
cart again, and even so it was only with the utmost
difficulty that it could be carried across.
But now we were only three miles from Kabare,
and very soon we were greeting our brother who
had come to meet us. Presently, too, his wife and
their two little children appeared, and we received
a warm welcome to their station. They had been
there only a few months, and were living in a
temporary house of wattle and daub, but they had
a well-ordered school and the little grass church
was packed on Sunday. I was charmed with the
situation of Kabare, the hill being covered with
lovely trees, and having a fine view of the mountain.
Bidding farewell to our relatives a few days later
we again had to traverse that dreadful log bridge
A Natural Bridge
121
over the Thiba. Quite half-an-hour was lost
in taking off and putting on the cart wheels, and
another slipped by in waiting to see Chief Gutu
at his village. He is certainly one of the cleverest
and most dignified black men we have ever met
in these uncivilized regions, and his influence over
his 40,000 followers is enormous. His large home
stead is enclosed within a strong stockade and
consists of sixteen or eighteen huts (to accommo
date his many wives) besides numerous granaries.
He is very rich in cattle and flocks, and is a per
sonality to be reckoned with by every traveller
to the trans-Tana.
We lunched at noon in a most picturesque spot
where a great natural bridge of stone spans a
rocky stream. The road passes over the bridge,
which is so overgrown with creepers and bushes
as to be scarcely discernible, unless the traveller
takes the trouble to climb down the bank and
examine the massive pillars upon which it rests.
I suppose that it is owing to the fact that it was
not constructed by human hands that the natives
have given it the name of Thakama wa Ngai
(the bridge of God). We were told that it was
here under the bridge that Chief Gutu secreted
himself two years before after leading his warriors
in an attempt to expel the white men from his
country. When the fortunes of war turned against
him he fled to the Thakama wa Ngai and the British
forces were unable to find him. Some of the black
soldiers pursued him to this spot, and even clam-
122 Rhinos Ahead !
bered down to search for him under the rocky
structure, where they fired a volley to terrify him,
in the hope that he would rush out from his shelter.
But old Gutu was too wary for that ! He lay
perfectly still in his hiding place until, weary of the
search, they gave it up and returned to the other
troops. Not until darkness fell did the chief
venture to creep to a place of safety.
The road now led through a great uninhabited
wilderness, and we had not gone very far before
we heard from some passing natives that there
were rhinoceroses ahead ! It certainly looked as
though wild beasts might spring at any moment
from the dense jungle through which we were
passing. The Doctor got out of the trap and walked
along with his rifle, but nothing formidable ap
peared. But some of our native servants who were
walking a little in advance were greatly startled
by the appearance of four ponderous rhinos, and
my husband very much regretted that we were a
few minutes too late ! It was near this point of
the road that he and his brother had been charged
by a pair of rhinos about two years before.
Fort Embu, which we reached after a drive of
about twelve miles, is delightfully situated on a
fine hill overlooking the plains and the weary
waste through which we had travelled. Just
below it is a deep gorge through which flows the
Ribongazi River. This forms the boundary
between the Ndia and Embu territories. An
exceedingly steep and narrow zig-zag cutting
Fort Etnbu at Last 123
must be climbed to reach the top of the hill, which
is prettily laid out and planted with avenues of
trees leading to the Government bungalows and
offices.
The assistant District Officer came out to
welcome us and seemed intensely surprised at the
sight of our little cart, which had the honour
of being the first to be driven out to Embu. The
superior officer being away, leave was kindly granted
us to use his vacant house. The site selected for
the new mission station was only about eight miles
beyond the Fort. The natives have given the
name of Kigari, or A Big Leopard, to the hill, doubt
less owing to the prevalence of these beasts in the
vicinity. On our arrival the local chief and many
of his people ran out of their villages to greet us,
and seemed to be really pleased that we were
coming to live amongst them. Chief Kabuthi is a
tall, lean man, and wears a dark-coloured blanket
and an old felt hat. He brought the usual present
of a sheep, and we bestowed suitable gifts in return.
An exchange of gifts is the only basis of friendship
that these primitive savages seem able to under
stand I
There was only a small cleared space on the hill
top where it was possible to pitch our tents, the
jungle being so thick all around that it was difficult
at first to get any adequate idea of the site. A
large number of men had to be employed to clear
it up as it was extremely unhealthy in its present
condition. A pretty bit of woodland on one side
124 Clearing the Jungle
of the hill and a banana grove on the other were,
however, interesting features, and when the
clouds lifted, there was the most wonderful view
of the mountain that we had ever seen. Looking
towards the north-west it seemed to fill the land
scape. We were indeed so near that the vast
forest which encircles its base could be reached in
an hour and a half, and it was difficult to believe
that it was not nearer still, so clearly were the
trees visible. The builder arrived the same day
as ourselves with his Swahili masons, and the site
of the house was soon staked out.
We had been living a whole month under canvas
when one evening an army of soldier ants came
up in thousands and laid siege to our tent and
we were obliged ignominiously to surrender to the
enemy and seek another shelter ! Fortunately,
a tiny shanty of wood and iron which was being
put together for our temporary abode was almost
finished and we were able to move into it.
Warriors of Embuland
CHAPTER XII
Amongst the Embus
THE Embus are a branch of the Kikuyu tribe,
and inhabit the foothills on the east side of
Mt. Kenia. It was not until after the Government
had been some time firmly established in the
Kikuyu country to the south and south-west of
the mountain, that they turned their attention to
the Embus. Every attempt to get on a friendly
footing with this tribe completely failed, and the
advance of the British force was resisted with all
the strength they could muster. At last a punitive
expedition was sent against them, about six years
ago, which resulted in their complete subjugation.
From the latest reports there must be a popula
tion of about 200,000 in the Embu district, but
this (for purposes of administration) includes
also the Embere, Chuka, Mwimbi and part of the
Ndia tribes. The whole territory is naturally
but little known to outsiders, excepting to a few
adventurous sportsmen for whom the country
enfolds all that heart could wish in the way of
big game. We are indeed living on the border of a
125
126 A 4 Baby Rhino
vast menagerie ! Some natives told us the other
day of a fight that had just been witnessed on the
plains between a buffalo and a lion. The king of
beasts was worsted in the fray, and one of our
informants offered us his claws for sale. In the
glades of the great forest upon which we gaze from
our mission station Ex-President Roosevelt has
hunted elephants. The Duke of Connaught has
also hunted in the district, and amongst many
other trophies his party captured a baby rhino.
This ponderous infant was kept alive for a time
with cow s milk, our local chief Kabuthi supplying
some of the cows for the purpose. Any kindness
shown him by the chiefs the Duke rewarded right
royally. He and the Duchess and Princess
Patricia stayed a night at Fort Embu on their
journey around Mt. Kenia. This was just before
we entered the district.
We found the people very much like the Akikuyu,
but somewhat wilder, less clothed and more de
graded. Their customs are for the most part very
similar. Much of their social life, however, is so
debased that I can scarcely venture even to touch
upon the subject. It is a striking fact that our
Christian Embus all aspire to Kikuyu brides,
feeling it impossible to marry girls of their own
tribe. The villages in Embuland are much the
same as amongst the Kikuyu, but the huts are
smaller and not nearly so well built.
For some months after our arrival we were
obliged to hold our services in the open air. The
A Hospital Chapel 127
chief, clad in a red blanket, topped with an old
white helmet, was usually enthroned on a packing
case, with several hundreds of his followers sitting
in a large circle on the ground. The first few
Sundays they seemed vastly amused, and often
had to be rebuked for an outburst of laughter,
especially when we began to sing or pray ; indeed,
we did not dare attempt the latter until they
became a little more orderly. Humanly speaking,
it seemed quite impossible to convey any spiritual
truth to their darkened minds. But when our
Master said, Go ye into all the world and preach
the Gospel to every creature, He could not have
intended the Embus to be omitted ! Behind the
divine command there is divine power, power
which can transform these degraded savages, and
make them meet to be partakers of the inheritance
of the saints in light. If we doubted this we could
not remain here. So, trustfully and hopefully,
we took up the sacred charge of seeking to win a
new tribe for God.
Amongst other building operations my husband
soon started a large hospital chapel, which took
nearly two months to complete, although we
boasted no grander materials than the usual
poles, sticks, mud and banana bark ! The interior
being neatly lined with white reeds from which
the bark had been stripped, reminded us of the
Uganda churches, 1 only that the workmanship
was somewhat rougher. The next problem was
1 We paid a visit to Uganda in 1905.
128 An Uproarious Crowd
how to contrive seats for our congregation. This
was eventually solved by having a great many
long, straight poles brought from the forest, each
of which when supported horizontally on small
posts, emerging about a foot above the ground,
formed quite as up-to-date a pew as we could
desire, considering the present status of our
parishioners ! When all was finished there was
seating accommodation for five hundred and fifty.
The building is ninety feet long and twenty feet
wide, and the top ridge pole is fifteen feet high.
The opening day arrived and it almost took our
breath away to see the uproarious crowd of savages
pouring in, and it required almost superhuman
efforts to reduce them to any semblance of order !
But the strains of the baby organ caught their
attention and helped to silence the babel. As
we had not used it for the open-air services most of
them had never heard it before, and of course the
unanimous verdict was, there was c a spirit inside
the box !
An evangelistic school was started next day in
the same building. Twenty-eight boys were duly
enlisted as scholars, and a few days later the number
was almost doubled, but to my dismay they all
went on strike, demanding wages for thus obliging
the Europeans ! The situation had to be carefully
explained, and we tried to make them understand
that the obligation was the other way round.
When they found that we were quite firm, and pre
pared to close the school if need be, then most of
,
The Belfry, Embu Medical Mission
Medical Assistants and Pupil Teachers, Embu
Elected to the * Kiama 129
them gave in, and settled down quietly. The
following month quite ninety pupils had been
enrolled, but the average attendance was about
seventy-five.
One day not very long after our arrival many of
the veterans of the tribe came up to do honour to
Gitari by admitting him to the Council of Elders.
This being regarded as a great occasion, Dr. Craw
ford presented them with a bull as an initiation fee
(it being customary to give either a sheep or a bull).
They sat around in a ring, with the new candidate
in their midst. Two of the elders came forward
and extended their hands over him, invoking the
blessing of Ngai, and imploring Him to bestow
sheep, cattle, fruitful gardens and all other temporal
mercies upon the new member of their council.
All present grunted their assent to every sentence
in unison. When the bull was slaughtered they be
stowed a large piece of meat upon the new member,
and then he was permitted to retire. A week later
the council assembled again, and once more the
Doctor was summoned to their midst. This time a
fat sheep was presented to him, and his elder s staff,
which he was expected to use as a walking-stick.
Then one of the athuri rose and told him that he
had been elected president of the Kiama, as a token
of their appreciation of his services to the people
He also proclaimed that in future Sunday was to
be observed as a day of rest, and that their boys
were to be allowed to attend the school. Further
10
130 A Confirmation Service
blessings were then invoked, much the same as on
the former occasion, after which they took their
departure. The chief himself, Kabuthi, is not a
member of the Council of Elders, being too young
at present to be admitted to the charmed circle.
He is an animist of animists, and although he likes
to appear friendly and even went so far as to attend
school for a few days with some of his councillors,
yet we very soon discovered that he had a horror
of any of his people being turned away from the
superstitions of their ancestors, in which spirit
worship plays such a conspicuous part.
The work was still quite in its initial stage when
our Bishop and his daughter paid us a visit. We
were living almost in camp fashion at the time, but
notwithstanding this it was a great pleasure to
welcome them. The great event of their short stay
was a Confirmation service. The four candidates
were amongst those who had been baptized at
Kahuhia just before we left for England, and they
had been very carefully prepared during the previ
ous months. All were medical assistants except
Marko the cook. It was very impressive to see
these, our children in the Faith, kneeling before
the Bishop, whilst we fervently echoed his prayer
that they might continue Christ s faithful soldiers
and servants unto their lives end. A solemn Com
munion service followed, when our dear Kikuyu
boys gathered with us to remember our Lord s
death till He come.
A few weeks later, after our visitors had left us
.
An Embu Warrior
Soldier Ants
and the mission-house was nearing completion, one
Sunday evening our tin shanty was overrun with
soldier ants. With the help of our boys we en
deavoured to fight them back by pouring red hot
ashes and paraffin on their track, and were all
badly bitten in the attempt. Finally we decided
to escape from the invaders by a hasty removal into
the new house, just as we had evacuated the tent
for the cottage five months before. These terrible
pests are a perpetual menace all over the country.
Many a time travellers have had to turn out of their
tents at night because of a besieging army of siafu
(the Swahili name for these biting ants). We once
had them in our bedroom during our stay at Kabete,
and after battling with the foe for an hour and a
half, we had to retire for the night with the room
reeking of paraffin.
Some months ago they attacked a favourite cat
and her kitten, the latter being so thickly covered
as to be almost unrecognizable. As soon as we
discovered their dreadful predicament we called
our little house boys to the rescue, and although
constantly getting bitten themselves they laboured
most perseveringly until every ant was extracted.
I say extracted advisedly, as these ants fasten
their fangs, which are like a sharp pair of forceps,
deep into the flesh, and they can seldom be removed
without drawing blood. The poor wee kitten lay
bleeding and exhausted, but remembering the pro
verbial nine lives a cat is supposed to possess we
hoped it would survive. Placing cat and kitten
132 Bitten to Death
comfortably in another house we left them for the
night. Imagine then our distress at rinding them
in the morning again covered with these dreadful
pests ! This time the unfortunate kitten was just
breathing its last, so we concentrated all our efforts
on the poor mother, but in spite of all that we could
do she died of blood-poisoning a few days later.
It is a pitiful sight to discover a whole brood of
little chickens smothered with these ants. Dipping
our hands into paraffin and water we pick them off
as fast as we can, but it is seldom that more than
two or three will outlive the frightful siege they
have experienced, and of course the mother-hen
herself may not survive. Insect life is one of the
small trials the missionary or settler has to face in
the tropics. The well-known white ants are not so
much a source of personal inconvenience as the
soldier ants, but they are extremely destructive to
property. If they get under your matting, or be
hind your photographs and pictures, or invade your
library, they will generally do untold damage before
they are discovered. But the most terrible of insect
pests are the jiggers, which bore deep into your flesh
to lay their eggs, creating a shocking amount of
pain and irritation. We have many times seen
little children brought to the dispensary with their
fingers and toes eaten off by jiggers, and the wounds
in a state of horrible suppuration.
A tiny girl two or three years of age was suddenly
left on our hands one day, her mother having died
in the hospital from a loathsome disease which at
The School a Menagerie ! 133
the last attacked her throat. The poor little creature
was almost a skeleton, and her feet and hands were
in a dreadful condition from jiggers. She could
only hobble along on her heels, as her toes caused
her so much pain. We gave her some disinfectant
baths, had nearly a hundred jiggers extracted, and
her maimed limbs carefully doctored and bandaged.
She soon became every one s pet, and is now learn
ing to read in school. The bright, merry little girl
who runs about the station to-day could hardly
be recognized as the forlorn little waif who so
deeply touched our sympathies a year ago.
In spite of a good deal of secret opposition the
school has continued to progress very satisfactorily.
In 1911 the attendance averaged about eighty-five,
but in 1912 it ranged between one hundred and
one hundred and twenty. As the boys are mostly
named after wild animals, birds and insects, etc.,
the roll call is decidedly amusing, and reads
somewhat like this : Giraffe, son of Buffalo ; Frog,
son of Ostrich ; Elephant, son of Hawk ; Hippo
potamus, son of Crocodile ; Ostrich, son of
Rhinoceros ; Giraffe, son of Rat. I taught each
one to stand and salute when his name was called
and they were very proud of the accomplishment !
The first half hour in school has always been
devoted to Scripture teaching. A Bible lesson
follows the opening hymn, and an appeal is often
made to the hearts and consciences of the scholars.
I soon found it necessary to prepare a series of
graded reading sheets in the Embu dialect. These
134 Linguistic Difficulties
were printed at the mission press in Frere Town
and have been most useful in securing not only
the interest of the pupils but their rapid advance
ment also. Much of my time has of necessity
been taken up with translational work to meet
the ever growing needs of both church and school.
The dialect is considerably different from the
Kikuyu language. The linguistic difficulties we
have had to wrestle with since coming to Embu
may be better appreciated by the reader if I pre
sent the Lord s Prayer in the two vernaculars.
The Lord s Prayer in Kikuyu
Baba witu wee uri matwini, Ritwa riaku ria-
murwo, Uthamaki waku oke, Kwenda gwaku
kugie thi ta uria gutarie matwini, Utuhe umuthi
irio citu cia gutuigana, uturekere mehia maitu,
ta uria ithui turekagera aria matuehagia, Nduga-
tutware ugerioine, no utuhonokie uruini, Kwondu
uthamaki ni waku, ona hinya, ona ugocwo, tene
na tene. Amina.
The Lord s Prayer in Embu
Vava wetu uri mature, Ritwa reaku renenevue,
Uthamaki waku oke, Marwendo maku marutwe
mavorore toria marutagwa mature. Utuve omon-
thi irio cetu cia gutuigana. Utukirire me via metu,
toria tumakiragira aria matuevagia. Ndokatuvire
ugeriare, no utuvonokie weeire. Kwa undu utha
maki ni waku, na vinya, na ugocwa, tene na tene.
Amina.
The ist Embu Company of the Boys Brigade
Embu Medical Mission School
The Boys Brigade 135
Knowing that the corruption of the village life
was several degrees worse in Embuland than in the
Kikuyu country, we tried to make it possible for
as many of our boys as desired to escape from its
impurity to do so. To this end Dr. Crawford put
up some large dormitories. He also built a club-
room where our lads might spend their evenings
innocently and profitably in reading, singing
hymns and playing simple games. We still adhere
to our original decision not to give any of our
boarders money except for actual work accom
plished. Food is generally supplied to them from
their villages, the parents consent being first
obtained for them to live on the station. In this
way they are neither pampered nor pauperized.
All are expected to perform at least five hours
of manual labour a day, besides attending school
and classes. In order to yet further discipline
the boys, my husband organized a company of
the Boys Brigade, which has been duly enrolled
at headquarters with himself as captain. It is
amusing to watch them at drill. No arms what
ever are used, the only object being to instil the
qualities of order, obedience and reverence. When
there is no drill the boys may usually be seen
throwing themselves heartily into a game of
football when the work of the day is over. Such
a change was taking place in the ideals of our
scholars that the chief and many of the elders
became greatly alarmed, and for a time the
attendance at school was much reduced,
136
A Fight to be Fought
One is not very long in the mission field without
realizing that there is a hard spiritual fight to be
fought. Behind the evil heathen customs there
is a personality, and when we missionaries attack
them we find that we wake up the forces of the
evil one. Our teaching naturally strikes at the
very root of the foolish superstitions and degrading
customs with which the Prince of Darkness seeks
to bind these primitive people body and soul. In
the clear light of Gospel truth they stand revealed
in their true character, and the pupil at the mission
school learns to regard them with aversion. The
entrance of Thy Word giveth light. He can no
longer bear to participate in what he now sees to
be displeasing to God. From that point of course
the real conflict begins. But for those who know
that they are on the winning side there is nothing
to fear, though temporary rebuffs may be encoun
tered. The Captain of their salvation has never
known defeat, and the weakest of His soldiers may
learn to triumph in His blessed Name !
CHAPTER XIII
With the Savage Ghukas
AS the work of a medical mission grows it
becomes increasingly difficult to get away
from the station, but we longed to carry the light
of the Gospel a little farther into the dense dark
ness of Heathendom, so in September, 1911, we
arranged a safari that would take us through
eastern Embuland into the country of the Chukas.
After rapidly completing our preparations we set
out one morning, my husband, as usual, riding his
mule, and I in a camp chair slung on two strong
bamboo poles. The long file of porters kept up
a constant chatter as they swung along the narrow
path with their burdens. Our good, faithful
Josiah (medical assistant) walked by my side all
the way, keeping a steadying hand on my chair
in every rough or dangerous place, and sometimes
even plunging into mud or water in his anxiety
to secure my safety.
There had been much to occupy us during the
past busy days, but now, with our faces set towards
the unknown regions beyond, our minds were free
138
A Sacred Grove
to dwell on the solemn privilege which was to be
ours within the next few days, of planting our
footsteps where no missionaries had ever been
before. Our hearts ascended in prayer that,
however unworthy, our God would graciously
cleanse and prepare His instruments. Up and
down we went, sometimes almost pushing our
way through a dense tangle of bush, or threading
our path through fertile vales covered with native
gardens, or yet again crossing with wary footsteps
some slender pole where a mountain streamlet
tumbled its noisy career over rocks and boulders.
A beautiful dome-shaped hill completely mantled
with forest trees attracted our attention, and we
were told it was a sacred grove of the Embu tribe
where sacrifices were wont to be offered to pro
pitiate the spirits. Although the forest abounds
with Colybus monkeys, yet not one of them must
be killed lest the anger of the ghosts which are
supposed to frequent these glades should be
aroused.
As we neared the River Ena we heard the roar
of falling water, and in another minute a most
lovely cascade was presented to our view. But we
could not stay to explore the beauties of the
scene. After three hours of travelling we arrived
at our first camp, near the village of a chief named
Ronenji. As we had sent some of our boys and
porters ahead of us we found the tents pitched
and all in readiness. The chief was unfortunately
away from home so we did not see him. A native
A Lantern Service 139
dance, performed by young men with decorated
shields, was in full swing, and there was no possi
bility of settling down until late at night on account
of the din and noise. The next day, Sunday,
some sick people gathered around for treatment
and a service was held for them. In the evening,
a large sheet having been stretched between two
poles in the open air, a lantern lecture was given
portraying the Life of our Lord.
The whole camp was astir at daybreak the
following morning, and after a hasty breakfast
we set out again, this time making for Kagani s,
the most influential chief in eastern Embuland,
just two hours away. We passed through a most
delightful country, richly wooded and undulating,
and with extensive patches of native cultivation,
witnessing to a numerous population.
On a wide green sward outside the chief s village,
where several large trees afford a pleasant shade,
the tents were rapidly set up by many willing
hands. Presently some of Kagani s wives paid
us a visit, and then the chief himself appeared.
He sat and chatted with us for some time, and
then carried the Doctor off to see his homestead.
In the cool of the afternoon I was carried over
there in my chair at the chief s request. Having
had a lantern lighted he proceeded to show us
the interior of his huts, which were unusually well
made and divided into a number of sleeping
compartments, with beds built up of sticks high
above the ground, and covered with grass and
140 Through a Dreary Desert
blankets. But all was so intensely dark that we
should have seen nothing had it not been for the
dim flicker of the dirty lamp. It was quite the
best village we had seen, but some of the larger
huts were evidently built by Swahilis, who travel
about for purposes of trade, sowing, alas ! the
seeds of Islam wherever they go.
On leaving Kagani s we directed our steps
towards the land of the Chukas. In approaching
this country from Embuland, native villages and
gardens gradually disappear and the traveller
passes through a veritable desert where beasts of
prey lurk unmolested. Then comes a great deep
ravine with a dreadfully steep and rocky pathway
leading down to a turbid stream below, and up
again, a long, hard climb, till the crest of the hill
is reached on the farther side. In the old days
the Embus did not dare to cross this ravine, as the
Chukas and themselves were always at enmity.
If a man ventured to pass through the country
with a herd of cattle or goats, the latter would
invariably be seized and himself murdered. But
since the British Government conquered these
tribes, all inter-tribal warfare has ceased. After
a three hours march we reached the homestead
of Mutua, one of the most important Chuka chiefs,
and were soon surrounded by his people as we
pitched our tents. They appeared to us just like
a lot of little children in their primitive simplicity,
so full of curiosity and wonder at all that pertained
to the white man.
o
J8 I
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O 4=
CA! H
Mutua s Village 141
Chief Mutua was soon seen emerging from the
thick banana grove which hides his village from
view, and very friendly were the greetings when he
discovered the purpose of our visit. His wives
also came to see us and invited us over to the
homestead, going away happy with their hands
filled with coarse salt, which is always deemed
a luxury amongst African savages. It did not
take long for the news to spread that the white
medicine man had arrived with boxes filled with
muthaiga. The people gathered in crowds to be
treated, and as they crouched together on the
ground they heard for the first time the wonderful
story of God s redeeming love. In the evening
a lantern service brought still more vividly before
these depraved savages the life and death and
resurrection of the Saviour of the world. But
when they saw the picture of the suffering body
suspended from a cross of wood they pained us by
their laughter and rude jests, showing how little
their darkened minds could understand that
marvellous Sacrifice for sin.
This country is even more richly wooded than
Embuland, and the villages are for the most part
completely obscured by trees and bushes, or
plantations of bananas. The Chukas are a most
exclusive tribe, and keep almost entirely to their
own territory, not intermarrying with other tribes,
or going abroad in search of work. They have a
reputation for being very wild and dangerous.
Even quite recently the officials have had poisoned
142 The Chuka Barricades
arrows shot at them from ambush while riding
through the country for the purpose of collecting
hut tax. Until lately the frontiers of the Chuka
territory were enclosed by a thorny hedge entered
only by gateways which were barricaded at night,
and guarded by sentinels by day. But these
barricades have been torn down by order of the
Government, To still further protect themselves
from enemies the people dig pitfalls near the
villages, lined with sharp-pointed stakes, and
skilfully covered with sticks and greenery so as to
escape detection. Besides these man-traps they
dig large pits in the same way to catch elephants
and other wild beasts in the Kenia forest. The
animals falling in are impaled on the sharp stakes,
and so are easily dispatched. The physical condi
tion of this tribe is worse than that of any of the
others with which we have corne in contact, and
during the few days we were able to spend amongst
them patients came around the Doctor in hundreds,
seeming really grateful for the opportunity of
being helped.
The dialect of these interesting people differs
considerably from that of the Kikuyu and Embu
tribes, so that it was not always easy to make
ourselves understood. The cast of countenance
is also somewhat distinctive, with an unusual
width between the eyes. Clothing is reduced
to a minimum ! Goatskins, beads and red clay,
all play their part as with most of the barbarous
tribes of Africa ; but many of the men and women
The Minimum of Clothing 143
seem to attempt no other covering than a frill
of banana leaves round the waist. American
cotton and blankets are, however, being gradually
introduced amongst the male portion of the com
munity. They appear to be quite devoid of the
scruples of their Kikuyu and Embu neighbours with
regard to food, and will eat almost any kind of
meat that comes in their way, even that of the
hyaena, which is reckoned most unclean by the
Akikuyu, who consider it ceremonially defiling
to touch any meat except beef or mutton, even a
domestic fowl or a partridge being absolutely
tabooed !
A desire was expressed by the chief Mutua that
a missionary might be sent to teach his people,
and leading the Doctor to a very beautiful hill
he offered it to him as a site for a mission station.
He also brought two boys to us (one of them his
own son) that they might be educated at our
school. Two other Chuka boys followed after us,
appearing at our next camp, and begging that they
too might be allowed to return with us and learn
to read. We longed that these lads might some
day go back to evangelize their own people, and
we kept this thought before us, praying that a work
of grace might be begun in their hearts. Some
of them had already joined the inquirers class
after being some months on our station, when we
were informed one day that they had run away.
As they always seemed quite happy and contented
while with us, we could only draw the conclusion
144
Little Kipande
that some adverse influence had crept in, and
that Mutua had recalled them in consequence.
During our short visit to the Chuka chief s
village, a tiny little fellow, named Kipande, one
of Mutua s sons, took an extraordinary fancy to
us and hovered continually about our tent. On
the morning of our departure, as our caravan
wound its way through the banana grove near the
homestead, we found our small friend awaiting
us on the pathway. He had evidently made up
his mind to accompany us, as the childish voice
was heard shouting, Are you going away and
leaving your child behind ? As the pathetic
appeal brought no response, it was followed by
loud sobbing. We were unable, of course, to
accede to his request. But I have never ceased to
remember little Kipande, and to pray that some
day the way may open for him to be brought to
the missionaries and led into the fold of the Good
Shepherd.
We parted from our Chuka acquaintances with
mutual regrets, many of them asking us when we
would come again. Retracing our steps we re-
crossed the ravine and trudged along for nearly
four hours until we arrived at the village of an
Embu chief named Weimiri, where we remained
two or three days, helping all the sick folk who came
our way, and delivering our message to the people.
From thence we returned to the station, having
travelled about sixty miles in ten days.
CHAPTER XIV
Out of the Jaws of Death
WE had not been many weeks in Embuland
before a small temporary dispensary was
opened. Not many patients came round at first,
but it did not take long for the white doctor s
fame to spread, and during a few months the
numbers rose steadily until at last there were three
or four hundred patients daily. It was indeed a
formidable task to attend to them all ! Watching
this pathetic throng of diseased and suffering
humanity one was often reminded of the word,
When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with
compassion on them. Day by day at the dis
pensary door they heard, for the first time, of that
tender, compassionate Saviour Who could heal,
not only physical infirmity, but soul sickness too.
Many had to be received at once as in-patients,
and a number of little temporary huts were hastily
run up for their accommodation. But as they
continued to press upon us it became necessary to
erect some large hospital wards. The doctor and
his young assistants threw themselves energeti-
146 A General Stampede !
cally into the work, and before many months had
passed we had a spacious hospital compound com
posed of six large wards, with sleeping capacity
for over a hundred people. A long shed was also
built for the out-patient department, the whole
forming one large square. Then came the labour
of making beds of native materials, which in
volved still harder toil than the building of the
houses. Seventy-five cots were at length com
pleted, and it did not take long to fill them with
patients. The Embus being accustomed to sleep
on a bundle of banana leaves strewn on the mud
floor of their dwellings, regarded the hospital
accommodation as positive luxury, and it has
generally been a difficult matter to get them to
leave when convalescent !
A special service for in-patients was now in
stituted, with the hope that many of these poor
creatures, hearing the Gospel every day (some of
them for many months at a time) might be able to
return to their own people with a new and wonder
ful story of a Saviour able to save to the utter
most all who come to Him for spiritual healing.
Our patients were, of course, terribly supersti
tious. When the first death occurred in the hospital
we were dismayed to find that there was a general
stampede, and quite half of them returned to their
homes ! This was because they feared that the
ghost of the dead man would haunt the ward in
which he died, and possibly bring some calamity
upon all the inmates. It was, however, cheering
A New Dispensary
147
to notice that it was chiefly the newer patients
who had left, thus demonstrating that the older
ones had more or less profited from the teaching.
The C.M.S. having made a grant for the erection
of a stone Dispensary and Operating Room, the
European builder turned his attention to this as
soon as he had completed the mission-house. My
husband spent several days when it was finished
in fitting it up with the necessary shelves and tables.
Six months had passed away and the medical
mission was now successfully established, with
representatives of all the trans-Tana tribes to be
found amongst the patients, many of whom had
to travel two or three days in order to reach us.
But here I must retrace my steps to relate the
remarkable chain of circumstances which led to
such a rapid development of the work.
The local chief, Kabuthi, had shown a most
friendly attitude towards us, and seemed to realize
that we had come to help his people. Soon after
our arrival he was stricken down with a virulent
form of malarial fever. In spite of all Dr. Craw
ford s efforts he did not seem to gain any ground,
and upon investigation it was found that he was
not always taking the medicine that had been given
him, on the contrary the native medicine men were
asserting their influence over him, and he was being
dosed with their concoctions. Every missionary
in this part of Africa, and most particularly every
medical missionary, must sooner or later come up
against the opposition of these wizard-quacks.
148 Kabuthi and the Witch Doctor
Kabuthi s village lies on the slope of our hill,
only a few hundred yards from the mission station.
There he had lain many days, wasted by the ever-
recurring attacks, and reduced almost to a skeleton.
One day my husband paid him a visit at an un
wonted hour, and a strange scene confronted him.
The patient lay on the ground outside his hut, and
by his side was a mundu mugo (medicine man),
preparing to slaughter a sheep in order to appease
the offended spirits who were supposed to be caus
ing the sickness. Pointing to the sheep, the Doctor
indignantly inquired if it was intended for a sacri
fice. The reply was in the affirmative. Then/
said my husband to the chief, if you are going to
allow this sacrifice to be offered I shall drop your
case ! Looking sternly in the direction of the
medicine man, he added, You have to choose be
tween that man and me 1 The result of this was
that Kabuthi, thus appealed to, decided in favour
of Gitari, and the sheep having been driven back
to the flock, the mundu mugo beat an ignominious
retreat, slinking out of the village in a decidedly
crestfallen manner. Turning towards his patient
again my husband impressed upon him the absolute
futility of such a sacrifice as that which he had been
about to offer, which could not possibly propitiate
the holy God, but would rather tend to bring down
His righteous anger upon him. Then he went on
to expatiate upon the One great Sacrifice which had
been offered up long ago when God sent His only-
begotten Son into the world to die for sinners.
Carried out to Die 149
The young medical assistant, Josiah Gathu, him
self a Heathen only a few years back, added an
impressive testimony to the words which had just
been spoken.
After this all went well for a time, and the chief
seemed to be approaching convalescence, but, alas !
there came a sudden relapse, and early one morning
a messenger came running up the hill to tell us
that Kabuthi had been carried out into the thicket
to die. The Doctor hurried to the scene, and
was shocked to find the unfortunate chief lying
out on the damp ground in the woods. Dissolu
tion certainly seemed imminent, for the limbs
were stiff and cold, and the eyes glazed, while
no gleam of consciousness remained. A few of
his followers were watching with frightened faces
at a little distance, not daring to approach the
dying man. My husband quickly administered
a restorative, gave directions for the hospital
stretcher to be brought, and then knelt in prayer,
asking that in God s great mercy this life might
be given back, and that Kabuthi might yet learn
to know and love Him. He was carried up the
hill and placed on a bed in one of the hospital
huts. How we cried to God that day, as we feared
the result to our work if the chief should die
just at this juncture ! And very graciously the
answer came. The stiffened limbs relaxed, the
pulse quickened and consciousness returned. The
people were greatly awed, and said he was brought
back from the dead ! Day by day the poor man
150 4 You are my Saviour !
gained a little strength, until he was able to sit
up in bed, and later on to creep out of the hut and
lie in the sunshine. Then he said to the Doctor,
You are my saviour ! you have brought me
back from the grave ! you have resurrected me !
Promptly the answer was given that it was all
God s wonderful goodness, and that the Doctor
was only His instrument. As we saw our patient
recovering, our hearts were filled with chastened
thankfulness, and we realized more than ever
before that God Himself had sent us to Embuland,
and that He was confirming our message with
signs following.
Since then Kabuthi has had several serious
attacks of illness, but the means used have always
been blessed to his recovery, and he is to-day a
fairly healthy man, able to administer his largely
increased district, and to walk and ride about the
country getting in the hut tax for the Government.
When he was convalescent he promised that he
would learn to read the Word of God for himself,
but like a ruler of old he has put it off till a
more convenient season !
I have already mentioned Gutu, the powerful
chief of the Ndia tribe. We had not been long
at our new station when one day a messenger
arrived from him, imploring Dr. Crawford to go
to his assistance as he was most seriously ill.
My husband at once put together such drugs and
appliances as he felt the case demanded, and
A Jealous Chief 151
hurried off with his young assistants to a village
several hours distant from our station, where
the chief happened to be staying. It certainly
seems that this visit was instrumental in saving
his life, as he was wonderfully relieved, and a
few days later was able to be carried to the
hospital. Here the help he received was blessed
to his complete recovery, and after a fortnight
of careful attention and nursing he was able to
return home. This case was naturally a great
advertisement for our work amongst the Ndia
people, and hundreds of them began flocking to
us for treatment, until at last Gutu grew alarmed,
as he feared that many might want to settle near
the Mission. Instead of remembering that, under
God, he owed his life to the medical mission, he
became inflamed with jealousy. Gitari was getting
too powerful and his influence must be checked !
Having discussed the matter with the paramount
chief of Ndialand, they called their sub-chiefs
and headmen together, and issued an order that
in future no sick people were to go to the hospital
without permission being obtained from them in
every individual case. Most of those who were
already with us as in-patients were recalled. Not
only so, but emissaries were sent out to inform
other influential chiefs amongst the adjacent
tribes of their movements and to request them to
join the combine. It seemed to us the height of
cruelty to prevent thousands of suffering people
from getting medical help, so an appeal was made
152 Encountering Opposition
to the Government. The chiefs thereupon received
instructions that they must cease to interfere with
the work of the Mission, and that they were
not to prevent patients from obtaining succour
from the hospital. I may here mention that we
have uniformly received the greatest kindness
and courtesy from the officials of the province,
especially from the present Commissioner, Mr.
C. R. W. Lane.
Although the chiefs professed the most complete
ignorance of any attempt to restrict our useful
ness, yet they continued to secretly carry on
their opposition, with the result that the attend
ance at the dispensary dropped to about one
half. However, with an average of two hundred
out-patients a day, and the large in-patient
department, in addition to the constant building
operations, the Doctor and his helpers were any
thing but idle.
A year passed away, and again chief Gutu lay
at death s door, worn almost to a shadow from
the most malignant form of malaria, complicated
with dysentery. For a whole month he lay sick ;
but although my husband several times sent
messages to him, expressing his willingness to
receive him as before, yet he was ashamed to come
to us after all the antagonism he had shown to our
work. In the end, however, he overcame his
scruples, realizing that it was his only hope of
life. Naturally a twenty mile journey did not
Gutu at Death s Door Again 153
improve his condition, and for some days after
his admission to the hospital poor Gutu hovered
between life and death. It was an anxious time
for us, and many were the prayers that ascended
for his recovery, as we feared the effect on the
superstitious minds of the people should this
important chief die on our hands. Everything
that could be devised for his relief and comfort
was attempted. Our efforts were at last rewarded
in seeing the tide turn, and the serious symptoms
begin to abate. He was, however, extremely
prostrated, and it took six weeks of unremitting
care before our patient could be pronounced cured.
During this tedious illness we both endeavoured
to bring him into touch with the Great Physician,
entreating him to turn to the Lord Jesus Christ
for salvation. Most attentively he listened to
our messages by his sick bed, and the proud chief
became so softened and responsive, that we could
hardly realize that it was Gutu ! But no real
heart surrender ensued. Like the young rich
man to whom our Saviour appealed when on
earth, he went away sorrowful, for he had great
possessions. His protracted stay in hospital,
however, led to the removal of many prejudices,
and to the establishment of a very friendly feeling
which must ultimately tend to the furtherance
of the work.
Just two or three other cases I would mention,
amongst many others almost equally interesting.
The Embu are not a whit behind the Akikuyu in
154 Adepts at Poisoning
the horrible practice of poisoning, many a one
being secretly put out of the way in order to
obtain possession of property, or because of
revenge or jealousy. One such case was that of a
chief from a village several miles away, who was
brought to the hospital apparently in a dying
condition. The treatment he received was the
means under God of restoring him to health. The
day after his return home he appeared again with
the present of a goat and kid for his muvonokia
(saviour from death), as he called the Doctor.
Such an evidence of gratitude touched us deeply,
as it is a very rare commodity amongst these
barbaric tribes. Another case was that of a tall,
fine-looking young warrior, who was carried here
on a litter by his relatives. He and a warrior
friend had both been poisoned at the same time.
The latter preferred to remain under the care of a
native medicine man, with a fatal result, while the
other who had been brought to the hospital made a
good recovery.
Cases of injury from wild beasts are not at all
uncommon. A native came to us one day in a
terrible plight, having been severely mauled by a
man-eating lion. It seems that it had attacked
the homestead at night and was in the act of
carrying off a warrior whom it had killed, when
this man rushed in and after a fearful struggle,
which nearly cost him his life, succeeded in dis
patching the ferocious beast with his spear. It
was most fortunate for him that there was a
Injuries by Wild Beasts 155
medical mission within reach where his wounds
could be attended to. At the time of writing
there is a little girl under treatment who was
brought here by her mother. She had been
terribly bitten by a leopard, and the wounds and
subsequent shock would in all probability have
caused her death, had not prompt and skilful
treatment been obtainable.
The work of the medical mission is now known
far and wide, and we cannot but praise God for the
lives that have been rescued, and the thousands
who have heard the news of His great salvation.
CHAPTER XV
Witnessing to Tribes beyond
IT had been much upon our minds that some of
the wild tribes to the east of Mt. Kenia had
never yet heard the Gospel, so availing ourselves of
the dry season of August, 1912, we planned a medical
itineration, that should include the Embere, Chuka
and Mwimbi countries, as well as eastern Embuland.
Leaving our station with a large caravan of natives
carrying our camp outfit and medical loads, we
stayed at Fort Embu over Sunday, and on Monday
morning made an early start in the direction of
Embereland.
We had already descended about 1,000 feet in
approaching the Fort, and our pathway still con
tinued to decline as we left the Embu highlands
and traversed a vast plain, where for many miles
no native dwellings or signs of cultivation are to be
seen. Wild beasts in this region are exceedingly
numerous, and our attendants often pointed out the
spoor of rhinoceroses and buffaloes, while herds
of hartebeestes and other antelopes were much in
evidence. We camped near the banks of a river
156
Rumbia leads the Caravan 157
which forms the boundary of the Embu and Embere
territories, and here we were met by chief Rumbia,
who had come on purpose to escort us to his
country and homestead. He showed great plea
sure at our intended visit, and begged that we
should stay not three days but three months.
Towards sunset a leopard was seen near the camp,
and porters and boys all turned out in search of it,
the Doctor leading the party with his rifle, but it
slunk away into the bush and was not seen again.
We were told that this camp was the site of a
battle between the Embus and the Emberes a few
years ago.
The following day we were early on the road,
I in my safari chair borne by relays of four Embu
carriers, but m!y husband and all the rest of the
party on foot, his mule having died some months
before. The long, coarse grass of the plain is
studded with wild olive and other trees, but the
landscape for the most part presented a scorched
and blasted appearance on account of the Embere
custom of burning the grass in the dry season.
Chief Rumbia strode on ahead of the caravan
with a few of his special followers, looking quite
an important personage, with a towering head
dress of monkey skin, and a black and red blanket
draped around his tall, thin figure.
Our faces were set in an easterly direction
towards the mountains which skirted the plains,
for there amongst the hillsides the Embere people
have built their villages. After a three hours
158
A Rhino in a Tent !
journey we found ourselves nearing the home of
the paramount chief. The wilderness now lay
far below us as we wound our way up a hill through
a plantation of bananas, sugar-cane and beans,
until we came upon a large cluster of bee-hive
huts, and Rumbia s children crept out to gaze
in wonder at the unwonted cavalcade. A few
hundred yards on there proved to be a fairly good
camping-ground, and here the tents were quickly
erected and we took our midday meal sitting under
the shade of a big tree, chatting with the chief s
wives and others who gathered around.
This is a great rhinoceros country. A friendly
native showed us some enormous footprints quite
close to the camp, telling us that they were those
of a rhino who had paid a visit to the place the
previous night. This incident recalls an alarming
experience which befell one of the Government
officials some time ago when on safari. Hearing
some unusual sounds at midnight he went out
of his tent to look around, leaving a friend asleep
in a camp bed. Presently a great blundering form
came tearing through the darkness and a rhino
dashed into the tent, smashing it up and dragging
it away into the bush. Strange to say the officer
found his friend still in his bed, uninjured, though
he had had a decidedly rude awakening !
A circle of Embere patients and others soon
gathered around the Doctor and his assistants,
listening to the story of our Saviour s love. The
boxes were rapidly opened up, bottles, ointments,
Will they follow the Gleam ? 159
and bandages were produced, and the ministry of
healing was soon in full swing. We stayed four
days at Rumbia s village, and hundreds of poor,
suffering people were relieved. The chief himself
attended the services, interrupting the preacher
with quite intelligent questions and acknowledging
that the words were very good. The last evening
a lantern service was given on our Lord s life and
death. It was only attended by the men and boys,
as the women were not allowed to come out at
night. All down the ages the Embere people had
been left in their darkness and degradation, but
now the first glimmering of the Eternal Light was
breaking in upon them. Will they follow the
gleam ? Will they respond to the message which
God s servants have come so far to bring ? Oh
how fervently we pray that they may respond, and
that we may have the joy of seeing some of these
neglected savages transformed by the Holy Spirit s
power I
During our stay at Rumbia s another Embere
chief, named Mugo, came to see us and begged the
Doctor to pay a visit to his village to heal his
sick people ; so, taking it as an indication of
God s leading, we decided to go ; more especially
as my husband wanted to discover whether it was
possible to secure a site near the Ena River for a
mission station.
Although we breakfasted soon after half-past
five, and broke camp shortly after 6 A.M. the heat
became intense as we travelled due east with the
i6o
A Miniature Cascade
rising sun in our faces. Our path lay over a low
mountain range and was very rough and rocky,
while every now and again we would plunge down
into some dried-up rivulet bed, a mass of stones
and boulders. There was a most glorious view of
Mount Kenia, looking back over the plain which
we had traversed a few days ago, and the snowy
peak was glistening in the sunshine. It took us
three hours and forty minutes to reach our camp
by the Ena River, and we were all very weary and
glad of a rest on our arrival.
We found the altitude by our aneroid to be only
3,500 feet, which is very low indeed for the high
lands of East Africa, and the whole neighbourhood
seemed too unhealthy for European occupation.
The river was, however, very beautiful, with lofty
palms and other lovely trees lining its banks,
and a miniature cascade making music as it leapt
over the rocks. The natives had constructed
a most picturesque-looking bridge close to the
little waterfall, and the whole effect was very
charming.
After about fifty patients had been treated by
the Ena River bank, and the Old, Old Story again
proclaimed to those who had never heard it before,
we packed up our kit and moved on again. We
now had to leave the Government pathway and
cut across country in a north-westerly direction in
order to connect with the road leading to the
Chuka country. I suppose had we really known
what was before us we would have preferred to
A Dreadful Thorn Jungle 161
have retraced our steps and to have gone a long
way round rather than attempt it.
How can I describe it ? It was impossible to
carry me in the safari chair, so I had recourse to
the hammock which we had brought for such
emergencies. After crossing the Ena we found our
selves in a dense thicket, and two men had to go
in front of us and cut a passage for the hammock
with their native swords. The monotony of the
jungle was alternated with a breathless scrambling
over great rocks which here and there were flung
across the track. Our good medical assistants^
Josiah and Simeon, never faltered in their watchful
care over me, helping the bearers to lift the ham
mock in dangerous places ; but even so I was several
times bumped on the rocks and scratched by sharp
thorns as we simply tore our way through the ter
rible prickly bushes. It was a hard climb, too, for
the first two hours, but at last we emerged upon a
burnt-up, desolate-looking plain ; yet even this was
a relief after the dreadful thorn jungle we had
passed through.
We now made better progress, and the weary
wilderness disappeared at length, giving place to
green trees and bushes, and patches of native plan
tation, showing us that we were nearing inhabited
country again. The village of Kagani came into
view, with a nice green sward with shady trees for
a camping ground. What an oasis it seemed after
the toilsome journey of the past four and a half
hours ! Although we had breakfasted at 5.30 we
162 In Chukaland
were too weary to touch any luncheon until 2 p.m.
Chief Kagani being away from home, nothing could
be done at this place, so we remained but one
night, and the only event to be recorded seems to
be the visit of a leopard to the camp at midnight.
Though it prowled around near our tents it was
mercifully prevented from doing us injury.
On August 31 we turned towards Chukaland,
and going by a new Government road passed
through a beautiful and well-watered country
on the Embu side. But the hills were exceedingly
heavy, and two deep gorges had to be crossed
before we entered the Chuka territory. The
officer at Fort Embu had sent a letter warning
us that the Chukas were in a very restless condition,
and that several murders had been perpetrated
recently, so he begged us to be particularly careful
and to keep to the main road, as he felt some
anxiety on our account.
The first halt in Chukaland was made at the
village of Kangangi, where the people crowded
around us all day long, watching our movements
with great curiosity, but seeming very timid and
suspicious. However, they attended the services
very well, and we trust some good was done. The
next camp was near the village of Kabandango,
but as that chief had been called to the Fort about
some murder cases we missed seeing him, and his
people seemed afraid to come near us in the absence
of the chief. The whole journey through the
Chuka and Mwimbi countries is wearisome in the
A Famous Hunter 163
extreme ; not that the scenery is dull and un
interesting, very far from it, but a whole series
of deep ravines confront the traveller, and he has
no sooner emerged from one and begun to fill his
lungs with the cooler air of the hilltops, than he
must begin again to plunge down into another deep
gorge. Following the zig-zag path far away down
into the valley he then starts toiling up another
terrific hill, always fervently hoping it may be the
last. These deep ravines are sometimes extremely
beautiful, filled with tropical vegetation, with
towering and majestic trees, and ferns in wonderful
variety; and always the swiftly flowing river,
dashing over boulders, and the little wooden
footbridge, sometimes none too secure I
So we passed through the Chuka country,
and pitched our tents in the vicinity of the village
of Njage, a chief of the Mwimbi tribe. Here we met
the famous hunter, Mr. R. J. Cunninghame, 1 who
had charge of Colonel Roosevelt s African hunting
expedition. During the following night a hysena
visited his tent and carried off one of his boots into
the bush, where after much searching it was found,
though not at all improved by the hyaena s tooth-
marks ! A much more serious event took place
the same night, when on the roadside close to our
camp an unfortunate Akikuyu traveller was robbed
and murdered in cold blood and his body thrown
into the bushes ! Oh, how these poor degraded
1 It is interesting to note that Mr. Cunninghame is the original
of Sir Rider Haggard s Allan Quatermain.
164 Amongst the Mwimbis
savages need the Gospel of peace on earth, good
will towards men !
We sent Chief Njage word of our arrival and the
Doctor s willingness to treat his sick people, and
very soon he came with his elders to pay us a visit,
apparently quite friendly, and eager for his people
to benefit from the white man s medicines. We
remained three days amongst the Mwimbis, and
large numbers of patients received help ; but each
time we tried to get them together for a service
they nearly all vanished amongst the bushes, only
a very few remaining to listen to the Message of
Life, which was of far greater importance than the
medicines for their physical ailments. I en
deavoured to talk to some Mwimbi women who
would shyly venture round the tent when I was
sitting there alone, but the story of God s love in
sending His Son to be their Saviour seemed to fall
on utterly callous ears. Their one idea appeared
to be to improve the opportunity by begging.
We now turned our faces towards home, but
there were still several chiefs to be visited on our
return journey, the first being a Chuka named
Mbeera. It took us three and a half hours of very
strenuous travelling to reach the camping ground
outside his village, which is near the Ruguti River.
The chief came out to welcome us, and one of his
sub-chiefs also visited us. About sixty people
gathered together to be treated, and these and
many others listened quietly to the preaching
and hymn singing.
A Sacred Grove 165
On the morning of August 28 we rose soon after
4.30 and were on the road again by 5.45. It was
so dark and cloudy that boys had to go ahead of
us with lanterns. We made this early start so as
to avoid the heat of the sun, as many heavy hills
had to be climbed before the next camp. By 8.30
the village of Chief Kanjugu was reached, and his
people swarmed out of their huts and appeared very
delighted at our coming ; but their curiosity knew
no bounds. The cleared ground outside the village
was so circumscribed that there was little privacy
or quiet to be had, but as far as the work was
concerned it proved the best camp of all. Medicines
were in great demand, and men and women as well
as children flocked together for the services, the
lantern lecture the second evening being especially
popular.
Moving on again we visited the homestead of
another Embu chief, Weimiri. In approaching
this place we had to pass through a sacred grove
where the Embu elders sacrifice to Ngai. They
guard these groves with the greatest vigilance. If
a tree were cut down or a monkey killed, it would
be considered a most heinous crime, and a sacrifice
would immediately have to be offered to appease
the spirits. Seeing the asparagus fern growing pro-
lifically in these woodland glades, I was eager to
secure some for our garden, but our boys assured
us there would be a terrible outcry if we touched
anything, however small, in the vicinity of the
grove.
166 A Man-eating Leopard
We found Weimiri s village almost deserted
except for crowds of little children and a few
women. On inquiry we learned that most of the
men had gone in search of a man-eating leopard
which was terrorizing the neighbourhood, hoping
to put an end to its depredations by their spears.
Only the previous evening a little girl had been
seized and devoured by this dreadful beast, and
several other people had also been killed. The
chief had been to the Fort, but returned in the
afternoon and immediately paid us a visit. Being
out of touch with his elders he failed to bring his
people together in any numbers for our services,
though about forty benefited from the medicines.
At our last camp Chief Ronenji showed us all
possible attention, bringing food and firewood for
our men, and presenting us with a sheep. He
seemed genuinely appreciative of the white doctor s
skill, and about one hundred of his people were
treated. The lantern service here was a greater
success than ever, as we never had a quieter or a
more attentive audience amongst absolute savages.
What an opening this might prove for an out-
station ! God grant it may be possible to establish
one before very long !
We had been away from home twenty-three
days, so although we both rejoiced in the wide
scattering of the good seed of the Kingdom
which a medical itineration renders possible, yet we
felt the time had come to return and pick up the
The End of a Safari 167
threads of the station work once more with all its
problems and responsibilities. A journey of three
and a half hours on Sept. 2 completed the safari,
and it was cheering to see many of the boys and
others running to meet us as we approached our
hill. Above all, our hearts were filled with thank
fulness for our Heavenly Father s care throughout
the long journey.
CHAPTER XVI
Firstfruits of Harvest
AS we sowed the seed month by month how
eagerly we watched and waited for it to
spring forth from the hardened soil ! The Sunday
evening Bible class has always been a special
opportunity for getting into closer touch with our
adherents and pressing upon them the claims of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who desired to
become Christians were invited to come during the
week for a personal interview. After the first
definite appeal of this kind eighteen boys and
young men came forward, each one seeking me
alone, and saying, I want to follow the Lord
Jesus ; or, I have come because of the Word of
God ; or, I want to leave all the evil things of
Satan.
By the end of our first year in Embu we had
had the joy of publicly admitting twenty-five
inquirers. Week by week in their own special
class we sought to make them understand what
it is to become new creatures in Christ. One
evening I had been speaking on confession of sin,
W
The Black Man s Mind 169
when one of our small houseboys came to me after
wards and said, I want you to forgive me because
some time ago I stole your penknife and took it to
our village. Presently another houseboy came and
said, I want to tell you that it was I who upset
ink on your bedspread though I denied it at the
time do forgive me. As a rule the African native
is exceedingly secretive in all his relations with
the white teacher. The black man s mind is not
easy to penetrate even after twenty years of
missionary experience ! And so one knows it
must be the convicting power of the Holy Spirit
that alone would lead to real confession of wrong
doing.
Although we believe, indeed, that the True
Light is beginning to dissipate the darkness of
their hearts, it must not be supposed that our young
people are all we could wish them to be. At
times untruth and deceit, and even petty stealing,
cause us much grief and disappointment. But
when we contemplate the awful environment of
the village life, with its terrible vice and immorality,
one can only marvel that they respond so readily
to our poor efforts, and are so willing to be taught
the better way. The longer we are in Africa the
more we feel the wisdom of subjecting our converts
to a long probation. It is the rule of our Mission
not to admit any inquirers as catechumens until
we have good reason to believe that they are truly
born from above. Then after a still further
period of testing they may be presented for
170 Enduring Hardness
baptism. We have often been really thankful
that each one who would follow Christ in sincerity
has at once to brace himself to endure hardness.
The people are very deeply attached to the customs
which have been handed down to them by countless
generations of the past, and are strongly averse
to the thought of any secession whatever on the
part of the young people.
One of our inquirers, a young fellow of about
eighteen years of age, named Njue, had to undergo
a bitter season of persecution. The time had
arrived when he was expected to go through the
initiation ceremony, without which he could not be
admitted to the privileges of manhood in the tribe.
With the new light which had dawned upon him
the very thought of such a ceremony was most
distasteful, and especially so as the sacrifice of
a sheep would have to be offered. He felt that it
was quite impossible for him to participate in it,
so very bravely he took his stand, and asserted
that as he was now a Christian nothing would
induce him to take part in the rite. Then a fire of
opposition was opened upon him, chief and elders
alike seeking to bring pressure to bear upon the
young convert. My husband thinking that it
would be better for him to face it out once and for
all, sent one day for Kabuthi, and also for Njue s
father and mother. A stormy scene ensued, in
which they all did their utmost to make the boy
yield. At length, finding that he was not to be
persuaded, his parents openly renounced him and
A Mother s Curses 171
poured curses on his head. His old mother seemed
to be nearly distracted, declaring that Njue would
certainly bring calamity upon them all, and that
he would be sure to die. The crops, she cried,
would fail, and their sheep and cattle would
perish, if he thus persisted in offending the spirits !
We did indeed praise God that Njue had been
enabled to stand firm through this terrible ordeal.
For some time he was quite an outcast for Christ s
sake.
Encouraged by his example three other young
men refused the initiation ceremony, encountering
a storm of indignation from their relatives. But
we are glad to learn that all the parents have since
become reconciled, though doubtless the alienation
of their sons from the ancient customs of the tribe
is still a source of grief to some. Since then
another of our inquirers has refused to participate
in a heathen sacrifice although strongly urged by
the chief himself to do so. The position was all
the more difficult as we ourselves were away at the
time, attending the C.M.S. conference at the coast.
We were so thankful to find on our return that
Muturi had bravely stood the test.
We have now admitted fifty- seven inquirers in
all. A few have been removed from the station
by the chief and others, but we trust that the seed
sown in their hearts may not be altogether eradi
cated, and that after a time they may be permitted
to return and be further instructed in the Faith.
We have always endeavoured to impress upon
172 Converts amongst the Patients
our converts the sacred duty of trying to lead
others to the Lord Jesus Christ, and quite a number
have been added to the inquirers class through their
efforts. Many of the patients have responded to
the teaching, and are ranging themselves on the
Lord s side. One of these is a lad who was carried
to the hospital in an apparently dying condition.
Another is a little fellow whose face is so shockingly
distorted by disease that it is almost painful to
look at him. Accustomed to be despised by his
own people, his heart was touched by the kindness
shown to him on the mission station, and so he
was the more easily won.
The women, too, have not been altogether un-
reached, although the men folk try to guard them
from our influence. A weekly sewing class and
an evangelistic meeting have been held whenever
possible, the former for the Christian women only.
Besides the wives of our medical assistants, some
girls who are in-patients have confessed their
faith in Christ, and seem really sincere in their
desire to follow Him. One of them, named Maitha,
has been with us almost ever since we came to
Embuland. Having heard of the wonderful help
which was to be obtained at the medical mission,
and being quite unable to walk, this poor girl
crawled painfully on her hands and knees a dis
tance of ten or twelve miles in order to reach us.
She can now walk about the station, and is still
constantly improving. These and many more
of the in-patients are learning to read the Word of
Daily Services 173
God in our school. I have tried to encourage all
our adherents to come to us alone for help and
prayer whenever they are in trouble, or desire to
take some fresh step in the Christian life, as we
realize it is the individual work that counts the
most.
When the Bishop and Miss Peel paid their
second visit to us in Embu in January, 1912,
they were very much interested in the progress
which had been made during the year. Ours is
a very isolated station and when the Bishop s
daughter came I had not seen a white woman for
quite six months. We do not, however, mind
the loneliness of our position if only we may see
God s work prospering. It is a joy to realize that
about three hundred people listen to the Gospel
message daily on this hill. Quite a hundred and
twenty are now living on the station, rather more
than half of these being in-patients and the rest
our native staff and scholars. The in-patients
have a special service all to themselves at 7 a.m.
Those who are able also attend the dispensary
service at 9 a.m. At 2 p.m. comes the school
service, with the daily Bible lesson and Scripture
repetition, and at 6.30 p.m. all on the station are
gathered together for Evening Prayer. On Satur
day night Dr. Crawford conducts a prayer meeting,
when it is encouraging to hear the voices of our
converts pleading for blessing upon the work, and
for more of God s Spirit and power in their lives.
Every Sunday morning the hospital chapel is
174 A Powerful Preacher
packed with from four hundred and fifty to five
hundred and fifty savages, listening to the oft-
told story of the Cross, and of the Father in
Heaven Who loves them, and yearns to make them
His children.
A few Sundays ago Kabuthi rose at the close of
the address, quite spontaneously, and said the
words they had listened to were all quite true.
Each one would have to answer for himself before
God, and they must not wait for him (their chief)
to lead them, because God would be very angry
if they despised His Word. We thought it was a
remarkable little message from a heathen chief,
and it seemed to show that his own heart was not
altogether untouched.
Our two young medical assistants, Josiah and
Simeon, have been a wonderful help to us all along,
not only with the patients, but in the church and
school. The latter has a particularly forceful way
of presenting the Gospel. His favourite theme is the
Second Advent, and he never wearies of pressing
upon his hearers the tremendous importance of
getting ready to meet their Lord and Saviour.
One of the most interesting features of the work
this year has been the great eagerness with which
our students are buying books. We have sold nearly
two hundred ; and as they are all either Testaments,
Gospels, Hymn-books, Bible stories and Catechisms,
the dissemination of such literature must mean
untold uplift and blessing in their young lives, and
through them, we trust, to many others also.
The Lesson of the * Snowy Peak 175
It is now just over two years since we pitched our
tent upon this hill and opened the Embu Medical
Mission, and although very conscious of our own
weakness and shortcomings, we can only praise
God for what has been accomplished in so short a
time. How much we owe to those dear friends who
have been daily bearing both us and the work upon
their hearts before God, we shall never know this
side of eternity ! When the sowing days are over,
and, with our prayer-partners, we come again with
rejoicing bringing our sheaves with us, how thank
fully we shall recall these firstfruits of the coming
harvest !
Yet as we turn in thought to the thousands
who have never even heard the precious name of
Jesus, our hearts are appalled with the greatness
of the need ; and what has been already done sinks
into absolute insignificance. Although we have
been seeking for fresh sites for mission stations
amongst the unevangelized regions beyond, and
several of the chiefs would gladly welcome a white
teacher, yet we are told there is very little hope of
occupying them. Must these tribes be left to perish
in their pagan darkness because of the slackness
of the Church of Christ ?
It may be that the Equator s Snowy Peak has
a lesson to teach us. As we take our binoculars
and scan the mountain summit we can distinguish
the rivulets rushing down its rocky clefts, becoming
ever wider and fuller as they hurry on their joyous
errand of fertilizing all the land below. We see
176 The Transforming Touch
how all the little streamlets lose themselves at last
in the big Tana River, which in its turn flows on
and on through countries which might otherwise be
a mighty desert, bringing life and blessing to count
less thousands, until at length, its mission ended,
it empties itself into the great Indian Ocean.
What is the source of all this fertilizing power ?
Whence do the life-giving rivers spring ?
Let us look once again at the grand old mountain !
Just before dawn how cold and irresponsive the icy
pinnacles appear ! But when the sun rises and
sheds its beams upon the snow, what a change takes
place ! The glaciers begin to glow and melt, until
the rivulets break forth on every side ! Were it
not for the sunshine they would remain hard, and
cold and unyielding, but the softening, warming
rays of the tropical sun fall with transforming
touch, and the streams of blessing are the result !
Thus our cold hearts, so irresponsive and unyield
ing by nature, can be warmed and softened by the
beams of the Sun of Righteousness, until they
glow and melt at last with love and pity for a lost
world, and the pent-up life begins to pour itself
forth for others, fulfilling the Saviour s promise,
4 Out of his inward parts shall flow rivers of living
water. Then through the desert places of this sad,
weary world the tide of blessing will pass on its way,
bringing the water of life to thousands of thirsty
souls. Oh, to be thus melted by divine love that
our lives may flow forth in joyous ministry !
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