Adventure Magazine Cover, April 3, 1918 — page 84: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

82 and found two strands of wire tightly bound about his skull, these strands having been in place for some twelve years. They were rather difficult to cut, and Kofubu suffered something in the process, but when they were removed and after the man had spent a night under the influence of one of Sanders’ six medicants, he dis- covered that his pain had disappeared. “YT think you are a fool, Kofubu,” said Sanders, ‘for who but a fool would put wire about his head?” “Lord,” said Kofubu ruefully, “that was a very powerful charm which kept from me ghosts and evil devils.”’ “You were nearer to ghosts and evil devils than you know, my man,” said Sanders with a wry smile. He had no use for witch-doctors of any kind. Sanders sent for the medicine-man. “Buluta,” said he, ‘do you believe in devils?”’ “Lord, I do,” replied the man appre- hensively eying the stick which Sanders carried. ‘“‘And do you believe that your devils will save you pain?” The man, still with his eye on the stick, edged away. “‘Answer!”’ said Sanders sharply. “Tord, it is said that we wise men do not feel—ouch!”’ ‘And now,” said Sanders, when the flogging was finished, “hear my words. I will have no witch-doctor who draws blood in this land. ‘This time I beat, but if I send for you because you have done this evil again, I will await you at the Village of Irons, and there you shall stay for ten years.” The commissioner passed on the next day and Buluta was forgotten, but Buluta did not forget. (S| IT WAS a month or five weeks eee after Sanders had come and gone, et that Buluta sent secret messengers to all the tribes, to the N’gombi, the Inner N’gombi, to the Akasava, the Lesser Akasava and the Three-Streams Akasava, to the Isisi, the Lesser Isisi, to the Ochori and the Upper Ochori and even into the forbidden land of the Old King. To no chiefs or headmen did his summons go, but to strange old men who lived apart from the communities to which they were attached, and on the night his call reached Adventure them, they left their villages furtively and came by hidden ways to the rendezvous which Buluta had appointed. This was one of those famous islands where bats hang in great bunches from the trees throughout the hot day and fly by the thousand over the river at night. There never was such an assembly in all the history of the land since the day when they buried Gufufu, the witch-doctor. There were old men and there were young men too. Men fantastically arrayed in skins of unknown animals, men _ belted about with teeth and claws, men cloaked in feathers, men streaked and circled with paint and they came to sit at the feet of Buluta and learn his will. ‘Wise goats,” said Buluta, “I have called you that I may tell of wonders, for I who understand devils and have fought with terrible ghosts have been beaten by Sandi because he hates me. Also I have dis- covered a great wonder. All men know that Sandi has a ju-7u which tells him when any man breaks the law—for have not the people of the river held very private palavers and has not Sandi come swiftly? And when the Akasava went secretly to make war and none knew, save the king, where the goats would bleed, was not Sandi waiting in the Isisi River for their coming?”’ “Wa!” chorused his audience, ‘“‘all men know this.” Buluta’s eyes blazed. “Now I have found the mystery,” he shouted in triumph, “Sandi has a wonderful fetish!” “That is foolish talk,” said a skeptic in the circle, “for all people know that Sandi is a white man and white men have no fetishes.”’ “Wa! that is true,” said another, “for did not Sandi beat me cruelly because I smelt out one who had bewitched the daughter of Kumulubu the chief of the Lesser Isisi?”’ “Let all men hear this,” cried Buluta, ‘Sandi who lives in a fine house by the sea has put up a great stick near where the big water runs, and that is his fetish for the son of my sister who has newly come from sandi’s home, tells me this and every morn- ing Tibbetti, the young one, goes before this stick and bows himself and picks up pieces of cloth and hangs it upon the stick and puts his hand to his face thus.” One of the old witch-doctors nodded. GOmicsvoo S (C@