Then I forgot these scenic accessories in the sight of the man himself.

There he sat on a stool in front of his hut, quite unattended, and

wearing only a cloak of leopard skins open in front, for he was

unadorned with the usual hideous trappings of a witch-doctor, such as

snake-skins, human bones, bladders full of unholy compounds, and so

forth.

What a man he was, if indeed he could be called quite human. His

stature, though stout, was only that of a child; his head was enormous,

and from it plaited white hair fell down on to his shoulders. His eyes

were deep and sunken, his face was broad and very stern. Except for this

snow-white hair, however, he did not look ancient, for his flesh was

firm and plump, and the skin on his cheeks and neck unwrinkled, which

suggested to me that the story of his great antiquity was false. A man

who was over a hundred years old, for instance, surely could not boast

such a beautiful set of teeth, for even at that distance I could see

them gleaming. On the other hand, evidently middle age was far behind

him; indeed, from his appearance it was quite impossible to guess even

approximately the number of his years. There he sat, red in the red

light, perfectly still, and staring without a blink of his eyes at the

furious ball of the setting sun, as an eagle is said to be able to do.

Saduko advanced, and I walked after him. My stature is not great, and

I have never considered myself an imposing person, but somehow I do not

think that I ever felt more insignificant than on this occasion. The

tall and splendid native beside, or rather behind whom I walked, the

gloomy magnificence of the place, the blood-red light in which it was

bathed, and the solemn, solitary, little figure with wisdom stamped upon

its face before me, all tended to induce humility in a man not naturally

vain. I felt myself growing smaller and smaller, both in a moral and a

physical sense; I wished that my curiosity had not prompted me to seek

an interview with yonder uncanny being.

Well, it was too late to retreat; indeed, Saduko was already standing

before the dwarf and lifting his right arm above his head as he gave him

the salute of "Makosi!"[*] whereon, feeling that something was expected

of me, I took off my shabby cloth hat and bowed, then, remembering my

white man's pride, replaced it on my head.

[*--"Makosi", the plural of "Inkoosi", is the salute given

to Zulu wizards, because they are not one but many, since in

them (as in the possessed demoniac in the Bible) dwell an

unnumbered horde of spirits.--EDITOR.] The wizard suddenly seemed to become aware of our presence, for, ceasing

his contemplation of the sinking sun, he scanned us both with his slow,

thoughtful eyes, which somehow reminded me of those of a chameleon,

although they were not prominent, but, as I have said, sunken.




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