The Sunday Oregonian., April 26, 1908, Magazine Section, Page 8, Image 54

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BY FRANK G. CARPENTER.
THKRE are two great monuments
here at Mengo which mark tlie
changes now going on In t'gamla.
OnIs the tomb of the tyrant Mutesa,
who was ruling- these millions of semi
civilistd natives when our Stanley came.
It is guarded by a score or more of hia
ta lil -headed widows, who are fated to
watch his coffin to the day of their
death. The other is the mighty thatched
cathedral of Namlrembe, put up by the
natives, that forms the center of thw
modern Christian movement that ha s
converted this nation. It Is the largest,
church on the African continent, and
thousands of negroes are worshiping in
it.
The Tomb of kins -Mutesa.
Hut coniu with mo tir;st to take a looto
at the tomb. It lies here a few miles
from the Victoria Nyanza, on a great
hill opposite Kampala, and is like no
other tomb upon earth. I have visited1
the graves of the Pharaohs. The great
est of them were caged up in the Pyra
mids, and It is only within recent years
that they have been brought forth to
lie lit. Others were laid away In caves
dug out of the mountains far up thts
Nile Valley; but for ages they were cov
ered by sand and rock. 1 have wan
dered among the tombs of the Ming Em
perors near Kan kin, and below the
lireut Wall in Central and North China.
They are guarded by giants, elephants,
camels and lions cut out of stone. 1
have also seen the Taj Mahal at Agra,
Jndia, that structure of marble whose
dome floats like a vast bubble in the
blue sky. It Is the most beautiful monu
ment ever erected, and was put up by a
Mohammedan Sultan out of his love for
Ms wife. Among the other great tombs
of the world are the enormous struc
ture In Java known as the Boro Boedoer.
near which stands the famed stone god
dess Ojf the beautiful hips; the wonder
fully decorated temples at Toklo, Japan,
In which lie the Shoguns. and the Hotel
des Invaltdes In Paris, where Napoleon
Bonn parte rests In a sarcophagus of
reddish brown granite guarded by the
12 apostles whose figures look down
from the dome overhead.
This tomb of Mutesa Is like none of
these, and yet in many respects It Is more
alive and more wonderful. It consists of
a hut shaped like a hay stack and as big
as the main tent of a circus. It is as high
as a four-story house and fully 100 feet
in circumference. It is a great tent of
thatch sewed to a framework of reeds
and upheld by hundreds of poles. The
reeds are tied up in bundles, and are
woven In and out as intricately as the
finest of b.xket work. In some places
they look like mosaics. They were orig
Inaily white, but the smoke which arises
from the perpetual fires within has
turned them as black as the skins of
Mutesa widows, for whom the tomb
forms a home.
The flour of the tomb is covered with
grass, cut for the purpose, and spread
thickly over it. The poles which support
'n" rotf are so arranged that there Is a
wide pathway through the center, and
ripht in the middle, under the tip of the
cone, lies the coffin. It is guarded by
spears fixed upright on each side of it.
There are shiclns of copper and brass In
fr.int. and at the back are huge curtains
of bark cloth. thA same material which
forms the clothing of the king's widows.
I'lmtoKraphlng: tlie gucens.
Accompanied by my guide and a single
native soldier, I made my way into the
tomb. At first it seemed as dark as
night, but as my eyes grew used to the
gloom I could see about me. Squatted
around the coffin and seated here and
there on the grass in different parts of
the hut were women of various ages
rangint; from 55 upward. All had blankets
of bark cloth wrapped about their bod
ies, covering their breasts, but leaving
the arms, shoulders and necks perfectly
bare. They were barefooted and bare
headed, and with two exceptions their
hea:s were shaved close to the scalp
Some of the younger women were fairly
pood looking, but all were dark brown or
black and of negro features. By the aid
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of my guide I was able to get a number
of them outside in the sun, and by pay
ing a little money had them pose for a
photograph. The widows have been so
long in darkness that their eyes were al
most blinded by the light, and it was
only after a number of trials that I got
a good picture.
These women were all wives of King
Mutesa, and upon his death, by custom,
they took their places about his coffin to
guard his body for the rest or their nat- ;
ural lives. They have an allowance from I
the native government, and receive so !
much food and drink every day. I un- j
derstand that there axe a score or more j
of similar tombs in the country about, i
each containing the body of a king who
reigned long ago and each guarded by ;
widows who are thus doomed to a living j
death. I spent some' time around the
tomb. The women were interested in me
for a while, and then went back to their
seats in the gloom. Here one sat and
rocked to and fro; there another crawled
over the grafcs, smoothing it out on the j
floor, and further over a third stretched ;
herself out and slept. A sadder sight I j
have never seen! Every woman seemed :
a petrified figure of despair, and the J
whole recalled Dante's inscription over j
the gates of hell "All hope abandon ye
who enter here!" j
How They Bury Kings in Vganda. j
I have learned of the funeral of King j
Mutesa from the missionaries. It was j
more civilized than that of his predeces- j
sors. There were no human sacrifices at I
his death and he was buried with his un-
dor jaw intact. In the past the under ;
law of a dead king was cut off and laid
to one aide. The body In the meantime
had been wrapped in bark cloth by the
prince who was to succeed him, and the
prince, the otticial executioner and the
keeper of the king's tomb carried the
body to this region where Mutesa lies.
Here the executioner cut off the jaw and
laid it carefully away in a wooden bowl.
After that the grass tent-like tomb was
built, and earth banked up around it to
prevent the surface water flowing in.
Then the body, minus the jaw, wrapped in
bark cloth, was laid on a bedstead In the
center of the tent and the doo; was
closed. .Immediately following this came
the sacrifices. Three of the king's chiefs
and three high-class women of the same
rank were seized and slaughtered in front
of the door, and their bodies were left
there to be devoured by the vultures. The
three men who were killed were usually
the king's cook, the man who had charge
of his beer mugs and the boss of his cow
boys. After this the Jaw was placed in a
hut built nearby, and a chief was made
guardian of it. Another chief became
guardian to the tomb itself, and he and
the widows took up their oesldence in it to
watch over it.
Stories of King Mutesa.
When King Mutesa died he ordered that
the human sacrifices be done away with;
and so his cook, beer man and chief cow
herd went free, but the widows remained,
and they are still on the Job. This was
so, although King Mutesa had some years
previously killed SXX) innocent men, wo
men and children in one day to celebrate
a tomb which he built in honor of his
father. Had it not been for the work of
the missionaries, his own death would
probably have been accompanied by a
similar slaughter. The present king of
Uganda, whom I have described in a pre
vious letter, is a grandson of old Mutesa.
He was baptized a Christian, and was
then given the bible name of David,
which is here spelled Daudl. This boy
king has a Christian tutor, and his prime
minister, Apolo Katikiro, Is a Christian
who, as a boy, was tortured for his re
ligion. I have heard many stories about old
Mutesa since I came to Uganda. He
was a mighty monarch and was govern
ing a million or so people at the time
Stanley came. He held his court here at
Kampala, and the neighboring countries
recognized his power and paid him tribute.
I have already written of the blind musi
cian, who lost his eyes because he could
not play to please this king, and of the
royal drummer rhose ears were cut off
because one of Mutesa.' s daughters hap
pened to spy him in swimming. Under
King Mutesa it was considered indelicate
for a man to show any part of his person
THE SUNDAY OREGOMAX, PORTLAND. APRIL 26, 1K)8.
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except his face, neck and feet,- and If he
happened to lift his dress a bit high and
display a section of his calf In the royal
presence he was liable to execution. This
was so notwithstanding the maids of ;
honor inside the palace went naked and
the king was waited upon by girls in a
similar state.
Sad Fat of an Uganda Eve.
King Mutesa had scores of wives dur
ing his reign, but the two or three dozen
that are now watching hLs tomb are all
that remain. During the earlier part of
his life he had a playful way of reducing
his family whenever he became drunk.
At such times he would take up his spear
and stab his wives right and left. I was j
ioiu ncre oi a picnic lie once gave, ai i
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present. One of the prettiest of the girls
in the party thought to curry favor with
her, royal husband after the manner of
Eve. She plucked a piece of fine fruit
and offered it to him. The king there
upon denounced her for her familiarity,
and began to beat her to death with his
club, when Speke, the explorer, who hap
pened to be present, ran in and saved her.
At that time the king had the right to
any woman in the country, and no matter
how many deaths, the harem was kept
full. His majesty was supposed to marry
only the daughters of chiefs, but if he
fancied other girls he had the chiefs adopt
them, and in this way they were brought
into the palace according to law. The
sending of a pot of . native beer to the
father of a girl was an indication that the
king required one of his daughters, and
the maiden specified was at once sent to
the palace. If she proved true to his
majesty and he did not kill her in one of
his Jits of anger, she was on the whole
fairly well treated and she had the chance
of the lifelong death watch which the
widows are now enjoying. On the other
hand, if the girl was not true to Mutesa
and sneaked away to another lover, she
was terribly punished. The old penalty
for such a crime was that both offenders
should be chopped up alive, somewhat
after the slicing process which, until re
cently, was common In China. All such
penalties have now been done away with,
and infidelity is punished by the native
courts, which are directed by the British
officials. f
As to Mutesa's cruelties, Apolo Katikiro,
the present Prime Minister, describes
how one of his wives was killed for
speaking too loudly in the royal presence.
The king was angry at her for her pre
sumption, and straightway ordered that
her nose and ears be cut off, and finally
her head. This sentence was carried out
right In the midst of the court crowd, and
the soldiers laughed as they did it.
Mwanga, the King.
An even more brutal beast than old Mu
tesswas King Mwanga, who succeeded
him. He reigned after the Christian mis
sionaries had come in and when the coun
try was to a large extent converted to
Christianity. Mwanga was at times nfuch
opposed to the missionaries, and be tor
tured the Christians among the natives,
cutting off the arms and feet of some
and roasting others to death over slow
fires. He killed several of the white mis
sionaries and acted so that he brought
about a. civil war among his people. In
this war the native Catholics and the
native Protestants fought with each
other, and for a time the country was
under the control of the Mohammedans.
Tlie King himself was notoriously weak
and notoriously bad. The orgies of his
palace were so disgraceful that they can
not be printed, and the people themselves
were glad when he was deposed, as they
feared he would corrupt and wipe out the
whole nation. The British at last threw
him from the throne and chose Daudl
Chau, who was then a baby, as King.
That was about 12 years ago, and in the
meantime the country has been ruled by
this boy. with a regency of natives and a
council of the chiefs.
It was Henry M. Stanley who first
brought Christianity into this part of the
world. He came out here in IS75 and was
well received by Mutesa. He ungd the
King to adopt the Christian religion.
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" ' T FJ I tYJT f:'7r2A M Kit Ml- . 2 i iT . 2 ; 2 -
HAT
AFRICAN KINGS
WIDOWS iDGDED
TO WATCH HIS
COFFIN SO LONG
AS THEY LIVE '
translated the ten commandments and
tlie Lord's prayer for him, and found
him to interested that he sent a letter
to the London Telegraph begging the
English to send out missionaries. He
spoke of Uganda as the most promising
field in the pagan world and advised the
English to work it. This letter was sent
to Europe by way of the Nile. It was
given to a Belgian messenger, but the
Belgian was killed on his way down the
river, and a crovernment expedition was
sent out to find his remains. When they
discovered the body Stanley's letter was
still hidden in one of its boot legs. It was
forwarded to Chinese Gordon at Khar
toum, and he sent it on to the London
Telegraph. Three days after it was pub
lished an anonymous gift of $25,000 was
offered to the Church Missionary SoeMety
of England to begin work in the Uganda
field, and ?25,O00 more was added shortly
thereafter. As a result eight young men
were sent to Zanzibar, and from there
they came overland to Lake Victoria.
Others came south by way of the Nile,
and within a short time the work of
Christianizing this nation began in ear
nest. Fifty Thousand Native Preacehrs.
All this happened about 30 years
ago, and now the Uganda people are
practically Christians. Of course, there
are still many heathen arnng them,
but I think It is safe to say that some
thing like a million' of these natives
believe in Christianity in one form or
another. In addition to the Protestant
movement, which is by far the most
Important, and which is under the. au
spices of the Church Missionary Soci
ety of England, a great work has been
done by the Catholics. The White
Fathers, a famous French denomina
tion, have native churches scattered
over the country and a large mission
station here. The Mill Hill Mission,
also Catholic, and composed largely of
Irish priests. Is doing a great work,
having Us churches, hospitals and
schools. The convert of these, two
missions, usually marked by the little
crosses they wear around their necks,
are to be seen everywhere. 1
As to the work1 of the Protestants. It
Is enormous. Archdeacon Walker, who
1 at the head of the Church Mission
Society here, tells me that the first
converts were baptized just about 25
years ago, and that today Uganda has
300 native Protestant churches and
200 naUv evangelists, who are going
about over the country doing: mission
work. It has 50.000 native preachers,
who are holding regular services from
week to week. The natives have built
their own churches, and they support
their preachers.
The people go to church; they hold
prayer meetings, and many of them are
earnest Christians. They are called to
church by the beating of a drum. They
keep the Sabbath, and on that day the
markets throughout the country are
closed. The archdeacon says the rela
tions between the Protestants and
Catholics are good, and that the field
Is still large enough for all denomina
tions. Said he: "I am glad to have
the Catholics do what they cart. We
are all working to benefit the natives
and we all believe in the creed, the
Lord's Prayer and the ten command
ments," This mission work has to a
large extent abolished the savage cus
toms common here in the past, slavery
has been done away with, and the
King and chiefs cannot maim or kill
their subjects. The natives as a rule
have each but one wife, and many of
their children are now being sent to
school and taught the three R's. Both
the Catholics and Protestants have
, - ---- '
manual training schools, and there is
also a high school here at Mengo.
The Xamirembe Cathedral.
I wish I could show the American
skeptics who doubt the good of mis
sion work the great Protestant cathe
dral which has been built here by the
natives with their own money. It
stands on he hill of Namlrembe about
three miles from Kampala and it can
be seen1 for miles around. My first
glimpse of it was on my way inland
from I-ake Victoria, and I thought then
that it must be the palace of the King,
it is an enormous structure of sun
dried brick, with a roof of velvety
thatch which rises in three spires of
the same material. The architecture
makes you think of the wonderful
temples of Siam or Burmah, save that
this, to my eye, is far the more beau
tiful. The structure covers about half
BALLOONING IS A GREAT DELIGHT
Wife, of an Aeronaut Declares It Is Not at All Dangerous.
IN two years it won't be at all strange
to see balloons passing over New
York guided by women, and event
ually women will own aerial craft just
the same as they own motor cars today,
if Mrs. Jeo Stevens, wife of the aero
naut, prophesies correctly, for Mrs.
Stevens is quite as enthusiastiq over
ballooning as her husband.
She will also tell you with laughing
eyes atra dimpling cheeks how foolishly
fearful people are about balloon ascen
sions. For as a matter of fact it isn't
alarming at all: quite the contrary,
says the New York Sun.
Mrs. Stevens declares that more
women are interested in the pastime
now than most persons are 'aware. It
Is only their shrinking from the pub
licity of the thing that prevents them
from coming out in the open and de
claring themselves converts to the
sport.
A number of New York women have
made ascensions in Paris, where going
up in a balloon is a common thing and
entails no comment, but as yet they
haven't had the courage to do it here.
But Just as soon as a sufficient num
ber becomes interested there is no
doubt that this prejudice will die away.
"In Paris." said lirs. Stevens, "every
pleasant day you ' will see anywhere
from one to half a dozen balloons
passing over the city, and they attract
no more attention than a bird flying
overhead. And it is sueh delightful
sport! I know of nothing to compare
with it.
"This is my basket," Mrs. Stevens
went on, pulling out a small basket,
just large enough for one person. "1
haven't yet made an ascension alone
but I mean to this Summer. I have
made this balloon for the purpose.
"I shall be alone in the car, but will
probably go with a party of balloonists.
At least that is what we are planning
now to take trips, for Instance, Just
for pleasure, not with the In tendon of
covering great distances.
"It Ib a pity that we can't go up
from here, but the gas Isn't right for
it. It s too heavy, so we are obliged
to go to Plttsfleld. Mass.. or some place
in that vicinity, to make ascents, where
7 WWT
TTiilH litli
an acre and it can accommodate 5000
worshipers. Its walls are about 50 feet
high an- are of great thickness. They
are of a rich red color. From their
tops sloping upward to a ridge with
a beautiful curve extends the mighty
roof, which is so large that it took
more than 230 tons of grass to cover it.
The interior is equally beautiful. It
Is a symphony of whites and blacks
and rich dark reds. The floors are of
sun-dried bricks and so are the walls.
The roof is composed entirely of reeds
of elephant grass, laid together in
bunches and so tied, with black shrubs
from the swamps as to give it a dec
orative effect. The roof is upheld by
many red brick columns and the .work
of fitting the roof to the walls is beau
tifully done. The building Is in the
shape of a cross, with a great nave
60 feet wide and with a chancel for
the choir at the front. The people
we can get gas that lifts about 30
pounds.
"Unfortunately this makes the trips
expensive, for it isn't possible to make
an ascent under $100, for there is tlie
transportation, expressage, etc. If we
only had aero grounds here, with a
private gas plant, it wouldn't cost so
much, but this will all come in time.
Then it won't be an uncommon sight
to see balloons sailing about every day.
"What is the necessary equipment
for a short balloon trip? Why, not
much more than is required f&r a motor
excursion.
"I always wear a short tailor suit,
with a cap, and take a coat along in
case of necessity. I really seldom wear
anything on my head, and don't bother
about rain, for the balloon protects us
pretty thoroughly unless it happens to
be a driving storm; and as our trips
are purely for pleasure we are not apt
to go up unless it's a fair day.
"Then we take this' hamper along."
pointing to a basket about twice as
high as an automobile lunch box. "We
generally take chicken sandwiches,
coffee, a little brandy maybe, but plen
ty of water. Sometimes we never
touch the food, preferring rather to
get something to eat at a farmhouse
en route, but of course we have to
take the lunch in case of necessity.
"Usually we stop at a farmhouse, and
you have no idea how delightfully we
are treated. Why, the farmers can't
do enough for ydli. It's a funny thing,
too, for while they are death on motors
they are simply crazy about balloons.
"You are royally entertained and fed
on milk and honey, and it's next to
Impossible to get them to take any
money for it. They seem to feel it Is
an honor conferred upon them, and
the farmer in whose lot the balloon
happens to land is the envy of the
whole countryside. All the rest come
from far and near to have a look at it
and at us, whom they look upon as
they would if we came from the moon.
"Have I any fear? Oh, mercy no,"
laughed Mrs. Stevens, and it was clear
that she thoroughly enjoyed her aerial
trips without being hampered by any
thought of accident or danger. "Real
ly there isn't a particle of danger.
"Everything is so well arranged and
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r a, a V
come in, bringing skins and mats wltn
them, and they sit cross-legged upon
these during the preaching.
This great church is the fourth which
has been built here. The first was made
many years ago. It was constructed
by voluntary labor of the natives and
its labor cost represented $.1000. This
was at the rate of 6 cents per day for
the men who worked upon it, and at
our wages of $1 a ay the labor cost
would be over $0,000. AH this work
was given of their own free will by
the natives, and they must have had
considerable faith to have done so. A
short time after that church was built
it wns destroyed by one of the bijc
thunder storms common to this part of
the world. Th present cathedral which
has taken its place was erected in 1904,
Ten thousand natives were present at
its dedication.
Nembo, Uganda.
so perfectly worked out that unless
one were to encounter a tornado there
is nothing whatever to rear. I have
made ascensions staying up for four
or Ave hours at a time, and the experi
ence is delightful.
"It is quite a wrong Impression that
people have of the flight. So many
ask me what the sensation is. Th-re
Isn't any sensation any more than that
of riding la an automobile. It Is even
better than a motor, fori there are no
wheels going around, only' a delightful
feeling of sailing smoothly up and
away from the noise an4 bustle of the
city.
"The moment you get up about 10)
feet above the average building every
thing is a picture to you. You soon
lose ti'ark of the sounds, snd outside of
an occasional steamboat, ferry or train
whistle, the noise of the city Is tem
pered to a soothing drone like that of
bees in Summer.
"It is of course pleasanter to remain
in sight of the earth, though one isn't
cognizant of people living? beneath: it
Just seems a if the whole worl.l had
faded away and there was no one in
existence except those in the ear. and
you were gazing at some wonderful
panorama unfolding for your sole en
joy men t.
"It is fascinating when the weather
Is fine to take a trip ann let the trail
line drag and call to the boys down
below to catch it. They will tear over
nel'js, jump fences and run like mail,
and just when they almost rem-h the
lint, up we go ngain out of their reach.
''Sometimes we call out to the farm
ers and ask jthem how their crops are
getting on. and they are so amazed at
the sight of us they can hardiy sneak.
"Then it is so grand to think that on
a fine day you can go out of the city
a little way, till your balloon and sbII
off to some sequestered nook. w.rr.
you can land and eat your lunch in
picnic fashion. Oh, I realiy have no
doubt that the time 13 very near when
ballooning will have become a National
sport both for men and women, and we
will think no more of sailing through
the air than we think of going simp
ping nowntlays. One only bns to st a-'
tasLe of it to get the fever."