"It looks to me as if there is going to be trouble. I talked to
Lomwazi and his mother and told them it was the agreement that she was
to remain regent until Sebuza came of age, and that the Boers and
British both would protect her when the young man was made king. This
seemed to reassure them, but I don't think Labotsibeni and her crowd
want to lose control. Yes, Owen, I think there is going to be trouble
in Swaziland."
We talked the matter over, and I agreed with him that things were
going to happen soon in Swaziland. The Swazis had been at peace too
long a time for such a warlike nation and it would not take much to
start a war of some sort. The fact that Prince Sebuza was to be made
king stood out above everything else, and I made up my mind to see the
ceremonies.
About this time I had become interested in the cinematograph.
Moving-pictures were a hobby of mine, and it suddenly occurred to me
that it would be a fine thing from an historic and educational
standpoint to take some reels of Sebuza's coronation. Tuys told me
that this would probably be the last affair of its kind, and it seemed
to me that a cinematograph record of it would be most valuable and
instructive.
I suggested this to Oom Tuys, and he agreed with me.
"But you'd better arrange to take the pictures," he cautioned me. "It
would be just a waste of time to rush into Swaziland with a camera and
take a chance. We don't know when the coronation is going to take
place, and what's more, we don't know that the Swazis would stand for
your taking pictures of it. The witch-doctors might tell them that you
were putting some sort of a curse on them, and then where would you be?"
This put another light on the matter, and Tuys finally advised me to
see Labotsibeni and get her permission to film the ceremonies when
Sebuza was made king. I was afraid that I might not be able to get
what I wanted from Labotsibeni, so I asked Tuys to help me. This he
agreed to do, arranging to meet me in Zombode. This meant quite a trip
for him, because the British objected to his going into Swaziland,
owing to certain activities there in the past, and he had to go in
through Portuguese territory. I have forgotten what reasons the
government had for not wanting Tuys to visit Swaziland, but the
officials evidently had not forgotten--Britishers seldom do,
particularly when the matter affects one of their principalities.
So it was arranged that Tuys should slip into Swaziland through
Komatipoort, a town on the border between Portuguese East Africa and
Labotsibeni's country. I was to leave as soon as I could, and we would
meet at Zombode and there transact our business with Lomwazi and the
old queen.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account