The Blind Lion of the Congo Part 26

At the end of five days the first raft was finished to the satisfaction of the boys. Even when the platform was crowded with men it floated clear of the water, and with an ordinary load the platform would be at least a foot above the surface. The whole fabric was very strong, for the platform itself was formed of saplings which were lashed carefully, and no ordinary shock would break up the raft. A small bulwark was then run around the edges.

At the end of a week the second raft also lay completed, and now the boys had to face the somewhat difficult task of explaining their purpose to Mbopo. They took him over to the sacred hut, and Burt pointed to the ivory tusks, with gestures of uprooting them.

"Take him to Buburika Mac," he explained over and over. "You go along.

Come back afterwards."

Mbopo looked doubtful as he grasped the idea that the tusks were to be loaded on the rafts. Finally, however, he nodded and the boys drew a breath of relief. That they would be obeyed now they had no fear at all, for the pigmies were their devoted slaves in every way, and stood in evident awe of the two boys and especially of "Mwanzi."

This belief was confirmed when Mbopo addressed the tribe in a great council that night. The pigmies made not the slightest opposition, and the boys could see by his gestures that he was describing their desires.

"All right," murmured Burt as the two short guttural barks ascended from the audience, "it's all over but the shouting, Critch. S'pose we can get the stuff loaded up to-morrow?"

"We ought to," replied his chum. "We'll have to see first. Those thorns are tangled up with the tusks somethin' fierce."

Next morning the entire tribe left the village and approached the sacred hut of Pongo. Under the direction of Mbopo, who took matters into his own hands now, the work of uprooting the ivory was begun. This was difficult, but by evening the last of the great tusks lay in the pile by the river edge. All that remained was to load them aboard the rafts.

This, however, would be no easy matter, for the tusks were heavy and the balance of the rafts must be preserved.

Critch took charge of the loading, while Burt attended to getting provisions together for the journey. There was dried meat in abundance, and plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. The boys had a long consultation over loading the ivory, for even with the protection of the dwarfs a raftload of tusks would be too much of an inducement for the tribes they were sure to meet.

At length it was settled by making a layer of tusks, of which there were thirty-nine in all, on the platforms. Fifteen of the tusks had been discarded by the boys as worthless. Over the layer of ivory was placed enough dirt to fill in the s.p.a.ces and hold the tusks steady. A top layer of skins completed the whole.

The young chief made no objection to taking the journey on the rafts, for the boys held out "Buburika Mac" at the end of the trip as a bribe, and Mbopo could not resist. He selected six warriors for each raft; he and Burt took charge of one and Critch of the other. Poles were cut for the "deckhands," as Burt named the crews, and at length all was ready.

CHAPTER XX

DOWN THE MAKUA

The start was made in the early dawn of a perfect day. The whole tribe a.s.sembled to see the party off, and it was plain that the pigmies, while not opposing the departure, did not like to lose "Mwanzi," for many gifts were brought to the boys, with gestures of good will. In their turn, Burt and Critch gave away all the small articles they possessed except those which they would absolutely need. Their collection of weapons was completed, and Burt carefully wrapped up the rifle with its three precious cartridges in the tarpaulin. As the sequel proved, it was well indeed for the boys that they had found the old rifle.

Finally all was ready. The warriors took their places on board, standing amid the piles of provisions and skins of water, for the boys dared not drink the river water.

"Cast off!" shouted Critch, throwing off the vine that bound his raft to the bank. Burt followed suit. A roll of tom-toms and a loud shout rose from the tribe, which was answered by a shout from the crews. Slowly the poles sent the rafts out into mid-stream, where the current caught them and swept them down. For half a mile they remained in sight of the village, then a bend swept all away. The perilous voyage was begun.

Burt's raft followed that of Critch at a distance of fifty feet. Neither boy made any effort to increase the speed of the craft, confining their efforts to keeping the rafts from turning around and around in the current. Both floated well above the water, and the pigmies were highly delighted with their novel situation.

The river was of good size and to the joy of the two boys it continued to flow steadily toward the northwest. They floated down between banks of heavy vegetation, but saw no signs of life. That night they camped on an island and the party seemed in high spirits.

The next day they received their first sign of the hidden life that filled the great jungles. There came a high shrill yell from one bank, to which Mbopo replied, and the boys knew that once more they were among the black dwarfs. This was repeated in the afternoon, but even by the aid of their gla.s.ses they could not make out who had hailed them.

Only once did they meet with trouble. This occurred when Critch ran aground on a hidden shoal. The solid raft ran deeply into the mud of the river bottom and it took the efforts of both crews to get her off.

For three days more they floated down the river, but on the third evening both boys noticed signs of uneasiness among the pigmies. In the morning, before the start, Mbopo approached Critch.

"Where Buburika Mac?" he inquired, glancing around as if he expected to find Captain Montenay in their vicinity. Critch glanced at Burt.

"Him down there," and he waved his hand downstream. Mbopo looked doubtfully around.

"Mbopo no like vera good," was his reply. "Him Zwengi pretty quick."

"Zwengi?" repeated Critch, puzzled.

"Him vera bad," declared Mbopo. "Him big, much fight. Mbopo no like."

"Must be a tribe they're at war with," said Burt. He took up the rifle and turned to the chief. "Him kill Zwengi."

"Mwanzi kill Zwengi?" asked Mbopo of Critch, plainly putting all his faith in the latter's prowess. Critch laughed and nodded. Mbopo turned and spoke joyfully to his men, who instantly lost their uneasy appearance and sprang aboard with a shout of delight.

"It's up to you," grinned Burt, and Critch nodded soberly.

"Plain bluff again," he said. "If we are held up, those bows o' the dwarfs ought to get in good work, an' your three cartridges'll help a whole lot unless the Zwengi have guns. If they have, it's all up, I guess."

"The Makua can't be so very far off now," replied Burt. "The river's getting bigger and bigger, and the current's swifter. S'pose we could rig up any kind of breastwork on the rafts?"

"Better not waste time trying," dissented Critch. "I'm afraid of making them top-heavy. Well, let's be off. We ought to hit the Makua pretty quick now. If we don't meet Cap'n Mac I expect Mbopo'll be sore. That's what's worrying me right now."

It was worrying Burt too, but he jumped aboard his raft and cast loose without giving vent to his fears. He realized only too well that the Zwengi might have canoes, and if they were discovered and pursued their only hope was to beat off the enemy.

For several hours they swept along the rapidly widening river without any sign of a foe. Toward noon the stream swept around in a great bend, and as Burt stared ahead he caught a wild shout from Critch.

"There she is!" and the red-haired boy danced around and waved his arms back at the other raft. "The Makua, Burt!"

Sweeping around with the current, Burt saw ahead of them two or three scattered islands. Beyond these was the sheen of water, and he could plainly see that their river formed a juncture with another and much larger stream. As he was staring down the river there came a sudden yell from his men.

"Zwengi!"

Whirling around, Burt saw them pointing to the right bank. At the same instant a yell of alarm went up from Critch's raft. It was answered by another shout from the right bank, and Burt saw three long canoes putting out, with a crowd of savage warriors pouring into others. He saw instantly that they had only one chance.

"Make for the island!" he shouted to Critch. "Land and hold them off!"

Critch waved his hand, and both boys set the men to work frantically, trying to guide the unwieldy craft toward an island that rose straight ahead of them. Burt unwrapped the rifle, but did not wish to use it until he had to.

With a dozen paddlers in each, the big war canoes shot out across the river to head off the first raft. Now, the bows used by the white pigmies were larger than those of any other tribe the boys had seen.

They were fully as long as the men themselves and of great strength.

Burt saw Critch say something to Mbopo and take the pole from one of his men. Instantly he followed suit, directing the man he relieved to shoot at two of the following canoes which were heading toward them. As he did so a flight of arrows came over the water, all but one falling short, the one rebounding from the wet logs without sticking.

As Burt's man caught up his bow, the boy saw Mbopo and another warrior loose their shafts from the first raft. The arrows, driven by the full force of those tremendous bows, easily reached to the canoes. The bowman in the first canoe gave a yell and dropped his paddle; as he did so, the man behind him threw up his arms and fell back, overturning the canoe.

At this instant Burt's man shot, and although his arrow missed, the pursuing canoes instantly ceased their approach and sheered off, paddling down ahead of the rafts.

Their plan was evident. By reaching the islands ahead of the two rafts, which were still two hundred yards away, they could command the pa.s.sages that led into the Makua. Realizing the danger as he saw one of the canoes turn and head for the island in front of them, Burt took up his rifle. He did not wish to shoot to kill and therefore took careful aim at the bow of the canoe, ahead of the bowman and just at the waterline.

As the canoes were hollowed-out logs, a bullet there would shatter the whole bow.

Trusting to luck that the old rifle would hold together, Burt pulled the trigger. The sharp crack awoke a thousand echoes from the forest on either hand. At the same instant the bow of the canoe seemed to fly into splinters, a shrill yell of fear went up from the foe, and as the canoe filled, the others instantly turned back but still continued downstream. A moment later Critch's raft swept down toward the island, four of the pigmies sprang out, and drew her safely to sh.o.r.e.

The other islands, however, were well within range of the Zwengi bows and to them the canoes dashed. Mbopo's men sent one whirling downstream by a flight of arrows that completely cleared the craft, but the others gained the shelter of the islands just as Burt's raft was landed beside that of Critch. Then the dwarfs made fast and sprang out.