DEATH OF CETEWAYO.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 6937, 11 February 1884, Page 5

DEATH OF CETEWAYO.

, [PRESS ASSOCIATION.] [Received February 11,12.53 *.ra.] London, February 9. j News from the Cape reports the death of .Cetewayo, . suddenly, from heart disease. ' [reuter.] Cape Town, February 9. Telegrams from Natal report that Cetewayo died suddenly yesterday. tub dead xiko. Cetewayo,. the Zulu King, has cut so larga a figure-in, the annals of the last six years : that his death is noteworthy. He came of . l;good stock, j being the' son of Panda and > ..-uephew of ..Chaka, palled the /j-jlu Napoleon, \ ■ who organised the nation and made it formidable. As a boy Cnaka had listened to the . exploits .of Bonaparte, recounted by | some shipwrecked English eailors at St. j Lucia 'Bay, and had conceived the idea, which later he carried out, of creating a powerful army and conquering all Southern ' Africa.': - He formed his army into regiments, battalions, and'companies, gave each a distinguishing uniform, and armed them , with heavy shields and a short stabbing assegai— : the Homon shield, and pilum/over again— i haviDg proved ;its.superiority over the long, -light darts whijh had been used before his time. The revolution in African warfaro was as great as was' wrought in Europa by the introduction of gunpowder or the. needlo-gun.v Tribe, after tribe waa overthrown and .incorporated with the' Zulu! ; nation, till sixty peoples owned his sway and: he hp.d:an Old Guard:of 12,000 or 15,000 strong, always prepared on a ;!moment's notice to. " eat up '' any contumacious enemy. • He was murdered in IS2S by his two,brothers.; They in turn quarrelled and fought; a; duel for the throne. The successful one in 1840 was killed by another brother, Panda, tho father of Cetewayo; He: reigned, in /peaca" until IST 2, established friendly " relations; with the Dutch and. England, and left, the: throne to Cetewayo. The first trouble' with' Cetewayo was in October,'lS76; when the English Governor of Natal Bent a remonstranre against the execution of some of his subjects who had refused to obey the marriage laws. The. Zulu King returned a haughty reply.: "Why," says he, " does the .Governor of Natal speak to me about my laws ? Do I go to Natal and dictate to him about his ?" The refusal to permit him to go through the ceremony of " wash- . ibg his spears,''—the - first: act 0f... a . Zulu King on coming to the throne,: and a very, / ! . natural one for a military potentate desirous:, of keeping the people around in due terror—. ' tended to increase his.ill-feeling, toward England, and finally ho was bullied into the war in which his power was broken and his throne ; lost. The war is memorable, because it de- ; moiistrated the power of a native tribe, and tor the death of the Prince Imperial.: In:; August, lS7f), his. forces were ,scattered, and he was run down and captured by a squad of cavalry under Major, Martes. ; When the . kraal in which the -fugitive.,.monarch was hidiDg. was surrounded, and he. was ordered " to -come' out, he.refused,-saying, " No ; you; come into me." But:, the, British officer ; forced tho King to come. out. The bearing . of Cetewayo then and thereafter.was alwaysdignified.' On the 15th of September Cetewayo was taken to Capo Town with two of his twenty-three wives, two of his concnbines, his daughter, and four.male followersi, apartments for their detention .being fitted ; up in cue of the bastions of the. Castle barracks; *He/ was quite, interested. in seeing the l trains run : by the station, and Bhouted and.laughed at them. : .; The sight of so many soldiers' impressed, him, and., ha remarked with some: bitterness : "Oh ! I was only born yesterday. lam a mere baby. I never should have fought against: such good men as. the English, ! who ...intended...to: take away my country and govern.it so much .-. better than 1 could." , :In this prison the exKing remained nearly two years, during which period, by the way, he dictated the . history of his, people- to Captain Poole, the . officer in charge of him. • In : the spring of 1881.he was removed'to a farm near Cape Town, and was kept in merely nominal confinement until the "summer of the following year, when he was taken to London! His ; reception by Ythe*'English people. was. very enthusiastic, and he was the lion of the day—attending many receptions and gaining : favourable notices on ; account,of:. his dignified bearing and his intelligißrice. . iHis visit was ' followed by his attempted restoration by the British to his throne. The effort was not : very successful, and the reception which Cetewayo. met with from his .own people was very depressing to his pride. They refused to ac- . knowledge him asa King, declaring that he was' merely a puppet in the hands of the British. After being several' times defeated lie was : severely wounded/and,. fled to the ■ bush; where he remained in concealment. Eventually, he was induccd to surrender himself to . .the.Cape authorities',:and ..was,placed in con- " fineruent. He succeeded,, however, in effects ing his; escape, : but . was recaptured. ...by a military force sent in pursuit,of him. The othfer day it wass stated i that the British Government had finally decided not to restore the King again. His. friends will no doubt : say- that this news killed him, and that he died of a broken heart. "