How the White Fathers Conquered.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXX, Issue 37, 11 September 1902, Page 6

How the White Fathers Conquered.

An interesting account is given in the New York Sun of how Car dinal Lavigerie's White Fathers overcame, by gentlenegp, kindness', and pitience, the dietruat and dislike entertained toward* them, in common with all white men, by the natives (called the Wabemba tribe) of that part of Africa known as Lobemba : — 'In 1 81) 1 the While Fathers, members of the famous French missionary bociety founded by Cardinal Livigene, founded a missionary station in Manbone, near the eastern border of Lobemba. It was their purpose to establish stations throughout the hostile country, but they knew i hat for a while at least they would not Le able to enter it. For three years the Wabemba rejected every proposal by the White Fathers to become friend*. The Fathers did not press the rativep. at all nor arouse their hostility in any way, but patiently bided their time. 'In 1894 a famine in Lobemba caused great suffering. The White Fathers di 1 not fail to impro\e this opportunity. Father Van Ooat, the Father Superior of the ft at ion at Manbone, gathered a large supply of food and sent it to Makasa, one of the moat important chiefs of the Mabernba Even a eavage will be touched if an emeny gives him focd to keep him alive, and the chief did not fail to return thanks for the timely present. When, however, Father Van Oost aeked tic chief if he would not peimit him to visit Mipini, the capital of his district, the chief replied that his people would never cocseLt, for they bad determined that they would never

permit the whites to their country. A little later Father Van Ooit died, and his successor, Monsignor Dupont, with admirablAcourage and energy, continued the efforts to gain admittance into the country. There were many exchanges of messages between the White Fathers and the barbarous chieftain, Makasa, who wu in great perplexity. ' Several invitations were extended and withdrawn, until finally Monsignor Dupont decided to act wholly upon his own responsibility. He sent the following message to Makasa :—: — ' " You have been trying to frighten me, and have withdrawn the promises you made to welcome me kindly to your town. I am going to show you that lam afraid of no man. To-morrow I shall start on my journey, and in two days I shall cross your frontier." ' Next morning the missionary, accompanied by Fasher Anthony and an escort of 30 natives, set out for the forbidden land. They cropsed the frontier and made straight for Mipini, some distance from the Luba plain. When the little party came within sight of the bom», or town, they saw a vast number of grass huts surrounded by a high wall of picket*, four or five miles in length. Outside of this defence were about 5000 clamorous natives brandishing their weapons and making so much hubbub that some time elapsed before Monaignor Dupont succeeded in opening pturparlen. The any was ppent in tedious talking, but the white man at last gained his point. He was told that he might enter the town and see Makasa if he would come alone and unarmed. He knew that he was taking his life in his hands, and accepted the conditions. The gate of the boma was opened just wide enough to admit him, and the missionary was conducted into the presence of the chief. ' Makasa received him coldly. He told the white man he could not be his friend because he had forced his way into the oountry. The gentle missionary's friendly attitude and power of quiet per« suasivenees at last gained for him a slight concession. The chief told him that he and his 31 men might oamp for the night at a distance of about a mile from the town. ' That evening two old men entered Monsignor Dupont's oamp bringing an ivory tusk and a mest-age from the ohief. Makasa paid that the tu?k was fent to the white man as proof of his faith that the strangers meant no harm. But after the next morning he would wash bib hands of all responsibility for their safety. If they were not gone by sunrise, they would all be killed ; and if they attemptei to penetrate far into the country, not a soul of them would be alive by sunaet, ' Father Dupont communicated this stern message to his party. The native escort paid that that they would not remain to meet certain death. When the sun arose every man of them had deserted, going back across the frontier. Father Dupont and Father Anthony were left alone. The savages saw them there with astonishment. Around the camp which the whites had occupied was quite a dense population. Monsigncr Dupont observed an old woman on the ground iv great pain from a wound i»he had received. He had brought bandages with him, for he intended to minister to the sick BDd suffering if any were found. He washed and dressed the old woman's wound. She expressed her gratitude and told the natives. that she felt greatly relieved. News from thtß friendly act spread quickly through Mipini, and soon a crowd of the sick and suffering came out to the missionaries. All day long they ministered to these unfortuDatea, while thousands of natives looked on. They sent into the town the present they bad intended for Makasa, who in turn supplied th m with food. "These people love men," was th« remark that parsed from mouth to rrouth through Mipini. That ni<<bt the two white men were pcimiUed to sleep in peace in their can. p. ' For eleven days th"y kept treating- the sick of the town, and by that time the thorough friendship and confidence of the chief and his people had been guiiud. The missionaries were told that they might build a station on Kayarubi Hill, about a mile east of Mipini. About a month later they opened a school Before a year had passed they had 1500 pupils, most of them sons of the leading men among the Wabemba. ' It is unnecessary to t<4l how their influence gradually spread over the whole of the country and how stations of the white Father were planted in many of the principal towns and even in Ituna, the centre of the hostile feeling against the whites, where Muamba, the paramount, chief of the great tribe, resided. In September, 1898, when Muamba was dying, he said to Moneignor Dupont : '" I want you to continue to live in my country and to teach my people ; and when I am dead I do not vvi^h any blood to flow because lam gone. I have told all the chiefs that there must be no human sacrifl 'es on my grave." ' The chief died, and not a drop of blood was spilled to mark his departure, though only a few years before thousands of lives would have been taken in the belief that a laree escort should be provided for the decease! chief in the other world.'