It was an
amazing miracle! The priests moved in Lodge through the first two degrees
almost without telling, as if the memory was coming back to them. After that
Peachey and Dravot raised such as was worthy--high priests and Chiefs of far-
off villages. Billy Fish was the first, and I can tell you we scared the soul
out of him. It was not in any way according to Ritual, but it served our turn.
We didn't raise more than ten of the biggest men, because we didn't want to
make the Degree common. And they was clamouring to be raised.
"'In another six months,' says Dravot, 'we'll hold another Communication and
see how you are working.' Then he asks them about their villages, and learns
that they was fighting one against the other, and were sick and tired of it.
And when they wasn't doing that they was fighting with the Mohammedans. 'You
can fight those when they come into our country,' says Dravot. 'Tell off every
tenth man of your tribes for a Frontier guard, and send two hundred at a time
to this valley to be drilled. Nobody is going to be shot or speared any more
so long as he does well, and I know that you won't cheat me, because you're
white people--sons of Alexander--and not like common black Mohammedans. You
are my people, and, by God,' says he, running off into English at the end,
'I'll make a damned fine Nation of you, or I'll die in the making!'
"I can't tell all we did for the next six months, because Dravot did a lot I
couldn't see the hang of, and he learned their lingo in a way I never could.
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