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That's where the West begins;
Out where the sun is a little brighter.
Where the snows that fall are a trifle
whiter.
Where the bonds of home are a wee
bit tighter—
That's where the West begins.
rived weafy and broken-hearted at
the cannibal village. Bokwala became
the slave of one of the cannilial
chiefs. With a brave heart he
Out where the skies are a trifle bluer.
Out where friendship's a little truer.
tried to learn the language and
That's where the West begins;
please his master. When the cannibals
wanted to ratify a treaty or hon­
Out where a fresher breeze is blowingor
a visitor the usual practice was to
Where there's laughter in every
kill a slave and make a feast. So
streamlet flowing,
Bokwala and his .ellows lived in
Where there's more of reaping and
daily dread of death. One evening
less of sowing—
when he returned from work he no­
That's where the West begins.
THE CHRISTIAN NATION. Vol. 61.
the gain all on their side and clapped
their hands. "It was all right at all ages. Bokwala says that someready
filled with men and women of
A R O U N D T H E O L D A R M C H A I R
the first,"they said; "but we did not times ten died in a day because of
"I love it, I love it,
know.'' Yes, they did not know they their wounds, their crowded condition,
hunger and thirst. The dead
And who shall dare
would soon be beating their breasts
To chide me for loving
in grief. Soon they were not asked were dragged a little way off and
The Old Arm Chair.'
but commanded to bring so much rubber
on a certain day in the month. As an arm or head was left bare. Sooa
buried so carelessly that sometimes
WHERE THE WEST BEGINS. ous dream he had had, aiifl advised
By Arthur Chapman.
them not to go; but they persisted. the rubber became scarce the trouble the burial place was crowded, with
Out where the hand clasps a little
grew. Once Bokwala missed a day, the inevitable frightful result. The
The cannibals were In 'Biding at the
stronger.
and when he came on the next he missionaries had been writing many
Out where a smile dwells a little "^^'' ^^'^'^ ^nd suddenly spraing on was flung on his face on the ground letters about the slavery, and a
longer,
them out of the bushes, and all of and a hide whip brought down lash European came to inquire. The
them, Bokwala included, were taljen after lash on his naked back, each prison was opened and Bokwala and
captive over the river.
stroke cutting to the bone, the white all the inmates were released. It
men looking on in flendisTidelight.
A Cannibal's Slave.—After days of
was a merry procession home; but
Bokwala, with the blood dripping to
marching through the forest they ar­
the ground, was sent off and ordered
to oring twice as much next time. To
do so he had to buy from others and
their families with uiabolical cruelty.
Rubber Horrors.—Every day things
ticed the absence of a little girl
grew worse. Even the old men were
slave, Siene. "Is she ill'' "Has she
Out where the world is in the mak-
enslaved too. They had to hunt for
escaped" Bokwala cried. For an­antelopeswer he was led to an open space
for the white man's table.
Where fewer hearts with despair are
The legs of these poor animals had
where was a dark blood stain on the
aching—
to be broken because they had to
ground. The cannibals had visitors
That's where the West begins; ,, , , j ^ .
be brought alive. Then the women
, , ._ ^ . . J that day and a dainty morsel was and children had to work the" gardens
Where less there of s sighing, more ot smgmg and
wanted;
, ,
so little Siene
_. -^
was slain. to provide food for the tyrants. As
Once again when a neighbor chief
Where there's more of giving and
long as supplies came there were no
came to buy a slave for a feast a
less of buying,
complaints; but any shortage brought so weak and poor that they envied
little boy called Makweke was chosen,
but he fled and hid in a hole in
And a man makes friends without
terrors such as even animals could the dead. But in spite of all, the
half trying—
not endure. See the poor victims go rubber-hunting had to go on.
a tree till the danger passed. Many
That's where the West begins.
off to the forest. Bach one makes a The Close.—The only comfort these
were the hardships they had to en­littldure. Xo matter what was lost they
hut under a rubber tree. Sometimes
the wind is so high he cannot the missionaries gave them. They,
poor Congo victims had was w>i&t
BOKWALA.
were blamed and punished. Oftentimes
pepper was rubbed' into their rains go through the hut, putting out
"The Story of a Congo Victim.
go up the tree; often the pouring too, were white men, but men of God.
By T. B. 'McF.
They came not to enslave but to set
eyes, or slits were cut in the skin of the fire, and the poor creature has free. They visited them in their
Bokwala was a native of the Con- their back out of their reach and pepgo
region, and was one of those who Per was rubbed into the sores. One Then wild animals are prowling they met them in the forest they said,
to sit there all night in wet and cold. homes with the words of life. As
^, X .,, .. •.• boy told a lie, and for this one of around waiting an opportunity to at­"Comtack. So the days pass, which the Jesus." But these poor creatures
and listen to the glad news of
suffered during the terrible atrocities .'' ^ .,„ , , ,
his ears was cut off and cooked, and native counts by knots on a string. would always say, "Tell us how we
there when the ruDber fiends were ^^ ^^^ ^^ ^^^ j. q^^^ ^^^ ^j^^^^ At last the day arrives tor rendering
the tale of rubber, and if he has Through the intervention of the mis­
can get salvation from rubber."
making their fortunes at the expense many of the cannibals were absent
of the blood of the poor natives. Bokwala and his comrades determin- not the full supply he goes forth in sionaries a deputation came from
Early 'Days—Bokwala means slave ""^ to escape. The night was dark tears and dread, awaiting some awful
punishment. Listen to one tale of victims came and recited their woes.
Europe and an inquiry was held. The
^^,. . ,, TT and moonless and they stole off and
—a fitting name, as we shall see. His , ... , , ,
horror. The men of a village near For three days they told stories of
hurried through the forest. At dawn. Bokwala's did not turn up on the set horror. "Any more'' said those writing.
"Yes, we can go on for three
father was a powerful chfef and dwelt g^e^tly exhausted, they turned aside day with rubber. The sentries came
in a village with a numerous tribe, from the main path and crept under and seized the wife of one ot the days more," was the sad reply. As
Bokwala's boyhood days were the a fallen tree to rest. Soon they absent men. Clasping her little child a result the slavery was eased but
happiest of his life. He with other '^eard the voices of their pursuers. of a few weeks' old, she was dragged not abolished. From this inhuman
, .,j J ,.,., . . • / XI, They lay very quiet and the cannichildren
made little picnics into the , ,
flung on the ground, to be lashed great sums—so much blood-money.
to the white man's house, and there traffic many Europeans amassed
bals found them not. At last they with the whip of hide. When one The man who did most to engineer
forest, home from flshed, the bathed hunt, in there the was rivers, a reached home amidst the river, great where joy. they came was tired he passed the whip on to the rubber slavery was King Leopola
time played of games feasting, all followed the day, by and stories then upon '^'^= a canoe Beginning moorea of at Sorrows.—Bok-
the bank, by
another. The poor creature, half of Belgium.
in the evening, when the men came which they crossed, and returned
. of war told by the old men, and
wala settled down in the old home, dead, was thrown into the prisonhouse.
The husb'and came and was alive. We trust that he and-many of
So far as is known Bokwala is still
and soon after married. Some missionaries
came to the village and; told he must bring twenty fowls to
music and dancing, whion often last-
ed far into the night. One thing built a house near. From them Bokgreatly
dreaded was an attack trom wala and his people first heard of but was sent back. At last he got in Jesus Christ. Bokwala's story
his fellows have obtained emancipation
from sin's bondage through faith
redeem his wife. He brought sixteen,
the cannibals who lived on the other J^sus and the Bible. Other white the twenty and took his wife home. ought to lead us to thankfulness for
., „ ., . /-!„„„ B„i,- ®° came and built another house Three days after the woman died, our unspeakable blessings, to prayer
side of the river. Once a fishing .
hut, strange to say, the child lived. and increased effort in seeking to
They said they had heard there was Once again Bokwala had not the full have the Gospel remedy applied to
expedition to this river was planned. ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^^ ^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ supply of rubber and was thrown in­
Old Iseankoto, "the Father of they would give beads and solt in ex-
Discernment," told them of an bmin- change. The poor natives thought
paid very dearly. Their slavery was
increased by the placing over them
of native sentries, whose duty it was
to see that they brought the full tale
of rubber. They were even more
cruel than the white men, and when
the natives were in the forest their
sentries ransacked their villages,
plundered their homes, and treated
no, the joy was swallowed up in woe.
They looked like spectres. Some
were so weak they had to be carried,
and some died by the way. Bokwala
now became the servant of the missionary.
What a (Shange! He had
work to do, but no sentry stood over
him with a gun; he was paid his
wages, he enjoyed the comforts of
home. He attended the services in
the little church and began to learn
of Jesus and the great redemption.
This was an hour of sunshine amidst
the darkness, a breathing space
amidst unspeakable horrors. Alas!
it soon came to end, for the missionary
went home for rest, and Bokwala
was dragged back to slavery again,
which was more cruel than ever. To
fill full the cup of horror their villages
were swept by small-pox, and
sleeping sickness fell on them, so
that whole villages were practically
wiped out. Those who recovered were
the wounds and woes of every people
to the prison, a long narrow hut al­on the earth.—Go or Send for July.