Show THE BAMANGWATO CHIEF Who Turned Traders Out of His Kingdom and Kept Out Drink King Khama chief oC the Bamang watos IH one of the most Interesting figures In South African history and la in some respects the most rernarkahlr product of Christian missions In ail Africa His devout faith and noble Christlike character have made a deep Impression upon all native or civ ilized who come In contact with him His father Sckhome was one of the most ferocious and treacherous of the native chiefs and several times sought the life of his son to punlalthlm for his refusal to continue the natlve superstitious su-perstitious practices From thi time of his conversion Khama has boon a persistent and implacable foe to the liquor Lrainc In a dispatch to the Brit ish Government he aaldr i It tvwero better for me that I should lose my country than that It should bo Hooded with drink Loncngula never gives me a sleepless iiight = hut lo fight SEES drink Is t0 fight against de mons not against men I dread1 the white mans drink moro than all the assepils of the Matabeles which kill mcLn f bodies and k IB Quickly over but drink puts devils Into men and destroys de-stroys both bodies and souls forever Its wounds never heal I pray your Honor never to ask me to open even a little door to drink Khama not only refused to permit his people to drink but has banished from his kingdom English traders who attempted at-tempted to sell liquor In spite of his many remonstrances traders Insisted on bringing drink into his country under un-der the guise of other goods and he went personally from wagon to wugon and house to house The next day he summoned all the traders to the Kings courtyard and told them what he had scon romindlrff them that he had warned them ngalnsl selling his people drink but they had despised his laws because he was a black man and for nothing else Well I um black but If I am black I am chief of my own country at present pres-ent When you white men rule lnvthc country you will do as you like At present I rule and I shall maintain my laws which you Insult and despite You have Insulted and despised mrt In your hearts If you despise us what do you Want here In the country that God has given us Go back to your own country Tako everything you have strip the Iron roofs oft the houses the wood of the country and the clay of which you made the bricks you can leave Take all that Is yours and go I nm trying to lead my people to act according to that word of God which we have received from you white people and you show them an example oC wickedness such ns we never know You the people of the word of God Go Take your cattle and leave my town and never come back again The utmost silence followed Khamas words and the traders lost the very I power to reply From that day to this fvhama has succeeded In keeping drink t I out of his country despite the efforts of English traders and even of Government Govern-ment officials to bring the dreaded curse Into his kingdom Public Opinion Opin-ion |