Behind them was the terror of the cave, beneath
them were the mists of the valley, but above them the light shone and
rolled and sparkled, and above them stretched the eternal sky!
They descended the pillar, and near the foot of it saw an old man
sitting. It was Mambo, the Molimo of the Makalanga: even when they were
still far away from him they knew his snow-white head and thin, ascetic
face. As they drew near Benita perceived that his eyes were closed, and
whispered to Robert that he was asleep. Yet he had heard them coming,
and even guessed her thought.
"Maiden," he said in his gentle voice, "maiden who soon shall be a wife,
I do not sleep, although I dream of you as I have dreamt before. What
did I say to you that day when first we met? That for you I had good
tidings; that though death was all about you, you need not fear; that
in this place you who had known great sorrow should find happiness
and rest. Yet, maiden, you would not believe the words of the Munwali,
spoken by his prophet's lips, as he at your side, who shall be your
husband, would not believe me in years past when I told him that we
should meet again."
"Father," she answered, "I thought your rest was that which we find only
in the grave."
"You would not believe," he went on without heeding her, "and therefore
you tried to fly, and therefore your heart was torn with terror and with
agony, when it should have waited for the end in confidence and peace.
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