Again she looked at Saduko, who said hurriedly: "Yes, yes, I told her so; I told her that I wished for no barren cows in
my kraal."
Now some of the audience laughed outright, but Panda frowned.
"It seems," he said, "that my ears are being stuffed with lies, though
which of these two tells them I cannot say. Well, if the woman left the
man by his own wish, and that his ends might be furthered, as he says,
he had put her away, and therefore the fault, if any, is his, not hers.
So that charge is ended. Now, woman, what have you to tell us of the
witchcraft which it is said you practised upon the Prince who is gone,
thereby causing him to make war in the land?"
"Little that you would wish to hear, O King, or that it would be seemly
for me to speak," she answered, drooping her head modestly. "The only
witchcraft that ever I practised upon Umbelazi lies here"--and she
touched her beautiful eyes--"and here"--and she touched her curving
lips--"and in this poor shape of mine which some have thought so fair.
As for the war, what had I to do with war, who never spoke to Umbelazi,
who was so dear to me"--and she looked up with tears running down her
face--"save of love? O King, is there a man among you all who would
fear the witcheries of such a one as I; and because the Heavens made me
beautiful with the beauty that men must follow, am I also to be killed
as a sorceress?"
Now, to this argument neither Panda nor anyone else seemed to find an
answer, especially as it was well known that Umbelazi had cherished his
ambition to the succession long before he met Mameena. So that charge
was dropped, and the first and greatest of the three proceeded with;
namely, that it was she, Mameena, and not her husband, Masapo, who had
murdered Nandie's child.
When this accusation was made against her, for the first time I saw a
little shade of trouble flit across Mameena's soft eyes.
"Surely, O King," she said, "that matter was settled long ago, when the
Ndwande, Zikali, the great Nyanga, smelt out Masapo the wizard, he who
was my husband, and brought him to his death for this crime. Must I then
be tried for it again?"
"Not so, woman," answered Panda. "All that Zikali smelt out was the
poison that wrought the crime, and as some of that poison was found upon
Masapo, he was killed as a wizard. Yet it may be that it was not he who
used the poison."
"Then surely the King should have thought of that before he died,"
murmured Mameena. "But I forget: It is known that Masapo was always
hostile to the House of Senzangakona."