A Note on the Historical Background to This Story

his story is set in Kenya in the late 1950s and the early 1960s. At that time, Kenya was a British colony.

T

The  colonial  settlers  took  away  Kenyan people's  land.  They forced Africans to work on the stolen land. They made many laws that were against African people.

The  K.A.U.  — the  Kenyan African Union -  was formed  by black  Kenyan  leaders  in  1944.  But  the  British  colonial  rulers refused to  recognize the leaders of the K.A.U.  and did not allow them to have positions of responsibility.

The  K.A.U.  wanted to  change  the  colonial government and the laws by peaceful means. They wanted to have the colour bar removed so that the black people would have equal rights with the whites;  they  wanted  the  land  returned to  the  black farmers  and they wanted black people to govern their own country.

Jomo  Kenyatta  became  President  of  the  K.A.U.  in   1947. Kenyans  believed  he  could  save  Kenya  from  the  evils  of colo• nialism.  But  the  colonial  government  refused  to  listen  to  the K.A.U.  The  K.A.U.  was  banned and many of its  members were imprisoned.

The K.A.U. had members from all over Kenya, but the highest number  of members  were  from  those  parts  of Kenya  where  the Kikuyu  lived.  Jomo  Kenyatta  was  himself a  Kikuyu.  In  1951  a separate  organization  was  formed  from  members  of  the  K.A.U. Many  of  the  members  of this  organization  were  men  who  had fought for  the  British  in  the  Second World War.  They  believed that  violence  was  the  only  way  to  bring  about  changes  and  to remove  the  colonial  rule.  In   1952  this  separate  organization, called 'Kenya Land and Freedom Army', or 'Mau Mau', began to attack colonial settlers. Mau Mau also attacked and killed Kenyan

A Note on the Historical Background

chiefs. These were chiefs who supported the colonial government. Waruhiu - a well-known colonial chief- was killed in 1952.

In  1952 some leaders of the K.A.U. were killed and on 20th October  of  that  year  the  government  declared  a  state  of emer• gency. Jomo Kenyatta was  arrested and  imprisoned,  even though it was never proved that he was a member of the Mau Mau.

Many  young  people  left  their  villages  and  joined  the  Mau Mau.  Mau Mau was  a secret nationalist organization and people from all over Kenya joined it. Most of the members were from the Kikuyu. A man joined the Mau Mau by taking a secret oath. He swore  to  fight  for  land  and  freedom.  Members  of the  Mau  Mau knew  that  if a  man broke his  oath  or told  anyone  what he had sworn he would be killed by the Mau Mau.

The  leader  of the  Mau  Mau  from  1953  to  1956  was  Dedan Kimathi.  Dedan Kimathi was  caught  and  hanged by  the  British in  1956.  By  the  end  of that year  approximately  2000  European and Asian civilians, soldiers and African government troops were dead, and over 11  000 Mau Mau had been killed. However, very many thousands  of Kikuyu,  including women  and  children,  died of  starvation  and  disease  in  the  fortified  villages.  These  were villages surrounded by troops sent in by the colonial government.

The  British government was forced  to  give  independence to Kenya in  1963. Jomo Kenyatta became  the first President of the Republic of Kenya in 1964.

6

A Note on the Main Characters in This Story

Ngotho

Ngotho is the head of the family in this story. Ngotho works as a labourer on

the land which his father once owned, but which the British gave to a white settler. Ngotho fought with the British Army in the First World War which is referred to in the story as the First Big War. Ngotho has two wives, Njeri an d Nyokabi. He has three sons by Njeri and two sons by Nyokabi.

NJERI = NGOTHO = NYOKABI

(First wife )                             (Second wife )

BORO   KORI   KAMAU   MWANGI   NJOROGE

Boro

Ngotho's eldest son by his first wife. Boro fought for the British in the

Second World War. He came back fro m the war a bitter and angry man. He ha s left home and has gone to Nairobi to look for work. Boro does not respect hi s father because Ngotho works as a

labourer on the land which his father once owned.

7

Kori

Boro's brother. He also has left home and gone to find work in Nairobi.

Kamau

Njeri's youngest son. He has stayed at home and is learning to become a carpenter. His wages

help to support the family.

Mwangi

Ngotho's son by his second wife, Nyokabi. Mwangi was killed while fighting for the British in the Second World War.

Njoroge

the main character in the story. He is Ngotho's youngest son by his wife, Nyokabi.

Other main characters

Jacobo

Jacobo has done well out of colonial rule. He is wealthy and is ready to help the British so that he can keep his land and his wealth. Mr Howlands uses Jacobo in his fight against the black people.

9

Mwihaki

Jacobo's daughter. She makes friends with Njoroge and falls in love with him. The unhappy love affair between Mwihaki and Njoroge is a central part of the story.

Mr Howlands

the white settler who farms the land which once belonged to Ngotho's father. He loves his farm and is determined that no one shall take it from him. His hatred for the black people increases  as  the struggle for freedom becomes fiercer.

10

PART ONE

THE WANING LIGHT

11

'Where Did Our Land Go?'

joroge,  Njoroge!'  the woman called.  The  little boy,  dressed in nothing but a piece of calico , ran up to his mother.

N

The  woman smiled.  Her  small  eyes  were  full  of life  and  the smile lit up her dark face. She looked at the child with pride.

'Would you like to go to school?' she said. Njoroge gasped, but said nothing.

'We are poor, you know that,' his mother went on.

'Yes, Mother.' The boy's voice shook a little.

'You won't get food at midday like the other children.'

'I understand.'

'And you must never bring shame^5  on us by refusing to go to school.'

The  thought  of going  to  school  was  like  a  bright  light  in

Njoroge's mind  .

'I want to go to school,' he said quietly. 'I will never refuse to go to school.'

'All right. You'll begin on Monday. Whe n your father gets his pay, we'll go to the shops. I'll buy you a shirt and a pair of shorts.

'I thank you, Mother, very much.'

Njoroge  wanted  to  say  more,  but  he  could  not.  His  mother looked  at  his  eyes  and  understood.  She  was  happy  because  her son was  happy.  In  the  evening, Njoroge  told his  brother Kamau the news.

'Kamau, I shall go to school. I'm glad. Oh, so glad. But I wish you were coming too.'

'Don't  worry  about  me,'  Kamau  said  to  the  little  boy.  'I'm being   trained     as                           a   carpenter.    It's                                a   useful                     trade^5 .                  You get  your  education  and  I'll  get  a  trade.  The n  one  day,  we'll have a better home for the whole family.'

13

'Where Did Our Land Go?'

'Yes,' Njoroge replied. 'That's what I want. I think people get rich because they are educated.'

Ngotho,  Njoroge's  father,  was  proud  that  his  youngest  son was  going  to  school.  Njoroge  was  the  second  son  of  Ngotho's second wife. Njoroge was the first of Ngotho's sons to go to school. A man was always proud if one of his sons went to school. It was important for the boy and his family.

Ngotho had  two  wives,  Njeri  and Nyokabi.  They had  given him five sons. Njeri was Njoroge's mother. She had had another son Mwangi but he was dead.

All the other brothers were friends and they often sat together in one hut. They loved to hear stories from Ngotho or the women. That night, all the young people sat together in Ngotho's big hut. Ngotho  told  them  a  story.  It was  the  story  of the first  man and woman and of the land that God had given to them.

'God  showed  the  man  and  woman  the  land  and  said:  "This land I hand over to you,  O Man and Woman.  It's yours to keep and to look after for ever." '

There was a strange light in Ngotho's eyes as he spoke.

Whe n he told this story, he forgot his wives and sons and all the young people in the hut.

Njoroge listened to the old story of the beginning of the world. He wished he had stood next to God and seen all the land. At the end of the story, he cried out, 'But where did our land go?'

Everyone  looked  at  the  little  boy.  Ngotho  answered his  son slowly.

'I  am an old man now.  But I have asked that question many times, waking and sleeping. I've said: Wha t happened, O God, to the land that you gave us?

'I'll tell you what happened,' Ngotho went on.  'First the sun burnt  all  the  land.  There  was  no  water  and  the  cattle  died. The n  the  white  man  came  and  took the  land.  But not  all  of it at first^3.

'Then  came  the  First  Big  War.  It  was  the  white  man's  war,

14

'Where Did Our Land Go?'

but  we  had  to  fight  for  them.   We  had  to   clear  the  forest and  make  roads  for  them.  We  helped  the  British  to  win  the war  and  we  came  back  tired.  We  said  to   each  other:  "We have  helped  them.  What  will  they  give  us  in  return  for  our help?"

'They  gave  us  nothing  in  return for  our  help.  Instead,  they took our land.

'My  father's  land  was   taken  from  him.   He   died  lonely, waiting  for  the  white  man  to  go.  But  the  white  man  stayed. My  father  died  on  the  land,  working  for  another  man.  Now I  too  work  for  another  man,  on  the  land  that  used  to  belong to us.'

'You mean the land that Howlands farms?'

The question came from Boro, Ngotho's eldest son.

'Yes, the same land,' Ngotho replied. 'My father showed it to me when I was young. But one day the land will return to us. I work here, waiting for that day.'

'And do you think that day will ever come?' another son, Kori, asked.

'I  don't know.  Perhaps not  in  my  lifetime ,  but,  oh  God,  I

wish it was possible.'

Boro, sitting alone in a corner, thought about the land which they had lost.

Boro,  too,  had fought for the  white  man.  He  had  fought  in the  Second  Big  War.  Tha t  war had  killed  his  brother,  Mwangi, who  had  been  his  dearest  friend.  Boro  had  gone  to  the  war  a boy  and  returned a man.  Now he  was  a  man with no  land  and no job.

A bitter ange r  filled Boro's heart. In a whisper that everyone could hear, he said, 'To hell with waiting.'

And to his father he said, 'How can you work for a man who has taken our land? How can you go on being his servant?'

And Boro walked out into the darkness without waiting for an answer.

15

2

Njoroge Goes to School

n Monday, Njoroge went to school for the first time. He did not  know  exactly  where  the  school  was.  So  Mwihaki,  the

O

daughter of Jacobo, showed him the way.

Jacobo was  the  owner of the  land  on which Njoroge's family lived. Jacobo was a black man, but the white men allowed him to grow pyrethrum  as a cash crop  on his land. Pyrethrum was a cash crop which Jacobo was able to sell in the market. So Jacobo was rich and his big house looked like a white man's home.

Everything was new to Njoroge on that first day. The school was  a  strange  place  and  the  church  beside  it  was  the  biggest building Njoroge had ever seen.

Whe n the other boys saw Njoroge, they began to tease  him.

'You are a Njuka!' they cried. 'Come on, Njuka, carry this bag for me.'

No , my name's Njoroge,' the little boy answered. He did not understand that Njuka meant 'new boy'.

The boys began to laugh. 'Njuka, Njuka!' they shouted. But Mwihaki stopped them.

'Yes,  he's  a  Njuka.  But  he's  my  Njuka.  Don't  any  of  you touch him!'

The boys were silent. Mwihaki's sister, Lucia, was a teacher at the school. They were afraid that if Mwihaki told her sister about them they might be beaten.

For the first few weeks, Njoroge always walked home with Mwihaki. They lived near each other and Njoroge liked the clever little girl.

One day, they did not go straight home. They sat down on a little hill and began to play. They forgot the time and, as darkness came, Nyokabi came looking for her son, Njoroge.

17

Njoroge Goes to School

.

She was angry to find her son with Mwihaki. She did not want him to be friends with a rich man's daughter.

Njoroge was sorry to see his mother so angry. He decided that in the future he would keep away from Mwihaki.

Nyokabi was very proud of her son and she loved to see him reading or writing. She wanted Njoroge to get the white man's education.  The n  perhaps  one  day  Ngotho,  her  husband,  could stop working for Mr Howlands.

Njoroge told his mother everything that happened at school.

'The teacher asked me to tell a story today, Mother,' he said.

'A story you had told us came into my head. But when I stood up, I was afraid. I lost the story!'

'A  man should not be  afraid,' Nyokabi said.  'You have many stories. Or have we wasted our time telling them to you?'

'I tell you, Mother,  I forgot all of them!' And the little boy's eyes opened wide.

Nyokabi laughed.

'All right. I'll tell them to you again. But now you must fetch your brother, Kamau. Your elder mother, Njeri, wants him. Don't forget to take off your school clothes first.'

Dressed  in his  old piece  of calico,  Njoroge  took  the  path  to the house of Nganga,  the carpenter. The path went near Jacobo's house and Njoroge saw Mwihaki coming towards him. He was ashamed of meeting her dressed in his piece of calico, so he turned away and went along another path.

Nganga was the village carpenter and Ngotho had paid him a lot of money to teach Kamau his trade. Nganga was rich because he had land. Land was much more important than money. A man was rich only if he had land.

As  Njoroge  got  near  to  Nganga's  house,  he  saw  his  brother coming towards him.

'Work's over for today,' Kamau said.  'Let's go home,  brother. Oh, how I hate this man, Nganga!'

'Why, brother? Isn't he a good man?'

19

Njoroge Goes to School

'No, he isn't. He doesn't let me do anything. How can I learn a trade just by watching? He treats me like a servant.'

'But why?' Njoroge asked. 'He is a black man, like you.'

'Blackness  is  not  all  that  makes  a  man,'  Kamau  replied bitterly.  'Rich  men -  black  or white  -  never want  others  to  get rich.  Sometimes  a  European  is  better  than  an African.  A white man is a white man. But a black man trying to be a white man is bad and harsh^5.'

Njoroge  said  nothing.'  These   ideas  were  difficult  for  him to   understand.   But  he  knew  that  the   only  good  thing  was education.

20

3

Ngotho and Mr Howlands

N

gotho  usually  walked  through  the  fields  to  work.  Ngotho loved walking through the fields in the  early morning when everything was green and the crops were  in flower. But today he was walking along the busy tarmac road that went straight to the city. Black men had made the road for the white men in the First

Big War.

Ngotho was  thinking of what his son Boro had said. Ngotho thought too of all the lonely years of waiting - black men waiting for their land to be returned to them. Perhaps they had all waited too  long.  Perhaps it had been wrong to wait at all.  Perhaps that was the coward's  way.

Mr Howlands, the white settler , was already up when Ngotho reached his land.

'Good morning, Ngotho.'

'Good morning, Bwana .'

'Had a good night?'

'Yes, Bwana.'

Mr Howlands always greeted Ngotho like this.  But the white man's  mind  was  far  away.  He  was  thinking  of other  things.  He was  thinking  about  his  farm,  his  shamba.  Nothing  mattered  to Mr  Howlands  except  the  shamba.  It  meant  much  more  to  him than  his  wife.  She  was  a  bad-tempered woman who  was  always quarrelling with  the  servants.  She  sent  away boy   after  boy,  but Mr Howlands did not care.  But she could not get rid of Ngotho. Mr Howlands refused to send him away.

Mr Howlands loved to see Ngotho working in the fields.  He loved to watch the strong old man working. He loved to see the old man touching the  earth  and  the plants  as  though they were his own.

Mr Howlands felt that Ngotho was part of the farm. Ngotho could  not  be  separated  from  it.  Whe n  Ngotho  had  first  begun working  for  him,  Mr  Howlands  had  had  no  money.  But  after Ngotho came, everything got better. For this reason, Mr Howlands wanted Ngotho to stay.

Mr Howlands looked like many of the other white settlers in Kenya.  He  was  tall  and  heavily  built,  with  a  big  stomach.  His oval shaped face ended in a double chin.

Like  Ngotho,   Mr  Howlands  had  fought  in  the  First  Big War.  Whe n  peace  came,  Mr  Howlands  was  no  longer happy  in England. He had settled in East Africa and the white government had given him land. A year or two later, Mr Howlands went back to England to find a wife.

Mrs Howlands came to Africa and she hated it. She had two children  who  were  sent  back  to  England  to  study.  Peter,  the boy,  was killed  in  the  Second Big War.  The daughter became a missionary^5.

Mr  Howlands  loved  his   son,   Peter.   After  Peter's   death, Mr  Howlands  cared  for  nothing  but  his  land.  Later,  he  had another son, Stephen, but the land was all Mr Howlands thought about.

Like Mr Howlands, Ngotho loved the land. Ngotho really believed  that  one  day  the  land  would  belong  to  black  people again, to his sons perhaps.

'You  like  all  this?'  said Mr Howlands to Ngotho one  day as they stood in the fields.

'It is the best land in all the country,' Ngotho replied. Mr Howlands sighed.

'I don't know who will look after it when I am gone.' Ngotho's heart filled with hope^4 .

'Then you are going back to England - to your home?'

'No!' Mr Howlands shouted. 'No! My home is here.'

Ngotho could not understand. Would these white men never go away?

24

But  now  Mr  Howlands  was  thinking  about  his  dead  son, Peter.

'The war took my son, Peter, away,' he said.

Ngotho had not known this. He wanted to tell Mr Howlands about his  own son,  Mwangi.  He wanted  to  say,  'You white men took my son away too.' But he said nothing. He thought that Mr Howlands should not  complain.  After all,  it had been the  white man's war.

25

Kamau Talks to Njoroge

Kamau Talks to Njoroge

joroge was a clever little boy.  He worked hard and did well at school. At the beginning of the next year, he was sent to

N

the third class, Standard 1.

Ngotho was proud of his youngest son. And Njoroge himself thought that education was  the  most important thing in  life. He wanted everyone to go to school.

One day, when they were hunting in the forest, Njoroge asked his brother Kamau, 'Why don't you start school, like me?'

But Kamau shook his head.

'No , Njoroge,'  he  said.  'A  man  without  land  must  have  a trade. One day I will be a good carpenter. The n I will be rich. I will be  able  to help  you continue your education. Father agrees with me. He wants you to go on learning, to bring light to our home^1 ' Education is the light of Kenya^1. That's what Jomo says.'

Njoroge had heard of Jomo Kenyatta^2. Whe n Jomo had come back from across the sea, many people had gone to Nairobi to meet him. Njoroge thought that he would like to learn like Jomo. One day, he too would cross the sea to the land of the white man.

Ngotho  told  Njoroge,  'Education  is  everything.'  But  in  his heart, Ngotho thought that owning land was more important. Education was  only good because  it  would help  black people  to get back their land.

'We  black men  live  under hard  conditions,' Ngotho  told his son.  'You  must  learn  to  escape  these  conditions.  A  man  cannot live without a piece of land.'

Ngotho did not often complain. He believed that things would change in his lifetime. Ngotho believed in his heart that he was looking  after  the  land  that  would  one  day  belong  to  his  family again. That was why he worked so hard for Mr Howlands.

26

Njoroge  listened  to  his  father.  Njoroge  knew  that  he  was expected to do well  at school.  His  education would help  others. He would be able to help his father, his two mothers, his brothers and perhaps even the village.

'One day,' Njoroge told himself, 'something important will happen. And I shall make it happen.'

And the little boy's heart was filled with joy^4.

But  Njoroge  found  some  things  difficult  to  understand.  He often asked Kamau questions and his big brother tried to answer them.

One  dark  night,  Njoroge  and  Kamau  stood  together  on  the little hill outside the village.

'Do you see those lights, far away?' Kamau said.

'Yes, that's Nairobi,  isn't it?' Njoroge replied. Njoroge looked through the  darkness  to  the distant lights.  Nairobi,  the  big city, had  taken  away his  two  elder brothers,  Boro  and  Kori.  Njoroge could not understand why his brothers had left the family.

'Do   you   think   Boro   and  Kori  will  forget  home?'   asked

Njoroge.

'I'm sure they won't. No one can forget his home.'

'But why couldn't they work here? Why did they want to go away?'

'Think,  Njoroge,'  Kamau  answered.  'There  is  no  work  for them here.  The  only happy people here  are  the  ones with land. Boro has no land. He couldn't get work here. And Boro is angry with our father because he works for another man.  Boro is angry with all the older men who let the white men take the land.'

'What does our father say?'

'He says that the black men did try to get the land back after the Second Big War. But they failed.'

'And does Boro blame   our father for this?'

'I think so. Boro's heart is full of hate^4  for the white men. He blames the British for the death of our brother, Mwangi. The war and the fighting changed Boro. He has become a strong and angry

27

Kamau Talks to Njoroge

man.  Perhaps  he  is  stronger  than  our  father.  I  sometimes  think that our father is afraid of Boro.

The two brothers stood looking at the lights of the city, the city that had taken away their brothers.

'I would like to go to Nairobi too,' Kamau said softly.

'I'm a good enough carpenter now to get a job in the city.'

'What about the strike^5  that father has been talking about? If the black people in Nairobi go on strike, no one will work.'

'I don't know,' said Kamau. 'Father thinks the strike will help us, but I'm not sure.'

'Father says the strike is for all people who want freedom,' Njoroge said. 'Father says the black people are striking to get their land back. He says that all this land belongs to the black people. Do you think that is true, Kamau?'

'Yes of course. The land is ours. Th e white men from England stole it from us. They are all thieves; Mr Howlands is a thief.'

'I  don't  like  Mr  Howlands,'  Njoroge  said  quietly.  'His  son followed me once and I was afraid. He was a tall, thin boy, with yellow hair.'

Njoroge  stood  in  silence  for  a  minute  and  then  he  said,

'Kamau, tell me about Jomo. Wh o is he?'

'Boro called him the Black Moses.'

'I've heard about Moses,' Njoroge said. 'He is in the Bible. He led his people to the land God had given them.'

Later  that  night,  before  he  went  to  sleep,  Njoroge  thought about the future.  He did not want to work for a white man. Yes, he, Njoroge, would be different from his father. Before he went to sleep, he prayed.

'Oh, God, let me get the white man's learning. I want to help my father, my two mothers and all my brothers . . .'

And  the  little  boy  fell  asleep  and  dreamt  of education -  in

England.

28

'Education is Everything

5

'Education is Everything'

he n  he   reached   Standard  4,   Njoroge   began   to   learn

W

English. He was now in the same class as Mwihaki. Their teacher was Lucia, Mwihaki's sister.

Th e two children tried hard to learn English. It was important for  them  to  learn  English.  But  it  was  difficult  and  sometimes Njoroge got confused.

'I am standing up,' the teacher said. 'What am I doing?'

'You  are  standing  up,'  the  class  replied.  Lucia  pointed  her finger.

'You, boy, what's your name?'

'Njoroge.'

'Stand up, Njoroge. Now, what are you doing?' Njoroge was afraid of the watching, smiling faces.

'You are standing up,' he said.

'No , no. What are you doing?'

Njoroge  answered  again,  'You  are  standing  up.'  Th e  teacher was really angry now. She told Mwihaki to stand too.

'Mwihaki, what are you doing?'

'I am standing up.'

'Good. Now, Njoroge. What is she doing?'

'I am standing up.'

The pupils laughed quietly. But when the teacher asked them, they could not give the right answer.

'Look here, you lazy, stupid fools!' Lucia shouted. 'We did all this  yesterday.  If you  make just  one  mistake  tomorrow,  I'll beat you all!' But in the end, the children understood.

After a while, when a teacher came into the class, they could speak to him in English.

'Good morning, children,' he said.

30

'Good morning, sir,' the children answered.

One  day,  a  white  woman  came  to  the  school.  The  school was made clean and tidy. All the children were told what to say and do.

Njoroge had not been so near to a white woman before. The whiteness and softness of her skin surprised him.

The class stood up, ready to greet her.

'Good morning, children.'

'Good morning, sir.'

Lucia felt  like  crying.  The  children had forgotten everything she had told them.

'I  am  a  woman,  so  you  must  call  me  "Madam",'  the  white woman explained. 'And it is after lunch now, so you must say "afternoon". Do you understand?'

'Yes, sir,' they all cried.

'Madam! Madam! Say Madam!' Lucia shouted at them.

'Good afternoon, Madam.' But some of them still said, 'Sir'. Whe n  the  white  woman  had  gone,  Lucia beat  all  the  chil•

dren  and  they  were  sorry.  In  this  way,  they  learnt  the  differ•

ence  between  'Sir'  and  'Madam',   and  between  'morning'  and

'afternoon'.

Njoroge found out later that the white woman, who was a missionary,  was  Mr  Howlands'  daughter.  This  surprised Njoroge. The  white  settlers,  like  Mr  Howlands,  thought  that  they  were

, better  than  the  black  men.  But  missionaries  said  that  the  black people were as good as white people.

Perhaps she's different from her father, Njoroge thought.

At about this time, Kamau stopped working for Nganga. He began to work as a carpenter in one of the African shops in the nearby village  of Kippanga.  Kamau didn't go  to  Nairobi  and  this  made

31

'Education is Everything

Njoroge happy.  But Njoroge was still afraid that one  day Kamau would go and join his brothers, Kori and Boro, in Nairobi.

The two brothers came home often, but they were changing. Kamau did not change. He was still part of the family.  If Kamau left, the family would be broken.

African shops  in  the  village were  miserable  looking places.  The                                                                                                         W

6

Fear and Anger

Njoroge  often  went  to  Kippanga  to  see  his  brother.  The

work  was  hard  and  boring.  The  young  men who  worked  in  the shops  looked  sad  and  bored.  The  sight  of these  sad  young  men made  Njoroge  work  harder  in  school.  Education  was  the  thing that would give him a different future.  Education was the key to a better life.

Books  were  Njoroge's  best  friend.   He  read  everything  he could, but  the  Bible was his favourite book. Th e  Bible,  and  the stories his mother told him,  all seemed to say the same thing.  If a man was good,  God would reward   him.  Bad  things happened to bad men.

Njoroge  remembered  his  brother  saying  that  Jomo  was  the Black  Moses.  Njoroge  thought he  understood  this  now.  If Jomo was like Moses, then black men were the chosen people of God .

Njoroge believed that the future  of his family and his village depended on two things - his education and his belief in God.

Whenever  he  was  with  Mwihaki,  Njoroge  tried  to  tell  her about these things. But he was not able to  explain his ideas. He could not think of the right words. So Njoroge kept his thoughts to himself.  The  tall,  brown-skinned,  clear-eyed boy walked alone in the fields and kept his ideas in his own heart^5.

32

hen  the  elders  of  the  village     talked  with  Ngotho,  they

sometimes sat  in the hut of either Nyokabi or Njeri. The n

Njoroge was happy because he could sit there and listen to them.

Whe n Kori  and  Boro came home on a visit,  they sometimes brought home young men from the city. These young men seemed to know a lot of things. Whe n they talked, they did not laugh and joke as young men usually did. They talked about war, unemploy• ment^2  and stolen land. And when they talked, the elders listened.

They  often  talked  about Jomo.  Njoroge  had  read  the  Bible. In the Bible,  he had read about Moses and how Moses had  lead the  Children  of  Israel  to  the  Promised  Land.  Njoroge  believed that  when  the  young  men  talked  about  Jomo  they  were  really talking  about  Moses.   Njoroge  believed  that  the  black  people were the Children of Israel and Jomo was going to lead them to the Promised Land.

The young men also talked about the coming strike.  All the black  men  who  worked  for  white  men  or  the  government were going to go on strike. The strikers would show the white men that the black men were not slaves. The black people had children to feed and educate, just like the white men.

'Everyone will go  on strike,' someone said.  'Every black man everywhere,  even  policemen  and  soldiers.   Black  men  are  all brothers.'

'Shall we get the same pay as Indians and Europeans?'

'Yes.  It  is  us,  the  black people,  who  do  all  the  hard  work. Business depends on us. We will demand more money. We cannot live on the money we get now.'

Everyone listened. They didn't know much about strikes, but they all wanted more money.

33

Fear and Anger

That night, Njoroge prayed that the strike would be a success. The n he fell asleep. He dreamt of the money and happiness that they would all have after the strike.

Whe n  Mr  Howlands  heard  about  the  strike,  he  called  all  his workers together.  He told his workers  that anyone who went on strike would lose his job. He would not allow a strike to stop the work on his farm!

Ngotho listened to  Mr Howlands.  His face did not show his thoughts. Ngotho could not make up his mind^5   about the strike. It might fail.

If he  lost  his  job,  the  land  would  never  be  his.  After  the meeting, Ngotho did not talk to the other men. He went straight home.

To Njoroge, his father Ngotho was  the  centre of everything. As long as Ngotho lived, nothing could go wrong. Njoroge feared his father, but he  trusted him too. Ngotho was well-known as  a man who could keep his family together.

But  thinking about  the  strike  had  confused Ngotho.  Fear  of losing his land gripped him. An d this fear slowly turned to anger.

Whe n  Njoroge  came  back  from  school  that  day,  he  found Nyokabi crying. Ngotho, tall and strong in spite of his age, stood in front of her. His face was full of anger.

'I must be a man in my own house!' Ngotho was shouting.

'Yes, be a man and lose your job! And then we shall all starve!'

'I  shall  do  what  I  like.  I  have  never  taken  orders  from  a woman,'  Ngotho  shouted.  'This  strike  is  important for  all  black people. Why must I work for a white man and his children? We need more money and the strike will give it to us!'

But Nyokabi knew that Ngotho was shouting because he was afraid.

'What if the strike fails? Tell me that!' she cried.

34

Fear and Anger

'Shut  up!'  Ngotho  shouted.  He  slapped  Nyokabi's  face  and raised his hand again.

Njoroge, terribly afraid, ran forward.

'Please, Father!' he cried.

Ngotho grabbed Njoroge by  the  shoulders. Ngotho began  to speak, but changed his mind^5. He let the boy go and walked out of the hut.

Njoroge tried to comfort^5  his mother, but she went on crying.

'Why have they bewitched^5 him? My man is changed . . .'

That  night,  Njoroge  felt  more  alone  than  ever.  He  did  not know  who  was  right -  his  father  or  his  mother.  He  prayed  for them both and then he asked God a question.

'Oh, God, do you think the strike will be a success?'

Njoroge  waited  in  the  dark for God's  answer,  and,  while  he was waiting, fell asleep.

35

The Strike

I

t was the beginning of New Year.  Njoroge had been at  school for five years. He sat in the big classroom with Mwihaki and all the other pupils. The class was waiting to hear whether they had

passed their exams or not.

The teacher came in with the list of names. Njoroge wanted to hide under a desk. And then he heard his name. He was the first in the class. Mwihaki had passed too. They would both be going to a new school.

Together they ran home,  hand  in hand.  Each wanted to  tell their  parents  the  good  news.  Whe n  they  came  near  Mwihaki's house, they stood together for a moment. The n ran off along their different paths.

Mwihaki reached home first.

'Mother! Mother!' she cried.

But her mother looked at her coldly.

'What is it?' she said. 'What has happened now?'

'Nothing, ' Mwihaki whispered, 'only that I have passed.'

'Is that all?' her mother said. The n she cried out, 'A man will never listen to a woman! I told him not to go.'

'What has happened, Mother?'

'Wha t   a  question!   I've   always  said  your  father  will  be murdered one day.'

'What, is he dead?' Mwihaki burst out crying, but no one answered her.

Whe n Njoroge  reached home,  the  open  place  near  the  huts was full of people. Some of them were looking towards his father's hut  and  others  were  turned  towards  the  market-place.  Njoroge found his mother, Nyokabi,  in her hut. Two village women were sitting  with  her  and  she  was  crying  quietly.  Njoroge  forgot  his

37

The Strike

good news.

Had someone died?

'What is it, Mother?' he asked.

'It's the strike,' the women told him.

Yes, it was the first day of the strike - the strike that was going to stop the whole country! And Njoroge had forgotten. He ran to his brother Kamau, who told him what had happened.

A meeting had been held on the first day of the strike.  Many people had gone to it and Ngotho had been one of them.

Speakers  had  come  from  Nairobi,  including  a  young  man whom  Boro  had  brought  to  the  village.  Boro  was  sitting  on the  platform with the young man and Ngotho was proud to  see him there.

The young man got up to speak. He reminded them of the time when the land had belonged to the black people. Africa was theirs because God had given it to them. The n the white man had come and taken the land away from them.

'How foolish our fathers were to believe them!' the young man cried. 'Our fathers were taken away to fight in the First Big War - the white man's war. An d when our fathers came back their land had been given to the white men! Was that fair? (No! No!) The black people were forced to work for them and pay taxes  . Where did their freedom go?

'When the Second Big War came,  then we were taken away to fight. Black men died to save the British Empire . Was that fair? (No! No!) But we cried aloud to God and God heard us. He sent a man to us called Jomo. He was our Black Moses. He told the white men: "Let my people go!" '

The young man's voice was raised to a shout.

An d that's why we are here today. All black men are brothers. Together we must cry with one voice: "The time has come! Let my people go! We want our land - now." '

Ngotho listened, unhappy and confused.  He could not shout, but he heard others shouting. For a few minutes, his eyes were full

38

The Strike

of tears  and  he  could  not see  clearly.  The n he  realized  that  the whole meeting was surrounded by policemen. They were standing quietly, with heavy sticks in their hands.

The  speaker  went  on.  'Remember,  this  must  be  a  peaceful strike. We must get more pay.  But there must be no violence. If you are hit, don't hit back!'

At  that  moment,   a  white  police   inspector  got  onto  the platform.  And  with  him  -  Jacobo!  Why  was  Jacobo  standing next to a white man? Then, when Jacobo began to speak,- Ngotho understood.

Jacobo,  the  richest  black  man  in  all  the  land  around,  was speaking for the white people! He was telling everyone to go back to work. They listened in silence.

As  Ngotho  listened,  something  happened  to  him.  Not  all black  men  were  brothers,  for  here  was  Jacobo  -  and  he  was  a traitor .

Ngotho thought of all the long years of waiting and suffering. Slowly,  he  began  to  move  towards  the  platform.  The n  he  was standing right  in front of Jacobo. The  two black men faced each other. Th e battle was now between these two - Jacobo on the side of the white people and Ngotho on the side of the black people.

Ngotho turned and in a terrible voice cried: Arise!'

The  crowd  moved  forward.  Led  on  by  Ngotho's  cry,  they rushed  towards  Jacobo.  Th e   police   attacked  with  guns   and tear-gas .

Ngotho ran about blindly in the crowd. His courage had gone and he was full of fear. A policeman hit him in the face, but he ran on. Feeling the blood flow, he ran faster, stumbled and then fell.

People from his village found him where he  lay unconscious. They carried him home. Ngotho was the hero of the hour .

Days later, people were still talking about Jacobo and Ngotho.

'The old man is brave

'He is, to be sure. But why did he do it? He caused the death of two men.'

39

The Strike

'Ah, but he had to do something. Wh o could listen to a black man saying these things?'

'Jacobo is a traitor. You know how he got so rich.'

'Yes! He sold us, his brothers, to the white man!'

But one man shook his head sadly.                                                                                                                                                         T

INTERLUDE

'Yes, yes,' several voices agreed.

'Ngotho has only harmed himself,' he said.  'He has been told to leave Jacobo's land.'

'Leave  Jacobo's  land?  But  Ngotho  was  there  before  Jacobo bought it! It is against the custom^2.'

The  men  began  to  shout  but  then  they  saw  a  policeman coming towards them. They moved away quietly. It was clear now that the strike had failed.

Now Ngotho found out who his friends were. Nganga, the carpenter, gave him a place to build new huts. But new huts cost money and Ngotho had no job.

Things became  difficult for Njoroge.  Fees  were  higher in his new school.  Mwihaki, Jacobo's daughter,  was  sent  to  a  boarding school  far  away.  She  would  go  on  learning,  but  Njoroge  would have to stop.

Njoroge  cried  and  he  prayed  to  God.  And  God  heard  his prayers. Kamau's wages were raised and he gave the money to Njoroge.  Kori gave the rest of the  money. Njoroge was glad.  He too would go on learning.

42

wo and a half years later, a disillusioned^5  government official

stood  on  a  hill,  looking  down  at  Nairobi.  He  was  looking down at the country he would soon be leaving. He looked down at the city that the white man had made. The city was where all the trouble came from.

How did this trouble start? Could I have guessed there would be trouble? No, there were no signs to tell me. Or, were there signs and I didn't see them?

We tried our best. We tried to help them. Now we are leaving. Leaving without thanks.

The  people  passed  on  news.   Sometimes  they  heard  it  on  a neighbour's radio. Sometimes their friends told them.

Listen, neighbour, a great chief has died.

What's that to me? My children are crying for food. But he was a big chief. It's an interesting story.

A big chief like Jacobo?

Bigger. And he was killed in daylight. That was daring. Tell me. Tell us all.

.  .  . The Government had given this chief much land. In return, the chief had sold his own people. This chief was driving to Nairobi, when two men followed him. In a quiet place, they made the chief's car stop. They shot the chief three times. When he was dead, they drove away . . .

They were brave . . .

They learnt this trick from the white man . . . They were brave, those young men . . .

43

Interlude

The n one  night,  Jomo  Kenyatta and  all  the  leaders  of the  land were arrested.

But they can't arrest Jomo! Now we are without a leader. Yes, that's what they want . . .

A state of emergency was declared. A state of emergency? What's that?

Don't you know? It means we can do nothing. We are all prisoners in our own land.

Njoroge had never seen Jomo.  Once,  he  had gone  to  a meeting where Jomo had been speaking. Jomo had spoken about freedom and about the trouble the colour-bar had made in Kenya.

Njoroge had heard  all  about  the colour-bar from his brothers in Nairobi. He did not know what it was really. But he knew that the strike had failed because of the  colour-bar.  Black people had no  land  because  of  the  colour-bar.  An d  they  could  not  eat  in hotels because of the colour-bar. The colour-bar was everywhere.

Njoroge had gone  early to  the  meeting-place  in order to  see Jomo.  But  there  were  so  many  people  there  that  Njoroge  was unable  to  see Jomo.  And  now Jomo  had  been  arrested.  Perhaps Njoroge would never see him now .. .

44

PART TWO DARKNESS FALLS

8

Everyone is Afraid

nd now stories began to spread about the land, passed on by many voices. Njoroge listened carefully to them all.

A

Many  of these  stories  were  about  Dedan  Kimathi,  leader  of the African Freedom Army .  In the stories, Kimathi was able to turn himself into any shape - a bird, an aeroplane or even a white policeman. The country was full of stories and rumours   and they brought the people together.

Many  things  had  changed.  Jacobo  had  been  made  a  chief. He  lived  in fear  of Mau Mau,  the  Freedom Boys  of the  Forest . Two  policemen  with  guns  always  walked  with  him.  Sometimes he  moved  around  with  the  new  District  Officer ,  who  was  Mr Howlands.

Njoroge's  family now  lived  in  three  rough huts  on Nganga's land.  Ngotho had no job;  only Kori  and Kamau brought money home.

Njoroge had been at his new school for two years. Every day he walked five miles to school and five miles back. Tha t is what education meant to him and to thousands of boys and girls all over Kenya.

It  was  dark when  Njoroge  reached  home  that  day.  Njoroge  felt cold and hungry, but there was no smell of food being cooked.

He  heard  voices  from  Njeri's  hut  and  went  in.  Ngotho  was there with the family and Njoroge sat down without being told. As he looked around the dark hut, Njoroge saw his brother, Boro.

'How is it with you, brother? We have not seen you here for a long time.'

47

Everyone is Afraid

'It is well, brother. How is school?'

'It's all well. I hope you left Kori in peace.'

'Oh, dear child, we all hope so,' his father said.

'How  can  we  hope?'  Njeri  cried  out.  'He  and  many  others have been taken!'

'Oh, if they should kill him!' Boro cried out.

At that moment, the door opened and Kori staggered into the hut. His face was thin and he could hardly stand.

'Water! Food!' he cried.

Whe n he was strong enough, he told his story.

Kori began. 'Many, many young men have been imprisoned as terrorists,' Kori began. 'You were lucky to escape, Boro.'

'What about you? How did you . . .?'

'After you escaped,' Kori answered, 'the police beat us and put us into trucks. I think they planned to kill us. So when the truck slowed down, I jumped out and escaped into the forest. They fired at me, but they didn't hit me. I got a lift in a lorry and somehow managed to get home.'

'Why  are  these  things  happening to  the black people?' Njeri asked.

'They want us weak before Jomo gets out of prison. They are afraid because they know he will win his case  .'

'So if Jomo wins, will they let everyone out of prison?'

'Of course. And then we will have Freedom.'

Ngotho sat in the corner of the hut, saying nothing. Since the strike, he had changed. Boro had told his father that his attack on Jacobo had spoilt everything. Boro no longer respected his father. Ngotho had lost his importance in the family.

But there was one thing Ngotho would not do. He would not take  the  Mau Mau oath   from his  son.  Ngotho was  not  against taking  oaths.  Oaths  drew  people  together.  But  how  could  any man take oath from his son? Such a thing was against all custom and tradition.

But  Mau  Mau  was  gaining supporters  every day.  They were

48

Everyone is Afraid

the Freedom Boys of the Forest. A boy at school had told Njoroge about them.

'Mau Mau is a secret tribe which you join by "drinking oath". The n you become a soldier with Kimathi as your leader.'

'Not Jomo?'

'No.  Jomo  leads  the  K.A.U.2    But  they  both  fight  for  the freedom of black people.'

'I hear they kill white settlers.'

'Yes.  And  they  kill  black  people  who  are  traitors  to  their country. They fight in the forest for the black people.'

'Ah, that is a fine thing to do!'

Ngotho lived in fear for his family, which was a family no longer. And  Ngotho  knew  that  one  day Jacobo  would  punish  him.  He no  longer hoped  that  he  would  get  his  land  back.  The  land  of his fathers was lost for ever. Wha t had he  to hope for in his old age?  Would  his  youngest  son  Njoroge  save  them?  That  was  his only hope. But did Njoroge understand what was happening? Did anyone understand?

That  night,  Kori  came  and  brought  them  more  bad  news. Jomo had been tried by the white men and he had lost his case. Jomo, who had gone across the sea, been educated, but who stood for custom and tradition, had failed.

The men were silent and Njeri, a woman, spoke for them all.

'The white man made the laws. He made the laws that took the land away from us. He did not ask for our agreement, as in the old days of the tribe. Now our leader, Jomo, tries to fight for us. But he is taken by the white man and tried under his laws. Of course he cannot win . . .'

And Njeri began to cry. Njoroge had never heard her speak for such a long time.

The n Boro said, 'White people stand together and this makes them  strong.   But  we  black  people  are  divided  against  each

50

Everyone is Afraid

other.  Now Jomo  is  in prison,  we  will become  the  white  men's slaves. They made us fight in their wars. They took away our traditions

Boro stood up and his voice became a shout.

'We must never give in. Never! Never! Black people must rise up and fight!'

Njoroge's eyes opened wide. Njeri turned her eyes towards the door in fear. Kenya was now a land where everyone was afraid.

51

'There's no Safe Place'

9

'There's no Safe Place'

M

5

r  Howlands,  the  District  Officer,  sat  alone  in  his  office. It  was  a  small,  square  building  with  a  red  roof.  It  was surrounded by the buildings and huts of the police garrison . All

around was a fence of barbed wire.

He had only agreed to become District Officer to protect his land from Mau Mau. They wanted to drive him away, back to England. But who were they? Savages. Just black savages.

Before the strike, Mr Howlands had not really thought about the  black workers  on  his  land.  He  had  not  thought  about  their needs or their wants.  But now he was willing to fight like a lion for what belonged to him.

Mr Howlands was  waiting for Jacobo. Jacobo was  the  Chief, but  a  savage  like  the  rest  of  them!   Mr  Howlands  was  using Jacobo  to  make  trouble  between  the  blacks.  That  would  stop them fighting the white man!

There was a knock on the door and Jacobo came in. He took off his hat and smiled in the way Mr Howlands hated.

'Sit down, Jacobo. Why did you want to see me? I haven't got long. What's the matter?'

'Well,  sir.  It's  this  man,  Ngotho,  sir.  He's  a  bad  man.  A

terrible man. He has taken many oaths. And he led the strike.'

'I know all this,' Mr Howlands said. 'What has he done now?'

'This  man,  Ngotho,  has  sons.  They have  come  back  to  the village. They are planning trouble — big trouble - especially the son, Boro. We should send them all to a detention camp . The n we  could  watch Ngotho  more  closely.  I  feel  sure he  is  the  real leader of Mau Mau.'

'All  right,'  Mr  Howlands  answered.  'Arres t  the  sons  for breaking curfew^2  or anything. The n put them in a camp.'

52

'Thank  you,  sir,  thank  you.  I  think  this  Mau  Mau  will  be beaten.'

Mr  Howlands  did  not  answer.  Whe n  Jacobo  had  gone,  Mr Howlands stood by the window thinking. He had never forgotten what Ngotho had done.

A few nights later, Ngotho and his family were sitting in Nyokabi's hut. Kamau never slept at home now. Boro might be coming later. But he and Kori had their beds in Njeri's hut, a few yards away.

They  sat   in  darkness.  Whe n  they  spoke,   they  spoke  in whispers, but no one had much to say. They knew that the dark night would be long.

It was too late for Boro to come now. The curfew had begun. Njeri and Kori stood up quietly. They went out without saying goodbye. No one said goodbye nowadays in case it was for the last time. They were afraid that they might never meet again.

'Halt!' The terrible shout rang through the night. Njoroge trembled with fear. Ngotho stood up,  went to the door and then walked back to his place. After a while, Nyokabi came in, crying bitterly.

'They have taken them away!' she cried.

Ngotho  rushed  to  the  door,  but  it  was  too  late.  What  a coward!  He had watched his wife and son being taken away and done nothing!  He  came back from the  door,  blaming himself for being a coward.

'Jacobo has done this,' Ngotho said at last. He wants to ruin me — to destroy this family. And he will do it.'

At that moment, Boro came in.  He could see that something was wrong.

'They  have  taken  your  mother  and  brother  away,'  Ngotho told  him,  holding his  head  in  shame.  'They  were  out  after  the curfew.'

53

'There's no Safe Place'

'Curfew . .  . curfew . . .' Boro repeated. An d turning towards

Ngotho he said, 'And you did nothing?'

'Listen, my son . . .' Ngotho began.

Boro turned and went out. They would not see his face again for a long time.

Njeri was tried and fined for breaking the curfew. But Kori was sent to a detention camp without trial. Jacobo had not caught Ngotho, but he was willing to wait.

Now Ngotho's home was a home no longer. No stories were told there.   No   young   people   from   the   village   met   there.   Only Njoroge  still  had  faith  in  his  father.   An d  the  more   terrible conditions became,  the  more Njoroge believed  in his  education. Only education could save them now. On e day he would use his learning to fight the white man. He would continue the work his father had  started.  Njoroge  even dreamt  that  one  day he  would save his country - God's country - Kenya.

But many things still puzzled him.

'This morning,' Njoroge told his mother, 'a letter was fixed to the wall of our school. It told the headmaster to close the school. If he  didn't,  forty boys  would have  their heads  cut  off.  Kimathi signed it.'

'Then you must stay at home,'  his  mother said.  'Your life  is more important than education.'

'I  thought  Mau  Mau  was  on  the  side  of the  black  people,' Njoroge said.

'Hush,' Nyokabi whispered. 'Don't say that name!' But Kamau told Njoroge to go back to school.

'Do  you  think  you  are  safer  at  home?'  Kamau  asked.  No . There's no safe place and no hiding-place in this land.'

So Njoroge did not leave school.  But,  like everyone else, he lived in fear.  He was  almost a young man now and  things  were becoming  clearer  in  his  mind.  He  was  beginning  to  understand what had happened to his country.

Kamau was now the only brother still at home.  He paid the

55

'There's no Safe Place'

cost  of Njoroge's  circumcision when  the  time  came.  He  bought food and clothes and paid Njoroge's school fees.

So  Njoroge  still  felt  he  had  a  family  -  he  had  a  father,  a brother and two mothers. In another year, he would take the examination to  enter secondary school.  So  he  read  and  worked harder than ever.

56

10

Mwihaki

joroge had not seen Mwihaki since she went to the boarding school.  He  did  not want  to  see  her.  How  could  he  be  her

N

friend when his father and her father were enemies?

But there were times when he longed to see   and speak to her. He remembered her soft hands and clear eyes.

One  Saturday, Njoroge went to  the  African shops  to  see  his brother, Kamau.

'Is it well with you, brother?'

'It is well. How is home?'

'Everything  is  well  at  home,'  replied Njoroge.  'But you  look worried, brother. What's the matter?'

'Haven't  you  heard,  Njoroge?  Six  men  of  the  village  were taken from their houses three nights  ago.  They have been found dead  in  the  forest.  You  know  all  of  them.  One  of  them  was Nganga.'

'Nganga! On whose land we have built our huts?'

'Yes.'

Njoroge could not believe he would never see the men again. Wh o  had  killed  them?  Th e  white  men  or  Mau  Mau?  Njoroge thought of Boro who was fighting in the forest. The thought frightened him.

A few days  later, on his way home from the market, Njoroge heard someone call his name. Mwihaki was coming towards him. She was tall and graceful. Her soft, dark eyes were full of life.

She  saw  a  tall,  strong  young  man  with  a  handsome  face- attractive and mysterious.

'You have changed much,' Njoroge said.

'Have I? So have you. Much has happened since we last met.' They tried to talk, but they could find little to say.

57

Mwihaki

'I  hope  you  enjoy  your  holidays,'  Njoroge  said,  starting  to move away. 'I must go now.'

At  first  Mwihaki  did  not  answer  and  then  she  said,  'I'm  so lonely here. No one wants to talk to me.'

Njoroge's  heart  began  to  beat  hard.  And  then,  suddenly,  he said, 'Let's meet on Sunday in church. Let's go there together. As we used to do.'

'All right. I shall be waiting for you. Go in peace.'

Whe n Mwihaki was walking away, Njoroge nearly called her back.  He  felt  that  they  should  not  meet.   How  could  he  be friends   with  Jacobo's   daughter?  But   on   Sunday,   he   put   on his best clothes, clean and well pressed. He was afraid, but he remembered Mwihaki's words, 'I'm so lonely here.'

Mwihaki  looked  very  pretty  in  her  white  blouse  and  brown skirt. Her black hair was shining and beautiful.

She felt that the  trouble between Ngotho  and her father had nothing to do with her feelings for Njoroge. She had heard about Mau  Mau.  But  she  did  not  think  anyone  in  the  village  was  a member of Mau Mau.

The  preacher  spoke  and  he  gave  no  comfort  to  the  people. This was a time of fighting and sorrow, as the Bible told them. He could not tell them what to do.

The two young people went home along the path they used to walk  together.  Whe n  they were  near  Mwihaki's  home,  she  said,

'Let's go in.'

Njoroge started to refuse and Mwihaki looked sad.

'I know why you don't want to come inside, but please . . .' They went in together. Njoroge hoped that he would not meet

Jacobo, but then he saw the Chief in front of him.

Njoroge sat quietly, looking at the family photographs on the walls. Jacobo  and his  homeguards   sat down too. Jacobo  looked tired and his face was older. He asked Njoroge about his education and said, 'I hope you do well. It is boys like you who must work hard and rebuild the country.'

58

Mwihaki

Njoroge,  in  a  moment  of  joy,   saw  himself  rebuilding  the whole  country. The n he saw the homeguards staring at him.  He remembered the village men who had died.

Later, Njoroge and Mwihaki sat together on the hill near their homes.

'When the preacher spoke about the end of the world, I was

afraid,'  Mwihaki said  quietly.  'It  is very hard  to  think of all  this country being destroyed.'

'That's what the Bible says,' Njoroge said.

'And all this trouble in our country. Do you think Jesus knew it would happen? If he did, he could have stopped it.'

'Everything will be  all right  in  the  end,'  Njoroge  said  softly.

'God will help us.'

'The  thing  that  worries  me  most  is  how  my  father  has changed,'  Mwihaki  said.  'He  never  talks  to  me  now.  And  the guns he carries make me  afraid of him.  People don't talk to me, you know,  even girls of my age.  It  is,  oh  .  .  .'  and to Njoroge's horror, Mwihaki burst into tears.

Njoroge  looked  away  down  towards  the  plain  below  them. Would he really be able to help his country?

'You know,  I  think the people have sinned.  If one man sins, God punishes  all.'  Then,  looking  at  Mwihaki, Njoroge  went  on firmly, 'Peace shall come to this land.'

'Oh, Njoroge, do you really think so?'

'Yes. Sunshine always follows a dark night .' Mwihaki opened her eyes wide.

'Shall we  go  away from here  and  come back when  the  dark night is over?'

'But . . .'

'It is a good idea, isn't it?'

'No , no,' said Njoroge. 'How could we leave our parents? And where would we go and what could we eat?'

Mwihaki laughed, 'I was only joking.'

Njoroge felt he would never understand this girl.

59

Mwihaki

'Of course. I knew you were joking,' said Njoroge.

'When  I  come  back  from  school,  you  will  be  my  friend, won't you?'

Njoroge smiled at the girl who was like a sister to him.

'When you come back, I shall be with you. That is a promise. And remember, the sun will rise tomorrow .

They  walked  back  down  the  hill  together  before  the  dark night  came.  The  boy  and  the  girl  went  forward,  thinking  their own  thoughts.  For  a  time,  they  forgot  about  the  darkness  over their land.

60

11

'Will There Ever be Freedom?'

r  Rowlands  was  very  pleased.  His  plans  were  working. Blacks  were  destroying  blacks.  Let  them!   Wha t  did  he

M

care? Mr Howlands was enjoying his work and for a while he had forgotten about farming.

Mr Howlands looked up from his desk at Chief Jacobo. More than ever, he wanted to kick him.  But the time for that had not yet come.

'Are  you  sure  it's  Boro  who  is  the  leader  of the  gang?'  Mr

Howlands asked.

'I'm not sure, but the man is dangerous, as you know. I think he sometimes comes home. Even if he doesn't, Ngotho must know where he is hiding.'

'Then go on watching Ngotho and tell me what he does.'

Mr Howlands knew that one  day Ngotho would be  arrested. Whe n that happened, his work would be over. He would go back to the farm.

Jacobo took a piece of paper from his pocket. He held it out for

Mr Howlands to read.

Stop - or we will have your head. This is our last warning.

'You  fool,'  he  said  to  Jacobo.  'Have  you  received  messages before and not told me?'

'Yes - two. But . . .'

'Are they from Ngotho?'

'They must be. A few months ago, his youngest son was at my house - with my daughter . . .'

Mr Howlands did not understand.

'All right,' he said quickly.  'Leave this paper with me. Never

I go out without a guard. Watch Ngotho. New huts are being built

'Will There Ever be Freedom?'

here in the garrison. Whe n they are finished, you can move into the compound with your family.'

Boro now lived in the forest as a leader of the Freedom Fighters. Boro was daring and brave because he did not care what happened to  him.  He  believed  in  nothing  except  revenge .  He  no  longer thought about the land his family had lost. Too many of his loved ones had died.

Whe n  Boro's  lieutenant^2   spoke  of  Freedom,  Boro  answered

bitterly, 'Freedom? Will there ever be Freedom for you and me?'

'Why do we fight then, if not for Freedom?'

'To  kill.  It's  kill  or  be  killed.  We  kill,  the  white  man  kills. Fighting is the only way.'

'But  surely  we  are  fighting  for  a  cause^2.  And  our  cause  is

Freedom.'

'Maybe.  But Freedom can't bring back my brother.  So  I  kill and rejoice when I kill. Chief Jacobo will be next. He must die. He has ignored the warnings we sent him.'

'And Mr Howlands? Wha t about him?'

'Yes,  he  is  a  dangerous  man.  He  will  die  too,  but  not  yet. Jacobo must be shot first.'

'Who's going to do it?'

'I  will,'  Boro  said  quietly.  'I  must.  This  is  revenge  for  my family.'

Throughout the troubled time, the people still believed in education.  Boro,  Ngotho  and  even  Jacobo  -  they  all  believed in education.

6_3

-

'Will There Ever be Freedom?'

Whe n Njoroge passed his  examinations for High School,  the news went quickly from hill to hill. Many people gave him money to help him to continue his studies. He was not only Ngotho's son, but the son of the land.

Before he went to Siriana Secondary School, Njoroge saw Mwihaki  again.  They had  not  met for  a  year,  but  Mwihaki had changed very little.

'When people  go  away,  they  sometimes forget  their friends,' Mwihaki said to Njoroge.

'Do they?'

'Yes.  But  what  are  you  going  to  do  with your  life,  Njoroge? One day you will be an important man.'

'I don't know. Maybe I'll go to Britain or America. It doesn't matter.'

Njoroge  glanced  at  Mwihaki  who  was  looking  down  at  the ground sadly. Was she jealous of his success?

'Our  country  needs  us  all,'  Njoroge  said.  'It  needs  me.  It needs  you.  Whe n  this  trouble  is  over,  we  must  all  get  together to rebuild the country. Your father told me that and I have never forgotten it.'

'But the country is so dark now,' Mwihaki whispered.  'There is fear in the air. No t fear of death, but fear of living.'

'The sun will rise tomorrow,' Njoroge replied.

'Tomorrow, tomorrow! What is "tomorrow" - what is "the country" - what does it all mean to you?'

Njoroge saw the  anger in Mwihaki's eyes and he was  a little afraid.

'Don't be angry, Mwihaki,' he said. 'We must have hope. Bloodshed and death will not go on for ever. Think of the future

- of that sweet, sunny day when, with God's help, we can all live freely again.'

Mwihaki was quiet now.

'Come,' Njoroge said.  'The  sun  is  going  down.  We  must go home.'

'Will There Ever be Freedom?'

Whe n  they parted, Njoroge  said,  'Thank you,  Mwihaki.  You have been like a sister to me.'

She  watched  him  go.  The n  she  wiped  away  her  tears  and

turned towards her home. She ran back - faster and faster . . .

64                                                                                                                                                                                                                             65

The House of Pain

12

The House of Pain

iriana  Secondary  School  was  one  of the  best  schools  in  the country. For the first time, Njoroge was taught by white men.

S

They were friendly and helpful and at first this confused him.

The  school  was  a  place  of  peace.  Boys  from  many  tribes became   friends   and  worked   together.   Njoroge   worked  hard. His  trust  in  God  grew  stronger  every  day.  The  school  often played  games  with  boys  from  other  schools.  One  day,  the  Hill School, which was for European boys, sent a football team to play a match.

One  of  the  boys  was  tall,  with  long,  brown  hair.  Njoroge was  sure  he  had  seen  him  before,  near  home.  The  boy  looked at Njoroge and said, 'I remember you. You are the son of Ngotho who . . .' The boy stopped and then added, 'My name is Stephen

- Stephen Howlands.'

'I am Njoroge.'

They walked together in silence. The n Njoroge said, 'I used to see you when we were little boys. I was afraid of you then.'

Stephen smiled.

'Yes,  I  was  afraid of you too.  People fear each other because they have been taught to fear each other. That's bad, but we can't get away from it.'

'The  land  is dark now,' Njoroge said.  'But the future will be different.'

'I'm  going  away  soon,'   Stephen  went  on.   'I'm  going  to

England.'

'Of course, England's your home.'

'No  it  isn't,'  Stephen  answered  quickly.  'I  was  born  here. I  have  never  been  to  England  and  I  don't  want  to  go  there now.'

66

Njoroge  felt  sorry  for  the  white  boy.  At  least  he,  Njoroge, could stay in Kenya. Tha t was his home.

'Father is  staying here,'  Stephen added.  'But somehow I  feel

I'll never come back. I'll never see my father again.'

The boys stood in silence. Njoroge did not want to think about

Mr Howlands.

'Let's  watch  the  game,' Njoroge  said  at  last.  But  when  they reached the football field, the two boys walked off in different directions. Once more, they seemed afraid to talk to each other.

One cold morning, in Njoroge's third term at Siriana, he got up as usual and said his prayers. His first class was English. He felt very happy and laughed and talked with his friends.

'My mother tells me that a man should not be too happy in the morning,' one boy said. 'It's a bad omen. Something bad is sure to happen.'

Njoroge did not want to believe this. But he had been having bad dreams all the week. He decided he would write to Mwihaki that night.

The n the lesson began and Njoroge forgot his troubles. He was answering  a  question  when  the  headmaster  came  in  and  called him out of the class.

Njoroge's heart began to beat fast. He saw a black police car. Two police officers were standing in the headmaster's room. The headmaster made them wait outside his room and told Njoroge to sit down.

'I'm sorry to hear this news about your family,' the headmaster

said. 'It's a bad business and you are wanted at home. Remember that whatever your family has made you do,  God will  look after you. I know you will not forget our teaching.'

Njoroge went  to  the police  car,  confused  and  unhappy.  The police did not take him home, but to the homeguard post   known as the House of Pain.

67

The House of Pain

The House of Pain

Th e  following  day,   he  was  questioned  by  two  European officers.

'What's your name? . . . How old are you?'

'Have you taken the Oath?'

'No!'

'Say "sir",' shouted one of the guards.

'No, sir.'

'How many oaths have you taken?'

'None, sir.'

'How many oaths have you taken?'

One of the men moved swiftly. He hit Njoroge hard and for a

too.

This  time,  Mr  Howlands  was  there  and  he  asked  questions

'Tell the truth. If you tell the truth, we will let you go.' But still Njoroge whispered, No . . .'

'Who murdered Jacobo?' Njoroge began to shake.

'Jacobo murdered? By whom?'

'You tell us that,' Mr Howlands said.

'Me, sir? But . . .'

'Yes, you tell us.'

Mr  Howlands  moved  nearer  to  Njoroge.  He  had  a  pair  of

moment everything went dark.

'Have you taken the Oath?'

'No oaths, sir, none. I am a schoolboy.'

Another blow and another. Tears rolled down Njoroge's face. He  remembered  the  peace  and  calm  of the  school.  It  was  lost for ever.

'Do you know Boro?'

'He's my brother . . .'

'Where is he?'

'I . . . don't . . . know . . .'

The officer hit him again. The n Njoroge was on the floor.

'Bloody Mau Mau!' one of the men shouted.

'Take him out!'

Njoroge was  carried out by the  two homeguards at the door. He was senseless. He was covered with blood where heavy boots had kicked him.

He  woke  up  in  the  middle  of  the  night.  A  woman  was screaming in another hut. Could it be Njeri or Nyokabi?

Njoroge was  taken back to the room the next day.  His body was bruised and covered with blood.

'Have you taken the Oath?' the men asked.

Njoroge did not know what to say. If he told a lie, would they stop hitting him?

pincers   in his hand.

'I'll show you,' he said. 'You'll be castrated^5, like your father.'

Mr Howlands began to press with the pincers and Njoroge screamed with pain.

'Tell  us.  Wh o  told  you  to  go  to  Jacobo's  house  to  get information?'

But  Njoroge  could  not  hear.  Th e  pain  was  so  bad.  Mr

Howlands went on asking his questions and every time he pressed harder with the pincers.

'Your father says he murdered Jacobo.'        •

Njoroge screamed and screamed. The n suddenly he fell to the ground.

Mr  Howlands  looked  down  at  the  boy  he  had  tortured.  As

he  walked  out,  the  two  white  officers  looked  at  each  other  and laughed aloud. Njoroge was not hurt again. In a few days, he was well. The n he and his two mothers were allowed to go home.

Now Njoroge's mind was full of   fear   His family was breaking up  and he could not stop it.  He thought of Mwihaki and he felt guilty. He was to blame. He felt that he had caused all this trouble by  being  her  friend.  Njoroge  hated  the  dead  chief Jacobo  even more. He cried with fear, but he did not pray.

70                                                                                                                                                    71

Two Deaths

13

Two Deaths

gotho was kept in the homeguard post in a small hut without light. He did not know if it was day or night. To him, night

N

and day were the same. He was in terrible pain. He was not able to sleep. He felt that he had failed his children and failed himself.

But, in spite of the pain, Ngotho was not sorry that Jacobo was dead.  Two  days  after Jacobo  had  been  killed,  Kamau  had  been arrested for the  murder.  For  a  day  and  a half,  Ngotho hesitated. He was not able to make up his mind. Then he walked into Mr Howlands'  office  and  told  him  that  he  had  killed  Jacobo.  The whole village had been shocked.

Ngotho  was  tortured  for  many  days,  but  he  did  not  change his story.

Mr Howlands was now nearly mad with hatred. Even the homeguards  were  afraid  to  watch  him  questioning Ngotho.  But Mr Howlands got nothing more from him. All Ngotho would say was that he had killed Jacobo.

Njoroge never forgot  the  day his  father came  home.  Ngotho was unable to walk and his face was covered with cuts and bruises. For four days, his eyes and mouth never opened.

His  wives,  Nyokabi  and  Njeri,  wept  to  see   their  broken husband.  At  last,  he  opened  his  eyes  and  looked  around  the hut.  Tears  covered his  face.  Whe n he  saw Njoroge, he  struggled to speak.

'You are here . . .'

'Yes, Father.'

'Why are you not at school? Have you come to laugh at your own father?'

No ,  Father,  no.  You have  given  us  everything.  What  could we do without you?'

72

Ngotho went on talking, but his thoughts were confused.

'Did I shoot him? I don't know. But I wanted him dead. Th e white  men  want  my  sons,  they  want  young  blood.  They  took Mwangi in the Big War. Now they've taken Kamau.  And where are my other sons? Only you are here. Get back to school! Learn everything, then they can't hurt you.'

'Who's that at the door? Ah!  It's Mr Howlands .. . he wants my heart . . . Boro — Boro went away. He knew! I've been a useless father.'

The n  suddenly,  Boro was  in  the hut.  His hair was  long and untidy. He knelt by his father's bed.

'Forgive me, Father,' Boro said. 'I didn't know.'

'So you've come back to  laugh at me too.  But I  only meant good for you all. Stay with me now . . .'

'But I have to fight,' Boro said. 'I must go on fighting. I can't stay here. I can't!'

For a moment, Ngotho spoke more clearly.

'You must stay,' he said firmly.

'No, Father. But forgive me before I go.'

With  a  great  effort,  Ngotho  sat  up  and  put  his  hand  on

Boro's head.

'All right. Fight well. Peace to you all. And you, Njoroge, look after your mo . . .'

Ngotho fell back onto the bed. Boro stood up.

'I should have come before,' he whispered. Then, with one last look round the hut, he ran out into the night.

They turned back to Ngotho.  But he  too had gone, never to return.

Tha t same night, Mr Howlands was sitting in his office, waiting to go out on night patrol . He enjoyed these patrols. They gave him a feeling of power and strength.

73

Two Deaths

Mr Howlands looked at his watch. The policemen who were to go with him would soon arrive. Mr Howlands had forgotten to lock the  office door.  It opened and he  looked round. A gun was pointing at his head.

'You move and you are dead. Now put up your hands. I killed

Jacobo,' Boro said.

'I know.'

'Jacobo  betrayed  black  people  and  helped  you  to  kill  them. You raped our women. You killed my father. You took our land.'

'This is my land,' Mr Howlands replied.

'Your land? Then, you white dog, you'll die on your land.'

Boro  fired  once  and  Mr  Howlands  fell  to  the  ground.  Boro rushed out into the compound, firing at the police who were all round him. Escape was impossible, but Boro was full of joy.

'He's  dead,'  he  told  them.   'The  white  men  taught  me  to shoot well.'

75

His Last Hope . . .

N

joroge  had  to  leave  school.  Money  was  badly  needed  at home  and  he  had  to  work.  He  found  a  job  in  one  of the Indian shops in Kippanga. But he could not do the work properly. His life was one long bad dream. His brothers, Boro and Kamau,

were both in prison, accused of murdering Mr Howlands.

Whe n  little  children  came  into  the  shop  with  their  happy, hopeful faces,  Njoroge  thought  of his  own  happy  childhood.  He thought of his education which would never be completed.

Njoroge now moved and spoke like an old man. His staring, unhappy  eyes  frightened  the  children.  After  less  than  a  month, he was dismissed from his job. As he walked home to Njeri and Nyokabi, he thought only of Mwihaki. He knew he had to see and speak to her.

Mwihaki had heard about her father's death while she was at school. She had come home at once, crying as never before^3.

Njoroge sent her  a note,  but she  decided that she  could not meet him. She felt she would be betraying her dead father.

But the n she remembered Njoroge's words:  'The sun will rise tomorrow.' She agreed to see Njoroge.

It was late in the afternoon when they met. Whe n Njoroge saw Mwihaki, he knew what she meant to him. She meant more to him than anything else in the world.

'I have come,' were Mwihaki's first words.  'Tell me what you want to say.' And she turned away her face so that Njoroge did not see her tears.

'Mwihaki,' he said. 'I have lost everything - my education, my faith and my family. You have always meant so much to me. I feel guilty. I feel I am to blame for what my people have done to you. I wanted to meet you and say that I am sorry.'

76

His Last Hope

'You didn't warn me that my father was in danger.'

'I knew nothing. And now I know there will be no tomorrow^3. You are my only hope - I love you.  But you have good reason to feel only hate for me.'

He took her hand and now her tears flowed freely.

'Don't, don't . . .' said Mwihaki.

'Mwihaki, I love you. Save me. Without you I am lost. Let us go away from here - together!'

'No,  no.  You  must  save  me.  We  cannot  go  away  now.  We must stay to build our country.'

'But we must go. Kenya is no place for us.'

'We  are no longer children. We must wait. Th e sun will rise tomorrow,' Mwihaki told him.

'All that was a dream,' he said. 'We can only live today.'

'But we both have our duty,' Mwihaki said. 'I cannot leave my mother. Let's wait for a new day.'

Mwihaki had won. She walked away. Njoroge's last hope had gone. He fell to the ground crying, 'Mwihaki, Mwihaki!'

On  the  following  Sunday,  Njoroge  walked  out  alone  into  the fields.  Nyokabi watched  him leave  the hut.  She  wanted  to  stop him. She wanted to speak to him. But neither she nor Njeri knew what to say to him.

Njoroge  walked  in  a  dream  -  a  dream  of fear  and  sadness. He  thought  of his  dead  father.  He  thought  of Boro,  waiting  to die.  Kamau was  in prison for life  and Kori was  somewhere in a detention camp.

Oh, God! But there was no God now, there was nothing. Even his love, his last hope had left him.

Njoroge walked on, listening to the voice inside his head. Go on. Go on.

And then, Wait for the night . . .

He  had  reached  the  place  where  he  had  said  goodbye  to

78

His  Last Hope...

Mwihaki. He took the rope out of his pocket and laughed quietly. He waited for the darkness.

. . . And now night covered him.

The rope was ready, hanging from the tree. As he took it in his hands, he heard a cry, 'Njoroge!'

Njoroge   only   laughed   and   prepared  himself  for  what  he

had to do.

Njoroge!'

The  voice  was  clear.  Njoroge's heart beat faster.  His  mother was looking for him.  He  stood there for a moment and then his courage left him. He heard the loved voice again and now he could see a light. His mother came towards him, carrying a burning piece of wood to light the way.

'Mother, I am here.'

Njoroge.' She held him close. 'Let's go home,' she said.

Njoroge  followed  her.  He  remembered  the  last  words  of his father - his father had asked him to look after the women.

He remembered Mwihaki's words. She had asked him to wait for a new day, but he had not.

They met Njeri who had also come to find him, in spite of the curfew laws. Njoroge heard the voice in his head again.

You are a coward. You have always been a coward. Why didn't you do it?

And Njoroge repeated aloud, 'Why didn't I do it?' The voice answered: Because you are a coward.

Yes, he whispered to himself. I am a coward.

And he ran home and opened the door for his two mothers.

79

Glossary

SECTIO N  1

Terms to do with light and darkness

Th e author uses ideas of light and darkness throughout the story. Light is used to suggest hope, freedom and a happy future. Darkness is used to suggest despair, imprisonment and a miserable future.

home - bring light to our home (page 26)

Ngotho believes tha t an educated person will bring wealth and

happiness to the family.

Kenya - Education is the light of Kenya (page 26)

this comes from a speech by Jomo Kenyatta. Jomo Kenyatta

believed tha t Kenya's future success depended on education.

mind - was like a bright light in Njoroge's mind (page 13)

Njoroge thought tha t education would bring success and happiness

in the future. This hope of Njoroge's is described as 'a bright light'

in his mind.

night - sunshine always follows a dark night (page 59)

night is seen as a time of despair and sorrow. But when th e sun rises

and brings a new day, it also brings with it hope for a better future.

tomorrow - the sun will rise tomorrow (page 60)

see night above.

SECTIO N  2

Terms  to  do  with political systems  and government

Th e background to the political system in Kenya is explained in the note on the historical background on page 5.

Army - African Freedom Army  (page 47)

see th e not e on th e historical background on page 5.

camp - detention camp (page 52)

Kenyans who fought against British rule were arrested by th e police and kept prisoner in a detention camp.

87

case - win his case (page 48)

Kenyans believed that Jomo Kenyatta would win the fight for Kenya to gain independence from Britain. A case is a matter taken to a court for its decision. To win a case is to prove that you are right.

cause -fighting for a cause  (page 63)

to fight for a cause is to fight for something you believe to be right and just.

crop - cash crop (page 17)

a crop grown by a farmer which can easily be sold for a good price in the market. Th e main cash crops of Kenya are coffee and tea.

curfew - breaking curfew (page 52)

a curfew is a law which says tha t every person must be indoors by a certain time. Any one found on the street after tha t time can be arrested and taken to prison.

custom - against the custom (page 42)

a custom is th e way something is done over a long period of time. Against the custom means doing something in a very different way.

Empire - British Empire (page 38)

until the Second World War, Britain ruled a great number of countries. All these countries were part of the British Empire. Kenya was in the British Empire until the Second World War. It was a British colony until it became independent in 1963. It was ruled by white men from England. Africans did not govern their own country at this time.

Forest - Freedom Boys of the Forest (page 47)

an organization also called 'Mau Mau' or 'Keny a Land and Freedom

Army'. See th e note on th e historical background on page 5.

homeguard  (page  58)

the homeguard were Kenyans employed by th e British as policemen They were used by the British to arrest other Kenyans. Th e homeguard were hated by th e Kenyans and were looked on as traitors because they were fighting against their own people. See traitors below.

K.A.U .  (page 50)

Kenyan African Unio n - see the not e on the historical background on page 5.

Kenyatta -Jomo Kenyatta  (page  26)

see the not e on the historical background on page 5.

88

lieutenant  (page  63)

a junior officer in an army.

Mau Mau (page 48)

see th e not e on th e historical background on page 5.

Oath - taking oath (page 48)

see th e not e on the historical background on page 5.

Officer - District Officer (page 47)

a British official who had full powers to rule over th e part of the country he lived in.

patrol - night patrol (page 73)

policemen who go out together at night looking for Mau Mau or for anyone caught breaking th e curfew. See curfew above.

post - homeguard post (page 67)

a building which the homeguard used as a headquarters and as a prison. Prisoners were often tortured in th e homeguard posts. See homeguard above.

settler - white settler (page 21)

the climate in Kenya, especially in th e Whit e Highlands is very pleasant. After the Second World War, many British people came to live in Kenya and th e colonial government gave them land where they could build houses and make farms. Th e best land was taken from th e Kenyans who owned it and given to th e white settlers.

taxes (page 38)

money paid by th e people to th e government. Th e government uses th e money to run th e country.

traitor  (page 39)

a traitor is someone who works against his or her own people. See

homeguard above.

unemployment  (page  33)

a time when people cannot find any work.

SECTIO N  3

Unusual  negative  forms

Th e negative in English is usually formed by 'not' or 'never' with the verb - e.g. 'Jomo Kenyatta was never a member of Mau Mau.' But there are other ways of forming th e negative. These other forms are often

used to give greater emphasis.

8 9

before - crying as never before (page 76)

can also be expressed as 'she cried as she had never cried before'.

calico - nothing but a piece of calico (page 13)

can also be expressed as 'he was not wearing anything except a piece of calico'.

first - not all of it at first (page 14)

can also be expressed as 'A t first, they did not take all th e land.'

lifetime - 'Perhaps not in my lifetime'  (page 15)

can also be expressed as 'Perhaps th e day will not come until after I

am dead.'

tomorrow - no  tomorrow (page 78)

can also be expressed as 'Tomorrow will not come.'

SECTIO N  4

Terms  to do with emotions

Th e story is set in Kenya at a time of fierce struggle when people felt very strong emotions. Th e Kenyans wanted freedom from colonial rule. Th e British - especially th e white settlers - did not want to lose

control of th e land they were living in. Many different emotions are written about in the story: bitter anger, despair, joy and hope. Some of these expressions are listed below.

anger - bitter anger (page 15) fear -full of fear  (page  71) hate  -full of hate  (page  27)

hope -filled with hope (page 24)

joy -filled with joy  (page 27)

SECTIO N  5

General

bewitch (page 35)

to bewitch someone is to use magic to put a spell on a person so tha t they behave in a strange way.

blame  (page 27)

to blame someone is to say that they are responsible for something bad which has happened.

boy (page 21)

th e name used by whites when talking to African servants.

9 0

Bwana  (page  21)

an African word meaning 'boss' or 'master'.

castrated  (page  71)

to castrate is to remove the sexual organs of a man or male animal.

circumcision  (page  56)

circumcision is an operation to remove a piece of skin from th e end of a man's sexual organ. This operation is often done for religious reasons. Njoroge was circumcised to show he had grown from a boy into a man.

comfort  (page 35)

to make someone feel better or happier by holding them in your arms.

coward  (page  21)

someone who is afraid to do what they believe ought to be done.

disillusioned  (page  43)

you become disillusioned when you are not able to believe tha t there is any hope for a better future.

farms  (page 15)

to farm is to work the land and grow crops.

garrison  (page 52)

a building where soldiers live. Usually a garrison is a strong building which can easily be defended by the soldiers.

God - chosen people of God (page 32)

in th e Bible, th e Jews believed that they were the chosen people of God. They believed tha t God had sent them Moses to lead them out of slavery to th e Promised Land. Many Kenyans believed that Jomo Kenyatta was like Moses and that he would lead th e Kenyans out of th e slavery of colonial rule.

harsh (page 20)

cruel.

heart  (page 32)

Njoroge had many thoughts in his mind, but he was no t able to tell anyone what he was thinking.

hour - hero of the hour (page 39)

a hero for a very short time . After th e excitement was over, th e villagers realized that what Ngoth o had done was wrong and foolish.

mind - make up his mind (page 34) changed his mind (page 35)

to make up your mind is to make a decision to do something. To change your mind is to decide to do something else.

9 1

missionary  (page  24)

a missionary is someone who goes to a foreign land to tell people about his or her religion. There were many Christian missionaries in Kenya during the British colonial rule. Many white settlers believed that white people were better tha n black people, but th e missionaries taught tha t all men were equal.

pincers  (page 71)

a metal tool usually used for holding and pulling nails, etc.

pyrethrum  (page  17)

a plant which is used to make medicine. Th e plant was valuable and was sold for cash. See cash crop in Section 2 above.

revenge  (page 63)

to do harm to someone who has done harm to you.

reward  (page 32)

the opposite of punish. Th e missionaries taught tha t God would punish bad people by sending them to hell and reward good people by accepting the m into heaven.

rumour  (page 47)

a story which people tell each other. A rumour goes quickly from one person to another and it may be true or untrue.

see - long to see (page 57)

to have a great wish to see someone.

shame - bring shame on us (page 13)

if you do something wrong and people hear about it, it brings shame on you and on your family.

strike  (page 28)

a time when workers will no t work because they want more money or are angry about something.

tear-gas  (page 39)

a gas which burns people's eyes and makes it difficult for the m to breathe. Tear-gas is often used by police to break up crowds in a riot.

tease  (page  17)

to make fun of someone.

trade  (page  13)

a trade is a job which requires skills with your hands, like a carpenter, a plumber, etc.

village - elders of the village (page 33)

th e wise, older men of th e village.

9 2