CHAPTER XXXIII
WHERE THE GOLD WENT
VAN DER WYCK with a fluent command of the Makoh'lenga tongue, figuratively had Umkomasi on toast. He handled the situation briskly and decisively, giving the Chief very little opening and dismissing the latter's arguments in a manner that left him powerless.
In vain Umkomasi protested that the sacred amulet, which he admitted having given to the Afrikander, had passed into unauthorised hands; that his captives had no right to be possessed of the swastika.
He had heard from native sources that two young white men were in the country with the mystic jewel in their possession, and he had taken prompt measures to secure both it and them.
"You must release them instantly, Umkomasi," demanded Van der Wyck.
"I dare not," replied the Chief. "They are dedicated to the Golden Lion. If the Golden Lion is deprived of his sacrifices he will be angry, and dire calamity will befall my people."
"It won't," rejoined the Afrikander. "My power is greater by far than that of the Golden Lion."
"It is easy to say so," remarked Umkomasi. "The Golden Lion weighs as much as, or more than, one hundred fat oxen----"
"And by my magic I can overthrow him," asserted Van der Wyck. "Without placing so much as a finger on the Golden Lion I can hurl him from his place. Umkomasi, is it not unwise to put your trust in a false idol and risk the certain vengeance of the Great White One when by placing your trust in the White Emperor beyond the seas you and your people will live in peace and thrive exceedingly?"
"If I could but believe in what you say," began the Chief, wistfully.
"Seeing is believing, O Umkomasi," interposed Van der Wyck. "Go outside, you and your petty chiefs, your servants and your torch-bearers. Wait without and see my magic eat up the Golden Lion. And, also," he added as an afterthought, "tell those priests--the rascals who move the paw and who sit within the idol and deceive your people--tell them to clear out as they value their hides. Quickly, for I'm in a hurry."
Knowing that Umkomasi would carry out his commands, Van der Wyck turned his back upon the Chief, set his haversack on the ground, and assisted Colin to carry the still unconscious Tiny into the open-air.
Quickly the Chief and his assistants followed, while the armed ranks of the Makoh'lenga looked on in awe-struck silence.
"Remain here, Umkomasi," commanded the Afrikander. "Remain here, lest death overtake you."
With that Van der Wyck re-entered the cave, leaving the nearest Makoh'lenga a good hundred yards from the mouth of the gloomy and horrible abode of the Golden Lion.
In less than five minutes he reappeared, limping briskly to the spot where Umkomasi stood.
"Have you overthrown the Golden Lion, O Great One?" enquired the Chief. "You have brought me no proof that you have done so, neither do you look as if you had been exerting much strength."
"I have not laid a finger upon the Golden Lion, O Umkomasi," declared the Afrikander. "But I have cast my spells upon him, and lo! he will be utterly destroyed."
Taking up his stand a couple of paces in front of the puzzled chief, Van der Wyck consulted his watch, utterly unconcerned by the fact that behind him were four thousand armed warriors, any of whom, at their Chief's bidding, would have hurled his spear with unerring aim into the middle of the Afrikander's broad back.
Suddenly a tremendous flash leapt from the mouth of the cave, followed by an enormous cloud of black smoke. A loud, ear-splitting detonation rent the air. The ground trembled with the vibrations of a stupendous explosion.
When the smoke cleared away, and the bright moonbeams lighted up the scene, the cave was no longer in existence. The mountain, shaken and torn by the detonation of sixty pounds of powerful explosive, had collapsed, entirely filling up the cave and the idol with thousands of tons of granite.
"That's done it," ejaculated Van der Wyck, turning to Colin. "There goes my chance of making a fortune. But it's jolly well worth it. Come along, we'll make tracks. I'll get these fellows to carry your chum. I've a dozen 'boys' waiting at the edge of the forest."