Elephant Song

by Wilbur Smith

  The great wars of this century had smashed the class system of inherited privilege and fortune, and ushered in this aberrant age of human rights, in which the common men of inferior races were taught that they were the equal of their betters. In Cheng's view, and that of his father, common men had no such divine rights, any more than the antelope in the wild deserved special protection from the lion.

  When the mass of humanity reached such proportions that human life was cheap, that was the age of opportunity for the great predators to emerge. Predators like Lucky Dragon. In Africa that time was fast approaching as populations swarmed like hiving bees.

  He thought about the little Cambodian boat girl, whose corpse now lay in the dark depths of the China Sea. There were millions and tens of millions more like her, in India and China and Africa and South America, for men like him.

  Cheng had recognized in the burgeoning populations of Africa a unique opportunity.

  That was the main reason that Lucky Dragon was drawn so irresistibly to this continent. That was why he was going now to a meeting with the president of this country which would soon be made to render up its wealth to him. He would suck the juice from it, throw away the empty skin, and pluck another from the tree. He smiled at the metaphor and raised his eyes to the green hill above the town on which Government House stood.

  President Ephrem Taffari had an honour guard in maroon uniforms and white sun-helmets drawn up to welcome him and a red carpet laid across the green lawn. He came down the to meet Ning Cheng Gong personally and to shake his hand. He led him up on to the wide verandah and seated him in one of the carved armchairs under the revolving fan that hung from the ceiling.

  An Uhali servant in ankle-length white robes, scarlet sash and to sselled fez offered him a silver tray of frosted glasses.

  Cheng refused the champagne and chose a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.

  Ephrem Taffari took the armchair opposite him and crossed one long leg clad in crisp white cotton trousers over the other.

  He smiled at Cheng with all his charm. I wanted our first meeting to be informal and relaxed he explained, and made a deprecatory gesture towards his own open-neck sports shirt and sandals. So you will excuse my casual attire and the fact that I have none of my ministers with me.

  'Of course, Your Excellency. Cheng sipped the orange juice. I am also delighted by this opportunity to get to know you and to be able to speak freely without the inhibition of having other people present.

  Sir Peter Harrison speaks very highly of you, Mr. Ning. He is a man whose opinion I value. I am sure that our relationship will be mutually rewarding. For another ten minutes they traded compliments and ploicstations of friendship and goodwill. Both of them were at ease with this flowery circumlocution; it was part of their separate cultures and they understood instinctively the moves and countermoves as they circled and closed in on the real business of their meeting.

  Finally Cheng took a sealed envelope from the inside pocket of his white silk tropical suit. It was a piece of expensive stationery, glossy and cream-coloured with a dragon motif embossed on the back flap. My father and I want you to believe, Mr. President, that our commitment to your country is unswerving. We would like you to accept this as an earnest token of our friendship and concern.

  Cheng made his offering seem like a free and unsolicited gift, whereas both of them were aware that it had been the subject of intense and protracted bargaining. There had been other bidders in the market, not least of them the Arab oil sheikh who had provided the gunboat and the presidential Mercedes.

  It had taken all Sir Peter Harrison's influence to secure the deal for the BOSS and Lucky Dragon syndicate.

  The envelope contained the second instalment due to Ephrem Taffari in his personal capacity. The first instalment had been paid over ten months previously, on signature of the original agreement.

  President Taffari picked up the envelope -and turned it over to examine the seal His fingers were long and elegantly shaped, and very dark against the stiff creamy paper.

  He split the corner of the envelope with his thumbnail and unfolded the two documents it contained. One was a deposit receipt to a numbered bank account in Switzerland. The amount of the deposit was ten million US dollars. The other was a share transfer document, notarised in Luxembourg. A total of thirty percent of the syndicate's share equity was now registered in the name of Ephrem Taffari. The syndicate's formally registered -name was The Ubomo Development Corporation.

  The president returned the documents to the open envelope -and slipped it into the pocket of his flowered sports shirt. Progress has not been as rapid as I had hoped, he said, his tone still courteous but underlaid with steel. I hope that will change with your arrival, Mr.

  Ning. I am aware of the delays. As you know, my field-manager has been in Kahali for the last week or so. He has given me a full report of the situation. I believe that some of the blame must attach to the previous management, put in place by BOSS.

  There has been some reluctance to exploit all the available assets.

  Cheng made a delicately pejorative gesture. Mr. Purvis of BOSS, who is now safely on his way back to London, was a sensitive man. You know how squeamish these Englishmen can be. My field-manager informs me that we are short of labour. I assure you, Mr. Ning, that you will have all the labour you require. Taffari's smile became strained at the thinly veiled complaint. Thirty thousand, Cheng said softly. That was the original estimate approved by you, Your Excellency. So far we have been given fewer than ten thousand. You will have the rest before the beginning of next month.

  Taffari was no longer smiling. I have given orders to the army.

  All political detainees and dissidents are to be rounded up and sent to the labour camps in the forest. These will be members of the Uhah tribe?

  Cheng asked. Of course, Taffari snapped. You didn't think for a moment that I would send you Hita, did you? Cheng smiled at the absurdity of that notion. My fieldmanager tells me that the Uhali are good workers, hardy and intelligent and compliant. We will need most of them in the forest to begin with. it seems that we are experiencing problems there caused by the terrain and the climate. The roads are bad and machinery is bogging down, We will be forced to use More men.

  Yes, I warned the BOSS people of that, Taffari agreed. They were reluctant to use what they considered to be. . . He hesitated. That man Purvis referred to our convict labour as slave labour. He looked mildly amused by such pedantic definitions. These Westerners, Clieng sympathized, The English are bad enough, but the Americans are even-worse. They do not understand Africa or the orient. Their minds stop at Suez. .

  he broke off. I assure you, Mr. President, that an easterner is now in control of the syndicate's operation. You will find that I do not suffer from these Western scruples. It is a relief to be able to work with somebody who understands the necessities of life, Taffari agreed.

  Which brings me to the hotel and casino project at Fish Eagle Bay. I understand from my field-manager that nothing has been done there, apart from the original survey of the area.

  He tells me that there is still a fishing village on the hotel site.

  Not any longer, Taffari smiled. The area was cleared two days ago, soon after Purvis left for London. The village was a hotbed of counter-revolutionary activity. My soldiers rounded up all the dissidents. Two hundred able-bodied prisoners are already on their way to the concession area in the forest to join Your labour force. The hotel site is ready for construction to begin. Your Excellency, I can see that you and I are going to work well together. May I show you the modifications that I have made to the schedule of works drawn up by Purvis? He opened his briefcase and unfolded a large computer spreadsheet that covered the entire table between them.

  Taffari, leaned forward and listened with interest as Cheng pointed out the way in which he had restructured almost the entire syndicate operation.

  At the end of the lecture Taffari's admiration was unconcealed. You have acco
mplished all this in the short time since you arrived in Ubomo? he asked, but Cheng shook his head. Not all of it, Your Excellency. Some of the replanning was done before I left Taipei. I had the benefits of my father's advice and the assistance of his headquarters staff at Lucky Dragon.

  Only part of the planning was necessitated after my arrival in Kahali, on the advice of my field-manager, and his report on the conditions and problems we have encountered in the forest. Remarkable!

  Taffari shook his head. Sir Peter Harrison's opinion of you seems to be well founded. Planning is one thing, Cheng pointed out modestly.

  Execution is another thing entirely. I am sure that you will bring the same energy and drive to that part of the operation. Taffari looked at his wristwatch. I am expecting a guest for lunch. . I am sorry, Your Excellency. I have overstayed my welcome.

  Cheng made as if to rise. Not at all, Mr. Ning. I absolutely insist that you join us for lunch. It may amuse you to meet my other guest, a member of the film team which Sir Peter Harrison has hired.

  Ah, yes.

  Cheng looked dubious. Sir Peter explained to my father and myself why he had invited a film company to Ubomo. I am not certain that I agree with him, however. The English have a saying about sleeping dogs. In my view, it may be better not to draw world attention to our operations. I would like to cancel the project and send the film team out of Ubomo. I am afraid it is too late for that. Taffari shook his head.

  We have already- received a great deal of adverse publicity.

  There is a woman, a protegee of the previous presidents Omeru. . .

  For another ten minutes they discussed Sir Peter's plan to defuse Kelly Kinnear's propaganda campaign by a countercampaign of their own. In any event, Taffari pointed out, we can always suppress anything we don't like about this film production. Sir Peter Harrison has an approval clause written into the contract. We can even suppress the final product completely, and destroy all copies of the film, if we feel that is advisable. of course, you are taking precautions to make certain that these people do not get to see any of our sensitive areas?

  The convict labour camps, the main logging operations, and the refill mining? Trust me, Mr. Ning. They will see the pilot scheme only. I have a reliable military officeraccompanying them at all times. He broke off at the sound of an approaching vehicle. Aht That would be the person we are discussing, the cameraman and Captain Kajo.

  Cameraman?

  Cheng asked, as ihey watched Bonny Mahon and Captain Kajo cross the lawn towards them. Inaccurate, I agree, Taffari chuckled. But is there such a term as camerawoman, I wonder? He stood up and went to meet his guest.

  Captain Kajo came to attention and saluted. Taffari ignored him.

  Kajo's job was done. He had delivered Bonny. He turned on his heel and returned to wait in the army Landrover. He knew it might be a long wait.

  Cheng studied the woman as Taffari led her down the verandah. She was too big and bosomy. She had no delicacy of bone structure nor refinement of feature. Both her nose and mouth were too large for his taste. Her freckled skin and coppery hair repelled him. Her voice and laughter, as she joked with Taffari, were loud and vulgar. Her confident attitude and powerful limbs made Cheng feel threatened as though she were challenging his masculinity. He did not like a woman to be as strong and assertive as a man. He compared her unfavourably with the dainty ivory-skinned women of his own race, with their straight black hair and submissive self-effacing manner.

  However, he rose politely and smiled and shook her hand, and saw that Taffari was quite smitten by the woman.

  He knew that Taffari had a dozen Hita wives who were amongst the most beautiful of the tribe, but he supposed that the president was attracted by the novelty of this gross creature.

  Perhaps he felt that it would add to his status to have a white woman as a plaything. However, Cheng guessed shrewdly that he would tire of her soon enough and discard her as casually as he had taken her up.

  Mr. Ning is the chief executive officer of the Ubomo Development Corporation, Taffari told Bonny. Technically he is your boss. Bonny chuckled. Well, I can report that we are doing a hell of a job, boss.

  I am delighted to hear that, Miss Mahon! Cheng was unsmiling. It is an important task that you are undertaking.

  What have you accomplished so far? We've been working here in Kahali and on the lake. We've already filmed the site of the new hotel and casino.

  Both Cheng and Taffari listened seriously to her report. Where are you moving to after this? Cheng wanted to know. After we finish here we are driving up-country to the forest area. A place called Sengi-Sengi. Have I got that right, Your Excellency? She looked at Taffari.

  Quite right, my dear Miss Mahon, Taffari assured her. Sengi-Sengi is the corporation's pilot scheme for utilising the forest assets.

  Cheng nodded. I will be visiting the project myself at the very first opportunity. Why don't you come up to Sengi-Sengi while we are filming?

  Bonny suggested. it would give much more weight to the production to have you in it, Mr. Ning. She paused as another thought struck her, and then with a boyish grin she turned to Ephrem Taffari. But it would really be terrific to have you in the production, Mr. President. We could interview you on the site of the project at Sengi-Sengi. You could explain to us your hopes and dreams for your country. just think of that, Your Excellency.

  Ephrem Taffari smiled and shook his head. I'm a busy man.

  I don't think I could spare the time. But she could see he was tempted.

  He was enough of a politician to relish the prospect of favourable exposure to a wide audience. It would be very valuable, she urged him.

  For both Ubomo and your personal image. People out there in the big world have heard about you only vaguely. If they could see you, it would change their whole perception. I assure you from a professional point of view that you would look plain bloody marvelous on the screen.

  You are tall and handsome and your voice is sensational. I swear I'd make you look like a film star. He liked the idea. He liked the flattery. Well, perhaps. . . They both realised that he wanted to be persuaded just a little longer. You could fly up to Sengi-Sengi by helicopter, Bonny pointed out. It would take half a day, no more. . .

  She paused and pouted suggestively and touched his arm. Unless, of course, you decided to stay over for a day or two. That would be okay by me, also. Daniel and Bonny, accompanied as always by Captain Kajo, drove up from Kahah. Although it was only a little over two hundred miles it took them two full days, for much of that time was spent not in travelling but in filming the changing countryside and the rural tribes in their traditional manyattas that they found along the way.

  Captain Kajo was able to smooth the way and negotiate with the tribal elders. For a few Ubomo shillings he arranged that they had the run of any of the Hita villages that they passed.

  They filmed the young girls at the water-holes, clad only in tiny beaded skirts as they bathed and plaited each other's hair. The unmarried girls dressed their coiffures with a mixture of cow dung and red clay until it was an intricate sculpture on top of their heads, adding inches to their already impressive height.

  They filmed the married -women as they returned to the village in long files clad in flowing red matronly togas, swaying gracefully under brimming calabashes of water drawn from the spring.

  They filmed the herds of dappled, multi-coloured cattle with their wide horns and humped backs against 4 background of flat-topped acacia and golden savanna grasslands.

  They filmed the herdboys bleeding a great black bull, twisting a leather thong around its neck to raise the congested vein beneath the skin, then piercing it with the point of an arrow and capturing the scarier stream of blood in a bottle-shaped calabash. When the gourd was half filled they sealed the wound in the bull's neck with a handful of clay, and topped up the calabash with milk stripped directly from the udder. Then they added a dash of cow's urine to curdle the mixture into thick cheesy curds. Low cholesterol, Dan
iel pointed out when Bonny gagged theatrically. And look at those Hita figures. I'm looking, Bonny assured him. Oh, hallelujah, I'm looking-" The men wore only a red blanket over one shoulder, held with a belt at the waist.

  They allowed the skirts to flap open casually in the breeze, especially when Bonny was nearby. They let her film as much as she wished of everything they possessed, staring into the lens with masculine arrogance, the elongated loops of their earlobes stopped with bone and ivory earrings.

  On the main road their Landrover passed ore trucks and logging trailers coming in the opposite direction. The weight of these massive vehicles, even though spread over a dozen axles and banks of massive tyres, rutted the road deeply and raised a fog of dust that covered the trees for a mile on both sides of the roadway with a thick coating of dark red talcum. Bonny gloried in the effect of the sunlight through the dust cloud and the shapes of the trucks lumbering out of it like prehistoric monsters.

  When at last, on the second day, they crossed the river on the ferry and reached the edge of the great forests, even Bonny was awed by the height and girth of the trees. They're like pillars holding up the sky, she breathed as she turned her camera upon them. The quality of the air and light changed as they left the dry savannah behind them and entered this humid and lush forest world.

  At first they followed the main highway with its milewic open verges.

  Then, after fifty miles, they turned off on to one of the new development roads, freshly cut into the virgin forest.

  The deeper they journeyed into the forest, the closer the trees crowded the roadway, until at last their high branches met overhead and they were in a tunnel filled with dappled and greenish light.

  Even the bellow of the truck engines that passed them seemed muted, as though the trees were blanketing and absorbing the alien and offensive sound. The surface of the road had been corduroyed with logs laid side by side, and over this was spread a layer of flinty gravel to give the great trucks footing. The returning ore trucks bring the gravel back from the quarries near the lakeshore, Captain Kajo explained. If they did not, the road would become a bottomless swamp of mud. It rains almost every day here. Every mile or so there were gangs of hundreds of men and women working on the road, spreading gravel and laying new logs to hold the surface together.