Matigari

by Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o

  ‘No, ’ said Matigari. ‘I don’t want you to lose your lives before your time has come. Let us say goodbye to one another here. I shall go and recover my weapons from under the tree. Then I shall claim my house with new might and right. ’

  ‘Please let me come! ’ Muriuki begged. ‘Don’t leave me behind. ’

  ‘I will come too, ’ Guthera said. ‘One can die only once, and it is better to die in pursuit of what is right. '

  ‘Yes. We are the children of Matigari ma Njiruungi, ’ Muriuki said. ‘We are the children of the patriots who survived the war. ’

  ‘And their wives as well! ’ said Guthera, smiling. ‘Or which other wives and children were you looking for? ’ She was silent for a while. Then she started talking in a subdued tone about the thoughts which bothered her.

  ‘From the moment you saved me from the dogs of prey, I have felt very discontented. Yes, I have not been satisfied with the kind of life I have been leading. You see, my entire life has been dominated by men, be they our Father in heaven, my father on earth, the priest, or all the men who have bought my body and turned me into their mattress.

  ‘What I really want to say is that most of the things I have been doing so far have not sprung from my being able to choose, I have been wearing blinkers like a horse. Yes, I have never done anything which came from free choice. I’ve been moved here and there by time and place. Except yesterday when I broke my eleventh commandment. I could have chosen not to do it, but I didn’t. I chose to do it freely for an end in which I believed,

  ‘But that is not what I really want to say. You see, I have known all along that the life I have been leading is not that of a human being. It has been more like that of an animal,.. my life has not been any different from that of any animal, which breathes, eats, drinks and goes to sleep. Therefore, the most important thing is not just to know that my life has been without meaning. I would say that there is no woman who does not really know the pressures that we women live under.

  ‘What is troubling my thoughts is this. Once a person knows, what does she do about it? Or is knowing just good in itself? Is it enough for me just to say that now I know? I want to do something to change whatever it is that makes people live like animals, especially us women. What can we as women do to change our lives? Or will we continue to follow the paths carved out for us by men? Aren’t we in the majority anyway? Let’s go! From now on, I want to be among the vanguard. I shall never be left behind again. Matigari, stamp your feet to the rhythm and let the bullets tinkle! May our fears disappear with the staccato sound of our guns! ’

  Matigari bent his head and turned his face away. He felt hot tears sting his eyelids.

  ‘Let us go now! ’ he said in an unsteady voice, as though holding back the tears with difficulty. ‘Saying is doing is our motto. ’

  Just then they heard the purring of an engine. They looked at one another.

  Cars in the plains? In this wilderness?

  14

  ‘We can’t be far from the road that we passed, then? ’ Guthera asked.

  ‘Muriuki, why don’t you climb up that tree and see what it is, ’ Matigari said.

  Muriuki climbed up the tree. There was no road in sight. But, true, there was a car in the wilderness. It drove at a snail’s pace. Then it stopped by a small cluster of leleskwa bushes some distance from where they were.

  ‘It’s a Mercedes! It’s a Mercedes-Benz! ’ Muriuki exclaimed.

  It’s stopped. ’

  Matigari and Guthera crept out of the ditch. They looked across at the car. It was indeed a black Mercedes. They waited for the occupants of the car to come out.

  Far beyond the Mercedes, one could see a flock of sheep and a herd of cattle grazing. Other than these, and the black Mercedes, the plain stretched endlessly and lifelessly under the sun.

  ‘What are they eating in this hot sun? ’ Guthera asked, pointing at the animals.

  ‘You ought to have asked what the shepherds are eating in this hot sun. ’

  ‘Milk comes from cows, and the cows from the grass, and so if the animals have nothing to eat, it means that the people will have nothing to drink. So if I ask about the cow, I am at the same time asking about the shepherd. ’

  Matigari looked at Guthera and said, ‘You have a point there. ’

  ‘There is a great difference between human beings and animals, ’ Guthera added as if struck by a new thought. ‘Human beings can store food in granaries and in this way, they should not starve. That means that people starve only because they choose to. ’

  Matigari looked at Guthera as though seeing her for the first time.

  ‘You have a point there, ’ he repeated,

  ‘The problem here is that the surplus from many hands remains in the hands of some parasites. They sell the people’s food to fatten their own bank accounts. The fool’s staff is used by the cunning, ’ Guthera said. ‘It’s only now that I begin to see what it is you have been struggling for all this time. ’

  The occupants of the car remained inside. Matigari called to Muriuki:

  ‘Come down from that tree. ’

  Muriuki came back to them.

  ‘Just walk slowly towards that car and pretend to be a shepherd boy. See what they are doing there. Caution is not a sign of cowardice. Then find a way of getting back here without letting whoever is in the car see you. ’

  Muriuki looked around for a stick. He pitched it across his shoulder and held each end with one hand, just like a shepherd boys do.

  ‘Where did you learn to do that? Were you once a shepherd boy? ’ Guthera asked him, laughing.

  ‘No, I am just imitating what I’ve seen shepherd boys do. ’ ‘If anything happens to prevent us from meeting again, ’ Matigari said, ‘make your way to the house this evening. ’ Muriuki left them still lying on their stomachs, looking across at the Mercedes.

  ‘Maybe those are ivory poachers, ’ Guthera said.

  ‘What use could they possibly have for ivory? You can’t eat ivory! ’

  ‘You have really been gone for a long time, ’ Guthera said, laughing. This morning Guthera was in a really good mood. ‘Of course they sell it. What did you say about food? They convert it into fat cheques. The same applies to ivory. They work with some greedy Asians and some greedy Europeans. ’

  ‘Don’t they know that animals are man’s friends? When we were in the forest we never killed any animals at any cost unless we were hungry and had run out of food. Even when we came across an injured animal, we would mend their broken limbs. Animals were very useful to us. They used to warn us when there was imminent danger. You know that there are ways of talking with animals. If you stay in the forests and mountains for a long time, you get to learn how to talk to them. Sometimes the animals talk to you. You just remain silent, listening to them. How do you think that shepherds like those ones there survive out here on the plains? They have forged special ties with the animals. ’

  ‘These Mercedes people only shepherd money taken from the workers, ’ Guthera said.

  They saw Muriuki approaching the Mercedes. He walked past the car and a little beyond it.

  ‘How come the driver has not come out even to relieve himself? ’ Guthera asked.

  ‘Who told you that drivers always need to relieve themselves? ’

  'How is it you are so quick to come in the defence of drivers? Were you ever a driver?

  ‘Who, me? There is no job that these hands of mine have not done for the settler. ’

  They saw Muriuki making his way back. They waited. He was smiling slyly.

  ‘Who is it? ’ Guthera asked.

  'It’s a couple, ’ Muriuki said, trying his best not to laugh.

  ‘Why, what are they doing? ’

  Now Muriuki burst out laughing. Guthera looked at Matigari, whose expression had not changed.

  ‘They are doing love. They have no clothes on. They have turned the radio on, but they are not listening to it. ’

  ‘Leave them alone. Le
t’s go away. ’ Matigari said,

  ‘But where will we pass? ’ Muriuki asked.

  ‘Why? ’ Guthera asked in turn.

  ‘I heard the radio announce that the police have set up roadblocks on all major roads. It also announced that anyone who sees a man, a boy and a woman together should report them immediately to the police. ’

  ‘So we are surrounded? ’ Guthera asked.

  ‘It looks like it, ’ Matigari said, deep in thought. A crease appeared on his forehead.

  ‘To get to the mugumo tree, we have to pass through many roads, and we have to pass many people. We might get arrested before we get there. ’

  ‘Or before we get to the house, ’ Guthera added.

  ‘I have sworn that Boy cannot sleep in that house another night. He and I cannot share the same roof, ’ Matigari said, pained at the implication of Guthera’s words.

  ‘What shall we do? ’ she asked.

  ‘If we can find a bus or a malatu, we can first go to the children’s village and hide there until nightfall. Then we can go to the mugumo tree, take the guns and take the sword, go to the house and tell Boy and Williams: Hands up! Surrender! ’

  ‘You mean that the children will house us in their cars?’ Guthera asked, laughing.

  ‘Of course! They would like nothing better than just to shake Matigari’s hand. You see, ever since they threw stones at him, they have been wondering what they can do to undo the wrong they did. It was only yesterday that they were asking me: What can we do to help Matigari? Most of them are now calling themselves Matigari ma Njiruungi. They even thought of taking something to Matigari to help him escape from the mental hospital. ’

  ‘Is that where you picked the idea up from? ’ Guthera asked Muriuki. ‘What wonderful children! The patriots who survived the war, ’ Guthera said quietly.

  Matigari was staring into space. He looked as if he were not listening to what they were saying.

  ‘That’s not a bad idea! ’ he said suddenly.

  ‘You mean going to the children’s village? Or you mean going to look for a bus or a matatu? Guthera asked him.

  ‘If we travel by bus or by matatu, or even go to the children’s village, we will be hiding right under their noses as it were. It is usually easy to hide in obvious places. Most people don’t see what is right under their noses. ’

  ‘But buses and matatus are being searched, ’ said Guthera. ‘We’ll find our own matatu, ’ Matigari said, getting up at the same time, ‘We’d better get moving now. ’

  They followed Matigari across the plains towards the Mercedes. Matigari’s intentions suddenly dawned on them. Muriuki was beside himself with excitement.

  ‘A Mercedes-Benz! To become a matatu! ’

  15

  The man and woman lay naked in the back seat of the car. The ignition keys were still in the starter. They seemed to think that nobody would be needing the car keys here in the wilderness. Nobody would be after their Mercedes here in the wilderness...

  Matigari left them their underwear only, saying, ‘If you talk about this before tomorrow, I shall park the car by the roadside and display your clothes in such a way that everyone will know what you were doing in the wilderness. But if you promise not to tell anybody about it, I shall leave the car in a safe place and burn your clothes to destroy all the evidence of what you were doing. You can do what you like with yourselves. It is not important to me. That is a matter between the two of you. So make up your minds whether you want this incident to remain secret, or whether you want the whole world to know.

  Guthera and Muriuki sat in the back seat, each in their own corner. Matigari took the wheel,

  ‘I seem to have seen that woman somewhere, ’ Guthera remarked, after they had driven for a short distance,

  ‘Some faces remind you of other faces, ’ Matigari said in a matter-of-fact way, ‘The human race has the same roots, you know. It’s only that they have been dispersed by time and space into different camps. ’

  Guthera remained silent. She was not satisfied with this explanation. The woman’s face kept flashing in her mind.

  The Mercedes was one of the latest models. It had an air- conditioner. It was also an automatic and they could open or close the windows by just pressing a button. The windows had blinds across them.

  Behind the front seat was a little bar. Muriuki pressed a button, and a light came on. The little door opened and a row of glasses appeared arranged in the bar. There were different types of drinks there: Chivas Regal, Gordon’s Dry Gin, Bristol Cream sherry, green Chartreuse and Dom Perignon, as well as some soda water, ginger ale and Coca-Cola.

  ‘It’s just like a house! ’ Guthera exclaimed. ‘A bar in a car with all sorts of drinks! Blinds across the windows, and reclining seats, just like beds! A stereo recorder and radio too. ’ Muriuki opened a bottle of Coca-Cola with his teeth. He made himself comfortable in his corner and started drinking the Coke, sipping a little at a time.

  ‘Where is this cool air coming from? ’ he asked.

  ‘From the fan. The car has an air-conditioner, ’ Guthera informed him.

  The car glided along the tarmac road. They felt no bumps, no pot-holes; the car absorbed all these.

  Muriuki could not keep still. He touched this and that or looked out of the window at other people and at other cars. ‘Look! Horses! Horses! ’ he shouted,

  ‘Oh, those ones? Those are the racehorses, ’ Guthera explained to him.

  ‘Is that where all the people in all these cars are going? ’ ‘Yes. ’

  The entrance to the racecourse was close to the road. There was a signpost with ‘CITY JOCKEY CLUB. NOW OPEN FOR ALL RACES’ boldly written on it.

  ‘There are Africans and Asians too? ’

  ‘Yes. ’

  They drove along the fence of the racecourse. On the other side of the road was a hangar, and just behind it —

  ‘Aeroplanes! Aeroplanes! Look at those little aeroplanes! ’ Muriuki exclaimed.

  ‘These are planes for tourists and business men, ’ Guthera told him. ‘Rich Americans and Europeans come here to hire them, ’

  ‘What about the big aeroplanes? Where are they? ’

  ‘Those are at the international airport. ’

  'Do African people hire the planes too? ’

  ‘Oh, yes! Some do! You know, people like Boy. Money is all you need to hire one. ’

  I’ve just had an idea! ’ Muriuki suddenly said. ‘Let’s go and steal one of those small aeroplanes and fly it to the mugumo tree. ’ Guthera laughed.

  They drove through the centre of the capital city. They drove through the main street.

  Long ago, this road was named after a governor, you know, those colonial ones, ’ Guthera told Muriuki. ‘But now it is named after His Excellency Ole Excellence. All the roads which were named after the governors or kings or queens during the colonial days are now named after His Excellency. ’

  ‘He is our governor, ’ Muriuki said. Then after a little while he asked, ‘Why isn’t Ole Excellence called King? King Excellence! ’

  ‘I don’t know. ’

  On either side of the highway they were now driving on were tall buildings. Neon lights flashed their various names: American Express, Citibank, Barclays, Bank of Japan, American Life, Inter-Continental, The Hilton, Wool worths, Wimpy Bar, Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonalds, Shah’s Supermarket Stores, Bata Shoes, African Retailers and many others. The neon lights seemed to be competing for attention.

  ‘Have you ever been here before? ’ Muriuki asked Guthera.

  ‘Oh, yes. Many times. ’

  ‘This is my first time, ’ he said.

  When they got to the industrial area of the city, Guthera said, ‘I’ve never been to this part of the city before. ’ She continued glancing out through the window, and she read out the different names as they flashed by. ‘General Motors... Firestone... Coca-Cola... IBM... Unilever Products,.. Madhvani Products... Del Monte... BAT... Union Carbide... Mitsubishi Products... Africa
n Cycle Mart... ’ and so on. Then she got tired and turned her thoughts to the woman. Where had she seen her before?

  They went past some workers’ houses. These were many tiny houses crammed together. They drove past estate after estate. The walls were as black as soot. Not a single plant graced their yards. Pedestrians, buses, cars, cyclists and a few carts all competed for the use of the road.

  Then they came to the place where the rich lived, and Muriuki thought that these were the houses that he had often looked at in a National Geographic magazine which he had found in a dustbin. He had stuck these photographs on the walls of his

  Mercedes-Benz house. The houses they were driving past were large, with huge gardens. There were flowered lawns and green trees everywhere. At the entrances stood huge steel gates. From the road one could see swimming-pools full of clear blue water. Despite the drought in the country, these homes had enough water for their lawns and shrubs and their swimming-pools. At each gate there was a security guard with an Alsatian dog and a sign: ‘Mbwa Kali’, ’

  It is true that there are two worlds here in this country, ’ Guthera said, as though she was reading Muriuki’s thoughts.

  The drive was so smooth. Each time they came across a roadblock the police would wave them by. In some cases the policemen would move the road-blocks so that the Mercedes could get through more easily, without the set-back of slowing clown.

  Muriuki felt like opening the window and showing his face to the policemen. He felt like telling them, ‘It’s us you’re looking for! ’ or, ‘This is Matigari ma Njiruungi. ’ How he would have loved to see the look on their faces then!

  ‘This Mercedes-Benz is like a ticket to heaven! ’ he said happily.

  He stared across at the trees, which seemed to be retreating in the direction opposite the one they were driving in.

  Guthera was deep in thought. The image of the woman kept coming back to her. She now lifted the clothes and admired them, especially the woman’s dress. They were expensive. She opened the handbag, and something fell out. It was a photograph.