VIII. A Magisterial Function

A splendid repast, in the course of which good spirits and good cheer had flowed freely. The talk had varied from Oxford dons to Japanese admirals and Russian generals; and when it came down to liqueur and coffee everyone was merry, but truly the merriest was the genial host, and a right down good sort he was.

The Chief Magistrate beat himself this evening, and as he waxed more and more eloquent and glibly passed on from one subject to the other, it was only right that the eternal race question should come in for a fair consideration.

They were a body of learned men, the guests of the evening, including the members of the Diplomatic Service, one or two doctors, with a fair sprinkling of coloured barristers, and, as it became such a company, they talked learnedly.

“ .When you come to talk of the jurisdiction of the native Kings and Chiefs I lose all patience with you,” said the host, as he wheeled round upon a youthful barrister who had ventured to make an observation upon the destoolment, that is to say, the deposition of the Chief of Agona. “ The ETHIOPIA UNEOUND. King of England is King here, and it is ridiculous to think that these little squirts of puppet headmen can be said to have jurisdiction.”

Macan of the Diplomatic Service rashly came to the rescue of the youthful barrister. “ I thought I had seen such a thing as a Native Jurisdiction Ordinance in the Corpus Juris of the Gold Coast.”

The host growled and told him plainly, but politely, without much ado, that he knew next to nothing about the matter. Turning to Kwamankra, he pursued, “ Now, what do you think — you go up country, and one day one of your puppet kings sends and arrests you and claps you in gaol - - how would you feel over the matter, eh ? ”

“ At the best of times, I confess,” said Kwamankra, “it is not pleasant to find oneself in durance vile. But if the jurisdiction is there, what is there to do but to submit to it? ”

“ That is exactly what you needn’t do. When one of your native authorities comes before me with their confounded jurisdiction notions I treat them as little children, and dismiss the whole thing with a jest. I can assure you, it is a most effective way. Besides, talking seriously, you have not considered the effect of the Order in Council.” “ Which Order in Council do you mean? ” ventured a precocious full-fledged.

‘ ‘ What else can I mean but the last, which defined the limits of the colony, and vested the jurisdiction in our sovereign Lord the King,” almost shrieked out the host.

“ My dear sir,” put in Kwamankra, “ if I may venture to come to the assistance of my young friend, it takes two to make a bargain, as you will find if you examine into the constitutional history of the country.”

For the moment the host was nonplussed. He was somewhat hazy as to the historical part of the subject. But as a parting shell, he exclaimed : “ Well, be that as it may, it was one of your own men who drew a report upon this very matter upon which the Government have acted. I have seen it with my own eyes, I assure you, and I make you a present of the fact.”

“ I say, Whitely,” continued the Chief Magistrate, “ how did you get on with that cemetery controversy of yours ? I hear you have given your assistant the sack. I say, it is really too bad of you. I am strong on so-called native jurisdiction, and that kind of thing, but when it comes to segregation of the dead, I tell you the thing beats me. Think of old Lawson, the pioneer of the gold industry, not receiving decent interment on the ground of colour. The thing is preposterous, and I am not in sympathy with it.” Whitely coloured up and appeared confused. The criticism was sharp and unexpected. The Chief Magistrate was known for his frank expression of opinion, no matter what the subject matter of discussion was. Bilcox thought it was time he came to the rescue of the Government policy.

“Bravo! Chief, I like your fine speech,” addressing the Chief Magistrate. “ I never knew you were a champion of the non-segregation theory. At the next sitting of the Council I shall not fail to record the considered views of such a highly placed official as your Honour.”

“ I have never been able to understand the argument in favour of segregation,” put in the conscientious Macan unguardedly. “In the time of an epidemic, for instance, I can understand why the afflicted, without distinction, should be put away. But in normal times, to be sure, I don’t understand the philosophy of the matter.”

“ The question has nothing to do with epidemics. The man in the street knows that,”' sourly retorted Bilcox. “ Besides, it is common knowledge that whites never catch small-pox from blacks,” he added irrelevantly.

“Ha! ha! ha! ha!” burst out Dr. Castor. “ That’s good, go one further. In all my experience I declare ! ”

“ You don’t mean to insult me, doctor, I hope. Besides, all this discussion before these gentlemen,” waving his hand in the direction of the coloured fraternity, “ is most unseemly, and I for one must beg leave to retire.”

“ Pray, don’t go away, Mr. Bilcox,” said Kwamankra. “ I am sure we are not offended in the slightest. My friends here, like myself, are used to this kind of thing. But what are the odds ? I, for one, am strong on reciprocity .”

“ And what has reciprocity to do with this matter ? 5 ’ angrily demanded the Political Officer.

“ Only this, sir,” began Kwamankra calmly, “ that if you took mankind in the aggregate, irrespective of race, and shook them up together, as you would the slips of paper in a jury panel box, you would find after the exercise that the cultured would shake themselves free and come together, and so would the uncouth, the vulgar, and the ignorant ; but, of course, you would ignore this law of nature, and, with a wave of the hand, confine the races in separate air-tight compartments. Wherefore I preach reciprocity .”

“ I say, you fellows, we must be going; it is getting late ’ ’ — this said the senior member of the legal fraternity as he rose, turban in hand, to take leave of the genial host, who was fuming at Bilcox’s rudeness. “ Good-night, sir, we thank you so much for kind entertainment,” he continued, addressing the Chief Magistrate.

“ Good-night, gentlemen.”