The Forest People

As Turnbull nears the end of his stay in Epulu, he decides to travel to other parts of the region, and Kenge agrees to go with him. He wants to stay with the Pygmies, though he realizes that he cannot stay with them forever. The trip will allow him to see different things as he prepares to leave the BaMbuti.

Their first stop is at the headquarters of the BaNdaka chief in the village of Bafwakoa. They meet with Kachui, who claims to “own” hundreds of Pygmies in the area. Kachui complains he cannot get any of the Pygmies to return to the village to work, and he will be fined if the work is not done. Kachui is actively looking for the Pygmies, intending to throw them in jail. Of course, the search parties cannot find the Pygmies. Kenge gets the purported locations of the Pygmies out of Kachui without the old man realizing it. The two go off to speak to the few Pygmies Kachui had mentioned, but as they are always with Kachui’s men, Turnbull and Kenge find it difficult to get information from them. Kenge does his best to pull the Pygmies aside to speak to them and manages to find out information for Turnbull.