BLACK MAN'S BURDEN
BY MACK REYNOLDS
Illustrated by Schoenherr
[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Analog Science Fact &Fiction December 1961 and January 1962. Extensive research did notuncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication wasrenewed.]
CONTENTS
I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
Send forth the best ye breed...."
I
The two-vehicle caravan emerged from the sandy wastes of the erg andapproached the small encampment of Taitoq Tuareg which consisted ofseven goat leather tents. They were not unanticipated, the camp's scoutshad noted the strange pillars of high-flung dust which were set up bythe air rotors an hour earlier and for the past fifteen minutes they hadbeen visible to all.
The turmoil in Africa is only beginning—and it must grow worsebefore it's better. Not until the people of Africa know they areAfricans—not warring tribesmen—will there be peace....
Moussa-ag-Amastan, headman of the clan, awaited the newcomers at firstwith a certain trepidation in spite of his warrior blood. Although hehadn't expressed himself thus to his followers, his first opinion hadbeen that the unprecedented pillars were djinn come out of the erg forno good purpose. It wasn't until they were quite close that it could beseen the vehicles bore resemblance to those of the Rouma which were ofrecent years spreading endlessly through the lands of the Ahaggar Tuaregand beggaring those who formerly had conducted the commerce of theSahara.
But the vehicles traveling through the sand dunes! That had been thelast advantage of the camel. No wheeled vehicle could cross the vaststretches of the ergs, they must stick to the hard ground, to thetire-destroying gravel.
They came to a halt and Moussa-ag-Amastan drew up his teguelmoustturban-veil even closer about his eyes. He had no desire to let thenewcomers witness his shocked surprise at the fact that the desertlorries had no wheels, floated instead without support, and now thatthey were at a standstill settled gently to earth.
There was further surprise when the five who issued forth from the twoseemingly clumsy vehicles failed to be Rouma. They looked more like theTeda to the south, and the Targui's eyes thinned beneath histeguelmoust. Since the French had pulled out their once dreaded CamelCorps there had been somewhat of a renaissance of violence betweentraditional foes.
However, the newcomers, though dark as Negro Bela slaves, wore Tuaregdress, loose baggy trousers of dark indigo-blue cotton cloth, a loose,nightgownlike white cotton shirt, and over this a gandoura outergarment. Above all, they wore the teguelmoust though they wereshockingly lax in keeping it properly up about the mouth.
Moussa-ag-Amastan knew that he was backed by ten or more of hisclansmen, half of whom bore rifles, the rest Tuareg broadswords,Crusader-like