(Continued from Chapter 1)
1. And once news spread abroad throughout all the province of River Cross, that the people have besieged and murmured against King Benedict the son of Ngayi, then the king was greatly wroth with the seers and the town-criers and put many in a prison house; for he was in a rage.
2. And the king spake to himself saying, hear o thou that troubleth River Cross, let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of the miserable one. As the Lord liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, I shall pursue thee to the ends of the earth.
3. And it came to pass that King Benedict, the son of Ngayi from the lineage of Akinsheye, refused to hearken to the cry of his people and began to plunder the kingdom. He worketh not in his promise, but turned aside after lucre and perverted judgment. The cattle in the field, the sheep in the sheep-house and the harvest of the fields, the fine olives and proceeds of trade hath the king commanded for his own use.
4. And the king grabbed the lands of the tribes from the banks of the River Cross, to the foot of the mountains and withholdeth the wages of aged laborers. He rode around the kingdom with loud trumpets in the choicest royal chariots from the fleet of the gentiles and dineth on polished oak tables, as the province bestrideth in want.
5. Then the elders of River Cross and all the circumcised adults of the tribes, bearing scrolls with inscriptions of their grievances, gathered themselves together and came to King Benedict unto Peregrino a second time saying: O King, from the sole of the foot even unto the head of River Cross, there is no soundness in it but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
6. Thy province is wailing, thy land, strangers devour it in thy presence, and thy province is left as a cottage in a vineyard and as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers and as a besieged city. Except the King deal kindly with us and turn upon us with mercy, thy inhabitants shall surely perish.
7. And the king answereth them saying: Wherefore have ye all tasteth the venom of ungratefulness towards thy king? Suffereth day and night, have I done from the day ye all found me worthy of the throne of our fathers, to rebuild the broken walls of the kingdom. Like the streams of Galilee and the waves of Jordan have mine tears waileth in affection of the province. But woe unto you who denieth the wonderious feats the Lord hath wroth through mine hands and rare wisdom. And so shalt sorrow and pain be thine portion and shall increase continually along thine path.
8. And the people wrapped their faces in shame and wailing and departeth from the King’s presence with brokenness of heart. For the king be a diminutive man, girt with a girdle of leather about his loins and unyielding to suffer the people gladly.
9. And the leaders and the elders of River Cross and all the circumcized adults, departeth each one to his tribe and raised their voices unto the Lord saying: Whither O Lord, wrongeth thee have we, that thou offereth us such a king which hath chosen to deal unfairly with us?
10. And the Lord answereth them saying: Once more shalt I send a prophet up to the palace to warn the king: go ye into the palace and shout the shout of the Lord to the king that all nations may bear witness: refrain from thy wickedness and from thy injustice so that thine throne may not be brought to disrepute. Suffer thy people gladly so that they may serve thee. But if thou o King, persist in thine folly, surely, the Lord has promised shame and utter anger as thine end indeed.
To be continued …
Your sincerely,
Citizen Agba Jalingo, Publisher of CrossRiverWatch and a rights activist is a Cross Riverian and writes in from Lagos.
NB: Opinions expressed in this article are strictly attributable to the author, Agba Jalingo and do not represent the opinion of CrossRiverWatch or any other organization the author works for/with.
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