Rachel gave judgment accordingly, commanding that he should pay the costs
in cattle and a fine to the King, and warned him to be more upright in
future. The result was that her fame as a judge spread throughout the
land, and every day her gates were beset with suitors whose causes she
dealt with to the best of her ability, and to their entire satisfaction.
Criminal prosecutions that involved the death-sentence or matters
connected with witchcraft, however, she steadily refused to try, saying
that the Inkosazana should not cause blood to flow. These things she left
to the King and his Council, confining herself to such actions as in
England would come before the Court of Chancery. Thus to her reputation as
a spiritual queen, Rachel added that of an upright judge who could not be
influenced by fear or bribes, the first, perhaps, that had ever been known
in Zululand.
But she could not try such cases all day, the strain was too great,
although in the end most of them partook of the nature of arbitrations,
since the parties involved, having come to the conclusion that it was not
possible to deceive one so wise, grew truthful and submitted their
differences to the decision of her wisdom.
After they were dismissed, which was always at noon, for she opened her
court at seven and would not sit more than five hours, Rachel was left in
her solitary state until the next morning, and oh! the hours hung heavily
upon her hands.
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