"The Wizard"
This begins in the Midlands parish of Buscombe, 300 people, and worth £2,000 a year. The Rev’d Thomas Owen (a little over 30) is the rector, and he also owns the advowson, having been heir to a very large estate, which he gave up on entering the Church 9 years earlier.
A visiting missionary is giving the sermon, telling the congregation of 39 (of whom 3 were fast asleep, and 4 were dozing) about his efforts to convert the "Sons of Fire", or Amasuka, who lived in south central Africa. The missionary had accompanied a fellow missionary thence, only be have his companion killed as a liar because he couldn’t raise the dead, and he himself driven out with a message to anyone who dared to follow, that it they too were found to be liars, they would follow the "bridge of spears".
Owen listened to the missionary, and reviewed his own achievements. In the five years as rector he had done nothing. He receives a "call". He offered to swap places with the amazed missionary (whose stipend was only one-tenth that of Owen’s). After initially suspecting that Owen had suddenly gone mad, it was agreed.
The story resumes two years later. Owen has been in the land of the Amasuka for a year, learning the language, and incidentally converting his teacher, who became his first disciple, John. He feels he is now ready to enter the Great Place, and begin his work among the Amasuka. King Umsuka ("Thunderbolt") is elderly and inclined to peace. His heir, Hafela, is "proud and cruel". The second son, Prince Nodengo, is "gentle and mild". The greatest chief in the land – which is half a million strong – is Hokosa, the wizard-in-chief.
As Owen prepared to leave his house – which had been made especially for him – he was filled with doubts. But that night he dreamt a dream which showed him Hafela and Hokosa plotting to poison the king, and showed him (Owen) the antidote. In return for poisoning the king, Hokosa would get Noma, who had been his ward, but who was to be placed in the house of the prince. Hokosa wanted to marry her, but he also needed her for his magic. Hafela wants to kill his father because he has lived too long, and because he fears he is about to make Nodwengo his heir.
Owen, who tells the people to call him "Messenger", arrives in the Great Place, dressed in his surplice and hood, and carrying an ivory crucifix. There are 30,000 soldiers on parade, for it is the festival of the first-fruits. A regiment of youths pull down a bull buffalo, and then two regiments – the Bees (colonel-in-chief, Prince Nodwengo), and the Wasps (Prince Hafela) – stage a "mock" battle with kerries and shields but no spears. Many and killed and injured, and when the Wasps prevail, the king orders the Bees into the fever country to hunt elephants for three years, and for the captain in charge to be killed.
The ceremonial now requires the king, Umsuka, to drink some beer into which token offerings have been stirred. This is handed to him by Hafela, who has added some poison provided by Hokosa. The king collapses, apparently with a fatal stroke. Owen, the Messenger, offers to cure him – which Hokosa accepts, knowing that it is impossible without the antidote, of which no one knows but he. Owen succeeds, much to the mortification of the conspirators, and Hafela runs away before anyone can stop him.
Nodwengo is declared heir, Noma rejoins Hokosa and his first wife, Zinti, and Owen begins his work. Owen tells Hokosa that he knows it was he who provided the poison, but doesn’t tell the king or Nodwengo.
The King shows Owen the god of the people of fire, a meteoric fragment in the rough shape of a seated man, place in the centre of a large ironstone plateau.
Owen is successful in converting a number of Amasuka, including the Prince Nodwengo (who is baptised as Constantine, though the name is not used thereafter). Even the king is tempted, but decides he is too old to change. John now kills a snake which has bitten his wife – and to kill a snake which has taken up residence in one’s hut is sacrilege, since it contained the spirit of one’s ancestors. The wizards council demand that matters be resolved one way or another – will the people worship their old god or the new. This is put to trial by lightning (or fire), much as Indaba-zimbi in "Allan’s Wife".
As soon as a fierce electrical storm is imminent, the Messenger, John, and Nodwengo, take their places by a large wooden cross on the ironstone plateau. Hokosa and 20 of his fellow wizards take their places opposite. The storm front approaches, but seems to turn in front of the cross. Lightning plays upon the plateau. Afterwards, of the 20 wizards, 11 are dead, 4 paralysed by shock, 5 have fled, and only Hokosa remains standing on the battleground. More importantly, their meteoric god is shattered by lightning. Hokosa admits defeat. The next day the king is baptised, and dies some short time afterwards.
Hokosa won’t accept defeat. He is living quietly as a private citizen, since the new King, Nodwengo, will not allow witchcraft to be practised. Hokosa consults the spirit of the dead king, using Noma as the vessel. He prophesies, among other things, that "you shall triumph over your rival, the white man, by your hand he shall perish. That which you deem accursed shall lift you up on high. High shall you be set above the nation and its king". Noma complains that henceforth she is haunted by ghosts (and particularly that of king Umsuka, who cursed her), and grows to hate Hohosa, though he has some supernatural hold over her so that she must obey him in all things.
Hokosa secretly plots with the exiled Hafela, who has been joined by some regiments, who desert from the peaceful regime of Nodwengo. Noma herself is sent to deliver the master plan, which involved Hafela pretending to move far away, but actually secretly investing the capital.
Meanwhile, using a woman who wanted a potion to make her husband prefer her half-sister to herself, Hokosa gets hold of some fruit which is destined for the Messenger. He carefully inserts some poisonous powder into the fruit. He gives the woman some of the same poison, which will kill over a period of 7 weeks, through dysentery.
Hokosa visits the Messenger, in order to see if he has eaten the fruit, and to show his friendship – so that he wouldn’t be suspected. Hokosa had his doubts about killing Owen, but feared the scorn of Noma. Owen ate 3 fruit, and the a 4th to a child, who ate it. Hokosa attended evening prayers in the chapel that had been built for the Messenger, the sermon being on the subject "thy sin shall find you out". The woman who he had given the poison to looked guilty and fled the chape, so Hokosa was assured that she had given it to her rival.
Hokosa was impressed by what he heard, so decided to look into the matter more carefully. He sought leave of Owen to attend his services, and the private lessons he was giving.
Meanwhile, Noma, having given birth to a still-born child (as a result of being ghost-ridden), left for the "Mount of Purification", and hence (secretly) to Hafela’s camp, with a message for Hafela.
Within 3 weeks Hokosa has been converted, "the iniquities of his past life had become abominable to him", though he knew that they were committed in ignorance, and not beyond pardon. But he was mindful of one colossal crime which, he believed, could never be pardoned to him in this world or the next – killing the Messenger (for he was now ailing).
Hokosa consented to baptism twice, but on each occasion an ominous interruption thwarted him. First the mother of the boy who had eaten the poisoned fruit came to ask for help. Then the woman who had taken the poison came before them charged with murder. Her half-sister and husband’s wife had died by dysentery, and he was ill. The woman didn’t implicate Hokosa, merely saying that she had the poison from a witchdoctor many months ago, thinking that it would merely soften her husband’s heart towards her. But she added that (having become a Christian), she hoped that the person responsible would repent. She was sentenced to be hung on the Doom tree (a huge euphorbia, which gives off poisonous vapours).
Hokosa prepared poison for himself, but dared not take it. He confessed to Owen, who repeated the words Hokosa had heard from the spirit of Umsuka as uttered through the mouth of Noma. He told Owen as much, who was horrified: "horrible has been you witchcraft, O Son of Darkness". But he noted that it was apparently permitted to Hokosa that he might find truth in the pit of sorcery.
Owen forgives Hokosa, and the latter moves into Owen’s house. Hokosa now tells Nodwengo all about Hafela’s (and his) plot. Nodwengo, because many thought that he had turned weak as well as Christian, had only 22,000 men left to him, while Hafela had amassed 40,000. The King sent 17,000 to ambush Hafela’s army, at a spot far distant from the town.
Hokosa is baptised just as Noma returns. She scorns Hokosa for betraying his prince and his religion, and at the behest of Owen, he releases her from his controlling spell (though he notes that he could resume this power at any time if he so wishes). Noma flees and warns Hafela that the plan is betrayed. Hafela’s impis evade direct contact with the forces of Nodwengo, and advance on the city.
Owen addresses the people in the Great Place (in surplice and hood), telling them of his "call" of 3 years ago. He dies immediately after finishing, concluding by saying that onto Hokosa will fall his role of Messenger. The missionaries whom Owen had summoned to carry on his work were due to arrive shortly.
Because there are only 5,000 soldiers guarding the Great Place, Nodwengo, with the advice of Hokosa, decides to withdraw all the women and children (12,000) into the Valley of Death (in which is situated the Tree of Death, or Doom tree). It is impossible to hold the town with so few troops.
There is a fighting withdrawal, while the civilians are moved out of the city. The defence is led by Hokosa. Over 1,000 of the 5,000 soldiers are killed by the time the have fallen back to the Valley of Doom. Hokosa is captured while on a negotiation mission (Hafela’s soldiers follow the example of the Khania’s men in "She", and pretend to be corpses). Hokosa is bound to the Tree of Doom, which overlooks the battlefield, upon a cross-like arrangement of branches.
Hafela pushes back the defenders to their last wall. The water runs out – the small stream cannot support such a large number of people. The crucified Hokosa prays for rain, which immediately arrives. He exhorts them to continue to fight, saying he can see the advancing impis of Nodwengo’s army. Hokosa calls upon Noma once again to obey his spirit, and she creeps up to the tree.
Hafela’s army is defeated, and he is offered his life by Nodwengo at Hokosa’s request – he refuses the offer and falls on his assegai. Nodwengo also offers generous terms to the troops of Hafela – traditionally a defeated army would be massacred – and they accept. Noma now climbs the tree of Doom to the top, and stabs the already dying Hokosa. She then jumps from the tree, a drop of 100 feet.
The interesting thing about this story (published 1896) is that it has some similarities with the history of Uganda – though I don’t think Thomas Owen, saint and martyr (as Haggard describes him on the last page) has any particular prototype. Though it is in a sense the history of Owen, it is really about Hokosa – the "Wizard" of the title – and his conversion. It is also interesting that of the supernatural events, only one major occurrence is at the hands of the pagan wizard – the raising of the spirit of Umsuka – while Owen is responsible for several – the trial by lightning (if it can be classified as miraculous – certainly the Amasuka thought so), and the vision of the plan to murder king Umsuka, as well as his call back in England. Haggard offers no attempt at explaining any of these manifestations, which may be interpreted as the reader wishes
This is the book which shows most strongly Haggard Christian beliefs - so doubtless it will be among his less popular works in this athiestic age. Owen himself is saintly but weak. His real contribution was not so much in bringing Christianity to the Amasuka people - though that was no mean feat - but in his death as a Christian martyr at the hands of the man who became his greatest disciple. The portrayal of Owen's struggles with his own conscience, and his acceptance of his fate, are among the best examples of characterisation found in Haggards writings. But even better is Hokosa's gradual conversion and his profound and deep remorse at having murdered Owen. For characterisation, its historical parallels (if not precise setting), and its portrayal of the bringing of the light of Christianity to the dark continent, this is an exceptionally powerful novel.