The Congo: The Snake Has All the Lines

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Clapping an arm around "Brother" Moise, Gizenga explained in the Lingala language that his rebel days were over. "I am ready to work for pacification and peace in our country," he said benignly. The crowd waved crossed branches—the Congo-wide symbol of unity—and women danced so wildly that they nearly spilled the porcelain tubs of manioc flour balanced on their heads. It all seemed very hopeful, except that revolt still raged in three of the Congo's outlying provinces, where Communist-encouraged bands burned villages, terrorized whites and slaughtered Congolese almost at will. Still, Tshombe has made more progress so far toward solving the Congo's chaotic problems than any of his predecessors. And he certainly has self-confidence. At a rally in Baudouin Stadium before 25,000 rapt listeners, he said: "Before discovering America, Christopher Columbus said to his tired friends, 'In three days I will give you a new world.' To you who are also tired—tired of anarchy and disorder—I say, three months and I will give you a new Congo."

With that kind of oratory, he might even be able to charm the talking snake in Kasavubu's palace.