After Okonkwo kills a messenger and is sought by the District Commissioner, Obierika initially denies his presence but eventually leads them to where Okonkwo's body hangs from a tree, having committed suicide. Obierika requests assistance in burying him, as tradition forbids the clan from touching the body of a suicide victim. The Commissioner, indifferent to the cultural significance, orders the body taken down for a court inquiry. As he departs, he contemplates documenting Okonkwo's story in his book, which he plans to title "The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger."