look out for them. Here is a leopard-cat, with white
behind its ears, and a Nddzi porcupine, of the short-
quilled kind, which my people eat with great relish; and
if you are fond of animals, I will give you any number of
specimens, for my keepers net and bring in live animals
of every kind daily; for the present, you can take this,
basket of porcupines home for your dinner.” My men
n’yanzigged—the king walked away, giving orders for
another officer to follow up the first who went to Ukorir
and bring Petherick quickly—and I went home.
This was to be a day of varied success. When I
arrived at my hut I found a messenger sent by the
queen, with a present of a goat, called “ fowls for Bana,
my son,” and a load of plantains, called potatoes, waiting
for me; so I gave the bearer a fundo of mtend6 beads,
and told again the reasons why I had not been able to call
upon the queen, but hoped to do so shortly, as the king
had promised me a house near at hand. I doubt, however,
whether one word of my message ever reached her.
That she wanted me at her palace was evident by the
present, though she was either too proud or too cautious
to say so.
At night I overheard a chat between Sangizo, a
Myamubzi, and Ntalo, a freed man of Zanzibar, very
characteristic of their way of chaffing. Sangizo opened
the battle by saying, “ Ntalo, who are you ? ” iV “ A
Mgiiana” (freed man). S. “ A Mgiiana, indeed! then,
where is your mother?” IV. “ She died at Anguja.”
S. “ Your mother died at Anguja! then where is your
father?” IV. “ He died at Anguja likewise.” S. “Well,
that is strange; and where are your brothers and sisters ?”
2V “ They all died at Angiija.” S. (then changing the
word Anguja for Anguza, says to Ntalo) “ I think you
said your mother and father both died at Anguza, did you
not?” 2V “Yes, at Angiiza.” S. “ Then you had two
mothers and two fathers—one set died at Anguja, and
the other set at Anguza; you are a humbug; I dont
believe you; you are no Mgiiana, but a slave who has
been snatched from his family, and does not know where
■any of his family are. A h ! a h ! a h ! ” And all the men
of the camp laugh together at the wretched Ntalo’s defeat;
but Ntalo won’t be done, so retorts by saying, “ Sangizo,
you may laugh at me because I am an orphan, but what
are you ? you are a savage—a Mshenzi; you come from
the ivra.shp.nzi, and you wear skins, not cloths, as men do;
so hold your impudent tongue; ”—and the camp pealed
with merry boisterous laughter again.
9 th.—Early in the morning, and whilst I was in bed,
the king sent his pages to request me to visit his royal
mother, with some specific for the itch, with which her
majesty was then afflicted. I said I could not go so far
in the sun; I would wait till I received the promised
palace near. her. In the meanwhile I prepared to call on
him». I observed, in fact, that I was an object of jealousy
between the two courts, , and that, if I acted skilfully and
decidedly, I might become master of the situation, and
secure my darling object of a passage northwards. The
boys returned, bringing a pistol to be cleaned, and a mes-
sagie to say it was no use my thinking of calling on the
king—that I must go to the queen immediately, for she
was very ill. So far the queen won the day, but I did
not obtain my new residence, which I considered the first
step to accomplishing the greater object; I therefore put
the iron farther in the fire by saying I was no man’s
slave, and I should not go until I got-a house in the
palace—Bombay could teach the boys the way to clean
the pistol. The pert monkeys, however, turned up their
noses at such menial service, and Uffidi was instructed in
their stead.
10th.—To surprise the queeD, and try another dodge,
I called on her with all my dining things and bedding,
to make a day of it, and sleep the night. She admitted