menting on the potency of the charm. Whilst thus
engaged, I took another rifle and brought the bird down
altogether. “ Woh, woh, woh!” shouted the king; “ Bana,
Mzungu, Mzungii!” he repeated, leaping and clapping his
hands, as he ran full speed to the prostrate bird, whilst
the drums beat, and the Wakungii followed him | “ Now,
is not this a wonder ? but we must go and shoot another.”
“ Where ?” I said; “ we may walk a long way without
finding, if we have nothing but our eyes to see with. Just
send for your telescope, and then I will show you how to
look for birds.” Surprised at this announcement, the king
sent his pages flying for the instrument, and when it
came I instructed him how to use i t ; when he could see
with it, and understand its powers, his astonishment
knew no bounds; and, turning to his Wakungii, he said,
laughing, “ Now, I do see the use of this thing I have
been shutting up in the palace. On that distant tree I
can see three vultures. To its right there is a hut, with a
woman sitting inside the portal, and many goats are feeding
all about the palace, just as large and distinct as if I
was close by them.”
The day was now far spent, and all proceeded towards
the palace. On the way a mistletoe was pointed out as a
rain-producing tree, probably because, on a former occasion,
I had advised the king to grow groves of coffee-trees
about his palace to improve its appearance, and supply
the court with wholesome food—at the same time informing
him that trees increase the falls of rain in a country,
though very high ones would be dangerous, because they
attract lightning. Next the guns must be fired off; and,
as it would be a pity to waste lead, the king, amidst
thunders of applause, shot five cows, presenting his gun
from the shoulder.
So ended the day’s work in the field, but not at home;
for I had hardly arrived there before the pages hurried in
to beg for powder and shot, then caps, then cloth, and,
everything else failing, a load of beads. Such are the
persecutions of this negro land——the host every day must
beg something in the most shameless manner from his
guest, on the mere chance of gaining something gratis,
though I generally gave the king some trifle when he
least expected it, and made an excuse that he must wait
for the arrival of fresh stores from Gani when he asked.
30th. — To fulfil my engagement with the queen, I
walked off to her palace -with stomach medicine, thinking
we were now such warm friends, all pride and distant
ceremonies would be dispensed with; but, on the contrary,
I was kept waiting for hours till 1 sent in word to
say, if she did not want medicine, I wished to go home,
for I was tired of Uganda and everything belonging to it.
This message brought her to her gate, where she stood
laughing till the Wahuma girls she had promised me, one
of twelve and the other a little older, were brought in and
made to squat in front of us. The elder, who was in the
prime of youth and beauty, very large of limb, dark in
colour, cried considerably; whilst the younger one, though
very fair, had a snubby nose and everted lips, and laughed
as if she thought the change in her destiny very good
fun. I had now to make my selection, and took the
smaller one, promising her to Bombay as soon as we
arrived on the coast, where, he said, she would be considered
a Hubshi or Abyssinian. But when the queen
saw what I had done, she gave me the other as well,
saying the little one was too young to go alone, and, if
separated, she would take fright and run away. Then
with a gracious bow I walked off with my two fine specimens
of natural history, though I would rather have
had princes, that I might have taken them home to be
instructed in England ; but the queen, as soon as we had
cleared the palace, sent word to say she must have another
parting look at her son with his wives. Still laugh-
2 a