All conversation was kept between tbe two queens; but
ber Wiehwfizi majesty bad a platter of clay-stone brought,
which she ate with great relish, making a noise of satisfaction
like a happy guinea-pig. She threw me a bit, which,
to the surprise of everybody, I caught and threw into my
mouth, thinking it was some confection; but the harsh taste
soon made me spit it out again, to the amusement of the
company. On returning home I found the king had
requested me to call on him as soon as possible with the
medicine-chest.
8th.—Without a morsel to eat for dinner last night, or
anything this morning, we proceeded early to the palace,
in great expectation that the medicines in request would
bring us something; but after waiting all day till 4 p .m.,
as the king did not appear, leaving Bombay behind, I
walked away to shoot a guinea-fowl within earshot of the
palace. The scheme was successful, for the report of the
gun which killed the bird reached the king’s ear, and
induced him to say that if Bana was present he would be
glad to see him. This gave Bombay an opportunity of
telling all the facts of the case; which were no sooner
heard than the king gave his starving guests a number of
plantains, and vanished at once, taking my page Lugoi
with him, to instruct him in Kisuahili (Zanzibar language).
9 th.—As the fruit of last night’s scheme, the king sent
us four goats and two cows. In great good-humour I now
called on him, and found him walking about the palace
environs with a carbine, looking eagerly for sport, whilst
his pages dragged about five half-dead vultures tied in a
bundle by their legs to a string. “ These birds,” said he,
tossing his head proudly, “ were all shot flying, with iron
slugs, as the boys will tell you. I like the carbine very
well, but you must give me a double smooth gun.” This
I promised to give when Grant arrived, for his good-nature
in sending so many officers to fetch him.
We next tried for guinea-fowl, as I tell him they are
the game the English delight in ; but the day was far
spent, and none could be found. A boy then in attendance
was pointed out as having seen Grant in Uddu ten
days ago. If the statement were true, he must have
crossed the Katonga. But though told with great apparent
circumspection, I did not credit it, because my men
sent on the 15th ultimo for a letter to ascertain his whereabouts
had not returned, and they certainly would have
done so had he been so near. To make sure, the king
then proposed sending the boy again with some of my
men; but this I objected to as useless, considering the boy
had spoken falsely. Hearing this, the king looked at the
boy and then at the women in turn, to ascertain what they
thought of my opinion, whereupon the boy1 cried. Late
in the evening the sly little girl Kahala changed her cloth
wrapper for a mbugu, and slipped quietly away. I did
not suspect her intention, because of late she had appeared
much more than ordinarily happy, behaving to me in
every respect like a dutiful child to a parent. A search
was made, and guns fired, in the hopes of frightening her
back again, but without effect.
lOfA-sAI had promised that this moming l would teach
the king the art of guinea-fowl shooting, and when I
reached the palace at 6 A.M., I found him already on the
ground. He listened to the tale of the missing girl, and
sent orders for her apprehension at once; then proceeding
with the gun, fired eight shots successively at guinea-birds
sitting on trees, but missed them all. After this, as the
birds were scared away, and both iron shot and bullets
were expended, he took us to his dressing-hut, went inside
himself, attended by full-grown naked women, and ordered
a breakfast of pork, beef, fish, and plantains to be served
me outside on the left of the entrance; whilst a large
batch of his women sat on the right side, silently coquetting,
and amusing themselves by mimicking the white
man eating. Poor little Lugoi joined in the repast, and