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THE TRAGEDY OF POOR QUERLAOUEN.

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When he heard my destination mentioned, he at once conceived the brilliant idea of having the honor of guiding the first white man to his king, and thus gaining imperishable renown to himself. I was very glad to have him, as he was a very intelligent negro.

Yesterday, as we approached Obindji's town, we came to the plantation of my old friend Querlaouen. I got out of the canoe, and went ashore to greet the good old African and his wife and children, for whom I had brought presents such as they wished. But alas! I found no house or plantation. The place was deserted; the jungle was thickest where his little clearing had been, and I walked back with disappointed and foreboding heart. On the shore I met a Bakalai, who told me poor Querlaouen's story. Some months before the old hunter had gone out after an elephant. His slave heard the report of the gun, and, finding that his master did not return, set out to hunt him. He found him in the forest dead, and trampled into a shapeless mass by the beast, which he had wounded mortally, but which had strength enough left to rush at and kill its enemy. The poor body was brought in and buried. But now came in the devilish superstitions of the Africans. This family really loved each other. They lived together in peace and unity. But the people declared that Querlaouen's brother had bewitched him and caused his death. brother was killed by the mboundou ordeal, and the women and children were gone to live with those to whom they belonged by the laws of inheritance, and were thus scattered in several villages.

The

Early on the 27th we were awakened by the voice of Obindji, who was recommending Okendjo to take great care of "his white man," and see that nothing hurt him. We were soon under weigh. Our road led up the Ofoubou for some three miles and a half. Then we struck off to the due east, and after half an hour's arduous travel we got through the marshy bottom land which bounds the river, and stood at the foot of a mountain ridge, along which lay the route to Ashira-land. Here we gave three cheers, and with great hopes I led the way into a new terra incognita.

By five that night, when we encamped, we had advanced in a straight line about twenty miles from the Ofoubou. The country was mountainous, very rugged, and very thickly wooded with great trees. The ground was in many places thickly strewn

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GREAT EXPECTATIONS OF MY MEN.

with the immense boulders which I had noticed in my journey to the Fans, only here quartz rock was more abundant. Numerous streams of the purest and most crystalline water rolled in every direction, tumbling over the rocks in foaming cascades, or purling along in a bed of white pebbles, which was delightfully reminiscent of the hill-streams and trout-brooks of home.

This night we had no rain-storm, which was very lucky, as, when camping-time came, we were too tired to build ourselves shelters. Before this there had not a night passed since I started from Biagano that we did not have one of the powerful storms of mixed wind and rain for which this is the proper season. Several times they even overtook us by day.

Our camp was full of life this evening. The men were rejoicing in anticipation of great trade in slaves and ivory, and gave their imagination full swing. When trade was exhausted, they rejoiced over the wives they would get among the Ashira, where they expect, as strangers from a far land, to be sumptuously entertained. And at last Okendjo capped their pleasure by promising them great feasts of goats and plantains, the Goumbi and Bakalai regarding Ashira-land as the country of goats and plantains. We were kept awake between one and three o'clock by the roarings of a leopard, which, however, could not face the fire, which we had kept bright, so he could not make his breakfast from one of us as he desired. But neither did I think it quite safe to venture into the gloom after him. The leopard is a beast that can not be trifled with even by white men. As for the negroes, they are very much afraid of him; and I have known cases where so many persons were carried away out of a village by a persistent leopard, who had got a taste of black meat and liked it, that the survivors had to move away.

Next morning (29th) I found out that the fellows had slyly thrown away a quantity of my plantains, to be relieved of the burden. I warned them that, if we were short of food, they would have to starve first.

This day the country was much as yesterday. Ebony grows in great abundance on all hands. The poorer the soil, the taller the trees, and the more numerous. In many places the rains had washed away the soil from the immense and wide-spreading roots, which ran along the ground looking like huge serpents. To-day we saw for the first time a tree new to me, and which my

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men called the indoonoo. It has an immense girth, and is a much taller and better shaped tree than the baobab, which is not found in this part of Africa. I measured one, of only moderate size, which had fallen down, and found it, at some feet from the base, eight feet in diameter. This tree is not known on the Rembo, and was as new to my Bakalai as to me. The Ashira fellows, however, knew it very well.

I think the blocks of quartz grow more and more immense as we proceed. To-day there were some which were really stupendous masses, and it was a most curious sight to see our caravan filing between two such ponderous blocks, looking like pigmies alongside of these huge boulders.

Toward evening, at last, we began to see signs of a change in the face of the country. Plantations could be seen from time to time; the soil became more clayey; and at last we emerged from the immense forest. I saw spread out before me the great Ashira prairie-land, dotted plentifully with villages, which looked in the distance like ant-heaps. I stood for a long time on the edge of a bluff, taking in this, one of the finest landscapes I ever saw in my life. Far as the eye could reach was a high rolling prairie. As I afterward discovered, the plain is about fifty-five miles long by ten wide. All over this vast plain were scattered collections of little Ashira huts. The hills and valleys were streaked with ribbon-like paths, and here and there the eye caught the silver sheen of a brook winding along through the undulating land. In the far distance loomed up mountains higher than any I had yet seen, and whose peaks were lost in the clouds. It was a grand sight.

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ASHIRA-LAND AT LAST.

CHAPTER XXIV.

We enter Ashira-land.-Astonishment of the People at my Appearance.-Their Fear of my Eyes.-Grand Reception. -Message and Presents from the Ashira King.-Kendo.-King Olenda.-His Address to me.-I am an Object of great Wonder.-My Clock a Fetich.-Features of the Plain.-Villages.-Houses.— Agriculture.-Appearance of the Ashira.-Dress.-Grass-cloth.-Loom.—Curious Custom of young Women.-Operation of Dyeing.-Manner of Hair-dressing. -Peculiarities.-Fears of the Slaves.—Condition of Women.-Marriage.—Splendid Water-fall.-Mount Nchondo.-A Superstition about it.-A Case of Insanity. -Ascent of Mount Andele.-Meet a Nshicgo Mbouve.-How it rests at Night.— Attempt to ascend the Nkoomoo-nabouali.-Gorilla killed.-Difficulties of the Ascent.-Starvation.

To make our entry into Ashira-land properly, Okendjo sent two men ahead to announce that "the spirit" was coming to see them, and that he (Okendjo) had been selected as his guide. Soon, in the nearest village, we began to see people moving about hurriedly, and in half an hour the whole plain knew something had occurred. Meantime those nearest us came out to meet us, and we moved forward to them. When they saw me, all stopped, and the majority turned back with awe and alarm depicted on their faces. We continued to advance slowly. It was nearly dusk when we entered the nearest village. But very few of the people dared to approach me; and even those took to flight if I fixed my eye upon them, evidently fearing I would do them a mischief.

Okendjo walked ahead of me, proclaiming, in a most magniloquent manner, the many virtues of the great white man or spirit whom he had brought to see his countrymen. And the crowd answered to his words in shouts, "The tangani has come! The spirit has come to see our land our land, which he never saw before !"

It happened luckily that the chief of the first village we came to was a brother of Okendjo. Akoonga met us at the entrance of his place, and said, "Is it true, Okendjo, what I hear, that you bring to us this man? Is it not an hallucination of my mind, occasioned by too much palm wine? Is he the white man who

PLEASANT RECEPTION.

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makes the guns, the cloth, the beads, the brass rods, and the copper rings?"

Okendjo replied, "He is the man. This is he of whom you have heard so much. He comes from a far country to see us."

Then the people shouted out their surprise. A house was given me, and when I had taken possession the chief came, followed by ten of his wives, each bearing two bunches of plantains, which, with fear and trembling, they deposited at my feet. Next were brought four goats, twenty fowls, several baskets of groundnuts, and many bunches of sugar-cane.

When these were delivered, Akoonga said to Okendjo, "Tell the spirit that I thank him that he stays in my village a night. Tell him he is welcome, and all those who follow him. He is the master while he is here. This food is for him. As for his people, my women will cook for them."

I thanked him.

Then, showing me the house, he said, "It is your house; my wives are yours; my slaves are yours; my people are yours." Then, at last, I had a chance to refresh myself with supper. After supper, being tired, I lay down, but was not yet asleep when I heard the chief say to his people, "Be silent; do not trouble the spirit; do not speak lest you awake him. Our forefathers nor ourselves ever saw such a wonder as this."

The consequence of this kind and very unusual forethought was that I enjoyed a very good night's rest.

By my reckoning, the village of Akoonga is two hundred and forty miles east from Cape Lopez.

Early next morning the rush of people began. They were less afraid than on the evening before, and crowded around me in such masses that I was nearly stifled. As usual, my hair was the great object of wonder to them. I stood it as long as I could, but at last had to ask the chief to send them away. Not to disappoint their curiosity too much, I consented to walk through the streets at intervals of an hour or two, and thus give all an opportunity to look at me. This piece of complaisance gratified them immensely.

In the morning, Olenda, the king or head chief of the Ashiras, sent two messengers with presents of goats and plantains, and a desire that I should come to his town. I sent back word that I would the day after to-morrow; to-day my feet were too sore.

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