country, just like Suwarora. Surely Suwarora could not permit this if he knew it; and if they would not suffice, I should have to stop here until called again by Suwarora. The ruffian, on hearing this, allowed the wires to lie in his hut, and said he was going away, but hoped, when he returned, I should have, as I had got no cloths, 20 wires, and 1000 necklaces of extra length, strung and all ready for him.

Just then Bombay returned flushed with the excitement of a great success. He had been in Masudi's camp, and had delivered my message to Insangéz. Masudi, he said, had been there a fortnight unable to settle his hongo, for the great Mkama had not deigned to see him, though the Arab had been daily to his palace requesting an interview. "Well," I said, " that is all very interesting, but what next? will the big king see us?" "Oh no; by the very best good fortune in the world, on going into the palace I saw Suwarora, and spoke to him at once; but he was so tremendously drunk he could not understand me." "What luck was there in that?" I asked. On which Bombay said, "Oh, every body in the place congratulated me on my success in having obtained an interview with that great monarch the very first day, when Arabs had seldom that privilege under one full month of squatting; even Masŭdi had not yet seen him." To which Nasib also added, "Ah! yes-indeed it is so-a monstrous success; there is great ceremony as well as business at these courts; you will better see what I mean when you get to Uganda. These Wahuma kings are not like those you ever saw in Unyamŭézi or any where else; they have officers and soldiers like Said Majid, the Sultan at Zanzibar." "Well," said I to Bombay, "what was Suwarora like?" "Oh, he is a very fine man-just as tall, and in the face very like Grant; in fact, if Grant were black you would not know the difference." "And were his officers drunk too?" "Oh yes, they were all drunk together; men were bringing in pombé all day." "And did you get drunk?" "Oh yes," said Bombay, grinning, and showing his whole row of sharp-pointed teeth, "they would make me drink; and then they showed me the place they assigned for your camp when you come over there. It was not in the palace, but outside, without a tree near it—any thing but a nice-looking residence." I then sent Bombay to work at the hongo business; but, after haggling till night with Kariwami, he was told he must bring fourteen brass wires, two cloths, and five mukhnai of kanyéra, or white porcelain beads, which, re

duced, amounted to three hundred necklaces, else he said I might stop there for a month.

At last I settled this confounded hongo by paying seven additional wires in lieu of the cloth; and, delighted at

Halt, 30th.

the termination of this tedious affair, I ordered a march. Like magic, however, Vikora turned up, and said we must wait until he was settled with. His rank was the same as the others, and one bead less than I had given them he would not take. I fought all the day out, but the next morning, as he deputed the officers to take nine wires, these were given, and then we went on with the journey.

To Uthungu, 31st.

Tripping along over the hill, we descended to a deep miry water-course, full of bulrushes, then over another hill, from the heights of which we saw Suwarora's palace lying down in the Uthungu valley, behind which again rose an

other hill of sandstone, faced on the top with a dike of white quartz. The scene was very striking, for the palace inclosures, of great extent, were well laid out to give effect. Three circles of milk-bush, one within the other, formed the boma, or ringfence. The chief's hut (I do not think him worthy the name of king, since the kingdom is divided in two) was three times as large as any of the others, and stood by itself at the farther end; while the smaller huts, containing his officers and domestics, were arranged in little groups within the circle, at certain distances apart from one another, sufficient to allow of their stalling their cattle at night.

On descending into the Uthungu valley, Grant, who was pre

ceding the men, found Makinga opposed to the progress of the caravan until his dues were paid. He was a stranger like ourselves, and was consequently treated with scorn, until he tried to maintain what he called his right by pulling the loads off my men's shoulders, whereupon Grant cowed him into submission, and all went on again—not to the palace, as we had supposed, but, by the direction of the mace-bearers, to the huts of Suwarora's commander-in-chief, two miles from the palace; and here we found Masŭdi's camp also. We had no sooner formed camp for ourselves and arranged all our loads, than the eternal Vikora, whom I thought we had settled with before we started, made a claim for some more wire, cloth, and beads, as he had not received as much as Kariwami and Virembo. Of course I would not listen to this, as I had paid what his men asked for, and that was enough for me. Just then Masŭdi, with the other Arabs who were traveling with him, came over to pay us a visit, and inquire what we thought of the Usui taxes. He had just concluded his hongo to Suwarora by paying 80 wires, 120 yards of cloth, and 130 lbs. of beads, while he had also paid to every officer from 20 to 40 wires, as well as cloths and beads. On hearing of my transactions, he gave it as his opinion that I had got off surprisingly well.

Next morning (1st) Masŭdi and his party started for Karagué. They had been more than a year between this and Kazé, trying all the time to get along. Provisions here were abundanthawked about by the people, who wore a very neat skin kilt strapped round the waist, but otherwise were decorated like the Wanyamŭézi. It was difficult to say who were of true breed here, for the intercourse of the natives with the Wahuma and the Wanyamŭézi produced a great variety of facial features among the people. Nowhere did I ever see so many men and women with hazel eyes as at this place.

In the evening, a Uganda man, by name N'yamgundă, came to pay his respects to us. He was dressed in a large skin wrapper, made up of a number of very small antelope skins: it was as soft as kid, and just as well sewn as our gloves. To our surprise, the manners of the man were quite in keeping with his becoming dress. I was enchanted with his appearance, and so were my men, though no one could speak to him but Nasib, who told us he knew him before. He was the brother of the dowager queen of Uganda, and, along with a proper body of officers, he had been