At A Distance Of About A Hundred Yards I
Recognized My Old Friend Speke, And With A Heart Beating With Joy I Took
Off My Cap And Gave A Welcome Hurrah!
As I ran toward him.
For the
moment he did not recognize me. Ten years' growth of beard and mustache
had worked a change; and as I was totally unexpected, my sudden
appearance in the centre of Africa appeared to him incredible. I hardly
required an introduction to his companion, as we felt already
acquainted, and after the transports of this happy meeting we walked
together to my diahbiah, my men surrounding us with smoke and noise by
keeping up an unremitting fire of musketry the whole way. We were
shortly seated on deck under the awning, and such rough fare as could be
hastily prepared was set before these two ragged, careworn specimens of
African travel, whom I looked upon with feelings of pride as my own
countrymen. As a good ship arrives in harbor, battered and torn by a
long and stormy voyage, yet sound in her frame and seaworthy to the
last, so both these gallant travellers arrived at Gondokoro. Speke
appeared the more worn of the two; he was excessively lean, but in
reality was in good, tough condition. He had walked the whole way from
Zanzibar, never having once ridden during that wearying march. Grant was
in honorable rags, his bare knees projecting through the remnants of
trousers that were an exhibition of rough industry in tailor's work.
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