But The Waters Were Too Large And The
Animals Too Shy, So We Toiled All The Day Without Any Effect,
Going Only Once Ashore To Picnic; Not For The Women To Eat - For
They, Poor Things, Got Nothing - But The King, Myself, The Pages,
And The Principal Wakungu.
As a wind-up to the day's amusement,
the king led the band of drums, changed the men according to
their powers, put them into concert pitch, and readily detected
every slight irregularity, showing himself a thorough musician.
This day requires no remark, everything done being the
counterpart of yesterday, excepting that the king, growing bolder
with me in consequence of our talking together, became more
playful and familiar - amusing himself, for instance, sometimes by
catching hold of my beard as the rolling of the boat unsteadied
him.
We started early in the usual manner; but after working up and
down the creek, inspecting the inlets for hippopotami, and tiring
from want of sport, the king changed his tactics, and, paddling
and steering himself with a pair of new white paddles, finally
directing the boats to an island occupied by the Mgussa, or
Neptune of the N'yanza, not in person - for Mgussa is a spirit -
but by his familiar or deputy, the great medium who communicates
the secrets of the deep to the king of Uganda. In another sense,
he might be said to be the presiding priest of the source of the
mighty Nile, and as such was, of course, an interesting person
for me to meet.
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