The Ox Was
Slaughtered, And The People Preferring Beef To Antelope Venison, I Gave
The Flesh Of The Waterbuck To The Latooka Porters Belonging To Ibrahim's
Party.
Thus all teeth were busy.
Ibrahim and his men occupied the shade
of another enormous tree at about a hundred and fifty yards' distance.
The town was Latome, one of the principal places in the Latooka country,
and was strongly palisaded, like the town of Wakkala. I did not go
through the entrance, but contented myself with resting under my tree
and writing up the journal from my note-book. Before we had been there
many hours the two parties of Ibrahim and Mahommed Her were engaged in a
hot contention. Mahommed Her declared that no one had a right of way
through that country, which belonged to him according to the customs of
the White Nile trade; that he would not permit the party of Ibrahim to
proceed, and that, should they persist in their march, he would resist
them by force.
Words grew high;-Ibrahim was not afraid of force, as he had a hundred
and forty men against Mahommed Her's hundred and five;-insults and abuse
were liberally exchanged, while the natives thronged around, enjoying
the fun, until at last Mahommed Her's temper becoming outrageous, he was
seized by the throat by Sulieman, a powerful choush or sergeant of
Ibrahim's party, and hurled away from the select society who claimed the
right of road. Great confusion arose, and both parties prepared for a
fight, which after the usual bluster died away to nothing.
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