I had won him. I knew the Arab character so thoroughly that I was
convinced that the tree he had pointed out, followed by the words, "I
will come there and speak to you," was to be the rendezvous for the
receipt of the promised gun and money.
I did not wait for the arrival of my men, but mounting our horses, my
wife and I rode down the hillside with lighter spirits than we had
enjoyed for some time past; I gave her the entire credit of the "ruse."
Had I been alone, I should have been too proud to have sought the
friendship of the sullen trader, and the moment on which success
depended would have been lost.
On arrival at the grassy plain at the foot of the mountain, there was a
crowd of the trader's ruffians quarrelling for the shade of a few large
trees that grew on the banks of the stream. We accordingly dismounted,
and turning the horses to graze, we took possession of a tree at some
distance, under which a number of Latookas were already sitting. Not
being very particular as to our society, we sat down and waited for the
arrival of our party. The valley of Ellyria was a lovely spot in the
very bosom of the mountains. Close to where we sat were the great masses
of rock that had fallen from the cliffs, and upon examination I found
them to be the finest quality of grey granite, the feldspar being in
masses several inches square and as hard as a flint. There was no
scaling upon the surface, as is common in granite rocks.
No sooner had the trader's party arrived than crowds of natives issued
from the palisaded villages on the mountain; and descending to the
plain, they mingled with the general confusion. The baggage was piled
beneath a tree, and a sentry placed on guard.
The natives were entirely naked, and precisely the same as the Bari.
Their chief, Legge, was among them, and received a present from Ibrahim
of a long red cotton shirt, and he assumed an air of great importance.
Ibrahim explained to him who I was, and he immediately came to ask for
the tribute he expected to receive as "black mail" for the right of
entree into his country. Of all the villanous countenances that I have
ever seen, that of Legge excelled.
Ferocity, avarice, and sensuality were stamped upon his face, and I
immediately requested him to sit for his portrait, and in about ten
minutes I succeeded in placing within my portfolio an exact likeness of
about the greatest rascal that exists in Central Africa.
