I Also Bought Some Elephant-Hair
Necklaces From One Of The Chiefs' Wives, By Exchanging My Red Silk
Tie With Her For Them, And One Or Two Other Things.
I saw fish-
hooks would not be of much value because Efoua was not near a big
water of any sort; so I held fish-hooks and traded handkerchiefs and
knives.
One old chief was exceedingly keen to do business, and I bought a
meat spoon, a plantain spoon, and a gravy spoon off him; and then he
brought me a lot of rubbish I did not want, and I said so, and
announced I had finished trade for that night. However the old
gentleman was not to be put off, and after an unsuccessful attempt
to sell me his cooking-pots, which were roughly made out of clay, he
made energetic signs to me that if I would wait he had got something
that he would dispose of which Gray Shirt said was "good too much."
Off he went across the street, and disappeared into his hut, where
he evidently had a thorough hunt for the precious article. One box
after another was brought out to the light of a bush torch held by
one of his wives, and there was a great confabulation between him
and his family of the "I'm sure you had it last," "You must have
moved it," "Never touched the thing," sort. At last it was found,
and he brought it across the street to me most carefully.
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