Bum, The Head Man,
Then Turns Up, Sound Asleep Inside, But Quite Ready To Come.
Bum, I
find, is always ready to do what he is told, but has no more
original ideas in his head than there are in a chair leg.
Kefalla,
however, by scratching other parts of his anatomy diligently, has
now another argument ready, the two Bakwiris are sick with abdominal
trouble, that requires rum and rest, and one of the other boys has
hot foot.
Herr Liebert now appears upon the scene, and says I can have some of
his labourers, who are now more or less idle, because he cannot get
about much with his bad foot to direct them, so I give the Bakwiris
and the two hot foot cases "books" to take down to Herr von Lucke
who will pay them off for me, and seeing that they have each a good
day's rations of rice, beef, etc., eliminate them from the party.
In addition to the labourers, I am to have as a guide Sasu, a black
sergeant, who went up the Peak with the officers of the Hyaena, and
I get my breakfast, and then hang about watching my men getting
ready very slowly to start. Off we get about 8, and start with all
good wishes, and grim prophecies, from Herr Liebert.
Led by Sasu, and accompanied by "To-morrow," a man who has come to
Buea from some interior unknown district, and who speaks no known
language, and whose business it is to help to cut a way through the
bush, we go down the path we came and cross the river again.
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