This
Tree Stem Is Perfection, Just The Right Angle To Be Restful To One's
Back, And One Can Rely All The Time On Nature Hereabouts Not To Let
One Get Thoroughly Effete From Luxurious Comfort, So I Lazily Watch
And Listen To Xenia And Kefalla At Their Fire Hard By.
They begin talking to each other on their different tribal
societies; Kefalla is a Vey, Xenia a Liberian, so in the interests
of Science I give them two heads of tobacco to stimulate their
conversation.
They receive them with tragic grief, having no pipe,
so in the interests of Science I undo my blankets and give them two
out of my portmanteau; then do myself up again and pretend to be
asleep. I am rewarded by getting some interesting details, and form
the opinion that both these worthies, in their pursuit of their
particular ju-jus, have come into contact with white prejudices, and
are now fugitives from religious persecution. I also observe they
have both their own ideas of happiness. Kefalla holds it lies in a
warm shirt, Xenia that it abides in warm trousers; and every half-
hour the former takes his shirt off, and holds it in the fire smoke,
and then puts it hastily on; and Xenia, who is the one and only
trouser wearer in our band, spends fifty per cent. of the night on
one leg struggling to get the other in or out of these garments,
when they are either coming off to be warmed, or going on after
warming.
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