As for me, I had also made extra preparations. I had blackened my face and hands with powdered charcoal and oil; and my blue drilling shirt and trousers and black shoes made me as dark as any of them. My revolvers hung at my side, with my ammunition bag and brandy flask; my rifle lay upon my shoulder. All this excited the admiration of the crowd which assembled to see us go out.
Quengueza was greatly delighted, and exclaimed, "What kind of ntangani (white man) is this? He fears nothing; he cares for neither sun nor water; he loves nothing but the hunt."
The old king charged the people to take great care of his white man, and to defend him with their lives if need be.
We travelled all day, and about sunset we came to a little river. Here we began at once to make a fire and build leafy shelters for the night. Scarcely was the firewood gathered, and we were safely bestowed under our shelter, when a storm came up which lasted half an hour. Then all was clear once more. We cooked plantains and smoked some dried fishes.
In the evening the men told stories about gorillas.
"I remember," said one, "my father told me he once went out to the forest, when just in his path he met a great gorilla. My father had his spear in his hand. When the gorilla saw the spear he began to roar; then my father was terrified, and dropped the spear. When the gorilla saw that my father had dropped the spear he was pleased. He looked at him, and then left him and went into the thick forest. Then my father was glad, and went on his way."
Here all shouted together, "Yes! so we must do when we meet the gorilla. Drop the spear; that appeases him."
Next Gambo spoke. "Several dry seasons ago a man suddenly disappeared from my village after an angry quarrel. Some time after an Ashira of that village was out in the forest. He met a very large gorilla. That gorilla was the man who had disappeared; he had turned into a gorilla. He jumped on the poor Ashira and bit a piece out of his arm. Then he let him go. Then the man came back with his bleeding arm. He told me this. I hope we shall not meet such gorillas."
Chorus--"No; we shall not meet such wicked gorillas."
I myself afterwards met that man in the Ashira country. I saw his maimed arm, and he repeated the same story.