46 COLLAPSE AND RETURN part i 



of old Spanish galleons, and graceful light " mtepes " from 

 Lamu, with lines not unlike those of an English racing 

 cutter. With shortened sail and wind abeam, we worked 

 slowly up the harbour against the falling tide, and anchored 

 beyond the quay. I went ashore at once, expecting to 

 arrange for the transference of the Somali to the German 

 steamer which was to leave the same night. I therefore told 

 the men to stop on board until my return. As there was no 

 news from Benett-Stanford, the men could not be sent on, so 

 I hired a house for them in the town and went back to the 

 dhow. Here I found that, with characteristic disobedience, 

 all the Somali, except my cook Hirsi, had gone ashore the 

 moment I was out of sight. I had all the baggage trans- 

 ferred to a Customs shed or " go-down," and while I was 

 watching its removal the Somali came up for their " posho " 

 or food money. The usual rate is sixteen pice^ for a Somali 

 and eight for a Zanzibari. I gave Hirsi twenty pice as a 

 reward for his obedience, and refused to give the others more 

 than seven as a punishment, for I said they were worth less 

 than Zanzibari. They regarded the insult as worse than the 

 injury, and in a fit of passion declared that rather than accept 

 seven pice they would take nothing. I took away their 

 rifles, belts, and ammunition, and told them to wait for Harris, 

 for they would get nothing more out of me. They stormed 

 and raged for their sixteen pice posho — of course without 

 avail. 



While this was going on, the last of the luggage was 

 brought ashore and stowed in the go-down. When it was all 

 safely landed, and the Customs were responsible for the safety 

 of the luggage, and the Mombasa police for the future behaviour 

 of the men, I was free. 



The clerk gave me a receipt for the baggage, and I took 

 my place on Mr. Piggott's trolly. The Somali redoubled 

 their protests, and in an appropriate sense of clamorous hurly- 

 burly, my connection with the great Lake Rudolf Expedition 

 came to an end. 



The trolly soon carried me out of the hubbub, and I could 

 quietly think over plans for another try. I had learnt one 

 lesson from my late leader, who had at least taught me that 



■' A pice is a sixty-fourth of a rupee, so sixteen pice are worth about fourpence. 



