BRISK BARTER. 



281 



him. He thanked me, and said that I was very good, 

 and that he was happy that I had visited his country ; 

 but that one thing made his heart sore, viz., that we 

 had not been able to trade. I replied that that was his 

 fault, and not mine, having offered him my goods on 

 equally liberal terms as I did to others. I then ex- 

 pressed myself anxious to depart. Hereupon Sicomy 

 requested me to remain with him another day, promis- 

 ing to bring me abundance of tusks, and to purchase 

 all my muskets. To this I replied that I was still will- 

 ing to deal with him, if he would only deal fairly ; but 

 I gave him to understand that this was positively the 

 last day I could remain with him. We then all start- 

 ed for the wagons, where this day the barter went on 

 as briskly as it had been dilatory on the two preceding 

 ones. The king continued drinking coffee and taking 

 snuff at a tremendous rate, and large bowls of his bo- 

 yalwa kept continually arriving, and were freely circu- 

 lated throughout the day. Sicomy gave me three bull's 

 tusks for each of the first tw^o muskets, I giving him 

 some powder and lead to boot; after which the price 

 fell to two tusks for each musket. With this rate of 

 exchange the whole assembly seemed perfectly satis- 

 fied, .and the trading went on without a murmur. Ath- 

 letic savages were constantly coming and going through- 

 out the day in three different directions, bearing on their 

 shoulders the precious spoils of the elephants of the 

 Kalahari ; and when the sun went down, all my mus- 

 kets were disposed of, and I found myself in the posses- 

 sion of a very valuable lot of ivory. 



I also effected several exchanges of beads and am- 

 munition for the tusks of cow elephants. I had resolved 

 to purchase fine specimens of the native costume and 

 arms, &c. ; but ivory being the most important article, 



