AFRICAN CAMP FIRES 



"At ten o'clock," said he. 



It was now within fifteen minutes of that hour. 

 We were at the time fully ten miles off shore, and 

 forging ahead full speed parallel with the coast. 



We pointed out this fact to the Quartermaster, but 

 found to our sorrow that the poor old man had 

 suddenly gone deaf! We, therefore, refrained from 

 asking several other questions that had occurred 

 to us, such as, Why the cape was not shown on the 

 map? 



" Somebody, " said one of the Americans, a cowboy 

 going out second class on a look for new cattle coun- 

 try, "is a goat. It sure looks to me like it was these 

 yere steamboat people. They can't expect to rope 

 nothing on such a raw deal as this!" 



To which the English assented, though in different 

 idiom. 



But now up the companion ladder struggled eight 

 serious-minded individuals herded by the second 

 mate. They were armed to the teeth and thoroughly 

 equipped with things I had seen in German cata- 

 logues, but in whose existence I had never believed. 

 A half-dozen sailors eagerly helped them with their 

 multitudinous effects. Not a thought gave they to 

 the fact that we were ten miles off the coast, that 

 we gave no indication of slackening speed, that it 

 would take the rest of the day to row ashore, that 



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