INTRODUCTION 



dreamily down the long vistas of our past, long ago 

 vanished from our mental sight or faded in the haze of 

 days gone by ; but here and there an event, a sensation, 

 or a scene will rise up in front of us as though we had but 

 that moment experienced it, and so it is now that I am 

 standing once again on a hill, watching the sunset and 

 its glory of colours fade away : and then, from the tent 

 door where I sit — pulling at the old trusty briar — seeking 

 comfort from " My Lady Nicotine," looking over the 

 millions of trees in the forest below, which bend their 

 heads weeping to the restless sigh of the wind, thus I 

 gaze away to the east, watching for the sky to lighten 

 and proclaim the coming of a great blood-red moon which 

 shall climb into the heavens from behind the mountains 

 far beyond which are the shimmering silent waters of old 

 Mother Nile, flowing away to the north like a stream of 

 molten lead. 



From below comes the low growl of a prowling beast, 

 which startles the solitary night bird on yonder branch, 

 and sends it flitting away with a hoarse croak into the 

 uncertain shadows beyond. 



The distant heavens gradually lighten, and the huge 

 glowing mass of red climbs rapidly upward amidst a 

 myriad of stars which seem to mock the darkness below, 

 for up to now, across the face of the orb, have lain hori- 

 zontal bars of cloud, six in number, giving it the appear- 

 ance of a huge Chinese lantern ; slowly, however, they 

 drift away, and the country appears bright and sharp 

 under a sea of silver light. Mosquitoes buzz, insects 

 drone, and borne on the breeze from afar come the sounds 

 of tapping drums and weird song from a village under 

 yonder knoll beside which can be seen the fitful glare of 

 camp fires and curling wind-driven columns of smoke. 



And so in that mysterious unknown country you learn 

 to appreciate something of wild, undisturbed nature and 

 those equally wild, savage-looking people. 



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