406 AFRICA SPEAKS 



me of his former close association with Lord Kitchener 

 — of how he had carried a precious dispatch, sealed in 

 a small silver tube placed in his eardrum, through 

 enemy Unes. The locale was India — it was a dan- 

 gerous mission — the fate of an army depended upon 

 him — his hairbreadth escapes were many I He 

 fought his way through regiments single-handed, but 

 finally delivered the message which ultimately gave 

 the control of India to England. He received many 

 medals for this — the one he showed me attesting to 

 his abihty as an expert marksman. 



So the hours melted into days, each of which pre- 

 sented its problems and hardships, but always we 

 moved forward. We hurriedly left one village in the 

 midst of our evening meal, when loud peals of thunder 

 warned us that we might be stranded there for weary 

 months. We raced ahead of a storm which threatened 

 to bar our way, and by sheer good luck rolled into the 

 outskirts of Fort Lamy, less than an hour before it 

 deluged the countryside. 



In the morning I went to pay my respects to Lieuten- 

 ant Governor Buhot-Launay, finding him to be a pleas- 

 ant French gentleman. Knowing that we were com- 

 ing, he had hoped we could remain for some time and 

 visit Lake Chad, where there were many interesting 

 things to picture, but now he advised against staying 

 any longer than necessary, because the heavy rains 

 would soon transform the surrounding country into a 

 vast shallow lake, making it impossible for us to reach 

 the coast. Even one good rain would make the way 

 impassable, not only for motor trucks but iQV horses 

 and camels, thus marooning us until the next dry 

 season; so the Governor said it was either a case of 



