8 CHIEFS & CITIES OF CENTRAL AFRICA 



baboon live there in such numbers and are so daring 

 that they often hold the road, and a single man, 

 though armed, dare not press past, for they are very 

 fierce, and should he wound one of their number the 

 whole pack would fall upon him. Mr Stone, one of 

 the Police Commissioners, who had told us much 

 about the baboon, very kindly arranged a hunting 

 expedition for us. Accordingly, one early morning 

 we all set forth up the hill, and picnicked in the 

 bungalow the Governor has had made as a sort of 

 week-end residence at the summit. This day's outing 

 entailed an immense deal of preparation, — insatiable 

 thirst was foreseen and provided against, books were 

 brought to read during those hours when it was too 

 hot to be out, and chairs were carried behind us, for 

 ants make short work of any one who attempts to 

 sit upon the ground. It was a very successful day 

 — the woods were lovely and the view wide. The 

 rock is of ironstone and lightning there is dreaded, 

 but no tornado burst to mar our peace. In the 

 cool of the afternoon we set forth upon our hunt, 

 scrambling over sharp rocks, breaking through thick 

 grass that waved above our heads and enclosed our 

 view, but nothing more material rewarded us than 

 the penetrating odour of baboon. We reached the 

 bottom hot and depressed, mopped our heated brows 

 in the towels which it is the height of courtliness 

 for a man to offer a woman out walking, and shook 

 the dust of Mount Patti off our feet. 



Our unsuccessful expedition led to a very terrible 

 result, by causing Mrs Talbot and me to realise 

 that we had neither of us brought suitable hunting 

 costumes. We defied vanity, and went to the store, 



