182 CHIEFS & CITIES OF CENTRAL AFRICA 



Captain Lucas and his comrade hurried over with- 

 in a few minutes of the accident, and both assured 

 us that permanent blindness does not result from 

 snake poison, and they were right, though we have 

 since heard of cases where the eyesight was destroyed. 

 After three days Mr Talbot was able to open his eye 

 and see ; but the pain had been continuous, though 

 steadily lessening, and his eyelid so swollen that till 

 then it w^as impossible to test the power of sight. It 

 was a matter of time and care before the recovery 

 was complete. 



It was unlucky that the snake should have come, 

 for they are not common there. And that it should 

 have wriggled in at an entrance through the zana 

 matting and made its way straight to the one spot 

 of light in the place, seemed almost uncanny. It 

 seemed so remarkable that we could not help wonder- 

 ing whether it had come by chance, or whether there 

 had been an evil agency at work ; but our boxes were 

 secure, and we repressed our speculations as unjust. 



The days slipped by, for though we were in a hurry 

 to be back, and anxious to spend Christmas altogether 

 round Herr von Raben's tree at Kusseri, as also to see 

 the zakoki and Josephine, we dared not start before 

 Mr Talbot had regained his sight. When that glad 

 day came our preparations for departure were made, 

 and on the morning of our start we were delighted 

 to see Gauaronga's emissary, who brought another 

 cowrie-bedecked clarinet and a long wooden trumpet, — 

 kingly treasures reserved for the Sultan's musicians 

 alone, and which, hitherto, with one exception, had 

 been denied us. We paid the price asked and joyfully 

 added them to our baggage. 



