OUR STATIONS ON THE NILE 197 



suited with the three Soudanese officers, and we got everything 

 ready to give Kabarega a warm reception if he did venture to 

 attack us. However, he did not come near us ; he sent instead 

 an armed band to raid our friendhes and to capture slaves. It 

 happened, that the Shuli had also sent an armed raiding band for 

 the same purpose. These two bands, having crossed the river 

 unknown to each other, met, and taking each other for the 

 enemy, they at once had a hotly contested fight. Under cover 

 of -darkness each party escaped and re-crossed the river, leaving 

 their dead on the field. About twenty men were killed on each 

 side. This extraordinary mistake, that friends should turn their 

 weapons against each other and slaughter each other, was attri- 

 buted by the superstitious natives to the magic arts of the white 

 medicine-man. It had, however, one good result, our friendlies 

 were left for a while unmolested by ex-king Kabarega and his 

 Shuli allies. 



