186 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 



ular rock that formed a natural pinnacle on the face of the cliff, 

 and waving his cap to the crowd on the opposite side, he instructed 

 Bacheeta to shout to the people that an English lady, his wife, 

 had also arrived, and that they wished immediately to be pre- 

 sented to the king and his family, as they had come to thank 

 him for his kind treatment of Speke and Grant, who had arrived 

 safe in their own country. Upon this being explained and 

 repeated several times, the canoe approached the shore. Baker 

 ordered all the people to retire, and to conceal themselves among 

 the plantains, that the natives might not be startled by so im- 

 posing a force, while he and Mrs. Baker advanced alone to meet 

 Kamrasi's people, who were men of some importance. Upon 

 landing through the high reeds, they immediately recognized the 

 similarity of Baker's beard and general coinplexion to that of 

 Speke ; and their welcome was at once displayed by the most 

 extravagant dancing and gesticulating with lances and shields, as 

 though intending to attack, rushing at the travelers with the points 

 of their lances thrust close to their faces, and shouting and 

 singing in great excitement. 



THE UNYORO NATIVES. 



THE difference between the people of Unyoro (Kamrasi's 

 country) and the tribes they had hitherto seen was most striking. 

 On the north side of the river the natives were either stark naked 

 or wore a mere apology for clothing, in the shape of a skin slung 

 across their shoulders ; the river appeared to be the limit of utter 

 savagedom, and the people of Unyoro considered the indecency 

 of nakedness precisely in the same light as among Europeans. 

 The men wore robes of dark cloth arranged in various fashions, 

 generally either like the Arab " tope," or the Roman toga. 



In spite of the very friendly reception, the explorers were still 

 not permitted to cross the river. Only a few months before a 

 party of Arabs had allied themselves with Rionga, Kamrasi's 

 deadly enemy, and made an attack on the latter' s people, slaying 

 three hundred of them. This made the king suspicious of all 

 strangers, and he had given strict orders that none should be 

 ferried across the river. The travelers were therefore compelled 



