58 FROM THE NIGER TO THE INILE 



bows, and refusing to answer any questions. I believe that 

 the rack would not have drawn from him the secret of the 

 Lake. The " boys " treated him well at first, but when they 

 found that he made no response to their friendliness, they 

 grew tired of him and always took care, when there was any 

 mud- wading to be done (and this became more frequent every 

 day now) that he should be the first to go overboard to lead 

 the forlorn hope. He was a queer-looking object as he 

 waded ahead, his black shining body, small head, and big- 

 boned arms in the distance made him look more like a gigantic 

 beetle than a man. As he plunged and floundered in the 

 black mud, knee-deep at first, then sinking to his waist 

 and then up to his neck, he was followed by shouts of laughter 

 from the " boys." I believe the rascals would have enjoyed 

 seeing him disappear altogether, for they were beginning to 

 fancy that his revengeful spirit was purposely leading us 

 into the worst places. He was a worthless fellow and I 

 began to be sorry that we had ever shipped him, for he had 

 a big enough mouth to feed, yet gave no information in 

 return. Once, after he had preserved a determined silence 

 all one day, I tried the plan of sending him supperless to bed. 

 At first this seemed to promise very good results, for he volun- 

 teered the information to my headman that he would guide 

 us next day to an island where there was a large Buduma 

 town with plenty of people and cattle, and he emphasised 

 his remarks by pointing in a certain direction. But when the 

 morrow came and his belly was full, miles of mud-wading 

 brought us no nearer to the promised city, nor did its phantom 

 even mock us hanging mid-air in the mirage. 



For the next eight days we struggled on through a net- 



