14 TKAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



imagine she must have had a worthless husband, 

 since every sultan can have as many wives as he 

 pleases, and the whole could never have been barren. 

 I rallied the porters for pulling up after so short a 

 march, but could not induce them to go on. They 

 declared that forests of such vast extent lay on ahead, 

 that it would be quite impossible to cross them before 

 the night set in. In the evening I had a second 

 cause for being vexed at this loss of time, when every 

 mile and hour was of so much importance ; for by 

 our halt the sultana got news of my arrival, and 

 sent a messenger to request the pleasure of my com- 

 pany at her house on the morrow. In vain I pleaded 

 for permission to go and see her that moment, or to 

 do so on my return from the If'yanza ; her envoy re- 

 plied that the day was so far spent, I could not arrive 

 at her abode till after dark, and she would not have 

 the pleasure of seeing me sufficiently well. He there- 

 fore begged I would attend to the letter of her request, 

 and not fail to visit her in the morning. 



The lazy pagazis, smelling flesh, also aided the 

 deputy in his endeavours to detain me, by saying 

 that they could not oppose her majesty's will, lest at 

 any future time, when they might want again to pass 

 that way, she should take her revenge upon them. 

 Though this may be considered a very reasonable ex- 

 cuse, I doubt much, if their interests had lain the 

 opposite way, whether they would have been so 

 cautious. However, it was not difficult to detect 



