•9F 



276 A NATURALIST IN MID-AFRICA. 



of the Ujiji rowers in the moonlight. Their songs 

 are very beautiful, with an alto solo and both bass 

 and tenor parts. There is often a melancholy, 

 pathetic tinge in them. 



The voyage was not, however, at all a pleasant 

 one. 



The second day the rowers, all slaves of the 

 Arab, were anxious to land at a point belonging to 

 a chief who was hostile to the Arabs and run 

 away. After we had gone some distance they 

 mutinied. They would not obey orders, and twice 

 let the yard of the sail down with a run, in an 

 attempt to crack my skull. I therefore adopted 

 strong measures, and succeeded in quieting them. 

 Then the waves became larger, and a storm began 

 to rise, until the overladen boat was in consider- 

 able danger. We ran her ashore, and in spite of 

 the heavy sea, I thought it necessary to land with 

 three askari. I did not know where we were, and 

 the last news I had had from home was a very 

 alarming letter from Mr. Swan, saying that the 

 Arabs were going to cut the throats of every 

 European on Tanganyika. I got soaked to the skin 

 in landing, and spent a very miserable night in 

 a wet shirt beside a small lire, watching the 

 lantern of the dhow tossing on the waves. 



Next morning the sea had gone down, and we 

 arrived at the place where Salim, a rich Arab, had 

 established himself. Instead of cutting my throat, 

 as I had expected, he was most friendly and hos- 



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