no FROM THE NIGER TO THE NILE 



a chief. It is interesting also to note in connection with this 

 subject that the natives of the Shari mouth use the term 

 " Buduma'" as an epithet of contempt for a man. Some 

 such theory as this seems necessary to explain the rapidly 

 decreasing numbers of a race that is believed to have existed 

 on the Lake for over 300 years without suffering the losses 

 of conquest by other tribes ; though, of course, it must be 

 admitted that their habit of intermarriage would also cause 

 a low birth-rate. 



In their shyness of the stranger all Budumas are alike. 

 Gosling, who went down to the river mouth from Port Lamy 

 before my arrival to see if he could get news of me, has 

 written in his diary the following note on the Kuri. " On 

 a sand-bank I came upon some of these fisher-folk — probably 

 a party who had failed to return to their island owing to lack 

 of water. They had three canoes, but I failed to speak to 

 them as they made themselves very scarce, leaving all their 

 property behind. I searched for them unsuccessfully and 

 left without a thing being moved so much as an inch, hoping 

 to see them on my way back. But on my return they had 

 disappeared, canoes and all." 



We made our camp in the dry bed of the river not far from 

 Jimtilo. In the evening the sheik of the village — quite a 

 boy in appearance — came with a " dash " of fowls and eggs. 

 A Uttle later the camp was put into a state of excitement by 

 a canoe arriving from Fort Lamy with stores for me from 

 Gosling. This was a most welcome event after my having 

 been so long on short rations. Two of our escort also came 

 and gave all the news round the camp-fires which were kept 

 burning to a late hour that night. Fort Lamy was, of course, 



