136 FROM THE NIGER TO THE NILE 



of married men of course meant expense, with the result that 

 the " boys " were always asking for advances of pay in cloth 

 or money. When the hour of parting came the inevitable 

 reaction set in and for the next few days they went about 

 their work silent and glum and minus the greater part of their 

 clothing which had found its way into the bundles of the 

 girls they left behind them. 



Whether it was under the influence of domesticity I 

 cannot say, but it was while we were at Fort Lamy that 

 Graladima, who had at one time been a teacher of the Faith, 

 became once more a devout Mahomedan. With his last 

 coin he bought a koran and a mallam's cap and punctually 

 observed all the ceremonies of his religion, telling every one 

 that he was on his way to Mecca. And Quabena, too, 

 Gosling's little Ashanti boy, fired by Galadima's teaching 

 and tired of the taunts of the other " boys " who were always 

 chafl&ng him upon his pagan condition finally made up his 

 mind to undergo the rite for admittance into the Faith, 

 which was duly performed before our departure. But we 

 had not left Fort Lamy long behind, when Galadima's koran 

 became a " back number " only to be brought out again 

 when some pilgrim we met upon the road returning to his 

 home as an " al hadchi," conjured up to his mind visions of 

 the sacred city. I_j 



Before taking our departure we crossed over to Kusseri 

 to see the Resident, Captain Stieber, who kindly arranged 

 for two Kotoko canoes to accompany us up the river as far 

 as Irena so as to lighten the boats. The post is prettily 

 situated, overlooking the Logone river. It is a good example 

 of German energy and miUtary neatness. With the help of 



