362 BOXES BROKEN OPEN. 



who had possession of the boxes, was only a half- 

 blood Wahama, and he had but little influence over 

 him, which was one reason that his son, Mahomed 

 Allee, could not induce him to go on to Shoa with 

 himself. Since he had seen the boxes last, he added, 

 they had every one been opened, either by the 

 Tajourah people, or the Bedouins of the kraal, but 

 as they had, to his knowledge, remained four months 

 among the latter, without exciting the least curiosity 

 to know their contents, he had no doubt the outrage 

 had been committed by the people of our Kafilah. 

 This was a confirmation of my fears, and a good 

 ground of complaint, which I did not hesitate to 

 make after my return to camp. Before I left Abu 

 Mahomed, the old gentleman promised that he 

 would take me to see the boxes, if he could do so 

 without offending my Has ul Kafilah. 



After a deal of trouble with Ebin Izaak, 

 and Ohmed Mahomed, each asserting on my 

 charging them with the deed, that he did not 

 know of the breaking open of the boxes, I 

 asked them, if they would go with me the fol- 

 lowing morning to the kraal, where they were 

 kept, to examine the state they were in, but 

 neither seeming inclined to indulge me, I walked 

 back to my hut. I was soon after followed, 

 however, by the father of Mahomed Allee, who 

 asking me to accompany him, I buckled on my 

 belt again, replaced my pistols, took up my carabine, 

 and went off with him, without once looking back 



