16 LIVINGSTONE'S LAST JOUENALS. [Chap. I. 



gored a donkey so badly that he had to be shot : we cut off 

 the tips of the offender's horns, on the principle of " locking 

 the stable-door when the steed is stolen," and marched. 

 We came to level spots devoid of vegetation, and hard 

 on the surface, but a deposit of water below allowed the 

 camels to sink up to their bodies through the crust. 

 Hauling them out, we got along to the jemidar's house, 

 which is built of coral and lime. Hamesh was profuse in his 

 professions of desire to serve, but gave a shabby hut which 

 let in rain and wind. I slept one night in it, and it was 

 unbearable, so I asked the jemidar to allow me to sleep in 

 his court-room, where many of the sepoys were : he con- 

 sented, but when I went refused ; then, being an excitable, 

 nervous Arab, he took fright, mustered all his men, 

 amounting to about fifteen, with matchlocks ; ran off, saying 

 he w r as going to kill a lion ; came back, shook hands 

 nervously with me, vowing it was a man who would not 

 obey him, " it was not you." 



Our goods were all out in the street, bound on the pack- 

 saddles, so at night we took the ordinary precaution of 

 setting a guard. This excited our dignitary, and after dark 

 all his men were again mustered with matches lighted. I 

 took no notice of him, aud after he had spent a good deal 

 of talk, which we could hear, he called Musa and asked what 

 I meant. The explanations of Musa had the effect of sending 

 him to bed, and in the morning, when I learned how much 

 I had most unintentionally disturbed him, I told him that I 

 was sorry, but it did not occur to me to tell him about an 

 ordinary precaution against thieves. He thought he had 

 given me a crushing reply when he said with vehemence, 

 " But there are no thieves here." I did not know till after- 

 wards that he and others had done me an ill turn in saying- 

 that no carriers could be hired from the independent tribes 

 adjacent. They are low-coast Arabs, three-quarters African, 

 and, as usual, possess the bad without the good qualities 

 of both parents. Many of them came and begged brandy, 



