CHAPTER II 



On the morning of the 24th many Pokomo came into 

 camp, bringing small presents, consisting of Indian corn, 

 a few fowls, and a bushel or two of millet. They prayed 

 for my protection against the raiders. I told them I 

 would drive the raiders back if they made an attack dur- 

 ing my stay along the river, and that they could rest 

 assured that in a short time the English would drive 

 these people forever from their neighbourhood. At the 

 time of writing (1895) this result has been happily ac- 

 complished, and peace reigns once more along the banks 

 of the Tana. 



The Pokomo are undoubtedly of Bantu origin, and 

 their language is very similar to that of the Zanzibari. 

 They clothe themselves in waist-bands of cheap cotton, 

 and the men, one and all, carry long spears, which con- 

 vey a warlike impression, but which are used more as 

 paddles, or as poles for their canoes, than as implements 

 of war. The length of these spears is about eight feet, 

 and the blades are short and trowel-shaped. 



Our camp was pitched among the ruins of a village 

 recently destroyed by the raiders. As the natives be- 

 came more accustomed to our presence, they swarmed 

 into camp, bringing small parcels of grain for sale. 

 The trading-goods taken by the Pokomo in exchange 

 for their products are rods of soft lead, having a thick- 



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