I 



TRAVELS IN EASTERN AFRICA 



7 



little things which are procurable only on the coast of 

 Africa. Through the kindness of the Italian authorities 

 at Massowah, we were enabled to procure the Soudanese ; 

 and it is not the fault of our kind friends there that the 

 quality of these men was not better than it later proved. 

 The Somali were engaged at Aden ; there, likewise, we 

 purchased the saddles for our camels and two horses. 

 This portion of the work was attended to by Lieutenant 

 von Hohnel — I going to Zanzibar to engage porters. 



I could not have chosen a more inopportune time for 

 the enlistment of porters at Zanzibar. The British East 

 Africa Company, bent upon the retention of Uganda, 

 had practically exhausted the supply of porters, and a 

 missionary caravan was on the point of starting to the 

 interior. Apparently, a porter was worth his weight in 

 gold, and almost as difficult to procure as is that precious 

 metal. However, I brought excellent letters to the au- 

 thorities at Zanzibar, and my friend, Sir Gerald Portal 

 (since deceased), was at that time the British Agent and 

 Consul-General at this place. This gentleman offered 

 me every assistance in his power, and instructed General 

 Sir Lloyd Matthews, the efficient Prime Minister to the 

 Sultan of Zanzibar, to throw the great weight of his 

 local influence into the scales in my behalf. Moreover, 

 the American Consul, Mr. Jones, procured me an audi- 

 ence with His Highness the Sultan, Seyd Ali, who 

 kindly permitted me to enlist porters in my service. 



Although permission had been granted me, yet, in 

 order not to excite the jealousy of others in search of por- 

 ters, the enlistment of the men was carried on in a more 

 or less secret manner. Runners were sent out to the 

 neighbouring plantations with the news that an expedi- 



