20 PREPARATIONS IN ZANZIBAR AND ON THE COAST 



for tlie Expedition, and lie had already g^one tliere to await us. 

 In a farewell audience, His Hio-lmess the Sultan had given us 

 a number of letters of recommendation to his officers on the 

 mainland, and also placed his steamer ' Star ' at our service for 

 the voyage to Pangani, whilst a large sailing-vessel was to 

 start with the men and most of the stores two days earlier 

 than we did. 



On January 21, 1887, then, the sailing-vessel lay at anchor 

 close to the beach. We had impressed upon our men the ne- 

 cessity of their mustering punctually and in full force ; but in 

 spite of their reiterated assurances of ^ Eivnallah,' or 'All right, 

 so shall it be,' we waited for them in the broiling sunshine with 

 some little anxiety. But they came, late, it is true ; all, at least, 

 except two, who, we were told, had been taken up for debt. 

 This is a trick East Indians are very fond of playing on 

 Europeans when they want to evade their engagements. But 

 with the help of Issa ben Madi we. at last got even these 

 defaulters on board, and by sunset Count Teleki was able to 

 give the signal to start. 



The light-hearted men seemed quickly to get over their 

 grief at parting from home and wife, and from their beloved 

 Unjudja, for wild shouts were heard on shore as the great 

 clumsy white sail of the dhow slowly swelled in the slight 

 breeze, and the vessel got under way. . , 



The next two days were divided between feverish toil and 

 the enjoyment of the eager hospitality of our friends in Zanzi- 

 bar ; and now, on January 23, the date of our own departure 

 had dawned. The ' Star,' with our personal luggage already on 

 board, loomed through a cloud of spotless white steam, and we 

 were still sitting amongst a crowd of friends in Mr. Oswald's 

 house ; quickly, however, a last bumper was drunk to the success 

 of our journey and our happy return ; then we too left the 

 shores of Zanzibar. We were very silent as we were rowed to 



