338 



TO KENIx^ 



surrounded us were very self-possessed, and seemed, as our 

 guide had warned us in the morning, not indisposed to attack 

 us. We therefore kept our weapons in readiness, for our 

 guides were never mistaken. In fact their honesty and faith- 

 fulness to us in the midst of their own people struck us as 

 being amongst the most remarkable facts of our journey 

 through Kikuyuland. 



We had no fight, but once there were loud u-u-u-i cries, with 

 a general stampede from, the camp. This war-cry was often 

 started b}^ young girls who wanted their lovers or brothers to 

 come to blows with us in the hope that all our fine posses- 

 sions might fall into their hands. 



On September 30 we marched on first through the Esuru- 

 suru valley and then over a flat hill with a gentle slope to the 

 north, from the top of which, to our delight, we were at last 

 able to see the wood on the northern frontier of Kikuyuland, 

 for though we could not hope to reach it that same day, we 

 were at least not far off the end of our much harassed weary 

 tramp. For the first time since we left Taveta we saw a few 

 isolated specimens of the lofty feather palm. We camped on 

 a gentle slope beside a shallow brook with clumps of rushes 

 here and there, and near a little island-like wood haunted by 

 numerous colobi monkeys, who however fled at our approach. 



The natives had been very aggressive on this march, much 

 more so, in fact, than ever before. The warriors were all 

 freshly smeared with grease, many of them had newly painted 

 shields, both tokens of readiness for a fight, and one insolent 

 fellow went so far as to threaten Qualla several times with his 

 spear. Qualla lost patience at last and aimed his gun at his 

 tormentor, whilst I shouted out to the native to beware of 

 what he was about in very good German, which, as often 

 before, made the desired impression. 



We were greatly relieved at arriving without bloodshed at 



