THE CRISIS ENDS. 



175 



Such a proceeding on the part of several of these 

 mercenaries was inexcusable. They had been treated 

 with kindness, and even indulgence. They had hitherto 

 never complained, simply because they had no cause for 

 complaint. One man, Ismail, who suffered from dy- 

 sentery, had been regularly supplied with food cooked 

 by the Goanese ; and even while we dragged along our 

 fevered frames on foot, he was allowed to ride an ass. 

 Yet the recreant never attempted a word of dissuasion, 

 and deserted with the rest- 

 After the disappearance of the Baloch, the Sons of 

 Eamji were summoned. I had privily ascertained 

 from Said bin Salim the opinions of these men concern- 

 ing their leader : they said but little evil, complaining 

 principally of the Englishman's " heat," and that he was 

 not wholly ruled by their rascalities, whereas the Baloch 

 in their private confabs never failed to indulge in the 

 choicest of Oriental Billingsgate. The slaves, when 

 they heard the state of the case, cheerfully promised to 

 stand by us, but on the same evening, assembled by 

 Kidogo, they agreed to follow the example of the escort 

 on the first justifiable occasion. I did not learn this till 

 some days afterwards, and even if I had been told it on 

 the spot, it would have mattered little. My companion 

 and I had made up our minds, in case of the escort and 

 the slaves deserting, to bury our baggage, and to trust 

 ourselves in the hands of the Wanyamwezi porters. The 

 storm, however, — a brutum fulmen — blew over with 

 only noise. 



A march was ordered for the next day — the 17th 

 August. As the asses were being loaded, appeared the 

 one-eyed Jemadar, with Greybeard Musa and Darwaysh, 

 . looking more crestfallen and foolish than they had ever 

 looked before. They took my hand with a polite 



