THE SULTAN MASANZA. 



399 



of the loosest description. The drum is never silent, 

 and the dance fills up the spare intervals of carouse, 

 till exhausted nature can no more. The consequence 

 is, that caravans invariably lose numbers by desertion 

 when passing through Msene. Even household slaves, 

 born and bred upon the coast, cannot tear themselves 

 from its Circean charms. 



There was u cold comfort " at Msene, where I was 

 delayed twelve days. The clay roof of the Tembe 

 was weed-grown like a deserted grave, and in the foul 

 patio or central court-yard only dirty puddles set in 

 black mud met the eye. The weather was what only 

 they can realise who are familiar with a " Rainy 

 Monsoon." The temptations of the town rendered it 

 almost impossible to keep a servant or a slave within 

 doors; the sons of Ramji vigorously engaged themselves 

 in trading, and Muinyi Wazira in a debauch, which 

 ended in his dismissal. Gaetano had repeated epileptic 

 fits, and Valentine rushed into the room half-crying to 

 show a white animalcule — in this country called Funza 

 — which had lately issued from his " buff." None of 

 the half-caste Arabs, except I'd and Khalfan, sons of 

 Muallim Salim, the youths who had spread evil reports 

 concerning us in Ugogo and elsewhere, called or showed 

 any civility, and the only Arab at that time resident at 

 Msene was the old Salim bin Masud. I received seve- 

 ral visits from the Sultan Masanza. His first greeting 

 was, " White man, what pretty thing hast thou brought 

 up from the shore for me ?" He presented a bullock, and 

 received in return several cloths and strings of beads, and 

 he introduced to us a variety of princesses, who returned 

 the salutes of the Baloch and others with a wild effu- 

 sion. As Christmas-day had been spent in marching, I 

 hailed the opportunity of celebrating the advent of the 



