437 
CHAP. LXVIL 
FIRST MONTH OF RESIDENCE IN TIMBUKTU. 
It had been arranged that, during the absence of 
the Sheikh el Bakay, whose special guest I professed 
to be, my house should be locked up and no one al- 
lowed to pay me a visit. However, while my lug- 
gage was being got in, numbers of people gained 
access to the house, and came to pay me their com- 
pliments, and while they scrutinised my luggage, 
part of which had rather a foreign appearance, some 
of them entertained a doubt as to my nationality. 
But of course it could never have been my intention 
to have impressed these people with the belief of 
my being a Mohammedan ; for having been known 
as a Christian all along my road as far as Libtdko, 
with which province the Arabs of A'zaw^d keep 
up a continual intercourse, although there the 
people would scarcely believe that I was a European, 
the news of my real character could not fail soon 
to transpire ; and it was rather a fortunate cir- 
cumstance that, notwithstanding our extremely slow 
progress, and our roundabout direction, the news 
had not anticipated us. I had been obliged to 
F F 3 
