THE AUTHOR RECEIVES ORDERS FROM ALMAMY TO RETURN, 129 
they may see to read by its light, they all came and seated 
themselves by my side. I must confess that during my 
travels, I have always trembled at the sight of a troop of 
women or children : these weaker classes of society are the 
eternal torment of the traveller in the interior of Africa. 
These children, to the number of at least fifty, tormented me 
in a variety of ways ; some took off my shoes, and almost 
flayed my feet by putting them on and pulling them off again ; 
others tried on my hat, and laughed at their appearance in this 
covering; some unbuttoned my clothes, and but for the 
presence of three old duennas, I verily believe they would 
have stripped me stark naked. 
March 5th. Whilst I was engaged in examining the 
library of my host, which consisted of four volumes of prayers, 
my Marabout arrived with two men from Almamy. This 
king sent word, that I was wrong not to wait for the guide he 
had promised to give me, and desired, if I wished to avoid 
being compelled to return to St. Louis, to come back to him. 
A chief, whatever may be his colour or his origin, is always 
right. I obeyed the commands of Almamy, but to tell the 
truth, I must declare that he had never promised me a guide ; 
but no doubt regretting that he had so easily dismissed me, he 
hoped that the resistance I should oppose to his orders, would 
justify the arbitrary measures he probably wished to enforce 
towards me, in the opinion of the French governor ; but the 
prudent counsel of Boukari made me sensible, that patience 
s 
