INGENUOUS CONDUCT OF A NATIVE. 213 
the wood. I had not entered it more than fifty yards when 
I saw a group of four natives, sitting round a small fire. 
One of them, as I approached, rose up and met me, and in 
him I recognised the man for whom I was seeking. When 
near enough, I stuck the spears upright into the ground. 
The poor man stood thunderstruck; he spoke not, he 
moved not, neither did he raise his eyes from the ground. 
1 had kept the tomahawk out of his sight, but I now pro- 
duced and offered it to him. lie gave a short exclamation 
as his eyes caught sight of it, but he remained otherwise 
silent before me, and refused to grasp the tomahawk, which 
accordingly fell to the ground. I had evidently excited 
the man’s feelings, hut it is difficult to say how he was 
affected. His manner indicated shame and surprise, and 
the sequel will prove that both these feelings must have 
possessed him. While we were thus standing together, his 
two wives came up, to whom, after pointing to the spears 
and tomahawk, he said something, without, however, 
looking at me; and they both instantly burst into tears 
and wept aloud. 1 was really embarrassed during so un- 
expected a scene, and to break it, invited the native to the 
camp, but I motioned with my hand, as 1 had not my gun 
with me, that I would shoot any other of the blacks who 
followed me. He distinctly understood my meaning, and 
intimated as distinctly to me that they should not follow 
us; nor did they. We were never again molested by 
them. 
I left him then, and, returning to the camp, told M'Lcay 
