362 
AFRICA AND ITS EXPLORATION. 
go to the rafeer. De town is long way clis side! 
Den I think of my wife. My Gaut, I tink there is 
wanting in de house at home now ! My heart is varee 
sore dis night.” 
“ John, John ! ” I exclaimed, knowing his weak point; 
“ elephants ahead, my boy. Never mind to-day— 
onwards ! ” 
This chat occurred upon one of those nights when I 
had to cheer the man in his despondency. But now he 
proved to be inconsolable ; therefore I told him that if 
he would go to the town to which our new guides 
would take us, he might afterwards return homewards. 
I would not ask him to go any farther ; I would try and 
get Karemba to go with me. After this declaration I 
retired to my blankets. 
When attempting to find repose, I found the old goat 
in an uncomfortably playful mood. It is curious what 
a lot of amusement may be found in observing the 
antics even of a goat, especially of such a truly comical 
one as ours. It had evidently a very hard day of it; 
stealing the bunches of corn which the Inyota had hung 
upon their spears, and being chased around the camp in a 
very lively manner by the owners. Our goat was an 
inveterate thief, and a wonderfully advanced animal of 
its kind. It was so tame that it became a nuisance, 
for its nose was never out of such pots and pans as 
we possessed, in spite of frequent singeing and burning. 
One of its tricks was to upset the baskets of rice, and 
run off with as much as it could. 
But we were near the tsetse-fiy country then, so that 
we should soon have to bury the poor old goat; and, 
perhaps, some others of the party, judging from the 
general expression in the features of the followers. 
One, especially, complained that his throat was swelling. 
There are times when one feels for men who struggle 
hard a sympathy as warm as though they were near of 
kin ; but the indolent and the discontented are repelled 
with a heart colder than the drifting snow. 
A chilly morning with a heavy dew aw T aited us after 
our night’s repose. All the vegetation was wet, so that 
