70 
IN AFRICA 
lion or hyena that may approach the camp. We 
had four askaris, one of whom was the noisiest man 
I have ever heard. He reminded me of a congress¬ 
man when congress is not in session. 
Then came the cook, who is always quite an im¬ 
portant member of the community, because much of 
the pleasure of the safari depends upon him. Our 
cook was one that the Akeleys had on their former 
Gunbearer — Askari—Tent Boy—Porter 
trip. His name was Abdullah, he had a jovial face 
and a beaming smile, cooked well, and was funny to 
look at. He wore a slouch hat with a red band 
around it, a khaki suit and heavy shoes. When on 
the march he carried his shoes and when in camp he 
wore a blue jersey and a polka-dotted apron which 
took the place of trousers. He was good-natured, 
which atoned somewhat for his slowness. The sug¬ 
gestion may be made that he might not have been 
