132 
MAHOMMED HER. 
[chap. V. 
had from the first instigated, my men to revolt and to 
join his party, and he at that moment had two of 
my deserters with him that had mutinied and joined 
him at Gfondokoro. It had been agreed that the re¬ 
mainder of my men were to mutiny at this spot and 
to join him with my arms and ammunition. This 
was to be the stage for the outbreak. The apparent 
welcome was only to throw me off my guard. 
I was coldly polite, and begging them not to waste 
their powder, I went to the large tree that threw a 
beautiful shade, and we sat doAvn, surrounded by a 
crowd of both natives and trader’s people. Mahommed 
Her sent me immediately a fat ox for my people : not 
to be under any obligation I immediately gave him a 
double-barrelled gun. The ox was slaughtered, and 
the people preferring beef to antelope venison, I gave 
the flesh of the waterbuck to the Latooka porters be¬ 
longing to Ibrahim’s party. Thus all teeth were busy. 
Ibrahim and his men occupied the shade of another 
enormous tree at about a hundred and fifty yards’ 
distance. 
The town was Latome, one of the principal places in 
the Latooka country, and was strongly palisaded, like 
the town of Wakkala. I did not go through the 
entrance, but contented myself with resting under my 
tree and writing up the journal from my note-book. 
Before we had been there many hours the two parties 
of Ibrahim and Mahommed Her were engaged in a 
hot contention. Mahommed Her declared that no one 
had a right of way through that country, which be¬ 
longed to him according to the customs of the White 
Nile trade; that he would not permit the party of 
Ibrahim to proceed, and that, should they persist in 
their march, he would resist them by force. Words 
grew high ;—Ibrahim was not afraid of force, as he 
had a hundred and forty men against Mahommed Her’s 
hundred and five;—insults and abuse were liberally 
exchanged, while the natives thronged around, enjoy¬ 
ing the fuu, until at last Mahommed Her’s temper 
