COURT ETIQUETTE. 
i7 
He then asked how we were going to get to Mombasa, 
and said he would lend us a small steamer of his own ; 
Mr. Holm wood rather frightened me by replying that 
we should not require it, as we had already engaged 
the Henry Wright mission steamer. The Sultan, 
however, would not hear of our taking any other but 
his, which was very fortunate, for although the Bishop 
of Mombasa had promised us the mission steamer, he 
had just informed us that we could not have it till the 
following Tuesday or Wednesday as he was most 
anxious the crew should be back at Mombasa on 
Sunday to attend Divine service. This would have 
been inconvenient, for we were most eager to start on 
Monday, being obliged to give our men two months’ 
advance pay, and every day they were kept idle meant 
their getting drunk and into mischief. 
Thanking the Sultan for his kind offer and for the 
“ delightful day spent at Chugnani! ” Mr. Holmwood 
notified to him that we were quite satisfied with our 
interview and prepared to depart whenever it was his 
pleasure to give us permission. This appeared an 
unusual form of Court etiquette, as it savoured rather 
more of our dismissing the Sultan than of his dis¬ 
missing us ; however, it was doubtless correct, and the 
Sultan at once took the hint by rising from his chair, 
after saying he would give us letters of introduction 
to all the principal chiefs up country, and conducting 
us back to the head of the stairs : here we again shook 
hands all round, while the band struck up our National 
Anthem and the troops once more presented arms. 
B 
