MISCHIEVOUS ROUT OF A SLAVE CARAVAN. 71 
After running back about two miles we found that 
it was only a false alarm, due to our. infernal mission 
men, who, brave enough when in the proportion of 
four to one, had fired on the small slave caravan, with 
the intention, I suppose, of avenging some former ill- 
treatment they might have experienced at the hands 
of the traders. The result was that the whole convoy 
bolted to a man, and when the leader appeared again, 
shortly after the firing ceased, he complained that his 
rifle had been stolen, though 1 expect in reality he had 
thrown it away, so that he might be able to run all 
the faster. We expressed our regret for the contre¬ 
temps, and tried to find out the culprits, but to give 
the devils their due, I will say the mission men were 
too loyal to split on their comrades, though we offered 
a reward. This episode was most annoying, as, apart 
from the delay of one and a half hours and the con¬ 
sequence of a four mile extra march, it might have led 
to most unpleasant results, by embroiling us with all 
the slave traders in these parts, with whom we had no 
right at all to meddle anywhere inland. 
Our journey was resumed at 7.30, and as it was now 
quite dark, I led the way, carrying one lantern, and 
Martin brought up the rear with another, but our 
progress was very slow. Every now and then we 
would hear the snorting of zebra and other wild 
animals, scared by the light as we passed, and we 
frightened large flocks of guinea fowl from the thorns 
in which they were roosting. At 10 p.m. we halted 
till two o’clock, but though we were tired enough, it 
