In Afric’s Forest and Jungle 
person was sacred. He could, therefore, do 
with impunity what others could not. 
I was the victim of one of his harmless jokes 
and 1 was the more readily taken in because I 
supposed that he was incapable of such a trick. 
He wanted to exchange cowries for coin and he 
desired to make the bargain in person and not 
through an agent. He knew that 1 would not 
come to him on such business any more than he 
would come to me, so he resorted to stratagem 
to bring me to him. Instead of sending a mes¬ 
senger with a staff, he sent a mounted military 
courier who dashed into the mission yard and in 
an excited manner shouted that his master 
wished to see me immediately. Ogudookpeh’s 
very name was a terror to the people, and fear¬ 
ing that some of the inmates of the mission com¬ 
pound had fallen under his displeasure, I hastily 
mounted and told the courier to lead the way. 
This he did at full speed, his loose tobe spread¬ 
ing out on each side like wings, and the loose 
end of his turban band streaming out behind. 
Thus we went through the city and thus we 
came to Ogudookpeh’s house. 
1 found him dressed in a silk stove-pipe hat 
and velvet shocoto, standing outside his gate 
under the shade of a large tree calmly smoking 
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