He Said His King Had Heard Of Our Approach,
And Was Most Anxious To See Us.
Hearing this I begged him to
wait here until my hongo was paid, that we might travel on to
Uganda together.
He said, No, he could not wait, for he had been
detained here a whole year already; but, if I liked, he would
leave some of his children behind with me, as their presence
would intimidate Suwarora, and incite him to let us off quickly.
I then begged him to convey a Colt's six-chamber revolving rifle
to his king, Mtesa, as an earnest that I was a prince most
desirous of seeing him. No one, I said, but myself could tell
what dangers and difficulties I had encountered to come thus far
for the purpose, and all was owing to his great fame, as the king
of kings, having reached me even as far off as Zanzibar. The
ambassador would not take the rifle, lest his master, who had
never seen such a wonderful weapon before, should think he had
brought him a malign charm, and he would be in danger of losing
his head. I then tried to prevail on him to take a knife and
some other pretty things, but he feared them all; so, as a last
chance - for I wished to send some token, by way of card or
letter, for announcing my approach and securing the road - I gave
him a red six-penny pocket-handkerchief, which he accepted; and
he then told me he was surprised I had come all this way round to
Uganda, when the road by the Masai country was so much shorter.
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