This Display Over, The Women Were Sent Away,
And I Saw Shown Into A Court, Where A Large Number Of Plantains
Were Placed In A Line Upon The Ground For My Men To Take Away,
And We Were Promised The Same Treat Every Day.
From this we
proceeded to another court, where we sat in the shade together,
when the women returned again, but were all dumb, because my
interpreters dared not for their lives say anything, even on my
account, to the king's women.
Getting tired, I took out my
sketch-book and drew Lubuga, the pet, which amused the king
immensely as he recognised her cockscomb.
Then twenty naked virgins, the daughters of Wakungu, all smeared
and shining with grease, each holding a small square of mbugu for
a fig-leaf, marched in a line before us, as a fresh addition to
the harem, whilst the happy fathers floundered n'yanzigging on
the ground, delighted to find their darlings appreciated by the
king. Seeing this done in such a quiet mild way before all my
men, who dared not lift their heads to see it, made me burst into
a roar of laughter, and the king, catching the infection from me,
laughed as well: but the laughing did not end there - for the
pages, for once giving way to nature, kept bursting - my men
chuckled in sudden gusts - while even the women, holding their
mouths for fear of detection, responded - and we all laughed
together. Then a sedate old dame rose from the squatting mass,
ordered the virgins to right-about, and marched them off, showing
their still more naked reverses.
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