Travels Of Richard And John Lander Into The Interior Of Africa For The Discovery Of The Course And Termination Of The Niger By Robert Huish
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He Was Surrounded By Natives Of All Ages, Who Were Laughing
Most Extravagantly At The Unnatural Capering Of The Thing, And
Admiring The Ingenuity Of The Contrivance.
The figure itself was
entirely concealed with cloths, which rendered it impossible to
discover by what agency it was moved.
Its head was covered with red
cloth, and a pair of sheep's ears answered the purpose for which they
were intended tolerably well. Yet, on the whole, though it was easy
to perceive that a horse was intended to be represented by it, the
figure was executed clumsily enough. As soon as this party had joined
the individuals assembled near the place of worship, a startling
shriek of laughter testified the tumultuous joy of the wondering
multitude. The sun shone out resplendently on the happy groups of
fancifully dressed persons, whose showy, various-coloured garments,
and sooty skin, contrasted with the picturesque and lovely appearance
of the scenery, produced an unspeakably charming effect. The foliage
exhibited every variety and tint of green, from the sombre shade of
the melancholy yew, to the lively verdure of the poplar and young
oak. "For myself," says John Lander, "I was delighted with the
agreeable ramble, and imagined that I could distinguish from the
notes of the songsters of the grove, the swelling strains of the
English skylark and thrush, with the more gentle warbling of the
finch and linnet. It was indeed a brilliant morning, teeming with
life and beauty, and recalled to my memory a thousand affecting
associations of sanguine boyhood, when I was thoughtless and happy.
The barbarians around me were all cheerful and full of joy.
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