us, and on the centre of the left shoulder blade I
felt a pain as if some one was branding me with a hot iron. All this
was constant; and, in addition, I repeatedly felt severe pains--rather
paroxysms of fearful twinges--in the spleen, liver, and lungs; whilst
during my sleep I had all sorts of absurd dreams: for instance--I
planned a march across Africa with Sir Roderick Murchison; and I fancied
some curious creatures, half-men and half-monkeys, came into my camp to
inform me that Petherick was waiting in boats at the south-west corner
of the N'yanza, etc., etc.

Though my mind was so weak and excited when I woke up from these
trances, I thought of nothing but the march, and how I could get out of
Lumeresi's hands. He, with the most benign countenance, came in to see
me, the very first thing in the morning, as he said, to inquire after my
health; when, to please him as much as I could, I had a guard of honour
drawn up at the tent door to fire a salute as he entered; then giving
him my iron camp-chair to sit upon, which tickled him much--for he
was very corpulent, and he thought its legs would break down with his
weight--we had a long talk, though it was as much as I could do to
remember anything, my brain was so excited and weak. Kind as he looked
and spoke, he forgot all his promises about coveting my property, and
scarcely got over the first salutation before he began begging for many
things that he saw, and more especially for a deole, in order that he
might wear it on all great occasions, to show his contemporaries what
a magnanimous man his white visitor was. I soon lost my temper whilst
striving to settle the hongo. Lumeresi would have a deole, and I would
not admit that I had one.

23d to 31st.--Next morning I was too weak to speak moderately, and
roared more like a madman than a rational being, as, breaking his faith,
he persisted in bullying me. The day after, I took pills and blistered
my chest all over, still Lumeresi would not let me alone, nor come to
any kind of terms until the 25th, when he said he would take a certain
number of pretty common cloths for his children if I would throw in a
red blanket for himself. I jumped at this concession with the greatest
eagerness, paid down my cloths on the spot; and, thinking I was free at
last, ordered a hammock to be slung on a pole, that I might leave the
next day. Next morning, however, on seeing me actually preparing to
start, Lumeresi found he could not let m