e river.

"Some native traders or white men are encamped there," observed Tubbs.
"They are probably proceeding up the river, and will tell us what sort
of people we are likely to meet with on the passage down. If they are
traders, they are likely to prove friendly and we may consider ourselves
fortunate in falling in with them."

"But suppose they are not traders, suppose they are not friendly, what
are we to do then?" asked Harry.

"We muster eight white men with arms in our hands, and are not likely to
be uncivilly treated," observed Jansen, flourishing his weapon. "I'll
go forward, and see who these people are, and we'll soon settle whether
we are to be friends or foes."

As there was no time to be lost, he hurried forward, while we halted to
await his return. In a few minutes he reappeared.

"Friends! come on," he exclaimed; and once more moving forward, we
reached an open space near the bank of the river, where we saw a tent
pitched and two white men and a party of six blacks, two of whom were
cooking at a fire, while the rest were seated in the shade. They rose
to greet us.

The white men were French traders, they told us. They spoke a little
English, and we understood enough of their language to be able to carry
on a conversation. As they were inclined to be friendly, and appeared
to be honest, we told them that we were escaping from a piratical slave
craft, which we described. They appeared to know her well, and seemed
greatly to commiserate us. They informed us that they were proceeding
up the river to trade with the natives; that one of their number had
fallen ill and was now suffering from fever inside the tent. They hoped
by spending a day or two where they were that he would recover
sufficiently to enable them to continue their voyage. They told us that
we were nearly two hundred miles from the sea, and a much greater
distance following the course of the river; but still it would be the
safest plan to descend it in the way we proposed, until we reached a
village where canoes were to be obtained. Though Harry and I and Tubbs
were anxious at once to set to work and build a raft, our companions
declared that they were too tired to do anything more until they had had
a long rest. Our new friends, who had plenty of provisions, kindly
bestowed some upon them, and invited us to join them in their repast,
giving us some wine, which we found very refreshing. The Frenchmen,
hearing how far we had