l take
them. They might go there in the day, and feed and water the
horses; and sleep some distance away, at night."

Meinik found two boys, sixteen years old, who said that they would
go with them and, at the hour agreed on, Stanley and Meinik started
on horseback. They descended the hill to the plain at its foot and,
turning to the right, rode for some ten or twelve miles; when they
struck into the road and, following this at an easy pace they came,
in the course of another hour, upon the party of villagers sitting
by the roadside.

The sun was just rising, and they travelled for three hours without
meeting anyone; then they drew off into the wood, at a point where
a small stream crossed the road and, after eating a meal, and
giving a good feed to the horses, lay down to sleep till the heat
of the day abated--the natives, who were all armed with spears and
swords, keeping watch by turns.

At four o'clock they started again and, at ten, approached the spot
where, in the depth of the wood, lay the temple. The man who knew
its position declared, however, that he could not find it, at
night. Stanley had no doubt that he was really afraid to go there
but, as he did not wish to press them against their will, he said
carelessly that it made no difference if they halted there, or
close by the road, and a fire being speedily lit, they bivouacked
round it.

Meinik had procured the necessary dyes from a village, and Stanley
was again stained, and covered with tattoo marks, as before.

"What am I to do about your hair, master?" he asked. "It will never
do for you to go, like this."

Stanley had not thought of this point and, for a time, was
completely at a loss. His own hair was now short, and could not
possibly be turned up.

"The only thing that I can see," he said, after a long pause, "is
for you and the men each to cut off a lock of hair from the top of
your heads, where it will not show. The six locks would be ample;
but I don't see how you are to fasten it, below the turban."

"There are berries we can get wax from," Meinik said. "We boil them
in water, and the wax floats at the top. With that, master, we
could fasten the hair in among yours, so that it would look all
right."

The men had all laughed at the proposal, but willingly consented to
part with a portion of their hair. Meinik therefore proceeded to
stain Stanley's close crop black and, the first thing in the
morning, the boys went out, soon returning