let us go together, for the journey shall be to our mutual
advantage; we will hunt together, and if sickness overtake me you shall
be my healer, while such gold, or stones, or ivory as we may obtain
shall be yours.' Those, O Lobelalatutu! are our sole reasons for coming
hither. Are they not good and sufficient?"

"They may be sufficient in your own eyes; but as for me, I know not,"
answered the king. "The thing that I would know is this: Come ye as
friends, or as secret enemies, of me and my people?"

"Have I not said?" returned Dick. "My friend would be the friend of you
and your people; and his friends will also be my friends; his enemies my
enemies. If ye should need such help as it is in our power to give, it
shall be yours, freely; and all we ask in return is that we may be
allowed to examine the ruins at our leisure, and to take away with us
such gold or stones as we may find."

"It is well," answered the king. "If that be all ye ask, it is granted.
Ye may examine the ruins at your pleasure; ye may remain in my country
as long as ye will, and no man shall molest you; and whatsoever ye may
find that is valuable in your eyes, that shall ye take with you when ye
leave my country. That is my word, the word of the king. Say now, is
it good?"

"It is very good, and the Spirits will be well pleased when they learn
that you have granted our request," answered Dick.

The king gave vent to a sigh of evident relief; it was clear that he
wished to stand well with these two friends of the great and terrible
Spirits of the Winds, who by the potency of their magic had been able to
punish his predecessor M'Bongwele for his evil-doing, and to place
himself upon the vacant throne. Yet it was apparent that there was
still something at the back of the king's mind, something that he keenly
desired yet hesitated to speak of. For two or three minutes he sat
plunged in deep and painful meditation; then he looked up and said:

"It is well; I am glad that ye have come hither, O white men! for when
ye return to your own country ye will be able to tell the Spirits that I
have faithfully obeyed all the injunctions that they laid upon me. Ha!
There is one thing more that I would ask. Ye speak not the tongue of
the Makolo, yet ye were able to communicate with my people as soon as ye
entered my borders. By what means did ye so?"

"Oh, quite easily!" answered Dick--who, being the better linguist of the
two, naturally assumed t