town was received by Matadi
with scornful laughter, the savage declaring in set terms that he did
not believe in the power of the white men to produce either lightning or
thunder; and as to our accomplishing the threatened destruction without
those means--why, there were a few of his warriors present who would
have a word to say upon that matter. Touching the question of the white
men said to have been sold to him, Matadi admitted that he now thought
he remembered some transaction of the kind, but had not the remotest
idea of what had become of them; he would make inquiries, however, and
if we would go away, and return again about the same time next moon he
would perhaps be able to give us some news of them. But before
troubling himself to make any such inquiries he must be propitiated with
a present; and he would also like to know what price we were prepared to
pay for each white man, should any be found.

"Tell him," said I, "that this is a case of `no white man, no present';
but that if the white men are found, I will not only buy them of him at
so much per head, but also make him a handsome present into the bargain.
Say that the goods to be paid as ransom are aboard the schooner, and
that they consist of guns, beads, brass wire, beautiful printed
calicoes, suitable for the adornment of any African king's wives;
handsome red coats with resplendent brass buttons and gorgeous worsted
epaulettes, admirably calculated to set off Matadi's own kingly figure;
and superb blankets, red, blue, green--in fact, all the colours of the
rainbow. If he and two or three of his chiefs would like to come aboard
and see these magnificent articles, I shall be very pleased to exhibit
them."

This speech being translated by Lobo, there ensued a long palaver, the
result of which was that Matadi declined to go on board the schooner,
but had no objection to come off alongside and inspect them from a
distance, provided that we would first return and hoist up our own boat.
The fact evidently was that the fellow, treacherous himself, suspected
everybody else of being the same, and was clearly indisposed to put
himself in our power, while he was at the same time devoured with
curiosity to see the articles of which I had given such a glowing
description. Of course, as I wished above all things to excite his
cupidity to the point of determining to possess the goods, even at the
cost of having to give up the white men, I readily agreed to his