[Note: this transcription was produced by an automatic OCR engine]

SANTO 14 7

At the edge of the square the women sat down
beside their loads, and were soon joined by the
women of the village. Our hostesses were at once
informed of every detail of our outfit, our food and
our doings, and several dozen pairs of big dark eyes
followed our every movement. The women were
all quite sure that I. was a great doctor and magician,
and altogether a dangerous man, and this belief was
not at all favourable to my purposes.

We men soon withdrew to the gamal, where the
men likewise had to be informed of everything re-
lating to our doings and character. The gamal was
low and dirty, and the state of health of the in-
habitants still worse than in the first village, but at
least there were a few more babies than elsewhere.
The chief suffered from a horrible boil in his loin,
which he poulticed with chewed leaves, and the odour
was so unbearable that I had to leave the house and
sit down outside, where I was surrounded by many
lepers, Without toes or even feet, a very dismal
sight.

I now paid my carriers the wages agreed upon,
but they claimed that I ought to pay the men extra,
although their services had been included in the
price. I took this for one of the tricks by which
the natives try to get the better of a good—natured
foreigner, and refused flatly, whereupon the whole
crowd sat down in front of the house and waited in
defiant silence. I left them there for half an hour,
during which they whispered and deliberated in
rather an uncomfortable way. I finally told them