Her name was Bamatafe, and she was considered very beautiful. Her skin was of a light brown colour, and decorated all over in various patterns of cicatrised cuttings, and when well rubbed with palm oil and camwood powder would shine in the sun. She was usually dressed in a wild-cat skin and fresh plantain leaves frayed out at the edges and suspended from a string of blue beads round the waist. Her hair was dressed in our most beautiful style—called besíngya—that is, all the hair is divided into very small portions, each of which is rolled in oil sprinkled plentifully with red camwood powder and another kind of sweet-smelling powder made from nuts. Her eyes were black, and her teeth were chiseled to very sharp points. Such was the girl I loved; and now that you know what she looked like, can you wonder that I wanted her? But of course I had to find out if she were willing to come to me, so I determined to pay a few visits to her home. On the first occasion I simply passed by and looked at her as she was sitting in her father’s house; but I went again, and, drawing near, I said to her, “Bamatafe, o l’eko?” (salutation, “Are you there?”) to which she answered, “I am there; Are you there?” and I said “O yes!” I felt very encouraged after that interview, and the next time stayed and talked with her for a while; then when a few days had passed I carried her a fine fat hen for a present. When she accepted that I knew it was all right for me, she was agreeable. I immediately went and told my father about it, and he arranged with hers about the amount of riches which was to be paid as pledge money on the occasion of our marriage. A spear was passed over as earnest of the other things to come, and that evening I brought home my wife. Her beauty was greatly admired, and according to our custom I had to make a lot of presents to the people who admired her so much. Every one of the young men thought me very fortunate in securing such a beautiful wife. And I soon found that she was clever also, for she could cook well; and at once she set about planting a big garden, which showed that she was industrious. We settled down to village life then—building houses, making canoes and other things, getting our knives, spears, and ornaments made by the village blacksmith, hunting, fishing, palaver talking, paying and receiving visits, having a good time generally, and feeling so glad to be really free—free from bondage and servitude. I often paid visits to the white men of whom we had heard so many rumours on the other side of the river, and became quite friendly with them. I could not quite understand them: their words were good certainly, but they said they had come to our land simply to tell us those words, and not to get anything from us.