"Seven days!" ejaculated Grosvenor, glancing in astonishment at Dick. "Then how the dickens has this fellow Insimbi contrived in the course of a single day to communicate with the king and get a reply from him?" "Why, easily enough," answered Dick. "Don't you remember the wonderful system of voice-telegraphy mentioned in those two books that we were discussing to-day? That, of course, is how it has been accomplished. And, now that I come to think of it, we had an illustration of that system this morning when those two boys ran to the top of yonder hill and started shouting in that queer, high-pitched tone of voice. They were telegraphing to the king the news of our arrival without a doubt." "Yes," assented Grosvenor, a little doubtfully, "I suppose that was it. But seven days' trek with fresh oxen! That means a hundred and forty miles, or thereabout--it is wonderful!" "You are right; it is," agreed Dick; "but not more wonderful, to my mind, than that we, destined, as one may say, to make this trip together, should have both been fortunate enough to stumble across and read those two books, which I am now beginning to understand were records of sober fact instead of extravagant fiction, as we both thought them to be. We must certainly polish up our recollection of what we read, for it is not at all difficult to imagine circumstances in which the knowledge may be of vital import to us. By the way, Mafuta, tell those fellows that they are dismissed, and that all we shall require of them to-morrow, in addition to the oxen, will be a guide." Oxen and guide were both duly forthcoming on the morrow: the journey toward what may be called the capital was resumed, and continued day after day without adventure, the guide supplied on the first day continuing with the party for the whole of that day, and then turning them over to another, who in like manner piloted them a day's trek, in turn to pass them on to another, and so on, day after day; each guide returning to his starting-point on the following day. CHAPTER EIGHT. KING LOBELALATUTU.