When this part of the affair was ended the gas apparatus was put in operation. It roused the curiosity of the king, who was thoroughly convinced that the white men knew the secret of making air burn, as he examined the bags and pipe, and was satisfied they contained nothing but air. The reflectors answered their purpose very well, and threw light in any direction the king suggested. On the whole, the boys had reason to congratulate themselves on the success of the affair, and they greatly regretted that, owing to force of circumstances, the brilliant engagement was to terminate with only one performance. The close of the entertainment literally "brought down the house." Everybody was invited outside to witness the grand finale, which consisted in sending up a paper balloon, carrying a Chinese lantern. As the light rose toward the sky some of the women and children actually fell down in terror at the strangeness of the occurrence, and it required all the persuasive powers of the king to convince them that no harm would ensue from the magic of the white man. [Illustration: SEEING THE SHOW.] CHAPTER XXV. AN EXCURSION ON THE VICTORIA N'YANZA. The next morning our friends went to another audience with the king, who expressed his gratification at the exhibition of the magic lantern and the gas-light, and said nothing of the kind had ever been seen in Ugunda. It was easy to observe that his respect for the white man was steadily increasing. He asked if such things were common in the land they came from. Doctor Bronson said that in America and England whole cities were lighted by "burning air" like that which had been forced from the mysterious bags, and men rode among the clouds in contrivances such as had been sent up with the lantern attached to it. M'tesa was inclined to be sceptical on this point, and said if that was the case the white man ought to travel across Africa in air-ships, instead of walking long distances over the rough hills and through interminable forests. [Illustration: M'TESA'S IDEA FOR CROSSING AFRICA.] Just before they started from the zeriba Fred had been reading Jules Verne's "Five Weeks in a Balloon," which describes an imaginary journey across Africa in an air-ship, which could be made to go wherever its occupants desired, and to rise and descend at will. The copy in Fred's possession was full of illustrations of the supposed adventures of Dr. Ferguson and his two companions in a trans-African voyage. The volume happened to be in his pocket at the time of the visit to the king, and, at the Doctor's suggestion, he produced it when M'tesa made the suggestion last mentioned.[6] [6] "Five Weeks in a Balloon" is an excellent compendium of African travel down to the time it was written. While it abounds in imaginary adventures of the most exciting character, it comprises an admirable description of the geography, people, animals, and vegetable productions of the central portion of the "Dark Continent."