The Man Who Did the Right Thing: A RomanceJohnston, Harry
General
The Man Who Did the Right Thing: A Romance
Johnston, Harry
British -- Africa, East -- Fiction; Missions -- Tanzania -- Fiction
Brentham and his charges were bound for the Stotts’ station of Burungi,
three or four days’ journey—say, fifty miles—to the west. Lucy felt
already many degrees better in health, though she thought it only decent
to conceal her returning vigour and new-found animation. The picnic
meals by the road side stimulated her appetite; her eye took pleasure in
the changes of scenery, the new panoramas of plain and wilderness that
unfolded themselves as she was swayingly borne along. Ann seemed sombre
and preoccupied, as though noting land-marks for after recognition.
Occasionally she pointed to this and that feature in the landscape and
asked her Big-geru for its native name.
The very hot weather which closes the dry season made itself felt, so
that the start from Hangodi had been begun in the early morning
twilight, and each succeeding morning they took to the road at 5.30.
They jogged along, with an occasional five minutes’, rest, till
half-past ten or until about that time they had found a stream valley or
a water hole which contained water not too bad for cooking purposes.
Then the caravan halted for the day in such shade as might be found, and
the march was not resumed till 5 p.m.
Owing to the brilliancy of the moonlight it might be continued well into
the night. During the long mid-day halt, the Goanese cook, aided by
Halima and several porters and Brentham’s Swahili butler, would prepare
really very creditable little meals, and after eating the travellers
would lie on unfolded deck chairs in some piece of shade where the hard
ground had been swept clear of snakes, insects or scorpions. Brentham,
if the heat were not too scorching, might wander with a shot-gun near by
to try for the chance of a guinea-fowl or francolin or tiny antelope.
At four o’clock they had tea with goat’s milk; and at five resumed their
journey. The tents were pitched by moonlight and the beds made by the
light of a candle lantern. Toilet processes were very summary; there
was all too little water to wash in and the travellers must just sleep
in their clothes and put any ideas of effective ablutions out of their
heads till they reached the water supply at the Stotts’ station. The
night camp was hastily surrounded by a thorn hedge cut from the acacia
trees, and big fires were lighted to keep off lions and hyenas. Blacks
and whites had to sleep in close proximity and the treasured goats and
donkey in the middle of the circle of loads.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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