On arrival at the top of the cliff, we were about 180 feet above the
river, and after a walk of about a quarter of a mile, we were
triumphantly led into the heart of the village, and halted in a small
courtyard in front of the headman's residence.
Keedja waited to receive us by a blazing fire. Not having had anything
to eat, we were uncommonly hungry, and to our great delight a basketful
of ripe plantains was presented to us; these were the first that I had
seen for many years. A gourd bottle of plantain wine was offered, and
immediately emptied; it resembled extremely poor cider. We were now
surrounded by a mass of natives, no longer the naked savages to whom we
had been accustomed, but well-dressed men, wearing robes of bark cloth,
arranged in various fashions, generally like the Arab "tope," or the
Roman toga. Several of the headmen now explained to us the atrocious
treachery of Debono's men, who had been welcomed as friends of Speke and
Grant, but who had repaid the hospitality by plundering and massacreing
their hosts. I assured them that no one would be more wroth than Speke
when I should make him aware of the manner in which his name had been
used, and that I should make a point of reporting the circumstance to
the British Government. At the same time I advised them not to trust any
but white people, should others arrive in my name, or in those of Speke
and Grant.
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