376 THE EXPLORATION OF THE NIGER beyond Say, and brought us all sorts of silly news only, so Digui took him by the shoulders and quite gently turned him out of the camp.

May 20. — As the so-called Tabaski fSte approached, our visitors and the news they brought were greatly on the increase. Pullo, Osman, and the minor ambassadors vied with each other in the ingenuity of their inventions.

The fact was, they all wanted to have new bubus for the festive occasion, some money, some coppers to buy kola nuts, etc., not to speak of new bright-coloured undergarments for their wives. " What would the village people say, commandant," they would urge, " if I, who every one knows to be a friend of the French, should cut anything but a good figure ? " Some few, however, were actuated by something more than a wish for presents on their visits to us. They were