MISTAKES AND FALSE NEWS 357 but this is always the way with travellers, and even Barth himself was not exempt from such fluctuations of mood.

My journal in extenso might serve as an illustration of the psychology of the lie as illustrated amongst the negroes and Mussulmans, but no other useful purpose, so I shall greatly condense it. The reader will still, I hope, get a very good idea of all we went through. If what I quote is rather incoherent, excuses must be made for me, for the news we got was often incoherent enough, and our life at the Fort was rather a puzzle too sometimes, with our alternations of hope and anxiety.

Friday, April 10. — We are getting on with our fort ; our abattis are finished and ready for any attack. (This was written the day after our arrival, whilst our work was still in full swing.)

We put the Aube in dry dock to-day, and it took the united efforts of us all to haul her into position : noncommissioned ofificers, interpreters, servants, all had to work, and even we white men lent a hand. During the operation of turning her on to her side, the poor Aube might have tumbled to pieces, for all her planks were loose. But she held together yet once more, and, as you will see, we did not have to abandon her until the very end of our voyage.

A new recruit joined us to-day, my journal goes on, so with Suleyman Futank we have two extra hands now. This was how he came to join us. During the siesta hour we heard a man shouting from the other side of the river, " Agony ! agony ! " and looking out we saw some one waving a white cloth. We sent the Dantec to fetch him, and when he arrived he kept shouting " Agony ! agony ! " in a joyful voice. He showed us his cap of European make, evidently expecting us to understand what he meant, but that did not explain the use of the word " agony " so often.