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Above Boma the hills, which are the outlines of the west African Ghats, form a graceful semicircle, separated from the water by a flat terrace garnished with little villages and tree- islets. On the north bank are many of the crater-like sinks which dot the coast from the Gaboon to Loango.
It must have been close to three o'clock in the morning that Anderssen brought the boat's nose to the shore before a clearing where could be dimly seen in the waning moonlight a cluster of native huts encircled by a thorn boma. At the village gate they were admitted by a native woman, the wife of the chief whom Anderssen had paid to assist him.
Trees overhung the boma at this point which was upon the opposite side of the camp from them. They dared not approach. Their terror even prevented them from arousing their fellows they could only stand in frozen fear and watch for the fearsome apparition they momentarily expected to see leap from the jungle. Nor had they long to wait.
To wait there any longer after this, I knew, would be a mere waste of time, so I ordered my men to pack up that moment, and we all marched over at once to Lumeresi's, when we put up in his boma. Lumeresi was not in then, but, on his arrival at night, he beat all his drums to celebrate the event, and fired a musket, in reply to which I fired three shots.
Also, as I observed, they took precautions against attack by stationing sentries and forcing the slaves to construct a boma of thorns about their camp. "Well," said Stephen, when we had finished our dinner, "are you ready for that call?" "No!" I answered, "I do not think that I am. I have been considering things, and concluded that we had better leave well alone.
Cautiously he approached until there suddenly burst upon his view a rude BOMA, in the center of which, squatted about their tiny fires, sat his fifty black Waziri. He called to them in their own tongue: "Arise, my children, and greet thy king!" With exclamations of surprise and fear the warriors leaped to their feet, scarcely knowing whether to flee or not.
Sayd bin Salim's house was at the north-western corner of the inclosure, a stockaded boma of Kwikuru. We had tea made in a silver tea-pot, and a bountiful supply of "dampers" were smoking under a silver cover; and to this repast I was invited.
Stanley was reasoning with the chief when the coxswain came and asked what was the matter. "There's rum for him," he said, and gave the chief a buffet which knocked him over and put his whole retinue to flight. Now it was only a couple of days' journey to Boma, near the mouth of the Congo, where there were trade factories and Europeans.
The canoe-men attempted to land at one place, declaring that some king wanted "dash," but we were now too strong for them: these fellows, if allowed, will halt to speak every boat on the river. The wind fell to a dead calm, and five hours and a half sufficed to cover the thirty miles between Boma and Porto da Lenha. Here Mr. Scott supplied me with a fine canoe and a fresh crew of seven paddles.
They had instructions to erect temporary shelter and construct a protecting BOMA of thorn bush; for the plan of campaign which Tarzan had chosen was one which might stretch out over many days, or even weeks, during which time the warriors would not return to the new camp. Two hours after daylight a thin circle of black warriors surrounded the village.
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