is your modesty, my friend," said the Cabinet Minister with a
benign smile. "I, at any rate, appreciate the fact that but for your
popularity I should have had short shrift from this murderous
blackguard."

He went down stream the next morning, the _Zaire_ overcrowded with
Houssas.

"I should have liked to have left a party in the forest," said Sanders;
"I shall not rest until we get this thief Mimbimi by the ear."

"I should not bother," said Hamilton dryly; "the sobering influence of
your name seems to be almost as potent as my Houssas."

"Please do not be sarcastic," said Sanders sharply, he was unduly
sensitive on the question of such matters as these. Nevertheless, he was
happy at the end of the adventure, though somewhat embarrassed by the
telegrams of congratulation which were poured upon him not only from the
Administrator but from England.

"If I had done anything to deserve it I would not mind," he said.

"That is the beauty of reward," smiled Hamilton; "if you deserve things
you do not get them, if you do not deserve them they come in cartloads,
you have to take the thick with the thin. Think of the telegrams which
ought to have come and did not."

They took farewell of Mr. Blowter on the beach, the surf-boat waiting to
carry him to a mail steamer decorated for the occasion with strings of
flags.

"There is one question which I would like to ask you," said Sanders,
"and it is one which for some reason I have forgotten to ask before--can
you describe Mimbimi to me so that I may locate him? He is quite unknown
to us."

Mr. Blowter frowned thoughtfully.

"He is difficult to describe! all natives are alike to me," he said
slowly. "He is rather tall, well-made, good-looking for a native, and
talkative."

"Talkative!" said Sanders quickly.

"In a way; he can speak a little English," said the Cabinet Minister,
"and evidently has some sort of religious training, because he spoke of
Mark, and Luke, and the various Apostles as one who had studied possibly
at a missionary school."

"Mark and Luke," almost whispered Sanders, a great light dawning upon
him. "Thank you very much. I think you said he always bowed when my name
was mentioned?"

"Invariably," smiled the Cabinet Minister.

"Thank you, sir." Sanders shook hands.

"O! by the way, Mr. Sanders," said Blowter, turning back from the boat,
"I suppose you know that you have been gazetted C.M.G.?"

Sanders flushed red and stammered "C.M.G."

"It