hem very earnestly, by which they
guessed that this was the place of their destination. The island was
so uncommonly low that the houses and trees appeared as if they were
standing in the water, as indeed many of them actually were. Theirs
being the first canoe, before they landed on the island, they waited
for the king to precede them, and the moment he set his foot on
shore, they fired a salute of four muskets and three pistols. The
king of the dark water was rather alarmed at this, and demanded
whether they were going to make war on him, but he was soon relieved
from his fear, by being told that it was an honour that they had been
in the habit of paying to all the princes, whom they had met in their
travels; which he no sooner understood, than he expressed himself
much gratified by their attention.

The king himself went in quest of a dwelling house, and conducted
them to one of the best which the island afforded; it was, however,
miserably bad, for as the town was built on a marsh, every hut in it
had the disadvantage, during the whole of the rainy season, of soft
damp floors, and uncomfortable roofs. Their own hut had positively
pools of water springing up out of the ground. The walls of the hut
were built of mud from the river, strengthened and supported by
wooden pillars, and ribs of the same materials; however, these do not
prevent them from cracking in a hundred different places, and large
chinks, admitting wind and rain, may be observed in the walls of
every hut. They have all a very dirty and wretched appearance,
although their inmates, generally speaking, were understood to be
clean, opulent, and respectable. Having conducted them to the hut,
the chief of the island shook hands with them very heartily, and
assured them they should want for nothing. He soon provided them with
doors of bamboo for their hut, and a number of mats to spread on the
floor, which made it tolerably comfortable. In the evening, four
large calabashes of stewed rice with fowls, and no less than ten
gallons of _petto_ or country beer were sent them.

About seven in the evening, messengers arrived from Rabba, to inform
them that they should come early in the morning for the presents
intended for their chief. They said that the king would not put them
to the trouble of going to see him, as the town was full of Arabs,
whose begging propensities would be very inconvenient to them. The
Landers were much pleased with this intelligence, knowi