it, but that nobody appeared to have the power to prevent
it! Even the Sultan who granted the permits or passes to the owners of
the dhows, although he _professed_ to wish to check the slave-trade,
could not prevent it. Wasn't that strange--wasn't it curious? The
Sultan derived by far the largest portion of his revenue from the tax
levied on the export of slaves--amounting to somewhere about 10,000
pounds a year--but _that_ had nothing to do with it of course not, oh
dear no! Then there was another very ludicrous phase of this oriental,
not to say transcendental, potentate's barefacedness. He knew, and
probably admitted, that about 2000, some say 4000, slaves a year were
sufficient to meet the home-consumption of that commodity, and he also
knew, but probably did not admit, that not fewer than 30,000 slaves were
annually exported from Zanzibar to meet this requirement of 4000! These
are very curious specimens of miscalculation which this barefaced Sultan
seems to have fallen into. Perhaps he was a bad arithmetician. [See
Captain Sulivan's _Dhow-chasing in Zanzibar Water_; page 111.] We have
said that this state of things _was_ so at the time of our story, but we
may now add that it still _is_ so in this year of grace 1873. Whether
it shall continue to be so remains to be seen!

Having spent some time in fruitless inquiry, Harold and Disco at last to
their satisfaction, discovered an Arab dhow of known good character,
which was on the point of starting for the Zambesi in the course of a
few days, for the purpose of legitimate traffic. It therefore became
necessary that our hero should make his purchases and preparations with
all possible speed. In this he was entirely guided by his father's
agent, a merchant of the town, who understood thoroughly what was
necessary for the intended journey.

It is not needful here to enter into full details, suffice it to say
that among the things purchased by Harold, and packed up in portable
form, were a number of bales of common unbleached cotton, which is
esteemed above everything by the natives of Africa as an article of
dress--if we may dignify by the name of dress the little piece, about
the size of a moderate petticoat, which is the only clothing of some, or
the small scrap round the loins which is the sole covering of other,
natives of the interior! There were also several coils of thick brass
wire, which is much esteemed by them for making bracelets and anklets;
an