to our
government?"

"Better send the book to the commissioner at Nairobi, or Mombasa, or
wherever he is," suggested Will. "Then if the 'prof' here doesn't get
a swift move on he's liable to be overtaken by the cops, I should say."

"Let's make no promises," said I. "I vote we simply give him time to
get away."

At that the Germain saw the weak side of our case in a flash.

"If you dared give that diary to your government," he growled, "you
would do so without bargaining with me! Why do you propose to let me
go? Out of love for me? No! But because you dare not appeal to your
government! Give me that diary, and I will go at once to German East,
not otherwise! It is only a diary," he added. "Nothing
important--merely my private jottings and memoranda."

Fred turned toward me so that Schillingschen could not see his face.

"Are you willing to start for Kisumu at once with that book?" he asked,
and I nodded. He winked at me so violently that I could not trust
myself to answer aloud and keep a straight face.

"Very well,"' he said. "Suppose you start with it to-morrow morning.
At the end of a week well turn the professor home to follow his own
nose!"

Schillingschen shrugged his shoulders and refused to be drawn into
further argument. We gave him a good meal from his own provisions, and
then once more made his hands fast with wire behind him and left him to
sleep off his rage if he cared to in a corner of the tent.

Later that morning we sent for the Baganda--gave him a view of
Schillingschen trussed and helpless--and questioned him about the man
he boasted he knew, who could tell us what Schillingschen was after.
He was so full of fear by that time that he held back nothing.

He assured us the German was after buried ivory. There was a man, who
had promised to meet Schillingschen, who knew where to find the ivory
and would lead the way to it. He did not know names or places--knew
only that the man would be found waiting at a certain place, and was
not white.

"How did you get that information?" Fred demanded.

"By listening."

"When? Where?"

"At night, months ago, in Nairobi, outside the professor's tent. I lay
under the fly among the loads and listened. The man came in the dark,
and went in the dark. I did not see him. I did not hear him called by
name. He must have been an old man. Speaking Kiswahili, he admitted
he knew where the ivory is. He said he saw it buried, and that he
a