Page:Dick Sands the Boy Captain.djvu/389

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MARKET-DÀY. 36Î Âuffer the cruellest tortures that native ingenuity could de- vise. That the ** Pilgrim's " cook now held in his power the 1x^ captain he so thoroughly hated was warrant enough Ihat the sternest possible measure of vengeance would bé «xacted. Two days latef", the great market, the lakoni, corn- Ynencéd. Although many of the principal traders were there from the interior, it was by no means exclusively a «lave-mart ; a considérable proportion of the natives froni Ihe neighibouring provinces assembled to dispose of the Various products of the country. • Quite early the great chitoka of Kazonndé was ail ahVe wîth a bustlîng concourse of little under fiye thousand peoplé, including the slaves of old Alvez, amongst whom were Tom and his three partners in adversity — an item by ho means inconsiderahle in the dealer*s stock.

  • Accompanled by Coïmbra, Alvez himself was one of thë

first arrivais. He was going to sell his slaves in lots to be conveyed in caravans into the interior. The dealers for the most part consisted of half-breeds from Ujiji, the principal market on Lake Tanganyika, whilst some of a superior class were manifestly Arabs. ' The natives that were assembled were of both sexes, and of every variety of âge, the women in particular displaying an aptitude in making bargains that is shared by their sisters elsewhere of a lighter hue; and it may be said that no market of the most civilized région could be èharacterized by greater cxcitement or animation, for amongst the savages of Africa the customer makes his offer irt equally noiisy terms as the vendor. The lakoni was always considered a kînd of fête-day ; consequently the natives of both sexes, though their clothing was scahty in extent, made a point of appearing in a most lavish display of ornaments. Their head-gear was most iremarkable. The men had their hair arranged in every variety of eccentrîc device ; some had it dividcd into four parts, rolled over cushions and fastcncd into a chignon, or inountedi în front into a bunch of tails adorned with recf feathers ; others plastered it thîckly with a mixture of red