The men stood their ground and stared at them,
but the women and children ran screaming away to hide themselves.
The idea of the people of Central Africa of the whites is that
they are few in number, that they live at the bottom of the sea,
and are possessed of great wealth, but that they have no palm oil
or logwood, and are, therefore, compelled to come to land to trade
for these articles. They believe that the strange clothes they wear
are manufactured from the skins of sea beasts.
When night fell Mr. Goodenough fastened a sheet against the outside
of the chief's hut, and then placed a magic lantern in position
ten paces from it. The Fans were then invited to gather round and
take their seats upon the ground. A cry of astonishment greeted the
appearance of the bright disk. This was followed by a wilder yell
when this was darkened, and an elephant bearing some men sitting
on his back was seen to cross the house. The men leaped to their
feet and seized their spears. The women screamed, and Ostik, who
was himself somewhat alarmed, had great difficulty in calming their
fears and persuading them to sit down again, assuring them that
they would see many wonderful things, but that nothing would hurt
them.
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