“How about going to Abyssinia?” asked Stasch.
“It is also nearly 300 kilometers distant. Besides that, one must reckon that the Mahdi is now at war with the whole world, consequently with Abyssinia. Besides, I have heard from the prisoners that bands of Dervishes are wandering in the western and southern districts, and you might easily fall into their hands. Abyssinia is certainly a Christian land, but the savage races to the south are either heathens or believers in Islam, and for that reason they secretly sympathize with the Mahdi. No; you can not go through that country.”
“Then what shall I do, and where shall I go with Nell?” asked Stasch.
“I told you that you are in a difficult position,” murmured Linde; then he covered his head with his hands and remained silent a while.
“From here to the ocean,” he at last said, “would be more than 900 kilometers, through mountain regions, wild tribes, and even desert places, for on the way there are supposed to be large tracts of arid land. But nominally the country belongs to England. One might strike caravans of ivory on their way to Kismaya-Lam and Mombasa, perhaps even meet missionary expeditions. When I saw that, owing to the Dervishes, I could not escape the course of this river, as it turns off toward the Nile, I made up my mind to go east toward the ocean.”
“Then we will return together!” cried Stasch.
“I shall never return. The _Ndiri_ beast tore my sinews and veins so terribly that blood poisoning must certainly set in. Only a surgeon could save me by amputating my leg. Now it has dried up and stiffened, but on the first day the pain was so great that I bit into my hands and——”
“No, my brave boy, I shall surely die, and you must cover me well with stones, so that the hyenas can not dig me up. This is perhaps of little consequence to the dead, but while alive it is not a pleasant thought. It is hard to have to die so far away from one’s family.”
At these words his eyes became veiled, and after a while he continued:
“But I have become accustomed to the thought, so let us now talk about you, not about me. I will give you one piece of advice: There is only one road for you to take, which is to the east toward the ocean. But before attempting this journey you should rest well and gather strength; otherwise your little companion will die in a few weeks. Postpone the journey until the rainy season is over and perhaps even longer. The first months of summer, when it has ceased raining, and the water still covers the swamps, are the most healthful. This place, where we now are, is an elevated plateau lying nearly seven hundred feet above the level of the sea. In high regions of one thousand three hundred feet there is no fever, and if by chance it be carried there from places of lower altitude, it assumes a much milder form. Take the little English girl and go into the mountains with her.”