"Now, Kulana," said Challis to the second in command, "what are you all idling for? Carry the stuff to those palm-trees yonder."
The men got up obediently, but they appeared to have a strange hesitation in lifting their loads.
"Come, come!" said Challis. "I know that you are done up, but you are not so bad as all that. Besides, it's only a few yards away, and the sooner we form camp the sooner you'll get to sleep."
There was a murmuring among them. Still they did not offer to lift the bundles.
Challis curbed his rising anger. The men were usually so willing that he wished not to be hard on them. And both Royce and he had already taken much interest in studying the queer moods and ideas of these Africans.
"What is troubling them, Kulana?" he asked quietly.
The Hausa looked him full in the face, and, seeing no anger there, replied:
"No want camp dar, sah—berry bad place."
"Oh! Why is that?"
And then the man began to pour out an explanation of which at first Challis could make nothing. Kulana's English was not adequate to express his thoughts. He talked of "debbils" and "bad medicine," and went through a pantomime of gestures expressing fear and fright, the other men listening intently, and murmuring approval now and then.