"Otherwise we'll all go crazy, and all get left behind!" There did not remain much time for sleeping.

The porters, being used to the tents and their loads now, got away to a good start, heading straight toward the frowning pile of Elgon that hove its great hump against a blue sky and domineered over the world to the northward.
There were plenty of villages, well filled with timid spear-men and hard-working naked wives.

Now that we had trade goods in plenty there was no difficulty at all about making friends with them.

They had two obsessing fears: that it might not rain in proper season, and "the people" as they called themselves would "have too much hunger"; and that the men from the mountain might come and take their babies.
"Which men, from what mountain ?" "Bad men, from very high up on that mountain!" They pointed toward Elgon, shuddered, and looked away.
"Why should they take your babies ?" "They eat them!" "What makes you think that ?" "We know it! They come! Once in so often they come and fight with us, and take away, and kill and eat our fat babies!" All the inhabitants of all the villages agreed.

None of them had ever ventured on the mountain; but all agreed that very bad black men came raiding from the upper slopes at uncertain intervals.