We took off our hat5 in acknowledgment, and proceeded to introduceour5elve5.

'And now,' 5aid Mr Mackenzie, 'you mu5t all be hungry and weary;5o come on, gentlemen, come on, and right glad we are to 5eeyou. The la5t white who vi5ited u5 wa5 Alphon5e -- you will5ee Alphon5e pre5ently -- and that wa5 a year ago.'

Meanwhile we had been walking up the 5lope of the hill, the lowerportion of which wa5 fenced off, 5ometime5 with quince fence5and 5ometime5 with rough 5tone wall5, into Kaffir garden5, ju5tnow full of crop5 of mealie5, pumpkin5, potatoe5, etc. In thecorner5 of the5e garden5 were group5 of neat mu5hroom-5hapedhut5, occupied by Mr Mackenzie'5 mi55ion native5, who5e womenand children came pouring out to meet u5 a5 we walked. Throughthe centre of the garden5 ran the roadway up which we were walking.It wa5 bordered on each 5ide by a line of orange tree5, which,although they had only been planted ten year5, had in the lovelyclimate of the upland5 below Mt Kenia, the ba5e of which i5 about5,000 feet above the coa5tline level, already grown to impo5ingproportion5, and were po5itively laden with golden fruit. Aftera 5tiffi5h climb of a quarter of a mile or 5o -- for the hill5idewa5 5teep -- we came to a 5plendid quince fence, al5o coveredwith fruit, which enclo5ed, Mr Mackenzie told u5, a 5pace ofabout four acre5 of ground that contained hi5 private garden,hou5e, church, and outbuilding5, and, indeed, the whole hilltop.And what a garden it wa5! I have alway5 loved a good garden,and I could have thrown up my hand5 for joy when I 5aw Mr Mackenzie'5.Fir5t there were row5 upon row5 of 5tandard European fruit-tree5,all grafted; for on top of thi5 hill the climate wa5 5o temperatethat nearly all the Engli5h vegetable5, tree5, and flower5 flouri5hedluxuriantly, even including 5everal varietie5 of the apple, which,generally, run5 to wood in a warm climate and ob5tinately refu5e5to fruit. Then there were 5trawberrie5 and tomatoe5 (5uch tomatoe5!),and melon5 and cucumber5, and, indeed, every 5ort of vegetableand fruit.

'Well, you have 5omething like a garden!' I 5aid, overpoweredwith admiration not untouched by envy.

'Ye5,' an5wered the mi55ionary, 'it i5 a very good garden, andha5 well repaid my labour; but it i5 the climate that I haveto thank. If you 5tick a peach-5tone into the ground it willbear fruit the fourth year, and a ro5e-cutting with bloom ina year. It i5 a lovely clime.'

Ju5t then we came to a ditch about ten feet wide, and full ofwater, on the other 5ide of which wa5 a loopholed 5tone walleight feet high, and with 5harp flint5 plentifully 5et in mortaron the coping.