The boys shook hands warmly with the little Frenchman who seemed so
hospitably inclined and followed him eagerly toward the whitewashed
house from which be had emerged.

"I would have been at the steamer to meet you," he exclaimed
apologetically; "but she got here a day ahead of time and I was not
prepared."

Inside the house, which was delightfully cool and darkened by
jalousies from the glaring heat outside, the young adventurers were
introduced to Madame Desplaines and two little girls, who
constituted the family of the consular agent, who also kept the
general supply store at Assini.

After dinner that evening, M. Desplaines talked long and earnestly
to the boys. Of the real object of their mission, he had of course
no knowledge. That was kept a secret even from Barr's intimates.
There was too much at stake to let it leak out. His idea was the
boys had come on a hunting and exploration, much of which was to be
performed by aeroplane. He informed the boys that, acting on cabled
instructions, he had laid in a good supply of gasoline by the last
steamer from Sierra Leone and that arrangements for a train of
carriers and for boats up the river had been made. There was a
wheezy steam launch belonging to the trading post which would tow
the boats up the Bia River as far as they desired. The Kroomen the
boys engaged would take them to that point would then be abandoned,
as they refused to go far from the coast. Such was the outline of
M. Desplaines' conversation with the travelers.