 a single short
question, which I supposed meant »Who are you?« I answered in English quite
composedly as though he would understand me, and endeavoured to be my very most
natural self as well as I could. He appeared more and more puzzled, and then
retired, returning with two others much like himself. Then they took me into an
inner room, and the two fresh arrivals stripped me, while the chief looked on.
They felt my pulse, they looked at my tongue, they listened at my chest, they
felt all my muscles; and at the end of each operation they looked at the chief
and nodded, and said something in a tone quite pleasant, as though I were all
right. They even pulled down my eyelids, and looked, I suppose, to see if they
were bloodshot; but it was not so. At length they gave up; and I think that all
were satisfied of my being in the most perfect health, and very robust to boot.
At last the old magistrate made me a speech of about five minutes long, which
the other two appeared to think greatly to the point, but from which I gathered
nothing. As soon as it was ended, they proceeded to overhaul my swag and the
contents of my pockets. This gave me little uneasiness, for I had no money with
me, nor anything which they were at all likely to want, or which I cared about
losing. At least I fancied so, but I soon found my mistake.
    They got on comfortably at first, though they were much puzzled with my
tobacco-pipe and insisted on seeing me use it. When I had shown them what I did
with it, they were astonished but not displeased, and seemed to like the smell.
But by and by they came to my watch, which I had hidden away in the inmost
pocket that I had, and had forgotten when they began their search. They seemed
concerned and uneasy as soon as they got hold of it. They then made me open it
and show the works; and when I had done so they gave signs of very grave
displeasure, which disturbed me all the more because I could not conceive
wherein it could have offended them.
    I remember that when they first found it I had thought of Paley, and how he
tells us that a savage on seeing a watch would at once conclude that it was
designed. True, these people were not savages, but I none the less felt sure
that this was the conclusion they would arrive at; and I was thinking what a
wonderfully wise man
