Atlantida

vision of a yellow and rose-colored sun rising through the morning mists over the smooth waves of a great river, 'the river where there is water,' the Niger, it was. . . But you are not listening to me."

"I am listening to you, I swear it, little Tanit-Zerga."

"You are sure I am not wearying you? You want me to go on?"

"Go on, little Tanit-Zerga, go on."

"Well, with my little companions, of whom I was very fond, I played at the edge of the river where there is water, under the jujube trees, brothers of the zeg-zeg, the spines of which pierced the head of your prophet and which we call 'the tree of Paradise' because our prophet told us that under it would live those chosen of Paradise; 1 and which is sometimes so big, so big, that a horseman cannot traverse its shade in a century.

"There we wove beautiful garlands with mimosa, the pink flowers of the caper bush and white cockles. Then we threw them in the green water to ward off evil spirits; and we laughed like mad things when a great snorting hippopotamus raised his swollen head and we bombarded him in glee until he had to plunge back again with a tremendous splash.

"That was in the mornings. Then there fell on Gâo the deathlike lull of the red siesta. When that

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