"Once a white man in an unbuttoned uniform, camping on the path with an armed escort of lank Zanzibaris, very hospitable and festive- not to say drunk."Zanzibar Island was founded in the sixteenth century and used for a Portuguese trading post. The people of Zanzibar were used as mercenaries. Comprised of all ages people of the Zanzibar nation were forced into being soldiers. Conrad has Zanzibars appear throuhout the story.
"Zanzibaris - definition of Zanzibaris by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia." Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary. Web. 14 Sept. 2009. http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Zanzibaris.
http://books.google.com/books?id=Ftz_gtO-pngC&pg=PA719&lpg=PA719&dq=Zanzibaris+mercenaries&source=bl&ots=IuzCrjiBlR&sig=50lx0xQVEoJgwQnfYzpuOGAJ4iY&hl=en&ei=s22VSpewLsPIlAeR_v2vDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5#v=onepage&q=&f=false
why include this particular detail -- why might Conrad be keying on these folks?
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