The French writer Henri de Monfreid (1879–1974) began his career as a diplomat at the French mission in Calcutta, then for some time he was engaged in commerce - selling leather and coffee. However, all his life he was attracted to sea adventures, and at the age of 32 he finally left public service and went to the French colony of Djibouti, where he engaged in pearl fishing. On the advice of the famous French writer Joseph Kessel, he wrote his first story, “Secrets of the Red Sea,” about pearl divers, which was enthusiastically received by readers, and the writer’s reputation as a “corsair writer” was firmly established. His next story, “Sea Adventures,” is about the underground arms trade in which the Intelligence Service is involved, about relationships in the French colony, and about enmity with the British. The stories are full of marvelous descriptions of exotic countries and the customs of local tribes. The action takes place at the beginning of the 20th century in East Africa.