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 PRESENTED I IV 
 
*► 
 
 
 LIVINGSTONE'S 
 
 f nvtlt m& ^muthn 
 
 IN SOUTH AFRICA; 
 
 INCLUDING 
 
 i SKETCH OF SIXTEEN YEARS' RESIDENCE IN THE INTERIOR OF AFRU 
 
 AND A JOURNEY FROM THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE TO LOANDA 
 
 ON THE WEST COAST, THENCE ACROSS THE CONTINENT, 
 
 DOWN THE RIVER ZAMBESI, TO THE 
 
 EASTERN OCEAN. 
 
 OP 
 
 DAVED LrVIKGSTONE, LL.D., D.C.L. 
 
 LLOW OP THE FACULTY OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS, GLASGOW; CORRESPONDING MEM 
 
 OF THE GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK; GOLD MEDALLIST 
 
 AND CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETIES 
 
 OF LONDON AND PARIS, ETC. ETC. 
 
 TO WHICH IS ADDED 
 
 A HISTORICAL SKETCH OF DISCOVERIES IN AFRICA 
 Illustrate foitjj Jpunuraus (Bugntbiirg*. 
 
 Tk* Tittie Fly, magnifltd. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 J. W BRADLEY, 48 N. FOURTH STREET. 
 
 1861. 
 
tf 
 
 < 
 
 ■$ 
 
 filtered accoutring to Act of Congress, in the year 18*9, by 
 
 J. W. BRADLLY, 
 
 in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States in and for the 
 Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 
 
 ' t. 
 
 STEREOTYPED BY L. JOHNSON & CO. 
 PHILADELPHIA. 
 
 PRINTED HY KING & U.UR». 
 
PREFACE 
 
 0? THE 
 
 AMEEICAN PUBLISHER. 
 
 Dr. Livingstone is the most remarkable of all the 
 travellers who have visited Africa. His personal nar- 
 rative is the most important and interesting of all that 
 nave yet been published. It will prove the most influ- 
 ential on future discovery. His great journey across 
 the continent was almost entirely over ground hitherto 
 untrodden by the foot of the white man. The infor- 
 mation which he gives is therefore fresh, and, in 
 many instances, refutes and explodes the theories of 
 previous travellers. In the matter of personal adven- 
 tures and hairbreadth escapes it is much richer than 
 the doctor could have desired. 
 
 Dr. Livingstone is a very pleasing writer, a man of 
 true Christian benevolence, a man of extensive scien- 
 tific information, and an indefatigable laborer in the 
 cause of discovery and civilization. His personal nar- 
 rative contains a vast amount of information on the 
 geology, meteorology, zoology, and history of the coun- 
 tries which he visited, which will be esteemed highly 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 valuable by scientific inquirers. The edition of his 
 book now offered to the public, by omitting a con- 
 siderable amount of scientific matter and minor de- 
 tails, has been compressed into a compass which will 
 render it perhaps more acceptable to the general 
 reader than if the whole had been given, and at the 
 same time bring it within the reach of those who find 
 it necessary to consult economy in their purchases of 
 books. 
 
 The reader will observe that the narrative is all 
 given in the language of Dr. Livingstone, and that it 
 forms a complete account of his various journeys, 
 omitting only incidental details and scientific matter.* 
 
 * Since the above Preface was written and published, the publisher has 
 issued a work which forms an excellent companion to Dr. Livingstone's Travels 
 and Researches, as the Author has explored thoroughly, and described with 
 wonderfully graphic power, the whole of North Central Africa, while Dr. Liv- 
 ingstone was engaged in his useful labors in South Central Africa. The con- 
 trast between the.nations and tribes which they respectively visited, in manners, 
 character and civilization, is of the most striking kind. The following is the 
 title of Dr. Barth's work : u Travels and Discoveries in North and Central 
 Africa, from the Journal of an Expedition undertaken under the auspices of 
 H. B. M. Government in the years 1849-1855. By Henry Barth, Ph. D., 
 D. C. L., Fellow of the Royal Geographical and Asiatic Societies, etc ; with 
 notes amd extracts from Mr. Richardson's Account of the Expedition, and ■ 
 Sketch of Danham and Clapperton's Expedition by the American editor.* 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Pireonal Sketch — Highland Ancestors — Family Traditions-— Grandfather n^ 
 moves to the Lowlands — Parents — Early Labors and Efforts — Evening 
 School — Love of Reading — Religious Impressions — Medical Education — 
 Youthful Travels — Geology — Mental Discipline — Study in Glasgow — Londou 
 Missionary Society — Native Village — Medical Diploma, — Theological Studies 
 — Departure for Africa No Claim to Literary Accomplishments Page 9 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 The Bakw&in Country — -Study of the Language — Mab6tsa Station — A Lion 
 Encounter — Virus of the Teeth ef Lions — SechSle — Baptism of Seehele — 
 Opposition of the Natives — Purchase Land at Chonuane — Relations with 
 the People — Their Intelligence — Prolonged Drought — Consequent Trials — 
 The Hunting Hopo m 18 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 The Boers — Their Treatment of the Natives — The Tale of the Cannon — The 
 Boers threaten Seehele — In violation of Treaty, they expel Missionaries — 
 They attack the Bafcwains — Their Mode of Fighting — The Natives killed 
 and the School-Children carried into Slavery — Destruction of English Pro- 
 perty — Continued Hostility of the Boers — The Journey North — Prepara- 
 tions — Fellow-Travellers 28 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Departure from Kolobeng, 1st June, 1849 — Companions — Our Route — Serotli, 
 a Fountain in the Desert — The Hyena — The Chief Sekomi — Dangers — The 
 Wandering Guide — Cross Purposes — Slow Progress — Want of Water — The 
 Salt- Pan at Nchokotsa — The Mirago — Reach the River Zouga — Tho Quaker* 
 :>f Africa — Discovery of Lake Ngami, 1st August, 1849 — Its Extent — Small 
 Depth of Water— The Bamangwato and their Chief — Desire to visit Sebi- 
 tuane, the Chief of the Makololo — Refusal of Lechulatebe to furnish us with 
 Guides— The Banks of tho Zouga .... 84 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Luave Kolobeng again for the Country of Sebituane — Reach the Zouga — The 
 Tsetse — A Party of Englishmen — Death of Mr. Rider — Obtain Guides — 
 Children fall sick with Fever — Relinquish the Attempt to reach Sebituane— 
 Return to Kolobeng — Make a Third Start thenoe — Reach Nchokotsa — Oui 
 
 vii 
 
ttil CONTENTS. 
 
 Guide Shobo— The Bnnajoa— An Ugly Chief— The Tsetse- -Bite ratal tr 
 Domestio Animals, but harmless to Wild Animals and Man — Operation of 
 the Poison — Losses caused by it — The Makololo — Our Meeting with Sebi- 
 tuane — His Sudden Illness and Death — Succeeded by his Daughter — Her 
 Friendliness to us — Discovery, in June, 1651, of the Zambesi flowing in the 
 Centre of the Continent — Determine to send Family to England — Return to 
 the Capo in April, 1852 — Safe Transit through the Caffre Country during 
 Hostilities — Need of a " Special Correspondent" — Kindness of the London 
 Missionary Society — Assistance afforded by the Astronomer-Royal at the 
 Cape Page 44 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Start, in June, 1852, on the Last and Longest Journey from Cape Town — 
 Companions — Wagon-Travelling — Migration of Springbucks — The Orange 
 River — Territory of the Griquas and Bechuanas — The Griqtias — The Chief 
 Waterboer — His Wise and Energetic Government — His Fidelity — Succesa 
 of the Missionaries among the Griquas and Bechuanas — Manifest Improve- 
 ment of the Native Character — Dress of the Natives — Articles of Commerce 
 in the Country of the Bechuanajs — Their Unwillingness to learn and Readi- 
 ness to criticize 57 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Kuruman — Its fine Fountain — The Bible translated by Mr. Moffat — Capa- 
 bilities of the Language — Christianity among the Natives — Disgraceful 
 Attack of the Boers on the Bakwains — Letter from Sechele — Details of the 
 Attack — Destruction of House and Property at Kolobeng — The Boers vow 
 Vengeance against ine-— Consequent Difficulty of getting Servants to accom- 
 pany me on my Journey — Start in November, 1852 — Meet Sechele on his 
 way to England to obtain Redress from the Queen — Ho is unable to proceed 
 beyond the Cape — Meet Mr. Macabe on his Return from Lake Ngami — Reach 
 Litubaruba — The Cave Lepelole — Superstitions regarding it — Impoverished 
 State of the Bakwains — Retaliation on the Boers — Slavery — Attachment of 
 the Bechuanas to Children 63 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Departure from the Country of the Bakwains — Large Black Ant — Habits of 
 Old Lions — Cowardice of the Lion — Its Dread of a Snare — Major Vardon'a 
 Note — The Roar of the Lion resembles the Cry of the Ostrich — Seldom 
 attacks full-grown Animals — Buffaloes and Lions — Sekomi's Ideas of Ho- 
 nesty — Gordon Cumming's Hunting Adventures — A Word of Advice for 
 Young Sportsmen — Bushwomen drawing Water 73 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Fffects of Missionary Efforts-»-Belief in the Deity — Departure from their 
 Country — Nchokotsa — The Bushmen — Their Superstitions — Elephant-Hunt- 
 ing — The Chief Kaisa — His Fear of Responsibility — Severe Labor in cutting 
 our Way — Party seized with Fever — Discovery of Grape-Bearing Vines — 
 Difficulty of passing through the Forest — Sickness of my Companion — The 
 Bushmen — Their Mode of destroying Lions — Poisons— A Pontooning Ex- 
 pedition — The Chobe — Arrive at the Village of Moremi — Surprise o* the 
 Makololo at our Sudden Appearance — Cross the Chobe on our way tt 
 Linyanti. , • •• ••- S8 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Reception at Linyanti — The Court Herald — Sekeleta obtains the Chieftainship 
 from his Sister — Sekeletu's Reason for not learning to read the Bible — 
 Public Religious Services in the Kotla — Unfavorable Associations of the 
 Place — Native Doctors — Proposals to teach the Makololo to read — Sekeletu'i 
 Present — Reason for accepting it — Trading in Ivory — Accidental Fire- 
 Presents for Sekeletu Page 96 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Ihe Fever — Its Symptoms — Remedies of the Native Doctors — Hospitality of 
 Sekeletu and his People — They cultivate largely — The Makalaka or Subjeol 
 Tribes — Sebituane's Policy respecting them — Their Affection for him— Pro- 
 ducts of the Soil — Instrument of Culture — The Tribute — Distributed by the 
 Chief — A Warlike Demonstration — Lechulatebe's Provocations — The Ma- 
 kololo determine to punish him 104 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 • 
 Departure from Linyanti for Sesheke — Level Country — Ant-Hills — "Wild Date- 
 Trees — Appearance of our Attendants on the March — The Chief's Guard— 
 They attempt to ride .on Oxback — Reception at the Villages — Presents of 
 Beer and Milk — Eating with the Hand — The Chief provides the Oxen for 
 Slaughter — Social Mode of Eating — Cleanliness of Makololo Huts — Their 
 Construction and Appearance — The Beds — Cross the Leeambye — Aspect of 
 this part of the Country — Hunting — An Eland -. 109 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Procure Canoes and ascend the Leeambye — Beautiful Islands — Winter Land- 
 scape — Industry and Skill of the Banyeti — Rapids — Falls of Gonye — Nali^le, 
 the Capital, built on an Artificial Mound — Santuru, a Great Hunter — "The 
 Barotse — More Religious Feeling — Belief in a Future State and in the 
 Existence of Spiritual Beings — Hippopotamus-Hunters — No Healthy Loca- 
 tion — Determine to go to Loanda — Buffaloes, Elands, and Lions above 
 Libonta — Two Arabs from Zanzibar — Their Opinion of the Portuguese and 
 the English — Reach the Town of Ma-Sekeletu — Joy of the People at the 
 First Visit of their Chief — Return to Sesheke — Heathenism 116 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Ireliminary Arrangements for the Journey — A Picho— Twenty-Seven Men 
 appointed to accompany mo to the West — Eagerness of the Makololo for 
 Direct Trade with the Coast — Effects of Fever — A Makololo Question — Re- 
 flections—The Outfit for the Journey — 11th November, 1853, leave Linyanti 
 and embark on the Chobc — Dangerous Hippopotami — Banks of Chobe — 
 Trees — The Course of the River — The Island Mparia at the Confluence of 
 the Chobe and the Leeambye — Anecdote — Ascend the Leeambye — Publio 
 Addresses at Sesheke — Attention of the People — Results — Proceed up the 
 River — The Fruit which yields Nux vomica — The Rapids — Hippopotami and 
 their Young „., . ijj 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Ecreasing Beauty cf tie Country — Mode of spending the Day — The ?ti j»l« 
 and the Falls of Gonye — A Makololo Foray — A second prevented, and Cap- 
 tives delivered up — Politeness and Liberality of the People — The Rains- 
 Present of Oxen — Death from a Lion's Bite at Libonta — Continued Kindnesi 
 ■ — Arrangements for spending the Night during the Journey — Cooking and 
 Washing — Abundance of Animal Life — Alligators — Narrow Escape of one 
 of my Men — Superstitious Feelings respecting the Alligator — Large Game — . 
 Shoals of Fish — Hippopotami Page 138 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Message to Masiko, the Barotse Chief, regarding the Captives — Navigation of 
 the Leeambye — Capabilities of this District — The Leeba — Buffalo-Hunt — 
 Suspicion of the Balonda — Sekelenke's Present — 'Message from Manenko, a 
 Female Chief — Mambari Traders — A Dream — Sheakdndo and his People — 
 Interview with Nyamoana, another Female Chief — Court Etiquette — Hair 
 versus Wool — Increase of Superstition — Arrival of Manenko : her Appear- 
 ance and Husband — Mode of Salutation — Anklets — Embassy, with a Present 
 from Masiko — Roast Beef — Manioc — Magic Lantern — Manenko an Accom- 
 plished Scold : compels us to wait 148 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Nyamoana's Present — Charms — Manenko's Pedestrian Powers — Rain — Hunger 
 —Dense Forests — Artificial Bee-Hives — Villagers lend the Roofs of their 
 Houses — Divination and Idols — Manenko's Whims — Shinte's Messengers 
 and Present — The Proper Way to approach a Village — A Merman — Enter 
 Shinte's Town : its Appearance — Meet two Half-Caste Slave-Traders — The 
 Makololo scorn them — The Balonda Real Negroes — Grand Reception from 
 Shinte — His Kotla — Ceremony of Introduction — The Orators — Women — 
 Musicians and Musical Instruments — A Disagreeable Request — Private In- 
 terviews with Shinte — Give him an Ox — Manenko's New Hut — Conversa- 
 tion with Shinte — Kolimb6ta's Proposal — Balonda's Punctiliousness — Selling 
 Children — Kidnapping — Shinte's Offer of a Slave — Magic Lantern — Alarm 
 of Women — Delay — Sambanza returns intoxicated — The Last and Greatest 
 Proof of Shinte's Friendship 162 
 
 CHAPTER XVIL 
 
 (M»ve Shinte — Manioc-Gardens — Presents of Food — Punctiliousness of th« 
 Balonda — Cazembe — Inquiries for English Cotton Goods — Intemese's Fiction 
 — Locs of Pontoon- — Plains covered with Water — A Night on an Island — 
 Loan of the Roofs of Huts — A Halt — Omnivorous Fish — Natives' Mode of 
 matching them — The Village of a Half-Brother of Katema : hi3 Speech and 
 Present — Our Guide's Perversity — Mozenkwa's Pleasant Home and Family 
 —A Messenger from Katema — Quendende's Village : his Kindness — Crop 
 of Wool — Meet People from tho Town of Matiamvo — Fireside Talk— Ma- 
 tiamvoVCharacter and Conduct — Presentation at Katema's Court : his Pre- 
 sent — Interview on the following Day — Cattle — A Feast and a Makololo 
 Dance — Sagacity of Ants 188 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 tfbe Watershed between the Northern and Southern Rivers — A Deep VU^ey — 
 Rustic Bridge — Fountains on the Slopes of the Valleys — Village of Kabinje 
 — Demand for Gunpowder and English Calico — The Kasai — Vexatious Trick 
 — Want of Food — No Game — Katende's Unreasonable Demand — A Grave 
 Ofl'ence — Toll-Bridge Keeper — Greedy Guides — Flooded Valleys —Swim the 
 Jfuana Loke" — Prompt Kindness of my Men — Makololo Remarks on the rich 
 Uncultivated Valleys — Difference in the Color of Africans — Reach a Village 
 of the Chiboque — The Head Man's Impudent Message — Surrounds our En- 
 campment with his Warriors — The Pretence — Their Demand — Prospect of a 
 Fight — Way in which it was averted — Change our Path — The Ox Sinbad — 
 Insubordination suppressed — Beset by Enemies — A Robber Party — More 
 Troubles — Detained by Ionga Panza — His Village-^Annoyed by Bangala 
 Traders — My Men discouraged — Their Determination and Precaution Pagel99 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 troides Prepaid — Bark Canoes — Deserted by Guides — Native Traders — Valley 
 • 3f the Quango — The Chief Sansawe — His Hostility — Pass him safely — The 
 River Quango — Chief's Mode of dressing his Hair — Opposition — Opportune 
 Aid by Cypriano — His Generous Hospitality — Arrive at Cassange — A Good 
 Supper — Kindness of Captain Neves — Portuguese Curiosity and Questions- 
 Anniversary of the Resurrection — No Prejudice against Color — Country 
 around Cassange — Sell Sekeletu's Ivory — Makololo's Surprise at the High 
 Price obtained — Proposal to return Home, and Reasons — Soldier-Guide — 
 Tala Mungongo, Village of — Civility of Basongo — Fever — Enter District of 
 Ambaca — Good Fruits of Jesuit Teaching — The Tampan: its Bite — Uni- 
 versal Hospitality of the Portuguese — A Tale of the Mambari — Exhilarating 
 Effects of Highland Scenery — District of Golungo Alto — Fertility — Forests 
 of Gigantic Timber — Native Carpenters — Coffee-Estate — Sterility of Country 
 near the Coast — Fears of the Makololo — Welcome by Mr. Gabriel to 
 Loanda 224 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Continued Sickness — Kindness of the Bishop of Angola and her Majesty's 
 Officers — Mr. Gabriel's Unwearied Hospitality — Serious Deportment of the 
 Makololo — They visit Ships of War — Politeness of the Officers and Men — 
 The Makololo attend Mass in the Cathedral — Their Remarks — Find Employ- 
 ment in collecting Firewood and unloading Coal — Their Superior Judgment 
 respecting Goods — Beneficial Influence of the Bishop of Angola — The City 
 of St. Paul de Loanda — The Harbor — Custom-House — No English Merchants 
 — Sincerity of the Portuguese Government in suppressing the Slave-Trade— ■ 
 Convict Soldiers — Presents from Bishop and Merchants for Sekeletu — Outfit 
 — Leave Loanda 20th September, 1854 — Accompanied by Mr. Gabriel as fai 
 as Icollo i Bengo — Women spinning Cotton — Cazengo : its Coffee-Planta- 
 tions — South American Trees — Ruins of Iron-Foundry — Native Miners— 
 Coffee-Plantations — Return to Golungo Alto — Self-Complacency of the Ma- 
 kololo — -Fever — Jaundice — Insanity 251 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Visit a Deserted Convent — Favorable Report of Jesuits and their Teaching— 
 Marriages and Funerals — Litigation — Mr. Canto's Illness — Bad Behavior oi 
 his Slaves — An Entertain raout^- Ideas on Free Labor — Loss of American 
 
 1* 
 
II 
 
 Ui CONTENTS 
 
 Cotton-Seed — Abundance of Cotton in the Country — Sickness of Sokeleta f 
 Horse — Eclipse of the Sun — Insects which distill Water — Experiments with 
 them — Proceed to Ambaca — Present from Mr. Scbut, of Loanda — Visit Pungo 
 Andongo — Its Good Pasturage, Grain, Fruit, <tc. — The Fort and Columnar 
 Rocks — Salubrity of Pungo Andongo — Price of a Slave — A Merchant-Prince 
 — His Hospitality — Hear of the Loss of my Papers in "Forerunner" — Nar- 
 row Escape from an Alligator — Ancient Burial-Places — Neglect of Agricul- 
 ture in Angola — Manioc the Staple Product — Its Cheapness — Sickness- 
 Friendly Visit from a Colored Priest — The Prince of Congo — No Prieste in 
 the Interior of Angola Page 265 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Leave Pungo Andongo — Extent of Portuguese Power — Meet Traders and Car- 
 riers — Descend the Heights of Tala Mungongo — Cassange Village — Quinine 
 and Cathory — Sickness of Captain Neves's Infant — Loss of Life from the 
 Ordeal — "Wide-Spread Superstitions — The Chieftainship — Receive Copies of 
 the "Times" — Trading Pombeiros- Present for Matiamvo — Fever after 
 Westerly Winds — Capabilities of Angola for producing the Raw Materials 
 of English Manufacture — Trading-Parties with Ivory — More Fever — A 
 Hyena's Choice— Makololo Opinion of the Portuguese — Cypriano's Debt- - 
 A Fmneral — Dread of Disembodied Spirits — Crossing the Quango — Aniba- 
 kistas called "The Jews of Angola" — Fashions of the Bashinje — Approach 
 the Village of Sansawe — His Idea of Dignity — The Pombeiros' Present — ■ 
 Long Detention — A Blow on the Beard — Attacked in a Forest — Sudden 
 Conversion of a Fighting Chief to Peace-Principles by means of a Re- 
 volver — No Blood shed in consequence — Rate of Travelling — Feeders of the 
 Congo or Zaire — Obliged to refuse Presents — Cross the Loajima, — Appear- 
 ance of People: Hair-Fashions 28U 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Make a D6tour southward — The Chihombo — Cabango — Send a Sketch of the 
 Country to Mr. Gabriel — The Chief Bango — Valley of the Loembwe — Fune- 
 ral Observances — Agreeable Intercourse with Kawawa — His Impudent De- 
 mand 298 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Level Plains — Vultures — Twenty-Seventh Attack of Fever — Reach Katema'a 
 Town — His Renewed Hospitality — Ford Southern Branch of Lake Dilolo — 
 Hearty Welcome from Shirite — Nyamoana now a Widow — Purchase CanoeB 
 and descend the Leeba — Despatch a Message to Manenko — Arrival of her 
 Husband Sambanza — Mambawe Hunters — Charged by a Buffalo — Reception 
 from the People of Libonta — Explain the Causes of our Long Delay — Pit- 
 sane's Speech — Thanksgiving Services — Appearance of my " Braves" — Won- 
 derful Kindness of the People 303 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Colony of Birds called Linkololo — The Village of Chitlane — Murder of Mpo- 
 lolo's Daughter — Execution of the Murderer and his Wife — My Companion* 
 find that their Wives have married other Husban is — Sunday — A Party from 
 Masiko — Freedom of Speech — Canoe struck by a Hippopotamus — Appear- 
 ance of Trees at the End of Winter — Murky Atmosphere — Surprising Amount 
 of Organic Life — The Packages forwarded by Mr. Moffat — Makololo Suspi- 
 cions and Reply to the Matebele who brought them — Convey the Goods to 
 an Island and build a Hut over them — Ascertain that Sii R. Murchisou had 
 
CONTENTS. , XlU 
 
 recognised the True Form of African Continent — Arrival at Linyanti — A 
 Grand Pieho — Shrewd Inquiry — Stkelotu in his Uniform — A Trading-Party 
 sent to Loauda with Ivory — Mr. Gabriel's Kindness to them — Two Makololo 
 Forays during our Absence — The Makololo desire to be nearer the Market-- 
 Opinions upon a Change of Residence — Sekeletu's Hospitality — Sekeleto 
 wishes to purchase a Sugar-Mill, Ac. — The Donkeys — Influence among the 
 Natives — "Food fit for a Chief" — Parting Words of Mamire — Motibe'f 
 Excuses Page 311 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 departure from Linyanti — A Thunder-Storm — An Act of Genuine Kindness — 
 Fitted out a Second Time by the Makololo — Sail down the Leeambye — Vie* 
 toria Falls — Native Names — Columns of Vapor — Gigantic Crack — Wear of 
 the Rocks — Second Visit to the Falls — Part with Sekeletu — Night-Tra- 
 velling — Moyara's Village — Savage Customs of the Batoka — A Chain of 
 Trading-Stations—" The Well of Joy"— First Traces of Trade with Euro- 
 peans — Knocking out the Front Teeth — Facetious Explanation — Degrada- 
 tion of the Batoka — Description of the Travelling- Party — Cross the Unguesi 
 —Ruins of a Large Town 326 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIL 
 
 Low Hills — A Wounded Buffalo assisted — Buffalo-Bird — Rhinoceros-Bird — 
 The Honey-Guide — The White Mountain — Sebituane's Old Home — Hostile 
 Village — Prophetic Frenay — Friendly Batoka — Clothing despised — Method 
 of Salutation — The Captive released — The Village of Monze — Aspect of the 
 Country — -Visit from the Chief Monze and his Wife — Central Healthy Loca- 
 tions — Friendly Feelings of the People in reference to a White Resident- 
 Kindness and Remarks of Monze's Sister — Generosity of the Inhabitants — 
 Their Anxiety for Medicine — Hooping-Cough 339 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Beautiful Valley — Buffalo — My Young Men kill two Elephants — The Hunt — 
 Semalembue — His Presents — Joy in prospect of living in Peace — Trade — Hia 
 People's Way of wearing their Hair — Their Mode of Salutation — Old En- 
 campment — Sebituane's former Residence — Ford of Kafue — Prodigious 
 Quantities of Large Ga"me — Their Tameness — Rains — Less Sickness than in 
 the Journey to Luanda — Reason — Charge from an Elephant — Vast Amount 
 of Animal Life on the Zambesi — Water of River discolored — An Island with 
 Buffaloes and Men on it — Native Devices for killing Game — Tsetse now in 
 Country — Agricultural Industry — An Albino murdered by his Mother — 
 " Guilty of Tlolo" — Women who make their Mouths " like those of Ducks" 
 — First Symptom of the Slave-Trade on this Side — Selole's Hostility — An 
 Armed Party hoaxed — An Italian Marauder slain — Elephant's Tenacity of 
 Life — A Word to Young Sportsmen — Mr. Oswell's Adventure with an Ele- 
 phant: Narrow Escape — Mburuina's Village — Suspicious Conduct of his 
 People — Guides attempt to detain us — The Village and People of -Ma- 
 Mburuma — Character our Guides give of us „« « 351 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Confluence of Loangwa and Zambesi — Hostile Appearances — Ruins of a 
 Church — Turmoil of Spirit — Cross the River — Friendly Parting — The Situa- 
 tion of Zumbo for Commerce — Pleasant Gardens — Dr. Lacerda's Visit to 
 Caiembe— Pereira'a Statement — Unsuccessful Attempt to establish Trade 
 

 **▼ CONTENTS. 
 
 with the People of Cazembe — One of my Men tossed by a Buffalo — Meet a 
 Man with Jacket and Hat on — Hear of the Portuguese and Native War- 
 Dancing for Corn — Mpende's Hostility — Incantations — A Fight anticipated— 
 Courage and Remarks of my Men — Visit from two old Councillors of Mpende 
 — Their Opinion of the English — Mpende concludes not to fight us, — Hi* 
 subsequent Friendship — Aids us to cross the River — Desertion of one of my 
 Men — Meet Native Traders with American Calico — Boroma — Freshets — • 
 Leave the River — Loquacious Guide — Nyampungo, the Rain-Charmer — An 
 Oli Man— No Silver— Gold- Washing— Nd Cattle Page 372 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 A.A Elephant-Hunt — Offering and Prayers to the Barimo for Success — Native 
 Mode of Expression — Working of Game-Laws — A Feast — Laughing Hyenai 
 — Numerous Insects — Curious Notes of Birds of Song — Caterpillars — Butter- 
 flies — Silica, — The Fruit Makoronga and Elephants — Rhinoceros- Adventure 
 — Honey and Bees'-Wax — Superstitious Reverence for the Lion — Slow Tra- 
 velling — Grapes — The Ue — Monina's Village — Native Names— Suspected of 
 Falsehood — War-Dance — Insanity and Disappearance of Monahin — Fruit- 
 less Search — Monina's Sympathy — The Sand-River Tangwe — The Ordeal 
 Muavi : its Victims — An Unreasonable Man — " Woman's Rights" — Present! 
 — Temperance — A Winding Course to shun Villages — Banyai Complexion 
 and Hair — Mushrooms — The Tubers, Mokuri — The Tree Shekabakadzi — 
 Face of the Country — Pot-Holes — Pursued by a Party of Natives — Unplea- 
 sant Threat — Aroused by a Company of Soldiers — A Civilized Breakfast — 
 Arrival at Tete 387 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Kind Reception from the Commandant — His Generosity to my Men — The Vil- 
 lage of Tete — The Population — Distilled Spirits — The Fort — Cause of the 
 Decadence of Portuguese Power — Former Trade — Slaves employed in Gold- 
 Washing — Slave-Trade drained the Country of Laborers — The Rebel 
 Nyaude's Stockade — He burns Tete — Extensive Field of Sugarcane — The 
 Commandant's Good Reputation among the Natives — Providential Guidance 
 — Seams of Coal — A Hot Spring — Picturesque Country — Water-Carriage k, 
 the Coal-Fields — Workmen's Wages — Exports — Price of Provisions — Visit 
 Gold-Washings — Coal within a Gold-Field — Present from Major Sicard-— 
 Natives raise Wheat, Ac. — Liberality of the Commandant — Geographical 
 Information from Senhor Candido — Earthquakes — Disinterested Kindness 
 of the Portuguese 405 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 Cieave Tete and proceed down the River — Pass the Stockade of Bonga — War- 
 Drum at Shiramba — Reach Senna, — Its Ruinous State — Landeens levy Fines 
 upon the Inhabitants — Cowardice of Native Militia, — Boat-Building at Senna 
 — Our Departure — Fever : its Effects — Kindly received into the House of 
 Colonel Nunes at Kilimane — Forethought of Captain Nolloth and Dr. Waldh 
 --Joy imbittered — Deep Obligations to the Earl of Clarendon, Ac. — De- 
 sirableness of Missionary Societies selecting Healthy Stations — Arrange- 
 ments on leaving my Men — Site of Kilimane — Unhealthincss — Arrival of 
 H.M. Brig "Frolic" — Anxiety of one of my Men to go to England — Rough 
 Passage in the Boats to the Ship — Sekwebu's Alarm — Sail for Mauritius- 
 Sekwebu on board : he becomes insane : drowns himself — Kindness of Major- 
 General C. M. Hay — Escape Shipwreck — Reach Home 420 
 
 Historical Sketch of Discovery in Africa 434 
 
JOURNEYS AND RESEARCHES 
 
 IN 
 
 SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 My own inclination would lead me to say as little aa 
 possible about myself; but several friends, in whose judg- 
 ment I have confidence, have suggested that, as the reader 
 likes to know something about the author, a short account 
 of his origin and early life would lend additional interest 
 to this book. Such is my excuse for the following egotism ; 
 and, if any apology be necessary for giving a genealogy, I 
 find it in the fact that it is not very long, and contains only 
 one incident of which I have reason to be proud. 
 
 Our great-grandfather fell' at the battle of Culloden, 
 fighting for the old line of kings; and our grandfather 
 was a small farmer in Ulva, where my father was born. 
 It is one of that cluster of the Hebrides thus alluded to by 
 Walter Scott :— 
 
 " And Ulva dark, and Colonsay, 
 And all the group of islets gay 
 That guard famed Staffa round."* 
 
 Our grandfather was intimately acquainted with all th* 
 traditionary legends which that great writer has since 
 made use of in the "Tales of a Grandfather" and other 
 works. As a boy I remember listening to him with do 
 
 * Lvrd of the Islea, canto iv. 
 
4 THE AUTHOR'S AIWESTORS. 
 
 light, for his memory was stored with a never-ending 
 stock of stories, many of which were wonderfully like 
 those I have since heard, while sitting by the African even- 
 ing fires. Our grandmother, too, used to sing Gaelic 
 sougs, some of which, as she believed, had been composed 
 by captive islanders languishing hopelessly among the 
 Turks. 
 
 Grandfather could give particulars of the lives of hi a 
 ancestors for six generations of the family before him; 
 and the only point of the tradition I feel proud of is this : 
 One of these poor hardy islanders was renowned in the 
 district for great wisdom and prudence ; and it is related 
 that, when he was on his death-bed, he called all his chil- 
 dren around him and said, " Now, in my lifetime I have 
 searched most carefully through all the traditions I could 
 find of our family, and I never could discover that there 
 was a dishonest man among our forefathers. If, therefore, 
 any of you or any of your children should take to dis- 
 honest ways, it will not be because it runs in our blood : 
 it does not belong to you. I leave tkis precept with you : 
 Be honest." If, therefore, in the following pages I fall 
 into any errors, I hope they will be dealt with as honesi 
 mistakes, and not as indicating that I have forgotten our 
 ancient motto. This event took place at a time when the 
 Highlanders, according to Macaulay, were much like the 
 Cape Caffres, and any one, it was said, could escape punish- 
 ment for cattle-stealing by presenting a share of the 
 plunder to his chieftain. Our ancestors were Eoman Catho- 
 lics : they were made Protestants by the laird coming 
 round with a man having a yellow staif, which would 
 seem to have attracted more attention than his teaching, 
 for the new religion went long afterward, perhaps it does 
 so still, by the name of "the religion of the yellow stick." 
 
 Fifciding his farm in Ulva insufficient to support a nume- 
 rous family, my grandfather removed to Blantyre Works, 
 u large cotton-manufactory on the beautiful Clyde, above 
 Glasgow; ai d his sons, having bad the best education the 
 
EARLY LABORS AND INSTRUCTIONS. 5 
 
 Hebrides afforded, were gladly received as clerks by the 
 proprietors, Monteith and Co. He himself, highly esteemed 
 for his unflinching honesty, was employed in the con- 
 veyance of large sums of money from Glasgow to the 
 works, and in old age was, according to the custom of 
 that company, pensioned off, so as to spend his declining 
 years in ease and comfort. 
 
 Our uncles all entered his majesty's service during the 
 last French war, either as soldiers or sailors; but my father 
 remained at home, and, though too conscientious ever to 
 become rich as a small tea-dealer, by his kindliness ot 
 manner and winning ways he made the heart-strings of his 
 children twine around him as firmly as if he had possessed, 
 and could have bestowed upon them, every worldly advan- 
 tage. He reared his children in connection with the Kirk 
 of Scotland, — a religious-establishment which has been an 
 incalculable blessing to that country; but he afterward 
 left it, and during the last twenty years of his life held the 
 office of deacon of an independent church in Hamilton, and 
 deserved my lasting gratitude and homage for presenting 
 me, from my infancy, with a continuously consistent pious 
 example, such as that the ideal of which is so beautifully 
 and truthfully portrayed in Burns's "Cottar's Saturday 
 Night." He died in February, 1856, in peaceful hope of 
 that mercy which we all expect through the death of our 
 Lord and Saviour. I was at the time on my way below 
 Zumbo, expecting no greater pleasure in this countiy than 
 Bitting by our cottage-fire and telling him my travels. I 
 revere his memory. 
 
 The earliest recollection of my mother recalls a picture 
 ft> often seen among the Scottish poor, — that of the anxioas 
 housewife striving to make both ends meet. At the age 
 of ten I was put into the factory as a " piercer," to aid by 
 my earnings in lessening her anxiety. With a part of my 
 first week's wages I purchased Euddiman's " Budimonta 
 of Latin," and pursued the study of that language for 
 many years afterward, with unabatod ardor, at an evening 
 
6 RELIGIOUS IMPRESSIONS. 
 
 school, which mot between the hours of eight and ton. 
 The dictionary part of my labors was followed up till 
 twelve o'clock, or later, if my mother did not interfere by 
 jumping up and snatching the books out of my hands. I 
 had to be back in the factory by six in the morning, and 
 continue my work, with intervals for breakfast and dinner, 
 till eight o'clock at night. I read in this way many of the 
 classical authors, and knew Yirgil and Horace better at 
 sixteen than I do now. Our schoolmaster — happily 3till 
 alive — was supported in part by the company ; he was 
 attentive and kind, and so moderate in his charges that all 
 who wished for education might have obtained it. Many 
 availed themselves of the privilege \ and some of my 
 schoolfellows now rank in positions far above what they 
 appeared ever likely to come to when in the village school. 
 If such a system were established in England, it would 
 prove a never-ending blessing to the poor. 
 
 In reading, every thing that I could lay my hands on 
 was devoured except novels. Scientific works and books 
 of travels were my especial delight; though my father, 
 believing, with many of his time who ought to have known 
 better, that the former were inimical to religion, would 
 have preferred to have seen me poring over the " Cloud of 
 Witnesses," or Boston's " Fourfold State." Our difference 
 of opinion reached the point of open rebellion on my part, 
 and his last application of the rod was on my refusal to 
 peruse Wilberforce's "Practical Christianity." This dislike 
 to dry doctrinal reading, and to religious reading of every 
 sort, continued for years afterward ; but having lighted on 
 those admirable works of Dr. Thomas Dick, "The Philoso- 
 phy of Religion" and " The Philosophy of a Future State," 
 it was gratifying to find my own ideas, that religion and 
 science are not hostile, but friendly to each other, fully 
 proved and enforced. 
 
 Great pains had been taken by my parents to instil the 
 doctrines of Christianity into my mint", and I had no diffi- 
 culty in understanding the theory of our free salvation by 
 
YOUTHFUL EXCURSIONS. 7 
 
 the atonement of our Saviour; but it was only about this 
 time that I really began to feel the necessity and value of 
 a personal application of the provisions of that atonement 
 to my own case. The change was like what may be sup- 
 posed would take place were it possible to cure a case of 
 "color-blindness." The perfect freeness with which the 
 pardon of all our guilt is offered in God's book drew forth 
 faelings of affectionate love to Him who" bought us with 
 his blood, and a sense of deep obligation to Him for hia 
 mercy has influenced, in some small measure, my conduct 
 ever since. But I shall not again refer to the inner spiritual 
 life which I believe then began, nor do I intend to specify 
 with any prominence the evangelistic labors to which the 
 love of Christ has since impelled me. This book will 
 speak, not so much of what has been done, as of what stiL 
 remains to be performed before the gospel can be said to 
 be preached to all nations. 
 
 In the glow of love which Christianity inspires, I soon 
 resolved to devote my life to the alleviation of human 
 misery. Turning this idea over in my mind, I felt that to 
 be a pioneer of Christianity in China might lead to the 
 material benefit of some portions of that immense empire, 
 and therefore set myself to obtain a medical education, in 
 order to be qualified for that enterprise. 
 
 In recognising the plants pointed out in my first medical 
 book, that extraordinary old work on astrological medicine, 
 Culpeper's "Herbal," I had the guidance of a book on the 
 plants of Lanarkshire, by Patrick. Limited as my time 
 was, I found opportunities to scour the whole country-side, 
 "collecting simples." Deep and anxious were my studies 
 on the still deeper and more perplexing profundities of 
 astrology, and I believe 1 got as far into that abyss of fan- 
 tasies as my author said he dared to lead me. It seemed 
 perilous ground to tread on farther, for the dark hint seemed 
 to my youthful mind to loom toward "selling soul and body 
 to tne devil," as the price of tne unfathomable knowledge 
 »f the stars These excursions, often in company with 
 
 2 
 
8 STUDY DURING WuRKING-HOURS, 
 
 brothers, one now in Canada, and the other a clergyman 
 in the United States, gratified my intense love of nature \ 
 and though we generally returned so unmercifully hungry 
 and fatigued that the embryo parson shed tears, yet we 
 discovered, to us, so many new and interesting things, that 
 he was always as eager to join us next time as he was the 
 last. 
 
 On one of these exploring tours we entered a limestone- 
 quarry, — long before geology was so popular as it is now. 
 It is impossible to describe the delight and wonder with 
 which I began to collect the shells found in the carboni- 
 ferous limestone which crops out in High Blantyro and Cam- 
 buslang. A quarry-man, seeing a little boy so engaged, 
 looked with that pitying eye which the benevolent assume 
 when viewing the insane. Addressing him with, "How 
 ever did these shells come into these rocks ?" " When God 
 made the rocks, he made the shells in them," was the 
 damping reply. What a deal of trouble geologists might 
 have saved themselves by adopting the Turk-like philo- 
 sophy of this Scotchman ! 
 
 My reading while at work was carried on by placing the 
 book on a portion of the spinning-jenny, so that I could 
 catch sentence after sentence as I passed at my work : 1 
 thus kept up a pretty constant study, undisturbed by tho 
 roar of the machinery. To this part of my education I owe 
 my present power of completely abstracting the mind from 
 surrounding noises, so as to read and write with perfect 
 comfort amid the play of children qr near the dancing and 
 songs of savages. Tho toil of cotton-spinning, to which 
 I was promoted in my nineteenth year, was excessively 
 severe on a slim, loose-jointed lad, but it was well paid for; 
 and it enabled me to support myself while attending me- 
 dical and Greek classes in Glasgow in winter, as also the 
 divinity lectures of Dr. Wardlaw by working with my 
 hands in summer. I never received a farthing of aid from 
 any one, and should have accomplished my project of going 
 to China as a medical missionary, in the course of time, by 
 
THE AUTIIOR'S 'NATIVE VILLAGE. 9 
 
 my own efforts, had not some friends advised my j< ining 
 the London Missionary Society ; <>u account of its pcwectly 
 uiieeetarian character. It "sends neither Episcopacy, nor 
 Presbyterian ism, nor Independency, but the gospel of 
 Christ, to the heathen." This exactly agreed wita my 
 ideas of what a missionary society ought to do; but it wpc 
 not without a pang that I offered myself, for ' t w&3 not 
 quite agreeable to one accustomed to work his own way 
 to become in a measure dependent on others ; and I would 
 not have been much put about though my offer had been 
 rejected. 
 
 Looking back now on that life of toil, I cannot but feel 
 thankful that it formed such a material part of my early 
 education; and, were it possible, I should like to begin life 
 over again in the same lowly style, and to pass through 
 the same hardy training. 
 
 Time and travel have not effaced the feelings of lespect 
 I imbibed for the humble inhabitants of my native village. 
 For morality, honesty, and intelligence, they were, in 
 general, good specimens of the Scottish poor. In a popu- 
 lation of more than two thousand souls, we had, of course, 
 a variety of character. In addition to the common run 
 of men, there were some characters of sterling worth and 
 ability, who exerted a most beneficial influence on the chil- 
 dren and youth of the place by imparting gratuitous reli- 
 gious instruction. * Much intelligent interest was felt by the 
 villagers in all public questions, and they furnished a proof 
 that the possession of the means of education did not render 
 them an unsafe portion of the population. They felt kindly 
 
 * The reader will pardon my mentioning the names of two of these 
 most worthy men, — David Hogg, who addressed me on bis death -bed with 
 the words, "Now, lad, make religion the every-day business of your 
 life, and not a thing of fits and starts : for if you do not, temptation and 
 other things will get the better of you ;" and Thomas Burke, an old 
 Forty-Second Peninsula soldier, who has been incessant and never weary 
 in good works for about forty years. I was delighted to find him still 
 alive : men like these are an honor to their country and profession. 
 
1U MEDICAL DIPLOMA. 
 
 toward e^ch other, and much respected those of the neigh, 
 boring gentry who, like the kite Lord Douglas, placed sOme 
 confidence in their sense of honor. Through the kindness 
 of that nobleman, the poorest among us could stroll at 
 pleasure over the ancient domains of Bothwell, and othei 
 spots hallowed by the venerable associations of which our 
 school-books and local traditions made us well aware; and 
 few of us could view the dear memorials of the past with- 
 out feeling that these carefully-kept monuments were our 
 own. The masses of the working-people of Scotland have 
 read history, and are no revolutionary levellers. They re- 
 joice in the memories of "Wallace and Bruce and a' the 
 lave," who are still much revered as the former champions 
 of freedom. And, while foreigners imagine that we want 
 the spirit only to overturn capitalists and aristocracy, we 
 are content to respect our laws till we can change them, 
 and hate those stupid revolutions which might sweep away 
 time-honored institutions, dear alike to rich and poor. 
 
 Having finished the medical curriculum and presented a 
 thesis on a subject which required the use of the stetho- 
 scope for its diagnosis, 1 unwittingly procured for myself an 
 examination rather more severe and prolonged than usual 
 among examining bodies. The reason was, that between 
 me and the examiners a slight difference of opinion existed 
 as to whether this instrument could do what was asserted. 
 The wiser plan would have been to have had no opinion of 
 my own. However, I was admitted a Licentiate of Faculty 
 of Physicians and Surgeons. It was with unfeigned delight 
 J became a member of a profession which is pre-eminently 
 devoted to practical benevolence, and which with unwearied 
 energy pursues from age to age its endeavors to lessen 
 human woe. 
 
 But, though now qualified for my original plan, the opiuua 
 war was then raging, and it was deemed inexpedient foi 
 me to proceed to China. I had fondly hoped to have 
 gained access to that then closed empire by means of the 
 healing art ; but there being no prospect of an early peace 
 
NO CLAIM TO LITERARY MERIT. I 1 
 
 with the Chinese, and as another inviting field was open- 
 ing out through the labors of Mr. Moffat, I was induced to 
 turn my thoughts to Africa; and, after a more extended 
 course of theological training in England than I had en- 
 Hyed in Glasgow, I embarked for Africa in 1840, and, after 
 » voyage of three months, reached Cape Town. Spending 
 but a short time there, I started for the interior by going 
 round to Algoa Bay, and soon proceeded inland, and have 
 spent the following sixteen years of my life, namely, from 
 1840 to 185C, in medical and missionary labors there with- 
 out cost to the inhabitants. 
 
 As to those literary qualifications which are acquired by 
 habits of writing, and which are so important to an author 
 my African life has not only not been favorable to tue 
 growth of such accomplishments, but quite the reverse; 
 it has made composition irksome and laborious. I think 1 
 would rather cross the African continent again than under- 
 take to write another book. It is far easier to travel than 
 to write about it. I intended on going to Africa to con- 
 tinue my studies; but as I could not brook the idea of 
 simply entering into other men's labors made ready to my 
 hands, I entailed on myself, in addition to teaching, ma- 
 nual labor in building and other handicraft-work, which 
 made me generally as much exhausted and unfit for study 
 in the evenings as ever I had been when a cotton-spinner. 
 The want of time for self-improvement was the only source 
 of regret that I experienced during my African career. 
 The reader, remembering this, will make allowances for 
 the mere gropings for light of a student who has the vanity 
 to think himself "not yet too old to learn." More precise 
 inforaiation on several subjects has necessarily been omitted 
 in a popular work like the present ; but I hope to give such 
 details to the scientific reader throi gh some other channel 
 
12 THE BAKWAIN COUNTRY 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 l>tt. LIVINGSTONE A MISSIONARY IN THE BAKWAIN COLNTRY 
 
 The general instructions I received from the Directort 
 of the London Missionary Society led me, as soon as 1 
 reached Kuruman or Lattakoo, then, as it is now, their 
 farthest inland station from the Cape, to turn my attention 
 to the north. Without waiting longer at Kuruman than 
 was necessary to recruit the oxen, which were pretty well 
 tired by the long journey from Algoa Bay, I proceeded, in 
 company with another missionary, to the Bakuena or 
 Bakwain country, and found Sechele, with his tribe, located 
 at Shokuane. We shortly after retraced our steps to Kuru- 
 man ; but as the objects in view were by no means to be 
 attained by a temporary excursion of this sort, I determined 
 to make a fresh start into the interior as soon as possible. 
 Accordingly, after resting three months at Kuruman, which 
 is a kind of head-station in the country, I returned to a 
 spot about fifteen miles south of Shokuane, called Lepelole 
 (now Litubariiba.) Here, in order to obtain an accurate 
 Knowledge of the language, I cut myself off from all Eu- 
 ropean society for about six months, and gained by this 
 ordeal an insight into the habits, ways of thinking, laws, 
 and language of that section of the Bechuanas called Bak- 
 wains, which has proved of incalculable advantage in my 
 intercourse with them ever since. 
 
 In this second journey to Lepelole — so called from a 
 cavern of that name — I began preparations for a settle- 
 ment, by making a canal to irrigate gardens, from a stream 
 then flowing copiously, but now quite dry. When these 
 preparations were well advanced, I went northward to 
 visit the Bakaa and Bamangwato, and the Makalaka, living 
 between 22° and 23° south latitude. The Bakaa Mountains 
 had been visited before by a trader, who, with his people, 
 all perished from fever. In going round the northern part 
 
APPEARANCE? DECEIlVCu. 13 
 
 rff these basaltic hills near Letloche I was only ten day* 
 distant from the lower part of the Souga, which passed by 
 the same name as Lake Ngami ; and 1 might then (in 
 1842) have discovered that lake, had discovery alone been 
 *iy object. Most part of this journey beyond Shokuane 
 ..as performed on foot, in consequence of the draught-oxen 
 having become sick. Some of my companions who had 
 recently joined us, and did not know that I understood a 
 little of their speech, were overheard by me discussing my 
 appearance and powers : " He is not strong ; ho is quito 
 slim, and only appears stout because he puts himself into 
 those bags, (trowsers :) he will soon knock up." This 
 caused my Highland blood to rise, and made me despise the 
 fatigue of keeping them all at the top of their speed for 
 days together, and until I heard them expressing proper 
 opinions of my pedestrian powers. 
 
 Returning to Kuruman, in order to bring my luggage 
 to our proposed settlement, 1 was. followed by the news 
 that the tribe of Bakwains, who had shown themselves so 
 friendly toward me, had been driven from Lepelole by the 
 Barolongs, so that my prospects for the time of forming a 
 settlement there were at an end. One of those periodical 
 outbreaks of war, which seem to have occurred from time 
 immemorial, for the possession of cattle, had burst forth in 
 the land, and had so changed the relations of the tribes to 
 each other that I was obliged to set out anew to look foi 
 a suitable locality for a mission-station. 
 
 jf s some of the Bamangwato people had accompanied me 
 to 1\ 4ruman, I was obliged to restore them and their goods 
 to the» r chief Sekdmi. This made a journey to the residenco 
 vf that chief again necessary, and, for the first time, I per- 
 formed a distance of some hundred miles on ox-back. 
 
 Keturning toward Kuruman, I selected the beautiful 
 valley of Mabotsa (lat. 25° 14' south, long. 26° 30'?) as the 
 site of a missionary station, and thither I removed in 1843 
 Here an occurrence took place concerning which I have 
 frequently been questioned in England, and which, hut for 
 
14 RAVAGES OF LIONS. 
 
 the importunities of friends, I meant to have kept in store 
 \o tell my children when in my dotage. The Bakatla of 
 the village Mabotsa were much troubled by lions, which 
 leaped into the cattle-pens by night and destroyed theif 
 cows. They even attacked the herds in open day. This 
 waa so unusual an occurrence that the people believed that 
 they were bewitched, — "given," as they said, "into the 
 power of the lions by a neighboring tribe." They went 
 once to attack the animals; but, being rather a cowardly 
 people compared to Bechuanas in general on such occasions, 
 they returned without killing any. 
 
 It is well known that if one of a troop of lions is killed, 
 the others take the hint and leave that part of the country% 
 So, the next time the herds were attacked, I went with the 
 people, in order to encourage them to rid themselves of the 
 annoyance by destroying one of the marauders. Wq found 
 the lions on a small hill about a quarter of a mile in length 
 and covered with trees. A circle of men was formed round 
 it, and they gradually closed up, ascending pretty near to 
 each other. Being down below on the plain with a native 
 schoolmaster, named Mebalwe, a most excellent man, I saw 
 one of the lions sitting on a piece of rock within the now 
 closed circle of men. Mebalwe fired at him before I could, 
 aud the ball struck the rock on which the animal was 
 sitting. He bit at the spot struck, as a dog does at a stick 
 or stone thrown at him, then, leaping away, broke through 
 the opening circle and escaped unhurt. The men were 
 afraid to attack him, perhaps on account of their belief in 
 witchcraft. When the circle was reformed, we saw two 
 other lions in it; but we were afraid to fire, lest we should 
 strike the men, and they allowed the beasts to burst through 
 also. If the Bakatla had acted according to the custom 
 of the country, they would have speared the lions in their 
 attempt to get out. Seeing we could not get them to kill 
 one of the lions, we bent our footsteps toward the village : 
 in going round the end of the hill, however, I saw one of 
 the beasts sitting on a piece of rock as before, but this time 
 
A LION-ENCOUNTER. 10 
 
 he had a Utile bash in front. Being about thirty yaw ■ off, 
 I took a good aim at his body through the bush, and fired 
 both barrels into it. The men then called out, "He ie ihotl 
 he is shot!" Others cried, "lie has b:>en shot by ai-other 
 man too ; let us go to him I" I did not see any one else 
 shoot at him, but I saw the lion's tail erected in anger be- 
 hind the bush, and, turning to the people, said, "Stop a 
 little, till I load again." When in the act of ramming 
 down the bullets, I heard a shout. Starting, and looking 
 half round, I saw the lion just in the act of springing upon 
 me. I was upon a little height; he caught my shoulder as 
 he sprang, and we both came to the ground below together. 
 Growling horribly close to my ear, he shook me as a terrier 
 dog does a rat. The shock produced a stupor similar to 
 that which seems to be felt by a mouse after the first shako 
 of the cat. It caused a sort of dreaminess, in which there 
 was no sense of pain nor feeling of terror, though quite 
 conscious of all that was happening. It was like what 
 patients partially under the influence of chloroform de» 
 scribe, who see all the operation, but feel not the knife. 
 This singular condition was not the result of any mental 
 process. The shake annihilated fear, and allowed no sense 
 of horror in looking round at the beast. This peculiar 
 state is probably produced in all animals killed by the car- 
 nivora, and, if so, is a merciful provision by our benevolent 
 Creator for lessening the pain of death. Turning round 
 to relieve myself of the weight, as he had one paw on tho 
 back of my head, I saw his eyes directed to Mebalwe, who 
 was trying to shoot him at a distance of ten or fifteen 
 yards. His gun, a flint one, missed fire in both barrels; 
 the lion immediately left me, and, attacking Mebalwe, bit 
 his thigh. Another man, whose life I had saved before, 
 after he had been tossed by a buffalo, attempted to spear 
 ihe lion while he was biting Mebalwe. He left Mebalwe 
 and caught this man by the shoulder, but at that moment 
 the bullets Ke had received took effect, and he fell down 
 dead. TV • vhole was tho work of a few moments, and 
 
1 6 SECHEEE. 
 
 mu hi have been his paroxysms of dying rage In order to 
 take out the charm from him, the Bakatia on the following 
 day made a huge bonfire over the carcass, which was de- 
 clared to be that of the largest lion they had ever soon. 
 Besides crunching the bone into splinters, he left eleven 
 teeth-wounds on the upper part of my arm. 
 
 A wound from this animal's tooth resembles a gun-shot 
 wound ; it is generally followed by a great deal of slough 
 mg and discharge, and pains are felt in the part periodically 
 ever afterw r ard. I had on a tartan jacket on the occasion, 
 and I believe that it wiped off all the virus from the teeth 
 that pierced the flesh, for my two companions in this affray 
 have both suffered from the peculiar pains, while I have 
 escaped with only the inconvenience of a false joint in my 
 limb. The man whose shoulder was wounded showed me 
 his wound actually burst forth afresh on the same month 
 of the following year. This curious point deserves the 
 attention of inquirers. 
 
 I attached myself to the tribe called Bakuena or Bak- 
 wains, the chief of which, named Sechele, was then living 
 with his people at a place called Shokuane. I was from 
 the first struck by his intelligence, and by the marked 
 manner in which we both felt drawn to each other. This 
 remarkable man has not only embraced Christianity; but 
 expounds its doctrines to his people. 
 
 Sechele continued to make a consistent profession for 
 about three years; and, perceiving at last some of the 
 difficulties of his case, and also feeling compassion for the 
 poor women, who were by far the best of our scholars, I had 
 no desire that he should be in any hurry to make a full 
 profession by baptism and putting away all his wives bvl 
 one. His principal wife, too, was about the most unlikely 
 subject in the tribe ever to become any thing else than an 
 out-and-out greasy disciple of the old school. She has 
 since become greatly altered, I hear, for the better; but 
 again and again have I seen Sechele send her out of church 
 to put her gown on, and away she would go with her lip* 
 
BAPTISM Of S ECU ELK. 17 
 
 ■hot out, the very picture of unutterable disgust at his 
 new-fangled notions. 
 
 "When he at la8t applied for baptism, I simply asked him 
 how he, having the Bible in his hand, and able to read it, 
 thought he ought to act. He went home, gave each of his 
 superfluous wives new clothing, and all his own goods, 
 which they had been accustomed to keep in their huts 
 for him, and sent them to their parents with an inti- 
 mation that ho had no fault to find with them, but that iu 
 parting with them he wished to follow the will of God. 
 On the day on which he and his children were baptized, 
 great numbers came to see the ceremony. Some thought, 
 from a stupid calumny circulated by enemies to Chris- 
 tianity in the south, that the converts would be made to 
 drink an infusion of "dead men's brains/' and were asto- 
 nished to find that water only was used at baptism. Seeing 
 several of the old men actually in tears during the service, 
 I asked them afterward the cause of their weeping ; they 
 were crying to see their father, as the Scotch remark over 
 a case of suicide, " so far left to himself." They seemed to 
 think that I had thrown the glamour over him, and that 
 he had become mine. Here commenced an opposition 
 which we had not previously experienced. All the friends 
 of the divorced wives became the opponents of our re- 
 ligion. The attendance at school and church diminished 
 to very few besides the chief's own family. They all 
 treated us stil} with respectful kindness but to Sechele 
 hinibelf they said things which, as he often remarked, had 
 they ventured on in former times, would have cost them 
 their lives. It was trying, after all we had done, to see 
 onr labors so little appreciated ; but we had sown the 
 good seed, and have no doubt but it will yet spring up, 
 though we may not live to see the fruits. 
 
 Leaving this sketch of the chief, I proceed to give an 
 equally rapid one of our dealing with his people, the Ba- 
 kena, or Bakwains. A small piece of land, sufficient for a 
 garden, was purchased when we first went to live with 
 
18 RELATIONS AT1TH THE PEOrLE. 
 
 ihem, though that was scarcely necessary in a country 
 where the idea of buying land was quite new. It was ex- 
 pected that a request for a suitable spot would have been 
 made, and that we should have proceeded to occupy it a« 
 any other member of the tribe would. But we explained 
 to them that we wished to aroid any cause of future 
 dispute when land had become more valuable; or when a 
 foolish chief began to reign, and we had erected large or 
 expensive buildings, he might wish to claim the whole. 
 These reasons were considered satisfactory. About £5 
 worth of goods were given for a piece of land, and an ar- 
 rangement was come to that a similar piece should be 
 allotted to any other missionary, at any other place to 
 which the tribe might remove. The particulars of the 
 sale sounded strangely in the ears of the tribe, but to ere 
 nevertheless readily agreed to. 
 
 In our relations with this people we were simply 
 strangers, exercising no authority or control whatever. 
 Our influence depended entirely on persuasion ; and, having 
 taught them by kind conversation as well as by public 
 instruction, I expected them to do what their own sense 
 of right and wrong dictated. We never wished them to 
 do right merely because it would be pleasing to us, nor 
 thought ourselves to blame when they did wrong, although 
 we were quite aware of the absurd idea to that effect 
 We saw that our teaching did good to the general mind 
 of the people by bringing new and better motives into 
 play. Five instances are positively known to me in 
 which, by our influence on public opinion, war was pre- 
 vented ; and where, in individual cases, we failed, the peo- 
 ple did no worse than they did before we came into the 
 country. In general they were slow, like all the African 
 people hereafter to be described, in coming to a decision 
 on religious subjects; but in questions affecting their 
 worldly affairs they were keenly alive to their own inte- 
 rests. They might be called stupid in matters which han 
 uot come within the sphere of their observation, but. ia 
 
 3 
 

 & 
 
 
 1 
 
THE JIOPO. 21 
 
 other things they snowed more intelligence than is to be 
 met with in our own uneducated peasantry. They are 
 "emarkably accurate in their knowledge of cattle, sheep, 
 and goats, knowing exactly the kind of pasturage suited 
 to each; and they select with great judgment the varieties 
 of soil best suited to different kinds of grain. They are 
 al^o familiar with the habits of wild animals, and \l 
 general are well up in the maxims which embody then 
 ideas of political wisdom. 
 
 The place where wo first settled with the Bakwains is 
 called Chonuane, and it happened to be visited, during tho 
 first year of our residence the"re, by one of those droughts 
 which occur from time to time in even the most favored 
 districts of Africa. 
 
 The conduct of the people during this long-continued 
 drought was remarkably good. The women parted with 
 most of their ornaments to purchase corn from more for- 
 tunate tribes. The children scoured the country in search 
 of the numerous bulbs and roots which can sustain life, 
 and the men engaged in hunting. Very great numbers of 
 the large game, buffaloes, zebras, giraffes, tsessebes, kamas 
 or hartebeests, kokongs or gnus, pallahs, rhinoceroses, &c., 
 congregated at some fountains near Kolobeng, and the trap 
 called "hopo" was constructed, in the lauds adjacent, for 
 their destruction. The hopo consists of two hedges in the 
 form of the letter Y, which are very high and thick near 
 the angle. Instead of the hedges being joined there, they 
 are made to form a lane of about fifty yards in length, at 
 the extremity of which a pit is formed, six or eight feet 
 deep, and about twelve or fifteen in breadth and length. 
 Trunks of trees are iaid across the margin of the pit, and 
 more especially over that nearest the lane where the ani- 
 mals arc expected to leap in, and over that farthest from 
 the lane where it is supposed they w..l attempt to escape 
 after they are in. The trees form an overlapping border 
 and render escape almost impossible. The whole is care- 
 fully decked with short green rushes making the pit like 
 
/ 
 
 2i THE BOERS 
 
 u concealed pitfall. As the hedges are frequently about w 
 mile long, and about as much apart at their extremities, a 
 tribe making a circle three or four miles round the country 
 adjacent to the opening, and gradually closing up, are 
 almost sure to enclose a large body of game. Driving it up 
 with shouts to the narrow part of the hopo, men secreted 
 there throw their javelins into the affrighted herds, and on 
 the animals rush to the opening presented at the con- 
 verging hedges, and into the pit, till that is. full of a living 
 mass. Some escape by running over the others, as a 
 Smithfiela market-dog does over the sheep's backs. It is a 
 frightful scene. The men, wild with excitement, spear the 
 lovely animals with mad delight; others of the poor crea- 
 tures, borne down by the weight of their dead and dying 
 companions, every now and then make the whole mass 
 heave in their smothering agonies. 
 
 The Bakwains often killed between sixty and seventy 
 head of large game at the different hopos in a single week; 
 and as every one, both rich and poor, partook of the prey, 
 the meat counteracted the bad effects of an exclusively 
 vegetable diet. 
 
 CHAPTEK II. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE PREPARES TO GO TO LAKE NGAM1. 
 
 Another adverse influence with which the mission 
 had to conter.d was the vicinity of the Boers of the 
 Cashan Mountains, otherwise named " Magaliesberg." 
 These are not to be confounded with the Cape colonists, 
 who sometimes pass by the name. The word Boer simply 
 means "farmer," and is not synonymous with our word 
 boor. Indeed, to the Boere generally the latter term 
 would be quite inappropriate, for they are a sober, indus- 
 trious, and most hospitable body of peasantry. Those, how- 
 
TREATMENT OF NATIVE8 BY BOERS. *2* 
 
 ever who have fled from English law on various pretext*, 
 and have been joined by English deserters and every other 
 variety of bad character in their distant localities, are 
 unfortunately of a very different stamp. The great ob- 
 jection many of tho Boers had, and still have, to English 
 law, is that it makes no distinction between black men 
 and white. They felt aggrieved by their supposed lossei 
 in the emancipation of their Hottentot slaves, and deter 
 mined to erect themselves into a republic, in which they 
 might pursue, without molestation, the "proper treatment 
 of the blacks." It is almost needless to add that the 
 " proper treatment" has always contained in it the essen- 
 tial element of slavery, namely, compulsory unpaid labor. 
 
 One section of this body, under the late Mr. Hendrick 
 Potgeiter, penetrated the interior as far as the Cashan 
 Mountains, whence a Zulu or Caffro chief, named Mosili- 
 katze, had been expelled by the well-known Caffre Din. 
 gaan ;* and a glad welcome was given them by the Be- 
 chuana tribes, who had just escaped the hard sway of that 
 cruel chieftain. They came with the prestige of white 
 men and deliverers; but the Bechuanas soon found, as 
 they expressed it, " that Mosilikatze was cruel to his 
 enemies, and kind to those he conquered; but that the 
 Boers destroyed their enemies, and made slaves of their 
 friends." The tribes who still retain the semblance of 
 independence are forced to perform all the labor of the 
 fields, such as manuring the land, weeding, reaping, building, 
 
 * Dingaan was the brother and successor of Chaka, the most cruel and 
 bloodthirsty tyrant that ever disgraced the soil of Africa. He had formed 
 kis tribe into a military organization and ravaged all the neighboring 
 tribes ; but his horrible cruelties to his own subjects led to a revolt, 
 headed by Dingaan and Umslungani, his two elder brothers, who first 
 attacked him with spears, wounding him in the back. Chaka was en- 
 veloped in a blanket, which he cast off and fled. He was overtaken and 
 again wounded. Falling at the feet of his pursuers, he besought them in 
 the most abject terms to let him live, that he might be their slave ; but h« 
 
 was instantly speared to death. — Am. Ed 
 
 3» 
 
26 THE BOERS MAKE WAR ON THE BAKWAINS. 
 
 making dam& and canals, and at the same time to support 
 themselves. I have myself been an eye-witness of Boera 
 coming to a village, and, according to their usual custom, 
 demanding twenty or thirty women to weed their gardens, 
 and have'seen these women proceed to the scene of unre- 
 quited toil, carrying their owri, food on their heads, their 
 children on their backs, and instruments of labor on their 
 shoulders. JNor *have the Boers any wish to conceal tho 
 meanness of thus employing unpaid labor : on the contrary, 
 every one of them, from Mr. Potgeiter and Mr. Gert 
 Krieger, the commandants, downward, lauded his own 
 humanity and justice in making such an equitable regula- 
 tion. " We make the people work for us, in consideration 
 of allowing them to live in our country." 
 
 The Boers determined to put a stop to English traders 
 going past Kolobeng, by dispersing the tribe of Bakwains 
 and expelling all the missionaries. Sir George Cathcart 
 proclaimed the independence of the Boers, the best thing 
 that could have been done had they been between us and 
 the Caffres. A treaty was entered into with these Boers ; 
 an article for the free passage of Englishmen to the coun- 
 try beyond, and also another, that no slavery should be 
 allowed in the independent territory, were duly inserted, 
 as expressive of the views of her majesty's government at 
 home. " But what about the missionaries T" inquired the 
 Boers. " You may do as you please with them" is said to 
 have been the answer of the " Commissioner." This re- 
 mark, if uttered at all, was probably made in joke : design- 
 ing men, however, circulated it, and caused the general 
 belief in its accuracy which now prevails all over the coun. 
 try, and doubtless led to the destruction of three mission- 
 stations immediately after. The Boers, four hundred in 
 number, were sent by the late Mr. Pretorius to attack the 
 Bakwains in 1852. Boasting that the English had given 
 up all the blacks into their power, and had agreed to aid 
 them in their subjugation by preventing all supplies of 
 ammunition from coming into the Bechuara country, thej 
 
HOSTILITY OF THE BOERS. 27 
 
 assaaited the Bakwnins, and, besides killing a considerablu 
 number of adults, carried off two hundred of our school- 
 sbildron into slavery. The natives under Sochelo defend' J 
 themselves till the approach of night enabled tho.in to neo 
 to the mountains; and, having in that defence killed a 
 number of the enemy, the very first ever slain in this coun- 
 try by Bechuanas, I received the credit of having taught 
 the tribe to kill Boers ! My house, which had stood per- 
 fectly secure for years under the protection of the natives, 
 was plundered in revenge. English gentlemen, who had 
 come in the footsteps of Mr. Cumming to hunt in the coun- 
 try beyond, and had deposited large quantities of stores in 
 the same keeping, and upward of eighty head of cattle as 
 relays for the return journeys, were robbed of all, and, 
 when they came back to Kolobeng, found the skeletons of 
 the guardians strewed all over the place. The books of a 
 good library — my solace in our solitude — were not. taken 
 away, but handfuls of the leaves were torn out and scat- 
 tered over the place. My stock of medicines was smashed, 
 and all our furniture and clothing carried off and sold at 
 public auction to pay the expenses of the foray. 
 
 In trying to benefit the tribes living under the Boers of 
 the Cashan Mountains, I twice performed a journey of about 
 three hundred miles to the eastward of Kolobeng. Sechelo 
 had become so obnoxious to the Boers that, though anxious 
 to accompany me in my journey, he dared not trust him- 
 self among them. This did not arise from the crime of 
 cattle-stealing; for that crime, so common among tho 
 Canres, was never charged against his tribe, nor, indeed, 
 against any Bechuana tribe. It is, in fact, unknown in tho 
 country, except during actual warfare. His independenco 
 mid love of the English were his only faults. In my last 
 journey there, of about two hundred miles, on parting at 
 the river Marikwe he gave me two servants, " to be," as 
 he said, " his arms to serve me," and expressed regret that 
 he could not come himself. " Suppose we went north/' I 
 said, " would you come f" He then told me the story of 
 
28 PREPARING TO CROPS TIIE DESERT. 
 
 * 
 
 6ebituane having saved his life, and expatiated on the far 
 famed generosity of that really great man. This was th# 
 first time I had thought of crossing the Desert to Lak* 
 Ngami. 
 
 The conduct of the Boers, who had sent a letter designed 
 to procure my removal out of the country, and their well- 
 known settled policy which I have already described, be- 
 came more fully developed on this than on any former 
 occasion. When I spoke to Mr. Hendrick Potgeiter of the 
 danger of hindering the gospel of Christ among these poor 
 Bavages, he became greatly excited, and called one of his 
 followers to answer me. He threatened to attack any tribe 
 that might receive a native teacher -, yet he promised to use 
 his influence to prevent those under him from throwing 
 obstacles in our way. I could perceive plainly that nothing 
 more could be done in that direction, so I commenced col- 
 lecting all the information I could about the desert, with 
 the intention of crossing it, if possible. Sekomi, the chief 
 of the Bamangwato, was acquainted with a route which 
 he kept carefully to himself, because the Lake country 
 abounded in ivory, and he drew large quantities thence 
 periodically at but small cost to himself. 
 
 Sechele, who valued highly every thing European, and 
 was always fully alive to his own interest, was naturally 
 anxious to get a share of that inviting field. He was most 
 anxious to visit Sebituane too, partly, perhaps, from a wish 
 feo show off his new acquirements, but chiefly, I believe, 
 from having very exalted ideas of the benefits he would 
 derive from the liberality of that renowned chieftain. 
 
 Sechele, by my advice, sent men to Sokomi, asking leave 
 for me to pass along his path, accompanying the request 
 with the present of an ox. Sekomi' s mother, who possesses 
 great influence over him, refused permission, because she 
 had not been propitiated This produced a fresh message; 
 and the most honorable man in the Bakwain tribe, next 
 to Sechele, was sent with an ox for both Sekomi and his 
 mother. This, too. was met by refusal. It was said, 
 
PRErARINO TO CROSS THE DESERT. 29 
 
 1 The Matebele, the mortal enemies of the Beehuanas, are 
 in the direction of the lake, and, should they kill the white 
 man, we shall incur great blame from all his nation/' 
 
 The exact position of the Lake Ngami had, for half » 
 century at least, been correctly pointed out by the natives, 
 who had visited it when rains were more copious in the 
 Desert than in more recent times, and many attempts had 
 been made to reach it by passing through the Desert in the 
 direction indicated; but it was found impossible, even for 
 G-riquas, who, having some Bushman blood in them, may 
 be supposed more capable of enduring thirst than Euro- 
 peans. It was clear, then, that our only chance of suc- 
 cess was by going round, instead of through, the Desert. 
 The best time for the attempt would have been about the 
 end of the rainy season, in March or April, for then we 
 should have been likely to meet with pools of rain-water, 
 which always dry up during the rainless winter. I com- 
 municated my intention to an African traveller, Colonel 
 Steele, then aide-de-camp to the Marquis of Twecdale at 
 Madras, and he made it known to two other gentlemen, 
 whose friendship we had gained during their African travel, 
 namely, Major Yardon and Mr. Oswell. All of these gentle- 
 men were so enamored with African hunting and African 
 discovery that the two former must have envied the latter 
 his good fortune in being able to leave India to undertako 
 afresh the pleasures and pains of desert life. I believe Mr. 
 Oswell came from his high position at a very considerable 
 pecuniary sacrifice, and with no other end in view but to 
 extend the boundaries of geographical knowledge. Before 
 I knew of his coming, I had arranged that the payment 
 of the guides furnished by Sechele should be the loan cf 
 my wagon to bring ba> k whatever ivory he might obtain 
 from the chief at. the lake. When, at last, Mr. Oswell 
 came, bringing Mr. ]V) array with him, he undertook to 
 defray the entire expense of the guides, and fully executed 
 his generous intention 
 
 Sechele himself wot Jd have come with us, but, foaring 
 C 
 
g DEPARTURE FROM K0L0BES3. 
 
 that the much-talked-of assault of the Boers might take 
 place during our absence, and blame be attached to me fo. 
 taking him away, I dissuaded him against it by Baying that 
 ho knew Mr. Oswell « would be as determined as himself 
 to get through the Desert." 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE DISCOVERS DAKE NGAMI. 
 
 Just before the arrival of my companions, a party of tho 
 people of the lake came to Kolobeng, stating that they 
 were sent by Lechulatebe, the chief, to ask me to visit 
 that country. They brought such flaming accounts of the 
 quantities of ivory to be found there, (cattle-pens made of 
 elephants' tusks of enormous size, &c.,) that the guides of 
 the Bakwains were quite as eager to succeed m reaching 
 the lake as any one of us could desire. This was fortnnate, 
 as wo knew the way the strangers had come was impass- 
 able for wagons. , 
 Messrs. Oswell and Murray came at the end of May, and 
 we all made a fair start for the unknown region on the 1st 
 of .Tune 1849. Proceeding northward, and passing througn 
 a range of tree-covered hills to Shokuane. formerly the re- 
 sidence of tho Bakwains, we soon after emered on the high 
 road to the Bamangwato, which lies generally in the bed 
 of an ancient river or wady that must formerly have flowed 
 
 Boatlanama, our next station, is a lovely spot in the 
 otherwise dry region. The wells from which we nad to 
 lift out the water for our cattle f.re deep, but they were 
 well filled. A few villages of Baka ahari were found near 
 them, and great numbers of pallah.i, springbucks, Guinea, 
 fowl, and small monkeys. 
 Lopepe came next This place afforded another proof 
 
MESSAGE FROM SEKOMI 35 
 
 of the desiccation of the country. The first time I passed 
 it, LopCpo was a largo pool with a stream flowing out of it 
 tc the south; now it was with difficulty we could get our 
 cattle watered by digging down in the bottom of a well. 
 
 At Mash iie — where we found a # never-failing supply of 
 puro water in a sandstone rocky hollow— we left the road 
 to the Bamangwato Hills, and struck away to the north 
 into the Desert. Having watered the cattle at a well called 
 Lobotani, about N. W. of Bamangwato, we next proceeded 
 to a real Kalahari fountain, called Serotli. 
 
 In the evening of our second day at Serotli, a hyena, 
 appearing suddenly among the grass, succeeded in raising 
 a panic among our cattle. This false mode of attack is 
 the plan which this cowardly animal always adopts. His 
 courage resembles closely that of a turkey-cock. He will 
 bite if an animal is running away; but if the animal stand 
 still, so does he. Seventeen of our draught-oxen ran away, 
 and in their flight went right into the hands of Sekomi, 
 whom, from his being unfriendly to our success, we had no 
 particular wish to see. Cattle-stealing, such as in the cir- 
 cumstances might have occurred in Caffraria, is here un- 
 known; so Sekomi sent back our oxen, and a message 
 strongly dissuading us against attempting the Desert. 
 "Where are you going? You will be killed by the nun 
 and thirst, and then all the white men will blame me for 
 not saving you." This was backed by a private message 
 from his mother. " Why do you pass me ? I always made 
 the people collect to hear the word that you have got. 
 What guilt have I, that you pass without looking at me V 
 We replied by assuring the messengers that the white men 
 would attribute our deaths to our own stupidity and "hard- 
 headedneas," (tlogo, e thata,) "as we did not intend to 
 allow our companions and guides to return till they had 
 put us into our graves." We sent a handsome present to 
 Sekomi, and a promise that, if he allowed the Bakal: 
 to keep the wells open for us, wo would repeat the gift od 
 return. 
 
34 DISCOVERY OF WATER. 
 
 After exhausting all his eloquence in fruitless attempts 
 to persuade us to return, the under-chief, who headed the 
 party of Sekomr's messengers, inquired, "Who is taking 
 them?" Looking round, he exclaimed, with a face ex- 
 pressive of the most unfeigned disgust, "It is Eamotobi I" 
 Our guide belonged to Sekomr's tribe ; but had fled to 
 Sechele ; as fugitives in this country are always well re- 
 ceived, and may even afterward visit the tribe from which 
 they had escaped, Eamotobi was in no danger, though doing 
 that which he knew to be directly opposed to the interests 
 of his own chief and tribe. 
 
 For sixty or seventy miles beyond Serotli, one clump of 
 bushes and trees seemed exactly like another -, but, as we 
 walked together this morning, Eamotobi remarked, "When 
 we come to that hollow we shall light upon the highway 
 of Sekomi; and beyond that again lies the river Mokoko/' 
 which, though we passed along it, I could not perceive to 
 be a river-bed at all. 
 
 After breakfast, some of the men, who had gone forward 
 on a little path with some footprints of water-loving 
 animals upon it, returned with the joyful tidings of 
 "metse," water, exhibiting the mud on their knees in con- 
 firmation of the news being true. It does one's heart good 
 to see the thirsty oxen rush into a pool of delicious rain- 
 water, as this was. In they dash until the water is deep 
 enough to be nearly level with their throat, and then they 
 stand drawing slowly in the long, refreshing mouthfuls, 
 until their formerly collapsed sides distend as if they would 
 burst. So much do they imbibe, that a sudden jerk, when 
 they come out on the bank, makes some of the water run 
 out again from their mouths ; but, as they have been days 
 without food too, they very soon commence to graze, and 
 of grass there is always abundance everywhere. This 
 pool was called Mathuluana; and thankful we were to have 
 obtained so welcome a supply of water. 
 
 After giving the cattle a rest at this spot, we proceeded 
 down the dry bed of the river Mokoko. 
 
8ALT-PAN8 35 
 
 / 
 
 At jNchokotsa we came upon the first of a great number 
 of sa^t-pans, covered with an efflorescence of lime, probably 
 the nitrate. A thick belt of mopane-trees (a Bauhinia) 
 hides this salt-pan, which is twenty miles in circumference, 
 entirely from the view of a person coming from the south- 
 east ; and, at the time the pan burst upon our view, the 
 Betting sun was casting a beautiful blue haze over the white 
 incrustations, making the whole look exactly like a lake. 
 Oswell threw his hat up in the air at the sight, and shouted 
 out a huzza which made the poor Bushwoman and the 
 Bakwains thick him mad. I was a little behind him, and 
 was as completely deceived by it as he; but, as we had 
 agreed to allow each other to behold the lake at the same 
 instant, I felt a little chagrined that he had, unintentionally, 
 got the first glance. We had no idea that the long-looked- 
 for lake was still more than three hundred miles distant. 
 One reason of our mistake was that the river Zouga was 
 often' spoken of by the same name as the lake, — viz. : Noka 
 ea Batletli, (" JRiver of the Batletli.") 
 
 On the 4th of July we went forward on horseback toward 
 what we supposed to be the lake, and again and again did 
 we seem to see it j but at last we came to the veritable 
 water of the Zouga, and found it to bo a river running to 
 the N.E. A village of Bakurutse lay on the opposite bank: 
 these live among Batletli, a tribe having a click in their 
 iunguage, and who were found by Sebituane to possess large 
 berds of the great horned cattle. They seem allied to the 
 Hottentot family. Mr. Oswell, in trying to cross the river, 
 £0t his horse bogged in the swampy bank. Two Bakwains 
 and I managed to get over by wading beside a fishing-weir. 
 The people were friendly, and informed us that this water 
 came out of Ngami. This news gladdened all our hearts, 
 for we now felt certain of reaching our goal. Wo might, 
 they said, be a moon on the way: but wo had tho river 
 Zouga at our feet, and by following it we should at iast 
 reach the broad water. 
 
 Next day, when we were quite disposed to bo friondlj 
 
36 THE ZOUGA. 
 
 with every one, two of the Bamangwato, who had been 
 sent on before us by Sekomi to drive away all the Bushmen 
 and Bakalahari from our path, so that they should not 
 assist or guide us, came and sat down by our fire. We had 
 seen their footsteps fresh in the way, and they had watched 
 eur slow movements forward, and wondered to see how we, 
 without any Bushmen, found our way to the waters. This 
 was the first time they had seen Eamotobi. "You have 
 reached the river now," said they ; and we, quite disposed 
 to laugh at having won the game, felt no ill-will to any one. 
 They seemed to feel no enmity to us, either; but, after an 
 apparently friendly conversation, proceeded to fulfil to the 
 last the instructions of their chief. Ascending the Zouga 
 in our front, they circulated the report that our object was 
 to plunder all the tribes living on the river and lake; but 
 when they had got half-way up the river, the principal man 
 sickened of fever, turned back some distance, and died. 
 His death had a good effect, for the villagers connected it 
 with the injury he was attempting to do us. They all saw 
 through Sekomi's reasons for wishing us to fail in our at- 
 tempt; and, though they came to us at first armed, kind 
 and fair treatment soon produced perfect confidence. 
 
 When we had gone up the barJk of this beautiful river 
 about ninety-six miles from the point where we first struck 
 it, and understood that we were still a considerable distance 
 from the JSTgami, we left all the oxen and wagons, except 
 Mr. OswelPs, which was the smallest, and one team, at 
 Ngabisane, in the hope that they would be recruited for the 
 home journey, while we made a push for the lake. The 
 Bechuana chief of the Lake region,- who had sent men to 
 Sechele, now sent orders to all the people on the river to 
 assist us, and we were received by the Bakoba, whose lan- 
 guage clearly shows that they bear an affinity to the tribes in 
 the ncrth. They call themselves Bayeiye, i.e. men ; but the 
 Bechuanas call them Bakoba, which contains somewhat of 
 tiie idea of slaves. They have never been known to fight, 
 and, indeed, have a tradition that their forefathers, in theii 
 
DISCOVERT OP LAKE NGAMI. 30 
 
 first essays at war, made their bows of the Palma Christy 
 and, whan these broke, they gave up fighting altogether. 
 They have invariably submitted to the rule of every horde 
 whieh has overrun the countries adjacent to the rivers on 
 which they specially love to dwell. They are thus the 
 Quakers of the body politic in Africa. 
 
 Twelve days after our departure from the wagons at 
 Ngabisane Ave came to the northeast end of Lake Ngami; 
 and on the 1st of August, 1849, we went down together to 
 tlio broad part, and, for the first time, this fine-looking 
 sheet of water was beheld by Europeans. The direction 
 of the lake seemed to be N.N.B. and S.S.W. by compass. 
 The southern portion is said to bend round to the west, and 
 to receive the Teoughe from the north at its northwest 
 extremity. We could detect no horizon where we stood 
 looking S.S.W., nor could we form any idea of the extent 
 of the lake, except from the reports of the inhabitants of 
 the district; and, as they professed to go round it in three 
 days, allowing twenty-five miles a day would make it 
 seventy-five, or less than seventy geographical miles in cir- 
 cumference. Other guesses have been made since as to its 
 circumference, ranging between seventy and one hundred 
 miles. It is shallow, for I subsequently saw a native punt- 
 ing his canoe over seven or eight miles of the northeast 
 end ; it can never, therefore, be of much value as a com- 
 ' mercial highway. In fact, during the months preceding 
 the annual supply of water from the north, the lake is so 
 shallow that it is with difficulty cattle can approach the 
 water through the boggy, reedy banks. These are low on 
 all sides, but on the west there is a space devoid of trees, 
 showing that the waters have retired thence at no very 
 ancient date. This is another of the proofs of desiccation 
 met with so abundantly throughout the whole country. A 
 number of dead trees lie on this space, somo of them em- 
 bedded in the mud, right in the water. We were informed 
 by the Bayeiye, who live on the lake, that when tho annual 
 inundation begin? not only trees of great size, but ante- 
 
40 THE NGAMI. 
 
 lopes, as the springbuck and tsessebe, (Acronotus lunata,) are 
 swept down by its rushing waters ; the trees are gradually 
 driven by the winds to the opposite side, and become em 
 bedded in the mud. 
 
 The water of the lake is perfectly fresh when full, but 
 brackish when low ; and that coming down the Taniunak'le 
 we found to be so clear, cold, and soft, the higher we 
 ascended, that the idea of melting snow was suggested to 
 our minds. We found this region, with regard to that from 
 which we had come, to be clearly a hollow, the lowest 
 point being Lake Kumadau ; the point of the ebullition of 
 water, as shown by one of Newman's barometric thermome- 
 ters, was only between 207£° and 206°, giving an elevation 
 "of not much more than two thousand feet above the level of 
 the sea. "We had descended above two thousand feet in 
 coming to it from Kolobeng. It is the southern and lowest 
 part of the great river-system beyond, in which large tracts 
 of country are inundated annually by tropical rains. 
 
 My chief object in coming to the lake was to visit Sebi- 
 tuane, the great chief of the Makololo, who was reported 
 to live some two hundred miles beyond. We had now 
 come to a half-tribe of the Bamangwato, called Batauana. 
 Their chief was a young man named Lechulatebe. Sebi- 
 tuane had conquered his father Moremi, and Lechulatebe 
 received part of his education while a captive among the 
 Bayeiye. His uncle, a sensible man, ransomed him, and, 
 having collected a number of families together, abdicated 
 the chieftainship in favor of his nephew. As Lechulatebe 
 had just come into power, he imagined that the proper 
 way of showing his abilities was to act directly contrary 
 to every thing that his uncle advised. When we came, the 
 uncle recommended him to treat us handsomely : therefore 
 the hopeful youth presented us with a goat only. It ought 
 to have been an ox. So I proposed to my companions to 
 loose the animal and let him go, as a hint to his master. 
 They, however, did not wish to insult him. I, being more 
 of a native, and familiar with their customs, knew that 
 
THE BAMANQWATO AND THEiH CHIEF. 41 
 
 this shabby present was an insult to us. We wished to 
 purchase some goats or oxen ; Lechulatebo offered us ele- 
 phants' tusks. "No, we cannot eat these; wo want some- 
 thing to fill our stomachs." " Neither can I ; but I hear 
 you white men are all very fond of these bones; so I offer 
 them: I want to put the goats into my own stomach." A 
 trader, who accompanied us, was then purchasing ivory 
 at the rate of ten good large tusks for a musket worth 
 thirteen shillings. They were called "bones;" and I 
 myself saw eight instances in which the tnsks had been 
 left to rot with the other bones where the elephant fell. The 
 Batauana never had a chance of a market before ; but, in 
 less' than two years after our discovery, not a man of them 
 could be found who was not keenly alive to the groat value 
 of the article. 
 
 On the day after our arrival at the lake, I applied to 
 Lechulatebe for guides to Sebituane. As he was much 
 afraid of that chief, he objected, fearing lest other white 
 men should go thither also, and give Sebituane guns; 
 whereas, if the traders came to him alone, the possession 
 of fire-arms would give him such a superiority that Sebi- 
 tuane would be afraid of him. It was in vain to explain 
 that I would inculcate pea^e between them, — that Sebi- 
 tuane had been a father to him and Sechele, and was as 
 anxious to see me as he, Lechulatebe, had been. He 
 offered to give me as much ivory as I needed without 
 going to that chief; but, when I refused to take any, he 
 unwillingly consented to give me guides. Next day, how- 
 ever, when Oswell and I were prepared to start, with the 
 horses only, we received a senseless refusal; and like Se- 
 komi, who had thrown obstacles in our way, ho sent men 
 to the Bayeiye with orders to refuse us a passage across 
 tho river. Trying hard to form a raft at a narrow part, I 
 worked many hours in the water ; but the diy wood was 
 so worm-eaten it would not bear the weight of a single 
 person. I was not then awaro of the number of alligators 
 which exist in the Zouga, and nevar think of my labor in 
 
42 START FOB THE COUNTRY OF SEBITUANE 
 
 tho water without feeling thankful that I escap-ed theii 
 jaws. The season was now far advanced; and as Mr. Os* 
 well, with his wonted generous feelings, volunteered, on 
 the spot, to go down to the Cape and bring up a boat, wa 
 resolved to make our way south again. 
 
 CHAPTEK IV. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE PERFORMS TWO JOURNEYS IN THE INTERIOR 
 AND DISCOVERS THE RIVER ZAMBESI — HE SENDS HIS 
 FAMILY TO ENGLAND. 
 
 Having returned to Kolobeng, I remained there till 
 April, 1850, and then left in company with Mrs. Living- 
 stone, our three children, and the chief Sechele, — who had 
 now bought a wagon of his own, — in order to go across the 
 Zouga at its lower end, with the intention of proceeding 
 up the northern bank till we gained the Tamunak'le, and 
 of then ascending that river to visit Sebituane in the north. 
 Sekomi had given orders to fill up the wells which we had 
 dug with much labor at Serotli; so we took the more 
 eastern route through the Bamangwato town and by 
 Letloche. That chief asked why I had avoided him in our 
 former journeys. I replied that my reason was that I 
 knew he did not wish me to go to the lake, and I did not 
 want to quarrel with him. ""Well," he said, "you beat 
 me then, and I am content/' 
 
 Parting with Sechele at the ford, as he was eager to 
 visit Lechulatebe, we went along the northern woody 
 bank of the Zouga with great labor, having to cut down 
 very many trees to allow the wagons to pass. Our losses 
 by Oxen falling into pitfalls were very heavy. The Ba- 
 yeiye kindly opened the pits when they knew of our ap« 
 
GUIDES OBTAINED FROM IAOHULATEBE. 4 J, 
 
 proach; but, when that was not the case, we could blamo 
 no one on finding an established custom of the country 
 inimical to our interests. On approaching tho confluence 
 of the Tamunak'le we were informed that the fly called 
 tsetse* abounded on its banks. This was a barrier we 
 never expected to meet; and, as it might have brought 
 our wagons to a complete stand-still in a wilderness, 
 where no supplies for the children could be obtained, 
 we were reluctantly compelled to recross the Zouga. 
 
 From' the Bayeiye we learned that a party of English- 
 men, who had come to the lake in search of ivory, were 
 all laid low by fever; so we travelled hastily down about 
 sixty miles to render what aid was in our power. TVe 
 were grieved to find, as wo came near, that Mr. Alfred 
 Eider, an enterprising young artist who had come to 
 make sketches of this country and of the lake immediately 
 after its discovery, had died of fever before our arrival; 
 but, by tho aid of medicines and such comforts as could be 
 made by the only English lady who ever visited the lake, 
 the others happily recovered. 
 
 Sechele used all his powers of eloquence with Lechula- 
 tebo to induce him to furnish guides, that I might bo able 
 to visit Sebituane on ox-back, while Mrs. Livingstone and 
 tho children remained at Lake ISTgami. He yielded at 
 last. I had a very superior London-made gun, the gift of 
 Lieutenant Arkwright, on which I placed the greatest 
 value, both on account of the donor and the impossibility 
 of my replacing it. Lechulatebo fell violently in love with 
 it, and offered whatever number of elephants' tusks I might 
 ask for it. I too was enamored with Sebituano ; and, as he 
 promised in addition that he would furnish Mrs. Living- 
 stone with meat all the time of my absence, his argu- 
 ments made me part with the gun. Though he had no 
 ivory at the time to pay me, I felt the pieco would be well 
 
 * Glossina morsitans, the first specimens of which were brought to 
 England in 1848 by my friend Major Vardon, from the banks of th« 
 Limpopo. 
 
44 MR. OSWELl/S HUNTTifG. 
 
 spent on those terms, and delivered it to him. All bei«g 
 ready for our departure, I took Mrs. Livingstone about six 
 miles from the town, that she might have a peep at the 
 broad part of the lake. Next morning we had other work 
 to do than part, for our little boy and girl were seized 
 with fever. On the day following, all our servants were 
 down too with the same complaint. As nothing is better 
 in these cases than change of place, I was forced to give 
 up the hope of seeing Sebituane that year; so, leaving my 
 gun as part payment for guides next year, we started for 
 the pure air of the Desert. 
 
 Some mistake had happened in the arrangement with 
 Mr. Oswell, for we met him on the Zouga on our return, 
 and he had devoted the rest of this season to elephant- 
 hunting, at which the natives universally declare he is the 
 greatest adept that ever came into the country.' He hunted 
 without dogs. It is remarkable that this lordly animal 
 is so completely harassed by the presence of a few yelp- 
 ing curs as to be quite incapable of attending to man. He 
 makes awkward attempts to crush them by falling on hia 
 knees, and sometimes places his forehead against a tree 
 ten inches in diameter; glancing on one side of the tree 
 and then on the other, he pushes it down before him, aa 
 if he thought thereby to catch his enemies. The only 
 danger the huntsman has to apprehend is the dogs' run- 
 ning toward him, and thereby leading the elephant to 
 their master. Mr. Oswell has been known to kill foui 
 large old male elephants a day. The value of the ivory in- 
 These cases would be one hundred guineas. We had reason 
 to be proud of his success, for the inhabitants conceived 
 from it a very high idea of English courage, and when 
 they wished to flatter me wou\d say, "If you were not a 
 missionary you would just be like Oswell; you would not 
 hunt with dogs either." When, 1 in 1852, we came to the 
 Cape, my black coat eleven years out of fashion, and with- 
 out a penny of salary to draw, we found that Mr. Oswell 
 had most generously ordered an outfit for the half-uaked 
 
NCnOKOTSA. 45 
 
 children, which cost about £200, and presented it to us, 
 saying ho thought Mrs. Livingstone had a right to the 
 game of her own preserves. 
 
 Foiled in this second attempt to reach Sebituano, we 
 returned again to Kolobeng, whither we were soon followed 
 by a number of messengers from that chief himself. When 
 ho heard of our attempts to visit him, he despatched three 
 detachments of his men with thirteen brown cows to 
 Lechulatebe, thirteen white cows to Sekomi, and thirteen 
 black cows to Sechele, with a request to each to assist the 
 white men to reach him. Their policy, however, was to 
 keep him out of View, and act as his agents in purchasing 
 with his ivory the goods he wanted. This is thoroughly 
 African ; and that continent being without friths and arms 
 of tke sea, the tribes in the centre have always been de- 
 barred from European intercourse by its universal preva- 
 lence among all the people around the coasts. 
 
 Before setting out on our third journey to Sebituane. it 
 was necessary to visit Kuruman; and Sechele, eager, for 
 the sake of the commission thereon, to get the ivory of 
 that chief into his own hands, allowed all the messengers 
 to leave before' our return. Sekomi, however, was more 
 than usually gracious, and even furnished us with a guide, 
 but no one knew the path beyond Nchokotsa which we 
 intended to follow. When we reached that point, we found 
 that the n ainspring *)f the gun of another of his mon, 
 who was well acquainted with the Bushmen, through whoso 
 country we should pass, had opportunely broken. I never 
 undertook to mend a gun with greater zest than this; for, 
 under promise of his guidance, we went to the north in- 
 stead of westward. All the other guides were most libo- 
 rally rewarded by Mr. Oswell. 
 
 We passed quickly over a hard countiy, which is perfectly 
 flat. A little 6oil lying on calcareous tufa, over a tract of 
 several hundreds of miles, supports a vegetatior of fine, 
 •Bweet short grass, and mopane and baobab trees. 
 
 We found a great number of wells in this tufa. A piano 
 
46 THE GUIDE SHOBO. 
 
 called Matlomagan-yana, or the "Links," is quite a chain 
 of these never-failing springs. As they occasionally be- 
 come full in seasons when no rain falls, an d resemble some- 
 what in this respect the rivers we have already mentioned, 
 it is probable they receive some water by percolation from - 
 the river-system in the country beyond. Among these 
 links we found many families of Bushmen; and, unlike 
 those on the plains of the Kalahari, who are generally of 
 snort stature and light yellow color, these were tall, strap- 
 ping fellows, of dark complexion. Heat alone does not 
 produce blackness of skin, but heat with moisture seems 
 to insure the deepest hue. 
 
 One of these Bushmen, named Shobo, consented to be our 
 guide over the waste between these springs and the country 
 of Sebituane. Shobo gave us no hope of water in less than 
 a month. Providentially, however, we came sooner than 
 we expected to some supplies of rain-water in a chain of 
 pools. It is impossible to convey an idea of the dreary * 
 scene on which we entered after leaving this spot : the only 
 vegetation was a low scrub in deep sand ; not a bird or in- 
 sect enlivened the landscape. It was, without exception, 
 the most uninviting prospect I ever beheld ; and, to make 
 matters worse, our guide Shobo wandered on the second 
 day. We coaxed him on at night, but he went to all points 
 of the compass on the trails of elephants which had been 
 here in the rainy season, and then would sit iown in the 
 path, and in his broken Sichuana say, "No water, all 
 country only; Shobo sleeps; he breaks down; country 
 only," and then coolly curl himself up and go to sleep. 
 The oxen were terribly fatigued and thirsty; and, on the 
 morning of the fourth day, Shobo, after professing igno- 
 rance of every thing, vanished altogether. "We went on in 
 the direction in which we last saw him, and about eleven 
 o'clock began to see birds; then the trail of a rhinoceros. 
 A.t this we unyoked the oxen, and they, apparently know 
 tag the sign, rushed along to find the water in the rivei 
 Mahabe, which comes from the Tamunak'le, and lay to the 
 
THE BANAJOA. 47 
 
 west of us. The supply of water in the wagons had been 
 wasted by one of our servants, and by the afternoon only 
 a small portion remained for the children. This was a bit- 
 terly anxious night; and next morning the less there wan 
 of water the more thirsty the little rogues became. The 
 idea of their perishing before our eyes was terrible. It 
 would almost have been a relief to me to have been re- 
 proached with being the entire cause of the catastrophe ; 
 bui not one syllable of upbraiding was uttered by their 
 mother, though the tearful eye told the agony within. In 
 the afternoon of the fifth day, to our inexpressible relief, 
 some of the men returned with a supply of that fluid of 
 which we had never before felt the true value. 
 
 The cattle, in rushing along to the water in the Mahab* ; 
 probably crossed a small patch of trees containing tsetse, 
 an insect which was shortly to become a perfect pest to us. 
 Shobo had found his way to the Bayeiye, and appeared; 
 when we came up to the river, at the head of a party; 
 and, as he wished to show his importance before his friends, 
 he wnlked up boldly and commanded our whole cavalcade 
 •to stop, and to bring forth fire and tobacco, while he coolly 
 sat down and smoked his pipe. It was such an inimitably 
 natural way of showing off that we all stopped to admire 
 the acting, and, though he had left us previously in the 
 larch, we all liked Shobo, a fine specimen of that wonder- 
 ful people, the Bushmen. 
 
 Next day we came to a village of Banajoa, a tribe which 
 extends far to the eastward. They were living on the bor- 
 ders of a marsh in which the Mahabe terminates. They 
 had lost their crop of corn, (Holcus sorghum,} and now sub 
 sisted almost entirely on the root called "tsitla," a kind of 
 aroidoea, which contains a very largo quantity of sweet-tasted 
 itarch. When dried, pounded into meal, and allowed to fer- 
 ment, it forms a not unpleasant article of food. Tb e women 
 shave all the hair off their heads, and seem darker than tho 
 Bechuanas. Their huts were built on poles, and a firo ia 
 made beneath by night, in order that the smoke may drivo 
 
48 OPERATION OF TSETSE POISON 
 
 away the mosquitos, which abound on the Mahabe and 
 Tamunak'le more than in any other part of the country. 
 The head-man of this village, Majane, seemed a little want- 
 ing in ability, but had had wit enough to promote a younger 
 member of the family to the office. This person, the most 
 like the ugly negro of the tobacconists' shops I ever saw, 
 was called Moroa Majane, or son of Majane, and proved an 
 active guide across the river Sonta, and to the banks of 
 the Chobe, in the country of Sebituane. We had come 
 through another tsetse district by night, and at once passed 
 our cattle over to the northern bank to preserve them from 
 its ravages. 
 
 A few remarks on the Tsetse, or Glossina morsitans, may 
 here be appropriate. It is not much larger than the com- 
 mon house-fly, and is nearly of the same brown color as 
 the common honey-bee; the after-part of the body has 
 three or four yellow bars across it ; the wings project be- 
 yond this part considerably, and it is remarkably alert, 
 avoiding most dexterously all attempts to catch it with 
 the hand at common temperatures; in the cool of the morn- 
 ings and evenings it is less agile. Its peculiar buzz when 
 once heard can never be forgotten by the traveller whose 
 means of locomotion are domestic animals; for it is well 
 known that the bite of this poisonous insect is certain 
 death to the ox, horse v and dog. In this journey, though 
 we were not aware of any great number having at any 
 time lighted on our cattle, we lost forty-three fine oxen by 
 its bite. We watched the animals carefully, and believe 
 that not a score of flies were ever upon them. 
 
 A most remarkable feature in the bite of the tsetse is its 
 perfect narmlessness in man and wild animals, and even 
 calves so long as they continue to suck the cow. We 
 never experienced the slightest injury from them ourselves, 
 personally, although we lived two months in their habitat, 
 which was in this case as sharply defined as in many others, 
 for the south bank of the Chobe was infested by them, and 
 the northern bank, where our cattle were placed, only fifty 
 
TIIE TSETSE POISON. 49 
 
 yards distant, c«. ntained not a single specimen. This was 
 the more remarkable as we often saw natives carrying over 
 raw meat to the opposite bank with many tsetse settled 
 upon it. 
 
 The poison does not seem to be injected by a sting, or by 
 ova placed beneath the skin ; for, when one is allowed to 
 feed freely on the hand, it is seen to insert the middle prong 
 of throe portions, into which the proboscis divides, some- 
 what deeply into the true skin ; it then draws it out a little 
 way, and it assumes a en mson color as the mandibles come 
 into brisk operation. The previously-shrunken belly swells 
 out, and, if left undisturbed, the fly quietly departs when it 
 is full. A slight itching irritation follows, but not more 
 than in the bite of a mosquito. In the ox this same bite 
 produces no more immediate effects than in man. It does 
 not startle him as the gad-fly does; but a few days after- 
 ward the following symptoms supervene : the eye and nose 
 begin to run, the coat stares as if the anima> were cold, a 
 swelling appears under the jaw and sometime* at the navel; 
 and, though the animal continues to graze, emaciation com- 
 mences, accompanied with a peculiar flaccidit^ of the mus- 
 cles, and this proceeds unchecked until, perhaps months after- 
 ward, purging comes on, and the animal, no longer able 
 to graze, perishes in a state of extreme exhaustion. Those 
 which are in good condition often perish soon afVer the bite 
 is inflicted, with staggering and blindness, as if the brain 
 were affected by it. Sudden changes of temperature pro- 
 duced by falls of rain seem to hasten the progress of the 
 complaint; but, in general, the emaciation goes on unin- 
 terruptedly for months, and, do what we will, th*» poor 
 animals perish miserably. 
 
 When opened, the cellular tissue on the surface o* the 
 body beneath the skin is seen to be injected with air, us if 
 a quantity of soap-bubbles were scattered over it, or a ms- 
 honest, awkward butcher had been trying to make it Wk 
 fat. The fat is of a greenish-yellow color and of an o>*y 
 consistence. All the muscles are flabby, and the he*M 
 
60 MEETTNQ WITH SEBITUANE. 
 
 often so soft that the fingers may be made to meet through 
 it. The lungs, and liver partake of the disense. The 
 stomach and bowels are pale and empty, and the gall- 
 bladder is distended with bile. 
 
 The mule, ass, and goat enjoy the same immunity from 
 the tsetse as man and game. Many large tribes on tho 
 Zambesi can keep no domestic animals except the goat, in 
 consequence of the scourge existing in their country. ..Our 
 children were frequently bitten, yet suffered no harm; 
 and we saw around us numbers of zebras, buffaloes, pigs, 
 pallahs and other antelopes, feeding quietly in the very 
 habitat of the tsetse, yet as undisturbed by its bite as 
 oxen are when they first receive the fatal poison. 
 
 The Makoiolo whom we met on the Chobe were delighted 
 to see us; and, as their chief. Sebituane was about twenty 
 miles down the river, Mr. Oswell and I proceeded in canoes 
 to his temporary residence. He had come from the Barotse 
 town of Kaliele down to Sesheke as soon as he heard of 
 white men being in search of him, and now came one hundred 
 miles more to bid us welcome into his country. He was 
 upon an island, with all his principal men around him, and 
 engaged in singing when we arrived. It was more like 
 churuh-music than the sing-song e e e, se & se, of the 
 Bechuanas of the south, and they continued the tune for 
 some seconds after we approached. We informed him of the 
 difficulties we had encountered, and how glad we were that 
 they were all at an end by at last reaching his presence. 
 He signified his own joy, and added, "Your cattle are V 
 bitten by the tsetse, and will certainly die ; but never min 
 I have oxen, and will give you as many as yOu need." We, 
 in our ignorance, then thought that as so few tsetse had 
 bitten them no great mischief would follow. He then pre- 
 sented us with an ox and a jar of honey as food, and handed 
 us over to the care of Mahale, who had headed the party 
 to Kolobeng, and would now fain appropriate to himself 
 the whole credit of our coming. Prepared skins of oxen, 
 as soft as cloth were given to cover us through the night; 
 
HIS CHARACTER. 51 
 
 and, as nothing could be returned to this chief, Mahale be- 
 came the owner of them. Long before it was day, Sebituane 
 came, and sitting down by the fire, which was lighted for 
 our benefit behind the hedge where we lay, he narrated the 
 difficulties he had himself experienced, when a young man, 
 in crossing that same desert which we had mastered long 
 afterward. 
 
 He was much pleased with the proof of confidence we 
 had shown in bringing our children, and promised to take 
 us to see his country, so that we might choose a part in 
 which to locate ourselves. Our plan was, that I should 
 remain in -the pursuit of my objects as a missionary, 
 while ilr. Oswell explored the Zambesi to the east. Poor 
 Sebituane, however, just after realizing what he had so long 
 ardently desired, fell sick of inflammation of the lungs, 
 which originated in and extended from an old wound got at 
 Melita. I saw his danger, but, being a stranger, I feared 
 to treat him medically, lest, in the event of his death, I 
 should be blamed by his people. I mentioned this to one 
 of his doctors, who said, " Your fear is prudent and wise : 
 this people would blame you." He had been cured of this 
 complaint, during the year before, by the Barotse making 
 a large number of free incisions in the chest. The Mako- 
 lolo doctors, on the other hand, now^scarcely cut the skin. 
 On the Sunday afternoon in which he died, when our usual 
 religious service was over, I visited him with my little boy 
 Robert. " Come near," said Sebituane, " and see if I am 
 any longer a man. I am done." He was thus sensible of 
 the dangerous nature of his disease; so I ventured to as- 
 sent, and added a single sentence regarding hope after 
 death. "Why do you speak of death?" said one of a 
 relay of fresh doctors; "Sebituane will never die." If I 
 had persisted, the impression would have been produced 
 that by speaking about it I wished him to die. After 
 sitting with him some time, and commending him to the 
 mercy of God, I rose to depart, when the dying chieftain, 
 raising himself up a little from his prone position, called a 
 
52 DEATII OP SEBITUANE. 
 
 servaDt, and said, "Take Eobert to Maunku, [one of his 
 wives,] and tell her to give him some milk." These -were 
 the last words of Sebituane. 
 
 We were not informed of his death until the next day. 
 The burial of a Bechuana chief takes place in his cattle- 
 pen, and all the cattle are driven for an hour or two around 
 and over the grave, so that it may be quite obliterated. 
 We went and spoke to the people, advising them to keep 
 together and support the heir. They took this kindly ; 
 and in turn told us not to be alarmed, for they would not 
 think of ascribing the death of their chief to us ; that 
 Sebituane had just gone the way of his fathers; and, 
 though the father had gone, he had left children, and they 
 hoped that we would be as friendly to his children as we 
 intended to have been to himself. 
 
 He was decidedly the best specimen of a native chief I 
 ever met. I never felt so much grieved by the loss of a 
 black man before ; and it was impossible not to follow him 
 in thought into the world of which he had just heard be 
 fore he was called away, and to realize somewhat of the 
 feelings of those who pray for the dead. The deep, dark 
 question of what is to become of such as he must, how- 
 ever, be left where we find it, believing that, assuredly, 
 the " Judge of all the earth will do right." 
 
 At Sebituane's death the chieftainship devolved, as hoT 
 father intended, on a daughter named Ma-mochisane. He 
 had promised to show us his country and to select a suitable 
 locality for our residence. We had now to look to the 
 daughter, who was living twelve days to the north, at 
 Naliele We were obliged, therefore, to remain until a 
 message came from her j and, when it did, she gave ua 
 perfect liberty to visit any part of the country we chose. 
 Mr. Oswell and I then proceeded one hundred and thirty 
 miles to the northeast, to Sesheke ; and in the end of June, 
 1851, we were rewarded by the discovery of the Zambesi, in 
 the centre of the continent. This was a most important 
 point, for that river was not previously known to exist 
 
DISCOVSSY OF THE ZAMBESI. 53 
 
 toere at a!l. The Portuguese maps all represent it a* 
 rising fai to the east of where we now were j and, if evei 
 any thing like a chain of trading-stations had existed 
 across the country between the latitudes 12° and 18° south, 
 this magnificent portion of the river must have been 
 known before. We saw it at the end of the dry season, at 
 the time when the river is about at its lowest; and yet 
 there was a breadth of from three hundred to six hundred 
 yards of deep, flowing water. Mr. Oswell said he had 
 never seen such a fine river even in India. At the period 
 of its annual inundation it rises fully twenty feet in per- 
 pendicular height, and floods fifteen or twenty miles, of 
 lands adjacent to its banks. 
 
 Occasionally the country between the Chobe and Zam- 
 besi is flooded, and there are large patches of swamps lying 
 near the Chobe or on its banks. The Makololo were living 
 among these swamps for the sake of the protection the 
 deep reedy rivers afforded them against their enemies. 
 
 Now, in reference to a suitable locality for a settlement 
 for myself, I could not conscientiously ask them to aban- 
 don their defences for my convenience alone. The healthj 
 districts were defenceless, and the safe localities were so 
 deleterious to human life that the original Basutos had 
 nearly all been cut off by the fever : I therefore feared te 
 ftubject my family to the scourge. 
 
 As there was no hope of the Boers allowing the peace 
 able instruction of the natives at Kolobeng, I at once re- 
 solved to save my family from exposure to this unhealthy 
 region by sending them to England, and to return alone, 
 with a view to exploring the country in search of a 
 healthy district that might prove a centre of civilization 
 and open up the interior by a path to either the east or 
 west coast. This resolution led me down to the Cape in 
 April, 1352, being the first time during eleven vears that 1 
 had visited the scenes of civilization. Our route to Cape 
 Town led us to pass through the centre ^f the colony 
 during the twentieth month of a Caffre wrr; and if thos« 
 
54 RETURN TO THE* CArE. 
 
 who periodically pay enormous » sums for these inglorious 
 affairs wish to know how our little unprotected party 
 could quietly travel through the heart of the colony to 
 the capital with as little sense or sign of danger as if w« 
 nad been in .England, they must engage a "Times Special 
 Correspondent" for the next outbreak to explain where 
 the money goes, and who have been benefited by the 
 blood and treasure expended. 
 
 Having placed my family on board a homeward-bound 
 ship, and promised to rejoin them in two years,, we parted, 
 for, as it subsequently proved, nearly five years. The 
 Directors of the London Missionary Society signified their 
 cordial* approval of my project, by leaving the matter 
 entirely to my own discretion ; and I have much pleasure 
 in acknowledging my obligations to the gentlemen com- 
 posing that body for always acting in an enlightened 
 spirit and with as much liberality as their constitution 
 would allow. 
 
 I have the like pleasure in confessing my thankfulness 
 to the Astronomer Eoyal at the Cape, Thomas Maclear, 
 Esq., for enabling me to recall the little astronomical 
 knowledge which constant manual labor and the engross- 
 ing nature of missionary duties had effaced from my 
 memory, and in adding much that I did. not know before. 
 The promise he made on parting, that he would examine 
 and correct all my observations, had more effect in making 
 me persevere in overcoming the difficulties of an unassisted 
 solitary observer than any thing else; so, whatever credit 
 may be attached to the geographical positions laid down 
 • n my route must be attributed to the voluntary aid of 
 the excellent and laborious astronomer of the Cape Obser- 
 vatory. 
 
 Eaving given the reader as rapid a sketch as possible 
 events which attracted notice between 1840 and 1852, I 
 
 >w proceed to narrate the incidents of the last and 
 
 ngest journey of all, performed in 1852-56 
 
THE LAST AND LONGEST JOURNEY. 5&. 
 
 CHAPTER Y. 
 
 DSL. LIVINGSTONE STARTS IN JUNE, 1852, ON THE LAST AND 
 LONGEST JOURNEY FROM CAPE TOWN. 
 
 .Having sent my family home to England, I started in 
 the beginning of June, 1852, on my last journey from 
 Cape Town. This journey extencled from the southern 
 extremity of the continent to St. Paul de Loando, the 
 capital of Angola, on the west coast, and thcnco across 
 South Central Africa in an oblique direction to Kilimane 
 (Quilimane) in Eastern Africa. I proceeded in the usual 
 conveyance of the country, the heavy lumbering Cape 
 wagon drawn by ten oxen, and was accompanied by two 
 Christian Bechuanas from Kuruman, — than whom I never 
 saw better servants anywhere, — by two Bakwain men, 
 and two young girls, who, having come as nurses with our 
 children to the Cape, were returning to their home at 
 Kolobeng. Wagon-travelling in Africa has been so often 
 described that I need say no more than that it is a prolonged 
 system of picnicking, excellent for the health, and agree- 
 able to those who are not over-fastidious about trifles, 
 and who delight in being in the open air. 
 
 Our route to the north lay near the centre of the cone- 
 shaped mass of land which constitutes the promontory of 
 the Cape. 
 
 The slow pace at which we wound our way through the 
 colony made almost any subject interesting. The attention 
 is attracted to the names of different places, because they 
 indicate the former existence of buffaloes, elands, and ele- 
 phants, which are now to be found only hundreds of miles 
 beyond. A few blesbucks, (Antilope pygarga,) gnus, blue- 
 bucks, {A. cerulea,) stcinbucks, and the ostrich, (Struthio 
 camelus,) continue, like the Bushmen, to maintain a pre- 
 carious existence when all the rest are <'ono. The eie- 
 
56 ANIMALS OF THE DESERT. 
 
 phaat, the most sagacious, flees the sound of fire-arms 
 first; the gnu and ostrich, the most wary and the most 
 stupid, last. The first emigrants found the Hottentots in 
 possession of prodigious herds of fine cattle, but no horses, 
 asses, or camels. The original cattle, which may still be 
 seen in some parts of the frontier, must have been brought 
 south from the north-northeast, for from this point the 
 natives universally ascribe their original migration. They 
 brought cattle, sheep, goats, and dogs : why not the horse, 
 the delight of savage hordes ? Horses thrive well in the 
 Cape Colony when imported. Naturalists point out cer- 
 tain mountain-ranges as limiting the habitat of certain 
 classes of animals ; but there is no Cordillera in Africa to 
 answer that purpose, there being no visible barrier between 
 the northeastern Arabs and the Hottentot tribes to prevent 
 the different hordes, as they felt their way southward, 
 from indulging their taste for the possession of this noble 
 animal. 
 
 I am here led to notice an invisible barrier, more insur- 
 mountable than mountain-ranges, but which is not opposed 
 to the southern progress of cattle, goats, and sheep. The 
 tsetse would prove a barrier only until its well-defined 
 habitat was known; but the disease passing under the 
 term of horse-sickness {peripneumonia) exists in such viru- 
 lence over nearly seven degrees of latitude that no precau- 
 tion would be sufficient to save these animals. The horse 
 is so liable to this disease, that only by great care in stabling 
 can he be kept anywhere between 20° and 27° S. during 
 the time between December and April. The winter, begin- 
 ning in the latter month, is the only period in which Eng- 
 lishmen can hunt on horseback, and they are in danger of 
 losing all their studs some months before December. To 
 this disease the horse is especially exposed, and it is almost 
 always fatal. One attack, however, seems to secure im- 
 munity from a second. Cattle, too, are subject to it, but 
 only at intervals of a few, sometimes many, years ; but it 
 never xaakes a clean sweep of the whole cattle of a village, 
 
HORSE-SICKNESS- 
 
 i 
 
 as it would do of a troop of fifty horses. This barrier, 
 then, seems to explain the absence of the horse among tho 
 Hottentots, though it is not opposed to the southern migra- 
 tion of cattle, sheep, and goats. 
 
 When the flesh of animals that have died of this disease 
 is eaten, it causes a malignant carbuncle, which, when it 
 appears over any important organ, proves rapidly fatal. 
 It is more especially dangerous over the pit of the stomach. 
 The effects of the poison have been experienced by mis- 
 sionaries who had eaten properly-cooked food, — the flesh 
 of sheep really but not visibly affected by the disease. 
 The virus in the flesh of the animal is destroyed neither by 
 boiling nor roasting. This fact, of which we have had innu- 
 merable examples, shows the superiority of experiments on 
 a large scale to those of acute and able physiologists and 
 chemists in the laboratory ; for a well-known physician of 
 Paris, after careful investigation, considered that tho virus 
 in such cases was completely neutralized by boiling. 
 
 This disease attacks wild animals too. During our re- 
 sidence at Chonuan, great numbers of tolos, or koodoos, 
 were attracted to the gardens of the Bakwains, abandoned 
 at the usual period of harvest because there was no pros- 
 pect of the corn (Holcus sorghum) bearing that year. The 
 koodoo is remarkably fond of the green stalks of this kind 
 of millet. Free feeding produced that state of fatness favor- 
 able for the development of this disease, and no fewer than 
 twenty-five died on the hill opposite our house. Great 
 numbers of gnus and zebras perished from the same cause; 
 but tho mortality produced no sensible diminution in the 
 numbers of the game, any more than the deaths of many 
 of the Bakwains who persisted, in spite of every remon- 
 strance, in eating the dead meat, caused any sensible de- 
 crease in tho strength of the tribe. 
 
 Before we came to the Orange River, we saw the last 
 portion of a migration of springbucks, (Gazella euchore, or 
 tsepe.) They came from the great Kalahari Desert, and, 
 when first seen after crossing the colonial boundary, are 
 
58 THE GRIQUAS. 
 
 said often to exceed forty thousand in number. I cannot 
 give an estimate of their numbers, for they appear spread 
 over a vast expanse of country, and make a quivering 
 motion as they feed, and move, and toss their graceful 
 horns. They feed chiefly on grass; and, as they come 
 from the north about the time when the grass most 
 abounds, it cannot be want of food that prompts tno 
 movement. Nor is it want of water; for this antelope is 
 one of the most abstemious in that respect. Their nature 
 prompts them to seek as their favorite haunts level plains 
 •with short grass, where they may be able to watch the 
 approach of an enemy, "^he Bakalahari take advantage 
 of this feeling, and burn off large patches of grass, not only 
 to attract the game by the new crop when it comes np, but 
 also to form bare spots for the springbuck to range over. 
 
 On crossing the Orange Biver we come into inde- 
 pendent territory inhabited by Griquas and Bechuanas. 
 % By Griquas is meant any mixed race sprung from natives 
 and Europeans. Those in question were of Dutch extrac- 
 tion through association with Hottentot and Bush women. 
 Half-castes of the first generation consider themselves 
 superior to those of the second, and all possess in some 
 degree the characteristics of both parents. They were 
 governed for many years by an elected chief, named 
 Wa'terboer, who, by treaty, received a small sum per 
 annum from the colonial government for the support of 
 schools in his country, and proved a most efficient guard 
 of our northwest boundary. 
 
 Many hundreds of both Griquas and Bechuanas have 
 become Christians and partially civilized through the 
 teaching of English missionaries. My first impressions of 
 the progress made were that the accounts of the effects of 
 the gospel among them had been too highly colored. 1 
 expected a higher degree of Christian simplicity and purity 
 than exists either among them or among ourselves. I was 
 not anxious few a deeper insight in detecting shams than 
 others; but 1 expected character, such as we imagine th# 
 
DRESS OF THE NATIVES. f)^ 
 
 p«imitive disciples had, — and was disappointed. When, 
 however, I passed on to the true heathen in the countries 
 beyond the sphere of missionary influence, and could com- 
 pare the people there with the Christian natives, I came to 
 the conclusion that, if the question were examined in the 
 mpst rigidly severe or scientific way, the change effected 
 by the missionary movement would be considered unques- 
 tionably great. 
 
 We cannot fairly compare these poor people with our- 
 selves, who have an atmosphere of Christianity and en 
 lightened public opinion, the growth of centuries, around 
 us, to influence our deportment ; but let any one from the 
 natural and proper point of view behold the public mo- 
 rality of Griqua Town, Kurunian, Likatlong, and othor 
 villages, and remember what even London was a century 
 ago, and he must confess that the Christian mode of treat- 
 ing aborigines is incomparably the best. 
 
 The Griquas and Bechuanas were in former times clad < 
 much like the Caffres, if such a word may be used where 
 there is scarcely any clothing at all. A bunch of leather 
 strings about eighteen inches long hung from the lady's 
 waist in front, and a prepared skin of a sheep or antelope 
 covered the shoulders, leaving the breast and abdomen 
 bare : the men wore a patch of skin, about the size of the 
 crown of one's hat, which barely served for the purposes 
 of decency, and a mantle exactly like that of the women. 
 To assist in protecting the pores of the skin from the in- 
 fluence of the sun by day and of the cold by night, all 
 smeared themselves with a mixture of fat and ochre; the 
 head is anointed with pounded blue mica schist mixed with 
 fat ; and the fine particles of shining mica, falling on the 
 body and on strings of beads and brass rings, were con- 
 sidered as highly ornamental, and fit for the most fasti- 
 dious dandy. Now these same people come to church in 
 decent though poor clothing, and behave with a decorum 
 certainly superior to what seems to have been the case in 
 the time of Mr. Samuel Pepys in L< ndon Sunday is welJ 
 
60 ARTICLES OF CC MMERCfi. 
 
 observed, and, even in localities where" no missionary lives, 
 religious meetings are regularly held, and children and 
 adults taught to read by the more advanced of their own 
 fellow-countrymen; and no one is allowed to make a pro- 
 fession of faith by baptism unless he knows how to read 
 and understands the nature of the Christian religion 
 
 The Bechuana Mission has been so far successful that, 
 when coming from the interior, we always felt, on reaching 
 Kuruman, that we had returned to civilized life. But I 
 would not give any one to understand by this that they 
 are model Christians, — we cannot claim to be model Chris- 
 tians ourselves, — or even in any degree superior to the 
 members of our country churches. They are more stingy 
 and greedy than the poor at home ; but in many respects 
 the two are exactly alike. On asking an intelligent chief 
 what he thought of them, he replied, "You white men 
 have no idea of how wicked we are; we know each other 
 # better than you : some feign belief to ingratiate themselves 
 with the missionaries ; some profess Christianity because 
 they like the new system, which gives so much more 
 importance to the poor, and desire that the old system 
 may pass away; and the rest — a pretty large number — 
 profess because they are really true believers." Thif 
 testimony may be considered as very nearly correct. 
 
 There is not much prospect of this country ever pro 
 ducing much of the materials of commerce except wool 
 At present the chief articles of trade are karosses or man- 
 tles, — the skins of which they are composed come from tho 
 Desert; next to them, ivory, the quantity of which cannot 
 now be great, inasmuch as the means of shooting elephants 
 is sedulously debarred entrance into the country. A few 
 skins and horns, and some cattle, make up the remainder 
 of the exports. English goods, sugar, tea, and coffee are 
 the articles received in exchange. All the natives of these 
 parts soon become remarkably fond of coffee. The acme 
 of respectability among the Bechuanas is the possession of 
 cattle and a wagon. It is remarkable that, though theso 
 
KURUMAN: ITS FOUNTAIN. (J] 
 
 latter require frequent repairs, none of the Bochuanas htiv\ 
 ever learned to mend them. Forges and tools have boen 
 at their service, and teachers willing to aid them, but, 
 beyond putting together a camp-stool, no effort has ever 
 been made to acquire a knowledge of the trades. They 
 observe most carefully a missionary at work until they 
 understand whether a tire is well welded or not, and then 
 pronounce upon its merits with great emphasis; but there 
 their ambition rests satisfied. It is the same peculiarity 
 among ourselves which leads us in other matters, such as 
 book-making, to attain the excellence of fault-finding 
 without the wit to indite a page. It was in vain I tried 
 to indoctrinate the Eechuanas with the idea that criticise 
 did not imply any superiority over the workman, or *v*m 
 equality with him. 
 
 CHAPTEE VL 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE VISITS HIS FATHER-IN-LAW, MR. MOFFAT, 
 
 AT KURUMAN. 
 
 The permanence of the station called Kuruman depends 
 entirely on the fine ever-flowing fountain of that name. 
 It comes from beneath the trap-rock, and, as it usually 
 issues at a temperature of 72° Fahr., it probably cornea 
 from the old Silurian schists which formed the bottom of 
 the great primeval valley of the continent. I could not 
 detect any diminution in the flow of this gushing fountain 
 during my residence in the country; but when Mr. Moffat 
 first attempted a settlement here, thirty-five years ago, he 
 made a dam six or seven miles below the present one, and 
 led out the stream for irrigation, where not a drop of the 
 fountain-water ever now flows. Other parts, fourteen miles 
 below the Kuruman gardens, are pointed out as having 
 
(52 ATTEMPTS TO OBTAIN WATER. 
 
 contained, within tho memory of people now living, 
 hippopotami, and pools sufficient to drown both men and 
 cattle. This failure of water must be chiefly ascribed to 
 the general desiccation of the country, but partly also to 
 the amount of irrigation carried on along both banks of 
 the stream at the mission-station. This latter circum- 
 stance would have more weight were it not coincident 
 with the failure of fountains over a wide extent of 
 country 
 
 Without ct present entering minutely into this feature 
 of the climate, It may be remarked that the Kuruman dis- 
 trict presents evidence of this dry southern region having 
 at no very distant date, been as well watered as the country 
 north of Lake Ngami is now. Ancient river-beds and 
 water-courses abound, and the very eyes of fountains long 
 since dried up may be seen, in which the flow of centuries 
 has worn these orifices from a slit to an oval form, having 
 on their sides the tufa so abundantly deposited from these 
 primitive waters; and just where tMe splashings, made 
 when the stream fell on the rock below, may be supposed 
 to have reached and evaporated, the same phenomenon 
 appears. Many of these failing fountains no longer flow, 
 because the brink over which they ran is now too high, or 
 because the elevation of the western side of the country 
 lils the land away from the water-supply below ; but let a 
 cutting be made from a lower level than the brink, and 
 through it to a part below the surface of the water, and 
 wster flows perennially. Several of these ancient fountains 
 h?ve been resuscitated by the Bechuanas near Kuruman, 
 who occasionally show their feelings of self-esteem by 
 laboring for months at deep cuttings, which, having once 
 begun, they feel bound in honor to persevere in, though 
 told by a missionary that they can never force water to run 
 up hill. 
 
 During the period of my visit at Kuruman, Mr. Moffat, 
 who has been a missionary in Africa during upward of forty 
 y?ars, and is well known by his interesting work, "Scenes 
 
THE BECUUANA LANGUAGE. 63 
 
 trvl Labors in South Africa/' was busily engaged in carry- 
 \rg through the press, with which his station is furnished, 
 Ito Bible in tho language of the Bechuanas, which is called 
 Sitnuana. This has been a work of immense labor; and 
 as Lo was the first to reduce their speech to a written form, 
 and has had his attention directed to the study for at least 
 thirty years, he may be supposed to be better adapted for 
 the task than any man living. Some idea of the copious- 
 ness of the language may be formed from the fact that 
 even he never spends a week at his work without discover- 
 ing new words; the phenomenon, therefore, of any man 
 who, after a few months' or years' study of a native tongue, 
 cackles forth a torrent of vocables, may well be wondered 
 at, if it is meant to convey instruction. In my own case, 
 though I have had as much intercourse with the purest 
 :diom as most Englishmen, and have studied the language 
 carefully, yet I can never utter an important statement 
 without doing so very slowly, and repeating it too, lest the 
 foreign accent, which is distinctly perceptible in all Euro- 
 peans, should render the sense unintelligible. In this I 
 follow the example of the Bechuana orators, who, on im- 
 portant matters, always speak slowly, deliberately, and 
 with reiteration. The* capabilities of this language may 
 be inferred from the fact that the Pentateuch is fully ex- 
 pressed in Mr. Moffat's translation in fewer words than in 
 the Greek Septuagint, and in a very considerably smaller 
 Dumber than in our own English version. The language 
 is, however, so simple in its construction, that its copious- 
 ness by no means requires the explanation that the people 
 kjve fallen from a former state of civilization and culture. 
 The fact of the complete translation of the Bible at a 
 Station seven hundred miles inland from the Cape naturally 
 suggests the question whether it is likely to be permanently 
 useful, and whether Christianity, as planted by modern 
 missions, is likely to retain its vitality without constant 
 supplies of foreign teaching. It would certainly be no 
 causo for congratulation if the Bechuana • Bible seemed at 
 
64 TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE. 
 
 all likely to meet the late of Elliot's Choctaw version, & 
 epocimen of which may be seen in the library of one of tin 
 American colleges, — as God's word in a language which m 
 living tongue can articulate, nor living mortal understand* 
 but a better destiny seems in store for this, for the Sichuana 
 language has been introduced into the new country beyond 
 Lake Ngami. There it is the court language, and will take 
 a stranger anywhere through a district larger than France. 
 The Bechuanas, moreover, in all probability possess that 
 imperishability which forms so remarkable a feature in the 
 entire African race. 
 
 Protestant missionaries of every denomination in South 
 Africa all agree in one point, that no mere profession of 
 Christianity is sufficient to entitle the converts to the 
 Christian name. They are all anxious to place the Bible 
 in the hands of the natives, and, with ability to read that, 
 there can be little doubt as to the future. We believe 
 Christianity to be divine, and equal to all it has to perform ; 
 then let the good seed be widely sown, and, no matter to 
 what sect the converts may belong, the harvest will be 
 glorious. Let nothing that I have said be interpreted as 
 indicative of feelings inimical to any body of Christians, 
 for I never, as a missionary, felt myself to be either Pres- 
 byterian, Episcopalian, or Independent, or called upon in 
 any way to love one denomination less than another. My 
 earnest desire is, that those who really have the best in- 
 terests of the heathen at heart should go to them ; and 
 assuredly, in Africa at least, self-denying labors among real 
 heathen will not fail to be appreciated. Christians have 
 never yet dealt fairly by the heathen and been disappointed. 
 
 When Sechele understood that we could no longer remain 
 with him at Kolobeng, he sent his children to Mr. Moffat, 
 at Kuruman, for instruction in all the knowledge of the 
 white men. Mr Moffat very liberally received at once an 
 accession of five to his family, with their attendants. 
 
 Having been detained at Kuruman about a fortnight by 
 the breaking of a wagon-wheel, I was thus providentially 
 
sechele's letter. 65 
 
 prevented from being present at the attack of the Boers 
 on the Bakwains, news of which was brought, about the 
 end of that time, by Masebcle, the wife of Sechelo. She 
 had herself been hidden in a cleft of a rock, over wiiich a 
 number of Boers were firing. Her infant began to cry, 
 and, terrified lest tnis snould attract the attention of the 
 men, the muzzles of whose guns appeared at every discharge 
 over her head, she took off her armlets as playthings to quiet 
 the child. She brought Mr. Moffat a letter, which tells its 
 own tale. Nearly literally translated it was as follows : — 
 
 " Friend of my heart's love, and of all the confidence of 
 my heart, I am Sechele. I am undone by the Boers, who 
 attacked me, though I had no guilt with them. They de- 
 manded that I should be in their kingdom, and I refused. 
 They demanded that I should prevent the English and 
 Griquas from passing (northward). 1 replied, These are 
 my friends, and I can prevent no one (of them). They 
 came on Saturday, and I besought them not to fight on 
 Sunday, and they assented. They began on Monday 
 morning at twilight, and fired with all their might, and 
 burned the town with fire, and scattered us. They killed 
 sixty of my people, and captured women, and children, 
 and men. And the mother of Baleriling (a former wife of 
 Sechele) they also took prisoner. They took all the cattle 
 and all the goods of the Bakwains; and the house of Living- 
 stone they plundered, taking away all his goods. The 
 number of wagons they had was eighty-five, and a cannon; 
 and after they had stolen my own wagon and that of 
 Macabe, then the number of their wagons (counting the 
 cannon as one) was eighty-eight. All the goods of the 
 hunters (certain English gentlemen hunting and exploring 
 in the north) were burned in the town; and of the Boers 
 were killed twenty-eight. Yes, my beloved friend, now 
 my wife goes to see the children, and Kobus Hae will con* 
 vey her to you. "I am Sechele, 
 
 "The son of Mochoasele." 
 
(>6 A PANIC. 
 
 This statement is Li exact accordance with the account 
 given by the native teacher Mebalwe, and also that sent 
 by some of the Boers themselves to the' public colonial 
 papers. The crime of cattle-stealing, of which we hear so 
 much near Caffreland, was never alleged against these 
 people; and, if a single case had occurred when I was in 
 the country, I must have heard of it, and would at once 
 eay so. But the only crime imputed in the papers was 
 that "Sechele was getting too saucy." The demand made 
 for his subjection and service in preventing the English 
 traders passing to the north was kept out of view. 
 
 Yery soon after Pretorius had sent the marauding-party 
 against Kolobeng, he was called away to the tribunal of 
 infinite justice. His policy is justified by the Boers gene- 
 rally from the instructions given to the Jewish warriors 
 in Deuteronomy xx. 10-14. Hence, when he . died, the 
 obituary notice ended with "Blessed are the dead who die 
 in the Lord." I wish he had not " forbidden us to preach 
 anto the Gentiles that they may be saved." 
 
 The report of this outrage- on the Bakwains, coupled 
 with denunciations against myself for having, as it was 
 alleged, taught them to kill Boers, produced such a panic 
 in the country that I could not engage a single servant to 
 accompany me to the north.' I have already alluded to 
 their mode of warfare, and in all previous Boerish forays 
 the killing had all been on one side; now, however, that a 
 tribe where an Englishman had lived had begun to shed 
 their blood as well, it was considered the strongest pre- 
 sumptive evidence against me. Loud vows of vengeance 
 were uttered against my head, and threats of instant pur- 
 suit by a large party on horseback, should I dare to go into 
 or beyond their country; and as these were coupled with 
 the declaration that the English Government had given 
 over the whole of the native tribes to their rule, and would 
 issist in their entire subjection by preventing fire-arms 
 and ammunition from entering the country except for the 
 use of the Boers, it was not to be wondered at that I waa 
 
sechele's intended journey. 67 
 
 detained for months at Kuruman from sheer inability to get 
 wagon-drivers. The English name, from being honored 
 and respected all over the country, had become somewhat 
 more than suspected; and as the policy of depriving tho9© 
 friendly tribes of the means of defence was represented 
 by the Boers as proof positive of the wish of the English 
 that they should be subjugated, the conduct of a govern, 
 ment which these tribes always thought the paragon 
 of justice and friendship was rendered totally incompre- 
 hensible to them; they could neither defend themselves 
 against their enemies, nor shoot the* animals in the pro- 
 duce of which we wished them to trade. 
 
 At last I found three servants willing to risk a journey 
 to the north; and a man of color named George Fleming, 
 who had generously been assisted by Mr. H. E. Eutherford, 
 a mercantile gentleman of Cape Town, to endeavor to 
 establish a trade with the Makololo, had also managed to 
 get a similar number; we accordingly left Kuruman on the 
 20th of November, and proceeded on our journey. Our 
 servants were the worst possible specimens of those who 
 imbibe the vices without the virtues of Europeans; but we 
 had no choice, and were glad to get away on any terms. 
 
 When we reached Motito, forty miles off, we met Sechole 
 on his way, as he said, "to the Queen of England." Two 
 of his own children, and their mother, a former wife, were 
 among the captives seized by the Boers; and, being strongly 
 imbued with the then very prevalent notion of England's 
 justice and generosity, he thought .that in consequence of 
 the violated treaty he had a fair case to lay before her 
 majesty. He employed all his eloquence and powers of 
 persuasion to induce me to accompany him, but I excused 
 myself on the ground that my arrangements were already 
 made for exploring the north. On explaining the diffi. 
 culties of the way, and endeavoring to dissuade him from 
 the attempt, on account of the knowledge I possessed of 
 the governor's policy, he put the pointed question, "Will 
 the queen not listen to me, supposing 1 should reach her V 
 
68 HIS RETORF. 
 
 £ replied, "I believe she would listen, but the difficulty is 
 to get to her." "Well, I shall reach her," expressed his 
 final determination. Others explained the difficulties more 
 fully, but nothing could shake his resolution. When he 
 reached Bloemfontein he found the English army just re- 
 turning from a battle with the Basutos, in which bctla 
 parties claimed the victory, and both were glad that a 
 second engagement was not tried. Our officers invited 
 Sechele to dine with them, heard his story, and collected 
 a handsome sum of money to enable him to pursue his 
 journey to England/ The commander refrained from no- 
 ticing him, as a single word in favor of the restoration of 
 the children of Sechele would have been a virtual confes- 
 sion of the failure of his own policy at the very outset. 
 Sechele proceeded as far as the Cape ; but, his resources 
 being there expended, he was obliged to return to his own 
 country, one thousand miles distant, without accomplishing 
 the object of his journey. 
 
 On his return he adopted a mode of punishment which 
 he had seen in the colony, namely, making criminals work 
 on the public roads. And he has since, I am informed, 
 made himself the missionary to his own people. He is tall, 
 rather corpulent, and has more of the negro feature than 
 common, but has large eyes. He is very dark, and his peo- 
 ple swear by " Black Sechele." He has great intelligence, 
 reads well, and is a fluent speaker. Great numbers of the 
 tribes formerly living under the Boers have taken refuge 
 under his sway, and he is now greater in power than he 
 was before the attack on Kolobeng. 
 
 Having parted with Sechele, we skirted along the Kala- 
 hari Desert, and sometimes within its borders, giving the 
 Boers a wide berth. A larger fall of rain than usual had 
 occurred in 1852, and that was the completion of a cycle 
 of eleven or twelve years, at which the same phenomenon 
 is reported to have happened on three occasions. An un- 
 usually large crop of melons had appeared in consequence 
 We had the pleasure of meeting with Mr. J. Macabe return- 
 
SACRED CAVE. 69 
 
 ^^ from Lake Ngami, which ho had succeeded in reaching 
 by going right across the Desert from a point a little to the 
 south of Kolobeng. The accounts of the abundance of 
 water-melons were amply confirmed by t]|is energetic 
 traveller; for, having these in vast quantities, his cattle sub- 
 sisted on the fluid contained in them for a period of no lesa 
 than twenty-one days; and when at last they reached a 
 supply of water they did not seem to care much about it. 
 Coming to the lake from the southeast, he crossed the 
 Teoughe, and went round the northern part of it, and is 
 the only European traveller who had actuitlly se«jn it all. 
 His estimate of the extent of the lake is higher than that 
 given by Mr. Oswell and myself, or from about ninety to 
 one hundred miles in circumference. 
 
 On the 31st of December, 1852, we reached the town of 
 Sechele, called, from the part of the range on which it is 
 situated, Litubaruba. Near the village there exists a cave 
 named Lepelole; it is an interesting evidence of the former 
 existence of a gushing fountain. No one dared to enter the 
 Lohaheng, or cave, for it was the common belief that it was 
 the habitation of the Deity. As we never har" a holiday 
 from Jair uy to December, and our Sunday? were the pe- 
 riods oi our greatest exertions in teaching, I projected an 
 excursion into the cave on a weekday to see the god of the 
 Bakwair.s. The old men said that every one who went in 
 remained there forever, adding, " If the teacher is so mad 
 as to kill himself, let him do so alone : we shall not bo to 
 blame." The declaration of Sechele, that he would follow 
 where 1 led, produced the greatest consternation. It is 
 curious that in all their pretended dreams or visions of their 
 god he has always a crooked leg, like the Egyptian Thau. 
 Supposing that those who were reported to have perished 
 in this cave had fallen over some precipice, we went well 
 provided wijth lights, ladder, lines, &c. ; but it turned out to 
 be only an open cave, with an entrance about ten feet square, 
 which contracts into two water-worn branches, ending in 
 round orifices through which the water once flowed. The 
 
70 RETALIATION ON BOERS. 
 
 only Inhabitants it seems ever to have had wer.e babooksT 
 I left at the end of the upper branch one of Father Mathew's 
 leaden teetotal tickets. 
 
 I never saw the Bakwains looking so haggard and lean 
 as at this time. Most of their cattle had been swept away 
 by the Boers, together with about eighty fine draught-oxen; 
 and much provision left with them by two officers, Cap- 
 tains Codrington and Webb, to serve for their return jour- 
 ney south, had been carried off also. On their return these 
 officers found the skeletons of the Bakwains where they 
 expected to fmd their 'own goods. All the corn, clothing, 
 and furniture of the people, too, had been consumed in the 
 flames which the Boers had forced the subject tribes to 
 apply to the town during the fight, so that its inhabitants 
 were now literally starving. 
 
 Sechele had given orders to his people not to commit any 
 act of revenge pending his visit to the Queen of England ; 
 but some of the young men ventured to go to meet a party 
 of Boers returning from hunting, and, as the Boers became 
 terrified and ran off, they brought their wagons to Lituba- 
 ruba. Thin seems to have given the main b~nly of Boers 
 an idea that the Bakwains meant to begin a gu ^rilla war 
 upon them. This "Caffre war" was, however, only in 
 embryo, and not near that stage of development in which 
 the natives have found out that the hide-and-seek tystem is 
 the most successful. 
 
 The Boers, in alarm, sent four of their number to ask for 
 peace ! I, being present, heard the condition : — " Sechele's 
 children must be restored to him." I never saw men so 
 completely and unconsciously in a trap as these four Boers 
 were. Strong parties of armed Bakwains occupied every 
 pass in the hills and gorges around; and had they not pro- 
 mised much more than they intended, or did perform, that 
 day would have been their iast. The commandant Schola 
 had appropriated the children of Sechele to be his own 
 domestic slaves. I was present when one little boy, Khari^ 
 son of Sechele, was returned to his mother; the child had 
 
 
LOVE OP CHILDREN. 71 
 
 been allowed to roll into the fire, and there were three large 
 unbound open sores upon different parts of his body. His 
 mothor and the women received him with a flood of silont 
 tears. 
 
 Slavery is said to bo mild and tender-hearted in some 
 plaess. The Boers assert that they are the best of masters, 
 and that, if the English had possessed the Hottentot slaves, 
 they would have received much worse treatment than they 
 did : what that would have been it is difficult to imagine. 
 I took down the names of some scores of boys and girls, 
 many of whom I knew as our scholars; but I could not 
 comfort the weeping mothers by any hope of their ever 
 returning from slavery. 
 
 The Bechuanas are universally much attached to children. 
 A little child toddling near a party of men while they are 
 eating is sure to get a handful of the food. This love of 
 children may arise in a great measure from the patriarchal 
 system under which they dwell. Every little stranger 
 forms an increase of property to the whole community, 
 and is duly reported to the chief, — boys being more wel- 
 come than girls. The parents take the name of the child, 
 anr> often address their children as Ma, (mother,) or Ea, 
 (fat, -n\) Our eldest boy being named Eobert, Mrs. Living- 
 stone <ras, after his birth, always addressed as Ma-EcboH 
 instead of Mary, her Christian name. 
 
 CHAPTEE VII. 
 
 LIVINGSTONE LEAVES THE COUNTRY OF THE BAKWAWS. 
 
 Having remained five days with the wretched Bakwaica 
 ■ocing'the effects of war, of which only a very inadequacy 
 idea can ever be formed by those who have not been eye- 
 witnesses of its miseries, we prepared to depart on the 
 15th of January, 1853. Several dogs, in better condition 
 by far than any of the people, had taken up their rcsidenow 
 
 7 
 
72 DEPARTURE FROM BAKWAIN COUNTRY 
 
 at the water. No one would own them ; there they hac 
 
 remained, and, coming on the trail of the people, long after 
 
 their departure from the scene of conflict, it was plain 
 
 they had 
 
 14 Held o'er the dead their carnival." 
 
 Hence the disgust with which they were viewed. 
 
 On our way from Khopong, along the ancient river-bed 
 which forms the pathway to Boatlanama, I found a species 
 of cactus, being the third I had seen in the country, namely, 
 one in the colony with a bright red flower, one at Lake 
 Ngami, the flower of which was liver-colored, and the 
 present one, flower unknown. That the plant is uncommon 
 may be inferred from the fact that tLe Bakwains find so 
 much difficulty in recognising the plant again after having 
 once seen it, that they believe it has the power of changing 
 its locality. 
 
 On the 21st of January we reached the wells of Boat- 
 lanama, and found them for the first time empty. Lopepe, 
 which I had formerly seen a stream running from a large 
 reedy pool, was also dry. The hot salt spring of Serinane, 
 east of Lopepe, being undrinkable, we pushed on to Mashue 
 foi its delicious waters. In travelling through this country, 
 the olfactory nerves are frequently excited by a stronp dis- 
 agreeable odor. This is caused by a large jet-bla ^ ant 
 named "Leshonya." It is nearly an inch in lengtn, and 
 emits a pungent smell when alarmed, in the same manner 
 as the skunk. The scent must be as volatile as ether, for, 
 on irritating the insect with a stick six feet long, the odor is 
 instantly perceptible. 
 
 That the fear of man often remains excessively strong in 
 the carnivora is proved from well-authenticated cases in 
 which the lioness, in the vicinity of towns where the largo 
 game had been unexpectedly driven away by fire-arms, 
 has been known to assuage the paroxysms of hunger by 
 devouring her own young. It must be added that, though 
 the effluvium which is left by the footsteps of man is in 
 general sufficient to induce lions to avoid a village, there 
 
THE LION. 73 
 
 are exceptions: so many came about oar half-deserted 
 houses at Chonuane while we were in the act of removing 
 to Kolobeng, that the natives who remained with Mrs* 
 Livingstone were terrified to stir out of doors in the even- 
 ing. Bitches, also, have been known to be guilty of the 
 horridly unnatural act of eating their own young, probably 
 from the great desire for animal food, which is experienced 
 by the inhabitants as well. 
 
 When a lion is met in the daytime, a circumstance by nc 
 means unfrequent to travellers in these parts, if precon- 
 ceived notions do not lead them to expect something very 
 "noble" or "majestic," they will see merely an animal 
 somewhat larger than the biggest dog they ever saw, and 
 partaking very strongly of the canine features : the face is 
 not much like the usual drawings of a lion, the nose being 
 prolonged like a dog's ; not exactly such as our painters 
 mak e it, — though they might learn better at the Zoological 
 Gardens, — their ideas of majesty being usually shown by 
 making their lions' faces like old women in nightcaps. 
 When encountered in the daytime, the lion stands a second 
 or two, gazing, then turns slowly round, and walks as 
 slowly away for a dozen paces, looking over his shoulder, 
 then begins to trot, and, when he thinks himself out of 
 sight, bounds off like a greyhound. By day there is not, 
 as a rule, the smallest danger of lions which are not 
 molested attacking man, nor even on a clear moonlight 
 night, except when they possess the breeding ffropyrj, (natural 
 affection :) this makes them brave almost any danger; and 
 if a man happens to cross to the windward of them, both 
 lion and lioness will rush at him, in the manner of a bitch 
 with whelps. This does not often happen, as I only became 
 aware of two or three instances of it. In one case a man, 
 passing where the wind blew from him to the animals, was 
 bitten before he could climb a tree; and occasionally a man 
 on horseback has been caught by the leg under the sama 
 circumstances. So general, however, is the sense of security 
 on moonlight nights, that we seldom tied up our oxen, but 
 
;4 HABITS OF THE LION. 
 
 let them lie loose by the wagons; while on a dark, rainy 
 night, if a lion is in the neighborhood, he is almost sure to 
 venture to kill an ox. His approach is always stealthy, 
 except when wounded; and any appearance of a trap ia 
 enough to cause him to refrain from making the last spring. 
 This seems characteristic of the feline species : when a 
 goat is picketed in India for the purpose of enabling the 
 huntsmen to shoot a tiger by night, if on a plain, he would 
 whip off the animal so quickly by a stroke of the paw that 
 no one could take aim; to obviate this, a small pit is dug, 
 and the goat is picketed to a stake in the bottom ; a small 
 stone is tied in the ear of the goat, which makes him- cry 
 the whole night. When the tiger sees the appearance of 
 a trap, he walks round and round the pit, and allows the 
 hunter, who is lying in wait, to have a fair shot. 
 
 When a lion is very hungry, and lying in wait, the sight 
 of an animal may make him commence stalking it. In one 
 case a man, while stealthily crawling toward a rhinoceros, 
 happened to glance behind him, and found to his horror a 
 lion stalking him; he only escaped by springing up a tree 
 like a cat. At Lopepe a lioness sprang on the after-quarter 
 of Mr. Os well's horse, and when we came up to him we 
 found the marks of the claws on the horse, and a scratch 
 on Mr. O.'s hand. The horse, on feeling the lion on him, 
 sprang away, and the rider, caught by a wait-a-bit thorn, 
 was brought to the ground arid rendered insensible. His 
 dogs saved him. Another English gentleman (Captain 
 Codrington) was surprised in tke same way, though not 
 hunting the lion at the time, but turning round he shot him 
 dead in tiie neck. By accident a horse belonging to Cod- 
 rington ran away, but was stopped by the bridle catching 
 a stump ; there he remained a prisoner two days, and when 
 found the whole space around was marked by the footprints 
 of lions. They had evidently been afraid to attack the 
 haltered horse, from fear that it was a trap. Two lions 
 came up by night to within three yards of oxen tied to a 
 wagon, and a sheep tied to a treo, and stood roaring, but 
 
HABITS OF THE LION. 7 
 
 .-. 
 
 afraid to make a spring. On another occasion, one of our 
 party was lying sound asleep and unconscious of danger 
 between two natives behind a bush at Mashiie ; the firo was 
 nearly out at their feet in consequence of all being com- 
 pletely tired out by the fatigues of the previous day : a lion 
 uame up to within three yards of the fire, and there com- 
 menced roaring instead of making a spring : the fact of 
 their riding-ox being tied to the bush was the only reason 
 the lion had for not following hi3 instinct and making a 
 meal of flesh. He then stood on a knoll three hundred 
 yards distant, and roared all night, and continued his 
 growling as the party moved off by daylight next morning. 
 Nothing that I eyer learned of the lion would lead me to 
 attribute to it either the ferocious or noble character ascribed 
 to it elsewhere. It possesses none of the nobility of the 
 Newfoundland or St. Bernard dogs. With respect to its 
 great strength there can be no doubt. The immense masses ■ 
 of muscle around its jaws, shoulders, and forearms pro- 
 claim tremendous force. They would seem, however, to 
 be inferior in power to those of the Indian tiger. Most of 
 those feats of strength that I have seen performed by lions, 
 such as the taking away of an ox, were not carrying, but 
 dragging or trailing the carcass along the ground : they 
 have sprung on some occasions on to the hind-quarters 01 
 a horse, but no one has ever seen them on the withers oi 
 a giraffe. They do not mount on the hind-quarters of an 
 ehtud even, but try to tear him down with their claws. 
 Messrs. Oswell and Vardon once saw three lions endeavor- 
 ing to drag down a buffalo, and they were unable to do so 
 for a time, though he was then mortally wounded by a 
 twe-ounce ball.* 
 
 * This singular encounter, in the words of an eye-witness, happened 
 M follows : — 
 
 "My South African Journal is now before me, and I have got hold of 
 the account of the lion and buffalo affair; here it is: — 'loth September, 
 1846. Oswell and 1 were riding this afternoon along tha banks of tbe 
 
 7* 
 
76 IIABITS OF THE LION. 
 
 In general the lion seizes the animal he is attacking by tL« 
 flank near the hind-leg, or by the throat below the jaw. It is 
 questionable whether he ever attempts to seize an animal by 
 the withers. The flank is the most common point of attack, 
 and that is the part he begins to feast on first. The native? 
 and lions are very similar in their tastes in the selection oi 
 titbits : an eland may be seen disembowelled by a lion so 
 completely that he scarcely seems cut up at all. The 
 bowels and fatty parts form a full meal for even the largest 
 lion. The jackal comes sniffing about, and sometimes 
 suffers for his temerity by a stroke from the lion's paw 
 
 Limpopo, when a waterbuck started in front of us. I dismounted, and 
 was following it through the jungle, when three buffaloes got up, ana 
 after going a little distance, stood still, and the nearest bull turned round 
 and looked at me. A ball from the two-ouncer crashed into his shoulder, 
 aud they all three made off. Oswell and I followed as soon as I had re- 
 loaded, and when we were in sight of the buffalo, and gaining on him at 
 every stride, three lions leaped on the unfortunate brute ; he bellowed 
 most lustily as he kept up a kind of running fight, but he was, of course, 
 Boon overpowered and pulled down. We had a fine view of the struggle, 
 and saw the lions on their hind-legs tearing away with teeth and claws 
 in most ferocious style. We crept up within thirty yards, and, kneeling 
 down, blazed away at the lions. My rifle was a single barrel, and I had 
 no spare gun. One lion fell dead almost on the buffalo ; he had merely 
 time to turn toward us, seize a bush with his teeth, and drop dead with 
 the stick in his jaws. The second made off immediately; and the third 
 raised his head, coolly looked round for a moment, then went on tearing 
 and biting at the carcass as hard as ever. We retired a short distance 
 to load, then again advanced and fired. The lion made off, but a ball 
 that he received ought to have stopped him, as it went clean through hii 
 shoulder-blade. He was followed up and killed, after having charged 
 several times. Both lions were males. It is not often that one bags a 
 brace of lions and a bull-buffalo in about ten minutes. It was an exciting 
 tdventure, and I shall never forget it.' 
 
 *• Such, my dear Livingstone, is the plain unvarnished account. The 
 buffalo had, of course, gone close to where the lions were lying down foi 
 the day ; and they, seeing him lame and bleeding, thought the opportu 
 aity too good a one to be lost Ever yours, 
 
 "Fbank Vardom. 
 
V 
 
II TS ROAR. 70 
 
 laying him dead. When gorged, the lion falls fast asleep, and 
 is then easily despatched. Hunting a lion with dogs involve* 
 very little danger compared with hunting the Indian tiger y 
 bocuuse the dogs bring him out of cover and make him stand 
 at bay, giving the hunter plenty of time for a good deliberate 
 shot. 
 
 Where game is abundant, there you may expect lions in 
 proportionately large numbers. They are never seen in 
 herds, but six or eight, probably one family, occasionally 
 hunt together. One is in much more danger of being run 
 over when walking in the streets of London than he is of 
 being devoured by lions in Africa, unless engaged in hunt- 
 ing the animal. Indeed, nothing that I have seen or heaid 
 about lions would constitute a barrier in the way of men of 
 ordinary courage and enterprise. 
 
 The same feeling which has induced the modern painter 
 to caricature the lion has led the sentimentalist to consider 
 the lion's roar the most terrific of all earthly sounds. We 
 hear of the "majestic roar of the king of beasts." It is, 
 indeed, well calculated to inspire fear if you hear it in 
 combination with the tremendously loud thunder of that 
 countiy, on a night so pitchy dark that every flash of the 
 intensely vivid lightning leaves you with the impression 
 of stone-blindness, while the rain pours down so fast that 
 your fire goes out, leaving you without the protection of 
 even a tree, or the chance of your gun going off. But 
 when you are in a comfortable house or wagon, the case is 
 very different, and you hear the roar of the lion without 
 any awe or alarm. The silly ostrich makes a noise as loud ; 
 yet he never was feared by man. To talk of the majestio 
 roar of the lion is mere majestic twaddle. On my men- 
 tioning this fact some years ago, the assertion was doubted, 
 iC I have beer careful ever since to inquire the opinions 
 of Europeans, who have heard both, if they could detect 
 any difference between the roar of a lion and that of an 
 ostrich; the invariable answer was, that they could not 
 when the animal was at any distance. The natives assert 
 
gO LIONS AND BJJFFALOES. 
 
 that they can detect a variation between the commence- 
 ment of the noise of each. There is, it must be admitted, 
 considerable difference between the singing noise of a lion 
 when full, and his deep, gruff growl when hungry. In 
 general the lion's voice seems to come deeper from the 
 chest than that of the ostrich; but to this day I can dis- 
 tinguish between them with certainty only by knowing 
 that the ostrich roars by day and the lion by night. 
 
 The African lion is of a tawny color, like that of some 
 mastiffs. The mane in the male is large, and gives the 
 idea of great power. In some lions the ends of the hair 
 of the mane are black; these go by the name of black- 
 maned lions, though as a whole all look of the yellow 
 tawny color. At the time of the discovery of the lake, 
 Messrs. Oswell and Wilson shot two specimens of another 
 variety. One was an old lion, whose teeth were mere 
 stumps, and his claws worn quite blunt ; the other was 
 full grown, in the prime of life, with white, perfect teeth : 
 both were entirely destitute of mane. The lions in the 
 country near the lake give tongue less than those farther 
 south. We scarcely ever heard them roar at all. 
 
 The lion has other checks on inordinate increase besides 
 *nan. He seldom attacks full-grown animals; but fre- 
 quently, when a buffalo-calf is caught by him, the cow 
 rushes to the rescue, and a toss from her often kills him. 
 One we found was killed thus; and on the Leeambye an- 
 other, which died near Sesheke, had all the appearance of 
 having received his death-blow from a buffalo. It is ques- 
 tionable if a single lion ever attacks a full-grown buffalo. 
 The amount of roaring heard at night, on occasions when 
 a buffalo is killed, seems to indicate there are always moie 
 than one lion engaged in the onslaught. 
 
 On the plain, south of Sebituane's ford, a herd of buffa- 
 loes kept a number of lions from their young by the malea 
 turning their heads to the enemy. The young and the 
 cows were in the rear. One toss from a bull would kill 
 
 the strongest lion that ever oreathed 1 have been in- 
 v 
 
fiEKOMl'S VIEW OF EXTORTION. 83 
 
 formed that in one part of India even the tamo buffaloo* 
 frel their superiority to some wild animals, for they havo 
 been seen to chase a tiger up the hills, bellowing as if they 
 enjoyed the sport. Lions never go near # any elephants ex- 
 cept the calves, which, when young, are sometimes torr. 
 by them ; every living thing retires before the lordly ele- 
 phant, yet a full-grown one would be an easier prey than 
 the rhinoceros; the lion rushes off at the mere sight of 
 this latter boast. 
 
 When we reached the Bamangwato, the chief, Sekomi, 
 was particularly friendly, collected all his people to the 
 religious services we held, and explained his reasons for 
 compelling some Englishmen to pay him a horse. " They 
 would not sell him any powder, though they had plenty ; 
 so he compelled them to give it and the horse for nothing. 
 He would not deny the extortion to me ; that would be 
 'boherehere/ (swindling.)" He thus thought extortion 
 better than swindling. 1 could not detect any difference 
 In the morality of the two transactions; but Sekomi's ideas 
 of honesty are the lowest I have met with in any Bechu- 
 ana chief, and this instance is mentioned as the only ap- 
 "proach to demanding payment for leave to pass that T have 
 met with in the south. In all other cases the difficulty has 
 been to get a chief to give us men to show the way, and 
 the payment has only been for guides. Englishmen have 
 always very properly avoided giving that idea to the native 
 mind which we shall hereafter find prove troublesome, that 
 payment ought to be made for passage through a country 
 
 January 28. — Passing on to Letloche, about twenty 
 miles beyond the Bamangwato, we found a fine supply of 
 water. This is a point of so much interest in that country 
 that the first question we ask of passers-by is, (i Have you 
 bad water?" the .first inquiry a native puts to a fellow- 
 countryman is, " Where is the rain V and, though they aro 
 by no means an untruthful nation, the answer generally ie, 
 u I don't know : there is none : we are killed with hunger 
 and by the sun." If news is asked for, they commence 
 
84 MR. GORDON HUMMING. 
 
 with, "There is no news; I heard some lies only/' and 
 then tell all they know. 
 
 This spot was Mr. Gordon Cumming's farthest station 
 north. Our house at Xolobeng having been quite in the 
 hunting-country, rhinoceros and buffaloes several times 
 rushed past, and I was able to shoot the latter twice from 
 our own door. We were favored by visits from this famous 
 hunter during each of the five vears of his warfare with 
 wild animals. Many English gentlemen following the 
 same pursuits paid their guides and assistants so punc- 
 tually that in making arrangements for them we had to be 
 careful that four did not go where two only were wanted : 
 they knew so well that an Englishman would pay that 
 they depended implicitly on his word of honor, and not 
 only would they go and hunt for five or six months in the 
 north, enduring all the hardships of that trying mode of 
 life, with little else but meat of game to subsist on, but 
 they willingly went seven hundred or eight hundred m'lea 
 lo Graham s Town, receiving for wages only a musket 
 worth fifteen shillings. 
 
 No one ever deceived them, except one man ; and, as 1 
 believed that he was afflicted with a slight degree of the 
 insanity of greediness, I upheld the honor of the English 
 name by paying his debts. As the guides of Mr. Gumming 
 were furnished through my influence, and usually got some 
 strict charges as to their behavior before parting, looking 
 upon me in the light of a father, they always came to give 
 me an account of their service, and told most of those 
 hunting-adventures which have since been given to the 
 world, before we had the pleasure of hearing our friend 
 relate them himself by our own fireside. I had thus a tole- 
 rably good opportunity of testing their accuracy, and I 
 have no hesitation in saying that, for those who love that 
 aort of thing, Mr. Gumming' s book conveys a truthful idea 
 of South African hunting. Some things in it require ex 
 planation, but the numbers of animals said to have been 
 met with and killed are by no means improbable, consider- 
 
sporting 85 
 
 tng the amount of large game then in the country. Two 
 other gcntlomcn hunting in the same region destroyed in 
 one season no fewer than seventy-eight rhinoceroses alone. 
 Sportsmen, however, would not now find an equal number j 
 for, as guns are introduced among the tribes, all these fin** 
 animals melt away like snow in spring. In the mere 
 remote districts, where fire-arms have not yet been intro- 
 duced, with the single exception of the rhinoceros, the 
 game is to be found in numbers much greater than Air. 
 Cumming ever saw. The ts*etse is, however, an insuper- 
 able barrier to hunting with, horses there, and Europeans 
 can do nothing on foot. The step of the elephant when 
 charging the hunter, though apparently not quick, is so 
 long taat the pace equals the speed of a good horse at a 
 canter. A young sportsman, no matter how great among 
 pheasants, foxes, and hounds, would do well to pause before 
 resolving to brave fever for the excitement of risking such 
 a terrific charge ; the scream or trumpeting of this enor- 
 mous brute when infuriated is more like what the shriek 
 of a French steam-whistle would be to a man standing on 
 the dangerous part of a railroad than any other eavthly 
 sound : a horse unused to it will sometimes stand shivering 
 instead of taking his rider out of danger. It has hj^pened 
 often that the poor animal's legs do their duty so badly 
 that he falls and causes his rider to be trodden into a 
 mummy; or, losing his presence of mind, the rider may 
 allow the horse to dash under a tree and crack his cranium 
 against a branch. As one charge from an elephant has 
 made embryo Nimrods bid a final adieu to the chase, inci- 
 pient Gordon Cummings might tiy their nerves by stand- 
 ing on railways till the engines were within a few yards 
 of them. Hunting elephants on foot would bo not less 
 dangerous,* unless the Ceylon mode of killing them bv 
 
 * Since writing the above statement, it has received confirmation ii 
 the reported death of Mr, Walhberg while hunting elephants on fopt at 
 Lake N garni. 
 
 8 
 
h6 SCARCITY OF WATER. 
 
 one shot could be followed : it has never been tried in 
 .Africa. 
 
 Advancing to b'ome wells beyond Letloche, at a spot 
 named Kanne, we found them carefully hedged round by 
 the people of a Bakalahari village situated near the spot 
 We had then sixty miles of country in front without water, 
 and very distressing for the oxen, as it is generally" deep 
 soft sand. There is one sucking-place, around which wore 
 congregated great numbers of Bushwomen with their egg- 
 shells and reeds. Mathuluane now contained no water, and 
 Motlatsa only a small supply ; so we sent the oxen across 
 the country to the deep well Nkauane, and half were lost 
 on the way. When found at last, they had been five whole 
 days without water. Yery large numbers of elands were 
 met with, as usual, though they seldom can get a sip of 
 drink. Many of the plains here have large expanses of 
 grass without trees ; but you seldom see a treeless horizon. 
 
 CHAPTEK VIII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE REACHES THE COUNTRY OP THE MAKOLOLO. 
 
 I 
 
 The Bakalahari, who live at Motlatsa Wells, have always 
 been very friendly to us, and listen attentively to instruc- 
 tion conveyed to them in their own tongue. It is, how- 
 ever, difiicult to give an idea to a European of the little 
 effect teaching produces; because no one can realize the 
 degradation to which their minds have been sunk by cen- 
 turies of barbarism and hard struggling for the necessariea 
 of life : like most others, they listen with respect and 
 attention; but, when we kneel down and address an 
 unseen Being, the position and the act often appear to 
 them so ridiculous that they cannot refrain from bursting 
 into uncontrollable laughter. Ailer a few services thej 
 
EFFECTS OF MISSIONARY EFFORTS. 87 
 
 got over this tendency. I was once present when a mis- 
 sionary attempted to sing among a wild heathen tribe of 
 Bechuanas, who had no music in their composition : the 
 effect on the risible faculties of the audience was such that 
 the tears actually ran down their cheeks. Nearly all their 
 thoughts are directed to the supply of their bodily wants; 
 and this has been the case with the race for ages. If asked, 
 then, what effect the preaching of the gospel has at the com- 
 mencement on such individuals, I am unable to tell, except 
 that some have confessed long afterward that they then first 
 began to pray in secret. Of the effects of a long-continued 
 course of instruction there can be no reasonable doubt, aa 
 mere nominal belief has never been considered sufficient 
 proof of conversion by any body of missionaries ; and, after 
 the change which has been brought about by this agency, 
 we have good reason to hope well for the future : those I 
 have myself witnessed behaving in the manner described; 
 when kindly treated in sickness, often utter imploring 
 words to Jesus, and, I believe, sometimes really do pray to 
 him in their afflictions. As that great Eedeemer of the 
 guilty seeks to save all he can, we may hope that they 
 find mercy through his blood, though little able to appre- 
 ciate the sacrifice he made. 
 
 Leaving Motlatsa on the 8th of February, 1853, we 
 passed down the Mokoko, which, in the memory of per- 
 sons now living, was a flowing stream. 
 < At Nchokotsa, the rainy season having this year been 
 delayed beyond the usual time, we found during the day 
 the thermometer stand at 96° in the coolest possible 
 shade. 
 
 We dug out several wells ; and, as we had on each occa- 
 sion to wait till the water flowed in again, and then allow 
 our cattle to feed a day or two and slake their thirst 
 thoroughly, as far as that could be done, before starting, 
 our progress was but slow. At Koobe there was such a 
 mass of mud in the pond, worked up by the wallowing 
 thinoceros to the consistency of mortar, that only by great 
 
88 THE BUSHMEN 
 
 labor could we get a space cleared at one side for the watei 
 to ooze through and collect in for the oxen. 
 
 At Kapesh we came among our old friends the Bushmen, 
 under Horoye. This man, Horoye, a good specimen of 
 that tribe, and his son Mokantsa, and others, were at leasl 
 six feet high, and of a darker color than the Bushmen of 
 the south. They have always plenty of food and water ; 
 and, as they frequent the Zouga as often as the game in 
 company with which they live, their life is very different 
 from that of the inhabitants of the thirsty plains of the 
 Kalahari. 
 
 Those among whom we now were kill many elephants, 
 and, when the moon is full, choose that time for the chase, 
 on account of its coolness. Hunting this animal is the 
 best test of courage this country affords. The Bushmen 
 choose the moment succeeding a charge, when the ele- 
 phant is out of breath, to run in and give him a stab with 
 their long-bladed spears. In this case the uncivilized have 
 the advantage over us ; but I believe that, with half their 
 training, Englishmen would beat the Bushmen. 
 
 At Maila we spent a Sunday with Kaisa, the head-man 
 of a village of Mashona, who had fled from the iron sway 
 of Mosilikatse, whose country lies east of this. I wished 
 him to take charge of a packet of letters for England, to 
 be forwarded when, as is the custom of the Bamangwato, 
 the Bechuanas come hither in search of skins and food 
 among the Bushmen; but he could not be made to compre- 
 hend that there was no danger in the consignment. He 
 feared the responsibility and guilt if any thing should hap- 
 pen to them ; so I had to bid adieu to all hope of letting 
 my family hear of my welfare till I should reach the west 
 coast. 
 
 At Unku we came into a tract of country which had 
 been visited by refreshing showers long before, and every 
 spot was covered with grass run up to seed, and the flowers 
 of the forest were in full bloom. Instead of the dreary 
 prospect around Koobe and Nchokotsa, we had here a de- 
 
TARTl' ATTACKED BY FEVER. 89 
 
 ligUful sooue, — all the ponds full of water, and the birds 
 twittering joyfully As the game can now obtain water 
 everywhere, they become very shy, and cannot be found 
 in their accustomed haunts. 
 
 1st M-irch. — The thermometer in the shade generally 
 stood at 98° from 1 to 3 p.m.; but it sank as low as 65° by 
 night; eo that the heat was by no means exhausting. At 
 the surface of the ground, in the sun, the thermometei 
 marked 125°, and, three inches below it, 138°. The hand 
 cannot l>e held on the ground, and even the hornv soles of 
 the feet of the natives must be protected by sandals of 
 hide ; yet the ants were busy working on it. The water 
 in the ponds was as high as 100° ; but, as water does not 
 conduct heat readily downward, deliciously-cool water 
 may be obtained by any one walking into the middle and 
 lftting up the water from the bottom to the surface with 
 his hands. 
 
 Proceeding to the north, from Kama-kama, we entered 
 into dense Mohonono bush, which required the constant 
 application of the axe by three of our party for two days. 
 This bush has fine silvery leaves, and the bark has a sweet 
 taste. The elephant, with his usual delicacy of taste, feeds 
 much on it. On emerging into the plains beyond, we found 
 a number of Bushmen, who afterward proved very service- 
 able. The rains had been copious ; but now great numbers 
 of pools were drying up. Lotus-plants abounded in them, 
 ani a low, sweet-scented plant covered their banks. 
 Breezes came occasionally to us from these drying-up 
 pools ; but the pleasant odor they carried caused sneezing 
 in both myself and people ; and on the 10th of March (when 
 iu lat. 19° 16' 11" S., long. 24° 24' E.) we were brought 
 to a stand by four of the party being seized with fever. 
 I had seen this disease before, but did not at once recognis© 
 it as the African fever : I imagined it was only a bilioug 
 attack arising from full feeding on flesh; for, the large 
 game having been very abundant, we always hud a good 
 
 ■uppty. But, instead of the first sufferers recovering «oon, 
 
 8* 
 
9 ? GRAPEd. 
 
 ©very man of i>ur party was in a few days laid low, except 
 a Bakwain and myself. He managed the oxen, while I 
 attended to the wants of the patients and went out occa- 
 sionally with the Bushmen to get a zebra or buffalo, so as 
 to induce them to remain with uq. 
 
 Here for the first time I had leisure to follow the instruc- 
 tions of my kind teacher, Mr. Maclear, and calculated seve- 
 ral longitudes from lunar distances. The hearty manner 
 in which that eminent astronomer and frank, friendly man 
 had promised to aid me in calculating and verifying my 
 work conduced more than any thing else to inspire me 
 with perseverance in making astronomical observations 
 throughout the journey. 
 
 We wished to avoid the tsetse of our former path, so 
 kept a course on the magnetic meridan from Lurilopepe. 
 The necessity of making a new path much increased our 
 toil. We were, however, rewarded in lat. 18° with a sight 
 we had not enjoyed the year before, namely, large patches 
 of grape-bearing vines. There they stood before my eyes; 
 but the sight was so entirely unexpected that I stood some 
 time gazing at the clusters of grapes with which they were 
 loaded, with no more thought of plucking than if I had 
 been beholding them in a dream. The Bushmen know 
 ,and eat them ; but they are not well flavored, on account 
 of the great astringency of the seeds, which are in shape 
 and size like split peas. The elephants are fond of the 
 fruit, plant, and root alike. 
 
 The forest, through which we were slowly toiling, daily 
 became more dense, and we were kept almost constantly 
 ttt work with the axe ; there was much more leanness in 
 the trees here than farther south. The leaves are chiefly 
 of the pinnate and bi-pinnate forms, and are exceedingly 
 beautiful when seen against the sky : a great variety of 
 the. papilionaceous family grow in this part of the country. 
 
 Fleming had until this time always assisted to drive his 
 own wagon, but about the end of March he knocked up, as 
 well as his people As I could not drive two wagons, 1 
 
BUSHMEN'S MODE OF LlON-nUNTlNQ. 91 
 
 shared with him the remaining water, half a caskful, and 
 went on, with the intention of coming back for him as 
 soon as we shonld reach the next pool. Heavy rain now 
 commenced; I was employed the whole day in cutting down 
 trees, and every stroke of the axe brought down a thick 
 shower on my back, which in the hard work was very 
 refreshing, as the water found its way down into my shoes 
 In the evening we met some Bushmen, who volunteered 
 to show us a pool ; and, having unyoked, I walked some 
 miles in search of it. As it became dark they showed 
 their politeness — a quality which is by no means confined 
 entirely to the civilized — by walking in front, breaking the 
 branches which hung across the path, and pointing out the 
 fallen trees. On returning to the x wagon, we found that 
 being left alone had brought out some of Fleming's energy, 
 for he had managed to come up. 
 
 As the water in this pond dried up, we were soon 
 obliged to move again. One of the Bushmen .took out his 
 dice, and, after throwing them, said that God told him to 
 go home. He threw again, in order to show me the com- 
 mand, but the opposite result followed; so he remained 
 and was useful, for we lost the oxen again by a lion driving 
 them off to a very great distance. The lions here are not 
 often heard. They seem to have a wholesome dread of the 
 Bushmen, who, when they observe evidence of a lion's 
 having made a full meal, follow up his spoor so quiotly 
 that his slumbers are not disturbed. One discharges a 
 poisoned arrow from a distance of only a few feet, while 
 his companion simultaneously throws his skin cloak on the 
 boast's head. The sudden surprise makes the lion lose his 
 presence of mind, and he bounds away in the greatest non- 
 fusion and terror. Our friends here showed me the poison 
 which they use on these occasions. It is the entrails 
 of a caterpillar called N'gwa, half an inch long. They 
 squeeze out these, and place them all around the bottom 
 of the barb, and allow the poison to dry in the sun. They 
 are very careful in cleaning their nails after working with 
 
92 THE SANSUUREH 
 
 it, as a small portion introduced into a scratch acts like 
 morbid matter in dissection-wounds. ' The agony is so 
 great that the person cuts himself, calls for his mother's 
 breast as if he were returned in idea to his childhood again, 
 or flies from human habitations a raging maniac. Tho 
 effects on the lion are equally terrible. He is heard moan- 
 ing ^n distress, and becomes furious, biting the trees and 
 ground in rage. 
 
 A.s the Bushmen have the reputation of curing the 
 wounds of this poison, I asked how this was effected. 
 They said that they administer the caterpillar itself in 
 combination with fat; they also rub fat into the wound, 
 saying that 4 * the N'gwa wants fat, and, when it does not 
 find it in the body, kills the man: we give it what it 
 wants, and it is content :" a reason which will commend 
 itself to the enlightened among ourselves. 
 
 None of the men of our party had died, but two seemed 
 unlikely to recover; and Kibopechoe, my willing Mokwain^ 
 at last became troubled with boils, and then got all the 
 symptoms of fever. As he lay down, the others began to 
 move about, and complained of weakness only. Believing 
 that frequent change of place was conducive to their 
 recovery, we moved along as much as we could, and came 
 to the hill N'gwa, (lat. 18° 27' 20" S., long. 24° 13' 36" E.) 
 This being the only hill we had seen since leaving Bamang- 
 wato, we felt inclined to take off our hats to it. It is 
 three or four hundred feet high, and covered with trees. 
 
 Our Bushmen wished to leave us, and, as there was no 
 use in trying to thwart these independent gentlemen, I 
 paid them, and allowed them to go. The payment, how- 
 ever, acted as a charm on some strangers who happened 
 to be present, and induced them to volunteer their aid. 
 
 We at last came to the Sanshureh, which presented an 
 impassable barrier; so we drew up under a magnificent 
 baobab-tree, (lat. 18° 4' 27" S., long. 24° 6' 20" E.,) and 
 resolved to explore the river for a ford. The great quan- 
 tity of water we had passed through was part of thf 
 
BANKS OF THE CHOBE. 93 
 
 annual inundation of the Chobe ; and this, which appeared 
 a large, deep river, filled in many parts with reeds, and 
 having hippopotami in it, is only one of the branches by 
 which it sends its superabundant water to the southeast. 
 
 We made so many attempts to get over the Sanshureh, 
 both to the west and east of the wagon, in the hope of 
 reaching some of the Makololo od the Chobe, that my 
 Bushmen friends became quite tired of the work. By 
 means of presents I got them to remain some days ; but at 
 last they slipped away by night, and I was fain to take 
 one of the strongest of my still weak companions and cross 
 the river in a pontoon, the gift of Captains Codrington and 
 Webb. We each carried some provisions and a blanket, 
 and penetrated about twenty miles to the westward, in 
 the hope of striking the Chobe. It was much nearer to us 
 in a northerly direction, but this we did not then know. 
 The plain, over which we splashed the whole of the first 
 day, was covered with water ankle deep, and thick grass 
 which reached above the knees. In the evening we came 
 to an immense wall of reeds, six or eight feet high, without 
 any opening admitting of a passage. When we tried to 
 enter, the water always became so deep that we were fain 
 to desist. We concluded that we had come to the banks 
 of the river we were in search of; so we directed our course 
 to some trees which appeared in the south, in order to get 
 a bed and a view of the adjacent locality. Having shot a 
 lecho. and made a glorious fire, we got a good cvp of tea 
 and had a comfortable night. 
 
 Next morning, by climbing the highest trees, we could 
 ■eo a fine large sheet of water, but surrounded on all sides 
 oy the same impenetrable belt of reeds. This is the broad 
 part of the river Chobe, and is called Zabesa. Two tree- 
 covered islands seemed to be much nearer to the water 
 than the snore on which we were; so we made an attempt 
 to get to them first. It was not the reeds alone wo had 
 to pass through; a peculiar serrated grass, which at certain 
 angles cut the hands like a razor, was mingled with the 
 
94 THE CHOBE. 
 
 reed, and the climbing convolvulus, with stalks which felt 
 as strong as whipcord, bound the mass together. We felt 
 like pygmies in it, and often the only way we could get 
 on was by both of us leaning against a part and bending 
 it down till we could stand upon it. The perspiration 
 streamed off our bodies, and as the sun rose high, there 
 being no ventilation among the reeds, the heat was stifling, 
 and the water, which was up to the knees, felt agreeably 
 refreshing. After some hours' toil we reached one of the 
 islands. Here we met an old friend, the bramble-bush. 
 My strong moleskins were quite worn through at the knees> 
 and the leather trousers of my companion were torn and 
 nis legs bleeding. Tearing my handkerchief in two, I tied 
 the pieces round my knees, and then encountered another 
 difficulty. We were still forty or fifty yards from the clear 
 -water, but now we were opposed by great masses of papy- 
 rus, which are like palms in miniature, eight or ten feet 
 high, and an inch and a half in diameter. These were 
 laced together by twining convolvulus so strongly that the 
 weight of both of us could not make way into the clear 
 water. At last we fortunately found a passage prepared 
 by a hippopotamus. Eager as soon as we reached the 
 island to look along the vista to clear water, I stepped in 
 and found it took me at once up to the neck. 
 
 Eeturning nearly worn out, we proceeded up the bank 
 of the Chobe till we came to the point of departure of the 
 branch Sanshureh ; we then went in the opposite direction, 
 or down the Chobe, though from the highest trees we could 
 see nothing but one vast expanse of reed, with here and 
 there a tree on the islands. This was a hard day's work ; 
 and, when we came to a deserted Bayeiye hut on an ant- 
 hill, not a bit of wood or any thing else could be got foi a 
 fire except the grass and sticks of the dwelling it-self. 1 
 dreaded the " Tampans, " so common in all old huts ; but 
 outside of it we had thousands of mosquitos, and cold 
 dew began to be deposited, so we were fain to crawl be* 
 neath its shelter. 
 
ARRIVAL AT MOKE Mr. 95 
 
 Wo wore close to the reeds, and could listen to the strange 
 Bounds which are often heard there. By day I had seen 
 water-snakes putting up their heads and swimming about 
 I here were great numbers of otters, (Zutra inunguis, F. 
 Cavier,) which have made little spoors all over the plains 
 in search of the fishes, among the tall grass of these flooded 
 prairies; curious birds, too, jerked and wriggled amon r 
 these reedy masses, and we heard human-like voices and 
 unearthly sounds, with splash, guggle/ jupp, as if rare fun 
 were going on in their uncouth haunts. After a damp 
 cold night, we set to, early in the morning, at our work of 
 exploring again, but left the pontoon in order to lighten 
 our labor. The ant-hills are here very high, some Thirty 
 teet, and of a base so broad that trees grow on them; while 
 the lands, annually flooded, bear nothing but grass. From 
 one of these ant-hills we discovered an inlet to the Chobe-. 
 and, having gone back for the pontoon, we launched our- 
 selves on a deep river, here from eighty to one hundred 
 yards wide. I gave my companion strict injunctions to 
 stick by the pontoon in case a hippopotamus should look 
 at us; nor was this caution unnecessary, for one came up 
 at our side and made a desperate plunge off. We had 
 passed over him. The wave he made caused the pontoon 
 to glide quickly away from him. 
 
 We paddled on from mid-day till sunset. There was 
 nothing but a wall of reed on each bank, and we saw every 
 prospect of spending a supperless night in our float; but 
 just as the short twilight of these parts was commencing 
 we perceived on the north bank the village of Moremi, one 
 of the Makololo, whose acquaintance I had made on our 
 foimer visit, and who was now located on the island Ma. 
 honta, (lat. 17° 58' S., long. 24° 6' E.) The villagers looked 
 as we may suppose people do who see a ghost, and in their 
 figurative way of speaking said, "He has dropped among 
 us from the clouds, yet came riding on the back of a hip- 
 popotamus I We Makololo thought no one could cross tte 
 
93 DEPARTURE FROM LIN1TANTI. 
 
 (Jhobe without our knowledge, but here he drops among 
 ua like a bird." 
 
 Next day we returned in canoes across the flooded lards, 
 and found that, in our 'absence, the men had allowed the 
 cattle to wander into a very small patch of wood t*> the 
 west containing the tsetse; this carelessness cost me ten 
 fine large oxen. After remaining a few days, some of the 
 head-men of the Makololo came down from Linyanti, with 
 a large party of Barotse, to take us across the river. This 
 they did in fine style, swimming and diving anior^ the 
 oxen more like alligators than men, and taking the wagons 
 to pieces and carrying them across on a number of canoes 
 lashed together. We were now among friends ; so, going 
 about thirty miles to the north, in order to avoid tho still 
 flooded lands on the north of the Chobe, we turned, west- 
 ward toward Linyanti, (lat. 18° 17' 20" S., long. 23' 50' 9" 
 E.,) where we arrived on the 23d of May, 1853. This ia 
 the capital town of the Makololo, and only a short distance 
 from our wagon-stand of 1851, (lat. 18° 20' S., lou^. T3° 
 50' E.) 
 
 CHAPTEK IX. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE LABORS AS A MISSIONARY AM^NG 1HI 
 
 MAKOLOLO. 
 
 The whole population of Linyanti, numbering between 
 six and seven thousand souls, turned out en jnasse to see 
 the wagons in motion. They had never witnessed the phe- 
 nomenon before, we having on the former occasion departed 
 by night. Sekeletu, now in power, received us in what is 
 considered royal style, setting before us a great number 
 of pots of boyaloa, the beer of the country. These were 
 brcught by women, and each bearer takes a good draught 
 of the beer when she sets it down, by way of " tasting/' 
 to show that there is no poison 
 
Tin: court iiF.RAi.n 97 
 
 The court herald, an old man who occupied the pout Also 
 in Sebituane's time, stood up, and after some antics, such 
 as leaping, and shouting at the top of his voice, roared out 
 some adulatory sentences, as, " Don t I see the white man ? 
 Don't I see the comrade of Sebituane? Don't I see the 
 father of Sekeletu ?" — " We want sleep." — " Give your son 
 sleep, my lord," &c. &c. The perquisites of this man are 
 the heads of all the cattle slaughtered by the chief, and he 
 even takes a share of the tribute before it is distributed 
 and taken out of the kotla. He is expected to utter all the 
 proclamations, call assemblies, keep the kotla clean, and 
 the fire burning every evening, and when a person is 
 executed in public he drags away the body. 
 
 I found Sekeletu a young man of eighteen years of age, 
 of that dark yellow or coffee-and-milk color of which the 
 Makololo are so proud, because it distinguishes them 
 considerably from the black tribes on the rivers. He is 
 about five feet seven in height, and neither so good-looking 
 nor of so much ability as his father was, but is equally 
 friendly to the English. Sebituane installed his daughter 
 Mamochisane into the chieftainship long before his death, 
 but, with all his acuteness, the idea of her having a hus- 
 band who should not be her lord did not seem to enter his 
 mind. He wished to make her his successor, probably in 
 imitation of some of the negro tribes with whom he had 
 come into contact; but, being of the Bechuana race, he 
 oould not look upon the husband except as the woman's 
 lord; so he told her all the men were hers, — she might 
 take any one, but ought to keep none. In fact, he thought 
 nlie might do with the men what he could do with the 
 women ; but these men had other wives ; and, according 
 to a saying in the country, " the tongues of women can- 
 not be governed," they made her miserable by their re- 
 mai ks. One man whom she chose was even called her wife, 
 and her son the child of Mamochisane's wife; but the ar- 
 rangement was so distasteful to Mamochisane herself that, 
 as soon as Sebituane died, she said she never would con^ont 
 
 
98 SEKELETU BECOMES CIIIEFTAIN. 
 
 to govern the Makololo so long as she had a brother living 
 Sekeletu, being afraid of another member of the family, 
 Mpepe, who had pretensions to the chieftainship, urged his 
 ijister strongly to remain as she had always been, and 
 allow him to support her authority by leading the Mako- 
 lolo when they went forth to wap. Three days were spent 
 in public discussion on the point. Mpepe insinuated that 
 Sekeletu was not the lawful son of Sebituane, on account 
 of his mother having been the wife of another chief before 
 her marriage with Sebituane; Mamochisane, however, 
 upheld Sekeletu's claims, and at last stood up in the as- 
 sembly and addressed him with a womanly gush of tears : 
 — " I have been a chief only because my father wished it. 
 I always would have preferred to be married and have a 
 family like other women. You, Sekeletu, must be chief, 
 and build up your father's house." This was a death-blow 
 to the hopes of Mpepe, who was soon after speared for an 
 attempt to assassinate Sekeletu. 
 
 Soon after our arrival at Liny an ti, Sekeletu took me 
 aside, and pressed me to mention those things I liked best 
 end hoped to get from him. Any thing, either in or out 
 of his town, should be freely given if I would only men- 
 tion it. 1 explained to him that my object was to elevate 
 him and his people to be Christians; but he replied he did 
 not wish to learn to read the Book, for he was afraid " it 
 might change his heart, and make him content with only 
 one wife, like Sechele." It was of little use to urge that 
 Nie change of heart implied a contentment with one wife 
 oqual to his present complacency in polygamy. Sucn a 
 preference after the change of mind could not now be 
 understood by him any more than the real, unmistakable 
 pleasure of religious services can by those who have not 
 experienced what is known by the term the " new heart." 
 I assured him that nothing was expected but by his own 
 voluntary decision. " No, no ; he wanted always to have 
 five wives at least." I liked the frankness of Sekeletu, for 
 
r TBLIC RELIGIOUS 8ERVICE. 99 
 
 nothing is so wearying to tho spirit as talking to those 
 who agree tvitb every thing advanced. 
 
 At our pubh'c religious services in the kotJa, the MaW 
 Iclo women always behaved with "decorum from the first, 
 except at tho conclusion of the prayer. When all knelt 
 down, many of those who had children, in following the 
 example of the rest, bent over their little ones : tho chil- 
 dren, in terror of being crushed to death, set up a simul- 
 taneous yell, which so tickled the whole assembly there 
 was often a subdued titter, to be turned into a hearty 
 laugh as soon as they heard Amen. 
 
 The numbers who attended at the summons of the 
 herald, who acted as beadle, were often from' five to seven 
 hundred. The service consisted of reading a small portion 
 of the Bible and giving an explanatory address, usually 
 short enough to prevent weariness or want of attention. 
 So long as wo continue to hold services in the kotla, the as- 
 sociations of the place are unfavorable to solemnity; hence 
 it is alwayp desirable to have a place of worship as soon as . 
 possible ; and it is of importance, too, to treat such place 
 with reverence, as an aid to secure that serious attention 
 which religious subjects demand. This will appear more 
 evident when it is recollected that, in the very spot where 
 we had been engaged in acts of devotion, half an hour 
 after a dance would be got up; and these habits cannot be 
 at first opposed without the. appearance of assuming too 
 much authority over them. It is always unwise to hurt 
 their feelings of independence. 
 
 To give an idea of the routine followed for months to- 
 gether, on other days as well as on Sundays, I may advert 
 to my habit of treating the sick for complaints which 
 seemed to surmount the skill of their own doctors. I re- 
 frained from going to any one unless his own doctor 
 wished it or had given up the case. This led to my 
 having a selection of the severer cases only, and prevented 
 the doctors' being offended at my taking their practice out 
 of their hands. When attacked by fever myself, and wisn 
 
J 00 TEACHING THE MAKOLOLC TO READ. 
 
 ing to ascertain what their practices were, I could safely 
 intrust myself in their hands, on account of their well- 
 known friendly feelings. 
 
 I proposed to teach the Makololo to read ; but, for the 
 f easons mentioned, Sekeletu at first declined : after some 
 weeks, however, Motibe, his father-in-law, and some others, 
 determined to brave the mysterious book. To all who 
 have not acquired it, the knowledge of letters is quite 
 unfathomable; there is naught like it within the compass 
 of their observation ; and we have no comparison with 
 any thing except pictures, to aid them in comprehending 
 the idea of signs of words. It seems to them supernatural 
 that we see in a book things taking place or having oc- 
 curred at a distance. No amount of explanation conveys 
 the idea unless they learn to read. Machinery is equally 
 inexplicable, and money nearly as much so until they see 
 it in actual use. They are familiar with barter alone; and 
 in the centre of the country, where gold is totally un- 
 known, if a button and sovereign were left to their choice, 
 they would prefer the former on account of its having an 
 eye. 
 
 In beginning to learn, Motibe seemed to himself in the 
 position of the doctor, who was obliged to drink his potion 
 before the patient, to show that it contained nothing detri- 
 mental ; after he had mastered the alphabet, and reported 
 the thing so far safe, Sekeletu and his young companions 
 came forward to try for themselves. He must have re- 
 solved to watch the effects of the book against his views 
 on polygamy, and abstain whenever he perceived any ten- 
 dency, in reading it, toward enforcing him to put his wives 
 fcway A number of men learned the alphabet in a short 
 time, ani were set to teach others, but before much pro- 
 gress could be made I was on my way to Loanda. 
 
 As I had declined to name any thing as a present from 
 Sekeletu, except a canoe to take me up the river, he brought 
 ten fine elephants' tusks and laid them down beside my 
 wagon. He would take no denial, though I told him J 
 
SEKELETU'S PRESENT. 101 
 
 should prefer to see him trading with Fleming, a man of 
 color from the West Indies, who had come for the purpose 
 I had, during the eleven years of my previous course, 
 invariably abstained from taking presents of ivory, from an 
 idea that a religious instructor degraded himself by accept- 
 ing gifts from those whose spiritual welfare he professed 
 to seek. My precedence of all traders in the line of dis- 
 covery put me often in the way of very handsome offers ; 
 but I always advised fc'ne donors to sell their ivory to 
 traders, who would be sure to follow, and when at some 
 future time they had become rich by barter they might 
 remember me or my children. When Lake Ngami was 
 discovered, I might h *ve refused permission to a trader 
 who accompanied us; but when he applied for leave to 
 form part of our company, knowing that Mr. Oswell 
 would no more trade than myself, and that the people of 
 the lake would be disappointed if they could not dispose 
 of their ivory, I willingly granted a sanction, without 
 which his people would not at that time have ventured so 
 far. This was surely preferring the interest of another to 
 my own. The return I got for this was a notice in one 
 of the Cape papers that this " man was the true discoverer 
 of the lake !" 
 
 The conclusion I had come to was that it is quite lawful, 
 though perhaps not expedient, for missionaries to trade; 
 but barter is the only means by which a missionary in the 
 interior can pay his way, as money has no value. In all 
 the journeys I had previously undertaken for wider diffu- 
 sion of the gospel, the extra expenses weru defrayed from 
 my salary of £100 per annum. This sum is sufficient to 
 enable a missionary to live in the interior of South Africa, 
 supposing he has a garden capable of yielding corn and 
 vegetables ; but should he not, and still consider that six 
 or eight months cannot lawfully be spent simply in getting 
 goods at a lower price than they can be had from itinerant 
 traders, the sum mentioned is barely sufficient for the 
 poorest faro and plainest, apparel. As we nover felt our- 
 
 »* 
 
102 PRESENTS AND TRADING. 
 
 eelves justified in making journeys to the colony for th* 
 sake of securing bargains, the most frugal living was ne- 
 cessary to enable us to be a little charitable to others; but 
 when to this were added extra travelling-expenses, the 
 wants of an increasing family, and liberal gifts to chiefs, it 
 was difficult to make both ends meet. The pleasure of 
 missionary labor would be enhanced if one could devote 
 his life to the heathen without drawing a 3aiary from a 
 society at all. The luxury of doing good from one's own 
 private resources, without appearing to either natives or 
 Europeans to be making a gain of it, is far preferable, and 
 an object worthy the ambition of the rich. But few men 
 of fortune, however, now devote themselves to Christian 
 missions, as of old. Presents were always given to the 
 chiefs whom we visited, and nothing accepted in return ; 
 but when Sebituane (in 1851) offered some ivory, I took 
 it, and was able by its sale to present his son with a num- 
 ber of really useful articles of a higher value than I had 
 ever been able to give before to any chief. In doing this, 
 of course, I appeared to trade, but, feeling I had a right to 
 do so, I felt perfectly easy in my mind ; and, as I still held 
 the view of the inexpediency of combining the two profes- 
 sions, I was glad of the proposal of one of the most honor- 
 able merchants of Cape Town, Mr. H. E. Eutherford, that 
 hf should risk a sum of money in Fleming's hands for the 
 purpose of attempting to develop a trade with the Mako- 
 lolo. It was to this man I suggested Sekeletu should sell 
 the tusks which he had presented for my acceptance ; bat 
 the chief refused to take them back from me. The goods 
 which Fleming had brought were ill adapted for the use 
 of the natives, but he got a pretty good load of ivory in 
 exchange; and though it was nis first attempt at trading, 
 and the distance travelled over made the expenses enor* 
 mous, he was not a loser by the trip. Other -traders fol- 
 lowed, who demanded 90 lbs. of ivory for a musket. The 
 Makololo, knowing nothing of steelyards, but supposing 
 that they were meant to cheat them, declined to trade 
 
"RESENTS TO SEKELETU. 101 
 
 except by exchanging one bull and one cow elephant't 
 tusk for each gun. This would average 70 lbs. of ivory, 
 which sells at the Cape for 5s. per pound, for a second- 
 hand musket worth 10s. I, being sixty miles distant, did 
 not witness this attempt at barter, but, anxious to enable 
 my countrymen to drive a brisk trade, told the Makololo 
 to sell my ten tusks on their own account for whatever 
 they would bring. Seventy tusks were for sale, but, the 
 parties not understanding each other's talk, no trade was 
 established ; and when I passed the spot some time after- 
 ward I found that the whole of that ivory had been de- 
 stroyed by an accidental fire, which broke out in the village 
 when all the people were absent. Success in trade is as 
 much dependent on knowledge of the language as success 
 In travelling. 
 
 I had brought with me as presents an improved breed 
 of goats, fowls, and a pair of cats: A superior bull was 
 bought, also as a gift to Sekeletu; but I was compelled to 
 leave it on account of its having become foot-sore. As the 
 Makololo are very fond of improving the breed of their 
 domestic animals, they were much pleased with my selec- 
 tion. I endeavored to bring the bull, in performance of a 
 promise made to Sebituane before he died. Admiring a 
 calf which we had with us, he proposed to give me a cow for 
 it, which in the native estimation was offering three times 
 its value. I presented it to him at once, and promised to 
 bring him another and a better one. Sekeletu was much 
 jrratified by my attempt to keep my word given to **■ 
 %iher 
 
 
104 THE FEVER. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 MOKNESB OP DR. LIVINGSTONE — ACCOUNT OF SEKELETU AICI 
 
 HIS SUBJECTS. 
 
 On the 3(.th of May I was seized with fever, for the first 
 time. We reached the town of Linyanti on the 23d ; and, 
 as my habits were suddenly changed from great exertion to 
 comparative inactivity, at the commencement of the cola 
 season I suffered from a severe attack of stoppage of the 
 secretions, closely resembling a common cold. Warm baths 
 and drinks relieved me, and I had no idea but that I was 
 now recovering from the effects of a chill got by leaving 
 the warm wagon in the evening in order to conduct family 
 worship at my people's fire. But on the 2d of June a 
 relapse showed to the Makololo, who knew the complaint, 
 that my indisposition was no other than the fever, with 
 which I have since made a more intimate acquaintance. 
 Cold east winds prevail at this time; and as they come 
 over the extensive flats inundated by the Chobe, as well as 
 many other districts where pools of rain-water are now 
 drying up, they may be supposed to be loaded with mala- 
 ria and watery vapor, and many cases of fever follow. The 
 usual symptoms of stopped secretion are manifested, — 
 shivering and a feeling of coldness, though the skin is 
 quite hot to the touch of another. The heat in the axilloB, 
 over the heart and region of the stomach, was in my case 
 100°, but alon£ the spine and at the nape of the neck 103° 
 The internal processes were all, with the exception of the 
 kidneys and liver, stopped ; the latter, in its efforts to free 
 the blood of noxious particles, often secretes enormous 
 quantities of bile. There were pains along the spine, and 
 frontal headache. Anxious to ascertain whether the natives 
 possessed the knowledge of any remedy of which we were 
 Ignorant, I requested the assistance of one of Sekeletu'a 
 doctors He put some roots into a pot with water, and, 
 
NATIVE REMEDIES. 104 
 
 when it was boiling, placed it on a spot beneath a blanket 
 thrown around both me and it. This produced no 1m 
 mediate effect : he then got a small bundle of different 
 kinds of meflicinal woods, and, burning them in a potsherd 
 nearly to ashes, used the smoke and hot vapor arising from 
 them as an auxiliary to the other in causing diaphoresis. 
 I fondly hoped that they had a more potent remedy than 
 our own medicines afford ; but after being stewed in their 
 vapor-baths, smoked like a red herring over green twigs, 
 and charmed secundum artem, I concluded that 1 could cure 
 the fever more quickly than they can. If we employ a wet 
 sheet and a mild aperient in combination with quinine, in 
 addition to the native remedies, they are an important aid 
 in curing the fever, as they seem to have the same stimu- 
 lating effects on the alimentary canal as these means have 
 on the external surface. Purgatives, goueral bleeding, or 
 indeed any violent remedies, are injurious; and the ap- 
 pearance of a herpetic eruption near the mouth is regarded 
 as an evidence that no internal organ is in danger. There 
 is a good deal in not " giving in" to this disease. He who 
 is low-spirited, and apt to despond at every attack, will die 
 sooner than the man who is not of such a melancholic nature. 
 The Makololo had made a garden and planted maize for 
 me, that, as they remarked when I was parting with them 
 to proceed to the Cape, I might have food to eat when I 
 returned, as well as other people. The maize was now 
 pounded by the women into fine meal. This they do in 
 large wooden mortars, the counterpart of which may be 
 seen depicted on the Egyptian monuments. Sekeletn added 
 to this good supply of meal ten or twelve jars lof honey, 
 each of which contained about two gallons. Liberal sup- 
 plies of groundnuts were also 'furnished every time the 
 tributary tribes brought their dues to Linyanti, and an ox 
 was given for slaughter every week or two. Sekeletu also 
 appropriated two cows to be milked for us every morning 
 and evening. This was in accordance with the acknow 
 ledged rule throughout the country, that the chief should 
 
106 EXTENSIVE CULTIVATION OF LAND. 
 
 feed all the strangers who come on any special business t<J 
 him and take up their abode in his kotla. 
 
 The Makololo cultivate a large extent of land around 
 their villages. Those o£ them who are real Uasutos still 
 retain the habits of that tribe, and may be seen going out 
 with their wives with their hoes in hand, — a state of things 
 never witnessed at Kolobeng, or among any other Be- 
 chuana or Caffre tribe. The great chief Moshesh affords 
 an example to his people annually, by not only taking the hoe 
 in hand, but working hard with it on certain public occasions. 
 His Basutos are of the same family with the Makololo to 
 whom I refer. The younger Makololo, who have been 
 accustomed from their infancy to lord it over the conquered 
 Makalaka, have unfortunately no desire to imitate the 
 agricultural tastes of their fathers, and expect their sub- 
 jects to perform all the manual labor. They are the aris- 
 tocracy of the country, and once possessed almost unlimited 
 power over their vassals. Their privileges were, however, 
 much abridged by Sebituane himself. 
 
 The tribes which Sebituane subjected in this great 
 country pass by the general name of Makalaka. The Ma- 
 fcololo were composed of a great number of other tribes, 
 as well as thes« central negroes. The nucleus of the whole 
 were Basuto, vho came with Sebituane from*a compara- 
 tively cold an 1 hilly region in the south. When he con- 
 quered various tribes of the Bechuanas, as Bakwains, 
 Bangwaketze, Bamangwato, Batauana, &c, he incorpo- 
 rated the young of these tribes into hi3 own. Great mor- 
 tality by fever having taken place in the original stock, he 
 wisely adopted the same plan of absorption on a large scale 
 with the Makalaka. So we found him with even the sons 
 of the chiefs of the Barotse closely attached to his person ; 
 and they say to this day, if any thing else but natural 
 death had assailed their father, every one of them would 
 have laid down his life in his defence. One reason for their 
 strono- affection was their emancipation by the decree of 
 Sebituane, "all are children of the chief." 
 
WARLIKE DEMONSTRATION. 107 
 
 Sekclota receives tribute from a great number of tribe9 
 in corn or dura, groundnuts, hoes, spears, honey, canoes, 
 paddles, wooden vessels, tobacco, mutokuane, {Cannabis sa- 
 liva,) various'wild fruits, (dried,) prepared skins, and ivory. 
 When these articles are brought into the kotla, Sekeletu 
 has the honor of dividing them among the loungers who 
 usually congregate there. A small portion only is reserved 
 'for himself. The ivory belongs nominally to him too, but 
 this is simply a way of making a fair distribution of the 
 profits. The chief sells it only with the approbation of his 
 Dounsellors, and the proceeds are distributed in open day 
 among the people as before. He has the choice of every 
 thing; but, if he is net more liberal to others than to him- 
 self, he loses in popularity. I have known instances in this 
 and other tribes in which individuals aggrieved, because 
 they had been overlooked, fled to other chiefs. One discon- 
 tented person, having fied to Lechulatebi), was encouraged 
 to go to a village of the Bapalieng, on the river Cho or Tso 
 and abstracted the tribute. of ivory thence which ought to 
 have come to Sekeletu. This theft enraged the whole of 
 the Makololo, because they all felt it to be a personal loss 
 Some of Lochulatebe's people having come on a visit to 
 Linyanti, a demonstration was made, in which about five 
 hundred MaUblolo, armed, went through a mimic fight ; the 
 principal warriors pointed their spears toward the lake 
 where Lechulatebe lives, and every thrust in that direction 
 was answered by all with the shout, " IIoo I" while every 
 stab on the ground drew out a simultaneous "Huzz!" -On 
 these occasions all capable of bearing arms, even the old, 
 must turn out at the call. In the time of Sebituane, any 
 one remaining in his house was searched for and killed 
 without mercy. * 
 
 This offence of Lechulatebe was aggravated by repeti- 
 tion, and by a song sung in his town accompanying the 
 dances, which manifested joy at the death of Sebituane. 
 He had enjoined his people to live in peace with those at 
 the lake, and Sekeletu felt disposed to follow his advice ; 
 
108 lechulatebe's provocations. 
 
 but Lechulatebe nad now got possession of fire-arms, and 
 considered himself more than a match for the Makololo. 
 His father had been dispossessed of many cattle by Sebi* 
 tuane; and, as forgiveness is not considered among the 
 virtues by the heathen, Lechulatebe thought he had a 
 right to recover what he could. As I had a good deal of 
 influence with the Makololo, I persuaded them that, before 
 they could have peace, they must resolve to give the same 
 blessing to others, and they never could do that without 
 forgiving and forgetting ancient feuds. It is hard to make 
 them feel that shedding of human blood is a great crime ; 
 they must be conscious that it is wrong, but, having been 
 accustomed to bloodshed from infancy, they are remarkably 
 callous to the enormity of the crime of destroying human 
 fife. 
 
 I sent a message at the same time to Lechulatebe, advising 
 him to give up the course he had adopted, and especially 
 the song j because, though Sebituane was dead, the arms 
 with which he had fought were still alive and strong. 
 
 Sekeletu, in order to follow up his father's instructions 
 and promote peace, sent ten cows to Lechulatebe to be ex- 
 changed for sheep; these animals thrive well in a bushy 
 country like that around the lake, but will scarcely live in 
 the flat prairies between the network of waters north of 
 the Chobe. The men who took the cows carried a number 
 of hoes to purchase goats besides. Lechulatebe took the 
 cows and sent back an equal number of sheep. Now, ac- 
 cording to the relative value of sheep and cows in these 
 parts, he ought to have sent sixty or seventy. 
 
 One of the men who had r )es was trying to purchase in 
 a village without formal leave from Lechulatebe ; this chief 
 punished him by making him sit some hours on the broiling 
 hot sand, (at least 130°.) This further offence put a stop to 
 amicable relations between the two tribes altogether. It 
 was a case in which a very small tribe, commanded by a 
 weak and foolish chief, had got possesion of fire-arms, and 
 fak conscious of ability to cope with a numerous and war- 
 
ANT-HILLS. 109 
 
 like race. Such cases are the only ones in which the pos- 
 session of fire-arms does evil. The universal effect of the dif- 
 fusion of the more potent instruments of warfare in Africa 
 le the same as among ourselves. Fire-arms render wars less 
 frequent and less bloody. It is indeed exceedingly rare to 
 hear of two tribes having guns going to war with each other; 
 and, as nearly all the feuds, in the south at least, have been 
 about cattle, the risk which must be incurred from long 
 shots generally proves a preventive to the foray. 
 
 Tke Makololo were prevailed upon to keep the peace 
 during my residence with them, but it was easy to per- 
 ceive that, public opinion was against sparing a tribe of 
 Bechuanas for whom the Makololo entertained the most 
 sovereign contempt. The young men would remark, 
 "Lechulatebe is herdisg our cows for us; let us only go, 
 we shall 'lift' the price, of them in sheep," &c. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE LEAVES LINYANTI. 
 
 Having waited a month at Linyanti, (lat. 18° 17' 20" 8 V 
 long. 23° 50' 9" E.,) we again departed, for the purpose of 
 ascending the river from Sesheke, (lat. 17° 31' 38" S., long 
 25° 13' E.) To the Barotse country, the capital of which 
 is Nariele or Naliele, (lat. 15° 24' 17" S., long. 23° 5' 54" E.,) 
 I went in company with Se'seletu and about one hundred 
 and sixty attendants. We had most of the young men 
 with, us, and many of the under-chicfs besides. The country 
 between Linyanti and Sesheke is perfectly flat, except 
 patches elevated only a few feet above the surrounding 
 level. There are also many mounds where the gigantic 
 ant-hills of the country ha\e been situated or still appear: 
 these mounds are evidently the work of the termites. No 
 one who has not seen their gigantic structures can fancy 
 
 10 
 
JLIC THE CHIEFS GUAKD." 
 
 the industry of these little laborers; they seem tc impart 
 fertility to the soil which has once passed through their 
 mouths, for the Makololo find the sides of ant-hills tho 
 choice spots for rearing early maize, tobacco, or any thing 
 on which they wish to bestow especial care. 'We had the 
 Chobe on our right, with its scores of miles of reed occupy- 
 ing the horizon there. It was pleasant to look back on the 
 long extended line of our attendants, as it twisted v and bent 
 according to the curves of the footpath, or in and out behind 
 the mounds, the ostrich-feathers of the men waving in the 
 wind. Some had the white ends of ox-tails on their heads, 
 hussar fashion, and others great bunches of black ostrich- 
 feathers, or caps made of lions' manes. Some wore red 
 tunics, or various-colored prints which the chief had bought 
 from Fleming ; the common men carried burdens ; the gen- 
 tlemen walked with a small club of rhinoceros-horn in their 
 hands, and had servants to carry their shields; while the 
 "Machaka," battle-axe men, carried their own, and were 
 liable at any time to be sent off a hundred miles on an 
 errand, and expected to run all the way. 
 
 Sekeletu is always accompanied by his own Mopato, a 
 number of young men of his own age. When he sits down 
 they crowd around him ; those who are nearest eat out of 
 the same dish, for the Makololo chiefs pride themselves on 
 eating with their people. He eats a little, then beckons 
 his neighbors to partake. When they have done so, he 
 perhaps beckons to some one at a distance to take a share ; 
 that person starts forward, seizes the pot, and removes it 
 to his own companions. The comrades of Sekeletu, wish 
 ing to imitate him in riding on my old horse, leaped on the 
 backs of a number of half-broken Batoka oxen as they ran ; 
 but, having neither saddle nor bridle, the number of tumbles 
 they met with was a source of much amusement to the 
 rest. 
 
 When we arrived at any village, the women all turned 
 out to lulliloo their chief. Their shrill voices, to which 
 they give a tremulous sound by a quick motion of the 
 
RECEPTION AT VILLAGES. Ill 
 
 tongue, peal forth, "Great lion!" "Great chief !" "Sleep, 
 my lord I" &c. The men utter similar salutations ; and 
 Sokeletu receives all with becoming indifference. After a 
 few minutes' conversation and telling the news, the head 
 man of the village, who is almost always a Makololo, rises 
 and brings forth a number of largo pots of beer. Cala- 
 bashes, being used as drinking-cups, are handed round, and 
 aa many as can partake of the beverage do so, grasping 
 the vessels so eagerly that they are in danger of being 
 broken. 
 
 They bring forth also large pots and bowls of thick milk; 
 some contain six or eight gallons; and each of tnese, as 
 well as of the beer, is given to a particular person, who has 
 the power to divide it with whom he pleases. The head- 
 man of any section of the tribe is generally selected for 
 this office. Spoons not being generally in fashion, the milk 
 is conveyed to the mouth with the hand. I often presented 
 my friends with iron spoons, and it was curious to observe 
 how the habit of hand- eating prevailed, though they were 
 delighted with the spoons. Thev lifted out a little with 
 the utensil, then put it on the left hand, and ate it out oi 
 that. 
 
 As the Makololo have great abundance of cattle, and the 
 chief is expected to feed all who accompany him, he either 
 selects an ox or two of his own from the numerous cattle- 
 stations that he possesses at different spots all over the 
 country, or is presented by the head-men of the villages 
 he visits with as many as he needs, by way of tribute. The 
 animals are killed by a thrust from a small javelin in the 
 region of the heart, the wound being purposely small in 
 order to avoid any loss of/ blood, whict, with the internal 
 parts, are the perquisites of the men who perform the work 
 of the butcher; hence all are eager to render service in 
 that line. Each tribe has its own way of cutting up and 
 distributing an animal. Among the Makololo the hump 
 and ribs belong to the chief; among the Bakwains the 
 breast is his perquisite. After the oxen are cut up, the dif- 
 
112 SOCIAL MODE OF EATING. 
 
 ferent joints are placed before Sekeletu, and he apportions 
 them among the gentlemen of the party. The whole is 
 rapidly divided by their attendants, cut into long strips, 
 and so many of these are thrown into the fires at once that 
 they are nearly put out. Half broiled and burning hot, 
 the meat is quickly handed round; every one gets a mouth- 
 ful, but no one except the chief has time to masticate. It 
 is not the enjoyment of eating they aim at, but to get as 
 much of the food into the stomach as possible during the 
 short time the others are cramming as well as themselves, 
 for no one can eat more than a mouthful after the others 
 have finished. They are eminently gregarious in their 
 eating; and, as they despise any one who eats alone, I 
 always poured out two cups of coffee at my own meals, so 
 that the chief, or some one of the principal men, might 
 partake along with me. They all soon become very fond 
 of coffee; and, indeed, some of the tribes attribute greater 
 fecundity to the daily use of this beverage. They were all 
 well acquainted with the sugarcane, as they cultivate it 
 in the Barotse country, but knew nothing of the method 
 of extracting the sugar from it. They use the cane only 
 for chewing. Sekeletu, relishing the sweet coffee and bis- 
 cuits, of which I then had a store, said "he knew my heart 
 loved him by finding his own heart warming to my food.''' 
 He had been visited during my absence at the Cape by 
 some traders and Griquas, and "their coffee did not taste 
 half so nice as mine, because .they loved his ivory and not 
 himself." This was certainly an original mode of dis- 
 cerning character. 
 
 Sekeletu and I had each a little gipsy-tent in which to 
 ■leep. The Makololo huts are generally clean, while those 
 of the Makalaka are infested with vermin. The cleanli- 
 ness of the former is owing to the habit of frequently 
 smearing the floors with a plaster composed of cow-dung 
 and earth. If we slept in the tent in some villages, the 
 mice ran over our faces and disturbed our sleep, or hungry 
 prowling dogs would eat our shoes and leave only the 
 
MAKOLOLO HUTS. 113 
 
 solos. When they were guilty of this and other misde* 
 moanors, we got the loan of a hut. The best sort of Ma- 
 kololo huts consist of three circular walls, with small hole* 
 as doors, each similar to that in a docj-house; and it us 
 necessary to bend down the body to get in, even when on 
 all-fours. The roof is formed of reeds or straight sticks, 
 in shape like a Chinaman's* hat, bound firmly together with 
 circular bands, which are lashed with the strong inner 
 bark of the mimosa-tree. When all prepared except the 
 thatch, it is lifted on to the circular wall, the rim resting 
 on a circle of poles, between each of which the third wall 
 is built. The roof is thatched with fine grass, and sewed 
 with the same material as the lashings; and, as it projects 
 far beyond the walls, and reaches within four feet of the 
 ground, the shade is the best to be found in the country. 
 These huts are very cool in the hottest day, but are close 
 and deficient in ventilation by night. 
 
 The bed is a mat made of rushes sewn together with 
 twine; the hip-bone soon becomes sore on the hard flat 
 surface, as we are not allowed to make a hole in the floor 
 to receive the prominent part called trochanter by ana- 
 tomists, as we do when sleeping on grass or sand. 
 
 Our course at this time led us to a part above Sesheke, 
 called Katonga, where there is a village belonging to a 
 Bashubia man named Sekhosi, — latitude 17° 29' 13", longi- 
 tude 24° 33'. The river here is somewhat broader than at 
 Sesheke, and certainly not less than six hundred yards. 
 It flows somewhat slowly in the first part of its eastern 
 course. When the canoes came from Sekhosi to take us 
 over, one of the comrades of Sebituane rose, and, looking 
 to Sekeletu, called out, ' • The elders of a host always tako 
 tho lead in an attack." This was understood at once; and 
 Sekeletu, with all the young men, were obliged to give tho 
 elders the precedence, and remain on the southern bank 
 and see that all went orderly into the canoes. It took a 
 considerable time to ferry over the whole of our large 
 party, as, even with quick paddling, from six to eight 
 H io» 
 
114 THE LEEAMBYE. 
 
 minutes were spent in the mere passage from bank to 
 bank. 
 
 Several days were spent in collecting canoes from dif- 
 ferent villages on the river, which we now learned is called 
 by the whole of i\ie Barotse the Liambai or Leeambye 
 This we could not ascertain On our first visit, 'and, conse- 
 quently, called the r.'ver after the town "Sesheke." This 
 term Sesheke means "white sand-banks," many of which 
 exist at this part. There is another village in the valley 
 of the Barotse likewise called Sesheke, and for the same 
 reason; but the term Leeambye means " the large river," 
 or the river par excellence. Luambeji, Luambesi, Ambezi, 
 Ojimbesi, and Zambesi, &c, are names applied to it at dif- 
 ferent parts of its course, according to the dialect spoken, 
 and all possess a similar signification, and express the na- 
 tive idea of this magnificent stream being the main drain 
 of the country. 
 
 In order to assist in the support of our large party, and 
 at the same time to see the adjacent country, I went 
 several times, during our stay, to the north of the village 
 for game The country is covered with clumps of beauti- 
 ful trees, among which fine open glades stretch away in 
 every direction ; when the river is in flood these are inun- 
 dated, but the tree-covered' elevated spots are much more 
 numerous here than in the country between the Chobe and 
 the Leeambye. The soil is dark loam, as it is everywhere 
 on spots reached by the inundation, while among the trees 
 it is sandy, and not covered so densely with grass as else- 
 where, A sandy ridge covered with trees, running parallel 
 to and about eight miles from the river, is the limit of the 
 inundation on the north ; there are large tracts of this 
 sandy forest in that direction, till you come to other dis- 
 tricts of alluvial soil and fewer trees. The latter soil ; « 
 always found in the vicinity of rivers which either now 
 overflow their banks annually or formerly did so. The 
 people enjoy rain in sufficient quantity to raise very large 
 supplies of grain and groundnuts. 
 
AN ELANS SHOT. 116 
 
 Great numbers of buffaloes, zebras, tsessebes, tahaetsi, 
 fcud eland, or pohu, grazed undisturbed on these plains, so 
 Chat veiy little exertion was required to secure a fair Bup- 
 ply of meat for the party during the necessary delay. 
 Hunting on foot, as all those who have engaged in it id 
 this country will at once admit, is very hard work indeod. 
 The heat of the sun by day is so great, even in winter, as 
 it now was, that, had there been any one on whom I could 
 have thrown the task, he would have been most welcome 
 to all the sport the toil is supposed to impart. But the 
 Makololo shot so badly, that, in order to save my powder, 
 I was obliged to go myself. 
 
 "We shot a beautiful cow-eland, standing in the shade of 
 a fine tree. It was evident that she had lately had hoi 
 calf killed by a lion, for there were five long deep scratches 
 on both sides of her hind-quarters, as if she had run to the 
 rescue of her calf, and the lion, leaving it, had attacked 
 herself, but was unable to pull her down. When lying on 
 the ground, the milk flowing from the large udder showed 
 that she must have been seeking the sh^de, from the dis- 
 tress its nou-removal in the natural manner caused. She 
 was a beautiful creature, and Lebeole, a Makololo gentle- 
 man who accompanied me, speaking in reference to its size 
 and beauty, said, "Jesus ought to have given us these in- 
 stead of cattle." It was a new, undescribed variety of this 
 splendid antelope. It was marked with narrow white 
 bands across the body, exactly like those of the koodoo, 
 and had a black patch of more than a hand-breadth on tht 
 outer side of the forearm. 
 
116 ASCENT OF THE LEEAMBYE. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 EH LIVINGSTONE ASCENDS THE LEEAMBYE, AND DETERMINES 
 TO OPEN A COMMUNICATION WITH THE WEST COAST 09 
 AFRICA. 
 
 Having at last procured a sufficient number of canoes, 
 we began to ascend the river. I had the choice of the 
 whole leet, and selected the best, though not the largest ; 
 it was thirty-four feet long by twenty inches wide. I had 
 six paddlers, and the larger canoe of Sekeletu had ten 
 They stand upright, and keep the stroke with great pre- 
 cision, though they change from side to side as the course 
 demands. The men at the head and stern are selected from 
 the strongest and most expert of the whole. The canoes, 
 being flat-bottomed, can go into very shallow water; and 
 whenever the men can feel the bottom they use the paddles, 
 which are about eight feet long, as poles to punt with. 
 Our fleet consisted of thirty-three canoes, and about ono 
 hundred and sixty men. It was beautiful to see then- 
 skimming along so quickly and keeping the time so well 
 On land the Makalala fear the Makololo; on water the 
 Makololo fear them, and car not prevent them from racing 
 with each other, dashing along at the top of their speed 
 and placing their masters' lives in danger. In the event 
 of a capsize, many of the Makololo would sink like stones. 
 A case of this kind happened on the first day of our voyage 
 up. The wind, blowing generally from the east, raises very 
 large waves on the Leeambye. An old doctor of the Mako- 
 lolo had his canoe filled by one of these waves, and, being 
 unablo to swim, was lost. The Barotse who were in the 
 canoe with him saved themselves by swimming, and were 
 afraid of being punished with death in the evening for rot 
 saving the doctor as well. Had he been a man of more 
 influence, they certainly would havo suffered death. 
 
ISLANDS — THE BANYETI. 117 
 
 We proceeded rapidly up the river, *nd I felt the plea- 
 Riire of looking on lands which had never been seen by a 
 European before. The river is, indeed, a magnificent one, 
 often more than a mile broadband adorned with many 
 islands of from three to five miles in length. Both islands 
 and banks are covered with forests, and most of the tree* 
 on the brink of the water send down roots from their 
 branches like the banian, or Ficus Indica. The islands at 
 a little distance seem great rounded masses of sylvan vege- 
 tation reclining on the bosom of the glorious stream. The 
 beauty of the scenery of some of the islands is greatly in- 
 creased by the date-palm, with its gracefully-curved fronds 
 and refreshing light-green color, near the bottom of the 
 picture, and the lofty palmyra towering far above, and 
 casting its feathery foliage against a cloudless sky. It 
 being winter, we had the strange coloring on the banks 
 which many parts of African landscape assume. The 
 country adjacent to the river is rocky and undulating, 
 abounding in elephants and all other large game, except 
 leches and nakongs, which seem generally to avoid stony 
 ground. The soil is of a reddish color, and very fertile, as 
 is attested by the great quantity of grain raised annually 
 by the Banyeti. A great many villages of this poor and 
 very industrious people are situated on both banks of the 
 river: they are expert hunters of the hippopotami and 
 other animals, and very proficient in the manufacture of 
 articles of wood and iron. The whole of this part of the 
 country being infested with the tsetse, they are unable to 
 rear domestic animals. This may have led to their skill 
 in handicraft works. Some make large wooden vessels 
 with vory neat lids, and wooden bowls of all sizes; and, 
 since the idea of sitting on stools has entered the Makololo 
 mind, they have shown great taste in the different forms 
 given tc the legs of these pieces of furniture. 
 
 Other Banyeti, or Manyeti, as they are called, make neat 
 and strong baskets of the split roots of a certain tree, 
 while others excel in pottery and iron. 1 cannot find that 
 
118 RAPIDS AND FALLS. 
 
 they have ever been warlike. Indeed, the wars in the 
 centre of the country, where no slave-trade existed, have 
 seldom been about any thing else but cattle. So well 
 known is this, that several tribes refuse to keep cattle, 
 because they tempt their enemies to come and steal 
 Nevertheless, they have no objection to eat them when 
 offered, and their country admits of being well stocked. 1 
 nave heard of but one war having occurred from another 
 cause. Three brothers, Barolongs, fbught for the possession 
 of a woman who was considered worth a battle, and the 
 tribe has remained permanently divided ever since. 
 
 From the bend up to the north, called Katima-molelo, (I 
 quenched fire,) the bed of the river is rocky, and the 
 stream runs fast, forming a succession of rapids and cata- 
 racts, which prevent continuous navigation when the 
 water is low. The rapids are not visible when the river 
 is full, but the cataracts of Nambwc, Bonibwe, and Kale 
 must always be dangerous. The fall at each of these is 
 between four and six feet. But the falls of Gonye present 
 a much more serious obstacle. There we were obliged to 
 take the canoes out of the water, and carry them more 
 than a mile by land. The fall is about thirty feet. The 
 main body of water, which comes over the ledge of rock 
 when the river is low, is collected into a space seventy or 
 eighty yards wide before it takes the leap, and, a mass of 
 rock being thrust forward against the roaring torrent, a 
 loud sound is produced. 
 
 As we passed up the river, the different villages of Ban- 
 yeti turned out to present Sekeletu with food and skins, as 
 their tribute. One large village is placed at Gonye, the 
 inhabitants of which are required to assist the Makololo 
 to carry their canoes past the falls. The tsetse here 
 lighted on us even in the middle of the stream. This 
 we crossed repeatedly, in order to make short cuts at 
 bmds of the river. The course is, however, remarkably 
 t raight among the rocks; and here the river is shallow, 
 
 a account of the great breadth of surface which it covers 
 
NALIELE— * SANTURU. 1 IS 
 
 When we came to about 16° 16' S. latitude, the higl 
 wooded banks seemed to leave the river, and no mort 
 tsetse appeared. 
 
 This visit was the first Sekeletu had made to these parts 
 since he attained the chieftainship. Those who had taken 
 part with Mpepe were consequently in great terror. 
 When we came to the town of Mpepe' s father, as he and 
 another man had counselled Mamochisane to put Sekeletu 
 to death and marry Mpepe, the two were led forth and 
 tossed into the river. Nokuane was again one of the 
 executioners. When I remonstrated against human blood 
 being shed in the off-hand way in which they were pro- 
 ceeding, the counsellors justified their acts by the evidence 
 given by Mamochisane, and calmly added, "You see we 
 are still Boers : we are not yet taught." 
 
 Naliele, the capital of the Barotse, is built on a mound 
 which was constructed artificially by Santuru, and was his 
 storehouse for grain. His own capital stood about five 
 hundred yards. to the south of that, in what is now the 
 bed of the river. All that remains of the largest mound 
 in the valley are a few cubic yards of earth, to erect which 
 cost the whole of the people of Santuru the labor of many 
 years. The same thing has happened to another ancient 
 site of a town, Linangelo, also on the left bank. It would 
 seem, therefore, that the river in this part of the valley 
 must be wearing eastward. 
 
 Santuru, at whose ancient granary we are staying, waa 
 a great hunter, and very fond of taming wild animals. 
 His people, aware of his taste, brought to him every young 
 antelope they could catch, and, among other things, two 
 young hippopotami. These animals gambolled in the river 
 by day, but never failed to remember to come up to Naliele 
 for their suppers of milk and meal. They were the wonder 
 of the country, till a stranger, happening to come to visit 
 Santuru, saw them reclining in the sun, and speared one 
 of tnem, on the supposition that it was wild. The same 
 unlucky accident happened to one of the cats I had brought 
 
120 BAROTSE ERAS. 
 
 to Sokeletn. A stranger, seeing an animal he had never 
 Viewed before, killed it and brought the trophy to tha 
 chief, thinking that he had made a very remarkable dis- 
 covery : we thereby lost the breed of cats, of which, from 
 iho swarms of mice, we stood in great need. 
 
 On making inquiries to ascertain whether Santuru, the 
 Moloiana, had ever been visited by white men, I could find 
 no vestige of any such visit; there is no evidence of any 
 of Santuru's people having ever seen a white man before 
 the arrival of Mr. Oswell and myself in 1851. The people 
 have, it is true, no written records; but any remarkable 
 event here is commemorated in names,' as was observed by 
 Park to be the case in the countries he traversed. The 
 year of our arrival is dignified by the name of the year 
 when the white men came, or of Sebituane's death; but 
 they prefer the former, as they avoid, if possible, any direct 
 reference to the departed. After my wife's first visit, great- 
 numbers of children were named Ma-Eobert, or mother ot 
 Eobert, her eldest child; others were named Gun, Horse, 
 Wagon, Monare, Jesus, &c. ; but though our names, and 
 those of the native Portuguese who came in 1853, were 
 adopted, there is not a trace of any thing of the sort having 
 happened previously among the Barotse: the visit of a 
 white man is such a remarkable event, that, had any taken 
 place during the last three hundred years, there must have 
 remained some tradition of it. 
 
 The town or mound of Santuru's mother was shown to 
 me : this was the first symptom of an altered state of feel- 
 ing with regard to the female sex that I l^id observed. 
 There are few or no cases of women being elevated to the 
 headships of towns farther south. The Barotse also showed 
 some relics of their chief, which evinced a greater amount 
 of the religious feeling than I had ever known displayed 
 among Bechuanas. His more recent capital, Lilonda, built, 
 too, on an artificial mound, is covered with different kinds 
 of trees, transplanted when young by himself. They form 
 a grove on the emd of the mound, in which are to be soeik 
 
RELIGIOUS FEELINO. 121 
 
 various instruments of iron just in the state he left them. 
 One looks like the guard of a basket-hilted swcrd; another 
 has an upright stem of the metal, on which are placed 
 branches worked at the ends into miniature axes, hoes, and 
 spears; on these he was accustomed to present offerings, 
 according as he desired favors to be conferred in undertak- 
 ing hewing, agriculture, or fighting. The people still living 
 there, in charge of these articles, were supported by presents 
 from the chief; and the Makololo sometimes follow the ex- 
 ample. This was the nearest approach to a priesthood 1 
 met. When I asked them to part with one of these relics, 
 they replied, " Oh, no : he refuses." " Who refuses V } " San- 
 turu," was their reply, showing their belief in a future state 
 of existence. After explaining to them, as I always did 
 when opportunity offered, the nature of true worship, and 
 praying with them in the simple form which needs no 
 offering from the worshipper except that of the heart, and 
 planting some fruit-tree seeds in the grove, we departed. 
 
 Another incident, which occurred at the confluence of 
 Ahe Leeba and Leeambye, may be mentioned here, as show- 
 ing a more vivid perception of the existence of spiritual 
 oeings, and greater proneness to worship, than among the 
 Bechuanas. Having taken lunar observations in the morn- 
 ing, I was waiting for a meridian altitude of the sun for 
 the latitude ; my chief boatman was sitting by, in order to 
 pack up the instruments as soon as I had finished; there 
 was a large halo, about 20° in diameter, round the sun; 
 thinking that the humidity of the atmosphere, which this 
 indicated, might betoken rain, I asked him if his experience 
 did not lead him to the same view. " Oh, no," replied he; 
 "it is the Barimo, [gods or departed spirits,] who tavs* 
 tailed a picho ; don't you see they have the Lord [sun] in 
 the centre ?" 
 
 While still at Naliele, I walked out to Katongo, (lat. 15° 
 
 16* B3",) on the ridge which bounds the valley of the Barotse 
 
 in that direction, and found it covered with trees. It is 
 
 only the commencement of the lands which are never 
 
 11 
 
122 THE HERALD. 
 
 inundated; their gentle rise from the dead level of the 
 valley much resembles the edge of the Desert in the valley 
 of the Nile. 
 
 I imagined the slight elevation (Katongo) might be 
 healthy, but was informed that no part of this region ia 
 exempt from fever. When the waters begin to retire from 
 this valley, such masses of decayed vegetation and mud 
 are exposed to the torrid sun that even the natives suffer 
 severely from attacks of fever. The grass is so rank in 
 its growth that one cannot see the black alluvial soil of 
 the bottom of this periodical lake. Even when the grass 
 falls down in winter, or is "laid" by its own weight, one is 
 obliged to lift the feet so high, to avoid being tripped up 
 by it, as to make walking excessively fatiguing. Young 
 leches are hidden beneath it by their dams; and the Mako- 
 lolo youth complain of being unable to run in the Barotse 
 land on this account. There was evidently no healthy 
 spot in this quarter; and, the current of the river being 
 about four and a half miles per hour, (one hundred yards 
 in sixty seconds,) I imagined we might find what we needed 
 in the higher lands, from which the river seemed to come. 
 I resolved, therefore, to go to the utmost limits of the Ba- 
 rotse country before coming to a final conclusion. Katongo 
 was the best place we had seen ; but, in order to accomplish 
 a complete examination, I left Sekeletu at Naliele, and 
 ascended the river. He furnished me with men, besides 
 my rowers, and among the rest a herald, that I might 
 enter his villages in what is considered a dignified manner. 
 This, it was supposed, would be effected by the herald 
 shouting out, at the top of his voice, "Here comes the lord, 
 the great lion;" the latter phrase being "tau e tona," 
 which, in his imperfect way of pronunciation, became 
 "sau e tona," and so like "the great sow" that I could not 
 receive the honor with becoming gravity, and had to 
 entreat him, much to the annoyance of my party, to be 
 *ilent. 
 
 In our ascent we visited a number of Makololo villages, 
 
THE LEEAMBYE AND LOETI 125 
 
 and were always received with a hearty welcome, as mes- 
 sengers to them of peace, which they term "sleep/ 1 They 
 behave well in public meetings, even on the first occasion 
 of attendance, probably from the habit of commanding the 
 Makalaka, crowds of whom swarm in every village, and 
 whom the Makololo women seem to consider as especially 
 under their charge. 
 
 The river presents the same appearance of low banks 
 without trees as we have remarked it had alter we came 
 to 16° 16', until we arrive at Libonta, (14° 59' S. lat.) 
 Twenty miles beyond that, we find forests down to the 
 water's edge, and tsetse. Here I might have turned back, 
 as no locality can be inhabited by Europeans where that 
 scourge exists; but, hearing that we were not far from 
 the confluence of the river of Londa or Lunda, named Leeba 
 or Loiba, and the chiefs of that country being reported to 
 be friendly to strangers, and therefore likely to be of use 
 to me on my return from the west coast, I still pushed on 
 to latitude 14° 11' 2" S. There the Leeambye assumes the 
 name Kabompo, and seems to be coming from the east. It 
 is a fine large river, about three hundred yards wide, and 
 the Leeba two hundred and fifty. The Loeti, a branch of 
 which is called Langebongo, comes from W.N.W., through 
 a level grassy plain named Mango; it is about one hundred 
 yards wide, and enters the Leeambye from the west ; the 
 waters of the Loeti are of a light color, and those of the 
 Leeba of a dark mossy hue. After the Loeti joins tho 
 Leeambye, the different-colored waters flow side by side fo» 
 some distance unmixed. 
 
 Before reaching the Loeti, we came to a number of people 
 from the Lobale region, hunting hippopotami. They fled 
 precipitately as soon as they saw the Makololo, leaving 
 their canoes and all their utensils and clothing. My own 
 Makalaka, who were accustomed to plunder wherever they 
 went, rushed after them like furies, totally regardless of 
 my shouting. As this proceeding would have destroyed 
 my character entirely «it Lobale, I took my stand on a 
 
124 NO HEALTH i' LOCATION 
 
 commanding position as they returned, and forced them t<i 
 lay down all the plunder on a sand-bank, and leave it there 
 for its lawful owners. 
 
 It was now quite evident that no healthy location could 
 be obtained in which the Makololo would be allowed to live 
 in peace 1 nad tnus a fair excuse, if I had chosen to avail 
 myself of it, of coming home and saying that the " door 
 was shut," because the Lord's time had not yet come. But 
 believing that it was my duty to devote some portion of 
 my life to these (to me at least) very confiding and affec- 
 tionate Makololo, I resolved to follow out the second part 
 of my plan, though I had failed in accomplishing the first. 
 The Leeba seemed to come from the N. and by "VV.^ or 
 .N'.N.W. ; so, having an old Portuguese map, which pointed 
 out the Coanza as rising from the middle of the continent 
 in 9° S. lat., I thought it probable that, when we had as- 
 cended the Leeba (from 14° 11') two or three degrees, we 
 should then be within one hundred and twenty miles of 
 the Coanza, and find no difficulty in following it down to 
 the coast near Loanda. This was the logical deduction; 
 but, as is the case with many a plausible theory, one of 
 the premises was decidedly defective. The Coanza, as we 
 afterward found, does not come from anywhere near the 
 centre of the country. 
 
 The numbers of large game above Libonta are prodigious, 
 and they proved remarkably tame. Eighty-one buffaloes 
 defiled in slow procession before our fire one evening, within 
 gunshot; and herds of splendid elands stood by day, with- 
 out fear, at two hundred yards' distance. They were all of 
 the striped variety, and, with their forearm markings, large 
 dewlaps, and sleek skins, were a beautiful sight to see. 
 The lions here roar much more than in the country near 
 the lake, Zouga, and Chobe. One evening we had a good 
 opportunity of hearing the utmost exertions the animal 
 can make in that line. We had made our beds on a large 
 sand-bank, and could be easily seen from all sides. A lion 
 on the opposite shore amused himself for hours by roaring 
 
LIONS ARABS. 125 
 
 as loudly as he could, putting, as is usual in such cases, his 
 mouth near the ground, to make the sound reverberate. 
 The river was too broad for a ball to reach him, so we let 
 him enjoy himself, certain that he durst not have boon 
 gailty of the impertinence in the Bushman country. 
 Wherever the game abounds, these animals exist in pro- 
 portionate numbers. Here they were very frequently seen, 
 and two of the largest I ever saw seemed about as tall as 
 
 . common donkeys; but the mane made their bodies appear 
 rather larger. 
 
 A party of Arabs from Zanzibar were in the countiy at 
 this time. Sekeletu had gone from Naliele to the town of 
 his mother before we arrived from the north, but left an ox 
 for our use, and instructions for us to follow him thither. 
 We came down a branch of the Leeambye called Marile, 
 whicli departs from the main river in latitude 15° 15'43"S., 
 and is a fine deep stream about sixty yards wide. It makes 
 the whole of the country around Naliele an island. When 
 sleeping at a village in the same latitude as Naliele town, 
 two of the Arabs mentioned made their appearance. They 
 were quite as dark as the Makololo, but, having their heads 
 Bhaved, I could not compare their hair with that of the 
 inhabitants of the country. When we were about to leave, 
 they came to bid adieu; but I asked them to stay and 
 help us to eat our ox. As they had scruples about eating 
 an animal not blooded in their own way, I gained their 
 good- will by saying I was quite of their opinion as to 
 
 ^getting quit of the blood, and gave them two legs of an 
 
 mimal slaughtered by themselves. They professed the 
 
 greatest detestation of the Portuguese, " because they eat 
 
 pigs;" and disliked the English, "because they thrash them 
 
 fox selling slaves." I was silent about pork ; though, had 
 
 they seen me at a hippopotamus two days afterward, they 
 
 would have set me down as being as much a heretic as any 
 
 of that nation ; but I ventured to tell them that I agreed 
 
 with the English, that it was better to let the children 
 
 glow up and comfort their mothers when they became old, 
 
 11* 
 
/20* TOWN OF MA-SEKELETO 
 
 than to carry them away and sell them across the 0«a 
 This they never attempt to justify; " they want them onlv 
 to cultivate the land, and take care of them as their chil- 
 dren." It is the same old story, justifying a monstrous 
 wrong on pretence of taking care of those degraded por- 
 tions of humanity which cannot take care of themselves; 
 doing evil that good may come. 
 
 These Arabs, or Moors, could read and write their own 
 language readily ; and, when speaking about our Savior, I 
 admired the boldness with which they informed me " that 
 Christ was a very good prophet, but Mohammed was far 
 greater. " And with respect to then loathing of pork, it 
 may have some foundation in their nature; for I have 
 known Bechuanas who had no prejudice against the wild 
 animal, and ate the tame without scruple, yet, unconscioua 
 of any cause of disgust, vomit it again. The Bechuanas 
 south of the lake have a prejudice against eating fish, and 
 allege a disgust to eating any thing like a serpent. This 
 may arise from the remnants of serpent- worship floating in 
 their minds, as, in addition to this horror of eating such 
 animals, they sometimes render a sort of obeisance to 
 living serpents by clapping their hands to them, and re- 
 fuisng to destroy the reptiles; but in the case of the hog 
 they are conscious of no superstitious feeling. 
 
 Having parted with our Arab friends, we proceeded down 
 the Marile till we re-entered the Leeambye, and went to 
 the town of Ma-Sekeletu (mother of Sekeletu,) opposite the 
 island of Loyela. Sekeletu had always supplied me most 
 liberally with food, and, as soon as I arrived, presented me 
 with a pot of boiled meat, while his mother handed me a 
 large jar of butter, of which they make great quantities 
 for the purpose of anointing their bodies. He had himself 
 sometimes felt the benefit of my way of putting aside a 
 quantity of the meat after a meal, and had now followed 
 my example by ordering some to be kept forme. Accord- 
 ing to their habits, every particle of an ox is devoured at 
 one meal; and as the chief cannot, without a deviation 
 
HEATHENISM. 127 
 
 trom thou- customs, cat alone, he is often compelled to suffer 
 severely from hunger before another meal is ready. We 
 henceforth always worked into each other's hands by sav- 
 ing a little for each other; and w T hen some of the sticklers 
 for use and custom grumbled, I advised them to eat like 
 men, and not like vultures. 
 
 As this was the first visit which Sekeletu had paid to this 
 part of his dominions, it was to many a 3eason of great joy. 
 The head-men of each village presented oxen, milk, and 
 beer, more than the horde which accompanied him could 
 devour, though their .abilities in that line are something 
 wonderful. The people usually show their joy and work 
 off their excitement in dances and songs. 
 
 As Sekeletu had been waiting for me at his mother's, wo 
 left the town as soon as I arrived, and proceeded down the 
 river. Our speed with the stream was very great, for in 
 one day we went from Litofe to Gonye, a distance of forty- 
 four miles of latitude; and if we add to this the windings 
 of the river, in longitude the distance will not be much less 
 than sixty geographical miles. At this rate we soon 
 reached Sesheke, and then the town of Linyanti. 
 
 1 had been, during a nine weeks' tour, in closer contact 
 with heathenism than I had ever been before; and though 
 all, including the chief, were as kind and attentive to me 
 as possible, and there was no w T ant of food, (oxen being 
 slaughtered daily, sometimes ten at a time, more than suf- 
 ficient for the w T ants of all,) yet to endure the dancing, 
 roaring, and singing, the jesting, anecdotes, grumbling, 
 quarrelling, and murdering of these children of nature, 
 seemed more like a severe penance than any thing I had 
 before met with in the course of my missionary duties. I 
 took thence a more intense disgust at heathenism than I 
 had before, and formed a greatly-elevated opinion of the 
 latent effects of missions in the south, among tribes which 
 are reported to have been as savage as the Makoloio. Tho 
 indirect benefits which, to a casual observer, lie beneath the 
 surface and are. inappreciable, in reference to the probable 
 
I US ARRANGEMENTS FOR JOURNEYS. 
 
 wide diffusion, of Christianity at some future time, are 
 worth all the money and labor that have bf>en expeno*4 
 to produce them. 
 
 CHAPTEE XIII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE SETS OUT ON THE EXPEDITION TO THK 
 
 WEST COAST. 
 
 Linyanti, September, 1853. — The object proposed to the 
 Makololo seemed so desirable that it was resolved to proceed 
 with it as soon as the cooling influence of the rams should 
 be felt in November. The longitude and latitude of Lin- 
 yanti (lat. 18° 17' 20" S., long. 23° 50' 9" E.) showed that 
 St. Philip de Benguela was much nearer to us than 
 Loanda; and I might have easily made arrangements 
 with the Mambari to allow me to accompany them as far 
 as Bihe, which is on the road to that port; but it is so 
 undesirable to travel in a path once trodden by slave- 
 traders that I preferred to find out another line of march. 
 
 Accordingly, men were sent at my suggestion to examine 
 all the country to the west, to see if any belt of country 
 free from tsetse could be found to afford us an outlet. The 
 search was fruitless. The town and district of Linyanti 
 are surrounded by forests infested by this poisonous insect, 
 except at a few points, as that by which we entered at 
 Sanshureh and another at Sesheke. But the lands both 
 east and west of the Barotse valley are free from this 
 insect-plague. There, however, the slave-trade had defiled 
 the path, and no one ought to follow in its wake unless 
 well armed. The Mambari had informed me that many 
 English lived at Loanda; so / prepared to go thither. The 
 prospect of meeting with countrymen seemed to over* 
 balance the toils of the longer march. 
 
A »*i»ioho:" ITS RESULTS- 129 
 
 A "pieho'' was called to deliberate on the steps proposed 
 In these assemblies great freedom of speech is allowed* 
 *»nd on this occasion one of the old diviners said, "Where 
 s he taking you to ? This white man is throwing you 
 iway. Your garments already smell of blood." It if 
 curious to observe how much identity of character appears 
 all over the world. This man was a noted croaker. lie 
 always dreamed something dreadful in every expedition, 
 and was certain that an eclipse or comet betokened the 
 propriety of flight. But Sebituane formerly set his visions 
 down to cowardice, and Sekeletu only laughed at him now. 
 The general voice was in my favor ; so a band of twenty 
 seven were appointed to accompany me to the west 
 These men were not hired, but sent to enable me to 
 accomplish an object as much desired by the chief and 
 most of his people as by me. They were eager to obtain 
 free and profitable trade with white men. The prices 
 which the Cape merchants could give, after defraying the 
 great expenses of a long journey hither, being very small, 
 made it scarce worth while for the natives to collect pro- 
 duce for that market ; and the Mambari, giving only a few 
 bits of print and baize for elephants' tusks worth more 
 pounds than they gave yards of cloth, had ^produced the 
 belief that trade with them was throwing ivory away. 
 The desire of the Makololo for direct trade with the sea- 
 coast coincided exactly with my own conviction that no 
 permanent elevation of a people can be effected without 
 commerce. Neither could there be a permanent mission 
 here, unless the missionaries should descend to the level of 
 the Makololo, for even at Kolobeng we found that traders 
 demanded three or four times the price of the articles we 
 needed, and expected us to be grateful to them besides for 
 letting us have them at all. 
 
 The three men whom 1 had brought from Kuruman had 
 frequent relapses of the fever; so, finding that instead of 
 serving me I had to wait on them, I decided that the^ 
 should return to the south with Fleming as soon as he had 
 
130 THE LOST JOURNAL. 
 
 finished his trading. I was then entirely dependent on 
 my twenty-seven men, whom I might name Zambesians, 
 for there were two Makololo only, while the rest con*- 
 eisted of Barotse, Batoka, Bashubia, and two of the Am- 
 bonda. 
 
 The fever had caused considerable weakness in my own 
 frame, and a strange giddiness when I looked up suddenly 
 to any celestial object, for every thing seemed to rush 
 to the left, and if I did not catch hold of somo object 
 I fell heavily on the ground : something resembling a 
 gush of bile along the duct from the liver caused the 
 same fit to occur at night, whenever I turned suddenly 
 round. 
 
 The Makololo now put the question, "In the event of 
 your death, will not the white pei>ple blame us for having 
 allowed you to go away into an unhealthy, unknown 
 country of enemies V I replied that none of my friends 
 would blame them, because I would leave a book with 
 Bekeletu, to be sent to Mr. Moffat in case I did not return, 
 which would explain to him all that had happened until 
 the time of my departure. The book was a volume of my 
 Journal; and, as I was detained longer than I expected at 
 Loanda, this book, with a letter, was delivered by Sekeletu 
 to a trader, and I have been unable to trace it. I regret 
 this now, as it contained valuable notes on the habits of 
 wild animals, and the request was made in the letter to 
 convey the volume to my family. The prospect of passing 
 away from this fair and beautiful world thus came before 
 m« in a pretty plain, matter-of-fact form, and it did seem 
 a serious thing to leave wife and children, — to break up all 
 connection with earth and enter on an untried state of 
 existence; and I find myself in my journal pondering over 
 that fearful migration which lands us in eternity, wonder- 
 ing whether an angel will soothe the fluttering soul, sadly 
 flurried as it must be on entering the spirit-world, and 
 hoping that Jesus might speak but one word of peace, for 
 that would establish in the bosom an everlasting calm. 
 
OUTFIT FOR JOURNEY 131 
 
 But, as I bad always believed that, if we sorvo God at all, 
 it ought to be done in a manly way, I wrote to my 
 brother, commending our little girl to his care, as I was 
 determined to " succeed or perish" in the attempt to open 
 up this part of Africa. The Boers, by taking possession 
 of all my goods, had saved mo the trouble of making a 
 will; and, considering the light heart now left in my 
 bosom, and some faint efforts to perform the duty of Chris- 
 tian forgiveness, I felt that it was better to be the plun- 
 dered party than one of the plunderers. 
 
 When I committed the wagon and remaining goods to 
 the care of the Makololo, they took all the articles except 
 one box into their Jmts ; and two warriors — Ponuane and 
 Mahale — brought forward each a fine heifer-calf. After 
 performing a number of warlike evolutions, they asked 
 the chief to witness the agreement made between them, 
 that whoever of the two should kill a Matebelo warrior 
 first, in defence of the wagon, should possess both the 
 calves. 
 
 I had three muskets for my people, a rifle and a double- 
 barrelled smooth-bore for myself; and, having seen such 
 great abundance of game in my visit to the Leeba, I 
 imagined that I could easily supply the wants of my 
 party- Wishing also to avoid the discouragement which 
 would naturally be felt on meeting any obstacles if my 
 companions were obliged to carry heavy loads, I took only 
 a few biscuits, a few pounds of tea and sugar, and about 
 twenty of coffee, which, as the Arabs find, though used 
 without either milk or sugar, is a most refreshing beverage 
 after fatigue or exposure to the sun. We carried one small 
 tin canister, about fifteen inches square, filled with spare 
 Bhirting, trousers, and shoes, to be used when we reached 
 civilized life, and others in a bag, which were expected to 
 wear out on the way ; another of the same size for medi- 
 cines ; and a third for books, my stock being a Nautical 
 Almanac, Thomson's Logarithm Tables, and a Bible; . 
 fourth box contained a magic lantern, whiah we found of 
 
 
132 OUTFIT INSTRUMENTS. 
 
 much use. The sextant and artificial borizon, thermo 
 meter, and compasses were carried apart. My ammuni- 
 tion was distributed in portions through the whole lug- 
 gago; so that, if an accident should befall one part, we 
 could still have others to fall back upon. Our chief hopes 
 for food were upon that; but, in case of failure, I took 
 about twenty pounds of beads, worth forty shillings, which 
 still remained in the stock I brought from Cape Town, a 
 small gypsy tent, just sufficient to sleep in, a sheep-skin 
 mantle as a blanket, and a horse-rug as a bed. As I had 
 always found that the art of successful travel consisted in 
 taking as few " impediments" as possible, and not for- 
 getting to carry my wits about me, the outfit was rather 
 spare, and intended to be still more so when we should 
 come to leave the canoes. Some would consider it inju- 
 dicious to adopt this plan; but I had a secret conviction 
 tmat, if I did not succeed, it would not bo for want of the 
 " knick-knacks" advertised as indispensable for travellers, 
 but from want of "pluck," or because a large array of 
 baggage excited the cupidity of the tribes through whose 
 country we wished to pass. 
 
 The instruments I carried, though few, were the best of 
 their kind. A sextant, by the famed makers Troughton 
 and Sims, of Fleet Street; a chronometer watch, with a 
 stop to the seconds-haod, — an admirable contrivance for 
 enabling a person to take the exact time of observations . 
 it was constructed by Dent, of the Strand, (61,) for the 
 .Royal Geographical Society, and selected for the service 
 by the President, Admiral Smythe, to whose judgment and 
 kindness I am in this and other matters deeply indebted. 
 It was pronounced by Mr. Maclear to equal most chrono- 
 meters in performance. For these excellent instruments 1 
 have much pleasure in recording my obligations to my 
 good friend Colonel Steel, and at the same time to Mr. 
 Maclear for much of my ability to use them. Besides 
 these, I had a thermometer by Dollond ; a compass from 
 the Cape Observatory, and a small pocket one in addition ; 
 
BANKS OP THE CHOBE. 133 
 
 a good small telescope with a stand capable of being 
 screwed into a tree. 
 
 11th of November, 1853. — Left the town of Linyanti, 
 accompanied by Sekeletu and his principal men, to embark 
 on the Chobe. The chief came to the river in order to see 
 that all was right at parting. We. crossed five branches 
 of the Chobe before reaching the main stream : this 
 ramification must be the reason why it appeared so 
 small to Mr. Oswell and myself in 1851. When all the 
 departing branches re-enter, it is a large, deep river. The 
 spot of embarkation was the identical island where we met 
 Sebituane, first known as the island of Maunku, one of his 
 wives. The chief lent me his own canoe; and, as it was 
 broader than usual, I could turn about in it with ease. 
 
 The Chobe is much infested by hippopotami, and, as 
 certain elderly males are expelled the herd, they become 
 soured in their temper, and so misanthropic as to attack 
 every canoe that passes near them. 
 
 The course of the river we found to be extremely tor- 
 tuous ; so much so, indeed, as to carry us to all points of the 
 compass every dozen miles. Some of us walked from a bend 
 at the village of Moremi to another nearly due east of that 
 point in six hours, while the canoes, going at more than 
 double our speed, took twelve to accomplish the voyago 
 between the same two places. And though the river is 
 from thirteen to fifteen feet in depth at its lowest ebb, and 
 broad enough to allow a steamer to ply upon it, the sud- 
 denness of the bendings would prevent navigation ; but, 
 should the country ever become civilized, the Chobe would 
 be a convenient natural canal. We spent forty-two and a 
 half hours, paddling at the rate of five miles an hour, in 
 coming from Linyanti to the confluence ; there we found a 
 dike of amygdaloid lying across the Leeambye. 
 
 The actual point of confluence of the Chobe and the 
 Leeambye is ill defined, on account of each dividing into 
 several branches as they inosculate ; but when the whole 
 body of water collects into one bed it is a goodly sight 
 
 12 
 
134 ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE. 
 
 for one who has spent many years in the thirsty south. 
 Standing on one bank, even the keen eye of the natives 
 cannot detect whether two large islands, a few miles cast 
 of the junction, are mainland or not. 
 
 After spending one night at the Makololo village on 
 Mparia, we left the Chobe, and, turning round, began to 
 ascend the Leeambye; on the 19th of November we again 
 f cached the town of Sesheke. It stands on the north bank 
 of the river, and contains a large population of Makalaka, 
 under Moriantsane, brother-in-law of Sebituane. There 
 are parties of various tribes here, assembled under their 
 respective head-men, but a few Makololo rule over all. 
 Their sway, though essentially despotic, is considerably 
 modified by certain customs and laws. 
 
 The following circumstance, which happened here wher 
 I was present with Sekeletu, shows that the simple mode 
 of punishment by forcing a criminal to work out a fine did 
 not strike the Makololo mind until now. 
 
 A stranger, having visited Sesheke for the purpose of 
 barter, was robbed by one of the Makalaka of most of his 
 goods. The thief, when caught, confessed the theft, and 
 that he had given the articles to a person who had removed 
 to a distance. The Makololo were much enraged at the 
 idea of their good name being compromised by this treat- 
 ment of a stranger. Their customary mode of- punishing 
 a crime which causes much indignation is to throw the 
 criminal into the river; but, as this would not restore the 
 Jost property, they were sorely puzzled how to act. The 
 case was referred to me, and I solved the difficulty by pay- 
 ing for the loss myself and sentencing the thief to work 
 out an equivalent with his hoe in a garden. This system . 
 was immediately introduced, and thieves are now sen- 
 tenced to raise an amount of corn proportioned to thoir 
 offences. Among the Bakwains, a woman who had stolen 
 from the garden of another was obliged to part with her 
 own entirely : it became the property cf her whose field 
 was injured by the crime. 
 
PUBLIC ADDRESSES 136 
 
 There is no stated day of rest in any part of this country, 
 except the day after the appearance of the now moon; and 
 the people then refrain only from going to their gardens, 
 A curious custom, not to be found among the Bechuanas, 
 prevails among the black tribes beyond them. They watch 
 most eagerly for the first glimpse of the new moon, and, 
 when they perceive the faint outline after the sun has set 
 deep in the west, they utter a loud shout of " Kua !" and 
 vociferate prayers to it. My men, for instance, called out, 
 "Let our journey with the white man bo prosperous ! Let 
 our enemies perish, and the children of Nake become rich I 
 May he have plenty of meat on this journey !" &c. &c. 
 
 I gave many public addresses to the people of Seshcko 
 under the outspreading camel-thorn-tree, which serves as a 
 shade to the kotla on the high bank of the river. It was 
 pleasant to see the long lines of men, women, and children 
 winding along from different quarters of the town, each 
 party following behind their respective head-men. They 
 often amounted to between five and six hundred souls, and 
 required an exertion of voice which brought back the com- 
 plaint for which I had got the uvula excised at the Cape. 
 They were always very attentive; and Moriantsane, in 
 order, as he thought, to please me, on one occasion roso up 
 in the middle of the discourse, and hurled his staff at tho 
 heads of some young fellows whom he saw working with 
 a skin instead of listening. My hearers sometimes put very 
 sensible questions on the subjects brought before them; at 
 other times they introduced the most frivolous nonsense 
 immediately after hearing the most solemn truths. Some 
 begin to pray to Jesus in secret as soon as they hear of the 
 white man's God, with but little idea of what they ar« 
 about, and no doubt are heard by Him who, like a father 
 pitieth his children. Others, waking by night, recollect 
 what has been said about the future world so clearly that 
 they tell next day what a fright they got by it, and resolve 
 not to listen to tho teaching again ; and not a few keep to 
 the determination not to believe, as certain villagers in the 
 
136 PROGRESS UP THE LEEAMBYB. 
 
 south, who put all their cocks to death because they 
 crowed the words, " Tlang lo rapeleng," — u Come along to 
 prayers." 
 
 On recovering partially from a severe attack of fever 
 which remained upon me ever since our passing the village 
 of Moremi on the Chobe, we made ready for our departure 
 up the river by sending messages before us to the villages 
 to prepare food. We took four elephants' tusks, belonging 
 to Sekeletu, with us, as a means of testing the difference of 
 prices between the Portuguese, whom we expected to reach, 
 and the white traders from the south. Moriantsane sup- 
 plied us well with honey, milk, and meal. The rains were 
 just commencing in this district; but, though showers 
 sufficient to lay the dust had fallen, they had no influence 
 whatever on the amount of water in the river, yet never 
 was there less in any part than three hundred yards of a 
 deep flowing stream. 
 
 Our progress up the river was. rather slow : this was 
 caused by waiting opposite 'different villages for supplies 
 of food. We might have done with much less than we got; 
 but my Makololo man, Pitsane, knew of the generous orders 
 Of Sekeletu, and was not at all disposed to allow them to 
 remain a dead letter. The villages of the Banyeti con- 
 tributed large quantities of mosibe, a bright-red bean 
 yielded by a large tree. The pulp enclosing the seed is not 
 much thicker than a red wafer, and is the portion used. It 
 requires the addition of honey to render it at all palatable. 
 
 To these were added great numbers of the fruit which 
 yields a variety of the nux vomica, from which we derive 
 that virulent poison strychnia. The pulp between the nuts 
 Is the part eaten, and it is of a pleasant juicy nature, having 
 a sweet acidulous taste. The fruit itself resembles a lar^e 
 yellcw orange, but the rind is hard, and, with the pips and 
 bark, contains much of the deadly poison. They evince 
 their noxious qualities by an intensely bitter taste. The 
 nuts, swallowed inadvertently, cause considerable pain, 
 but not death ; and, to avoid this inconvenience, the peopie 
 
HIPPOPOTAMI. 137 
 
 dry the pulp before the fire, in order to hi able the more 
 fl&sily to get rid of the noxious seed. 
 
 The rapids in the part of the river between Katima- 
 molelo and Nameta are relieved by several reaches of still 
 deep water, fifteen or twenty miles long. In these very 
 large herds of hippopotami are seen ; and the deep furrows 
 they make, in ascending the banks to graze during tho 
 nights, are everywhere apparent. They aro guided back 
 to the water by the scent; but a long-continued pouring rain 
 makes it impossible to perceive by that means in which 
 direction the river lies, and they are found bewildered on 
 the land. The hunters take advantage of their helplessness 
 on these occasions to kill them. 
 
 It is impossible to judge of the numbers in a herd, for 
 they are almost always hidden beneath the waters; but, aa 
 they require to come up every few nvnutes to breathe, 
 when there is a constant succession of heads thrown up, 
 then the herd is supposed to be large. They love a still 
 reach of the stream, as in the more rapid parts of tho 
 channel they are floated down so quickly that much exer- 
 tion is necessary to regain the distance lost, by frequently 
 swimming up again : such constant exertion disturbs them 
 in their nap. They prefer to remain by day in a drowsy, 
 yawning state, and, though their eyes are open, they take 
 little notice of things at a distance. The males utter a 
 loud succession of snorting grunts, which may be heard 
 a mile off. The canoe in which I was, in passing over a 
 wounded one, elicited a distinct grunting, though the 
 animal lay entirely under the water. 
 
 The young, when very little, take their stand on the 
 neck of the /lam, and the small head, rising above the 
 largo, comes soonest to the surface. The dam, knowing 
 the more urgent need of her calf, comes more frequently to 
 the surface when it is in her care. But in the rivers of 
 Londa, where they are much in danger of being shot, even 
 the hippopotamus gains wit by experience; for, while those 
 in the Zambesi put up their heads openly to blow, those 
 
 12* 
 
138 MODE OF SPENDING THE DAY. 
 
 referred to keep their noses among water-plants, and 
 breathe so quietly that one would not dream of their exist- 
 ence in the river except by footprints on the banks. 
 
 CHAPTEE XIT. 
 
 VOYAGE ON THE LEEAMBYE, CONTINUED. 
 
 J ) 
 
 30th of November, 1863. — At Gonye Falls. No rain has 
 /alien here; so it is excessively hot. The trees have put od 
 their gayest dress, and many flowers adorn the landscape 
 yet the heat makes all the leaves droop at mid-day and 
 look languid for want of rain. If the country increases 
 as much in beauty in front as it has done within the last 
 four degrees of latitude, it will be indeed a lovely land. 
 
 "We all felt great lassitude in travelling. The atmo- 
 sphere is oppressive both in cloud and sunshine. The evapo- 
 ration from the river must be excessively great ; and I feel 
 as if the fluids of the system joined in the general motion 
 of watery vapor upward, as enormous quantities of water 
 must be drunk to supply its place. 
 
 When under way our usual procedure is this : — We get 
 up a little before five in the morning ; it is then beginning 
 to dawn. While I am dressing, coffee is made ; and, having 
 filled my pannikin, the remainder is handed to my com- 
 panions, who eagerly partake of the refreshing beverage 
 The servants are busy loading the canoes, while the prin 
 cipal men are sipping the coffee, and, that being soon over 
 we embark. The next two hours are the most pleasant 
 part of the day's sail. The men paddle away most vigor- 
 ously : the Earotse, being a tribe of boatmen, have large 
 deeply-developed chests and shoulders, with indifferent 
 lower extremities. They often engage in loud scolding of 
 each other, in order to relieve the tedium of their work. 
 About eleven we land, and eat any meat which may ba?ft 
 
■ 
 
 PALLS OP GONYE. 139 
 
 remnined from the previous evening meal, or a biscuit with 
 honey, and drink water. 
 
 After an hour's rest, we again embark and cower under 
 an umbrella. The heat is oppressive, and, being weak 
 from the last attack of fever, I cannot land and keep the 
 camp supplied with flesh. The men, being quite uncovered 
 in the sun, perspire profusely, and in the afternoon begin 
 to stop, as if waiting for the canoes which have been left 
 behind. Sometimes we reach a sleepipg-place two hours 
 before sunset, and, all being troubled with languor, we 
 gladly remain for the night. Coffee again, and a biscuit, or 
 a piece of coarse bread made of maize-meal, or that of the 
 native corn, make up the bill of fare for the evening, un- 
 less we have been fortunate enough to kill something, — 
 when we boil a potful of flesh. This is done by cutting it 
 up into long strips and pouring in water till it is covered. 
 When that is boiled dry, the meat is considered ready. 
 
 The people at Gonye carry the canoes over the space 
 requisite to avoid the falls by slinging them on poles tied 
 on diagonally. They place these on their shoulders, and, 
 setting about the work with good humor, soon accomplish the 
 task. They ai^ a merry set of mortals; a feeble joke sets 
 them off in a fit of laughter. Here, as elsewhere, all peti- 
 tioned for the magic lantern; and, as it is a good means of 
 conveying instruction, I willingly complied. 
 
 The falls of Gonye have not been made by wearing back 
 like those of Niagara, but are of a fissure form. For many 
 miles below, the river is confined in a narrow space of not 
 more than one hundred yards wide. The water goes boiling 
 along, and gives the idea of great masses of it rolling over 
 and over, so that even the most expert swimmer would find 
 it difficult to keep on the surface. Here it is that the river, 
 when in flood, rises fifty or sixty feet in perpendicular 
 height. The islands above the falls are covered with foliago 
 as beautiful as can be seen anywhere. Yiewed from the 
 mass of rock which overhangs the fall, the scenery was T,he 
 loveliest 1 had seen. 
 
 Nothing worthy of note occurred on our way to Nam* * 
 
140 MAKOLOLO FORAY. 
 
 There we heard that a party of the Makololo, headed by 
 Lerimo, had made a foray to the north and up the Leeba, 
 in the very direction in which we were about to proceed. 
 Mpololo, the uncle of Sekeletu, is considered the head-man 
 of the Barotse valley ; and the perpetrators hai his full 
 sanction, because Masiko, a son of Santuru, the former 
 chief of the Barotse, had fled high up the Leeambye, and, 
 establishing himself there, had sent men down to the vici- 
 nity of Naliele to draw away the remaining Barotse from 
 their allegiance. Lerimo' s party had taken some of this 
 Mesiko's subjects prisoners, and destroyed several villages 
 of the Balonda, to whom we were going. This was in 
 direct opposition to the policy of Sekeletu, who wished to 
 be at peace with these northern tribes ; and Pitsane, my 
 head-man, was the bearer of orders to Mpololo to furnish 
 us with presents to the very chiefs they had attacked. 
 Thus, we were to get large pots of clarified butter and 
 bunches of beads, in confirmation of the message of peace 
 we were to deliver. 
 
 When we reached Litofe, we heard that a fresh foray 
 was in contemplation ; but I sent forward orders to disband 
 the party immediately. At Ma-Sekeletu's .town we found 
 the head-offendei, Mpololo himself, and I gave him a bit 
 of my mind, to the effect that, as I was going with the full 
 sanction of Sekeletu, if any harm happened to me in con- 
 sequence of his ill-advised expedition the guilt would rest 
 with him. Ma-Sekeletu, who was present, heartily approved 
 all I said, and suggested that all the captives taken by 
 Lerimo should be returned by my hand, to show Masiko 
 that the guilt of the foray lay not with the superior per- 
 sons of the Makololo, but with a mere servant. Her good 
 sense appeared in other respects besides; and, as this was 
 exactly what my own party had previously resolved to 
 iuggest, we were pleased to hear Mpololo agree to do what 
 he was advised. He asked me to lay the matter before 
 the under-chiefs of Naliele, and when we reached that 
 place, on the 9th of December, I Jid so in a picho, called 
 
LIBERALITY 01 THE TEOPLE. 141 
 
 expressly for the purpose. Lerimo was present, and felt 
 rather crestfallen when his exploit was described by Moho- 
 risi, one of my companions, as one of extreme cowardice, 
 he having made an attack upon the defenceless villagers of 
 Londa, while, as we had found on our former visit, a lion 
 had actually killed eight people of Naliele without his 
 daring to encounter it. The Makololo are cowardly in 
 respect to animals, but bravo against men. Mpololo took 
 all the guilt upon himself before the people, and delivered 
 up a captive child whom his wife had in her possession ; 
 others followed his example, till we procured the release of 
 five of the prisoners. Some thought, as Masiko had tried 
 to take their children by stratagem, they ought to take his 
 by force, as the two modes suited the genius of each people : 
 the Makalaka delight in cunning, and the Makololo in 
 fighting; and others thought, if Sekeletu meant them to 
 be at peace with Masiko, he ought to have told them so. 
 
 It is rather dangerous to tread in the footsteps of a 
 marauding-party with men of the same tribe as the 
 aggressors, but my people were in good spirits, and several 
 volunteers even offered to join our ranks. We, however, 
 adhered strictly to the orders of Sekeletu as to our com- 
 panions, and refused all others. 
 
 The people of every village treated us most liberally, 
 presenting, besides oxen, butter, milk, and meal, more than 
 we could stow away in our canoes. The cows in this valley 
 are now yielding, as they frequently do, more milk than 
 the people can use, and both men and women present 
 butter in such quantity that I shall be able to refresh my 
 men as we move along. Anointing the skin prevents the 
 excessive evaporation of the fluids of the body, and acts as 
 clothing in both sun and shade. They always made their 
 presents gracefully. When an ox was given, the owner 
 would say, " Here is a little bit of bread for you." This was 
 pleasing, for I had been accustomed to the Bechuanas pre- 
 senting a miserable goat, with the pompous exclamation, 
 "Behold an ox!" The women persisted in giving me 
 
142 DEPARTURE EKOJVI NAL1ELE. 
 
 copious supplies of shrill praises, or "lullilooing;" but, 
 though I frequently told them to modify their " great lords" 
 and "great lions" to more humble expressions, they so evi. 
 dently intended to do me honor that I could not help being 
 pleased with the poor creatures' wishes for our success. 
 
 The rains began while we were at Naliele ; this is much 
 later than usual ; but, though the Barotse valley has heeu 
 in need of rain, the people never lack abundance of food 
 The showers are refreshing, but the air feels hot and close; 
 Jie thermometer, however, in a cool hut, stands only at 
 84°. The access of the external air to any spot at once 
 "raises its temperature above 90°. A new attack of fever 
 here caused excessive languor ; but, as I am already getting 
 tired of quoting my fevers, and never liked to read travels 
 myself where much was said about the illnesses of the 
 traveller, I shall henceforth endeavor to say little about 
 them. 
 
 We here sent back the canoe of Sekeletu, and got the 
 loan of others from Mpololo. Eight riding-oxen, and seven 
 for slaughter, were, according to the orders of that chief, 
 also furnished; some were intended for our own use, and 
 others as presents to the chiefs of the Balonda. Mpololo 
 was particularly liberal in giving all that Sekeletu ordered, 
 though, as he feeds on the cattle he has in charge, he might 
 have felt it so much abstracted from his own perquisites. 
 
 Leaving Naliele, amid abundance of good wishes for the 
 success of our expedition, and hopes that we might return 
 accompanied with white traders, we began again our ascent of 
 the river. It was now beginning to rise, though the rainf 
 had but just commenced in the valley. The banks are low, 
 but cleanly cut, and seldom sloping. At low-water they are 
 from four to eight feet high, and make the river always 
 assume very much the aspect of a canal. 
 
 These perpendicular banks afford building-places to a 
 pretty bee-eater,* which loves to breed in society. The 
 
 * Merops apiaster and M. bullockoides, (Smith.) 
 
LIBONTA. 143 
 
 face of tne sand-bank is perforated with hundreds of holes 
 loading to their nests, each of which is about a foot apart 
 from the other; and as we pass they pour out ol their 
 hiding-places and float overhead. 
 
 17th December. — At Libonta. We were detained for days 
 together collecting contributions of fat and butter, accord- 
 ing to the orders of Sekeletu, as presents to the Balonda 
 chiefs. Much fever prevailed, and ophthalmia was rife, as 
 is generally the case before the rains begin. Some of my 
 own men required my assistance, as well as the people of 
 Libonta. A lion had done a good deal of mischief here, 
 and when the people went to attack it two men were badly 
 wounded; one of them had his thigh-bone quite broken, 
 showing the prodigious power of this animal's jaws. The 
 inflammation produced by the teeth-wounds proved fatal to 
 one of them. 
 
 Here we demanded the remainder of the captives, and 
 (rot our number increased to nineteen. They consisted of 
 women and children, and one young man of twenty. One 
 of the boys was smuggled away in the crowd as we em- 
 barked. The Makololo under-chiefs often act in direct 
 opposition to the will of the head-chief, trusting to cir- 
 cumstances and brazen-facedness to screen themselves from 
 his open displeasure; and, as he does not always find it 
 convenient to notice faults, they often go to considerable 
 lengths in wrong-doing. 
 
 Libonta is the last town of the Makololo ; so, when we 
 parted from it, we had only a few cattle-stations and out- 
 lying hamlets in front, and then an uninhabited border- 
 country till we came to Londa or Lunda. Libonta is situ- 
 ated on a mound, like the rest of the villages in the Barotse 
 valley, but here the tree-covered sides of the valley begin 
 to approach nearer the river. The village itself belongs to 
 two cf the chief wives of Sebituane, who furnished us with 
 an ox and abundance of other food. The same kindness 
 was manifested by all who could afford to give any thing; 
 and, as I glance over their deeds of generosity recorded in 
 
144 MODE OP PASSING THE NIGtlT, 
 
 my journal, my heart glows with gratitude to them and I 
 hope and pray that God may spare me to make them soma 
 return 
 
 Before leaving the villages entirely, we may glance at 
 our way of spending the nights. As soon as we land, some 
 of the men cut a little grass for my bed, while Mashauana 
 plants the poles of the little tent. These are used by day 
 for carrying burdens, for the Barotse fashion is exactly 
 like that of the natives of India, only the burden is fastened 
 near the ends of the pole, and not suspended by long cords. 
 The bed is made, and boxes ranged on each side of it, and 
 then the tent pitched over all. Four or five feet in front 
 of my tent is placed the principal or kotla fire, the wood 
 for which must be collected by the man who occupies the 
 post of herald and takes as his perquisite the heads of all 
 the oxen slaughtered and of all the game too. Each per- 
 son knows the station he is to occupy in reference to the 
 post of honor at the fire in front of the door of the tent. 
 The two Makololo occupy my right and left, both in eating 
 and sleeping, as long as the journey lasts. But Mashauana, 
 my head-boatman, makes his bed at the door of the tent as 
 soon as I retire. The rest, divided into small companies 
 according to their tribes, make sheds all round the fire, 
 leaving a horseshoe-shaped space in front sufficient for the 
 cattle to stand in. The fire gives confidence to the oxen ; 
 so the men are always careful to keep them in sight of it. 
 The sheds are formed by planting two stout forked poles 
 in an inclined direction, and placing another over these in a 
 horizontal position. A number of branches are then stuck in 
 the ground in the direction to which the poles are inclined, 
 the twigs drawn down to the horizontal pole and tied with 
 strips of bark. Long grass is then laid over the branches 
 in sufficient quantity to draw off the rain, and we have 
 eheds open to the fire in front but secure from beasts be- 
 hind. In less than an hour we were usually all under cover. 
 We never lacked abundance of grass during the whole 
 journey. It is a picturesque sight at night, when the clear 
 
ALLIGATORS. 145 
 
 hright moon of those climates glances on the sleeping forma 
 around, to look out upon the attitudes of profound repose 
 both men and beasts assume. There- being no danger from 
 wild animals on such a night, the fires are allowed almost 
 to go out j and, as there is no fear of hungry dogs coming 
 over sleepers and devouring the food, or quietly eating up 
 the poor fellows' blankets, which at best were but greasy 
 ftkins, which sometimes happened in the villages, the pic- 
 ture was one of perfect peace. 
 
 The cooking is usually done in the natives' own style; 
 and, as they carefully wash the dishes, pots, and the hands 
 before handling food, it is by no means despicable Some- 
 times alterations are made at my suggestion, and then they 
 believe that they can cook in thorough white man's fashion. 
 The cook always comes in for something left in the pot, so 
 all are eager to obtain the ofiice. 
 
 1 taught several of them to wash my shirts, and they 
 did it well, though their teacher had never been taught 
 that work himself. Frequent changes of linen and sunning 
 of my blanket kept me more comfortable than might have 
 been anticipated, and I feel certain that the lessons of 
 cleanliness rigidly instilled by my mother in childhood 
 helped to maintain that respect which these people enter- 
 tain for European ways. It is questionable if a descent to 
 barbarous ways ever elevates a man in the eyes of savages. 
 Part of our company marched along the banks with the 
 oxen, and part went in the canoes, but our pace was regu- 
 lated by the speed of the men on shore. Their course was 
 rather difficult, on account of the numbers of departing and 
 re-entering branches of the Leeambye, which they had to 
 avoid or wait at till we ferried them over. The number 
 of alligators is prodigious, and in this river they are more 
 savage than in some others. Many children are carried 
 off annually at Sesheke and ether towns; for, not with- 
 standing the danger, when they go down for water they 
 almost always must play a while. This reptile is said by the 
 natives to strike the victim with his tail, then drag him in 
 
1 16 GAME. 
 
 and drown him. When lying in the water watching for 
 prey, the body never appears. Many calves are lost also, 
 and it is seldom that a number of cows can swim over at 
 Sesheke without some loss. I never could avoid shuddei- 
 ing on seeing my men swimming across these branches, 
 after one of them had been caught by the thigh and taken 
 below. He, however, retained, as nearly all of them in 
 the most trying circumstances do, his full presence of mind, 
 and, having a small, square, ragged-edged javelin with 
 him, when dragged to the bottom gave the alligator a stab 
 behind the shoulder. The alligator, writhing in pain, left 
 him, and he came out with the deep marks of the reptile's 
 teeth on his thigh. Here the people have no antipathy to 
 persons who have met with such an adventure ; but in the 
 Bamangwato and Bakwain tribes, if a man is either bitten 
 or even has had water splashed over him by the reptile's 
 tail, he is expelled his tribe. 
 
 "When we had gone thirty or forty miles above Libonta, 
 we sent eleven of our captives to the west, to the chief 
 called Makoma, with an explanatory message. This 
 caused some delay ; but as we were loaded with presents 
 of food from the Makololo, and the wild animals were in 
 enormous herds, we fared sumptuously. It was grievous, 
 however, to shoot the lovely creatures, they were so tame. 
 With but little skill in stalking, one could easily get within 
 fifty or sixty yards of them. There I lay, looking at tho 
 graceful forms and motions of beautiful pokus, leches, and 
 other antelopes, often till my men, wondering what was 
 the matter, came up to see, and frightened them away 
 [f we had been starving, I could have slaughtered them 
 with as little hesitation as I should cut off a patient's leg; 
 but 1 felt a doubt, and the antelopes got the benefit of it. 
 
 My men, having never had fire-arms in their hands be- 
 fore, found it so difficult 'to hold the musket steady at tbfc 
 flash of fire in the pan, that they naturally expected me to 
 furnish them with " gun-medicine," without which, it is 
 almost universally believed, no one can shoot straight. 
 
DIFFICULTY IN USING THE GUN. 117 
 
 Grwit expectations had been formed when I arrived among 
 the Makololo on this subject; but, having invariably de- 
 clined to deceive them, as some for their own profit have 
 done, my men now supposed that I would at last consent, 
 and thereby relieve myself from the hard work of hunting 
 by employing them after due medication. This I was most 
 willing to do, if I could have done it honestly ; for, having 
 but little of the hunting-/wrore in my composition, I always 
 preferred eating the game to killing it. Sulphur is the 
 remedy most admired, and I remember Sechele giving a 
 large price for a very small bit. He also gave some 
 elephants' tusks, worth £30, for another medicine which 
 was to make him invulnerable to musket-balls. As I 
 uniformly recommended that these things should be tested 
 by experiment, a calf was anointed with the charm and 
 tied to a tree. It proved decisive, and Sechele remarked 
 it was "pleasanter to be deceived than undeceived." 1 
 offered sulphur for the same purpose, but that was declined, 
 even though a person came to the town afterward and 
 rubbed his hands with a little before a successful trial of 
 Bhooting at a mark. 
 
 I explained to my men the nature of a gun, and tried to 
 teach them, but they would soon have expended all the 
 ammunition in my possession. I was thus obliged to do 
 all the shooting myself ever aftarward. Their inability 
 was rather a misfortune ; for, in consequence of working 
 too soon after having been bitten by the lion, the bone of 
 my left arm had not united well. ■ Continual hard manual 
 labor, and some falls from ox-back, lengthened the liga- 
 ment by which the ends of the bones were united, and a 
 false joint was the consequence. The limb has never been 
 painful, as those of my companions on the day of the ren- 
 counter with the lion have been; but, there being a joint 
 too many, I could not steady the rifle, and was always 
 obliged- to shoot with the piece resting on the left shoulder. 
 I wanted steadiness of aim, and it generally happened that 
 
148 HIPPOPOTAMI. 
 
 the more hungry the party became, the more frequently } 
 
 missed the animals. 
 
 Before we came to the junction of the Leeba and 
 Leeambye we found the banks twenty feet high, and com- 
 posed of marl} sandstone. They are covered with trees, 
 and the left bank has the tsetse and elephants. I suspect 
 the fly has some connection with this animal, and the 
 Portuguese in the district of Tete must think so too, for 
 they call it the Musca da elephant, (the elephant-fly.) 
 
 We passed great numbers of hippopotami. They are 
 very numerous in the parts of the river where they are 
 never hunted. The males appear of a dark color, the 
 females of yellowish brown. There is not such a complete 
 separation of the sexes among them as among elephants. 
 They spend most of their time in the water, lolling about 
 in a listless, dreamy man nor. When they come out of the 
 • river by night, they crop off the soil succulent grasses 
 very neatJy. When they blow, they puff up the water 
 about three feet high. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE VISITS THE FEMALE CHIEFS MANENKO Afci) 
 
 NYAMOANA. . 
 
 On the 27th of December we were at the confluence of tLo 
 Leeba and Leeambye, (lat. 14° 10' 52" S., long. 28° 35' 4j" 
 E ) Masiko, the Barotse chief, for whom we had souo 
 captives, lived nearly due e-ist of this point. They were 
 two little boys, a little girl, ; young man, and two middle- 
 aged women. One of these as a member of a Babfmpe 
 tribe, who knock out both upp r and lower front teeth as 
 a distinction. As we had beei informed by the captives 
 on the previous Sunday that Masiko was in the habit of 
 bcizing all orphans, and those wh have no powerful friend 
 
MESSAGE TO MASIKO \\$ 
 
 m the tribe whoso protection they can claim, and selling 
 them for clothing to the Mambari, we thought the objec 
 tion of the women to go first to his town before seeing their 
 friends quite reasonable, and resolved to send a party of 
 our own people to see them safely among their relatives 
 I told the captive young man to inform Masiko that he 
 was very unlike his father Santuru, who had refused tn 
 sell his people to Mambari. He will probably be afraid to 
 deliver such a message himself, bat it is meant for his peo- 
 ple, and they will circulate it pretty widely, and Masiko 
 may yet feel a little pressure from without. We sent 
 Mosantu, a Batoka man, and his companions, with the cap. 
 tives.. The Barotse whom we had were unwilling to «- to 
 Masiko, since they owe him allegiance as the son of San- 
 turn, and while they continue with Makololo are consi- 
 dered rebels. The message by Mosantu was that -I was 
 sorry to find that Santuru had not borne a wiser son. San 
 turn loved to govern men, but Masiko wanted to govern 
 wild beasts only, as he sold his people to the Mambari •" 
 adding an explanation of the return of the captives, and 
 an injunction to him to live in peace, and prevent his 
 people kidnapping the children and canoes of the Makololo 
 as a continuance in these deeds would lead to war, which 
 I wished to prevent. He was also instructed to say if 
 Masiko waated fuller explanation of my views, he must 
 send a sensible man to talk with me at the first town of the 
 Balonda, to which I was about to proceed. 
 
 We ferried Mosantu over to the left bank of the Leeba 
 The journey required five days, but it could not have been 
 at a quicker rate than ten or twelve miles per day: the 
 children were between seven and eight years of a**, acd 
 anable to walk fast in a hot sun. 
 
 Leaving Mosantu to pursue his course, we shall take bat 
 one glance down the river, which we are. now about to 
 leave, for it comes at this point from the eastward, and our 
 Bourse is to be directed to the northwest, as we mean to 
 ge to Loanda in Angola. From the confluence, where w« 
 
 13* 
 
IbO NAVIGATION OF THE LEEAMBYE. 
 
 now aro, down to Mosioatunya, there are many loug 
 reach es, where a vessel equal to the Thames steamers ply- 
 ing ret ween the bridges could run as freely as they do on 
 the Thames. It is often, even here, as broad as that river 
 at London Bridge; but, without accurate measurement of 
 tho depth, one could not say which contained most water. 
 There are, however, many and serious obstacles to a con- 
 tinued navigation for hundreds of miles at a stretch. 
 About ten miles below the confluence of the Loeti, for in. 
 stance, there are many large sand-banks in the stream; then 
 you have a hundred miles to the river Siniah, where a 
 Thames steamer could ply at all times of the year ; but, 
 again, the space between Simah and Katima-molelo has five 
 or six rapids with cataracts, one of which — Gonye — could 
 not be passed at any time without portage. Between 
 these rapids there are reaches of still, deep water, of 
 several miles in length. Beyond Katima-molelo to the 
 confluence of the Chobe you have nearly a hundred miles, 
 again, of a river capable of being navigated in the same 
 way as in the Barotse valley. 
 
 Now, I do not say that this part of the river presents a 
 very inviting prospect for extemporaneous European enter- 
 prise ; but when we have a pathway which requires only 
 the formation of portages to make it equal to our canals 
 for hundreds of miles, where the philosophers supposed 
 there was naught but an extensive sandy desert, we must 
 confess that the future partakes at least of the elements 
 of hope. My deliberate conviction was and is that the 
 part of the country indicated is as capable of supporting 
 millions of inhabitants as it is of its thousands. The grass 
 of the Barotse valley, for instance, is such a densely-matted 
 mass, that, when "laid," the stalks bear each other up, *o 
 that one feels as if walking on the sheaves of a haystack, 
 and the leches nestle under it to bring forth their young 
 The soil which produces this, if placed under the plough, 
 instead of being mere pasturage, would yield grain sufl* 
 cient to feci vast multitudes. 
 
BUFFALO-HUNT. 151 
 
 We now began to ascend the Leoba. The water is black 
 in color as compared with the main stream, which here 
 assumes the name of Kabompo. The Leeba flows placidly, 
 and, unlike the parent river, receives numbers of little rivu- 
 lets from both sides. It winds slowly through the most 
 charming meadows, each of which has either a soft, sedgy 
 centre, large pond, or trickling rill down the middle. 
 
 A large buffalo was wounded, and ran into the thickest 
 part of the forest, bleeding profusely. The young men 
 went on his trail ; and, though the vegetation was so dense 
 that no one could have run more than a few yards, most 
 of them went along quite carelessly, picking and eating a 
 fruit of the melon-family called mponko. When the animal 
 heard them approach, he always fled, shifting his stand 
 and doubling on his course in the most cunning manner. 
 In other cases I have known them to turn back to a point 
 a few yards from their own trail, and then lie down in a 
 hollow waiting for the hunter to come up. Though a 
 heavy, lumbering-looking animal, his charge is then rapid 
 and terrific. More accidents happen by the buffalo and 
 the black rhinoceros than by the lion. Though all aro 
 aware of the mischievous nature of the buffalo when 
 wounded, our young men went after him quite carelessly. 
 They never lose their presence of mind, but, as a buffalo 
 charges back in a forest, dart dexterously out of his way 
 behind a tree, and, wheeling round, stab him as he passes. 
 
 On the 28th we slept at a spot on the right bank from 
 which had just emerged two broods of alligators. We had 
 seen many young ones as we came up ; so this seems to be 
 their time of coming forth from the nests, for we saw them 
 Sunning themselves on sand-banks in company with the. 
 old ones. We made our fire in one of the deserted nests, 
 which were strewed all over with the broken shells. At 
 the Zouga we saw sixty eggs taken out of one such nest 
 alone. They are about the size of those of a goose, only 
 the eggs of the alligator are of the same diameter at both 
 ends, and the white shell is partially elastic, from having a 
 
152 alligators' eggs. 
 
 strong internal membrane and but little lime ii* its compq 
 Bition. The distance from the water was about ten feet 
 %nd there were evidences of the same place having beei 
 used for a similar purpose in former years. A broad path 
 led up from the water to the nest, and the dam, it was sixii 
 by my companions, after depositing the eggs, covers them 
 up, and returns afterward to assist the young out of the 
 place of confinement and out of the egg. She leads them 
 to the edge of the water, and then leaves ,them to catch 
 small fish for themselves. 
 
 When we reached the part of the river opposite to the 
 village of Manenko, the first female chief whom we encoun- 
 tered, two of the people called Balunda, or Balonda, came 
 to us in their little canoe. From them we learned that 
 Kolimbota, one of our party, who had been in the habit of 
 visiting these parts, was believed by the Balonda to have 
 acted as a guide to the marauders under Lerimo, whoso 
 captives we were now returning. They very naturally 
 suspected this, from the facility with which their villages 
 had been found ; and, as they had since removed them to 
 some distance from the river, they were unwilling to lead 
 us to their places of concealment. We were in bad repute ; 
 but, having a captive boy and girl to show in evidence of. 
 Sekeletu and ourselves not being partakers in the guilt of 
 inferior men, I could fully express my desire that all should 
 live in peace. They evidently felt that I ought to have 
 taught the Makololo first, before coming to them ; for they 
 remarked t^at what I advanced was very good, but guilt 
 lay at the door of the Makololo for disturbing the pre- 
 viously-existing peace. They then went away to report 
 us to Manenko. 
 
 When the strangers visited us again in the evening, they 
 were accompanied by a number of the people of an Am- 
 bonda chief named Sekelenke. The Ambonda live far to 
 the N.W.j their language (the Bon da) is the common dia- 
 lect in Angola. Sekelenke had fled, and was now living 
 with his village as a vassal of Masiko. Sekelenke had 
 
sekelenke' s present, 15i 
 
 gone with his villagers to hunt elephants on the right 
 bank of the Lceba, and was now on his way back to 
 Masiko. He sent me a dish of boiled zebra's flesh, and a 
 request that I should lend him a canoe to ferry his wives 
 and family across the river to the bank on which we were 
 encamped. Many of Sekelenke's people came to salute the 
 first white man they ever had an opportunity of seeing; 
 but Sckelenke himself did not come near. We heard he 
 was offended with some of his people for letting me know 
 he was among the company. He said that I should be 
 displeased with him for not coming and making some pre 
 sent. This was the only instance in which I was shunned 
 in this quarter. 
 
 Sekelenke and his people, twenty-four in number, defiled 
 past our camp, carrying large bundles of dried elephants' 
 meat. Most of them came to say good-bye, and Sekelenke 
 himself sent to say that he had gone to visit a wife living 
 in the village of Manenko. It was a mere African manoeuvre 
 to gain information, and not to commit himself to either 
 one line of action or another with respect to our visit. As 
 he was probably in the party before us, I replied that it 
 was all right, and when my people came up from Masiko 
 I would go to vyj wife too. 
 
 To our first message offering a visit of explanation to 
 Manenko, we got an answer, with a basket of manioc-roots, 
 that we must remain where we were till she should visit 
 us. Having waited two days already for her, other mes- 
 sengers arrived with orders for me to come to her. After 
 four days of rains and negotiation, I declined going at all, 
 and proceeded up the river to the small stream Makondo, 
 (hit. 18° 23' 12" S.,) which enters the Leeba from the east, 
 and is between twenty and thirty yards broad. 
 
 January 1, 1854. — We had heavy rains alir ost every day: 
 indeed, the rainy season had fairly set in. Baskets of the 
 purple fruit called mawa were frequently brought to us by 
 the villagers; not for sale, but from a belief that theii 
 
164 MAMBARI TRADERS. 
 
 chiefs would be pleased to hear that they had treated ai 
 well : we gave them pieces of meat in return. 
 
 When crossing at the confluence of the Leeba and Ma» 
 kondo, one of my men picked up a bit of a steel watch 
 chain of English manufacture, and we were informed that 
 this was the spot where the Mambari cross in coming to 
 Masiko. Their visits explain why Sekelenke kept his tuski 
 so carefully. These Mambari are very enterprising mer- 
 chants : when they mean to trade with a town, they delibe- 
 rately begin the affair by building huts, as if they knew 
 that little business could be transacted without a liberal 
 allowance of time for palaver. They bring Manchester 
 goods into the heart of Africa ; these cotton prints look so 
 wonderful that the Makololo could not believe them to be 
 the work of mortal hands. On questioning the Mambari, 
 they were answered that English manufactures came out 
 of the sea, and beads were gathered on its shore. To 
 Africans our cotton-mills are fairy dreams. "How can the 
 «Tons spin, weave, and print so beautifully V 1 Our country 
 is like what Taprobane was to our ancestors, — a strange 
 realm of light, whence came the diamond, muslin, and 
 peacocks; an attempt at explanation of our manufactures 
 usually elicits the expression, " Truly ye are gods V 
 
 When about to leave the Makondo, one Of my men had 
 dreamed that Mosantu was shut up a prisoner in a stockade : 
 this dream depressed the spirits of the whole party, and 
 when I came out of my little tent in the morning, they 
 were sitting the pictures of abject sonow. I asked if we 
 were to be guided by dreams, or by the authority I derived 
 from Sekeletu, and ordered them to load the boats at once; 
 ^hey seemed ashamed to confess their fears; the Makololo 
 picked up courage and upbraided the others for having 
 Buch superstitious views, and said this was always their 
 way : if even a certain bird called to them, they would turn 
 back from an enterprise, saying it was unlucky. They 
 entered the canoes at last, and were the bettei of a little 
 scolding for aeing inclined to put dreams before authority. 
 
INTERVIEW WITH JTfiMALE CHIEF. a.55 
 
 It rained all the morning, but about eleven we reached the 
 village of Sheakondo, on a small stream named Lonkouyo. 
 We sent a message to the head-man, who soon appeared 
 with two wives, bearing handsome presents of manioc : 
 Sheakondo could speak the language of the Barotso well, 
 and seemed awe-struck when told some of the "words of 
 God." He manifested no fear, always spoke frankly, and, 
 when he made an asseveration, did so by simply pointing 
 up to the sky above him. 
 
 Sheakondo' s old wife presented some manioc-roots, and 
 then politely requested to be anointed with butter: as I 
 had been bountifully supplied by the Makololo, I gave her 
 as much as would suffice, and, as they have little clothing, 
 I can readily believe that she felt her comfort greatly 
 enhanced thereby. 
 
 The favorite wife, who was also present, was equally 
 anxious for butter. She had a profusion of iron rings on 
 her ankles, to which were attached little pieces of sheet- 
 iron, to enable her to make a tinkling as she walked in her 
 mincing African style; the same thing is thought pretty 
 by our own dragoons in walking jauntingly. 
 
 On the 6th of January we reached the village of another 
 female chief, named Nyamoana, who is said to be the 
 mother of Manenko, and sister of Shinte or Kabompo, the 
 greatest Balonda chief in this part of the country. Her 
 people had but recently come to the present locality, and 
 had erected only twenty huts. Her husband, Samoana, 
 was clothed in a kilt of green and red baize, and was armed 
 with a spear and a broadsword of antique form, about 
 eighteen inches long and three broad. The chief and her 
 husband were sitting on skins placed in the middld of a 
 circle thirty paces in diameter, a little raised above che 
 ordinary level of the ground, and having a trench round it. 
 Outside the trench sat about a hundred persons of all ages 
 and both sexes. The men were well armed with bows, 
 arrows, spears, and broadswords. Beside the husband sat 
 a rather aged wom<ip having a bad outward squint in th« 
 
156 C0UIIT ETIQUETTE. 
 
 left eye4 We put down our arms about forty yards off. aid 
 I walked up to the centre of the circular bench, and saluted 
 ttira in the usual way by clapping the hands together in 
 their fashion. He pointed to his wife, as much as to say, 
 The honor belongs to her. I saluted her in the same way, • 
 and, a mat having been brought, I squatted down in front 
 of them. 
 
 The talker was then called, and I was asked who was 
 my spokesman. Having pointed to Kolimbota, who knew 
 their dialect best, the palaver began in due form. I ex- 
 plained the real objects I had in view, without any attempt 
 to mystify or appear ill any other character than my own, 
 for I have always been satisfied that, even though there 
 were no other considerations, the truthful way of dealing 
 with the uncivilized is unquestionably the best. Kolimbota 
 repeated to Nyamoana's talker what I had said to him 
 tie delivered it all verbatim to her husband, who repeated 
 it again to her. It was thus all rehearsed four times over, 
 in a tone loud enough to be heard by the whole party of 
 auditors. The response came back by the same round- 
 about route, beginning at the lady to her husband, &c. 
 
 After explanations and re-explanations, I perceived that 
 our new friends were mixing up my message of peace and 
 friendship with Makololo affairs, and stated that it was 
 not delivered on the authority of any one less than that 
 of their -Creator, and that if the Makololo did again break 
 his laws and attack the Balonda, the guilt would rest with 
 the Makololo and not with me. The palaver then came to 
 a close. 
 
 By way of gaining their confidence, I showed them my 
 hair, which is considered a curiosity in all this region. They 
 said, " Is that hair ? It is the mane of a lion, and not hair 
 &t all." Some thought that I had made a wig of lion's 
 manej as they sometimes do with fibres of the u ife," and 
 dye it black and twist it so as to resemble a mass of then 
 own -wool. I could not return the joke by telling them 
 that theirs was not hair, but the wool of sheep, for they 
 
INCREASE OF SUPERSTITION. 157 
 
 have none of these in the country ; and even though thoy 
 had, as Herodotus remarked, " the African sheep are clothed 
 with hair, and men's heads with wool." So I had to be 
 content with asserting that mine was the real original hair, 
 fcuch as theirs would have been had it not been scorched 
 and frizzled by the sun. In proof of what the sun could 
 do, I compared my own bronzed face and hands, then about 
 the 'same in complexion as the lighter-colored Makololo, 
 with the white skin of my chest. They readily believed 
 that, as they go nearly naked and fully exposed to that 
 influence, we might bo of common origin after all. Here, 
 as everywhere when heat and moisture are combined, the 
 people are very dark, but not quite black. There is always 
 a shade of brown in the most deeply colored. I showed 
 my watch and pocket-compass, which are considered great 
 curiosities ; but, though the lady was called on by her hus- 
 band to look, she would not be persuaded to approach near 
 enough. 
 
 These people are more superstitious than any we had 
 yet encountered : though still only building their village, 
 they had found time to erect two little sheds at the chief 
 dwelling in it, in which were placed two pots having charms 
 in them. When asked what medicine they contained, they 
 replied, "Medicine for the Barimo;" but when I rose and 
 looked into them they said they were medicine for the 
 £jame. Here we saw the first evidence of the existence of 
 idolatry, in the remains of an old idol at a deserted village. 
 It was simply a human head carved on a block of wood. 
 Certain charms mixed with red ochre and white pipe-clay 
 are dotted over them when they are in use ; and a crooked 
 stick is used in the same way for an idol when they have 
 no professional carver. 
 
 As the Leeba seemed still to come from the direction in 
 tfhich we wished to go, I was desirous of proceeding far- 
 ther up with the canoes ; but Nyamoana was anxious that 
 we should allow her people to conduct us to her brother 
 Bhinte; and ; when I explained to her the advantage of 
 
 n 
 
i58 MODE OP SALUTATION. 
 
 water-carriage, 3he represented that her brother did not 
 live near the river, and, moreover, there was a cataract in 
 front, over which it would be difficult to convey the canoes 
 She was afraid, too, that the Balobale, whose country lies 
 to the west of the river, not knowing the objects for which 
 we nad come, would kill us. To my reply that I had been 
 so often threatened with death if I visited a new trite 
 that I was now more afraid of killing any one than of 
 being killed, she rejoined that the Balobale would not kill 
 me, but the Makololo would all be sacrificed as their ene- 
 mies. This produced considerable effect on my companions, 
 and inclined them to the plan of Nyamoana, of going to 
 the town of her brother rather than ascending the Leeba. 
 The arrival of Manenko herself on the scene threw so 
 much weight into the scale on their side that I was forced 
 to yield the point. 
 
 Manenko was a tall, strapping woman about twenty, dis- 
 tinguished by a profusion of ornaments and medicines hung 
 round her person; the latter are supposed to act as charms. 
 Her body was smeared all over with a mixture of fat and 
 red ochre, a» <i protection against the weather ; a necessary 
 precaution, for, like most of the Balonda ladies, she was 
 otherwise in a state of frightful nudity. This was not from 
 want of clothing; for, being a chief, she might have beep 
 as well clad as any of her subjects, but from her peculiar 
 ideas of elegance in dress. When she arrived with her 
 husband, Sambanza, they listened for some time to the 
 statements I was making to the people of Nyamoana, after 
 which the husband, acting as spokesman, commenced an 
 oration, stating the reasons for their coming ; and, during 
 every two or three seconds of the delivery, he picked up a 
 little sand and rubbed it on the upper part of his arms 
 and chest. This is a common mode of salutation in Londa; 
 and when they wish to be excessively polite they bring 
 a quantity of ashes or pipe-clay in a piece of skin, and, 
 taking up handfuls, rub it on the chest and upper front 
 part of each arm; others, in saluting, drum the'r ribs witfc 
 
EMBASSY AND PRESENT FROM MASIKO. 159 
 
 their elbows ; while others still touch the ground with one 
 cheek after tLe other, and clap their bands. The chief's go 
 through the manoeuvre of rubbing the sand on the arms, 
 but only make a feint of picking up some. When £am- 
 banztf' had finished his oration, he rose up and showed his 
 ankles ornamented with a bundle of copper rings : had 
 they been very heavy they would have made nim adopt a 
 straggling walk. Some chiefs have really so many as to be 
 forced, by the weight and size, to keep one foot apart from 
 the other, the weight being a serious inconvenience in 
 walking. The gentlemen like Sambanza, who wish to 
 imitate their betters, do so in their walk; so you see meD 
 with only a few ounces of ornament on their legs strutting 
 along as if they had double the number of pounds. When 
 I smiled at Sambanza's walk, the people remarked, " That 
 is the way in which they show off their lordship in these 
 parts." 
 
 Manenko was quite decided in the adoption of the policy 
 of friendship with the Makololo which we recommended ; 
 and, by way of cementing the bond, she and her coun- 
 sellors proposed that Kolimbota should take a wife among 
 them. Kolimbota, I found, thought favorably of the pro- 
 position, and it afterward led to his desertion from us. 
 
 On the evening of the day in which Manenko arrived, 
 we were delighted by the appearance of Mosantu and an 
 imposing embassy from Masiko. It consisted of all his 
 under-chiefs; and they brought a fine elephant's tusk, two 
 calabashes of honey, and a large piece of blue baize, as a 
 present. The last was intended perhaps to show mo that 
 he was a truly great chief, who had such stores of white 
 men's goods at hand that he could afford to give present* 
 of them ; it might also be intended for Mosantu, for chiefa 
 osually remember the servants : I gave it to him. Masiko 
 expressed delight, by his principal men, at the return of 
 the captives, and at the proposal of peace and alliance 
 with the Makololo. He stated that he never sold any of 
 his own people to the Mambari, bu*. only captives whom 
 
160 MANENKO A SCOLD. 
 
 t 
 
 his people kidnapped from small neighboring tribes. When 
 the question was put whether his people had been in 
 the habit of molesting the Makololo by kidnapping their 
 servants and stealing canoes, it was admitted that two 
 of his men, when hunting, had gone to the Makololo 
 gardens, to see if any 'of their relatives were there. As 
 the great object in all native disputes is to get both parties 
 to turn over a new leaf, I explained the desirableness of 
 forgetting past feuds, accepting the present Makololo pro- 
 fessions as genuine, and avoiding in future to give them 
 any cause for marauding. I presented Masiko with an ox 
 furnished by Sekeletu as provision for ourselves. 
 
 We were now without any provisions, except a small 
 dole of manioc-roots each evening from Nyamoana, which, 
 when eaten raw, produce poisonous effects. A small loaf, 
 made from nearly the last morsel of maize-meal from Li- 
 bonta, was my stock, and our friends from Masiko were 
 still more destitute; yet we all rejoiced so much at their 
 arrival that we resolved to spend a day with them. The 
 Barotse of our party, meeting with relatives and friends 
 among the Barotse of Masiko, had many old tales to tell ; 
 and, after pleasant hungry converse by day, we regaled 
 our friends with the magic lantern by night; and, in order 
 to make the thing of use to all, we removed our camp up 
 to the village of Nyamoana. This is a good means of 
 arresting the attention and conveying important facts to 
 the minds of these people. ■ 
 
 When erecting our sheds at the village, Manenko fell 
 upon our friends from Masiko in a way that left no doubt 
 on our minds but that she is a most accomplished scold. 
 Masiko had, on a former occasion, sent to Samoana for 
 a cloth, — a common way of keeping up intercourse, — and, 
 after receiving it, sent it back, because it had the appear- 
 ance of having had " witchcraft-medicine' ' on it : this was 
 a grave offence, and now Manenko had a good excuse for 
 venting her spleen, the ambassadors having called at her 
 village and elept in one of the huts without leave. If hei 
 
DETAINED BV MANftrfKti ]fi] 
 
 famhy vas to be suspected of dealing in evil charms, why 
 were Masiko'fl people not to be thought guilty of leaving 
 the same in her hut ? She advanced and receded in true 
 oratorical style, belaboring her own servants as well for 
 allowing the offence, and, as usual in more civilized femi- 
 nine lectures, she leaned over the objects of her ire, and 
 screamed forth all their faults and failings ever since they 
 were born, and her despair of ever seeing them become 
 better until they were all "killed by alligators." Masiko's 
 people followed the plan of receiving this torrent of abuse 
 in silence, and, as neither we nor they had any thing to 
 eat, we parted next morning. In reference to Masiko 
 Belling slaves to the Mambari, they promised to explain 
 the relationship which exists between even the most abject 
 of his people and our common Father; and that no more 
 kidnapping ought to be allowed, as he ought to give that 
 peace and security to the smaller tribes on his eastern 
 borders which he so much desired to obtain himself from 
 the Makololo. We promised to return through his town 
 when we came back from the sea-coast. 
 
 Manenko gave us some manioc-roots in the morning, 
 and had determined to carry our baggage to her uncle's, 
 Kaborapo or Shinte. We had heard a sample of what 
 she could do with her tongue; and, as neither .my men nor 
 myself had much inclination to encounter a scolding from 
 this black Mrs. Caudle, we made ready, the packages ; but 
 she came and said the men whom she had ordered for the 
 service had not yet come : they would arrive to-morrow. 
 Being on low and disagreeable diet, I felt annoyed at this 
 further delay, and ordered the packages to be put into the 
 canoes to proceed up the river without her servants. But 
 Manenko was not to be circumvented in this way: she 
 came forward with her people, and said her uncle would 
 bo angry if she did not carry forward the tusks and goods 
 of Sekeletu, seized the luggage, and declared that she 
 would carry it in spite of me. My men succumbed soone* 
 to this petticoat-government than I felt inclined to do, and 
 L U* 
 
162 CHARMS. 
 
 left mo no power; and, being unwilling to encounter hoi 
 tongue, I was moving off to the canoes, when she gave me 
 a kind explanation, and, with her hand on my shoulder, 
 put on a motherly look, saying, "Now, my little man, just 
 do as the rest have done." My feelings of annoyance of 
 course vanished. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE VISITS SHINTE, CHIEF OP THE BALONDA. 
 
 11th of January, 1854. — On starting this morning, Samoana 
 (or rather Nyamoana, for the ladies are the chiefs here) 
 presented a string of beads, and a shell highly valued 
 among them, as an atonement for having assisted Manenko, 
 as they thought, to vex me the day before. They seemed 
 anxious to avert any evil which might arise from my dis- 
 pleasure; but, having replied that I never kept my anger 
 up all night, they were much pleased to see me satisfied. 
 We had to cross, in a canoe, a stream which flows past 
 the village of Nyamoana. Manenko's doctor waved some 
 charms over her, and she took some in her hand and on 
 her body before she ventured upon the water. One of my 
 men spoke rather loudly when near the doctor's basket of 
 medicines. The doctor reproved him, and always spoke 
 in a whisper himself, glancing back to the basket as if 
 afraid of being heard by something therein. So much 
 superstition is quite unknown in the south, and is men- 
 tioned here to show the difference in the feelings of thin 
 new people, and the comparative want of reverence on 
 these points among Caffres and Bechuanas. 
 
 Manenko was accompanied by her husband and her 
 drummer , the latter continued to thump most vigorously 
 until a heavy, drizzling mist set in and compelled him to 
 
HUNGER. 163 
 
 desist. Her husband used various incantations and vocif'o 
 rations to drive away the rain, but down it poured inces- 
 santly, and on our Amazon went, in the very lightest 
 marching-order, and*at a pace that few of the men could 
 keep up with. Being on ox-back, I kept pretty close to 
 our leader, and asked her why she did not clothe herself 
 daring the rain, and learned that it is not considered proper 
 for a chief to appear effeminate. He or she must alwaya 
 wear the appearance of robust youth and bear vicissitudes 
 without wincing. My men, in admiration of her pedestrian 
 powers, every now and then remarked, "Manenko is a 
 soldier f and, thoroughly wet and cold, we were all glad 
 when she proposed a halt to prepare our night's lodging 
 on the banks of a stream. 
 
 Next day we passed through a piece of forest so dense that 
 no one could have penetrated it without an axe. It was 
 flooded, not by the river, but by the heavy rains which 
 poured down every day and kept those who had clothing 
 constantly wet. I observed in this piece of forest a very 
 strong smell of sulphuretted hydrogen. This I had observed 
 repeatedly in other parts before. I had attacks of fever 
 of the intermittent type again and again, in consequence 
 of repeated drenchings in these unhealthy spots. 
 
 On the 11th and 12th we were detained by incessant 
 rains, and so heavy I never saw the like in the south. I 
 had a little tapioca and a small quantity of Libonta meal, 
 which I still reserved for worse times. The patience of 
 my men under hunger was admirable ; the actual want of 
 the present is never so painful as the thought of getting 
 nothing in the future. We thought the people of some 
 large hamlets very niggardly and very independent of their 
 chiefs, for they gave us and Manenko nothing, though they 
 had large fields of maize in an eatable state around them. 
 When she went and kindly begged some for me, they gave 
 her five ears only. They were subjects of her uncle, and, 
 had they been Makololo, would have been lavish in theii 
 gifts to the nieoe of their chief. I suspected that the} 
 
164 DENSE FORESTS. 
 
 were dependents of some of Shinte's principal men, and 
 bad no power to part with the maize of their masters. 
 
 The forests became more dense as we went north. ^Te 
 travelled much more in the deep gloom of the forest than 
 in open sunlight. No passage existed on either side of the 
 narrow path made by the axe. Large climbing plants 
 entwined themselves arcund the trunks and branches of 
 gigantic trees like boa-constrictors, and they often do con- 
 strict the trees by which they rise, and, killing them, stand 
 eract themselves. The bark of a fine tree found in abun- 
 dance here, and called "motuia," is used by the Barotse for 
 making fish-lines and nets, and the "molompi," so well 
 adapted for paddles by its lightness and flexibility, was 
 abundant. There were other trees quite new to my com- 
 panions : many of them ran up to a height of fifty feet of 
 one thickness, and without branches. 
 
 In these forests we first encountered the artificial bee- 
 hives so commonly met with all the way from this to 
 Angola. They consist of about five feet of the bark of a 
 tree fifteen or eighteen inches in diameter. Two incisions 
 are made right • round the tree at points five feet apart, 
 then one longitudinal slit from one of these to the other ; 
 the workman next lifts up the bark on each side of this slit, 
 and detaches it from the trunk, taking care not to break it, 
 until the whole comes from the tree. The elasticity of the 
 bark makes it assume the form it had before ; the slit is 
 sewed or pegged up with wooden pins, and ends made of 
 coiled grass rope are inserted, one of which has a hole for 
 the ingress of the bees in the centre, and the hive is com- 
 plete. These hives are placed in a horizontal position on 
 high trees in different parts of the forest, and in this way 
 Ail the wax exported from Benguela and Loanda is col- 
 lected. It is all the produce of free labor. A " piece of 
 medicine" is tied round the trunk of the tree, and proves 
 sufficient protection against thieves. The natives seldom 
 rob each other, for all believe that certain medicines can 
 inflict disease and death • and, though they consider that 
 
NATURAL WELLS. 165 
 
 these are only known to a few, they act on the principle 
 that it is best to let them all alone. The gloom of these 
 forests strengthens the superstitious feelings of the people. 
 In other quarters, where they are not subjected to thii 
 influence, I have heard the chiefs issue proclamations to 
 the effect that real witchcraft-medicines had been placed at 
 certain gardens from which produce had been stolen, the 
 thieves having risked the power of the ordinary charma 
 previously placed there. 
 
 There was considerable pleasure, in spite of rain and 
 fever, in this new scenery. The deep gloom contrasted 
 strongly with the shadeless glare of the Kalahari, which 
 had left an indelible impression on my memory. Though 
 drenched day by day at this time, and for months after- 
 ward, it was long before I could believe that we were 
 getting too much of a good thing. Nor could I look at 
 water being thrown away without a slight, quick impres- 
 sion flitting across the mind that we were guilty of wast- 
 ing it. Every now and then we emerged from the deep 
 gloom into a pretty little valley, having a damp portion in 
 the middle; which, though now filled with water, at other 
 times contains moisture enough for wells only. These wells 
 have shades put over them in the form of little huts. 
 
 We crossed, in canoes, a little never-failing stream, which 
 passes by the name of Lefuje, or " the rapid." It cornea 
 from a goodly high mountain, called Monakadzi, (the 
 woman,) which gladdened our eyes as it rose to our sight 
 about twenty or thirty miles to the east of our course. It 
 is of an oblong shape, and seemed at least eight hundred 
 feet above the plains. The Lefuje probably derives iU 
 name from the rapid descent of the short course it has to 
 flow from Monakadzi to the Leeba. 
 
 The number of little villages seemed about equal to the 
 number of valleys. At some we stopped and rested, the 
 people becoming more liberal as we advanced. Others we 
 found deserted, a sudden panic having seized the inhabit- 
 ants, though the drum of Nanenko was kept beaten protty 
 
166 LENDING ROOFS OP HUTS. 
 
 constantly, in order to give notice of the approach of great 
 people. When we had decided to remain for the night at 
 any village, the inhabitants lent us the roofs of their huts, 
 
 which in form resemble those of the Makololo, or a China 
 
 • 
 
 man's hat, and can be taken off the walls at pleasure. 
 They lifted them off, and brought them to the spot we had 
 e alec ted as our lodging, and, when my men had propped 
 them up with stakes, they were then safely housed for the 
 night. Every one who comes to salute either Manenko or 
 ourselves rubs the upper parts of the arms and chest with 
 ashes; those who wish to show profounder reverence put 
 some also on the face. 
 
 We found that every village had its idols near it. This 
 is the case all through the country of the Balonda, so that, 
 when we came to an idol in the woods, we always knew 
 that we were within a quarter of an hour of human habi- 
 tations. One very ugly idol we passed rested on a hori- 
 zontal beam placed on two upright posts. This beam was 
 furnished with two loops of cord, as of a chain, to suspend 
 offerings before it On remarking to my companions that 
 these idols had ears, but that they heard not, &c, I learned 
 that the Balonda, and even the Barotse, believe that divina- 
 tion may be performed by means of these blocks of wood 
 and clay; and, though the wood itself could not hear, the 
 owners had medicines by which it could be made to hear 
 and give responses, so that if an enemy were approaching 
 they would have full information. Manenko having brought 
 us to a stand on account of slight indisposition and a desire 
 to send forward notice of our approach to her uncle, 1 
 asked why it was necessary to send forward information 
 of our movements if Shinte had idols who could tell him 
 every thing. " She did it only,"* was the reply. It is 
 geidom of much use to show one who worships idols the 
 folly of idolatry without giving something else as an object 
 
 * This is a curious African idiom, by which a person implies he had no 
 particular reason for his act- 
 
MANENKO'S WHIMS. 16 • 
 
 of adoration instead. They do not love them. They feai 
 them, and betake themselves to their idols only when i» 
 perplexity and danger. 
 
 While delayed, by Manenko's management, among th« 
 Balonda villages, a little to the south of the town of 
 Shinte, we were well supplied by the villagers with sweofc 
 potatoes and green maize : Sambanza went to his mother's 
 village for supplies of other food. I was laboring under 
 fever, and did not find it very difficult to exercise patience 
 with her whims; but, it being Saturday, I thought wo 
 might as well go to the town for Sunday, (15th.) "No: 
 her messenger must return from her uncle first." Being 
 sure that the answer of the uncj.e would be favorable, 1 
 thought we might go on at once, and not lose two days in 
 the same spot. "No : it is our custom;" and every thiyg 
 else I could urge was answered in the genuine pertinacious 
 lady style. She ground some meal for me with her own 
 hands, and when she brought it told me she had actuall y 
 gone to a village and begged corn for the purpose. St d 
 said this with an air as if the inference must be drawn b/ 
 even a stupid white man, "I know how to manage, don 
 I V It was refreshing to get food which could be eatei 
 without producing the unpleasantness described by the 
 Kev. John Newton, of St. Mary's, Woolnoth, London, 
 when obliged to eat the same roots while a slave in the 
 West Indies. The day, (January 14th,) for a wonder, was 
 fair, and the* sun shone, so as to allow us to dry our cloth- 
 ing and other goods, many of which were mouldy and 
 rotten from the long-continued damp. The guns rusted, 
 in spite of being oiled every evening. 
 
 On Sunday afternoon, messengers arrived from Shinte, 
 expressing his approbation of the objects we had in view 
 in our journey through the country, and that he was glad 
 of the prospect of a way being opened by which white 
 men might visit and allow him to purchase ornaments at 
 pleasure. Manenko now threatened in sport to go on, and 
 I soon afterward perceived that what now seemed to me 
 
168 MODE OS AP2S0 ACHING VILLAGES. 
 
 the dilly-dallying way of iihis lady was tne proper mode 
 of making acquaintance with the Balonda; and much of 
 the favor with which I was received in different places 
 was owing to my sending forward messengers to state the 
 object of our coming before entering each town and vil- 
 lage. When we came in sight of a village, we sat down 
 under the shade of a tree and sent forward a man to give 
 notice who we were and what were our objects. The head- 
 man of the village then sent out his principal men, as 
 Shinte now did, to bid us welcome and show us a tree 
 under which we might sleep. Before I had profited by the 
 rather tedious teaching of Manenko, I sometimes entered 
 a village and created unintentional alarm. The villagers 
 would continue to look upon us with suspicion as long as 
 we remained. Shinte sent us two large baskets of manioo 
 and six dried fishes. His men had the skin of a monkey, 
 called in their tongue " poluma," (Colobus guereza,) of a jet- 
 black color, except the long mane, which is pure white : it 
 is said to be found in the north, in the country of Mati- 
 ainvo, the paramount chief of all the Balonda. We 
 learned from them that they are in the habit of praying 
 to their idols when unsuccessful in killing game or in any 
 other enterprise. They behaved with reverence at our re- 
 ligious services. This will appear important if the reader 
 remembers the almost total want of prayer and reverence 
 we encountered in the south. 
 
 Our friends informed us that Shinte would be highly 
 honored by the presence of three white men in his town 
 at once. Two others had sent forward notice of their ap- 
 proach from another quarter, (the west ;) could it be Barth 
 or Krapf ? How pleasant to meet with Europeans in such 
 an out-of-tho»way region ! „ The rush of thoughts made me 
 almost forget my fever. Are they of the same cclor as I 
 am? "Yes; elactly so." And have the same hair? "Is 
 that hair? we thought it was a wig; we never saw the 
 like before : this white man must be of the sort that lives 
 in the sea." Henceforth my men took the hint, and alwayB 
 
A MERMAN. 169 
 
 sounded my praises as a true specimen of the variety of 
 white men who live in the sea. " Only look at his hair j it 
 is made quite straight by the sea- water V 
 
 I explained to them again and again that, when it was 
 said we came out of the sea, it did not mean that we came 
 from beneath the water; but the fiction has been widely 
 spread in the interior by the Mambari that the real white 
 rx en l>e in the sea, and the myth was too good not to be 
 taken advantage of by my companions : so, notwithstand- 
 ing my injunctions, I believe that, when I was out of hear- 
 ing, my men always represented themselves as led by a 
 genuine merman : "Just see his hair \" If I returned from 
 walking to a little distance, they would remark of some to 
 whom they had been holding forth, " These people want tc 
 see your hair." 
 
 As the strangers had woolly hair like themselves, I had 
 to give up the idea of meeting any thing more European 
 than two half-caste Portuguese engaged in trading for 
 slaves, ivor} r , and bees'-wax. 
 
 16th. — After a short march we came to a most lovely valley 
 about a mile and a half wide, and stretching away east- 
 ward up to a low prolongation of Monakadzi. A small 
 stream meanders down the centre of this pleasant green 
 glen; and on a little rill, which flows into it from the 
 western side, stands the town of Kabompo, or, as he likes 
 best to be called, Shinte. (Lat. 12° 37' 35" S., long. 22° 
 47' E.) When Manenko thought the sun was high enough 
 for us to make a lucky entrance, we found the town em- 
 bowered in banana and other tropical trees having great 
 expansion of leaf; the streets are straight, and present a 
 complete contrast to those of the Bechuanas, which are all 
 very tortuous. Here, too, we first saw native huts with 
 square wails and round roofs. Goats were browsing about, 
 and, when we made our appearance, a crowd of negroes, 
 all fully armed, ran toward us as if they would eat us up; 
 some had guns, but the manner in which they were held 
 showed that the owners were more accustomed to bows 
 
 15 l 
 
170 SLAVE TRADERS. 
 
 and arrows than to white men's weapons. After surround, 
 ing and staring at us for an hour, they began to disperse. 
 
 The two native Portuguese traders of whom we had heard 
 had erected a little encampment opposite the place where 
 ours was about to be made. One of them, whose spine 
 had Deen injured in youth, — a rare sight in this country, — 
 came and visited us. I returned the visit next morning. 
 His tall companion had that sickly yellow hue which made 
 him look fairer than myself, but his head was covered with 
 a crop of unmistakable wool. They had a gang of young 
 female slaves in a chain, hoeing the ground in front of their 
 encampment to clear it of weeds and grass; these were 
 purchased recently in Lobale, whence the traders had now 
 'iome. There were many Mambari with them, and the 
 establishment was conducted with that military order which 
 pervades all the arrangements of the Portuguese colonists. 
 A drum was beaten and trumpet sounded at certain hours, 
 quite in military fashion. It was the first time most of my 
 men had seen slaves in chains. " They are not men," they 
 exclaimed, (meaning, they are beasts,) "who treat their 
 children so." 
 
 The Balonda are real negroes, having much more woo) 
 on their heads and bodies than any of the Bechuana or 
 Caffre tribes. They are generally very dark in color, but 
 several are to be seen of a lighter hue ; many of the slaves 
 who have been exported to Brazil have gone from this 
 region; but, while they have a general similarity to the 
 typical negro, I never could, from my own observation, 
 think that our ideal negro, as seen in tobacconists' shops, 
 is the true type. A large proportion of the Balonda, indeed, 
 have heads somewhat elongated backward and upward, 
 thick lips, flat noses, elongated ossa calces, &c. &c; but there 
 are also many good-looking, well-shaped heads and persona 
 among them. 
 
 llth, Tuesday. — We were honored with a grand recop 
 tion by Shinte about eleven o'clock. Sambanza claimec 
 the honor of presenting us, Manenko being slightly indis- 
 
RECEPTION BY SHINTE 171 
 
 posed The native Portuguese and Mambari went fully 
 armed with guns, in order to give Shinte a salute, their 
 drummer and trumpeter making all the noiso that very 
 old instruments would produce. The kotla, or place of 
 audience, was about a hundred yards square, and two 
 graceful specimens of a species of banian stood near one 
 end; under one of these sat Shinte, on a sort of throne 
 covered with a leopard's skin. He had on a checked 
 jacket and a kilt of scarlet baize edged with green; many 
 strings of large beads hung from his neck, and his limbs 
 were covered wi\h iron and copper armlets and bracelets, 
 on his head he wore a helmet made of beads woven neatly 
 together and crow ned with a great bunch of goose-feathers. 
 €lose to him sat three lads with large sheaves of arrows 
 aver their shoulders. 
 
 When we entered the kotla, the whole of Manenko's 
 party saluted Shinte by clapping their hands, and Sam- 
 banza did obeisance by rubbing his chest and arms with 
 ashes. One of the trees being unoccupied, I retreated to 
 it for the sake of the shade, and my whole party did the 
 same. We were now about forty yards from the chief, 
 and could see the whole ceremony. The different sections 
 of the tribe came forward in the same way that we did, 
 the head-man of each making obeisance with ashes which 
 he carried with him for the purpose ; then came the sol- 
 diers, all armed to the teeth, running and shouting toward 
 us, with their swords drawn and their faces screwed up so 
 as to appear as savage as possible, for the purpose, I 
 thought, of trying whether they could not make us take to 
 our heels. As we did not, they turned round toward 
 Shinte and saluted him, then retired. When all had come 
 and were seated, then began the curious capering usually 
 j3oen in pichos. A man starts up, and imitates the most 
 approved attitudes observed in actual fight, as throwing 
 one javelin, receiving another on the shield, springing to 
 one side to avoid a third, running backward or forward, 
 leaping, &c. This over, Sambauza and the spokesman of 
 
i/2 RECEPTION BY SHINTE 
 
 Nyamoana stalked backward and forward in front wi 
 Shinte, and gave forth, in a loud voice, all they ha.d beon 
 able to learn, either from myself or people, of my past his* 
 tory and connection with the Makololof the return of th 
 captives j the wish to open the country to trade; the Bibl« 
 as a word from heaven; the white man's desire for the 
 tribes to live in peace : he ought to have taught the Ma- 
 kololo that first, for the Balonda never attacked them, yet 
 they had assailed the Balonda : perhaps he is fibbing, per- 
 haps not : they rather thought he was ; but as the Balonda 
 had good hearts, and Shinte had never done harm to any 
 one, he had better receive the white man well, and send 
 him on his way. Sambanza was gayly attired, and, be- 
 sides a profusion of beads, had a cloth so long that a boy 
 carried it after him as a train. 
 
 Behind Shinte sat about a hundred women, clothed in 
 their best, which happened to be a profusion of red baize 
 The chief wife of Shinte, one of the Matebele or Zulus, sat 
 in front with a curious red cap on her head. During the 
 intervals between the speeches, these ladies burst forth 
 into a sort of plaintive ditty; but it was impossible for any 
 of us to catch whether it was in praise of the speaker, of 
 Shinte, or of themselves. This was the first time I had 
 ever seen females present in a public assembly. In the 
 south the women are no*< permitted to enter the kotla, 
 and, even when invited to come to a religious service there, 
 would not enter until ordered to do so by the chief; but 
 here they expressed their approbation by clapping their 
 hands and laughing to different speakers ; and Shinte fre- 
 quently turned round and spoke to them. 
 
 A party of musicians, consisting of three drummers and 
 four performers on the piano, went round the kotla several 
 times, regaling us with their music. Their drums are 
 neatly carved from the trunk of a tree, and have a small 
 hole in the side covered with a bit of spider's web : the 
 ends are covered with the skin of an antelope pegged on ; 
 and, when they wish to tighten it, they hold it to the fir* 
 
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. 173 
 
 to make it contract : the instruments are beaten with the 
 hands. 
 
 The piano, named " marimba," consists of two bars of 
 wood placed side by side, here quite straight, but, farther 
 north, bent round so as to resemble half the tire of a car- 
 riage-wheel ; across these are placed about fifteen wooden 
 keys, each of which is two or three inches broad and 
 fifteen or eighteen inches long; their thickness is regu- 
 lated according to the deepness of the note required : each 
 of the keys has a calabash beneath it; from the upper part 
 of each a portion is cut off to enable them to embrace the 
 bars, and form hollow sounding-boards to the keys, which 
 also are of different sizes, according to the note required ; 
 and little drumsticks elicit the music. Eapidity of execu- 
 tion seems much admired among them, and the music is 
 pleasant to the ear. In Angola the Portuguese use the 
 marimba in their dances. 
 
 When nine speakers had concluded their orations, Shinte 
 stood up, and so did all the people. He had maintained 
 true African dignity of manner all the while, but my 
 people remarked that he scarcely ever took his eyes off me 
 for a moment. About a thousand people were present, 
 according to my calculation, and three hundred soldiers. 
 The sun had now become hot ; and the scene ended by the 
 Mambari discharging their guns. 
 
 18th. — We were awakened during the night by a message 
 from Shinte, requesting a visit at a very unseasonable hour. 
 As I was just in the sweating-stage of an intermittent, and 
 the path to the town lay through a wet valley, I declined 
 going. Kolimbota, who knows their customs best, ufged 
 me to go ; but, independent of sickness, I hated words of 
 the eight and deeds of darkness. "I was neither a hyena 
 nor a witch." Kolimbota thought that we ought to con- 
 form to their wishes in every thing : I thought we ought 
 to have some choice in the matter as well, which put him 
 into high dudgeon. However, at ten next morning we 
 went, and were led into the courts of Shinte, the walls of 
 
 16* 
 
174 PRIVATE INTERVIEW WITH SHINTE. 
 
 which were woven rods, all very neat and high. Many 
 trees stood within the enclosure and afforded a grateful 
 shade. These had been planted, for we saw soma recently 
 put in, with grass wound round the trunk to protect them 
 from the sun. The otherwise waste corners of the stieets 
 were planted with sugarcane and bananas, which spread 
 their large light leaves over the walls. 
 
 The Ficus Indica tree, under which we now sat, had 
 very large leaves, but showed its relationship to the Indian 
 banian by sending down shoots toward the ground. Shinte 
 soon came, and appeared a man of upward of fifty -five 
 years of age, of frank and open countenance, and about 
 the middle height. He seemed in good humor, and said he 
 had expected yesterday " that a man who came from the 
 gods would have approached and talked to him." That 
 had been my own intention in going to the reception ; but 
 when we came and saw the formidable preparations, and 
 all his own men keeping at least forty yards off from him, 
 I yielded to the solicitations of my men, and remained by 
 the tree opposite to that under which he sat. His remark 
 confirmed my previous belief that a frank, open, fearless 
 manner ;s the most winning with all these Africans. I 
 stated the object of my journey and mission, and to all I 
 advanced the old gentleman clapped his hands in approba- 
 tion. He replied through a spokesman; then all the com- 
 pany joined in the response by clapping of hands too. 
 
 After the more serious business was ©ver, I asked 
 if he h#d ever seen a white man before. He replied, 
 "Xever: you are the very first I have seen with a white 
 smn and straight hair : your clothing, too, is different from 
 any we have ever seen/' They had been visited by native 
 Portuguese and Mambari only. 
 
 On learning from some of the people that "Shinte'* 
 mouth was bitter for want of tasting ox-flesh/' I presented 
 him with an ox, to his great delight; and, as his country 
 is so well adapted for cattle, I advised him to begin a trade 
 in cows with the Makololo. He was pleased with the idea, 
 
FERTILITY OP SOIL. 175 
 
 and when we returned from Loanda we found that ho had 
 profited by the hint, for he had got three, and one of them 
 justified my opinion of the country, for it was more like a 
 prize-heifer for fatness than any we had seen in Africa, 
 fle soon afterward sent us a basket of green maize boiled, 
 another of manioc-meal, and a small fowl. 
 
 During this time Manenko had been extremely busy 
 with all her people in getting up a very pretty hut and 
 court-yard, to be, as she said,, her residence always when 
 white men were brought by her along the same path. 
 When she heard that we had given an ox to her uncle, 
 she came forward to us with the air of one wronged, and 
 explained that "this white man belonged to her; she had 
 brought him here, and therefore the ox was hers, not 
 Shinte's." She ordered her men to bring it, got it slaugh- 
 tered by them, and presented her uncle with a leg only. 
 Shinte did not seem at all annoyed at the occurrence. 
 
 19th. — I was awakened at an early hour by a messenger 
 from Shinte ; but, the thirst of a raging fever being just 
 assuaged by the bursting forth of a copious perspiration, I 
 declined going for a few hours. Yiolent action of the 
 heart all the way to the town did not predispose me to be 
 patient with the delay which then occurred, probably on 
 account of the divination being unfavorable : — "They could 
 not find Shinte." When I returned to bed, another mes- 
 sage was received : — " Shinte wished to say all he had to 
 tell me at once." This was too tempting an offer; so we 
 went, and he had a fowl ready in his hand to present, also 
 a basket of manioc-meal, and a calabash of mead. Eefer- 
 ring to the constantly-recurring a'ttacks of fever, he re- 
 marked that it was the only thing which would prevent 
 a successful issue to my journey, for he had men to guide 
 me who knew all the paths which led to the white men. 
 He had himself travelled far when a young man. On 
 asking what he would recommend for the fever, "Drink 
 plenty of the mead, and as it gets in it will drive the fever 
 out" It was. rather strong, and I suspect he liked tha 
 
176 KII>NAPI>ING 
 
 remedy pretty well, even though he had no fever. He had 
 always been a friend to Sebituane ; and, now that his son 
 Sekeletu was in his place, Shinte was not merely a friend, 
 but a father to him; and if a son asks a favor the fatbei 
 must give it. He was highly pleased with the large cala- 
 bashes of clarified butter and fat which Sekeletu had sent 
 him, and wished to detain Kolimbota, that he might send 
 a present back to Sekeletu by his hands. This proposition 
 we afterward discovered was. Kolimbota's own, as he had 
 heard so much about the ferocity of the tribes through 
 which we were to pass that he wished to save his skin. 
 It will be seen farther on that he was the only one of our 
 party who returned with a wound. 
 
 An incident which occurred while we were here may be 
 mentioned, as of a character totally unknown in the south 
 Two children, of seven and eight years old, went out to 
 collect firewood a short distance from their parents' home, 
 which was a quarter of a mile from the village, and were 
 kidnapped; the distracted parents could not find a trace of 
 them. This happened so close to th r e town, where there 
 are no beasts of prey, that we suspect some of the high 
 men of Shinte' s court were the guilty parties : they can 
 sell them. by night. The Mambari erect large huts of a 
 square shape to stow these stolen ones in ; they are well fed, 
 but aired by night only. The frequent kidnapping from 
 outlying hamlets explains the stockades we saw around 
 them : the parents have no redress, fcr even Shinte himself 
 seems' fond of working in the dark. One night he sent for 
 me, though I always staged I liked all my dealings to be 
 aboveboard. When I came, he presented me with a slave- 
 girl about ten years old : he said he had always been in the 
 habit of presenting his visitors with a child. On ioj 
 thanking him, and saying that I thought it wrong to tafcf 
 away children from their parents, that I wished him to 
 give up this system altogether and trade in cattle, ivory, 
 and bees' -wax, he urged that she was "to be a child" to 
 bring me water, and that a great man ought to have * 
 
MAGIC LANTERN. 177 
 
 child for tho purpose, yot I had none. As I replied that 1 
 had four children, and should bo very sorry if my chief wero ■ 
 to take my little girl and give her away, and that I would 
 prefer this child to remain and carry water for her own 
 mother, he thought I was dissatisfied with her size, and 
 sent for one a head taller. After many explanations of our 
 abhorrence of slavery, and how displeasing it must be to 
 God to see his children selling one another and giving each 
 other so much grief as this child's mother must feel, I 
 declined her also. If I could have taken her into my family 
 for the purpose of instruction, and then returned her 'as a 
 free woman, according to a promise I should have made to 
 the parents, I might have done so ; but to take her away, 
 and probably never be able to secure her return, would have 
 produced no good effect on the minds of the Balonda ; they 
 would not then have seen evidence of our hatred to slavery, 
 and the kind attentions of my friends would, as it almost 
 always does in similar cases, have turned the poor thing's 
 head. 
 
 Shinte was most anxious to see the pictures of the magic 
 lantern ; but fever had so weakening an effect, and I had 
 such violent action of the heart, with buzzing in the ears, 
 that I could not go for several days; when I did go for the 
 purpose he had his principal men and the same crowd of 
 court beauties near him as at the reception. The first 
 picture exhibited was Abraham about to slaughter his son 
 Isaac : it was shown as large as life, and the uplifted knife 
 was in the act of striking the lad; the Balonda men re- 
 marked that the picture was much more like a god than 
 khe things of wood and clay they worshipped. I explained 
 khat this man was the first of a race to whom God had 
 given the Bible we now held, and that among his children 
 our Savior appeared. The ladies listened with silent awe ; 
 tut, when I moved the slide, the uplifted dagger moving 
 toward them, they thought it was to be sheathed in their 
 bodies instead of Isaac's. " Mother ! mother I" all shouted 
 at once, and off they rushed, helter-skelter, tumbling pell 
 M 
 
178 DELAY — HEAVY RAINS. 
 
 mell over sack other, and over the little idol-huts and 
 tobacco-bushes ; we could not get one of them back again. 
 Shinte, however, sat bravely through the whole, and after- 
 ward examined the instrument with interest. An explana- 
 tion was always added after each time of showing its 
 powers, so that no one „ should imagine there w r as aught 
 supernatural in it ; and had Mr. Murray, who kindly brought 
 it from England, seen its popularity among both Makololo 
 and .Balonda, he would have been gratified with the direc- 
 tion his generosity then took. It was the only mode of 
 instruction I was ever pressed to repeat. The peopio came 
 long distances for the express purpose of seeing the objects 
 and heating the explanations. 
 
 One cannot get away quickly from these chiefs; they 
 like to have the honor of strangers residing in their vil- 
 lages. Here we had an additional cause of delay in fre- 
 quent rains : twenty-four hours never elapsed without 
 heavy showers ; every thing is affected by the dampness ; 
 surgical instruments become all rusty, clothing mildewed, 
 and shoes mouldy; my little tent was now so rotten and so 
 full of small holes that every smart shower caused a fine 
 mist to descend on my blanket, and made me fain to cover 
 the head with it. Heavy dews lay on every thing in the 
 morning, even inside the tent; there is only a short time 
 of sunshine in the afternoon, and even that is so interrupted 
 by thunder-showers that we cannot dry our bedding. 
 
 The winds coming from the north always bring heavy 
 clouds and rain; in the south, the only heavy rains noticed 
 are those which come from the northeast or east. The 
 thermometer falls as low as 72° when there is no sunshine, 
 though, when the weather is fair, the protected thermo- 
 meter generally rises as high as 82° even in the mornings 
 and evenings. 
 
 24th. — We expected to have started to-day; but Sambanza, 
 who had been sent off early in the morning for guides, re- 
 turned at mid-day without them, and drunk. As far as we 
 could coll act from his incoherent sentences, Shinte had said 
 
FAREWELL TO SHINTE. 179 
 
 tbo rain was too heavy for our departure, and tho guide* 
 still required time for preparation. Shinto himself was 
 busy getting some meal ready for my use in the journey. 
 As it rained nearly all day, it was no sacrifice to submit to 
 his advice and remain. Sambanza staggered to Manenko's 
 hut: she, however, who had never promised "to love, 
 lunor, and obey him," had not been "nursing her wrath 
 to keep it warm j" so she coolly bundled him into the hut, 
 and put him to bed. 
 
 As the last proof of friendship, Shinte came into my tent, 
 though it could scarcely contain more than one person, 
 looked at all the curiosities, the quicksilver, the looking- 
 glass, books, hair-brushes, comb, watch, &c. &c, with tho 
 greatest interest; then, closing the tent, so that none of his 
 own people might see the extravagance of which he was 
 about to be guilty, he drew out from his clothing a string 
 of beads and the end of a conical shell, which is consi- 
 dered, in regions far from the sea, of as great value as the 
 Lord Mayor's badge is in London. He hung it round my 
 neck, and said, " There, now you have a proof of my friend- 
 ship." 
 
 My men informed me that these shells are so highly 
 valued in this quarter, as evidences of distinction, that for 
 two of them a slave might be bought, and five would be 
 considered a handsome price for an elephant's tusk worth 
 ten pounds. At our last interview old Shinte pointed out 
 our principal guide, Intemese, a man about fifty, who was, 
 he said, ordered to remain by us till we should reach the 
 sea; that I had now left Sekeletu far behind, and must 
 henceforth look to Shinte alone for aid, and that it would 
 always be most cheerfully rendered. This was only a 
 polite way of expressing his wishes for my success. It was 
 the good words only of the guides which were to aid me 
 from the next chief, Katema, on to the sea; they were to 
 turn back on reaching him ; but he gave a good supply of 
 food for the journey before us, and, after mentioning as a 
 reason for letting us go even now that no one could say 
 
180 MANIOC-GARDENS. 
 
 that we had been driven away from the town, since we had 
 been several days with him, be gave a mont hearty saluta- 
 tion, and we parted with the wish that God might blesa 
 him. 
 
 CHAPTEE XVII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE PASSES THROUGH LONDA AND VISITS 
 
 KATEMA. 
 
 26th. — Leaving Shinte, with eight of his men to aid in 
 carrying our luggage, we passed, in a northerly direction, 
 down the lovely valley on which the town stands, then 
 went a little to the west through pretty open forest, and 
 alept at a village of Balonda. In the morning we had a 
 fine range of green hills, called Saloisho, on our right, and 
 were informed that they were rather thickly inhabited 
 )>y the people of Shinte, who worked in iron, the ore of 
 which abounds in these hills. 
 
 The country through which we passed possessed the same 
 general character of flatness and forest that we noticed 
 before The soil is dark with a tinge of red — in some 
 places it might be called red — and appeared very fertile 
 fivery valley contained villages of twenty or thirty huts, 
 with gardens of manioc, which here is looked upon as the 
 staff of life. Very little labor is required for its cultiva- 
 tion The earth is drawn up into oblong beds, about three 
 feet broad and one in height, and in these are planted 
 pieces of the manioc-stalk, at four feet apart ,A crop of 
 beans or groundnuts is sown between them, and when 
 these are reaped the land around 4 the manioc is cleared of 
 weeds In from ten to eighteen months after planting, ac- 
 cording to the quality of the soil, the roots are fit for food. 
 There is no necessity for reaping soon, as the roots do tot 
 Secome bitter and dry until after three years. When a 
 
VILLAGES BEYOND THE LONAJE 181 
 
 woman lakes up the roots, she thrusts a piece or two of 
 
 tie upper stalks into the hole she has made, draws hack 
 the soil, and a new crop is thereby begun. The plant grows 
 to a height of six feet, and every part of it is useful ; the 
 leaves may be cooked as a vegetable. The roots are from 
 three to four inches in diameter, and from twelve to 
 eighteen inches long. 
 
 There are two varieties of the manioc or cassava, — one 
 sweet and wholesome, the other bitter and containing 
 poison, but much more speedy in its growth than the 
 former This last property causes its perpetuation. 
 
 Our chief guide, Intemese, sent orders to all the villages 
 around our route that Shinte's friends must have abundance 
 of provisions. Our progress was impeded by tLb time re- 
 quisite for communicating the chiefs desire and consequent 
 preparation of meal. We received far more food from 
 Shinte's people than from himself. Kapende, for instance, 
 presented two large baskets of meal, three of manioc-roots 
 steeped and dried in the sun and ready to be converted 
 into flour, three fowls, and seven eggs, with three smoke- 
 dried fishes ; and others gave with similar liberality. I 
 gave to the head-men small bunches of my stock of beads, 
 with an apology tha$ we were now on our way to tne 
 market for these goods. The present was always politely 
 received. 
 
 AfUr crossing the Lonaje, we came to some pretty vil- 
 lages, embowered, as the negro villages usually are, in 
 bananas, shrubs, and manioc, and near the banks of the 
 Leeb* we formed our encampment in a nest of serpents, 
 one of which bit one of our men ; but the wound waa 
 harmless. The people of the surrounding villages pro- 
 'sented us with large quantities of food, in obedience to 
 the mandate of Shinte, without expecting any equivalent 
 One village had lately been transferred hither from the 
 cour try of Matiamvo. They, of course, continue to ac- 
 knowledge him as paramount chief; but the frequent in- 
 stances which occur of people changing from ono part of 
 
 16 
 
182 CROSSING THE LEEBa 
 
 • 
 
 the country to another show that the great chiefs possesi 
 only a limited power. The only peculiarity we observed in 
 these people is the habit of plaiting the beard into a three- 
 fold cord. 
 
 The town of the Balonda chief Cazembe was pointed 
 out to us as lying to the N.E. and by E. from the town oi 
 Bhinte, and great numbers of people in this quarter have 
 gone thither for the purpose of purchasing copper ankle cs, 
 made at Cazembe's, and report the distance to be about five 
 days' journey. 
 
 It took us about four hours to cross the Leeba, which is 
 ionsi'derably smaller here than where we left it, — indeed, 
 only about a hundred yards wide. It has the same dark 
 mossy hue. The villagers lent us canoes to effect our pass- 
 age ; and, having gone to a village about two miles beyond 
 the river, I had the satisfaction of getting observations for 
 both longitude and latitude, — for the former, the distance 
 between Saturn and the moon, and for the latter, a meridian 
 altitude of Canopus. Long. 22° 57' E., lat. 12° 6' 6" S. 
 
 Here we were surprised to hear English cotton cloth 
 much more eagerly inquired after than beads and orna- 
 ments. They are more in need of clothing than the Be- 
 chuana tribes living adjacent to the»-Kalahari Desert, who 
 have plenty of skins for the purpose. Animals of all kinds 
 are rare here, and a very ^mall piece of calico is of great 
 value. 
 
 As the people on the banks of the Leeba were the last 
 of Shinte's tribe over which Intemese had power, he was 
 naturally anxious to remain as long as possible. He was 
 not idle, but made a large wooden mortar and pestle for 
 his wife during our journey. He also carved many wooden 
 spoons and a bowl; then commenced a basket; but, as 
 what he considered good living was any thing but agreeable 
 to ns, who had been accustomed to milk and maize, we we*it 
 forward on the 2d without him. He soon followed, but left 
 our pontoon, saying it would be brought by the head-man 
 of the village. This was a great loss, as we afterward 
 
PLAINS COVERED WITH WATER. 183 
 
 found : it remained at this village more thai a year, and, 
 when we returned, a mouse had eaten a hole in it. 
 
 We entered on an extensive plain beyond the Lcoba, at 
 Least twenty miles broad, and covered with water ankle 
 deep in the shallowest parts. We doviated somewhat from 
 oui N.W". course, by the direction of Intemese, and kept 
 the hills Piri nearly on our right during a great part of 
 the first day, in order to avoid the still more deeply -flooded 
 plains of Lobale (Luval?) on the west. These, according 
 to Intemese, are at present impassable on account of being 
 thigh deep. The plains are so perfectly level that rain- 
 water, which this was, stands upon them for months together 
 They were not flooded by the Leeba, for that was still far 
 within its banks. Here and there, dotted over the surface, 
 are little islands, on which grow stunted date-bushes and 
 scraggy trees. 
 
 We made our beds on one of the islands, and were 
 wretchedly supplied with firewood. The booths constructed 
 by the men were but sorry shelter, for the rain poured 
 down without intermission till mid-day. There is no drain- 
 age for the prodigious masses of w r ater on these plains, ex- 
 cept slow percolation into the different feeders of the Leeba 
 and into that river itself. The quantity of vegetation has 
 prevented the country from becoming furrowed by many 
 rivulets or " nullahs." Were it not so remarkably flat, the 
 drainage must have been effected by torrents, even in spite 
 of the matted vegetation. 
 
 When released from our island by the rain ceasing, we 
 marched on till we came to a ridge of dry inhabited land 
 in the N.W. The inhabitants, according to custom, lent 
 us the roofs of some huts to save the men the trouble of 
 booth-making. I suspect that the story in Park's " Travels," 
 of the men lifting up the hut to place it on the lion, referred 
 to the roof only. We leave them for the villagers to replace 
 at their leisure. No payment is expected for the use of 
 them. By night it rained so copiously that all our bods 
 wore flooded from below; and from this time forth we 
 
184 A HALT. 
 
 always made a furrow round each booth, and used the earth 
 to raise our sleeping-places. My men turned out to work 
 in the wet most willingly : indeed, they always did. ] 
 could not but contrast their conduct with that of Intemese. 
 fle was thoroughly imbued with the slave-spirit, and lied 
 on all occasions without compunction. Untruthfulness is 
 A sort of refuge for the weak and oppressed. We expected 
 to move on the 4th, but he declared that we were so near 
 Katema's, if we did not send forward to apprize that chief 
 of our approach, he would certainly impose ,a fine. It 
 rained the whole day, so we were reconciled to the clelayj 
 but on Sunday, the 5th, he let us know that we were still 
 two days distant from- Katema. We unfortunately could 
 not manage without him, for the country was so deluged 
 we should have been brought to a halt, before we went 
 many miles, by some deep valley, every one of which was 
 full of water. Intemese continued to plait his basket with 
 all his might, and would not come to our religious service. 
 He seemed to be afraid of our incantations, but was always 
 merry and jocular. 
 
 6th. — Soon after starting, we crossed a branch of the Loka- 
 lueje by means of a canoe, and in the afternoon passed over 
 the main stream by a like conveyance. The former, as is 
 the case with all branches of rivers in this country, is 
 called nuana Kalueje, (child of the Kalueje.) Hippopotami 
 exist in the Lokalueje, so it may be inferred to be peren- 
 nial, as the inhabitants asserted. We cannot judge of the 
 size of the stream from what we now saw. It had about 
 forty yards of deep, fast-flowing water, but probably not 
 more than half that amount in the dry season. Besides 
 these, We crossed numerous feeders in our N.N7W. course, 
 and, there being no canoes, got frequently wet in the course 
 of the day. The oxen in some places had their heads only 
 above water, and the stream, flowing over their backs, 
 wetted our blankets, which we used as saddles. The arm- 
 pit was the only safe spot for carrying the watch, for there 
 it was preserved from rains above and waters below T 
 
0MNIV0R0U8 FISH. 185 
 
 men on foot crossed these gullies holding up their burden* 
 »t arms' length. 
 
 Great numbers of the omnivorous-feeding fish Giants 
 tiluris, or mosala, spread themselves over the flooded plains, 
 and, as the waters retire, try to find their way back again 
 lo the rivers. The Balonda make earthen dikes and 
 hedges across the outlets of the retreating waters, leaving 
 only small spaces through which the chief part of the 
 water flows. In these open spaces they plant creels, simi- 
 lar in shape to our own, into which the fish can enter but 
 cannot return. They secure iarge quantities of fish in 
 this way, which, when smoke-dried, make a good relish for 
 their otherwise-insipid food. They use also a weir of mats 
 made of reeds sewed together, with but half an inch be- 
 tween each. Open spaces are left for the insertion of the 
 yreels as before. 
 
 In still water, a fish-trap is employed of the same shape 
 and plan as the common round wire mouse-trap, which has 
 an opening surrounded with wires pointing inward. This 
 is made of reeds and supple wands, and food is placed 
 inside to attract the fish. 
 
 Besides these means of catching fish, they use a hook of 
 iron without a barb ; the point is bent inward instead, so 
 as not to allow the fish to escape. Nets are not so common 
 as in the Zouga and Leeambye ; but they kill large quan- 
 tities of fishes by means of the bruised leaves of a shrub 
 which may be seen planted beside every village in the 
 c&untry. 
 
 On the 7th »we came to the village of Soana Molopo, 
 a half-brother of Katema, a few miles beyond the Loki*- 
 lueje. When we went to visit him, we found him sitting 
 with about one hundred men. He called on Intemese to 
 give some account of us, though no doubt it had been done 
 in private before. He then pronounced the following sen- 
 tences : — " The journey of the white man is very proper j 
 but Shinte has disturbed us by showing the path to the 
 Makololo -who accompany him. He ought to have taken 
 
 16* 
 
\ 
 
 186 OUR GLIDE'S. PERVERSITY. 
 
 them through the country without showing them the 
 towns. We are afraid of the Makololo." ' He then gave 
 us a handsome present of food, and seemed perplexed by 
 my sitting down familiarly and giving him a few of our 
 ideas When we left, Intemese continued busily impart* 
 ing an account of all we had given to Shinte and Masiko, 
 and instilling the hope that Soana Molopo might obtain as 
 mucfti as they had received. Accordingly, when we ex- 
 pected to move on the morning of the 8th, we got some 
 hints about the ox which Soana Molopo expected to eat ; 
 but we recommended him to get the breed of cattle for 
 himself, seeing his country was so well adapted for rearing 
 stock. Intemese also refused to move : he, moreover, 
 tried to frighten us into parting with an ox by saying 
 that Soana Molopo would send fo; fvard a message that wo 
 were a marauding-party; but we packed up and went on 
 without him. We did not absolutely need him ; but he 
 was useful in preventing the inhabitants of secluded vil- 
 lages from betaking themselves to flight. We wished to 
 be on good terms with all, and therefore put up with our 
 guide's peccadilloes. His good word respecting us had 
 considerable influence; and he was always asked if we had 
 behaved ourselves like men on the way. The Makololo 
 are viewed as great savages; but Intemese could not 
 justly look with scorn on them, for he has the mark of a 
 large gash on his arm, got in fighting ; and he would never 
 toil the cause of battle, but boasted of his powers, as the 
 Makololo do, till asked about a scar on his back, betoken- 
 ing any thing but bravery. 
 
 Intemese was useful in cases like that of Monday, when 
 we came upon a whole village in a forest enjoying their 
 noonday nap. Our sudden appearance in their midst so 
 terrified them that one woman nearly went intc con- 
 vulsions from fear. When they saw and heard Intemese, 
 their terror subsided. 
 
 As usual, we were caught by rains after leaving Soana 
 Molopo' s, and made our booths at the house of Mozinkwa, 
 
 / 
 
MOZINK^A AND HIS FAMILY. 187 
 
 a most intelligent and friendly man belonging to Katcma. 
 He had a fine large garden in cultivation; and well "hedged 
 round. He had made the walls of his compound, or court- 
 yard, of branches of the banian, which, taking root, had 
 grown to be a live hedge of that tree. Mozinkwa's wife 
 liad cotton growing all round her premises, and several 
 plants used as relishes to the insipid porridge of the 
 country. She cultivated also the common castor-oil plant, 
 and a larger shrub (Jatropha curcas) which also yields a 
 purgative oil. Here, however, the oil is used for anointing 
 the heads and bodies alone. We saw in her garden like- 
 wise the Indian bringalls, yams, and sweet potatoes. 
 Several trees were planted in the middle of the yard, and 
 in the deep shade they gave stood the huts of his fine 
 family. His children, all by one mother, very black, but 
 comely to view, were the finest negro family I ever saw. 
 y* e were much pleased with the frank friendship and 
 liberality of this man and his wife. She asked me to bring 
 hor a cloth from the white man's country ; but, when we 
 returned, poor Mozinkwa's wife was in her grave, and he, 
 as is the custom, had abandoned trees, garden, and huts to 
 ruin. They cannot live on a spot where a favorite wife 
 has died, probably because unable to bear the remem- 
 brance of the happy times they have spent there, or afraid 
 to remain in a spot where death has once visited the esta- 
 blishment. If ever the place is revisited, it is to pray to 
 hor or make some offering. This feeling renders any per- 
 manent village in the country impossible. 
 
 "We learned from Mozinkwa that Soana Molopo was the 
 elder brother of Katema, but that he was wanting in wis- 
 dom j and Katema, by purchasing cattle and receiving in 
 a kind manner all the fugitives who came to him, had 
 secured the birthright to himself, so far as influence in the 
 country is concerned. Soana' s. first address to us did not 
 savor much of African wisdom. 
 
 Friday, 10th. — On leaving Mozinkwa's hospitable mansion, 
 we crossed another stream, about forty yards wide, iii 
 
J 88 QUENPLNDE'S POLITENESS. 
 
 mnoes. While this tedious process was going on, T was in- 
 formed* that it is called the Mona-Kalueje, or brother of 
 Kalueje, as it flows into that river; that both the Kaluoja 
 and Livoa flow into the Leebe ; and that the Chifumadze, 
 swollen by the Lotembwa, is a feeder of that river also, 
 below the point where we lately crossed it. 
 
 As we were crossing the river, we were joined by a mes- 
 senger from Katema, called Shakatwala. This person was 
 a sort of steward or factotum to his chief. Every chief has 
 one attached to his person, and, though generally poor, 
 they are invariably men of great shrewdness and ability. 
 They act the part of messengers on all important occasions, 
 and possess considerable authority in the chief's house- 
 hold. Shakatwala informed us that Katema had not re- 
 ceived precise information about us, but if we were peaceably 
 disposed, as he loved strangers, we were to come to his 
 town. We proceeded forthwith, but were turned aside, by 
 the strategy of our friend Intemese, to the village of 
 Quendende, the father-in-law of Katema. This fine old 
 man was so very polite that we did not regret being obliged 
 to spend Sunday at his village. He expressed his pleasure 
 at having a share in the honor of a visit as well as Katema, 
 though it seemed to me that the conferring that pleasure 
 required something like a pretty good stock of impudence, 
 in leading twenty-seven men through the country without 
 the means of purchasing food. My men did a little busi- 
 ness for themselves in the begging line : they generally 
 commenced every interview with new villagers by saying, 
 "1 have come from afar; give me something to eat." I 
 forbade this at first, believing that, as the Makololo had a 
 bad name, the villagers gave food from fear. But, after 
 some time, it was evident that in many cases maize and 
 manioc were given from pure generosity. The first time I 
 came to this conclusion was at the house of Mozinkwa : 
 scarcely any one of my men returned from it without 
 something in his hand; and as they protested tbey had rot 
 
CROP OP WOOL. 189 
 
 begged, I asked himself, and found that it was tho case, 
 aid that he had given spontaneously. 
 
 Qnondonde's head was a good specimen of the greater 
 crop of wool with which the negroes of Londa are fur 
 Dished. The front was parted in the middle, and plaited 
 into two thick rolls, which, falling down behind the ears, 
 reached the shoulders : the rest was collected into a largo 
 knot, which lay on the nape of the neck. As he was an 
 intelligent man, we had much conversation together: ho 
 had just come from attending the funeral of one of his 
 people, and I found that the great amount of drum-beating 
 which takes place on these occasions was with the idea 
 that the Barimo, or spirits, could be drummed to sleep. 
 There is a drum in every village, and we often hear it going 
 from sunset to sunrise. They seem to look upon the de- 
 parted as vindictive beings, and, I suspect, are more in- 
 fluenced by fear than by love. In beginning to speak on 
 religious subjects with those who havenever heard of Chris- 
 tianity, the great fact of the Son Of God having come down 
 from heaven to die for us is the prominent theme. No fact 
 more striking can be mentioned. " He actually came to 
 men. He himself told us about his Father and tho dwell- 
 ing-place whither he has gon^. We have his words in this 
 book, and he really endured punishment in our stead from 
 pure love," &c. If this fails to interest them, nothing else 
 will succeed. 
 
 We here met with some people just arrived from the 
 town of Matiamvo, (Muata yanvo,) who had been sent to 
 unnounce the death of the late chieftain of that name, 
 liatiamvo is the hereditary title, muata meaning lord or 
 chief. The late Matiamvo seems, from the report of these 
 men, to have become insane, for he is said to have some- 
 times indulged the whim of running a muck in the town 
 and beheading whomsoever he met, until he had quite a 
 heap of human heads. Matiamvo explained this conduct 
 by saying that his people were too many, and he -wanted 
 to diminish them. He had absolute power of life ana death. 
 
190 MATlAMVO'S CONDUCT. 
 
 On inquiring Whether human sacrifices were still made, as 
 in the time of Pereira, at Cazeinbe's, we were informed 
 that these had never been so common as was represented 
 to Pereira, but that it occasionally happened, when certain 
 charms were needed by the chief, that a man was slaugh- 
 tered for the sake of some part of his body. He added 
 that he hoped the present chief would not act like his 
 (mad) predecessor, but kill only those who were guilty of 
 witchcraft or theft. These men were very much astonished 
 at the liberty enjoyed by the Makololo; and, when they 
 found that all my people had cattle, we were told that 
 Matiamvo alone had a herd. One very intelligent man 
 among them asked, " If he should make a canoe, and take 
 it down the river to the Makololo, would he get a cow for 
 it V This question, which my men answered in the affirma- 
 tive, was important, as showing the knowledge of water- 
 communication from the country of Matiamvo to the 
 Makololo; and the riveT runs through a fertile country 
 abounding in large timber. If the tribes have intercourse 
 with each other, it exerts a good influence on their chiefs 
 to hear what other tribes think of their deeds. The Ma- 
 kololo have such a bad name, on account of their perpetual 
 forays, that they have not been known in Londa except as 
 ruthless destroyers. The people in Matiamvo's country 
 submit to much wrong from their chiefs, and no voice can 
 be raised against cruelty, because they are afraid to flee 
 elsewhere. 
 
 We left Quendende's village in company with Quendende 
 himself, and the principal man of the ambassadors of Ma- 
 tiamvo, and, after two or three miles' march to the N.W., 
 came to the ford of the Lotembwa, which flows southward. 
 A canoe was waiting to ferry us over, but it was very 
 tedious work; for, though the river itself was only eighty 
 yards wide, the whole valley was flooded, and we were 
 obliged to paddle more than half a mile to get free of the 
 water. A fire was lit to warm old Quendende and enable 
 him to dry his tobacco-leaves. The leaves are taker from 
 
8UPKRSTITI0US CUSTCM8. 191 
 
 frho piant ai.d spread close to the fire until they arc quit* 
 iry and crisp; they are then put into a snuff-box, which, 
 with a little pestle, serves the purpose of a mill to grind 
 them into powaor; it is then used as snuff. As we sat by 
 the fire, the ambassadors communicated their thoughts 
 freely respdct.rg the customs of their race. When a chiei 
 dies, a nitiuuer of servants are slaughtered with him to 
 Torn: L:& company in the other world. The Barotse followed 
 the BU?De custom; and this and other usages show them to 
 be genuine negroes, though neither they nor the Balonda 
 resemble closely the typical form of that people. Qucn- 
 dend*5 said if be were present on these occasions be would 
 nide his people, so that they might not be slaughtered. 
 As we go north, the people become more bloodily super- 
 stitious. 
 
 We were assured that if the late Matiamvo took a fancy 
 to any thing, — such, for instance, as my watch-chain, which 
 was of silver wire, and was a great curiosity, as they had 
 never seen metal plaited before, — he would order a whole 
 village to be brought up to buy it from a stranger. When 
 a slave-trader visited him, he took possession of all his 
 goods; then, after ten days or a fortnight, he would send 
 out a party of men to pounce upon some considerable 
 village, and, having killed the head-men, would pay for all 
 the goods by selling the inhabitants. This has frequently 
 been the case, and nearly all the visitants he ever had were 
 men of color. On asking if Matiamvo did not know he 
 was a man, and would be judged, in company with those 
 he destroyed, by a Lord who is no respecter of persons, 
 the ambassador replied, "We do not go up to God, as you 
 do: we are put into the ground/' I could not ascertain 
 that even those who have such a distinct perception of the 
 continued existence of departed spirits had any notion oi 
 neaven^: they appear to imagine the souls to be always 
 near the place of sepulture. 
 
 After crossing the river Lotembwa, we travelled about 
 eight miles, and came to Ka tenia's straggling town, (lat 
 
192 PRESENTATION TO KATEMA. 
 
 ] 1° 35' 49" S., long. 22° 27' E.) It is more a collection oi 
 villages than a town. We were led out about half a 
 mile from the houses, that we might make for ourselvea 
 the best lodging we could of the trees and grass, whilo 
 Intemese was taken to Katema to undergo the usual pro 
 cess of pumping as to our past conduct and professions 
 Katema soon afterward sent a handsome present of food. 
 
 Next morning we had a formal presentation, and found 
 Katema seated on a sort of throne, with about three hun- 
 dred men on the ground around, and thirty women, who 
 were said to be his wives, close behind him. The main 
 body of the people were seated in a semicircle, at .a dis 
 tance of fifty yards. Each party had its own head-man 
 stationed at a little distance in front, and, when beckoned 
 by the chief, came near him as councillors. Intemese gave 
 our history, and Katema placed sixteen large baskets of 
 meal before us, half a dozen fowls, and a dozen eggs, and 
 expressed regret that we had slept hungry: he did not like 
 any stranger to suffer want in his town; and added, "Go 
 home and cook and eat, and you will then be in a fit state 
 to speak to me at an audience I will give you to-morrow.'' 
 He was busily engaged in hearing the statements of a large 
 body of fine young men who had fled from Kangenko, 
 chief of Lobale, on account of his selling their relatives to 
 the native Portuguese who frequent his country. Katema 
 is a tall man, about forty years of age, and his head was 
 ornamented with a helmet of beads and feathers. He had 
 on a snuff-brown coat, with a broad band of tinsel down 
 the arms, and carried in his hand a large tail made of the 
 caudal extremities of a number of gnus. This has charma 
 attached to it, and he continued waving it in front of him- 
 self all the time we were there. He seemed in good spirits, 
 laughing heartily several times. This is a good sign, for a 
 man who shakes his sides with mirth is seldom difficult to 
 deal with. When we rose to take leave, all ro»e with us, 
 as at Shinte's. 
 
 Be turning next morning, Katema addressed me thui:— 
 
INTF.UVfEW WITH KATEMA. 1OT 
 
 "I am 'the great Moene (lord; Katema, the fellow of Ma- 
 tiamvo. There is no one in the country equal to Matiamvo 
 and me I have always lived here, and my forefathers too. 
 There is the house in which my father lived. You four.d 
 r\o human skulls near the place where you are encamped 
 J never killed any of the traders : they all come to me. I 
 am the great Moene Katema, of whom you have heard." 
 Jle looked as if he had fallen asleep tipsy and dreamed 
 of his greatness. On explaining my objects to him, he 
 promptly pointed out three men who would be our guides, 
 and explained that the northwest path w r as the most 
 direct, and that by which all traders came, but that the 
 water at present standing on the plains would reach up to 
 the loins : he would therefore send us by a more northerly 
 route, which no trader had yet traversed. This was more 
 suited to our wishes, for we never found a path safe that 
 had been trodden by slave-traders. 
 
 We presented a few articles which pleased him highly, — 
 a small shawl, a razor, three bunches of beads, some but- 
 tons, and a powder-horn. Apologizing for the insignifi- 
 cance of the gift, I wished to know what I could bring 
 him from Loanda, saying, not a large thing, but something 
 small. He laughed heartily at the limitation, and replied, 
 " Every thing of the white people would be acceptable, and 
 he Would receive any thing thankfully ; but the coat he 
 then had on was old, and he would like another." I intro- 
 duced the subject of the Bible; but one of the old coun- 
 cillors broke in, told all he had picked up from the Mam- 
 bari, and glided off into several other subjects. It is a 
 misery to speak through an interpreter, as I was now 
 forced to do. With a body of men like mine, composed as 
 they wore of six different tribes, and all speaking the lan- 
 guage of the Bechuanas, there was no difficulty in commu 
 eating on common subjects with any tribe we came to; but 
 doling out a story in which they felt no interest, and 
 which I understood only sufficiently well to perceive that 
 
 a mere abridgment was given, was uncommonly slow 
 N 17 
 
194 CATTLE — A FEAST. 
 
 work. Neither could Katema's attention be arrested, 
 except by compliments, of which they have always plenty* 
 to bestow as well as receive. TV^ were strangers, ami 
 knew that, as Makololo, we had not the best of characters ; 
 yet his treatment of us was wonderfully good and liberal. 
 
 I complimented him on the possession of cattle, and 
 pleased him by telling him how he might milk the cows. 
 He has a herd of about thirty, really splendid animals, all 
 reared from two which he brought from the Balobale when 
 he was young. They are generally of a white color, and 
 are quite wild, running off with graceful ease like a herd 
 of elands on the approach of a stranger. They excited the 
 unbounded admiration of the Makololo, and clearly proved 
 that the country was well adapted for them. When Katema 
 wishes to slaughter one, he is obliged to shoot it as if it 
 were a buffalo. Matiamvo is said to possess a herd of cattle 
 in a similar state. I never could feel certain as to the 
 reason why they do not all possess cattle in a country con- 
 taming such splendid pasturage. 
 
 As Katema did not offer an ox, as would have been done 
 by a Makololo or Caffre chief, we slaughtered one of our 
 own, and all of us were delighted to get a meal of meat, 
 after subsisting so long on the light porridge and green 
 maize of Londa. On occasions of slaughtering an animal, 
 some pieces of it are in the fire before the skin is all 
 removed from the body. A frying-pan full of these pieces 
 having been got quickly ready, my men crowded about 
 their father, and I handed some all round. It was a 
 strange sight to the Balonda, who were looking on wonder- 
 ing. I offered portions to them too, but these were declined, 
 though they are excessively fond of a little animal food to 
 eat with their vegetable diet. They would not eat with us, 
 but they would take the meat and cook it in their own 
 way, and then use it. I thought at one time that they had 
 imported something from the Mohammedans, and the more 
 especially as an exclamatica of surprise, "Allah!" sounds 
 like the Illah of the Arabs ; but we found, a little farther 
 
NEW ATTACK OF FEVER. 197 
 
 on, another form of salutation, of Christian (?) origin, " Ave- 
 rio," (Ave Marie.) The salutations probably travel farther 
 than the faith. My people, when satisfied with a meal like 
 that which they enjoy so often at home, amused themselves 
 by an uproarious dance. Katema sent to ask what I Lad 
 given them to produce so much excitement. Intemese replied 
 it was their custom, and they meant no harm. The com 
 panion of the ox we slaughtered refused food for two days, 
 and went lowing about for him continually. He seemed 
 inconsolable for his loss, and tried again and again to 
 escape back to the Makololo country. My men remarked, 
 fi He thinks, They will kill me as well as my friend." Katema 
 thought it the result of art, and had fears of my skill in 
 medicine, and, of course, witchcraft. He refused to «ee the 
 magic lantern. 
 
 On Sunday, the 19th, both I and several of our party 
 were seized with fever, and I could do nothing but toss 
 about in my little tent, with the thermometer about 90°, — 
 though this was the beginning of winter, and my men 
 made as much shade as possible by planting branches of 
 trees all round and over it. We have, for the first time in 
 ray experience in Africa, had a cold wind from the north. 
 All the winds from that quarter are hot, and those from 
 the south are cold; but they seldom blow from eithei 
 direction. 
 
 20th. — We were glad to get away, though not on account 
 cf any scarcity of food; for my men, by giving small 
 presents of meat as an earnest of their sincerity, formed 
 many friendships with the people of Katema. We went 
 about four or five miles in a KN.W. direction, then two in 
 a westerly one, and came round the small end of Lake 
 Molo. It seemed, as far as we could at this time discern, 
 to be like a river a quarter of a mile wide. - 
 
 Immediately beyond Dilolo there is a large flat abou 
 twenty miles in breadth. Here Shakatwala insisted on our 
 remaining to get supplies of food from Katema's subjectg 
 before entering the uninhabited watery plains 
 
 17* 
 
198 SAGACITY OF ANTS. 
 
 Heavy rains prevented us from crossing the plain in * ant 
 (N.N W.) in one day, and the constant wading among the 
 grass hurt the feet of the men. There is a footpath all the 
 way across, but, as this is worn down beneath the lev* 1 of 
 the resi; of the plain, it is necessarily the deepest portion, 
 and the men, avoiding it, make a new walk by its side. A 
 path, however narrow, is a great convenience, as any one 
 who has travelled on foot in Africa will admit. The virtual 
 want of it here caused us to make slow and painful progress. 
 
 Ants surely are wiser than some men, for they learn by 
 experience. They have established themselves even on 
 these plains, where water stands so long annually as to 
 allow the lotus, and other aqueous plants, to come to matu- 
 rity. When all the ant-horizon is submerged a foot deep 
 they manage to exist by ascending to little houses built of 
 black tenacious loam on stalks of grass and placed higher 
 than the line of inundation. This must have been the re- 
 sult of experience ; for, if they had waited till the water 
 actually invaded their terrestrial habitations, they would not 
 have been able to procure materials for their aerial quarters 
 unless they dived down to the bottom for every mouthful 
 of clay. Some of these upper chambers are about the size, 
 of a bean, and others as large as a man's thumb. They 
 must have built in anticipation ) and, if so, let us humbly 
 hope that the sufferers by the late inundations in France 
 may be possessed of as much common sense as the littU 
 black ants of the Dilolo plains. 
 
DEEP VALLEY 199 
 
 CHAPTEE XYIII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE ADVANCES TO THE NORTHWEST — VI8IT8 
 KATENDE AND IONQA PANZA. 
 
 24.th of February. — On reaching unflooded lands beyond 
 the plain, we found the villages there acknowledged the 
 authority of the chief named Katende, and we discovered, 
 also, to our surprise, that the almost level plain we had 
 passed forms the watershed between the southern and 
 northern rivers, for we had now entered a district in 
 which the rivers flowed in a northerly direction into the 
 Kasai or Loke, near to which we now were, while the 
 rivers we had hitherto crossed were all running southward. 
 Having met with kind treatment and aid at the first vil- 
 lage, Katema's guides returned, and we were led to the 
 N.N.W. by the inhabitants, and descended into the very 
 first really-deep valley we had seen since leaving, Kolo- 
 beng. A stream ran along the bottom of a slope of three 
 or four hundred yards from the plains above. 
 
 We crossed this by a rustic bridge at present submerged 
 thigh deep by the rains. The trees growing along the 
 stream of this lovely valley were thickly planted and very 
 high. Many had sixty or eighty feet of clean straight 
 trunk, and beautiful flowers adorned the ground beneath 
 them. Ascending the opposite side, we came, in two 
 hours' time, to another valley, equally beautiful, and with 
 a stream also in its centre. 
 
 Reaching the village of Kabinje, in the evening he sent 
 as a present of tobacco, Mutokuane or " bang/' (Cannabis 
 sativa,^ and maize, by the man who went forward to an- 
 nounce our arrival, and a message expressing satisfaction 
 at the prospect of having trade with the coast. The 
 westing we were making brought us among people 
 who are frequently visited by the Mam bar i as slave-dealers. 
 
200 DEMAND FOR GUNPOWDER AND CALICO. 
 
 This trade causes bloodshed; for when a poor family is 
 selected as the victims it is necessary to get rid of the 
 older members of it, because they are supposed to be able 
 to give annoyance to the chief afterward by means of 
 enchantments. The belief in the power of charms for 
 good or evil produces not only honesty, but a great amount 
 of gentle dealing. The powerful are often restrained in 
 their despotism from a fear that the weak and helpless 
 may injure them by their medical knowledge. 
 
 When we wished to move on, Kabinje refused a guide to 
 the next village, because he was at war with it ; but, after 
 much persuasion, he consented, provided that the guide 
 should be allowed to return as soon as he came in sight 
 of the . enemy's village. This we felt to be a misfortune, 
 as the people all suspect a man who comes telling his own 
 tale ; but, there being no help for it, we went on, and found 
 the head-man of a village on the rivulet Kalomba, called 
 Kangenke, a very different man from what his enemy 
 represented. We found, too, that the idea of buying and 
 selling took the place of giving for friendship. As I had 
 nothing with which to purchase food except a parcel of 
 beads, which were preserved for worse times, I began to feai 
 that we should soon be compelled to suffer more from 
 hunger than we had done. The people demanded gun- 
 powder for every thing. If we had possessed any quan- 
 tity of that article, we should have got on well, for here 
 it is of great value. On our return, near this spot we 
 found a good-sized fowl was sold for a single charge of 
 gunpowder. Next to that, English calico was in great 
 demand, and so were beads; but money was of no value 
 whatever. Gold is quite unknown; it is thought to be 
 brass : trade is carried on by barter alone. The people 
 know nothing of money. A purse-proud person would 
 here feel the ground move from beneath his feet. Occasion- 
 ally a large piece of copper, in the shape of a St. Andrew's 
 cross, is offered for sale. 
 
 February 27. — Kangenke promptly furnished guides 
 
i 'jA p \/iv^^\y5j 
 
VEXATIOUS TRICK. 203 
 
 this morning, so we went briskly on a sh(»rt distance, and 
 came to a part of the Kasye, Kasai, or Loke, where lie 
 had appointed two canoes to convey us across. This is a 
 most beautiful river, and very much like the Clyde in Scot- 
 land. The slope of the valley down to the stream is abo-it 
 five hundred yards, and finely wooded. It is perhaps 
 one hundred yards broad, and was windiDg slowly from 
 / side to side in the beautiful green glen, in a course to the 
 north and northeast. In both the directions from which 
 it came and to which it went it seemed to be alternately 
 embowered in sylvan vegetation or rich meadows covered 
 with tall grass. The men pointed out its course, and said 
 " Though you sail along it for months, you will turn with 
 out seeing the end of it." 
 
 While at the ford of the Kasai we were subjected to a 
 trick, of which we had been forewarned by the people <tf 
 Shinte. A knife had been dropped by one of Kangenka'a 
 people, in order to entrap my men ; it was put down near 
 our encampment, as if lost, the owner in the mean time 
 watching till one of my men picked it up. Nothing was 
 said until our party was divided, one half on this and the 
 other on that bank of the river. Then the charge was 
 made to me that one of my men had stolen a knife. 
 Certain of my people's honesty, I desired the man, who 
 was making a great noise, to search the luggage for it ; 
 the unlucky lad who had taken the bait then came forward 
 and confessed that he had the knife in a basket which was 
 already taken over the river. When it was returned, the 
 owner would not receive it back unless accompanied with 
 a fine. The lad offered beads, but these were refused with 
 scorn. A shell hanging round his neck, similar to that 
 which Shinte had given me, was the object demanded, and 
 the victim of the trick, as we all knew it to be, was obliged 
 to part with his costly ornament. I could not save him 
 from the loss, as all had been forewarned; and it is the 
 universal custom among the Makololo and many other 
 tribes to show whatever they may find to the chief person 
 
204 WANT OP FOOD. 
 
 of their company, and make a sort of offer of it to him. 
 This lad ought to have done so to me : the rest of the 
 party always observed this custom. I felt annoyed at the 
 imposition, but the order we invariably followed in cross 
 ing a river forced me to submit The head of the party 
 remained to be ferried over last ; so, if I had not come to 
 terms, I would have been, as I always was in crossing 
 rivers which we could not swim, completely in the power 
 of the enemy. It was but rarely we could get a head-man 
 bo witless as to cross a river with us and remain on the 
 opposite bank in a convenient position to be seized as a 
 hostage in case of my being caught. 
 
 This trick is but one of a number equally dishonorable 
 which are practised by tribes that lie adjacent to the more 
 civilized settlements. The Ealonda farther east told us, 
 by way of warning, that many parties of the more central 
 tribes had at various periods set out, in order to trade with 
 the white men themselves, instead of through the Mambari, 
 but had always been obliged to return without reaching 
 their destination, in consequence of so many pretexts being 
 invented by the tribes encountered in the way for fining 
 them of their ivory. 
 
 This ford was in 11° 15' 47" S. latitude, but the weather was 
 bo excessively cloudy we got no observation for longitude. 
 
 We were now in want of food; for, to the great surprise 
 ( of my companions, the people of Kangenke gave nothing 
 except by way of sale, and charged the most exorbitant 
 prices for the little meal and manioc they brought. The 
 ^nly article of barter my men had was . a little fat saved 
 from the ox we slaughtered at Katema's; so I was obliged 
 tc give them a portion of the stock of beads. One day 
 (29th) of westing brought us from the Kasai to near the 
 village of Katende, and we saw that we were in a land 
 where no hope could be entertained of getting supplies of 
 animal food, for one of our guides caught a light- blue- 
 colored mole and two mice for his supper. The care 1 with 
 wl ich he wrapped them up in a leaf and slung them on 
 
A GRAVE OFFENCE. 205 
 
 his spear told that wo could not hope to enjoy any larger 
 game. We saw no evidence of any animals besides; and, 
 on coming to the villages beyond this, we often saw boys 
 and girls engaged in digging up these tiny quadrupeds. 
 
 Katendo sent for me on the day following our arrival, 
 and, being quite willing to visit him, I walked, for thin 
 purpose, about three miles from our encampment. When we 
 approached the. village we were desired to enter a hut, and, as 
 it was raining at the time, we did so. After a long time spent 
 in giving and receiving messages from the great man, we were 
 told that he wanted either a man, a tusk, beads, copper rings, 
 or a shell, as payment for leave to pass through his country. 
 No one, we were assured, was allowed that liberty, or even 
 to behold him, without something of the sort being pre- 
 sented. Having humbly explained our circumstances, and 
 that he could not expect to "catch an humble cow by the 
 horns," — a proverb similar to ours that "you can't draw 
 milk out of a stone," — we were told to go home, and ho 
 would speak again to us next day. 1 could not avoid a 
 hearty laugh at the cool impudence of the savage, and 
 made the best of my way home in the still pouring rain. 
 My men were rather nettled at tl^s want of hospitality; 
 but, after talking over the matter w r ith one of Katende' a 
 servants, he proposed that some small article should bo 
 given, and an attempt made to please Katende. I turned 
 out my shirts, and selected the worst one as a sop for him, 
 and invited Katende to come and choose any thing else I 
 had, but added that, when I should reach my own chief 
 naked, and was asked what I had done with my clothes, I 
 ihould be obliged to confess that I had left them with 
 Katende. The shirt was despatched to him, and some of 
 my people went along with the servant • they soon returned, 
 saying that the shirt had been accepted, and guides and 
 food too would be sent to us next day. The chief had, 
 moreover, expressed a hope to see me on my return. He 
 is reported to be very corpulent. The traders who have 
 come here seem to have oeer '"cry timid, yielding to every 
 
 18 
 
206 A NATIVE TOLL-KEEPER. 
 
 demand made on the most frivolous pretences. One of inj 
 men, seeing another much like an acquaintance at home, 
 addressed him by the name of the latter in sport, telling 
 him.;, at the same time, why he did so ; this was pronounced 
 to be a grave offence, and a large fine demanded : when tho 
 case came before me I could see no harm in what had been 
 done, and told my people not to answer the young fellow. 
 The latter felt himself disarmed, for it is chiefly in a brawl 
 they have power ; then words are spoken in anger which 
 rouse the passions of the complainant's friends. In this 
 case, after vociferating some time, the would-be offended 
 party came and said to my man that, if they exchanged 
 some small gift, all would be right, but, my man taking nc 
 notice of him, he went off rather crest-fallen. 
 
 My men were as much astonished as myself at the de- 
 mand for payment for leave to pass, and the almost entire 
 neglect of the rules of hospitality. Katende gave us only 
 a little meal and manioc, and a fowl. Being detained two 
 days by heavy rains, we felt that a good stock of patience 
 "was necessary in travelling through this country in the 
 miny season. 
 
 Passing onward without seeing Katende, we crossed a 
 small rivulet, the Sengko, by which we had encamped, and 
 after two hours came to another, the 1 Totelo, which was 
 somewhat larger and had a bridge over it. At the farther 
 end of this structure stood a negro, who demanded fees. 
 He said the bridge was his, tho path his ; the guides were 
 his children ; and if we did not pay him he would prevent 
 farther progress. This piece of civilization I was not pre- 
 pared to meet, and stood a few seconds looking at our bold 
 toll-keeper, when one of my men took off three copper 
 bracelets, which paid for the whole party. The negro wa* 
 & better man than he at first seemed, for he immediately 
 went to his garden and brought us some leaves of tobacco 
 as a present. 
 
 When we got fairly away from the villages, tne guidea 
 ftom Kangenke sat down and told us that thorp rv V^a 
 
FLOODED VALLEYS. 207 
 
 paths in front, and if we did not at once present thera 
 with a cloth they would leave us to take whichever we 
 might like best. As I had pointed out the direction in 
 which Loanda lay, and had only employed them for the 
 sake of knowing the paths between villages which lay 
 along our route, and always objected when they led us in 
 any other than the Loanda direction, I wished my men 
 now to go on without the. guides, trusting to ourselves to 
 choose the path which would seem to lead us in the direction 
 we had always followed. But Mashauana, fearing lest wo 
 might wander, asked leave to give his own cloth, and when 
 the guides saw that they came forward, shouting, "Averie! 
 Averie V 
 
 In the afternoon of this day we came to a valley about 
 a mile wide, filled with clear, fast-flowing water. The men 
 on foot were chin deep in crossing, and we three on ox-back 
 got wet to the middle, the weight of the animals preventing 
 them from swimming. A thunder-shower descending com- 
 pleted the partial drenching of the plain, and gave a cold, 
 uncomfortable " packing in a wet blanket" that night. 
 Next day we found another flooded valley about half a 
 mile wide, with a small and now deep rivulet in its middle, 
 flowing rapidly to the S.S.E., or toward the Kasai. The 
 middle part of this flood, being the bed of what at other 
 times is the rivulet, was so rapid that we crossed by holding 
 on to the oxen, and the current soon dashed them to the 
 opposite bank : we then jumped off, and, the oxen being re- 
 lieved of their burdens, we could pull them on to the shal- 
 lower part. The rest of the valley was thigh deep and 
 boggy, but, holding on by the belt which fastened the blanket 
 to the ox, we each floundered through the nasty slough as 
 well as we could. 
 
 In the afternoon we came to another stream, nuana Loke, 
 (or child of Loke,) with a bridge over it. The men had to 
 swim off to each end of the bridge, and when on it wero 
 breast deep : some preferred holding on by the tails of the 
 oxen the whole way across. I intended to do this too ; 
 
2 ^$ UNCULTIVATED VALLEYS. 
 
 but, riding to the deep part, before I could dismount and 
 seize the helm the ox dashed off with his companions, and 
 his body sank so deep that I failed in my attempt even to 
 catch the blanket-belt, and if I pulled the bridle the ox 
 seemed as if he would come backward upon me; so I struck 
 out for the opposite bank alone. My. poor fellows were 
 dreadfully alarmed when they saw me parted from the 
 cattle, and about twenty of them made a simultaneous rush 
 into the water for my rescue, and just as I reached the 
 opposite bank one seized my arm, and another threw his 
 around my body. When I stood up it was most gratifying 
 to see them all struggling toward me. Some had leaped 
 off the bridge and allowed their cloaks to float down the 
 stream. Part of my goods, abandoned in the hurry, were 
 brought up from the bottom after I was safe. Great was 
 the pleasure expressed when they found that I could swim 
 like themselves, without the aid of a tail, and I did and do 
 feel grateful to these poor heathens for the promptitude 
 with which they dashed in to save, as they thought, my 
 life. I found my clothes cumbersome in the water : they 
 could swim quicker from being naked. They swim like 
 dogs, not frog-fashion as we do. 
 
 In the evening we crossed the small rivulet Lozeze, and 
 came to some villages of the Kasabi, from whom we got 
 some manioc in exchange for beads. They tried to frighten 
 us by telling of the deep rivers we should have to cross in 
 our vay. I was drying my clothes by burning myself re und 
 and round before the fire. My men laughed at the idea of 
 being frightened by rivers. "We can all swim: who car- 
 ried the white man across the river but himself?" I felt 
 proud of their praise. 
 
 Saturday, 4th March. — Came to the outskirts of the ter- 
 ritory of the Chiboque. We crossed the Konde and Ka- 
 luze rivulets. The former is a deep, small stream with a 
 bridge, the latter insignificant; the valleys in which these 
 rivulets run are beautifully fertile. My companions are 
 :ontinually lamenting over the uncultivated vales in suou 
 
DIFFERENCE IN COLOR OF AFRICANS. 209 
 
 words as these: — "'What a fine country for cattle! My 
 heart is sore to see such fruitful valleys for corn lying 
 waste." 
 
 While at the villages of the Kasabi we saw no evidences 
 of want of food among the people. Our beads were very 
 valuable, but cotton cloth would have been still more so; as 
 we travelled along, men, women, and children came running 
 after us, with meal and fowls for sale, which we would 
 gladly have purchased had we possessed any English manu- 
 factures. When they heard that we had no cloth, they 
 turned back much disappointed. 
 
 The amount of population in the central parts of the 
 country may be called large only as compared with the 
 Cape Colony or the Bechuana country. The cultivated 
 land is as nothing compared with what might be brought 
 under the plough. There are flowing streams in abundance, 
 which, were it necessary, could be turned to the purpose 
 of irrigation with but little labor. Miles of fruitful country 
 are now lying absolutely waste, for there is not even game 
 to eat off the fine pasturage, and to recline under the ever- 
 green, shady groves which we are ever passing in our pro- 
 gress. The people who inhabit the central region are not 
 all quite black in color. Many incline to that of bronze, 
 and others are as light in hue as the Bushmen, who, it may 
 be remembered, afford a proof that heat alone does not 
 cause blackness, but that heat and moisture combined do 
 very materially deepen the color. 
 
 Having, on the aforementioned date, reached the village 
 of Njambi, one of the chiefs of the Chiboque, we intended 
 to pass a quiet Sunday; and, our provisions being qui to 
 epent, I ordered a tired riding-ox to be slaughtered. As 
 we wished to be on good terms with all, we sent the hump 
 and ribs to Njambi, with the explanation that this was the 
 customary tribute to chiefs in the part from which we had 
 come, and that we always honored men in his position. He 
 returned thanks, and promised to send food. ~Next morn 
 Lag he sent an impudent message, with a very small present 
 
 18» 
 
210 OUR ENCAMPMENT SURROUNDED. 
 
 of meal; scorning the meat he had accepted, he demanded 
 either a man, an ox, a gun, powder, cloth, or a shell ; and, 
 in the event of refusal to comply with his demand, he inti- 
 mated his intention to prevent our farther progress. We 
 replied, we should have thought ourselves fools if we had 
 scorned his small present and demanded other food instead ; 
 and, even supposing we had possessed the articles named, 
 no black man ought to impose a tribute on a party that did 
 not trade in slaves. The servants who brought the mes- 
 sage said that, when sent to the Mambari, they had always 
 got a quantity of cloth from them for their master, and now 
 expected the same, or something else as an equivalent, 
 from me. 
 
 We heard some of the Chiboque remark, " They have 
 only five guns;" and about mid-day Njambi collected all his 
 people and surrounded our encampment. Their object was 
 evidently to plunder us of every thing. My men seized 
 their javelins, and stood on the defensive, while the young 
 Chiboque had drawn their swords and brandished them 
 with great fury. Some even pointed their guns at me, and 
 nodded to each other, as much as to say, " This is the way 
 we shall do with him." I sat on my camp-stool, with my 
 double-barrelled gun across my knees, and invited the chief 
 to be seated also. When he and his counsellors had sat 
 down on the ground in front of me, I asked what crime 
 we had committed that he had come armed in that way. 
 He replied that one of my men, Pitsane, while sitting at 
 the fire that morning, had, in spitting, allowed a smaU 
 quantity of the saliva to fall on the leg of one of his men, 
 and this "guilt" he wanted to be settled by the fine of a 
 man, ox, or gun. Pitsane admitted the fact of a little 
 saliva having fallen on the Chiboque, and, in proof of its 
 being a pure accident, mentioned that he had given the 
 man a piece of meat, by way of making friends, just before 
 it happened, and wiped it off with his hand as soon as it 
 fell. In reference to a man being given, I declared that we 
 were all ready to die rather than give up* one of our num* 
 
PROSPhCTS OF A riOflT. 
 
 bci to b© a slave; that my men might as well givo me as I 
 giv« one of them, for we were all free men. " Then you 
 can give the gun with which the ox was shot." As we 
 heard some of his people remarking even now that wo had 
 only "five guns/' we declined, on the ground that, as they 
 were intent on plundering us, giving a gun would be help- 
 ing them to do so. 
 
 This they denied, saying they wanted the customary 
 tribute only. I asked what right they had to demand pay- 
 ment for leave to tread on the ground of God, our common 
 Father. If we trod on their gardens, we would pay, but 
 not for marching on land which was still God's, and not 
 theirs. Thoy did not attempt to controvert this, because 
 it is in accordance with their own ideas, but reverted again 
 to the pretended crime of the saliva. 
 
 My men now entreated me to give something; and, after 
 asking the chief if he really thought the affair of the 
 spitting a matter of guilt, and receiving an answer in the 
 affirmative, I gave him one of my shirts. The young 
 Chiboque were dissatisfied, and began shouting and bran- 
 dishing their swords for a greater fine. 
 
 As Pitsane felt that he had been the cause of this dis- 
 agreeable affair, ho asked me to add something else. I 
 gave a bunch of beads, but the counsellors objected this 
 time ; so I added a large handkerchief. The more I yielded, 
 the more unreasonable their demands became, and at 
 every fresh demand a shout was raised by the armed party, 
 and a rush made around us with brandishing of arms. One 
 young man made a charge at my head from behind; but I 
 quickly brought round the muzzle of my gun to his mouth, 
 and he retreated. I pointed him out to the chief, and he 
 ordered him to retiro a little. I felt anxious to avoid the 
 effusion of blood; and though sure of being able, with my 
 Makololo, who had been drilled by Sebituane, to drive off 
 twice the number of our assailants, though now a large 
 body and well armed with spears, swords, arrows, and 
 guns, I strove to avoid actual collision. My men wera 
 
212 THE FIGHT AVERTED. 
 
 qPiite unprepared for this exhibition, but behaved with 
 admirable coolness. The chief and counsellors, by accept- 
 ing my invitation to be seated, had placod themselves in a 
 trap, for my men very quietly surrounded them, and made 
 them feel that there was no chance of escaping their spears. 
 I then said that, as one thing after another had failed to 
 satisfy them, it was evident that they wanted to fight, while 
 we only wanted to x pass peaceably through the country; 
 that they must begin first, and bear the guilt before God : 
 we would not fight till they had struck the first blow. I 
 then sat silent for some time. It was rather trying for 
 me, because I knew that the Chiboque would aim at the 
 white man first ; but I was careful not to appear flurried, 
 and, having four barrels ready for instant action, looked 
 quietly at the savage scene around. The Chiboque coun- 
 tenance, by no means handsome, is not improved by the 
 practice which they have adopted of filing the teeth to a 
 point. The chief and counsellors, seeing that they were 
 in more danger than I, did not choose to follow our decision 
 that they should begin by striking the first blow and then 
 see what we could do, and were perhaps influenced by 
 seeing the air of cool preparation which some of my men 
 displayed at the prospect of a work of blood. 
 
 The Chiboque at last put the matter before us in this 
 way : — " You come among us in a new way, and say you 
 are quite friendly : how can we know it unless you give us 
 some of your food, and you take some of ours ? If you 
 give us an ox, we will give you whatever you may wish, 
 and then we shall be friends." In accordance with the 
 entreaties of my men, I gave an ox, and, when asked what 
 I should like in return, mentioned food as the thing which 
 we most needed. In the evening, Njambi sent us a very 
 small basket < >f meal, and two or three pounds of the flesh 
 of our own ox ! with the apology that he had no fowls, 
 and very little of any other food. It was impossible to 
 avoid a laugh at the coolness of the generous creatures. I 
 was truly thankful, nevertheless, that, though resolved to 
 
CHANGE OF PATH. 213 
 
 lie rather than deliver up one of our number to be a 
 ■lave, we had so far gained our point as to be allowed to. 
 pass on without having shed human blood. 
 
 In the midst of the commotion, several Chiboque stole 
 pieces of meat out of the sheds of my people, and Mono- 
 risi, one of the Makololo, went boldly into the crowd and 
 took back a marrow-bone from one of them. A few of my 
 Batoka seemed afraid, and would perhaps have fled had 
 the affray actually begun, but, upon the whole, I thought 
 my men behaved admirably. They lamented having left 
 their shields at home by command of Sekeletu, who feared 
 that, if they carried these, they might be more disposed to 
 be overbearing in their demeanor to the tribes we should 
 meet. We had proceeded on the principles of peace and 
 conciliation, and the foregoing treatment shows in what 
 light our conduct was viewed: in fact, we were taken for 
 interlopers trying to cheat the revenue of the tribe. They 
 had been accustomed to get a slave or two from every 
 slave-trader who passed them, and, now that we disputed 
 the right, they viewed the infringement on what they con- 
 sidered lawfully due with most virtuous indignation. 
 
 March 6. — We were informed that the people on the ' 
 west of the Chiboque of Njambi were familiar with the 
 visits of slave-traders; and it was the opinion of our guides 
 from Kangenke that so many of my companions would be 
 demanded from me, in the same manner as the people 
 of Njambi had done, that I should reach the coast without 
 a single attendant. I therefore resolved to alter our course 
 and strike away to the N.N.E., in the hope that at some 
 point farther north I might find an exit to the Portuguese 
 settlement of Cassange. We proceeded at first due north, 
 with the Kasabi villages on our right and the Kasau on 
 our left. During the first twenty miles we crossed many 
 ■mall, but now swollen, streams, having the usual boggy 
 banks j- and wherever the water had stood for any length 
 of time it was discolored with rust of iron. 
 
 On the 8th, one of the men had left an ounce or two of 
 
214 THE OX "SINBAD." 
 
 powder at our sleeping-place, and went back several miles 
 for it. My clothing being wet from crossing a stream, 1 
 was compelled to wait for him : had I been moving in the 
 sun I should have felt no harm ; but the inaction led to a 
 vioiunt fit of fever. The continuance of this attack was a 
 Bourse of much regret ; for we went on next day to' a small 
 n\uiet called Chihune, in a lovely valley, and had, for a 
 wonder, a clear sky and a clear moon; but such was th© 
 conrusion produced in my mind by the state of my body, 
 that I could scarcely manage, after some hours' trial, to 
 get a lunar observation in which I could repose confidence. 
 The Chihune flows into the Longe, and that into the Chi- 
 hdmbo, a feeder of the Kasai. Those who know the diffi- 
 culties of taking altitudes, times, and distances, and com- 
 mitting all of them to paper, will sympathize with me in 
 this and many similar instances While at Chihune, the 
 men of a village brought wax for sale, and, on finding that 
 we wished honey, went off and soon brought a hive. All 
 the bees in the country are in possession of the natives; 
 for they place hives sufficient for them all. After having 
 ascertained this, we never attended the call of the honey- 
 guide, for we were sure it would only lead us to a hive 
 which we had no right to touch. The bird continues its 
 habit of inviting attention to the honey, though its ser- 
 vices in this district are never actually needed. My 
 Makololo lamented that they never knew before that wax 
 could be sold for any thing of value. 
 
 In passing through these narrow paths I had an oppor- 
 tunity of observing the peculiarities of my ox " Sinbad." 
 He had a softer back than the others, but a much more 
 [n tractable temper. His horns were bent downward and 
 hung loosely, so he could do no harm with them ; but, as 
 we wended our way slowly along the narrow path, h& 
 would suddenly dart aside. A string tied to a atick put 
 through the cartilage of the nose serves instead of a bridle: 
 if you jerk this back, it makes him run faster on ; if you 
 pull it to one side, he allows the nose and head to go, bat 
 
INCIPIENT MUTINY. 215 
 
 keeps the opposite eye directed to the forbidden spot and 
 goes in spite of you. The only way he can be brought to 
 a stand is by a stroke with a wand across the nose. When 
 Sinbad ran in below a climber stretched over the path so 
 low that I could not stoop under it, I was dragged off and 
 came down on the crown of my head; and he never 
 Allowed an opportunity of the kind to pass without trying 
 to inflict a kick, as if I neither had nor deserved his love. 
 
 On leaving the Chihune, we crossed the Longe, and, as 
 the day was°cloudy, our guides wandered in a forest away 
 to the west till we came to the river Chihombo, flowing to 
 the E.N.E. My men depended so much on the sun for 
 guidance, that, having seen nothing of the luminary all 
 day, they thought we had wandered back to the Chiboque; 
 and' as often happens when bewildered, they disputed as 
 to the point where the sun should r ,e next morning. As 
 soon as the rains would allow next iay, we went off to the 
 N.E. It would have been better to have travelled by com- 
 pass alone j for the guides took advantage of any fears ex- 
 pressed by my people, and threatened to return if presents 
 were not made at once. But my men had never left their 
 own country before except for rapine and murder. When 
 they formerly came to a village, they were in the habit of 
 killing numbers of the inhabitants and then taking a few 
 young men to serve as guides to the next place. As this 
 was their first attempt at an opposite line of conduct, and 
 as they were without their shields, they felt defenceless 
 among the greedy Chiboque, and some allowance must be 
 made for them on that account. 
 
 Saturday, llth.— Beached a small village on the banks 
 of a narrow stream. I was too ill to go out of my little 
 covering except tc quell a mutiny which began to show 
 itself among some of the Batoka and Ambonda of our 
 pnrty. They grumbled, as they often do against their 
 chiefs when they think them partial in their gifts, because 
 they supposed that I had shown a preference in the distri- 
 bution of the beads ; but the beads I had given to my prin- 
 
216 
 
 IN B C B0RTJ1 N ATTON S U FPU KSSED 
 
 cipaJ , men were only sufficient to purchase a scanty meal, 
 ana\f I had hastened on to this village in order to slaughter 
 a- y'ired ox and give them all a feast as well as a rest on 
 SyUnday, as preparation for the journey before us. I ex- 
 lained this to them, and thought their grumbling was al« 
 layed. I soon sank into a state of stupor, which the fevei 
 sometimes produced, and was oblivious to all their noise in 
 slaughtering. On Sunday the mutineers were making a 
 terrible din in preparing a skin they had procured. I re- 
 quested them twice, by the man who attended me, to bo 
 more quiet, as the noise pained me; but, as they paid no 
 attention to this civil request, I put out my head, and, re- 
 peating it myself, was answered by an impudent laugh. 
 Knowing that discipline would be at an end if this mutiny 
 were not quelled, ai 1 that our lives depended on vigor- 
 ously upholding aut. ority, I seized a double-barrelled 
 pistol and darted fortn from the domicile, looking, I sup- 
 pose, so savage as to put them to a precipitate flight. As 
 some remained within hearing, I told them that I must 
 maintain discipline, though at the expense of some of their 
 limbs; so long as we travelled together they must re- 
 member that I was master, and not they. There being 
 but little room to doubt my determination, they imme- 
 diately became very obedient, and never afterward gave 
 me any trouble or imagined that they had any right to 
 my property. 
 
 13^. — We went forward some miles, but were brought 
 to a stand by the severity of my fever on the banks of a 
 branch of the Loajima, another tributary of the Kasai. I 
 was in a state of partial coma until late at night, when it 
 became necessary for me to go out; and I was surprised *.o 
 find that my men had built a littlo stockade, and 3ome <rf 
 them took their spears and acted as a guard. I found thai 
 we were surrounded .by enemies, and a party of Chiboquo 
 lay near the gateway, after having preferred the demaud 
 of "a man, an ox, a gun, or a tusk/' My m n had prepared 
 for defence in case of a night-attack, and, when the Chi« 
 
DEMANDS OF THE CHIBOvlUl. 21" 
 
 boque wished to be shown where I lay sick, lli^ ver « 
 properly refused to point me out. In the morning J ven $ 
 out to the Chiboque, and found that they answer* m(Q 
 civilly regarding my intentions in opening the couy . 
 teaching them, &c. &o. They admitted that their cny^ 
 would be pleased with the prospect of friendship, and n< 
 only wished to exchange tokens of good-will with mc, ail 
 offered three pigs, which they hoped I would accept. The 
 people here are in the habit of making a present and then 
 demanding whatever they choose in return. We had been 
 forewarned of this by our guides; so I tried to decline, by 
 asking if they would eat one of the pigs in company with 
 us. To this proposition they said that they durst not 
 accede. I then accepted the present, in, hope that tho 
 blame of deficient friendly feeling might not rest with me, 
 and presented a razor, two bunches of beads, and twelve 
 copper rings, contributed by my men from their arms. 
 They went off to report to their chief; and, as I was quite 
 unable to move from excessive giddiness, we continued in 
 the same spot on Tuesday evening, when they returned 
 with a message couched in very plain terms, that a man, 
 tusk, gun, or even an ox, alone would be acceptable; that 
 he had every thing else in his possession but oxen, and 
 that, whatever I should please to demand from him, he 
 would gladly give it. As this was all said civilly, and 
 there was no help for it if we refused but bloodshed, I gave 
 a tired riding-ox. My late chief mutineer, an Ambonda 
 man, was now overloyal, for he armed himself and stood 
 at the gateway. He would rather die than see his fathei 
 imposed on; but I ordered Mosantu to take him out of thi 
 way, which he did promptly, 4 and allowed the Chiboque U 
 march off well pleased with their booty. I told my men 
 that I esteemed one of their lives of more value than all the 
 oxen we had, and that the only cause which could induce 
 me to fight would be to save the live3 and liberties of the 
 majority. In tn^ propriety of this they all agreed, and 
 ■aid that, if the Chiboque molested us who behaved sc 
 
 19 
 
/ 
 
 218 / A ROBBER-VARTY. 
 
 peaceably, the guilt would be on their* heads This is a 
 favorite mode of expression throughout the whole country. 
 All are anxious to give explanation of any acts they have 
 pe/rformed, and conclude the narration with, " I have do 
 guilt or blame/' ("molatu.") "They have the guilt." 1 
 never could be positive whether the idea in their minds is 
 guilt in the sight of the Deity, or of mankind only. 
 
 Next morning the robber-party came with about thirty 
 yards of strong striped English calico, an axe, and two 
 hoes for our acceptance, and returned the copper rings, as 
 the chief was a great pian and did not need the ornaments 
 of my men, but we noticed that they were taken back 
 again. I divided the cloth among my men, and pleased 
 them a little by thus compensating for the loss of the ox. 
 I advised the chief, whose name we did not learn, as he 
 did not deign to appear except under the alias Matiamvo, 
 to get cattle for his own use, and expressed sorrow that 1 
 had none wherewith to enable him to make a commence- 
 ment. Eains prevented our proceeding till Thursday 
 morning, and then messengers appeared to tell us that 
 their chief had learned that all the cloth sent by him had 
 not been presented; that the copper rings had been secreted 
 by the persons ordered to restore them to us, and that he 
 had stripped the thievish emissaries of their property as a 
 punishment. Our guides thought these were only spies of - 
 a larger party concealed in the forest through which we 
 were now about to pass. We prepared for defence by 
 marching in a compact body and allowing no one tc 
 straggle far behind the others. We marched through 
 many miles of gloomy forest in gloomier silence, but no- 
 thing disturbed us. We cam*e to a villager, and found all 
 the men absent, — the guides thought, in the forest, with 
 their countrymen. I was too ill to care much whether we 
 were attacked or not. Though a pouring rain came on, as 
 we were all anxious to get away out of a bad neighbor- 
 hood, we proceeded. The thick atmosphere prevented my 
 seeing the creeping plants in time to avoid them; sc 
 
MORE TROUBLES. 219 
 
 Pltsane, Mohorisi, and I, who alone were mounted, were 
 often caught; and, as there is no stopping the oxen when 
 they have the prospect of giving the rider a tumble, we 
 came frequently to the ground. In addition to these mis- 
 haps, Sinbad went off at a plunging gallop, the bridle 
 broke, and I came down backward on the crown of my 
 head. He gave me a kick on the thigh at the same time. 
 I felt none the worse for this rough treatment, but would 
 not recommend it to others as a palliative in cases of fever. 
 This last attack of fever was so obstinate that it reduced 
 me almost to a skeleton. The blanket which I used as 
 a saddle on the back of the ox, being frequently wet, 
 remained sO beneath me even in the hot sun, and, aided by 
 the heat of the ox, caused extensive abrasion of the skin, 
 which was continually healing and getting sore again. To 
 this inconvenience was now added the chafing of my pro- 
 jecting bones on the hard bed. 
 
 On Friday we came to a village of civil people on the 
 banks of the Loajima itself, and we were wet all day in 
 consequence of crossing it. The bridges over it, and 
 another stream which we crossed at mid-day, were sub- 
 merged, as we have hitherto invariably found, by a flood 
 of perfectly-clear water. At the second ford we were met 
 by a hostile party, who refused us farther passage. I 
 ordered my men to proceed in the same direction we had 
 been pursuing, but our enemies spread themselves out in 
 front of us with loud cries. Our numbers were about 
 equal to theirs this time, so I moved on at the head of my 
 men. Some ran off to other villages, or back to their own 
 village, on pretence of getting ammunition; others called 
 out that all traders came to them, and that we must do 
 the same. As these people had plenty of iron-headed 
 arrows and some guns, when we came to t'iie edge of 
 the forest I ordered my men to put the luggage in our 
 centre, and, if our enemies did not fire, to cut down 
 some young trees and mak« a screen as quickly as possible, 
 but do nothing to them except in case of actual attack. I 
 
£20 CONTINUED DEMANDS. 
 
 then dismounted, and, advancing a little toward our prin- 
 cipal opponent, showed him how easily I could kill him, 
 but pointed, upward, saying, " I fear God." He did the 
 same, placing his hand on his heart, pointing upward, and 
 paying, "I fear to kill; but come to our village; come: do 
 come." At this juncture, the old head-man, Ionga Panza, 
 a venerable negro, came up, and I invited him and all to 
 be seated, that we might talk the matter over. Ionga 
 Panza soon let us know that he thought himself very ill 
 treated in being passed by. As most skirmishes arise 
 from misunderstanding, this might have been a serious 
 one; for, like all the tribes near the Portuguese settle- 
 ments, people here imagine that they have a right to 
 demand payment from every one who passes through the 
 country ; and now, though Ionga Panza was certainly no 
 match for my men, yet they were determined not to forego 
 their right without a struggle. I removed with my men 
 to the vicinity of the village, thankful that no accident had 
 as yet brought us into actual collision. 
 
 The reason why the people have imbibed the idea so 
 strongly that they have a right to demand payment for 
 leave to pass through the country is probably this. They 
 have seen no traders except those either engaged in pur- 
 chasing slaves or who have slaves in their employment. 
 These slave-traders have always been very much at the 
 mercy of the chiefs through whose country they have 
 passed ; for, if they afforded a ready asylum for runaway 
 slaves, the traders might be deserted at any moment, and 
 stripped of their property altogether. They are thus 
 obliged to curry favor with the chiefs, so as to get a safe- 
 conduct from them The same system is adopted to induce 
 the chiefs to part with their people, whom all feel to be the 
 real source of their importance in the country. On the 
 return of the traders from the interior with chains of slaves, 
 it is so easy for a chief who may be so disposed to take 
 away a chain of eight or ten unresisting slaves, that the 
 merchant is fain to give any amount of presents in order to 
 
TILLAGE OF IONUA PANZA 221 
 
 secure the good-will of the rulers. The independent chiefs, 
 not knowing why their favor is so eagerly sought, become 
 excessively proud and supercilious in their demands, and 
 look upon white men with the greatest contempt. To such 
 lengths did the Bangala, a tribe near to which wo had now 
 approached, proceed a few years ago, that they compelled 
 the Portuguese traders to pay for water, wood, and even 
 grass, and every possible pretext was invented for levying 
 tines; and these were patiently submitted to so long as the 
 slave-trade continued to flourish. "We had unconsciously 
 come in contact with a system which was quite unknown 
 in the country from which my men had set out. An 
 English trader may there hear a demand for payment of 
 guides, but never, so far as I am aware, is he asked to pay 
 for leave to traverse a country. The idea does not seem 
 to have entered the native mind, except through slave- 
 traders; for the aborigines all acknowledge that the un- 
 tilled land, not needed for pasturage, belongs to God alone, 
 and that no harm is done by people passing through it. I 
 rathei believe that, wherever the slave-trade has not pene- 
 trated, the visits of strangers are esteemed a real privilege 
 
 The village of old Ionga Panza (lat. 10° 25' S., long. 20 c 
 15' E.) is small, and embowered in lofty evergreen trees, 
 which were hung around with fine festoons of creepers. 
 He sent us food immediately, and soon afterward a goat, 
 which was considered a handsome gift, there being but few 
 domestic animals, though the country is well adapted^, for 
 them. I^suspect this, like the country of Shinte and Ka- 
 tema, must have been a tsetse district, and only recently 
 rendered capable of supporting other domestic animals be- 
 ' tides the goat by the destruction of the game through the 
 extensive introduction of fire-arms. We might all have 
 been as ignorant of the existence of this insect-plague as 
 the Portuguese, had it not been for the numerous migra- 
 tions of pastoral tribes which took place in the south in 
 aonsequence of Zulu irruptions. 
 
 During these exciting scenes I always forgot my fever; 
 
 19* 
 
V ' 
 
 222 DIFFICULTY WITH THE GUIDES 
 
 but a terrible sense of sinking came back with the feeling 
 of safety. The same demand of payment for leave to pass 
 was made on, the 20th by old Ionga Panza as by the other 
 Chiboque. I offered the shell presented by Shinte, but 
 Ionga Panza said he was too old for ornaments. We might 
 have succeeded very well with him, for he was by no 
 means unreasonable, and had but a very small village of 
 supporters; but our two guides from Kangenke compli- 
 cated our difficulties by sending for a body of Bangala 
 traders, with a view to force us to sell the tusks of Seke- 
 letu and pay them with the price. We offered to pay 
 them handsomely if they would perform their promise of 
 guiding us to Cassange, but they knew no more of the 
 paths than we did; and my men had paid them repeatedly 
 and tried to get rid of them, but could not. They now 
 joined with our enemies, and so did the traders. Two 
 guns and some beads belonging to the latter were standing 
 in our encampment, and the guides seized them and ran 
 off. As my men knew that we should be called upon to 
 replace them, they gave chase, and when the guides saw 
 that they would be caught they threw down the guns, 
 directed their flight to the village, and rushed into a hut. 
 The doorway is not much higher than that of a dog's ken- 
 nel. One of the guides was reached by one of my men as 
 he was in the act of stooping to get in, and a cut was 
 inflicted on a projecting part of the body which 'would have 
 made any one in that posture wince. The guns were 
 restored, but the beads were lost in the flight. AH I had 
 remaining of my stock of beads could not replace those 
 lost<$ and, though we explained that we had no part in the 
 guilt of the act, the traders replied that we had brought 
 the thieves into the country ; these were of the Bangala, 
 who bad been accustomed to plague the Portuguese in the 
 most vexatious way. We were striving to get a passage 
 through the country, and, feeling anxious that no crime 
 whatever should be laid to our charge, tried the oonciiia 
 
DISCOURAGEMENTS. £23 
 
 tory plan here, though we were not, as in the other in- 
 stances, likely to be overpowered by numbers. 
 
 My men offered all their ornaments, and I offered all nij 
 beads and shirts; but, though we had come to the villa^x 
 against our will, and the guides had also followed us con- 
 trary to our desire, and had even sent for the Bangala 
 traders without our knowledge or consent, yet mattera 
 could not be arranged without our giving an ox and one 
 of the tusks. We were all becoming disheartened, and 
 could not wonder that native expeditions from the interior 
 to the coast had generally failed to reach their destinations. 
 My people were now so much discouraged that some pro^ 
 
 6ed to return home : the prospect of being obliged to 
 return when just on the threshold of the Portuguese set- 
 tlements distressed me exceedingly. After using all my 
 powers of persuasion, I declared to them that if they re- 
 turned I would go on alone, and went into my little tent 
 with the mind directed to Him who hears the sighing pi 
 the soul, and was soon followed by the head of Mohorisi, 
 saying, " We will never leave you. Do not be disheartened. 
 Wherever you lead we will follow. Our remarks were 
 made only on account of the injustice of these people." 
 Others followed, and with the most artless simplicity of 
 manner told me to be comforted : "they were all my chil- 
 dren j they knew no one but Sekeletu and me, and they 
 would die for me; they had not fought, because I did not 
 wish it; they had just spoken in the bitterness of their 
 spirit, and when feeling that they could do nothing; but 
 if these enemies begin you will see what we can do." One 
 of the oxen we offered to the Chiboque had been rejected 
 because he had lost part of his tail, as they thought that it 
 had been cut off and witchcraft-medicine inserted; and 
 some mirth was excited by my proposing to raise a similar 
 objection to all the oxen we still had in our possession. 
 The remaining four soon presented a singular shortness of 
 their caudal extremities, and, though no one ever asked 
 whether they had medicine in the stumps or no, wo were 
 
22 l GUIDES PREPAID. 
 
 no \f% *re troubled by the demand for an ox ! We now 
 alaugatered another ox, that the spectacle might not be 
 seen of the owners of the cattle fasting while the Chiboque 
 were feasting. 
 
 CHAPTEK XIX. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE REACHES THE WEST COAST OF AFRICA. 
 
 24th. — Ionga Panza's sons agreed to act as guides into 
 i*e territory of the Portuguese if I would give them the 
 eoell given by Shinte. I was strongly averse to this, and 
 e specially to give it beforehand, but yielded to the entreaty 
 cf my peuple to appear as if showing confidence in these hopo- 
 fal youths. They urged that they wished to leave the shell 
 with their wives as a sort of payment to them for enduring 
 their husbands' absence so long. Having delivered the pre- 
 cious shell, we went west-by-north to the river Chikapa, 
 which here (lat. 10° 22' S.) is forty or fifty yards wide, 
 and at present was deep ; it was seen flowing over a rocky, 
 broken cataract with great noise about half a mile above 
 our ford. We were ferried over in a canoe made out of a 
 single piece of bark sewed together at the ends, and having 
 sticks placed in it at different parts to act as ribs. 
 
 Next morning our guides went only about a mile, and 
 then told us they would return home. I expected this 
 when paying them beforehand, in accordance with the en- 
 treaties of the Makololo, who are rather ignorant of the 
 world. Very energetic remonstrances were addressed tc 
 the guides, but they slipped off one by one in the thick 
 forest through which we were passing, and I was glad to 
 hear my companions coming to the conclusion that, as we 
 were now in parts visited by traders, we did not require 
 the guides, whose chief use had been to prevent misappre* 
 bension of our objects in the minds of the villagers. 
 
TRADERS. 225 
 
 26th. — We spent Sunday on the banks of the Quito or 
 Kweelo, here a stream of about ten yards wide. It runs 
 ;n a deep glen, the sides of which are almost five hundred 
 yards of slope, and rocky, the rocks being hardened cal- 
 caroous tufa lying on clay shale and sandstone below, with 
 a capping of ferruginous conglomerate The scenery would 
 have been very pleasing, but fever took away much of the 
 joy of life, and severe daily intermittents rendered me very 
 weak and always glad to recline. 
 
 In continuing our W.N.W. course, we met many parties 
 of native traders, each carrying some pieces of cloth and 
 salt, with a few beads to barter for bees' -wax. They are 
 all armed with Portuguese guns, and have cartridges with 
 iron balls. When we meet, we usually stand a few minutes 
 They present a little salt, and we give a bit of ox-hide, or 
 some other trifle, and then part with mutual good wishes. 
 The hide of the oxen we slaughtered had been a valuable 
 addition to our resources, for we found it in so great repute 
 for girdles all through Loanda that we cut up every skin 
 into strips about two inches broad, and sold them for meal 
 and manioc as we went along. As we came nearer Angola 
 we found them of less value, as the people there possess 
 cattle themselves. 
 
 The village on the Kweelo, at which we spent Sunday, 
 was that of a civil, lively old man, called Sakandala, whc 
 offered no objections to our progress. We found we should 
 soon enter on the territory of the Bashinje, (Chinge of the 
 Portuguese,) who are mixed with another tribe, named 
 Bangala, which have been at war with the Babindele or 
 Portuguese. Kains and fever, as usual, helped to impede 
 mr progress until we were put on the path which eads 
 from Cassange and Bihe to Matiamvo by a head-man 
 named Kamboela. This was a well-beaten footpath, and 
 soon after entering upon it we met a party of half-caste 
 traders from Bihe, who confirmed the information we had 
 already got of this path leading straight to Cassange, 
 through wh.ch they had come on their way from Bihe to 
 
226 VALLEY OP THE QUANGO. 
 
 Cabango They kindly presented my men w|th somt 
 tobacco, and marvelled greatly when they found that 1 
 had never been able to teach myself to smoke. 
 
 As we were now alone, and sure of being on the way to 
 the abodes of civilization, we went on briskly. 
 
 On the 30th we came to a sudden descent from the high 
 land, indented by deep, narrow valleys, over which we had 
 lately been travelling. It is generally so steep that it can 
 only be descended at particular points, and even there I 
 was obliged to dismount, though so weak that I had to be 
 led by my companions to prevent my toppling over in 
 walking down. It was annoying to feel myself so helpless, 
 for I never liked to see a man, either sick or well, give in 
 effeminately. Below us lay the valley of the Quango. If 
 you sit on the spot where Mary Queen of Scots viewed the 
 battle of Langside, and look down on the vale of Clyde, 
 you may see in miniature the glorious sight which a much 
 greater and richer valley presented to our view. It ia 
 about a hundred miles broad, clothed with dark forest, 
 except where the light-green grass covers meadow-lands on 
 the Quango, which here and there glances out in the sun 
 as it wends its way to the north. The opposite side of this 
 great valley appears like a range of lofty mountains, and 
 the descent into it about a mile, which, measured perpen- 
 dicularly, may be from a thousand to twelve hundred feet. 
 Emerging from the gloomy forests of Londa, this magnifi- 
 cent prospect made us all feel as if a weight had been lifted 
 off our eyelids. A cloud was passing across the middle of 
 the valley, from which rolling thunder pealed, while above 
 all was glorious sunlight ; and when we went down to the 
 part where we saw it passing we found that a very heavy 
 thunder-shower had fallen under the path of the cloud, 
 and the bottom of the valley, which from above seemed 
 quite emooth, we discovered to be intersected by great 
 numbers of deep-cut streams. Looking back from below, 
 the descent appears as the edge of a table-land, with 
 numerous indented dells and spurs jutting out all along 
 
VALLEY OF THE QUANGO 227 
 
 giving it a serrated appearance. Both the top a.id sides 
 tof the sierra are covered with trees; hut large patches 
 of the more perpendicular parts arc bare, and exhibit the 
 red soil which is general over the region we have now 
 entered. 
 
 The hollow affords a section of this part of the country; 
 and we find that the uppermost stratum is the ferruginous 
 conglomerate already mentioned. The matrix is rust of 
 iron, (or hydrous peroxide of iron and hematite,) and in it 
 are embedded water-worn pebbles of sandstone a.id quartz. 
 As this is the rock underlying the soil of a large part of Londa, 
 its formation must have preceded the work of denudation by 
 an arm of the sea which washed away the enormous mass 
 of matter required before the valley of Cassange could as- 
 Bume its present form. The strata under the conglomerate 
 are all of red clay shale of different degrees of hardness, 
 the most indurated being at the bottom. This red clay 
 shale is named " keele" in Scotland, and has always been 
 considered as an indication of gold; but the only thing wo 
 discovered was that it had given rise to a very slippery 
 clay soil, so different from that which we had just left thav 
 Mashauana, who always prided himself on being an adept 
 at balancing himself in the canoe on water, and so sure of 
 foot on land that he could afford to express contempt for 
 any one less gifted, came down in a very sudden and un- 
 dignified manner, to the delight of all whom he had pre- 
 viously scolded for falling. 
 
 Sunday, April 2. — We rested beside a small stream, and 
 our hunger being now very severe, from having lived on 
 manioc alone since leaving Ionga Panza's, we slaughtered 
 one of our four remaining oxen. We could get neither 
 meal nor manioc, but should have been comfortable had not 
 the Bashinje chief Sansawe pestered us for the customary 
 present. The native traders informed us that a display of 
 force was often necessary before they could pass this man. 
 
 Sansawe, the chief of a portion of the Bashinje, having 
 §ent the usual formal demand for a man, an ox, or a tusk. 
 
/ 
 
 228 THE CHIEF SANSAWE, 
 
 epoko very contemptuously of the poor things we offered 
 him instead. We told his messengers that the tusks were 
 Sekeletu's : every thing was gone except my instruments, 
 which could be of no use to them whatever. One of them 
 begged some meat, and, when it was refused, said to my 
 men, " You may as well give it, for we shall take all after 
 we have killed you to-morrow." The more humbly we 
 spoke, the more insolent the Bashinje became, till at last 
 we were all feeling savage and sulky, but continued to 
 Bpeak as civilly as we could. They are fond of argument, 
 and, when I denied their right to demand tribute from a 
 white man who did not trade in slaves, an old white- 
 headed negro put rather a posing question : — " You know 
 that Ood has placed chiefs among us whom we ought to 
 support. How is it that you, who have a book that tells 
 you about him, do not come forward at once to pay this 
 chief tribute like every one else ?" I replied by asking, 
 "How could I know that this was a chief, who had allowed 
 me to remain a day and a half near him without giving me 
 any thing to eat ?" This, which to the uninitiated may 
 geem sophistry, was to the Central Africans quite a rational 
 question ; for he at once admitted that food ought to have 
 been sent, and added that probably his chief was only 
 making it ready for me, and that it would come soon. 
 
 After being wearied by talking all day to different par- 
 ties sent by Sansawe, we were honored by a visit from 
 himself: he is quite a young man, and of rather a pleasing 
 countenance. There cannot have been much intercourse 
 between real Portuguese and these people even here, so 
 close to the Quango, for Sansawe asked me to show him. 
 my hair, on the ground that, though he had heard of it, 
 and some white men had even passed through his country, 
 he had naver seen straight hair before. This is quite pos- 
 sible, as most of the slave-traders are not Portuguese, but 
 half-castes. The difference between their wool and our hail 
 caused him to burst into a laugh, and the contrast between 
 the exposed and unexposed parts of my skin, when exhibited 
 
B0STIL1 IHHIWJB. !T29 
 
 in evidence of our all being made of one stock originally, 
 *nd the children of one Maker, seemed to strike him with 
 wonder. I then showed him my watch, and wished to 
 win my way into his confidence by conversation; but, whei\ 
 about to exhibit my pocket -compass, he desired me to <l«v 
 feist, as he was afraid of my wonderful things. 1 told him, 
 if ho knew my aims as the tribes in the interior did, and 
 as I hoped ho would yet know them and mo, he would be 
 glad to stay, and soe also the pictures of the magic lan- 
 tern ; but, as it was now getting dark, he had evidently got 
 enough of my witchery, and began to use some charms to 
 dispel any kindly feelings he might have found stealing 
 round his heart. He asked leave to go, and when his party 
 moved off a little way he sent for my spokesman, and 
 told him that, "if we did not add a red jacket and a man 
 to our gift of a few copper rings and a few pounds of meat, 
 we must return by the way we had come." I said, in 
 reply, "that we should certainly go forward next day, and 
 if he commenced hostilities the blame before God would 
 be that of Sansawe ;" and my man added, of his own ac- 
 cord, "How many white men have you killed in this path?" 
 which might be interpreted into, " You have never killed 
 any white man ; and you will find ours more difficult to 
 manage than you imagine." It expressed a determination, 
 which we had often repeated to each other, to die rather 
 than yield one of our party to be a slave. 
 
 Hunger has a powerful effect on the temper. When we 
 had got a good meal of meat, we could all bear the petty 
 annoyances of these borderers on the more civilized region 
 in front with equanimity; but, having suffered considerably 
 of late, we were all rather soured in our feelings, and not 
 unt'requently I overheard my companions remark in thoir 
 own tongue, in answer to threats of attack, "That's^what 
 we want : only begin, then j" or with clenched teeth they 
 would exclaim to each other, "These things have never 
 travelled, and do not know what men are." The worrying, 
 of which I give only a slight sketch, had considerable is- 
 
 20 
 
\3( THE QUANGO. 
 
 fluence on niy mind, and more especially as it was lm pos- 
 sible to make any allowance for the Bashinje such as 1 
 was willing to award to the Chiboque. They saw that we 
 had nothing to give, nor would they be benefited in the 
 least by enforcing the impudent order to return whence 
 we had come. They were adding insult to injury, and thia 
 put us all into a fighting spirit, and, as nearly as we could 
 judge, we. expected to be obliged to cut our way through 
 the Bashinje next morning. 
 
 3d April.^-As soon as day dawned we were astir, and, 
 setting off in a drizzling rain, passed close to the village. 
 This rain probably damped the ardor of the robbers. 
 We, however, expected to be fired upon from every clump 
 of trees, or from some of the rocky hillocks among which 
 we were passing; and it was only after two hours' march 
 that we began to breathe freely, and my men remarked, 
 in thankfulness, "We are children of Jesus." We con- 
 tinued our course, notwithstanding the rain, across the 
 bottom of the Quango valley, which we found broken by 
 clay shale rocks jutting out, though lying nearly horizon- 
 tally. We passed many villages during this drenching, 
 one of which possessed a flock of sheep; and after six 
 hours we came to a stand near the river Quango, (lat. 9° 
 53' S., long. 18° 37' E.,) which may be called the boundary 
 of the Portuguese claims to territory on the west. As 1 
 had now no change of clothing, I was glad to cower under 
 the shelter of my blanket, thankful to God for his good- 
 ness in bringing us so far without losing one of the 
 party. 
 
 it h April. — We were now on the banks of the Quango, a 
 river one hundred and fifty yards wide, and very deep. The 
 water was discolored, — a circumstance which we had ob- 
 served in no other river in Londa or in the Makololo 
 country. This fine river flows among extensive meadowa 
 clothed with gigantic grass and reeds, and in a direction 
 nearly north. 
 
 We were advised not to sleep near it; but, as we wew 
 
DIFFICULTY WITH BASHINJE CHIEF. 
 
 23 
 
 anxious to cross to the western side, we tried to induce 
 some of the Bashinje to lend us canoes for the purpose. 
 This brought out the chief of these parts, who informed u* 
 that all the canoe-men were his children, and nothing 
 could be done without his authority. He then made the 
 usual demand for a man, an ox, or a gun, adding that 
 otherwise we must return to the country from which we 
 had come. As I did not believe that this man had any 
 power over the canoes of the other side, and suspected that 
 
 BASHINJE CHIEF'S MODE OF WEARING THE HAIR. 
 
 it I gavo him my blanket — the only thing I now had m 
 rsserve — he might leave us in the lurch after all, I tried to 
 persuade my men to go at once to the bank, about two 
 miles off, and, obtain possession of the canoes beforo we 
 gave up the blanket; but they thought that this chief 
 might attack us in the act of crossing, should we do so. 
 The chief came himself to our encampment and made his 
 demand again. My men stripped off the last of their cop. 
 p«r ring3 and gave them ; but he was still intent on a man, 
 
232 OPPORTUNE AID. 
 
 He thought, as others did, that my men were slaves. He 
 was a young man, with woolly hair elaborately dressed : 
 that behind was made up into a cone, about eight inches 
 in diameter at the base, carefully swathed round with red 
 and black thread. As I resisted the proposal to delivei up 
 my blanket until they had placed us on the western bank, 
 this chief continued to worry us with his demands till I 
 was tired. My little tent was now in tatters, and, having 
 a wider hole behind than the door in front, I tried in vain 
 to lie down out of sight of our persecutors. We were on a 
 reedy flat, and could not follow our usual plan of a small 
 stockade in which we had time to think over and concoct 
 our plans. As I was trying to persuade my men to move 
 on to the bank in spite of these people, a young half-caste 
 Portuguese sergeant of militia, Cypriano di Abreu, made 
 his appearance and gave the same advice. He had come 
 across the Quango in search of bees'-wax. When we 
 moved off from the chief who had been plaguing us, his 
 people opened a fire from our sheds, and continued to blaze 
 away some time in the direction we were going ; but none 
 of the bullets reached us. It is probable that they ex- 
 pected a demonstration of the abundance of ammunition 
 they possessed would make us run; but, when we con- 
 tinued to move quietly to the ford, they proceeded no 
 farther than our sleeping-place. Cypriano assisted us in 
 making a more satisfactory arrangement with the ferry- 
 man than parting with my blanket ; and as soon as we 
 reached the opposite bank we were in the territory of the 
 Bangala, who are subjects of the Portuguese, and often 
 gpoken of as the Cassanges or Cassantse ; and happily all 
 our difficulties with the border-tribes were at an end. 
 
 Passing with light hearts through the high grass by a 
 narrow footpath about three miles west of the river, we came 
 to several neat square houses, with many cleanly-looking 
 half-caste Portuguese standing in front of them to salute 
 us. They are all enrolled in the militia, and our friend 
 Cypriano is the commander of a division established hero 
 
CYPRTAAO'S GENEROUS HOSPITALITY. 23S 
 
 We came to the dwelling of Cypriano after dark, and 1 
 pitched my little tent in front of it for the night. ¥e had 
 the company of mosquitos here. We never found them 
 troublesome on the banks of the pure streams of Londa. 
 On the morning of the 5th, Cypriano generously supplied 
 my men with pumpkins and maiz3, and then invited me to 
 breakfast, which consisted of groundnuts and roasted 
 maize, then boiled manioc-roots and groundnuts, with 
 guavas and honey as a dessert. I felt sincerely grateful 
 for this magnificent breakfast. 
 
 At dinner Cypriano was equally bountiful, and several 
 of his friends joined us in doing justice to his hospitality 
 Before eating, all had water poured on the hands by a 
 female slave to wash them. One of the guests cut up a 
 fowl with a knife and fork. Neither forks nor spoons were 
 used in eating. The repast was partaken of with decency 
 and good manners, and concluded by washing the hands as 
 at first. 
 
 Much of the civility shown to us here was, no doubt, 
 owing to the flattering letters of recommendation I carried 
 from the Chevalier Du Prat, of Cape Town -, but I am 
 inclined to believe that my friend Cypriano was influenced, 
 too, by feelings of genuine kindness, for he quite bared his 
 garden in feeding us during the few days which I remained, 
 anxiously expecting the clouds to disperse so far as to 
 allow of my taking observations for the determination of 
 the position of the Quango. He slaughtered an ox for us, 
 and furnished his mother and her maids with manioc-roots, 
 to prepare farina for the four or five days of our journey to 
 Cassange, and never even hinted at payment. My wretched 
 appearance must have excited his compassion. 
 
 We were detained by rains and a desire to ascertain our 
 geographical position till Monday, the 10th, and only got 
 the latitude 9° 50' S., and, after three days' pretty hard 
 travelling through the long grass, reached Cassange, the 
 farthest inland station of the Portuguese in Western Africa. 
 I made my entrance in a somewhat forlorn state as to 
 
 20* 
 
234 ARRIVAL AT OASSANGE. 
 
 clothing among our Portuguese allies. The first gentleman 
 I met in the village asked if I had a* passport, and said it 
 was necessary to take me before the authorities. As I was 
 in the same state of mind in which individuals are who 
 commit a petty depredation in order to obtain the shelter 
 and food of a prison, I gladly accompanied him to the house 
 of the commandant or Chefe, Senhor de Silva Eego. Having 
 shown my passport to this gentleman, he politely asked me 
 to supper, and, as we had eaten nothing except the farina 
 of Cypriano from the Quango to this, I suspect I appeared 
 particularly ravenous to the other gentlemen around the 
 table. They seemed, however, to understand my position 
 pretty well, from having all travelled extensively them- 
 selves : had they not been present, I might have put some 
 in my pocket to eat by night; for, after fever, the appetite 
 is excessively keen, and manioc is one of the most unsatisfy- 
 ing kinds of food. Captain Antonio Kodrigues Neves then 
 kindly invited me to take up my abode in his house. Next 
 morning this generous man arrayed me in decent clothing, 
 and continued during the whole period of my stay to treat 
 me as if I had been his brother. I feel deeply grateful to 
 him for his disinterested kindness. He not only attended 
 to my wants, but also furnished food for my famishing 
 party free of charge. 
 
 The village of Cassange (pronounced Kassanje) is com- 
 posed of thirty or forty traders' houses, slattered about, 
 without any regularity, on an elevated fiat spot in the great 
 Quango or Cassange valley. They are, built of wattle and 
 daub, and surrounded by plantations of manioc, maize, &c, 
 There are about forty Portuguese traders m this district, 
 all of whom are officers in the militia, and many of them 
 ha7e become rich from adopting the plan of sending out 
 pcmbeiros, or native traders, with large quantities of goods, 
 to trade in the more remote parts of the country. If 1 
 might judge from the week of feasting I passed among 
 them, they are generally prosperous. 
 
 As I always preferred to appeal : n my owp proper eba- 
 
PORTUGUESE JURIOSITY. 235 
 
 r&cter, 1 was an object of curiosity to these hospitable 
 Portuguese. They evidently looked upon me as an agent 
 of the English Government engaged in some new move 
 ment for the suppression of slavery. They could not divine 
 what a " missionario" had to do with latitudes and longi- 
 tudes, which I was intent on observing. When we became 
 a little familiar, the questions put were rather amusing :— 
 " Is it common for missionaries to be doctors ?" u Are you 
 a doctor of medicine and a ' doutor rnathematico' too ? 
 You must be more than a missionary to know how to calcu- 
 late the longitude. Come ; tell us at once what rank you 
 hold in the English army." They may have given credit 
 to my reason for wearing the mustache, as that explains 
 why men have beards and women have none; but that 
 which puzzled many besides my Cassange friends was the 
 anomaly of my being a " sacerdote," with a wife and four 
 children ! I usually got rid of the last question by putting 
 another : — " Is it not better to have children with a wife than 
 to have children without a wife?" But all were most kinj 
 and hospitable ; and, as one of their festivals was near, they 
 invited me to partake of the feast. 
 
 The anniversary of the.Eesurrection of our Savior was 
 observed on the 16th of April as a day of rejoicing, though 
 the Portuguese have no priests at Cassange. The colored 
 population dressed up a figure intended to represent Judas 
 Iscariot, and paraded him on a riding-ox about the village - 
 sneers and maledictions were freely bestowed on the pool 
 wretch thus represented. The slaves and free colored popu- 
 lation, dressed in their gayest clothing, made visits to all 
 the principal merchants, and, wishing them " a good feast," 
 expected a present in return. This, though frequently 
 granted in the shape of pieces of calico to make new 
 dresses, was occasionally refused; but the rebuff did not 
 much affect the petitioner. 
 
 At ten a.m. we went to the residence of the commandant, 
 and, on a signal being given, two of the four brass guns 
 belonging to the Government commenced firing, and con- 
 
236 50 PREJUDICE AGAINST COLCR. 
 
 tinued some time, to the great admiration of my men, 
 whose ideas of the power of a cannon are very exalted. 
 The Portuguese flag was hoisted and trumpets sounded, aa 
 an expression of joy at the resurrection of our Lord. Cap 
 tain Neves invited all the principal inhabitants of the place, 
 and did what he could to feast them in a princely style 
 All manner of foreign preserved fruits and wine from Por» 
 tugal, biscuits from America, butter from Cork, and beer 
 from England, were displayed, and no expense spared in 
 rendering the entertainment joyous. After the feast was 
 over, they sat down to the common amusement of cai d- 
 playing, which continued till eleven o'clock at night. As 
 far as a mere traveller could judge, they seemed to be 
 polite and willing to aid each other. They live in a febrile 
 district, and many of them had enlarged spleens. They 
 have neither doctor, apothecary, school, nor priest, and, 
 when taken ill, trust to each other and to Providence. As 
 men left in such circumstances must think for themselves, 
 they have all a good idea of what ought to be done in the 
 common diseases of the country, and what they have 
 of either medicine or skill they freely impart to each 
 other. 
 
 None of these gentlemen had Portuguese wives. They 
 usually come to Africa in order to make a little money, 
 and return to Lisbon. Hence they seldom bring their 
 wives with them, and never can be successful colonists in 
 consequence. It is common for them to have families by 
 native women. It was particularly gratifying to me, who 
 had been familiar with the stupid prejudice against color 
 entertained only by those who are themselves becoming 
 tawny, to view the liberality with which people of color 
 were treated by the Portuguese. Instances, so common 
 in the south, in which half-caste children are abandoned^ 
 are here extremely rare. They are acknowledged at table, 
 and provided for by their fathers as if European. The 
 colored clerks of the merchants sit at the same table with 
 their employers without any embarrassment. The civil 
 
COUNTRY AROUND CASSANGB. 237 
 
 manners of superiors to inferiors is probably the result of 
 the position they occupy — a few whites among the usanda 
 of blacks; but nowhere else in Africa is there so much 
 good-will between Europeans and natives as here. If some 
 border-colonists had the absolute certainty of our Govern- 
 ment declining to bear them out in their arrogance, we 
 should probably hear less of Caffro insolence. It is inso- 
 lence which begets insolence. 
 
 From the village of Cassangc we have a good view of 
 the surrounding country: it is a gently-undulating plain, 
 covered with grass and patches of forest. The western 
 'edge of the Quango valley appears, about twenty miles 
 off, as if it were a range of lofty mountains, and passes by 
 the name of Tala Mungongo, ("Behold the Range.") In 
 the old Portuguese map, to which I had been trusting in 
 planning my route, it is indicated as Tails Mugongo, or 
 "Castle of Bocks!" and the Coanza is put down as rising 
 therefrom; but here 1 was assured that the Coanza had 
 its source near Bihe, far to the southwest of this, and wo 
 should not see that ri /er till we came near Pungo Andonga. 
 It is somewhat remarkable that more accurate information 
 about this country has not been published. Captain Neves 
 and others had a correct idea of the courses of the rivers, 
 and communicated their knowledge freely ; yet about this 
 time maps were sent to Europe from Angola representing 
 the Quango and Coanza as the same river, and Cassange 
 placed about one hundred miles from its truo position. 
 The frequent recurrence of the same name has probably 
 helped to increase the confusion. I have crossed several 
 Quangos, but all insignificant except that which drains this 
 valloy. The repetition of the favorite names of chiefs, as 
 (Jitcnde, is also perplexing, as one Catende may be mis- 
 taken for another. To avoid this confusion as much as 
 possible, I have refrained from introducing many names. 
 Numerous villages are studded all over the valley; but 
 these possess no permanence, and many more existed pre- 
 
238 SALE OP IVORY 
 
 vious to the Portuguese expedition of 1850 to punish tha 
 Bangala. 
 
 This valley, as I have before remarked, is all fertile in 
 
 the extreme. My men could never cease admiring its 
 
 capability for raising tneir corn (JSolcus sorghum) and 
 
 despising the comparatively-limited cultivation of the in- 
 
 habitants. The Portuguese informed me that no manure 
 
 is ever needed, but that the more the ground is tilled the 
 
 better it yields. Yirgin soil does not give such a heavy 
 
 crop as an old garden ; and, judging from the size of the 
 
 maize and manioc in the latter, I can readily believe the 
 
 statement. Cattle do well, too. Viewing the valley as a 
 
 whole, it may be said that its agricultural and pastoral 
 
 riches are lying waste. Both the Portuguese and their 
 
 descendants turn their attention almost exclusively to 
 
 trade in wax and ivory; and, though the country would 
 
 yield any amount of corn and dairy-produce, the native 
 
 Portuguese live chiefly on manioc, and the Europeans 
 
 purchase their flour, bread, butter, and cheese from the 
 
 Americans. 
 
 As the traders of Oassange were the first white men we 
 had come to, we sold the tusks belonging to Sekeletu, which 
 had been brought to test the difference of prices in the Ma- 
 kololo and white men's country. The result was highly 
 satisfactory to my companions, as the Portuguese give 
 much larger prices for ivory than traders from the Cape 
 ean possibly give, who labor under the disadvantage of con- 
 siderable overland expenses and ruinous restrictions. Two 
 muskets, three small barrels of gunpowder, and English 
 calico and baize sufficient to clothe my whole party, with 
 lar.^e bunches of beads,, all for one tusk, were quite delight- 
 ful for those who had been accustomed to give two tusks 
 for one gun. With another tusk we procured calico, which 
 bere is the chief currency, to pay our way down to the 
 coast The remaining two were sold for money to purchase 
 » horse for Sekeletu at Loanda. 
 
 The superiority of this new market was quite astound- 
 
DEPARTURE FilOM CASSANGE. 239 
 
 tog to the Makololo, and they began to abuse the trader* 
 by whom they had, while in. their own country, been visited, 
 and, as they now declared, "cheated." They had no idea 
 of the value of time and carriage, and it was somewhat 
 difficult for me to convince them that the reason of the dik 
 forence of prices lay entirely in what they themselves had 
 done in coming here, and that, if the Portuguese should 
 carry goods to their country, they would by no means be 
 to liberal in their prices. They imagined that, if the Cas- 
 sange traders came to Liny an ti, they would continue to 
 vend their goods at Cassange prices. I believe I gave them 
 at last a clear idea of the manner in which prices were regu- 
 lated by the expenses incurred; and when we went to 
 Loanda, and saw goods delivered at a still cheaper rate, 
 they concluded that it would be better for them to come to 
 that city than to turn homeward at Cassange. 
 
 Mr. Rego, the commandant, very handsomely offered me 
 a soldier as a guard to Ambaca. My men told me that 
 they had been thinking it would be better to turn back 
 here, as they had been informed by the people of color at 
 Cassange that I was leading them down to the sea-coast 
 only to sell them, and they would be taken on board ship, 
 fattened, and eaten, as the white men were cannibals. I 
 asked if they had ever heard of an Englishman buying or 
 selling peoplo j if I had not refused im take a slave when 
 she was offered to me by Shinto ; but, as I had always be- 
 naved as an English teacher, if they now doubted my inten- 
 tions, they had better not go to the coast ; I, however, who 
 expected to meefc some of my countrymen there, was deter- 
 mined to go on. They replied that they only thought it 
 right to tell me what had been told to them, but they did 
 not intend to leave me, and would follow wherever I 
 should lead the way. This affair being disposed of for the 
 time, the commandant gave them an ox, and me a friendly 
 dinner before parting. All the merchants of Cassange 
 accompanied us, in their hammocks carried by slaves, to 
 the «sdg© of the plateau on which their village stands, and 
 
240 ' A SOLDIER-GUIDE. 
 
 we parted with the feeling in my mind that I should neve* 
 forget their disinterested kindness. They not only did 
 every thing they could to make my men and me comfort- 
 able during our stay, bit, there being no hotels in Loanda, 
 they furnished me with letters of recommendation to their 
 friends in that city, requesting them to receive me into 
 their houses, for without these a stranger might find him- 
 self a lodger in the streets. May God remember them in 
 their day of need ! 
 
 The latitude and longitude of Cassange, the most easterly 
 station of the Portuguese in Western Africa, is lat. 9° 37' 
 30" S and long. 17° 49' E.j consequently we had still about 
 three hundred miles to traverse before we could reach the 
 coast. We had- a black militia-corporal as a guide. He was 
 a native of Ambaca, and, like nearly all the inhabitants of 
 that district, known by the name of Ambakistas, could both 
 read and write. He had three slaves with him, and was 
 carried by them in a "tipoia," or hammock slung to a, pole. 
 
 Having left Cassange on the 21st, we passed across tne 
 remaining portion of this excessively-fertile valley to the 
 foot of Tala Mungongo. We crossed a fine little stream 
 called the Lui on the 22d, and another named the Luare on 
 the 24th, and then slept at the bottom of the height, which 
 is from -a thousand to fifteen hundred feet. 
 
 Situated a few*feiiles from the edge of the descent, we 
 found the village of Tala Mungongo, and were kindly 
 accommodated with a house to sleep in, — which was very 
 welcome, as we were all both wet and cold. We found 
 that the greater altitude and the approach of winter 
 lowered the temperature so much that many of my men 
 suffered severely from colds. At this, as at several other 
 Portuguese stations, they have been provident enough to 
 erect travellers' houses on the same principle as khans or 
 caravanserais of the East. They are built of the usual 
 wattle and daub, and have benches of rods for the way- 
 farer to make his bed on; also chairs, and a table, and a 
 Urge jar of water. These benches, though far from luxu« 
 
THE QUIZE. 241 
 
 rious couches, were better than the ground under the 
 rotten fragments of my gypsy-tent, for we had still showeri 
 occasionally, and the dews were very heavy. I continued 
 to use them for the sake of the shelter they afforded, until 
 I found that they were lodgings also for certain inconve- 
 nient bedfellows. , 
 
 27th. — Five hours 7 ride through a pleasant country of 
 forest and meadow, like those of Londa, brought us to a 
 village of Basongo, a tribe living in subjection to the Por- 
 tuguese. We crossed several little streams, which were 
 flowing in the westerly direction in which we were march- 
 ing, and unite to form the Quize, a feeder of the Coanza. 
 The Basongo were very civil, as indeed all the tribes were 
 who had been conquered by the Portuguese. The Basongo 
 and Bangala are yet only partially subdued. The farther 
 west we go from this the less independent we find the 
 black population, until we reach the vicinity of Loanda, 
 where the free natives are nearly identical in their feelings 
 toward the Government with the slaves. But the go- 
 vernors of Angola wisely accept the limited allegiance and 
 tribute rendered by the more distant tribes as better than 
 none. 
 
 We spent Sunday, the 30th of April, at ISgio, close to 
 the ford of the Quize as it crosses our path to fall into the 
 Coanza. The country becomes more open, but is still 
 abundantly fertile, with a thick crop of grass between two 
 and three feet high. It is also well wooded and watered. 
 Villages of Basongo are dotted over the landscape, and 
 frequently a square house of wattle and daub, belonging to 
 native Portuguese, is placed beside them for the purposes 
 of trade. 
 
 Pitsane and another of the men had violent attacks of 
 fever, and it was no wonder; for the dampness and evapo- 
 ration from the ground was excessive. When at any time 
 I attempted to get an observation of a star, if the trough 
 of mercury were placed on the ground, so much moisture 
 
 was condensed on the inside of the glass roof over it that 
 Q 21 
 
242 PETER — ARRIVAL AT A MB AC A. 
 
 it was witn difficulty the reflection of the star could be 
 seen. "When the trough was placed on a box to prevent 
 the moisture entering from below, so much dew was de- 
 posited on the outside of the roof that it was soon neces- 
 sary, for the sake of distinct vision, to wipe the glass. 
 This would not have been of great consequence, but a short 
 exposure to this dew was so sure to bring on a fresh fever 
 that I was obliged to give up observation by night alto- 
 gether. The inside of the only covering I now had was 
 not much better, but under the blanket one is not so liable 
 to the chill which the dew produces. 
 
 It would have afforded me pleasure to have cultivated a 
 more intimate acquaintance with the inhabitants of this 
 part of the country, but the vertigo produced by frequent 
 fevers made it as much as I could do to stick on the ox 
 and crawl along in misery. In crossing the Lombe, my 
 ox Sinbad, in the indulgence of his propensity to strike out 
 a new path for himself, plunged overhead into a deep hole, 
 and so soused me that I was obliged to move on to dry my 
 clothing without calling on the Europeans who live on the 
 bank. This I regretted, for all +v *e Portuguese were very 
 kind, and, like the Boers placed in similar circumstances, 
 feel it a slight to be passed without a word of salutation. 
 But we went on to a spot where orange-trees had been 
 planted by the natives themselves, and where abundance 
 of that refreshing fruit was exposed for sale. 
 
 On entering the district of Ambaea, we found the land- 
 scape enlivened by the appearance of lofty mountain^ in 
 the distance, the grass comparatively short, and the whole 
 country at this time looking gay and verdant. We crossed 
 the Lucalla by means of a large canoe kept there by a man 
 who farms the ferry from the Government and charges 
 about a penny per head. A few miles beyond the Lucalla 
 we came to the village of Ambaea, an important place in 
 former times, but now a mere paltry village, beautifully 
 situated on a little elevation in a plain surrounded on all 
 hands by lofty mountains. It has a jail, and a good house 
 
FRUITS OF JESUIT TEACHING. 243 
 
 for the commandant, but neither fort nor church, though 
 the ruins of a place of worship are still standing. 
 
 We were most kindly received by the commandant of 
 Ambaca, Arsenio de Carpo, who spoke a little English. 
 He recommended wine for my debility, and here I took 
 the first glass of that beverage I had taken in Africa. I 
 felt much refreshed, and could then realize and meditate 
 on the weakening effects of the fever. They were curious 
 even to myself; for, though I had tried several times since 
 we left Ngio to take lunar observations, I could not avoid 
 confusion of. time and distance, neither could I hold the 
 instrument steady, nor perform a simple calculation : hence 
 many of the positions of this part of tho route were left 
 till my return from Loanda. Often, on getting up in the 
 mornings, I found my clothing as wet from perspiration as 
 if it had been dipped in water. In vain had I tried to 
 learn or collect words of the Bunda, or dialect spoken in 
 Angola. I forgot the days of the week and the names of 
 my companions, and, had I been asked, I probably could 
 not have told my own. The complaint itself occupied 
 many of my thoughts. One day I supposed that I had got 
 the true theory of it, and would certainly cure the next 
 attack, whether in myself or companions ; but some new 
 symptoms would appear and scatter all the fine specula- 
 lions which had sprung up, with extraordinary fertility, in 
 one department of my brain. 
 
 This district is said to contain upward of 40,000 souls. 
 Some ten or twelve miles to the north of the village of Am- 
 baca there once stood the missionary station of Cahenda* 
 and it is now quite astonishing to observe the great num- 
 bers who can read and write in this district. This is the 
 fruit of the labors of the Jesuit and Capuchin missionaries, 
 for they taught the people of Ambaca ; and ever since the 
 expulsion of the teachers by the Marquis of Pombal the 
 natives have continued to teach each other. These devioted 
 men are still held in high estimation throughout the coun- 
 try to this day. All speak well of them, (os padres Jesuitas;) 
 
244 THE TAMPAN. 
 
 and, now that they are gone from this lower sphere, I could 
 not help wishing that these our Eoman Catholic fellow- 
 Christians had felt it to be their duty to give the people 
 the Bible, to be a light to their feet when the good men 
 themselves were gone. 
 
 When sleeping in the house of tihe commandant, an 
 insect, well known in the southern country by the name 
 tampan, bit my foot. It is a kind of tick, aud chooses by 
 preference the parts between the fingers or toes for inflict- 
 ing its bite. It is seen from the size of a pin's head to that 
 of a pea, and is common in all the native huts in this coun- 
 try. It sucks the blood until quite full, and is then of a 
 dark-blue color, and its skin so tough and yielding that it 
 is impossible to burst it by any amount of squeezing with 
 the fingers. I had felt the effects of its bite in former 
 years, and eschewed all native huts ever after; bulj, as I 
 was here again assailed in a European house, I shall detail 
 the effects of the bite. These are a tingling sensation of 
 mingled pain and itching, which commences ascending the 
 limb until the poison imbibed reaches the abdomen, where 
 it soon causes violent vomiting and purging. Where these 
 effects do not follow, as we found afterward at Tete, fever 
 sets in ; and I was assured by intelligent Portuguese there 
 that death has sometimes been the result of this fever. 
 The anxiety my friends at Tete manifested to keep my 
 men out of the reach of the tampans of the village made it 
 evident that they had seen cause to dread this insignificant 
 insect. The only inconvenience I afterward suffered from 
 this bite was the continuance of the tingling sensation in 
 the point bitten for about a week. 
 
 May 12. — As we were about to start this morning, the 
 commandant, Senhor Arsenio, provided bread and meat 
 most bountifully for my use on the way to the next sta- 
 tion, and sent two militia-soldiers as guides, instead of our 
 Cassange corporal, who left us here. About mid-day we 
 asked for shelter from the. sun in the house of Senhor Mel- 
 lot, at Zangu j and, though I was unable to sit and engage 
 
CABINDA — GOLUNGO ALTO. 245 
 
 in conversation, I found, on rising from his couch, that he 
 had at once proceeded to cook a fowl for ray use; and at 
 parting he gave me a glass of wine, which prevented the 
 violent fit of shivering I expected that afternoon. Tho 
 universal hospitality of the Portuguese was most gratify* 
 ing, as it was quite unexpected ; and even now, as I copy 
 ray journal, I remember it all with a glow of gratitude. 
 
 We spent Sunday, the 14th of May, at Cabinda, which is 
 one of the stations of the sub-comniandants, who are placed 
 at different points in -each district of Angola as assistants 
 of the head-commandant, or chefe. It is situated in a 
 beautiful £len, and surrounded by plantations of bananas 
 and manioc. 
 
 We met numbers of Mambari on their way back to Biho 
 Some of them had belonged to the parties which had pene- 
 trated as far as Linyanti, and foolishly showed their dis- 
 pleasure at the prospect of the Makololo preferring to go 
 to the coast-markets themselves to intrusting them with 
 their ivory. The Mambari repeated the tale of the mode 
 in which the white men are said to trade. " The ivory is 
 left on the shore in the evening, and next morning the 
 Boiler finds a quantity of goods placed there in its stead by 
 the white men who live on the sea." " Now," added they 
 to my men, " how can you Makolo trade with these ' mer- 
 men' ? Can you enter into the sea and tell them to come 
 ashore ?" It was remarkable to hear this idea repeated so 
 near the sea as we now were. My men replied that they 
 only wanted to see for themselves ; and, as they were now 
 getting some light on the nature of the trade carried on by 
 the Mambari, they were highly amused on perceiving the 
 reasons why the Mambari would rather have met them on 
 the Zambesi than so near the sea-coast. 
 
 There is something so exhilarating to one of Highland 
 blood in being near or on high mountains, that I forgot my 
 fever as wo wended our way among the lofty tree-covered 
 masses of mica schist which form the highlands around the 
 romantic residence of the chefe of Golnngo Alto. (Lat. 9 a 
 
 21* 
 
246 CARRIERS. 
 
 8' 30" S., long. 15° 2' E.) The whole district is extremely 
 beautiful. The hills are all bedecked with trees of various 
 hues of foliage, and among them towers the graceful palm, 
 which yields the oil of commerce for making our soaps and 
 tne intoxicating toddy. 
 
 We were most kindly received by the commandant, 
 Lieutenant Antonio Canto e Castro, a young gentleman 
 whose whole subsequent conduct will ever make me re- 
 gard him with great affection. Like every other person 
 of intelligence whom I had met, he lamented deeply the 
 neglect with which this fine country had been treated. 
 This district contained, by the last census, 26,000 hearths 
 or fires ; and, if to each hearth we reckon four souls, we 
 have a population of 104,000. The number of carre- 
 gadores (carriers) who may be ordered out at the pleasure 
 of Government to convey merchandise to the coast is in 
 this district alone about 6000 ; yet there is no good road 
 in existence. This system of compulsory carriage of mer- 
 chandise was adopted in consequence of the increase in 
 numbers and activity of our cruisers which took 'place in 
 1845. Each trader who went, previous to that year, into 
 the interior, in the pursuit of his calling, proceeded on the 
 plan of purchasing ivory and bees'-wax, and a sufficient 
 number of slaves to carry these commodities. The whole 
 were intended for exportation as soon as the trader reached 
 the coast. But when the more stringent measures of 1845 
 came into operation, and rendered the exportation of slaves 
 almost impossible, there being no roads proper for the em- 
 ployment of wheel-conveyances, this new system of com- 
 'pulsory carriage of ivory and bees'-wax to the coast was 
 resorted to by the Government of Loanda. A trader who 
 requires two or three hundred carriers to convey his mer- 
 chandise to the coast now applies to the general Govern- 
 ment for aid. An order is sent to the commandant of a 
 district to furnish the number required. Each head-man 
 of the villages to whom the order is transmitted mast fur- 
 nish from five to twenty or thirty men, according to th« 
 
GOLUNGO ALTO 247 
 
 • 
 
 proportion that his people bear to the entire population of 
 the district. For this accommodation the trader must pay 
 a tax to the Government of one thousand reis, or about 
 three shillings, per load carried. The trader is obliged to 
 pay the carrier also the sum of fifty reis, or about two- 
 pence a day, for his sustenance. And, as a day's journey 
 id never more than from eight to ten miles, the expense 
 which must be incurred for this compulsory labor is felt to 
 be heavy by those who were accustomed to employ slave- 
 labor alone. Yet no effort has been made to form a great 
 line of road for wheel-carriages. The first great want of a 
 country has not been attended to, and no development of . 
 its vast resources has taken place. The fact, however, of 
 a change frpm one system of carriage to another, taken in 
 connection with the great depreciation in the price of 
 slaves near this coast, proves the effectiveness of our effort* 
 at repressing the slave-trade on the ocean. 
 
 The latitude of Golungo Alto, as observed at the re- 
 sidence of the commandant, was 9° 8' 30" S., longitude 
 15° 2' E. A few days' rest with this excellent young man 
 enabled me to regain much of my strength, and I could 
 look with pleasure on the luxuriant scenery before his 
 door. We were quite shut in among green hills, many of 
 which were cultivated up to their tops with manioc, coffee, 
 cotton, groundnuts, bananas, pineapples, guavas, papaws, 
 custard-apples, pitangas, and jambos, — fruits brought from 
 South America by the former missionaries. 
 
 We left Golungo Altc on the 24th of May, — the wintor 
 in those parts. Every evening clouds come rolling in 
 great masses over the mountains in the west, and pealing 
 diunder accompanies the fall of rain during the night or 
 early in the morning. The clouds generally remain on the 
 hills till the morning is well spent, so that we become fami- 
 liar with the morning mists, — a thing we never once «saw 
 at Kolobeng. The thermometer stands at 80° by day, but 
 Hinks as low as 76° by night. 
 
 In going westward we crossed several fine little guehmg 
 
248 COFFEE-ESTATE. 
 
 streams whioh never dry. They unite in the Luinha (pro- 
 nounced Lueenya) and Lucalla. As they flow over many 
 litt'e cascades, they might easily be turned to good account; 
 but they are all allowed to run on idly to the ocean. We 
 passed through forests, of gigantic timber, and, at an open 
 space named Cambondo, about eight miles from Golungo 
 AJto, found numbers of carpenters converting these lofty 
 trees into planks, in exactly the same manner as was fol- 
 lowed by the illustrious Kobinson Crusoe. A tree of three 
 or four feet in diameter and forty or fifty feet up to the 
 nearest branches was felled. It was then cut into lengths 
 of a few feet, and split iuto thick junks, which again were 
 reduced to planks an inch thick by persevering labor with 
 the axe. The object of the carpenters was to make little 
 chests, and they drive a constant trade in them at Cam- 
 bondo. When finished with hinges, lock, and key, all of 
 their own manufacture, one costs only a shilling and eight- 
 pence. My men were so delighted with them that they 
 carried several of them on their heads all the way to 
 Linyanti. 
 
 At Trombeta we were pleased to observe a great deal oi 
 taste displayed by the sub-commandant in the laying out 
 of his ground and adornment of his house with flowers. 
 This trifling incident was the more pleasing, as it was the 
 first attempt at neatness I had seen since leaving the esta- 
 blishment of Mozinkwa in Londa. Kows of trees had 
 been planted along each side of the road, with pineapples 
 and flowers between. This arrangement I had an oppor- 
 tunity of seeing in several other districts of this country, 
 for there is no difficulty in raising any plant or tree if it is 
 only kept from being choked by weeds. 
 
 This gentleman had now a fine estate, which but a few 
 years ago was a forest and cost him only £16. He had 
 planted about nine hundred coffee-trees upon it, and as 
 these begin to yield in three years from being planted, and 
 in six attain their maximum, I have no doubt but that ere 
 now his £1 3 yields him sixty-fold. All sorts cf fruit-trees 
 
MOSQUITOS. 249 
 
 and grape-vines yield their fruit twice in each year, with, 
 out any labor or irrigation being bestowed on them. AH 
 grains and vegetables, if only sown, do the same; and, if 
 advantage is taken of the mists of winter, even three cropf 
 of pulse may be raised. Cotton was now standing in tha 
 pods in his fields, and he did not seem to c&re about it. 1 
 understood him to say that this last plant flourishes, but the 
 wet of one of the two rainy seasons with whieh this coun- 
 try is favored sometimes proves troublesome to the grower. 
 I am not aware whether wheat has ever been tried, but 1 
 saw both figs and grapes bearing well. The great com- 
 plaint of all cultivators is the want of a good road to carry 
 their produce to market. Here all kinds of food are re- 
 markably cheap. 
 
 Farther on we left the mountainous country, and, as we 
 descended toward the west coast, saw the lands assuming 
 a more sterile, uninviting aspect. On our right ran the 
 river Senza, which nearer the sea takes the name of Bengo 
 It is about fifty yards broad, and navigable for canoes 
 The low plains adjacent to its banks are protected from 
 inundation by embankments, and the population is entirely 
 occupied in raising food and fruits for exportation to 
 Loanda by means of canoes. The banks are infested by 
 myriads of the most ferocious mosquitos I ever m^t. Not 
 one of our party could get a snatch of sleep. I was taken 
 into the house of a Portuguese, but was soon glad to make 
 my escape and lie across the path on the lee side of the 
 fire, where the smoke blew over my body. My host won- 
 dered at my want of taste, and I at his want of fueling; 
 for, to our astonishment, he and the other inhabitants had 
 actually become used to what was at least equal to * nail 
 through the heel of one's boot, or the toothache. 
 
 As we were now drawing near to the sea, my com- 
 panions were looking at every thing in a serious light. One 
 of them asked me if we should all have an opportunity of 
 watching each other at Loanda. " Suppose one went for 
 water: wou.d the others see if he were kidnapped?" I 
 
250 FEAR£ OF THE MAlvOLOLO. 
 
 replied, iC I see what you are driving at; and if you suspect 
 me you may return, for I am as ignorant of Loanda as 
 you are; but nothing will happen to you but what happens 
 to myself. We have stood by each other hitherto, and will 
 do so to the last/' The. plains adjacent to Loanda are 
 somewhat elevated and comparatively sterile. On coming 
 across these we first beheld the sea : my companions 
 looked upon the boundless ocean with awe. On describing 
 their feelings afterward, they remarked that " we, marched 
 along with our father, believing that what the ancients had 
 always told us was true, that the world has no end; but all 
 at once the world said to us, <I am finished: there is no 
 more of me I' " They had always imagined that the world 
 was one extended plain without limit. 
 
 They were now somewhat apprehensive of suffering 
 want, and I was unable to allay their fears with any pro- 
 mise of supply, for my own mind was depressed by disease 
 and care. The fever had induced a state of chronic dys- 
 entery so troublesome that I could not remain on the ox 
 more than ten minutes at a time ; and as we came down 
 the declivity above the city of Loanda en the 31st of May, 
 I was laboring under great depression of spirits, as I under- 
 stood that, in a population of twelve thousand souls, there 
 was but one genuine English gentlerjan. I naturally folt 
 anxious to know whether he were pofioossed of good-nature, 
 or was one of those crusty mortsli one would rather not 
 meet at all. 
 
 This gentleman, Mr. Gabriel, oot commissioner for the 
 suppression of the slave-trade, bad kindly forwarded ~n 
 invitation to meet me on the way from Cassange, but, 
 unfortunately, it crossed me on the road. When we 
 entered his porch, I was delighted to see a number of 
 flowers cultivated carefully, and inferred irom this circum- 
 stance fhat he was, what I soon discovered him to be. a 
 real whole-hearted Englishman. 
 
 Seeing me ill, he benevolently offered me his bed. Never 
 uhall I forget the Insurious pleasure I enjoyed in feeling 
 
CONTINUED STCK.NESS. 25 1 
 
 myself again on a good English couch, after six months' 
 sleeping on the ground. I was soon asleep ; and Mr. Ga- 
 briel, coming in almost immediately, rejoiced at the sound- 
 ness of my repose. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE COMMENCES HIS GREAT JOURNEY ACROSS 
 
 AFRICA. 
 
 In the hope that a short enjoyment of Mr. Gabriel's 
 generous hospitality would restore me to my wonted vigor, 
 I continued under his roof; but, my complaint having been 
 caused by long exposure to malarious influences, I became 
 much more reduced than ever, even while enjoying rest. 
 Several Portuguese gentlemen called on me shortly after 
 my arrival; and the Bishop of Angola, the Eight Reverend 
 Joaquim Moreira Reis, then the acting governor of the 
 province, sent his secretary to do the same, and likewise to 
 offer the services of the Government physician. 
 
 Some of her majesty's cruisers soon came into the port, 
 and, seeing the emaciated condition to which I was re- 
 duced, offered to convey me to St. Helena or homeward; 
 but, though I had reached the coast, I had found that, in 
 consequence of the great amount of forest, rivers, and 
 marsh, there was no possibility of a highway for wagons, 
 and I had brought a party of Sekeletu's people with me, 
 and found the tribes near the Portuguese settlement so very 
 unfriendly that it would be altogether impossible for my 
 men to return alone. I therefore resolved to decline the 
 tempting offers of my naval friends, and take back my Mako- 
 lolo companions to their chief, with a view of trying to 
 maKe a path from his country to the east coast by means 
 of the great river Zambesi or Leeambye. 
 
 I, however, gladly availed myself of the medical assist- 
 
252 MAKOLOLO'S VISIT TO THE SHIPS. 
 
 ance of Mr. Cockin, the surgeon of the " Polyphemus/ 
 at the suggestion of his commander, Captain Phillips. Mr 
 Cockin's treatment, aided by the exhilarating presence 
 of the warm-hearted naval officers, and Mr. Gabriel's un 
 wearied hospitality and care, soon brought me round 
 again. On the 14th I was so far well as to call on the 
 bishop, in company with my party, who were arrayed in 
 new robes of striped cotton cloth and red caps, all pre- 
 sented to them by Mr. Gabriel. He received us, as head 
 of the provisional Government, in the grand hall of the 
 palace. He put many intelligent questions respecting the 
 Makololo, and then gave them free permission to come to 
 Loanda as often as they pleased. This interview pleased 
 the Makololo extremely. 
 
 Every one remarked the serious deportment of the 
 Makololo. They viewed the large stone houses and 
 churches in the vicinity of the great ocean with awe. 
 A house with two stories was, until now, beyond their 
 comprehension. In explanation of this strange thing, I 
 had always been obliged to use the word for Hut ; and, as 
 huts are constructed by the poles being let into the earth, 
 they never could comprehend how the poles of one hut 
 could be founded upon the roof of another, or how men 
 could live, in the upper story, with the conical roof of the 
 lower one in the middle. Some Makololo, who had visited 
 my little "house at Kolobeng, in trying to describe it to 
 their countrymen at Liny an ti, said, " It is not a hut : it is 
 a mountain with several caves in it." 
 
 Commander Bedingfeld and Captam Skene invited them 
 to visit their vessels, the " Pluto" and " Philomel." Know- 
 ing their fears, I told them that no one need go if he 
 entertained the least suspicion of foul play. Nearly the 
 whole party went ; and, when on deck, I pointed to the 
 sailors, and said, " Now, these are all my countrymen, sent 
 by our queen for the purpose of putting down the trade of 
 those that buy and sell black men." They replied, " Truly ! 
 they are just like you !" and all their fears seemed to 
 
MAKOLOLO AT MASS. 253 
 
 vanish at once, for they went forward among the men, 
 and the jolly tars, acting .much as the Makololo would have 
 done in similar circumstances, handed them a share of the 
 bread and beef which they had for dinner. The com- 
 mander allowed them to fire off a cannon ; and, having 
 the most exalted ideas of its power, they were greatly 
 pleased when I told them, " That is what they put down 
 the slave-trade with." The size of the brig-of-war amazed 
 them. " It is not a canoe at all : it is a town !" The 
 sailors' deck they named " the kotla f and then, as a 
 climax to their description of this great ark, added, "And 
 what sort of a town is it that you must climb up into with 
 a rope f" 
 
 The effect of the politeness of the officers and men on 
 their minds was most beneficial. They had behaved with 
 the greatest kindness to me all the way from Linyanti, 
 and I now rose rapidly in their estimation ; for, whatever 
 they may have surmised before, they now saw that I was 
 respected among my own countrymen, and always after- 
 Ward treated me with the greatest deference. 
 
 On the 15th there was a procession and service of the 
 mass in the Cathedral; and, wishing to show my men a 
 place of worship, I took them to the church, which now 
 serves as the chief one of the see of Angola and Congo. 
 There is an impression on some minds that a gorgeous 
 ritual is better calculated to inspire devotional feelings 
 than the simple forms of the Protestant worship. But 
 nere the frequent genuflexions, changing of positions, 
 burning of incense, with the priests' back turned to the 
 people, the laughing, talking, and manifest irreverence of 
 the singers, with firing of guns, &c, did not convey to the 
 minds of my men the idea of adoration. I overheard 
 them, *'n talking to each other, remark that "they had 
 seen the white men charming their demons;" a phrase 
 identical with one they had used when seeing the Balonda 
 beating drums before their idols. 
 
 In the beginning of August I suffered a severe relap**., 
 
 22 
 
254 THEIR JUDGMENT RESPECTING GOODS. 
 
 which reduced me to a mere skeleton. I was then ui^able 
 to attend to my men for a considerable time ; but, when in 
 convalescence from this last attack, I was thank*ful to find 
 that 1 was free from that lassitude which, in my first 
 recovery, showed the -continuance of the malaria in the 
 system. I found that my men, without prompting, had 
 established a brisk trade in firewood. They sallied forth 
 at cock-crowing in the morning, and by daylight reached 
 the uncultivated parts of the adjacent # country, collected 
 a bundle of firewood, and returned to the city. It was 
 then divided into smaller fagots, and sold to the inhabit- 
 ants ; and, as they gave larger quantities than the regular 
 wood-carriers, they found no difficulty in selling. A ship 
 freighted with coal for the cruisers having arrived from 
 England, Mr. Gabriel procured them employment in un- 
 loading her at sixpence a day. They continued at this 
 work for upward of a month ; and nothing could exceed 
 their astQnishment at the vast amount of cargo one ship 
 contained. As they themselves always afterward ex- 
 pressed it, they had labored every day from sunrise to 
 sunset for a moon and a half, unloading, as quickly as they 
 could, "stones that burn," and were tired out, still leaving 
 plenty in her. With the money so obtained they purchased 
 clothing, beads and other articles to take back to their 
 own country. Their ideas of the value of different kinds 
 of goods rather astonished those who had dealt only with 
 natives on the coast. Hearing it stated with confidence 
 that the Africans preferred the thinnest fabrics, provided 
 they had gaudy colors and a large extent of surface, the 
 idea was so new to my experience in the interior that I 
 dissented, and, in order to show the superior good sense 
 of the Makololo, took them to the shop of Mr. Schut. 
 When he showed them the amount of general goods which 
 they might procure at Loanda for a single tusk, I requested 
 them, without assigning any reason, to point out the fabrics 
 they prized most. They all at once selected the strongest 
 pieces of English calico and other cloths, showing that they 
 
THE BISHOP OF ANGOLA. 2J>5 
 
 had regard to strength without reference to color. I believe 
 that most of the Bechuuna nation would have done the 
 same. But I was assured that the people near the coast, 
 with whom the Portuguese have to deal, have not so much 
 regard to durability. * This probably arises from cialico 
 freiug the chief circulating-medium, — quantity being ihon 
 of more importance than quality. 
 
 During the period of my indisposition, the bishop sent 
 frequently to make inquiries, and as soon as I was able to 
 walk I went to thank him for his civilities. His whole 
 conversation and conduct showed him to be a man of great 
 benevolence and kindness of heart. Alluding to my being 
 a Protestant, he stated that he was a Catholic from convic- 
 tion; and though sorry to see others, like myself, following 
 another path, he entertained no uncharitable feelings, nor 
 would he ever sanction persecuting measures. He com- 
 pared the various sects of Christians, in their way to 
 heaven, to a number of individuals cnoosing to pass down 
 the different streets of Loanda to one of the churches : all 
 would arrive at the same point at last. His good influence, 
 both in the city and the country, is universally acknow- 
 ledged : he was promoting' the establishment of schools, 
 which, though formed more on the monastic principle than 
 Protestants might approve, will no doubt be a blessing. Pie 
 was likewise successfully attempting to abolish the non- 
 marriage custom of the country; and several marriages 
 had take'n place in Loanda among those who, but for his 
 teaching, would have been content with concubinage. 
 
 St. Paul de Loanda has been a very considerable city, 
 but is now in a state of decay. It contains about twelve 
 thousand inhabitants, most of whom are people of color.* 
 
 * From the census of 1850-51 we find the population of this city 
 arranged thus : — 830 whites, only 160 of whom are females. This is the 
 largest collector, of whites in the country, for Angola itself contains only 
 •bout 1000 whites. There are 2400 hnlf-castes in Loanda, and only 120 
 of them slaves ; and there are 9000 blacks, more than 5000 of whom art 
 ■laves 
 
256 ST. PAUL DE LOANDA. 
 
 There are various evidences of its former nagnificence, 
 especially two cathedrals, one of which, once a Jesuit 
 college, is now converted into a workshop ; and in passing 
 the other we saw with sorrow a number of oxen feeding 
 within its stately walk. Three fo#ts continue in a good 
 state of repair. Many large stone houses are to be found. 
 The palace of the governor and Government offices are 
 commodious structures, but nearly all the houses of the 
 native inhabitants are of wattle and daub. Trees are 
 planted all over the town for the sake of shade, and the 
 city presents an imposing appearance from the sea. It is 
 provided with an effective police, and the custom-house 
 department is extremely well managed. All parties agree 
 in representing the Portuguese authorities as both polite 
 and obliging; and, if ever any inconvenience is felt by 
 strangers visiting the port, it must be considered the fault 
 of the system, and not of the men. 
 
 The harbor is formed by the low, sandy island of Loanda 
 which is inhabited by about 1300 souls, upward of 600 of 
 whom are industrious native fishermen, who supply the 
 city with abundance of good fish daily. The space between 
 it and the mainland, on which the city is built, is the 
 station for ships. When a high southwest wind blows, 
 the waves of the ocean dash over part of the island, and, 
 driving large quantities of sand before them, gradually fill 
 up the harbor. Great quantities of soil are also washed 
 in the rainy season from the heights above the city, so that 
 the port, which once contained water sufficient to float the 
 largest ships close to the custom-house, is now at low- water 
 dry. The ships are compelled to anchor about a mile north 
 of their old station. Nearly all tfye water consumed in 
 Loanda is brought from the river Bengo by means of 
 launches, the only supply that the city affords being from 
 some deep wells of slightly-brackish water. Unsuccessful 
 attempts have been made by different governors to finish a 
 canal which the Dutch, while in possession of Loanda 
 during the seven, years preceding 1648, had begun, to bring 
 
 
CUSTOM-HOUSE ARRANGEMENTS. 257 
 
 water from the river Coanza to the city. There is not a 
 single English merchant at Loanda, and only two American. 
 This is the more remarkable as nearly all the commerce is 
 carried on by means of English calico brought hither vid 
 Lisbon. Several English houses attempted to establish a 
 trade about 1845, and accepted bills on Eio de Janeiro in 
 payment for their goods; but the increased activity of our 
 cruisers had such an effect upon the mercantile houses of 
 that city that most of them failed. The English merchants 
 Yost all. and Loanda fjot a bad name in the commercial 
 world in consequence. • 
 
 One of the arrangements of the custom-house may have 
 had some influence in preventing English trade. Ships 
 coming here must be consigned to some one on the spot ; 
 the consi^aee receives one hundred dollars per mast, and 
 he generally makes a great (Teal more for himself by put- 
 ting a percentage on boats and men hired for loading and 
 unloading, and on every item that passes through his hands 
 The port-charges are also rendered heavy by twenty dollars 
 being charged as a perquisite of the secretary of Govern- 
 ment, with a fee for the chief physician, something for the 
 hospital, custom-house officers, guards, &c. &c. But, with 
 all these drawbacks, the Americans carry on a brisk and 
 profitable trade in calico, biscuit, flour, butter, &c. &c. 
 
 The Portuguese home Government has not generally re- 
 ceived the credit for sincerity in suppressing the slave-trade 
 which I conceive to be its due. In 1839, my friend Mr. 
 Gabriel saw thirty-seven slave-ships lying in this harbor, 
 waiting for their cargoes, under the protection of the guns 
 of the forts. At that time slavers had to wait many 
 months at a time for a human freight, and a certain sum 
 pei head was paid to the Government for all that were ex- 
 po* ted. The duties derived from the exportation of slaves 
 far exceeded those from other commerce, and, by agreeing 
 to the suppression of this profitable traffic, the Government 
 actually sacrificed the chief part of "he export-revenue. 
 
 Since that period, however, the revenue from lawful com- 
 R 22* 
 
258 CONVICT SOLHIEKS. 
 
 merce bag very much exceeded that on slaves. Tho in ten 
 tions of the home Portuguese Government; however good, 
 cannot be fully carried out under the present system 
 The pay of the officers is so very small that they are nearly 
 all obliged to engage in trade ; and, owing to the luci ative 
 nature of the slare-trade, the temptation to engage in it is 
 so powerful that the philanthropic statesmen of Lisbon 
 need hardly expect to have their humane and enlightened 
 views carried out. The law, for instance, lately promul- 
 gated for the abolition of the carrier-system (carregadores) 
 is but one of several equally humane enactments against 
 this mode of compulsory labor, but there is very little pro- 
 bability of the benevolent intentions of the legislature 
 being carried into effect. 
 
 Loanda is regarded somewhat as a penal settlement, and 
 those who leave their native land for this country do so 
 with the hope of getting rich in a few years and then re- 
 turning home. They have thus no motive for seeking the 
 permanent welfare of the country. The Portuguese lajsr 
 preventing the subjects of any other nation from holding 
 landed property unless they become naturalized, the country 
 has neither the advantage of native nor foreign enterprise, 
 and remains very much in the same state as our allies found 
 ft in 1575. Nearly all the European soldiers sent out are 
 convicts, and, contrary to what might be expected from 
 men in their position, behave remarkably well. A few 
 riots have occurred, but nothing at all so serious as have 
 taken place in our own penal settlements. If is a remark- 
 able fact that the whole of the arms of Loanda are every 
 night in the hands of those who have been convicts. 
 Various reasons for this mild behavior arc assigned by 
 the officers, but none of these, when viewed in connection 
 with our own experience in Australia, appear to be valid. 
 Religion seems to have no connection with the change. 
 Perhaps the climate may have some influence in subduing 
 their turbulent disposition, for the inhabitants generally 
 are a timid race : they are not half so brave as our Caffre* 
 
PKKSKNTS FOR SEKKLETU. 259 
 
 The people of" Ambriz run away like a flock of sheep, and 
 allowed the Portuguese to take possession of their copper- 
 mineo and country without striking a blow. It* we must have 
 convict-settlements, attention to the climate might bo of 
 advantage in the selection. Here even bulls are much 
 tamer than with us. I never met with a ferocious one in 
 this country, and the Portuguese use them generally lor 
 riding : an ox is seldom seen. 
 
 The objects which I had in view in opening up the 
 country, as stated in a few notes of my journey published 
 in the newspapers of Angola, so commended themselves to 
 the general Government and merchants of Loanda, that, 
 at the instance of his excellency the bishop, a handsome 
 present for Sekeletu was granted by the Board of Public 
 Works, (Junta da Pazenda Publica.) It consisted of a 
 colonel's complete uniform and a horse for the chief, and 
 suits of clothing for all the men who accompanied me. The 
 merchants also made a present, by public subscription, of 
 handsome specimens of all their articles of trade, and two 
 donkeys, for the purpose of introducing the breed into his 
 country, as tsetse cannot kill this beast of burden. These 
 presents were accompanied by letters from the bishop and 
 merchants; and I was kindly favored with letters of recom- 
 mendation to the Portuguese authorities in Eastern Africa. 
 
 I took with me a good stock of cotton cloth, fresh sup 
 plies of ammunition and beads, and gave each of my men 
 a musket. As my companions had amassed considerable 
 quantities of goods, they were unable to carry mine; but 
 the bishop furnished me with twenty carriers, and sent for- 
 ward orders to all the commandants of the districts through 
 which we were to pass to render me every assistance in 
 their power. Being now supplied witli a good new tent 
 made by my friends on board the Philomel, we left Loanda 
 on the 20th of September, 1854, and passed round by sea 
 to the mouth of the river Bengo. Ascending this river, we 
 went through the district in which stand the ruins of the 
 Convent of St. Antonio; thence into Icollo i Bengo, which 
 
2t)0 SPINNING AND WEAVING. 
 
 contains a population of 6530 blacks, 172 mulattoes, and 11 
 whites, and is so named from having been the residence of 
 a former native king. The proportion of slaves is only 
 3.88 per cent, of the inhabitants. The commandant of this 
 place, Laurence Jose Marquis, is a frank old soldier and a 
 most hospitable man : he is one of the few who secure the 
 universal approbation of their fellow-men for stern unflinch- 
 ing honesty, and has risen from the ranks to be a major in 
 the army. We were accompanied thus far by our generous 
 host, Edmund Gabriel, Esq., who, by his unwearied atten- 
 tions to myself, and liberality in supporting my men, had 
 become endeared to all our hearts. My men were strongly 
 impressed with a sense of his goodness, and often spoke of 
 him in terms of admiration all the way to Linyanti. 
 
 28th September, Kalungwembo. — We were still on the same 
 path by which we had come, and, there being no mosqui- 
 tos, we could now better enjoy the scenery. Eanges of 
 hills occupy both sides of our path, and the fine level road 
 is adorned with a beautiful red flower named Bolcamaria 
 The markets or sleeping-places are well supplied with pro- 
 visions by great numbers of women, every one of whom is 
 seen spinning cotton with a spindle and distaff exactly like 
 those which were in use among the ancient Egyptians. A 
 woman is scarcely ever seen going to the fields — though 
 with a pot on her head, a child on her back, and the hoe 
 over her shoulder — but she is employed in this way. The 
 cotton was brought to the market for sale, and I bought a 
 pound for a penny. This was the price demanded, and 
 probably double what they ask from each other. We saw 
 the cotton growing luxuriantly all around the market- 
 places from seeds dropped accidentally. It is seen also 
 about the native huts, and, so far as I could learn, it was 
 the American cotton, so influenced by climate as to be 
 perennial. We met in the road natives passing with bun- 
 dles of cops, or spin lies full of cotton thread, and these 
 they were carrying i > other parts to be woven into cloth. 
 The women are the spinners, and the men perform th« 
 
OOIFEE-PLANTATIONi. 201 
 
 weaving, Each web is about five feet long, and fifteen ot 
 eighteen inches wide. The loom is of the simplest construc- 
 tion, being nothing but two beams placed one over the other, 
 the web standing perpendicularly. The threads of the web 
 are separated by means of a thin wooden lath, and the 
 woof passed through by means of the spindle on which it 
 has jcen wound in spinning. 
 
 Numbers of other articles are brought for sale to these 
 sleeping-places. The native smiths there carry on their 
 trade. I bought ten very good table-knives, made oi 
 country iron, for twopence each. 
 
 Labor is extremely cheap, for I was assured that even 
 carpenters, masons, smiths, &c. might be hired for four- 
 pence a day; and agriculturists would gladly work for half 
 that sum. 
 
 Being anxious to obtain some more knowledge of this in- 
 teresting country and its ancient missionary-establishments 
 than the line of route by which we had come afforded, 1 
 resolved to visit the town of Massangano, which is situated 
 to the south of Golungo Alto and at the confluence of tho 
 rivers Lucalla and Coanza. This led me to pass through 
 the district of Cazengo, which is rather famous for the 
 abundance and excellence of its coffee. Extensive coffee- 
 plantations were found to exist on the sides of the seve- 
 ral lofty mountains that compose this district. They were 
 not planted by the Portuguese. The Jesuit and other mis- 
 sionaries are known to have brought some of the fine old 
 Mocha seed, and these have propagated themselves far and 
 wide : hence the excellence of the Angola coffee. Some 
 have asserted that, as new plantations were constantly dis 
 covered even during the period of our visit, the coffee-tree 
 was indigenous; but the fact that pineapples, bananas, 
 yarns,' orange-trees, custard-apple-trees, pitangas, guavas, 
 and other South American trees were found by me in the 
 same localities with the recently-discovered coffee would 
 seem to indicate that all foreign trees must have been 
 introduced by the same agency. It is known that the 
 
262 RUINS OF IRON-FOUNDRY. 
 
 Jesuits also introduced many other trees for the sake of 
 their timber alone. Numbers of these have spread over 
 the county; some have probably died out and others failed 
 to spread, like a lonely specimen that stands in what was 
 the Botanic Garden of Loanda, and, though most useful 
 in yielding a substitute for frankincense, is the only one 
 of the kind in Africa. 
 
 Accompanied by the commandant of Cazengo, who was 
 well acquainted with this part of the country, I pro- 
 ceeded in a canoe down the river Lucalla to Massangano. 
 This river is about eighty-five yar&s wide, and navigable for 
 canoes from its confluence with the Coanza to about six 
 miles above the point where it receives the Luinha. Near 
 this latter point stand the strong, massive ruins of an iron- 
 foundry erected in the times (1768) and by the order of the 
 famous Marquis of Pombal. The whole of the buildings 
 were constructed of stone cemented with oil and lime. The 
 dam for water-power was made of the same materials, and 
 twenty-seven feet high. This had been broken through by 
 a flood, and solid blocks, many yards in length, were carried 
 down the stream, affording an instructive example of the 
 iransporting-power of water. There was nothing in the 
 appearance of the place to indicate unhealthiness; but 
 eight Spanish and Swedish workmen, being brought hither 
 for the purpose of instructing the natives in the art of 
 smelting iron, soon fell victims to disease and " irregulari- 
 ties:" The effort of the marquis to improve the mode of 
 manufacturing iron was thus rendered abortive. Labor 
 and subsistence are, however, so very cheap that almost 
 any amount of work can be executed at a cost that renders 
 expensive establishments unnecessary. 
 
 A party of native miners and smiths are still kept in the 
 employment of the Government, who, working the rich, 
 black, magnetic iron-ore, produce for the Government from 
 180 to 500 bars of good malleable iron every month. They 
 are supported by the appropriation of a few thousands of a 
 umal 1 fresh-water fish, called "Cacusu," a portion of the tax 
 
MA8SAN0AN0. 263 
 
 leried upon the nsherinen of the Coanza. This fish is so 
 mn?h relished in the country that those who do not wish 
 to eat them can easily convert them into money The 
 commandant of the district of Massangano, for instance, 
 has a right to a dish of three hundred every morning, as 
 part of his salary. Shell-fish are also fou^d in the Coanza, 
 and the " Peixemulhcr," or woman-fish of the Portuguese, 
 which is probably a Manatee. 
 
 TVe found the town of Massangano on a tongue of rather 
 high land formed by the left bank of the Lucalla and right 
 bank of the Coanza, and received true Portuguese hospi- 
 tality from Senhor Lubata. The town has more than a 
 thousand inhabitants : the district has 28,063, with only 
 315 slaves. 
 
 Massangano district is well adapted for sugar and rice, 
 while Cambambe is a very superior field for cotton ; but 
 the bar at the mouth of the Coanza would prevent the ap- 
 proach of a steamer into this desirable region, though a 
 small one could ply on it with ease when once in. 
 
 The latitude of the town and fort of Massangano is 9° 
 B7' 40" S., being nearly the same as that of Cassange. The 
 country between Loanda and this point being compara- 
 tively flat, a railroad might be constructed at small ex- 
 pense. The level country is prolonged along the north 
 bank of the Coanza to the edge of the Cassange basin, and 
 a railway carried thither would be convenient for the trans- 
 port of the products, of the rich districts of Cassange, 
 Pungo Andongo, Ambaca, Cambambe, Golungo Alto, Ca- 
 eengo, Muchima, and Calumbo, — in a word, the whole of 
 Angola and independent tribes adjacent to this kingdom. 
 
 Returning by ascending the Lucalla into Cazengo, wo 
 had an opportunity of visiting several flourishing coffee, 
 plantations, and observed that several men, who had begun 
 with no capital but honest industry, had in the course of 
 a few years acquired a comfortable subsistence. One of 
 t.hese, Mr. Pinto, generously furnished me with a good 
 supply of his excellent coffee, and my men with a breed 
 
2d4 FEVER — INSANITY 
 
 of rabbits to cany to their own country. Their lands 
 granted by Government, yielded, without much labor, coffee 
 sufficient for all the necessaries of life. 
 
 On returning to Golungo Alto, I found several of my men 
 laid up with *ever. One of the reasons for my leaving 
 them there was that they might recover from the fatigue 
 of the journey from Loanda, which had much more effect 
 upon their feet than hundreds of miles had on our way west- 
 ward. They had always been accustomed to moisture in 
 their own well- watered land, and we certainly had a super- 
 abundance of that in Loanda. The roads, however, from 
 Loanda to Golungo Alto were both hard and dry, and they 
 suffered severely in consequence ; yet they were composing 
 songs to be sung when they should reach home. The 
 Argonauts were nothing to them; and they remarked very 
 impressively to me, "It was well you came with Makololo; 
 for no tribe could have done what we have accomplished 
 in coming to the white man's country : we are the true 
 ancients, who can tell wonderful things." Two of them 
 now had fever in the continued form, and became jaun- 
 diced, the whites or conjunctival membrane of their eyes 
 becoming as yellow as saffron ; and a third suffered from 
 an attack of mania. He came to his companions one day, 
 and said, " Eemain well. I am called away by the gods V 
 and set off at the top of his speed. The young men caught 
 him before he had gone a mile, and bound him. By gentle 
 treatment and watching for a few days he recovered. I 
 have observed several instances of this kind in the country, 
 but very few cases of idiocy; ard I believe that continued 
 insanity is rare. 
 
DESERTED CONVENT. 26f) 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 DR LIVINGSTONE VISITS PUNGO ANDONflO. 
 
 While waiting for the recovery of my men, I visited, in 
 company with my friend Mr. Canto, the deserted Convent 
 of St. Hilarion, at Bango, a few miles northwest of Golungo 
 Alto. It is situated in a magnificent valley, containing a 
 population numbering 4000 hearths. This is the abode of 
 the Sova, or Chief Bango, who still holds a place of autho- 
 rity under the Portuguese. The garden of the convent, 
 the church, and dormitories of the brethren are still kept 
 in a good state of repair. I looked at the furniture, couches, 
 and large chests for holding the provisions of the brother- 
 hood with interest, and would fain have learned something 
 of the former occupants; but all the books and sacred 
 vessels had lately been removed to Loanda, and even the 
 graves of the good men stand without any record : their 
 resting-places are, however, carefully tended. All apeak 
 well of the Jesuits and other missionaries, as the Capuchins, 
 &c, for having attended diligently to the instruction of the 
 children. They were supposed to have a tendency to take 
 the part of the people against the Government, and were 
 supplanted by priests, concerning whom no regret is ex- 
 pressed that they were allowed to die out. In viewing the 
 present fruits of former missions, it is impossible not to 
 feel assured that, if the Jesuit teaching has been so per- 
 manent, that of Protestants, who leave the Bible in the 
 bands of their converts, will not be less abiding. 
 
 The chief recreations of the natives of Angola are mar 
 
 nages and funerals. When a young woman is about to be 
 
 married, she is placed in a hut alone and anointed witn 
 
 various unguents, and many incantations are employed in 
 
 order to secure good fortune and fruitfulness. Here, as almost 
 
 everywhere in the south, the height of good fortune is to 
 
 23 
 
266 MARRIAGES AND FUNERALS. 
 
 bear sons. They often leave a husband altogether if they 
 have daughters only. In their dances, when any one may 
 wish to deride another, in the accompanying song a line is 
 introduced, " So and so has no children, and never will get 
 Any." She feels the insult so keenly that it is not uncom- 
 mon for her to rush away and commit suicide. After some 
 days the bride elect is taken to another hut, and adorned 
 with all the richest clothing and ornaments that the rela- 
 tives can either lend or borrow. She is then placed in a 
 public situation, saluted as a lady, and presents made by 
 all her acquaintances are placed around her. After this 
 she is taken to the residence of her husband, where she 
 has a hut for herself, and becomes one of several wives, — for 
 polygamy is general. Dancing, feasting, and drinking on 
 such occasions are prolonged for several days. In case of 
 separation, the woman returns to her father's family, and 
 the husband receives back what he gaVe for her. In nearly 
 all cases a man gives a price for the wife, and in cases of 
 mulattoes as much as £60 is often given to the parents of 
 the bride. This is one of the evils the bishop was trying 
 to remedy. 
 
 In cases of death the body is kept several days ; and there 
 \a a grand concourse of both sexes, with beating of drums, 
 dances, and debauchery, kept up with feasting, &c, accord- 
 ing to the means of the relative. The great ambition of 
 many of the blacks of Angola is to give their friends an 
 expensive funeral. Often, when one is asked to sell a pig. 
 ae replies, "I am keeping it in case of the death of any of 
 my friends." A pig is usually slaughtered and eaten on 
 the last day of the ceremonies, and its head thrown into 
 the nearest stream or river. A native will sometimos 
 appear intoxicated on these occasions, and, if blamed for 
 his intemperance, will reply, " Why, my mothei is dead 1" 
 as if he thought it a sufficient justification. The expenses 
 of funerals are so heavy that often years elapse before they 
 can defray them. 
 
 These people are said to be veiy litigious and obstinate 
 
p, MISCONDUCT OF SLAVES. 267 
 
 constant disputes are taking place respecting their lands 
 A case came before the weekly court of the commandant 
 involving property in a palm-tree worth twopence. The 
 judge advised the pursuer to withdraw the case, as the 
 mere expenses of entering it would be much more than the 
 cost of the tree. " Oh, no/' said he ; "I have a piece of 
 calico with me for the clerk, and money for yourself. It's 
 my right: I will not ..forego it." The calico itself cost 
 thi.ee or four shillings. They rejoice if they can say of an 
 enemy, "I took him before the court." 
 
 My friend Mr. Canto, the commandant, being seized with 
 fever in a severe form, it afforded me much pleasure to attend 
 him in his sickness who had been so kind to me in mine 
 He was for some time in a state of insensibility ; and I, 
 having the charge of his establishment, had thus an oppor- 
 tunity of observing the workings of slavery. When a 
 master is ill, the slaves run riot among the eatables. I did 
 not know this until I observed that every time the sugar- 
 basin came to the table it was empty. On visiting my 
 patient by night, 1 passed along a corridor, and unexpect- 
 edly came upon the washerwoman eating pineapples and 
 sugar. All the sweetmeats were devoured, and it was 
 difficult for me to get even bread and butter until I took 
 tne precaution of locking the pantry-door. Probably th* 
 slaves thought that, as both they and the luxuries were the 
 master's property, there was no good reason why they 
 should be kept apart. 
 
 Debarred by my precaution from these sources of enjoy- 
 ment, they took to killing the fowls and goats, and, when 
 the animal was dead, brought it to me, saying, "W« 
 found this thing lying out there." They then enjoyed a 
 feast of flesh. A feeling of insecurity prevails throughoat 
 this country. It is quite common to furnish visitors with 
 the keys of their rooms. When called on to come to break- 
 fast or dinner, sach locks his door and puts the key in his 
 pocket. At Kolobeng we never locked our doors by night 
 or by day for months together; but there tlavery is un« 
 
268 LOSS OF COTTON-SEED. 
 
 known. The Portuguese do not seem at all bigoted in 
 their attachment to slavery, nor yet in their prejudices 
 against color. Mr. Canto gave an entertainment in order 
 to draw all classes together and promote general good-will 
 Two sovas or native chiefs were present, and took their 
 places without the least appearance of embarrassment. 
 The Sova of Kilombo appeared in the dress of a general, 
 and the Sova of Bango was gayly attired in a red coat 
 profusely ornamented with tinsel. The latter had a band 
 of musicians with him, consisting of six trumpeters and 
 four drummers, who performed very well. These men are 
 fond of titles, and the Portuguese Government humors 
 them by conferring honorary captaincy, &c. : the Sova of 
 Bango was at present anxious to obtain the title of " Major 
 of all the Sovas." At the tables of other gentlemen I 
 observed the same thing constantly occurring. At this 
 meeting Mr. Canto communicated some ideas which I had 
 written out on the dignity of labor and the superiority of 
 free over slave labor. The Portuguese gentlemen present 
 wt^re anxiously expecting an arrival of American cotton- 
 seed from Mr. Gabriel. They are now in the transition- 
 state from unlawful to lawful trade, and turn eagerly to 
 cotton, coffee, and sugar as new sources of wealth. Mr. 
 Cftflto had been commissioned by them to purchase three 
 sugar-mills. Our cruisers have been the principal agents 
 in compelling them to abandon the slave-trade; and our 
 Government, in furnishing them with a supply of cotton- 
 seed, showed a generous intention lo aid tbem in com- 
 mencing a more honorable course. It can scarcely be 
 believed, however, that after Lord Clarendon had been a* 
 the trouble of procuring fresh cotton-seed through our 
 minister at Washington, and had sent it out to the care of 
 H. M. Commissioner at Loanda, probably fro^m having 
 fallen into the hands of a few incorrigible slave-traders, it 
 never reached its destination. It was most likely cast into 
 the sea of Ambriz, and my friends at Golungo Alto were 
 left without the means of commencing a new enterprise. 
 
ECLIPSE OF THE SUN. 269 
 
 Mr. Canto mentioned that there is now much more cot- 
 ton in the country than can be consumed; and if he had 
 possession of a few hundred pounds ho would buy up all 
 the oil and cottOL at a fair price, and thereby bring about 
 a revolution in the agriculture of the country. These 
 commodities are not produced in greater quantity, because 
 the people have no market for those which now spring 
 up almost spontaneously around them. The above was 
 put down in my journal when I had no idea that enlarged 
 supplies of cotton from new sources were so much needed 
 at home. 
 
 It is common to cut down cotton-trees as a nuisance, 
 and cultivate beans, potatoes, and manioc sufficient only 
 for their own consumption. I have the impression that 
 cotton, which is deciduous in America, is perennial here; 
 for the plants I saw in winter were not dead, though going 
 by' the name Algodilo Americana, or American cotton. The 
 rents paid for gardens belonging to the old convents are 
 merely nominal, varying from one shilling to three pounds 
 per annum. The higher rents being realized from those 
 in the immediate vicinity of Loanda, none but Portuguese 
 or half-castes can pay them. 
 
 When about to start, the horse which the governor had 
 kindly presented for Sekeletu was seized with inflamma- 
 tion, which delayed us some time longer; and we ultimately 
 lost it. 
 
 November 20. — An eclipse of the sun, which I had 
 anxiously hoped to observe with a view of determining 
 the longitude, happened this morning, and, as often took 
 place in this cloudy climate, the sun was covered four 
 minutes before it began. When it shone forth, the eclipse 
 was in progress, and a few minutes before it should 
 (according to my calculations) have ended the sun was 
 tgain completely obscured. The greatest patience and 
 perseverance are required if one wishes to ascertain his 
 position when it is the rainy season. 
 
 Before leaving, I had an opportunity of observing a 
 
 23* 
 
270 INSECTS WHICH DI6TIL WATER. 
 
 curious insect, which inhabits trees of the fig family, 
 ' Ficus,) upward of twenty species of which are found 
 here. Seven or eight of them cluster round a Bpot on one 
 of the smaller branches, and there keep up a constant dis- 
 tillation of a clear fluid, which, dropping to the ground, 
 forms a little puddle below. If a vessel is placed undei 
 them in the evening, it contains three or four pints of fluid 
 in the morning. The natives say that if a drop falls into 
 the eyes it causes inflammation of these organs. To the 
 question, whence is this fluid derived, the people reply that 
 the insects suck it out of the tree; and our own natu- 
 ralists give the same answer. I have never seen an orifice, 
 and it is scarcely possible that the tree can yield so much. 
 A similar but much smaller homopterous insect, of the 
 family Cercopidce, is known in England as the frog-hopper, 
 (Aphrophora spumaria,') when full grown and furnished 
 with wings, but while still in the pupa state it is called 
 " Cuckoo-spit f " from the mass of froth in which it envelops 
 itself. The circulation of sap in plants in our climate, 
 especially of the graminaceae, is not quick enough to yield 
 much moisture. The African species is five or six times 
 the size of the English. In the case of branches of the 
 fig-tree, the point the insects congregate on is soon marked 
 by a number of incipient roots, such as are thrown out 
 when a cutting is inserted in the ground for the purpose 
 of starting another tree. I believe that both the Eno-lish 
 and African insects belong to the same family, and differ 
 only in size, and that the chief part of the moisture ie 
 derived from the atmosphere. I leave it for naturalists to 
 explain how these little creatures distil both by night and 
 day as much water, as they please, and are more indepen- 
 dent than her majesty's steamships with their apparatus 
 for condensing steam; for, without coal, their abundant 
 supplies of sea-water are of no avail. I tried the following 
 experiment. Finding a colony of these insects busily dis- 
 tilling on a branch of the Eicinus communis, or castor-oil 
 plant, 1 denuded about twenty inches of the bai k on the tiee- 
 
EXPERIMENTS. 2« I 
 
 side of the insects, and scraped away the inner bar\i, so at 
 to destroy all the ascending vessels. I also cut a hole in 
 tho side of the branch, reaching to the middle, and then 
 cut out tho pith ami internal vessels. The distillation 
 was then going on at the rate of one drop each sixty-seven 
 seconds, or about 2 ounces 5£ drachms in twenty-four 
 hours. Next morning the distillation, so far from being 
 affected by the attempt to stop tho supphcs, supposing 
 they had come up through the branch from the tree, was 
 increased to a drop every five seconds, or twelve drops 
 per minute, making one pint (16 ounces) in every twenty- 
 four hours. I then cut the branch so much that, during 
 the day, it broke ; but they still went on at the rate of a 
 drop eveiy five seconds, while another colony on a branch 
 of the same tree gave a drop every seventeen seconds 
 only, or at the rate of about 10 ounces 4J drachms in 
 twenty-four hours. I finally cut off the branch ; but this 
 was too much for their patience, for they immediately 
 decamped, as insects will do from either a dead branch or 
 a dead animal, — which Indian hunters soon know when 
 they sit down on a recently-killed bear. The presence of 
 greater moisture in the air increased the power of these 
 distillers : the period of greatest activity was in the morn- 
 ing, when the air and every thing else was charged with 
 dew. 
 
 Having but one day left for experiment, I found again 
 that another colony on a branch denuded in the same way 
 yielded a drop every two seconds, or 4 pints 10 ounces in 
 twenty -four hours, while a colony on a branch untouched 
 yielded a drop every eleven seconds, or 16 ounces 2|jj 
 drachms in twenty-four hours. I regretted somewhat tho 
 want of time to institute another experiment, namely, 
 to cut a branch and place it in water, so as to keep it in 
 hfc, and then observe if there was any diminution of the 
 quantity of water in the vessel. This alone was wanting 
 to make it certain that they draw water from the atmo- 
 sphere. J imagine that they have some power of which wa 
 
272 ARRIVAL AT AMBACA 
 
 are not aware, besides that nervous influence which jaur. .a 
 constant motion to our own involuntary muscles, tne 
 power of life-long action without fatigue. The reader will 
 remember, in connection with this insect, the ca^e of the 
 ants already mentioned. 
 
 December 14. — Both myself and men having recovered 
 from severe attacks of fever, we left the hospitable resi- 
 dence of Mr. Canto with a deep sense of his kindness to 
 us all, and proceeded on our way to Ambaca. (Lat. 9° 16' 
 85" S., long. 15° 23' E.) 
 
 Owing to the weakness of the men who had been sick, 
 we were able to march but short distances. Three hours 
 and a half brought us to the banks of the Caloi, a small 
 stream which flows into the Senza. 
 
 We found, on reaching Ambaca, that the gallant old 
 soldier, Laurence Jose Marquis, had, since our passing 
 lcoilo i Bengo, been promoted, on account of his stern 
 integrity, to the government of this important district. 
 The office of commandant is much coveted by the officers 
 of the line who come to Angola, not so much for the salary 
 as for the perquisites, which, when managed skilfully, in 
 the course of a few years make one rich. 
 
 Before leaving Ambaca we received a present of ten head 
 of cattle from Mr. Schut of Loanda; and, as it shows the 
 cheapness of provisions here, I may mention that the cost 
 was only about a guinea per head. 
 
 On crossing the Lucalla we made a detour to the south, 
 in order to visit the famous rocks of Pungo Andongo. As 
 soon as we crossed the rivulet Lotete, a change in the 
 vegetation of the country was apparent. We found trees 
 identical with those to be seen south of the Chobe. The 
 grass, too, stands in tufts, and is of that kind which the 
 natives consider to be best adapted for cattle. Two species 
 of grape-bearing vines abound everywhere in this district, 
 and the influence of the good pasturage is seen in the plump 
 condition of the catt/e. In all my previous inquiries re- 
 specting the vege*-able products of Angola, I was invariably 
 
PUNGO ANDONGO 273 
 
 directed to Pungo Andongo. "Do you grow wheat?"— 
 " Oh, yes, in Pungo Andongc " " Grapes, figs, or peaches ?" 
 —"Oh, yes, in Pungo Andongo." "Do you make butter, 
 cheese, &c. ?" The uniform answer was, " Oh, yes: there 
 is abundance of all these in Pungo Andongo." But when 
 we arrived here we found that the answers all referred to 
 thfl activity of one man, Colonel Manuel Antonio Pires. 
 The presence of the wild grape shows that vineyards might 
 be cultivated with success; the wheat grows well without 
 irrigation; and any one who tasted the butter and cneese 
 at the table of Colonel Pires would prefer them to the 
 stale produce of the Irish dairy in general use throughout 
 that province. The cattle in this country are seldom 
 milked, on account of the strong prejudice which the Por- 
 tuguese entertain against the use of milk. They believe 
 that it may be used with safety in the morning, but, if 
 taken after mid-day, that it will cause fever. It seemed 
 to me that there was not much reason for carefully avoid- 
 ing a few drops in their coffee after having devoured ten 
 times the amount in the shape of cheese at dinner. 
 
 The fort of Pungo Andongo (lat. 9° 42' 14" S., long. 15° 
 30' E.) is situated in the midst of a group of curious 
 columnar-shaped rocks, each of which is upward of three 
 hundred feet in height. They are composed of conglome- 
 rate, made up of a great variety of rounded pieces in a 
 matrix of dark red sandstone. They rest on a thick stra- 
 tum of this last rock, with very few of the pebbles in its 
 substance. On this a fossil palm has been found, and if of 
 tne same age as those on the eastern side of the continent 
 on which similar palms now lie, there may be coal under- 
 neath this, as well as under that of Tete. The asserted 
 existence of petroleum-springs at Dande, and near Cam- 
 bauibe. would seem to indicate the presence of this useful 
 mineral, though I am not aware of any one having actually 
 seen a seam of coal tilted up to the surface in Angola, as 
 we have at Tete. The gigantic pillars of Pungo Anaongo 
 have been formed by a current of the sea coming from the 
 
274 PCNGO ANDONGO 
 
 S.S.E.; for, seen from the top, they appear arranged in thai 
 direction, and must have withstood the surges of the ocean 
 at a period of our world's history when the relations of 
 land and sea were totally different from what they are now, 
 and long before "the morning stars sang together, and. all 
 the sons of God shouted for joy to see the abodes prepared 
 which man was soon to fill." The embedded pieces in 
 the conglomerate are of gneiss, clay shale, mica and sand- 
 stone schists, trap, and porphyry, most of which are large 
 enough to give the whole the appearance of being the 
 only remaining vestiges of vast primeval banks of shin- 
 gle. Several little streams run among these rocks, and 
 in the central part of the pillars stands the village, com- 
 pletely environed by wellnigh-inaccessible rocks. The 
 pathways into the village might be defended by a smaD 
 body of troops against an army; and this place was long 
 the stronghold of the tribe called Jinga, the original pos- 
 sessors of the country. 
 
 In former times the Portuguese imagined that this plac« 
 was particularly unhealthy, and banishment to the black 
 rocks of Pungo Andongo was thought by their judges to 
 be a much severer sentence than transportation to any 
 part of the coast ; but this district is now well known to 
 be the most healthy part of Angola. The water is remark- 
 ably pure, the soil is light, and the country open and undu- 
 lating, with a general slope down toward the river Coan^a, 
 a few miles distant. That river is the southern boundary 
 of the Portuguese, and beyond, to the S. and S.W., we aefl 
 the high mountains of the Libollo. On the S.E. we h^.ve 
 also a mountainous country, inhabited by the Kimbonda 01 
 4mbonda, who are said by Colonel Pires to be a very brwve 
 and independent people, but hospitable and fair in theii 
 dealings. They are rich in cattle, and their country pi\> 
 duces much bees' -wax, which is carefully collected and 
 brought to the Portuguese, w'th whom they have alwayi 
 been on good terms. 
 
 The Ako, (Hako,) a branch of this family, inhabit th# 
 
A MERCHANT-PRINCE. 275 
 
 left bank jf the Coanza above tliis village, who, instead 
 of bringing slaves for sale, as formerly, now occasionally 
 bring wax for the purchase of a slave from the Portuguese. 
 I saw a boy sold for twelve shillings : he said that he be- 
 ed to the country of Matiamvo. Here I bought a pair 
 of well-made boots, of good tanned leather, which reachod 
 above the knee, for five shillings and eightpence, and thai 
 just the price given for one pound of ivory by Mr. 
 Pires : consequently, the boy was worth two pairs of boots, 
 or two pounds of ivory. The Libollo on the south have 
 not so good a character; but the Coanza is always deep 
 enough to form a line of defence. Colonel Pires is a good 
 example of what an honest, industrious man in this country 
 may become. He came as a servant in a ship, and, by a 
 long course of persevering labor, has raised himself to be 
 the richest merchant in Angola. He possesses some thou- 
 sands of cattle, and, on any emergency, can appear in the 
 field with several hundred armed slaves. 
 
 While enjoying the hospitality of this merchant-prince 
 in his commodious residence, which is outside the rocks 
 and commands a beautiful view of all the adjacent country, 
 I learned that all my despatches, maps, and journal had 
 gone to the bottom of the sea in the' mail-packet " Fore- 
 runner." I felt so glad that my friend Lieutenant Beding- 
 feld, to whoso care I had committed them, though in the 
 most imminent danger, had not shared a similar fate, that 
 I was at once reconciled to the labor of rewriting. 1 
 availed myself of the kindness of Colonel Pires, and re- 
 mained till the end of the year reproducing my lost 
 pap- 
 
 Colonel Pires having another establishment on the banks 
 of the Coanza, about six miles distant, I visited it with 
 him about once a week for the purpose of recreation. The 
 difference of temperature caused by the lower altitude was 
 seen in the cashew-trees; for while, near the rocks, theso 
 trees were but coining into flower, those at the lower sta- 
 tion were ripening their fruit. Cocoanut-trees and bananas 
 
 \ 
 
276 ANCIENT BULIAL-PLACE. 
 
 bear well at the lower station, but yield little or no fruil 
 at the upper. The difference indicated by the thermo- 
 meter was 7°. The general range near the rocks was 67° 
 at 7 a.m., 74° at mid-day, and 72° in the evening. 
 
 A slave-boy belonging to Colonel Pires, having stolen 
 and eaten some lemons in the evening, went to the river 
 to wash his mouth, so as not to be detected by the flavor. 
 An alligator seized him and carried him to an island in the 
 middle of the stream : there the boy grasped hold of the 
 reeds, and baffled all the efforts of the reptile to dislodge 
 him, till his companions, attracted by his cries, came to his 
 assistance. The alligator at once let go his hold ; for when 
 out of his own element he is cowardly. The boy had many 
 marks of the teeth in his abdomen and thigh, and those of 
 the claws on his legs and arms. 
 
 The slaves in Colonel Pires 7 establishments appeared 
 more like free servants than any I had elsewhere seen. 
 Every thing was neat and clean, — while generally, where 
 slaves are the only domestics, there is an aspect of sloven- 
 liness, as if they went on the principle of always doing as 
 little for their masters as possible. 
 
 In the country near to this station were a large number 
 of the ancient burial-places of the Jinga. These are simply 
 large mounds of stone, with drinking and cooking vessels 
 of rude pottery on them. Some are arranged in a circular 
 form, two or three yards in diameter, and shaped like a 
 haycock. There is not a single vestige of any inscription. 
 The natives of Angola generally have a strange predilec- 
 tion for bringing their dead to the sides of the most fre- 
 quented paths. They nave a particular anxiety to secure 
 the point where cross-roads meet On and around the 
 graves are planted tree-euphorbias and other species of 
 that family. On the grave itself they also place water- 
 bottles, broken pipes, cooking- vessels, and sometimes a 
 little bow and arrow. 
 
 The Portuguese Government, wishing to prevent this 
 custom affixed a penalty on any cine burying in the roads. 
 
MANIOC flfl CHIEF PRODUCT. 277 
 
 And appointed places of public sepulture in every district 
 in the country. The people persist, however, in spite of 
 the most stringent enforcement of the law, to follow thtii 
 ancient custom. 
 
 The country between the Coanza and Pungo Andongo ii 
 covered with low trees, bushes, and fine pasturage. In the 
 latter we were pleased to see our old acquaintances, the 
 gaudy gladiolus, Amaryllis toxicaria, hymanthus, and otlier 
 bulbs, in as flourishing a condition as at the Cape. 
 
 It is surprising that so little has been done in the way 
 of agriculture in Angola. Eaising wheat by means of ir- 
 rigation has never been tried; no plough i 9 ever used; and 
 the only instrument is the native hoe, in the hands of 
 slaves. The chief object of agriculture is the manioc, 
 which does not contain nutriment sufficient to give proper 
 stamina to the people. The half-caste Portuguese have 
 not so much energy as their fathers. They subsist chiefly 
 on the manioc; and, as that can be eaten either raw, 
 roasted, or boiled, as it comes from the ground, or fer- 
 mented in water, and then roasted or dried after fermenta- 
 tion, and baked or pounded into fine meal, or rasped into 
 menl and cooked as farina, or made into confectionary 
 wil h butter and sugar, it does not so soon pall upon the 
 palite as one might imagine when told that it constitutes 
 th«ir principal food. The leaves boiled make an excellent 
 vegetable for the table ; and, when eaten by goats, their 
 Milk is much increased. The wood is a good fuel, and 
 yields a large quantity of potash. If planted in a dry 
 ♦oil, it takes two years to come to perfection, requiring 
 •luring that time one weeding only. It bears drought 
 well, and never shrivels up like other plants when de- 
 prived of rain. When planted in low, alluvial soils, and 
 either well supplied with rain or annually flooded, twelve, 
 or even ten, months are suflicient to bring it to maturity 
 The root rasped while raw, placed upon a cloth, and rubbed 
 with the hands while water is poured upon it, parts with 
 its starchy glutinous matter, and this, when it settles at 
 
 24 
 
£78 VISIT FROM A COLORED PRIEST. 
 
 the bottom of the vessel and the water poured off, id 
 placed in the sun till nearly dry, to form tapioca. The 
 process of drying is completed on an iron plate over a slow 
 Cre, the mass being stirred meanwhile with a stick, and 
 when quite dry it appears agglutinated into little globules, 
 and is in the form we see the tapioca of commerce. This 
 is never eaten by weevils, and so little labor is required in 
 its cultivation that on the spot it is extremely cheap. 
 Throughout the interior parts of Angola, fine manioc-meal, 
 which could with ease have been converted either into supe- 
 rior starch or tapioca, is commonly sold at the rate of about 
 ten pounds for a penny. All this region, however, has no 
 means of transport to Loanda other than the shoulders of 
 the carriers and slaves over a footpath. 
 
 Cambambe, to which the navigation of the Coanza 
 reaches, is reported to be thirty leagues below Pungo 
 Andongo. A large waterfall is the limit on that side ; and 
 another exists higher up, at the confluence of the Lombe, 
 (lat. 9° 41' 26" S. and about long. 16° E.-,) over which hip- ; 
 popotami and elephants are sometimes drawn and killed. 
 The river between is rapid, and generally rushes over a 
 rocky bottom. Its source is pointed out as S.E. or S.S.E. 
 of its confluence with the Lombe, and near Bihe. The situa- 
 tion of Bihe is not well known. When at Sanza, we were 
 assured that it lies nearly south of that point, and eight 
 days distant. This statement seemed to be corroborated 
 by our meeting many people going to JMatiamvo and to 
 Loanda from Bihe. Both parties had come to Sanza, and 
 then branched off, one to the east, the other to the west. 
 The source of the Coanza is thus probably not far from 
 
 Sanza. 
 
 I had the happiness of doing a little good in the way of ; 
 administering to the sick ; for there are no doctors in the 
 interior of Angola. Notwithstanding the general healthi- 
 ness of this fine district and its pleasant temperature, I was 
 attacked by the fever myself. While confined to my room, 
 a gentleman of color, a canon of the Church, kindly paid 
 
THE KING OF CONGO. (579 
 
 Die a visit. He was on a tour of visitation in the different 
 interior districts for the purpose of baptizing and marrying 
 He had lately been on a visit to Lisbon in company with 
 the Prince of Congo, and had been invested with an or. 
 of honor by the King of Portugal as an acknowledgment 
 of his services. He had all the appearance of a true negro, 
 but commanded the respect of the people; and Colonel P., 
 wno had known him for thirty years, pronounced him to be a 
 good man. There are only three or four priests in Loanda, 
 — all men of color, but educated for the office. About the 
 time of my journey in Angola, an offer was made to any 
 young men of ability who might wish to devote themselves 
 to the service of the Church to afford them the requisite 
 education at the University of Coimbra in Portugal. I 
 was infoxmed, on what seemed good authority, that the 
 Prince of Cougo is professedly a Christian, and that there 
 are no fewer than twelve churehes in that kingdom, the 
 fruits of the mission established in former times at San 
 Salvador, the capital. These churches are kept in partial 
 repair by the people, who also keep up the ceremonies of 
 the Church, pronouncing some gibberish over the dead in 
 imitation of the Latin prayers which they had formerly 
 hoard. Many of them can read and write. When a king 
 of Congo dies, the body is wrapped up in a great many 
 folds of cloth until a priest can come from Loanda to con- 
 secrate his successor. The King of Congo still retains the 
 title of Lord of Angola, which he had whea the Jinga, the 
 original possessors of the soil, owed him allegiance; and, 
 when he writes to the Governor of Angola, he places his 
 own name first, as if addressing his vassal. The Jinga 
 paid him tribute annually in cowries, which were found on 
 tho island that shelters Loanda Harbor, and, on refusing to 
 continue payment, the King of Congo gave over the island 
 to the Portuguese, and thus their dominion commenced in 
 this quarter. 
 
 There is not much knowledge of the Christian religion 
 in either Congo or Angola; yet it is looked-upon with a 
 
2$p DEPARTURE FROM PUNGO ANDONGO. 
 
 certain degree of favor. The prevalence of fever is pro- 
 bably the reason why no priest occupies a post in any part 
 of the interior. They come on tours of visitation like that 
 mentioned, and it is said that no expense is incurred, for 
 ali the people are ready not only to pay for their services, 
 b'j t also to furnish eveiy article in their power gratuitously. 
 in view of the desolate condition of this fine missionary, 
 neld, it is more than probable that the presence of a fow 
 Protestants would soon provoke the priests, if not to love, 
 to good works. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE REACHES THE LOAJIMA RTVER. 
 
 January 1, 1855.— Having, through the kindness of 
 Colonel Pires, reproduced some of my lost papers, I left 
 Pungo Andongo the first day of this year, and at Can- 
 dumba slept in one of the dairy-establishments of my 
 friend, who had sent forward orders for an ample supply 
 of butter, cheese, and milk. Our path lay along the right 
 bank of the Coanza. This is composed of the same sand- 
 stone rock, with pebbles, which forms the flooring of the 
 country. The land is level, has much open forest, and is 
 well adapted for pasturage. 
 
 ^ On reaching the confluence of the Lombe, we left the 
 river, and proceeded in a northeasterly, direction, through 
 a fine open green country, to the village of Malange, where 
 we struck into our formor path. A few miles to the west 
 Of this a path branches off to a new district named the 
 Duke Braganza. This path crosses the Lucalla and several 
 of its feeders. The whole of the country drained by these 
 is described as extremely fertile. The territory west oi 
 Braganza is reported to be mountainous, well wooded and 
 watered; wild coffee is abundant, and- the people evo» 
 
MEETING WITH NATIN E TRADERS. j?8l 
 
 Xkj thnr huts of oofFee-trees. The rivora Dande, Senza, 
 ai <t Lucalla arc said to rise in 4 one mountain-range 
 Numerous tribes inhabit the country to the north, who are 
 all independent. The Portuguese power extends chiefly 
 over the tribes through whose lands we have nassed It 
 may be said to be firmly seated only between the rivers 
 Dande and Co&nza. It extends inland about three hun- 
 dred miles to thfc river Quango; and the population, 
 according to the imperfect data afforded by the census 
 given annually by the commandants of the fifteen or six- 
 teen districts into which it is divided, cannot be under 
 600,000 souls. 
 
 Leaving Malange, we passed quickly, without deviation, 
 along the path by which we had come. At Sanza (lat. 9° 
 87' 46" S., long. 16° 59' E.) we expected to get a little seed- 
 wheat, but this was not now to be found in Angola. 
 
 While at Tala Mungongo, we met a native of Bihe who 
 nas visited the country of Shinte three times for the pur- 
 poses of trade. He gave us some of the news of that dis- 
 tant part, but not a word of the Makololo, who have alwa3 r s 
 been represented in the countries to the north as a despe- 
 rately-savage race, whom no trader could visit with safety. 
 The half-caste traders whom we met at Shinto's had re- 
 turned to Angola with sixty-six slaves and upward of fifty 
 tusks of ivory. As we came along the path, we daily me J 
 long lines of carriers bearing large square masses of bees' 
 wax, each about a hundred pounds' weight, and number* 
 of elephants' tusks, the property of Angolese merchants- 
 Many natives were proceeding to the coast also on theix 
 own account, carrying bees'-wax, ivory, and sweet oil 
 They appeared to travel in perfect security; and at differ- 
 ent parts of the road we purchased fowls from them at * 
 penny each. 3Iy men took care to celeorato their owa 
 daring in having actually entered ships, while the native* 
 of these parts, who had endeavored to frighten them op 
 their way down, had only seen them at a distance. Poo* 
 fellows! they were more than ever attentive to me; and 
 
 24» 
 
28- CA88ANGS VILLAGE. 
 
 as they were not obliged to erect sheds for themselves, in 
 consequence of finding them already built at the different 
 sleeping-places, all tbeir care was bestowed in making me 
 comfortable. Mashauana, as usual, made his bed with hi? 
 head close to my feet, and never during the entire journey 
 did I have to call him twice for any thing I needed. 
 
 January 15, 1855. — We descended in one hour from the 
 heights of Tala Mungongo. I counted the number of pace? 
 made on the slope downward, and found them to be sixteen 
 hundred, which may give a perpendicular height of from 
 twelve to fifteen hundred feet. 
 
 Before we reached Cassange we were overtaken by the 
 commandant, Senhor Carvalho, who was returning, with a 
 detachment of fifty men and a field-piece, from an unsuc 
 cessful search after some rebels. The rebels had fled, and 
 all he could do was to burn their huts. lie kindly invited 
 me to take up my residence with, him; but, not wishing t 
 pass by the gentleman (Captain Neves) who had so kindly 
 received me on my first arrival in the Portuguese pos- 
 sessions, I declined. Senhor Eego had been superseded in 
 his command, because the Governor Amaral, who had come 
 into office since my departure from Loanda, had determined 
 that the law which requires the office of commandant to be 
 exclusively occupied by military officers of the line should 
 once more come into operation. I was again most kindly 
 welcomed by my friend Captain Neves, whom I found 
 laboring under a violent inflammation and abscess of the 
 hand. There is nothing in the situation of this village te 
 indicate unhealthiness, except, perhaps, the rank luxu 
 nance of the vegetation. Nearly all the Portuguese in« 
 habitants suffer from, enlargement of the spleen, the effects 
 of freauent intermittents, and nave generally a sickly ap- 
 pearance. Thinking that thxs affection of the hand was 
 simply an effort of nature to get rid of malarious mattei 
 from the system, I recommended the use of quinine. 1J« 
 himself apjH^ed the leaf of a plant called cathory, famed 
 tmong the natives as an excellent remedy fbi ulcers. The 
 
THE ORDEAL 28-? 
 
 cathory-lcaves, when boiled, exude a gummy juic?, whitb 
 effectually shuts out the external air. Each remedy, ot 
 course, claimed the merit of the cure. 
 
 Many of the children are cut off by fever. A fine boy 
 of Captain Neves' had, since my passage westward, shared 
 a similar fate. Another child died during the period of 
 niy visit. 
 
 The intercourse which the natives have had with whito 
 men does not seem to have much ameliorated their con- 
 dition. A great number of persons are reported to lose 
 their lives annually in different districts of Angola by the 
 cruel superstitions to which they are addicted, and the 
 Portuguese authorities either know nothing of them or are 
 unable to prevent their occurrence. The natives are bound 
 to secrecy by those who administer the ordeal, which gene- 
 rally causes the death of the victim. A person, when ac- 
 cused of witchcraft, will often travel from distant district! 
 in order to assert her innocency and brave the test. They 
 come to a river on the Cassange called Dua, drink th* 
 infusion of a poisonous tree, and perish unknown. 
 
 The same superstitious ideas being prevalent through 
 the whole of the country north of the Zambesi seems to 
 indicate that the people must originally have been one. 
 All believe that the souls of the departed still mingle 
 among the living and partake in some way of the food 
 they consume. 
 
 The chieftainship is elective from certain families. Among 
 the Bangalas of the Cassange valley the chief is chosen 
 from three families in rotation. A chief's brother inherit! 
 in preference to his son. The sons of a sister belong to her 
 brother; and he often sells his nephews to pay his debts. 
 By this and other unnatural customs, more than by war, is 
 the slave-market supplied. 
 
 While here, I reproduced the last ot my lost papers and 
 maps j and, as tnere is a post twice a month from Loanda, 
 I had the happiness to receive a packet of the "Times,'' 
 •nd, among other news, an account of the Russian war up 
 
284 TRADING POMBEIROS. 
 
 bo tbe terrible charge of the light cavalry. The intense 
 anxiety I felt to hear more may be imagined by every 
 true patriot; but I was forced to brood on in silent 
 thought, and utter my poor prayers for friends who per- 
 chance were now no more, until I reached the other side 
 of the continent. 
 
 A considerable trade is carried on by the Cassange mer- 
 chants with all the surrounding territory by means of 
 native traders, whom they term "pombeiros." Two of 
 these, called in the history of Angola " the trading blacks," 
 (os feirantes pretos,) Pedro Joao Baptista and Antonio 
 Jose, having been sent by the first Portuguese trader that 
 lived at Cassange, actually returned from some of the Por- 
 tuguese possessions in the East with letters from the 
 governor of Mozambique in the year 18l5, proving, as is 
 remarked, " the possibility of so important a communica-' 
 tion between Mozambique and X/oanda." This is the only 
 instance of native Portuguese subjects crossing the conti- 
 nent. No European ever accomplished it, though this 
 fact has lately been quoted as if the men had been 
 "Portuguese." 
 
 Captain Neves was now actively engaged in preparing 
 a present, worth about fifty pounds, to be sent by pom- 
 beiros to Matiamvo. It consisted of great quantities of 
 cocton cloth, a large carpet, an arm-chair with a canopy 
 trnd curtains of crimson calico, an iron bedstead, mosquito- 
 curtains, beads, &c, and a number of pictures rudely 
 painted in oil by an embryo black painter at Cassange. 
 
 Matiamvo, like most of the natives in 'the interior of the 
 country, has a strong desire to possess a cannon, and had 
 Bent ten large tusks to purchase one ; but, being Govern- 
 ment property, it could not be sold : he was now furnished 
 with a blunderbuss mounted as a cannon, which would 
 probably please him as well. 
 
 Senhor Graoa and some other Portuguese have visited 
 this chief at different times; but no European resides 
 keyond the Quango : indeed, it is contrary to the policy of 
 
A LARC1K TVSK 28& 
 
 the Government of Angola to allow their subjects to pene- 
 trate farther into the interior. The present would hav« 
 boon a good opportunity for me to have visited that chief, 
 and 1 felt strongly inclined to do so, as he had expr« 
 
 •tisfaction respecting my treatment by the Chiboque, 
 and even threatened to punish them. As it would be im- 
 proper to force my 'men to go thither, I resolved to wait 
 and see whether the proposition might not emanate from 
 themselves. When I can get the natives to agree in the 
 propriety of any step, the}' go to the end of the affair 
 without a murmur. I speak to them and treat them as 
 rational beings, and generally get on well with them in 
 consequence. 
 
 February 20. — On the day of starting from Cassange the 
 westerly wind blew strongly, and on the day following we 
 were brought to a stand by several of our party being laid 
 up with fever. This complaint is the only serious draw- 
 back Angola possesses. It is in every other respect an 
 agreeable land, and admirably adapted for yielding a rich 
 abundance of tropical produce for the rest of the world. 
 Indeed, I have no hesitation in asserting that, had it been 
 in the possession of England, it would now have been 
 yielding as much or more of the raw material for her 
 manufactures as an equa' extent of territory in the cotton- 
 growing States of America. A railway from Loanda to 
 this valley would secure the trade of most of the interior 
 of South Central Africa. 
 
 As soon as we could move toward the Quango we did so, 
 meeting in our course several trading-parties, both native 
 and Portuguese. We met two of the latter carrying a 
 tusk weighing 126 lbs. The owner afterward informed us 
 that its fellow on the left side of the same elephant was 1M 
 lbs It was 8 feet ti£ inches long, and 21 inches in ciroum- 
 ference at the part on which the lip of the animal rqstift. 
 Tne elephant was rather a small one, as is common in this 
 hot central region. Some idea may be formed of the 
 strength of his neck when it is recollected that he bore a 
 
286 RENEWED ATTACK OF FEVER. 
 
 weight of 256 lbs. The ivory which comes from the eas 
 and northeast of Cassange is very much larger than any 
 to be found farther south. Captain Neves had one weigh 
 ing 120 lbs. ; and this weight is by no means uncommon 
 They have been found weighing even 158 lbs. 
 
 Before reaching the Quango we were again brought ti 
 a stand, by fever in two of my companions, close to tha 
 residence of a Portuguese who rejoiced in the name or* 
 William Tell and who lived here in spite of the prohibition 
 of the Government. We were using the water of a pond; 
 and this gentleman, having come to invite me to dinner 
 drank a little of it, and caught fever in consequence. If 
 malarious matter existed in water, it would have been a 
 wonder had we escaped; for, travelling in the sun, wuh 
 the thermometer from 96° to 98° in the shade, the evapora- 
 tion from our bodies causing much thirst, we generally 
 partook of every water we came to. "We bad probably 
 thus more disease than others might suffer who had better 
 shelter. 
 
 Mr. Tell remarked that his garden was rather barren, 
 being still, as he said, wild; but when more worked it 
 would become better, though no manure be applied. My 
 men were busy collecting a better breed of fowls and 
 pigeons than those in their own country. Mr. Tell pre- 
 sented them with some large specimens from Eio Janeiro. 
 Of these they were wonderfully proud, and bore the cock 
 in triumph through the country of the Balonda, as evidence 
 oj having been to the sea. But when at the village of 
 Shinte a hyena came into our midst when we were all 
 sound asleep, and picked out the giant in his basket from 
 eighty -four others, and he was lost, to the great grief of 
 my men. The anxiety these people have always nhown to 
 improve the breed of their domestic animals is, J think, a 
 favorable point in their character. 
 
 On coming back to Cypriano's village on the 28th, we 
 found his step-father had died after we had passed, and, 
 according to the custom of the country, he lad spent mora 
 
8CPERST1TI0US FEAK8. 2'6'i 
 
 than his patrimony in fanoral orgies. He acted with bit 
 wonted kindness, though, unfortunately, drinking has got 
 him so dooply in debt that ho now keeps out of the way <>f 
 his creditors. lie informed us that the source of the 
 Quango is eight days, or one hundred miles, to the south 
 of this, and in a range called Mosamba, in the country oi 
 the Basongo. We can see from this a sort of break in the 
 high land which stretches away round to Tala Mongongo, 
 through which the river comes. 
 
 A death had occurred in a village about a mile off, and 
 tne people were busy beating drums and tiring guns. The 
 funeral rites are half festive, half mourning, partaking 
 somewhat of the character of an Irish wake. There is 
 nothing more heart-rending than their death-wails. When 
 the natives turn their eyes to the future world, they have 
 a view cheerless enough of their own utter helplessness 
 and hopelessness. They fancy themselves completely in 
 the power of the disembodied spirits, and look upon tho 
 prospect of following them as the greatest of misfortunes. 
 Hence they are constantly deprecating the wrath of de- 
 parted souls, believing that, if they are appeased, there is 
 no other cause of death but witchcraft, which may be 
 averted by charms. 
 
 We were informed that a chief named Gando, living on 
 the other side of the river, having been accused of witch- 
 craft, was killed by the ordeal, and his body thrown into 
 the Quango. 
 
 The ferrymen demanded thirty yards of calico, but 
 received six thankfully. The canoes were wretched, carry- 
 ing only two persons at a time; but, my men being well 
 acquainted with the water, we all got over in about two 
 nours and a half. They excited the admiration of the 
 inhabitants* by the manner in which they managed tho 
 cattle and donkeys in crossing. 
 
 On the eastern side of the Quango we passed on, without 
 visiting our friend of the conical head-dress, to the resi* 
 dence of some Ambakistas who had crossed the river Jn 
 
2$8 AMBAKISTAS — BASHINJE. 
 
 order to secure the first chances of trade in wax. I have 
 oefore remarked on the knowledge of reading and writing 
 that these Ambakistas possess; they are famed for their 
 love of ak sorts of learning within their reach, a knowledge 
 of the history of Portugal, Portuguese law, &c. &c. They 
 are remarkably keen in trade, and are sometimes called 
 the Jews of Angola. Tney are employed as clerks and 
 writers, their feminine aelicacy of constitution enabling 
 them to write a fine lady's hand, a kind of writing much 
 esteemed among the Portuguese. They are not physically 
 equal to the European Portuguese, but possess considerable 
 ability; and it is said that half-castes, in the course of a 
 few generations, return to the black color of the maternal 
 a ucestor. 
 
 The Bashinje, in wdiose country we now are, seem to 
 possess more of the low negro character and ph}'siognomy 
 than either the Balonda or Basongo; their color is generally 
 d?rty black, foreheads low and compressed, noses flat and 
 much expanded laterally, though this is partly owing to 
 the alse spreading over the cheeks, by the custom of insert- 
 ing bits of sticks or reeds in the septum ; their teeth are 
 deformed by being filed to points; their lips are large. 
 They make a nearer approach to a general negro appear- 
 ance than any tribes I met; but I did not notice this on 
 my way down. They cultivate pretty largely, and rely upon 
 their agricultural products for their supplies of salt, flesh, 
 tobacco, &c. from Bangalas. Their clothing consists of 
 pieces of skin hung loosely from the girdle in front and 
 behind They plait their hair fantaotically. We saw son.-e 
 women coming with their hair woven into the form of a 
 European hat, and it was only by a closer inspection thai 
 its nature was detected. Others had it arranged in tufts, 
 with a threefold cord along the edge? of each /uft; while 
 others, again, follow the ancient Egyptian fashion, having 
 the whole mass of wool plaited into cords, all hanging 
 down as far as the shoulders. This mode, with the some- 
 what Egyptian cast of countenance in other parts of Londa, 
 
SANSAWE'S idea of dignity 2*1* 
 
 reminded me strongly of the paintings of that nation in 
 the British Maseum. 
 
 We had now rain every day, and the sky seldom pro. 
 sented that cloudless aspect and clear hlue so common in 
 the dry lands of the south. The heavens are often over- 
 t by large white motionless masses, which stand for 
 hours in the same position; and the intervening spaces are 
 61Ied with a milk-and-water-looking haze. Notwithstand- 
 ing these unfavorable circumstances, I obtained good oo- 
 servations for the longitude of this important point on both 
 sides of the Quango, and found the river running in 9° 50' S. 
 hit., 18°33'R long. 
 
 On proceeding to our former station near Sansawe's 
 village, he ran to meet us with wonderful urbanity, asking 
 If we had seen Moene Put, king of the white men, (or Por- 
 tuguese,) and added, on parting, that ho would come to 
 receive his dues in the evening. I replied that, as he had 
 treated us so scurvily, even forbidding his people to sell us 
 any food, if he did not bring us a fowl and some eggs as 
 part of his duty as a chief, he should receive no present 
 rrom me. When he came, it was in the usual* Londa way 
 of showing the exalted position he occupies, mounted on 
 the shoulders of his spokesman, as schoolboys sometimes 
 do in England, and as was represented to have been the 
 
 se in the southern islands when Captain Cook visited 
 them. My companions, amused at his idea of dignity, 
 greeted him with a hearty laugh. He visited the native 
 traders first, and then came to me with two cocks as a 
 present. I spoke to him about the impolicy of treatment 
 we had received at his hands, and quoted the example of 
 the Bangalas, who had been conquered by the Portuguese 
 for their extortionate demands of payment for firewood, 
 grass, water, &c, and concluded by denying his right to 
 any payment for simply passing through uncultivated land. 
 To all this he agreed j and then I gave him, as a token of 
 friendship, a pannikin of coarse powder, two iron spoons, 
 and two yards of coarse printed calico lie looked rathoi 
 
290 MORE FEVER. 
 
 saucily at these articles, for he had just received a barrel 
 containing eighteen pounds of powder, twenty-four yards 
 of calico, and two bottles of brandy, from Senhor Pascoal 
 the pombeiro. Other presents were added the next day, 
 but we gave nothing more; and the pombeiros informed 
 me that it was necessary to give largely, because they are 
 accompanied by slaves and carriers who are no great 
 friends to their masters; and, if they did not secure the 
 friendship of these petty chiefs, many slaves and their loads 
 might be stolen while passing through the forests. It is 
 thus a sort of black-mail that these insignificant chiefs 
 levy; and the native traders, in paying, do so siinply as a 
 bribe to keep them honest. This chief was a man of no 
 power, but in our former ignorance of this he plagued us a 
 whole day in passing. 
 
 Finding the progress of Senhor Pascoal and the other 
 pombeiros excessively slow, I resolved to forego his com- 
 pany to Cabango after I had delivered to him some letters 
 to be sent back to Cassange. I went forward with the 
 intention of finishing my writing and leaving a packet for 
 him at some village. We ascended the eastern acclivity 
 that bounds the Cassange valley, which has rather a 
 gradual ascent up from the Quango, and we found that 
 the last ascent, though apparently not quite so high as 
 that at Tala Mungongo, is actually much higher. The top 
 is about 5000 feet above the level of i\e sea, and the 
 bottom 3500 feet ; water boiling on the heights at 202°, the 
 thermometer, in the air showing 96°, and at the bottom at 
 205°, the air being 75°. We had now gained the summit 
 of the western subtending ridge, and began to descend 
 toward the centre of the country, hoping soon to get out 
 of the Chiboque territory, which, when we ascended from 
 the Cassange valley, we had entered ; but, on the 19th of 
 April, the intermittent, whi<& had begun on the 16th of 
 March, was changed into an extremely severe attack of 
 rheumatic fever. This was brought on by being obliged 
 to sleep on an extensive plain covered with water Th.€ 
 
A BLOW OH THI BEART1 291 
 
 rain poured down incossantly; but we formed our beds by 
 ging up the earth into oblong mounds, somewhat like 
 graves in a country churchyard, and then placing g 
 upon them. The rain continuing to deluge us, wo were 
 unable to leave for two days; but as soon as it became fair 
 iontinued our march. The heavy dew upon the high 
 - was- so cold as to cause shivering, and 1 was forced 
 to lio by for eight days, tossing and groaning with violent 
 pain in the head. This was the most severe attack 1 had 
 endured. -It made me quite unfit to move, or even know 
 what was passing outside my kittle tent. Sehhor Pascoal, 
 who had been detained by the severe rain at a better spot, 
 at last came up, and, knowing that leeches abounded in 
 the rivulets, procured a number, and applied some dozens 
 to the nape of the neck and the loins. This partially 
 relieved the pain. He was then obliged to move forward, 
 in order to purchase food for his large party. After many 
 days, 1 began to recover, and wished to move on, but my 
 men objected to the attempt on account of my weakness. 
 When Senhor Pascoal had been some time at the village in 
 front, as he had received instructions from his employer, 
 Captain Neves, to aid me as much as possible, and being 
 himself a kindfv-disposed person, he sent back two mes- 
 sengers to invite me to come on, if practicable. 
 
 It happened that the head-man of the village where ] 
 had lain twenty-two days, while bargaining and quarrelling 
 in my camp for a piece of meat, had been struck on the 
 mouth by one of my men. My principal men paid five 
 es of cloth and a gun as an atonement; but the more 
 the}- yielded tne more exorbitant he became, and he sent 
 word to all the surrounding villages to aid him in avenging 
 the affront of a blow on the beard. As their courage 
 usually rises with success, I resolved to yield no more, ami 
 departed In passing through a forest in the country 
 beyond, we were startled by a body of men rushing after 
 us. They began by knocking down the burdens of the 
 hindermost of my men, and several shots were fired, each 
 
292 ' SKIRMISH IN A FOREST. 
 
 party spreading out on both sides of the path. I fortu- 
 oately had a six-barrelled revolver, which my friend 
 Captain Henry Need, of her majesty's brig "Linnet," had 
 considerately sent to Golungo Alto after my departure 
 from Loanda. Taking this in my hand, and forgetting 
 fever, I staggered quickly along the path with two or th: ee 
 of my men, and fortunately encountered the chief. The 
 sight of the six barrels gaping into his stomach, with my 
 own ghastly visage looking daggers at his face, seemeu to 
 produce an instant revolution in his martial feelings , for 
 he cried out, "Oh, I have only come to speak to you, and 
 wish peace only." Mashauana had hold of him by the 
 hand, and found him shaking. We examined his gun, and 
 found that it had been discharged. Both parties crowded 
 up to their chiefs. One of the opposite party coming too 
 near, one of mine drove him back with a battle-axe. The 
 enemy protested their amicable intentions, and my men 
 asserted the fact of having the goods knocked down as 
 evidence of the contrary. Without waiting long, I re- 
 quested all to sit down ; and Pitsane, placing his hand upon 
 the revolver, somewhat allayed their fears. I then said to 
 the chief, " If you have come with peaceable intentions, 
 we have no other : go away home to your village." Ho 
 replied, " I am afraid lest you shoot me in the back." 1 
 rejoined, "If I wanted to kill you, J could shoot you in 
 the face as well." Mosantu called out to me, " That's 
 only a Makalaka trick : don't give him your back." But 
 I said, " Tell, him to observe that I am not afraid of him," 
 and, turning, mounted my ox. There was not much danger 
 in the fire that was opened at first, there being so many 
 trees. The enemy probably expected that the sudden 
 fctiack would make us forsake our goods and allow them 
 to plunder with ease. The villagers were no doubt 
 pleased with being allowed to retire unscathed, and we 
 were also glad to get away without having shed a drop of 
 blood or having compromised ourselves for any future visit. 
 My men were delighted with their own bravery, and made 
 
RATI of TRAVEL 29a 
 
 the woods ring with tolling each other Low " brilliant theii 
 conduct before the enemy" would have been, had hosti- 
 lities not been brought to a sadden olofl 
 
 I do not mention this little skirmish as a very frightful 
 afl'air. Tho negro character in these parts, and in Angola, 
 is essentially cowardly, except when influenced by succeed. 
 A partial triumph over any body of men would induce the 
 wholo country to rise in arms; and this is the chief danger 
 to be feared. These petty chiefs have individually but 
 little power, and with my men, now armed with guns, I 
 could have easily beaten them off singly; but, being of 
 the same family, they would readily unite in vast numbers 
 if incited by prospects of successful plunder. They are by 
 no means equal to the Cape Caffres in any respect what- 
 ever. 
 
 In the evening we came to Moena Kikanje, and found 
 him a sensible man. He is the last of the Chiboque chief** 
 in this direction, and is in alliance with Matiamvo, whose 
 territory commences a short distance beyond. His village 
 is placed on the east bank of the Quilo, which is here 
 twenty yards wide and breast deep. 
 
 The country was generally covered with forest, and we 
 slept every night at some village. I was so weak, and had 
 become so deaf from the effects of the fever, that I was 
 glad to avail myself of the company of Senhor Pascoal and 
 the other native traders. Our rate of travelling was only 
 two geographical miles per hour, and the average number of 
 hours three and a half per day, or seven miles. Two-thirds 
 of the month was spent in stoppages, there being only ten 
 travelling-days in each month. The stoppages were caused 
 by sickness, and the necessity of remaining in different 
 parts to purchase food ; and also because when one carrier 
 wan sick the rest refused to cany his load. 
 
 We crossed the Loange, a deep but narrow stream, by a 
 ridge. It becomes much larger, and contains hippopo- 
 tami, lower down. It is the boundary of Londa on the west. 
 We slept also on the banks of the Pe/o, now flooded, and 
 
 2^ 
 
^4 FEEDERS OF THE CONGO. 
 
 could not but admire their capabilities for easy irrigati xi 
 On reaching the river Chikapa, (lat. 10° 10' S., long. 19° 
 42' E ,) the 25th of March, we found it fifty or sixty yards 
 wide, and flowing E.N.E. into the Kasai. The adjacent 
 country is of the same level nature as that part of Londa 
 formerly described ; but, having come farther to the east- 
 ward than Our previous course, we found that all the rivers 
 had worn for themselves much deeper valleys than at the 
 points we had formerly crossed them. 
 
 Surrounded on all sides by large gloomy forests, the 
 people of these parts have a much more indistinct idea of 
 the geography of their country than those who live in hilly 
 regions. It was only after long and patient inquiry that I 
 became fully persuaded that the Quilo. runs into the Chi- 
 kapa. As we now crossed them both considerably farther 
 down, and were greatly to the eastward of our first route, 
 there can be no doubt that these rivers take the same 
 course as the others, into the Kasai, and that I had been 
 led into a mistake in saying that any of them flowed to 
 the westward. Indeed, it was only at this time^that I 
 be(-an to perceive that all the western feeders of the Kasai, 
 exempt the Quango, flow first from the western side toward 
 the- centre of the country, then gradually turn, with the 
 Kasai itself, to the north, and, after the confluence of the 
 K«s«i with the Quango, an immense body of water, col- 
 lected from all these branches, finds its way out of the 
 country by means of the river Congo or Zaire, on the west 
 |wst. 
 
 The people living along the path we are now following 
 were quite accustomed to the visits of native traders, and 
 d'd not feel in any way bound to make presents of food 
 except tor the purpose of cheating : thus, a man gave me 
 a 'fowl and some meal, and after a short time returued. 
 I offered him a handsome present of beads; but these he 
 declined, and demanded a cloth instead, which was far 
 more than the value of his gift. They did the same with 
 my men, until "w e had to refuse presents altogether. Othen 
 
GROSSING THE LOAJIMA. 
 
 29b 
 
 made high demands because I slept in a " house of cloth" 
 and must be rich. They seemed to think that they had a 
 perfect right to payment for simply passing through the 
 country. 
 
 Beyond the Chikapa we crossed the Kamaue, a small, 
 deep stream proceeding from the S.S.W. and flowing into 
 the Chikapa. 
 
 On the 30th of April we reached the Loajima, where we 
 had to form a bridge to effect our passage. This was not 
 to difficult an operation as some might imag ne; for a tree 
 
 A LONOA LADY'S MODE OF WEARING HER H*AlR. 
 
 was growing in a boiizontal position across part of fcht 
 itream, and, there being no want of the tough climbing 
 plants which admit of being knitted like ropes, Senhor P. 
 soon constructed a bridge. The Loajima was here about 
 twenty-five yards wide, but very much deeper than where 
 I had crossed before on the shoulders of Mash au ana. Thf 
 
196 
 
 MODES OF DRESSING THE HATR. 
 
 last rain of this season had fallen on the 28th, and had 
 suddenly been followed by a great deci*ease of the tempera- 
 ture. The people in these parts seemed more slender in 
 form, and their color a lighter olive, than any we had 
 hitherto met. The mode of dressing the great masses of 
 woolly hair which lay upon their shoulders, together with 
 their general features, again reminded me of the ancienl 
 Egyptians. Several were seen with the upward inclination 
 of the outer angles of the eye; but this was not general. 
 
 LADY'S HEAD-DRESS OF WOVEN HAIR. 
 
 A few of the ladies adopt a curious custom of attaching 
 the hair to a hoop which encircles the head, giving it some- 
 what the appearance of the glory round the head of the 
 Virgin, as shown on p. 295. Some have a small hoop behind 
 that represented in the wood-cut. Others wear an orna- 
 ment of woven hair and hide adorned with beads. The 
 hair of the tails of buffaloes, which are to be found farther 
 
HEAD-DRESSES. 
 
 297 
 
 east, is sometimes added; while others weave their own 
 hair on pieces of hide into the form of buffalo-horns, 01 
 make a single horn in front. Many tattoo their bodies by 
 inserting some black substance beneath the skin, which 
 leaves an elevated cicatrix about half an inch long : the** 
 are made in the form of stars and other figures of no par* 
 ticnlar beauty. 
 
 LAftY'S HEAD-DRESS I" *" 
 
398 CABANOO 
 
 CHAPTEE XXIII. 
 
 £>R. LIVINGSTONE VISITS THE COUNTRY OF THE BALONDA. 
 
 We made a li + tle detour to the southward, in order tti 
 get provisions i cheaper market. This led us along the 
 rivulet called Tamba, where we found the people, who had 
 not been visited so frequently by the slave-traders as the 
 rest, rather timid and very civil. 
 
 We reached the river Moamba (lat. 9° 38' S., long. 20° 
 13' 34" E.) on the 7th May. This is a stream of thirty 
 yards wide, and, like the Quilo, Loange, Chikapa, and 
 Loajima, contains both alligators and hippopotami. We 
 crossed it by means or canoes. 
 
 We crossed -two small streams, the Kanesi and Fombeji, 
 before reaching Cabango, a village situated on the banks 
 of the Chihombo. The country was becoming more 
 densely peopled as we proceeded, but it bears no popula- 
 tion compared to what it might easily sustain. 
 
 Cabango (lat. 9° 31' S., long. 20° 31' or 32' E.) is the 
 dwelling-place of Muanzanza, one of Matiamvo's subor- 
 dinate chiefs. His village consists of about two hundred 
 huts and ten or twelve square houses, constructed of 
 poles with grass interwoven. The latter are occupied 
 by half-caste Portuguese from Ambaca, agents for the 
 Cassange triers. The cold in the mornings was now 
 severe to the feelings, the the — *ing from 58° 
 
 to 60°, ' standing as 
 
 high as well up, the 
 
 thermon n the even 
 
 ings it ie 
 
 Ilavin :^ «*n accident to one of my eyes by a 
 
 blow from a branch in passing through a forest, I remained 
 Borne days here, endeavoring, though with much pain, to 
 draw a sketch of the county thus far, to be sent back to 
 
DEPARTURE fROM CABANGO. 299 
 
 Mr. Gabriel at Loanda. I was always anxious to transmit 
 an account of my discoveries on every possible occasion, 
 lost, any thing happening in the country to which I was 
 going, they should be entirely lost. I also fondly expected 
 a packet of letters and papers which my good angel at 
 Loanda would bo sure to send if they came to hand; but 1 
 afterward found that, though he had offered a large sum 
 to any one who would return with an assurance of having 
 delivered the last packet he sent, no one followed me with 
 it to Cabango. The unwearied attentions of this good 
 Englishman, from his first welcome to me, when, a weary, 
 dejected, and worn-down stranger, I arrived at his resi- 
 dence, and his whole subsequent conduct, will be held in 
 lively remembrance by me to my dying day 
 
 As we thought it best to strike away to the 6.E. from 
 Cabango to our old friend Katema, I asked a guide from 
 Muanzanza. He agreed to furnish one, and also accepted 
 a smaller present from me than usual, when it was re 
 presented to him by Pascoal and Faria that I was not a 
 trader. 
 
 We were forced to prepay our guide and his father too ; 
 and he went but one day, although he promised to go with 
 us to Katema. 
 
 The reason why we needed a guide at all was to secure 
 the convenience of a path, which, though generally no 
 better than a sheep-walk, is much easier than going 
 straight in one direction through tangled forests and 
 tropical vegetation. We knew the general direction we 
 ought to follow, and also if any deviation occurred from 
 our proper route ; but, to avoid impassable forests and 
 untreadible bogs, and to get to the proper fords of the 
 rivers, we always tried to procure a guide, and he always 
 followed the common path from one village to another 
 when that lay in the direction we were going. 
 
 After leaving Cabango, on the 21st, we crossed several 
 little streams running into the Chihombo on our left. 
 
 On the 28th we reached the village of the chief Bango^ 
 
SOO INTERVIEW WITH KAWAWA. 
 
 (lat. 12° 22' 53" 8., long. 20° 58' B.,) who brought us a 
 handsome present of meal and the meat of an entir« 
 pallah. We here slaughtered the last of the cows pie- 
 sented to us by Mr. Schut, which I had kept milked unt'J 
 it gave only a teaspoonful at a time. My men enjoyed a 
 hearty laugh when they found that I had given up all hope 
 of more, for they had been /talking among themselves about 
 my perseverance. 
 
 May 30. — We left Bango, and proceeded to the river 
 Loembwe, which flows -to the N.N.E. and abounds in 
 hippopotami. It is about sixty yards wide and four feet 
 deep, but usually contains much less water than this, for 
 there are fishing-weirs placed right across it. Like all the 
 African rivers in this quarter, it has morasses on each 
 bank; yet the valley in which it winds, when seen from 
 the nigh lands above, is extremely beautiful. 
 
 Having passed the Loembwe, we were in a more open 
 country, with every few hours a small valley, through 
 which ran a little rill in the middle of a bog. These were 
 always difficult to pass, and, being numerous, kept the 
 lower part of the person constantly wet. 
 
 On the evening of the 2d of June we reached the village 
 of Kawawa, — rather an important personage in these parts. 
 This village consists of forty or fifty huts, and is surrounded 
 by forest. Drums were beating over the body of a man 
 who had died the preceding day, and, some women were 
 making a clamorous wail at the door of his hut, and 
 addressing the deceased as if alive. 
 
 In the morning we had agreeable intercourse with Ka- 
 wawa : he visited us, and we sat and talked nearly the 
 whole day with him and his people. When we visited 
 him in return, we found him in his large court-house, 
 which, though of a bee-hive shape, was remarkably weiJ 
 built. As I had shown him a number of curiosities, he 
 now produced a jug, of English ware, shaped like an old 
 man holding a can of beer in his hand, as. the greatest 
 wuiosity he had to exhibit. 
 
TRIBUTE DEMANDED. 301 
 
 Wo exhibited the pictures of the magic lantern in th# 
 evening, and ail were delighted except Kawawa himself. 
 Ho showed symptoms of dread, and several times started 
 np as if to run away, out was prevented by the crowd 
 behind. Some of the more intelligent understood the ex- 
 planations well, and expatiated, eloquently on them to the 
 more obtuse. Nothing could exceed the civilities which 
 had passed between us during this day ; but Kawawa had 
 heard that the Chiboque had forced us to pay an ox, and 
 now thought he might do the same. When, therefore, I 
 sent next morning to let him know that we were ready tc 
 itart, he replied, in his figurative way, "If an ox come iu 
 the way of a man, ought ho not to eat it ? I had given 
 one to the Chiboque, and must give him the same, together 
 with a gun, gunpowder, and a black robe, like that he had 
 Men spread out to dry the day before ; that, if I refusea an 
 ox, I must give one of my men, and a book by which he 
 might see the state of Matiamvo's heart toward him, and 
 which would forewarn him should Matiamvo ever resolve 
 to cut off his head." Kawawa came in the coolest manner 
 possible to our encampment after sending this message, 
 and told me he had seen all our goods and must have all 
 he asked, as he had command of the Kasai in our front, 
 and would prevent us from passing it unless we paid this 
 tribute. I replied that the goods were my property and 
 not his ; that I would never have it said that a white man 
 had paid tribute to a black, and that I should cross the 
 Kasai in spite of him. He ordered his people to arm them- 
 selves, and when some of my men saw them rushing for 
 their bows, arrows, ami spears, they became somewhat 
 panic-stricken. I ordered them to move away, and not to 
 fire unless'Kawawa's people struck the first blow. I took 
 the lead, and expected them all to follow, as they usually 
 had done; but many of my men remained behind. When 
 1 knew this, I jumped off the ox and made a rush to them 
 with the revolver in my hand. Kawawa ran away among 
 
 his people, and they turned their backs too. I shouted to 
 
 26 
 
302 CNPLEASANT PARTING. 
 
 my men to take up their luggage and march : some did «o 
 with alacrity, feeling that they had disobeyed orders by 
 remaining; but one of them refused, and was preparing tc 
 ire at Kawawa, until I gave him a punch on the head 
 with the pistol and made him go too. I felt here, as else- 
 where, that subordination must be maintained at all risks. 
 fVe all moved into the forest, the people of Kawawa stand- 
 ing about a hundred yards off, gazing, but not firing a shot 
 or an arrow. It is extremely unpleasant to part with these 
 chieftains thus, after spending a day or two in the mcst 
 amicable intercourse, and in a part where the people are 
 generally civil. This Kawawa, however, is not a good 
 specimen of the Balonda chiefs, and is rather notorious in 
 the neighborhood for his folly. We were told that he has 
 good reason to believe that Matiamvo will some day cut 
 off his head for his disregard of the rights of strangers. 
 
 Kawawa was not to be balked of his supposed rights by 
 the unceremonious way in which we had left him; for f 
 when we had reached the ford of the Kasai, about ten 
 miles distant, we found that he had sent four of his men 
 with orders to the ferrymen to refuse us passage. We 
 were here duly informed that we must deliver up all the 
 articles mentioned, and or.e of our men besides. This de- 
 mand for one of our number always nettled every heart 
 The canoes were taken away before our eyes, and we were 
 supposed to be quite helpless witnout them, at a river a 
 good hundred yards broad, and very deep. Pitsane stood 
 on the bank, gazing with apparent indifference on the 
 stream, and made an accurate^observation of where the 
 canoes were hidden among the reeds. The ferrymen 
 casually asked one of my Batoka if they had rivers in his 
 country, and he answered, with truth, " No j we have 
 none." Kawawa's people then felt sure we could not cross. 
 I thought of swimming when they were gone ; but, after 
 it was dark, by the unasked loan of one of the hidden 
 canoes, we soon were snug in our bivouac on the southern 
 bank of the Kasai. I left some beads as payment for som* 
 
LEVEx. PLAIN8. 803 
 
 meal which had been presented by the ferrymen ; and, the 
 canoe having been left on their own side of the river, 
 Pitsano and his companions laughed uproariously at the 
 disgust our enemies would feel, and their perplexity as 
 to who had been our paddlcr across. They were quito 
 sure that Kawawa would imagine that we had been ferried 
 over by his own people and would be divining to find out 
 who hai dono the deed. When ready to depart in the 
 morning, Kawawa' s people appeared on the opposite 
 heights, and could scarcely believe their eyes when they 
 saw us prepared to start away to the south. At last one 
 of them called out, "Ah! ye are bad/' to which Pitsane 
 and his companions retorted, "Ah! ye are good, and we 
 thank you for the loan of your canoe." We were carefu* 
 to explain the whole of the circumstances to Katcma and 
 the other chiefs, and they all agreed that we were per- 
 fectly justifiable under the circumstances, and that Ma- 
 tiamvo would approve our conduct. When any thing that 
 might bear an unfavorable construction happens among 
 themselves, they send explanations to each other. The 
 mere fact of doing so prevents them from losing their 
 character, for there is public opinion even among them. 
 
 CHAPTEK XXTY. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE RETURNS TO THE COUNTRY OP THE 
 MAKOLOLO. 
 
 After leaving the Kasai, we entered upon the extensive 
 level plains which we had formerly found in a flooded con- 
 dition. The water on them was not yet dried up, as it 
 still remained in certain hollow spots. Yiiltures were seen 
 floating in the air, showing that carrion was to he fou"»d; 
 and, indeed, we saw several of the large game, but «# 
 exceedingly wild as to be unapproachable. 
 
004 LAFE DILOLO. 
 
 During our second day on this extensive plain 1 suffered 
 from my twenty-seventh attack of fever, at a part where 
 no surface-water was to be found. We never thought it 
 Dccessary to carrj water with us in this region ; and now, 
 when I was quite mable to move on, my men soon found 
 water to allay my burning thirst by digging with sticks a 
 few feet beneath the surface. We had thus an opportunity 
 of observing the state of these remarkable plains at differ- 
 ent seasons of the year. Next day we pursued our way, 
 and on the 8th of June we forded the Lotembwa to the 
 N. W. of Dilolo, and regained our former path. 
 
 After crossing the Northern Lotembwa, we met a party 
 of the people of Kangenke, who had treated us kindly on 
 our way to the north, and sent him a robe of striped calico, 
 with an explanation of the reason for not returning through 
 his village. We then went on to the Lake Dilolo. It is a 
 fine sheet of water, six or eight miles long and one or two 
 broad, and somewhat of a triangular shape. A branch 
 proceeds from one of the angles and flows into the Southern 
 Lotembwa. 
 
 We found Moene Dilolo (Lord of the Lake) a fat, jolly 
 fellow, who lamented that when they had no strangers 
 they had plenty of beer, and always none when they came. 
 He gave us a handsome present of meal and putrid buffalo's 
 flesh. Meat cannot be too far gone for them, as it is used 
 only in small quantities, as a sauce to their tasteless manioc 
 
 June 14. — We reached the collection of straggling vil- 
 lages over which Katema rules, and were thankful to see 
 old familiar faces again. Shakatwala performed the part 
 of a chief by bringing forth abundant supplies of food in 
 nis master's name. He informed us that Katema, too, was 
 out hunting skins for Matiamvo. 
 
 On the 15th Katema came home from his hunting, having 
 heard of our arrival. He desired me to rest myself and 
 eat abundantly, for, being a great man, I must feel tired, 
 and took good care to give the means of doing so. All the 
 people in these parts are exceedingly kind and liberal witu 
 
WELCOME FROM SHINTE. S05 
 
 their food, and Katema was not behindhand. "When he 
 visited our encampment, I presented him with a cloak of 
 red baize, ornamented with gold tinsel, which cost thirty 
 shillings, according to the promise I had made in going to 
 Londa ; also a cotton robe, both large and small beads, an 
 iron spoon, and a tin pannikin containing a quarter of a 
 pound of powder. He seemed greatly pleased with the 
 liberality shown, and assured me that the way was mine, 
 and that no one should molest me in it if he could help it. 
 
 Leaving Katema's town on the 19th, and proceeding 
 four miles to the eastward, we forded the southern branch 
 of Lake Dilolo. We found it a mile and a quarter broad; 
 and, as it flows into the Lotembwa, the lake would seem 
 to be a drain of the surrounding flats, and to partake of 
 the character of a fountain. The ford was waist deep, and 
 very difficult, from the masses of arum and rushes through 
 which we waded. Going to the eastward about three 
 miles, we came to the Southern Lotembwa itself, running 
 in a valley two miles broad. It is here eighty or ninety 
 yards wide, and contains numerous islands covered with 
 dense sylvan vegetation. 
 
 We traversed the extended plain on the north bank of 
 the Leeba, and crossed this river a little farther on at Kan- 
 yonke's village, which is about twenty miles west of the 
 Peri Hills, our former ford. The first stage beyond the 
 Leeba was at the rivulet Loamba, by the village of Che- 
 bende, nephew of Shinte; and next day wo met Chebende 
 himself returning from the funeral of Samoana, his father. 
 He was thin and haggard-looking compared to what he 
 had been before, — the probable effect of the orgies in which 
 he had been engaged. 
 
 We reached our friend Shinte, and received a hearty 
 welcome from this friendly old man, and abundant pro- 
 visions of the best he had. On hearing a report of the 
 journey given by my companions, and receiving a piece 
 of cotton cloth about two yards square, he said, " Theso 
 Mambari Gheat us by bringing little piece3 only; but the 
 
 U 26» 
 
JJ06 VISIT TO NYAMOANA. 
 
 next time you pass I shall send men with you U trade foi 
 me in Loanda.''* When I explained the use made of th« 
 slaves ho sold, and that he was just destroying his own 
 ribe by selling his people, and enlarging that of the Man> 
 oari for the sake of these small pieces of cloth, it seemed to 
 him quite a new idea. 
 
 We parted on the best possible terms with our friend 
 Shinte, and proceeded by our former path to the village of 
 his sister Nyamoana, who is now a widow. She received us 
 wifh much apparent feeling, and said, "We had removed 
 from our former abode to the place where you found us, 
 and had no idea then that it was the spot where my hus- 
 band was to die." She had come to the river Lofuje, as 
 they never remain in a place where death has once visited 
 them. We received the loan of five small canoes from her, 
 and also one of those we had left here before, to proceed 
 down the Leeba. 
 
 Having despatched a message to our old friend Manenko, 
 we waited a day opposite her village, which was about 
 fifteen miles from the river. Her husband was instantly 
 despatched to meet us with liberal presents of food, she 
 being unable to travel in consequence of a burn on the 
 foot. Sambanza gave us a detailed account of the political 
 affairs of the country, and of Kolimbota's evil doings. 
 
 A short distance below the confluence of the Leeba and 
 Leeambye we met a number of hunters belonging to the 
 tribe called Mambowe, who live under Masiko. They had 
 dried flesh of hippopotami, buffaloes, and alligators. This 
 party had been sent by Masiko to the Makololo for aid to 
 repel their enemy, but, afraid to go thither, had spent the 
 time fat hunting. They have a dread of the Makololo, and 
 hence the joy they expressed when peace was proclaimed.* 
 
 * The Masiko were terrible warriors, but the atrocities committed by 
 them in war will hardly bear comparison with those committed even in 
 time of peace by the Zulus (Zooloos) under Chaka. Here is a specimen 
 given by Captain Harris: — " Umnante, the queen-mother, died, and 
 0V6ry subject in the realm was expected to proceed, according to est* 
 
CRUELTY OP THE ZULUS. 307 
 
 The Mambowo hunters were much alarmed until my name 
 was mentioned. They then joined our party, and on the 
 following day discovered a hippopotamus dead, which they 
 had previously wounded. This was the first feast of flesh 
 my men had enjoyed, for, though the game was wonder- 
 fully abundant, I had quite got out of the way of shooting, 
 and missed perpetually. Once 1 went with the determina- 
 tion of getting so close that I should not miss a zebra. 
 "We went along one of the branches that stretch out from the 
 river in a small canoe, and two men, stooping down as low 
 as they could, paddled it slowly along to an open space near 
 to a herd of zebras and pokus. Peering over the edge of 
 the canoe, the open space seemed like a patch of wet ground, 
 such as is often seen on the banks of a river, made smooth 
 as the resting-place of alligators. When we came within 
 a few yards of it, we found by the precipitate plunging of 
 the reptile that this was a large alligator itself. Although 
 I had been most careful to approach near enough, I unfor. 
 tunately only broke the hind-leg of a zebra. My two men 
 pursued it, but the loss of a hind-leg does not prevent this 
 animal from a gallop. As I walked slowly after the men 
 on an extensive plain covered with a great crop of grass, 
 
 Itfisbed custom, to the king's residence, there to mourn for the illustrioug 
 deceased. Umnante had been repudiated by Essenzinconyarna, and had 
 afterward been guilty of signal infidelity to the nation by cohabiting with 
 i commoner of her father's tribe. Whether in consequence of this lapse, 
 w from some other circumstance, the usual etiquette was somewhat laxlj 
 jbserved, and there ensued an appalling tragedy, which had never been 
 exceeded, either in brutality or foulness, by any of the black and inhu- 
 man exploits detailed in the long and bloody catalogue of Chaka's crimes. 
 Jpon the grounds that ' some of the subjects must have been accessary 
 itj witchcraft to the death of the queen-mother, and did not therefor* 
 attend to mourn,' several kraals and villages were fired ; men, women, 
 and children, having first been cruelly tortured, were roasted alive in the 
 flames by the ferocious agents of a still more fiendish master ; this aot 
 of unprecedented barbarity being followed up by a general massacre 
 throughout the realm, — the tide of blood flowing for a whole fortnight, 
 *nd reeking of cruelties too revolting to narrate." — Ed. 
 
808 
 
 CHARGE OF A BUFFALO. 
 
 which was laid by its own weight, I observed that a soli- 
 tary buffalo, disturbed by others of my own party, wai 
 coming to me at a gallop. I glanced around, but the only 
 tree on the plain was a hundred yards off, and there was 
 no escape elsewhere. I therefore cocked my rifle, with 
 the intention of giving him a steady shot in the forehead 
 when he should come within three or four yards of me. The 
 thought flashed across my mind, " What if your gun misses 
 fire V I placed it to my shoulder as he came on at full 
 speed, and that is tremendous, though generally he is a 
 lumbering-looking animal in his paces. A small bush and 
 bunch of grass fifteen yards off made him swerve a little, 
 and exposed his shoulder. I just heard the ball crack 
 there as I fell flat on my face. The pain must have made 
 aim renounce his purpose, for he bounded close past me on 
 to the water, where he was found dead. In expressing my 
 thankfulness to God among my men, they were much 
 offended with themselves for not being present to shield 
 me from this danger. The tree near me was a camel-thorn, 
 and reminded me that we had come back to the land of 
 thorns again, for the country we had left is one of ever- 
 greens. 
 
 July 27. — We reached the town of Libonta, and were 
 received with demonstrations of joy such as I had never 
 witnessed before. The women came forth to meet us, 
 making their curious dancing gestures and loud lulliloos. 
 Some carried a mat and stick, in imitation of a spear and 
 shield. Others rushed forward and kissed the hands and 
 cheeks of the different persons of their acquaintance among 
 us, raising such a dust that it was quite a relief to get to 
 the men assembled and sitting with proper African decorum 
 in the kotla. We were looked upon as men risen from the 
 dead, for the most skilful of their diviners had pronounced 
 as to have perished long ago. After many expressions of 
 joy at meeting, I arose, and, thanking them, explained the 
 causes of our long delay, but left the report to be made by 
 their owe eountrymon Formerly I had been the chief 
 
RECEPTION AT LTRONTA. 809 
 
 • 
 
 speaker, now T would leave the task of speaking to thorn. 
 Pitsane then delivered a speech of upward of an hour :'n 
 length, giving a highly-flattering picture of the whole jour- 
 ney, of the kindness of the white men in general, and of 
 Mr. Gabriel in particular. He concluded by saying that I 
 hud done more for them than they expected ; that I had not 
 only opened up a path for them to the other white men, 
 but conciliated all the chiefs along the route. The oldest 
 man present rose and answered this speech, and, among 
 other things, alluded to the disgust I felt at the Makololo 
 for engaging in marauding-expeditions against Lechulatebe 
 and Sebolamakw:iia, of which we had heard from the first 
 persons we met, and which my companions most energeti- 
 cally denounced as " mashue hela," entirely bad. He en- 
 treated me not to lose heart, but to reprove Sckeletu as my 
 child. Another old man followed with the same entreaties. 
 The following day we observed as our thanksgiving to 
 God for his goodness in bringing us all back in safety to 
 our friends. My men decked themselves out in their best, 
 and I found that, although their goods were finished, they 
 had managed to save suits of European clothing, which, 
 being white, with their red caps, gave them rather a dash- 
 ing appearance. They tried to walk like the soldiers they 
 had seen in Loanda, and called themselves my "braves," 
 (batlabani.) During the service they all sat with their 
 guns over their shoulders, and excited the unbounded admi- 
 ration of the, women arid children. I addressed them all 
 on the goodness of God in preserving us from all the 
 dangers of strange tribes and disease. We had a similar 
 service in the afternoon. The men gave us two fine oxen 
 for slaughter, and the women supplied us abundantly with 
 milk, meal,, and butter. It was all quite gratuitous, and I fell 
 ashamed that I could make no return. My men explained 
 the total expenditure of our means, and the Libontese 
 answered, gracefully, "It does not matter : you have opened 
 a path foi us, and we shall have sleep.' ' Strangers came 
 
310 KINDNESS OF THE PEOPLE. 
 
 flocking from a distance, and seldom empty-handod. Their 
 presents I distributed among my men. 
 
 Our progress down the Barotse valley was just like this. 
 Every village gave us an ox, and sometimes two. The 
 people were wonderfully kind. I felt, and still feel, most 
 deeply grateful, and tried to benefit them in the only way 
 I could, by imparting the knowledge of that Savior who 
 can comfort and supply them in the time of need; and my 
 prayer is that he may send his good Spirit to instruct them 
 and lead them into his kingdom. Even now I earnestly 
 long to return and make some recompense to them for 
 their kindness. In passing them on our way to the north, 
 their liberality might have been supposed to be influenced 
 by the hope of repayment on our return, for the white 
 man's land is imagined to be the source of every ornament 
 they prize most. But, though we set out from Loanda 
 with a considerable quantity of goods, hoping both to pay 
 our way through the stingy Chiboque and to make presents 
 to the kind Balotida and still more generous Makololo, the 
 many delays caused by sickness made us expend all my 
 stock, and all the goods my men procured by their own 
 labor at Loanda, and we returned to the Makololo as poor 
 as when we set out. Yet no distrust was shown, and my 
 poverty did not lessen my influence. They saw that I had 
 been exerting myself for their benefit alone, and even my 
 men remarked, " Though we return as poor as we went, 
 we have not gone in vain." They began immediately to 
 collect tusks of bippopotam. *r^ a'-fa* ivory for a second 
 journey. 
 
COLONY OF BIRDS 311 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 DfL LIVINGSTONE PREPARES FOR HIS JOURNEY TO THE EAS1 
 
 COAST. 
 
 On the 31st of July we parted with our kind Libonta 
 friends. We planted some of our palm-tree seeds in differ- 
 ent villages of this valley. They began to sprout even 
 while we were there; but, unfortunately, they were always 
 destroyed by the mice which swarm in every hut. 
 
 At Chitlane's village we collected the young of a colony 
 of the linkololo (Anastomus lamalligerus,) a black, long- 
 legged bird, somewhat larger than a crow, which lives on 
 shell-fish (Ampullaria) and breeds in society at certain 
 localities among the reeds. -These places are well knoAvn, 
 as they continue there from year to year, and belong to the 
 chiefs, who' at particular times of the year gather most 
 of the young. The produce of this "harvest," as they 
 call it, which was presented to me, was a hundred and 
 seventy -five unfledged birds. They had been rather late 
 in collecting them, in consequence of waiting for the 
 arrival of Mpololo, who acts the part of chief, but gave 
 them to me, knowing that this would be pleasing to him, 
 otherwise this colony would have yielded double the 
 amount. The old ones appear along the Leeambye in vast 
 flocks, and look lean and scraggy. The young arc very 
 fat, and, when roasted, are esteemed one of the dainties of 
 the Barotse valley. In presents of this kind, as well as of 
 oxen, it is a sort of feast of joy, the person to whom they 
 are presented having the honor of distributing the mate- 
 rials of the feast. Wo generally slaughtered every ox at 
 the village where it was presented, and then our friend* 
 and we rejoiced together. 
 
 The village ol Chitlane is situated, like all others in the 
 flarotse valley, on an eminence, over which floods do not 
 
S12 
 
 OHITLANE S VILLAOK. 
 
 Tine j but this last year the water approached nearer to an 
 entire submergence of the whole valley than has been 
 known in the memory of man. Great numbers of people 
 were now suffering from sickness, which always prevails 
 when the waters are drying up, and I found much demand 
 for the. medicines I had brought from Loanda. The great 
 variation of the temperature each day must have a trying 
 effect upon the health. At this village there is a real Indian 
 banian-tree, which has spread itself over a considerable 
 space by hieans of roots from its branches; it has been 
 termed, in consequence, u the tree with legs," (more oa 
 maotu.) It is curious that trees of this family are looked 
 upon with veneration, and all the way from the Barotse to 
 Loanda are thought to be preservatives from evil. 
 
 On reaching Naliele on the 1st of August we found 
 Mpololo in great affliction on account of the death of his 
 daughter and her child. She had been lately confined; 
 and her father naturally remembered her when an ox was 
 slaughtered, or when the tribute of other food, which he 
 receives in lieu of Sekeletu, came in his way, and sent fre- 
 quent -presents to her. This moved the envy of one of 
 the Makololo who hated Mpololo, and, wishing to- vex him, 
 he entered the daughter's hut by night, and strangled both 
 her and her child. He then tried to make fire in the hut 
 and burn it, so that the murder might not be known ; but 
 the squeaking noise of rubbing the sticks awakened a ser- 
 vant, and the murderer was detected. Both he and his 
 wife were thrown into the river, — the latter having " known 
 of her husband's intentions, and not revealing them." 
 Bhe declared she had dissuaded him from the crime, and, 
 had any one interposed a word, she nrght have Decn 
 spared. 
 
 Mpololo exerted, himself in every way to supply us with 
 other canoes, and we left Shinte's with him. The Mam- 
 bowe were well received, and departed with friendly mes- 
 sages to their chief Masiko. My men were exceedingly 
 delighted with the cardial reception we met with every 
 
ME88AGI FROM >J.\*1K0. ^13 
 
 wnere; but a source of annoyance was foun.l where it was 
 not expected. Many of their wives had married other 
 men during our two years' absence. Mashanana's wile, 
 who had borne him two children, was among the number. 
 He wished to appear not to feel it much, saying, " Why, 
 wives are as plentiful as grass, and I can get another : she 
 may go;" but he would add, "If 1 had that fellow, 1 
 would open his ears for him." As most of them had more 
 wives than one, 1 tried to console them by saying that 
 they had still more than I had, and that they had enough 
 yet ) but they felt the reflection to be galling that, while 
 they were toiling, another had been devouring their corn. 
 Some of their wives came with very young infants in theii 
 arms. This excited no discontent; and for some I had to 
 speak to the chief to order the men, who had married the 
 only wives some of my companions ever had, to restore 
 them. 
 
 Sunday, August 5. — A large audience listened most atten- 
 tively to my morning address. Surely some will remember 
 the ideas conveyed, and pray to our merciful Father, who 
 would never have thought of him but for this visit. The 
 invariably kind and respectful treatment I have received 
 from these and many other heathen tribes in this central 
 country, together with the attentive observations of many 
 years, have led me to the belief that, if one exerts him- 
 self for their good, he will never be ill treated. There 
 may be opposition to his doctrine, but none to the man 
 himself. 
 
 While still at Naliele, a party which had been sent after 
 me by Masiko arrived. He was much disappointed because 
 I had not visited him. They brought an elephant's tusk, 
 two calabashes of honey, two baskets of maize, and one 
 of groundnuts, as a present. Masiko wished to say that 
 he had followed the injunction which I had given as the 
 will of God, and lived in peace until his brother Limuoa 
 came, captured his women as they went to their gardens, 
 and theD appeared before his stockade. Masiko offered to 
 
 27 
 
314 
 
 FREEDOM OF SPEECH. 
 
 lead his men out; but they objected; saying, "Let us 
 servants be killed: you must not be slain." Those who 
 said this were young Barotse who had been drilled to 
 fighting by Sebituane, and used shields of ox-hide. They 
 beat off the party of Limboa, ten being wounded, and ton 
 Blain in the engagement. Limboa subsequently sent three 
 slaves as a self-imposed fine to Masiko for attacking him. 
 I succeeded in getting the Makololo to treat the messengers 
 of Masiko well, though, as they regarded them as rebels, 
 it was somewhat against the grain at first to speak civilly 
 to them. 
 
 Mpololo, attempting to justify an opposite line of con- 
 duct, told me how they had fled from Sebituane, even 
 though he had given them numbers of cattle after their 
 subjection by his arms, and was rather surprised to find that 
 I was disposed to think more highly of them for having 
 asserted their independence, even at the loss of milk. For 
 this food all who have been accustomed to it from infancy 
 in Africa have an excessive longing. I pointed out how 
 they might be mutually beneficial to each other by the 
 exchange of canoes and cattle. 
 
 There are some very old Barotse living here, who were 
 the companions of the old chief Santuru. These men, 
 protected by their age, were very free in their comments 
 on the " upstart" Makololo. One of them, for instance, 
 mterrupted my conversation one day with some Makololo 
 crontlenien with the advice " not to believe them, for they 
 were only a set of thieves;" and it was taken in quite a 
 good-natured way. It is remarkable that none of the 
 ancients here had any tradition of an earthquake having 
 occurred in this region. Their quick perception of events 
 recognizable by the senses, and retentiveness of memory, 
 render it probable that no perceptible movement of the 
 eaith has taken place between 7° and 27° S. in the centre 
 of the continent during the last two centuries at least 
 There is no appearance of recent fracture or disturbance 
 of rocks to be seen in the central country, except the fallf 
 
GONYE — END 01 WINTER. 317 
 
 of Gonyej nor is there any evidence or tradition of hur- 
 ri» anes. 
 
 i left Naliele on the 13th of August, and, when prooeed- 
 inj along the shore at mid-day, a hippopotamus struck the 
 caaoe with her forehead, lifting one-half of it quite out of 
 the water, so as nearly to overturn it. The force of the 
 butt sho gave tilted Mashauana out into the river; the iest 
 of us sprang to the shore, which was only about ten yards 
 off. Glancing back, I saw her come to the surface a short 
 way off and look to the canoe, as if to see if she had 
 done much mischief. It was a female, whose young ono 
 had been speared the day before. No damage was done, 
 except wetting person and goods. This is so unusual an 
 occurrence, when the precaution is taken to coast along 
 the shore, that my men exclaimed, " Is the beast mad V 
 There were eight of us in the canoe at the time, and the 
 shake it received shows the immense power of this animal 
 in the water. 
 
 August 22. — This is the end of winter. The trees which 
 line the banks begin to bud and blossom, and there is some 
 show of the influence of the new sap, which will soon end 
 in buds that push off the old foliage by assuming a very 
 bright orange color. This orange is so bright that I mis- 
 took it for masses of yellow blossom. There is every 
 variety of shade in the leaves, — yellow, purple, copper, 
 liver-color, and even inky black. 
 
 Having got the loan of other canoes from Mpololo, and 
 three oxen as provision for the way, which made the 
 number we had been presented with in the Barotse valley 
 amount to thirteen, we proceeded down the river toward 
 Sesheke, and were as much struck as formerly with the 
 noble river. The whole scenery is lovely, though the atmo- 
 sphere is murky in consequence of the continuance of the 
 smoky tinge of winter. 
 
 The amount of organic life is sin-prising. At the time 
 the river begins to rise, the Ibis religiosa comes down in 
 flocks of fifties, with prodigious numbers of other water 
 
 27* 
 
818 ABUNDANCE Oi 1 WATERFOWL. 
 
 fowl. Some of the sand-banks appear whitened during 
 the day with flocks of pelicans ; I once counted three hun- 
 dred ; others are brown with ducks, {Anas histrionica,) — 1 
 got fourteen of these by one shot, — (Querquedula Hottentota t 
 Smith,) and other kinds. Great numbers of gulls, (Procel 
 laria turtur, Smith,) and several others, float over the sur- 
 face. The vast quantity of small birds which feed on in- 
 sects show that the river teems also with specimens of 
 minute organic life. In walking among bushes on the 
 banks, we are occasionally stung by a hornet, which makes 
 its nest in form like that of our own wasp, and hangs it 
 on the branches of trees. The breeding aropyr} is so strong 
 in this insect that it pursues any one twenty or thirty 
 yards who happens to brush too closely past its nest. The 
 sting, which it tries to inflict near the eye, is more like a 
 discharge of electricity from a powerful machine, or a 
 violent blow, than aught else. It produces momentary 
 insensibility, and is followed by the most pungent pain. 
 Yet this insec^ is quite timid when away from its nest 
 It is named Murotuani by the Bechuanas. 
 
 We have tsetse between Nameta and Sekhosi. An in- 
 sect of prey, about an inch in length, long-legged and 
 gaunt-looking, may be observed flying about and lighting 
 upon the bare ground. It is a tiger in its way, for it 
 springs upon tsetse and other flies, and, sucking out their 
 blood, throws the bodies aside. 
 
 .Long before reaching Sesheke we had been informed that 
 a party of Matebele, the people of Mosilikatse, had brought 
 wme packages of goods for me to the south bank of the 
 river, near Victoria Falls, and, though they declared they 
 had been sent by Mr. Moffat, the Makololo had refused to 
 credit the statement of their sworn enemies. They ima- 
 gined the parcels were directed to me as a mere trick 
 whereby to place witchcraft-medicine in the hands of the 
 Makololo. When the Matebele on the south bank called to 
 the Makololo on the north tc come over in canoes and re- 
 
DISCOVERY FORESTALLED. 319 
 
 toive the goods sent by Moffat to " Nako," the Makololo 
 replied, "Go along with you: we know better than that. 
 How could he tell Moffat to sond his things here, he having 
 gone away to the north?" The Matebele answered, "Here 
 are the goods : we place them now before ycu, and if you 
 leave them to perish the guilt wiL be yours." When they 
 had departed, tht Makololo thought better of it, and, after 
 m ich divination, went over with fear and trembling, and 
 carried the packages carefully to an island in the middle of 
 the stream; then, building a hut over them to protect 
 them from the weather, they left them ; and there I found 
 they had remained from September, 185i. till September, 
 1855, in perfect safety. Here, as I had often experienced 
 before, I found the news was very old, and had lost much 
 of its interest by keeping ; but there were some good eat- 
 ables from Mrs. Moffat. Among other things, I discovered 
 that my friend Sir Eoderick Murchison, while in his study 
 in London, had arrived at the same conclusion respecting 
 the form of the African continent as I had lately come to 
 on the. spot; and that from the attentive study of the geo- 
 logical map of Mr. Bain and other materials, some of which 
 were furnished b}~ the discoveries of Mr. Oswell and my- 
 self, he had not only clearly enunciated the peculiar configu- 
 ration as a hypothesis in his discourse before the Geogra- 
 phical Society in 1852, but had even the assurance to send 
 me out a copy for my information ! There was not much 
 use in nursing my chagrin at being thus fairly "cut out" 
 by the man who had foretold the existence of the Austra- 
 lian gold before its discovery; for here it was in black and 
 white. In his easy-chair he had forestalled me by tnreo 
 ^ears, though 1 had been working hard through jungle, 
 marsh, and fever, and, since the light dawned on my mind 
 at Dilolc, had been cherishing the pleasing delusion that I 
 should be the first to suggest the idea that the interior of 
 Africa was a watery plateau of less elevation than flanking 
 hilly ranges. 
 Having waited a few days at Sesheke till the horset 
 
820 TRADING-PARTY TO LOANDA. 
 
 which we had left at Linyanti should arrive, we proceeded 
 to that town, and found the wagon, and every thing we 
 had left in November, 1853, perfectly safe. A. grand meet- 
 ing of all the people was called to receive our report and 
 the articles which had been sent by the governor and mer- 
 chants of Loanda. I explained that none of these were 
 my property, but that they were sent to show the friendly 
 feelings of the white men, and their eagerness to enter into 
 commercial relations with the Makololo. I then requested 
 my companions to give a true account of what they had 
 seen. The wonderful things lost nothing in the telling, the 
 climax always being that they had finished the whole world, 
 and had turned only when there was no more land. One 
 glib old gentleman asked, "Then you reached Ma Eobert 
 [Mrs. L.] V They were obliged to confess that she lived 
 a little beyond the world. The presents were received with 
 expressions of great satisfaction and delight; and on Sun- 
 day, when Sekeletu made his appearance at church in his 
 uniform, it attracted more attention than the sermon ; and 
 the kind expressions they made use of respecting myself 
 were so very flattering that I felt inclined to shut my eyes. 
 Their private opinion must have tallied with their publio 
 report, for I very soon received offers from volunteers to 
 accompany me to the east coast. They said they wished 
 to be able to return and relate strange things like my re- 
 cent companions ; and Sekeletu immediately made arrange- 
 ments with the Arab Ben Habid to conduct a fresh party 
 with a load of ivory to Loanda These, he said, must go 
 with him and learn to trade ; they were not to have any 
 thing to do in the disposal of the ivory, but simply look 
 and learn. My companions were to remain and rest them- 
 g^lves, and then return to Loanda when the others had 
 come home. Sekeletu consulted me as to sending presents 
 back to the governor and merchants of Loanda; but, not 
 possessing much confidence in this Arab, I advised him to 
 send a present by Pitsane, as he knew who ought to re* 
 ceive it 
 
DR. LIVINGSTONE REPROVES SEKELETU. 321 
 
 Sinco ray arrival in England, information lias been re- 
 ceived from Mr. Gabriel that this party had arrived on the 
 west coast, but that the ivory had been disposed of to some 
 Portuguese merchants in the interior, ana the men had 
 been obliged to carry it down to Loanda. They had not 
 been introduced to Mr. Gabriel, but that gentleman, having 
 learned that they "were in the city, went to them and pro- 
 nounced the names Pitsane, Mashauana, when all started up 
 and crowded round him. When Mr. G. obtained an inter- 
 preter, he learned that they had been ordered by Sekeletu 
 to be sure and go to my brother, as he termed him. Mr. 
 G. behaved in the same liberal manner as ho had done to 
 my companions, and they departed for their distant home 
 after bidding him a formal and affectionate adieu. 
 
 During the time of our absence at Loanda, the Makololo 
 had made two forays and captured large herds of cattle 
 One to the lake was in order to punish Lechulatebe for 
 the insolence he had manifested after procuring some fire- 
 arms ; and the other to Sebola Makwaia, a chief living far 
 to the N.E. This was most unjustifiable, and had be«n 
 condemned by all the influential Makololo. 
 
 In accordance with the advice of my Libonta friends, I 
 did not fail to reprove " my child Sekeletu" for his marau- 
 ding. This was not done in an angry manner, for no good 
 is ever achieved by fierce denunciations. Motibe, his 
 father-in-law, said to me, " Scold him much, but don't let 
 others hear you.' 7 
 
 The Makololo expressed great satisfaction with the route 
 we had opened up to tho west, and soon after our arrival a 
 * pieho" was called, in order to discuss the question of 
 removal to the Barotse valley, so that they might be nearer 
 the market. Some of the older men objected to abandon- 
 ing the line of defence afforded by the rivers Chobe and 
 Zambesi against their southern enemies the Matebele. The 
 Makololo generally have an aversion to the Barotse valley, 
 uQ account of the fevers which are annually engendered in 
 it as the waters dry up. They prefer it only as a cattle- 
 
322 KINDNES8 OF THE MAKOLOLO CHIEF. 
 
 Rtatioi ; for, though the herds are frequently thinned by an 
 endemic disease, '(peripneumon'a,) they breed so fast that the 
 o*ses are soon made good. Wherever else the Makololo 
 ^o, they always leave a portion of their stock in the charge 
 *of herdsmen in that prolific valley. Some of the younger 
 men objected to removal because the rankness of the grass 
 at the Barotse did not allow of their running fast, and be- 
 cause there "it never becomes cool ° 
 
 Sekeletu at last stood up, and, addressing me, said, "I am 
 perfectly satisfied as to the great advantages for trade of 
 the path which you have opened, and think that we ought 
 to go to the Barotse, in order to make the way from us to 
 Loanda shorter; but with whom am I to live there? If 
 you were coming with us, I would remove to-morrow; but 
 now you are going to the white man's country to bring Ma 
 Robert, and when you return you will find me near to the 
 spot on which you wish to dwell." I had then no idea 
 that any healthy spot existed in the country, and thought 
 only of a convenient central situation, adapted for inter- 
 course with the adjacent tribes and with the coast, such as 
 that near to the confluence of the Leeba and Leeambye. 
 
 During the whole of my stay with the Makololo, Seke- 
 lutu supplied my wants abundantly, appointing some cows 
 to furnish me with milk, and, when he went out to hunt, 
 sent home orders for slaughtered oxen to be given. That 
 the food was not given in a niggardly spirit may be inferred 
 from the fact that when I proposed to depart on the 20th 
 of October he protested against my going off in such a 
 hot sun. "Only wait," said he, "for the first shower, and 
 then I will let you go." This was reasonable, for the ther- 
 mometer, placed upon a deal box in the sun, rose to 138°. 
 1 1 stood at 108° in the shade by day, and 96° at sunset. 
 
 1 still possessed some of the coffee which I had brought 
 from Angola, and some of the sugar which I had left in my 
 wagon. So long as the sugar lasted, Sekeletu favored me 
 with his company at meals; but the sugar soon came to a 
 close The Makololo, as formerly mentioned, were weti 
 
SEKELETU'S COMMISSIONS Ml 
 
 acquainted with the sugarcane, as it is cultivated by tin 
 Barotse, but never knew that sugar could bo got from it 
 When I explained the process by which it was produced, 
 Sekeletu asked if I could not buy him an apparatus for the 
 purpose of making sugar. He said he would plant the 
 cane largely if he only had the means of making the sug;tr 
 from it. I replied that I was unable to purchase a mill, 
 when he instantly rejoined, "Why not take ivory to buy 
 it'/" As I had been living at his expense, I was glad of 
 the opportunity to show my gratitude by serving him; and 
 when ho and his principal men understood that I was 
 willing to execute a commission, Sekeletu gave me an 
 order for a sugar-mill, and for all the different varieties of 
 clothing that ho had ever seen, especially a mohair coat, a 
 good rifle, beads, brass wire, &c. &c, and wound up by 
 saying, "And any other beautiful thing you may see in 
 your own country." As to the quantity of ivory required 
 to execute the commission, I said I feared that a large 
 amount would be necessary. Both he and his councillors 
 replied, " The ivory is all your own : if you leave any in 
 the country it will be your own fault." He was also 
 Anxious for horses. The two I had left with him when 1 
 went to Loanda were still living, and had been of great use 
 to him in hunting the giraffe and eland ; and he was now 
 anxious to have a breed. This, I thought, might be ob- 
 tained at the Portuguese settlements. All were very much 
 delighted with the donkeys we had brought from Loanda. 
 As we found that they were not affected by the bite of the 
 tsetse, and there was a prospect of the breed being con- 
 tinued, it was gratifying to see the experiment of their 
 introduction so far successful. The donkeys came as 
 frisky as kids all the way from Loanda until we began 
 to descend the Leeambye. There we came upon so many 
 interlacing branches of the river, r-nd were obliged to 
 drag them through such masses of tangled aquatic plants* 
 that we half drowned them, and were at last obliged to 
 leave them, somewhat exhausted, at Naliele They excited 
 
324 THE AUTHOR'S INFLUENCE WITH THE NATIVE8. 
 
 the unbounded admiration of my men by their knowledge 
 of the different kinds of plants, which, as they remarked 
 u the animals had never before seen in their own country;" 
 and when the donkeys indulged in their music thej 
 startled the inhabitants more than if they had been lions 
 We never rode them, nor yet the horse which had beer 
 given by the bishop, for fear of hurting them by anv 
 work. 
 
 Although the Makololo were so confiding, the reader must 
 not imagine that they would be so to every individual who 
 might visit them. Much of my influence depended upon 
 the good name given me by the Bakwains, and that I 
 secured only through a long course of tolerably good con- 
 duct. No one ever gains much influence in this country 
 without purity and uprightness. The acts of a stranger 
 are keenly scrutinized by both young and old; and seldom 
 is the judgment pronounced, even by the heathen, unfair 
 or uncharitable. I have heard women speaking in admira- 
 tion of a white man because he was pure and never was 
 guilty of any secret immorality. Had he been, they would 
 have known it, and, untutored heathen though they be, 
 would have despised him in consequence. Secret vice 
 becomes known throughout the tribe; and, while one un- 
 acquainted with the language may imagine a peccadillo to 
 be hidden, it is as patent to all as it would be in London 
 had he a placard on his back. 
 
 21th October, 1855. — The first continuous rain of the 
 season commenced during the night, the wind being from 
 the N.E., as it always was on like occasions at Kolobeng. 
 The rainy season was thus begun, and I made ready to go 
 The mother of Sekeletu prepared a bag of groundnuts, by 
 frying them with cream with a little salt, as a sort of sand« 
 wiches for my "journey. This is considered food fit for a 
 chief. Others ground the maize from my own garden into 
 meal, and Sekeletu pointed out Sekwebu and Kanyata aa 
 the persons who should head the party intended to form 
 my company. Sekwebu had been captured by the Matebela 
 
REMARKS OF MAMIRE. 32:") 
 
 when a little boy, and the tribe in which be w:im a captive 
 
 had migrated to the country near Tote; he had travelled 
 
 along both banks of the Zambesi several times, and was 
 
 intimately acquainted with the dialects spoken there. 1 
 
 found him to be a person of grea-t prudence and sound 
 
 judgment, and his subsequent loss at the Mauritius hua 
 
 been, ever since, a source of sincere regret. He at once 
 
 recommended our keeping well away from the river, on 
 
 account of the tsetse and rocky country, assigning also as 
 
 a reason for it that the Leeambye beyond the falls turns 
 
 round to the N.N.E. Mamire, who had married the mother 
 
 of Sekeletu, on coming to bid me farewell before starting, 
 
 said, "You are now going among people who cannot be 
 
 trusted, because we have used them badly ; but you go with 
 
 a different message from any they ever heard before, and 
 
 Jesus will be with you and help you, though among enemies; 
 
 and if he carries you safely, and brings you and Ma Eobert 
 
 back again, I shall say he has bestowed a great favor upon 
 
 me. May we obtain a path whereby we may visit and be 
 
 visited by other tribes and by white men !" On telling 
 
 him my fears that he was still inclined ±o follow the old 
 
 marauding system, which prevented intercourse, and that 
 
 he, from his influential position, was especially guilty in the 
 
 late forays, he acknowledged all rather too freely for my 
 
 taste, but seemed quite aware that the old system was fai 
 
 from right. Mentioning my inability to pay the men who 
 
 were to accompany me, he replied, "A man wishes, of 
 
 course, to appear among his friends, after a long absence, 
 
 with something of his own to show : the whole of the 
 
 ivory in the country is yours, so you must take as much as 
 
 you can, and Sekeletu will furnish men to carry it." These 
 
 remarks of Mamire are quoted literally, in order to show 
 
 the state of mind of the most influential in the tribe. And, 
 
 as I wish to give the reader a fair idea of the other side of 
 
 tho question as well, it may be mentioned that Motibe 
 
 parried the imputation of the guilt of marauding by every 
 
 possible subterfuge. He would not admit that they had 
 
 28 
 
32(J A THUNDER-STORM. 
 
 done wrong, and laid the guilt of the wars in which th% 
 Makoioio had engaged on the Boers, the Matebele, ana 
 every other tribe except his own. When quite a youth, 
 Motibe's family had been attacked by a party of Boers : he 
 hid himself in an ant-eater's hole, but was drawn out and 
 thrashed with a whip of hippopotamus-hide. When en- 
 joined, to live in peace, he would reply, " Teach the Boers 
 to lav down their arms first." Yet Motibe, on other occa- 
 sions, seemed to feel the difference between those who are 
 Christians indeed and those who are so only in name. In 
 nil our discussions we parted good friends. 
 
 CHAPTEE XXYI. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE DISCOVERS THE FALLS OP VICTORIA. 
 
 On the 3d of November we bade adieu to our friends at 
 Linyanti, accompanied by Sekeletu and about 200 followers. 
 We were all fed at his expense, and he took cattle for this 
 purpose from every station we came to. The principal 
 men of the Makoioio, Lebeole, Ntlarie, Nkwatlele, &c. were 
 also of the party. We passed through the patch of the 
 tsetse, which exists between Linyanti and Sesheke, by night. 
 The majority of the company went on by daylight, in 
 order to prepare our beds. Sekeletu and I, with about 
 forty young men, waited outside the tsetse till dark. We 
 then went forward, and about ten o'clock it became so 
 pitchy dark that both horses and men were completely 
 blinded. The lightning spread over the sky, forming eight 
 or ten branches at a time, in shape exactly like those of a 
 tree. This, with great volumes of sheet-lightning, enabled 
 as at times to see the whole country. The intervals between 
 the flashes were so densely dark as to convey the idea of 
 Btone-blindness. The horses trembled, cried out, and turned 
 round, as 'f searching for each other, and every new flash 
 
KJNONKSs 01 MAKULOLO. • 327 
 
 revealed tho men taking different directions, laughing, and 
 stumbling against each other. The thunder was of that tre- 
 mendously-loud kind only to be heard in tropical countries, 
 and which friends from India have assured me is loudui 
 in Africa than any they have ever heard elsewhere. Then 
 came a pelting rain, which completed our confusion. After 
 the intense heat of the day, we soon felt miserable cold, 
 and turned aside to a tire we saw in the distance. This 
 had been made by some people on their march; for this 
 path is seldom without numbers of strangers passing to and 
 from the capital. My clothing having gone on, I lay down 
 on the cold ground, expecting to spend a miserable night ; 
 but Sekeletu kindly covered me with his own blanket and 
 lay uncovered himself. I was much affected by this act 
 of genuine kindness. If such men must perish by the 
 advance of civilization, as certain races of animals do be- 
 fore others, it is a pity. God grant that ere this time 
 comes they may receive that gospel which is a solace for 
 the soul in death ! 
 
 While at Sesheke, Sekeletu supplied me with twelve 
 oxen, — three of which were accustomed to being ridden 
 upon, — hoes, and beads to purchase a canoe when wo 
 should strike the Leeambye beyond the falls. He likewise 
 presented abundance of good fresh butter and honey, and 
 did every thing in his power to make me comfortable for 
 the journey. I was entirely dependent on his generosityj 
 for the goods I originally brought from the Cape were all 
 expended by the time I set off from Linyanti to the west 
 coast. I there drew £70 of my salary, paid my men with 
 it, and purchased goods for the return-journey to Linyanti. 
 These being now all expended, the Makololo again fitted 
 me out, and sent me on to the east coast. I was thus 
 dependent on their bounty and that of other Africans for 
 the means of going from Linyanti to Loanda, and again 
 from Linyanti to the east coast, and I feel deeply grateful 
 to them. Coin would have been of no benefit, for gold and 
 silver are quite unki own. We wore here joired by 
 
328 SEKOTE's .ISLAND. 
 
 Moriantsai.e, uncle of Sekeletu and head-man of Sesheke; 
 and, entering canoes on the 13th, some sailed down the 
 river to the confluence of the Chobe, while others drove the 
 cattle along the banks, spending one night at Mparia, the 
 island at the confluence of the Chobe, which is composed 
 of trap having crystals of quartz in it coated with a 
 pellicle of green copper-ore. Attempting to proceed down 
 the river next day, we were detained some hours by a 
 strong east wind raising waves so large as to threaten to 
 swamp the canoe. The river here is very large and deep, 
 and contains two considerable islands, which from either 
 bank seem to be joined to the opposite shore. 
 
 Having descended about ten miles, we came to the 
 island of Nampene, at the beginning of the rapids, where 
 wc were obliged to leave the canoes and proceed along the 
 bonks on foot. The next evening we slept opposite the 
 isJand of Chondo, and, then crossing the Lekone or Lek- 
 whie, early the following morning were at the island of 
 Sekote, called Kalai. This Sekote was the last of the 
 Batoka chiefs whom Sebituane rooted out. 
 
 As this was the point from which we intended to strike 
 off to the northeast, I resolved on the following day to 
 visit the falls of Victoria, called by the natives Mosioa- 
 tunya, or, more anciently, Shongwe. Of these we had 
 often heard since we came into the country : indeed, one 
 of the questions asked by Sebituane was, " Have you smoke 
 that sounds in your country?" They did not go near 
 enough to examine them, but, viewing them with awe at 
 a distance, said, in reference to the vapor and noise, "Mosi 
 oa tunya," (smoke does sound there.) It was previously 
 called Shongwe, the meaning of which I' could not ascer- 
 tain. The word for a "pot" resembles this, and it may 
 mean a -seething caldron; but I am not certain of it. 
 Being persuaded that Mr. Oswell and myself were the very 
 first Europeans who ever visited the Zambesi in the centre 
 of the country, and that this is the connecting-link between 
 the known and unknown portions ;>f that river, I decided 
 
VICTORIA FALLS. 329 
 
 to use the same liberty as the Makololo did, and gave the 
 only English namo I have affixed to any part of the 
 country. No better proof of previous ignorance of tin* 
 river could fie desired than that an untra veiled gentleman, 
 who had sp'mt a great part of his life in the study of the 
 geography of Africa and knew every thing written on the 
 subject from the time of Ptolemy downward, actually 
 asserted in the "AthenaMim," while I was coming up tno 
 Red Sea, *>hat this magnificent river, the Leeambye, " had 
 no connection with the Zambesi, but flowed under the 
 Kalahari Desert and became lost ;" and " that, as all the 
 old map* asserted, the Zambesi took its rise in the very 
 hills to which we have now come." This modest assertion 
 smacks exactly as if a native «f Timbuctoo should declare 
 that th« " Thames" and the " Pool" were different rivers, 
 he having seen neither the one nor the other. Leeambye 
 and Zambesi mean the very same thing, — viz., the River. 
 
 Sefareletu intended to accompany me; but, one canoe 
 only having come instead of the two he had ordered, he 
 resigned it to me. After twenty minutes' sail from Kalai 
 we came in sight, for the first time, of the columns of vapor 
 appropriately called " smoke," rising 1 1 a distance of five 
 or six miles, exactly as when large tracts of grass are 
 burned in Africa. Five columns now arose, and, bending 
 in the direction of the wind, they seemed placed against a 
 low ridge covered with trees ; the tops of the columns at 
 this distance appeared to mingle with the clouds. They 
 were white below, and higher up became dark, so as to 
 •imulate smoke very closely. The whole scene was ex- 
 tremely beautiful. The banks and islands dotted over th* 
 river are adorned with sylvan vegetation of great variety 
 of color and form. At the period of our visit several treet 
 were spangled over with blossoms. Trees have each their 
 own physiognomy. There, towering over all, stands the 
 great burly baobab, each of whose enormous arms would 
 form the trunk of a large tree, besides groups of graceful 
 palms, which, with their feathery-shaped leaves depicted 
 
 28* 
 
330 VICTORIA FALLS 
 
 on the sky, lend their beauty to the scene As a hiero- 
 glyphic they always mean " far from home/' for one can 
 never get over their foreign air in a p' 3ture or landscape 
 The silvery mohonono — which in the tropics is in form liko 
 the cedar of Lebanon — stands in pleasing contrast with the 
 dark color of the motsouri, whose cypress-form is dotted 
 over at present with its pleasant scarlet fruit. Some trees 
 resemble the great spreading oak ; others assume the cha- 
 racter of our own elms and chestnuts; but no one can 
 imagine the beauty of the view from any thing witnessed 
 in England. It had never been seen before by European 
 eyes ; but scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by 
 angels in their flight. The only want felt is that of moun- 
 tains in the background. The falls are bounded on three 
 sides by ridges three hundred or four hundred feet in 
 height, which are covered with forest, with the red soil 
 appearing among the trees. When about half a mile from 
 the falls, I left the canoe by which we had come down 
 thus far, and embarked in a lighter one, with men well 
 acquainted with the rapids, who, by passing down the 
 centre of the stream in the eddies and still places caused 
 by many jutting rocks, brought me to an island situated in 
 the middle of the river and on the edge of the lip over 
 which the water rolls. In coming hither there was danger 
 of being swept down by the streams which rushed along 
 on each side of the island; but the river was now low, and 
 we sailed where it is totally impossible to go when the 
 water is high. But, though we had reached the island, 
 and were within a few yards of the spot a view from 
 which would solve the whole problem, I believe that no 
 one could perceive where the vast body of water went : it 
 seemed* to lose itself in the earth, the opposite lip of the 
 fissure into which it disappeared being only eighty feet 
 distant. At least I did not comprehend it until, creeping 
 with awe to the verge, I peered down into a large rent 
 which had been made from bank to bank of the broad 
 Zambesi, and saw that a stream of a thousand yards broad 
 
VICTORIA PALLS. 3 ( 
 
 lekped down a hundred feet and then became suddenly 
 compressed into a space of fifteen or twenty yards. The 
 entire fulls are simply a crack made in a hard basaltic 
 rock from the right to the left bank of the Zambesi, and 
 then prolonged from the left bank away through thirty or 
 forty miles of hills. If one imagines the Thames tilled 
 with low, tree-covered hills immediately beyond the tunnel, 
 extending as far as Gravesend, the oed of black basaltio 
 rock instead of London mud, and a fissure made therein 
 from one end of the tunnel to the other down through the 
 keystones of the arch, and prolonged from the left end of 
 the tunnel through thirty miles of hills, the pathway being 
 one hundred feet down from the bed of the river instead 
 of what it is, with the lips of the fissure from eighty to 
 one hundred feet apart, then fancy the Thames leaping 
 boldly into the gulf, and forced there to change its direc- 
 tion and flow from the right to the left bank and then 
 rush boiling and roaring through the hills, he may have 
 some idea of what takes place at this, the most wonderful 
 sight I had witnessed in Africa. In looking down into the 
 fissure on the right of the island, one sees nothing but a 
 dense white cloud, which, at the time we visited the spot, 
 had two bright rainbows on it. (The sun was on the 
 meridian, and the declination about equal to the latitude 
 of the place.) From this cloud rushed up a great jet of 
 vapor exactly like steam, and it mounted two hundred <">r 
 three hundred feet high; there, condensing, it changed its 
 hue to that of dark smoke, and came back in a constant 
 shower, which soon wetted us to the skin. This shower 
 falls chiefly on the opposite side of the fissure, and a few 
 yards back from the lip there stands a straight hedge of 
 evergreen trees, whose leaves are always wet. From their 
 roots a number of little rills run back into the gulf; butj 
 as they flow down the steep wall there, the column of 
 vapor, in its ascent, licks thern up clean off the rock, and 
 away they mount again. They are constantly running 
 down, but never reach the bottom. 
 
332 GIGANTIC FISSURE. 
 
 On the left of the island we see the water at the bottom, 
 a white rolling mass moving away to the prolongation of 
 the fissure, which branches off near the left bank of the 
 river. A piece of the rock has fallen off a spot on the left 
 of the island, and juts out from the water below, and from 
 it I judged the distance which the water falls to be about 
 one hundred feet. The walls of this gigantic crack are 
 perpendicular, and composed of one homogeneous mass of 
 rock. The edge of that side over which the water falls is 
 worn off two or three feet, and pieces have fallen away, so 
 as to give it somewhat of a serrated appearance. That 
 over which the water does not fall is quite straight, except 
 at the left corner, where a rent appears and a piece seems 
 inclined to fall off. Upon the whole, it is nearly in the 
 state in which it was left at the period of its formation. 
 The rock is dark brown in color, except about ten feet from 
 the bottom, which is discolored by the annual rise of the 
 water to that or a greater height. On the left side of the 
 island we have a good view of the mass of water which 
 causes one of the columns of vapor to ascend, as it leaps 
 quite clear of the rock, and forms a thick unbroken fleece 
 all the way to the bottom. Its whiteness gave the idea of 
 snow, a sight I had not seen for many a day. As it broke 
 into (if I may use the term) pieces of water all rushing on 
 m the same direction, each gave off several rays of foam, 
 exactly as bits of steel, when burned in oxygen gas, give 
 off rays of sparks. The snow-white sheet seemed like 
 myriads of small comets rushing on in one direction, each 
 of which left behind its nucleus-rays of foam. I never saw 
 the appearance referred to noticed elsewhere. It seemed 
 to be the effect of the mass of water leaping at once cleai 
 of the rock and but slowly breaking up into opray. 
 
 I have mentioned that we saw five columns of vapoi 
 ascending from this strange abyss. They are evidently 
 formed by the compression suffered by the force of the 
 water's own fall into an unyielding wedge-shaped space. 
 Of the five columns, two on the right and one on the left of 
 
ISLAND GARDEN 833 
 
 the island were the largest, and the streams which formed 
 them seemed each to exceed in size the falls of the Clyde 
 at Stonebyres when that "river is in flood. This was the 
 period of low-water in the Leeambye: but, as far as I 
 could guess, there was a flow of five or six hundred yards 
 of water, which, at the edge of the fall, seemed at least 
 three feet deep. 
 
 Having feasted my eyes long on the beautiful sight, I 
 returned to my friends at Kalai, and, saying to Sekeletu 
 that he had nothing else worth showing in his country, his 
 curiosity was excited to visit it the next day. I returned 
 with the intention of taking a lunar observation from the 
 island itself; but the clouds were unfavorable, consequently 
 all my determinations of position refer to Kalai. (Lat. 17° 
 51' 54" S., long. 25° 41' E.) Sekeletu acknowledged to feel- 
 ing a little nervous at the probability of being sucked into 
 the gulf before reaching the island. His companions 
 amused themselves by throwing stones down, and won- 
 dered to see them diminishing in size, and even disappear- 
 ing, before they reached the water at the bottom. 
 
 I had another object in view in my return to the island. 
 I observed that it was covered with trees, the seeds of 
 which had probably come down with the stream from the 
 distant north, and several of which I had seen nowhere 
 else, and every now and then the wind wafted a little of 
 the condensed vapor over it, and kept the soil in a state of 
 moisture, which caused a sward of grass, growing as green 
 as on an English lawn. I selected a spot — not too near 
 the chasm, for there the constant deposition of the moisture 
 nourished numbers of polypi of a mushroom shape and" 
 fleshy consistence, but somewhat back — and made a little 
 garden. I there planted about a hundred peach and apricot 
 stones, and a quantity of coffee-seeds. I had attempted 
 fruit-trees before, but, when left in charge of my Makololo 
 friends, they were always allowed to wither, after having 
 vegetated, by being forgotten. I bargained for a hedge 
 with one of the Makololo, and, if he is faithful, 1 have great 
 
334 RESUMPTION OF THE JOURNEY. 
 
 hopes of Mosioatunya's abilities as a nursery-man. My 
 only source of fear is the hippopotami, whose footprints 1 
 saw on the island. When the garden was prepared,i,I cut 
 my initials on a tree, and the date 1855. This was the only 
 instance in which I indulged in this piece of vanity. The 
 garden stands in front, and, were there no hippopotami, I 
 have no doubt but this will be the parent of all the gardens 
 which may yet be in this new country. We then went up 
 to Kalai again. 
 
 20th November. — Sekeletu and his large party having 
 conveyed me thus far, and furnished me with a company 
 of one hundred and fourteen men to carry the -tusks to the 
 coast, we bade adieu to the Makololo and proceeded north- 
 ward to the Lekone. The country around is very beautiful, 
 and was once well peopled with Batoka, who possessed 
 enormous herds of cattle. When Sebituane came in former 
 times, with his small but warlike party of Makololo, to 
 this spot, a general rising took place of the Batoka through 
 the whole country, in order to "eat him up;" but his usual 
 success followed him, and, dispersing them, the Makololo 
 obtained so many cattle that they could not take any note 
 of the herds of sheep and goats. The tsetse has been 
 brought by buffaloes into some districts where formerly 
 cattle abounded. This obliged us to travel the first few 
 stages by night. We could not well detect the nature of 
 the country in the dim moonlight: the path, however, 
 seemed to lead along the high bank of what may have 
 been the ancient bed of the Zambesi before the fissure was 
 made. The Lekone now winds in it in an opposite direc- 
 tion to that in which the ancient river must have flowed. 
 
 24:th. — We remained a day at the village of Moyara. 
 Here the valley in which the Lekone flows trends away to 
 the eastward, while our course is more to the northeast. 
 The country is rocky and rough, the soil being red sand, 
 which is covered with beautiful green trees, yielding abun- 
 dance of wild fruits. The father of Moyara was a powerful 
 chief; but the son now sits among the ruins of the town. 
 
fiAVAGE CUSTOMS OF BATOKA. 335 
 
 with four or fivo wives and very few people. At his hamlet 
 a number of stakes are planted in the ground, and I counted 
 fifty-four human skulls hung on their points. These were 
 Matebele, who, unable to approach Sebituane on the island 
 of Loyela, had returned sick and famishing. Moyara's 
 father took advantage of their reduced condition, and, after 
 putting them to death, mounted their heads in the Batoka 
 fashion. The old man who perpetrated this deed now lies 
 iu the middle Of his son's huts, with a lot of rotten ivory 
 over his grave. One cannot help feeling thankful that the 
 reign of such wretches is over. They inhabited the whole 
 of this side of the country, and wero probably the barrier to 
 the extension of the Portuguese commerce in this direction. 
 When looking at these skulls, I remarked to Moyara that 
 many of them were those of mere boys. He assented 
 readily, and pointed them out as such. I asked why his 
 father had killed boys. " To show his fierceness," was the 
 answer. "Is it fierceness to kill boys?" "Yes : they had 
 no business here." When I told him that this would pro- 
 bably insure his own death if the Matebele came again, he 
 replied, " When I hear of their coming I shall hide the 
 bones." Ho was evidently proud of these trophies of 
 his father's ferocity ; and I was assured by other Batoka 
 that few strangers ever returned from a visit to this quar. 
 ter. If a man wished to curry favor with a Batoka chief, 
 he ascertained when a stranger was about to leave, and 
 waylaid him at a distance from the town, and when he 
 brought his head back to the chief it w T as mounted as a 
 trophy, the different chiefs vieing with each other as to 
 which should mount the greatest number of skulls in hii 
 village. 
 
 Next day we came to Namilanga, or " The Well of Joy." 
 It is a small well dug beneath a very large fig-tree, the 
 shade of which renders the water delightfully cool. The 
 temperature through the day was 104° in the shade and 94° 
 after sunset, but the air was not at all oppressive. Thia 
 well receives its name ironi the fact that, in former times, 
 
836 KNOCKING OUT FRONT TEETH. 
 
 marauding-parties, in returning with cattle, sat down her« 
 and were regaled with boyaloa, music, and the lullilooing 
 of the women from the adjacent towns. 
 
 All the surrounding country was formerly densely peo- 
 pled, though now desolate and still. The old head-man 
 of the place told us that his father once went to Bambala, 
 where white traders lived, when our informant was a child, 
 and returned when he had become a boy of about ten years 
 He went again, and returned when it was time to knock 
 out his son's teeth. As that takes place at the age of 
 puberty, he must have spent at least five years in each 
 -ourney. He added that many who went there never re- 
 turned, because they liked that country better than this. 
 They had even forsaken their wives and children; and 
 children had been so enticed and flattered by the finery 
 bestowed upon them there that they had disowned their 
 parents and adopted others. The place to which they had 
 gone, which they named Bambala, was probably Damba- 
 rari, which was situated close to Zumbo. This was the 
 first intimation we had of intercourse with the whites. 
 The Barotse, and all the other tribes in the central valley, 
 have no such tradition as this; nor have either the one or 
 the other any account of a trader's visit to them in ancient 
 times. 
 
 All theBatoka tribes followthe curious custom of knock- 
 ing out the upper front teeth at the age of puberty. This 
 is done by both sexes ; and though the under teeth, being 
 relieved from the attrition of the upper, grow long and 
 somewhat bent out and thereby cause the under lip to pro- 
 trude in a most unsightly way, no young woman thinks 
 herself accomplished until she has got rid of the upper in- 
 cisors. This custom gives all the Batoka an uncouth, old- 
 man-like appearance. Their laugh is hideous; yet they 
 are so attached to it that even Sebituane was unable to 
 eradicate the practice. He issued orders that none of the 
 children living under him shovld be subjected to the custom 
 by their parents, and disobedience to his mandates was 
 
THE TRAVELLING PARTY. 337 
 
 usually punished with severity; but, notwithstanding this, 
 the children would appear in the streets without their in- 
 cisors, and no one would confess to the deed. When ques- 
 tioned respecting the origin of this practice, the Batoka 
 roply that their object is to be like oxen, and those who 
 retain their teeth they consider to resemble zebras. 
 Whether this is the true reason or not it is difficult to 
 say : but it is noticeable that the veneration for oxen which 
 prevails in many tribes should be associated with hatred 
 to the zebra, as among the Bakwains, that this operation 
 is performed at the same age that circumcision is in other 
 tribes, and that here that ceremony is unknown. The 
 custom is so universal that a person who has his teeth is 
 considered ugly; and occasionally, when the Batoka bor- 
 rowed my looking-glass, the disparaging remark would be 
 made respecting boys or girls who still retained their teeth, 
 " Look at the great teeth !" Some of the Makololo give a 
 more facetious explanation of the custom : they say that, 
 the wife of a chief having in a quarrel bitten her husband's 
 hand, he, in revenge, ordered her front teeth to be knocked 
 out, and all the men in the tribe followed his example : but 
 this does not explain why they afterward knocked out 
 their own. 
 
 The Batoka of the Zambesi are generally very dark in 
 color and very degraded and negro-like in appearance, 
 while those who live on the high lands we are now ascend- 
 ing are frequently of the color of coffee and milk. We 
 had a large number of the Batoka of Mok^vine in our 
 party, sent by Sekeletu to carry his tusks. Their greater 
 degradation was probably caused by the treatment of their 
 chiefs, — the barbarians of the islands. I found them more 
 difficult to manage than any of the rest of my companions, 
 being much less reasonable and impressible than the others. 
 My party consisted of the head-men aforementioned, Sck. 
 webu, and Kanyata. Wo were joined at the falls by 
 another head-man of the Makololo, named Mon atria, in 
 command of the Batoka. We had also some of the Bana- 
 W 29 
 
888 REMAINS OP ANTIQUITY. 
 
 joa under Mosisinyane, and, last of all, a small party of 
 Bashubia and Barotse under Tuba Mokoro, which had been 
 furnished by Sekeletu because of their ability to swim 
 They carried their paddles with them, and, as the Makololo 
 suggested, were able to swim over the rivers by night "and 
 steal canoes if the inhabitants should be so unreasonable 
 as to refuse to lend them. These different parties assorted 
 together into messes : any orders were given through their 
 head-man, and when food was obtained he distributed it to 
 the mess. Each party knew its own spot in the encamp 
 ment ; and, as this was always placed so that our backs 
 should be to the east, the direction from whence the pre- 
 vailing winds came, no time was lost in fixing the sheds of 
 our encampment. They each took it in turn to pull grass 
 to make my bed ; so I lay luxuriously. 
 
 November 26. — As the oxen could only move at night, in 
 consequence of a fear that the buffaloes in this quartei 
 might have introduced the tsetse, I usually performed the 
 march by day on foot, while some of the men brought on 
 the oxen by night. On coming to the villages undei 
 Marimba, an old man, we crossed the Unguesi, a rivulet 
 which, like the Lekone, runs backward. It falls into the 
 Leeambye a little above the commencement of the rapids. 
 
 "We passed the remains of a very large town, which, fronr 
 the only evidence of antiquity afforded by ruins in this 
 country, must have been inhabited for a long period : the 
 millstones of gneiss, trap, and quartz were worn down two 
 and a half inches perpendicularly. The ivory gravestones 
 soon rot away. Those of Moyara's father, who must have 
 died not more than a dozen years ago, were crumbling into 
 powder ; and we found this to be generally the case all 
 over the Batoka country. The region around is pretty 
 well covered with forest ; but there is abundance cf open 
 pasturage, and, as we are ascending in altitude, we find 
 the grass to be short and altogether unlike the tangled 
 herbage of the Barotse valley. 
 
LOW HILLS. 3Sy 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE BATOKA COUNTRY — DR. LIVINGSTONE VISITS THE CHI EI 
 
 MONZE. 
 
 November 27. — Still at Marimba's. In the adjacent 
 country palms abound, but none of that species which 
 yields the oil: indeed, that is met with only near the 
 coast. There are numbers of flowers and bulbs just shoot- 
 ing up from the soil. The surface is rough and broken 
 into gullies; and, though the countiy is parched, it has 
 not that appearance, so many trees having put forth their 
 fresh green leaves at the time the rains ought to have 
 come. Among the rest stands the mola, with its dark 
 brownish-green color and spreading oak-like form. In the 
 distance there are ranges of low hills. On the north we 
 have one called Kanjele, and to the east that of Kaonka, to 
 which we proceed to-morrow. We have made a consider- 
 able detour to the north, both on account of our wish to 
 avoid the tsetse and to visit the people. Those of Kaonka 
 are the last Batoka we shall meet in friendship with the 
 Makololo. 
 
 November 28. — The inhabitants of the last of Kaonka's 
 villages complained of being plundered by the independent 
 Batoka. The tribes in front of this are regarded by the 
 Makololo as in a state of rebellion. I promised to speak to 
 the rebels on the subject, and enjoined on Kaonka the duty 
 of giving them no offence. According to Sekeletu's order, 
 Kaonka gave us the tribute of maize-corn and groundnut* 
 which would otherwise have gone to Linyanti. This had 
 been done at esrery village, and we thereby saved the 
 people the trouble of a journey to the capital. My own 
 Batoka had brought away such loads of provisions from 
 their homes that we were in no want of food. 
 
tJ40 BORDER-TERRITORY 
 
 After leaving Kaonka, we travelled over an uninhabited, 
 gently-undulating, and most beautiful district, the border, 
 territory between those who accept and those who reject 
 the sway of the Makololo. The face of the country appears 
 as if in long waves running north and south. There are 
 no rivers, though water stands in pools in the hollows. 
 We were .now come into the country which my people all 
 magnify as a perfect paradise. Sebituane was driven from 
 it by the Matebele. It suited him exactly for cattle, corn, 
 and health. The soil is dry, and often a reddish sand: 
 there are few trees, but fine large shady ones stand dotted 
 here and there over the country where towns formerly 
 stood. One of the fig family I measured and found to be 
 forty feet in circumference ; the heart had been burned out, 
 and some one had made a lodging in it, for we saw the 
 remains of a bed and a fire. The sight of the open country, 
 with the increased altitude we were attaining, was most 
 refreshing to the spirits. Large game abound. We see in 
 the distance buffaloes, elands, hartebeest, gnus, and ele- 
 phants, all very tame, as no one disturbs them. Lions, 
 which always accompany other large animals, roared about 
 us; but, as it was moonlight, there was no danger. In the 
 evening, while standing on a mass of granite, one began to 
 roar at me, though it was still light. The temperature was 
 pleasant, as the rains, though not universal, had fallen in 
 many places. It was very cloudy, preventing observations. 
 1 The temperature at 6 a.m. was 70°, at mid-day 90°, in the 
 evening 84°. This is very pleasant on the high lands, with 
 but little moisture in the air. 
 
 On the 30th we crossed the river Kalomo, which is about 
 fifty yards broad, and is the only stream that never dries 
 ap on this ridge. The current is rapid, and its course is 
 toward the south, as it joins the Zambesi at some distance 
 below the falls. The Ungues! and Lekone, with their 
 feeders, flow westward, this river to the south, and all 
 those to which we are about to come take an easterly di- 
 rection. We were thus at the apex of the ridge, and found 
 
WOUNDED BUFFALO ASSISTED. 34] 
 
 that, as water boiled at 202°, our altitude above the level 
 of the sea was over 5000 feet. 
 
 We met an elephant on the Kalomo which had no tusks 
 This is as rare a thing in Africa as it is to find them witk 
 tusks in Ceylon. As soon as she saw us she made off. It 
 .s remarkable to see the fear of man operating ever on this 
 huge beast. Buffaloes abound, and we see large herds of 
 them feeding in all directions by day. When much dis- 
 turbed by man, they retire into the densest parts of the 
 forest and feed by night only. We secured a fine large 
 bull by crawling close to, a herd. When shot, he fell down, 
 and the rest, not seeing their enemy, gazed about, wonder- 
 ing where the danger lay. The others came back to it, 
 and, when we showed ourselves, much to the amusement 
 of my companions, they lifted him up with their horns, 
 and, half supporting him in the crowd, bore him away. 
 All these wild animals usually gore a wounded companion 
 and expel him from the herd; even zebras bite and kick 
 an unfortunate or a diseased one. It is intended by this 
 instinct that none but the perfect and healthy ones should 
 propagate the species. In this case they manifested their 
 usual propensity to gore the wounded ; but our appearance 
 at that moment caused them to take flight, and this, with 
 the goring being continued a little, gave my men the im- 
 pression that they were helping away their wounded com- 
 panion. He was shot between the fourth and fifth ribs; 
 the ball passed through both lungs and a rib on the oppo- 
 site side, and then lodged beneath, the skin. But, though 
 it was eight ounces in weight, yet he ran off some distance, 
 and was secured only by the people driving him into a pool 
 of water and killing him there with their spears. The 
 herd ran away in the direction of our camp, and then came 
 bounding past us again. We took refuge on a large ant- 
 hill, and as they rushed by us at full gallop I had a good 
 opportunity of seeing that the leader of a herd of about 
 sixty was an old cow : all the others allowed her a full 
 half-length in their front. On her withers sat about twentj 
 
 29* 
 
S42 THE BUFFALO-BIRD. 
 
 buffalo-birds, (Textor erythrorhynchus, Smith,) which act <V« 
 part of guardian spirits to the animals. When the buffalo 
 is quietly feeding, this bird may be seen hopping on the 
 ground picking up food, or sitting on its back ridding it of 
 the insects with which their skins are sometimes infested. 
 The sight of the bird being much more acute than, that of 
 the buffalo, it is soon alarmed by the approach of any dan- 
 ger, and, flying up, the buffaloes instantly raise their heads 
 to discover the cause which has led to the sudden flight of 
 their guardian. • They sometimes accompany the buffaloes 
 in their flight on the wing; at other times they sit as above 
 described. 
 
 Another African bird — namely, the Buphaga Africana — 
 attends the rhinoceros for a similar purpose. It is called 
 "kala" in the language of the Bechuanas. When these 
 people wish to express their dependence upon another, 
 they address him as "my rhinoceros," as if they were the 
 birds. The satellites of a chief go by the same name 
 This bird cannot be said to depend entirely on the insects 
 on that animal, for its hard, hairless skin is a protection 
 against all except a few spotted ticks; but it seems to be 
 attached to the beast somewhat as the domestic dog is to 
 man; and, while the buffalo is alarmed by the sudden flying 
 up of its sentinel, the rhinoceros, not having keen sight, 
 but an acute ear, is warned by the cry of its associate, the 
 Buphaga Africana. The rhinoceros feeds by night, and its 
 sentinel is frequently heard in the morning uttering its 
 well-known call as it searches for its bulky companion. 
 One species of this bird, observed in Angola, possesses a bill of 
 a peculiar scoop or stone-forceps form, as if intended only 
 tc tear off insects from the skin; and its claws are as sharp 
 us needles, enabling it to hang on to an animal's ear while 
 performing a useful service within it. This sharpness of 
 the claws allows the bird to cling to the nearly-insensible 
 cuticle without irritating the nerves of pain on the true 
 skin, exactly as a burr does to the human hand; but, in the 
 case of the Buphaga Africana and erythrorhyncha, ether 
 
LEADERS OF IIERDS. 343 
 
 food is partaken of, for we observed flocks of them roosting 
 on the reeds in spots where neither tame nor wild animals 
 were to be found. 
 
 The most wary animal in a herd is generally the "leader." 
 When it is shot, the others often seem at a loss what to do 
 and stop in a state of bewilderment. I have seen them 
 then attempt to follow each other, and appear quite con- 
 fused, no one knowing for half a minute or more where to 
 direct the flight. On one occasion I happened to shoot the 
 leader, a young zebra mare, which at some former time 
 had been bitten on the hind-leg by a carnivorous animal, 
 and, thereby made unusually wary, had, in consequence, 
 become a leader. If they see either one of their own herd 
 or any other animal taking to flight, wild animals invariably 
 flee. The most timid thus naturally leads the rest. It is 
 not any other peculiarity, but simply this provision, which 
 is given them for tho preservation of the race. The great 
 Increase of wariness which is seen to occur when the females 
 bring forth their young, causes all the leaders to be at that 
 time females; and there is a probability that the separa- 
 tion of sexes into distinct herds, which is annually observed 
 in many antelopes, arising from the simple fact that the 
 greater caution of the she antelopes is partaken of only by 
 the young males, and their more frequent flights now havo 
 the effect of leaving the old males behind. I am inclined 
 to believe this, because they are never seen in the act ot 
 expelling the males. 
 
 December 2, 1855. — We remained near a small hill, called 
 Biaundo, where we began to be frequently invited by the 
 honey-guide, (Cuculus indicator.) Wishing to ascertain the 
 truth of the native assertion that this bird is a deceiver, 
 and by its call sometimes leads to a wild beast and not to 
 honey, I inquired if any of my men had ever been led by 
 this friendly little bird to any thing else than what its 
 name implies. Only one of the one hundred and fourteen 
 could say he had been led to an elephant instead of a hive* 
 1 am quite convinced that the majority of people who 
 
844 sebituane'b former residence 
 
 commit themselves to its guidance are led to honey, and tc 
 it alone. 
 
 On the 3d we crossed the river Mozuma, or river of Dila, 
 having travelled through a beautifully-undulating pastoral 
 country. To the south, and a little east of this, stands tho 
 hill Taba Cheu, or " White Mountain," from a mass" of white 
 rock, probably dolomite, on its top. But none of the hills 
 are of any great altitude. 
 
 At the river of Dila we saw the spot where Sebituane 
 lived, and Sekwebu pointed out the heaps of bones of cattle 
 which the Makololo had been obliged to slaughter after 
 performing a march with great herds captured from the 
 Batoka through a patch of the fatal tsetse. s When Sebi- 
 tuane saw the symptoms of the poison, he gave orders to 
 his people to eat the cattle. He still had vast numbers ) 
 and when the Matebele, crossing the Zambesi opposite this 
 part, came to attack him, he invited the Batoka to take 
 repossession of their herds, he having so many as to be 
 anable to guide them in their flight. The country was at 
 that time exceedingly rich in cattle, and, besides pasturage, 
 it is all well adapted for the cultivation of native produce. 
 Being on the eastern slope of the ridge, it receives more 
 rain than any part of the westward. Sekwebu had been 
 instructed to point out to me the advantages of this posi- 
 tion for a settlement, as that which all the Makololo had 
 never ceased to regret. It needed no eulogy from Sek- 
 webu; I admired it myself, and the enjoyment of good 
 health in fine open scenery had an exhilarating effect on 
 my spirits. The great want was population, the Batoka 
 having all taken refuge in the hills. We were now in the 
 vicinity of those whom the Makololo deem rebels, and felt 
 gome anxiety as to how we should be received. 
 
 On the 4th we reached their first village. Remaining at 
 a distance of a quarter of a mile, we sent two men to 
 inform them who we were and that our purposes were 
 peaceful. The head-man came and spoke civilly, but, when 
 nearly dark, the people of another village arrived and 
 
PROPHETIC FRENZY. 34ft 
 
 behaved vory differently. They began by trying to spea* 
 a young man who had gone for water. Then they ap- 
 proached us, and one came forward howling at the 1op oi 
 hit* voice in the most hideous manner : his eyos were shot 
 out, his lips covered with foam, and every muscle of hi* 
 frame quivered. Ho came near to me, and, having a small 
 battle-axe in his hand, alarmed my men lest he might 
 do violence; but they were afraid to disobey my previous 
 orders and to follow their own inclination by knocking 
 him on the head. I felt a little alarmed too, but would not 
 Bhow fear before my own people or strangers, and kept a 
 sharp look-out on the little battle-axe. It seemed to me a 
 case of ecstasy or prophetic frenzy voluntarily produced. I 
 felt it would be a sorry way to leave the world to get 
 my head chopped by a mad savage, though that, perhaps, 
 would be preferable to hydrophobia or delirium tremens. 
 Sekwebu took a spear in his right hand, as if to pierce a 
 bit of leather, but in reality to plunge it into the man if he 
 offered violence to me. After my courage had been suffi- 
 ciently tested, I beckoned with the head to the civil head- 
 man to remove him ; and he did so by drawing him aside. 
 This man pretended not to know what ho was doing. I 
 would fain have felt his pulse, to ascertain whether the 
 violent trembling were not feigned, but had not much 
 inclination to go near the battle-axe again. There was, 
 however, a flow of perspiration, and the excitement con- 
 tinued fully half an hour, then gradually ceased. This 
 paroxysm is the direct opposite of hypnotism, and it is 
 singular that it has not been tried in Europe as well as 
 clairvoyance. This second batch of visitors took no pains 
 to conceal their contempt for our small party, saying to 
 each other, in a tone of triumph, "They are quite a god- 
 send !" — literally, " God has apportioned them to us." " They 
 are lost among the tribes I" " They have wandered in order 
 to be destroyed, and what can they do without shields 
 among so many?" Some of them asked if there were no 
 other parties. Sekeletu had ordered my men not to take 
 
346 CLOTHING DESPISED 
 
 their shields, as in the case of my first company. We 
 were looked upon as unarmed, and an easy prey. We 
 prepared against a night-attack by discharging and re- 
 loading our guns, which were exactly the same .n number 
 (five) as on the former occasion, as I allowed my iate com- 
 panions to retain those which I purchased at Loanda. We 
 were not molested; but some of the enemy tried to lead ue 
 toward the Bashukulompo, who are considered to be the 
 fiercest race in this quarter. As we knew our direction to 
 the confluence of the Kafue and Zambesi, we declined their 
 guidance, and the civil head-man of the evening before 
 then came along with us. Crowds of natives hovered 
 round us in the forest ; but he ran forward and explained, 
 and we were not molested. That night we slept by a little 
 village under a low range of hills, which are called Chiza- 
 mena. The country here is more woody than on the high 
 lands we had left; but the trees are not in general large. 
 
 When we had passed the outskirting villages which alone 
 consider themselves in a state of war with the Makololo, 
 we found the Batoka, or Batonga, as they here call them- 
 selves, quite friendly. Great numbers of them came from 
 all the surrounding villages with presents of maize and 
 masuka, and expressed great joy at the first appearance of 
 a white man and harbinger of peace. The women clothe 
 themselves better than the Balonda, but the men go inpuris 
 naturalibus. They walk about without the smallest sense 
 of shame. They have even lost the tradition of the " fig- 
 leaf." I asked a fine, large-bodied old man if he did not 
 think it would be better to adopt a little covering. He 
 looked with a pitying leer, and laughed with surprise at my 
 thinking him at all indecent : he evidently considered him- 
 self above such weak superstition. I told them that, on 
 my return, I should have my family w T ith me, and no one 
 must come near us in that state. "What shall we put on ? 
 we have no clothing." It was considered a good joke 
 when I told them that, if they had nothing else, they must 
 put on a bu»''h of trrass. 
 
STRANGE MODE OF SALUTATION. H47 
 
 The farther wo advanced the more we found the country 
 swarming with inhabitants. Great numbers camo to see 
 the white man, — a Bight they had never beheld before. They 
 always brought presents of maize and masuka. Thefl 
 mode ot salutation is quite singular. They throw them- 
 selves on their backs on the ground, and, rolling from side 
 to side, slap the outside of their thighs as expressions of 
 thankfulness and welcome, uttering the words "Kina 
 bomba." This method of salutation was to me very dis- 
 agreeable, and I never could get reconciled to it. I called 
 out, " Stop, stop! I don't want that;" but they, imagining 
 I was dissatisfied, only tumbled about more furiously and 
 slapped their thighs with greater vigor. The men being 
 totally unclothed, this performance imparted to my mind 
 a painful sense of their extreme degradation. My own 
 Batoka were much more degraded than the Barotse, and 
 more reckless. We had to keep a strict watch, so as not 
 to be involved by their thieving from the inhabitants, in 
 whose country and power we were. We had also to watch 
 the use they made of their tongues, for some within hear- 
 ing of the villagers would say, " I broke all the pots of 
 that village," or "I killed a man there." Tt.oy were 
 eager to recount their soldier-deeds when they were in 
 company with the Makololo in former times as a conquer- 
 ing army. They were thus placing us in danger by their 
 remarks. I called them together, and spoke to them about 
 their folly, and gave them a pretty plain intimation that I 
 meant to insist upon as complete subordination as I had 
 secured in my former journey, as being necessary for the 
 safety of the party. Happily, it never was needful to 
 resort to any other measure for their obedience, as they a>J 
 believe I that I would enforce it. 
 
 December 6. — We passed the night near a series of villages 
 Before we came to a stani under our tree, a man came 
 running to u» with hands and arms firmly bound with 
 jords behind his back, entreating me to release him 
 *Vhen 1 had dismounted, the head-man of the village 
 
348 INTERVIEW WITH MONZE. 
 
 advanced, and I inquired the prisoner's offence. He stated 
 that he had come from the Bashukulompo as a fugitive, and 
 he bad given him a wife and garden and a supply of seed; 
 but ; on refusing a demand for more, the prisoner had 
 threatened to kill him, and had been seen the night before 
 skulking about the village, apparently with that intention. 
 I declined interceding unless he would confess to his father- 
 in-law, and promise amendment. He at first refused to 
 promise to abstain from violence, but afterward agreed. 
 The father-in-law then said that he would take him to the 
 village and release him ; but the prisoner cried out, bitterly, 
 "He will kill me there! don't leave me, white man." I 
 ordered a knife, and one of the villagers released him on 
 the spot. His arms were cut by the cords, and he was 
 quite lame from the blows he had received. 
 
 We spent Sunday, the 10th, at Monze's village, who is 
 considered the chief of all the Batoka we have seen. He 
 lives near the hill Kisekise, whence we have a view of at 
 least thirty miles of open undulating country, covered with 
 short grass and having but few trees. These open lawns 
 would in any other land, as well as this, be termed pas- 
 toral ; but the people have no cattle, and only a few goats 
 and fowls. 
 
 The chief Monze came to us on Sunday morning, wrapped 
 in a large cloth, and rolled himself about in the dust, 
 screaming "Kina bomba," as they all do. The sight of 
 great naked men wallowing on the ground, though intended 
 to do me honor, was always very painful : it made me feel 
 thankful that my lot had been cast in such different cir- 
 cumstances from that of so many of ,my fellow-men. One 
 of his wives accompanied him; she would have been comely 
 if her teeth had been spared: she had a little battle-axe in 
 her hand, and helped her husband to scream. She was 
 much excited, for she had never seen a white man before 
 We rather liked Monze, for he soon felt at home among us, 
 and kept up conversation during much of the day. One 
 head-man of a village after another arrived, and each oi 
 
FRIENDLY FEELINGS TOWARD EUROPEANS. 349 
 
 them supplied us liberally with maize, groundnuts, and 
 corn. Monze gave us a goat and a fowl, and appeared 
 highly satisfied with a present of some handkerchiefs I had 
 got in my supplies left at the island. Being of printed 
 cotton, they excited great admiration; and, when I put a 
 gaudy-colored one as a shawl about his child, ho said that 
 he would send for all his people to make a dance about it. 
 In telling them that my object was to open up a path 
 whereby they might, by getting merchandise for ivory, 
 avoid the guilt of selling their children, I asked Monze, 
 with about one hundred and fifty of his men, if they would 
 like a white man to live among them and teach them. All 
 expressed high satisfaction at the prospect of the white 
 man and his path : they would protect both him and his 
 property. I asked the question, because it would be of 
 great importance to have stations in this healthy region, 
 whither agents oppressed by sickness might retire, and 
 which would serve, moreover, as part of a chain of com- 
 munication between the interior and the coast. The 
 answer does not mean much more than what I know, by 
 other means, to be the case, — that a white man of good sense 
 would be welcome and safe in all these parts. By upright- 
 ness, and laying himself out for the good of the people, he 
 would be known all over the country as a benefactor of the 
 race. None desire Christian instruction, for of it they 
 nave no idea. But the people are now humbled by the 
 scourgings they have received, and seem to be in a favor- 
 able state for the reception of the gospel. The gradual 
 restoration of their former prosperity in cattle, simul- 
 taneously w T ith instruction, would operate beneficially upon 
 their minds. The language is a dialect of the other negro 
 languages in the great valley; and, as many of the Batoka 
 living under the Makololo understand both it and the 
 Sichuana, missionaries could soon acquire it through that 
 medium. 
 
 Monze had never been visited by any white man, but 
 had seen black native traders, who, he said, came for ivory 
 
 30 
 
550 GRATITUDE OF RELEASED CAI»TIVE. 
 
 not for slaves. He had heard of white men passing far U> 
 the east of him to Cazembe, — referring, no doubt, to Pereira f 
 Lacerda, and others, who have visited that chief. 
 
 Monze came on Monday morning, and on parting, pre- 
 sented us with a piece of a buffalo which had been killed 
 the day before by lions. We crossed the rivulet Makoo, 
 which runs westward into the Kafue, and went northward 
 in order to visit Semalembue, an influential chief there. 
 We slept at the village of Monze's sister, who also passos 
 by the same name. Both he and his sister are feminine in, 
 their appearance, but disfigured by the foolish custom of 
 knocking out the upper front teeth. 
 
 It is not often that jail-birds turn out well ; but the first 
 person who appeared to welcome us at the village of 
 Monze's sister was the prisoner we had released in the 
 way. He came with a handsome present of corn and 
 meal, and, after praising our kindness to the villagers who 
 had assembled around us, asked them, " What do you stand 
 gazing at ? Don't you know that they have mouths like 
 other people ?" He then set off and brought large bundles 
 of grass and wood for our comfort, and a pot to cook our 
 food in. 
 
 December 12. — The morning presented the appearance of 
 a continuous rain from the north, — the first time we had 
 seen it set in from that quarter in such a southern latitude. 
 In the Bechuana country, continuous rains are always from 
 the northeast or east, while in Londa and Angola they are 
 from the north. At Pungo Andongo^ for instance, the 
 whitewash is all removed from the north side of the houses. 
 It cleared up, however, about nid-day, and Monze's sister 
 conducted us a mile or two upon the road. On parting, 
 »he said that she had forwarded orders to a distant village 
 to send food to the point where we should sleep. In ex- 
 pressing her joy at the prospect of living in peace, she said 
 it would be so pleasant " to sleep without dreaming of any 
 one pursuing them with a spear." 
 
 In Our front we had ranges of hills called Chamai, covered 
 
EFFECT OF RAINS 3ft 1 
 
 W/th treos. We crossed the river Nackachinta, flowing 
 westward into the Kafue, and then passed over ridges of 
 rocks of the same mica schist which we found so abundant 
 in Golungo Alto : here they were surmounted by reddish 
 porphyry and finely-laminated feldspathic grit with trap. 
 
 As we passed along, the people continued to supply us 
 with food in great abundance. They had by some means 
 or other got a knowledge that 1 carried medicine, and, 
 somewhat to the disgust of my men, who wished to keep 
 it all to themselves, brought their sick children for euro. 
 Some of them I found had hooping-cough, which is one of 
 the low epidemics that range through this country. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 L»R. LIVINGSTONE DESCENDS THE ZAMBESI RIVER TO ITS CON- 
 FLUENCE WITH THE LOANGWA. 
 
 13th. — The country is becoming very beautiful, and fur- 
 rowed by deep valleys; the underlying rocks, being igneous, 
 have yielded fertile soil. There is great abundance of large 
 game. The buffaloes select open spots, and often eminences, 
 as standing-placos through the day. We crossed the Mbai, 
 and found in its bed rocks of pink marble. Some little 
 hills near it arc capped by marble of beautiful whiteness, 
 the underlying rock being igneous. Violent showers occur 
 frequently on the bills, and cause such sudden sweeping floods 
 m these rivulets that five of our men, who had gone to the 
 other side for firewood, were obliged to ^swim back. The 
 temperature of the air :s lowered considerably by the daily 
 rains. Several times the thermometer at sunrise has been 
 as low as 08°, and 71° at sunset. Generally, however, it 
 stood at from 72° to 74° at sunrise, 99° to 9G° at mid-Jay, and 
 
S52 AN ELEPHANT SHOT. 
 
 80° to 84° at sunset. The sensation, however, as before 
 remarked, was not disagreeable. 
 
 14th. — We entered a most beautiful valley, abounding in 
 large game. Finding a buffalo lying down, I went to 
 secure him for our food. Three balls did not kill him, and, 
 as he turned round as if for a charge, we ran for the shelter 
 of some rocks. Before we gained them, we found that 
 three elephants, probably attracted by the strange noise, 
 had cut off our retreat on that side : they, however, turned 
 short off, and allowed us to gain tho rocks. We then saw 
 that the buffalo was moving off quite briskly, and, in order 
 not to be entirely balked, I tried a long shot at the last of 
 the elephants, and, to the great joy of my people, broke his 
 fore-leg. The young men soon brought him to a stand, 
 and one shot in the brain despatched him. I was fight 
 glad to see the joy manifested at such an abundant supply 
 of meat. 
 
 On the following day, while my men were cutting up 
 the elephant, great numbers of the villagers came to enjoy 
 the feast. We were on the side of a fine green valley, 
 studded here and there with trees and cut by numerous 
 rivulets. I had retired from the noise, to take an observa- 
 tion among some rocks of laminated grit, when I beheld 
 an elephant and her calf at the end of the valley, about 
 two miles distant. The calf was rolling in the mud, and 
 the dam was standing fanning herself with her great ears. 
 As I looked at them through my glass, I saw a long striug 
 of my own men appearing on the other side of them, and 
 Sekwebu came and told me that these men had gone off, 
 Buying, " Our father will see to-day what sort of men he 
 has got." I then went higher up the side of the valley, in 
 order to have a distinct view of their mode of hunting. 
 The goodly beast, totally unconscious of the approach of 
 an enemy, stood for some time suckling her young one, 
 which seemed about two years old : they then went into a 
 pit containing mud, and smeared themselves all over with 
 it, the little one frisking about his dam, flapping his ears 
 

 in* 
 
ELErHANT-HUNTINQ. 35t 
 
 and tossing his trunk incessantly, in elephantine fashion 
 She kept flapping her ears and wagging her tail, us it' in 
 the height of enjoyment. Then began the piping of hei 
 enemies, which was performed by blowing into a tube, 01 
 the hands closed together, as boys do into a key. They 
 call out to attract the animal's attention : — 
 
 " chief! chief! we have come to kill you. 
 
 chief! chief! many more will die besides you," &c. 
 44 The gods have said it," &c. &c. 
 
 Both animals expanded their ears. and listened, then left 
 their bath as the crowd rushed toward them. The little 
 one ran forward toward the end of the valley, out, seeing 
 the men there, returned to his dam. She placed herself on 
 the danger-sid'e of her calf, and passed her proboscis over it 
 again and again, as if to assure it of safoty. She frequently 
 looked back to the men, who kept up an incessant shouting, 
 singing, and piping; then looked at ner young one and 
 ran after it, sometimes sideways, as if ner feelings were 
 divided between anxiety to protect her offspring and desire 
 to revenge the temerity of her persecutors. The men kept 
 about a hundred yards in her rear, and some that distance 
 from her flanks, and continued thus until she was obliged 
 to cross a rivulet. The time spent in descending and get- 
 ting up the opposite bank allowed of their coming up to 
 the edge and discharging their spears at about twenty 
 yards' distance. After the first discharge she appeared with 
 her sides red with blood, and, beginning to flee for her own 
 life, seemed to think no more of her young. I had pre- 
 viously sent off Sekwebu with orders to spare the calf. It 
 ran very fast, but neither young nor old ever enter into a 
 gallop : their quickest pace is only a sharp walk. Before 
 Sekwebu could reach them, tho calf had taken refuge in 
 the water, and was killed. The pace of the dam gradually 
 became slower. She turned with a shriek of rage, and 
 made a furious charge back among the men. They 
 vanished at right angles to her course, or sideways, and, 
 sb she ran straight on, she went through the whole party 
 
8f)6 ELEPHANT-HUNTING. 
 
 but came near no one except a man who wore a piece of 
 cloth on his shoulders. Bright clothing is always dangeroui 
 in these cases. She charged three or four times, and, ex- 
 cept in the first instance, never went farther than one 
 hundred yards. She often stood after she had crossed a 
 nvuleV and faced the men, though she received fresh 
 epears. It was by this process of spearing and loss of 
 blood that she was killed; for at last, making a short 
 charge, she staggered round and sank down dead in a 
 kneeling posture. I did not^see the whole hunt, having 
 been tempted away by both sun and moon appearing 
 unclouded. I turned from the spectacle of the destruction 
 of noble animals, which might be made so useful in Africa, 
 with a feeling of sickness; and it was not relieved by the 
 recollection that the ivory was mine, though that was tki 
 case. I regretted to see them killeu, and more especially 
 the young one, the meat not being at all necessary at that 
 time ; but it is right to add that I did not feel sick wnen 
 my own blood was up the day before. We ought, perhaps, 
 to judge those deeds more leniently in which we ourselves 
 have no temptation to engage. Had I Aot been previously 
 guilty of doing the very same thing, I might have prided 
 myself on superior humanity when I experienced the 
 nausea in viewing my men kill these two. 
 
 Passing the rivulet Losito, and through the ranges oi 
 hills, we reached the residence of Semalembue on the 18th. 
 His village is situated at the bottom of ranges through 
 which the Kafue finds a passage, and close to the bank 
 of that river. The Kafue, sometimes called Kahowhe or 
 Bashukulompo Eiver, is upward of two hundred yards wide 
 here, and full of hippopotami, the young of which may be 
 Been perched on the necks of their dams. At this point we 
 had reached about the same level as Linyanti. 
 
 tSemalembue paid us a visit soon after our arrival, and 
 <*aid that he had often heard of me, and, now that he had 
 >-he pleasure of seeing me, he feared that I should sleep the 
 *rst night at his village hungry. This was considered the 
 
SEMALEMBUE AND HIS PEOPLE. 357 
 
 nandsome way of introducing a present, for ho then handed 
 five or wx baskets of meal and maize, and an enormous one 
 of groundnuts. Next morning he gave mo about twenty 
 baskets more of meal. I could make but a poor return for 
 his kinaness; but he accepted my apologies politely, saying 
 t\ it he knew there were no goods in the country from 
 which I had come, and, in professing great joy at tho 
 words of peace I spoke, he said, "Now I shall cultivate 
 largely, in the hope of eating and sleeping in peace." It 
 is noticeable that all whom we have yet met eagerly caught 
 up the idea of living in peace a^ the probable effect of tho 
 gospel. They require no explanation of the existence of 
 the Deity. Sekwebu makes use of the term " Reza," and 
 they appear to understand at once. Like negroes in 
 general, they have a strong tendency to worship; and 1 
 heard that Semalembue gets a good deal of ivory from the 
 surrounding tribes on pretence of having some supernatural 
 power. He transmits this to some other chiefs on the 
 Zambesi, and receives in return English cotton goods which 
 come from Mozambique by Babisa traders. My men hero 
 began to sell their beads and other ornaments for cotton 
 cloth. Semalembue was accompanied by about forty peo- 
 ple, all large men. They have much wool on their heads, 
 which is sometimes drawn all together up to the crown 
 and tied there in a large tapering bunch. The forehead 
 and round by tho ears is shaven close to the base of this 
 tuft. Others draw out the hair on one side and twist it 
 into l'ttle strings. The rest is taken over and hangs above 
 tho ear, which gives the appearance of having a cap cocked 
 jauntily on the side of the head. 
 
 Tho mode of salutation is by clapping the hands. Various 
 parties of women came from the surrounding villages to 
 see the white man, but all seemed very much afraid. Their 
 fear, which I seldom could allay, made them, when ad- 
 dressed, clap their hands with increasing vigor. Sekwebu 
 was the only one of the Makololo who knew this part of 
 tho country; and this was tho region which to his mind 
 
35H THE RAFDE. 
 
 was best adapted for the residence of a tribe. The natives 
 generally have a good idea of the nature of the soil and 
 pasturage, and Sekwebu expatiated with great eloquence on 
 the capabilities of this part for supplying the wants of the 
 Makololo. There is certainly abundance of room at pre- 
 sent in the country for thousands and thousands more of 
 population. 
 
 We passed near the Losito, a former encampment of 
 the Matebele, with whom Sekwebu had lived. At the 
 sight of the bones of the oxen they had devoured, and the 
 spot where savage dances had taken place, though all de- 
 serted now, the poor fellow burst out into a wild Matebele 
 song. He pointed out also a district, about two days and 
 a half west of Semalembue, where Sebituane had formerly 
 dwelt. There is a hot fountain on the hills there named 
 " Nakalombo," which may be seen at a distance emitting 
 steam. " There/' said Sekwebu, " had your Molekane [Sebi- 
 tuane] been alive, he would have brought you to live with 
 him. You would be on the bank of the river; and, by 
 taking canoes, you would at once sail down to the Zambesi 
 and visit the white people at the sea." 
 
 The Kafue enters a narrow gorge close by the village of 
 Semalembue : as the hill on the north is called Bolengwe, 
 I apply that name to the gorge, (lat. 15° 48' 19" S., long. 28° 
 22' E.) Semalembue said that he ought to see us over the 
 river; so he accompanied us to a pass about a mile south of 
 his village, and when we entered among the hills we found 
 the ford of the Kafue. On parting with Semalembue 1 
 put on him a shirt, and he went aw T ay with it apparently 
 much delighted. 
 
 The ford was at least 250 yards broad, but rocky and 
 shallow. After crossing it in a canoe, we went along the 
 left bank, and were completely shut in by high hills. 
 
 Semalembue intended that we should go a little to the 
 northeast, and pass through the people called Babimpe, and 
 we saw some of that people, who invited us to ccme that 
 ^ay on a'^'int of its being smoother; but, feeling anxious 
 
BEAUTIFUL SCENERY. 3.% 
 
 to get back to the Zambesi again, we decided to cross the 
 hills toward its confluence with the Kafue. The distance, 
 which in a straight line is but small, occupied three days. 
 The precipitous nature of the sides of this mass of hills 
 knocked up the oxen and forced us to slaughter two, one 
 of which — a very large one, and ornamented with upward 
 of thirty pieces of its own skin detached and hanging 
 down — Sekeletu had wished us to take to the white people 
 as a specimen of his cattle. "We saw many elephants among 
 the hills, and my men ran off and killed three. When wo 
 came to the top of the outer range of the hills, we had a 
 glorious view. At a short distance below us we saw the 
 Kafue, wending away over a forest-clad plain to the con- 
 fluence, and on the other side of the Zambesi, beyond that, 
 lay a long range of dark hills. A lino of fleecy clouds 
 appeared lying along the course of that river at their base. 
 The plain below us, at the left of the Kafue, had more large 
 game on it than anywhere else I had seen in Africa. 
 Hundreds of buffaloes and zebras grazed on the open spaces, 
 and there stood lordly elephants feeding majestically, 
 nothing moving apparently but the proboscis. I wished 
 that 1 had been able to take a photograph of a scene so 
 seldom ) eheld, and which is destined, as gun? increase, to 
 pass away from earth. When we descended, »ve found all 
 the animals remarkably tame. The elephants stood beneath 
 the trees, fanning themselves with their large ears, as if 
 they did not see us at 200 or 300 yards' distance. The 
 number of animals was quite astonishing, and made mo 
 think that here I could realize an image of that time when 
 Megatheria fed undisturbed in the primeval forests. 
 
 We tried to leave one morning, but the rain, coming on 
 afresh, brought us to a stand, and after waiting an hour, 
 wet to the skin, we were fain to retrace our steps to our 
 sheds. These rains were from the east, and the clouds 
 might be seen on the hills exactly as the '* Table-cloth" on 
 Table Mountain. This was the first wetting we had got 
 uince we left Scsheke, for I had gained some experience in 
 
3ft0 IMPROVED HEALTH : THE REASON. 
 
 travelling. In Londa we braved the rain, and, as 1 despised 
 being carried in our frequent passage through running 
 water, I was pretty constantly drenched; but now, when 
 we saw a storm coming, we invariably halted. The men 
 soon pulled grass sufficient to make a little shelter for 
 themselves by placing it on a bush, and, having got my 
 camp-stool and umbrella, with a little grass under my feet, 
 I kept myself perfectly dry. We also lighted large fires, 
 and the men were not chilled by streams of water running 
 down their persons and abstracting the heat, as they would 
 have been had they been exposed to the rain. When it 
 was over they warmed themselves by the fires, and we 
 travelled on comfortably. The effect of this care was that 
 we had much less sickness than with a smaller party in 
 journeying to Loanda. Another improvement made from 
 my experience was avoiding an entire change of diet. In 
 going to Loanda I tbok little or no European food, in order 
 not to burden my men and make them lose spirit, but 
 trusted entirely to what might be got by the gun and the 
 liberality of the Balonda; but on, this journey I took some 
 flour which had been left in the wagon, with some got on 
 the island, and baked my own bread all the way in an ex- 
 temporaneous oven made by an inverted pot. W th these 
 precautions, aided, no doubt, by the greater healthiness 
 of the district over which we passed, I enjoyed perfect 
 health. 
 
 When we left the Chipongo on the 30th, we passed among 
 the range of hills on our left, which are composed of mica 
 and clay slate. At the bottom we found a forest of large 
 sil'cified trees, all lying as if the elevation of the range had 
 made them fall away from it and toward the river. The 
 numbers of large game were quite astonishing. I never 
 Baw elephants so tame as those near the Chiponga : they 
 stood close to our path without being the least afraid. 
 This is different from their conduct where they have been 
 accustomed to guns, for there they take alarm at the dis- 
 tance of a mile, and begin to run if a shot is fired even at 
 
CHARGE OJf AN ELEPHANT. 3(j] 
 
 a longer distance. My men killed another here, and re- 
 warded the villagers of the Chiponga for their liberality in 
 meal by loading them with flesh. We spent a night at a 
 baobab, which was hollow and would hold twenty men 
 i/isido. It had been used as a lodging-house by the Babisa. 
 As wo approached nearer the Zambesi, the country became 
 covered with broad-leaved bushes, pretty thickly planted, 
 and we had several times to shout to elephants to get out 
 of our way. At an open space, a herd of buffaloes came 
 trotting up to look at our oxen ; and it was only by shooting 
 one that I made them retreat. The meat is very much liko 
 that of an ox, and this one was very fine. The only danger 
 we actually encountered was from a female elephant, wiih 
 three young ones of different sizes. Charging through the 
 centre of our extended line, and causing the men to throw 
 down their burdens in a great hurry, she received a spear 
 for her temerity. I never saw an elephant with more 
 than one calf before. We knew that we were near our 
 Zambesi again, even before the great river burst upon our 
 sight, by the numbers of waterfowl we met. I killed 
 four geese with two shots, and, had I followed the wishes 
 of my men, could have secured a meal of waterfowl for 
 the whole party. I never saw a river with so much animal 
 life around and in it, and, as the Barotse say, " Its fish and 
 fowl are always fat." When our eyes were gladdened by a 
 view of its goodly broad waters, we found it very much 
 larger than it is even above the falls. One might try to 
 make his voice heard across it in vain. Its flow was more 
 rapid than near Sesheke, being often four and a half mile* 
 an hour; and, what I never saw before, the water was dis- 
 colored and of a deep brownish red. In the great valley 
 the Leeambyo never becomes of this color. The adjacent 
 countiy, so far north as is known, is all level, and the soil, 
 being generally covered with dense herbage, is not abraded; 
 but on the eastern ridge the case is different : the grass is 
 short, and, the elevation being great, the soil is washed 
 down by the streams, and hence the discoloration which 
 
 Hi 
 
362 TnE ZAMBESI — ISLAN1? OF MENYE. 
 
 we no w view . The same thing was observed on the western 
 ridge. "We never saw discoloration till we reached the 
 Quango : that obtained its matter from the western slope 
 of the western ridge, just as this part of the Zambesi 
 receives its soil from the eastern slope of the eastern ridge. 
 It carried a considerable quantity of wreck of reeds, sticks, 
 and trees. . We struck upon the river about eight miles east 
 of the confluence with the Kafue, and thereby missed a 
 sight of that interesting point. The cloudiness of the 
 weather was such that but few observations could be made 
 for determining our position ; so, pursuing our course, we 
 went down the left bank, and came opposite the island of 
 •Menye makaba. The Zambesi contains numerous islands : 
 this was about a mile and a half or two miles long and up- 
 ward of a quarter of a mile broad. Besides human popu- 
 lation, it has a herd of buffaloes that never leave it. In 
 the distance they seemed to be upward of sixty. The 
 numan and brute inhabitants understand each other; for 
 when the former think they ought to avenge the liberties 
 committed on their gardens, the leaders of the latter come 
 out boldly to give battle. They told us that the only time 
 in which they can thin them is when the river is full and 
 part of the island flooded. They then attack them from 
 their canoes. The comparatively small space to which 
 they have confined themselves shows how luxuriant the 
 vegetation of this region is ; for were they in want of more 
 pasture, as buffaloes can swim well, and the distance from 
 this bank to the island is not much more than 200 yards, 
 they might easily remove hither. The opposite bank is 
 much more distant. 
 
 Ranges of hills appear now to run parallel with the 
 Zambesi, and are about fifteen miles apart. Those on the 
 north approach nearest to the river. The inhabitants on 
 that side are the Batonga, those on the south bank are 
 the Banyai. The hills abound in buffaloes, and elephants 
 are numerous; and many are killed by the people on 
 both banks. They erect stages on high trees overhang' 
 
DEVICES FOR KILLING GAME. 303 
 
 i«ig the paths by which the elephants come, and then use 
 a large spear with a handle nearly as thick as a man's 
 wrist, and four or five feet long. When the animal 
 comes beneath they throw the spear, and if it enters be- 
 tween the ribs above, as the blade is at least twenty inches 
 long by two broad, the motion of the handle, as it is aided 
 by knocking against the trees, makes frightful gashes 
 Within and soon causes death. They kill them also by 
 means of a spear inserted in a beam of wood, which being 
 suspended on a branch of a tree by a cord attached to a 
 latch fastened in the path and intended to be struck by 
 the animal's foot, leads to the fall of the beam, and, the 
 spear being poisoned, causes death in a few hours. 
 
 We were detained by continuous rains several days at 
 this island. The clouds rested upon the tops of the hills as 
 they came from the eastward, and then poured down plen- 
 teous showers on the valleys below. As soon as we could 
 move, Tomba Nyama, the head-man of the island, volun- 
 teered the loan of a canoe to cross a small river, called 
 the Chongwe. which we found to be about fifty or sixty 
 yards broad and flooded. All this part of the country was 
 well known to Sekwebu; and he informed us that, when 
 he passed through 4t as a boy, the inhabitants possessed 
 abundance of cattle and there were no tsefcse. The exist- 
 ence of the insect now shows that it may return in -com- 
 pany with the larger game. The vegetation along the 
 bank was exceedingly rank, and the bushes so tangled that 
 it was difficult to get on. The paths had been made by the 
 wild animals alone, for the general pathway of the people 
 is the river, in their canoes. We usually followed the foot- 
 paths of the game; and of these there was no lack. Buf- 
 faloes, zebras, pallahs, and waterbucks abound ; and there 
 is also a great abundance of wild pigs, koodoos, and the 
 black antelope. We got one buffalo as he was rolling him- 
 jelf in a pool of mud. He had a large piece of skin torn 
 out of his flank, it was believed, by an alligator. 
 
 We were struck by tin fact that, as soon as we came 
 
364 AN ALBINO MURDERED BY HI* MOTHER. 
 
 between the ranges of hills which flank the Zambesi, th<s 
 rains felt warm. At sunrise the thermometer stood at from 
 82° to 86°; at mid-day in the coolest shade, namely, in my 
 little tent under a shady tree, at 96° to 98° ; and at sunset 
 it is 86°. This is different from any thing we experienced 
 in the interior; for these rains always bring down the mer- 
 cury to 72° or even 68°. There, too, we found a small, 
 black coleopterous insect, which stung like the mosquito 
 but injected less poison : it puts us in mind of that insect, 
 which does not exist in the high lands we had left. 
 
 January 6, 1856. — Each village we passed furnished us 
 with a couple of men to take us on to the next. They 
 were useful in showing us the parts least covered with 
 jungle. When we came near a village, we saw men, 
 women, and children employed in weeding their gardens, 
 they being great agriculturists. Most of the men are 
 muscular, and have large ploughman-hands. Their color 
 is the same admixture— from very dark to light olive — 
 that we saw in Londa. Though all .have thick lips and 
 flat noses, only the more degraded of the population pos- 
 sess the ugly negro physiognomy. They mark themselves 
 by a line of little raised cicatrices, each of which is a quar- 
 ter of an inch long : they extend from the tip of the nose 
 to the root of the hair on the forehead. It is remarkable 
 that I never met with an albino in crossing Africa, 
 though, from accounts published by the Portuguese, I wa? 
 led to expect that they were held in favor as doctors by 
 certain chiefs. I saw several in the south : one at Kuru 
 man is a full-grown woman, and a man having thi* pecu- 
 liarity of skin was met with in the colony. Their bodies 
 are always blistered on exposure to the sun, as the skin 
 is more tender than that of the blacks. The Kxrnman 
 woman lived some time at Kolobeng, and generally had on 
 her bosom and shoulders the remains of large bisters. 
 She was most anxious to be made black; but nitrate of 
 silver, taken internally, did not produce its usual effect. 
 During the time I resided at Mabotsa, a woman came js 
 
" TLOLO/* bO,i 
 
 the station with a fine boy, an albino. The father had 
 ordered her to throw him away; but she clung to hei 
 offspring for many years. He was remarkably intolligont 
 for his age. The pupil of the oye was of a pink color, and 
 the eye itself was unsteady in vision. The hair, or rathei 
 wool, was yellow, and the features were those common 
 among the Bechuanas. After I left the place, the mother 
 is said to have become tired of living apart from the father, 
 who refused to have her while she retained the son. She 
 took him out one day and killed him close to the village of 
 Mabotsa, and nothing was done to her by the authorities. 
 From having met with no albinos in Londa, I suspect they 
 are there also put to death. We saw one dwarf only in 
 Londa, and brands on him showed he had once been a 
 slave; and there is one dwarf woman at Linyanti. The 
 general absence of deformed persons is partly owing to 
 their destruction in infancy, and partly to the mode of life 
 being a natural one so far as ventilation and food are con- 
 cerned. They use but few unwholesome mixtures as con- 
 diments, and, though their undress exposes them to the 
 vicissitudes of the temperature, it does not harbor vomites. 
 It was observed that, when smallpox and measles visited 
 the country, they were most severe on the half-castes who 
 were clothed. In several tribes, a child which is said to 
 "tlola" (transgress) is put to death. " Tlolo," or trans- 
 gression, is ascribed to several curious cases. A child who 
 cut the upper front teeth before the under was always put 
 to death among the Bakaa, and, I believe, also among the 
 Bakwains. In some tribes, a case of twins renders one of 
 them liable to death; and an ox which, while lying in the 
 Den, beats the ground with its tail, is treated in the same 
 way. It is thought to be calling death to visit the tribe. 
 When I was coming through Londa, my men carried a 
 great number of fowls, of a larger breed than any they 
 had at homo. If one crowed before midnight, it had been 
 guilty of " tlolo," and was killed. The men often carried 
 them sitting on their guns, and, if one began to crow in a 
 
 31* 
 
866 IDEA OP FEMALE BEAUTY. 
 
 forest, the owner would give it a beating, by way of teach" 
 ing it not to be guilty of crowing at unseasonable hours. 
 
 The women here are in the habit of piercing the uppe* 
 lip and gradually enlarging the orifice until they can insert 
 a shell. The lip then appears drawn out beyond the per- 
 pendicular of the nose, and gives them a most ungainly 
 aspect. Sekwebu remarked, " These women want to make 
 ther'r mouths like those of ducks;" and, indeed, it does 
 appear as if they had the idea that female beauty of lip 
 had been attained by the Ornithorhynchus paradoxus alone. 
 This custom prevails throughout the country of the Maravi, 
 and no one could see it without confessing that fashion had 
 never led women to a freak more mad. We had rains now 
 every day, and considerable cloudiness ; but the sun often 
 burst through with scorching intensity. All call out against 
 it then, saying, " Oh, the sun •! that is rain again." It is 
 worth noticing that my companions never complained of 
 the heat while on the highlands; but when we descended 
 into the lowlands of Angola, and here also, they began to 
 fret on account of it. I myself felt an oppressive steami- 
 ness in the atmosphere which I had not experienced on 
 the higher lands. 
 
 As the game was abundant and my party very large, I 
 had still to supply their wants with the gun. We slaugh- 
 tered the oxen only when unsuccessful in hunting. We 
 always entered into friendly relations with the head-men 
 of the different villages, and they presented grain and other 
 food freely. One man gave a basinful of rice, — the first 
 we met with in the country. It is never seen in the in- 
 terior. He said he knew it was " white man's corn," and, 
 when I wished to buy some more, he asked me to give him 
 a slave. This was the first symptom of the slave-trade on 
 this side of the country. The last of these friendly head 
 men was named Mobala ; and, having passed him in peace, 
 we had no anticipation of any thing else ; but after a few 
 hours we reached Selole or Chilole, and found that he not 
 only considered us enemies, but had actually sent an ex« 
 
selole's hostility. 3G7 
 
 press to ra.se the tribe of Mburuma against us. All th« 
 women t f Selole had fled, and the few people we met ex- 
 hibited t igns of terror. An armed party had come from 
 Mburum.i in obedience to the call; but the head-man of 
 tho company, being Mburuma's brother, suspecting that it 
 wasahoux, came to our encampment and told us the whole. 
 When wt explained our objects, he told us that Mburuma, he 
 had no doubt, would receive us well. The reason why Se- 
 lole acted in this foolish manner we afterward found to be 
 this: an Italian named Simoens, and nicknamed Siriatomba, 
 (don't eat tobacco,) had married the daughter of a chief 
 called Sekokole, living north of Tete. He armed a party 
 of fifty slaves with guns, and, ascending the river in canoes 
 some distance beyond the island Meya makaba, attacked 
 several inhabited islands beyond, securing a large number 
 of prisoners and much ivory. On his return, the different 
 chiefs — at the instigation of his father-in-law, who also did 
 not wish him to set up as chief — united, attacked and dis- 
 persed the party of Simoens, and killed him while trying 
 to escape on foot. Selole imagined that I was another 
 Italian, or, as he expressed it, " Siriatomba risen from the 
 dead." In his message to Mburuma he even said that 
 Mobala, and all the villages beyond, were utterly destroyed 
 by our fire-arms; but the sight of Mobala himself, who had 
 come to the village of Selole, led the brother of Mburuma 
 to see at once that it was all a hoax. But for this the 
 foolish fellow Selole might have given us trouble. 
 
 "We saw many of the liberated captives of this Italian 
 among the villages here, and Sekwebu found them to be 
 Matebele. The brother of Mburuma had a gun, which was 
 the first we had seen in coming eastward. Before we 
 reached Mburuma, my men went to attack a troop of ele- 
 phants, as they were much in need of meat. "When the 
 troop began to run, one of them fell into a hole, and before 
 he could extricate himself an opportunity was afforded foi 
 all the men to throw their spears. When he rose he was 
 like a huge porcupine, for each of the seventy or eighty men 
 
368 ELEPHANTS 7 TENACITY OF LIFE. 
 
 had discharged more than one spear at him. As they had no 
 more, they sent for me to finish him. In order to put him 
 at once out of pain, I went to within twenty yards, there 
 being a bank between us which he 30uld not readily climb. 
 1 rested the gun upon an ant-hill, so as to take a steady 
 aim; but, though I fired twelve two-ounce bullets (all 1 
 had) into different parts, 1 could not kill him. As it was 
 becoming dark, I advised my men to let him stand, being 
 sure of finding him dead in the morning ; but, though we 
 searched all the next day, and went more than ten miles, 
 we never saw him again. 1 mention this to young men 
 who may think that they will be able to hunt elephants 
 on foot by adopting the Ceylon practice of killing them 
 by one ball in the brain. I believe that in Africa the 
 practice of standing before an elephant, expecting to kill 
 bim with one shot, would be certain death to the hunter ; 
 and I would add for the information of those who may 
 think that, because I met with a great abundance of game 
 here, they also might find rare sport, that the tsetse exists 
 all along both banks of the Zambesi, and there can be no 
 hunting by means of horses. Hunting on foot in this climate 
 is such excessively hard work that I feel certain the keenest 
 sportsman would very soon turn away from it in disgust. 
 I myself was rather glad, when furnished with the excuse 
 that I had no longer any balls, to hand over all the hunting 
 to my men, who had no more love for the sport than myself, 
 as they never engaged in it except when forced by hunger. 
 Some of them gave me a hint to melt down my plate by 
 asking if it were not lead. I had two pewter plates and a 
 piece of zinc, which I now melted into bullets. I also spent 
 the remainder of my handkerchiefs in buying spears for 
 them. My men frequently surrounded herds of buffaloes 
 and killed numbers of the calves. 1, too, exerted myself 
 greatly; but, as 1 am now obliged to shoot with the left 
 arm, I am a bad shot, and this, with the lightness of tho 
 bullets, made me very unsuccessful. The more the hunger, 
 the less my success, invariably 
 
MR. OSWKLL'S NARROW ESCAPE. 3fl0 
 
 I may bore add an adventure with an elephant of ono 
 who has had more narrow escapes than any man living, 
 but whose modesty has always prevented him from publish- 
 ing any thing about himself. When we were on the banks ?f 
 the Zouga in 1850, Mr. Oswell pursued one of these animals 
 in^to the dense, thick, thorny bushes met with on the margin 
 of that river, and to which the elephant usually flees for 
 safety. He followed through a narrow pathway by lifting 
 up some of the branches and forcing his way through the 
 rest; but, when he had just got over this difficulty, he saw 
 the elephant, whose tail -he had but got glhnpsos of before, 
 now rushing toward him. There was then no time to lift up 
 branches; so he tried to force the horse through them. He 
 could not effect a passage; and, as there was but an instant 
 between the attempt and failure, the hunter tried to dis- 
 mount, but in doing this one foot was caught by a branch, 
 and the spur drawn along the animal's flank; this made 
 him spring away and throw the rider on the ground with 
 his face to the elephant, which, being in full chase, still 
 went on. Mr. Oswell saw the huge fore-foot about to de- 
 scend on his legs, parted them, and drew in his breath as 
 if to resist the pressure of the other foot, which he expected 
 would next descend on his body. He saw the whole 
 length of the under part of the enormous brute pass over 
 him : the horse got away safely. I have heard of but one 
 other authentic instance in which an elephant went over a 
 man without injury, and, for any one who knows the nature 
 of the bush in which this occurred, the very thought of an 
 encounter in it with such a foe is appalling. As the thorns 
 arc placed in pairs on opposite sides of the branches, and 
 these turn round on being pressed against, one pair brings 
 the other exactly into the position in which it must pierce 
 the intruder. They cut like knives. Horses dread this 
 bush extremely; indeed, most of them refuse to face its 
 thorns. 
 
 On reaming Mburuma's village, his brother came to 
 tnoet us. We explained the reason of our delay, and ha 
 
370 mburuma's village and people. 
 
 told us that we were looked upon with alarm. He said 
 that Siriatomba had been killed near the village of Selole 
 and hence that man's fears. He added that the Italian had 
 come talking of peace, as we did, but ha^. kidnapped chil- 
 dren aiyi bought ivory with them, and that we were sup- 
 posed to be following the same calling. I pointed to my 
 men, and asked if any of these were slaves, and if we had 
 any children among them, and I think we satisfied.him that 
 we were true men. Referring to our ill success in hunting 
 the day before, he said, "The man at whose village you 
 remained was in fault in allowing you to want meat, for he 
 had only to run across to Mburuma; he would have give a 
 him a little meal, and, having sprinkled that on the ground 
 as an offering to the gods, you would have found your 
 elephant." The chiefs in these parts take upon themselves 
 an office somewhat like the priesthood, and the people 
 imagine that they can propitiate the Deity through them 
 In illustration of their ideas, it may be mentioned that, 
 when we were among the tribes west of Semalembue, 
 several of the people came forward and introduced them 
 selves, — one as a hunter of elephants, another as a hunter 
 of hippopotami, a third as a digger of pitfalls, — apparently 
 wishing me to give them medicine for success in theii 
 avocations, as well as to cure the diseases of those to 
 "whom I was administering the drugs. I thought they at- 
 tributed supernatural power to them, for, like all Africans, 
 they have unbounded faith in the efficacy of charms,- 
 but I took pains to let them know that they must pray 
 and trust to another power than mine for aid. We nevei 
 saw Mburuma himself, and the conduct of his people indi 
 cated very strong suspicions, though he gave us presents 
 cf meal, maize, and native corn. His people never came 
 fcear us except in large bodies and fully armed. We had 
 to order them to place their bows, arrows, and spears at 
 a distance before <>ntering our encampment. We did not, 
 however, care much for a little trouble now, as we hoped 
 that, if we could pass this time without much molestation 
 
SUSPICIONS OF TIIE NATIVES. 37J 
 
 we might yet be able to return with ease, and without 
 meeting sour, suspicious looks. 
 
 Mburuma sent two men as guides to the Loangwa. These 
 men tried to bring us to a stand, at a distance of about sis 
 miles from the village, by the notice, " Mburuma says ym 
 are to sleep under that tree." On declining to do this, wa 
 were told that we must wait at a certain village for a sup. 
 ply of corn. As none appeared in an hour, I proceeded on 
 the march. It is not quite certain that their intentions 
 were hostile; but this seemed to disarrange their plans, and 
 one of them was soon observed running back to Mburuma. 
 They had first of all tried to separate our party by volun- 
 teering the loan of a canoe to convey Sekwebu and me, 
 together with our luggage, by way of the river, and, as it 
 was pressed upon us, I thought that this was their design. 
 The next attempt was to detain us in the pass; but, be- 
 traying no suspicion, we civilly declined to place ourselves 
 in their power in an unfavorable position. We afterward 
 heard that a party of Babisa traders, who came from the 
 northeast, bringing English goods from Mozambique, had 
 been plundered by this same people. 
 
 At the village of Ma Mburuma, (mother of Mburuma,) the 
 guides, who had again joined us, gave a favorable report; 
 and the women and children did not flee. Ma Mburuma 
 promised us canoes to cross the Loangwa in our front. It 
 was pleasant to see great numbers of men, women, and 
 boys come, without suspicion, to look at the books, watch, 
 looking-glass, revolver, &c. They are a strong, miioculai 
 raqg, and both men and women are seen cultivating the 
 ground. v * 
 
 Wo were obliged to hurry along, for the oxen were bitten 
 daily by the tsetse, which, as I have before remarked, now 
 inhabits extensive tracts which once supported herds of 
 cattle that were swept off by Mpakane and other marau- 
 ders, whose devastations were well known to Sekwebu, for 
 he himself had been- an actor in the scenes. When he told 
 me of theni he always lowered his voice, in order that tt>* 
 
572 HOSTILE APPEARANCES. 
 
 guides might not hear that he had been one of their ene- 
 mies. But that we were looked upon with suspicion, on 
 accoun u of having come in the footsteps of invaders, was 
 evident from our guides remarking to men in the garden 
 through which we passed, " They have words of peace- 
 all very fine; but lies only, as the Bazunga are great liars." 
 They thought we did not understand them ; but Sekwebu 
 knew every word perfectly; and, without paying any 
 ostensible attention to these complimentary remarks, we 
 always took care to explain ever afterward that we were 
 not Bazunga, but Makoa, (English.) 
 
 CHAPTEE XXIX. 
 
 BR. LIVINGSTONE DESCENDS THE ZAMBESI TO CHICOVA. 
 
 14:th. — We* reached the confluence of the Loangwa and 
 the Zambesi, most thankful to God for his great mercies in 
 helping us thus far. Mburuma's people had behaved so 
 suspiciously, that, though we had guides from him, we 
 were by no means sure that we should not be attacked 
 in crossing the Loangwa. We saw them here collecting 
 in large numbers, and, though professing friendship, they, 
 kept at a distance from our camp. They refused to lend 
 us more canoes than two, though they have many. They 
 have no intercourse with Europeans except through the 
 Babisa. They tell us that this was formerly the residence 
 of the Bazunga, and maintain silence as to the cause of 
 their leaving it. I walked about some ruins I discovered, 
 built of stone, and found the remains of a church, and on 
 one side lay a broken bell, with the letters I. H. S. and a 
 cross, but no date. There were no inscriptions on stone, 
 and the people could not tell what ll>v Bazunga called 
 their place. We found afterward >l v\at» Zumbo. 
 
CROSSING THE LOANGWA. 373 
 
 1 felt some turmoil of spirit in the evening at the pros- 
 pect of having all my efforts for the welfare of this great 
 region and its teeming population knocked on the head by 
 savages to-morrow, who might he said to "know not what 
 they do." it seemed such a pity that the important fact 
 of the existence of the two healthy ridges which I had dis- 
 covered should not become known in Christendom, for a 
 confirmation would thereby have been given to the idea 
 that Africa is not open to the gospel. But I read that 
 Jesus said, "All power is given unto me in heaven and on 
 earth: go ye, therefore, ariM teach all nations; . . . and lo, 
 I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" I took 
 this as His word of honor, and went out to take observa- 
 tions for latitude and longitude, which, I think, were very 
 successful. (The church: lat. 15° 37' 22" S., long. 30° 
 82' E.) 
 
 \fith. — The natives of the surrounding country collected 
 around us this morning, all armed. The women and chil- 
 dren were sent away, and one of Mburuma's wives, who 
 lives in the vicinity, was not allowed to aprJroach, though 
 she had come from her village to pay me a visit. Only one 
 canoe was lent to us, though we saw two others tied to the 
 bank. The part we crossed was about a mile from the 
 confluence, and, as it was now flooded, it seemed upward 
 of half a mile in breadth. We passed all our goods first on 
 to an island in the middle, then the remaining cattle and 
 men ; occupying the post of honor, I, as usual, was the 
 last to enter the canoe. A number, of the inhabitants 
 Stood arined all the time we were embarking. I showed 
 them my watch, lens, and other things to keep them 
 amused, until there only remained those who were to enter 
 the canoe with me. I thanked them for their kindness, 
 and wished them peace. After all, they may have been 
 influenced only by the intention to be ready in case I 
 should play them some^ false trick, for they have reason to 
 be distrustful of the whites. The guides came over to bid 
 as adieu, and we sat under a mango-tree fifteen feet 'a cir 
 
 32 
 
374 SITUATION OP ZUMBO. 
 
 cumference. We found them more communicative now 
 They said that the land on both sides belonged to tha 
 Bazunga, and that they had Left of old, on the approach of 
 Changamera, Ngaba, and Mpakane. Sekwebu was with 
 the last-named, but he maintained that they never came tn 
 the confluence, though they carried off all the cattle of 
 Mburuma. The guides confirmed this by saying that tho 
 Bazunga were not attacked, but fled in alarm on the 
 approach of the enemy. This mango-tree he knew by ita 
 proper name, and we found seven others and several tama- 
 rinds, and were informed that the chief Mburuma sends 
 men annually to gather the fruit, but, like many Africans 
 whom I have known, nas not had patience to propagate 
 more trees. I gave them some little presents for them- 
 selves, a handkerchief and a few beads; and they were 
 highly pleased with a cloth of red baize for Mburuma, 
 which Sekeletu had given me to purchase a canoe. Wo 
 were thankful to part good friends. 
 
 The situation of Zumbo was admirably well chosen as a 
 site for commerce. Looking backward, we see a mass of 
 high, dark mountains covered with trees ; behind us rises 
 the fine high hill Mazanzwe, which stretches away north 
 ward along the left bank of the Loangwa ; to the S.E. lies 
 an open country, with a small round hill in the distance 
 called Tofulo The merchants, as they sat beneath the 
 verandahs m front of their houses, had a magnificent view 
 of the two rivers at their confluence, of their church at 
 the angle, and of all the gardens which they had on both 
 sides of the rivers. In these they cultivated wheat with- 
 out irrigation, and, as the Portuguese assert, of a grain 
 twice the size of that at Tete. From the guides we learned 
 that the inhabitants had not imbibed much idea of Chris 
 tianity, for they used the same term for the church-bel] 
 which they did for a diviner's drum. From this point th<» 
 merchants had water-communication in three directions 
 beyond, namely, from the Loangwa to the N.N.W., by the 
 Kafue to the W , ard by the Zambesi to the S W. Thou 
 
lacerda's visit TO OAZEMlJE. 375 
 
 attention, however, was chiefly attracted to the N., ot 
 Londa ; and the principal articles of trade wore ivory 
 and slaves. Private enterprise was always restrained, for, 
 the colonies of the Portuguese being strictly military, and 
 the pay of the commandants being very small, the officer! 
 have always been obliged to engage in trade ; and had they 
 not employed their power to draw the trade to themselves 
 by preventing private traders from making bargains be- 
 yond the villages, and only at regulated prices, they would 
 have had no trade, as they themselves were obliged to 
 remain always at their posts. 
 
 Several expeditions went to the north as far as to Ca- 
 cembe, and Dr. Lacerda, himself commandant of Tete, 
 wont to that chief's residence. Unfortunately, he was cut 
 off while there, and his papers, taken possession of by a 
 Jesuit who accompanied him, were lost to the world. This 
 Jesuit probably intended to act fairly and have them pub- 
 lished; but soon after his return he was called away by 
 death himself, and the papers were lost sight of. Dr. La- 
 cerda had a strong desire to open up. communication with 
 Angola, which would have been of importance then, as 
 affording a speedier mode of communication with Portugal 
 than by the way of the Cape; but since the opening of the 
 overland passage to India a quicker transit is effected from 
 Eastern Africa to Lisbon by way of the Red Sea. Besides 
 Lacerda, Cazembe was visited by Pereira, who gave a 
 glowing account of that chiefs power, which none of my 
 inquiries have confirmed. The people of Matiamvo stated 
 to me that Cazembe was a vassal of their chief; and, from 
 all the native visitors whom I have seen, he appears to be 
 exactly like Shinte and Katema, only a little more power- 
 ful. The term "Emperor," which has been applied to him, 
 geems totally inappropriate. The statement of Pereira 
 that twenty negroes were slaughtered in a day was not 
 confirmed by any one else, though numbers may have been 
 killed on some particular occasion during the time of hi* 
 visit, for we find throughout all the country north of 20° t 
 
376 A MAN TOSSED BY A BUFFALO. 
 
 which I consider to be real negro, the custom of slaugafcer* 
 nig victims to accompany the departed soul of a chief; ar-d 
 human sacrifices are occasionally offered, and certain. parts 
 of tne bodies are used as charms. It is on account of the 
 existence of such rites, with the similarity of the language, 
 and the fact that the names of rivers are repeated again 
 and again from north to south through all that* region, thai 
 I consider them tc have been originally one family. The 
 last expedition to Cazembe was somewhat of the . same 
 nature as the others, and failed in establishing a commerce 
 because the people of Cazembe, who had come to Tete to 
 invite the Portuguese to visit them, had not been allowed 
 to trade with whom they might. As it had not been free 
 trade there, Cazembe did not see why it should be free 
 trade at his town : he accordingly would not allow his 
 people to furnish the party with food except at his price; 
 and the expedition, being half starved in consequence, 
 came away voting unanimously that Cazembe was a great 
 bore. 
 
 When we left the Loangwa, we thought we had got rid of 
 the hills; but there are some behind Mazanzwe, though five 
 or six miles off from the river. Tsetse and the hills had de- 
 stroyed two riding-oxen, and, when the little one that I now 
 rode knocked up, I was forced to march on foot. The bush 
 being very dense and high, we were going along among the 
 trees, when three buffaloes, which we had unconsciously 
 passed above the wind, thought that they were surrounded 
 by men, and dashed through our line. My ox set off at a 
 gallop, and when I could manage to glance back I saw (tne 
 of the men up in the air about five feet above a buffalo 
 which was tearing along with a stream of blood running 
 down his flank. When I got back to the poor fellow, I 
 found that he had lighted on his face, and, though he had 
 fteen carried on the horns of the buffalo about twenty yards 
 before getting the final toss, the skin was not pierced, nor 
 was a bone broken. When the beasts appeared, he had 
 tiirown down his load and stabbed one m the side. It 
 
3':* 
 
caffrk w/r 379 
 
 turned suddenly upon him, and, before he could use a tree 
 for defence, carried him off. We shampooed him well, and 
 then went on, and in about a week he was able to engage 
 in the hunt again. 
 
 On the morning of the 17th we were pleased to see a 
 person coming from the island of Shibanga with jacket and 
 hat on. He was quite black, but had come from the Portu- 
 guese settlement at Tete or Nyungwe ; and now, for the 
 first time, wo understood that the Portuguese settlement 
 was on the other bank of the river, and that they had been 
 fighting with the natives for the last two years. We had 
 thus got into the midst of a Caffre war, without any par- 
 ticular wish to be on either side. Ho advised us to cross 
 the river at once, as Mpende lived on this side. We had 
 jtfen warned by the guides of Mburuma against him, for 
 uiey said that if we could get past Mpende we might reach 
 the white men, but that he was determined that no white 
 man should pass him. Wishing to follow this man's advice, 
 we proposed to borrow his canoes; but, being afraid to 
 offend the lords of the river, he declined. The consequence 
 was, wo were obliged to remain on the enemy's side. The 
 next island belonged to a man named Zungo, a fine, frank 
 follow, who brought us at once a present of corn, bound in 
 a peculiar way in grass. He freely accepted our apology 
 for having no present to give in return, as he knew 
 that there were no goods in the interior, and, besides, 
 Bent forward a recommendation to his brother-in-law 
 Pangola. 
 
 18?A. — Pangola visited us and presented us with food. 
 In few other countries would one hundred and fourteen 
 •turdy vagabonds be supported by the generosity of the 
 head-men and villagers and whatever they gave bo pre- 
 sented with politeness. My men got pretty well supplied 
 individually, for they went into the villages and com- 
 menced dancing. The young women were especially 
 pleased with the new steps they had to show, though I 
 inspect many of them were invented for the occasion, and 
 
880 APPROACHING MrENDE's VTLLAGE. 
 
 would say. "Dance for me, and I will grind corn for yon " 
 At every fresh instance of liberality, Sekwebu said, " Did 
 not I tell you that these people had hearts, while we were 
 still at Linyanti V All agreed that the character he had 
 given was true, and some remarked, " Look ! although we 
 have been so long away from home, not one of us has 
 become lean." It was a fact that we had been all well 
 supplied either with meat by my gun or their own spears, 
 or food from the great generosity of the inhabitants. 
 Pangola promised to ferry us across the Zambesi, but 
 failed to fulfil his promise. He seemed to wish to avoid 
 offending his neighbor Mpende by aiding us to escape from 
 his hands ; so we proceeded along the bank. Although we 
 were in doubt as to our reception by Mpende, I could not 
 help admiring the beautiful com try as we passed along. 
 Finding no one willing to aid us in crossing the river, we 
 proceeded to the village of the chief Mpende. When we 
 came to Mpende's village, he immediately sent to inquire 
 who we were, and then ordered the guides who had come 
 with us from the last village to go back and call their 
 masters. He sent no message to us whatever. We had 
 travelled very slowly up to this point, the tsetse-stricken 
 oxen being now unable to go two miles an hour. We 
 were also delayed by being obliged to stop at every village 
 and send notice of our approach to the head-man, who 
 came and received a little information and gave some foor 1 
 If we had passed on without taking any notice of them, 
 they would have considered it impolite, and we should 
 have appeared more as enemies than friends. I consoled 
 myself for the loss of time by the thought that these con- 
 versations tended to the opening of our future path. 
 
 23d. — This morning, at sunrise, a party of Mpende's 
 people came close to our encampment, uttering strange crie» 
 and waving some bright-red substance toward us. They 
 then lighted a fire with charms in it, and departed, utter 
 ing the same hideous screams as before. This was intended 
 to render us powerless, and probably also to frighten as 
 
A FIGHT ANTICIPATED. 3^1 
 
 Ever since dawn, parties of armed men have been seen 
 collecting from all quarters, and numbers passed us while 
 it "was yet dark. Had we moved down the river at once, 
 it would have been considered an indication of fear or 
 .defiance, and so would a retreat. I therefore resolved to 
 wait, trusting to Him who has the hearts of all men in 
 bis hands. They evidently intended to attack us, for no. 
 friendly message was sent; and, when three of the Batoka 
 the night before entered the village to beg food, a man 
 went round about each of them, making a noise like a lion 
 The villagers then called upon them to do homage, and, 
 when they complied, the chief ordered some chaff to be 
 given them, as if it had been food. Othei things also 
 showed unmistakable hostility. As we were now pretty 
 certain of a skirmish, I ordered an ox to be slaughtered, 
 as this is a means which Sebituane employed for inspiring 
 courage. I have no doubt that we should have been vic- 
 torious : indeed, my men, who were far better acquainted 
 with fighting than any of the people on the Zambesi, were 
 rejoicing in the prospect of securing captives to carry the 
 tusks for them. " We shall now," said they, " get both 
 corn and clothes in plenty." They were in a sad state, 
 poor fellows ; for the rains we had encountered had mad? 
 their skin-clothing drop off piecemeal, und they were 
 looked upon with disgust by the well-fed and well-clothed 
 Zambesians. They were, however, veterans in maraud 
 ing; and the head-men, instead of being depressed by fear, 
 a« the people of Mpende intended should be the case in 
 using their charms, hinted broadly to me that I ought to 
 allow them to keep Mpende' s wives. The roasting of meat 
 wvent on fast and furious, and some of the young men said 
 to me, "You have seen us with elephants, but you don't 
 know yet what we can do with men." I believe that, 
 had Mpende struck the first blow, he would soon have 
 found out that he never made a greater mistake in hia 
 life. 
 His wholo tribe was assembled at about the distance of 
 
V 
 
 082 mpende's friendship 
 
 half a mile As the country is covered with trees, we did 
 not see them ; hut every now and then a few came about 
 us as spies, and would answer no questions. I handed a 
 log of the ox to two of these, and dewired them to take it 
 to Mpende. After waiting a considerable time in suspense 
 two old men made their appearance and said they had 
 come to inquire who I was. I replied, "I am a Lekoa," 
 (an Englishman.) They said, "We don't know that tribe. 
 We suppose you are a Mozunga, the tribe with which we 
 have been fighting." As- 1 was not yet aware that the 
 term Mozunga was applied to a Portuguese, and thought 
 they meant half-castes, I showed them my hair and tb* 
 skin of my bosom, and asked if the Bazunga had hair ana 
 skin like mine. As the Portuguese have the custom of 
 cutting the hair close, and are also somewhat darker than 
 we are, they answered, "No; we never saw skin so white 
 as that," and added, "Ah ! you must be one of that tribe 
 that loves [literally, has heart to] the black men." I, of 
 course, gladly responded in the affirmative. They re- 
 turned to the vilUige, and we afterward heard that there 
 had been a long discussion between Mpende and his coun- 
 cillors, and that one ol the men with whom we had re- 
 mained to talk the day before had been our advocate. He 
 was named Si^deso Oalea. When we w T ere passing hit 
 village, after some conversation, he said to his people, " Tg 
 that the man whom they wish to stop after he has passed 
 so many tribes ? What can Mpende say to refusing him a 
 passage?" It was owing to this man, and the fact that I 
 belonged to tke " friendly white tribe," that Mpenae was 
 persuaded to allow us to pass. When we knew the favor- 
 able decision of the council, I sent Sekwebu to speak about 
 the purchase of a canoe, as one of my men had become 
 very ill, and I wished to relieve his companions by taking 
 him in a canoe. Before Sekwebu could finish his story, 
 Mpende remarked, "That white man is truly one of oui 
 friends. See how he lets me know his afflictions !" Sek 
 webu adroitly took advantage of this turn in the convorrr 
 
CROSSING IHI ZAMBESI. 388 
 
 ticm, and said, "Ah ! if you only knew him as well as we 
 do who have lived with him, you would understand that 
 he highly values your friendship and that of Mburuma, 
 and, as he is a stranger, he trusts in you to direct him/ 1 
 He replied, "Well, he ought to cross to the other side 
 of the river, for this bank is hilly and rough, and the way 
 to Tete^is. longer on this than on the opposite bank." 
 " But who will take us across if you do not?" "Truly," 
 replied Mpende, " I only wish you had come sooner to tell 
 me about him ; but you shall cross " Mpende said fre- 
 quently ho was sorry he had not known me sooner, but 
 that he had been prevented by his enchanter from coming 
 near me ; and he lamented that the same person had kept 
 him from eating the meat which I had presented. He did 
 every thing he could afterward to aid us on our course, 
 and our departure was as different as possible from our 
 approach to his village. I was very much pleased to find 
 the English name spoken of with such great respect so 
 far from the coast, and most thankful that no collision 
 occurred to damage its influence. 
 
 24th. — Mpende sent two of his principal men to order ihe 
 people of a largfe island below to ferry us across. The river 
 is very broad, and, though my men were well acquainted 
 with the management of canoes, we could not all cross over 
 before dark. It is 1200 yards from bank to bank, and be- 
 tween 700 and 800 of deep water, flowing at the rate of 
 3'i miles per hour. We landed first on an island, then, to 
 prevent our friends playing false with us, hauled the 
 canoes up to our bivouac and slept in them. The next 
 morning we all reached the opposite bank in safety. 
 
 29th. — I was most sincerely thankful to find myself on 
 the south bank of the Zambesi ; and, having nothing else. I 
 sent back one of my two spoons and a shirt as a thank- 
 offering to Mpende. The different head-men along ;hia 
 river act very much in concert, and if one refuses passage 
 they all do, uttering the sago remark, " If so-and-so did not 
 lend his canoes, he lniie Vave had some gcod reason." Th« 
 
884 BOROMA'S VILLAGE, 
 
 next island we came to was that of a man named Mozinkwa 
 Here we were detained some days by continuous rains. 
 
 "We were detained here so long that my tent becaine 
 again quite rotten. One of my men, after long sickness, 
 which 1 did not understand, died here. He was one of the 
 Batoka, and when unable to walk I had some difficulty in 
 making his companions carry him. They wished to leave 
 him to die when his case became hopeless. Another of 
 them deserted to Mozinkwa. He said that his motive for 
 doing so was that the Makololo had killed both his father 
 and mother, and, as he had neither wife nor child, there 
 was no reason why he should continue longer with them. 
 I did not object to his statements, but said if he should 
 change his mind he would be welcome to rejoin us, and 
 intimated to Mozinkwa that he must not be sold as a slave 
 
 February 1. — We met some native traders ; and, as many 
 of my men were now in a state of nudity, I bought sonu 
 American calico, marked " Lawrence Mills, Lowell," witl 
 two small tusks, and distributed it among the most needy. 
 After leaving Mozinkwa's, we came to the Zingesi, a sand- 
 rivulet in flood, (lat. 15° 38' 34" S., long. 31° V E.) It was 
 sixty or seventy yards wide, and waist deep* Like all these 
 sand-rivers, it is for the most part dry; but, by digging 
 down a few feet, water is to be found, which is percolating 
 along the bed on a stratum of clay. 
 
 February 4. — We were much detained by rains, a heavy 
 shower without wind falling every morning about daybreak : 
 it often cleared up after that, admitting of our moving on a 
 few miles. A continuous rain of several hours then set in. 
 
 On the 6th we came to the village of Boroma, which is 
 situated among a number of others, each surrounded by 
 extensive patches of cultivation. , On the opposite side of 
 the river we have a great cluster of conical hills, called 
 Chorichori. Boroma did not^nake his appearance, but sent 
 a srbstitute, who acted civilly. I sent Sekwebu in the 
 morning to state that we intended to m^ve on : lr.s mother 
 rcjp 1 ed that, a? she had expected that we should remain, no 
 
A GARRULOUS GUIDE. 385 
 
 food was ready; but she sent a basket of corn and a fowl. A§ 
 an excuse why Boroma did not present- himself, she said 
 that he was seized this morning by the Barimo, — which 
 probably meant that his lordship was drunk. 
 
 We marched along the river to a point opposite the hill 
 Pinkwc, (lat. 15° 39' 11" S., long. 32° 5' E.;) but the lato 
 abundant rains now flooded the Zambesi again, and gre&i 
 quantities of wreck appeared upon the stream. 
 
 This flood having filled the river, we found the numerous 
 rivulets which flow into it filled also, and when going along 
 the Zambesi we lost so much time in passing up each little 
 stream till we could find a ford about waist deep, and then 
 returning to the bank, that I resolved to leave the river 
 altogether and strike away to the southeast. We accord- 
 ingly struck off when opposite the hill Pinkwe, and camo 
 into a hard Mopane country. 
 
 This Chicova is not a kingdom, as has been stated, but a 
 level tract, a part of which is annually overflowed by the 
 Zambesi, and is well adapted for the cultivation of corn. 
 It is said to be below the northern end of the hill Bungwe. 
 I was veiy much pleased in discovering a sra«J.i specimen 
 of such a precious mineral as coal. I saw no indication of 
 silver; and, if it ever was worked by the natives, it is re* 
 markable that they have entirely lost the knowledge of it, 
 and cannot distinguish between silver and tin. Our path 
 lay along the bed of the Nake for some distance, the banks 
 being covered with impenetrable thickets. The villages 
 are not numerous ; but we went from one to the other, and 
 \were treated kindly. Here they call themselves Bambiri, 
 though the general name of the whole nation is Banyai. 
 One of our guides was an inveterate talker, always stop- 
 ping aLd asking for pay, that he might go on with a merry 
 heart. I thought that he led us in the most difficult paths 
 in order to make us feel his value, for, after passing through 
 one thicket after another, we always came into the bed 
 of the Nake again; and as that was full of coarse uand, and 
 the water only ankle deep, and as h)tasa foot-bath from 
 
S86 NYAMPUNGO, THE RAIN-CHARMEK. 
 
 the powerful rays of the sun, we were all completely tired 
 out. He likewise gave us a bad character at every village 
 we passed, calling to them that they wer6 to allow him to 
 lead us astray, as we were a bad set. Sekwebu knew 
 every word he said, and, as he became intolerable, I dis- 
 missed him, giving him six feet of calico I had bought from 
 native traders, and telling him that his tongue was a 
 nuisance. It is in general best, when a scolding is neces- 
 sary, to give it in combination with a present, and then end 
 it by good wishes. This fellow went of£ smiling ; and my 
 men remarked, " His tongue is cured now." 
 
 13th. — The head-man of these parts is named Nyampungo. 
 1 sent the last fragment of cloth we had, with a request 
 that wo should be furnished with a guide to the next chief. 
 After a long conference with his council, the cloth was 
 returned with a promise of compliance and a request for 
 some beads only. This man is supposed to possess the 
 3harm for rain, and other tribes send to him to beg it. 
 This shows that what we inferred before was correct, — that 
 less rain falls in this country than in Londa. Nyampungo 
 behaved in quite a gentlemanly manner, presented me 
 with some rice, and told my people to go among all the 
 villages and beg for themselves. An old man, father-in-law 
 of the chief, told me that he had seen books before, but 
 never knew what they meant. They pray to departed 
 chiefs and relatives, but the idea of praying to God seemed 
 new, and they heard it with reverence. As this was an 
 intelligent old man, I asked him about the silver; but he 
 was as ignorant of it as the rest, and said, " We never dug 
 silver, but we have washed for gold in the sands of the 
 rivers Mazoe and Luia, which unite in the Luenya." I 
 think that this is quite conclusive on the question of no 
 silver having been dug by the natives of this district. 
 Nyampungo is afflicted with a kind of disease called Se 
 senda, which I imagine to be a species of leprosy common 
 in this quarter, — though », L hey are a cleanly people. They 
 never had cattle. The chk^s father had always lived io 
 
GLEPHA-Vr-HUNT. d*7 
 
 their present position, and, when I asked him why he did 
 not possess these useful animals, he said, M Who would give 
 qs the medicine to enable us to keep them f" I found out 
 tho reason afterward in the prevalence of tsetse; but of 
 this ho was ignorant, having supposed that he could not 
 keep cattle because he had no medicine 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE REACHES TETE. 
 
 1-ith. — We left Nyampungo this morning. The path 
 wound up the Molinge, another sand-river which flows into 
 the Nake. W T hen we got clear of the tangled jungle which 
 covers the banks of these rivulets, we entered ^he Mopane 
 country, where we could walk with comfort. When we 
 had gone on a few hours, my men espied an elephant, and 
 v»ere soon in full pursuit. They were in want of meat, 
 h.iving tasted nothing but grain for several days. The 
 desire for animal food made them all eager to slay him, 
 &ad, though an old bull, he was soon killed The people 
 (//* Nyampungo had never seen such desperadoes before. 
 One rushed up and hamstrung the beast, while still stand- 
 ing, by a blow with an axe. Some Banyai elephant- 
 nunters happened to be present when my men were fighting 
 with him. One of them took out his snuff-box and poured 
 out all its contents at tho root of a tree, as an offering to 
 the Barimo for success. As soon as the animal fell, tho 
 whole of m) party engaged in a wild, savage dance round 
 the body, which quite frightened the Banyai, and he who 
 made the offering said to me, "I see you are travelling 
 with people who don't know how to pray: 1 therefore 
 offeied the onl} r thing I had in their behalf, and the ele- 
 phant soon fell." One of Nyampungo' s men, who remained 
 wuj. me, ran n little forward, '\htuan opening i m \ha trae* 
 
888 GAME-LAWS — HYENAS 
 
 gave us a view of the chase, and uttered loud prayers for 
 success in the combat. I admired the devout belief they 
 aL possessed in the actual existence of unseen beings, and 
 prayed that they might yet know that benignant One who 
 views us all as his own. My own people, who are rather 
 a degraded lot, remarked to me, as I came up, " God gave 
 it to us. He said to the old beast, 'Go up there : men are 
 come who will kill and eat you/ " These remarks are quoted 
 to give the reader an idea of the native mode of expression. 
 
 As we were now in the country of stringent game-laws, 
 we were obliged to send all the way back to Nyampungo, 
 to give information to a certain person who had been left 
 there by the real owner of this district to watch over his 
 property, the owner himself- living near the Zambesi. The 
 side upon which the elephant fell had a short, broken tusk; 
 the upper one, which was ours, was large and thick. The 
 Banyai remarked on our good luck. The men sent to give 
 notice cam% back late in the afternoon of the following day. 
 They brought a basket of corn, a fowl, and a few strings 
 of handsome beads, as a sort of thank-offering for our 
 having killed it on their land, and said they had thanked 
 the Barimo besides for our success, adding, " There it is : 
 eat it and be glad." Had we begun to cut it up before we 
 got this permission, we should have lost the whole. They 
 brought a large party to eat their half, and they divided it 
 with us in a friendly way. My men were delighted with 
 the feast, though, by lying unopened a whole day, the 
 carcass was pretty far gone. An astonishing number of 
 hyenas collected round and kept up a loud laughter for 
 two whole nights. Some of them do make a very good 
 imitation of a laugh. I asked my men what the hyenas 
 wero laughing at, as they usually give animals credit for a 
 share of intelligence. They said that they were laughing 
 because we could not take the whole, and that they would 
 have plenty to eat as well as we. 
 
 On coming to the part where the elephant was slain, we 
 passed through grass so tall that it reminded me of that in 
 
INSECT-LIFE — BIRDS. ; K9 
 
 the valley of Cassango. Insects are very nurncroua ai ei 
 the rains commence. While waiting by the eleph-.nt J 
 observed a great number of insects, like grains'of tine sa\ d, 
 moving on my boxes. On examination with a glasn, four 
 species were apparent: one of green and gold preening ;w 
 wings, which glanced in the sun with metallic lustre *, 
 another clear as crystal ; a third of the color of vermilion ; 
 and a fourth black. These are probably some of thoee 
 which consume the seeds of every plant that grows. 
 Almost every kind has its own peculiar insect, ai:d when 
 the rains are over very few seeds remain untouched. The 
 rankest poisons, as the kongwhano and euphorbia, are 8-x>n 
 devoured; the former has a scarlet insect; and even the fi try 
 bird's-eye pepper, which will keep off many others from their 
 own seeds, is itself devoured by a maggot. I observed hore, 
 what I had often seen before, that certain districts abound 
 in centipedes. Here they have light reddish bodies and 
 blue legs : great myriapedes are seen crawling everywhere. 
 Although they do no harm, they excite in man a feeling of 
 loathing. Perhaps our appearance produces a similar feel- 
 ing in the elephant and other large animals. AVhere they 
 have been much disturbed, they certainly look upon us with 
 great distrust, as the horrid biped that ruins their peace. 
 In the quietest parts of the forest there is heard a faint 
 but distirfct hum, which tells of insect joy. One may see 
 many whisking about in the clear sunshine in patches 
 among the green glancing leaves; but there are invisible 
 myriads working with never tiring mandibles on leaves 
 and stalks and beneath the soil. They are all brimful of 
 enjoyment. Indeed, the universality of organic life may 
 be called a mantle of happy existence encircling the world, 
 and imparts the idea of its being caused by the conscious- 
 ness of our benignant Father's smile on all the works of 
 his hands. 
 
 The birds of the tropics have been described as generally 
 wanting in power of song. I was decidedly of opinion 
 that <his was not applicable to many parts in Londa, 
 
 33* 
 
31*0 BIRDS CATERPILLARS. 
 
 though birds there are remarkably scarce. Here the 
 chorus, or body of song, was not much smaller in volame 
 than it is in England. It was not so harmonious, and 
 sounded always as if the birds were s : nging in a foreign 
 tongue. Some resemble the lark, and, indeed, there are 
 several of that family ; two have notes not unlike those of 
 the thrash. One brought the chaffinch to my mind, and 
 another the robin; but their songs are intermixed with 
 Be^eral curious abrupt notes unlike any thing English. 
 One utters deliberately "peek, pak, pok;" another has a 
 jingle note like a stroke on a violin-string. The mokwa 
 reza gives forth a screaming set of notes like our blackbird 
 when disturbed, then concludes with what the natives say 
 is " pula, pula," (rain, rain,) but more like " weep, weep, 
 weep." Then we have the loud cry of francolins, the 
 "pumpuru, pumpuru," of turtle-doves, and the "chiken, 
 chiken, chik, churr, churr," of the honey-guide. Occasion- 
 ally, near villages, we have a kind of mocking-bird, imi- 
 tating the calls of domestic fowls. These African birds 
 have not been wanting in song : they have only lacked 
 poets to sing their praises, which ours have had from the 
 time of Aristophanes downward. Ours have both a classic 
 and a modern interest to enhance their fame. In hot, dry 
 weather, or at mid-day when the sun is fierce, al] are still : 
 let, however, a good shower fall, and all burst forth at once 
 into merry lays and loving courtship. The early mornings 
 and the cool evenings are their favorite times for singing. 
 There are comparatively few with gaudy plumage, being 
 totally unlike, in this respect, the birds of the Brazils. 
 The majority have decidedly a sober dress, though col- 
 lectors, having generally selected the gaudiest as the most 
 valuable, have conveyed the idea that the birds of tho 
 tropics for the most part possess gorgeous plumage. 
 
 lbth. — Several of my men have been bitten by spiders 
 and other insects, but no effect except pain has followed. 
 A large caterpillar is frequently seen, called lezuntabuea. 
 tt is covered with long gray hair?, and, the body being 
 
THE fclOKORONOA. '°' 
 
 dark, it resembles a porcupine in miniature. If on* 
 
 it, the hairs run into the pores of the skin, anc 
 
 there, giving sharp pricks. There are others wh 
 
 a similar means of defence; and when the hand 
 
 across them, as in passing a bush on which they happen to 
 
 bo, the contact resembles the stinging of nettle* 
 
 the great number of caterpillars seen, we have a 
 
 able variety of butterflies. One particular kind fi 
 
 like a swallow than a butterfly. They are not reL 
 
 for the gaudiness of their colors. 
 
 In passing along, we crossed the hills Vungue or Mvung- 
 we, which we found to be composed of various eruptive 
 rocks. At one part we have breccia of altered marl or slate 
 in quartz, and various amygdaloids. It is curious to observe 
 the different forms which silica assumes. We have it in clay- 
 stone porphyry here, no larger than turnip-seed, dotted 
 thickly over the matrix; or crystallized round the walls of 
 cavities once filled with air or other elastic fluid; or it may 
 appear in similar cavities as tufts of yellow asbestos, or as 
 red, yellow, or green crystals, or in laminae so arranged as to 
 appear like fossil wood. Vungue forms the watershed be- 
 tween those sand-rivulets which run to the N.E., and others 
 which flow southward, as the Kapopo, Ue, and Due, which 
 run into the Luia. 
 
 We found that many elephants had been feeding on the 
 fruit called mokoronga. This is a black-colored plum, 
 having purple juice. We all ate it in largo quantities, as 
 we found it delicious. The only defect it has is the great 
 size of the seed in comparison with the pulp. This is the 
 chief fault of all uncultivated wild fruits. The moko- 
 ronga exists throughout this part of the country most 
 abundantly, and the natives eagerlv devour it, as it is said 
 to be perfectly wholesome, or, as they express it, "It is 
 pure fat," and fat is by them considered the best of food. 
 Though only a little larger than a cherry, we found that the 
 elephants had stood picking them off patiently by the hour. 
 We observed the footprints of a black rhinoceros (Rhino- 
 
392 THE nHINOCEROS. 
 
 ceros biccrnis, Linn.) and her calf. "We saw other footprints 
 amorig the hills of Semalembue; but the black rhinoceros 
 is remarkably scarce in all the country north of the Zam- 
 besi. The w^iite rhinoceros (Rhinoceros simus of Burchell,) 
 or Mohohu of the Bechuanas, is quite extinct here, and 
 v. II soon become unknown in the country to the south. 
 It feeds almost entirely on grasses, and is of a timid, un- 
 suspecting disposition : this renders it an easy prey, and 
 they are slaughtered without mercy on the introduction of 
 fire-arms. The black possesses a more savage nature, and, 
 like the ill-natured in general, is never found with an ounce 
 of fat in its body. From its greater fierceness and wariness, 
 it holds its place in a district much longer than its more 
 timid and better-conditioned neighbor. Mr. Oswell was 
 once stalking two of these beasts, and, as they came slowly 
 to him, he, knowing that there is but little chance of hitting 
 the small brain of this animal by a shot in the head, lay 
 expecting one of them to give his shoulder till he was 
 within a few yards. The hunter then thought that by 
 making a rush to his side he might succeed in escaping; 
 but the rhinoceros, too quick for that, turned upon him, 
 and, though he discharged his gun close to the animal's 
 head, he was tossed in the air. My friend was insensible 
 for some time, and, on recovering, found large wounds on 
 the thigh and body: I saw that on the former part still 
 open, and five inches *long. The white, however, is not 
 always quite safe, for one, even after it was mortally 
 wounded, attacked Mr. Oswell's horse, and thrust the 
 horn through to the saddle, tossing at the time both horse 
 and rider. I once saw a white rhinoceros give a buffalo, 
 which was gazing intently at myself, a poke in the chest, 
 but it did not wound it, and seemed only a hint to get out 
 of the way. Four varieties of the rhinoceros are enume- 
 rated by naturalists, but my observation led mo to conclude 
 that there are but two, and that the extra species have 
 been formed from differences in the,ir sizes, ages, and the 
 direction of the horns ; as if we should reckon the short- 
 
V 
 
 . HON!) AND WAX 3'J3 
 
 horned cattle a different species from the AMerneys or tho 
 Highland breed. I was led to this from having once seen 
 a black rhinoceros with a horn bent downward like that 
 of the kuabaoba, and also because the animals of the two 
 great varieties differ very much in appearance at different 
 stages of their growth. I find, however, that Dr. Smith, 
 the best judge in these matters, is quite decided as to tho 
 propriety of the subdivision into three or four species. For 
 common readers it is sufficient to remember that there are 
 two well-defined species, that differ entirely in appearance 
 and food. The absence of both these rhinoceroses among 
 the reticulated rivers in the central valley may easily be 
 accounted for, they would be such an easy prey to the 
 natives in their canoes at the periods of inundation ; but 
 one cannot so readily accQunt for the total absence of the 
 giraffe and ostrich on the high open lands of the Batoka 
 north of the Zambesi, unless we give credence to the native 
 report which bounds the country still farther north by 
 another network of waters near Lake Shuia, and suppose 
 that it also prevented their progress southward. The Ba- 
 toka have no name for the giraffe or the ostrich in their lan- 
 guage; yet, as the former exists in considerable numbers 
 in the angle formed by the Leeambye and Chobe, they 
 may have come from the north along the western ridge. 
 The Chobe would seem to have been too narrow to act as 
 an obstacle to the giraffe, supposing it to have come into 
 that district from the south ; but the broad river into 
 which that stream flows seems always to have presented 
 an impassable barrier to both the giraffe and the ostrich, 
 though they abound on its southern border, both in the 
 Kalahari Desert and the country of Mashona. 
 
 The honey-guides were very assiduous in their friendly 
 offices, and enabled my men to get a large quantity of 
 honey. But, though bees abound, the wax of these parts 
 forms no article of trade. In Londa it may be said to be 
 fu'iy "ared ior, as you £ i\d hives placed upon trees in the 
 v *<?'* Xxvjsome Crests. We often met strings of carrier! 
 
594 SLOW TRAVELLING 
 
 iuG-?n witi large blocks of this substance, each eighty or 
 a nundred pounds in weight, and pieces were offered to 
 u* xbr sale at eveiy viilago; but here we never saw a single 
 artificial hive. The bees were always found in the natural 
 cavities of mopane-trees. It is probable that the good 
 market for wax afforded to Angola by the churches of 
 Brazil led to the gradual development of that branch oi' 
 commerce there. I saw even on the banks of the Quango as 
 much as sixpence paid for a pound. In many parts of tho 
 Batoka country bees exist^m vast numbers, and the tribute 
 due to Sekeletu is often paid in large jars of honey ; but, 
 having no market nor use for the wax, it is thrown away. 
 This was the case also with ivory at the Lake Ngami at 
 the period of its discovery. 
 
 Though we are now approaching the Portuguese settle 
 ment, the country is still full of large game. My men 
 killed six buffalo-calves out of a herd we met. The abun- 
 dance of these animals, and also of antelopes, shows the in 
 sufficiency of the bow and arrow to lessen their numbers. 
 There are also a* great many lions and hyenas, and there is 
 no check upon the increase of the former, for the people ; 
 believing that the souls of their chiefs enter into them, 
 never attempt to kill them : they even believe that a chief 
 may metamorphose himself into a lion, kill any one he 
 chooses, and then return to the human form : therefore, 
 when they see one, they commence clapping their hands, 
 which is the usual mode of salutation here. The conse- 
 quence is that lions and hyenas are so abundant that we 
 Bee little huts made in the trees, indicating the places where 
 Bome of the inhabitants have slept when benighted in the 
 fields. As numbers of my men frequently left the line of 
 march in order to take out the korwes from their nests 
 or follow the honey-guides, they excited the astonishment 
 of our guides, who were constantly warning them of the 
 danger they thereby incurred from lions. I was often con- 
 siderably ahead of the main body of my men on this ao- 
 eount, and was obliged to stop every hour or two; but, the 
 
URAPhfc ">'»5 
 
 sun being excessively hot by day, 1 was glad oi the ox* d«i 
 fbr resting. We could make no such prodigious stiidi I 
 
 officers in the Arctic regions are able to do. Tea or twelve 
 
 miles a day were a good march for both the m .a and my- 
 
 . and it was not the length of the marches, but con- 
 
 tinuing day after day to perform the same di that 
 
 was so fatiguing. It was in this case much longer than aj>- 
 
 pears on the map, because we kept out of the way of vil- 
 
 3. I drank less than the natives when riding; but all my 
 
 clothing was now constantly damp from the moisture which 
 
 imbibed in large quantities at every pond. One does 
 
 not stay on these occasions to prepare water with alum 
 
 or any thing else, but drinks any amount without fear. 1 
 
 never felt the atmosphere so steamy as on* the low-lying 
 
 lands of the Zambesi; and yet it was becoming cooler than 
 
 it was on the highlands. 
 
 We crossed the rivulets Kapopo and Ue, now running but 
 usually dry. There are great numbers of wild grape-vines 
 growing in this quarter: indeed, they abound everywhere 
 along the banks of the Zambesi. In the Batoka country 
 there is a variety which yields a black grape of considerable 
 sweetness. The leaves are very large and harsh, as if capa- 
 ble of withstanding the rays of this hot sun; but the most 
 common kinds — one with a round leaf and a greenish 
 grape, and another with a leaf closely resembling that of 
 the cultivated varieties and with dark or purple fruit — 
 have large seeds, which are strongly astringent and render 
 it a disagreeable fruit. The natives oat all the varieties; and 
 I tasted vinegar made by a Portuguese from these grapes. 
 Probably a country which yields the wild vines so very 
 abundantly might bo a n't one for the cultivated species. 
 At this part of the journey so many of the vines hai run 
 laeross the little footpath we followed that one hai to 
 jbe constantly on the watch to avoid being tripped. The 
 •ound was covered w r ith rounded shingle, which was not 
 easily seen among the grass. Pedcstrianism may bo all 
 rery well for those whose obesity requires munh exercise; 
 
396 THE UE — MONINA'S VILLAGE. 
 
 but for one who was becoming as thin as a lath, thiou 5 
 the constant perspiration caused by inarching day aftei 
 day in the hot sun, the only good I saw in it was that it 
 gave an honest sort of a man a vivid idea of the tread 
 
 mill. 
 
 Although the rains were not quite over, great number! 
 
 of pools were drying up, and the ground was in many 
 parts covered with small green cryptogamous plants, which 
 gave it a mouldy appearance and a strong smell. As we 
 sometimes pushed aside the masses of rank vegetation 
 ^hich hung over our path, we felt a sort of hot blast on our 
 faces. Every thing looked unwholesome j but we had no 
 fever. The Ue flows between high banks of a soft red 
 sandstone streaked with white, and pieces of tufa. The 
 crumbling sandstone is evidently alluvial, and is cut into 
 twelve feet deep. In this region, too, we met with pot- 
 holes six feet deep and three or four in diameter. In some 
 rases they form convenient wells; in others they are full 
 of earth; and in others still the people have made them 
 into graves for their chiefs. 
 
 On the 20th we came to Monina's village, (close to thei 
 sand-river Tangwe, latitude 16° 13' 38" south, longitude I 
 32° 32' east.) This man is very popular among the tribes, 
 on account of his liberality. Boroma/Nyampungo, Mo- 
 nina, Jira, Katolosa, (Monomotapa,) and Siisa, all acknow- 
 ledge the supremacy of one called Nyatewe, who is re- 
 ported to decide all disputes respecting land. 
 
 When we told Monina that we had nothing to present 
 but some hoes, he replied that he was not in need of thoae 
 articles, and that he had absolute power over the country 1 
 in front, and if he prevented us from proceeding no one 
 would say any thing to him. His little boy Boromo having 
 come to .he encampment to look at us, I gave him a kmle, 
 and he went off and brought a pint of honey for me. Ihe 
 father came soo* afterward, and I offered him a shirt. He 
 remarked to his councillors, "It is evident that this manl 
 has nothing, for, if he had, his people would be buying 
 
INSANITY AND DISAPPEARANCE OF MONAHIN. 
 
 provisions, but we don't see them going about for that pur 
 pose." His council did not agree in this. They evidently 
 believed that we had goods but kept them hid, and we felt 
 it rather hard to be suspected of falsehood. It was pro- 
 bably at their suggestion that in the evening a war-dance 
 was got up about a hundred yards from our encampment, 
 as if to put us in fear and force us to bring forth presents. 
 Borne of Monina's young men had guns, but most wore 
 armed with large bows, arrows, and spears. They beat 
 their drums furiously, and occasionally fired off a gun. As 
 this sort of dance is never got up unless there is an inten- 
 tion to attack, my men expected an assault. *We sat and 
 »ooked at them for some time, and then, as it became dark, 
 lay down all ready to give them a warm reception. But an 
 hour or two after dark the dance ceased, and, as we then 
 saw no one approaching us, we went to sleep. During tho 
 night, one of my head-men, Monahin, was seen to get up, 
 i<>ok toward the village, and say to one who was half 
 awake, " Don't you hear what these people are saying? 
 <Jo and listen." He then walked off in the opposite direc- 
 tion, and never returned. We had no guard set, but every 
 one lay with his spear in his hand. The man to whom he 
 spoke appears to have been in a dreamy condition, for it 
 did not strike him that he ought to give the alarm. Next 
 morning I found to my sorrow that Monahin was gone, 
 and not a trace of him could be discovered, lie had an 
 attack ef pleuritis some weeks before, and had recovered, 
 but latterly complained a little of his head. 1 observed 
 him in good spirits on the way hither, and in crossing 
 lome of the streams, as I was careful not to wet my ft 
 he aided me, and several times joked at my becoming so 
 light In the evening he sat beside my tent until it was 
 dark, and did not manifest any great alarm. It was pro- 
 bably either a sudden fit of insanity, or, having gona a littlo 
 way out from the camp, he may have been carried off by a 
 lion, as this part of the country is full of them. I iaeline to 
 the former opinion, because sudden insanity occurs when 
 
 34 
 
S98 
 
 SAND MVMl TANOWE. 
 
 there is any unusual strain upon their mind's. M on ah in was. 
 in command of the Batoka of Mokwine in my party, and he 
 was looked upon with great dislike by all that chief's sub- 
 jects. The only difficulties I had with them arose in con- 
 sequence of being obliged to give orders through him 
 They said Mokwine is reported to have been killed by tho 
 Makololo, but Monahin is the individual who j)ut forth hi3 
 hand and slew him. When one of these people kills in 
 battle, he seems to have no compunction afterward; but 
 when he makes a foray on his own responsibility, and kills 
 a man of note, the common people make remarks to each 
 other, which are reported to him and bring the affair per- 
 petually to his remembrance. This iteration on the con- 
 science causes insanity, and, when one runs away in a wide 
 country like this, the fugitive is never heard of. Monahin 
 had lately become afraid of his own party from overhearing 
 their remarks, and said more than once to me, "They want 
 to kil! me." I believe if he ran to any village they would 
 take care of him. I felt his loss greatly, and spent three 
 days in searching for him. Ho was a sensible and most 
 obliging man. 1 sent in the morning to inform Monina of 
 this sad event, and he at once sent to all the gardens 
 around, desiring the people to look for him, and, should he 
 come near, to bring him home. He evidently sympathized 
 with us in our sorrow, and, afraid lest we might suspect 
 him, added, "We never catch nor kidnap people here. It 
 is not our custom. It is considered as guilt among all the 
 tribes." 1 gave him credit for truthfulness, and he allowed 
 us to move on without further molestation. 
 
 After leaving his village, we marched in the bed of a 
 AAud-river a quarter of a mile broad, called Tangwe. 
 Walking on this sand is as fatiguing as walking on snow. 
 The country is flat, and covered with low trees; but we see 
 high hills in the distance. A little to the south we have 
 those of the Lobole. This region is very much infested by 
 lions, and men never go any distance into the woods alone 
 Having turned aside on one occasion at mid-day, and gont 
 
THI ORDEAL Ml'AVl. 399 
 
 a short distance among grass a little taller than myself, an 
 animal sprang away from me which was certainly not an 
 antelope, but I could not distinguish whether it was a lion 
 or a hyena. This abundance of carnivora made us lose all 
 hope of Monahin. We saw footprints of many black rhi- 
 noceroses, bulfalos, and zebras. 
 
 After a few hours we reached the village of Nyakoba. 
 Two men who accompanied us from Alonina to Nyakoba's 
 would not believe us when we said that we had no beads. 
 It is very trying to have one's veracity doubted; but, on 
 opening the boxes, and showing them that all I had 
 was perfectly useless to them, they consented to receive 
 some beads off Sekwebu's waist, and I promised to send 
 four yards of calico from Tete. As we came away from 
 Monina's village, a witch-doctor, who had been sent for, 
 arrived, and all Monina's wives went forth into the fields 
 that morning fasting. There they would be compelled 
 to drink an infusion of a plant named "goho," which 
 is used as an ordeal. This ceremony is called u muavi," 
 and is performed in this way. When a man suspects 
 that any of his wives has bewitched him, he sends 
 for the witch-doctor, and -all the wives go forth into the 
 field and remain fasting till that person has made an 
 infusion of the plant. They all drink it, each one holding 
 up her hand to heaven in attestation of her innocency. 
 Those who vomit it are considered innocent, while those 
 whom it purges are pronounced guilty, and put to death by 
 burning. The innocent return to their homes, and slaughter 
 a cock as a thank-offering to their guardian spirits. The 
 practice of ordeal is common among all the negro nations 
 north of the Zambesi. This summary procedure excited 
 my surprise, for my intercourse with the natives here had 
 led me to believe that the women were held in so much 
 estimation that the men would not dare to get rid of them 
 thus. But the explanation I received was this. The 
 slightest imputation makes them eagerly desire the test; 
 they are conscious of being innocent, and have the fullest 
 
tOU woman's eighth 
 
 faith in the muavi detecting the guilty alone: hence they 
 go willingly, and even eagerly, to drink it. When in An- 
 gola, a half-caste was pointed out to me who is one of the 
 most successful merchants in that country; and the mother 
 of this gentleman, who was perfectly free, went, of hex 
 own accord, all the way from Ambaca to Cassange, to be 
 killed by the ordeal, her rich son making no objection 
 The same custom prevails among the Barotse, Bashubia, 
 and Batoka, but with slight variations. The Barotse, foi 
 instance, pour the medicine down the throat of a cock or 
 of a dog, and judge of the innocence or guilt of the person 
 accused according to the vomiting or purging of the 
 animal. I happened to mention to my own men the water- 
 test for witches formerly in use in Scotland: the supposed 
 witch, being bound hand and foot, was thrown into a pond : 
 if she floated, she was considered guilty, taken out, and 
 burned; but if she sank and was drowned, she was pro- 
 nounced innocent. >The w r isdom of my ancestors excited 
 
 as much wonder in their minds as their custom did in 
 
 - 
 
 mine. 
 
 The person whom ISyakoba appointed to be our guide, 
 having informed us of the decision, came and bargained 
 that his services should t>e rewarded with a hoe. I had 
 jo objection to give it, and showed him the article : he 
 wa& delighted with it, and went off to show it to his wife. 
 He hoon afterward returned, and said that, though he was 
 perfectly willing to go, his wife would not let him. I sijid, 
 ''Then bring back the hoe;" but he replied, "I want it." 
 »' Well, go with us, and you shall have it." " But my wife 
 won't let me." I remarked to my men, " Did you ever 
 \ear such a fool?" They answered, " Oh, that is the eua- 
 om cf these parts: the wives are the masters.'' And 
 jekwebu informed me that he had gone to this man's 
 \ouee, and heard him saying to his wife, "Do you think 
 tfiat I would ever leave you?" then, turning to Sekwebu, 
 he asked, "Do you think I would leave this pretty 
 woman f is she not pretty?" Sekwebu had been making 
 
woman's rights. 401 
 
 .fl/juirios among the people, and had found that tho 
 women indeed possessed a great deal of influence Wo 
 questioned tho guido whom we finally got from Nya- 
 koba, an intelligent young man, who had much of tho 
 Arab features, and found tho statements confirmed. 
 When a young man takes a liking for a girl of another 
 village, and the parents have no objection to the match, 
 he is obliged to come and live at their village. He has 
 to perform certain services for tho mother-in-law, such 
 as keeping her well supplied with firewood ; and wneu 
 he comes into her presence he is obliged to sit with his 
 knees in a bent position, as putting out his feet toward 
 the old lady would give her great offence. If he becomes 
 tired of living in this state of vassalage, aud wishes to re- 
 turn to his own family, he is obliged to leave all his chil- 
 dren behind : they belong to the wife. This is only a 
 more stringent enforcement of the law from which ema- 
 nates the practice which prevails so very extensively in 
 Africa, known to Europeans as "buying wives." Such 
 virtually it is; but it does not appear quite in that light 
 to the actors. So many head of cattle or goats are given 
 to the parents of the girl " to give her up," as it is termed, 
 — i.e. to forego all claim on her offspring and allow an 
 entire transference of her and her seed into another family. 
 If nothing is given, the family from which she hai come 
 can claim the children as part of itself: the payment is 
 made to sever this bond. In the case supposed, the young 
 man has not been able to advance any thing for that pur- 
 pose; and, from the temptations placed here before my 
 m^n, I have no doubt that some prefer to have their 
 daughters married in that way, as it leads to the increase 
 of their own village. My men excited the admiration 
 of tbn Bambiri, who took them for a superior breed on 
 account of .their bravery in elephant-hunting, and wished 
 to get them as sons-in-law on the conditions named; but 
 Bono yielded to the temptation. 
 
 We were informed that there is a child belonging to a 
 2 A u* 
 
402 THE WEATHER. 
 
 half-caste Portuguese in one of these tribes, and the fathei 
 bad tried in vain to get him from the mother's parents. 
 We saw several things to confirm the impression of the 
 higher position which women hold here j and, being anxious 
 to discover if I were not mistaken, when we came among 
 the Portuguese I inquired of them, and was told that they 
 had ascertained the same thing; and that, if they wished 
 a man to perform any seiwice for them, he would reply, 
 "Well, I shall go and ask my wife." If she consented, he 
 "would go and perform his duty faithfully; but no amount 
 of coaxing or bribery would induce him to do it if 6he 
 refused. The Portuguese praised the appearance of the 
 Banyai; and they certainly are a fine. race. 
 
 We got on better with Xyakoba than we expected. He 
 has been so much affected by the sesenda that he is quite 
 decrepit, and requires to be fed. I at once showed his 
 messenger that we had nothing whatever to give. Xya- 
 koba was offended with him for not believing me, and he 
 immediately sent a basket of maize and another of corn, 
 saying that he believed my statement, and would send 
 men with me to Tete who would not lead me to any other 
 village. 
 
 The birds here sing very sweetly, and I thought I heard 
 the canary, as in Londa. We had a heavy shower of rain; 
 and I observed that the thermometer sank 14° in one hour 
 afterward. From the beginning of February we expe- 
 rienced a sensible diminution of temperature. In January 
 the lowest wa e 75", and that at sunrise; the average at 
 the same hour (sunrise) being 79°; at 3 p.m., 90°j»and at 
 iunset, 82°. In February it fell as low as 70° in the course 
 of the night, and the average height was 88°. Only once did 
 it rise to 9t°, and a thunder-storm followed this; yet the 
 sensation of heat was greater now than it had been at 
 much higher temperatures on more elevated lands. 
 
 We passed several villages by going roundabout ways 
 through the forest. We saw the remains of a lion that had 
 been killed by a buffalo, and the horns of a putokwane, 
 
TflK BANTAJ. 403 
 
 (black antelope,) the finest I had ever seen, which had met 
 ts death by a lion. The drums, beating all night in one 
 Tillage near which we slept, showed that some person in it 
 had finished his course. 'On the occasion of the death of a 
 chief, a trader is liable to be robbed, for the people consider 
 themselve° not amenable to law until a new one is elected. 
 We continued a very winding course, in order to avoid the 
 chief Katolosa, who is said to levy large sums upon those 
 who fall into his hands Oni of our guides was a fine, tali 
 young man, the very image of Ben Habib the Arab. They 
 were carrying dried buffalo's meat to the market at Tete 
 as a private speculation. 
 
 A great many of the Banyai are of a light coffee-and- 
 milk color, and, indeed, this color id considered handsome 
 throughout the whole country, a fair complexion being as 
 much a test of beauty with them as with us. As they 
 draw out their hair into small cords a foot in length, and 
 entwine the inner bark of a certain tree round each sepa- 
 rate cord, and dye this substance of a reddish color, many 
 ff them put me in mind of the ancient Egyptians. The 
 great mass of dressed hair which they possess reaches to 
 the shoulders, but when they intend to travel they draw it 
 uj) to a hunch and tie it on the top of the head. They are 
 cleanly in their habits. , 
 
 A.8 we did not come near human habitations, and could 
 only take short stages on account of the illness of one of 
 my men, I had an opportunity of observing the expedients 
 my party resorted to in order to supply their wants. 
 Large white edible mushrooms are found on the ant-hills, 
 and are very good. '.The mokuri, a tuber which abounds 
 in the Biopane country, they discovered by percussing the 
 ground with stones; and another tuber, about the size ol a 
 turnip, called "bonga," is found in the same situations. K 
 does not determine to the joints like the mokuvi, and in 
 winter has a sensible amount of salt in it. A fruit called 
 1 ndongo" by the Makololo, "dongolo" by the Bam bin, 
 resembles in appearance a small plum, which beconiet 
 
404 PURSUED BY NATIVES. 
 
 black when ripe, and is good food; as the seeds are small 
 Many trees are known by tradition, and one receivei 
 carious bits of information in asking about different fruita 
 that are met with. A tree named " shekabakadzi" is su- 
 perior to all others for making fire by friction. As ita 
 name implies, women may even readily make fire by it 
 when benighted. 
 
 We were tolerably successful in avoiding the villages, 
 and slept one night on the flanks of the hill Zimika, whore 
 a great number of deep pot-holes afforded an abundant 
 supply of good rain-water. Here, for the first time, we 
 saw hills with bare, smooth, rocky tops, and we crossed 
 over broad dikes of gneiss and syenitic porphyry: the 
 directions in which they lay were N. and S. As we were 
 now 7 ear to Tete, we were congratulating ourselves, on 
 havir g avoided those who would only have plagued us ; 
 but 1 »ext morning some men saw us, and ran off to inform 
 the neighboring villages of our passing. A party imme- 
 diately pursued us, and, as they knew we were within call 
 of Katoldsa, (Monomotapa,) they threatened to send infor- 
 mation to that chief of our offence in passing through the 
 country without leave. We were obliged to give them two 
 small tusks ; for, had they told Katolosa of our supposed 
 offence, we should in all probability have lost the whole 
 We then went through a very rough, stony country with- 
 out any path. Being pretty well tired out in the evening 
 at the 2d of March, I remained at about eight miles' distance 
 from Tete, Tette, or Nyungwe. My men asked me to go 
 on : I felt too fatigued to proceed, but sent forwajgi to the 
 commandant the letters of recommendation with which I 
 had been favored in Angola by the bishop and others, and 
 lay down to rest. Our food having been exhausted, nvj 
 men had been subsisting for some time on roots and honey 
 About two o'clock in the morning of the 3d we ^ere 
 aroused by two officers and a company of soldiers, who had 
 been sent with the materials for a civilized breakfast and a 
 "masheela" to bring me to Tete. (Commandant's house; 
 
GENEROSITY OF THE COMMANDANT. 405 
 
 iat 16° 9' 3" S., long. 33° 28' E.) My companions though* 
 that wo were captured by the armed men, and called me 
 in alarm. When I understood the errand on whieh bhoy hf.d 
 come, and nad partaicen ot a good breakfast, though I hi^J 
 just before been too tired to sleep, all my fatigue vanished 
 It was the most refreshing breakfast I ever partook rtf, 
 and I walked the last eight miles without the least feeling 
 of weariness, although the path was so rough that one of 
 the officers remarked to me, " This is enough to tear i 
 man's life out of him." The pleasure experienced in par- 
 taking of that breakfast was only equalled by the enjoy- 
 ment of Mr. Gabriel's bed on my arrival at Loanda. It 
 was also enhanced by the news that Sebast.opol had fallen 
 ind the war was finished. 
 
 CHAPTEJR XXXI. 
 
 dr. Livingstone's residence at tete. 
 
 I was most kindly received by the commandant, Tito 
 Augusto d'Araujo Sicard, who did every thing in his power 
 to restore me from my emaciated condition ; and, as this 
 was still the unhealthy period at Kilimane, he advised mo' 
 to remain with him until the following month. He also 
 generously presented my men with abundant provisions of 
 millet; and, by giving them lodgings in a house of his own 
 until the}' could erect their own huts, he preserved them 
 from the*bitc of the tampans, here named Carapatos. We 
 had heard frightful accounts of this insect while among the 
 
 CD O 
 
 Danyui; and Major Sicard assured me that to strangers its 
 bite is more especially dangerous, as it sometimes cai sea 
 fata fever It may please our homoeopathic friends to tear 
 that, in curing the bite of the tampan, the natives admi- 
 nister one of the insects bruised in the medicine employed. 
 The village of Tete is built on a long slope down to tb« 
 
4U(5 TETE : ITS POPULATION 
 
 river, the fort be ng close to the water. The rock bcoeatb 
 is gray sandstone, and has the appearance of being crushed 
 away fiom the river: the strata have thus a crumpled 
 form. The hollow between each crease is a street, the 
 house? being: built upon the projecting fold. The rocks at 
 the top of the slope are much higher than the fort, and, of 
 course, completely command it. There is then a large 
 valley, and beyond that an oblong hill called Karueira. 
 There are about thirty European houses : the rest are 
 native, and of wattle and daub. A wall about ten feet 
 high is intended to enclose the village ; but most of the 
 native inhabitants prefer to live on different spots outside. 
 There are about twelve hundred huts in all, Avhich with 
 European households would give a population of about 
 four thousand live hundred souls. Only a small proportion 
 of these, however, live on the spot; the majority are en- 
 gaged in agricultural operations in the adjacent country. 
 Generally there are not more than two thousand people 
 resident, for, compared with what it was, Tete is now a 
 ruin. The number of Portuguese is very small ; if we ex- 
 clude the military, it is under twenty. Lately, however, 
 one hundred and five soldiers were sent from Portugal tc 
 Senna, where in one year twenty-five were cut off by fever. 
 They were then removed to Tete ; and here they enjoy 
 much better health, though, from the abundance of spirits 
 distilled from various plants, wild fruits, and grain, in 
 which pernicious beverage they largely indulge, besides 
 partaking chiefly of unwholesome native food, better health 
 could scarcely have been expected. The natives here un- 
 derstand the method of distillation by means of gun-barrels 
 and a succession of earthen pots filled with water to keep 
 diem cool. The general report of the fever here is that, 
 while at Kilimane the fever is continuous, at Tete a man 
 recovers in about three days. The mildest remedies only 
 are used at first, and, if that period be passed, then th« 
 aoore severe. 
 
 The fort «»f Tete has bceu the salvation of the Portuguese 
 
DBGADINC1 Of 1'oRTt GUESE roWER. 407 
 
 power in this quarter. It is a small square building, with 
 a thatched apartment for the residence of the troops; and, 
 though there are but few guns, they are in a much betu-r 
 state than those of any fort in the interior oi' Angola. 
 The cause of the decadence of the Portuguese power in 
 this region is simply this : — In former times, considerable 
 quantities of grain, as wheat, millet, and maize, were ex- 
 ported; also coffee, sugar, oil, and indigo, besides gold-dust 
 and ivory. The cultivation of grain was darned on by 
 means of slaves, of whom the Portuguese possessed a large 
 number. The gold-dust was procured by washing at various 
 points on the north, south, and west of Tete. A merchant 
 took all bis slaves with him to the washings, carrying as 
 much calico and other goods as he could muster. On 
 arriving at the washing-place, he made a present to the 
 chief of the value of about a pound sterling. The sla\ 
 were then divided into parties, each headed by a confiden- 
 tial servant, who not only had the supervision of his squad 
 while the washing went on, but bought dust from the inhabit- 
 ants and made a weeklyreturn to his master. When several 
 masters united at one spot, it was called a "Bara;" and 
 they then erected a temporary church, in which a priest 
 from one of the missions performed mass. Both chiefs 
 and people were favorable to these visits, because the 
 traders purchased grain for the sustenance of the slaves 
 with the goods they had brought. They continued at this 
 labor until the whole of the goods were expended j and by 
 this means about one hundred and thirty pounds of gold 
 were annually produced. Probably more than this was 
 actnally obtained, but, as it was an article easily secreted, 
 this alone was submitted to the authorities for taxation. At 
 present the whole amount of gold obtained annually by 
 tho Portuguese is from eight to ten pounds only. When 
 the slave-trade began, it seemed to man}' of the merchants 
 a more speedy mode of becoming rich to sell off the shr 
 than to pursue the slow mode of gold-washing and agricul- 
 ture, and they continued to export them until they had 
 
40S TETE, PLUNDERED AND BURNED. 
 
 neither hands to labor nor to fight for them. It was just 
 the story of the goose and the golden egg The coffee 
 and sugar plantations and gold-washings were abandoned, 
 because the labor had been exported to the Brazils. Many 
 of the Portuguese then followed. , their slaves, and tho 
 Government was obliged to pass a law to prevent further 
 emigration, which, had it gone on, would have depopu- 
 lated the Portuguese possessions altogether. A clever 
 man of Asiatic (Goa) and Portuguese extraction, called 
 Nyaude, now built a stockade at the confluence of the 
 Luenya and Zambesi; and, when the commandant of Tete 
 sent an officer with his company to summon him to his 
 presence, Nyaude asked permission of the officer to dress 
 himself, which being granted, he went into an inner apart- 
 ment, and the officer ordered his men to pile their arms. 
 A drum of war began to beat a note which is well known 
 to the inhabitants. Some of the soldiers took the alarm 
 on hearing this note; but the officer, disregarding their 
 warning, was, with his whole party, in a few minutes dis- 
 armed and bound hand and foot. The commandant of 
 Tete then armed the whole body of slaves and marched 
 against the stockade of Nyaude; but when they came near 
 to it there was the Luenya still to cross. As they did not 
 effect this speedily, Nyaude despatched a strong party 
 under his son Bonga across the river below the stockade, 
 and up the left bank of the Zambesi until they came near 
 to Tete. They then attacked Tete, which was wholly un- 
 defended save by a few soldiers in the fort, plundered, and 
 burned the whole town except the house of the command- 
 ant and a few others, with the church and fort. Tiie 
 women and children fled into the church ; and it is a re- 
 markable fact that none of the natives of this region will 
 ever attack a church. Having rendered Tete a ruin, Bonga 
 carried off all the cattle and plunder to his father. Newa 
 of this having been brought to the army before the stock* 
 ade, a sudden panic dispersed the whole ; and, as the fugi- 
 tives took roundabout ways in their flight, Katolosa, vb* 
 
and hitherto protended to bo friendly with the Pottngueae 
 jut his men to capture as many of thorn as they could. 
 They killed many fur the sake of their arms. Thin ie the 
 account which buLh natives and Portuguese give of the 
 iff air. 
 
 The merchants were unable to engage in trade, and com 
 e, which the slave-trade had rendered stagnant, vv^fi 
 cow completely obstructed. The present commandant of 
 Tete, Major Si card, having great influence among the 
 natives, from his good character, put a stop to the war 
 more than once by his mere presence on the spot. \\ r o 
 heard of him among the Banyai as a man with whom they 
 would never h'ght, because " he had a good heart." JIad 
 I come down to this coast instead of going to Loanda in 
 . 1 should have come among the belligerents while the 
 war was still raging, and should probably have been cut 
 oil*. My present approach was just at the conclusion of 
 the peace; and when the Portuguese authorities here 
 were informed, through the kind offices of Lord Clarendon 
 and Count de Lavradio, that I was expected to come this 
 way, they all declared that such was the existing state of 
 atl'airs that no European could possibly pass through the 
 tribes. Some natives at last came down the river to Tete 
 and said, alluding to the sextant and artificial horizon, 
 that "the Son of God had come," and that he was "able 
 to take, the sun down from the heavens and place it under 
 his arm I" Major Sicard then felt sure that this was the 
 man mentioned in Lord Clarendon's despatch. 
 
 On mentioning to the commandant that I had discovered 
 a small seam of coal, he stated that the Portuguese wore 
 already aware of nine such seams, and that live cf them 
 were on the opposite bank of the river. As soon as 1 had 
 ed from ra}' fatigue I went to examine them. We 
 proceeded in a boat to the mouth of the Lofiibu or Peviibu 
 ffhich is about two miles below Tete and on the opposite 
 BT northern bank. Ascending this about four miles against 
 k strong current of beautifully-clear water, we landed neai 
 
 35 
 
4l(f HOT SPRINGS. 
 
 a small cataract, and walked about two miles through very 
 fertile gardens to the seam, which we found to be in one 
 of the feeders of the Lofubu, called Muatize or Motize. 
 The seam is in the perpendicular bank, and dips into the 
 rivulet, or in a northerly direction. There is, first of alL, 
 a seam ten inches in diameter, then some shale, below 
 which there is another seam, fifty-eight inches of which 
 are seen, and, as the bottom touches the water of the 
 Muatize, it may be more. This part of the seam is about 
 thirty yards long. There is then a fault. About one 
 hundred yards higher up the stream, black vesicular trap 
 is seen, penetrating in thin veins the clay shale of the 
 country, converting it into porcellanite, and partially 
 crystallizing the coal with which it came into contact. 
 On the right bank of the Lofubu there is another feedet 
 entering that river near its confluence with the Muatize, 
 which is called the Morongozi, in which there is another 
 and still larger bed of coal exposed. Farther up the Lo- 
 fubu there are other seams in the rivulets Inyavu and 
 Makare ; also several spots in the Maravi country have 
 the coal cropping out. This has evidently been brought to 
 the surface by volcanic action at a later period than the 
 coal-formation. 
 
 I also went up the Zambesi, and visited a hot spring 
 called Nyamboronda, situated in the bed of a small rivulet 
 named Nyaondo, which shows that igneous action is not 
 yet extinct. We landed at a small rivulet called Moko- 
 rozi, then went a mile or two to the eastward, where we 
 t«jund"a hot fountain at the bottom of a high hill. A little 
 »pr ; ng bubbles up on one side of the rivulet Nyaondo, and 
 A great quantity of acrid steam rises up from the ground 
 adjacent, about twelve feet square of which is so hot that 
 my companions could not stand on it with their bare feet. 
 There are several little holes from which the water 
 trickles; but the principal spring is in a hole a foot in 
 diameter and about the same in depth. Numbers of 
 bubbles are constantly rising. The steam feels acrid in 
 
AL-SLAMS. 41) 
 
 the throat, but is not inflammable, as it did not bum when 
 
 I held a bunch of lighted grass over the bubbles. The 
 mercury rises to 156° when the thermometer is put into 
 the water in the hole; but after a few seconds it standi 
 steadily at 1(>0°. Even when flowing over the stones the 
 water is too hot for the hand. Little tish frequently leap 
 out of the stream in the bed of which the fountain rises, 
 into the hot water, and get scalded to death. We saw a 
 frog which had performed the experiment and was now 
 cooked The stones over which the water Hows are in- 
 crusted with a white salt, and the water has a saline taste. 
 The ground has been dug out near the fountain by the 
 natives, in order to extract the salt it contains. It is 
 situated among rocks of syenitic porphyry in broad dikes, 
 and gneiss tilted on edge and having a strike to \he X.E. 
 There are many specimens of half-formed pumice, with 
 greenstone and lava. Some of the sandstone strata are 
 dislocated by a hornblende rock and by basalt, the sand- 
 stone nearest to the basalt being converted into quartz. 
 
 The country around, as indeed all the district lying N. 
 and N.W. of Tete, is hilly, and, the hills being covered 
 with trees, the scenery is very picturesque. The soil of 
 the valleys is very fruitful and well cultivated. There 
 would not be much difficulty in working the coal. The 
 Lofubu is about sixty yards broad : it flows perennially, 
 and at its very lowest period, which is after September, 
 there is water about eighteen inches deep, which could be 
 navigated in flat-bottomed boats. At-the time of my visit 
 it was full, and the current was very strong. If the small 
 cataract referred to were to bo avoided, the land-carriage 
 beyond would only be about two miles. The other seams 
 farther up the river may, after passing the cataract, be 
 approached more easily than that in the Muatize: as the 
 seam, however, dips down into the stream, no drainage 
 ot the mine would be required, for if water were come to 
 it would run into the streaxp 1 did not visit the others, 
 but 1 was informed that ther^ ure seams in the independent 
 
412 WORKMEN'S WAUE9 
 
 native territory as well as in that of the Portuguese Tim 
 in the Xake is in the Banyai country; and, indeed, 1 havfl 
 do doubt but that the whole country between Zumbo and 
 JLupata is a coal-field of at least two and a half degrees 
 of latitude in breadth, having many faults, made during 
 the time of the igneous action. The gray sandstone rock^ 
 having silicified trees lying on it, is of these dimensions. 
 The plantation in which the seam of coal exists would bo 
 valued among the Portuguese at about 60 dollars, or £12 ; 
 but much more would probably be asked if a wealthy pur- 
 chaser appeared. They could not, however, raise the price 
 very much higher, because estates containing coal might 
 be had from the native owners at a much cheaper rate. 
 The wages of free laborers, when employed in such work 
 as gold-washing, agriculture, or digging coal, is two yards 
 of unbleached calico per day. They might be got to work 
 much cheaper if engaged by the moon, or for about sixteen 
 yards per month. For masons and carpenters even,, the 
 ordinary rate is two yards per day. This is called one 
 braca. Tradesmen from Kilimane demand four bracks, or 
 eight yards, per day. English or American unbleached 
 calico is the only currency used. The carriage of goods 
 up the river to Tete adds about ten per cent, to their cost. 
 The usual conveyance is by means of very large canoe3 
 and launches built at Senna. 
 
 The amount of merchandise brought up during the five 
 months of peace previous to my visit was of the value 
 of 30,000 dollars, or about £6000. The annual supply of 
 goods for trade is about £15,000, — being calico, thick 
 brass wire, beads, gunpowder, and guns. The quantity 
 of the latter is, however, small, as the Government of 
 Mozambique made that article contraband after the com- 
 mencement of the war. Goods, when traded with in tha 
 tribes around the Portuguese, produce a profit of cmy 
 about ten per cent., the articles traded in being ivory and 
 gold-dust. A little oil and wheat are exported, but nothing 
 else. Trade with the tribes beyond the exclusive ones ia 
 
TRADE — PRICES. 4lD 
 
 much better. Thirty brass rings cost 10s. at Senna, £1 at 
 
 , and £2 beyond the tribes in the vicinity of T 
 these are a good price for a penful of gold-dust of the 
 value of £2. The plantations of coffee, which, previous to 
 the commencement of the slave-trado, yielded one material 
 for exportation, are now deserted, and it is difficult to find 
 a single tree. The indigo (Indigofera argentea, the common 
 wild indigo of Africa) is found growing everywhere, and 
 large quantities of the senna-plant* grow in the village 
 of Tete and other parts; but neither indigo nor senna is 
 collected. Calumba-root, which is found in abundance in 
 some parts farther down the river, is bought by the 
 Americans, it is said, to use as a dye-stuff. A kind of 
 sarsaparilla, or a plant which is believed by the Portu- 
 guese to be such, is found from Londa to Senna, but has 
 never been exported. 
 
 The price of provisions is low, but very much higher 
 than previous to the commencement of the war. Two 
 yards of calico are demanded for six fowls : this is con- 
 sidered very dear, because before the war the same quan- 
 tity of calico was worth twenty-four fowls. Grain is sold 
 in little bags made from the leaves of the palmyra, like 
 those in which we receive sugar. They are called panjas; 
 and each p'anja weighs between thirty and forty pounds. 
 The panja of wheat at Tete is worth a dollar, or five shil- 
 lings; but the native grain may be obtained among the is- 
 lands below Lupata at the rate of three panjas for two yards 
 of calico. The highest articles of consumption are tea and 
 coffee, the tea being often as high as fifteen shillings a pound. 
 Food is cheaper down the river below Lupata, and previous 
 to the war the islands which stud the Zambesi were all in 
 habited, and, the soil being exceedingly fertile, grain and 
 fowls could be got to any amount. The inhabitants disap- 
 peared before their enemies the Landeens, but are beginning 
 
 * These appear to belong to Cassia acutifolia, or true senna of con* 
 nerce, found in various parts of Africa and India. — Dr. Hooktr. 
 
 35* 
 
414 GOLD-WASHING. 
 
 to return Rince the peace. They have no .cat tit,, -the onlj 
 place where we found no tsetse being the dis.rict of TeU 
 itself; and the cattle in the possession of the Portuguese 
 are a mere remnant of what they formerly owned. 
 
 When visiting the hot fountain, I examined what were 
 formerly the gold-washings in the rivulet Mokoroze, which 
 is neariy on the 16th parallel of latitude. The banks are 
 covered with large groves of fine mango-trees, among which 
 the Portuguese lived while superintending the washing fox 
 the precious metal. The process of washing is very labo 
 rious and tedious. A quantity of sand is put into a woodeu 
 bowl with water : a half-rotatory motion is given to the 
 dish, which causes the coarser particles of sand to collect 
 on one side of the bottom. These are carefully removed 
 with the hand, and the process of rotation renewed until 
 the whole uf the sand is taken away and the gold alone 
 remains. It is found in very minute scales, and, unless I 
 had been assured to the contrary, I should have taken it to 
 be mica; for, knowing the gold to be of greater specific 
 gravity than the sand, I imagined that a stream of water 
 would remove the latter and leave the former; but here 
 the practice is to remove the whole of the sand by the 
 hand. This process was no. doubt a profitable one to the 
 Portuguese, and it is probable that, with the improved plan 
 by means of mercury, the sands would be lucrative. I had 
 an opportunity of examining the gold-dust from different 
 parts to the east and northeast of Tete. There are six 
 well-known washing-places. These are called Mashinga, 
 Shindundo, Missala, Kapata, Mano, and Jawa. Frcm the 
 description of the rock I received, I suppose gold is found 
 both in clay shale and in quartz. At the range Mushinga 
 to the N.N. W. the rock is said to be so soft that the women 
 pound it into powder ir_ wooden mortars previous to wash- 
 ing. 
 
 Round toward the westward, the old Portuguese indicate 
 a station which was near to Zumbo on the river Panyame, 
 and called Dambarari, near which much crold was found 
 
EXTENT OF THE OoLll-KKOlin 415 
 
 Farther west lay the now unknown kingdom of Abutua, 
 which was formerly famous for the metal; and then, coming 
 round toward the east, we have the gold-washings of the 
 
 Mashona, or Bazizulu, and, farther east, that of Alanica, 
 where gold is found much more abundantly than in any 
 other part, and which has been supposed by some to be the 
 Ophir of King Solomon. 1 saw the gold from this quarter 
 as large as grains of wheat, that found in the rivers which 
 run into the coal-held being in very minute scales. If we 
 place one leg of the compasses at Tete, and extend the 
 other three and a half degrees, bringing it round from the 
 northeast of Tete by west, and then to the southeast, we 
 nearly touch or include all the known gold-producing coun- 
 try. As the gold on this circumference is found in coarser 
 grains than in the streams running toward the centre or 
 Tete, I imagine that the real gold-Held lies round about the 
 coal-field; and, if I am right in the conjecture, then we 
 have coal encircled by a gold-field, and abundance of wood, 
 water, and provisions, — a combination not often met with 
 ir. the world. The inhabitants are not unfavorable to 
 vashings conducted on the principle formerly mentioned. 
 At present they wash only when in want of a little calico. 
 They know the value of gold perfectly well; for they 
 bring it for sale in goose-quills, and demand twenty-four 
 yards of calico for one penful. 
 
 Major Sicard, the commandant, whose kindness to me 
 and my people was unbounded, presented a rosary made 
 of the gold of the country, the workmanship of a native 
 of Tete, to my little daughter, — also specimens of the gold- 
 dust of three different places, which, with the coal of 
 Muatize and Morongoze, are deposited in the Museum oi 
 Practical Geology, Jermyn Street, London. 
 
 All the cultivation is carried on with hoes in the native 
 manner, and considerable quantities of llolcus sorghum, 
 maize, Pennisetum typhoideum, or lotsa of the Balonda, 
 millet, rice, and wheat are raised, as also several kinds of 
 beans, — one of wa ch, called " litloo" by the Bechuanas, 
 
416 LIBERALITY OF COMMANDANT. 
 
 yields under ground, as well as the Arachis hypogcea, or 
 groundnut; with cucumbers, pumpkins, and melons. The 
 wheat is sown in low-lying places which are annually 
 flooded by the Zambesi. When the waters retire, the 
 women drop a few grains in a hole made with a hoe, then 
 push back the soil with the foot. One weeding alone is 
 required before the grain comes to maturity. This simple 
 process represents all our sub-soil ploughing, liming, ma- 
 nuring, and harrowing, for in four months after planting a 
 good crop is ready for the sickle, and has been known to 
 yield a hundred-fold. It flourished still more at Zumbu. 
 No irrigation is required, because here there are gentle 
 rains, almost like mist, in winter, which go by the name 
 of "wheat-showers," and are unknown in the interior, 
 where no winter rain ever falls. The rains at Tete come 
 from the east, though the prevailing winds come from the 
 S.S.E. The finest portion of the flour does not mak* 
 bread nearly so white as the seconds, and here the boyaloa, 
 (pombe,) or native beer, is employed to mix with the floui 
 instead of yeast. It makes excellent bread. At Kilimane, 
 where the cocoanut-palm abounds, the toddy from it, called 
 "sura," is used for the same purpose, and makes the bread 
 still lighter. 
 
 As it was necessary to leave most of my men at this 
 place, Major Sicard gave them a portion of land on which 
 to cultivate their own food, generously supplying them 
 with corn in the mean time. He also said 'that my young 
 men might go and hunt elephants in company with his 
 servants, and purchase goods with both the ivory and dried 
 meat, in order that thoy might have something to take witn 
 them on their return to Sekeletu. The men were delighted 
 with his liberality, and soon sixty or seventy of them sot 
 off to engage in this enterprise. Tnere was no calico to be 
 had at this time in Tete, but the commandant handsomely 
 furnished my men with clothing. I was in a state of want 
 myself; and, though I pressed him to take payment 11 
 ivory for v iOth myself and men, he refused all recompense 
 
GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION 417 
 
 1 shall over remember his kindness with deep gratitude 
 He has written me, since my arrival in England, that my 
 men had killed four elephants in the course of two montht 
 after my departure. 
 
 On the day of my arrival I was visited by all tho gentle- 
 men of the village, both white and colored, including th© 
 padre. Not one of them had any idea as to where the 
 source of the Zambesi lay. They sent for the best-travelled 
 natives; but none of tnem knew the river even as far as 
 KansaJa. The father of one of the rebels who had been 
 fighting against them had been a great traveller to the 
 southwest, and had even heard of our visit to Lake Nganii; 
 but he was equally ignorant with all the others that the 
 Zambesi flowed in the centre of the country. They had, 
 however, more knowledge of the country to the north of 
 Tete than I had. One man, who had gone to Cazembe 
 with Major Monteiro, stated that he had seen the Luapura 
 or Loapula flowing past the town of that chieftain into the 
 Luameji or Leeambye, but imagined that it found its way, 
 somehow or other, into Angola. The fact that sometimes 
 rivers were seen to flow like this toward the centre of the 
 country led geographers to the supposition that Inner 
 Africa was composed of elevated sandy plains, into which 
 rivers ran and were lost. One of the gentlemen present, 
 Senhor Candido, had visited a lake forty-five days to the 
 N.N.W. of Tete, which is probably the Lake Maravi of 
 geographers, as in going thither they pass through tho 
 people of that name. The inhabitants of its southern coast 
 are named Shiva, those on the north, Mujao ; and they call 
 tho lake Nyanja or Nyanje, which dimply means a largo 
 water, or bed of a large river. A high mountain stands 
 in the middle of it, called Murombo or Murombola, which 
 i* inhabited by people who have much cattle. He stated 
 that ho crossed the Nyanja at a narrow part, and was 
 thirty-six hours in the passage. The canoes were punted 
 tlie whole way, and, if we take the rate about two miles 
 per hour, it un\y be sixty or seventy miles in breadth Th« 
 
418 THE SHIRE — EARTHQUAKES. 
 
 country all round was composed of level plains covered 
 with grass, and, indeed, in going thither they travelled 
 seven or eight days without wood, and cooked their food 
 with grass and stalks of native corn alone. The people 
 Bold their cattle at a very cheap rate. From the southern 
 extremity of the lake two rivers issue forth: one, named 
 after itself, the Nyanja, which passes into the sea on the 
 east coast under another name; and the Shire, which flows 
 into the Zambesi a little below Senna. The Shire is named 
 Shirwa at its point of departure from the lake, and Senhor 
 Candjdo was informed, when there, that the lake was sim- 
 ply an expansion of the river Nyanja, which comes from 
 the north and encircles the mountain Murombo, the mean- 
 ing of which is junction or union, in reference to the water 
 having parted at its northern extremity and united again 
 at its southern. The Shire flows through a low, flat, 
 marshy country, but abounding in population, and they 
 are said to be brave. The Portuguese are unable to navi- 
 gate the Shire up to the Lake Nyanja, because of the great 
 abundance of a water-plant which requires no soil, and 
 which they name "alfacinya" (Pistia stratiotes) from its 
 resemblance to a lettuce. This completely obstructs the 
 progress of canoes. In confirmation of this, I may state 
 uiiat, when I passed the mouth of the Shire, great quanti- 
 ties of this same plant were floating from it into the Zam- 
 besi, and many parts of the banks below were covered 
 with the dead plants. 
 
 Senhor Candido stated that slight earthquakes have hap- 
 pened several times in the country of the Maravi, and at 
 no great distance from Tete. The motion seems to come 
 from the eastward and never to have lasted more than a 
 fow seconds. They are named in the Maravi tongue 
 "shiwo," and in that of the people of Tete " shitakoteko," 
 or "shivering" This agrees exactly with what has taken 
 place in the coast of Mozambique, — a few slight shocks of 
 .short* duration, and all appearing to come from the east. 
 At Senna, too, a single shock has been felt several times. 
 
KINDNESS OK PORTUGUESE 4lf 
 
 which shook the doors and windows and made the lassea 
 jingle. Both Tete and Senna have hot springs i thei* 
 vicinity, but the shocks seemed to come, not fropi thcro, 
 but from the cast, and proceed to the west. They a & pro- 
 bably connected with the active volcanoes in the i&l ,iid of 
 Bourbon. 
 
 Having waited a month for the commencement of the 
 healthy season at Kilimane, I would have started at tho 
 beginning of April, but tarried a few days, in order Urfit tho 
 moon might make her appearance and enable me to take 
 lunar observations on my way down the river. A sudden 
 change of temperature happening on the 4th, simultane- 
 ously with the appearance of the new moon, the command- 
 ant and myself, with nearly every person in the house, 
 were laid up with a severe attack of fever. I soon re- 
 covered by the use of my wonted remedies ; but Major 
 Sicard and his little boy were confined much longer. 
 There was a general fall of 4° of temperature from tha 
 middle of March, 84° at 9 a.m., and 87° at 9 p.m., — the 
 greatest heat being 90° at mid-day, and the lowest 81° at 
 sunrise. It afforded me pleasure to attend the invalids in 
 their sickness, — though I was unable to show a tithe of the 
 gratitude I felt for the commandant's increasing kindness. 
 
 The commandant provided for the journey most abun- 
 dantly, and gave orders to Lieutenant Miranda that I 
 should not be allowed to pay for any thing all the way to 
 the coast, and sent messages to his friends Senhors Ferrilo, 
 Isidores Asevedo, and Nunes, to treat me as they would 
 himself. From every one of these gentlemen I am happy 
 to acknowledge that I received most disinterested kind- 
 ness, and I ought to speak well forever of Portuguese hos- 
 pitality. I have noted each little act of civility received, 
 because, somehow or other, we have come to hold the Por- 
 tuguese character in rather a low estimation. This may 
 have arisen partly from the pertinacity with which some 
 of them have pursued the slave-trade, and partly from the 
 contrast .vhich thev now offer to their illustrious ancestors, 
 
420 THE REBEL BONGA. 
 
 — the foremost navigators of the world. If my specification 
 of their kindnesses will tend to engender a more respectful 
 feeling to the nation, I shall consider myself well rewarded. 
 We had three large canoes in the company which had lately 
 come up with goods from Senna. They are made very 
 large and strong, much larger than any we ever saw in the 
 interior, and might strike with great force against a rock 
 and not be broken. The men sit at the stern when pad- 
 dling, and there is usually a -little shed made over a part of 
 the canoe to shade the passengers from the sun. The boat 
 in which I went was furnished with such a covering; so 1 
 sat quite comfortably. 
 
 CHAPTEE XXXII. 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE REACHES THE EAST COAST AND RETURNS 
 
 TO ENGLAND. 
 
 "We left Tete at noon on the 22d, and in the afternoon 
 arrived at the garden of Senhor A. Manoel de Gomez, son- 
 in-law and nephew of Bonga. The Commandant of Tete 
 had sent a letter to the rebel Bonga, stating that he ought 
 to treat me kindly, and he had deputed his son-in-law to 
 he my host. Bonga is not at all equal to his father Ny- 
 aiide, who was a man of great ability. He is also* in bad 
 odor with the Portuguese, because he receives all runaway 
 slaves and criminals. He does not trust the Portuguese, 
 and is reported to be excessively superstitious. I found 
 his son-in-law, Manoel, extremely friendly, and able to con- 
 verse in a very intelligent manner. He was in his garden 
 when we arrived, but soon dressed himself respectably 
 and gave us a good tea and dinner. After a breakfast of 
 tea, roasted eggs, and biscuits next morning, he presented 
 six fowls and three goats as provision for the journey, 
 
WAR-DRUM AT SHI RAM HA. 421 
 
 When wo parted from him, we passed the Btock&<fa of 
 Bonga at the confluence of the Luenya, hut did not go 
 near it, as he is said to be vorv suspicious. The Portuguese 
 advised me not to take any observation, as the instrument! 
 might awaken fears in Bonga's mind, hut Manoel said I 
 might do so if I wished : his garden, however, bring above 
 the confluence, could notf avail as a geographical point 
 There are some good houses in the stockade. The trees of 
 which it is composed seemed to mo to be living, and could 
 oot be burned. It was strange to see a stockade menacing 
 the whole commerce of the river in a situation where the 
 guns of a vessel would have full play on it ; but it is a 
 formidable affair for those who have only muskets. On 
 one occasion, when Nyaude was attacked by Kisaka^ they 
 fought for weeks; and, though Nyaude was reduced to 
 cutting up his copper anklets for balls, his enemies were 
 not able to enter the stockade. 
 
 "We sailed on quickly with the current of the river, and 
 found that it spread out to more than two miles in breadth : 
 it is, however, full of islands, which are generally covered 
 with reeds, and which previous to the war were inhabited 
 and yielded vast quantities of grain. We usually landed 
 to cook breakfast, and then went on quickly. 
 
 Next day we landed at Shiramha for breakfast, having 
 sailed eight and a half hours from Lupata. This was once 
 the residence of a Portuguese brigadier, who spent large 
 sums of money in embellishing his house and gardens : 
 these we found in entire ruin, as his half-caste son had 
 destroyed all, and then rebelled against the Portuguese, 
 but with less success than either Nyaude or Kisaka, for he 
 had been seized and sent a prisoner to Mozambique a short 
 time before our visit. All the southern shore has been 
 ravaged by the Caffres, who are here named Landeens; 
 and most of the inhabitants who remain acknowledge the 
 authority of Bonga and not of the Portuguese. When at 
 breakfast, the people of Shiramba commenced heating the 
 dram of war Lieutenant Miranda, who was well ao< 
 
 36 
 
422 senna: its ruinous state 
 
 quainf ^d -with the customs of the country, immediately 
 started to his fret and got all the soldiers of our party 
 under arms : he then demanded of the natives why thy 
 drum was beaten while we were there. They gave an 
 evasive reply; and, as they employ this means of collect- 
 ing their neighbors when they intend to rob canoes, out 
 watchfulness may have prevented their proceeding further. 
 We spent the night of the 26th on -the island called 
 Nkuesi, opposite a remarkable saddle-shaped mountain, 
 and found that we were just on the seventeenth parallel 
 of latitude. The sail down the river was very line; the 
 temperature becoming low, it was pleasant to the feelings; 
 but, the shores being flat and far from us, the scenery was 
 uninteresting. We breakfasted on the 27th at Pita, and 
 found some half-caste Portuguese had established them- 
 selves there, after fleeing from the opposite bank to escape 
 » Kisaka's people, who were now ravaging all the Maganja 
 country. On the afternoon of the 27th we arrived at 
 Senna. (Commandant Isidore's house, three hundred 
 yards S.W. of the mud-fort on the banks of the river : 
 lat. 17° 27' 1" S., long. 35° 10' E.) We found Senna to be 
 twenty-three and a half hours' sail from Tete. 
 
 I thought the state of Tete quite lamentable; but that of 
 Senna was ten times worse. At Tete there is some life : 
 here every thing is in a state of stagnation and ruin. The 
 fort, built of sun-dried bricks, has the grass growing over 
 the walls, which have been patched in some places by 
 paling. The Landeens visit the village periodically and 
 levy fines upon the inhabitants, as they consider the Por- 
 tuguese a conquered tribe, and very rarely does a native 
 come to trade. Senhor Isidore, the commandant, a man 
 of considerable energy, had proposed to surround the whole 
 village with palisades as a protection against the Landeens, 
 and the villagers were to begin this work the day after I 
 left. It was sad to look at the ruin manifest in every 
 building; but the half-castes appear to be in league with 
 the rebels and Landeens; for when any attempt is made 
 
BOAT-BUILDING. )Z.', 
 
 by the Portuguese to coerce the enemy or defend them- 
 selves, information is conveyed at once to the Landeen 
 camp, and, though the commandant prohibits the payment 
 of tribute to the Landcens, on their approach tho half- 
 castes eagerly ransom themselves. 
 
 The village of Senna stands on the right bank of the 
 Zambesi. There arc many reedy islands in front of it, 
 and there is much bush in the country adjacent. The soil 
 is fertile; but the village, being in a state of ruin, and 
 having several pools of stagnant water, is very unhealthy. 
 
 The most pleasant sight I witnessed at Senna was the 
 negroes of Senhor Isidore building boats after the European 
 model, without any one to superintend their operations. 
 They had been instructed by a European master, but now 
 go into the forest and cut down the motondo- trees, lay 
 down the keel, fit in the ribs, and make very neat boats 
 and launches, valued at from £20 to £100. Senhor Isidore 
 had some of them instructed also in carpentry at R\o 
 Janeiro, and they constructed for him the handsomest 
 house in Kilimane, the woodwork being all of country 
 trees, some of which are capable of a fine polish, ana very 
 durable. 
 
 On the 9th of May sixteen of my men were employed to 
 carry Government goods in canoes up to Tete. They were 
 much pleased at getting this work. On the 11th the wholo 
 of the inhabitants of Senna, with the commandant, accom- 
 panied us to the boats. A venerable old man, son of a 
 judge, said they were in much sorrow on account of the 
 miserable state of decay into which they had sunk, and of 
 tho insolent conduct of the people of Kisaka now in the 
 village. We were abundantly supplied with provisions by 
 the commandant and Senhor Ferrao, and sailed pleasantly 
 down the broad river. Aboat thirty miles below Senna 
 we passed the mouth of the river Zangwe on our right, 
 which farther up goes by the name of Pungwe; and about 
 five miles farther on our left, close to the end of a low 
 range ; nto which Morumbala merges, wo crossed the 
 
424 EFFECTS OF FEVER. 
 
 mouth ,of the Shire, which seemed to be about two hundred 
 yards broad. 
 
 A few miles beyond the Shire we left the hills entirely 
 and sailed between extensive flat3. The banks seen in the 
 distance are covered with trees. We slept on a large in- 
 habited island, and then came to the entrance of the river 
 Mutu, (latitude 18° 3' 37" S., longitude 35° 46' E. :) the point 
 of departure is called Mazaro, or " mouth of the Mutu." 
 
 I was seized by a severe tertian fever at Mazaro, but 
 went along the right bank of the Mutu to the N.N.E. and 
 E. for about fifteen miles. We then found that it was made 
 navigable by a river called the Pangazi, which comes into 
 it from the north. 
 
 My fever became excessively severe in consequence of 
 travelling in the hot sun, and the long grass blocking up 
 the narrow path so as to exclude the air. The pulse beat 
 with amazing force, and felt as if thumping against the 
 crown of the head. The stomach and spleen swelled enor 
 mously, — giving me, for the first time, an appearance which 
 I had been disposed to laugh at among the Portuguese. 
 At Interra we met Senhor Asevedo, a man who is well 
 known by all who ever visited Kilimane, and who was pre- 
 sented with a gold chronometer watch by the Admiralty 
 for his attentions to English officers. He immediately 
 tendered his large sailing-launch, which had a house in the 
 stern. This was greatly in my favor, for it anchored in 
 the middle of the stream, and gave me some rest from the 
 mosquitos, which in the whole of the delta are something 
 frightful. Sailing comfortably in this commodious launch 
 along the river of Kilimane, we reached that village (lati- 
 tude 17° 53' 8" S., longitude 36° 40' E.) on the 20th of 
 May, 1856, which wanted only a few days of being four 
 years since I started from Cape Town. Here I was re- 
 ceived into the house of Colonel Galdina Jose Nunes, one 
 of the best men in the country. I had been three years 
 without hearing from my family, — letters having been 
 frequently sent, but somehow or other, wit! but a single 
 
THI AUTHOR'S OBLIGATIONS 425 
 
 exception, they never reached me. I received, however, a 
 letter from Admiral Trotter, conveying information of their 
 welfare, and some newspapers, which were a treat indeed. 
 Her majesty's brig the "Frolic" had called to inquire for 
 me in the November previous, and Captain Nolluth, of 
 that ship, had most considerately left a case of wine ; and 
 his surgeon, Dr. James Walsh, divining what I should need 
 most, left an ounce of quinine. These gifts made my heart 
 overflow. I had not tasted any liquor whatever during the 
 time I had been in Africa ; but, when reduced in Angola to 
 extreme weakness, I found much benefit from a little wine, 
 and took from Loanda* one bottle of brandy in my medi- 
 cine-chest, intending to use it if it were again required; 
 but the boy who carried it whirled the box upside-down 
 and smashed the bottle, so that I cannot give my testimony 
 either in favor of or against the brandy. 
 
 But my joy on reaching the east coast was sadly embit- 
 tered by the news that Commander MacLune, of H.M. 
 brigantine " Dart," on coming in to Kilimane to pick me 
 up, had, with Lieutenant Woodruffe and five men, been lost 
 *>n the bar. I never felt more poignant sorrow. It seemed 
 us if it would have been easier for me to have died for them 
 than that they should all be cut off from the joys of life in 
 generously attempting" to render me a service. I woul i 
 nere acknowledge my deep obligations to the Earl of Cla- 
 rendon, to the admiral at the Cape, and others, for the kind 
 interest they manifested in my safety : even the inquiries 
 made were very much to my advantage. I also refer with 
 feelings of gratitude to the Governor of Mozambique for 
 offering me a passage in the schooner "Zambesi," belonging 
 to that province ; and I shall never forget the generous 
 hospitality of Colonel Nunes and his nephew, with whom 
 1 remained. One of the discoveries I have made is that 
 there are vast numbers of good people in the world ; and 
 I do most devoutly tender my unfeigned thanks to thai 
 Gracious One who mercifully watchoi over me in every 
 
 30* 
 
4'2H THE AUTHOR S OBJECTS. 
 
 position and influenced the hearts of both black and white 
 to regard me with favor. 
 
 If the reader has accompanied me thus far, he may per* 
 baps be disposed to take an interest in the objects I pro- 
 pose to myself should God mercifully grant me the honoi 
 of doing something more for Africa. As the highlands 
 on the borders of the central basin are comparatively 
 healthy, the first object seems to be to secure a permanent 
 path thither, in order that Europeans may pass as quickly 
 as possible through the unhealthy region near the coast 
 The river has not been surveyed, but at the time I came 
 down there was abundance of water for a large vessel; and 
 this continues to be the case during four or five months of 
 each year. The months of low water still admit of naviga- 
 tion by launches, and would permit small vessels equal to 
 the Thames steamers to ply with ease in the deep channel 
 If a steamer were sent to examine the Zambesi, I would 
 recommend one of the lightest draught, and the months of 
 May, June, and July for passing through the delta; and 
 this not so much for fear of want of water as the danger 
 of being grounded on a sand or mud bank and the health 
 of the crew being endangered by the delay. 
 
 In the months referred to, no obstruction would be in- 
 curred in the channel below Tete. Twenty or thirty miles 
 above that point we have a small rapid, of which I regret 
 my inability to speak, as (mentioned already) I did not 
 visit it. But, taking the distance below this point, we have, 
 in round numbers, three hundred miles of navigable river. 
 Above this rapid we have another reach of three hundred 
 miles, with sand, but no mud-banks in it, which brings us 
 to the foot of the eastern ridge. Let it not, however, be 
 thought that a vessel by going thither would return laden 
 with ivory and gold-dust. The Portuguese of Tete pick up 
 all the merchandise of the tribes in their vicinity ; and, 
 though I came out by traversing the people with whom the 
 Portuguese had been at war, it does not follow that it will 
 be perfectly safe for others to go in whose goods may be a 
 
T1LB AUTHOR 8 OBJ £011. 4*J7 
 
 stronger temptation to cupidity than any thing 1 possessed 
 When wo get be}*ond the hostile population mentioned, we 
 reach a very different nice. On the latter my chief hopes 
 ftt present rest. All of them, however, are willing and 
 anxious to engage in trade, and, while eager for this, none 
 have ever been encouraged to cultivate the raw materials 
 of commerce. Their country is well adapted for cotton; 
 and I venture to entertain the hope that by distributing 
 
 3 of better kinds than that which is found indigenous, 
 and stimulating the natives to cultivate it by affording 
 them the certainty of a market for all they may produce, 
 we may engender a feeling of mutual dependence between 
 them and ourselves. I have a twofold object in view, and 
 believe that, by guiding our missionary labors so as to 
 benefit our own country, we shall thereby more effectually 
 and permanently benefit the heathen. Seven years were 
 spent at Kolobeng in instructing my friends there; but, the 
 country being incapable of raising materials for exportation, 
 when the Boers made their murderous attack and scatteied 
 the tribe for a season, none sympathized except a lew 
 Christian friends. Had the people of Kolobeng been in 
 
 iiabit of raising the raw materials of English commerce, 
 the outrage would have been felt in England; or, what is 
 more likely to have been the case, the people would have 
 raised themselves in the scale by barter, and have become, 
 hke the Basutos of Moshesh and people of Kuruman, pos- 
 sessed of fire-arms, and the Boers would never have made 
 the attack at all. We ought to encourage the Africans to 
 cultivate for our markets, as the most effectual means, next 
 to the gospel, of their elevation. 
 
 It is in the hope of working out this idea that I propose 
 the formation of stations on the Zambesi beyond the Por 
 tuguese territory but having communication through them 
 *nth the coast. A chain of stations admitting of easy and 
 speedy intercourse, such as might be formed along the flank 
 of the eastern ridge, would be in a favorable position for 
 carrying out the objects in view. The London ^Missionary 
 
428 ARRANGEMENTS ON LEAVING AFRICA. 
 
 Society has resolved to have a station among the Makolalo 
 on the north bank, and another on the south among the 
 Matebele. The Church — Wesleyan, Baptist, and that moat 
 energetic body, the Free Church — could each find desirable 
 locations among the Batoka and adjacent tribes. The 
 country is so extensive there is no fear of clashing. All 
 classes of Christians find that sectarian rancor soon die* 
 out when they are working together among and for the 
 real heathen. Only let the healthy locality be searched 
 for and fixed upon, and then there will be free scope to 
 work in the same cause in various directions, without that 
 loss of men which the system of missions on the unhealthy 
 coast entails. While respectfully submitting the plan to 
 these influential societies, I can positively state that, when 
 fairly in the interior, there is perfect security for life and 
 property among a people who will at least listen and 
 reason. 
 
 Eight of my men begged to be allowed to come as far 
 as Kilimane, and, thinking that they would there see the 
 ocean, I consented to their coming, though the food was so 
 scarce in consequence of a dearth that they were compelled 
 to suffer some hunger. They would fain have come far- 
 ther; for when Sekeletu parted with them his orders were 
 that none of them should turn until they had reached Ma 
 Robert and brought her back with them. On my explain- 
 ing the difficulty of crossing the sea, he said, " Wherever 
 you lead, they must follow." As I did not know well how 
 I should get home myself, I advised them to go back to 
 Tete, where food was abundant, and there await my return. 
 I bought a quantity of calico and brass wire with ten of 
 4Jae smaller tusks which we had in our charge, and sent 
 the former back as clothing to those who remained at Tete. 
 As there were still twenty tusks left, I deposited them 
 with Colonel ISTunes, that, in the event of any thing hap- 
 pening to prevent my return, the impression might not be 
 produced in the country that I had made away with Seke- 
 letu's ivory. I instructed Colonel Nunes, in case of my 
 
the author's Position. 4Zfl 
 
 death, to sell the tusks an J deliver the proceeds to my 
 men ; but I intended, if my life should bo prolonged, to 
 purchase the goods ordered by Sekcletu in England witl» 
 my own money, and pay myself on my return out of the 
 
 e of the ivory. This I explained to the men fully, and 
 they, understanding the matter, replied, ">i ay, father, you 
 will not die; you will return to take us back to Sekel 
 They promised to wait till I aame back; and, on my part, 
 
 -ured them that nothing but death would prevent my 
 return. This I said, though while waiting at Kilimane a 
 
 r came from the Directors of the London Missionary 
 Society stating that "they were restricted in their power 
 of aiding plans connected only remotely with tho spread 
 of tho gospel, and that the financial circumstances of tho 
 society were not such as to afford any ground of hopo that 
 it would bo in a position, within any definite period, to 
 enter upon untried, remote, and difficult fields of labor." 
 This has been explained since as an effusion caused by tem- 
 porary financial depression ; but, feeling perfect confidence 
 m my Makololo friends, I was determined to return and 
 trust to their generosity. The old love of independence, 
 which I had so strongly before joining the society, again 
 returned. It was roused by a mistaken view of what this 
 letter meant; for the directors, immediately on my reach- 
 ing home, saw the great importance of the opening, and 
 entered with enlightened zeal on the work of sending; the 
 gospel into the new field. It is to be hoped that their con- 
 stituents will not only enable them to begin, but to cany 
 out their plans, and that no material depression will ever 
 gain be permitted, nor appearances of spasmodic benevo- 
 lence recur. AVhile I hope to continue tho samo cordial 
 co-operation and friendship which have always character, 
 ized our intercourse, various reasons induce me to withdraw 
 from pecuniary dependence on an}' society. I have done 
 something for the heathen; but for an aged mother, who has 
 etill moro sacred claims than they, I have been able to do 
 nothing, and a continuance of the connection would be a 
 
430 VILLAGE OF KTLIMAN'E. 
 
 perpetuation of my inability to make an}- provision for ner 
 declining years. In addition to " clergyman's sore throat," 
 which partially disabled me from the work, my father's 
 death imposed new obligations; and, a fresh source of in- 
 come having been opened to me without my asking, I had 
 no hesitation in accepting what would enable me to fulfil 
 my duty to my aged parent as well as to the heathen. 
 
 The village of Kilimane stands on a great mud-bank, 
 and is surrounded by extensive swamps and rice-grounds. 
 The banks of the river are lined with mangrove-bushes, 
 the roots of which, and the slimy banks on which they 
 grow, are alternately exposed to the tide and sun. The 
 houses are well built of brick and lime, the latter from 
 Mozambique. If one digs down two or three feet in any 
 part of the site of the village, he comes to water: hence 
 the walls built on this mud-bank gradually subside; pieces 
 are sometimes sawn off the doors below, because the walls 
 in which they are fixed have descended into the ground, so 
 as to leave the floors higher than the bottom of the doors. 
 It is almost needless to say that Kilimane is very un- 
 healthy. A man of plethoric temperament is sure to get 
 fever, and concerning a stout person one may hear the 
 remark, "Ah, he will not live long; he is sure to die." 
 
 After waiting about six weeks at this unhealthy spot, 
 in which, however, by the kind attentions of Colonel 
 Nunes and his nephew, I partially recovered from my ter- 
 tian, H.M. brig "Frolic" arrived off Kilimane. As the 
 village is twelve miles from the bar, and the weather was 
 rough, she was at anchor ten days before we knew of her 
 presence about seven miles from the entrance to the port. 
 She brought abundant supplies for all my need, and £150 
 to pay my passage home, from my kind friend Mr. Thomp- 
 son, ths Society's agent at the Cape. The admiral at the 
 Cape kindly sent an offer of a passage t» the Mauritius, 
 which I thankfully accepted. Sekwebu and one attendant 
 alone remained with me now. He was very intelligent, and 
 Uad been of the greatest service to me : indeed, but for his 
 
ROUOn PASSAGE TO THE "FROLIC." 431 
 
 pood sense, tact, and command of the language of tbe 
 trices through which we passed, I believe we should 
 scarcely have succeeded in reaching the coast. T naturally 
 felt grateful to him; and as his chief wished all my com- 
 panions to go to England with me, and would probably be 
 disappointed if none went, I thought it would be beneficial 
 for him to see the effects of civilization and report them to 
 his countrymen. I wished also to make some return for his 
 very important services. Others had petitioned to come, 
 but I explained the danger of a change of climate and food, 
 and with difficulty restrained them. The only one who 
 now remained begged so hard to come on board ship that I 
 greatly regretted that the expense prevented my acceding 
 to his wish to visit England. I said to him, "You will die 
 if you go to such a cold country as mine." "That is 
 nothing," he reiterated; "let me die at your feet." 
 
 When we parted from our friends at Kilimane, the sea 
 on the bar was frightful even to the seamen. This was the 
 first time Sekwebu had seen the sea. Captain Peyton had 
 sent two boats in case of accident. The waves were so high * 
 that, when the cutter was in one trough and we in the 
 pinnace in another, her mast was hid. We then mounted 
 to the crest of the wave, rushed down the slope, and 
 struck the water again with a blow which felt as if she 
 had struck the bottom. Boats must be singularly well con- 
 structed to be able to stand these shocks. Three breakers 
 swept over us. The men lift up their oars, and a wave 
 comes sweeping over all, giving the impression that the 
 boat is going down; but she only goes beneath the top of 
 the wave, comes out on the other side, and swings down 
 the slope and a man bales out the water with a bucket. 
 Poor Sekwebu looked at me when these terrible seas broke 
 over, and said, "Is this the way you go? Is this the way 
 you go?" I smiled and said, "Yes; don't you see it is?" 
 and tried to encourage him. He was well acquainted with 
 canoes, but never had seen aught like this. When we 
 reached the ship, — a fine, large brig of sixteen guns and a 
 
4 
 
 432 IN8AMTY OF SEKWEBU. 
 
 crew of one hundred and thirty, — she was rolling so ^hat 
 we could see a part of her bottom. It was quite impossi- 
 ble for landsmen to catch the ropes and climb up; so a 
 chair was sent down, and we were hoisted in as ladies 
 usually are, and received «o hearty an English welcome 
 from Captain Peyton and all on board that I felt myself at 
 once at home in every thing except my own mother-tongue. 
 I seemed to know the language perfectly, but the words I 
 wanted would not come at .my call. When I left England 
 I had no intention ol returning, and directed my attention 
 earnestly to the languages of Africa, paying none to 
 English composition. With the exception of a short in- 
 terval in Angola, I had been three and a half years without 
 speaking English, and this, with thirteen years of previous 
 partial disuse of my native tongue, made me feel sadly at 
 a loss on board the "Frolic." 
 
 We left Kilimane on the 12th of July, and reached the 
 Mauritius on the 12th of August, 1856. Sekwebu was 
 picking up English, and becoming a favorite with both men 
 and officers. He seemed a little bewildered, every thing on 
 board a man-of-war being so new and strange; but he re- 
 marked to me several times, " Your countrymen are very 
 agreeable" and, "What a strange countrvthis is!— all water 
 together V* He also said that he now understood why I 
 used the sextant. When we reached the Mauritius a 
 steamer came out to tow us into the harbor. The constant 
 strain on his untutored mind seemed now to reach a climax, 
 for during the night he became insane. I thought at first 
 that he was intoxicated. He had descended into a boat, 
 and, when I attempted to go down and bring him into the 
 ship, he ran to the stern and said, "No ! no! it is enough 
 that I die alone. You must not perish ; if you come, I 
 BhaL throw myself into the water." Perceiving that hia. 
 mind was affected, I said, "Now, Sekwebu, we are going 
 to Ma Kobert." This struck a chord in his bosom, and he 
 Baid, "Oh, yes! where is she, and where is Bobert?" and 
 he seemed to recover The officers proposed to secure him 
 
DEATH OF SEKAVEiiU — VOYAGE HOME. 438 
 
 by putting him in irons; but, being a gentleman in hi* own 
 country, 1 objected, knowing that the insane often retain 
 ai impression of ill-treatment, and I could not bear to have 
 it said in Sekeletu's country that I had chained one of his 
 principal men as they had seen slaves treated. 1 tried to got 
 him on shore by day, but he refused. In the evening a fresh 
 m oi^ insanity occurred: he tried to spear one of the 
 crew, then leaped overboard, and, though he could swim 
 well, pulled himself down hand under hand by tho chain- 
 cable. We never found the body of poor Sekwebu. 
 
 At the Mauritius I was most hospitably received by 
 Major-General C. M. Hay, and he generously constrained 
 me to remain with him till, by the influence of tho good 
 climate and quiet English comfort, I got rid of an enlarged 
 spleen from African fever. In November I came up the Red 
 Sea, escaped the danger of shipwreck through the admirable 
 management of Captain Powell, of the Peninsular and 
 Oriental Steam-Company's ship " Candia," and on the 
 12th of December was once more in dear old England. 
 The Company most liberally refunded my passage-money. 
 I have not mentioned half the favors bestowed ; but I may 
 just add that no one has cause for more abundant grati- 
 tude to his fellow-men and to his Maker than I have; and 
 may God grant that the effect on my mind bo such that I 
 may be more humbly dovoted to the service of the Authcu 
 of ail our mercies I 
 
 JC if 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICES OF DISCOVERIES IN AFRICA 
 
 In the time of Herodctus, and lmg afterward, the ge- 
 neral opinion was that Africa did not extend so far south 
 as the equatorial line. There existed, however, a tradition 
 that Africa had been circumnavigated by the Phoenicians 
 about six centuries before the Christian era; but, if the 
 southern promontory of Africa had really been reached, 
 it is difficult to conceive how so erroneous an impression 
 could have prevailed as to the extent of the continent. It 
 is, therefore, most probable that such a voyage had never 
 succeeded; and, indeed," the circumstances under which it 
 was prosecuted, according to the accounts which have come 
 down to us, only add an additional feature of improbability 
 to the story. Turning to modern times, we find, at the 
 commencement of the fifteenth century, that Europeans 
 were only acquainted with that portion of the western 
 coast of Africa which extends from the Straits of Gibraltar 
 to Cape 2STun, — a line of coast not exceeding six hundred 
 miles in length. The Portuguese had the honor of extend- 
 ing this limited acquaintance with the outline of the African 
 continent. Their zeal for discovery in this direction became 
 truly a national passion, and the sovereigns and princes of 
 Portugal prosecuted this object with singular enthusiasm. 
 By the year 1471 the Portuguese navigators had advanced 
 2£° south of the Line In 1484, Diego Cam reached 22° 
 Bouth latitude. The next navigator, Bartholomew Diaz, 
 was commanded to pursue his course southward until he 
 should reach the extremity of Africa; and to him belongs 
 the honor of discovering the Cape of Good Hope, the name 
 given to it at the time by the King of Portugal, though 
 Diaz had named it Cabo Tonnentoso, (the Cape of Tem- 
 pests.) The Cape of Good Hope was at first frequently 
 called the Lion of the Sea, and also the Head of Africa 
 In 1497, Yasco de Gama set forth with the intention of 
 refilling India by sailing round the Cape of Good Hone 
 
SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERY. 435 
 
 AiWi doubling the Capo, he pursued his course along the 
 eastern coast of Africa, and then stretched across the ocean 
 to India. The Portuguese had now aseertaiued the general 
 outline of Africa and the position of many of the principal 
 rivers and headlands. With the exception of a portion of 
 the coast from the Straits of Bab el Mandeb to Mukdeesha, 
 situated in 3" north latitude, the whole of the coast had 
 Keen traced by the Portuguese, and their zeal and enthu- 
 siasm, which had at one period been treated with ridicule, 
 were at length triumphantly rewarded, about tour years 
 before ( 1 olumbus had achieved bis great discovery, which, 
 with that of Vasco de Gama, amply repaid a century of 
 speculative enterprise. This interesting combination of 
 events had a sensible effect upon the general mind of 
 Europe. The Portuguese soon formed settlements in 
 Africa, and began to acquire a knowledge of the interior 
 of the country. They were followed by the French, and 
 afterward by the English and the Dutch. 
 
 It is chiefly within the last fifty years that discoveries 
 in the interior of Africa have been perseveringly and sys- 
 tematically prosecuted. In 1788, a society was established 
 'ii London with the design of encouraging men of enter- 
 prise to explore the African continent. John Ledyard, 
 an American, was the first person selected by the African 
 Association for this task; and he set out in 1788 with the 
 intention of traversing the widest part of the continent 
 from east to west, in the supposed latitude of the river 
 Niger. Unfortunately, he was seized at Cairo with a 
 fever, of which he died. He possessed few p ;ientific ac- 
 quirements; but his vigor and powers of endurance, mental 
 ftnd bodily, his indijj'erencc to pain, hardship, and fatigue, 
 would have rendered him an admirable geographical pio- 
 neer. '• I have known," he said, shortly before leaving 
 England for the last time, "hunger and nakedness to tho 
 utmost extremity of human suffering: I have known what 
 it is to have Poou jpveii as charity to a madman, and have 
 %i times been obliged to shelter myself under the miseries 
 
436 SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVER*". 
 
 of that character to avoid a heavier calamity My (lis 
 tresses have been greater than I have ever owned, or evei 
 will own, to any man. Such evils are terrible to bear ; but 
 they never yet had the power to turn me from my purpose/ 
 Such was the indomitable energy of this man, the first of 
 a long list of victims in the cause of African discovery 
 Mr. Lucas, who was despatched by the Association to sup 
 ply the place of Ledyard, was compelled to return home 
 in consequence of several of the countries through which 
 he would have to -pass being engaged in hostilities. Jo 
 1790, Major Houghton, an officer who was acquainted with 
 the customs of the Moors and Negroes, proceeded to Africa 
 under the auspices of the Association, and had made con 
 Biderable progress in the interior, when, after having been 
 treacherously plundered and left in the Desert, where he 
 endured severe privations, he reached Jarra, and died there 
 in September, 1791, it being strongly suspected that he wat 
 murdered. The next individual on whom the Association 
 fixed was Mungo Park, who proceeded to the river Gambia 
 in 1795 and thence set out into the interior. The great 
 object accomplished during his journey was that of sue- 
 cessfully exploring the banks of the Niger, which had pre< 
 viously been considered identical with the river Senegal 
 In 1804, Park set out upon his second journey, which wat 
 undertaken at the expense of the Government. The plan 
 of former travellers had been to accompany the caravans 
 from one part of the country to another; but in this ex 
 pedition P vrk required a party of thirty-six Europeans. 
 six of whom were to be seamen and the remainder soldiers 
 it being his intention, on reaching the Niger, to build twd 
 vessels, and to follow with his party the course of the river 
 if the Congo and the Niger were the same stream, as was 
 then supposed, he anticipated little difficulty in his enter- 
 prise ; but if, as was also maintained, the Niger terminated 
 in swamps and morasses, many hardships and dangers were 
 expected in their subsequent progress. Park at length 
 reached the Niger, accompanied only by seven of his p*rtv 
 
■KETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERT 487 
 
 all of whom were in a state of great weakness fVon\ the 
 
 ■is of the 'climate. They built one vessel, and, on the 
 17th of r, 1805, were ready to embark on tho 
 
 river, previous to which Park sent despatches to England 
 His pari ow reduced to five, his brother-in-law having 
 
 died ; r, remained 
 
 undaunted. i all the with me 
 
 should die," said he, in his last letters to -and 
 
 though 1 myself were half dead, 1 would still persevere; 
 
 if I could not ibject of myjourn 
 
 would at least die in the Niger." He embarked, therefore, 
 with the intention of sailing down the river to its mouth, 
 wherever that might be; but, alter passing Timbuctoo and 
 
 pal other cities, he was killed in the Niger, at a place 
 called Boussa, a short distance below Yaouri. No part of 
 his journal after he left Sansanding has ever been recovered. 
 In 1797, the African Association had engaged Mr. Home- 
 mann, a German, who left Cairo in September, 1798, with 
 the intention of carrying into effect the objects of the As- 
 sociation by proceeding as far southward and westward as 
 ne could In his last despatches he expressed himself 
 
 confident in being able to succeed in reaching a greater 
 
 nee into the interior than an}' other European traveller; 
 but, after reaching Born ou, no certain intelligence was ever 
 
 ward heard concerning him. Mr. Hornemann learned 
 many particulars which had not before been known in 
 ecting the countries to the cast of Timbuctoo. 
 Mr. Nicholls, who was next engaged, arrived in the Gulf 
 of Benin in November, 1804, and died soon afterward of 
 the fever of the country. Another German, Bcentzen, was 
 next sent to Africa, lie had bestowed extraordinary pains 
 in making himself acquainted with the prevailing languago, 
 and, throwing off his costume, proceeded in the character 
 of a 1 nan, but unhappily was murdcied by his guidci 
 
 on his way to Soudan. The next traveller sent out by the 
 
 ciation was Burckhardt, a Swiss. He spent 
 
 i knowi the lac -ind customs 
 
 r,7» 
 
438 SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERT. 
 
 of the people he inter. ded to visit, and, like Mr Bcentzen, 
 assumed the characteristics of a Mussulman. He died at 
 Cairo in 1817, his travels having been chiefly confined to 
 the Abyssinian countries. 
 
 In 1816, an expedition was sent out by the Government^ 
 andcr the command of Captain Tuckey, to the rivei Congo 
 uuder the idea, in which Park coincided, that it and the 
 Niger were the same river. Captain Tuckey ascended the 
 Congo for about two hundred and eighty miles. At the 
 same time, Major Peddie, and, after his death, Captain 
 Campbell, proceeded from the mouth of the river Senegal 
 as far as Kakundy. In 1817, Mr. Bowdich explored the 
 countries adjoining Cape Coast Castle. In 1820, Mr. Jack- 
 son communicated an interesting account of the territories 
 »f Timbuctoo and Houssa, from details which he had col- 
 lecued from a Mussulman merchant. In 1819 and in 1821, 
 the expeditions of Messrs. Eitchie and Lyon, and of Major 
 Laing, showed the strong and general interest on the sub- 
 ject of African geography. In 1822, the important expedi^ 
 tion under Major Denham and Lieut. Clapperton set forth. 
 After crossing the Desert, the travellers reached the great 
 inland sea or lake called the Tchad, the coasts of which to 
 the west and south were examined by Major Denham. 
 This lake, from four hundred to six hundred feet above the 
 level of the sea, is one of the most remarkable feature* in 
 the physical geography of Africa. Lieut. Clapperton, in 
 the mean time, proceeded through the kingdom of Bomou 
 and the country of the Fellatahs to Sockatoo, situated on a 
 stream supposed to run into the Niger. A great mass of 
 information respecting the countries eastward of Timbuctoo 
 was the result of his expedition. As to the course of the 
 Niger, very little intelligence was obtained which could bo 
 depended upon : the natives stated that it flowed into the 
 &ca at Funda, though what place on the coast was mt-ant 
 utill remained a conjecture. Soon after his return to Eng- 
 land, Clapperton was sent out by the Government to con- 
 tact a new expeditio i, and was directed to proceed to th« 
 
SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERY 43y 
 
 scene of his former adventures. Having reached the Niger 
 at Boussa, where Park was killed, he passed through various 
 cottntri 1 reached Sockatoo, where be died; and Lan- 
 
 der, his friend an nt, commenced his return to Eng- 
 
 land with Clapperton's journals and papers. Major Laing, 
 meanwhile, had visited Timbuctoo, and transmitted home 
 accounts of this famous city, where he spent some weeks; 
 but on his return he was murdered, and his papers have 
 never been recovered. We have not spaco to allude to tho 
 many well-executed expeditions which have proceeded 
 from Cape Town for the purpose of exploring South 
 Africa, but? have confined ourselves to those exertions which 
 had for their object the elucidation of the question concern 
 ing the course and termination of the Niger, and were con- 
 sequently directed to Central Africa. 
 
 The termination of the Niger had long been one of the 
 most interesting problems in African geography, and wo 
 have now reached the period when, on this" point, facts 
 were substituted for conjecture and hypothesis. The river 
 had first been seen by Park, near Sego, the capital of Bam- 
 barra. It was called by the natives the Joliba, or " Great 
 Water/' and Park described it as "flowing slowly to the 
 eastward." He followed the course of the river for about 
 three hundred miles, and was told that a journey of ten 
 days would bring him to its source. At Sockatoo, Lieut. 
 Clapperton found that it was called the Quorra, by which 
 name it is known »in the most recent maps, it having re- 
 ceived the name of the Niger, in the first instance, from its 
 supposed identity with the Nigir of the ancients. The 
 want of information concerning the course and termination 
 of this mysterious river, until determined by actually pro- 
 ceeding down its channel to the sea. was, as may be sup- 
 posed, a fruitful source of speculation among geographers. 
 By some it was supposed to flow into the Nde; others 
 imagined that a great central lake received its water*. 
 Major Kennel, an authority of great weight, came to the 
 conclusion that, after passing Timbuctoo, the Niger flowed 
 
440 SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERT. 
 
 a thousand miles in an easterly direction, and terminated 
 in a lake or swamp; others supported the opinion that its 
 waters were lost in the arid sands of the Desert; while the 
 Congo was said by many to be its outlet. Major Laing, by 
 ascertaining the source of the Niger to be not more than 
 sixteen hundred feet above the level of the sea, proved that 
 »t could not flow into the Nile; and Denham and Clappei- 
 ton demonstrated that it did not, as had been supposed, 
 discharge itself into the Lake of Bornou. 
 
 Eichard and John Lander, in 1830, under the auspices 
 of the British Government, solved the long-disputed problem 
 of the course of the Niger by sailing down on its waters 
 from Boussa to the ocean, where it was fbund to terminate 
 in what was called the Nun, or First Brass Biver, from the 
 negro town of Brass situated on its banks. 
 
 An expedition under the auspices of the British Govern- 
 ment, and headed by Dr. Henry Barth, attended by Dr. 
 Overberg and Mr. James Richardson, was sent out in 1849 
 to prosecute discoveries in Northern Central Africa. Their 
 travels and researches into the history and present state of 
 the interior tribes were continued till 1855, and their results 
 have recently been published by Dr. Barth. Dr. Overberg 
 died in 1854, and was buried on the shores of Lake Tchad 
 or Tsad. Mr. Bichardson also fell a victim to the climate 
 before the close of the expedition. 
 
 Dr. Barth visited the countries of Bornou, Kanem, Man- 
 dara, Bagirmi, and others previously explored by Denham 
 and Clapperton, and carried his researches much farther, 
 reaching the eighth degree of north latitude. His volumei 
 contain nyich curious and minute information. 
 
 As Dr. Livingstone's researches reach only the eighth 
 degree of north latitude, there still remains an immense 
 region of Interior Africa, sixteen degrees broad, open to 
 futur* f-rplorers. 
 
S1LETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERT. 441 
 
 Since the preceding pages were written, the last two of the 
 five octavo volumes of Dr. Earth's Journal have been published 
 in London, and received in this country, and we have con- 
 densed it into one large 12mo., uniform with our edition of 
 Livingstone, and illustrated, &c, with a map giving the routes 
 of Livingstone and Barth ; they should be read together. We 
 are thus placed in possession of the whole result of Dr. Earth's 
 explorations, and truly they are of unparalleled extent and 
 Importance. The following extract from the preface gives a 
 summary of his travels : 
 
 "Extending over a tract of country of twenty-four degrees 
 from north to south, and twenty degrees from east to west, in 
 the broadest part of the continent of Africa, my travels neces- 
 sarily comprise subjects of great interest and diversity.* 
 
 "After having traversed vast deserts of the most barren soil, 
 and scenes of the most frightful desolation, I met with fertile 
 lands irrigated by large navigable rivers and extensive central 
 lakes, ornamented with the finest timber, and producing vari- 
 ous species of grain, rice, sesamnm, ground-nuts, in unlimited 
 abundance, the sugar-cane, &c, together with cotton and 
 indigo, the most valuable commodities of trade. The whole 
 of Central Africa, from Bagirmi to the east as far as Timbnctu 
 to the west (as will be seen in my narrative), abounds in these 
 products. The natives of these regions not only weave their 
 own cotton, but dye their home-made shirts with their own 
 indigo. The river, the far-famed Niger, which gives access to 
 these regions by means of its eastern branch, the Benuwe, 
 which I discovered, affords an uninterrupted navigable sheet 
 of water for more than six hundred miles into the very heart 
 of the country. Its western branch is obstructed by rapids 
 at the distance of about three hundred and fifty miles from the 
 coast ; but even at that point it is probably not jmpassable in 
 the present state of navigation, while, higher up, the river 
 opens an immense high-road for nearly one thousand miles into 
 the very heart of Western Africa, so rich in every kind of 
 produce. 
 
 "The same diversity of soil and produce which the regions 
 
442 SKETCH OF AFRICAN DISCOVERT. 
 
 traversed by ine exhibit, is also observed with respect to man. 
 Starting from Tripoli in the north, we proceed from the settle- 
 ments of the Arab and the Berber, the poor remnants of the 
 vast empires of the middle ages, into a country dotted with 
 splendid ruins from the period of the Roman dominion, through 
 the wild roving hordes of the Tawarek, to the Negro and half- 
 Negro tribes, and to the very border of the South African 
 nations. In the regions of Central Africa there exists not one 
 and the same stock, as in South Africa, but the greatest diver- 
 sity of tribes, or rather nations, prevails, with idioms entirely 
 distinct. 
 
 " The great and. momentous struggle between Islamism and 
 Paganism is here continually going on, causing every day the 
 most painful and affecting results, while the miseries arising 
 from slavery and the slave trade are here revealed in their most 
 repulsive features. We find Mohammedan learning ingrafted 
 on the ignorance and simplicity of the black races, and the 
 gaudy magnificence and strict ceremonial*of large empires side 
 by side with the barbarous simplicity of naked and half-naked 
 tribes. We here trace a historical thread which guides usr 
 through this labyrinth of tribes and overthrown kingdoms ; 
 and a lively interest is awakened by reflecting on their possible 
 progress and restoration, through the intercourse with more 
 civilized parts of the world. Finally, we find here commerce 
 in every direction radiating from Kano, the great emporium of 
 Central Africa, and spreading the manufactures of that indu* 
 trious region over the whole of Western Africa." 
 
NOTICES OF THE PRESS. 
 
 from among the hundreds jf favorable notices, from the most respectable J turn*'. «* in 
 ^•atrj, of oar cheap edition of " Livingstone's Travels and Explorations In Africa, »•» tak 
 s«* following: 
 
 It abounds in descriptions of strange and wonderfnl scenes, among a people and In a cnuotr) 
 intire It new to the civilized world ; and altogether we regard it a* one of the most interesting 
 books issued within the past year. The work is well printed and handsomely Illustrated ; and 
 one thing which we think considerably enhances the value of this edition above all others, U 
 the fact that the price at which it is published is sufficiently low to bring it within the resell 
 ef all classes of readers. This is done by leaving out a mass of dry scientific details, which are 
 •f nse only to a very small class of the community, and which would actually only make the 
 narrative department, now so extremely charming, tiresome and uninteresting. — Daily Demo- 
 crat, Paterson, X. J. 
 
 The present volume is a beautiful 12mo, of 446 pages, numerously illustrated, and contain? 
 all of the original, except some of the more dry scientific details. It is emphatically an editiok 
 for the people ; and, judging from the rapid sale with which it is meeting, it is fully appre- 
 ciated by them. — Christian Freeman, Boston. 
 
 Great care has been taken to preserve all the incidents and descriptions which are essentia) 
 to the interest of the work. In this way a very excellent volume has been maje, which de- 
 serves a large circulation. — New York Chronicle. 
 
 1he subjects treated of are new and strange, and take a deep hold upon popular feeling 
 The book is having a great run, aud will he read hy every reading man, woman, and child, li 
 this, as well as other lands. — Ashtabula (Ohio) Telegraph. 
 
 The work is finely illustrated, well printed, and firmly hound, thus answering, in every re- 
 spect, the demand for a popular and cheap edition of the " Journeys and Keseaiches in South 
 Africa." Those of our readers who would have a delightful book for reading at any hour, 
 irill not be disappointed in this work. — United States Journal. 
 
 The price and sire of the original volume have led the publisher of this, in view of the popa 
 lar interest in the travels of this great explorer, to present the main portions of Dr. Living- 
 stone's narrative in a condensed form and at a lower price. So far as we have compared the 
 two, not a single word of Dr. Livingstone's has been changed, and the only liberty taken with 
 the text has been simply that of omission. The chapters of the abridgment answer to those of 
 the original work, so that a reference to them can easily be verified. The entire course of Dr. 
 Livingstone" s Journey is thus traced, and the result given iu his own words. — If. T. Evangelist 
 
 We eommend his book to the perusal of all our friends.— Philadelphia City Item. 
 
 That this work is a work of merit, is proved by the war waged on it by the various pnb. 
 iULera who have raised the cry of "spurious edition," hoping this false alarm would dm« 
 •ff tis public attention from the cheap edition of J. W. Bradley, of Philadelphia ; but we lathei 
 guess that those who want to obtain this excelleut work know their own interests well enough 
 to get not only the cheapest edition yet published, but at the same time get all the Important 
 faet* of the narrative which, in the English edition, is sold for six dollar*. — Titnperanc* 
 M«nit*r y Aurora, 111 
 
 This \m an admirable abridgment of the nuge volume published by Tr. Ll'ipgstone some 
 ■ontAx ago, affording to general readers all that they can possibly care for iu its contents, ta- 
 les* they have become as Africanized as Mrs. Jellaby herself. — Boston Daily Evening T-aveUr. 
 
 This Is a valuable work for the general reader, gotten up in beautiful style. A special in 
 is given t* this volume by the addition of valuable " Historical Notice* of Discover*** 
 
 (1) 
 
•*7 ▼ 70 
 
 2 NOTICES OF THE PRESS CONTINUED./. 
 
 In Arri»«." Altogether, it would he difficult to name any work which woull more completely I 
 nieot the popular taste of our day. Those of our friends who have perused " our" copy, speak 
 very highly. of it — Fort Edward Institute Monthly. , 
 
 N? jook ol travels and personal experiences has ever appeared which has excited more In- 
 ure* " among all classes than " Dr. Livingstone's Researches aud Narrative." But the great] 
 cost 01 the largo work placed it beyond the reach of thousands who desired it. To obviate thi» | 
 objection of p-ice, the publishers have issued this volume, which contains the gist of the origi 
 nal work. It forms a solid 12ino of 440 pages, is- given in Dr. Livingstone's own words thn» 
 sustaining all the interest which attaches to his wonderful story. The work is finely ill ti- 
 trated, well printed, and firmly bound, and will answer the demand for a popular and cheaj- 
 edition of the "Journeys and Researches in South Africa." — The Constitution, Eiie, Pa. 
 
 With truth we can say, that seldom is presented to the reading public a work containing 
 Btich a vast amount of solid instruction as the one in question. The volume is handsomely 
 Illustrated, and presents that uniqttt appearance of exterior for which Mr. Bradley's publica- 
 tions are noted — Fa mill Maaazin* 
 
 In this volume we fcav s presented tu us the whole of Dr. Livingstone's Travels, omitting only 
 scientific letails. — Medical and Surgical Reporter. 
 
 This interesting work should be in the hands of every one. Its interesting pages of adven 
 'ures are full of instruction and amusement. Ten thousand copies, it is stated, have been sol* 
 u one month. — Auburn American. 
 
 Nothing of real importance is omitted. The general reader will prefer this to the Engllaa 
 jditiou, especially as the cost is so trifling. — Pennsylvania Inquirer. 
 
 Dr. Livingstone's Travels and Researches in South Africa appear to great advantage in thit 
 edition, which is undoubtedly the edition most acceptable to the reader who reads for practical 
 instruction and amusement. — Saturday Post. 
 
 It is a rich and valuable book for the general reader ; and the admirable style in which the 
 publisher has issued it, will commend it to the favor of thousands. — Christian Observer. 
 
 We cannot name thirty-two chapters which are likely to beguile time and enlarge the scope 
 vf reflection more pleasantly, and at the same time more satisfactorily, than these Livingston* 
 rd ventures. A- special value is given to this volume by the additon of " Historical Notices of 
 discoveries in Africa;" and taken altogether, it would be difficult t-o name any publication 
 cinch more completely meets the popular taste of our time for reading matter, which la 
 grange, new, the scene laid in far-off countries, which touches the feelings and increases oar 
 rock of useful knowledge. — New Yorker. 
 
 It tells the whole story, leaving out digressions and episodes. — Legal Intelligencer. 
 
 "Whll^i it contains all the material portions,, it is free from much superfluous mattei ineor 
 l> -vated in the larger edition. — Auburn Daily Advertiser. 
 
 ''h) edition of Dr. Livingstone's travels, published by J. W. Bradley, is jast what it purport* 
 t« »«y_>h-9, essential portions of the English editions brought within the means of all. Like all 
 ** /Jr. Bradley's publications, it is excellently gotten up. — Tioga Agitator, Pa. 
 
 CATJTION.— The attention of the Publisher has been called to spurious editions of tbJ* 
 *oik, put forth as "Narratives of Dr. Livingstone's Travels in Africa." Ours is the only 
 t.Veap American edition of this great work published, and contains all the importaot matfei 
 vf je English edition, which is sold at six dollars. 
 
 J. W. BRADLEY, Publisher, 
 No. 4S North Fourth Street, Philadelphia 
 


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