THE 
 
 LIFE AND ADVENTURES 
 
 OF 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE. 
 
 LONDON: 
 JAMES BLACKWOOD & CO., PATERNOSTER ROW.
 
 THE 73 / 
 
 LIFE AND ADVENTURES 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 INTERIOR OF SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 COMPRISING A DESCRIPTION OF THE REGIONS WHICH HE TEA VERSED 
 
 AN ACCOL*NT OF MISSIONARY PIONEERS; AND CHAPTERS ON 
 
 COTTON CULTIVATION, SLAVERY, WILD ANIMALS, 
 
 ETC., ETC. 
 
 BY H. G. ADAMS. 
 
 Illustrated fot'tfj ^Portrait, anfc Siito 
 
 THE DRAW.XGS BY 
 
 SARGENT, HAEVEY, THOMAS, WOOD, ETC. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 JAMES BLACKWOOD & CO., PATERNOSTER ROW.
 
 LONDON: 
 
 a. K. BURT & CO., WINE OFFICE COURT, 
 FLEET STHEET.
 
 TO THE DIRECTORS 
 
 OF 
 
 THE LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY 
 
 THIS VOLUME 
 
 IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 
 AS A HUMBLE ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF TUB 
 
 ABTHOIl'S HIGH ESTIMATION OF THE EMINENT SERVICES WU10X 
 THEY AKE KENDEKINO TO THE CAUSE OF 
 
 CHRISTIAN CIVILISATION.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 THE extraordinary interest which is felt by the reauing 
 public of this country, as well as of the whole civilised world, 
 in the adventures and discoveries of Dr. Livingston, renders any 
 apology for the appearance of the present volume altogether 
 unnecessary. If needful to apologise at all, it is for the appear- 
 ance of anything like a full and satisfactory account of his explo- 
 rations in that part of Central South Africa, which has hitherto 
 been a teira incognita in geographical science, a region about 
 which the most strange and contradictory reports have been 
 published and believed, and whose fertility and capabilities of 
 improvement, whether as regards climate, soil, or the people 
 who inhabit it, were altogether undreamt-of. 
 
 What Dr. Livingston saw in this great central net-work of 
 Lroud streams and mighty rivers : the important discoveries
 
 Vl PREFACE. 
 
 which he made, the difficulties which he overcame ; the toils and 
 sufferings he endured in his wanderings over eleven thousand 
 jiiles of strange ground, much of it never before trodden 
 by the foot of the white man it is the object of this hook to 
 relate, in as clear and graphic a manner as the materials at the 
 writer's disposal permitted. The publication of the work has 
 been delayed longer than the many thousands who are anxi- 
 ously looking for such a narrative might think necessary or 
 desirable, in order that the information obtainable might be 
 as full and complete as possible, and that it might have the 
 advantage of copious illustration from the hands of the most 
 eminent artists of the day. Indeed, we were only anxious that 
 the work we had undertaken should in every department be well 
 performed. 
 
 While expressing a hope that it will prove satisfactory to the 
 admirers of Dr. Livingston, and especially to those who are warm 
 advocates of Missionary operations, and friends of the African 
 fcce, we would also ask for a kindly and candid judgment of our 
 difficult labours. In many instances, it was not easy to realise 
 the scenes and circumstances of Dr. Livingston's adventurous 
 journeys, with the slight assistance which was afforded by the 
 documents which had been made public, or to which access could 
 be had with sufficient facility ; and we have had, therefore, to 
 draw somewhat upon other and independent sources, to give 
 the narrative proper coherency, and to convey to the mind
 
 PREFACE* Til 
 
 of the reader a clear impression of our traveller's labours and 
 perils in the cause of Christian civilisation, and present to them 
 a true picture of the wild regions he explored, and of their 
 savage, yet, in many instances, friendly, generous, and hospit- 
 able people 
 
 We have thought it would add completeness to our work 
 to give a slight sketch of the labours of early missionaries in 
 South Africa, and a description of those parts of the country 
 which approach near to, and comprehend, the scene of Dr. 
 Livingston's earlier missionary efforts ; to such labours, whether 
 prosecuted in Africa or elsewhere, we would on all occasions 
 direct the public interest and attention. 
 
 On the growth and cultivation of cotton, too, with especial 
 reference to its agency in effecting the entire abolition of 
 slavery and the improvement of the Negro race, we have 
 thought it desirable to devote a chapter, in which we trust 
 our readers will find some facts adduced, and arguments em- 
 ployed, which, if not altogether original, will commend the 
 subject to their serious attention. There is also a long and 
 copiously illustrated chapter devoted to a description of the wild 
 animals of South Africa ;* a familiarity with their appearance and 
 
 Much interesting information on this subject is afforded in th 
 writings of Harris, Burchell, Moffat, Pringle, and especially in Cumming's 
 " Lion Hunter in South Africa," for the general correctness ^f the ad- 
 ventures in which, Livingston has himself vouched.
 
 Till PREFACE. 
 
 habits, and also with their native habitats, will do much to 
 convey a just impression of the difficulties and dangers which. 
 Dr. Livingston encountered in his journeyings among the wild 
 tribes and savage scenery of that torrid land. That he should 
 have overcome these difficulties, and escape the many perils which 
 beset his way, is a subject of great thankfulness to all who look 
 with admiration upon the noble disinterestedness of the man, 
 and who estimate aright the devoted efforts of the Christian 
 philanthropist. 
 
 The prayers of all good men will go back with Dr. Living- 
 ston to Africa, whither, it seems, he is shortly to return ; and 
 those who are most anxious for the diffusion of Gospel principles 
 over the benighted regions which he has lately traversed, and which 
 are to be the scene of his future Missionary operations, will be 
 most earnest in their petitions to the Almighty for his success, and 
 most ready to render that pecuniary assistance to him and the 
 excellent society of which he has proved himself so efficient an 
 agent. 
 
 One word in aid of the Livingston Testimonial Fund, wo 
 would fain say here. Better it is to assist a man, who is labour- 
 ing for the benefit of his fellow- creatures, and devoting his 
 energies to a great philanthropic purpose, while he is living and 
 doing, than to build him a monument after he is dead. Some 
 great public recognition of Dr. Livingston's eminent services to 
 Chiistianity and geographical science, is called for; let it be
 
 PREFACE. IT 
 
 made in such a way as to relieve him from all future care for the 
 temporal welfare of his wife and family. Let not the interest 
 which is now felt in this extraordinary man evaporate in speeches 
 on platforms and over dinner- tables, in magazine articles, letters 
 to the Times, and leaders by able editors. He has cast aside all 
 care for his own interest, and devoted himself, heart and soul, to 
 a holy work ; to the honour of this country his labours will 
 greatly redound ; let the people of this country take care that he 
 receives an adequate reward for these labours. He himself, we 
 believe, looks for no reward beyond that of an approving con- 
 science his is 
 
 * 
 
 " The virtuous mind, that ever walks attended 
 By a strong-siding champion, conscience." 
 
 And in thus going forth into strange lands on his perilous enter- 
 prises, he -is actuated by a sense of duty towards God and his 
 fellow-men. All his acts and words tell us that. He comes not 
 here to sound the trumpet of his own achievements, of which, 
 when he is obliged to speak, he does so as briefly as may be, and 
 BO modestly that it almost seems like apologising for an intru- 
 sion upon the time and attention of his hearers ; he regards not 
 his sufferings in the cause of Christ (and how great these have 
 been the readers of our pages will know ) as " sacrifices," a 
 word which ho says should not be named in reference to self by 
 the i'ullowera )./' a crucified Saviour. Indeed, there is such a tutui
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 abnegation of self manifested all through the career of this great 
 man, that we look upon it as something absolutely approaching 
 to, if it does not reach, sublimity. He is a great discoverer, but 
 with him " the end of geographical discovery is the beginning of 
 missionary enterprise." 
 
 He is a great traveller, and he takes more accurate observa- 
 tions of the important points in the regions through which he 
 journeys, than most other travellers, with far less difficulties to 
 encounter, usually do; but it is all for the glory of God all 
 for the salvation of souls. Suitable spots for the establishment 
 cf missions among the poor benighted heathen, ready means of 
 communication, channels for the admission of light into the dark 
 places of the earth, these are the objects of his researches. Pos- 
 sessing all the physical and mental qualifications for mercantile 
 pursuits, he might ere this have been a rich man, had he devoted 
 but a portion of his powers to that end ; but, no ! he is every- 
 where, and at all times, heart and soul, the true Missiorary 
 
 " Faithful at all times to the one intent, 
 Bearing the message by the Saviour sent 
 Unto the dwellers in \vild heathen lands 
 To succour the afflicted, and the bands 
 Of sin to loosen : God's work ever doing, 
 
 And the great end of life aye stedfastly pursuing.* 
 
 Such is the man whom we should all delight to honour ; and 
 not to honour only, but to assist by all means in our power. He
 
 PBFFACE. XI 
 
 is a fellow- worker with God ; let us be fellow-workers with him, 
 as far as our opportunities permit, and show that we appreciate 
 his labours and services, and sympathise with his high aims and 
 holy objects. 
 
 In conclusion, let us again urge upon our readers the obliga- 
 tion which all professors of Christianity are under to promote 
 Missionary operations. In the words of an eminent writer 
 of the present day, " Let each do something to recommend 
 that noblest of all enterprises the regeneration of Pagan 
 nations by the diffusion of Christian principles." 
 
 A MISSIONARY HYMN. 
 
 41 Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospri to every 
 creature." MAIIK XT. 15. 
 
 SPREAD the tidings of salvation, 
 Spread them far, from shore to shore : 
 
 Unto every heathen nation 
 Tell of Him the cross who Dore ; 
 
 Spread the Gospel 
 Until darkness be no more. 
 
 Long, too long, this nation's gtonr 
 
 Hath on violence been built ; 
 Sung in song, and told in story, 
 
 Are her many deeds of guilt; 
 Now the Gospel 
 
 Bids that blood no more be spilt.
 
 PULfACE. 
 
 Mighty empires we have founded, 
 Millions own our Sovereign's sw.:y; 
 
 Loud let Z ion's trump be sounded 
 So that all may bless the day 
 
 When the Gospel 
 Bade the spoiler's hand to stay. 
 
 Send the pastor and the teacher, 
 Build the church, the school er ctl 
 
 And let every zealous preacher 
 All the glorious light reflect 
 
 Of the Gospel ; 
 So we hope, and so expect ! 
 
 Scoffers by the great St. Lawrenca, 
 Pagans by the Ganges' tide, 
 
 Look not on them with abhorrencOj 
 'Twas for such the Saviour died ; 
 
 Spread the Gospel 
 Through Australia's regions wido. 
 
 Where the broad Zambesi fiowctii, 
 And its banks the Niger laves ; 
 
 And the Pagan nothing knoweth 
 Of the Word that heals and savei, 
 
 Preach the Gospel 
 Unto poor benighted slaves. 
 
 Closely bound by sin and sorrow, 
 Waiting for a voice benign, 
 
 Waiting for a bright to-morrow, 
 When the Sun of truth shall shin, 
 
 And the Gospel 
 Breathe an influence divine. 
 
 All the Christian Church may remlct 
 Aid in this great work of good ; 
 
 Not alone by those who wander 
 Forth, by wildcrues and flood, 
 
 Are the Gospel 
 Writer' to be uudc.-st(x>d.
 
 PHFPACE. xiii 
 
 Ench within his sphere, according 
 To his moans, may smooth the wuy : 
 
 He shall meet a high rewarding 
 ; fn the final reckoning day, 
 
 Who the Gospel 
 Precepts se^kcth to obey : 
 
 What are these ? Love one another 
 Give, as ye would have it given , 
 
 Ltrive to save a fallen brother ; 
 Sinners teach the way to heaven ! 
 
 As the Gospel 
 Teaches, have ire wrought and triv5n: 
 
 II. G. A.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 I'KTFACE , . . v 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE BOY, THE MAN, THE MISSIONARY. 
 
 Nsil Livingston and family Middle son, David, our hero Blantyre works 
 Glasgow Weaver students Early discipline Dreams of the future 
 Devotion to a missionary life Examination in London Training estab- 
 lishment at Chipping Ongar Fellow-students Course of study Habits 
 and appearance Walk of fifty miles Characteristic incidents Living- 
 ston a teetotaler First attempt at a struion Appointed to a South 
 African station Lands at the Cape Fosses iato the interior Meets 
 Moffat Marries his daughter Paget 1 8 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 MISSIONARY PIONEERS. 
 
 Bechuana country Campbell's visit to Lattakoo Trotter and Somerville 
 Cowan and Denovan Mission established Campbell's second visit 
 Kalahari Desert False notions respecting its extent Native tribes 
 Moffat's account Journey through the wilderness Reward of the 
 faithful Running waters in a land of drought Still on ! Early mis- 
 sionaries George Schmidt Vale of Grace Among the Hottentots 
 Return to Europe Marsveldt, Schwinn, and Kiichnel Moravians 
 Spread of missions Dr. Vanderkemp, and Messrs. Kicherer and Ed- 
 monds Head-quarters of the enemy Character of the Kaffirs Van- 
 derkemp's labours among them Regarded with suspicion Difficulties 
 Affecting incident and prayer Struggle against evil Kay's description 
 Dutch farmers Mission abandoned Another effort Failure Atten- 
 tion to the Hottentots Enmity of the Boers Collision with govern
 
 Xv CONTEXTS. 
 
 jiu'iit Perseverance Miraculous escapes Contemplated mission to Ma- 
 dagascar Death" All is well!" Character of Vanderkerup Influence 
 of his example Zak River mission Kitcherer and Kramer's " call" 
 thereto Bushmen ambassadors Floras Fischer His encouragement 
 Meeting with missionaries Establishment of mission Not successful 
 Indirectly useful A finger-post Establishment broken up Another 
 attempt Character and habits of the Bushmen Peculiar dialect, and 
 country over which they extend Degraded position Mission at Coles- 
 berg Smith and Corner Gheeiing prospects Suspicions and differ- 
 ences Breaking up cf the mission Other efforts more successful 
 Bushmen converts Pages 9 24 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 NAMAQUALAND AND THE GIUQUAS. 
 
 Ountry of the Namaquas Moffat's description Character of the natives 
 The Albrechts Their journey Difficulties and Dangers Names ;.i 
 their resting-places First settlement Warm bath Africaner His 
 story Oorlams Working on amid discouragement Albrecht leaves 
 the mission Death of Abraham Marriage of Christian Return 
 to the station Storm-clouds gather Quarrels with Africaner Dan- 
 gerous position Obliged to retire Burning of the settlement Dcatn 
 of Mrs. Albrecht Cornelius Kok New station established Pella, or 
 the place of refuge Blessing of labours Peace with Africaner His 
 conversion and baptism Ebncr, Schmelen, Bartlctt, Kitchingman, and 
 Moffat His journey to the country of the Griquas Its position and 
 people Dangers of the way Wild beasts Welcomed by missionariesAn- 
 derson and Helm Excursion to Daniel's Kail and to Lattakoo Return 
 to Namaqualand Terrific thunder-storm Attacked by hippopotamus 
 Arrival at home Retrospective view History of the Griqua mission 
 An offshoot from the Zak River settlement Converts Influence of 
 Christianity Interference of the government Dissatisfaction of the 
 natives Mr. Anderson withdraws Andries Watcrboer His strict dis- 
 cipline Its effects Bergcnaars Preservation of the mission Retribu- 
 tion Moffat's testimony Messrs. Wright and Hughes Prosperity of 
 the mission Native agency Migratory efforts Kaffir wars Hostile to 
 advance of Christianity Pages 25 3U 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 AMONG THE BECHUANA8. 
 
 Livingston at Kuruman The Bechuana nation Ancient and present 
 limits Loktialo The desolate karroo Pringle's lines Campbell's ob- 
 servation The Balala, the Namaqua, and the Damara tribes Wander- 
 ing Bushmen, &c. Mantatees and Matabeles Zoolus Fingoes Early 
 travellers to Lattakoo Fruitfulncss of the country Murder of Cowan
 
 CONTENTS. XVU 
 
 anu Drnnvan Dr. Lichtenstein's receptioa Campbell, hew received- 
 King Mothibi Encouraging words Messrs. Evans and Hamilton 
 Demur about locality Spiritual and worldly riches Refusal to found a 
 mission Kuruman in 1820 State of the natives Hugh Murray's 
 account The chief end of man "Commandos" Cattle-lifting and 
 slave-capturing Campbell's visit to Mashow andKureechane Fruitful 
 country Arts practised by the natives African council Influence of 
 women Campbell and Thompson's visits to Lattakoo Destruction of 
 the town by the Mantatees Defeated by the Griquas Massacre of 
 women and children Backhouse's narrative Works by MofFat, 
 Pringle, &c. Pages 4053 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 LAXE NOAMI. FIRST THREE JOURNEYS. 
 
 Station atKolobeng Livingston's labours there Desire to penetrate north- 
 ward Lake Ngami Vague notions about it and the regions beyond 
 Attempts to advance in that direction Why they failed Invitation to 
 visit the lake district Opportunity of doing so Messrs. Oswell and 
 Murray Setting out Skirt the great desert Reach theZouga Travel 
 up its banks and Eureka ! Discover the lake The baobab tree The 
 people called Bayeiye Batavana country Reflections by the lake Its 
 exact position Return to Kolobeng Royal Geographical Society's pre- 
 mium awarded. SECOND JOURNEY : When commenced By whom 
 accompanied Route Lower part of the Zouga Bakurutse tribe De- 
 sign of proceeding up the Tamunakle Frustrated by the "tsetse" 
 Mrs. Livingston and children Friendly chief Sechulathebe Attacked 
 by fever Obliged to return Cause of malaria. THIRD JOURNEY: 
 Companions Cross the Zouga Nahokotsa The salt pans Ntwutive 
 Mopane trees and springs River Mambali Bushmen and Banajoa tribo 
 Reach the Chobe Sebitoane Kindly reception Antecedents of the 
 people Sickness of the chief His death Reflections thereon Re- 
 quested to remain Visit the Seshekc Description of the country- 
 Future arrangements Return to Kolobeng Thence to the Cape 
 Sends wife and children to England Once more northward Lines by 
 Howitt Pages b-i 67 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TO ST. PAUL DB LOANDA. 
 
 Disagreeable episode Enmity of t>e Boers Attack on the Bakwains 
 Burning of town and missionary station Livingston's philosophy. 
 ' FOURTH JOURNEY: Attendants Lost for two years First intimation 
 of whereabout Letters and maps lost Colony of St. Paul de Loanda 
 How he got there Wild vines Axe and whip Again by the Chobc 
 liiiiny season Linotkanoka Flooded country Followers sick Away
 
 COSTIEKTS. 
 
 through the swamps Boy and pontoon Climbs a high tree Sees the 
 Chobe Difficulties of approach A horrid sort of grass Embarks in 
 pontoon Village of the Makololo Astonishment of the natives The 
 good missionary Dropped from the clouds Send to Linyanti Fleet of 
 canoes Welcome of Sekeletu Another father Expected benefits 
 A national crisis Historical retrospect Rival chief Frustration of his 
 designs Disclosure of the plot Execution of the conspirators Dealers 
 in human flesh Palaver Hunger very strong Traffic in slaves How 
 to put an end to it Desire to proceed northward Objection of Sekeletu 
 Consent given Scene at departure Song of the Makololo Progress 
 up the river Glorious scenery Thoughts of home A rhapsody Talk- 
 ing to the stars Banks of the river Palm and palmyra Glimpses of 
 the Banyeti Shooting a cataract The Lecambye Barotse country 
 Annual overflow Capital, Nariele A land of plenty Prevalence of 
 fever Native remedies Return of the Makololo Confluence of the 
 Leeambye and Leeba Passage up the latter stream Paradise of hunters 
 Animals shockingly tame Impudence of lions The lion's roar 
 Savagery of the natives Traveller's loneliness Unfaltering courage 
 Doing something for God An ever-present help Return down the 
 Leeba Sojourn in Barotse valley Again among the Makololo Pre- 
 paring for a fresh journey Learning to read Apt pupils National ex- 
 citement Grand feast Song of the poet Hippopotamus hunt Fare- 
 well to Sekeletu Bechuanas sent home Barotse attendants Explora- 
 tory intentions In the canoe On the ox "Which most pleasant Hopes 
 and aspirations Slow and painful journey Turning westward Wet 
 season Soaked and drenched Watch under the armpits Feed on 
 manioc root Bad consequences Fever and prostration Undaunted 
 still No " sacrifices " Extortionate natives Reason of their vileness 
 Livingston's tact and firmness Graphic picture Chiboque Their furious 
 attack Black brigands Compromise Revel and song of triumph 
 Reach Cassange Kindness and hospitality of the settlers Exhausted 
 state of the traveller His geographical researches notwithstanding 
 Haven of rest Luxury of a bed Mr. Gabriel " May God reward 
 him" Pages 68 103 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 
 BACK TO LINYANTI. 
 
 St. Paul de Loanda Portuguese possessions in Africa Fading of the 
 pageant Spanish, Dutch, and British rule Gold trade River Niger 
 Timbuctoo Preston John Bishop of Angola His capital Astonish- 
 ment of the Barotse What would Sekeletu say? No more earth- 
 Wonderful ships Reception on board Banishment of fear Worship 
 of Livingston Presents " Stones that burn " Not sailor, now Time 
 <br departure Livingston'^ strength restored Shall he rest from hi*
 
 cosrmrrs. six 
 
 labours ? No ! "Work only half accomplished Sacred ambition WaJ 
 out to the eastern coast What he saw at Loanda Deserted convena 
 and churches All silent now Graves of the monks Effects of their 
 teaching Intelligent negroes Future of Africa Not Mr., but Dr., 
 Livingston Coffee-plant Another lever Once more en route Eager- 
 ness of the Barotse Presents for Sekeletu From Loanda to Cassange 
 Among the Chiboque, Bushinge, and Bangala tribes Old troubles begin 
 Extortion and robbery Barotse lose all their treasures Paying their 
 way Reach the Casai Heavy toll demanded Refusal to pay Bangala 
 circumvented Cross the Casai Among a friendly people Reach the 
 Leeba Delight of the Barotse Their wild antics Their song of glad- 
 ness Sleepy Bangala ! Arrival at home Wonderful stories. Account 
 of Central South Africa Its great basin Its network of rivers Reci- 
 procity of water supply Realms of King Fever Homes of ravenous 
 beasts, and venomous reptiles and insects Man the greatest foe to man 
 Scott's lines Demoralising influence of war The Makololo His 
 philosophy of life and death Vegetation of the swamps Aboriginal 
 inhabitants Who are the Makololo ? Their character and language 
 The Barotse and the Banyete Ingenious, peaceable, and industrious 
 Useful arts which they practise Slave-dealers Their mischievous 
 operations To be put down by legitimate commerce Prospects of 
 trade Christianity and civilisation Introduction of firearms Men for 
 guns Profit on the traffic Evil and good Hint to traders Winter on 
 the Zambesi Missionary spirit Short-sighted policy Wrongs like 
 curses Chickens come home to roost The end of geographical dis- 
 covery Pages 104131 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 VISIT TO MOSELEKATSE. 
 
 A necessary Episode Moffat sets out Visits Sechcle Beating Chris- 
 tianity into a People Household Pictures Ma Sebele, her children and 
 occupations Request of Sechele Lunching A good wife Blessings of 
 civilisation Relics of barbarism Porridge and boiled corn Interior of 
 a royal residence Plain speaking Sechele's character Bad impression 
 of the whites Bamanguato country King Sekhome His cunning 
 and duplicity His portrait by Gumming His people worthy of such a 
 ruler No match for Cumming's " 'cuteness" Driving a bargain Profit 
 on ivory trade How Sekhome obtains his ivory The chief among the 
 mountains Threatened attack of the Matabeles Professed friendship 
 for Moffat Retention of Livingston's parcels Their production Hope 
 of reward Rebuke Moffat proceeds on bis journey Treachery of 
 Sekhome '.His fears and insincerity Progress through the wilds- 
 Approach the country of the Matabeles Cross the Shashe and other 
 rivers Rocky desert Wild animals Lions Catching guides Mo
 
 XX COJTTKNXg. 
 
 sclekatse's officer Receives Moflut graciously Outskirts of the kingdom 
 jealously guarded Apples of discord Detention of Moffat Pas>:>/e by 
 easy stages Examination and scrutiny Moselekatse sick "Welcome 
 the missionary His fierce nature subdued God's good purpose Effects 
 of his sickness Moffat prescribes remedies He is restored to health 
 His gratitude and that of his people Consents to have the Gospel 
 preached Listens himself Salutary influence Rivetted attention 
 Favourable circumstances Desire of Moffat to proceed in search of 
 Livingston Opposed for awhile At length permitted Moselekatse 
 accompanies him with a large escort Attendants and supplies Halting 
 places Reach the fly country Dangerous to proceed further Living- 
 ston's parcels sent on Party returns to Matlokotlofco Account of Mose- 
 lekatse's dominions, and the people under his sway Cattle outposts 
 Mashona tribe Their language Government and power of the great 
 chief Tidings of Livingston His parcels taken to the river brink and 
 vhere left Makololo come over and fetch them Place them on an 
 island, and build a hut over them Moffat leaves the Matabeles Is 
 supplied with an escort His expenses paid by Moselekatse Reaches 
 Kuruman Feels that he has not had a lost journey . Pages 132 H9 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 AWAY TO QUILLIMANE. 
 
 Setting out Makololo attendants North of the Zambesi Sun and moon 
 under his arm Mosiotunya Falls Their grandeur and sublimity 
 Their cause Confluence with the Kafue Bashukulompo tribe Finds 
 his packages Island of Kalai Tomb of Sekete His barbarous people 
 Elephants' tusks and human skulls Hills to the north Murchison's 
 theory borne out Great trunk line Vegetation of the high lands 
 Air fresh and pure Good locality for missions Great discovery 
 Probable results The Balonda Their industry Their civility and 
 kindness Idolatry and superstition Despondency and hope A divine 
 guide in view Pleasing traits of character High estimation of women 
 Ask my wife Punishment of refractory husband His revenge 
 Tables turned Amusing scene Lovely woman " Serves him right" 
 Onward still ! Thoughts of the future Abundance of Elephants 
 Mischievous and dangerous Wild animals plentiful Migration of 
 Springboks Fearless confidence Fierce joy of the hunter Livingston 
 low different Fish, flesh, and fowl River Loangua Leave Balonda 
 country Jumbo Now deserted Its chief commodities Away to Tete 
 Dangerous travelling Lion worship At war with the Portuguese 
 Pcdcstrianism not always pleasant Realising a treadmill Attacked by 
 a lion Missionary a man not to be killed Different here Description 
 of the native tribes Matiamvo paramount chief Cazembe and Shinte 
 inferior chiefi* Popular government Migration of villages The Morena
 
 COKTEXTS. XTI 
 
 or Krtsi The Durtnann, littlo lords -Tl.n Kolla or pate Ancient 
 Jewish polity Public questions debated Dice and divination Cutting 
 the knot of a difficulty Hereditary wisdom Female influence Different 
 among the Kaffirs, &c. Monomotapa The Emperor " protected " 
 Establishment of Tete Dangerous situation " The tribe that loves tht 
 black man " Weary and worn Approach to Tete Utter exhaustion- 
 Effects of a civilised meal Reaches Tete Rest and refreshment. 
 
 Pages 150-174 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE "WILD ANIMALS OP SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 axinrom of animal life Nine hundred elephants Gordon Cummincr's 
 game " Tao" Agremens of the hunter's life. THE LION : King of the 
 Lesert His ride Pringle's descriptive lines Retreat of the Lion The 
 guarded fountain Preference for living food A.ppalling roar Lines by 
 Young Felis Leo, its habitats Felis concolor Different breeds Two 
 kinds of African, how distinguished Dutch names Terror of the na- 
 tives " Man-eater" Lion-killers General avoidance of man Emblem 
 of strength and bravery Strong, but not brave A true cat Stealthy 
 movements Noble port and presence Disputed sovereignty Must 
 give place to man Lines Latest domains Epicurean feeder Dull 
 and heavy by day Destruction by Bushmen Not a prolific breeder 
 Evidences of great strength Poor Hendrick Lion stories Burchell, 
 Campbell, &c. Bold in Northern Africa Jules Gerard Query f Other 
 species of the Fclinee. THE LEOPARD : Berg tiger of the colonists 
 Differs from the panther, in what Pringle Where chiefly found Its 
 prey Ravages among flocks, &c. Favourite position Agile, graceful, 
 and beautiful Attacks children and women Half-smothered growl 
 General turn-out Takes to a tree when hunted Only dislodged by 
 shooting Caught in traps Mr. Orpen's dangerous encounter Lines 
 Fair without, but foul within. THE CHETAH : Cape Luipaard Rare 
 Skin worn by Kaffir chief Not employed in hunting, as in the East. 
 Other South-African cats, THE CERVAL, the CARACAL, and the 
 WILD CAT : Dutch names all mischievous Valued for their skius. 
 THE BOOTED LYNX, called Wilde-kai by the Dutch Havoc among 
 t?uinea-fowls Not a dainty feeder Description. THE HYJKNA, tiger- 
 wolf of the colonists Expressive name Position between dogs and cats 
 Voracious appetite Doleful cry Nightly music Horrible, disgusting 
 habits Sheep-destroyer Infant-devourcr Cowardly Sacred with the 
 Kaffirs Dreadof fire arm s* Story of a trumpeter Powerofitsjaws Cun- 
 ning and suspicious Caught in traps and pitfalls Rankness of its flesh 
 Gregarious habits Species of hyaenas. HUNTING DOG : why called 
 "painted" Wild, fleet, and savage Worriers of sheep Mode of at- 
 tacking cattle Of hunting ai.trlopcs Curaming's description Peculiar
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 cries Antipathy to domestic dogs Dreaded even by the buffalo. THB 
 JACKAL : gregarious, predatory Very mischievous Fox-like in ap- 
 pearance and character Destroyer of poultry Hunter of sheep and 
 antelopes Partial to grapes and esculent roots Wild cry Mode of 
 hunting Lion providers. ELEPHANT : Descriptive lines Peaceful life 
 in the East Different in Africa Cumming'sjiftieth elephant Numbers 
 killed Quantity of ivory Modes of destruction Pasture grounds 
 Livingston's account Makololo hunters Tracts of country inhabited 
 Great safeguards Extraordinary horror of man Description of habits 
 by Gumming Taking repose Immense feeders Destruction of trees 
 Inaccessible Retreats Magnificent sight Unwieldy gambols Elephant 
 calves An elephant in love Terrible when excited Daring Feat But 
 then the ivory ! Weight and size of a pair of tusks A prize indeed ! 
 The hunter's work Appearance of the elephant Its pace A dangeroi s 
 enemy African and Indian species How distinguished Great saga- 
 city Keen sensibility Kindly nature Southey's descriptive lines. 
 THE RHINOCEROS : Unprepossessing appearance Morose and sullen tem- 
 per Filthy and disgusting habits A true pig Furious attack Unicorn 
 of Scriptiie Three distinct species Scientific and native names 
 Cummiug's description Flesh, food, habits Activity of the black 
 varieties Characteristic differences White varieties Where found 
 Not gregarious Day resters Night roamers Best time for hunting 
 Thickness of skin African and Asiatic species Horns of the Keitloa 
 Neck of the Borele. HIPPOPOTAMUS: Where found Size and appear- 
 ance Teeth and tusks, &c. Why called sea-cow Habitat and habits 
 Numbers Dr. Smith's account How long submerged Hunter's 
 opportunity Where found by Gumming Graphic Picture Ad- 
 venture with hippopotamus Enormous size Admirable adaptation 
 Flesh much esteemed Sea-cow's spec Dangerous when attacked 
 Great strength Moffat's escape Friendly with the crocodile Dr. 
 Smith's account of habits Night feeding Kind of grass preferred 
 The Behemoth of Scripture Young's paraphrase. WILD BOAR. : Scica- 
 ' tific and Dutch names Ferocity and cunning Impetuous attack For- 
 midable tusks Size and general appearance Description byM. Pallas 
 Dwelling-place Curious fact Care of young Rare about Cape Colony 
 Kouloubcng, River of Boars Favourite feeding-time Flesh regarded as 
 unclean by the Kaffirs. HY RAX, or Dassie : A true pachydermatous ani- 
 mal Described by Reid. CROCODILE : Leviathan of Scripture Where 
 found Enormous size A sluggish animal Safe in its coat of mail Jaws 
 and spiny tail Plentiful in the Limpopo Largest killed by Gumming 
 Carnivorous, oviparous Dangerous to travellers Object of adoration 
 with the Egyptians Descriptive lines. GIRAFFE : Found only in Africa 
 Old travellers' accounts not believed First seen iu England Grace 
 and statelincss Gentleness Ruthless slaughter Hunter's ocitcnurit 
 Where met with by Gumming Astounding spectacle Mode of pro-
 
 CONTENTS. XX1U 
 
 gression and speed Finest cow Her extreme beauty Imploring look 
 Death Giraffe widely distributed Number in a herd Imputed want 
 of grace Cumming's defence Picturesque objects Attacked by the 
 lion Frielegrath's poetic description. The Horse Tribe: ZEBRAS and 
 QUAOGA : Difference of species Beautiful and graceful Swift, watch- 
 ful, and wary Consort with the ostrich Hunted for their flesh 
 Pringlc's lines Scourers of the desert Lines. BUFFALO : Powerful 
 and ferocious Where found Dangerous to the hunter Appearance 
 Tremendous horns Vicious look Malevolence Great speed Buffalo- 
 hunting Driven from the colony Attacked by the lion only from be- 
 hind Hottentotmode of hunting Flesh and hide valuable Cumming's 
 adventure Death of Boer Boviform antelopes. BLUE-DUCK : Size 
 and appearance Large horns "Where found. OHYX : Peculiar ap- 
 pearance Bold and powerful Where found Difficult to shoot 
 Plan adopted by the Boers. The CANNA : Eland, or elk cf the colonists 
 Large size Spiral horns General description Finest venison 
 Mild and inoffensive Gregarious Plethora Oily perspiration Pau- 
 city of males Plentiful about the Zambesi Not often seen by 
 Cumming Most esteemed parts Thigh-tongues. The KOODOO: A 
 noble antelope Large and beautiful horns Haunts and food Won- 
 derful agility Strength and determination Appearance. The GNU : 
 Combination of characters Antipathy to scarlet Pringle's anecdote 
 Reported ferocity Domestication Size and colour Ferocious appear- 
 ance Migratory habits Difficult of approach Peculiar mode of retreat 
 At bay Species described by Barchell. HAKTEBEEST: Large and hand- 
 ome Deer-like head Range of pasturage Mild and inoffensive Heavy 
 runner Curious habit Easy prey to the wild-dogs. True antelopes : 
 BLESSBOK : What called by the colonists Why Blazebuck ? Swiftness 
 Cumming's description A wary creature Fat and delicate 
 Beauty and delicious perfume Where numerous Lyrated horns. 
 SPRINGBOK: Grace and beauty Migratory troops Immense num- 
 bers Lines on Desolation Dutch name, Trek-bokken Pringle and 
 Livingston's testimony General colour Cumming's picture Pe- 
 culiar Habits Extraordinary spring Dread of a Lion. The PALLAH : 
 Where found By whom discovered Prized for its flesh Height 
 and colour Shape and size of horns Family groups Sharp look-out 
 Not very swift Killed by wild-dogs. REITBOK, not uncommon : Tail 
 and horns Cumming's Waterbuck Met with near water Prevailing 
 colours. KLEENBOCK: Small and pretty Hiding habits Height- 
 Pointed head Short horns Easily domesticated. SABLE ANTELOPE : 
 Hare and beautiful Discovered by Harris 'Colour Large horns. 
 BUSH-BUCK of the Lompopo : Christened and discovered by Cumming 
 Native name Exquisite beauty Wide-set horns. KLII'SPIUNGEU . 
 Pringle's " Rock-leapcr " Amazing ability A mountain haunter. 
 BOXTKBOK BOSCHBOK : Priugle's allusion Lines . Faycs 17J IMo
 
 CONTENTS. 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 COTTON CULTIVATION AND SLAVERY. 
 
 Importance of cotton Connexion with, slavery East and West Indii 
 growth Insufficient quantity Consumption in Britain American ex- 
 ports Preponderance given to the South A popular fallacy How to 
 supply the European markets Superiority of American produce Africa 
 a good field What is cotton ? Question answered Where best grown 
 Livingston and cotton Cotton stuffs of the East Primitive mode of 
 weaving Factory machinery Cheapness Coarse fabric still made in 
 India Chiefly of English yarn Universally worn Immense quantity 
 consumed Growth and preparation in India Species employed there 
 and in America Description of the plant Ryots Ploughing Sowing 
 Harrowing Mortgagee, Mahajan Careless cultivation " Fair befal 
 the cotton tree" Proper time for gathering Saw-gin and Churka 
 Broker or middle man Mixing samples Loose mode of transportation 
 Packing and shipping Forced labour in America Return to Africa 
 Lines by Montgomery St. Paul's teaching Benighted African To 
 be kindly treated All meet above No inferiority of race Effects of cir- 
 cumstances The negro mother A fearful picture The slave coflle 
 seen by Livingston Africa the cradle of science Productive powers 
 Rich mental soil Cotton cultivation on west coast African Agency 
 Committee Successful efforts Examples Civilising influence Means 
 and opportunities Aids to be rendered Price of African cotton In- 
 struction of native growers Other arguments Commerce and Chris- 
 tianity Slave trade cannot be revived Kaffir labourers Alexander 
 
 Crummell His noble oration Pages 211 2G8 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 JOURNEY HOME AND RECEPTION*. 
 
 IVle Travellers' rest Rich district Mineral wealth Wild animals 
 Vegetable products Fine timber Capital and energy only wanted 
 Dutch settlers creeping up Little done by Portuguese Teaching and 
 civilising Powerof the native tribes Stimulus of slave trade Outbreak 
 of enmity Better ways Richer revenue Rude efforts Undeveloped 
 resources Written instructions Journey to the Coast Farewell to 
 Makololo friends Industrious Skilful hunters Accompanied by one 
 Delta of the Zambesi Arrival at Quillimauc Population mostly slaves 
 Precarious footing of the Portuguese Mozambique Gold dust of Sofala, 
 Imaum of Muscat The "Frolic" Fear and astonishment of the native 
 Tragical end Sojourn at the Mauritius European fame Meeting at 
 Cape Town " Times " announcement Livingston's labours Lion 
 encounter Wounded arm Reception in England Geographical So- 
 ciety Missionary Society Meeting and dinner Graphic portrait Mrs. 
 Livingston Mansion- House meeting Testimonial fund High estima- 
 tion Not without honour Glasgow, Hamilton, and Blantyre Stock- 
 port Ragged School Plaudits of the Press Eulogium . Pages 2G9 293
 
 CONTENTS. XXV 
 
 CHAPTER XIIL 
 
 DESCBIPTION OF THE COUNTRY. EEPOETED DEATH OF LIVINGSTONE. 
 
 Resumes his travels in Africa His last expedition to the Zambesi 
 Successful researches on the West Coast Opening up trade on the 
 Mozambique and Gaboon The River Shire Murchison's Cataracts 
 Chihisas High range of hills Well-watered district Fine grazing land 
 Numerous population of the Upper and Lower Shire Picturesque 
 villages The Boabad Ceremony on arriving at a village Intelligent- 
 looking men Ornaments of the natives Iron smelting Cotton grow- 
 ing Cultivators of the soil Brewing of beer Longevity of the natives 
 of the highlands Great dislike to cleanliness Drunkenness Ordeal 
 of the Maiori The death- wail Badge of mourning Field for Chris- 
 tian Instruction Expedition of Grant andSpeke Dr. Baikie follows 
 Discovery of Lake Nyanza Account read before the British Associa- 
 tion of Mr. Baincs' visit to the Victoria Falls Interesting details 
 Dangerous rapids Vague rumours reach England in 1867 of Living- 
 stone's death Great consternation Doubts concerning the truthful- 
 ness of the Johanna men Expedition to obtain accurate information 
 Commanded by Mr. Young His reasons for believing the Johanna 
 men unworthy of belief Starting of the Expedition Reports of Living- 
 stone's existence Despatch from the Consul at Zanzibar Contains a 
 letter from the Governor of Keelwa His inquiries among the traders 
 Hopes of his safety extinguished The "Nadir Shah" The Johanna 
 men's account of his death Murder of the traveller by the Mantes 
 Moosa's account The protest of Dr. Murchison in the "Times" 
 Profound regret in England Pag is 294 322 
 
 CHAPTER XTV. 
 
 Discovery of Livingstone Further researches the Manyuema country 
 Difficulty of travelling Grand scenery Watershed of the Nile. 
 
 Pages 323342. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Theory of tho Nile Basin The Mauycma Cannibals Appearance of 
 tho natives 2'aycs 313 301 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Last Labours Death and Character ...... Page* 352355
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 ARTIST. PAOB 
 
 Portrait Smyth 
 
 Title-page Sargent 
 
 Vignette 
 
 Initial O Wood. . . I 
 
 Initial A . .. 9 
 
 Vanderkemp and the Kaffirs -. . . 16 
 
 Bushmen . . 22 
 
 Initial L . . 25 
 
 Moffat attacked by Hippopotamus .... . . 33 
 
 Initial W . . 40 
 
 Rocky Desert Saryent . . 41 
 
 Desolate Karroo Wood . . 43 
 
 Kuruman Station ,, . . 48 
 
 Tropical Vegetation Saryent . . 61 
 
 Initial F Wood . . 54 
 
 Banks of the Zouga . . 57 
 
 Death of Sebitoane . . 64 
 
 InitialB . . 68 
 
 Climbing a Tree in the Swamp Sargent . . 71 
 
 Crossing the Chobe Wood . . 72 
 
 Leaving Sekhose . . 81 
 
 Learning the Alphabet Sargent . . 91 
 
 Initial W Wood . . 104 
 
 Worshipping Livingston Sargent . . 110 
 
 Initial T Wood . . 132 
 
 Livingston and Sechele Sargent . . 133 
 
 Moffat preaching ,, .. 145 
 
 Initial R Wood . . 150 
 
 Tomb of a Chief Sargent . . 154 
 
 Female Punishment . . 161 
 
 Livingston and Lion Wood . . 1C8 
 
 *2
 
 XXV111 
 
 LIST OP ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 ARTIST. rtntt 
 
 Tribe that levcs the 131 ck Man ..... Sargent . . 173 
 
 Wild Animals Wood . . 17-1 
 
 Initial I . . . . : . . 175 
 
 Lion : Ilarvey . .. 179 
 
 Hyscna . . 191 
 
 Hunting Dog ........... . , 194 
 
 Jackal ., . . 196 
 
 Elephants ............ ,. . . 202 
 
 Rhinoceros (White) . . 207 
 
 Ditto (Black) , . . 209 
 
 Hippopotamus and Young , . . 213 
 
 Wild Boar *.... , . . 215 
 
 Head of Giraffe . , (> . 219 
 
 Cape Buffalo , . . 220 
 
 Blauwbok , . . 2:9 
 
 Oryx ,. . . 230 
 
 Canna .......... . .. 2'5l 
 
 Koodoo . .. 2.33 
 
 Gnu , . . 235 
 
 Blcssbok , . . 2C.7 
 
 Lion and Antelope , .. ?43 
 
 Cotton Plan* . , . 214 
 
 Primitive Harrow . . 251 
 
 Bullock Hackery .......... . . 2-54 
 
 Negro Mother Thomas . . 2:9 
 
 Slave v/'offle Sargent . . 753 
 
 Tail-piece , , Thomca . . 268 
 
 Initial Letter . . 2C9 
 
 Death of Native ..,..-..-.. fi o 77
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE BOT, THE MAX, THE MISS10XAET. 
 
 ' So long hath he been traversing the wilds 
 And dwelling in the realms of savagery, 
 That he hath nigh forgot his mother tongue." 
 
 NE of the last great facts to be 
 recorded among the memo- 
 rabilia of the year 1856, ia 
 tlio return of Dr. Livingston 
 to his native land, after an 
 absence of sixteen years spent 
 among the barbarous tribes 
 of Southern Africa. What 
 he saw and suffered, what 
 heathen realms he traversed, what great geographical dis- 
 coveries he made, during that long period of voluntary 
 expatriation, it is the object of this little book to relate 
 and describe. But before we enter upon the narrative of 
 tuere philanthropes labour* and important diacovenco, kit u*
 
 j DB, LrVlKGSTOUK 
 
 briefly recapitulate such facts as we have been able to glean 
 concerning the hero of adventures almost as wonderful as 
 those of Gulliver, possessing all the charms of novelty and ro- 
 mantic incident, and yet being, as we cannot doubt, strictly 
 true. Henceforth the name of this enterprising man will be 
 associated with those of Bruce, Park, Denham, Clapperton, and 
 other great African discoverers ; and it will, in the eye of the 
 religious world, stand before them all for high aims and holy 
 motives, while in that of the scientific world it will be second 
 to none for important results. 
 
 Neil Livingston, the father of our hero, was a native of 
 " the land of brown heath and shaggy wood," and he appears 
 to have resided for upwards of thirty years at Blantyre, in 
 Lanarkshire, where he was employed in the linen factories ; 
 there he took for his wife Agnes Hunter, a lass in the like 
 humble circumstances with himself; and there were born unto 
 him three sons, and, as it appears, two daughters. Of these 
 three male descendants, the elder, John, is now in business in 
 Canada ; the younger, Charles, is a minister of the Gospel in 
 tue "United States ; while the middle son, David, is he on 
 whom just now the attention of the public of this country, 
 and indeed ef the whole civilised world, is turned. We ma] 
 as well at once state, in order that he may also have our un 
 divided attention, the few particulars which it may be desir- 
 able to mention, with regard to the elder Livingston. This 
 father of a veritable hero (for such the subject of our sketch 
 well deserves to be called) removed from Blantyre to the town 
 of Hamilton about sixteen years since, and there his widow 
 and two daughters at present reside, much beloved by all who 
 have the pleasure of their friendship, and respected by those 
 01 the neighbourhood. "With them, let us add, are now stay-
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADYEXTUaiS. 3 
 
 ing the younger Mrs. Livingston and her family, happy, no 
 doubt, in the occasional presence of a beloved husband and 
 father, who must be to them like one restored from the dead. 
 Let us now go back to the Blantyro works, where as boy, 
 youth, and man, Dr. Livingston wrought, first as a piecer-boy, 
 and afterwards as a spinner, gaining the respect and good 
 will of his employers by his steadiness and sobriety, and the 
 love of his fellow-workmen and acquaintance by his kindly 
 and affectionate demeanour. 
 
 Blantyre, as our readers are no doubt aware, is in the 
 neighbourhood of Glasgow; and to the university, or other 
 scholastic establishments of that city, many young Scotchmen 
 of the humbler classes were, and are, accustomed to resort, to 
 satisfy that thirst for knowledge which appears more espe- 
 cially to distinguish the North Briton. Thither, too, repaired 
 young Livingston ; attending classes during the winter months, 
 and working steadily in the factories while the summer lasted. 
 lie is said to have exhibited in very early life the marks of 
 a resolute and vigorous character ; he studied early and lato 
 while it was time for study, and worked as a man should 
 work, when the season for bodily labour came ; lived frugally 
 at all times, and indulged in no enervating excesses; in 
 short, did thoroughly whatever he undertook to do, and thus 
 in some degree prepared himself for that great work which 
 he was afterwards to accomplish. Did the young student, 
 when he left his humble lodging in Glasgow at five o'clock 
 in the morning, and climbed with willing steps the academic 
 stair of Anderson's College, ever dream of the trials and 
 labours which awaited him, and of the conquest which he was 
 to achieve over difficulties almost insurmountable ever dream 
 of a wild, wide region, peopled with barbarous tribes, where
 
 4 DK. 
 
 the foot of civilised man had never trodden, where the good 
 tidings of salvation had never been proclaimed that he was 
 to be the first to penetrate that terra incognita, and to open 
 the way for Christian truth and civilisation to the hearts and 
 homes of those who sit debased by ignorance and sensuality, 
 and overshadowed by the gloom of fetishism, and other false 
 and monstrous devices of Satan ? Did he, we say, ever think 
 of going forth on such a high and holy mission as this, and of 
 doing such great and good service to God and his fellow-men ? 
 Who shall say that he did not? At all events he wrought 
 while young, as though to fit himself for some such moral 
 conquest as this ; and there cannot be a doubt, that but for 
 the frugal and temperate habits which he early acquired, 
 but for the severe discipline to which he subjected both mind 
 and body, he never could have accomplished the work which 
 was afterwards set before him, and from which he shrunk 
 ,ot. "Who would compare with the heroism of this man that 
 of the warrior, who, in the heat and excitement of the battle, 
 loses all sense of danger, all fear of personal safety ? Well 
 has Dr. Heattie said, speaking of such 
 
 " Great Britain has her sons both frank and brave, 
 Who noble triumphs win, but wear no glave ; 
 Sons, who in heart as firm, in toil as free, 
 Have spread her glorious name from sea to sea ! 
 Men, who have pushed their conquests wide ami t.\r, 
 And changed to pruning-hooks the shafts of war; 
 Who bear no glittering arms no banners wave- 
 Who strike no blow, are stricken but to save ! 
 Yet still they conquer ; and where they appear. 
 The painted savage breaks his poisoned spear ; 
 A bloodless triumph follows in their train, 
 For those they vanquish frel no victor's chain
 
 HIS LIFE AWB ABVENT17BE8. 5 
 
 No, theirs are triumphs war can never bring ; 
 Theirs are the pecans guardian seraphs sing ; 
 Their noblest banner is the book of truth ; 
 Thoir trophies age, and infancy, and youth ; 
 'Tis theirs to free, exalt, and not debase 
 The painted brothers of our common race. 
 Nor stripe, nor tribute, nor oppressive sway, 
 Degrade their labours or obstruct their way ; 
 Their watchword still, Let war and sorrow cease! 
 Their noblest epithet, The Men of Peace !" 
 
 "WTiat circumstances, or train of thought, it was which first 
 induced David Livingston to determine on devoting himself 
 to a missionary life, we cannot tell ; but certain it is that he 
 did so resolve, and having offered his services to the London 
 Missionary Society, he was, September 1838, summoned to 
 London, to undergo the necessary examinations before the 
 directors of that society. He and another candidate for ad- 
 mission into the noble army of soldiers of the Cross were, 
 after they had satisfactorily answered the questions put to 
 them, sent on probation to a training establishment, con- 
 ducted by the Rev. Mr. Cecil, at Chipping Ongar, in Essex. 
 Mr. Inglis, another probationer, went down to the academy 
 at the same time. Among the students then there were 
 Messrs. Drummond, Hay, and Taylor; the first of these is now 
 a missionary in the Samoan Isles, the second in India, and 
 the third died on his way to the South Seas. Livingston is 
 spoken of by one of his fellow- students here, as " a pale, thin, 
 modest, retiring young man, with a peculiar Scotch accent." If 
 you broke through the crust of his natural reserve, you found 
 him open, frank, and most kind-hearted, ever ready for any 
 good and useful work, not even excepting gr.nding the corn 
 necessary to make brown bread for the establishment, chopping
 
 O DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 wood, and such-like laborious though healthful occupations. 
 He was fond of long walks, and for six months he and his friend 
 used to traverse the Essex flats together, sometimes extending 
 their peregrinations into the more romantic neighbouring 
 counties. Twelve or sixteen miles were often thus traversed ; 
 and the friends, as they passed along enjoying the beauties 
 of nature, indulged, we may be sure, in profitable conversation, 
 anticipating, no doubt, the glories and triumphs of the 
 Bpread of the Redeemer's kingdom, and strengthening and 
 encouraging each other to pursue the path of Christian duty 
 with faith and earnestness of purpose. Livingston's desire 
 at this time pointed to the East, that land of great and 
 stirring associations ; but God, as we constantly see, overrules 
 everything for good ; He had work for his servant elsewhere. 
 But let us not anticipate the events of our story, if such it 
 may be called. Livingston, when he went to Ongar, had 
 made considerable advance in the Latin language, but he 
 knew scarcely anything of Greek, and during their long 
 walks he was initiated into the verbs and crude forms of that 
 tongue, which being dead, yet eloquently speaketh. The 
 pupil showed considerable quickness in the acquirement of 
 languages, but his true characteristic was indomitable perse- 
 verance, an'd we have seen through what difficulties this 
 afterwards carried him. All through his career he has 
 exhibited this, perhaps most useful, quality of the human 
 aaind, in a very marked manner. An incident or two from 
 that period of his life, on which we are now dwelling, will 
 serve to show what might be expected from the future man. 
 
 On one of the coldest and most foggy mornings in 1838, 
 he got up at three o'clock, to walk to London, in the western 
 suburb of which he had souie business to transact for his
 
 HIS LIFE AND .uiT^xrrp.rs. 7 
 
 father; as he was returning, his energy find character were 
 called into play : a lady was thrown out of a gig, and Living- 
 ston, who had obtained some knowledge of medicine and 
 surgery at Glasgow, without regard to the etiquette of tho 
 thing, at once offered his services, and instituted an examin- 
 ation, which resulted in the satisfactory assurance that there 
 were no hones broken. He ought, of course, to have rendered 
 what assistance ha could in stopping the horse, picking up 
 the lady, and conveying her to a place of shelter, and BO 
 forth ; but have left the rest to the " regular doctor." It 
 was very improper, but still very comforting to the poor lady, 
 who expressed much gratitude for his attention, and it was 
 very like Livingston ! and as he is now acknowledged as a 
 great philanthropist and discoverer, we hope that society will 
 forgive him for this departure from its established rules. 
 
 Having performed this good office for a fellow-creature in 
 distress, our traveller trudged on his homeward way. Long 
 ere he reached Stamford, about two miles from Ongar, it had 
 become quite dark ; he was sadly wearied, and felt faint with 
 hunger, having scarcely eaten any food all day, but he deter- 
 mined to push on, and did so. Presently, however, he found 
 himself on strange ground, having evidently taken a wrong 
 turning somewhere : here was a new perplexity, his kneea 
 trembled under him, and he seemed almost constrained to lay 
 down under the hedge, and make his bed there. But no, this 
 would not do for Livingston, whose philosophy was and is 
 " never give up I 1 ' So he braced up his energies for a fresh 
 effort; climbed a direction -post to decipher the letters by the 
 light of the stars ; made oiit his whereabout, and again pushed 
 on for home, where he arrived, pale as a ghost, and sank into a 
 seat so exhausted that he could scarcely utter a word. Aft***
 
 8 rA. LIVINGS roXB 
 
 taking a little food, moistened with milk and Tratcr, he went 
 to bed, and slept soundly until the middle of the next day, 
 when he awoke perfectly refreshed, and ready for another 
 journey. He had walked that day upwards of fifty miles, 
 
 Livingston was, and, we believe, still is, a strong advo- 
 cate for teetotalism : when at Ongar, he and some other of 
 the students drew up a pledge, which they severally signed. 
 He did not in his student days shine as a speaker his oral 
 delivery was slow and hesitating. " I recollect," says one 
 who knew him at Ongar, " that once he had bestowed groat 
 pains on the composition of a sermon, and when he attended 
 to deliver it from memory, the whole had escaped him, and he 
 was left in Egyptian darkness." These reminiscences of the 
 early life of a great man arc interesting ; we must not, how- 
 ever, dwell upon them longer, but pass on to state that, in 
 1840, just when he had attained the age of manhood, our 
 hero was appointed to a South African station, to which he 
 shortly after proceeded. Landing at the Cape, he passed into 
 the interior, beyond the Orange Hivcr, into the country of the 
 Bechuanas, where, at a station called Kolobcng, he laboured 
 earnestly and unostentatiously for eight or nine years. 
 During this time the celebrated missionary Hobert Mofiat 
 was also pursuing his labours in the same region, at Kuru- 
 m;m, which was the most distant outpost of Christianity, 
 until Livingston established himself two hundred miles 
 futther to the north, impelled by a desire to carry the light 
 of revealed truth as far as possible into the dark realms of 
 heathenism. These two earnest missionaries, of course, 
 became intimately acquainted, and the union of hearts was 
 cemented by the marriage of the younger with Moflat'a 
 daughter.
 
 KTS LlfB UTD A.DVESTCHE5. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 KISSIONAKY PIONEERS. 
 
 REFERENCE to the map of Africa 
 will show us that the Bechu- 
 ana country lies considerably 
 to the north of the Orange 
 Paver, and to the west of the 
 great Kalahari desert. It is 
 therefore far beyond the 
 boundaries of Cape Colony, or 
 British Kaffraria, and although 
 now in some degree under the control of the mother country, 
 it was not eo at the time of Dr. Livingston's arrival there. 
 
 The first person who planted a mission amid this wild, 
 although by no means fierce or intractable people, was Mr. 
 John Campbell, who, in 1813, undertook a journey for that 
 purpose to the chief city or town of the country, called 
 Lattakoo, or Lithakoo, which had twelve years previously been 
 visited by Messrs. Trotter and Somerville, and, more re- 
 cently, by Dr. Cowan and Lieutenant Denovan, who unfor- 
 tunately lost their lives in attempting to pass on in a 
 north-easterly direction, and to reach Mozambique, the 
 centre of the Portuguese colonies on that coast. At the timo 
 of Mr. Campbell's first visit, the name of the reigning 
 monarch of the Bcchuanas, or Boshuanas, as they are some- 
 times called, was Mateebe or Mothibi; and he, after some im- 
 portunity, consented 'to huvc a missionary settlement near hia
 
 10 DU. LIVIXOSTONB 
 
 capital ; and this we learn, on the second visit of Mr. Camp- 
 bell to the place in 1820, -was in active operation, although 
 but little progress had been made in converting the aatives, 
 " who manifested the most profound indifference on the 
 subject of religion." At this time the enterprising mis- 
 sionary, as we learn, penetrated beyond Lattakoo, and came 
 among tribes till then unknown; some of them showing a 
 considerable advance in the arts of life, inhabiting neat 
 villages, cultivating the ground, smelting iron and copper, 
 and manufacturing various implements. He also came upon 
 the borders of an immense desert, which, from its appearance 
 and the information he was enabled to collect respecting it. 
 he thought entitled to be named the Southern Sahara, as 
 rivalling in extent the Great Northern Desert. This was the 
 before-mentioned Kalahari desert, which bounds the Be- 
 chuana country on the north-west, and about the extent cf 
 which very exaggerated notions were formerly entertained, 
 some believing that it stretched away from the tropic of 
 Capricorn to the equator, and constituted the greater portion 
 of Central Southern Africa. Dr. Livingston's recent dis- 
 coveries have quite exploded this theory, as will be by-and- 
 bye shown; but our present object is to give as faithful a 
 picture as can be drawn from the reports of travellers and 
 missionaries of the scene of his earlier operations among the 
 benighted Bechuanas, Griquas, Namaquas, and Bushmen, or 
 Bosjcmen, who are perhaps the most abject and degraded of 
 all the African races; more especially, however, must wo 
 confine our attention to the first-named of these heathen 
 tribes. 
 
 In Moffat's " Missionary Labours and Scenes in South 
 Africa" we have a most interesting description of the
 
 ms LIFE A^D ADvr.xTrnrs. 
 
 tribes and scenery of the Bechuana country, the account of 
 which is brought up close to the period when our young 
 Scotsman first appeared on that stage of Gospel labour. We 
 may imagine with what feelings of awe and wonder he would 
 survey those wild wide regions of heathen darkness, amid 
 which shone out here and there the light of Christianity 
 from the solitary mission-house, or station, all inadequate, as 
 it seemed, to dispel the spiritual gloom which had rested for 
 ages untold over river and mountain, forest and sandy 
 karroo, inhabited by creatures bloodthirsty and ferocious, and 
 human beings scarcely less brutal and savage. Leaving 
 behind him Cape Town and its surrounding settlements, he 
 would pass on farther and farther from the homes of civilisa- 
 tion ; the homestead of the Dutch Boer, or British settler, and 
 the military or missionary station, would become less and less 
 frequent, and the kraal of the Hottentot and the Kaffir would 
 give place to the clay huts of the fierce and crafty Bushman, 
 in the wattled Coranna village. He skirts the land of the 
 Tambookus, beyond which, trending to the right, and running 
 parallel with the eastern coast, he knows that the White 
 Mountains rear their glittering tops skyward, while west- 
 ward rolls the great Orange lliver, a highway for future 
 commerce, until it empties itself into the Atlantic. On and 
 on, no rest for the Gospel pioneer; he has taken up his 
 cross, and must bear it, as did his Lord and Master, until he 
 is commanded to lay it down, and receive the commendation, 
 " Well done, thou good and faithful servant." Has he not 
 been sent forth to spread the tidings of salvation ? Has he 
 not been told that the rough places shall become smooth, and 
 the desert shall blossom as the rose ? and, rugged and barren, 
 cheerless and discouraging, as may be all around him, can he
 
 12 BE. LITIXGSTOUE 
 
 not look forward with the eye of faith, and behold the 
 plorious prophecy realised of a reign of peace and holiness, 
 and an " earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the 
 waterp cover the sea?" All this he knows and feels; and 
 rejoicing in his high commission a true soldier of the Cross 
 he passes on through 
 
 " A region of drought where no river gli.lcs, 
 Nor rippling brook with osiered sides, 
 Where sedgy pool nor bubbling fount, 
 Nor tree, nor cloud, nor misty mount, 
 Appears to refresh the aching eye ; 
 But barren earth, and the burning sky, 
 And the blank horizon round and round 
 Spreads void of living sight or sound." 
 
 In such a scene, how is the soul of the traveller refreshed 
 and gladdened by the sight and sound of running water 1 how 
 is his heart uplifted in thankfulness to Him " who scndeth the 
 springs into the valleys which run among the hills ;" and who 
 is to His faithful children as "rivers of water in a dry place, 
 as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Our mission- 
 ary thinks of all these precious words of encouragement, and 
 presses on through thorn-brakes and mountain- passes, swamps 
 and tangled forests; by the brackish pool where the wild 
 beasts resort to quench their thirst ; by the lurking place of the 
 treacherous savage, and of the deadly serpent ; scathlcss, amid 
 many dangers, triumphant over many difficulties, he still 
 presses on, and reaches the spot at which he purposes to set up 
 the Gospel standard, from whence he will send out the call of 
 invitation to wandering souls, that they may come in and be 
 saved. 
 
 So, we may well imagine, went on his holy mission Davii]
 
 DI8 LIFE AKD ADVKMCKE5> 13 
 
 Livingston, thinking of the good men who had trodden the 
 missionary path before him, and were labouring, or had 
 laboured, in the vineyard of the Lord, until the time of rest 
 and payment came to relieve them. Lotus, before we proceed 
 any farther, take a glance at such of these devoted, hardy, 
 self-denying soldiers of the Cross, as are more especially con- 
 nected with the history of South African missions. 
 
 To the small religious community called the " United 
 Brethren of Germany," the honour is due of having com- 
 menced this good work as early as 1736, when George Schmidt, 
 with, as Moffat tells us, something of that zeal which fired the 
 bosom of Egede, the pioneer of the mission to Greenland, left 
 his native country for that of the Hottentots. " He was the 
 first who, commissioned by the King of kings, stood in the 
 Vale of Grace, (Genadendal) at that time known by the name 
 of Bavian's Kloof (the Glen of Baboons), and directed the de- 
 graded, depressed, ignorant, despised, and so far as life eternal ia 
 concerned, the outcast Hottentots to the Lamb of God who 
 tasted death for them." The efforts of this devoted man were 
 crowned with a considerable share of success, until 1743, when 
 he was compelled to leave his converts for Europe ; and the 
 Dutch East India Company, who then had control over the 
 affairs of the colony, refused to sanction his return, believing 
 that to instruct the Hottentots would be injurious to the 
 interests of the ruling powers. Until the year 1792, the pro- 
 duce of the seed sown by Schmidt remained without culture, 
 and much of it perished in consequence. But in that year 
 came Messrs. Marsveldt, Schwinnand Kiichnel, and once more 
 in the old German mission-house were heard the words of 
 prace. Such of the Hottentots as remembered their old 
 toucher gladly came ia tv Lie countrymen, uiiu from that day
 
 I* BE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 to this, the Moravians, as they arc called, have continued im 
 interruptedly their labours of love among the various South 
 African tribes ; they have spread their stations all through the 
 Cape Colony, and far beyond it, having now a flourishing 
 station among the Tamboukies. 
 
 Dr. Vanderkemp, a Dutch minister, is the next prominent 
 figure which appears on this missionary field. In the year 
 1799, he landed at Cape Town, accompanied by Messrs. 
 Kicherer and Edmonds; the former, associated with Mr. 
 Kramer, yielded, we are told, to "a call of Providence," and 
 proceeded to the Bushmen on the Zak River ; while the Doctor, 
 finding that the down-trodden and slavish Hottentots did not 
 present a congenial field for his active and energetic tempera- 
 ment, at once " forced his way into the head quarters of the 
 enemy, and raising the standard of the Cross amidst a dense 
 population of barbarians, the most powerful, warlike, and in- 
 dependent of all the tribes within or without the boundaries 
 of the Cape Colony, and who, notwithstanding the superior 
 means for human destruction enjoyed by their white neigh- 
 bours, still maintain their right to their native hills and dales." 
 In the wars which have occurred since these lines were 
 penned by MofFat, we have had sufficient illustrations of the 
 warlike character of the Kaffirs, to convince us of their 
 justice. They maintained a long struggle against all the force 
 that could be brought against them, and inflicted great loss 
 upon their assailants, although eventually defeated, as bar- 
 barians are sure to be, when brought into conflict with 
 civilised modes and means of warfare ; and driven from many 
 of their old possessions, they are yet far from conquered, and 
 appear likely to give much troubb to their oppressors, as both 
 the Dutch and English have undoubtedly been in times past,
 
 HTS ilFE A!H) ADTENTOUES. Id 
 
 although a more conciliatory and humane policy may of iatu 
 have been adopted towards them. 
 
 It was into the midst of this dreaded and dangerous people, 
 who were then, too, it must be remembered, as they had been 
 for a long time previous, carrying on a deadly strife with the 
 Dutch farmers, who were intruding more and more upon their 
 grounds, and appeared endeavouring to reduce them to a state 
 of slavish submission, as they had done the Ilottentots amid 
 these bold and active African mountaineers, to whom a white 
 man and a Christian seemed nothing else than a murderer and 
 a robber that Vanderkemp at once opened his mission, proceed- 
 ing first to GraafF Ileiuet, the most distant colonial town, and 
 thence into the Kaffir country. He was accompanied by Mr. 
 Edmonds, who soon, however, left him to perform his arduous 
 task alone. A more unpromising scene of missionary labour 
 could scarcely be imagined. There he was with only a few 
 attendants, surrounded by those who looked upon him with 
 jealousy and distrust, thinking him to be a spy, or the precursor 
 of some deeply laid plan for their subjugation and despoilment. 
 Afler his honest, outspoken answers to the many questions 
 which were put to him had somewhat disarmed suspicion, he 
 was allowed by the Kaffir chief, Gaika, to remain on his do- 
 minions ; and then, says the devoted servant of Christ, with 
 characteristic simplicity, " Brother Edmonds and I cut down 
 long grass and rushes for thatching, and felled trees in the 
 wood ; and I kneeled down on the grass, thanking the Lord 
 Jesus that He had provided me a resting-place before the face 
 of our enemies and Satan, praying that from under this roof 
 the seed of the Gospel might spread northwards through ail 
 Africa." 
 
 Bravely did the Doctor battle against the bad customs and
 
 16 
 
 DH. LIYIXG.9TOXE 
 
 . 
 
 evil passions of the savages around Mm; and his slightest 
 successes, such as a single ray of divine truth illuminating the 
 dreary mental waste in which he found himself, filled his heart 
 \vith joy and thankfulness. Although a man of a classical 
 education, skilled in various brandies of learning, and holding 
 ct one time a high military station, he had thrown aside all 
 for the service of God, and here wrought and laboured like 
 a very menial, performing the humblest offices, and cheerfully 
 eubmitting to the greatest indignities, so that by thus working 
 end bending he might win souls to Christ. Truly this was a 
 rial disciple to the great exemplar of Christianity ! 
 
 Kay, in his "Travels and Researches in Kaffir-land,'* 
 describes the mission stations there as " literally folds sur- 
 r juudcd by evil spirits, us well us b; liuusU of I-IVY." And so
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 17 
 
 Vandcrkemp found his : not only hud he to contend, against tho 
 wiles and suspicions of those whom he sought to convert, but 
 the Dutch farmers some of whom had committed acts obnox- 
 ious to the Government, and fled from the colony, at the time 
 he established his mission, around the protection afforded by 
 which they gathered after awhile became his determined 
 enemies, being made so by 'his open rebuke of their evil 
 practices; they maligned and plundered him on all occasions, 
 and carried their depredations on him to such an extent, that 
 he had scarcely sufficient left to take him back to Graaff Reinet, 
 whither he returned in 1800, being obliged to do so by a 
 combination of circumstances. 
 
 Subsequently he made another effort to establish a mission 
 in Kaffirland, but failing in this, henceforth devoted his 
 attention to the Hottentots, in whose service he went through 
 incredible labour and great suffering; his advocacy of the 
 rights of that oppressed race gained for him the determined 
 enmity of the Dutch farmers, and at one time brought him 
 into collision with the colonial government; his stations were 
 repeatedly attacked and destroyed, his friends and followers 
 murdered, and he himself had some miraculous escapes with 
 his life. But he persevered notwithstanding; nothing could 
 daunt his intrepid spirit, or abate his ardour for the service of 
 God and his fellow creatures ; and he was, when quite aged, 
 about entering upon a long contemplated and most dangerous 
 mission to Madagascar, when he was suddenly called on to lay 
 aside his armour, and enter into that rest which he had well 
 earned. He died in 1811, after a few days' illness, whispering 
 with his last breath, "All is well!" Again we ask, what 
 are the deeds of the bravest and most successful warrior com- 
 pared with those of this great philanthropist ? H's name will
 
 18 im. LIVHTGSTOICK 
 
 ever shine as one of the brightest stars in the van of mission- 
 ary enterprise, and be synonymous with all that is magnani- 
 mous and self-denying, and most truly glorious, in the 
 character of man. 
 
 Although, the attempts made by Vanderkemp to establish 
 missions among the Kaffirs failed at the time, yet were 
 they not altogether fruitless ; for afterwards, when Messrs. 
 Head and Williams directed their efforts to the same end, they 
 were welcomed " as the sons of Jankanna," the Kaffir name for 
 Vanderkemp. 
 
 "We have spoken of the Zak River mission, towards which 
 Messrs. Kicherer and Kramer had a special call of Providence, and 
 this, according to Moffat, is how it came about. " "Who would 
 have supposed that Kicherer' s course (which was originally 
 towards Kaffirland) would have been diverted by Bushmen 
 ambassadors, the feeblest, poorest, most degraded and despised 
 of all the sable sons of Ham ? It appears that some time 
 previous, while the Church at home was engaged in prayer 
 that the Great Head of the Church would open a door for His 
 servants whom they were sending forth, a treaty had been 
 made between the Bushmen and Florus Fischer, with other far- 
 mers, who had suffered terribly in their flocks and herds from 
 these depredators of the desert. The Bushmen seeing Florus 
 Fischer, who was a good man, solemnly appeal to Almighty God 
 to witness the transaction, and observing that he was in the 
 habit of assembling his family for worship morning and svcning, 
 were led to inquire into the Divine character, and to solicit 
 Christian teacher. Mr. Fischer cheerfully afforded encourage- 
 ment ; and though it appeared something like hoping against 
 hope, he, at their request, took some of the principal of then* 
 to Cape Town for the purpose."
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVKXTT7RES. 19 
 
 This party of inquirers after God arrived just befoie the 
 missionaries landed, and so appeared to be actually waiting 
 lor them ; they, as we have already learned, acceded to the 
 request of the natives, and the two gentlemen named, accom- 
 panied by a thiid, Mr. Edwards, shortly proceeded to a point 
 on Zak Kiver, at a distance of between four and five hundred 
 miles from Cape Town to the north-east. As far as its imme- 
 diate object was concerned this mission was not successful; 
 the degraded Bushmen, with but few exceptions, could never 
 be brought to comprehend the importance of those things 
 which pertain to the soul, and they soon began to assume an 
 attitude of hostility towards the missionaries whom they had 
 invited to reside among them, perhaps under a false notion 
 of some peculiar benefit or advantage to their worldly affairs 
 to be derived from their presumed acquaintance with some great 
 and powerful spirit. But the establishment of this Zak Kivcr 
 mission did good service to the cause of Christianity in an 
 indirect way; "it became," says Moffat, "the finger-post to 
 the Namaquas, Griquas, Corannas, and Bechuanas, for it 
 was by means of thai mission that these tribes and their con- 
 dition became known to the Christian world." We learn, 
 too, that Kicherer had great comfort in his intercourse with 
 many good farmers who exerted themselves in favour of the 
 objects he had in view. He was soon encouraged by the 
 accession of many Hottentots and Bastards (half-breeds) to 
 the station, without whose assistance it would not have been 
 possible for him to have lived there, as he afterwards found: 
 
 This missionary establishment was ultimately broken up 
 in 1806, some time after its chief minister had left it for 
 Graaff Reinet, to which he was appointed after having entered 
 the Dutch church. It was badly situated in an arid sterile
 
 20 DR. LIV1NGSTOXK 
 
 spot, where no supplies could be obtained, and in the midst of 
 an unfriendly people ; nevertheless, from it proceeded several 
 zealous converts, Hottentots and others, who afterwards be- 
 came active missionaries among the Griquas. This, however, 
 was not the last effort made to introduce the Gospel among the 
 liushmen, under which term are comprehended a widely scat- 
 tered people, the most brutish, ignorant, and miserable of all 
 barbarous tribes with whom civilised man has yet come- in 
 contact ; generally speaking, they have neither home nor shed 
 to shelter them ; they are neither shepherds nor tillers of the 
 earth; have no herds or flocks, or worldly possessions of 
 any kind. " Accustomed to a migratory life, and entirely de- 
 pendent on the chase for a precarious existence, they have 
 contracted habits which could scarcely be credited of human 
 beings. For generations past they have been hunted like 
 partridges on the mountains. Deprived of what nature had 
 made their own, they became desperate, wild, fierce, and 
 indomitable. Hunger compels them to feed on everything 
 edible. Ixias, wild garlic, and other vegetable productions of 
 the desolate regions amid which they wander and dwell in 
 caves and rocky recesses, like the Troglodytes described by 
 Pliny, constitute their fruits of the field, while almost every 
 kind of living creature is eagerly devoured, lizards, locusts, 
 grasshoppers, and even poisonous serpents are not exceptcd. 
 Of the latter, they cut off the head, and carefully extracting 
 the bags which contain the venom, mingle it with the 
 milky juice of the euphorbia, or of some other delcterioua 
 bulb, and after simmering the mixture over a slow fire, 
 until it acquires the consistency of wax, with it cover the 
 Joints of their arrows, which they send with unerring aim, 
 frith as little compunction at their fellow creatures as at
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 21 
 
 the savage beasts, with which they dispute the possession 
 of the sandy waste and rocky ravine. They are great 
 cittle stealers, and exhibit much cunning and dexterity 
 in this peculiar branch of their calling, as it may well be 
 termed ; lurking about the European settlement, or the native 
 kraal, or village, for days and weeks, and watching their op- 
 portunity for an inroad ; and when they have effected their 
 object, retreating with their spoil to some rendezvous, a cave 
 or overhanging precipice difficult of access; if pursued, and 
 likely to lose their ill-gotten booty, they will generally spear 
 the cattle rather than let them be retaken alive, and this of course 
 exasperates the owners greatly, who often inflict a terrible 
 vengeance upon the marauders, following them to the dens 
 and caves to which they fly for safety, and shooting them down 
 without mercy, or blocking up the entrances of their hiding 
 places with brushwood, setting it on fire, and so smothering them 
 by wholesale. Such is, in substance, the account given by Mof- 
 fat and others of these wretched and degraded beings, who have, 
 from time immemorial, inhabited the desert waste and barren 
 mountain ranges which intervene between the fertile districts, 
 on which the more settled native tribes were originally planted, 
 or of which they have taken possession ; they have kept them- 
 selves perfectly distinct from all of them ; although brought into 
 frequent contact with Kaffirs, Hottentots, Corannas, Namaquas, 
 Griquas, Bcchuanas, &c., they yet retain their individuality, 
 speaking their own peculiar language, which has, as Moffat says, 
 " in addition to the click of the Hottentot, a croaking in the 
 throat," unlike the utterance of any other African language or 
 dialect with which we are acquainted ; occupying, wherever 
 they are found that is, from Cape Colony to Mampoor Lake, 
 about eight hundred miles north of Lattakoo the lowest scale
 
 22 
 
 DE. LIVING STOTTB 
 
 on the ladder of civilisation, and the most degraded positioa 
 even among savages. Such arc the poor roving Bushmen, Earth- 
 men, or Bosjemen, with their hands against all men, and all 
 men's hands against them ; hated and despised ; the link, as 
 Borne say, between humanity and the brute creation. 15 ct 
 shall it always be so ? Nay, 
 
 " Though for a season Satan may prevail, 
 
 And hold as if secure his dark domain -, 
 The prayers of righteous men may seem to fail, 
 
 And heaven's glad tidings be proclaimed in vaia 
 . But wait in faith ; ere long shall spring a.sain 
 The seed that seemed to perish in the ground 
 
 And fertilised by Sion's latest rain, 
 
 The long parched land shall laugh with harvests crowned, 
 And through those silent \rastcs Jehovah's praise mound. 1 
 
 So thought the good men who saw in these brutaliscd aud 
 degraded children of Ham immortal beings, with souls to be 
 saved, inheritors of the same high destiny with themselves, if 
 they could but be awalccned to a knowledge of this, and put 
 in the way to secure it. Although the Zak River mission 
 was abandoned, yet were the Bushmen not given up to Satan. 
 Other efforts for their salvation were made. In 181-1 a
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVENTURES. 23 
 
 station under the auspices of the London Missionary Society 
 was established at Colesbcrg, or Toornberg, as it was then 
 called, about which gathered nearly five hundred Bushmen, 
 among whom laboured Messrs. Smith and Comer ; and we are 
 told by Moffat, that " the light and power of the Gospel, at an 
 early period of the mission, accompanied the proclamation of 
 its glad tidings, and a number of these barbarous people, when 
 they heard the Word of Life, believed. And here a Christian 
 church arose, extensive gardens were laid out and cultivated 
 by the Bushmen's own hands." But soon these pleasing 
 prospects were overclouded, in consequence of the enmity 
 which existed between the wild children of the desert and 
 the farmers; suspicions arose in the ignorant minds of th 
 former that the missionaries were employed as instruments to 
 betray them into the hands of the latter; to remove these 
 suspicions, and assure those whom they would convert of 
 their sincerity, the teachers endeavoured by all means to con- 
 ciliate the affections of the Bushmen, and took every oppor- 
 tunity of advocating their interests, and this brought them 
 into collision with the farmers, who, by their representations, 
 induced the authorities to recal the missionaries within the 
 bounds of the colony; this caused the breaking up of tho 
 Toornberg mission, and also of another of which the esta- 
 blishment was commenced, at a place called Hephzibah, where 
 also there was a prospect of permanent success. Other 
 efforts have since been made, which show that the conversion 
 of this degraded race is by no means impossible ; and among 
 the true converts to the cause of Christianity may now bo 
 numbered nearly as many Bushmen as of any one of the 
 other native races. Speaking of some of those whom Mr. 
 Smith baptised, the Rev. A. Faure, minister of Graaff Keinet
 
 24 DK. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 says that " tliey had acquired very rational ideas of the prin- 
 ciples of the Christian religion, and appeared to feel its 
 constraining influence on their habitual conduct. They were 
 zealous in trying to convey the same inestimable blessing to 
 their unhappy countrymen, who live without God and without 
 hope in the world. It was delightful to hear the children 
 sing the praises of Jehovah, and to wiliiess the proi<:t>> 
 made in spelling end reading."
 
 BIS I IFF. AND ADVI'.XTimES. 
 
 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 KAMAQCALAXD AND THE GKIQUXS. 
 
 ET us now turn our thoughts 
 to a desolate and dreary tract 
 of country, of great extent, 
 lying north and south of the 
 Gariep, or Orange River, and 
 extending from, the Atlantic 
 shore to about one fourth of 
 the breadth of the whole con- 
 tinent; this is Kamaqualand, 
 or the country of the Nam aquas, who are thought to be a 
 tribe, or perhaps several tribes, of the great Hottentot nation. 
 The river above named, which flows through this country, 
 divides it into two very unequal portions, which are respec- 
 tively distinguished as Little and Great, the former lying to 
 the south, and the latter to the north, of this division. " As 
 un inhabited country," says Mr. Moffut, "it is impossible 
 to conceive of one more desolate and miserable, and it is 
 impossible to traverse its extensive plains, its rugged undula- 
 ting surface, and to descend to the beds of its waterless rivers, 
 without viewing it as emphatically ' a land of drought, 1 
 bearing the heavy curse of 
 
 4 Man's first disobedience, and the fruit 
 Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste 
 Brought death into the world, and all our woe * ** 
 
 One who had spent many years in this land of barrenness
 
 26 Dll. L1VIXGSTOKB 
 
 and desolation, on being questioned by the traveller, thus 
 answers " Sir, you will find plenty of sand and stones, a 
 tliinly scattered population, always suffering^from want of 
 water, on plains and hills roasted like a burnt loaf under the 
 scorching rays of a cloudless sun." Of the truth of this de- 
 scription, Moffat soon had ample demonstration ; he found, in 
 most cases, the beds of the rivers and streams dry, and literally 
 glowing. ' Sometimes for years together they are not known 
 to run ; when, after the stagnant pools are dried up, the natives 
 congregate to their beds, and dig holes, or wells, in some in- 
 stances to the depth of twenty feet, from which they draw 
 water, generally of a vary inferior quality. They place 
 branches of trees in the excavation, and with great labour, 
 under a hot sun, hand up the water in a wooden vessel, and 
 pour it into an artificial trough, to which the parching, lowing 
 herds approach, partially to satiate their thirst. Thunder- 
 storms are eagerly anticipated, for by these only rain falls ; and 
 frequently these storms will pass over with a tremendous 
 violence, striking the inhabitants with awe, while not a single 
 drop of rain descends to cool and fructify the parched waste. 
 When the heavens do let down their watery treasures, it is 
 generally on a partial strip of country, which the electric cloud 
 has traversed ; so that the traveller will frequently pass almost 
 instantaneously from ground on which there is not a blade of 
 grass, into tracts of luxuriant green sprung up aftojr a passing 
 storm. Fountains arc few indeed and far between, the best 
 very inconsiderable, frequently very salt, and some of them hot 
 springs ; while the soil contiguous is generally so impregnated 
 with saltpetre as to crackle under the feet like hear frost, and 
 it is with great difficulty that any kind of vegetable can be 
 made to grow. Much of the country is hard and atony, inter-
 
 HI3 LIFE AND ADVEXTTTOES. 27 
 
 spread with plains of deep sand. There is much granite ; and 
 quartz is so abundantly scattered, reflecting such a glare of 
 light from the rays of the sun, that the traveller, if exposed at 
 noon-day, can scarcely allow his eyelids to bo sufficiently open 
 to enable him to keep the course he wishes to pursue." 
 
 Such is Xamaqualand, such the soil in which the seed of 
 the Gospel had to be sown. Its natives deeply sunk in ignor- 
 ance and barbarism, disgusting in their habits and manners, 
 and entertaining, moreover, a deep-rooted antipathy towards 
 the "hat- men," as they termed Europeans; this arose from 
 th disgraceful acts of deceit and oppression committed by 
 sailors from ships which had visited different parts of the 
 western coast. " Many runaways, too," as Moffat informs 
 us, " and characters reckless of law, abandoning the service 
 of the farmers of the colony, flock to Great Namaqualand; 
 and this influence went far in stirring up the native mind 
 against all compromise on the part of their civilised neighbours. 
 It was to such a people, and to such a country, that the mis- 
 sionaries directed their course, to lead a life of the greatest 
 self-denial and privation." 
 
 It was in the month of January, 1806, that the two 
 Albrcchts and their associates, sent forth by the London Mis- 
 sionary Society, crossed the Orange lliver, and proceeded on 
 their difficult and painful journey into the interior of this 
 desolate country; the party consisted of eleven persons, and 
 they were often near perishing for want of food and water ; 
 their supply of draught oxen, and indeed of all other neces- 
 saries, was insufficient for the journey, and the difficulties they 
 had to encounter were of the most formidable character ; never- 
 theless, although fully alive to the danger of their situation, their 
 strong faith was unwavering, and hence their courage did uot
 
 28 DR. LITI.VGSTOXE 
 
 fail. " We have gone through many difficulties," they wrote 
 addressing the Directors of the Society, " of which nobody can 
 form an idea, who never has been in a dry and barren desert. 
 We were not only separated from our friends, but could get 
 no assistance from any human being. If we had not been 
 able to believe that it was the will of the Lord that we 
 should go to the Great Namaquas, we could not have gone 
 through such fatigue and labour." We have a touching 
 record of the troubles and feelings of this little band of 
 Christian pilgrims, in the names which they gave to the spots 
 at which they made temporary stoppages; there was Slilie 
 Hoop (Silent Hope), and Blyde Uitkomst (Happy Deliver- 
 ance). How long they toiled and struggled against adverse 
 circumstances, how well they fought the good fight of faith 
 and holy love, may be read in the missionary records. We 
 can only relate a few of the events connected with their 
 earnest efforts for the enlightenment of this dark land. Their 
 lirst settlement was at a place denominated the Warm Bath, 
 from the hot spring which gushed up there ; it was a cheerless, 
 e'.orile spot, the land much impregnated with salt, so that 
 little could be expected to grow there; but its contiguity 
 to water, and the people whom they desired to convert, led to 
 its selection. Their prospects for a season were cheering, 
 notwithstanding i, * e desolation of the place, and their want of 
 almost all things necessary to bare existence, not to speak of 
 comfort. But the natives seemed inclined to listen to their 
 teaching, and even Africaner, a Hottentot of a bold and 
 resolute character, who had cast off the yoke attempted to be 
 fixed on his neck by the Dutch settlers in the colony, and 
 retired, with others of his family, beyond the Orange Iliver, 
 where he. became a chieftain renowned for his daring and
 
 BIS LIFE AND ADVEN TURKS. 29 
 
 prowess, and finally king of the Namaquas even this groat 
 warrior would sometimes draw near to listen to the instruc- 
 tions of the missionaries, and invite them to visit his place of 
 residence, which was situated at a distance of about a hun- 
 dred miles from the station. The people with whom they 
 were here brought in contact were composed of a mixed 
 multitude of Namaquas and Bastards, from the colony (called 
 on that account Oorlams), whom they, as well as the other 
 missionaries, found it difficult to manage. " Originating in tho 
 colony, proud of their superior knowledge, and having a 
 smattering of the Dutch language, they stood high in their 
 own estimation, and, despised the aborigines. This, in many 
 instances, gave rise to dissension, discord, and war, so as even 
 to overthrow the labours of tho missionaries, and turn a 
 thriving settlement into desolation. Thus, says MofTut, 
 who adds that, notwithstanding these discouragements, tho 
 brethren laboured on, "thus, for a season, their prospects 
 continued cheering. They were ' instant in season and out of 
 season' to advance the temporal and spiritual interests of the 
 natives, though labouring in a debilitating climate, and in want 
 of the common necessaries of life." 
 
 Soon, however, their prospects darkened again ; one of tho 
 brothers Albrecht (Abraham) was compelled by ill health to 
 leave the station and return to the colony, where he died ; the 
 other brother (Christian) accompanied him, leaving the mission 
 under the care of Mr. Tromp. 
 
 Christian Albrecht, soon after this event, married a Dutch 
 lady of superior education, who, burning with holy zeal for the 
 conversion of souls, had left her friends and home in'Ilottor. 
 dam, for the privations and hardships of a missionary life. 
 Christian, with his newly wedded wife, and the widow and
 
 30 DP. L1VINGSTOKB 
 
 child of his deceased brother, returned to the station in Xaraa- 
 qualand, around which the threatened storm was then gather- 
 ing. Quarrels arose between Africaner, with his followers, 
 and others, in which the people of the mission got involved; 
 and the ire of the great chief and daring freebooter waf 
 aroused against the missionaries, whose situation now became 
 most distressing. We again quote from MoiFat, who gives ua 
 this sad picture of their condition : " Among a feeble and 
 timid people, with scarcely any means of defence, a bare 
 country around, no mountain glen or cave in which they could 
 take refuge, a burning sun, and a glowing plain, two hundred 
 miles from the abodes of civilised men, between which lay a 
 waste howling wilderness, and the Orange River, seldom ford- 
 able by wagons. Such was their position with the human 
 lion in his lair, ready to rouse himself up to deeds of rapine 
 and blood. For a whole month they were in constant terror, 
 hourly expecting the threatened attack. The hearts of the 
 missionaries were riven with anguish ; their souls revolted at 
 the idea of abandoning the people, who were now siiifcring 
 from want, to become a prey to one from whom they could 
 expect no quarter." But at length their situation became so 
 insupportable that they were compelled to retire, first north- 
 ward to the base of the Kanis mountains, and then, finding it 
 impossible to settle there, to the colony, to seek counsel and 
 assistance. Soon after they left, Africaner, after spreading 
 devastation all around, and defeating the friendly Namaquaa, 
 proceeded to Warm Bath, plundered the settlement, and re- 
 duced the buildings to ashes. 
 
 But were these poor benighted Namaquas thenceforth given 
 up to the will of Satan? nay, nothing could subdue the spirit 
 of Albrccht, well named Christian, or abate his zeal for God'i
 
 jus LITE A.VD Airi menus. 31 
 
 BC-I vice. A fler a short period of rest and refreshment, he and 
 his devoted wife resolved to renew their heroic efforts. They 
 turned thci: faces again northward, although they well knew 
 the danger and hardships which beset the journey, and sur- 
 rounded tho place at which they must endeavour to establish 
 themselves, Before they reached the desired country Mrs. Al- 
 brccht died, at a settlement called Silver Fountain, where they 
 were hospicably received by its owner, Cornelius Kok, who had 
 on a formar occasion rendered good service to the missionaries. 
 Prom the death-bed of his wife, Christian, supported by hia 
 heavenly Master, proceeded on his sacred mission, and es- 
 tablished himself this time at a spot south of the Orange River, 
 which he called Pella, or the place of refuge ; here he was 
 joined by many of his old converts from Warm Bath, and for 
 awhile wrought with hope and energy ; but his health failing, 
 lie returned once more to the colony for medical advice, which 
 proved unavailing, for God at this juncture saw fit to call his 
 faithful servant home, and he went with gladness, bearing his 
 credentials with him. His labours had been blessed, his many 
 prayers been heard, and some of his warmest hopes realised ; 
 for we are told that before leaving the country of the Nama- 
 quas, "he had the ineffable joy, which it would require an 
 ungol's tongue to describe, of making peace with Africaner, and 
 seeing the standard of the Prince of Peace raised on the very 
 village of the man who once ' breathed out thrcatcnings and 
 Daughter,' against not only his fellow heathen, but against 
 the saints of tho Most High." 
 
 Subsequently, this man, whose name had been a terror to 
 oil the land, was, with his two brothers and a number of other 
 persons, baptised by Mr. Ebner, who went from Pella to Africa- 
 ner's town or vilhio, and remained there. In this field ofmi&-
 
 8" T)R. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Biouary labour we afterwards meet, among others, \\ itli llt- c ?rs. 
 Schmelen, Bartlctt, Kitchingnian and MofFat, the latter of 
 whom gives a vivid description of the dangers and difficulties 
 experienced by those who traverse the wilderness and the desert 
 doing the Lord's work. From Kamaqualand Mr. SIoJQTat, ut 
 the request of Africaner, who, having tasted of tho heavenly 
 fount, desired to diffuse its blessings among the tvild tribes 
 around him, undertakes a journey into the country of the Gri- 
 quas, which is further inland, occupying about a central 
 position between the eastern and western coasts. These 
 Griquas, like the Corannas and Namaquas, appear to belong to 
 the Hottentot nation. Pursuing their painful journey, fir=t 
 along the northern bank of the Orange River, whose windings 
 sometimes flowed through immense chasms, overhung with 
 stupendous precipices, and then across an immense sandy 
 waste, where their nightly music was made up of the dolorous 
 howl of the hyena, the shrill cry of the jackal, drowned ut 
 times by the deep awful roar of the lordly lion, from whoso 
 sharp fangs and talons they had several narrow escapes; now 
 surrounded by the wild Bushmen, now by chattering baboons, 
 oppressed by the burning heat, and nigh maddened with thirst, 
 they wend their weary way, and at length arrive at 
 Griqua Town, where they are welcomed by the missionaries 
 Anderson and Helm, who had been for some time established 
 there. Here they procured that rest and refreshment so much 
 needed, and satisfied also the thirst of the soul for sweet com- 
 munion and council with fellow worshippers. From this place 
 they make an excursion to another called Daniel's Kuil, or .avc, 
 lying northwards about fifty miles off, where a friendly chief 
 resides, and then pass further north to Lattakoo, on KurumaD. 
 Hirer, and in the Bechuoi a country, where, as has been before 
 
 J
 
 His LIFE ASD ADVI:XU;;;ES. 
 
 33 
 
 elated, there was also a missionary station. This was the first 
 lime Moffut had been brought into communication with the 
 people among whom so many of his after years were to be spent. 
 After stopping at Lattakoo some days, the party returned to 
 (Jriqua Town, and from thence to Namaqualand, having first 
 obtained the information for Africaner, and arranged the busi- 
 ness about which they came. They are overtaken in the 
 desert by a terrific thunder-storm, are saturated with the rain, 
 benumbed with the cold, and obliged to lie down at night amid 
 the darkness, with the eyes of hyenas glaring upon them, 
 fireless and foodless ; are nearly buried in rain and sand, and 
 famished with hunger. But still God preserves them, and 
 brings them home in safety, notwithstanding that they are 
 furiously attacked by an enormous hippopotamus, as they are 
 crossing a river near to their own village. 
 
 " It is an agreeable and profitable exercise to take a retro- 
 spective view of those events, whatever their character, which 
 have lod to important results ; and surely to the mind of tho 
 
 il ii.ust be dci^hliul to iv>jk l~ck along the chan-
 
 34 DB. 
 
 nel, tracing through all its windings the little rill of the water 
 of life, until it is observed oozing from beneath a mountain 
 peak. Like an African river, it now swells, and then dwindles, 
 is now rapid, then slowly spreads its refreshing waters over 
 a large surface of desert waste, now disappears, then rises in 
 another part of its course, in which it resumes a steady flow, 
 affording at all seasons permanent fertility, to the advantage 
 of those who assemble on its banks, or coine within the range 
 of its influence." It is thus that Moffat opens his account of 
 the Griqua mission, whose history, as he says, extending to 
 more than forty years (we may now say more than fifty) pre- 
 sents us with some remarkable displays of Divine power, 
 causing missionary enterprise to triumph over no common 
 difficulties. 
 
 The history of this remarkable mission may be traced from 
 the time when the London Missionary Society made its first 
 efforts in South Africa. It had its origin in the Zak River 
 settlement, which, although ostensibly devoted to the Bushmen, 
 very soon included within its operations Hottentots and Bas- 
 tards, and, before two years had elapsed, was directing its 
 efforts chiefly to the Corannas, Namaquas, and mixed tribes 
 on the Orange River; and it was an offshoot from this mission 
 which, after a migratory kind of existence of some duration, 
 finally settled down at Griqua Town, in 1804, with Messrs. 
 Anderson and Kramer as its chief ministers. Among the con- 
 verts to this mission were comprised men of many languages, and 
 various tribes and nations, having different customs and ideas 
 of honour and morality, if they could be said to entertain such 
 ideas at all. On the top of the scale of intelligence might bo 
 placed the half-bred descendants of the European settlers, at the 
 lottom the degraded Bushmen ; and of these discordant element*
 
 HI8 LIFE AND ADVEXTT7RES. 85 
 
 it was no easy task to form a Christian Church ; and yet this 
 task was accomplished, and so successful were the persevering 
 efforts of the missionaries, that as early as 1809 the regular 
 congregation consisted of 800 persons, who had given up their 
 roving predatory hahits, and resided at or near the station 
 during the whole or the greatest part of the year; and he- 
 sides these, there were numerous hordes of Corannas and other 
 natives, among whom the teachers lahoured sucessfully. "Won- 
 derful was the change effected in the character and hahits of 
 these poor heathens by the influence of Christianity. " When 
 I first went among the Griquas," says Mr. Anderson, " and for 
 some time after, they were without the smallest marks of 
 civilisation. If I except one woman (who had by some means 
 got a trifling article of colonial raiment), they had not one 
 thread of European clothing among them ; and their wretched 
 appearance and habits were such as might have excited in 
 our minds an aversion to them, had we not been actuated by 
 principles which led us to pity them, and served to strengthen 
 us in pursuing the object of our missionary work ; they were, 
 in many instances, little above the brutes. It is a fact, that 
 we were among them at the hazard of our lives. This be- 
 came evident from their own acknowledgments to us after- 
 wards, they having confessed that they had frequently pre- 
 meditated to take away our lives, but were prevented only 
 from executing their purpose by what they now considered 
 an Almighty Power." 
 
 Much more might be quoted to illustrate the change pro 
 duced by the operation of Christian principles, but we must 
 pass on to narrate briefly what afterwards befel this mission. 
 We are told that it continued to flourish and extend its benign 
 influence for several years, till an unlooked-for P*"^. ^ave a
 
 38 DB. LIVIXGSTOXE 
 
 shock from which it did not soon recover. This was 
 caused by the interference of the Colonial Government, which, 
 in 1814, sent an order to Mr. Anderson to select twenty 
 Griquas for service in the Cape regiment. This call upon a 
 people just emerging from barbarism, and scarcely able to 
 defend themselves, was sure to produce great dissatisfaction, 
 if not open rebellion. Mr. Anderson was obliged to make the 
 order known, and whereas he had formerly been looked up to 
 as the father and friend of the people, as one whom they 
 could consult in all matters of temporal as well as eternal 
 interest, he now came to be regarded as a mere agent of the 
 Government, which would subjugate and oppress the people, 
 who, like all partially civilised communities, were extremely 
 jealous of anything which looked like a restraint upon their 
 freedom. 
 
 Some of the more violent of the Griquas were extremely 
 exasperated against Mr. Anderson, and even threatened 
 his life ; others, who saw more clearly the difficult position in 
 which he was placed, defended him; hence, dissensions arose, 
 to stay which, and restore peace, Mr. Anderson thought it 
 best to withdraw from the mission, which he did, leaving hia 
 colleague, Mr. Helm, a most faithful and efficient man, to carry 
 on the work. The converts afterwards deeply mourned the 
 loss of one who had been instrumental in bringing so many of 
 them to a knowledge of the way of salvation. 
 
 Mr. Moffat, who lived on this station with Mr. Helm for 
 nearly a year, after Mr. Anderson's departure, says, " that lie 
 had innumerable opportunities of witnessing how warmly they 
 cherished the memory of him, who for twenty years laboured 
 among them in circumstances of great privation and affliction. 
 The bad effects of associating the two offices of missionary uud
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVES'lUKEI. 3T 
 
 Government agent were here strikingly exemplified; and it 
 was a long and arduous task to bring about a proper state of 
 feeling between the teachers and the partially converted hea- 
 thens around them ; as one means of accomplishing this, they 
 were invited to elect one of their own number to take the 
 government of their village, which they did, the choice 
 falling on Andries "VVaterboer, who, having been educated 
 under the eye of the missionaries, and set apart for a native 
 teacher, was then acting as assistant in the school. He proved 
 himself in every way worthy of his elevation, acting with 
 great judgment and decision, and repressing the disorders which 
 had arisen at the station. "His strict discipline," we are 
 told, "gave rise to divisions, purging the Griquas of those 
 who cared for neither law nor Gospel. From these again arose 
 Bergenaars, or mountaineers, and marauders, round whose 
 standards Corannas and Bushmen rallied; and finding no 
 difficulty in obtaining contraband ammunition from the colony, 
 they carried devastation, blood, and rapine among all the 
 Bechuana tribes within their reach." 
 
 Surrounded, however, as the missionaries were, by " ruth- 
 less desperadoes inured to violence and murder," yet they 
 were wonderfully preserved through all dangers; threatened 
 attacks on the mission were averted in a manner which at 
 times appeared quite miraculous ; and even on the minds of 
 those altogether ignorant of divine truth, and hardened in 
 crime, there appeared to exist a feeling of involuntary respect 
 which prevented them injuring these devoted men; and, as 
 though the hand of God had been visibly interposed in their 
 behalf, a fearful retribution fell upon the marauders. " After 
 they had filled their cup, Heaven frowned upon them; and 
 those who had escaped the war club and javelin, disease swept
 
 38 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 away ; those who escaped both, died in poverty, not only under 
 the gnawings of hunger, but those of a guilty conscience, being 
 deprived of that very property of which they had despoiled 
 others; while the bones of the majority lie bleaching on 
 many a barren waste, addressing the living in solemn lan- 
 guage, ' He that taketh the sword shall perish by the sword.' 
 The finger of God was so evident, that even the Griquas them- 
 selves could not help fearing that their former cruelties com- 
 mitted on the Bushmen would not go unpunished." 
 
 This is the testimony of Moffat, who, after relating that 
 the troubles which surrounded the Griqua mission did not 
 subside until 1829, when it partly revived under the labours 
 of Messrs. Wright and Hughes, and that, since 1831, when 
 it received a new impulse, it has continued to increase and 
 extend its influence around, goes on to relate, that about six 
 years after the above date, " it became increasingly useful 
 from circumstances in themselves apparently adverse to its 
 prosperity." The stoppage of agriculture in the village, owing 
 to long drought and the consequent drying up of the foun- 
 tains, necessitated the dispersion of the people, which led to 
 itinerating, and the employment of native agency on a large 
 ecale. Upon these migratory efforts the Divine blessing 
 appears to have rested, and " especially on numbers of the 
 Bechuanas, who had, from the destructive attacks on their 
 tribes in their own country, retired to the banks of the Vaal 
 lliver, within the Griqua district. These were brought by a 
 way they knew not. Many of them have been savingly 
 converted to God, and are now able to read in their own 
 language His wonderful works." 
 
 Ten years or more have elapsed since these words were 
 penned, and in that interval the missionary work haa been
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 39 
 
 pushed forward hopefully and unceasingly, in spite of many 
 adverse and discouraging circumstances. The Kaffir wars, 
 which have during this period desolated the colony and the 
 countries lying beyond its boundaries, have operated very 
 disastrously for the spread of religious truth, and, by 
 placing the native tribes in an attitude of hostility towards 
 all Europeans, have rendered the advance of Christian 
 civilisation amongst them slow and difficult. The Kaffirs 
 from beyond their enforced line of boundary, the Kei River, 
 look upon the fertile tracts and rocky fastnesses of their 
 ancient possessions, now in the occupation of the old 
 enemies, the Dutch boers, or British settlers, or the despised 
 Hottentots and Fingoes, as rightfully their own still, and 
 cherish feelings of enmity towards all who, as they consider, 
 have been instrumental in depriving them of their birthright. 
 The missionaries naturally are regarded with suspicion, if not 
 with hatred, as the countrymen of those " children of the 
 foam," who have come over the sea in their " sea-wagons," 
 to drive them back into the wilderness, and circumscribe their 
 free range of the territory of their fathers. They forget that 
 they are themselves a conquering race, and have held these 
 possessions only by the right of the strongest.
 
 40 
 
 DE. LIVISGSTONE 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 AMONG THE BECITUANAS. 
 
 left Dr. Livingston wending 
 his way to the scene of his 
 future labours, and pondering, 
 as we may well suppose he 
 would, on the scenes and inci- 
 dents in the lives of those who 
 had preceded him in the work 
 of African evangelisation. Our 
 object in this discursion from 
 the direct path of our subject has been to give our readers 
 some idea of the dangers and difficulties which attend all 
 missionary efforts in wild and barbarous countries, and 
 especially in that to which our attention is now directed ; and 
 thus to enable them to estimate duly the claims upon their 
 respect and admiration of those who go forth into such 
 regions of moral and physical desolation, constrained by the 
 love of Christ, and that enlarged philanthropy which is 
 characteristic of the true Christian. Our reference to the 
 pioneers of missionary enterprise in this dark land has been 
 of the briefest and most meagre description : we would gladly 
 have made it more full and interesting, but, as subsidiary to 
 the main object of our little book, it has already, we fear, 
 occupied too much space. We must therefore bring it to a con- 
 clusion, and accompany our " bringer of good tidings " to the 
 country cf the Ecchuanas, where he found his future father-
 
 HIS LITE AND ADVEXTCKE3. 
 
 41 
 
 in-law, who, after preaching tho Gospel to the Kamaquaa, the 
 Griquas, and other wandering tribes, scattered here and there 
 amid the wilds and rocky deserts, had pushed his way north- 
 ward, and settled on the Kuruman Kiver, 
 
 
 
 Wo have already endeavoured to give our readers some no- 
 tion of the position of that vast tract of country inhabited chiefly 
 by the Bechuanas, and therefore distinguished by their names. 
 Of the different tribes composing the Bcchuana nation, there is 
 vet much to be learned ; they arc widely scattered over the
 
 42 5E. LIVINGS PONE 
 
 central part of the South African continent, and are known by 
 various tribal names, euch as Basutos, Batlapis, &c. It is the 
 opinion of Hoffat that they formerly extended much further 
 to the south than their present limits ; for the places on the 
 Orange River have Bechuana names, and even the lokuah, 
 or peculiar mark of this people, is to be found on stones near 
 the present boundaries of the colony ; it is argued, however, 
 that this may have been done by herdsmen taken or escaped 
 from one or other of the tribes which compose this nation. 
 The Bechuana country extends, as we have said, close up to 
 the eastern borders of the great Kalahari Desert, that wide 
 undulating expanse of burning sand, varied here and there 
 with rocky ridges, and studded with acacias and other trees 
 of gigantic growth. Thus is the desolate karroo described 
 by Pringle : 
 
 " The brown karroo, where the bleating cry 
 Of the springbok's fawn sounds plaintively, 
 And the timorous quagga's shrill whistling neigh 
 Is heard by the fountain at twilight grey ; 
 Where the zebra wantonly tosses his mane, 
 With wild hoof scouring the desolate plain ; 
 And the fleet-footed ostrich over the waste 
 Speeds like a horseman who travels in haste, 
 Hieing away to the home of her rest, 
 Where she and her mate have scooped their nest, 
 Far hid from the pitiless plunderer's view 
 In the pathless depths of the parched karroo 
 * * * 
 
 Away away in the wilderness vast, 
 Where the white man's foot hath never past. 
 And the quivered Coranna or Bechuan 
 Hath rarely crossed with his roving clan ; 
 A region of emptiness, howling and drear, 
 Which man hath abandoned from famine and fear
 
 HIS LIFE AWl) ADVENTURES. 
 
 Which the snake and the lizard inhabit alone, 
 With the twilight hat from the yawning stone ; 
 Where grass nor herb nor shrub takes root, 
 Save poisonous thorns that pierce the foot ; 
 And the bitter-melon, for food and drink, 
 Is the pilgrim's fare by the salt lake's brink." 
 
 Speaking of this desolate region, Moffat says that " it ap- 
 pears to have the curse of Giihoa resting upon it. It is rare 
 that rain to any extent or quantity falls. Extreme droughts 
 continue for years together. The fountains are exceedingly few 
 and precarious, and latterly many of these have been dried up 
 altogether." And these remarks apply to the entire country; 
 extending in some places hundreds of miles on each side of the 
 Orange Eiver, and, from where it empties itself into the Atlantic, > 
 to beyond the 24th degree of east longitude. " Sir," said. 
 Mr. Campbell, when travelling over those karroo plains with Mr. 
 and Mrs. Moffat, " it would require a good pair of spectacles 
 to see a blade of grass in this world;" and yet on these arid, 
 sterile plains live the Balala, who inhabit the eastern verge of 
 the great desert itself; the Namaquas, of whom we have 
 already spoken; and the Damara tribes, whose haunts are 
 further to the north, find of whom but little is known, except
 
 44 Dfc. LITINGSTOK2 
 
 that, from their physical appearance and black colour, they 
 approximate to the negroes and natives of Congo and the 
 western coast. On the southern borders of the desert are 
 found wandering Bushmen, and far over to the north are the 
 Bechuana tribes of Bamanguato and Bakone, or Bakuena, 
 But few of these are able to keep cattle ; they subsist on game, 
 water-melons, and roots. 
 
 The Bauangketsis and Barolongsare other Bechuana tribes, 
 which dwell close upon the eastern borders of the desert. The 
 Mantatecs and Matabeles, again, have their habitations still 
 further eastward ; these are warlike tribes belonging to the 
 same great division of the African races, with those already 
 mentioned ; the tracts of country which they inhabit are more 
 fertile and pleasant than those which we have just described : 
 the first named tribe borders close upon the Zoolu country, 
 whose fruitful and well watered plains extend to the foot of 
 the White Mountains, which run for a great distance parallel 
 with the shore of the Indian Ocean. These Zoolus, or Zoolahs, 
 the name being derived from one of their early kings, are said 
 to have originally come from a country one or two degrees 
 north of the tropic of Capricorn, on the east coast, nearly 
 opposite Madagascar; they mustered eighty thousand warriors, 
 and were led by a sanguinary and remorseless chief named 
 Chaka; their terrible incursion swept on like a devastating flood, 
 and finally concluded in the country which they now inhabit, 
 and out of which fled before them, with all their flocks and 
 herds, a more peaceable nation, who committed themselves to 
 the care of the Kaffirs, settled east of the Kei River, becoming 
 eventually slaves to their protectors. Fingoes, the Kaffir 
 name for slaves, is that by which this people is now known. 
 
 But we arc getting away from the Bechuanas, among whom
 
 HIS LIFE A XI) ADVKN'TTJEES, 45 
 
 Dr. Livingston now finds himself, in a fertile district on the 
 banks of the Ivuruman Hirer, where the missionary settlement 
 has long heen established. " Send missionaries, I will be a 
 father to them," said Mothibi, chief of the Batlapis and other 
 Bechuana tribes, who reigned lord paramount at Lattakoo, a 
 town or city of considerable extent, containing, it is said, two 
 or three thousand houses, neatly and commodiously built, well 
 inclosed, and shaded from the sun by the spreading branches 
 of the mimosa trees. Such is the account given of it by 
 Messrs. Truter and Somerville, who in 1801, in consequence 
 of a scarcity of cattle in the colony, undertook an expedition 
 with the view of obtaining a supply from some of the outlying 
 districts. They crossed the Orange Eiver, and stimulated by 
 information received from the Corannas on its banks, made 
 their way across the sundy karroo, into the Bechuana country, 
 which encouraged their advance by constantly increasing signs 
 of fruitfulness and verdure. They were quite astonished, in 
 the midst of savage wildernesses, where but few signs of 
 human habitations had met their view, to come upon a large 
 and well-built town, the country around which was not only 
 covered with numerous herds, but showed considerable signs 
 of cultivation. The travellers were hospitably received by 
 both king and people, and, having accomplished their ob- 
 ject, went back to the colony with glowing accounts of this 
 new and promising field for commercial and missionary 
 operations. 
 
 "With the view of following up this discovery, Dr. Cowan 
 and Lieutenant Denovan were afterwards despatched over the 
 frontier by the Government of the colony; they had a party of 
 twenty men, and were directed to strike across the continent 
 in a north-easterly direction, and to endeavour to -each
 
 46 DK. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Mozambique; they penetrated beyond Lattakoo, and appeared 
 to have been treacherously murdered somewhere near the 
 Kiver Sofala, at no great distance from the east coast. The 
 next who conducted an expedition thitherward, was Dr. 
 Henry Lichtenstein, who, being accompanied by a native 
 chief, named Kok, whose father had rendered great service to 
 the nation, by defending them against the Dutch Boers, when 
 they made a marauding excursion into the country, received a 
 frank and hearty welcome. Lichtenstein proposed to proceed 
 beyond Lattakoo, into the interior, but being solicited to join in 
 one of the sanguinary wars which the different tribes were con- 
 stantly waging, and finding that he could not accomplish his 
 purpose without mixing himself up in these feuds, he deemed 
 it best to return. 
 
 Then, in 1813, came Mr. Campbell, animated by no worldly 
 desire or motive ; he found the spot where, by the accounts 
 given by previous travellers, he expected to find the great city 
 of Lattakoo, nearly deserted, and about sixty miles to the 
 southward, a town called New Lattakoo, which had not yet 
 attained the imposing dimensions of the old city. He was 
 received with much caution and jealousy, and an imposing 
 array of armed men, it being feared that he and his party 
 were sent to avenge the death of Cowan and Denovan, and 
 that the punishment for their murder might fall upon the 
 Batlapis, as being most accessible. When, however, it was 
 shown that no such hostile visitation was intended, the people 
 became very friendly, although the king Mateebe, or Mothibi, 
 still manifested some coldness and reserve. He demurred to 
 Mr. Campbell's proposal for founding a mission at Lattakoo. 
 After much pressing, and representation of the object of such 
 Mission, he at length gave consent, and gladdened the heart of
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 47 
 
 his earnest visitor by uttering those remarkable words which 
 we have already quoted : " Send missionaries, I will be a 
 father to them !" Kings and queens have been nursing fathers 
 and mothers of the Church in many ages of the world, but 
 alas ! it has more frequently happened that those in power and 
 high places have rather used their influence to thwart than to 
 advance the cause of Christ. And how did this heathen prince 
 fulfil his promise? When, in 1816, Messrs. Evans and Ha- 
 milton were sent by the London Missionary Society to Lattakoo, 
 how were they received ? Being accompanied by Adam Kok, 
 and other men of influence and power, whom the king would 
 not willingly disoblige, he did not give a positive refusal to 
 their remaining, but demurred as to the precise locality for the 
 mission. " There is no water ; there are no trees," he said; 
 " the people have customs, and will not hear." Inwardly he 
 was greatly chagrined that they had not come more as merchants 
 than missionaries, with stores of articles for barter ; his unen- 
 lightened mind was greedy of gain, and who can wonder at 
 this ? He knew not the valuo of the spiritual riches which 
 they came to distribute. After many palavers, a surly kind of 
 assent was given for the missionaries to make a settlement 
 on the Kuruman river; but, then " they were on no account to 
 teach the people." With such a condition attached, he was told 
 that this permission was useless. Therefore, he appealed to 
 the people themselves, and the response was, " The mission- 
 aries must not come here." 
 
 Thus did Mothibi fulfil his promise to Mr. Campbell, who 
 in 1820 undertook another journey into this district; he then 
 found the Christian establishment at Lattakoo in a somewhat 
 flourishing condition, for in the interim another effort had been 
 made to establish the mission, with more successful results ;
 
 48 ETI. 
 
 a change appears to have taken place in the minds of the lung 
 and his people, and although they by no means understood 
 and appreciated the blessings which must result from the 
 diffusion of Christian principles among them, they began to be 
 alive to the temporal advantages arising from the presence 
 of the missionaries. Campbell, we are told, found a chapel 
 capable of containing 400 persons, and a row of good houses 
 
 v/ith gardens, &c. But the friendly conduct of the natives 
 had not been accompanied with any disposition to embrace or 
 even to listen to their doctrines; and to account for this 
 deadness to spiritual things, we arc also informed that "the 
 Bechuanas, more than any other barbarians, seem to labour 
 under a peculiar thraldom of the senses, and an utter disregard 
 of all lofty and spiritual ideas. Beads for ornament, cattle 
 for use, commandos for the display of valour and activity, 
 absorb their whole attentiop, and leave no room for higher 
 objects. The number assembled to see the missionaries dino 
 was three times greater than could ever be induced to convene 
 to hear them preach." To this we may as well add another 
 passage from liic suuie author (liu^h iiwruv, i-scj.), \vhick
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTUHES. 49 
 
 etill further serves to illustrate the character of this people : 
 "Mr. Campbell's observations finally dissipated all that yet 
 remained of the original illusion, which had represented this 
 people as enjoying at once the innocence and felicity of tho 
 primitive ages. There was, indeed, as not unfrequently 
 happens in unchristian life, a courteous, kind, and friendly 
 spirit towards one another ; but between neighbouring tribes 
 the enmity is as deadly, and the practices of war as barbarous, 
 as among the rudest African hordes. The missionary, to pave 
 the way for religious instruction, having asked one of them 
 what was the chief end of man, received an immediate answer, 
 ' for commandos ' the term by which they express their raids 
 or forays, undertaken for the purpose of stealing cattle. "With 
 the profit of carrying off the herds they combine the glory of 
 killing the owners. The number they have slain forms their 
 chief boast, in which estimate they reckon one white equal to 
 two blacks." 
 
 Pity it is that tho so-called Christian colonists should 
 so closely resemble them in this respect. There are few native 
 tribes that have not suffered great loss of life and of cattle by 
 the 'commandos' of the Dutch boors, who hesitate not, at the 
 slightest provocation, and often without the shadow of such, 
 to carry fire and sword into the villages of the rightful owners 
 of the soil, and massacre whole communities, or deprive them 
 of their means of subsistence, and leave them to perish of 
 hunger and thirst in the wilderness. 
 
 Pringle, we may remember, in his " South African Sketches," 
 alludes to such an attack upon an unoffending native tribe ; 
 but on this occasion, it seems, the main object was more atro- 
 cious than even that of cattle-lifting, viz., that of capturing 
 the people for slaves. He says : " About the time of our risit
 
 50 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 to Graaff Reinet, several hundred natives belonging to various 
 tribes of the Bechuanas were driven into the colony from the 
 north-east, mostly in a state of utter starvation. These refu- 
 gees had been forced from their homes, partly by the ravages 
 f the wandering hordes called Mantatees and Fecani, and partly 
 by the predatory expeditions of certain bands of banditti, of 
 mixed colonial and African lineage, who had recently fixed 
 themselves in the fastnesses of the Stormberg mountains, and 
 had from that circumstance obtained the name of Bergenaars 
 (mountaineers). These latter miscreants had been, as it after- 
 wards appeared, constantly aided and encouraged in their 
 marauding incursions by unprincipled white colonists, who 
 clandestinely supplied them with arms and ammunition, in 
 exchange for the cattle, and in some cases for the children and 
 females of the slaughtered tribes." The latter part of this 
 paragraph is particularly worthy of attention : it exhibits a 
 glimpse of the sad under-current of crime and barbarity which 
 a close investigation of African affairs discloses. 
 
 After his second visit to Lattakoo, Mr. Campbell penetrated 
 a considerable distance both to the east and north, first visiting 
 Mashow, the seat of a chief named Rossie, which lies about 
 due east from the capital of the Bechuanas. His road lay through 
 a country consisting neither of naked desert, like most parts of 
 the Cape territory, nor of impenetrable forest, like some others, 
 but of a boundless meadow of luxuriant pasture, interspersed 
 with clumps of trees, appearing at a distance like a continual 
 wood, but gradually opening as he approached. These fertile 
 plains were tenanted only by a few roving Bushmen ; for so 
 incessant and desolating were the wars carried on even among 
 the Bechuanas themselves, that they were obliged to concen- 
 trate in the immediate vicinity of the towns. Mashow is de-
 
 HIS LIFR ASD ADVEXTURES. 
 
 51 
 
 scribed as "beautifully situated on a hill surrounded by a number 
 of lesser eminences. "Within a circuit of twenty miles there 
 are twenty-nine villages, with an almost endless cultivation." 
 
 Leaving this scene of fciiility, the inhabitants of which aro 
 aaid to number 10,000 or 12,000, Mr. Campbell passed north- 
 ward, through a country continually improving in richness and 
 beauty, and intersected by streams that appeared to direct their 
 course to the Indian Ocean. In this direction he came to 
 Kureechane. which in its construction, and in the arts practised
 
 52 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 ia it, lie found decidedly superior to anything he had yet & on 
 in Southern Africa. Here was carried on the smelting of iron 
 and copper in clay furnaces, the manufacture of earthen vessels, 
 and various other arts little known to a savage people ; there 
 were some attempts, too, at ornamental architecture, and much 
 land was under cultivation. 
 
 At Kureechane Mr. Campbell first witnessed the peetso ot 
 African council, on a large scale. The expression of opinion, both 
 by the king and inferior chiefs, is most free and unreserved, and 
 it is accompanied by many ludicrous ceremonies. The females 
 are admitted as hearers, and applaud or deride the speakers in 
 a very " strong minded " manner indeed. Here we have first 
 an intimation of that female influence in affairs, public as well 
 as private, which Dr. Livingston afterwards found to be so re- 
 markable a characteristic among the tribes whom he visited in 
 his great journeys, presently to be described, llcturning west- 
 ward, Mr. Campbell came upon the borders of the great desert, 
 already several times referred to, the crossing of which from east 
 to west is said to have occupied a party engaged in a plunder- 
 ing expedition two months. 
 
 Lattakoo was visited in 1812 by Purchell, and in 1823 by 
 Thompson, both of whom have published accounts of their 
 journeys. The latter witnessed an attack on, and destruction 
 of, the old town by the Mantatces, who had previously sacked 
 Kureechane. The aspect of these people, as they came up in 
 battle-array to the number of 40,000, is described as truly 
 frightful : " They were almost black, with only a girdle 
 round the loins; their heads were crowned with ostrich 
 plumes; they had numerous brass rings round their necks 
 and legs, and were armed with spears, javelins, battle-axes, 
 and ciubs." The Bechuanas could not stand against their
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 53 
 
 fierce attack ; but the Griquas, who had come to their aid, 
 and who had horses and fire-arms, although few in number, 
 eventually drove them back. The scene which followed their 
 retreat from the field, whereon they left many wounded, with 
 women and children, is described as most horrifying. The 
 Bechuanas, who fled before the army of warriors, massacred 
 these without mercy. 
 
 An interesting account of the country about Kuruman, 
 and of the state of that and other South African missions, is 
 given in " A Narrative of a Visit to the Mauritius and South 
 Africa, by James Backhouse," who visited the whole of the 
 missionary stations then established in 1839, the year before 
 Dr. Livingston commenced his labours. MofFut was then in 
 England, preparing for publication his work, which appeared 
 in 1842. With this graphic description of " Missionary 
 Labours and Scenes in South Africa," Backhouse's " Narra- 
 tive," Pringle's " African Sketches," and other works before 
 us, we can pretty well realise what must be the state of 
 society, so to speak, in those parts of South Africa where 
 the trader and the missionary have penetrated and settled ; 
 and we have endeavoured, as clearly as the brief space at our 
 command would permit, to convey the impressions which a 
 perusal of these works has enabled us to form to the minds 
 of our readers. We have now to visit, under the guidance of 
 Dr. Livingston, regions where the white man has never 
 before penetrated, and tribes that have only lately become 
 aware of the existence of these men of the pale face and 
 strange aspect, who would fain teach and civilise them. If the 
 preceding part of our book has wanted the interest of novelty 
 and wild adventure, we trust that the remaining portion will 
 have enough of these to compensate for this deficiency.
 
 tR. IIYTHGSTOTTE 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 LAKE NGAMI. FIRST THBEE JOURNEYS. 
 
 ROM the Cape to Kuruman h n 
 distance of about 1000 miles, 
 and, in 1841, when Livingston 
 reached the place, which waa 
 then the advanced post' of mis- 
 sionary effort, he found the 
 ground thereabout pretty well 
 occupied by Mr. Moffat and 
 his coadjutors; he therefore, 
 after remaining awhile at the station, and familiarising him- 
 self in some degree with the manners and customs of the 
 Bechuanas, and obtaining an insight into the Sechuana lan- 
 guage, as that spoken by this widely spread nation is called, 
 resolved to visit the tribes further to the north, and endeavour 
 to spread the light of Gospel truth in that direction. He 
 accordingly set to work with his characteristic energy and 
 perseverance, and, after awhile, was enabled to found a 
 station at Kolobeng, wliich is two hundred miles north-east 
 by north from Kuruman. Here, and in the surrounding dia- 
 triets, he laboured up to the middle of 1849; ever with an 
 increasing desire to advance further into the interior, feeling 
 convinced that there must be a fertile and well-watered 
 territory lying somewhere in that direction, beyond the great 
 desert, and burning with an inextinguishable desire to visit 
 those regions, into which probably no white man had ever
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 penetrated. The earliest Portuguese settlers in South Africa 
 had received intelligence of a large inland piece of water, 
 which they called Lake Ngami, and there it was laid down in 
 the maps published as early as 1508; but no traveller had 
 ever visited its borders, to make known its actual position. 
 Later geographers had questioned the existence of such a 
 lake, and expunged it altogether from their maps, but all 
 about the region where it was said to be, there was a pre- 
 vailing belief in the minds of the scattered tribes that Lake 
 Ngami might certainly be found by those who were sufficiently 
 adventurous and brave to dare the perils of the journey; and some 
 even affirmed that they could point out where it was situated. 
 Report, or tradition, or whatever it might be, said that 
 beyond this lake there was a land rich in gold and ivory, 
 abounding in natural wealth of all kinds, and inhabited by 
 tribes and peoples desirous of finding an outlet for their pro- 
 ductions a channel for trade. Stimulated by these accounts, 
 several attempts were made to penetrate this unknown world ; 
 but, from want of perseverance, or knowledge, or insufficient 
 means, they all failed. Livingston relates that " a large party 
 of Griquas, with about thirty wagons, made many and perse- 
 vering efforts at two distinct points in 1848 ; but, though inured 
 to the climate, and stimulated by the prospects of much gain 
 from ivory they expected to procure, want of water compelled 
 them to retreat." The reason was, that they attempted to go 
 through the great sandy waste which intervened between them 
 and the object of their desires; our traveller, we shall see, 
 took a more circuitous, yet, in the end, more direct route, 
 and skirted this vast southern wilderness. 
 
 While Livingston was thus waiting anxiously for an oppor- 
 tunity of pushing his researches into the unexplored country,
 
 fif DS. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 he was unexpectedly enabled to prosecute his desired journey 
 by the friendly assistance of Messrs. Murray and Oswt-11, two 
 English gentlemen, to whom he had communicated his desire 
 to proceed to the reported lake beyond the desert, and who 
 came out to the Cape with the express purpose of accompany- 
 ing him. " To their liberal and zealous co-operation," he 
 says, in the account which he gave of the expedition to the 
 secretary of the London Missionary Society, " we are especially 
 kidebted for the success with which that and other objects 
 have been accomplished." 
 
 While he was waiting for his European companions, he 
 was called on by seven men of the Batavana tribe, purporting 
 to came from the banks of this half mythical lake, with an 
 earnent request from their chief that the missionary would visit 
 him. Here was the way opened, by Providence as it seemed, 
 *or the exploratory journey, for which, as we have seen, the 
 means were also forthcoming. But the way by which these 
 messengers had come was impracticable for wagons, therefore 
 their guidance was declined, and the more circuitous route 
 chosen. Taking for guides a party of the Bakwains, in whose. , : 
 country Kolobeng is situated, our travellers set out on the 
 1st of June, 1849. To avoid the desert they made a detour 
 considerably to the east, until they reached the twenty-third 
 parallel of south latitude ; they then went straight northward 
 to the twenty-second parallel, and then inclining again to the 
 west, came at length, on the 1st of July, upon the banks of a 
 magnificent river, called the Zouga, which is here one hun- 
 dred yards in breadth. They had passed through about three 
 hundred miles of barren country, and their difficulties were in- 
 creased by the treacherous conductof Sekhome, chief of the Ber- 
 mangueato tribe, who becoming aware of their intention to pass
 
 HIS LIFE AKD ADYENTOTIES. 57 
 
 into the regions beyond him, sent his men to drive away all the 
 Bushmen and other desert rangers from the route, in order 
 that the travellers might not have their assistance in finding 
 water, and so be obliged to return. We have seen, however, 
 that this ruse did not have the desired effect : the wily chief 
 had to deal with those who would not easily give up ; and now 
 our party are beyond his reach, on the banks of the Zouga, as 
 Livingston spells it, along which they wound for another three 
 hundred miles, admiring the beautiful scenery, beautiful be- 
 yond any that our author had seen, he says, except perhaps 
 some parts of the Clyde. There ^poke the patriotic Scotsman I 
 
 These banks were covered with gigantic trees, some of them 
 bearing fruits quite new to the travellers; there grew the 
 baobab,* in two varieties, the trunks measuring seventy to 
 
 * The baobab tree is one of the wonders of African scenery, the most 
 gigantic of all its vegetable productions, remarkable as these are for 
 magnitude of proportion. Its scientific name is Adamonia digita, and it 
 is found all along the coasts and shores of tbe Niger as fur down as Bruin. 
 Livingston, we see, discovered it growing ou the Zouga, aud no doubt it
 
 58 Dtt. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 seventy-six feet in circumference. On either side of the 
 river was a broad belt of reeds with green and golden stems, 
 and feathery heads, and sword-like leaves, shimmering in the 
 sunshine, and rustling in the breeze ; and out beyond flowed 
 the sweet current, clear as crystal, soft and cool to the 
 taste. Oh, how delicious after the burning thirst of that 
 desert journey ; how pleasant to walk by day in the shade of 
 those umbrageous boughs, and to rest at night with the murmur 
 of running waters, and the whisper of green leaves, lulling the 
 
 exists also in many other parts of Africa. It is rather remarkable for 
 massiveness and outspreading grandeur of form, than for the stateliness 
 and grace which result from great altitude. On a trunk which some- 
 times measures eighty feet in circumference, although perhaps not more 
 than fifteen feet high, it lifts aloft a mass of verdure, which at a distance 
 looks more like the leafy covering of a forest than a single tree ; the plot 
 of ground which the extended branches cover has measured as much as 
 160 yards round, affording shelter to man and beast, alike from the heat of 
 the burning sun, and the violence of the tropical storm. The bark of this 
 tree is nearly an inch in thickness, of an ashy colour, perfectly smooth 
 and preasy to the touch ; its blossoms are of immense size, and usually 
 appear in July ; the fruit ripens towards the latter end of October ; it is 
 suspended from the tree by a pedicle or footstalk, nearly two feet long 
 and is oval or globular in shape ; it consists of seeds somewhat in size and 
 shape like a kidney bean, enveloped in a spongy looking pulp, which is 
 juicy and cool, and pleasant to the taste; the shape of the leaves is 
 palmate, something like the human hand, only having seven divisions 
 instead of five. The wood of this tree is white and soft, and is, like the 
 bark, leaves, and fruit, applied to various purposes of utility. It is said 
 to attain a great age, as much as five or six centuries, and to be venerated 
 as a sort of deity by some of the native tribes, who hollow out its decayed 
 trunks as tombs for their poets, musicicns, and other sacred characters ; 
 the wild bees sometimes store their honey in the cavities of such decayed 
 trunks, and it is then thought to possess a delicious flavour. The 
 baobab belongs to the natural order Stcrculiaceee^ and is nearly allied tq 
 the bombar, or cotton tree of India.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 59 
 
 senses to forgetfulness. As the travellers passed on, day by 
 day, they noticed that the noble river got broader and broader, 
 until they could see about a hundred yards of clear deep water 
 between the reedy belts, from amid which peeped out here and 
 there the villages of the natives, the Bayeiye (or men) as 
 they call themselves, Bakoba (or slaves) as the Bechuanas call 
 them. Their complexion is darker than that of the last-named 
 people, and their language, if it be a dialect of the Sechuana, 
 has many points of difference. They have a frank, manly 
 bearing, and paddle their light canoes, hollowed out of a single 
 piece of wood, up and down and across their noble river with 
 great skill and dexterity. Livingston says that he greatly 
 enjoyed following the windings of the river in one of these 
 primitive craft, while the wagon went along the banks. He 
 afterwards preached the Gospel to this people, and thought 
 they seemed to understand the message of mercy delivered to 
 them better than any people to whom he had preached for the 
 first time. But on, on, for the far-famed lake, Nyarmy, as it 
 should be pronounced, the word meaning " Great "Water," the 
 feeder of many rivers. ' The broad stream whose winding 
 course we follow, after flowing for awhile in a north-westerly 
 direction, then turning to the north-east, is now going straight 
 westward, as though in haste to reach what can it be, the 
 great lake itself? Broader and deeper it seems to grow, fed 
 by several confluents from the north ; and more dense and 
 impervious becomes the vegetation on its banks, until it ia 
 difficult for the wagons to proceed, and all except one are left 
 behind. Now the river spreads out almost as wide as a lake, 
 assuming a delta shape, and, see ! another noble stream, tha 
 Tamunakle, is flowing into it, or out of it, and if so, where to ? 
 Northward it rolls to spread fertility through what regions ? Ah,
 
 60 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 this is the mystery which has yet to be unravelled ! Now our 
 travellers have reached the Batavana country ; they liavo 
 evidently been slowly climbing, climbing, and are now at a 
 considerable elevation above the sea level. The air is cool, and 
 at times even keen ; the appetite has increased, the step 
 become more buoyant, and the energies of both mind and 
 body are braced and strengthened. And lo, Eureka ! we have 
 found it ! Here lies the lake itself, spread before us calm and 
 placid. The enigma is solved there is a Lake Ngami, and 
 we are perhaps the first Europeans who have ever gazed upon 
 its broad expanse. This, then, is the hitherto hidden reservoir 
 itself, probably fed by the mountain snows as well as by 
 springs from beneath, from whence is derived a supply for 
 the vast net-work of rivers which doubtless irrigate the 
 interior of the South African continent. Oh, that in like 
 manner the waters of eternal life may, from a fount perennial, 
 gush forth, and cleanse, and purify, and fertilise the mental 
 soil of those now desolate regions ! Something like this, we 
 imagine, may have been the prayer of Livingston, as he 
 stood on the shore of Lake Ngami, and inwardly resolved to 
 prosecute his researches into the lands which he felt assured 
 must be watered by the rivers which flowed into it, or took 
 their rise from thence. 
 
 Of this first journey we need only further state, that 
 the party, after remaining in the lake country for a short 
 period, and gleaning many interesting particulars of its in- 
 habitants, &c., left it, and returned to Kolobeng, which 
 they reached in health and safety on the 10th October, 
 1849, having been absent four months and ten days. Lake 
 Ngami, we may here observe, lies between the 20th and 2 1 st de- 
 grees of south latitude, and about '20 degrees of east longitude.
 
 HIS' LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 61 
 
 It is 2825 feet above the sea level, and its probable length is 
 from 50 to 70 miles. To mark their sense of the importance 
 of this discovery, the Royal Geographical Society determined 
 to award the half of the usual premium placed at the disposal 
 of the council by the Queen, " for the encouragement of geo- 
 graphical science," to Dr. Livingston, and the presentation 
 was made at the annual meeting of the society in May 1850, 
 to a deputation from the London Missionary Society, expressly 
 appointed to receive it for the discoverer, to whom, at the same 
 time, the president of the Geographical Society addressed a 
 handsome letter in acknowledgment of his valuable services 
 to the cause of science. 
 
 We have now briefly to record the events of the second 
 journey to the lake district, which was commenced in April, 
 1850 ; this was at a time of year when the people of Kolobeng 
 were much engaged in their agricultural labours, and when 
 therefore the missionary could be best spared. He was this 
 time accompanied by his wife and children, and also by Scehele, 
 the chief of the tribe among whom he was living, and a native 
 teacher named Mebaloe. Guided by his former experience, he 
 was enabled to select a route which pi-esented comparatively 
 few obstacles. Without suffering greatly for want of water, 
 the party reached in safety the lower end of the Zouga, whose 
 banks were then inhabited by the Bakurutse tribe ; they at once 
 crossed the river, and proceeded up the northern bank, pur- 
 posing to diverge from thence and follow the course of the 
 tributary stream called Tamunakle, until they reached Linyanti, 
 tht residence of Sebitaone, a friendly chief; but when near the 
 junction of the two rivers, they were informed that the tsetse, 
 a venomous fly, the bite of which was fatal to cattle, horses and 
 dogs, abounded on the Tamunakle. This put a stop to the pro-
 
 62 Dtt. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 jected journey, as far as the wagons were conjcrncd, but 
 Livingston resolved to proceed on foot. It was therefore de- 
 termined to recross the Zouga, and proceed onward to the lake, 
 in order to leave Jlrs. Livingston and the children in the care 
 of the friendly chief Sechulathebe; this was done, and furnished 
 with guides from this locality, Livingston was preparing once 
 more to cross the river, and prosecute his journey northward, 
 when his driver and leader were prostrated by fever, which 
 also attacked two of the children, and others of the party. 
 As the malaria appeared to exist in a more concentrated and 
 deadly form close about the lake than elsewhere, and the 
 attack had in more than one instance nearly proved fatal, and 
 as the hindrance caused by these various delays had nearly 
 exhausted the time at Mr. Livingston's command, it was found 
 necessary to abandon the expedition for the time, and return 
 to Kolobcng, which the party reached in due course, thankful 
 for having escaped the danger of the way, and resolved to 
 make another effort in the same direction the first favourable 
 opportunity. The fever by which they were defeated and 
 driven back appears to be the result of the exposure of the 
 profuse vegetation of the lake and river banks to the action 
 of the sun. Decomposition and evaporation go on simultane- 
 ously and rapidly, and the air is filled with miasma, which 
 imbibed into the system, acts like a poison. The natives who 
 are inured to this, yet suffer severely, the disease with them 
 generally assuming the form of bilious fever ; after copious 
 vomiting they become relieved. To Europeans it would most 
 likely prove fatal eventually, if not at the first attack. This 
 would be an obstacle to the establishment of missionary 
 stations in the immediate neighbourhood of the lake. Suit- 
 able spots might, however, be found for such in the more
 
 HIS LIFE AM> AHVEXTCEES. 6* 
 
 elevated regions beyond. This thought made Mr. Livingston, 
 the more anxious to push his researches in that direction. 
 
 Early in 1851, then, we hchold our devoted missionary set 
 forth on his third journey to the lake region, the very strong- 
 hold of the deadly malaria, guarded as it is, too, by the in- 
 numerable host of the venomous tsetse. He is accompanied 
 this time by Mr. Oswell, and his wife and children. Again 
 reaches the Zouga, which he crosses near a place called Naho- 
 kotsa, and then proceeds through a desert tract of country, 
 in which are several salt plains of great extent, one of them 
 being about fifteen miles across, and probably one hundred 
 miles long it is called by the natives Ntwetive. Beyond 
 these saline tracts, the travellers come upon -a hard, flat 
 country, covered with ruopane trees, and abounding in springs, 
 gushing out of limestone rocks. But soon they leave this 
 land of shade and water, and guided by some Bushmen, cross 
 an excessively dry and difficult district, and strike upon a 
 small river, called the Mambali; here they meet with some 
 Bushmen, and some, men of the Banajoa tribs. Entertained 
 and assisted by these friendly children of the desert, they 
 push on through swampy grounds, and in a few days raxcn 
 the river Chobe, in 18 deg. 17 min. S. lat., and 23 deg. 50 
 min. E. long. On this /iver lives Sebitoane, from whom they 
 ure assured of a kindly welcome. This chief formed one of 
 the party of Mantatoos, who some years ago destroyed old 
 Lattakoo, and were defeated by the Griquas ; his people aro 
 among the most savage and barbarous of tho native tribes ; 
 yet they treated our travellers well, and afforded them every 
 facility in their power for examining the country around. 
 Entrenched amid a network of rivers, they bid defiance to 
 the Matabele, and other tribes with whom they are constantly
 
 04 12. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 at war. Finding that the tsetse abounded on the southern 
 bank of the Chobe, our travellers leave their wagons and oxen 
 on an island which is free from the invasions of the fly, and 
 proceed about thirty miles down the river in a canoe, which, 
 impelled by five stout rowers, skims along at a rate which, to 
 those accustomed to the slow pace of the bullock-wagons, 
 Becms like flying. They reach the head quarters of the re- 
 doubtable chief Sebitaone, who gives them a hearty welcome, 
 offers to replace such of their cattle as the tsetse had bitten, 
 and even accompanies them to the island where the wagons 
 are left. Eut, lo ! a great sickness falls upon the mighty 
 warrior, even while he tarries on the green isle amid the waters 
 of his own broad river. Mr. Livingston wishes to speak to 
 him about the concerns of his soul, but the medicine man and 
 his people interpose, and take him away to die in his own 
 town. And there he finishes his troublous life, rich in cattle 
 
 and other such worldly possessions as the savage most prizes j 
 surrounded by numerous followers, who jealously watch every 
 inlet to his watery dominions ; guarded by river and bogs,
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEKTTTTEES. 65 
 
 and reedy tracts, where the crocodile lurks, and the poisonous 
 snake uncoils its spotted length, and the sluggish hreeze is 
 thick with miasma, and the venomous insects fly in vengeful 
 clouds. In spite of all this, the enemy came in and smoto 
 the great chief of the Mantatees, so that he died. 
 
 The travellers condole with his people, who appear grati- 
 fied by their sympathy, and remain with them for the space 
 of two months, and are requested to do so permanently ; but 
 there are yet higher lands to the north, which Mr. Livingston 
 wishes to explore, to find a more healthy spot for the establish- 
 ment of a mission, and therefore they proceed on horseback 
 about one hundred miles further to see the Sesheke, a river of 
 the Barotse, a people about whom we shall hear more by-and- 
 bye. They find this river to be from three to five hundred 
 yards broad, although this is the end of a remarkably dry 
 season ; they embark in canoes on its bosom, and are tossed 
 about on the rushing current in a way which makes them 
 think of home and old ocean. This river has a town on its 
 banks, called by the same name, Sesheke, and a fine waterfall 
 with the poetical name of Moriatunya (smoke sounds) ; it over- 
 flows its banks periodically, the inundation extending fifteen 
 miles out, and to this distance the spray of the waterfall can 
 be seen. A glorious country lies before the delighted eye of 
 the missionary, far as the glance can discern, far as native report 
 tells of; a region of mighty rivers and broad streams, lacing 
 and interlacing ; a network of silent highways, for commerce 
 and Christian civilisation, enclosing and fertilising countries 
 rich in all useful products and precious commodities. Here 
 flows the Bashukulompo, eighty yards wide or more ; joining 
 its waters with those of the Sesheke, it becomes the mighty 
 Zambesi, which forms the great prominent objectof Livingston's
 
 66 Dli. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 future explorations and discoveries. All along the banks of 
 these rivers, and in the intervening country, is a dense popu- 
 lation, of a strong, intelligent black race, the true negro type. 
 Shall they become the prey of the slave trader, as to some 
 extent they have already been ? Shall they continue to be 
 worshippers of strange gods, and pass away, generation after 
 generation, with no high hopes and aspirations, no knowledge 
 of a Saviour and the life that is to come ? Not if I can help 
 it, thought Livingston ; and while turning his back for a time 
 upon that rich field of missionary labour, he only resolved, 
 God willing, to devote himself to the work of redeeming these 
 waste places, and sowing the seeds of eternal life in the souls 
 of those dark-skinned and degraded brothers of his. How his 
 heart yearned towards them, and how earnestly he longed to 
 begin his great missionary work in that wide and hitherto 
 unexplored region, we may judge from the expressions which 
 occur in his letters to the Society at home. Wife, children, 
 fondly as he loved these dear domestic ties, were as nothing in 
 comparison with the great duty which he here saw set before 
 him ; and come what might, he was determined to perform it. 
 Speaking of his future arrangements, by which he would bo 
 enabled to shake himself loose from family ties, and go forth 
 alone on his fourth exploratory journey, he says, " To orphan- 
 ise my children will be like tearing out my bowels, but it is 
 the only way, except giving up the region altogether." So 
 lie returns to Kolobeng, and from thence passes on, with his 
 wife and children, to the Cape ; sees them safely off on their 
 homeward voyage, and after waiting a short time to make some 
 necessary preparations, again turned his face towards the 
 Heehuana country, from whence it was his purpose once more 
 to travenw the wide karruu uud press on in*" the fertile region*
 
 UTS LITE AND ADVENTURFB. 67 
 
 ' My heart goes with thce, dauntless man, 
 
 Freely as thou dost hie, 
 To sojourn with some barbarous clan, 
 
 For them to toil or die 
 Fondly our spirits to our own 
 
 Cling, nor to part allow ; 
 Thine to some land forlorn nas flown, 
 
 We turn, and where art thou ? 
 
 A savage shore receives thy tread, 
 
 Companion thou hast none ; 
 The wild boughs wave above thy h ad. 
 
 Yet still thou journeyest on ; 
 Threading the tangled wild wood il.ear, 
 
 Piercing the mountain glen, 
 Till, wearily, thou drawcstncar 
 
 The haunts of lonely men. 
 
 Strange is thy aspect to their eyes, 
 
 Strange is thy foreign speech ; 
 And wild and strong is their surprUe, 
 
 As marvels thou dost teach. 
 Thy strength alone is in thy word, 
 
 Yet armies could not bow 
 Tin- spirit of those barbarous herd* 
 
 to readily u
 
 DR, LTVIXCSTOWK 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TO ST. PAUL DE LOA.N3>., 
 
 EFOKE proceeding to relate the 
 incidents of Mr. Livings ton' a 
 fourth journey, we should men- 
 tion an episode of no very 
 agreeable character, which oc- 
 curred in his history. It ap- 
 pears that he was detained 
 somewhat longer than he ex- 
 pected on his way from the 
 Cape, and very providentially, for during his absence an 
 attack was made by a party of the Boers, who had settled 
 north of the Vaal River, assisted by some natives, whom they 
 compelled to accompany them, on Sechele, chief of the 
 Bakwains, amid whom, it will be remembered, Livingston had 
 long resided, and by whom he was much beloved. They burned 
 Sechele's town, killed sixty of his people, and carried away 
 many prisoners, with cattle and goods. They also went to 
 Kolobeng, which is eight miles from the town, and plundered 
 the missionary station, destroying anything which Mr. Liv- 
 ingston's house contained, and expressing great regret that 
 the owner was not there to be killed by them. These Trans- 
 Vaal Boers, as they were called, had, it seems, determined to 
 keep the traffic in ivory and other valuable commodities from 
 the north in their own hands, and they were therefore exas- 
 perated against Sechele for affording facilities to travellers
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEJJTUBES. 69 
 
 proceeding to Lake Ngami, and especially against Mr. Living, 
 ston for his persevering efforts to open up a communication, 
 with the interior, which -would be free for all who chose to 
 pursue it. Our missionary lost on this occasion goods to the 
 value of 300Z., hut this gave him very little uneasiness ; he 
 had escaped with his life, and could now, as he philosophically 
 said, " travel all the lighter one wagon would do." 
 
 It was late in the year 1852 that our enterprising missionary 
 pet out on his fourth journey ; excepting some native followers, 
 who did not accompany him further than Linyanti, he was 
 quite alone, and after he had crossed heyond the Zouga, and 
 plunged into the vast terra incognita of Central Africa, he was 
 lost to the civilised world for upwards of two years. The first 
 intimation of his whereabout which reaches Europe is dated 
 from Angola, on the west coast of Africa, 14th of January, 
 1855. He then speaks of other letters and maps which had 
 been sent by the " Forerunner," which was wrecked off Ma- 
 deira. How he got to the Portuguese colony of St. Paul de 
 Loanda, we have now to relate. On setting out he again took a 
 N.N."W. direction, but after crossing the Zouga, he pursued a 
 somewhat different route from that formerly taken, in order 
 to avoid as much as possible the districts infested with the 
 dreaded fly. Instead of salt plains, and rocky tracts of country, 
 he now came into a densely wooded district, where the wild 
 vines stretched their lithe arms from tree to tree, and hung out 
 their purple clusters to refresh the weary traveller ; and weary 
 enough he was, for to make his way through the tangled un- 
 derwood, and grass from eight to ten feet high, he was obliged 
 to perform tho double duty of driver and pioneer, having, as ho 
 tells us, "either the axe or the whip in hand all day long," 
 uiiiil he cauic to latitude 18 dcg. 4 niin., when he found him-
 
 70 DK. LI V1XC STOKE 
 
 self again approaching the Chobc, and the great mesh of rivers 
 of which it formed one of the threads. 
 
 Now, however, he found it far more difficult to travel in 
 this watery region, which the natives call Linotkanoka, 
 (meaning rivers upon rivers) than it was during his former 
 journey ; for now it was the wet season, and the banks were 
 overflowed, so that the whole country was like a great swampy 
 lake, with islands here and there, showing their green tree- 
 crowned heads above the surface. How then was Linyanti to 
 be reached, situated as it was in the very centre of this network 
 of confluent streams and submerged tracts of country ? No 
 wagons could cross the swollen stream of the Chobe, and 
 traverse those subaqueous districts ; the traveller, if he went at 
 all, must proceed on foot, and this Livingston determined on 
 doing, although he could reckon upon little or no assistance 
 from his followers, who, at this critical juncture of affairs, all, 
 except one, had fallen sick. Leaving them, therefore, with the 
 wagon, he set out, determined, as was his wont, to overcome 
 all obstacles, and make his way to the chief town of Makololo, 
 if there was a possibility of doing so. He had brought a small 
 pontoon with him from the Cape, and this he and the lad man- 
 aged to carry, with what difficulty we may well imagine when 
 we are told that they had to go " splashing through twenty miles 
 of an inundated plain," sometimes crossing streams half a mile 
 wide, like the Sanshurah, and abounding in hippopotami. Nor 
 was this all ; for when, after some days of this amphibious 
 kind of travelling, Mr. Livingston had, by climbing a high 
 tree, been gladdened by the sight of tie Chobe, he found 
 that it was rendered almost unapproachable by its broad 
 belt of reeds, water-flags, and other aquatic plants, whose 
 thickly planted stems were interlaced by a creeper like
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 71 
 
 s$jp 
 
 <r&# 
 
 tho convolvulus, which bound them together and formed ona 
 mass of tangled vegetation ; thraugh, or rather upon this, our 
 traveller and his attendant struggled on, bending down tho 
 reeds and papyri upon the green network below, to form foot- 
 hold above the water, which was often deep, and still carrying 
 the pontoon between them. We may imagine how toilsome 
 must have been such a mode of progression ; and then there 
 was the chance of an ugly crocodile poking up its monstrous 
 jaws, vind making u BU.IU at the adventurers' legs, which were
 
 ?2 DB, LIVINGSTONE 
 
 intruding on its watery domain ; or of a huge hippopotamus 
 showing its ugly head and disputing the way. Down upon 
 their unprotected heads shone the burning sun, and up from 
 beneath rose the teething vapour, laden with the deadly 
 miasma, and stinging insects buzzed and hummed around 
 them ; but still they struggled on, and at length got near to 
 the clear mid-current of the Chobe. But what is this ? Another 
 obstacle arises, more formidable far than the tangled masa 
 of reeds and flags and intertwining creepers " a horrid sort 
 of grass, about six feet high, and having serrated edges, 
 which cut the hands most cruelly," and against which even 
 leather and moleskin afford no adequate defence, for the knees 
 of the traveller's trowsers and the toes of his boots, al- 
 though nearly new, arc quite cut through. A rough sort of 
 a protest this, on the part of the naked African, against 
 European innovation and refinement, and one, moreover, 
 which was scarcely foreseen. No doubt the horrid grass had 
 never before come in contact with leather boots and moleskin 
 " unmentionables." 
 
 Perseverance conquers all, and even the Cliobe's body guard
 
 HIS LfPB ANfl ADVENTURES. T3 
 
 were at Icngtli obliged to give way before tliis Anglo-Saxon 
 onslaught ; the clear water is reached, and merrily down the 
 stream, in his pontoon, floats Livingston, glad enough to rest 
 his wearied limbs after three days' wading and plunging amid 
 the reedy forest, and three nights' uneasy sleep on some marshy 
 mound, or bed of matted rushes, in clothes saturated with 
 wet, and an ever-present sense of damp and slimPness. About 
 twenty miles from the spot where the travellers embarked, 
 stood on the river bank, where the ground was somewhat 
 raised, a village of the Makalolo, and we may fancy the aston- 
 ishment of these sable sons of Ham, as the pontoon with its 
 strange freight hove in sight. They could not believe it 
 possible that any mortal man had made his way through the 
 obstacles by which they were surrounded, and their explana- 
 tion of the phenomenon was, that there came one, riding upon 
 a hippopotamus, who had fallen from the clouds. Great was 
 the excitement in the village ; out from their huts rushed old 
 and young, rich and poor we were going to say, but this divi- 
 sion of classes was scarcely possible in so primitive a community : 
 granny and the toddling child, the warrior and the tender 
 maiden, all in a happy state of unconsciousness that they are 
 more uncovered than befits European ideas of modesty and 
 civilisation. There is dancing and clapping of hands, and 
 shrill exclamations of astonishment and delight, and these 
 manifestations are redoubled when it is discovered that the 
 strange being whom they suppose has dropped from the clouds 
 is the good missionary, the friend of their great chief Sebitaone, 
 who was with him when he died, and spoke words of comfort 
 to his people, and promised to come again, and perhaps settle 
 among them. " Send to Linyanti ! send messengers !" they 
 ery, "and tell our young chief, Sckclutu, that his
 
 74 DE. LIVING STOKE 
 
 friend is hero ; here to instruct us, and make us a great 
 people, as he did the Bakwains and the Batlapis. Now 
 "we shall conquer the Hatabelcs, and go to live upon the 
 high grounds, nor be longer hemmed in amid the swamps and 
 rivers, like the sea-cows and the crocodiles." Such were tb 
 words of these simple people of the wilds, to whom the white 
 man, with his wonderful knowledge of all things, was a kind 
 of superior being, more than ever exalted in their estimation 
 now that he had, as it were, dropped down upon them thus in 
 the wet season, when, if at no other time, they thought them- 
 selves perfectly secure from intruders from without. 
 
 Soon was a canoe seen shooting down the current of the 
 Chobe, propelled by a pair of sable arms. Soon the news 
 reached Linyanti, and then up the river came quite a fleet of 
 boats manned by about one hundred and forty of the king's im- 
 mediate attendants, sent to do honour to the visitor, and conduct 
 him in due state to the royal residence. His wagon and his 
 followers were fetched from their halting place on the other 
 side of the Chobe, and altogether they were taken to Linyanti, 
 where Sekeletu gave Livingston a warm welcome, exclaiming, 
 "Now I have got another father in the place of Sebitaone." 
 The people, too, were equally delighted, and thought that with 
 the missionary a "great indefinite good" had arrived. By 
 some kind of magical influence which he possessed, they were 
 at once to be transformed, and become civilised, and learned, 
 and mighty, among surrounding tribes, even as they had heard 
 were the white men. " Now we shall have arms and horses, 
 wagons and oxen ; now we shall be able to subdue our ene- 
 mies, and hold our own against those fierce Matebeles that 
 have so long hunted and oppressed us." Such were in substance 
 the congratulations which passed among the Makololos. Liv-
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVENTtKES. 7-f 
 
 ingston, when he visited them before, had told them of Jesus, 
 whose servant he was, and of God the creator of all things, 
 and with the simple faith of untutored minds they had listened 
 to his words and believed them. " God the Creator, Christ the 
 Saviour, these were all-powerful beings, and their hands were 
 ever open to protect, and to bless, and enrich, those who wor- 
 shipped them. The missionary knew how to pray to these 
 great spirits, he could teach the Makololo to do so, and riches 
 and prosperity would flow in upon them like a tide." 
 
 So reasoned these poor benighted Africans, deeming, as have 
 deemed others that we wot of, that the kingdom of Christ was 
 a temporal kingdom, and that a reign of peace and happiness 
 upon earth meant a time when all their enemies would be 
 subdued under them, and they would occupy the high places, 
 with wealth, and the means at command of all earthly enjoy- 
 ments, as far as they understood what these were. "Jesus," 
 said they to Mr. Livingston, " has not loved our forefathers 
 hence their present degradation ; but he haa loved the white 
 men, and given them all the wonderful things they now pos- 
 sess ; and as you have come to teach us to pray to Jesus, and to 
 pray for us, our wants will soon be supplied." " A very great 
 deal, too," adds the narrator, " was expected from medicines 
 and my liberality." 
 
 During Mr. Livingston's stay at Linyanti, there occurred 
 what might be termed a national crisis in the affairs of the 
 Makololos, to understand which we must go back a little in 
 the history of the reigning family. When Sebitaone died, he 
 nominated a daughter as his successor to the throne ; but she, 
 not being ambitious of occupying so exalted a station, or dis- 
 trusting her own ability to govern, willingly resigned her 
 pretensions to a younger brother Sekeletu, then a-c-J uinctecn.
 
 76 I>H. LIVING STOKE 
 
 who was accordingly recognised by the people as their reign- 
 ing chief. As it often has happened in more civilised states, 
 so chanced it here, that there was a rival claimant for the 
 kingly power, and therefore the young chief assumed the 
 reins of government with some reluctance. He was no 
 sooner installed in his high office, when the pretender thereto 
 commenced intriguing to deprive and unseat him. For, ac- 
 cording to the missionary's advice, given to liis father, Sekeletu 
 had forbidden the sale of children as slaves throughout his 
 dominions ; and his rival, hoping to turn this interference 
 with established custom ip his own advantage, had privately 
 introduced a party of slave-dealers from Zambari into the 
 country, receiving from them, as a reward for this service, a 
 small cannon, armed with which he hoped to give his party 
 such a preponderance of power as would place him at the 
 head of the government. He had resolved to make his attack 
 upon the young king just at the time when Mr. Livingston 
 was his guest, probably without being aware of the presence 
 of the \\ hite man at Linyanti. Accordingly it was arranged 
 that a party of his followers should proceed to hold a pretended 
 conference with Sekeletu, and while he was off his guard, one 
 of them should hamstring him with a battle-axe, which would 
 at onoe render him unfit to rule over a warlike and predatory 
 people, who must have for their chief one fit and able to lead 
 them to battle, and defend them when attacked. 
 
 This nefarious plan was entirely frustrated by the presence 
 of Mr. Livingston, who walked by the side of the chief while 
 the conspirators were addressing him, and prevented the exe- 
 cution of their design. Whether it was through fear of the 
 magical power which the missionary was supposed to possess, 
 or owing to some compunctions of conscience, we canaot tuli;
 
 HIS LIFE AKD ADVKXTUKES. 77 
 
 bat certain it is that the same evening some of the con- 
 spirators -went to the king and disclosed to him the -whole 
 project, and their leader having been seized, and ordered for 
 immediate execution, the sentence was carried out before the 
 visitor knew anything of the circumstance, so short and 
 sharp is the remedy applied to a national evil by these African 
 potentates. The slave-trading party from Zambari, who 
 hoped to do some business in these parts, under the new 
 regime, which they looked for, fled, attributing the overthrow 
 of the conspiracy probably to the supernatural power of the 
 white man, of whose presence they only now became aware. 
 
 It seemed, too, that there was another party of these 
 dealers in human flesh, who likewise had established them- 
 selves on the confines of Sekeletu's kingdom, no doubt 
 waiting for a chance of carrying on their horrible traffic 
 within its boundaries; they were intrenched in a stockade 
 in the valley of the Barotse, and had for the defence of 
 their position forty muskets. The Makololo were desirous 
 of attacking them, and held a palaver on the subject. Living- 
 ston strongly dissuaded them from doing so, pointing out 
 the difficulty of dislodging a party so placed and defended. 
 "Yes," said an inferior chief sagaciously, after having gone 
 through, the grotesque antics customary before delivering a 
 parliamentary opinion, " Yes, let them alone. Hunger is strong 
 enough a very strong fellow is he !" So the child-stealers 
 were left to Hunger, who, ere long, drove them out of their 
 position. 
 
 And here we may observe, with regard to this traffic in 
 slaves, which is carried on extensively among all the South- 
 African tribes, and to supply which, is the object of most of 
 the wars waged among them, that the great incitement to it
 
 78 I>n. LTTIXGSTOXE 
 
 is tho superior value set upon human beings over all other 
 commodities which the native chiefs can offer. It is a kind 
 of traffic which they themselves would willingly drop if more 
 legitimate articles of commerce were made known to them, 
 and their cupidity were not so strongly excited by the tempt- 
 ing offers of fire-arms, and other things which they most 
 desire to possess, in exchange for their fellow-creatures. Let 
 the cry for more slaves cease to come from the American and 
 other markets, and let native industry be turned to the culti- 
 vation of the soil, and collecting and preparing the rich 
 mineral and other products which Africa possesses, and this 
 abominable traffic will quickly cease. This, we apprehend., 
 will be one of the beneficial results of Mr. Livingston's dis- 
 coveries, remote if not approximate ; and if this alone were 
 all the good to be effected, we might well hail him as a great 
 benefactor of the human race. Hut we must remember that 
 he is now waiting at Linyanti. When he proposed 
 to Sekeletu to proceed northward, that he might examine 
 the country, and see if there was a place in it adapted 
 for the establishment of a mission, that chief objected, 
 saying, that he had not yet had "a satisfactory look at him." 
 He evidently wished to keep the missionary at Linyanti, 
 thinking, no doubt, that his throne would be all the safer for 
 such powerful protection. On being still further urged on 
 the subject, he affected to entertain fears for the missionary's 
 safety. " He could not suffer him to go alone, lest some evil 
 should bcfal him." 
 
 After awhile, however, towards the end of June, 1853, 
 he gavq a reluctant consent to the departure of his guest ; he, 
 with right royal munificence, gave him also the choice of his 
 beat canoes, manned with picked rowers, to proceed down th*
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 79 
 
 Zambesi, on whose banks, at a village called the Sekhose, tho 
 traveller's starting-point, he bade him an affectionate farewell. 
 And now we have to gaze upon a scene of peculiar anima- 
 tion and interest : the banks of the noble river are alive with 
 people, gathered from all parts, to witness the traveller's 
 departure. Overhead is the burning sun, irradiating a sky 
 which has no speck or stain to vary the crystalline uniformity 
 of its azure depth ; its golden rays flash and scintillate, in a 
 thousand glassy mirrors, the lakes and rivers, and swampy 
 hollows which still extend over all the surrounding country, 
 although water is not so prevailing a feature of the scene, as 
 it was when Livingston made his way with so much difficulty 
 to the Chobe. Most of the larger, as well as the smaller 
 streams, have now subsided within their natural boundaries, 
 and the eye can make out their separate courses, winding 
 and turning, now meeting and now retreating from each 
 other, like a number of gigantic silver-skinned snakes, en- 
 gaged in playful convolutions. Between them are what 
 look like verdant isles covered witli profuse vegetation, and 
 gorgeous with flowers of the richest hues and most delightful 
 perfumes ; there grow the beautiful heaths, such as in Europe 
 are only seen in hothouses and conservatories ; there the 
 flag-like agapanthus shoots up its clusters of bright bluo 
 blossoms, and the elegant belladonna amarylis hangs out its 
 waxen trumpets of pinkish white, and other plants of the 
 lily tribe give beauty and variety to the scene ; the prickly 
 cactus creeps along the ground, or stands erect, as though 
 proud of its crimson blossoms; and broad-leaved flags and 
 flowering rushes wave their silken pennons over all, as stand- 
 ard-bearers set to marshal an array of troops in splendid 
 .between iU bunks, now dry and pleasant to rest
 
 80 Dtt. LITIXG STONE 
 
 or stand upon, the Zambesi poured its noble volume of 
 water; and there lay the fleet of canoea, long and slender, 
 manned by 160 stout rowers, all eager for the honour of 
 speeding the missionary on his journey. Their sable skins 
 shone like polished ebony ; and as they sat there ready for 
 the start, with their broad chests and brawny arms exposed, 
 with their round woolly heads, and faces lighted up with 
 excitement and pleasure, their white teeth glistening between 
 the parted lips, their large eyes dilated and sparkling, i waa 
 impossible to deny that they were handsome fellows, although 
 their style of beauty differed greatly from the European 
 standard. And the women, too, the elite of Linyanti and the 
 surrounding villages, who sat and stood upon the banks, there 
 was much of native grace in their forms and attitudes ! How 
 they danced and clapped their hands, those African belles ! 
 and how the little naked children, slippery as eels, and as 
 lithe and nimble, tumbled and rolled about in the very ex- 
 uberance of their glee, sometimes going splash into the 
 river, from whence they were fished out, or scrambled out 
 themselves, in no way frightened or disconcerted ! How the 
 men shouted, and the women screamed, and the piccaninnies 
 joined their shrill treble to swell the chorus, as the good 
 missionary, having bidden farewell to the chief, stepped 
 into the canoe which he had selected for his voyage, a very 
 cranky- looking craft, about thirty feet long, by less than two 
 broad, but admirably adapted for gliding through the still 
 waters of the noble river. And now the signal is given, the 
 six athletic Makololos strike the water with their paddle?, 
 and the canoe flies off rapidly, although against the current, 
 and is soon lost to the view of the assembled people. 
 
 But long after the party had shot out of sight, the voices
 
 HIS LIFE AJO) ADYEHTUEES. 81 
 
 of the rowers might be heard floating back on the still air, as 
 they sang in chorus : ~" 
 
 Up the Zambesi we paddle away, 
 
 Paddle away ! Ah, ah ! Oh, oh ! 
 "White man among us no longer will stay ; 
 
 "Why will he leave the Makololo ? 
 Friend of our chief, he has come from alar, 
 Come in the sea-wagon o'er the big lake, 
 To help his black brothers in danger and war : 
 Oh, why from Linyanti his way will he take ? 
 Ah, ah! oh! oh! 
 How swiftly we go, 
 As up the Zambesi we paddle away ! 
 
 Fierce Matabeles will laugh with delight ; 
 
 " Come to our country," Barotses will say: 
 Cnco Sekcletu was strong in the fight, 
 
 Now will he come not to plunder and slay : 
 See how he trembles ! his father is gone ! 
 
 The white chief that talked with the spirits a'-iv: ; 
 Now he is pale, and nis heart is a stone ; 
 Look, he's a maiden that mourns for her lo?s 1 
 Ah, ah ! oh, oh ! 
 How swiftly we go ! 
 Aa up the ZaruHpsj we paddle away.
 
 *2 BH. LIVINGSTONS 
 
 Sebitaone looks out of his grave 
 
 Where is the white man, the teachor, the guide ? 
 No Makololo is sold for a slave 
 
 Since he came over the Chobe so wide. 
 ' Call him back ! call him back !" and the falls make reply, 
 
 As they rush through the gorge in their garment of smoke 
 " Call him back !" and the people re-echo the cry, 
 But he turns not, and still with a vigorous stroke 
 We paddle, oh, oh 1 
 How swiftly we go, 
 All up the Zambesi to bear him away. 
 
 Something like this we may imagine to have been the 
 scene and circumstances which occurred on the departure of 
 our traveller on his exploratory journey on the Zambesi, up 
 which his swift canoe bore him a distance of fifty miles during 
 the first day of ten hours and a half. Glorious was the 
 scenery through which he passed, filling his mind with wonder 
 and admiration. The mighty river spread out to the extent 
 of a mile, here and there embracing islands, from three to five 
 miles in length, adorned with all the splendour of tropical 
 vegetation, amid which aquatic fowls swam and sported, and 
 other birds of bright plumage sang and fluttered; but 
 they sang not like the little brown lark and the speckled 
 thrush of his CJVTI loved land; and gorgeously apparelled 
 as they were, mcthinks the traveller's mind reverted with 
 a sorrowful yearning to the sweet songsters, whose notes do- 
 I ghted him in boj-hood. " Better," he might perhaps have 
 t'-iought and said 
 
 " Better the wild, sweet music of the lark, 
 
 Better the mavis and the merle to hear , ) 
 Than all these richly varied plumes to mark j 
 Lovely they are, but ah ! not half so dear.'
 
 HIS LIFE ASD ADTEyTTTUKS. 88 
 
 What would he have given to have seen peeping out from 
 amid this magnificent array of brightly-tinted blosscms, that 
 glorified these African islands, hut a single 
 
 " Wee, modest crimsoa-tippet flower !" 
 
 "Would it not have carried him hack to the gowany glens and 
 braes of his northern home? We may remember how his 
 countryman Bruce or Park was it ? was moved even to teara 
 of joy, when he saw, amid his weary wanderings in the wilds 
 of Africa, a tiny moss, which he recognised as similar to one 
 he had seen growing in " auld Scotland." But away ! we 
 must not indulge in thoughts like these. Away ! for the per- 
 formance of a great enterprise. We go on a holy mission to 
 give light to them that sit in darkness and the shadow of 
 death. Has not the greatest of inspired prophets said, " How 
 beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth 
 good tidings, that publisheth peace !" peace to these warring 
 tribes and nations, whose hands from time immemorial have 
 been red with each other's blood. Let us hasten to proclaim 
 it. The enterprise is a glorious one ; so roll oa^ Chou broad Zam- 
 besi, and bear the messenger of peace upon thine ample bosom. 
 Bear commerce and civilisation, and, above all, the light of the 
 Gospel truth, all through that great central valley, which it is 
 thine to traverse, and let the benighted people who dwell upon 
 thy banks, and on those of the confluent streams, know the one 
 Great God who made heaven and earth, and the one Saviour 
 and Redeemer of all mankind. 
 
 " Waft, waft, ye winds, the .tury, 
 
 And you, ye waters, roll, 
 Till, like a sea of glory, 
 
 It spreads from pole to pole :
 
 4 DR. 
 
 Till o'er our ransomed nature 
 
 The Lamb for sinners slain, 
 Redeemer, King, Creator, 
 
 In bliss returns to reign." 
 
 Are we rhapsodising ? "Well, who can help it on such a thema 
 as this ? With such a vast field of missionary labour spread 
 out before him, sure are we that our traveller could not. 
 Swift as the canoe sped along, yet his eager soul outstripped 
 it ; and as each fresh view opened upon him, he would feel new 
 and stronger impulses spurring him on to the accomplishment 
 of his great work. 
 
 At the end of the first day, as we have already said, ho 
 found himself fifty miles farther up the Zambesi than tho 
 point from which he started ; and his sable attendants were 
 astonished to see him, on landing, fix his astrolabe, and take 
 an observation to determine his latitude and longitude. 
 " May be he is talking to the stars," said they among them- 
 selves ; and still greater grew the respect, amounting almost 
 to awe, with which they regarded him. It had been reported 
 among the Makololo, who had witnessed similar consultations 
 of the heavenly bodies, that he had brought the sun and moon 
 in his pocket ; and no wonder, for did he not, on his last visit, 
 drop among them from the clouds ? We may fancy the super- 
 stitious reverence with which these simple-minded people 
 Would regard such a man, and wonder not at the readiness 
 with which they volunteered to accompany him whithersoever 
 he would go. 
 
 We have spoken of the verdant isles which our travellers 
 passed on their way up the river, but have not alluded to the 
 banks, which, long ere they reached the end of their first day's 
 journey, have become at places rocky and precipitous; and
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 85 
 
 among other trees which clothe them, may be seen, towering 
 above the rest, the lofty palm, and the palmyra with its feathery 
 foliage thrown distinctly out against the azure background of 
 the clear sky. "Where the banks slope and undulate, the 
 travellers get glimpses into the country beyond, and on either 
 side they see, nestling amid the trees, the clustered huts of 
 the Banyeti, a poor but industrious people, whose women till 
 the soil, while the men hunt the hippopotamus and other wild 
 animals. 
 
 But soon the high banks shut out these glimpses of rural 
 scenery, the channel of the river begins to contract, and it is 
 evident, from the number of falls and rapids which now occur, 
 that the bottom, as well as the sides, is rocky and uneven. 
 Now they shoot down a cataract which tries the strength and 
 dexterity of the rowers ; but they are fully equal to this occa 
 sion, as also to the next, which is yet more difficult. 
 
 They have now reached the 16th degree of south latitude, 
 and the great river here, called the Leeambye, still tending 
 northward, flows through the country of the Barotse, which 
 stretches for about a hundred miles on either side of it, being 
 a valley inclosed between two ranges of hills, which, after 
 nearly meeting and shutting in the river, as we have just de- 
 scribed, bend away to the N.N.E., and the other to the N.N.W., 
 until they are about thirty miles apart, forming the long 
 valley in which the people of the Barotse tribe chiefly live. 
 This valley is annually overflowed to the depth of about ten 
 feet, and therefore the villages and cattle -pastures are placed 
 upon artificial mounds. Even the capital, Nariele, which con- 
 tains 1000 inhabitants, is so situated. These annual over- 
 flows render the low grounds fertile and productive, and the 
 natives raise on them large crops of maize and Kaffir corn.
 
 86 DR. 
 
 Theia also springs up spontaneously a coarse, succulent grass, 
 ten or twelve feet high, which is good food for the cattle. 
 On the more elevated grounds are numerous gardens, full of 
 yams, sweet potato, manioc, sugar-cane, millet, bananas, &c. ; 
 so that, with plenty of milk, and fish, and wild animals close 
 at hand, the Barotse country is celebrated as a land of plenty. 
 But, like the skeleton at the ancient feast, death is here ever- 
 present in the midst of abundance. " The fever," observes our 
 traveller, "must be braved, if a mission is to be established; 
 for it is very fatal, even to the natives." He himself had 
 eight attacks of it during the short time he was in the country, 
 and he tried all the native remedies, in order to find out 
 whether they were of any value ; " but after being stewed in 
 vapour baths, smoked like a red herring over twigs on hot 
 potsherds, and physicked sccundum (black) artem, " he came 
 to the conclusion that his own medicines were the most effica- 
 cious." 
 
 Mr. Livingston having determined to remain awhile at 
 Karelie, and from thence explore the surrounding country, 
 and proceed further up the river, here dismissed his 
 Makololo friends, who returned to their own country. lit 
 had heard of another river, the Lceba, which flowed to the 
 N.N.W. into the Leeambyc, somewhere about the northern ex- 
 tremity of the Barotse valley, and thither ho engaged a party 
 of the natives to convey him, which they did : and he had the 
 satisfaction of seeing the confluence of the two streams, and of 
 fixing its proper position on the map, as well as of making 
 other valuable geographical observations. Passing up the 
 Leeba, he found its banks low and bare, to south latitude 
 14 deg. llmin. ; beyond that, the dense forest covered all 
 the country around, and crept close down to the water's edge.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 87 
 
 Here, too, the land became more elevated. All along the 
 course of this river, and out far beyond its banks, wild animals 
 abounded, surpassing in numbers anything our traveller had 
 ever seen. It was a perfect paradise for hunters. Here were 
 herds of stately elands, which yield the finest venison known, 
 and many other of the deer and antelope kind; one called 
 " heranyane," an entirely new species. Here were buffaloes 
 in vast numbers, and, as Livingston says, " their tameness 
 was shocking to see," reminding one of the line in Hood's 
 "Haunted House," in the deserted garden of which the 
 rabbits from the wood 
 
 " Fed with a shocking tameness." 
 
 No less than eighty-one of these oxen of the desert defiled 
 slowly before our traveller, as he and his attendants lay 
 resting by their fire one evening. And they had less welcome 
 visitors than these; for, says he, " lions were impudent 
 enough to roar at us." What a land of plenty this must be 
 for the lordly brute! scarcely would he care to attack man 
 under such circumstances, unless indeed he had once tasted 
 human flesh, which he is said to prefer to every other kind of 
 food. What an appalling sound must that awful roar of th* 
 desert monarch's be rolling up from the depths of the forest, 
 or over the wild treeless waste, amid the deep stillness of the 
 tropical night, causing a tremor and a thrill to pass over the 
 stoutest nerves ! Hark ! now you hear it ! low at first, like a 
 deep growl, or the rumbling of distant thunder ! now it swells 
 and gathers strength, until it seems to fill the wide universe, 
 and make all nature shudder ! Away speed the antelopes 
 great and small ; the gnu and the hartebeest scour the sandy 
 plain, and tho zebra and the quagga go tossing their s
 
 88 DE. LIYJXGSTOITE 
 
 in a tempest of terror; even the panther and the hyena hide 
 themselves amid the rocks, and the wild cat climbs a tree for 
 safety ; the teeth of the monkey chatter with fear ; but the 
 noisy jackals follow with mocking laughter, as the shaggy 
 brute, with flashing eyes and extended tail, leaps forth upon 
 its prey. 
 
 What thoughts of home and far-away friends would fill 
 the traveller's mind as he rested, after his daily labour, and 
 listened to the strange and discordant cries of the wild 
 creatures around him; or the shoutings and hello wings of his 
 sable attendants, who, although most kind and devoted to him, 
 were yet the veriest savages, without any control over their 
 passions and animal impulses; dancing and yelling in their 
 joyous moments like frantic creatures; in their anger, quar- 
 relling and fighting, and exhibiting all the meannesses and 
 vices of their uncivilised nature ! On all his former journeys 
 he had been accompanied by at least one intelligent com- 
 panion, to whom he could communicate his thoughts and 
 express his feelings ; now he was quite alone, cut off, as it 
 were, from all human aid and sympathy, and deeply did he 
 feel his isolation. But his brave spirit never faltered, and 
 amid all the disgust, amounting to loathing, which he felt at 
 the barbarous manners and vicious practices of the people 
 around him, he never for a moment forgot that they were in- 
 deed his brothers, and that the more ignorant and degraded 
 they were, the more earnest should be his efforts to teach and 
 elevate them. Thus, at this period, he writes to a friend, 
 who had expressed fears for his safety : 
 
 " These children of nature gave me more intense disgust 
 to heathenism, and a much higher opinion of the effects of 
 missions among tribes in the south, which are reported to
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVEXTUKKS. 89 
 
 have been as savage as they, than I ever had before. * * * 
 You fear for the result of my going alone. I hope I am in 
 the way of duty ; my own conviction that such is the case has 
 never wavered. I am doing something for God. I have 
 preached the Gospel on many a spot where the name of Christ 
 has never been heard ; and I would work still more in the 
 way of reducing this Barotse language, if I had not suffered 
 so severely from fever. Exhaustion produced vertigo, caus- 
 ing me, if I looked suddenly up, almost to lose consciousness. 
 This made me give up some of my sedentary work; but I 
 hope God will accept what I do. The temperature in the 
 shade is about 100 Fahr. during the day, often 90 at nine at 
 night. But a merry heart doth good, like a medicine." And 
 what a brave heart must it be that could be merry under such 
 circumstances ! and what a firm faith must that man have 
 had in the presence of One who has said that He will be "an 
 ever-present help in time of trouble !" 
 
 From his excursion up the Leeba our traveller returned to 
 the Barotse valley, where he remained some time, visiting the 
 range of hills which forms its eastern boundary, to ascertain 
 if there was a healthy locality for the establishment of a mis- 
 sion ; but failing to discover such, he returned down the Lee- 
 ambye, to his old friends the Makololo, to make preparations 
 for an attempt to reach the west coast, by a route which the 
 knowledge of the country he had now gained enabled him to 
 determine on. 
 
 Once more at Linyanti, with Sekeletu and his people, our 
 missionary is anxious to instruct them, although he has no idea 
 of remaining longer than may bo necessary to complete the 
 arrangements for his journey ; ho therefore endeavours to prevaii 
 on them to learn to read j but this appears in their eyes such a
 
 00 
 
 DB. IlVtNOSTOWE 
 
 mysterious, and indeed supernatural acquirement, that the mat- 
 ter must be well considered before it is entered on. Many 
 were the palavers which were held on the subject ; and at length 
 it was resolved that two old and experienced chiefs, near rela- 
 tives to the king, should be the first pupils, as they might, by 
 their wisdom and experience, ward off any evil effects likely 
 to result from meddling with this great mystery, and warn others 
 of the dangers which might attend the process. Accordingly 
 one morning, these grave and reverend seigneurs set to work in 
 a room of tiro royal residence, the room we might as well say,
 
 niS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 91 
 
 for it had but one, under the direction of the white teacher, to 
 learn, the sound and significance of A B C, those mysterious 
 characters which were impressed upon the pages of the holy 
 book, and a knowledge of which enabled its possessor to talk 
 with the great spirits and do other wonderful things. We may 
 fancy how the people would crowd about the outside of the 
 building where this kind of incantation was going on, and 
 whisper among themselves. Some of the boldest of them 
 would no doubt creep up to the door or window, or rather 
 opening, where such would be in a more civilised house, and 
 silly peep in, then return to their companions with a face full 
 of meaning, as if they had seen what was quite indescribable. 
 Especially curious would the women be, and the children, awed 
 into silence by the stealthy paces and whisperings, and grave, 
 serious faces of their parents, would for this day cease their 
 gambols and noisy merriment, expecting nothing less than an 
 attack of the Matabeles, or a sudden descent of a whole host of 
 white men, riding upon hippopotami. The old men, of course, 
 and especially the medicine man, and the court fool, and the 
 rain maker, they would seem to know all about it, the whole 
 process was patent to them, as we Englishmen say, making 
 a much-abused word perform a duty for which it was never 
 intended. They could see the end of it all, and predict the 
 disastrous events which were to follow, as correctly as though 
 " Old Moore" or " Zadkiel" had been there to enlighten them. 
 As to the young men and the middle-aged, the warriors, the 
 mighty hunters, and the skilful rowers, why they certainly did 
 not go about their usual avocations that day ; but their staying 
 at home was quite an accidental circumstance, and if they did 
 gather in clusters about the impromptu school-house, and direct 
 anxious and uneasy glances to\vards it, and speak with
 
 92 DR. LIVING STOJTE 
 
 bated breath, it was not because they felt any alaim, 
 or womanly curiosity to know what was going on within ; 
 only it was observed, that if an unlucky piccaninny 
 came tumbling amid their legs, and breaking the general 
 stillness with its gleeful voice, it was immediately snatched 
 up, perhaps by the leg or the arm, or any part that 
 came handiest, and thrown into a hut, as if it had been a 
 rotten water-melon, to be pitched out of the way as soon as 
 possible. A look from amid one or other of these martial 
 groups was every now and then cast skyward, as though an 
 expectation was prevalent that presently the roof of the 
 palace would fly off, or that some other awful affair would 
 happen. And so the morning wore away ; noon came, and 
 the ebony forms, well anointed with palm or cocoa-nut oil, 
 glistened again in the meridian splendour of the burning sun. 
 There was an uneasy stirring in the groups; they broke up 
 and formed new combinations women mingling with the 
 men, and all alike gathering closer around the mysterious 
 building. Noon passed, and as the sun travelled westward, 
 the curiosity of the excited people became more unrestrained 
 in its manifestation. How silent was all within! not a 
 sound, except a low murmur like the hum of bees. Some of 
 the more weak-minded and superstitious crept away to the 
 sacred groves to supplicate the gods, clay lions, with sheila 
 for eyes, and wonderful manes and tails, formed of coarse 
 grass, or the weeds from the Chobe; and nondescript 
 monsters, like nothing that had ever been seen, except in tho 
 imaginations of their makers ! Still the hours wear on, and 
 still the chiefs come not out ; and the people, in a frenzy of 
 impatience, are just gathering themselves up for a rush upon 
 the building, whsn lo ! the door opens, and forth comes the
 
 31S LITE AND ADVENTURES. 93 
 
 missionary with his two pupils ; the former calm and smiling, 
 the latter Btill grave, but "with a yet more solemn gravity than 
 that which possessed them in the morning. Evidently they 
 have accomplished their task, and may now he reckoned 
 among the learned. Stand aside, medicine-man ! poet and 
 prophet, and diviner, as you are, your occupation's gone ! 
 These be the men that know all secrets, and have power over 
 the elements ! Oh, what a shout rends the sky, as the old 
 chiefs step forth, and proclaim that the work is accomplished, 
 and that all who will may now become initiated into the lore 
 of the white chief, who holds communion with the stars. 
 Oh, what a shout ! The children come tumbling out of the 
 huts, and think that the dreaded Matabeles are now truly 
 here. The hippopotamus raises its huge head above the 
 waters of the Chobe, and the crocodile scrambles away further 
 into the reeds, fearing some impending danger. 
 
 Now the delighted people form a ring around the chiefs, 
 who seem irradiated and glorified by the knowledge which 
 they have imbibed, and commence dancing to the air of a native 
 melody, to which the court poet improvises these words : 
 
 " White man over the Chobe come, 
 
 To teach the Makololo 
 Wonderful things ! wonderful things 
 
 That no other tribe may know. 
 No such people now oh, not 
 As the mighty Makololo ! 
 
 Lo-lo ! Makololo ! 
 Wonderful things we knowt 
 
 White man talks to the stars at 
 
 And so can the Makololo 
 We can look in his radical book 
 
 Barotsc cannot oh, no !
 
 94 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 We say to the -waters, " Flow," 
 And they mind the Makololo 
 
 Lo-lo! Makololo! 
 
 That bid the winds to blow !" 
 
 A few days after, there was a grand feast, to celebrate this 
 initiation into the learning of the white man, of the two 
 chiefs, who had certainly worked well at their task, having 
 mastered the alphabet in a single day. There was eland 
 venison, the fattest and finest-flavoured that the hunters 
 could obtain, and buffalo hump, and the rich tender flesh of the 
 hippopotamus calf; fish from the Chobe, and water- fowl, were 
 there in abundance ; bowls of milk, thickened with ground 
 manioc root, or boiled Kaffir corn, and sweetened with honey. 
 Nor wanted there yams and sweet potatoes, water-melons and 
 juicy pumpkins. In short, every delicacy, in or out of season, 
 which their own swampy lands or the surrounding district 
 yielded, was displayed upon the festive board, or rather 
 eward for the feast was spread upon the banks of the river, 
 just without the city; and the king, and the chiefs, and tho 
 people, vied with each other in expressions of gratitude and 
 affection towards the good missionary, in whose honour the 
 royal poet composed another sweet song, ending with " Lo- 
 lo, Makololo;" and telling him that he "never away must 
 go ;" that " as long as winds blow and waters flow, he wo?Jd 
 be loved by the Makololo." All was harmony and delight; 
 and, towards evening, there was a grand hippopotamus -hunt, 
 which would have delighted Gordon Gumming, to whose book 
 we refer our readers for a description of it. That Dr. 
 Livingston has given no account of this, nor of the festivity 
 which preceded it, nor of several other matters touched on in 
 this work, may perhaps astonish some persons. To such we
 
 BIS LITE AND ADVEHTPKES. 9.5 
 
 say, that if the scenes here described are not realities, they 
 are " what might have been." The outline of the narrative iR, 
 we believe, perfectly true ; for the filling-in we are somewhat 
 indebted to the imagination. 
 
 The missionary did not remain long enough at Linyanti 
 to give either the chiefs or people more than the most ru- 
 dimentary instruction ; but he purposed returning, to impart 
 more knowledge at a future day, and the wet season having 
 now commenced, so that he could conveniently proceed up 
 the river, he once more bade a kindly farewell to Sekelctu 
 and his friendly subjects, and set out, on November 10, 1853, 
 directing his course northward up the Leeambyo into the 
 Leeba, making rapid progress while he could glide along in 
 the canoe which Sekeletu had generously placed at his dis- 
 posal, together with four oxen for land travelling. He was 
 again delighted by the glorious scenery through which he 
 passed, seen now under a different aspect in consequence of 
 the rising of the waters. The natives he had brought from 
 Kuruman and left at Linyanti while he pursued this north- 
 ward track before, he had now sent back to the Bechuana 
 country, they being much weakened by fever. Their place 
 is supplied by twenty-seven of the Barotse, who have volun- 
 teered to accompany him : his purpose is to explore the country 
 to the north of the Leeba, and from thenco to endeavour to 
 open a way to the western coast. 
 
 Now he is compelled to exchange his pleasant mode of 
 transit for the back of an ox, which is far more slow and 
 tedious. Before starting on this journey he had written a 
 letter to his friends, from which we make an extract, to show 
 how full of hope and faith he yet was, and once again to 
 exhibit the high aims and benevolent objects he had in view :
 
 96 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 "T am again, through God's mercy and goodness, quite 
 restored from fever. I think I am getting rid of intermittent 
 too, and, if spared, will impart some knowledge of Christ to 
 many who never before heard His blessed name. There arc 
 many and large tribes in the direction in which we go, all 
 sitting in darkness and the shadow of death. I hope God will 
 in mercy permit me to establish the Gospel somewhere in this 
 region; and that I may live to see the double influence of 
 the spirit of commerce and Christianity employed to stay the 
 bitter fountain of African misery." These are sentiments 
 worthy of the Christian philanthropist ; and how heartily do 
 we all say Amen to the concluding desires of the above, so 
 simply and beautifully uttered ! 
 
 For more than three hundred miles after he left the Lecba 
 did our traveller slowly and painfully track his course north- 
 ward, untiRie found, by his observations, that he had got into 
 the same parallel as that in which Loanda, the Portuguese 
 Battlement on the coast, was situated ; he then turned to the 
 westward, intending to make his way thither in as direct a 
 line as the obstacles in his way permitted. On he toiled 
 through swamps and rivers, taking observations as he went, 
 and fixing with wonderful accuracy and precision the geogra- 
 phical positions of all important places and objects. It was 
 now the season of heavy rains, and besides being thoroughly 
 wetted in his lower extremities twice or thrice a day in wad- 
 ing through the streams and swampy grounds, he was often 
 drenched by the showers above, so that the only place where 
 lie could keep dry his chronometer watch, without which his 
 observations could not be taken, was under his armpits. Now, 
 too, the means of subsistence began to fail. Little else was 
 to be obtained but the wild manioc root, which, being com-
 
 HIS LIFR A!fD AEVKNTUnE*. 97 
 
 posed cliioily of starch, greatly affects tlio vision of those who 
 use it much as food. Now, too, came fever to add to the 
 traveller's difficulties; and no wonder, for night after night 
 he had to sleep on the damp ground in his saturated clothes ; 
 each day the journey hecame more toilsome and difficult; 
 each night his wearied frame, racked with pain, sunk down 
 in utter helplessness, and it seemed that he could rise no more. 
 Yet on he pressed, now across flooded plains, and now through 
 "dense tangled forests, which no wagon could penetrate," 
 his brave soul cheered and animated by an assurance of Divine 
 guidance; and even while thus weakened by disease, and 
 almost overcome by toil, he had an observant eye for the 
 beauties of nature. Writing of this period, he says : " The 
 luxuriant loveliness of many a spot will remain in my imagi- 
 nation for ever ;" and with what a truly self-sacrificing spirit 
 does he afterwards refer to the trials and dangers which ho 
 then underwent \ " These privations, I beg you to observe, 
 are not mentioned as if I considered them in the light of sacri- 
 fices. I think the word ought never to be mentioned in refer- 
 ence to anything we can do for Him who, though He was 
 rich, yet for our sakes became poor." 
 
 The travellers now begin to approach the confines of the 
 country of Angola, and they are unpleasantly reminded that 
 the native tribes have come into contact with Europeans of a 
 bad class, by the treatment to ^hich they are subjected ; 
 rapine and extortion become tne order of the day, and they 
 have to run the gauntlet through different parties of brutal 
 savages, who, from long connexion with the abominable slave- 
 traffic, and acquiring a taste for intoxicating drinks, havo 
 added to their natural vices all those which are acquired in a 
 state of quasi civilisation. They were crafty, avaricious, in- 
 
 a.
 
 98 DU. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 temperate, and callous to all human suffering. Ill as Living- 
 ston evidently was, scarcely able to drag himself along little 
 of worldly wealth as he or his followers possessed, yet were 
 they plundered and annoyed in every possible way : if they 
 had to cross a river, no help was offered them, unless some- 
 thing quite exorbitant was paid in the way of fine or toll, 
 and if the heavy demands made upon them were not complied 
 with often because the travellers really had not the meana 
 their passage was obstructed, and the natives gathered about 
 them in a noisy and threatening manner. It was only by 
 the greatest tact and firmness on the part of the leader of the 
 little band that they escaped with their lives. In the fol- 
 lowing extract from a letter, in which he afterwards described 
 this part of his journey, we have a graphic picture of his 
 dangers and sufferings: 
 
 " Never did I endure such drenchings, and all the streams 
 being swollen we had to ford many, the water flowing on the 
 rustic bridges waist-deep. Others we crossed by sticking to 
 the oxen in the best way we could, and a few we made a 
 regular swim of. My Barotse for with them alone I travel- 
 led did not know I could swim, and the first broad stream 
 we came to excited their fears ou my account : ' Now hold on 
 fast by the tail ; don't let go !' I intended to follow the 
 injunction, but tail and all went so deep, I thought it better to 
 strike out alone for the bank, and, just as I had reached it, 
 I was greatly gratified to see a universal rush had been mado 
 for my rescue. Their clothes were all floating down the 
 stream, and two of them reached me breathless with the 
 exertion they had made. If we could march, I got on very 
 well, I don't care much for fatigue; but when compelled 
 to stand still by pouring rair,s, thon fever laiJ hold with hii
 
 nu LIFE Ayn ATwrvrntEs. 99 
 
 strong tangs on ray inner man, and lying in a little gipsy tent, 
 with everything damp or wet, was sore against the grain." 
 
 As the party approached the Portuguese settlement, they 
 found the natives get worse and worse, and instead of offering 
 them food, as the tribes in the interior would always do, they 
 were more ready to inflict blows. This was especially the 
 case with the Chiboque, who have been described, in language 
 more forcible than elegant, as " most outrageous blackguards." 
 They broke in upon our travellers one Sunday, when they 
 were enjoying a short interval of rest, armed with guns, 
 spears, arrows, and short swords, and with loud vociferations 
 and brandished weapons, appeared disposed at once to make 
 mince-meat of the party. Meeting the attack very calmly, 
 Livingston requested the chief of his assailants to sit down 
 with him, and explain what was the occasion for all this 
 sound and fury, which he hoped might, in the end, signify 
 nothing. " Oh !" said the chief, standing upon his dignity, 
 "is it not as clear as the sun in the heavens, that we are 
 scorned, and insulted, and despised by you ? Did not one of 
 your followers spit upon us r" One of the poor Barotse, it 
 seems, in ejecting his saliva, had been so unfortunate as to 
 let a drop of it fall upon a Chiboque, a people by no means 
 sensitive on the subject of personal cleanliness ; but it suited 
 their purpose, on the present occasion, to appear excessively 
 annoyed at this, and to demand of the offending party a fino 
 as an expiation of the indignity. The travellers had often 
 been subjected to impositions on equally frivolous pretexts, 
 and therefore knew exactly what the demand meant. Mr. 
 Livingston at once consented to make reparation, and made an 
 offer which the chief accepted, but this, probably according to 
 previous concert, his warriors refused, demanding, after some
 
 100 DH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 parley, that they should have a man to sell as a slave, thus 
 proclaiming the real object of their furious assault. This 
 tribe, like others near the coast, had long subsisted, in a great 
 measure, by man-stealing ; they had been accustomed to make 
 inroads into the interior, and bring away all the weak and 
 defenceless people, especially well-grown children, they could 
 lay hands on ; they had been incited to do this by the Portu- 
 guese and other Europeans, who had settlements on, or visited 
 the coast, for the purpose of obtaining cargoes of these human 
 chattels, for the markets of Cuba, on the "West Indies, or 
 other places where such articles were required. "We have 
 seen that, while our missionary was at Linyanti, a party of 
 these black, brigands had come into the neighbourhood of the 
 Chobe, and in order to carry out the vile scheme, had rendered 
 aid to the pretender to Sekeletu's throne ; they were, however, 
 defeated in their object, and obliged to retire without doing any 
 profitable business. This might have been a party in commu- 
 nication with these Chiboque ; and, if so, we may be sure that 
 they regarded the white chief now in their power with no 
 friendly feelings. The vilest passions of their degraded nature 
 would be aroused against him, and they would be only too glad 
 of a pretext .to quarrel with, and, if possible, to destroy him. 
 The poor Barotse, so far from their own country, they might 
 then seize, and perhaps dispose of as slaves, although, since the 
 vigilant watch kept up by British cruisers along the coast, it 
 was not so easy to do that as formerly. The calmness and 
 firmness with which they were met by Mr. Livingston took 
 them somewhat aback. "What is it you want?" said he; 
 " I will deal justly by you, and make reparation, as far as I 
 am able, for this involuntary offence." They were not ac- 
 customed to such treatment as this, and did not know what
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 101 
 
 to make of it. And then, too, with all their bombast and 
 pretence of valour, they felt a sort of secret dread of this 
 white man ; they quailed before his look of mental superiority ; 
 and with the superstition natural to their state and education, 
 or want of it, they could account for the influence which 
 they felt he exercised over them, in no other way than 
 by supposing that he was in possession of some kind 
 of magical power, which might enable him to call into 
 action more potent auxiliaries than stern looks and reason- 
 able words. 
 
 Therefore they did nothing but hoot and yell, and brandish 
 their weapons, while Livingston sat looking calmly on, as if 
 all their noise and gesticulation was about a matter' in which 
 lie really had little concern. Having thus, as it were, let off 
 the steam, these worthy representatives of African civilisation 
 lowered their demands, and declared themselves willing to take 
 an ox instead of a man ; and with this condition of being re- 
 lieved of their agreeable company, it was deemed best to 
 comply. So one of the travellers' oxen was taken and slaugh- 
 tered ; and the Chiboque, to show that they were not such 
 bad fellows after all, but had just a spark of generosity left, 
 gave back a few pounds of the flesh to its late owner, and then 
 departed, no doubt to hold a high festival, and make a great 
 boast of their achievement, in overcoming an army of Barotse 
 led by a white chief, and, after killing the whole party, carrying 
 away spoil to an incredible amount. What a revel they held ! 
 "We can see them in imagination dancing round the relics of the 
 nearly devoured ox, and led on by the medicine man, who has 
 wrapped himself up in the skin of the animal, and decorated 
 himself with its horns, singing a chorus :
 
 102 DR. LlVlJfGSTOJTJS 
 
 11 Who so brave, who so brave, 
 
 As the bold Chiboque ? 
 Bah ! Earotae is a slave ! 
 
 As a leaf he shook. 
 White chief say ' go a\vay ! ' 
 
 What care we for him ? 
 If you throw him in the rivjr, 
 lie will sink, not swim. 
 "Who so brave, 
 Who so brave 
 As the bold Chiboquo ? " 
 
 We will leave them to enjoy their revels, and follow om 
 traveller, who has heen protected by a gracious Providence 
 through many and imminent dangers. These were now, for a 
 time, happily over. Having reached the river Quango, at a 
 place called Cassange, he there met with a Portuguese settler, 
 who treated him with great kindness, and undertook to conduct 
 him and his party to St. Paul de Loanda, where the hishop and 
 governor of the province of Angola resided. Notwithstanding 
 his exhausted state from hardships and long illness, Livingston 
 did not pass on his way with unobserving eyes. He determined, 
 by actual observation, the positions of about forty stations within 
 the Portuguese territory, and fixed the most important places. 
 He also discovered that the river Quango, instead of running 
 from the eastward, as had generally been supposed, turns to 
 the north, and probably joins the Zaire or Congo. Halting 
 thus occasionally to pursue his geographical researches, and 
 gather a store of most valuable knowledge, our traveller at 
 length reached his much-desired haven of temporary rest. 
 Nothing could exceed the kindness and hospitality with which 
 he was now everywhere treated ; the settlers on the route, and 
 residents in the city, vied with each other in paying attention 
 to the weary man, who was so weakened by dysentery and
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 103 
 
 fever that he could scarcely sit on his ox for ten minutes at a 
 time, and whose aspect was that of a living skeleton. The 
 only Englishman at Loanda, when he arrived, were Edmund 
 Gabriel, Esq., the Queen's commissioner, and by him was Liv- 
 ingston and his twenty-seven companions kindly received and 
 entertained* "I shall never forget," says the former, "the 
 delicious pleasure of lying down on his bed after sleeping six 
 months on the ground, nor the unwearied attention and kind 
 ness, through a long sickness, which Mr. Gabriel invariably 
 showed. Hay God reward him I''
 
 104 
 
 uvnronon 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 BACK TO LINYAKTZ. 
 
 OW that our traveller is resting 
 himself after his fatigues, ani 
 recruiting his strength for a 
 fresh journey, let us take a 
 glance around us, and see what 
 there is noteworthy in this 
 town of St Paul de Loanda, 
 which is the capital of the Por- 
 tuguese settlement in Angola, 
 once a great African kingdom called Abonda, and afterwards 
 Dingo. The town derives its name from the island of Loanda, 
 on which it is partly huilt, and which, stretching out 
 some distance into the Atlantic, forms a commodious and 
 secure harbour. Hither came the early Portuguese navigators 
 in the, palmy days of that now insignificant European power, 
 eager for geographical discovery, and rich freights of gold and 
 ivory, and the other precious commodities with which their 
 dreams had filled the El Dorados of these burning climes, and 
 which, in truth, they found tolerably abundant; sailing up the 
 great river Congo, or Zaire, they had by treaty with, or con- 
 quest over the native princes, obtained possession of vast tracts 
 of country, on which they planted the cross, and fancied they 
 had Christianised the inhabitants, by introducing the forms and 
 ceremonies of the Catholic faith. Zealous and active as were, 
 no doubt, the missionaries, who were &cut out from the mother
 
 HIS LIFE AX7) ADVrN'TURF.S. 105 
 
 country into these new possessions, it does not appear that they 
 did much towards the overthrow of those most horrid and de- 
 basing forms of paganism which prevailed all along the western 
 coast, from the Gulf of Guinea to the Cape of Storms, as the 
 Cape of Good Hope -was then called. It was in 1 484 that Diego 
 Cam, sailing from Elmina in quest of new shores whereon to 
 plant the emblem of Portuguese supremacy, discovered the mouth 
 of the Congo, and set up the stone pillar from -which this has 
 been sometimes called " the Eiver of the Pillar," and took pos- 
 session of the country in the name of his master, John King of 
 Portugal, and Lord of Guinea, as he was now called, from his 
 recent acquisition of territory on the Guinea coast. The maxim 
 had been long established that all seizure of country from 
 infidels, by powers calling themselves Christian, should be held 
 valid, and the popes were ever ready to make grants of such 
 lands, '[as those who acknowledged their spiritual supremacy 
 were desirous of possessing and strong enough to take. So the 
 game of appropriation went on, until Lusitania became the 
 mistress of all the coast countries watered by the Senegal, and 
 the Gambia, and the Congo; and year by year went sailing up 
 the Tagus her laden argossies, gaily decorated with flags and 
 streamers, and bearing untold wealth in their clumsy hulls, 
 while on their decks, dressed in barbaric splendour, stood 
 kings and chiefs, who had come, sometimes voluntarily, but 
 oftener sorely against their will, to do homage to the great 
 potentate who had sent out his fleets, conquering and to con- 
 quer. But all this unsubstantial pageant soon faded ; this 
 dream of power and wealth full quickly passed away ; and 
 now on the banks of the Congo, where it was once most visibly 
 impressed, and strongly asserted, not a trace remains of Portu- 
 guese supremacj'. First Spain became the ascendant power,
 
 106 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 and subjecting the sister country to her rule, seized on her 
 most valuable colonial possessions; then from their marshy 
 flats, in their huge, round-sterned and bluff-bowed galliots, 
 came the Dutch, sweeping the seas of all opponents, and plant- 
 ing their standard here and there along the whole western 
 coast from Elmina to the Cape. Then the British began to 
 push their explorations in this direction ; the splendid results 
 which had followed the discovery of the East and West Indies 
 put all 'maritime nations on the alert, and more especially did 
 the border lands of Africa become objects of desire, because 
 they were as gates to the interior, from whence could be procured 
 an unlimited supply of slaves for labour in the inter-tropical 
 colonies. And then the enormous gold trade which was re- 
 ported to be carried on between the often talked of, but still 
 unknown city of Timbuctoo, and the people who inhabited the 
 backs of the Niger, or passed up and down its broad stream. 
 If this could be diverted into European channels, what wealth 
 would flow in and enrich all the countries towards which it 
 was directed ! This great river Niger, which it was supposed 
 flowed through the heart of Africa, bringing down gold in 
 immense quantities from no one knew where, and depositing 
 it all over the level plains which it traversed, what a 
 mystery to be dreamt of, and talked about, and sought 
 for, eagerly as men do seek, and ever did seek, for worldly 
 riches! And Timbuctoo! that splendid city, perhaps built 
 altogether of gold, lying far away amid swamps and forests, 
 and lands of unimaginable fertility; but surrounded by 
 deserts, which rendered it unapproachable by any other 
 than natives of the climate, could this be but reached ! 
 There dwelt, it might be, that great myth of African 
 discoverers, Prestor John, ruling a Christian people with
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVKNTTTHE8. 10? 
 
 mild and paternal sway, and possessing wealth untold and 
 power unlimited a sort of demigod, uniting the characters 
 and properties of a Jupiter, a Minerva, a Croasus, a 
 Justinian, and a St. Paul. Such were the prevalent notions 
 of Prestor John, about whom we hear much reported in 
 the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries. Since 
 then Timbuctoo has been visited, and the Niger has been ex- 
 plored, and it is from California and Australia that the stream 
 of gold is pouring into Europe, and not from poor benighted 
 Africa. Of all her possessions on the mainland of the 
 Atlantic side of this continent, we now find that Portugal only 
 holds sway over the province of Angola, and that sway is 
 more nominal than real. The bishop of the province is also tho 
 governor; and neither from his spiritual nor his temporal office 
 does he appear to derive a large revenue. What power he has he 
 seems to use with justice and discretion ; and if we may judge 
 from his kind ami generous treatment of Mr. Livingston and 
 his party of natives, he is a warm-hearted and humane Chris- 
 tian man. He lives here at St. Paul de Loanda in no great 
 state, and conducts the affairs of his see and province as well 
 as he can, without much help from the mother country. H is 
 capital town here is a good-sized straggling place, containing, 
 it may be, some three thousand houses, built chiefly of stone, 
 although not of an imposing order of architecture. They cover 
 the low island of Loanda, which is about eighteen miles in 
 length, and stretch along the shores and hills inland, straggli;: 
 up into the interior, as houses are apt to do where there are 
 pleasant suburban spots to invite them. Among the better 
 kind of houses we meet with huts of clay, thatched with 
 straw ; these are inhabited chiefly by the negroes, who greatly 
 out.mmibcr the white population, of whom there maybe somo-
 
 108 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 thing more than three thousand. There arc walls and forti- 
 fications ; but the oest defence of the place is to deal justly and 
 honestly by the native tribes which surround it, for against such 
 only could any defence be contemplated. From no European 
 or other great maritime power which might desire to take 
 it could its present weak possessors long keep it. 
 
 Mr. Livingston's Barotse friends were stricken with aston- 
 ishment at what they considered the magnificence of the place. 
 What great houses ! big enough for a nation to hold a palaver 
 in. The church ah ! that is a stately building ! Look inside 
 at the altar-piece, and the images, and the crucifix ! Never 
 had the poor heathen such splendid gods to bow down to as 
 those ; this was far beyond their idol-craft. The governor's 
 residence! What would Sekeletu say to such a palace as 
 that, with its projecting roofs and verandahs ! all covered 
 with trellis-work, interlaced with magnificent creepers; its 
 great gates, and high walls, and paved courts, with fountains 
 and lemon and orange trees. They look at each other in 
 astonishment, and say, " Good ! good !" nodding their heads, 
 and bursting out into short laughs, as pleased children do. 
 And the grand people that went in and out of those grand 
 houses, with no end of rich clothing, and horses, and mules, 
 and gay carriages, and negroes to wait upon them, what 
 mighty chiefs they must all be ! The beautiful ladies and 
 the fair children ! Surely these be not common wives and 
 piccaninnies, but a superior race of beings. And then the 
 priests, with shaven crowns, and long garments of black and 
 white : these are the rain -makers and medicine-men in antic 
 dresses. But the greatest wonder of all was the sea. As 
 they stood upon the shore, and gazed out on the broad expanse, 
 they could scarcely believe their eyes: they looked first down
 
 DI9 LIFE AND ADVl-STTRKg. 109 
 
 upon the ground, and then at each other in mute astonishment. 
 What said they among themselves ? " No more earth r all 
 gone ? dead and done for ? . We were told that the earth 
 had no end, and yet here is the end. Wonderful ! But the 
 ships ! the big canoes ! Where could trees be got large enough 
 to cut them out of ? Who could manage the paddles of such 
 vast machines ? See ! see ! they move ! they move without 
 paddles ; these white men have caught the foam from the falls 
 of the Zambesi, or the clouds that fill the sky in the rainy 
 season, and fastened them to the straight stems of the young 
 palm-tree ; and so the ship moves along, guided by an unseen 
 spirit. Wonderful ! Can these be the great sea- wagons, of 
 which our fathers have told us, and in which so many of our 
 unhappy countrymen have been taken away to a life of slavery 
 in lands afar off? Into these did they put those poor manacled 
 creatures taken in the wars of our tribes, and sold to the 
 white man, to be fattened and eaten, or to be kept to toil 
 and suffer for the pleasure of their masters r" So would 
 these simple children of the valley beyond the Lceambye 
 talk and reason on all the new and strange objects which they 
 beheld, and although they were treated most kindly by the 
 people of the place, and had almost unbounded confidence 
 in Mr. Livingston, yet, when asked to go on board one of the 
 British cruisers, although they did not refuse to do so, they 
 went with fear and trembling, thinking that, after all, the 
 story of the fattening and killing natives for white man'a 
 food might, as they had heard, have some truth in it. The 
 cordiality of their reception on board the strange ship, how- 
 ever, soon set their fears at rest. The officers made them 
 understand by smiles, and more substantial tokens of friendli- 
 ness, that they WCD welcome guests; and the jack-tars shook
 
 JiU Dlt. L.VlJs T GSTONE 
 
 them by the hands, patted them on the backs, tickled them, 
 under the ribs to excite merriment, laughed and jabbered 
 with them in such a comical, frank, hearty and jovial manner, 
 that the Barotse were quite delighted, and would have gone 
 anywhere with their new friends without suspecting or fearing 
 harm. 
 
 Ileturning from their visit to this ship, and filled with 
 astonishment at everything they saw, they were ready to 
 
 fall down and worship Mr. Livingston, who they now, more 
 than ever, regarded as a superior being. He it was who Bad
 
 HIS T,rHE AND ADVENTURES. TJ1 
 
 safely conducted them through so many dangers, and brought 
 them to this place of wonders ; he it was to whom all these 
 white men, so rich and so powerful as they seemed, paid such 
 attention and respect. He had evidently done some great 
 thing, and he must be a chief mighty above all chiefs. They 
 saw him, after awhile, rise from his bed of sickness, on which 
 he lay down, as it seemed, to die, changed and renovated; 
 and they heard him tell them that he meant to go back to 
 Linyanti, notwithstanding all his former sufferings, and the 
 perils that he knew beset the way, with feelings of admira- 
 tion, not unmingled with awe. Many were the presents they 
 received from the governor, the merchants, and other in- 
 habitants of the place, for themselves and their chief; but 
 they wanted to take back more curious things, to show and 
 to talk about, to exhibit the astonishing amount of informa- 
 tion which they had gained, by explaining the nature and 
 uses of these things. So, having learned that by labouring 
 they could earn money, which, would purchase more, they 
 engaged to empty a vessel laden with coals, which had come- 
 in to be relieved of her cargo. At it they went, thinking 
 that the job would not be a very long one. " Oh, we shall 
 soon get them all out," they said confidently to each other. 
 And so they worked away, with good spirits for one day ; 
 two, three, not empty yet ? four, nor yet ? Xay, the ship 
 seems to have as many as ever in it. And so they gave it up 
 as a bad job, and they never could understand how it was 
 that so many " stones that burn " could be got into one ship. 
 They used to think, at one time, that their canoes were about 
 the finest vessels in the world, and that they were the most 
 dexterous and the bravest sailors ; but when they had seen 
 the boats and ships of these white men, and the bold and
 
 152 DR. L1VIXO STOKE 
 
 fearless way in which they ventured forth upon the rsug-h 
 sea, their estimate of themselves as sailors and marine 
 architects sunk marvellously, and their astonishment was 
 visibly depicted in their countenances. 
 
 And now the time is approaching for their departure ; the 
 health and strength of Mr. Livingston is greatly restored ; he 
 is still, however, far from well, and might without any dere- 
 liction of duty at once take ship for England, there to rejoin 
 his wife and family, from whom he had been separated two 
 years, and for a time, at all events, rest from his severe labours. 
 But no, his work was only half accomplished ; it is true he 
 had opened a way from the west coast into the heart of 
 Southern Africa ; but that way was beset with many diffi- 
 culties, and he had not yet found a healthy spot for the 
 establishment of a mission amid the densely populated middle 
 districts. Besides, he felt that he ought to see his faithful 
 Barotse back to their own country. And above all, there was 
 the constraining love for his fellow creatures, and the earnest 
 zeal for the service of God, which strongly influenced and 
 directed him. He had a sacred ambition which urged him on 
 the path of danger. " I feel," he writes to his friends in Eng- 
 land at this juncture, " that the work to which I have set 
 myself is only half accomplished. The way out to the eastern 
 coast may be less difficult than I have found that to the west. 
 If I succeed we shall at least have a choice. I intend, God 
 helping me, to go down the Zambesi, or Leeambye to Quili- 
 mane. If I cannot succeed, I shall return to Loanda, and 
 thence embark for England." 
 
 While resting at Loanda, our traveller made some interest- 
 ing notes of what he saw there ; among other things, the ruin- 
 ous convents, or as he called them, " decayed missionary
 
 UTS IfFE AND ADVENTURES. !13 
 
 establishments," particularly arrested his attention. No soiun.1 
 of matin or vesper chime issued from these religious houses 
 now, no call to prayer and praise. The monks who once 
 inhabited them, and endeavoured, as we would fain hope, to 
 draw the surrounding natives into the fold of Christ, havo 
 long since died, and havo had no successors in the pious work 
 which they undertook, doubtless with holy zeal. Churches 
 were in some instances standing beside these monastic houses, 
 which wanted but little to put them in repair, and fit them 
 for the service of God. But all were now silent and deserted ; 
 in the little dormitories stood the bedsteads and the chests 
 which the brethren had used; and traces of their handiwork 
 were visible in the gardens once so trim, but now overgrown 
 with weeds. In those gardens, too, were fruit trees brought 
 from South America, which had taken root and flourished in 
 this congenial clime, and now overspread with their luxuriant 
 branches the whole space which they had formerly but sharcJ 
 with other vegetables. There the fathers had laboured and 
 prayed; had risen refreshed in the morning, and lain dov.'n 
 weary at night weary with teaching and preaching, and 
 doing such daily work as was necessary to earn their daily 
 bread, and keep matters straight about them ; and when tlio 
 night came. on, when no man can work, they had dropped into 
 their peaceful graves. There stood the little hillocks, row by 
 row, but they bore no memorial of their inhabitants ; not a namo 
 was upon cither of them, nor were there any printed or written 
 records by which Livingston could read something of the dust 
 which slumbered there. But though there are no written 
 or engraved mementoes of these passed-away labourers in tho 
 Lord's vineyard, yet they have their Irving memorials in the 
 coloured population of the district, most of whom can read 
 
 i
 
 114 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 rnd write, so that " it is not an uncommon sight to see a black 
 sitting in the evening, with his fire-stick in one hand and a 
 pen in the other, writing in a beautiful hand a petition to a 
 commandant." 
 
 Nor is this art of writing likely to die out among so lively 
 and intelligent a people as these negroes undoubtedly are; 
 they know the value of it, and teach it to their children ; and 
 the day may come when it may be made a stepping-stone to 
 power and dominion, based not upon the old blood-cemented 
 pagan foundations, but upon those of Christian civilisation and 
 humanising commerce. Already the light is dawning upon 
 Africa; and her sable princes may yet be great among the 
 potentates of earth, and great, too, let us hope, in a more ex- 
 alted sense than that of mere earthly domination. This now 
 benighted quarter of the globe, we should remember, was once 
 the cradle of science and learning; her sons were the in- 
 structors of less enlightened nations, and much as the great 
 bulk of them are now sunk in the scale of man's moral and 
 intellectual stature, yet who shall say that they are never to 
 rise again, and exhibit those noble qualities of heart and mind 
 which have rendered some of them so eminent in times gone 
 by? 
 
 On this subject, however, we shall have more to say by 
 and bye ; at present we have to tread in the footsteps of Mr., or 
 as we should now say, Dr. Livingston for the degree of LL.D. 
 had, unknown at the time to himself, been conferred upon him 
 at a meeting of the senatus academicus of the Glasgow Univer- 
 sity, held on the 22nd Dec., 1854, " in token of high appre- 
 ciation of his services in the cause of science and Christian 
 philanthropy." 
 
 He had long borne among the Uechuanas, who hud reason
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENIUKES. 115 
 
 to be grateful for the exercise of his medical skill, the honoured 
 title of "Doctor;" and now he was, by the unanimous award 
 of a learned hody of his native country, legally invested with 
 this title, by which we shall henceforth distinguish him, whom 
 we left but just now musing among the deserted convents of 
 the Catholic missionaries. He has observed in some of the 
 neglected gardens, as well as in many other spots in the neigh- 
 bourhood, a plant growing wild in clumps and patches, fre- 
 quently of considerable extent, which he at once recognises 
 as the Coffea Arabica, whose oblong, red, shining, and after- 
 wards purple berries form such an important article of com- 
 merce all over the civilised world. This is the Mocha coffee, 
 first introduced by the old Portuguese missionaries into this 
 part of "Western Africa, where it seems to have met with a 
 congenial soil and climate ; for, although little pains appear to 
 have been taken in its cultivation, it has spread all over 
 the colony, and as far as 300 miles into the interior, it having 
 been found growing spontaneously near Cassange. Our good 
 missionary was rejoiced to observe this; for his philan- 
 thropic soul at once saw the advantage that might be derived 
 from the ready growth and easy cultivation of such a valuable 
 article of commerce. Here was another lever by which Africa 
 was to be elevated. 
 
 "We must pass over whatever else of interest Loanda and 
 its neighbourhood presented ; for the time has arrived for our 
 travellers to be again en route. The Barotse filled with the 
 wonders they have seen, and eager to communicate them to 
 their countrymen, and laden, too, with presents for their 
 friends, having, among other things, a horse and handsome 
 dress for Sekeletu from the Governor of Angola, who desires 
 to promote commercial intercourse with the Makololo people, -
 
 I 16 DK. T.IVINGKTOWB 
 
 are anxious to be gone; and so, also, is Livingston himself, not- 
 withstanding the perils of the way ; for, as we said before, 
 his great work is only half accomplished, and he is not the 
 man to stop half-way in a holy enterprise. Behold him, 
 then, at the close of 1854, once more take up his pilgrim's 
 staff, and set forth on his return journey, much strengthened 
 and refreshed, and highly gratified by the kind and hos- 
 pitable treatment he had received from, the Portuguese autho- 
 rities of all grades, and the British and other residents of 
 Loanda. To the former he had rendered valuable service, by 
 correcting many errors in their maps of the interior, and by 
 giving much useful information as to the names and positions 
 of the native tribes, and the productive capabilities of the 
 countries he had traversed. And now he went forth again, 
 resolved, if strength were given him, to enlarge his geo- 
 graphical knowledge, and open such a way into the heart of 
 South Africa as might be traversed by the missionary and the 
 merchant, and become a channel through which might Le 
 poured streams of light into those dark regions. 
 
 From Loanda to Cassange, a distance of about three hun- 
 dred miles, which was as far as the Portuguese authority ex- 
 tended, our party passed on without any other interruptLns 
 than those caused by the nature of the country, or I>r. Living- 
 ston's own desire to visit every important point, and make 
 observations that would be useful to future travellers. Ac- 
 cordingly he often turned aside from the direct route, and 
 passed over difficult tracts of country, which he might havo 
 avoided.' But when he emerged from Angola, and entered 
 the country occupied by Chiboque, Bushiugc, and Bangula 
 tribes, the old troubles began again. Extortion and robbery 
 met them at every turn; cupidity and violence confronted
 
 UTS T.IFF. AND ADVENTURES. 117 
 
 them wherever they went ; and so great were the difficulties 
 of the way, that most men would have turned hack in despair 
 of overcoming them. Formidable bodies of armed men 
 gathered around his little band, with fierce looks and threat- 
 ening gestures; and again and again was the tact and resolu- 
 tion of Dr. Livingston called into play to rescue himself and 
 followers from what appeared to be impending destruction. 
 Long ere they reached the Casai river, the poor Barotse had 
 been deprived of all the treasures with which they intended 
 to astonish their friends at home. Sekeletu's horse and dress 
 all went, one after another, in the shape of tolls, to the 
 extortionate savages who beset their way. They had literally 
 to buy permission to traverse almost every mile of the road, 
 and the crossing of a river was generally a very expensive 
 affair indeed. If they could swim across, they had to buy 
 permission to do so ; but if they required the aid of canoes, ot 
 the rude bridges which were in some places erected, nearly the 
 whole population swarmed out, and had to be satisfied, ero 
 the travellers could pass. Reaching, at length', the Casai, 
 with but little left, their request for a passage was met by 
 the modest demand of a gun, a bullock, and a man, as toll for 
 being ferried over. " Veiy well," said the Doctor, with per- 
 fect calmness; " I am sorry I cannot comply with these terms. 
 What will you do with us?" "Oh," said the chief, increas- 
 ing his price on account of the urgency of the occasion, " you 
 ' must give me all you have got." In no way disconcerted, as 
 it appeared, our travellers prepared to spend the night on tho 
 bank of the river, and the chief directed that his canoes 
 chould be put away, feeling confident that the party could 
 not proceed without them. But the Barotse had sharp eyes, 
 and, without seeming to do so, had carefully watched the
 
 J18 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 course of one of the canoes into a distant creek, far, as it was 
 imagined, beyond their reach. Then, when, only the twink- 
 ling stars looked out, and the owners of the canoe were fast 
 asleep in their tents, these children of the Leeambye silently 
 swam to the creek, and brought out the boat, in which the 
 watchful party were conveyed safely over the river, and long 
 ere their enemies awoke from their slumbers, they were far 
 cut of their reach, and among a friendly people, as all were 
 with whom they came in contact from this point. The good 
 ^rhite man was here " at home" again. All knew him, or 
 liad heard favourably of him ; and in the different towns and 
 villages through which he passed, he wanted nothing that the 
 people had to give ; although, in the true spirit of trade with 
 which all Africans are imbued, they often detained him on 
 various pretences, in order that he might be obliged to pur- 
 chase a meal of them. 
 
 And now again oh, joy of joys ! the river Leeba is in 
 Bight, and soon down the mid-channel our travellers glide ia 
 the light canoe, the Barotse singing as they bend to the pad- 
 dles, and at times breaking out into exclamations of delight at 
 the thought of being so near home. Each familiar object 
 seems like a dear friend to them, and every rock and clump of 
 trees which they swiftly pass calls up recollections of some 
 Event in their earlier life which they had for a time forgotten. 
 And yet they had not been long away ; but the dangers and 
 toils they had gone through, and the wonders they had seen, 
 made it seem like a life-time ; the little space was BO crowded 
 with events, and had in it so much of novelty and excitement, 
 that ever after they spoke of it as of some great lengthened 
 period of existence. On their way down the Leeba, and thence 
 into the Leeambye, they frightened all the wild creatures by
 
 UTS LITE AT7D ADVENTURES. 119 
 
 their shouting and singing. Sometimes one or other of them, 
 unable to control his delight, would send his paddle spinning 
 high in the air, and then spring overboard to catch it as it 
 fell, and go swimming and splashing down the stream for 
 awhile, to the great astonishment of the hippopotami and 
 crocodiles. Sometimes a single voice would arise from amid 
 them in a shrill scream, as though its owner would send it 
 before him, to announce his approach to his friends in the 
 valley towards which they were speeding ; other voices would 
 then join, and giving utterance to their eager thoughts and 
 thronging recollections, the wild chorus would burst forth 
 in words something like these : 
 
 " Home ! home ! Barotse go ! 
 
 Far from the land of the white man's foo ; 
 Far from Chiboque and Bangala ; 
 Hide your canoe close ! ah ! ah ! ah ! 
 Sharp is the eye of Barotse ; him 
 Can like a fish or a sea-cow swim. 
 Twinkling stars look down at night, 
 Say to Barotse, " Boy, all right!" 
 How they snore, them Bangala, 
 Snore in their sleep, ah ! ah ! ah ! ah ! 
 
 Home ! home ! Barotse go ! 
 Unto a land where the broad streams flow ; 
 Place of rest for the weary and worn, 
 There grows the maize, and the Kaffir corn ; 
 Fresh milk every day, honey in store, 
 Yams in the garden, enough and more ; 
 Fish in the river, and game on the plain, 
 Ne'er shall Barotse be hungry again. 
 No such land has the Bangala, 
 Him better sleep, ah ! ah ! ah ! ah ! 
 
 Home ! homo ! Barotse go ! 
 
 Bring white chief, in his swift cancel
 
 120 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Wonderful things has Barotse seen, 
 Strange are the places where he has boon ; 
 Been to the end of the world, oh ho ! 
 Wife won't believe it, not she ! no ! 
 Piccaninny open his big round eye, 
 While we talk to the standers by ; 
 While we tell of the Bangala, 
 Sleepy fellows ! ah ! ah ! ah ! aL t' 
 
 And so, as we said, with singing and shouting and groat 
 outbursts of merriment, they paddle down the Leeba into 
 their own Leeambye, and come to the Barotse country, where 
 they are welcomed by friends and relatives, who are as eager 
 to listen to, as they are to tell, their wonderful tales of 
 travel. Faithfully have they fulfilled their engagement with 
 Dr. Livingston, unswerving in their fidelity through all 
 trials and dangers ; and as faithfully has he performed his 
 promise to bring them back to their own country. They tell 
 their friends that he is "very good chief, very good!" And 
 that he belongs to a race, the mightiest upon the face of the 
 earth ; they live in grand houses as high as hills, and beau- 
 tifully furnished; and they have canoes so big that there 
 would not be water enough in the Leeambye to float them ; 
 and they spread out great wings like birds, only ten thousand 
 times bigger, and fly across the great lake, that has no 
 boundary, but runs off right into the sky. " Yes ; right into 
 the sky ! We know that, for we have seen it swallow up the 
 inoon, or break it all to pieces and scatter the fragments far 
 and wide over its surface. Call the Makololo sailors ? Bah ! 
 not they ; Barotse neither. White men, they are the sailors ; 
 they live on the water, their sliips arc floating houses, and 
 they never go upon land ; no, never, except just now and 
 then, to oblige the black people." So their tongues ran.
 
 HIP. T.7FF ANP APYENTTTKES. 121 
 
 while they rested and feasted, and while Dr. Livingston, once 
 more at Linyanti, with his friend Sekeletu, was thinking of, 
 and preparing for, his journey to the east coast, and performing 
 in the interval such missionary work as time and circumstance 
 permitted. 
 
 Let us, with him, take a glance at the people and country 
 around us, and endeavour to obtain an insight iuto the cha- 
 racter and capabilities of the one, and the nature and actual 
 position of the other. In the very middle of a great net- 
 work of rivers and streams, stands Linyanti, the chief-town, 
 if town it may be called, of the Makololo. It occupies about 
 a central position between the eastern and western coasts of 
 the great South- African continent, the middle of which ap- 
 pears, as it were, to be scooped out into a kind of natural 
 basin, in which there is probably no lower ground than that 
 on which Linyanti stands. Coming out of this place, on 
 either side, and taking a straight onward direction, the tra- 
 veller would, sooner or later, have to ascend, until he got into 
 a less fruitful, but more ealubrious, country; rocky ridges, 
 and slight elevations, he would occasionally have to traverse, 
 before he got away from the central depression, such as the 
 two ranges of hills which bound the Barotse valley, and 
 which have, no doubt, determined the course of the Leeam- 
 bye, as similar elevated grounds have those of other rivers, 
 which pour their volumes of water into this great central 
 hollow. The exposure of so large a surface of country, inter- 
 sected with broad rivers, and, during a part of every year, par- 
 tially submerged, must necessitate an enormous evaporation; 
 and this, rising towards the mountain ranges which form tho 
 upper edges of the basin, is there condensed, and falls again, 
 to flow into and replenish the downward-rushing streams,
 
 122 DH. LIVINGSTON!? 
 
 and to fill the laliss like Ngami, which again serve as re- 
 servoirs and feeders to such rivers as take their rise there- 
 from. All through a beautiful system of reciprocity prevails: 
 the water which is taken from one part is given to anothor v 
 which returns it to the place from whence it came, or to some 
 other which more needs the supply. Into Ngami flows the 
 Zouga, which takes its rise far to the east, and is joined, ere 
 it reaches the lake, by the Tamunakle. Into this lake, also, 
 at the eastern extremity, runs the Tiogne river, which comes 
 winding down from the north-west. If we follow the course 
 of the Tamunakle, it will lead us down into the centre of the 
 basin, near to the Chobe ; and, once in that Linotkanoka, 
 land of rivers upon rivers, turn wherever we may, we are 
 arrested by broad streams, hurrying in all directions, like 
 messengers of some beneficent king, in haste to bear glad 
 tidings to tributary nations. There from the south-west flows 
 on the Chobe, or Chove, friend and protector of the Makololo 
 people; there from the south-east flows the Leeba, which 
 as it approaches the Barotse valley becomes merged in, or 
 changes its name to, the Leeambye ; and this, again, as it 
 takes first an eastern sweep and then a direct western turn to 
 join the Chobe, is called the Sekosi, but before it takes this 
 turn a branch separates from it and goes direct east, and this 
 is called Sesheke. Tumbling down the Mosiotunya Falls 
 among the Kisi Kisi Hills, it gets another name, becoming the 
 far-famed Zambesi, which stretches away even to the eastern 
 coast, as we shall presently see, and promises to become a great 
 highway for commercial and missionary enterprise. Then 
 there is the Loangua, the Bashukulompo, the Kafue, and we 
 know not how many others, all great rivers or branches of 
 such, winding in and out in every direction, tind forming a
 
 HIS trPE AND ADVENTURES. 123 
 
 perfect watery maze, amid which the mind becomes be- 
 wildered, and from the entanglements of which escape seems 
 impossible. The great wonder is, how human beings can live 
 there, surrounded as they are by creatures and influences 
 detrimental to life and health ; huge hippopotami flounder in 
 the floods, scaly-coated crocodiles wallow in the swamps, where 
 also lurks the venomous snake and buzzes the poisonous fly. 
 King Fever reigns lord paramount over this his realm of 
 malaria ; the lion and other ravenous brutes prowl about tho 
 higher grounds, and often invade the villages in search of 
 prey ; and, as if this were not enough, man is himself the 
 greatest foe to man. 
 
 " The hunting tribes of air and earth 
 Respect the brethren of their birth ; 
 Nature, who loves the claim of kind, 
 Less cruel chase to each assigned. 
 The falcon, poised on soaring wing, 
 Watches the wild duck by the spring ; 
 The fox-hound wakes the fox's lair, 
 The greyhound presses on the hare ; 
 The eagle pounces on the lamb, 
 The wolf devours the fleecy dam ; 
 E'en tiger fell and sullen bear 
 Their likeness and their lineage spare ; 
 Man only mars kind Nature's plan, 
 And turns the fierce pursuit on man." 
 
 Thus says the great poet and novelist Scott, and among the 
 African tribes we find an exemplification of his lines, for no- 
 where is internecine war waged with more cruel malignity 
 and horrid barbarity; these savages are constantly fighting 
 among themselves, and the scenes which occur in their 
 plundering incursions into each other's territories are dreadful
 
 121 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 beyond description. There truly do men appear as demons ; 
 but, alas ! this brutalising of man's better nature is by no 
 means confined to heathen savages. All who engage in war 
 must to a certain extent deinonise themselves. 
 
 Still, even in this most pestilential region, notwithstanding 
 all the dangers to which they are exposed, and their utter 
 want of all comforts and conveniences, according to civilised 
 notions of such, these Makololo do manage to enjoy a tolerable 
 share of happiness and even security, that is, measured by 
 the standard which savage life affords. Among, or contiguous 
 to, these swampy islands, there are some elevated grounds, 
 comparatively cool and dry; and some of these valleys, when 
 not actually submerged, afford pleasant dwelling places : that 
 of the Barotse, we find, is celebrated as a land of plenty, and, 
 amid all their privations, the people have not to suffer from 
 want of food. With plenty of fish in their rivers, and wild 
 fowl amid their reedy swamps; with abundance of game on 
 their hills and higher plains, and a good supply of fruit, 
 grain, and vegetables, and not unfrcquently of cattlo also, 
 they can pretty well satisfy their mere animal wants; and 
 what does the savage care for beyond this ? Give him food 
 and drink in abundance, with little occasion to labour for it, 
 and he is happy. As to " battle, murder, and sudden death," 
 he is used to them ; and it matters but little whether he is 
 carried off by pestilence, or the wild beast, or the lurking foe. 
 The contemplation of such an end docs not trouble him, for ho 
 has been accustomed to regard it as the way that all must go, 
 and, if he had his choice, he would probably prefer it to dying 
 of old age to creeping out of life in a contemptible manner, 
 unworthy of a brave warrior. Better be slain by the foe, or 
 killed in any sudden way, than die thus.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVESIUKES. 125 
 
 So reasons the savage, who looks not beyond the life that 
 is ; hut not so thinks the Christian man, he holds not his life 
 BO lightly, he has a work to do and a race to run, and until 
 God sees fit to relieve him of his charge, he labours on if hia 
 strength lasts ; if not, he lies him clown submissively, to bear 
 and to suffer accordingly as his Heavenly Master wills. 
 
 But we were speaking of these Makololo and their country, 
 lying in the bottom of that great natural basin which we have 
 endeavoured to describe ; living in the wet season in the midst 
 of a swampy sea or lake as it appears to be, upon hills which 
 then become islands or artificial mounds, and in the dry, 
 ranging over the lately submerged country, which is exceed- 
 ingly fertile, and cultivating, in some parts, maize and several 
 kinds of grain, the sugar cane and sweet potato, with yams 
 and a kind of earth-root, called in their language motu- 
 ohatse, that is, "man of the earth." Date palms and feathery 
 palmyras are here and there to be met with. And all over 
 the land are cacti, and orchidaceous and other plants, which 
 enliven the scene with their splendid blossoms. The soil, 
 where not swampy and overgrown with rccds and aquatic 
 plants, is generally covered with rank, coarse grass, and well 
 timbered. The trees are large and beautiful, many of them 
 altogether new to the European botanist ; and distinguished 
 from all by its great size and massive proportions, stands the 
 giant baobab ; and amid the branches of these the oriole hangs 
 its pendent nest, out of the reach of snakes, monkeys, and 
 wild cats ; and the gregarious finch erects its thatched dome, 
 and many other bright winged creatures build and sport. 
 
 The proper, or aboriginal, inhabitants of these swampy 
 regions appear to be quite a distinct race from the Makololo, 
 who are composed of various Bcchuana tribes, and who. under
 
 126 DR. LlViKGSTOWB 
 
 the command of the old chief Sebitaone, migrated hither from 
 the borders of the great desert, and took possession of the land 
 to the north-north-east and north-west of the Chobe and Sesheke 
 rivers, and there, as it were, intrenched themselves against 
 their enemies the Matabeles, a warlike tribe inhabiting the 
 hilly country to the north of the Zambesi, with whom we 
 shall presently become more intimately acquainted. The na- 
 tives proper of these regions, who are now under the sway 
 of the Makololo, are a black race, with many of the true 
 negro characteristics; they are lively, peaceable, and intelligent; 
 their language is quite different from the Sichuana, although 
 that, being as it were the court language, is beginning to bo 
 pretty well understood among them. Hence Dr. Livingston 
 was enabled to communicate freely with the Barotse, Banyete, 
 Batoko, and Bashukulompo, as the different tribes into which 
 they are divided are called. These are, in the main, peace- 
 able and industrious ; by them cultivation is chiefly carried on, 
 and many rude arts are practised ; thus the Barotse are inge- 
 nious in basket-making, and the lighter sorts of wood- work; 
 the Banyete are expert workers in iron, which abounds in their 
 country ; they make ox and sheep-bells, and various imple- 
 ments and utensils ; they are also famed as canoe builders, 
 having plenty of a fine, light wood, called molompi, 
 well adapted for the purpose. Other tribes are skilful 
 in pottery, and the whole of them seem to have an ingenious, 
 mechanical turn, and good abilities, which only want culti- 
 vating to produce the happiest results. They are a strong race, 
 with well-developed, muscular chests, and well-formed limbs, 
 and yet they do not appear ever to have been much addicted 
 to warlike pursuits ; had it been otherwise, they would not 
 have afforded such an easy conquest to the Makololo a mere
 
 HIS LIFE AND ABVEKTTTRKS. 127 
 
 handful of intruders, compared with them, for they are very 
 numerous, their towns and villages being scattered here and 
 there over a vast extent of country, the smallest containing 
 500 or 600 inhabitants. Slave-dealers from both the eastern 
 and western coasts have lately penetrated their country, and 
 some of them have incited the Makololo to attack them in 
 their peaceable homes, and sell or exchange them for firearms, 
 which they are extremely desirous of possessing. They have 
 given as many as thirty captives for three English muskets ; 
 and in 1850, a slave-hunting party of the Mambari, who 
 came from the north-west, near the sea, went off with two 
 hundred of these wretched captives in chains. They promised 
 to return the next year for more, and we have seen that they 
 did so, and that the presence of Livingston among the Mako- 
 lolo frustrated their object. "If," argues our good mis- 
 sionary, " traders from Europe would come up the Zambesi, 
 the slave-trader would soon be driven out of the market. It 
 is only three years since we first opened up a market for the 
 people on the Zotiga and Lake Ngami. "We know of 900 
 elephants being killed in that period on one river alone. 
 Before we made a way into that quarter, there was no 
 market; the elephants' tusks were left to rot in the sun 
 with the other bones, and many may still be seen completely 
 spoiled by sun and rain; but more than 10,OOOZ. worth, of 
 ivory has come from that river since its discovery ; and if one 
 river helps to swell the commerce of the colony, what may not 
 be expected from the many rivers, all densely populated, 
 which are now brougM; to light?" 
 
 On the whole, it appears quite clear that a most lucrative 
 trade might be opened up in these regions by Europeans, and 
 that it is only necessary to make the natives aware of the
 
 128 nn. MVIKGSTONJB 
 
 ni?jrkctable value of the natural products around them, and to 
 show them how to collect, store, and increase their cultiva- 
 tion, to induce them to turn all their attention to agricultural 
 and other useful pursuits. Once introduce Christianity and 
 civilisation among them, and we shall hear no more of the 
 slave-trade, and probably little of inter -tribal war, of which 
 that abominable traffic is the great instigator. It has been 
 argued that firearms and gunpowder will be sure to find their 
 way into these regions through the channels opened for more 
 legitimate commerce ; and thus armed with these means of 
 destruction, the natives will become dangerous to the Eu- 
 ropeans who may settle among or near them. The reply to 
 this is, that such articles are already getting into the hands of 
 the Makololo, and other central South-African people, and 
 that so great is the desire to possess them, that they will give 
 anything they have, or can lay their hands on, for them. 
 The slave-dealers know this, and say, "men for guns; we 
 will take nothing else in exchange." So blood is shed, and 
 villages burned, and feuds are perpetuated, and men or chil- 
 dren are forthcoming, whenever they are called for, at the 
 rate sometimes, as we have seen, of three human beings for a 
 gun. Gordon Gumming tells us that a profit of three thou- 
 sand per cent, can be realised on the traffic in firearms among 
 the wild tribes of Africa ; and while this is the case, the efforts 
 of mercenary speculators will be mainly directed to supply the 
 articles for this traffic. The natives want guns too, for the 
 purpose of destroying, more readily than they can do by any 
 other means, the wild creatures by which they are surrounded, 
 and these they will have ; at present they can only get them 
 ty giving men for them, and so they seize and kidnap each 
 other. No; opejo, un liroad channels of trade with them
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEXTTTRES. 129 
 
 tlic broader the better ; evil will come in with the good 
 this is tbe case with all that results from human effort but 
 it' right means be taken, the good will vastly preponderate. 
 Civilise, Christianise, and elevate these black brothers of ours, 
 and they will make a better use of their energies than to kill, 
 and destroy, and enslave each other. As a useful hint to those 
 who would turn their attention to this part of Africa as a seat, 
 of commercial enterprise who would endeavour to establish 
 a trade on the Zambesi Dr. Livingston particularly states 
 that " June, July, and August, are, as far aa our present 
 knowledge goes, the only safe months for the attempt." This 
 is a comparatively healthy season, the winter, if such it may 
 be culled, in a region where the trees never lose their leaves, and 
 the swallows may be always seen haunting the banks of the 
 rivers, in which, however, as our travellers saw in July on the 
 Chobc, there is sometimes a slight frost. On the elevated lands 
 nearer to the coast on either side, the cold is at times even se- 
 vere ; and hero, we imagine, must the trading and missionary 
 stations be planted; and the more largely the missionary spirit 
 enters into the commercial transactions, the better will it bo 
 for the native tribes, and the better also for the Europeans 
 with whom they come in contact. It is ever a short sighted 
 policy to commit wrong for the sake of immediate profit; not 
 only with individuals, but also with nations, the axiom holds 
 good, that " honesty is the best policy." Curses have been 
 likened to chickens, which ever come home to roost ; so is it 
 the case with wrongs, national or individual, oven in this life 
 they are sure to inflict sore damage to the perpetrators. All 
 the gold and precious things of Mexico and Peru obtained by 
 violenco and treachery from the native prince by Spain, what 
 did iher for that country ? rendered her people luxurious and 
 
 K
 
 130 DR. LIVING STOW E 
 
 effeminate, her nobles avaricious and grasping, her court ond 
 government profligate and corrupt and what is she now ? And 
 what is Portugal ? for all that her ruler once called himself 
 Prince of Guinea, and was rich in slaves, and ivory, and 
 precious ores, the spoil of her African conquests ! And look 
 at America, what a dark cloud is impending over that magni- 
 ficent country, heralding the storm of retribution which will 
 sooner or later burst upon her, for the wrongs she has inflicted 
 upon the Africans ! Truly the chickens, grown now to birds 
 of strong beaks and mighty talons, are coming home to roost, 
 and they darken the air with the flapping of their innumerable 
 /ings. Need we refer to the pagan nations of antiquity to 
 prove our position, that wealth and power, got by violence 
 and wrong, are but the means of a nation's eventual decay and 
 downfall ? Alas, no ; for too many so-called Christian states 
 afford striking examples of this. Even those which have 
 sent forth their professed " soldiers of the cross," to spread 
 Christianity through heathen realms, have in most instances 
 may we not say all, in which the military was mingled with 
 the missionary spirit ? committed such grievous wrongs, as to 
 call down Heaven's judgment on them, and render themselves 
 examples of that retribution which, as we said, invariably 
 overtakes the wicked. 
 
 " A rabid race, fanatically bold, 
 And steeled to cruelty by lust of gold, 
 Traversed the waves, the unknown world explored. 
 The cross their standard, but their faith the sworu. 
 Their steps o'er graves, o'er prostrate realms they trod, 
 And worshipped mammon while they vowed to God." 
 
 Let no such reproach fall upon those who come hither 
 to explore, and colonise, and plant the standard of the cross
 
 BIS LIFE AXD JlDVlCNTSTiZS. 131 
 
 amid these now wild and barbarous regions. If thay como 
 ia tne spirit of the Christian pioneer with whom we are now 
 tarrying, sure are we that they will never inflict wrong, and 
 therefore never incur the anger of that God who hath said, 
 " Vengeance is mine, I will repay," and who will surely visit 
 the wrong-doer with heavy punishment. "Well would it be 
 if all geographical discoverers were imbued with such a lovo 
 for their fellow-man as Dr. Livingston, so as to be able to 
 Bay, with him, " The end of geographical discovery is the 
 beginning of the missionary enterprise."
 
 132 
 
 Dli. UVIXOSTOSE 
 
 CHAPTER VII [. 
 
 VISIT TO MOSELEKATSE. 
 
 HIS chapter, although to a cer- 
 tain extent episodical, is yet 
 necessary to the filling-in of 
 our sketch of Dr. Livingston's 
 travels and discoveries; in it 
 we purpose giving an account 
 of Mr. Moffat's journey to tho 
 country of the Matabcles, tho 
 warlike tribes who, under tho 
 rule of the renowned chief Moselekalse, hold possession of tho 
 more elevated lands to the south and east of the Makololo, of 
 whom they are the much- dreaded foes. 
 
 It was on the 23rd of May, 1854, that Mr. Moffjt, 
 anxious for the safety of his son-in-law, of whom nothing hud 
 been heard since he set out on his fourth journey, late in 
 1852, left the Kuruman station to proceed northward, in the 
 hope of gaining some tidings of the missing one. On the 7th 
 of June he reached Letubaruba, where abode Sechele, chief of 
 the Bakwains, who, we may remember, had, in 1852, suffered 
 BO severely on the attack of the Dutch Boers, which was 
 instigated by revengeful feelings against him for assisting 
 travellers to penetrate northward, and especially for hia 
 friendship for Dr. Livingston, whose station on the Kolobeng, 
 or, as the natives pronounce it Kouloubcng (River of wiid 
 boars), they totally destroyed.
 
 TTIS MFK AN!) 
 
 133 
 
 Under the ministry of Livingston, Christianity had made 
 considerable way among the Bakwains; the chief, if not 
 altogether converted, had come to conform outwardly to the 
 ordinances of the faith, and many of the habits of civilised 
 life ; he had some time previous to Mr. Moffat's visit sent his 
 elder children to Kuruman to be educated, and two of them 
 were at home again at the time we are speaking of. It was 
 this chief, who, when spoken to by our missionary about 
 preaching the Gospel to his people, said they would never 
 become Christians unless they were well beaten. " I must 
 take the zuinbok, and boat them iuto it," said he; and really
 
 134 Bit. LIVING STOKE 
 
 his method of propagating the Gospel was not so very different 
 from that of many professors of Christianity nearer home, 
 who would drive people into the fold of Christ, and punish 
 them with pains and penalties if they were stupid and obstinate 
 enough, to hang back, or go the wrong way. 
 
 Moffat gives a very interesting account of his interviews 
 with this chief and Ma Sechele, his wife, and children, the 
 younger of whom, when they afterwards grew old enough, 
 were also sent to Kuruman for instruction. " They were all," 
 he says, " pretty well dressed ; each had on a neat tiger-skin, 
 kaross above their other clothing. After a palaver, we went 
 over to Sechele' s village, which lies on the other side of a gully, 
 and close under a bold precipitous hill; the town is properly 
 on the top of the hill. We entered Sechele' s large .loloapo 
 (outer court or enclosure), and sat down in a booth very neatly 
 made, with a hard clean floor occupying one end of the enclosure. 
 If a Sebele, Sechele' s wife, sat in what we call the veranda, and 
 the daughters sat on a carpet of skin, and were sewing sorr.c- 
 thing like calico. Maids were attending to large pots on the fire. 
 The courts, back yards, &c., through which we passed, were 
 all well- stocked with corn, pumpkins, and dried water-melons. 
 Everything seemed to denote plenty. By and bye, the contenta 
 of one of the pots were emptied into clean-scoured bowls. 
 One with an ample cavity was placed between my companions 
 and myself, with each a clean spoon ; and the bottom of the 
 dish soon testified that we did justice to the porridge. They 
 must have concluded that we came fasting. Other individuals, 
 including Jan Khatlane, drew near to where we, Sechele, 
 Khosilintsi, and Basiame, his brothers, and a couple more were 
 sitting. Sechele told the intruders they could take a walk 
 somewhere, from which I gathered that he did not wish them
 
 HIS LIFE AlfD ADVEHTTTRES. 135 
 
 to partake of the conversation." A palaver was then held 
 with Scchele, who, understanding that Mr. Moffat was going to 
 visit Moselekatse, wished him to use his influence with that 
 dreaded chief to endeavour to procure the release of Macheng, 
 the rightful chief of the Bamanguato tribe, who had been taken 
 prisoner when a youth, and under the care of Sechele. This 
 was too delicate an affair for the missionary to interfere in 
 directly, but he promised to use indirect influence, if he had 
 the opportunity. The then reigning chief of the Bamanguato, 
 thrugh whose country Mr. MofFat would have to pass, was 
 Sekiomi, and any interference in this matter might involve 
 eericus consequences on the traveller. We shall hear more of 
 this Bamangante chief, his people and country, presently, 
 when Moffat proceeds on his journey. Let us now look upon 
 anotter domestic, representing the inner life of these half- 
 civilised Bechuanas. On the morning of June 8th, after 
 breakiist, Moffat records that he went to Sechele's residence, 
 nd foind his wife sitting on a skin in the loloapo, mending 
 her lo'd's braces. Sechele soon made his appearance, and the 
 missioiary commenced praising the good lady for her in- 
 dustry; for she had other articles of dress which she wai 
 puttinj to rights. "Yes," said Sechele, " she has been well 
 taughtat the Kuruman. How should I get on without her ?" 
 This \\as, so far, good. A number of persons having joined 
 the fanily group, Moffat enlarged on the blessings of civilisa- 
 tion, aid pointing to the numerous bracelets of beads on their 
 legs, aiced what these things were for, but to hinder them 
 from rmning away from the Boers, or any one else who 
 wished to catch them. Some laughed, while the dames 
 pitied he missionary for his want of taste. He talks to them, 
 uevertlclcss, about their heathenish customs, while sonic cd
 
 1SH BB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 the children sport about his knees, and arc highly amused to 
 see some of their playfellows scamper off, as if he was going 
 to eat them. By and bye, they leave the loloapo, and retort} 
 into the house, which is large and comfortable, with a fire in 
 the centre of the one-half, the other being partitioned for a 
 bedroom. Two or three tolerably good chairs and a very 
 respectable table, with a gun or two, bullet pouches and 
 powder-horns, suspended on the walls. A bowl of porritge 
 is placed before the missionary, who, having breakfasted, tut 
 just tastes it ; then comes a dish of boiled corn, and some 
 other things. And there sat the missionary, with his 
 Bechuana friends, talking long and earnestly about tilings 
 which pertain to the soul, now and then interrupted bf in- 
 quiries concerning domestic matters such as the divisi<n of 
 the flesh of an ox that had been slaughtered, and so fortl. 
 
 What a peep is this into the interior of a royal residence, 
 more humble in its furnishings, and means of comfort, than 
 that of a mechanic in a civilised country ; and yet how supe- 
 rior to the wretched hut in which its possessor once ived, 
 wallowing in the mire of his heathen customs ; not, hovevcr, 
 yet altogether cast aside, if we may judge by portions <f the 
 talk between him and his guest, who scrupled not to speak 
 the plain truth, and apply reproach where it was nccdei, like 
 a faithful minister of God. 
 
 Altogether, however, we arc impressed with a fuvuirable 
 impression of Sechelc's character ; it contrasts very agi^eably 
 with that of many other of the African chiefs with whim we 
 are brought into contact in these missionary records, h'here 
 was a child-like simplicity and open-heartedness abou! him, 
 which seemed to speak of innate goodness. No wonder ihat so 
 many ol lus coua'uyiiKU \\uulJ :w~ hear of Mukhuu, tic
 
 HIS LIKE AND ADVEXTUBES. 137 
 
 of tho whites, when such acts as those of the emigrant Bocra 
 wore perpetrated by men who called themselves his children. 
 They could not make a distinction between the good and tho 
 bad, but believed that all the whites were leagued together 
 for their destruction. And this impression had got so deeply 
 rooted in the minds of the South- African tribes who had como 
 into contact with Europeans, and also from their report cf 
 those who had not, that tho work of tho missionaries was ren 
 dcrcd doubly difficult. 
 
 However, let us pursue our journey to the Bamanguato 
 country, which we reach in eight days from the time of leaving 
 Sechcle's town. Hero we meet with Sekhome, " whose appear- 
 ance is in keeping with his character, made up of cunning, 
 treachery, cruelty, falsehood, and folly." A prepossessing 
 individual ! Here is his portrait, as drawn by Gordon Gum- 
 ming, who hunted elephants and other large game in his 
 dominions, and found him a hard hand at a bargain for every- 
 thing : " He was of middle stature, and appeared to be about 
 thirty years of age. His distinguishing feature was a wall- 
 eye, which gave his countenance a roguish look, that did not 
 bolic tho cunning and deceitful nature of tho man." His 
 people seemed to be worthy of such a ruler; among them 
 were some of the most consummate rascals ever met with. 
 It amused our bold hunter to observe their timid and cringing 
 demeanour when in the presence of the king : " They 
 approached him with the utmost humility, and saluted him 
 by stretching out their hands and clapping the palms together, 
 saying, at the same time, ' Itumela cosi !' signifying, ' Hail, 
 king !' Which his majesty was graciously pleased to acknow- 
 ledge by squinting at them with his cock-eye, and saying, 
 ' Eh !' which is the invariable Bcchuana salutation. " Thcsa
 
 138 DR. LTVIN-GST01CE 
 
 savage courtiers, too, were extremely complimentary to their 
 visitor, acknowledging his salutation by saying, ' Eh! Keitu- 
 mela, cosi a Machoa !' which means, ' Eh ! thank you, king 
 of the white men!' and then, to obtain from their chief the 
 expected 'largesse' of 'boyalwa,' or native beer, they ex- 
 patiated largely on the difficulty they had in inducing the 
 white man to visit his dominions, all lies, of course, in ac- 
 cordance with that mental obliquity of character which seemed 
 to prevail amongst them." Their natural cunning, however, 
 was no match for the "cuteness" of the European trader, 
 in which character, as well as in that of the hunter, Mr. 
 Gumming went among them; for, after the preliminary 
 chaffering was over and this would have done no discredit to 
 Rag-fair or Petticoat-lane, a pretty brisk traffic went on ; and 
 for his case of twenty muskets, which cost him sixteen pounds, 
 the canny Scot obtained ivory to the value of thirty pounds 
 per firelock, realising a profit of about three thousand pounds 
 per cent., as he himself acknowledges ; and this, he says, 
 among mercantile men, is reckoned a very fair profit. We 
 should think so ! However, it seems that the wall-eyed 
 potentate did not give much for his ivory ; for we are told that 
 his own subjects were, until Mr. Gumming' s arrival among 
 them, when they were furnished with firearms, utterly in- 
 capable of subduing a full-grown elephant, even by the united 
 exertions of the whole tribe.. And thus " all the ivory which 
 Sekhome then had, and much of what he probably has now, 
 is from elephants slain with assagais by an active and daring 
 race of Bushmen, inhabiting very remote regions to the north 
 and north-west of Bamanguato." 
 
 We are farther told that this ivory is obtained for a few 
 beads, and that the poor Bakalahari, or wild hunters of the
 
 HIS LIFE AND AD VENTURES. 139 
 
 desert, over whom the chief conceives he has a perfect right to 
 tyrannise, are compelled to bear it on their shoulders, across 
 extensive deserts of burning sand, to his head quarters ; and 
 so great is the fatigue endured by these poor creatures while 
 thus employed, that many of them continually die by the 
 way. 
 
 This mighty chief, at the time of the hunter's visit, had 
 left his royal residence, and, with most of his followers, was 
 entrenched amid the mountains, fearing the threatened attack 
 of their neighbours, the Matabeles, which frustrated the design 
 of Gumming to penetrate further north ; and therefore he re- 
 mained to hunt in this fine tract of country, consisting of 
 thick forests, frequented by elephants, rhinoceri, giraffes, and 
 other wild creatures ; and undulating plains, where roamed 
 the zebra and the quagga, the buffalo and the gnu, with the 
 blesbok, the hartebeest, the pallah, and others of the antelope 
 tribe 
 
 " All roaming the desert as wild and free 
 As the winds that sweep the wide, wide sea." 
 
 The treacherous chief, Sekhome, had long professed a friend- 
 ship for Moffat ; but when, relying on these professions, 
 the missionary had forwarded to him letters and parcels for 
 his son-in-law, to bo by him passed on to Linyanti, they had 
 been detained ; and when their detention was discovered, and 
 he was warned and admonished on the subject, he was ever 
 ready with some falsehood to excuse or palliate his conduct : 
 hence, as we may imagine, the visit of Moffat was no very 
 agreeable event to him. He had hoped that some handsome 
 reward would have been offered for the safe-keeping and 
 restoration of the property, which lie dared not appropriate to
 
 110 DB. LIVINGSTOHB 
 
 his own use or dispose of, because he had a kind of secret 
 dread of the power of the white man to punish him for hia 
 treachery. When, therefore, Moffat reached his residence, 
 the missing parcels were brought and laid down before him by 
 Sekhome's people; and not until that was done, did ho ven- 
 ture to show his prepossessing face. These parcels had been 
 collecting for the last eighteen months, and MofFat being very 
 desirous of putting them into a channel for reaching his son- 
 in-law, determined to take them with him on to Moselekatse's 
 country ; so, having scolded Sekhome for his dishonesty, at 
 which that worthy only laughed, he proceeded on his journey 
 through an almost trackless country, mostly covered with dense 
 thickets of what the Dutch colonists call cameel-dom that 
 is, camel, or rather camel-leopard thorn, and "wait-a-bit," 
 which Gordon Gumming describes as armed with something like 
 penknife blades and magnified fish-hooks. The wall-eyed 
 chief promised to supply the party with guides through thi.g 
 thorny wilderness ; but here again ho exhibited his usual 
 duplicity and faithlessness ; for no guides made their appear- 
 ance, and they had to find their way as best they could. 
 Indeed, as it afterwards came out, Sekhome had sent his people 
 on before to warn the children of the wilds over whom he had 
 control to get out of the travellers' way, and by no means to 
 render them assistance. It would have pleased him well if 
 Moffat had never reached the presence of Moselekatse ; for he 
 feared that the missionary might exert his influence over that 
 chief to procure th'e release of his prisoner, the rightful ruler 
 of the Bamanguato. Like all usurpers, he sat uneasily on hia 
 seat of power, and hourly expected that some effort would be 
 made to hurl him from it. Providentially, the country through 
 which Mollut and his companions had to pa^s, though woody
 
 HIS LIFE AWD ADVENTrRF.S. HI 
 
 and intricate, was well watered ; and as game was plentiful, 
 they did not suffer for want of food or drink. For days and 
 weeks they tracked their laborious way through the tangled 
 wilderness, guided only by a pocket compass, for they were 
 seldom able to see two hundred yards in advance. Thus they 
 traversed an extended plain, entirely covered with wood, with 
 here and there, rising between the trees, a hill of granite, which 
 appeared to form the foundation of the whole country, for 
 granitic sand glittered in the beds of the broad rivers which 
 they had to cross, and the rocks they met with were angular 
 and precipitous. Once, and once only, in this region of deso- 
 lation, did they come upon the dwellings of their fellow- 
 c.reatures a small village of the natives, who, lured by the 
 prospect of game, which they had not the means of destroying 
 themselves, accompanied the travellers on their way for three 
 days ; but, coming near to the country of the Matabelcs, they 
 were so struck with terror at the prospects of meeting with 
 some of these redoubtable warriors, that no temptation would 
 induce them to proceed farther. So the travellers were again 
 without guides, and, after crossing the Shashe and some other 
 rivers, they came into a yet more dreary and desolate region 
 than that of the woods a perfect labyrinth of hills and rocky 
 eminences a scene for the pencil of Salvator Itosa ; footsteps 
 were there, but they were those of savage beasts and shy, 
 timid creatures; sounds sometimes broke the awful still- 
 ness, but they were not those of the human voice, the shrill 
 trumpeting of the elephant, the neigh of the quagga, the 
 hoarse cry of the baboon, and snort of &* rhinoceros, might 
 occasionally be heard, as well as the laugh of the jackal and 
 the roar of tts HOE- ouuding from afar, but not often, for 
 generally
 
 142 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 11 "IV as siloncc (loop and awful, as though death 
 Had smitten all that once drew vital breath ; 
 As God had ta'en the life which erst He gare, 
 And made the earth an universal grave. 
 So drear, so desolate, so sad the scene, 
 That in the minds of those who there had been 
 It like a spectre dwelt, and ofc would corns . 
 
 To cast a gloom o'er cheerful hearth and home ; 
 To lead them, shuddering forth, with icy hand. 
 Through that most desolate and rock-strewn land." 
 
 But now the dreary rocks are passed, and traces of culti- 
 vation begin to appear; once more the travellers hear the 
 sound of the human voice, -which however harsh and wild its 
 tones may be, however uncouth and strange its language, is 
 yet ever welcome to the ear long accustomed to the stillness 
 of nature, and the cries of wild animals only, Some men of 
 ;he Bamanguato tribe, but subjects of Moselekatse, are seen ; 
 they flee in terror from the white men, and have to be pursued 
 and caught before they can be rendered serviceable. Having 
 got over their fear, they consent to act as guides for a short 
 distance, until they can place the travellers under the protec- 
 tion of an officer of their great chief; most likely the com- 
 mander of a party holding a cattle outpost, or some frontier 
 position. He receives them very graciously, and is highly 
 pleased when told that Moffat is there, knowing that his" chief 
 has a great desire to see the missionary ; still he has doubts 
 whether this can be the veritable Moffat, or Moshete, as the 
 Matabeles call him, and is fearful of introducing one who may 
 prove an enemy, into the very heart of his country, and 
 presence of his king. It appears that the outskirts of Mosele- 
 katse'a dominions are as jealously watched and guarded, as wo 
 re told were the gardens of the Hesperides, although not
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADYENTtTBES. 14? 
 
 quite for the same reason ; so many apples of discord were beinj* 
 constantly thrown from it into neighbouring countries, that 
 it was ever feared that returns might he made in the 
 shape of more warlike missiles. It was a matter of life and 
 death for any officer of a frontier post to allow an unauthorised 
 person to make his way into the presence of the king. So 
 MofFat was detained some time at this out-station, and then 
 passed on by easy stages, being carefully examined and scruti- 
 nised at each, until there could no longer be any doubt as to 
 his identity. At length he reached Moselekatse's residence, 
 and found him very sick, a fact which was known throughout 
 the country, but no one dared to relate it to a stranger j it 
 was a matter too awful and sacred to be talked about. With 
 great difficulty leaning upon his attendants he comes to the 
 porch of his house to welcome the missionary, whose know- 
 ledge of medicine would, he hoped, heal him of his sickness. 
 And the stern, strong man, the dreaded warrior, was quito 
 overcome at the sight of his deliverer, as he thought him, and 
 wept like a child wept tears of joy. What a scene for a 
 painter this ! The fierce, heathen nature of the man subdued 
 by the heavy weight of sickness, which God has seen fit to lay 
 upon him for a good and wise purpose ; but for this he would 
 probably never have given the missionary liberty to preach 
 the Gospel to his people, nor have listened himself so earnestly 
 to that preaching. This sickness of his opened as it were a 
 door into his obdurate heart, and into that of his country, for 
 the glad tidings of salvation. And who shall doubt, that even- 
 tually, if not at once, the truths of Christianity, which wero 
 then for the first time published among the Matabeles, will 
 take root and bear fruit, which shall indeed bo for the healing 
 of the nation which sitteth in darkness ?
 
 Ml DR. LIVING STOKE 
 
 liy means of the remedies prescribed by Mo/Tut ; and tha 
 abstemious diet which he enjoined, the chief was in a couple 
 of weeks on his feet again, to the great joy of the whole 
 nation, whose gratitude, like that of the recovered chief, was 
 unbounded. When, however, the missionary pressed for 
 leave to invite sinners to repentance, and to teach his poor 
 heathen people the better way, he would not at first consent 
 although he afterwards did so, and became himself a most 
 attentive listener. The people were anxious to hear the good 
 words which they understood the missionary was desirous of 
 speaking to them ; for ever since he first visited their chief, 
 which was some twenty years since, there had been a great 
 modification of the severity of his government ; the cruel and 
 revolting forms of execution which had before existed, had 
 from that time ceased, and public measures indicated an increas- 
 ing sense of the value of human life ; that it was plain that a 
 salutary influence had been exercised over his mind. These 
 changes were due to MofFat's strong remonstrances, which 
 wrought upon his judgment, if they did not at the time touch 
 his heart. But now the Gospel is to be preached openly to 
 the Matabeles: the chief had given full permission, and, 
 almost at a minute's warning, they were assembled to hear 
 the Word. The preacher stood on the slope of a hill near 
 the residence of Moselekatse, who himself came forth and sat 
 down close by bis side on the bank, permitting his people 
 a much nearer approach to his sacred person than was usual ; 
 in the hollow beneath, and up the sides of the hills all around, 
 they eat and stood, in every variety of picturesque attitude, 
 listening with breathless attention to the message of mercy 
 and salvation which MofFat read from the Book of Life, or 
 2iterec\ froar. the promptings of hie instructed spirit. " Kevcat
 
 nis LIU: AND ADVOTUKEB. 
 
 146 
 
 in ffiy life," said this good man, when afterwards relating the 
 incidents of his eventful journey, " did I witness such rivet ted 
 attention and astonished countenances, whilst I, amid the 
 stillness of the grave, published to them the great doctrines 
 of the v/ord of God." 
 
 And this took place day by day, and could not have done 
 so without a due effect among a quick and intelligent people 
 as these Matabeles are ; for, although composed of nearly 
 every Bcchuana tribe, yet they exhibit characteristics of 
 quickness and readiness of which these tribes have scarcely a 
 shadow. Living under a decisive and energetic government, 
 and placed in circumstances which call forth their most active 
 energies, they have become altogether superior to most of the 
 South African races.
 
 146 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 the open preaching of the Gospel among his people, Moffat had 
 frequently urged his desire to proceed to the country of the 
 Makololos, in search of his son-in-law; but this for awhile 
 could not be heard of; there was the great danger from a 
 hostile people, the deadly miasma, and other obstacles set 
 before him ; but finding that all these did not alter his deter- 
 mination, he was permitted to depart, Moselekatse himself 
 accompanying the missionary with a large escort, and sending 
 his officers before to prepare the way ; and so passed they on 
 from one town or village to another, in great pomp and state. 
 In the king's wagon were his principal men, with their white 
 guest, more honoured than all of them ; behind came armed 
 attendants, and long trains of females bearing on their heads 
 calabashes of beer and other supplies, and a drove of fat cattle, 
 four or five of which were slaughtered every day for the use 
 of the camp ; wherever they halted, booths were erected as if 
 by magic, in which the chief personages of the cavalcade slept, 
 while the poor followers had neither mantle nor kaross to shield 
 them from the sharp east wind which prevails in that country 
 throughout the year. Naked they lay down upon the ground, 
 which is often damp, although no rains fall during the winter 
 months, and slept in happy unconsciousness of feather-beds 
 and downy coverlets. 
 
 As the cavalcade proceeds, the number of those who com- 
 pose it increases, until it amounts to nearly three hundred; and 
 so they pass in a zigzag direction through the country, and 
 are brought to a standstill by an army more numerous than 
 that of the Matabeles, and a power more strong. On one side 
 was the stinging tsetse awaiting them in myriads, and these 
 in two or three days would have destroyed all their oxen; on 
 the other was a parched and arid country where drought kept
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEKTITnES. H7 
 
 guard. To have proceeded in either direction would have 
 been madness, and therefore here the cavalcade came to a stop, 
 although Moselekatso -would have gone on and braved the 
 tsetse, caring little for the loss of his oxen, so he could but 
 keep with Moffat. The missionary wished, with eight mea 
 to carry Livingston's parcels, to go on foot through the fly 
 country, a journey which would occupy about eight days; but 
 to this the chief would by no means consent, or, at least he 
 .said, "If you go, I shall go with you ; for suppose you perish on 
 the road, what will Mamary ( Mrs. Moffat) say?" This was 
 conclusive ; he would not go, but do the next best thing send. 
 
 Behold now a party of twenty stalwart Matabeles, under 
 the command of a trustworthy officer, all selected by the king 
 at a moment's warning, shouldering the Livingston packages, 
 and setting out for the country of their enemies, through 
 regions infested with fly and fever. Readily and cheerfully 
 they went forth on their dangerous mission; and when Moffat 
 hinted to their chief that they might be exposed to great 
 peril, his reply was " They are your servants, and on your 
 business, and therefore no one will ever think of injuring 
 them." "We may learn by this in what high estimation and 
 respect the missionaries are held, even by the most barbarous 
 of the South African tribes. 
 
 The party returned in the same order as they went to 
 Matlokotloko, the chief town of Moselekatse's dominions, 
 which stretch away thence northward to the Zambesi, which 
 is ten days' journey from the capital. All the tribes along 
 the southern banlse of this river, with their numberless canoes, 
 are under the sway of the Matabeles ; the only animals they 
 possess are sheep and goats, whose covering protects them 
 from the tsetse, which is here in overwhelming number*
 
 j 
 
 148 DB. LIVINGSTONS 
 
 Moselekatse's cattle outposts only extend about four day's 
 journey from the capital, in consequence of the prevalence of 
 this destructive insect in that direction. At about the same 
 distance directly east from the capital live the Mashona tribe, 
 in a mountainous tract of country. They are physically a 
 fine, muscular race of men. but they are much given to 
 industrial pursuits, and therefore no match for the trained 
 legions of Moselekatse, to whom they are subject. Tha 
 language which they speak is the Makalaka, a dialect of the 
 Sichuana. Nearly all the Matabelian country is beautifully 
 diversified with wood and water; it is mostly hilly, that to 
 the south especially so ; it is one wild scene of hills, mountains, 
 valleys, glens, streams, and fountains, the substratum being 
 granite, while that to the north is more basaltic. Such is the 
 description given by Moffat of this rich, though wild country, 
 throughout which we may hope ere long to hear sounding the 
 praises of the Great Jehovah, whose name has already gone 
 abroad throughout that region ; for when the missionary on 
 his return from the journey above described, was permitted to 
 preach the Gospel daily and openly, he was listened to by men 
 from the most remote parts of the mighty chief's vast domi- 
 nions, who were constantly arriving at, and departing from 
 head- quarters, to bring intelligence and carry orders and 
 instructions; and these published at a distance the strange in- 
 telligence that Moshete had brought to the ears of Matabelcs. 
 On reaching Matlokotloko, the chief found a party of ten 
 men awaiting him, who had been sent a month before to 
 endeavour to gain intelligence of Dr. Livingston's whereabout. 
 They halted at the Chobe river, and opened a communication 
 with the people of Linyanti, who came in canoes within 
 speaking distance, on being assured that the Matabeles were
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 149 
 
 or. Mo.Tut's business. They reported that Livingston was 
 absent on his journey* to the west coast, and was expected 
 back with the summer rains. 
 
 The other party, who had charge of the parcels, faithfully 
 fulfilled their mission ; they took them to the banks of the 
 river, and then invited the Makololo to come and fetch them. 
 This they refused to do, fearing some treachery ; the Matabelrt 
 then put them down on the bank of the river, and there left 
 them, saying to whom they belonged. "When they had gone, 
 Sckcletu's people came over thus far, and thinking the packets 
 might contain something magical, conveyed them to an island, 
 but built huts over them, to protect them from the weather ; 
 and in this state, safe and uninjured, Livingston afterwards 
 found them, as we shall presently see. 
 
 It was with much difficulty that Moffat, after remaining in 
 the country four months, got away from the grateful ilosclc- 
 katsc, who finding that he must go, sent an escort to take him 
 beyond the utmost bounds of his country, and furnished him 
 with sufficient means to defray all his expenses quite home to 
 Kuruman ; where the missionary arrived about the beginning 
 of December, 1854, after his seven months' wanderings among 
 savage beasts and scarcely less savage men. He felt that his 
 journey had not been a fruitless one ; for although he had not 
 succeeded in obtaining any satisfactory intelligence of his son- 
 in-law, he had been enabled to deliver his Master's message to 
 thousands who never heard the Saviour's name before, and to 
 do so under remarkably favourable circumstances. Henceforth 
 the Matabele country, hitherto so inaccessible to the Christian 
 missionary, may be considered open ground. And no doubt 
 speedy advantage will be taken of its present ruler's favourable 
 inclinations towards missionary efforts among his people.
 
 EH. ITVTKOBTOHE 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 TO QUILLIMANE. 
 
 ETUHNING now from this di- 
 gression, let us rejoin Living- 
 ston at Linyanti. We find him 
 preparing to set forth on his 
 journey to the east coast, rely- 
 ing upon that good Providence 
 which has hitherto protected 
 him, and also full of hope and 
 confidence. The day of depar- 
 ture arrives ; and accompanied by a large party of the Makololo, 
 who have volunteered to accompany him, he sets forth mounted 
 on an ox. He has bidden farewell to Sekeletu and his people ; 
 and now, as he tracks his course along the northern side of the 
 Zambesi, seldom losing sight of the noble river, his breast is 
 filled with glowing anticipations of the future benefits to flow 
 in upon these heathen tribes along its broad channel. Hia 
 present immediate object is to visit the great ilosiotunya Falls, 
 of which he had heard such astonishing reports; but there 
 was no important point within or near the line of his route, 
 which he did not visit for the purpose of making astronomical 
 observations. His constant use of the sextant and artificial 
 horizon puzzled his companions not a little, and again the 
 rumour flew that "a white man was coming, who had brought 
 down the sun and moon, and carried them under his arm."
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEimmFS 161 
 
 "We need not speak of the various places between Secheke 
 and that most southern point of the Zambesi at which the 
 falls occur ; suffice it that our traveller reaches the spot, and 
 for the first time is the foot of the white man planted by 
 the "smoke-resounding" rapids or cataracts; for ages and 
 ages had they been rolling and thundering on, with no human 
 eye that could duly appreciate their grandeur and sublimity, 
 no mind that could measure the vast volume of waters, and 
 understand the natural laws by which their impetuous course 
 fc-as guided and governed. Our traveller ascertained that their 
 geographical position was about 17 deg. 57 min. south latitude, 
 and 26 deg. 5 min. east longitude, and he describes them as 
 more remarkable, and not less sublime, than the great Falls of 
 raagara. The cause of them he found to be the sudden con- 
 traction or compression in the rocky bed of the river, which, 
 although about one thousand yards broad just above, urges its 
 mighty mass of water through a fissure in the basaltic rock of 
 not more than twenty-five yards wide, and down a deep cleft, 
 widening somewhat into a basin or trough, about thirty yards 
 in diameter, lying at a depth of abont thirty- five yards. Into 
 this narrow receptacle bounds the broad Zambesi ; and finding 
 the space far too contracted for its mighty energies, makes 
 mad attempts to escape into the channel below. For miles 
 around the stricken earth trembles and vibrates, and the very 
 rocks seem to reel and totter, as, 'mid foam and flash, and 
 whirling eddies, and iridescent spray-wreaths, it pursues ita 
 course like a strong will that spurns all efforts to control it. 
 
 " Onward flows the stately river 
 
 Through its channel broad and deep, 
 Volumes upon volumes rolling 
 Wiib ft grand resistless sweep ;
 
 12 Dli. LIVING STOKE 
 
 Now its rocky channel narrows, 
 
 Girding Li its mighty strength, 
 Lo ! a prison for the giant ! 
 
 He is caught and caged at length 
 
 Caught like Samson, we will bind liiir. . 
 
 Oh, prepare his bed below ! 
 Never more through pleasant valleys 
 
 Or through trackless woods to flow:* 
 Flow, rejoicing in his freedom, 
 
 Flow, rejoicing in his might, 
 Rippling on the foaming breezes, 
 
 Flashing in the golden light. 
 
 See, he cometh ! see, h foameth ! 
 
 Breaking into smiles of scorn : 
 Now he leapelh down the fissure ; 
 
 Hold him ! chain him ! ah, he's gone ! 
 Gone in flash, and crush, and thunder, 
 
 Crowned with glory wreaths of foam, 
 On his stately march triumphant, 
 
 Passing to his ocean home." 
 
 When our traveller visited these falls it was tho ry 
 geason, and therefore the effect was far less grand aud 
 imposing than at other times, when the volume of water to be 
 precipitated down the descent must he much greater. At such 
 times the thunder of the falls can be heard, and the columns 
 of spray seen as the natives assert fifteen miles off. Even 
 now, the effect is sublime, and even appalling, especially from 
 the point of view which Dr. Livingston has gained ; for not 
 satisfied with a distant prospect of the phenomenon, he has 
 persuaded a native, with nerves as steady as his own, to paddle 
 him in his canoe to an islet immediately above the falls, "from 
 one point of which he could look over the edge into the 
 ing cauldron below, could mark the mad whirl of the
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 153 
 
 waters, and stand in the very focus of its vapoury columns 
 and its deafening roar." All around him the river was 
 heaving, and eddying, and fretting, as though reluctant to 
 make the dreadful plunge ; and up from beneath rushed the 
 columns of dense vapour to a height of three or four hundred 
 feet ; spreading out like a crystal curtain, enwoven with 
 threads of rainbow tissue, and, becoming condensed, falling 
 again in showers of perpetual rain. 
 
 After entering the rocky chasm, the river turning abruptly, 
 takes a north-easterly course, foams and chafes awhile within 
 its narrow boundaries, and then spreading out again, flows on 
 slowly and majestically as before, to its confluence with the 
 Ivafue, a noble tributary stream, which flows through a 
 country inhabited by the Bashukulumpo, a tribe to which 
 that name has been given, in consequence of wearing their 
 hair piled up on their heads in a form like a dragoon's helmet. 
 It was to an island on the Zambesi, not far from the falls, 
 that the Makololo conveyed the packages left on the banks of 
 the river by Moselekatse's messengers, and there the traveller 
 found them carefully protected from the climate ; not a pack- 
 age was missing, nor had one been opened ; and his heart was 
 gladdened by the perusal of letters from friends, and papers 
 which informed him of affairs in the dear old country. He 
 had too, now, a fresh supply of medical and other necessaries, 
 which would materially add to the comforts of his journey. 
 
 About eight miles from the cataract, is Kalai, an island 
 on the Zambesi, famed for its tomb of a once-powerful chief, 
 named Sekete, around it are placed no less then eeventy 
 enormous elephant's trunks, and over the surrounding graves 
 of his relatives are about thirty more ; the people over whom 
 this chief held s\vay, were among; the mcst barbarous of Scuti
 
 154 
 
 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Africa; their moat highly-prized ornaments were human 
 skulls, and so eagerly did they covet these, that they often 
 murdered people for the sake of obtaining them. Dr. Living- 
 ston records that he has seen as many as fifty or sixty of these 
 savage ornaments, mounted on poles in a single village ; but 
 now their territory might be traversed with impunity, for some 
 time previous to the Doctor's visit, Sebitoane had attacked and 
 driven, them out, and thus rendered an important service to 
 the surrounding tribes. 
 
 Knowing that he would hare to traverse a difficult and
 
 HIS ITFE AKT) ADYENTT7RE8. 155 
 
 rocky country, and one, too, much infested by the tsetse, if he 
 kept near the course of the Zambesi, our traveller left it at 
 Kalai, and took a more northerly direction for about ahundred- 
 and-forty miles, rejoining the noble river at its confluence 
 with the Kafue, and thence continuing to follow its windings 
 pretty closely along the northern bank. At the junction of the 
 two rivers the party came upon a line range of hills, which 
 stretched far away to the north. Dr. Livingston h ere ascertained 
 by means of the boiling point of water, he not possessing 
 an aneroid barometer, that he had imperceptibly attained 
 an elevation of four thousand feet above the sea level, 
 and comparing this fact with ,what he had previously observed 
 of the rocky ridge on the western side, he came to the same con- 
 clusion as that at which Murchison and other geologists had 
 arrived, although this agreement of opinion was then unknown 
 to him, viz., that the centre of Africa was an elongated hollow, 
 or basin, bounded by these eastern and western ridges, and 
 that into it flowed from either side numberless rivers which 
 emptied themselves into the Zambesi, the great trunk line of 
 water communication. On this elevated ground he finds a 
 different kind of vegetation from that which characterises the 
 swampy lands below ; and here, too, the air is fresh and invi- 
 gorating, free from miasma, so that Europeans could dwell 
 safely in this healthy region, which stretches away from thence 
 eastward, as he afterwards finds, as far as Tete in Mono- 
 motapa. This discovery fills him with joy, as here is eligible 
 ground for the planting of missions and opening commercial 
 relations with the more unhealthy parts of the interior ; and he 
 doubted not that, by means of the Zambesi, if not by other 
 channels, easy access might also be had to this region from 
 the cast coast. And here, it seemed, was the great object of
 
 156 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 all his toils and wanderings attained ; he had had a long and 
 weary search, but not an unsuccessful one, and, in his mind, 
 to the teeming millions of Africa this discovery seemed fraught 
 with the most momentous results. 
 
 Gladdened by such thoughts as these, he now, with buoyant 
 step and light heart, pursued his pleasant elevated way, keep- 
 ing still in sight the great mainstay of his hopes for the 
 elevation of Africa, the broad and beautiful Zambesi. And 
 still more to cheer and encourage him, the people that he met 
 with, though deeply sunk in idolatry and ignorance, were 
 uniformly kind and attentive to his Avants. Those Avith whom 
 he came most in contact were the Balonda, a fine, athletic, 
 and skilful race of negroes, whose chief occupations were of 
 an agricultural character. They were very numerous, and 
 lived in small communities or villages, in which, as the 
 traveller passed, he saw on every hand men, women, and 
 children, assiduously employed in the gardens and fields; 
 their chief crops appeared to be maize, Kaffir corn, millet, 
 rice, pumpkins, beans, &c., which, on the low grounds 
 periodically flooded by the Zambesi, yielded a large return for 
 their labour. From pastoral pursuits they were debarred by 
 the fly, which prevailed more or less all along the course of 
 the river. 
 
 When the travellers approached one of these villages 
 a messenger generally came to invite them to enter and 
 rest and refresh themselves. As their building accom- 
 modations were not such as to admit of their giA"ing 
 lodging also; they courteously requested the Doctor to 
 select the spot which best suited him, generally under 
 a noble tree, and then brought the roofs from their own 
 houses, Avhich were composed of rccds, and arranged them 30
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADYEXTUBES. 157 
 
 an to frrm a shelter, where their guests might sleep secure 
 from interruption. In all the records that we have read, of 
 feasts given by kings and other great personages, and enter- 
 tainments afforded to wayfarers, we have met with no more 
 striking mark of a generous and hospitable spirit than this. 
 Yrry few, we opine, would be willing to take the roofs from 
 their own hoiises, or in any way to deprive themselves of 
 shelter, as did these poor benighted Balonda folk, for tho 
 sake of accommodating strangers who had but little, if aught, 
 wherewith to reward them. Throughout the whole of tho 
 district inhabited by this kindly-disposed people, which was 
 Bcvcral hundred miles, the party were fed by them; and 
 as Dr. Livingston records with gratitude, " They always gave 
 gracefully, with an apology that want of time had prevented 
 them making more food ready, and believed our statement of 
 having nothing to offer in return." And yet these people 
 were altogether unenlightened in the ways of truth. Unlike 
 all the other South African tribes, with which our missionary 
 had met, they were great idolaters. In passing along the 
 roads, well-beaten pathways were constantly observed, leading 
 into the recesses of the forest, whither they were wont to repair 
 for the worship and propitiation of the spirits of their de- 
 parted relatives, and various deities to whom they made offer- 
 ings of food and other things. They had, too, more tangible 
 objects of worship, a block of wood carved into a rude resem- 
 blance of a human form, or a clay lion, with two shells for 
 eyes, might be seen here and there, beneath a shed ; and be- 
 fore these senseless idols the people, when their crops failed, 
 or any other calamity happened, beat a drum all night, and 
 jTiatlc a prodigious uproar. In their household matters, too, 
 they were very suocrstitious; with all their hospitality, they
 
 158 DR. MVIKGSTOIfE 
 
 would not eat with, or in sight of, the strangers ; but if they 
 took the meat which was sometimes offered when their guesta 
 had shot game by the way, they always carried it away, and 
 devoured it in secret. " When," said Livingston, " I saw 
 them, and thought of the vast numbers there are in this land, 
 all living without Gcd and without hope, I sat down with 
 feelings of despair. When will they be supplied with the 
 Gospel of Christ?" 
 
 Seldom, however, did these feelings of despondency have 
 dominion in the mind of our traveller more commonly his 
 thoughts were buoyant and hopeful; and at all times, the 
 more deeply sunk in barbarism and wickedness he saw the 
 people around him to be, the more resolutely was he bent 
 upon endeavouring to accomplish their enlightenment and de- 
 liverance from the bonds of sin and Satan ; so he journeyed on 
 with that great object before him, like a cloudy pillar by day 
 and a light by night, having always a Divine Guide in view. 
 And then, too, in the social life of these poor negro tribes ho 
 eaw much that was pleasing and hopeful : they were not alto- 
 gether depraved, nor so savage in their manners and customs 
 as many other of the heathens among whom he had travelled 
 or dwelt. One thing that particularly struck him was, the 
 high consideration in which woman is held. In most uncivi- 
 lised heathen communities she holds the lowest and most 
 degraded position, and in those which have even a high state 
 of civilisation without Christianity, she is but an object of 
 sensual pleasure, with no political power, and little social in- 
 fluence. But here she seems to hold an equality with man, 
 and to be in some respects even above him. In the palavers, 
 or national counsels, she has an equal voice with the other sex, 
 and in all matters of domestic arrangement she reigns para-
 
 ITTS I.TFT5 ATTB ADVEKTT7RES. 19 
 
 mount. In the marriage relations she has decidedly the best 
 of it : giving her own name to the happy youth on whom she 
 bestows her hand, and who is bound, if she chooses to have 
 it so, to come and reside in her native village,. He is also 
 bound to provide her mother with firewood for life. In the 
 event of the union being an uncongenial one, she alone has 
 the option of divorce, and should this take place, the children, 
 if any, belong to her. The husband, without her sanction, 
 could not engage himself to perform the commonest service ; 
 and it both surprised and amused our traveller to hear a man, 
 whose services he wished to engage for a time, say " I must 
 go and ask my wife !" But, lest it should be supposed that 
 these African "lady superiors" occupy too exalted a posi- 
 tion, we must mention that they are bound to the performance 
 of certain onerous duties which prevent their leading a life of 
 useless idleness; one of these is providing their husbands 
 with food hence their assiduity in cultivating the soil ; but 
 even this duty is to them a handle of additional power ; for, 
 if their lords were refractory, they can punish them in that 
 most tender part, the stomach ; and it appears that conspira- 
 cies to this end are not unusual among the wives of an indi- 
 vidual who is blessed with several ; for, strange to say, that 
 in a community where woman has the ascendant, polygamy 
 is allowed. 
 
 On these occasions some such a scene as this will occur. 
 The offending husband, returning home hungry at his usual 
 meal-time, asks, of course, with all due submission, wife 
 No. 1 for his dinner; she, with some excuse, or may be 
 without any, refers him to wife No. 2, "whom he loves better 
 than her," as the good lady is pleased to put it. His applica- 
 tion hero is equally unsuccessful, wife No. 3 being named es
 
 1BO DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 the better beloved, and more likely to supply his wants. Ii 
 he should have more than three wives, he probably has to run 
 the gauntlet in the same way through the whole circle of his 
 domestic happiness, and comes out more hungry than he went 
 in. Then, resolving upon revenge, he climbs a tree in somo 
 populous part of the village, and utters his piteous proclama- 
 tion in this wise : " Listen, listen ! I thought I had 
 married women, but they are only witches ! I am a bachelor ! 
 I have not a single wife ! Is that right for a gentleman like 
 me ?" This arouses the virtuous indignation of the community, 
 especially the male part of it, and probably entails as much 
 public reprobation upon the offending ladies as, in a more 
 civilised state, is called forth by the announcement that Jones 
 or Smith will not be answerable for his wife's debts. But 
 sometimes these strong-minded matrons will even proceed 
 further than denying food to their liege lord; they will at- 
 tempt to enforce their usurped authority (for it is usurped, 
 mind you,) by means of cuffs and blows. But this is carrying 
 matters too far ; public sentiment is altogether against such a 
 proceeding, and public authority steps in to right the inj urcd 
 man : the tyrannical wife, or if there be more than one con- 
 cerned, she who has taken the lead in the assault, is condemned 
 to carry her husband upon her back from the cotla, or enclosed 
 court, in which the chief's house stands, and in which he sits 
 to try and condemn offenders, to his own home, and all tho 
 people of the village turn out to behold the interesting ceremony. 
 Then it is that the whole community is divided into two dis- 
 tinct and opposing parties, male and female; and while the 
 poor persecuted matron totters on under her burden, the former 
 salute her with sneers and jeerf tjhile the latter encourage 
 her with words of Onwiseration* y hile they deride her rider
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVEXTUHEG. 
 
 161 
 
 with shrill cries and invectives, and such shocking expres- 
 sions as, " Serves him right ! give it him again !" 
 
 ]>y all this we learn that it is not safe to give too great a 
 Blix'tch of power even to woman, angel of life though she be ! 
 
 " Oh, woman, lovely woman, Nature made thce 
 To temper man we had been brutes without thoc," 
 
 somebody says; and Mungo Park, we may remember, paid 
 an eloquent tribute to the tenderness of the female sex, and it 
 Wus an African woman, too, who culled forth his exprcs-
 
 162 DH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 sions of love ami gratitude. J3nt she dwelt not in a part of 
 Africa where woman had the upper hand, or else what? 
 Why, of course, the poor traveller, faint and weary as ho 
 was, would have been treated yet more kindly, yet more 
 tenderly. "We were about to run off into a diatribe against 
 the sex, but really cannot find that we have sufficient grounds 
 to go upon. As we tax our memory for sayings and 
 quotations which might serve to eke out our own imperfect 
 powers of expression, so many rise up in favour of the dear 
 charmer of man's cares and soother of his sorrows, that we 
 must even go with the stream, and say with the Balonda 
 ladies, " it serves him right !" No doubt he was a great, 
 hulking, idle fellow, that would neither fish, nor kill game, 
 nor cultivate the soil, nor mind the children, nor do anything 
 useful ; and it is provoking to have to provide for the daily 
 subsistence of such a good-for-nought, not to speak of his aggra- 
 vating tongue ; so go on, you sable Venuses, and, by all means, 
 " Give it him again!" He may think himself well off to 
 escape thus easily : had you been like the warlike ladies of 
 Dahomy, not a back of yours would have bent under him, not 
 a hand of yours would have held out a peace-offering of boiled 
 maize, or millet, or a juicy pumpkin, as a calabash to his 
 hungry stomach. Go home, thou much-injured matron, 
 with thy unworthy spousal burden, and be satisfied 
 with knowing that when thy wrongs and thy patient en- 
 durance of this public, undeserved punishment, comes to be 
 known by the thousands who will read this little book, there 
 will arise, from the streets and the lanes of many-peopled Eu- 
 rope, from its parlours and its kitchens, and all places where 
 the gentler sex do dwell and congregate, an universal cry of, 
 Serves him right t
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTUBES. 133 
 
 If the pithy Baying be true, as applied to a civilised state 
 of society, that " man is the head, yet woman is the neck, 
 for she moves the hand whatever way she pleases," how much 
 more striking and forcible is it in its application to the social 
 habits of these uncivilised Africans, among whom our travellers 
 looked in vain for a single woman of a marriageable age ! they 
 were all snapped up as soon as they emerged from girlhood ; 
 and most incongruous unions were sometimes the consequence 
 of the eager desire, on the part of the men, to possess one or 
 more of these "bread-finders." The first time Dr. Livingston 
 witnessed the infliction of the punishment for husband-beating, 
 just alluded to, the bearer was a great masculine creature, and 
 the rider a withered, scraggy old man, whom she might easily 
 have shaken to pieces and why did she not? because, of 
 course, her womanly heart was not altogether devoid of affec- 
 tion for the decrepit partner of her home, and, perhaps, the 
 father of her children. The Doctor says that he was graceless 
 enough to laugh at the absurd spectacle, and that the gude 
 wife could not help joining, to the great scandal of "Young 
 Africa." 
 
 Having noted all these things with the eye of the Christian 
 missionary, whose heart yearned towards the poor benighted 
 heathen, and whose spirit earnestly sought out the way to 
 teach and enlighten them, our traveller passes on through a 
 fine, fertile, healthy region, whose natural features and capa- 
 bilities filled him with hope and joy ; he well knew that the 
 Makololo would gladly leave the unhealthy regions below, to 
 dwell again upon the free fresh hills from whence they had 
 been driven by the Matabeles ; and also, that if a mission was 
 established among them, they might safely do so, for the sub- 
 jects of Moselekatse would not harm them with whom theii
 
 164 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 friends Moffat and Livingston dwelt, or for whom they ex- 
 pressed a strong interest. Here, then, like a light upon a hlli, 
 might the station be placed, and from thence might outposts of 
 Christianity be advanced on every side, to penetrate the sur- 
 rounding darkness, and wrest from Satan the dominion over 
 those territories which he had so long held; to gather into the 
 fold of Christ those sheep now scattered far and wide, without 
 a shepherd : 
 
 " By passions fierce, like ravening beasts of prey, 
 Torn and destroyed, and driven far astray." 
 
 "VVe have said that the party experienced the greatest kind- 
 ness and hospitality from the natives during this part of their 
 journey, and that shelter and food were at all times freely 
 given to them ; for the latter, however, they were not en- 
 tirely dependent, as the country through which they passed 
 abounded in game, especially of the larger kind. Elephants 
 were exceedingly numerous, far more so than Dr. Livingston 
 had ever before heard or conceived of, and yet the account 
 which Gordon Gumming must have given him when they met, 
 on the return of the latter from his sporting excursion in the 
 Bamanguato country, would have prepared him for the presence 
 of large numbers of these animals in some districts. To the 
 natives here, who had not the means of killing them, they were 
 a great pest, as they often broke into the gardens, and if dis- 
 turbed, when making a meal off pumpkins and other delicacies, 
 took it in high dudgeon, and rushed after their disturbers, de- 
 molishing their dwellings, and not unfrequently killing the poor 
 people. Sometimes the travellers had to shout at these pon- 
 tlerous creatures to get them out of the way, and numbers of 
 ttit&r joung they shot for food, the flesh being tender and very
 
 J1IS I.TFK AXI) ADVKXTUKKS. 16-TI 
 
 nutritious. Buffaloes, zebras, giraffes, wild hogs, and ante- 
 lopes were also plentiful; of one species of the latter, the 
 beautiful springbok, the Doctor says " I could form no idea of 
 the number of these lovely animals I saw in actual migration. 
 I can compare them to locusts alone ; for, as far as the eye 
 could reach, they appeared a tremulous mass, sometimes in 
 sprinklings, and at other times in close dense crowds, upon a 
 plain six or seven miles long by three or four broad." 
 
 At times, when the party were resting in the shady 
 forest, or under the friendly shelter of the native roofs, their 
 leader would take his gun, and go forth to obtain game ; he has 
 loin down on some grassy bank, and for awhile watched the 
 wild creatures sporting and feeding on their native pastures. 
 The fearless confidence with which they approached him, tho 
 exquisite grace of their forms and movements, and the whole 
 beauty of the scene, enhanced, as it was, by the flashing waters 
 of the bright and majestic river whose course he was following 
 to the sea, so enchanted him, that he could not find it in his 
 heart to introduce disorder and death into what seemed an 
 earthly paradise ; ho has, therefore, returned empty-handed 
 to his friends. How different is all this from the fierce joy 
 of the mere hunter, who revels in the slaughter of the wild 
 free creatures, and " knocks them over," as ho phrases it, for 
 the pleasure he finds in the power to do so, or for the pecu- 
 niary profit which it affords him ! But this foolish senti- 
 mentality (as some would call it, although we shall not) might 
 not, at all times, be indulged ; these animals were given for 
 man's use and sustenance; and therefore they must, when 
 necessary, be killed ; and so the gentle and stately giraffe, the 
 swift-footed zebra, the light-bounding antelope, or the hugo 
 ungainly hippopotamus, at times fell beneath the Doctor'* riilo.
 
 166 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 And here it may be observed tbat, among the Makololo, these 
 were the creatures most in request, as meats for the table ; tho 
 first is the delicate veal, the second the roast beef of Old 
 Africa, the third, the fine, full-flavoured venison and the 
 fourth, the rich pork. And, besides these delicacies, there were 
 not wanting plenty of wild fowl from the river banks, as, amid 
 the reeds and rushes, geese, ducks, and smaller birds literally 
 swarmed, so that eighteen head of this kind of game has been 
 brought down at a single shot ; nor were the finny tribes less 
 abundant in the rivers thus making up the full table of 
 luxurious diet fish, flesh, and fowl. After this, who shall 
 say that Central South Africa is but a barren desert, incapable 
 of furnishing sustenance to man ? 
 
 To this plentiful supply of the means of sustaining life 
 through most of the regions that he traversed, Dr. Livingston 
 was largely indebted for the success of his enterprise. Gene- 
 rally speaking the creatures were so unused to the effects of a 
 gun that they manifested little or no fear at his approach, and 
 would stand within easy shooting distance ; so that it waa 
 seldom necessary for the party to be burdened with a large 
 supply of provisions. But we must now pass out of the plea- 
 sant country of the Balonda, and enter upon a more difficult 
 and perilous part of -the journey. "We have reached the point 
 at which the Loangua, another large tributary stream, which 
 takes its rise far to the north-west, effecto a junction with the 
 Zambesi. And here, at a place called Jumbo, we come upon 
 traces of an ancient European settlement; thus far in from the 
 east side of the continent did the Portuguese penetrate : here 
 they had a trading station which grew into a town, called, as 
 we said, Jumbo or Zumbo. Slaves and ivory were no doubt the 
 chief commodities brought to thispoiutby the natives, to barter
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 167 
 
 for the coloured-glass beads, or brightly-tinted stuffs and calicos, 
 wherewith to decorate their sable persons, or to offer at the 
 shrines of their false gods ; but the station is now abandoned, 
 and a few ruins only mark the site of the once-flourishing 
 town. The tide of European civilisation, if such it might 
 be called, has rolled back to Tete, situated also on the Zam- 
 besi and about midway from hence to the east coast. To Tele, 
 then, we shall now direct our steps, keeping still along 
 the southern bank of the noble river. 
 
 We bid adieu now to friendly natives, and come among 
 those who respect not the missionary character, who have 
 never heard of the white man, who " goes about doing good," 
 as his Master did. They were a wild, fierce race, who would 
 rather retard than help a traveller on his way, and their 
 country was a difficult one to traverse ; they had no canoes by 
 which the party might be helped on their way down the 
 river, and if they had, the rapids were so frequent in this 
 part of its course, as to render such a means of progression un- 
 available for any distance. Furthermore, tb? party were in 
 constant danger from lions, which infested this part of the 
 country, and were held in great reverence by its thinly-scat- 
 tered inhabitants, who, when they met one of these shaggy 
 brutes, would, although keeping at a respectful distance, clap 
 their hands in token of veneration. Notwithstanding this 
 deification of the lion, which they would on no account at- 
 tempt to kill, they had a great disinclination to be devoured 
 by it, and therefore slept in trees by night. Another circum- 
 stance, which rendered this country especially dangerous to tra- 
 vellers, and more particularly to Europeans, was that its people 
 were at war with the Portuguese ; the small body of colonists 
 who inhabited Tile, had been besieged by them for the soar*
 
 168 
 
 DR. I.ITT 
 
 of two years; but of this ])r. Livingston was not at the lime 
 aware, or he would probably have attempted to make his way 
 to the coast by some other route. As it was, he was obliged to 
 proceed with great caution, avoiding the roaming bands of 
 armed natives as much as possible. The following passage, 
 from one of his letters, describes in a very pleasant, good- 
 humoured way, the perils and difficulties he had here to en- 
 counter. " The country is covered with shingle, and gravel, 
 bushes, trees, and grass, and we were often without paths, 
 skulking out of the way of villages, where we were expected 
 to pay after the purse was empty. It was excessively hot 
 and steamy ; the eyes had always to be fixed on the ground, to 
 avoid being tripped. After that, I say, let those who delight 
 in pedestrianism enjoy themselves. It is good for obesity, 
 but not for me, who had become as lean as a lath. The only 
 good I saw in it was to enable an honest sort of fellow to 
 realise completely the idea of a treadmill." Such was 
 this land of lion-worshippers, where, by the way, our chief 
 traveller met with an adventure which had nearly terminated 
 his career, having been attacked by a lion while resting at night
 
 HIS LIKU A:>D Anvn.vrtfKHS. 1!>3 
 
 Bomewluit apart from his attendants, who alarmed by tuo 
 report of his musket, came to the spot, and found him lying 
 senseless, with his arm severely lacerated, and the fierce king 
 of the desert dead a few yards off. 
 
 After this, of course, travelling was more difficult and painful, 
 and the further they proceeded from the country of tho 
 friendly Balonda, the more perilous did their journey become. 
 They got among tribes who had no respect for the pioneer of 
 Christianity. With the Makololo and those who dwelt in tho 
 regions round about them ; and all tho natives of the more 
 southerly parts of Africa, the missionary is a man " not to bo 
 killed," but here it was different : the white man had appeared 
 among the natives only as a slave-dealer and an oppressor, 
 and therefore he was not held in high estimation. All 
 over this part of Africa tho natives are of the true negro type ; 
 the different tribes are under various petty chiefs, who 
 have generally some acknowledged head, although they do 
 not appear to bend much to his authority thus Matiamvo is 
 the paramount chief of the widely scattered Balonda, and to 
 him Cazembe and Shinto, two heads of tribes, profess subjec- 
 tion, using the name of their Kosinkoln (great chief), as a 
 bugbear wherewith to fiightcn each other when they chanco 
 to quarrel ; they send him presents too, occasionally, and keep 
 up a show of respect which they do not at all times feel. 
 They are not lovers of centralisation, these Ealonda, Bolobalc, 
 and other negro tribes ; they will not tolerate a bureauocracy, 
 nor an aristocracy, and much less an imperial direction of their 
 affairs. There is a large infusion of the popular element into 
 their local and general government ; a chiefs importance de- 
 pends greatly upon tho number of his followers, and if ho 
 displeases his people, they often desert him, aal pl.ioc tuciu-
 
 170 BE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 selves under the command of a rival, who receives them with 
 open arms. Whole villages will thus sometimes migrate, with 
 all their belongings, into a neighbouring territory, and leave 
 their Morena or Kosi (lord or king) shorn of much of his power. 
 This individual may be the chief of a town or district, the sun 
 of a small system ; immediately beneath him second only to 
 himself in splendour are the planets, the Barenana that is 
 "the little lords," or as they are sometimes called, "the little 
 great old ones;" beneath these are the satellites, or influential 
 men allied by blood or marriage to the chief; and, still 
 descending in the scale, we have^the heads of families, who 
 rule with truly patriarchal sway ; the dwelling of such is called 
 the Kotla or gate, and around it all his children and dependents 
 build their huts. How forcibly this reminds us of the ancient 
 Jewish polity, and of the saying of the Psalmist, that those who 
 have much offspring " shall not be ashamed, but shall speak 
 with their enemies in the gate" If the head of a family 
 cannot manage his son, he calls in the authority of the 
 " little lord ;" and when one of these patriarchs has a com- 
 plaint to make against another, he, through the same channel, 
 lays it before the chief, who has his Kotla and cattle pens in 
 the very centre of the place, and who therefore sits in " the 
 gate" to give judgment, as did the kings and judges of Israel; 
 evidence is heard, if necessary, and the decision is given 
 orally, the witnesses always standing. Should the case be an 
 important one, and especially if any public question is raised, 
 then it has to be debated in the presence of all the " little great 
 old ones," who are supposed to be very wise in 'their generation ; 
 they give their opinions freely, and generally sway that of the 
 chief, especially if he be a man without much decision of 
 character; he sums up and decides seldom adoptiug uiiy
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 171 
 
 course directly contrary to public opinion, as expi-essed by these 
 little lords. Should it be a case of much perplexity and diver- 
 sity of opinion among the pleaders, recourse is had to divination. 
 The dice, which are found to be much in use all through Southern 
 Africa, are cast, and the decision goes as the fates order it. 
 This is a short and easy way of cutting the knot of a 
 difficulty it saves a deal of racking of brains, and, perhaps, 
 the conclusion come to is just as likely to be right as if it had 
 been left to the warped judgments of the elders, or lords, whose 
 minds are much influenced by certain maxims, or proverbs, in 
 which the " hereditary wisdom of the nation" has been floating 
 about for ages. Such is the custom, with regard to govern- 
 ment, which prevails among the Central South African tribes, 
 and those which dwell to the east and west of the great valley, 
 or basin. And here, too, in domestic matters, as we have seen, 
 female influence prevails to an extent altogether unparalleled 
 among any other uncivilised people. Further south, among the 
 Bechuanas, Hottentots, and Kaffirs, we see no trace of this ; 
 and with the first nation there exists no idea of a paramount 
 chief, although the different tribes refer themselves to a 
 common origin ; the Kaffirs have their Kosinkolu ; and nothing, 
 perhaps, has at different times tended so strongly to stir them 
 into rebellion against the Cape authorities, as the deposition of 
 their lame chief Sandilli, and the assumption of their nominal 
 headship by the colonial governor. The Hottentots are a sub- 
 jugated race if they be a distinct race at all ; out of them all 
 notions of a chief of their own have been beaten. Every one who 
 has power is their lord and master ; and the poor Bushmen and 
 Bakalihari of the desert lead too wild and scrambling a life to 
 think of government at all, any more than a pack of juckuli 
 Would.
 
 172 DK. 
 
 Observing and thinking over these matters, then, Dr. Living- 
 Eton passes on, out of the territory nominally ruled over by 
 Matiamvo, of whom Cazembe claims, by a sort of presumptive 
 or hereditary right, to be general- in-chief, into the country of 
 .Monornotapa, or Lord Motapa, or " the Emperor," as tho 
 Portuguese have named the great chief who rules, or claims to 
 rule, over that wide region which lies north and south of the 
 Zambesi, and stretches down eastward to the Mozambique 
 colonies. It was in the dominions of this chief, whom they 
 formerly subsidised and "protected" with European guards, 
 they established their new town called Tete, when they 
 deemed it advisable to abandon Zumbo, and fall back nearer to 
 the coast; Now, as we have before said, the subjects of king 
 ilonomotapa a sort of traditional name which the surrounding 
 country also bears were at open war with the Portuguese ; and 
 the Doctor's journey was, inconsequence, rendered much more 
 perilous than it would otherwise have been. On one occasion 
 he and his party were surrounded by a body of native warriors, 
 who were about to attack them, under the impression that the 
 travellers belonged to the nation with whom they were then 
 at war, but desisted on being told by Dr. Livingston that he 
 was English, they at once recognising tho name as that of 
 " the tribe that loves the black man." 
 
 Surely if, as a nation, we ought to be proud of anything, 
 it is of such a reputation as this; let us strive to deserve it, 
 and show these poor Africans that we do indeed love them. 
 Anxiously, most anxiously, did our traveller now look out for tho 
 hoped-for resting-place at Tete, where he was assured of akindly 
 welcome, having recommendations from his friends at Loanda. 
 Wounded and weary, worn almost to a skeleton, scarcely was 
 LL; in a \vorsc plight whoa hu approached Au^ulu, on tho
 
 HIS LIFE AXD 
 
 173 
 
 western coast ; j'ct now, as then, his spirit rose above Ins 
 weakness and sufferings; and, debilitated as he was, and 
 surrounded by dangers, he kept the great object of his expedi- 
 tion steadily in view, and would not pass any important point 
 in or near his lino of route, without fixing its position on the 
 map. At length he is within eight miles of Tete; but now 
 his strength utterly fails him he can go no further ; he sinks 
 to the ground with the goal in view ! But the governor of the- 
 place has heard of his approach, and sends out refreshments, ot' 
 v i lieu he is enabled to jKirtuku heartily, uud finds himself BO
 
 174 
 
 DK. ITVINGSTONE 
 
 much invigorated by the first civilised meal he has tasted for 
 many a month, that he is enabled to accomplish the rest of the 
 journey. He reaches the town on the 2nd of March, 1856, 
 and is well received by the Governor, Major Sicard 
 finds that the season will not permit of his sailing down 
 the Zambesi, which here divides into several channels, and 
 forms a swampy delta, which is equal in extent to the whole of 
 Scotland, and is extremely pestilential, especially at certain 
 parts of the year. At Tete, therefore, he remains to rest and 
 refresh himself; and here we must for the present leave him, 
 while we give a glance at the surrounding country, and speak 
 of one or two matters, the devotion of a couple of chapters to 
 which ma)' enhance the interest and value of our book.
 
 HI9 LIFE AND ADVBNTTTBES. 
 
 IVfi 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THK WILD ANIMALS OP SOUTH A.FUICA. 
 
 T is in Africa, and especially 
 in South Africa, that animal 
 life appears to have reached its 
 maximum, both as regards 
 size and numbers. All travel- 
 . r lers in that part of the world 
 agree in stating that the abun- 
 dance of wild creatures, and 
 especially those of the larger 
 kind, is perfectly astonishing ; and the testimony of Dr. Living- 
 ston is, as we have several times had occasion to notice, to the 
 same effect. When we read of 900 elephants being killed on 
 one river alone in three years, and this for the sake of their 
 tusks, what an idea does it give us of the amazing numbers of 
 these huge mountains of flesh which must inhabit the almost 
 impenetrable forests and wild wide mountain ranges of torrid 
 Africa ! Gordon Gumming, that mightiest of modern hunters, 
 thinks little of bagging his four or five bull- elephants in a 
 day, not to speak of hippopotami and rhinoceri, buffaloes, 
 giraffes, and such small make-weights. He sees the first- 
 named of these huge creatures, congregating in vast herds, 
 sometimes a hundred or more together; he rides in, and singles 
 out his bull, and sometimes with three or four lucky shots, but 
 oftener with twenty or thirty, brings him down, after an 
 obstinate fight of some hours, during which the hunter incurs
 
 J70 DR. LIT'NGSTOKZ 
 
 great danger from the tusks, and trunk, and enormous limbs of 
 the infuriated animal, which rushes with shrill trumpeting 
 upon its assailant. This one despatched, he follows in the 
 wake of the retreating herd, selects another, disables it 
 perhaps, and leaves it to be finished by his after-riders, or 
 other attendants ; while he, still eager for more ivory, again 
 overtakes, again slays, and goes on until night and darknesa 
 put an end to his exciting sport, or his wearied limbs Abso- 
 lutely refuse to bear him any further. His best horses are 
 worn out with fatigue, or otherwise disabled and he must rest; 
 and rest he does amid the trumpeting and snorting, yelling 
 and roaring, of the wild dwellers in the desert, and forest, and 
 the reedy swamp. Sometimes a lion with shaggy mane, and 
 fiery, flashing eyes, looks in upon him as he sits by the fire 
 within his fence of wait-a-bit thorn, seeking for a meal of 
 horse-flesh, or ox-flesh, or man-flesh, whichever comes 
 handiest. The Hottentots are frightened out of their senses 
 at the approach of their dreaded enemy "Tao;" but our 
 hunter is calm and collected, while his stanch dogs, let 
 loose, do battle with the intruder, which presently, perchance, 
 receives a shot that makes him bound off, yelling and roaring, 
 in pain and anger. Sometimes it is ride for your life, with 
 the horn of an infuriated rhinoceros close to your horse's 
 flanks, rushing and crashing, amid rocks and trees, and 
 thorny bushes, and dry water-courses, with many a trip and 
 stumble, and, it may be, a downfal altogether, and a miraculous 
 escape sideways, or other ways, from the snorting pursuer, 
 which plunges on, carrying off some ounces of lead in his 
 leathery hide; or by-and-bye tumbles prone, and yields up 
 his horn to the hunter, and his flesh to the hungry natives. 
 Sometimes it is watching from a rccdy covert the gambols of
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVIimniES. 177 
 
 n school of hippopotami, taking their morning bath in t.ho 
 v liters of the Lampopo, or some other river with an equally 
 euphoneous title. Bulls, and cows, and calves, are there, all 
 intent on taking their fill of enjoyment; plunging and wal- 
 lowing, splashing and snorting, now popping up their 
 monstrous heads above the stream, now disappearing altogether 
 beneath it, and again emerging like so many islands of dark 
 grey mud, just come to the surface. The finest bull is selected, 
 the ball crashes through the bony plate which protects tho 
 brain, and the agonised creature makes a whirlpool amid the 
 waters, dives to the bottom, remains there awhile, rises again 
 to receive another shot, dives again, but finally floats a dead 
 carcass of immense size and repulsive aspect, to be hooked and 
 bound with thongs of buffalo-hide, as it strands on the gravelly 
 bank, and drawn up high and dry, to have its huge head 
 ecvered from its body as a hunter's trophy, and its flesh carried 
 off as food to the Bushman's hut, or the Bcchuana village, or 
 the kraal of some other of the scattered or wandering tribes. 
 Should it be left till night, the lions and jackals, panthers or 
 hyaenas, will feast on it ; or if it remains in or near the water, 
 the scaly crocodile will leave his basking in the mud to come 
 and enjoy the savoury food ; while in either case, stooping 
 from above, the broad- winged and keen- scented vultures will 
 take their share of the feast. 
 
 Sometimes it is away over the desert, with the speed of 
 light, pursuing the solitary ostrich, or the troop of zebras or 
 quaggas, graceful and beautiful in their every aspect and 
 motion ; or the bounding antelopes, the pallahs, the khodoos, 
 the hartcbecsts, the springboks, and the blauboks, the rough- 
 maincd gnus spurning the sand with their cloven feet. Chasing 
 the wild boar among the hills, the buffulo in the reedy tley, 
 
 m
 
 1?8 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 or marsh ; the bush-buck' on the river banks, or the little 
 klipspringer, smallest and nimblest of antelopes, amid the 
 rocks ; watching the tall and stately giraffe, as it bends down 
 with its curled tongue the lithe boughs of the lofty trees, on 
 whose tender shoots it loves to feed ; or drawing the rock- 
 snake from its hiding place ; sending the clamorous wild dogs 
 flying with a shout or a shot, and scaring the jackal and hyaena 
 from their repast on the carcass, which has already afforded 
 a meal to their king the majestic lion. Such are the ay re- 
 wens of a South- African hunter's life, 
 
 M Who from the ways of men afar, 
 Goes forth on savage brutes to war, 
 To wander in the desert wide, 
 Amid the rocky glens to ride, 
 Through thorny forests, and to m iko 
 His bed beside the speckled snake." 
 
 But we will now proceed to speak more particularly of tho 
 wild animals of South Africa, premising that our account must 
 be of the briefest description, having to crowd into a single 
 chapter a whole menagerie of beasts, a full account of the 
 habits and characteristics of which would fill a goodly volume. 
 And first for the lion, the majestic brute whose sovereignty 
 no animal dares to dispute. 
 
 " King of the desert is the lion : when he'd ride his kingdom over 
 To the dim lagoon he stalkcth, giant reeds his ambush cover." 
 
 Our readers will no doubt remember Ferdinand Freilegrath'8 
 graphic description of "the lion's ride" on the back of the giraffe, 
 where he had sprung from his hiding-place in the reeds, when 
 the stately creature came to drink. What a ride was that 
 over a blood -besprinkled track with panting, heaving chest, 
 glazed and filmy eyes, and every nerve quivering with terror
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 179 
 
 .'. 
 
 and agony, the maddened steed flew on, his royal rider feasting 
 as he went on this triumphal progress over his wide domain. 
 No pause, no rest, while life and strength remained on! 
 on ! with a wild and terrible cry, like the shriek of despair, 
 over the rocky ridge, over the sandy waste, miles and miles 
 away from the green pastures and pleasant woods, from kin- 
 dred companionship, and the sound of running water. Flecked 
 with foam, bedabbled with gore, is the smooth shining skin ; 
 there is firo in every vein, a burning and consuming thirst, a 
 and exhaustion of strength that would prostrate
 
 180 DR. 
 
 every energy, were it not for the sharp Btimulous of rending 
 talons and fangs piercing into the very vitals. Still for awhile 
 he staggers on, with unsteady gait and relaxed speed, and 
 now a sharper pang shoots through his frame, and gives a mo- 
 mentary impulse to his mad career but alas ! as Pringle tells 
 us in his spirited lines : 
 
 " 'Tis vain ! the thirsty sands are drinking 
 His streaming blood his strength is sinking 
 The victor's fangs are in his veins ; 
 His flanks are streaked with sanguine stains 
 His panting breast in foam and gore 
 Is bathed he reels his race is o'er." 
 
 And now, leaving his bones to whiten in the desert, after they 
 have been picked clean by the hycenas, jackals, and vultures, 
 let us confine our attention for awhile to his destroyer : 
 
 " Wouldst thou view the lion's don ? 
 Search afar from haunts of men 
 Where the reed-encircled rill 
 Oozes from the rocky hill, 
 By its verdure far discried 
 'Mid the desert brown and wide." 
 
 says Pringle, who thus, in a few lines, gives us a graphic 
 picture of a favourite retreat of the lion of South Africa, 
 where he, perhaps, attains a larger size, and a more perfect 
 development of all his brute powers and faculties than 
 elsewhere. In such a spot as this, in his rocky hiding-plate, 
 close by water, to which he must often resort to satisfy the 
 thirst to which all carnivorous animals are more subjected 
 than those which feed on the juicy herbage, lurks the grim, 
 and oftentimes gory desert-king. Seldom, unless impelled by 
 great hunger, does he stir abroad until the shades of night
 
 UTS LIFK AND ADVETmrilKS. 181 
 
 begin to close around ; and there, where the gloom is rendered 
 yet deeper by the shadow of the overhanging rocks, or the in- 
 terception of the little light that is left by the tall grass or 
 reeds, his fiery eyes may be seen gleaming like live coals, as 
 he crouches, cat-like, ready to spring upon his prey. 
 
 " Close beside the fountain's brim, 
 Couchant lurks the lion grim, 
 Watching till the close of day 
 Brings the death-devoted prey." 
 
 "We have already seen that he -watches not in vain ; the lordly 
 brute knows that there will be a gathering of thirsty animals to 
 the fountain, and that then his opportunity will come. "Woe 
 be to the unlucky beast that chances first to trouble the waters 
 thus guarded, and to approach within springing distance of the 
 ambushed foe. 
 
 " Upon him straight the savage springs 
 With cruel joy." 
 
 That is, if it be not an elephant or rhinoceros ; for these pon- 
 derous and thick-skinned creatures are seldom attacked by the 
 lion, although it will feed upon either of them when dead, 
 notwithstanding the statement which we find in some works on 
 natural history, that the noble brute disdains to eat the flesh 
 of an animal which he has not himself killed. That he prefers 
 a living creature, out of whose veins he may suck the warm 
 spouting blood, appears to be certain ; and no doubt he feels a 
 sort of "cruel joy," as Pringle calls it, in striking down the crea- 
 ture on which he is pleased to feast. So appalling is the roar 
 of this beast, when he springs on his prey, or makes his com- 
 plnint to the moon of hunger, that all animals instinctively fly 
 from the sound. Should he be upsucccssful in his watching
 
 182 DH. LTVINGSTOKE 
 
 by the fountain, ho will arise from his couchant position, and 
 go forth, seeking whom or what he may devour ; and then 
 may be realised the description given by Young in these 
 lines : 
 
 " Fierce o'er the sands the lordly lion stalks, 
 Grimly majestic in his lonely walks . 
 When round he glares, all living creatures fly ; 
 lie clears the desert with his rolling eye. 
 By the pale moon he takes his destin'd rounil , 
 Lashes his sides, and, furious, tears the ground. 
 Now shrieks and dying groans the forest fill, 
 lie rages, rends, his rav'nous jaws distil 
 With crimson foam, and when the banquet's o'er, 
 lie strides away, and paints his steps with gor c. 
 In flight alone the shepherd puts his trust, 
 And shudders at the talon in the dust." 
 
 Of the Lion, which, is the Felis Leo of naturalists, several 
 varieties, or breeds, are known, but their points of difference 
 are scarcely marked enough to be called specific ; they were 
 formerly much more widely diffused throughout the world 
 than they are at present. Africa, some districts of Arabia, 
 and Persia to the country bordering on the Euphrates, and 
 some parts of India, are now their only habitats; for the 
 Puma Felis concolor, or Leo Americana, as some call it is not 
 properly a lion, but is more nearly allied to the Panther. Of 
 the Asiatic breeds, the Bengal, and the Persian or Arabian 
 lion, we need not here speak, nor of the manelcss lion of 
 Guzcrat, recently discovered by Captain Smee. Of the African 
 lions there are three kinds, the Barbary, distinguished by 
 having a deep yellowish-brown fur, and full flowing mane ; 
 the Senegal, which is more of a yellow tint, with a smaller 
 mane, which is nearly wauling on the breast and between tiiu
 
 HV9 .MFE AKD ADVKXTTmFS. 193 
 
 fore logs ; and the Cape, which presents two varieties, ono 
 yellowish and the other brown, the mane often deepening into 
 black. This black-mancd lion is called by the Dutch settlers 
 Schwart fore-life, and is the most dreaded for its strength and 
 ferocity. The yellow variety they call Chiell fore- life. Kaffirs, 
 Bechuanas, and other SouthAfrioan tribes, have a great horror of 
 "Tao," as they term him. Being without adequate means of 
 defence, they are often victims to his murderous attacks. Having 
 once tasted human flesh, he is said to prefer that to any other 
 kind of food, and hence the proximity to the kraal of a "man- 
 eater " fills the whole community with consternation. Those 
 who have followed Gordon Gumming through his wild adven- 
 tures will have had occasion to observe how frequently he was 
 hailed as a deliverer and a benefactor, for having destroyed the 
 man-eating lion ; so it was with the Arabs and Jules Gerard. 
 Nothing could exceed their gratitude at being delivered from 
 their fearful enemy, whom none of them would venture to 
 attack, although he committed fearful devastation among their 
 flocks and herds, and sometimes made a meal of a human 
 being. As a general rule, however, the lion will rather avoid 
 coming in contact with man, beneath whose fixed glance it has 
 been known to quail, and at the sound of whose voice it has 
 often fled. Time out of mind it has been considered an emblem 
 of strength and bravery. Strong it undoubtedly is, and when 
 pressed by hunger, or infuriated by pain, or the baiting of 
 dogs, or the attack of the hunter, it will, like any other wild 
 creature, conscious of possessing the means of offence, dis- 
 regard every danger, and fight desperately to the last. But 
 for all that, we should not consider boldness and bravery as 
 characteristic traits of the lion ; it is well placed by naturalists 
 ul thu heiiJ of the family Felidcr, being a true cat in its natuio
 
 184 DR. LIVINGSTOXJJ 
 
 and habits ; a skulking, stealthy brute, with padded feet that 
 enable it to move noiselessly, its favourite attitude is crouching, 
 ready for the spring, and it rarely meets its prey even face to 
 face, unless obliged to do so. Gumming, as well as Gerard, 
 frequently went close up to lions, and having the nerve to face 
 them boldly, commonly did so with impunity. If the creature 
 had a way open for escape, it would usually avail itself 
 thereof that is, before it received its first wound ; after that, 
 how to destroy its enemy would be its great object and desire. 
 With a port and presence calculated to overawe the fiercest of 
 its fellow roamers of the wilderness, and to shake the stoutest 
 nerves mighty, and majestic, and terrible as it undoubtedly 
 is we yet see that it is often met and bearded by puny man ' 
 its brute strength is no match for his mental power ; and 
 although this king of the desert may, fora time, dispute man's 
 claim to the sovereignty of the whole earth may for a time 
 roam unmolested over those arid tracts which are unfit for cul- 
 tivation, or lurk unseen in the depths of the pathless forests, 
 yet it must eventually be driven out even from these places of 
 refuge, and become extinct. In many parts of the world, where it 
 was once plentiful, it is now extremely rare, if it be not 
 altogether absent. Before the advancing footsteps of civili- 
 sation, it retires further and further into the most dreary and 
 inaccessible wilds. 
 
 " Where the reedy jungle stretches 
 
 Far and wide without a path 
 Where the rocky cavern yawneth, 
 
 And the sun, like one in wrath, 
 Scndeth down his fiery glances 
 
 On the parched and barren waste ; 
 Where the fierce simoom is sweeping, 
 
 Like a horseman hot with baste ;
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. IBS 
 
 Whore the thorny brake and thicket 
 
 Filleth up the interspace 
 Of the trees, through whose thick branches 
 
 Never sunshine lights the place, 
 There the lion dwells a monarch, 
 
 Mightiest among the brutes, 
 There his right to reign supremest, 
 
 Never one his claim disputes. 
 There he layeth down to slumber, 
 
 Having slain and ta'en his fill ; 
 There he roameth, there he croucheth, 
 
 As it suits his lordly will. 
 But, when through the forest clearing, 
 
 Voices sound of busy men 
 When the musket rings, and spear-heads 
 
 Glitter in the rocky glen 
 When the clamorous hounds are baying, 
 
 As they track the tim'rous deer, 
 Thence the desert monarch fleeth, 
 
 Stricken with a sudden fear ; 
 Or he croucheth in the covert, 
 
 Knoweth that his end is near." 
 
 It is in Africa, no doubt, that the lion will longest retain 
 his place of dominion this is his own especial realm. Here ho 
 finds the most inaccesible retreats here is food most plentiful ; 
 antelopes of various species and other wild creatures roam the 
 sandy plains, and haunt the rocky ravines and grey gloomy 
 forests in countless numbers ; and he has only to pick and 
 choose of the best and tenderest. He is something of an epicure 
 in his feeding when not much pressed by hunger, and will 
 take only certain parts of the animal he has slain ; he generally 
 takes his meals early in the morning or late in the evening, 
 and slumbers during the heat of the day ; then is the best time 
 for attacking him, for he is dull and heavy, not easily aroused. 
 The wild Bushmen, who lice from him at other times, tako
 
 186 DR, LIVINGSTONE 
 
 this opportunity of approaching his lair, and shooting him with 
 poisoned arrows, which, though they may fail to arouse him at 
 the time the wound is inflicted, generally prove fatal in the 
 end. Happily the lion is not a vory prolific breeder, nor does it 
 quickly attain maturity, five years being the period which elapses 
 before it reaches its full strength and stature. What that strength 
 is, we may judge from the fact that one of these animals has been 
 known to convey a horse about a mile from the spot where he 
 killed it ; and that another, which had seized a two-year old 
 heifer, was followed for five hours by horsemen, who observed 
 that, through the whole progress of the chase, the lion carried 
 its burden without much apparent difficulty, only letting it 
 once or twice touch the ground : what, then, must a man be 
 in the jaws of such a creature ? let the crushed bones and 
 mangled form of poor Hendrick, Cumming's wagon-driver, 
 answer the question. He was seized by a fierce man-eater 
 while lying by the fire in the camp, surrounded by a strong 
 hedge of wait-a-bit thorn, and safely guarded, as he thought, 
 by the dogs and muskets of himself and companions, as well 
 as by the glare of the burning brands seized and carried off, 
 as a mouse might be by a cat, and devoured within forty yards 
 of the spot, while his master and terrified comrades sat 
 listening to the growling of the horrid brute, without being 
 able to attempt his rescue. 
 
 But we must not enter upon lion stories, or we shall soon fill 
 all our remaining space. Burchell, Campbell, Moffat, Pringlc, 
 Gumming, and other African travellers, furnish plenty of 
 these, not to speak of the French " lion-killer," Jules Gerard, 
 of whose wonderful exploits in Northern Africa we have all 
 read ; in that part of the world, as his experience goes to 
 prove, this king of beasts is far more courageous and terrible
 
 TTI9 T.TFE A XI) ADVKXTUURS. 187 
 
 than in the South : " Jk i is," s:iys Li: Tunir des Lions, " but too 
 ready to attack ; hungry or not, the sight of an enemy rouses 
 his fury at once, and as to cowardice, there is no room for such 
 a suspicion indeed, the lion, so far from running away from 
 the hunter, attacks a whole tribe of armed Arabs, and often 
 scatters them to the winds. No Arab thinks of attacking a 
 lion unless supported by at least twenty muskets; and even 
 then, if the lion is killed, it is not until he has committed 
 serious damage in their ranks." And yet our chivalrous 
 Saphi bearded this formidable creature in his very den, 
 waited for him in narrow pathways, and really seemed 
 to enjoy meeting him face to face, where it was impossible 
 to avoid an encounter, in which the man was always vic- 
 torious over the beast. Query was the lion a coward or 
 
 the man a ? 
 
 There are five other species of the felina?, or cat family, found 
 in South Africa ; the largest and most formidable of these, next 
 to the lion, is the Leopard (felis leopardis), called by the 
 Dutch colonists the tiger, or berg tiger; " it differs from the 
 panther of Northern Africa," saysPringle, "in the form of 
 its spots, in the more slender structure of its body, and in the 
 legs not being so long in proportion to its size." This animal 
 is chiefly found in the mountainous districts, where he preys 
 on such of the antelopes as he can surprise, on baboons, anil 
 on the Das sie of the colonists (hyrax Capensis). He is much 
 dreaded by the Cape farmers for his ravages among the flock - 
 and the young fowls and calves in the breeding season. 
 Its habit, while watching for prey, is to crouch on the 
 ground, with its fore-paws stretched out, and its head between 
 them, with its eyes rather directed upwards. Extremely agile 
 and graceful in all its ii.c \ciii cuts, there is, perhaps, no
 
 183 Jll. LIVlW'JSTONE 
 
 animal more beautiful than this sleek and clcgantly-formoff 
 cat; but one had better not approach too close in examin- 
 ation of its beauties. Although it will generally flee before 
 the approach of man, yet instances are not wanting of its 
 having attacked an intruder on its haunts, with the greatest 
 fury, and so severely lacerating him as to cause death. 
 Among some of the natives of the western coast this animal 
 is considered sacred, and never hunted, although it occasionally 
 approaches the villages and destroys children, and even 
 women. The Cape colonists, however, have no such respect 
 for the animal ; and its low, half-smothered growl, heard at 
 night in the neighbourhood of the cattle kraal, is the signal for 
 a general turn-out for its destruction. When hunted, it 
 generally takes to a tree, if one is within reach, and can only 
 be dislodged from thence by a musket-ball. It is often caught 
 in a trap, and baited with dogs, two or three of which it 
 generally kills before it is overpowered. Mr. Orpen, Gumming' a 
 companion in his last campaign, had an encounter with a male 
 leopard, which had nearly proved fatal to him. The creature 
 had been wounded, and sprung upon his assailant's shoulders, 
 and dashing him to the ground, lay on him, growling and 
 lacerating his hands, arms, and head most fearfully; luckily its 
 strength failed from loss of blood, and it rolled over, permitting 
 Orpen to rise and get away. The native attendants, all this 
 while, were afraid to come near enough to render any assistance; 
 and had not the creature been struck in some vital spot, no 
 doubt it would have killed the man. 
 
 " And the beautiful cat, with skin so slec k, 
 That looketh so mild, and secmeth so meek ; 
 That leapeth down with an agile grace, 
 'Mid the clefts of its rocky dwelling-place;
 
 aris 
 
 That croucheth amid the waving grass. 
 With a wary eye upon all who pass, 
 What hath it sheathed in that velvet p.iw t 
 What hid 'neath the skin of that silky juw ? 
 Not talons to tear ? not fangs to rend ? 
 Ah, Ah ! approach not near, my friend ! 
 For the lovely creature that looks so mild 
 Hath a nature treacherous and wild. 
 Have you yet to learn that a beautiful skin 
 Full oft hideth much that is rile within ? 
 
 The Chetah, or Hunting Leopard called by naturalists Felts 
 jubata, an animal far inferior to the real leopard in size and 
 beauty is that to which Dutch colonists about the Cape have 
 given the name Luipaard. It is somewhat rare with them, but 
 the skin may occasionally be seen ornamenting the person 
 of a Kaffir chief, who prides himself much on its possession. 
 Some naturalists consider this as a distinct species from the 
 Indian chetah, which, on account of its testability and 
 adaptation of form for such a purpose, is often employed in 
 hunting a use to which the African chetah does not seem to 
 have been put. 
 
 There are three other animals of the cat-kind to be de- 
 scribed as South African : these are the Serval (felis serval], 
 the Caracal (/. caracal], and the Wild Cat (/ catus}. The 
 Dutch call these respectively Tiger-bosch-kat, Roode-kat, and 
 Wilde-hat They are all extremely mischievous creatures, 
 and on this account, as well as for their beautiful skins, are 
 assiduously hunted and shot, both by the settlers and 
 natives. By the latter their glossy furs are made into highly 
 ornamental karosscs, as the little cloaks, which they wear sus- 
 jHT.ded from their backs, are called. 
 
 But we had almost forgotten the Eootcd-Lynx (/. cali'jala),
 
 190 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 another ofihcfelina;, which must be included in this group, and 
 to which the Dutch name wilde-kat appears often to be applied. 
 This is a long-tailed and long-eared species, a true cat in its 
 habits and characteristics. It preys on birds and small quadru- 
 peJs, making sad havoc among the flocks of wild guinea-fowls, 
 lurking amid the branches of the trees on which they roost, 
 and seizing them while asleep. But although it prefers this 
 kind of prey, it is by no means a dainty feeder : when the 
 lion and leopard have done feasting on some large animal, the 
 lynx will draw near and share the remains with other of the 
 smaller felina, snarling and snapping with the best of them. 
 It has a beautiful furry covering, of a bluish-grey colour, 
 tinged here and there with red, and marked on the thighs and 
 across the cheeks with indistinct bars of brown. The tail, 
 which islongenough to reach the ground when the animal walks, 
 is tipped and ringed with black, with whitish intervals between. 
 The sole and posterior part of the legs are black hence the 
 name " booted." The cars aro lined with red, and tipped 
 with a pencil of brown hairs. 
 
 Perhaps the most mischievous and destructive animal with 
 which the settler in South Africa has to contend is the spotted 
 hyaena (Hy<ena crocuta), to which the colonists have given the 
 name of the tiger-wolf tolerably expressive of its fierce and 
 ravening nature. This animal appears to occupy a position 
 about mid- way between the cats and dogs, partaking much of 
 the nature of both, as manifested in their natural state. It 
 ia a hideous, shaggy monster, with a voracious appetite, and 
 a cry the most doleful and horrible that can be conceived, 
 something that seems to be made up of fiendish laughter and 
 the wail of condemned spirits. This is the nightly music to 
 which the colonist must listen, and it is associated with all
 
 HI3 LIFC AXD ADVENTURES. 
 
 191 
 
 that is most terrible ar.d revolting to humanity; for the hyacnu 
 is not only the great marauder and destroyer of sheep and all 
 domesticated animals, hut the devourer of infants and infirra 
 persons, as well as of dead hodics, whether human, or bestial, 
 and in any stage of decomposition. Prowling about the towns 
 r.nd the out- settlements, and often, stealing into the very 
 houses, it will seize whatever comes in its way, and make off 
 to its lair on the mountains. The infant from its mother's 
 breast, the sick person from the bed, and the corpse from the 
 coffin or the recently fillcd-up grave, have often been thus 
 mangled on the spot, or borne away to be devoured at homo. 
 It is a cowardly brute, and attacks no living creatures that 
 make a bold stand against it. Even sick calves, and sheep 
 that have been really unable to flee at its approach, or to mani- 
 fest any sign of fear, have driven it off by stupidly looking in 
 its face. "With the Kaffirs it is a kuid of sacred animal, and 
 they expose their dead bodies, and even their sick and aged 
 relatives, to be devoured by it ; and thus encouraged, it bo- 
 comes bold, frequently entering the huts and carrying off 
 children. "Where nro-nrmshavc been introduced, it has learned 
 to live iu vrholeiuuie dread of them; and a single mun, with
 
 192 DTI. 
 
 a gun, need not fear to encounter a host of hungry Iiycenas 
 they will scamper away in every direction; but he must 
 not go to sleep in an unprotected spot in their vicinity, or they 
 will soon be round him, sniffing and whining, with their foetid 
 breath and horrid, blood-stained jaws, and green, glaring eyes, 
 looking out for a vulnerable part. A story is told of a Capo 
 trumpeter, who, having become dead drunk, was put out in 
 the air to cool and recover himself; it was night, and the 
 sharp-scented hyaenas were soon attracted to the spot, and 
 believing the man to be really dead, they dragged him away 
 to the mountains for a feast. As they were about to com- 
 mence operations, the trumpeter awoke to a sense of his 
 agreeable situation, and sitting up, did perhaps the most 
 sensible thing which, under the circumstances, he could have 
 done; he applied his instrument to his lips, and blew a 
 shrill blast that made the rocks echo again, and his cowardly 
 assailants to fly as if a musket-ball had been sent among 
 them. The narrator of this story adds, that if the man had 
 been anything but a trumpeter, ho would, in all probability, 
 have been devoured ; but, from what we know of the hyaenas, 
 this seems unlikely, unless he had been so utterly slupifiecl by 
 drink, or paralysed by fear, as to have been incapable of 
 making any resistance before some vital part had been 
 reached. The jaws of this animal are so powerful that they 
 are said to be able to crush the largest bones, of a horse even. 
 A settler relates that when his horse was killed by a lion, only 
 a small part of the carcase was devoured by the destroyer ; 
 but next night the entire remains were carried off by the 
 hyaenas, and all that was ever afterwards discovered was ono 
 of the hoofs and part of the skull. 
 
 The hyajna is a very cunning and suspicious animal, so
 
 HTS 1TFE AND ADVENTURES. 193 
 
 that it is not often taken in the traps and pitfalls sot for it by tho 
 farmers ; when it is, and its dead carcass is thrown to the dogs, 
 they will not eat it, so rank and offensive is it. If, however, 
 the dead body is left till night, its relatives will scent it out, 
 and soon pick the bones quite clean, if they do not crunch and 
 swallow them too. Like the wolves, jackals, and wild dogs, 
 with which they claim kindred, these creatures are gre- 
 garious, hunting for prey in packs or troops of twenty or 
 thirty. They follow the lion in his nightly prowlings, and 
 come in for a share of any large animal which he kills. 
 Besides the tiger- wolf, already described, the colonists speak 
 of three other distinct species of hyaenas, viz., the Strand wolf, 
 the berg-wolf, and the wilde-hond, or wild-dog. The first of 
 these is not so common as the spotted species, and is found 
 mostly along the sea-coast : it is the hycena villosa of natu- 
 ralists. It, like the Berg-wolf, found chiefly in the moun- 
 tains, is said to be larger than the spotted species, and of a 
 dark-grey colour. Then there is the Aard wolf, or Earth 
 wolf, the Proteles cristata of naturalists, which appears to 
 rank the hyaenas with the civets, as the Wilde-hond does 
 with the true dogs. This last animal, generally called the 
 Cape Hunting-Dog, is the Canis, or Hyaena pictus of natu- 
 ralists ; the painted dog, or hyaena, so called from the distinct 
 markings of black and white on its fur of sandy yellow. 
 
 This is a wild, fleet, and savage animal, and one of the 
 pests of South Africa, often committing fearful ravages on 
 the flocks and herds of the farmers ; when it breaks into the 
 sheep-fold, it worries and mangles far more than it requires to 
 satisfy its carnivorous propensities. It does not attack horned 
 cattle openly, but steals behind, or upon them, when asleep, 
 and with a single bite will snap off the tail, and scurry away to 
 
 o
 
 194 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTON! 
 
 devour it in a place of security. Large packs of these wild- 
 dogs go scouring the country in all directions, sometimes by 
 day, but oftenest by night, hunting the different kinds of an- 
 telopes, which they generally run down, being long-winded, as 
 well as strong and fleet ; they will attack and tear in pieces 
 any disabled animal they come across, however large it may be ; 
 they are about the size of an English pointer, have long limbs, 
 erect cars, and muscular, well-proportioned forms. Gordon 
 Gumming describes their mode of hunting, and says " that their 
 pace is a long, cantering gallop ; and in the chasn they relieve 
 one another, the leading hounds falling to the rear when fa- 
 tigued, when others who have been husbanding their strength 
 come up and relieve them. Having succeeded in bringing their 
 quarry to bay, they all surround him, and he is immediately 
 dragged to the ground, and in a few minutes torn to pieces and 
 consumed. They are of a bold and daring disposition, and 
 do not entertain iaucb fear of man, evincing less concern
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVENTURES. 195 
 
 /if. Us approach than any other carnivorous animal with which 
 1 am acquainted. When a pack is disturbed, they trot leisurely 
 along before the intruder, repeatedly halting, and looking back 
 at him. The females bring forth their young in large holes, in 
 desolate open places, and their burrows are connected with oue 
 another underground. When a troop of wild- dogs observe a 
 man approaching, they rush forth, even though the intruder 
 should be close upon them, and retreat across the plain ; tho 
 young ones, unless very weak, accompany them." Then, after 
 describing the devastation they occasion among the flocks of tho 
 settlers, " tearing and mangling all within their reach," our 
 mighty hunter goes on to say that " their voice consists of 
 three different kinds of cry, each being used on a special occa- 
 sion ; one is a sharpy angry bark, usually uttered when they 
 suddenly behold an object which they cannot make out; 
 another resembles the chattering of monkeys. This cry is 
 emitted at night, when large numbers of them are congregated 
 together, and they are excited by any peculiar occurrence, 
 such as being barked at by domestic dogs. The third, and 
 the one most commonly made, is a sort of rallying note, 
 to bring the various members of the pack together when 
 they have been scattered in following several individuals 
 of a troop of antelopes. It is a peculiarly soft and melodious 
 cry, yet, nevertheless, may be distinguished at a great dis- 
 tance : it \ery much resembles the second note of the cuckoo, 
 and, when heard in a calm morning, echoing through the 
 distant woodlands, it has a very pleasing effect. They treat all 
 domestic dogs, however large and fierce, with the utmost scorn, 
 waiting to receive their attack, and then cleverly assisting 
 one another, they generally rend them to pieces. Tha 
 domestic dogs most cordially reciprocate their animositj-,
 
 196 
 
 DH. 
 
 at what distance soever heard, even more than that of 
 the lion, starting to their feet, and angrily barking for hours." 
 Further, the wild-dog is strong, and swift, and rapacious, only a 
 shade less fearful and repulsive than the hya?na itself : the 
 gnu and the eland, and the pallah, bound off when they hear 
 the wild musical cry, and the tempest of pattering feet, which 
 betokens the approach of the ravening pack ; and even the fierce 
 buffalo cowers among the reeds, fearful of their sharp fanga 
 and overpowering numbers. 
 
 The Jackal (Canis aurevs) is another of those gregarious 
 predatory creatures which give an infinity of trouble to the 
 South African settler. Not so savage and repulsive as the 
 hyaena ; not so strong and bold as the wild-dog, it yet perhaps 
 is as mischievous as either. Much like a fox in appearance, it 
 is so in character also ; sly and wary, it steals by night into the 
 poultry close, and carries off the feathered inhabitants; it
 
 HIS LTFE AWD AD YEN-TUBES. 197 
 
 gives chase to the sheep and antelopes, and any other de- 
 fenceless creatures which it can, singly or in united numbers, 
 overcome ; it is likewise very destructive in the fruit-garden, 
 being somewhat of an omnivorous feeder, and seems to have a 
 particular partiality for grapes; pulls up the roots and vegetables 
 in the kitchen-garden, and thus, in more ways than even the 
 animals above named, with which it is often found associated, 
 injures and annoys the husbandman. Its wild cry, like a shriek 
 heard in the silence of the night, is something truly horrifying ; 
 bursting forth out of the thick forest, or the rocky kloof, or 
 sweeping afar over the desolate karroo, it rises, and ere it dies 
 away, is taken up and repeated by echo ; or one troop answers 
 another, and is in turn answered from a different quarter, till 
 the wild chorus fills all the air, and it seems as though 
 demons were holding their revels in some weird spot near at 
 hand. Away go the yelling pack, light of foot, keen of scent, 
 and sharp of eye ; if they light upon a sick or wounded animal 
 of the larger kind, they stand shrieking round him, until tho 
 lion, guided by the sound, approaches, strikes down his prey, 
 and having satisfied his hunger, leaves the rest for his noisy 
 providers, as they have been called, who quarrel and fight over 
 every morsel, and chase each other round the carcass for 
 choice bits, all the while keeping up a terrific din. When the 
 bones are picked clean, off they go again, with tails stretched 
 out and noses high in air, snifiing the gale, and, as it seems, 
 attending on the desert-king in his nightly roamings. When 
 the daylight comes, they retire to their holes and burrows, 
 and there lie crouched, until the night, their season for racing, 
 feasting, and yelling, again approaches. 
 
 Having thus disposed of the South African cats and dogs, 
 and creatures most nearly allied to them, let us now turn our
 
 198 DK. LIVIRGSTOWB 
 
 attention to a very different class of animals, those included 
 by naturalists in the order Pachydermata, or thick-skinned, at 
 the head of which stands the ponderous elephant, the most 
 sagacious, and, when not molested and irritated, the most 
 harmless, of animals. 
 
 " Calm amid scenes of havoo in his own 
 Huge strength impregnable, the elephant 
 Oflendeth none, but leads a quiet life 
 Among his own contemporary trees ; 
 Till Nature lays him gently down to rest 
 Beneath the palm which he was wont to make 
 His prop in slumber : there his relics lie 
 Longer than life itself had dwelt in them. 
 Bees in the ample hollow of his skull 
 Pile their wax citadels and store their honey ; 
 Thence sally forth, to forage through the fields, 
 And swarm in emigrating legions thence. 
 There little burrowing animals throw up 
 Hillocks beneath the overarching ribs ; 
 While birds within their spiral labyrinth 
 Construct their nests." 
 
 Such is the picture given of the quiet life, gentle death, and 
 peaceful repose of the elephant in an eastern land, where the 
 huge creature is less likely to be hunted and disturbed than 
 in that quarter of the globe to which onr attention is now 
 directed. Here his mighty strength has never been turned to 
 purposes of utility; here he is not looked upon with such 
 kindly regard as in the east, where the idea of eating ele- 
 phant's flesh would be revolting to all, and to a large class, 
 the Hindoos, most wicked and impious. Here the great 
 creature lives surrounded by enemies : the native tribes are 
 constantly plotting his destruction, and the Europeans, with 
 their deadly weapons, are yearly thinning his number*.
 
 llIS LIFE ASD .VDVtJTUKES. 159 
 
 "This day," says Gordon Gumming, "I bagged my fiftieth 
 elephant;" and we read of 300 being killed every year on the 
 banks of a small river. 150,000 Ibs. weight of ivory, 
 chiefly elephant's tusks, are exported annually from Quilli- 
 mane, on the eastern coast of Africa ; and the staple article 
 of trading, with every native chief, is ivory. The Bechuanas, 
 and other African people, followed the white hunter bj 
 hundreds, in order to secure the flesh of the elephants which 
 ^lo might kill ; and on every hand, as we pass with the tra- 
 veller through the wild country, we find snares, and pitfulb, 
 and other contrivances for destroying the elephant. And no 
 less in league against him are his fellow- denizens of the foresi 
 and the sandy plain. Should he fall lame or sick, and be- 
 come unable to defend himself, he will be attacked and killed 
 at once by the lion, ripped up by the rhinoceros, gored by the 
 buffalo, or worried to death by leopards, hyaenas, wild- dogs, 
 and jackals, to whom his immense carcass affords a plentiful 
 feast. Under these circumstances, one is astonished at the 
 immense number of elephants which are yet met with in 
 South Africa. Large herds of from fifty to one hundred roam 
 the grey, dreary forests, and rocky pastures of the Bamanguato, 
 and other countries in that region. In his journey along the 
 northern banks of the Zambesi, Dr. Livingston and his party 
 had to shout to the elephants to get out of their way. About 
 Tete, as the Doctor tells us, there arc" plenty of elephants, 
 and he had no fear of leaving his party of Makololo there until 
 his return from Europe, because they were expert hunters, and 
 would be sure to get their own living, in a great measure, 
 no doubt, at the expense of the poor elephants. 
 
 The inaccessible nature of the wild tracts of country which 
 they inhabit has proved a great safeguard to these huge
 
 200 BE. 
 
 creatures, as well as the extraordinary horror which they 
 appear to entertain of the presence of man. Gordon Gum- 
 ming says that " a child passing at a quarter of a mile to wind- 
 ward will put a hundred of them to flight ; and when thus 
 disturbed, they go a long way before they halt: it is 
 surprising how soon these sagacious animals are aware of the 
 presence of a hunter in their domains. When one troop has 
 been attacked, all the other elephants frequenting the district 
 are aware of the fact within two or three days, when they all 
 forsake it, and migrate to distant parts, leaving the sportsman 
 no alternative but to inspan his wagons, and remove to fresh 
 ground: his constitutes one of the greatest difficulties a 
 skilful elephant-hunter encounters. Even in the most remote 
 parts, which may be reckoned the head-quarters of the ele- 
 phant, it is only occasionally, and with inconceivable toil, that 
 the eye of the hunter is cheered by the sight of one. Owing 
 to habits peculiar to himself, the elephant is more inaccessible, 
 and much more rarely seen, than any other wild animal, 
 excepting certain rare antelopes ; they choose for their resort 
 the most lonely and secluded depths of the forest, and gene- 
 rally at a great distance from the rivers and fountains at which 
 they drink. In dry, warm weather, they visit these every 
 night; but in cool, cloudy weather, they drink only once every 
 third or fourth day. About sundown the elephant leaves his 
 distant mid-day haunts, and commences his march towards 
 some fountain, which is probably from twelve to twenty 
 miles distant ; this he generally reaches between the hours of 
 nine and midnight ; when, having slaked his thirst and cooled 
 his body by spouting volumes of water over his back with his 
 trunk, he resumes his path to his forest solitudes." Our obser- 
 vant hunter says that, in very secluded districts, they usually lie
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 201 
 
 down on their sides, and sleep for a few hours. It does not appear 
 that the females do this ; and in districts where they are likely 
 to be disturbed, they all take repose, standing beneath some 
 ehady tree. " Having slept," he says, " they feed immensely, 
 spreading out from one another; and, proceeding in a zig-zag 
 course, they smash and destroy the forest trees which happen 
 to lie in their way. The number of these which a herd of 
 bull elephants will thus destroy is utterly incredible. They 
 are extremely capricious ; and on coming to a group of five 
 or six trees, not unfrequently break down the whole of them, 
 when, having perhaps only tasted one or two small branches, 
 pass on and continue their wanton work of destruction." 
 lie also relates, that "he has several times gone into forests, 
 where the trees thus broken lay so thick across one another, 
 that it was almost impossible to ride through them ; and it 
 is in situations such as these that attacking the elephant is 
 attended with most danger. During the night they will 
 feed in open plains, and thinly-wooded districta ; but, as day 
 dawns, they retire to the densest covers within reach, which, 
 nine times in ten, consist of impracticable wait-a-bit thorns ; 
 and here they remain, drawn up in a compact herd, during 
 the heat of the day. In remote districts, and in cool weather, 
 herds will continue pasturing throughout the whole day." 
 
 It must, indeed, bo a magnificent sight to behold these 
 immense creatures, in all the freedom of their native wilds, 
 slowly passing from glade to thicket, or out in the open plain, 
 ploughing up the ground with their mighty tusks, in search 
 of roots, or using them as levers wherewith to overthrow the 
 trees, on whose tender shoots and branches they love to 
 feed; to mark their unwieldy gambols and playful caresses 
 for this
 
 20. 
 
 DK. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 " JBcast, which hath between his eyes 
 A serpent for an arm," 
 
 has its frolicsome and tender moments, as well as animals of 
 more graceful and elegant proportions. The elephant calves 
 are very playful, and may be seen rolling over and over, and 
 chasing each other, amid the rocky ridges and wooded hol- 
 lows of their native haunts, like so many lambs. They have 
 softly modulated tones, these mighty Behemoths, in which 
 they address each other in accents of tenderest affection. An 
 elephant in love strikes us as rather a ridiculous figure ; and 
 yet Leigh Hunt tells us that
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVETTUKKS. 203 
 
 " None ever panted with love's sweet want 
 Like the unwieldy elephant." 
 
 But such an immense and powerful creature is this, that 
 in its love and anger it is alike terrible ; when excited, by 
 passion of any kind, to an exercise of its great strength, woe 
 be to whatever stands in its way. When it would open a path to 
 the object of its desire, or pursue an enemy, trees are over- 
 thrown like reeds, and stones and rocky fragments of immense 
 size hurled aside like very toys. He must be a bold man who 
 would venture on foot into the maze of uprooted trees and 
 thorn-bushes above described, to face and destroy an angry 
 elephant ; and such was Gordon Gumming, perhaps the most 
 successful hunter of this animal that ever lived. To ride up 
 to the very tusks of an advancing herd, and single out the 
 finest bull, must require no little nerve ; and then to stick 
 to the wounded beast, to follow it for hours through 
 thicket and rocky kloof, and stream and reedy marsh, now 
 rushing madly forward, now creeping warily in, to plant 
 another shot, now dodging in and out, with the chance 
 of coming unawares upon some savage brute, and finding 
 yourself between two fearful alternatives of death! very ex- 
 citing all this ; but few have the taste for it, and we are not 
 among 
 
 " That few, that daring few, that band of hunters." 
 
 But then, the ivory! Ah, think of a pair of tusks, eight 
 or nine feet long, and six inches in diameter, what a prize is 
 this ! A prize indeed, and yet we, for our parts, would rather 
 eit at home, and let the poor elephant range their native wilda 
 unobstructed, than go forth and encounter such risks, hard- 
 ships, iuid dangers, lor its possession. It is well, no doubt,
 
 904 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 that there should be adventurous spirits like Gordon Gumming ; 
 there is a work appointed for all to do, and this seems to bo 
 theirs to battle with the wild creatures of the forest and the 
 desert, and to extirpate, or bring into subjection, those whose 
 unrestrained existence would be adverse to the advancement 
 of human civilisation, of which they often act as pioneers. " A 
 herd of elephants, browsing in majestic tranquillity amid the 
 wild magnificence of an African landscape, is a very noble sight," 
 says Pringle, " and one of which I shall never forget the 
 impression." And Cumming tells us, that " the appearance of 
 the wild elephant is inconceivably majestic and imposing; his 
 gigantic height and colossal bulk, so greatly surpassing all 
 other quadrupeds, combined with his sagacious disposition and 
 peculiar habits, impart to him an interest in the eyes of the 
 hunter which no other animal can call forth. His pace, when 
 undisturbed, is a bold, free, sweeping step ; and from the spongy 
 formation of his foot, his tread is extremely light and in- 
 audible, and all his movements are attended with singular 
 gentleness and grace. This, however, only applies to the 
 elephant when roaming undisturbed in the jungle. When 
 roused by the hunter, he proves a most dangerous enemy, and 
 far more difficult to conquer than any other beast of the 
 chase." 
 
 Such is theElephas 4/ricanus, as naturalists call this African 
 species, which is distinguished from the E. Indicus, its Indian 
 congener, mainly by its rounded head, large ears, and three hoofs 
 on the hind feet, the Asiatic species having four. Like 
 most large animals, the elephant is of slow growth: it has been 
 said not to attain full maturity until the age of thirty years, and 
 lias been known, in a state of confinement and servitude, to live 
 to eut score. Of its great sagacity, innumerable instances are
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 805 
 
 on record, making us doubtful where to draw the imaginary 
 line between instinct and reason. Endowed with keen senses, 
 and, as it seems, fine sensibilities also, we find in this animal 
 a kindly, genial, and gentle nature, beneath a most unprepos- 
 sessing exterior, teaching us, again, that outward show has little 
 to do with inward qualities. 
 
 Southey has described tho habits of this animal in a wild 
 state, in a passage of so much beauty that, although we have 
 already extended these remarks to too great a length, we are 
 tempted to quote it : 
 
 " Trampling his path through wood and brake, 
 And canes which, crackling, fall before his way, 
 And tufted grass, whose silvery feathers play, 
 
 O'ertopping the young trees, 
 On comes the elephant, to slake 
 His thirst, at noon, in yon pellucid springs. 
 Lo ! from his trunk upturned, aloft he flings 
 
 The grateful shower ; and now, 
 
 Plucking the broad-leafed bough 
 Of yonder plume, with waving motion slow, 
 
 Fanning the languid air, 
 
 He waves it to and fro." 
 
 Next to the elephant in size, and belonging to the same 
 thick-skinned family, is the rhinoceros, a huge, unwieldy 
 brute, with a most unprepossessing exterior, a morose and sul- 
 len temper, and habits filthy and disgusting ; delighting to 
 wallow in the mire, with which its warty, tuberculated hide 
 is generally plastered, and to plough up the ground with its 
 horny snout; it goes routing and grunting about amid the 
 swamps and gloomy forests, like a very pig, as it is ; and a 
 most irascible pig, too ; for, if you come in its way, it will 
 charge right at you, without regard to consequences. " Canst
 
 206 
 
 DE. 
 
 thoubind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? or will he 
 harrow the valleys after thee ? wilt thou trust him because his 
 strength is great ? or wilt thou leave thy labour to him ? " 
 asks the afflicted patriarch of TJz, evidently alluding to this 
 animal, which, if it were as tractable as it is strong, might bs 
 of great service to the husbandman. But the asker of thcsa 
 questions well knew the fierce and untameable character of tho 
 animal to which he alluded. "Will he harrow the valleys after 
 thec?" not he that is, for any useful purpose; but he will 
 plough up the ground, and cut the bushes to pieces, in his fita 
 of ungovernable fury, seeming to take a savage delight in such 
 an exercise of his brute strength. 
 
 Naturalists pretty generally agree in giving to Africa three 
 distinct species of rhinoceri, all of which are found in the 
 southern portion of the continent. The black, one-horned 
 
 White Bbinoceroa
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURKS. 207 
 
 pecies, Rhinoceros bicornis, appears to be the most common ; 
 the native name for it, according to Gumming, is Borele. Tho 
 Keitloa (Ilk. keitloa), is also black, and has two horns; as like- 
 wise has the white rhinoceros (Rh. simus}, whose native 
 name is Muchocho ; but then we read in Gumming' s book of 
 another white species, or perhaps it is but a variety, which the 
 Bechuanas and others call Kobaoba, a most hideous creature 
 this, with an indescribable head, and one of its horns three or 
 four feet long. "We also hear of a three-horned rhinoceros in 
 Africa, and are induced to think that this is but an accidental 
 variety. 
 
 Gumming says that "both varieties of the black rhino- 
 ceros are extremely fierce and dangerous, and rush headlong and 
 unprovoked at any object which attracts their attention. They 
 never become very fat, and their flesh is tough, and not much 
 liked by the Bechuanas. Their food consists almost entirely of the 
 branches of the wait-a-bit thorns. The horns are much shorter 
 than those of the other varieties, seldom exceeding eighteen 
 inches in length ; they are finely polished by constant rubbing 
 against the trees. " These black varieties are also much smaller 
 and more active than the white, and are so swift that a horse 
 with a man on his back can scarcely overtake them." Of 
 the two white varieties, the principal difference appears to 
 consist in the length and set of the anterior horn ; that of 
 the Muchocho averaging from two to three feet, and pointing 
 backwards ; that of the Kobaoba often exceeding four feet, and 
 inclining forward. The latter is the rarer of the two, being 
 found very far in the interior, chiefly to the eastward of the 
 Limpopo. These white varieties have heads at least a foot 
 longer than their black congeners, and they are altogether 
 larger animals, reeding solely on grass, they become very
 
 208 DH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 fat, nnd their flesh is juicy and tender, " preferable," says our 
 authority, " to beef." One consequence of their general good 
 condition is, their inability to escape from the hunter, who 
 does not find attacking these such very dangerous sport. If 
 well mounted, he can easily overtake them, and they scarcely 
 ever turn upon him. They carry their heads low ; whereas 
 the impetuous Borele, when disturbed, sticks his up in a saucy 
 and defiant manner. 
 
 The rhinoceri do not, like the elephants, associate in 
 herds ; they generally go singly, or in pairs : sometimes five 
 or six may be seen together, and even more, where pasturage 
 is fresh and abundant, in districts where they are numerous. 
 " During the day they may generally be found in some retired 
 part of the forest, lying asleep, or reclining indolently against 
 a tree ; sometimes it is under the base of a mountain, shel- 
 tered from the sun by some friendly umbrella- topped mimosa. 
 In the evening they commence their nightly rambles, and 
 wander over a great extent of country, visiting the fountains 
 at night, between the hours of nine and twelve, and then it is 
 that they may be successfully hunted with the least danger." 
 The skin of this animal is so thick that bullets will not 
 penetrate, if made wholly of lead. Gumming hardened his 
 with solder : yet none of the African species have those over- 
 lapping folds of skin which the Asiatic have. These latter are 
 all, we believe, single-horned ; a species with one horn only 
 has been spoken of as African, bjjf *" <^ *"* Vnn-w- that it 
 has been met with far south. The "Keitloa is said to hav a the 
 two horns of a nearly equal length; while in the com- 
 moner black species the posterior one, in both sexes, is never 
 much beyond a third of the length of the anterior ; the neck 
 is also much longer than that of Borele, whose portrait we 
 here give.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 209 
 
 As large as the rhinoceros, and as hideous in appearance, 
 but far less ferocious and destructive, is the Hippopotamus, or 
 lliver- horse, which is found in nearly all the great rivers in 
 Africa whose banks have yet been visited by Europeans. This 
 is the Hippopotamus amphibius of naturalists, a creature which 
 sometimes weighs more than fifteen hundred pounds, and has 
 a skin in places as much as two inches thick, with a body like 
 a dirty barrel set upon short, thick legs; a monstrous head, for 
 which we can find no similitude on the earth, or in the waters 
 under the earth; a little pig- like tail; small eyes, situated 
 high up in the head ; a muzzle much swollen ; great thick lips 
 studded with wire-like bristles ; an enormously wide mouth, 
 which, when open, as it commonly, is, exhibits sharp incisor 
 teeth, and huge curved tusks, which, when the animal is 
 excited, uru cupublu of cuuuuittiiig fuoil'ul mischief ; the cure
 
 510 ,lfc. LIVING SfONfi 
 
 are small, and furnished with a few wiry bristles ; on each of 
 the immense feet are four toes, tipped wi li horny hoofs, which 
 leave a deep imprint in the mud of the river's brink, and sand 
 of the sea-shore, where the creature is as often seen as by the 
 fresh- water streams in the interior ; hence the name Sea-cow 
 is often given to it, showing that it is in its habits marine as 
 well as fluviate. 
 
 It does not appear that the hippopotamus has been found 
 out of Africa, where it is very abundant, although now more 
 limited in its range and habitat than it was formerly. It is 
 gregarious in its habits, sagacious, wary, and cautious. 
 
 " To convey some idea of the numbers iu. which these ani- 
 mals were found, on several of the rivers toward the tropic 
 of Capricorn," says Dr. Smith, "it may suffice to state, that, 
 in the course of an hour and a-half, a few members of an 
 expedition-party killed seven within gunshot of their encamp- 
 ment. Several other individuals were in the same pool, and 
 might also have been killed, had it been desirable. One of 
 the survivors was observed to make his escape to an adjoining 
 pool ; and in accomplishing this, he walked, with consider- 
 able rapidity, along the bottom of the river, and with his 
 back covered with about a foot of water." The animal docs 
 not remain thus submerged more than five or six minutes at 
 a time, being obliged to come to the surface for the purpose 
 of respiration ; and then it is that the hunter, who watches 
 for the opportunity, endeavours to plant the fatal shot. 
 Gumming, we may remember, first came upon hippopotami 
 on the Limpopo, and he describes them as there tolerably 
 abundant, but very difficult of approach. The scene which 
 he presents to us, in the following passage, must have been a 
 grand and impressive one: "At sun-down, the sea-cow*
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADTEWTTTRE8. ill 
 
 commenced their march up the river, passing opposite our 
 camp, and making the most extraordinary sounds blowing, 
 snorting, and roaring ; sometimes crashing through the reeds 
 sometimes swimming gently, and splashing and sporting 
 through the water. There being a little moonlight, I went 
 down, with my man, Carey, and sat some time by the river 
 side. It was a truly grand, and very extraordinary scene ; 
 and the opposite bank of the stream being clad with trees of 
 gigantic size and great beauty, they added greatly to the in- 
 terest of the picture." 
 
 A few days after, our hunter shot his first hippopotamus, 
 and had a most difficult task to secure his wounded game, 
 dashing into the water, notwithstanding the danger of croco- 
 diles, and holding on first to the creature's short tail, and 
 then, by two incisions which he made in the thick skin, and 
 being whirled about, as the maddened animal plunged and 
 struggled, as if he had been a fly settled upon her tail. 
 At length he succeeded in bringing his prize to the bank, 
 and, afterwards, in getting the huge carcass drawn up high 
 and dry. He was astonished at her enormous size : she ap- 
 peared to be about five feet across the belly ; and he could 
 " see much beauty in her conformation, so admirably adapted 
 for the amphibious life to which she was destined by nature." 
 
 The flesh of this animal is excellent, and in much request, 
 not only by the natives, but by the European settlers. In- 
 deed, the epicures of Cape Town, as Dr. Smith informs us, 
 are very solicitous to obtain of tho formers, at the out-settle- 
 ments, sea-cow's spec, as the layer or fat found between tho 
 flesh and the skin is called, when salted and dried. Although 
 generally harmless if unmolested, yet, when attacked, or 
 ulnl-med for the safety of its young, tVs is a truly formidable
 
 212 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 animal, on account of its great strength and enormous size. 
 It has been known to seize the side of a boat with its tre- 
 mendous jaws, and crush it like an egg-shell. If hard pressed 
 on land, it will run open-mouthed upon its assailants, in a 
 most desperate and furious manner ; and unless it can then 
 be shot down, the onset is perfectly irresistible. The mis- 
 sionary, Moffat, as we have before related, was once attacked 
 by one of these animals while crossing a stream, and he and 
 his party had great difficulty in escaping with their lives. 
 Many stories have been told of the enmity which exists 
 between the crocodile and friend Hippo, and of the deadly 
 fights which sometimes take place between the behemoth 
 and the leviathan of Scripture; biit Gumming, and others, 
 who have had the best opportunities of observing the habits 
 of these creatures, report that they appear to be very good 
 friends and neighbours, living comfortably together in their 
 own peculiar domains the river beds, and reedy swamps of 
 Africa. 
 
 The hippopotami, according to Dr. Smith, feeds chiefly 
 on grass, resorting to situations near the banks of rivers which 
 supply that food. " In districts fully inhabited by man," says 
 the Doctor, "they generally pass the day in the water, and 
 seek their nourishment during the night; but in localities 
 differently circumstanced they often pass a portion of the day 
 as well as the night on dry laud. In countries in which the 
 night constitutes the only tiafe period for their leaving the 
 water, they are generally to he seen effecting their escape 
 from it immediately before dark, or are to be heard doing so 
 soon after the day has closed, and according to the state of 
 the surrounding country; they then either directly commence 
 feeding, or begin a journey toward" * "ttlitics where fuod may
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVEXTTJKES. 
 
 213 
 
 exist. When, previous to nightfall, they may have been in 
 pools or rivers, they are generally at once enabled to com- 
 mence feeding on reaching the dry land ; but when they may 
 have passed the day in the sea, they require commonly to 
 proceed some distance after leaving it, before they find grass 
 which appears congenial to their palate. It is not every 
 description of grass that hippopotami seem to relish ; they often, 
 pass over, in search of food, luxuriant green swards, which 
 would strongly attract many other animals which feed upon, 
 grass. Besides having a peculiar relish for the grasses of cer- 
 tain situations, they appear to have a predilection for districts 
 supporting brushwood; and owing to the latter peculiarity, 
 they are often found wandering in localities on which but 
 little grass exists, when they might have it in the neighbour- 
 hood in great abundance, and wanting the accompaniment of 
 wood." 
 
 Such, then, is the Behemoth, mightiest among amphibious
 
 214 DR. LIVING STONE 
 
 creatures. Here is Young's paraphrase of the description 
 of him given in Scripture : 
 
 " Mild is the behemoth, though large his frame ; 
 Smooth is his temper, and represt his flame 
 While unprovoked. This native of the flood 
 Lifts his hroad foot, and puts ashore for food ; 
 Earth sinks beneath him, as he moves along 
 To seek the herbs, and mingle with the throng. 
 See with what strength his hardened loins are bound, 
 All over proof and shut against a wound ! 
 How like a mountain cedar moves his tail ! 
 Nor can his complicated sinews fail. 
 Built high and wide, his solid bones surpass 
 The bars of steel ; his ribs are ribs of brass ; 
 His port majestic, and his armed jaw 
 Give the wide forest and the mountains law. 
 The mountains feed him ; there the beasts admire 
 The mighty stranger, and in dread retire ; 
 At length his greatness nearer they survey, 
 Graze in his shadow, and his eye obey. 
 The fens and marches are his cool retreat, 
 His noon-tide shelter from the burning heat ; 
 Their sedgy bosoms his wide couch are made, 
 The groves of willows give him all their shade ; 
 His eye drinks Jordan up ; when fired with drought, 
 He trusts to turn its current down his throat ; 
 In lessened waves it creeps along the plain : 
 He sinks a river, and he thirsts again." 
 
 The South African Phacochsere, or Valcke Vark of tha 
 Cape colonists, the Phacochcerus Mthiopicus of Cuvier, is an 
 animal which, on account of its extreme ferocity, cunning, 
 and impetuosity of attack, and the formidable tusks with 
 which it is armed, is much dreaded by both natives and 
 Europeans. The length of the head and body is about five 
 fcet, and of the curled tail eleven inches or so. Of its general
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 215 
 
 appearance, horrid and bristly, the annexed cut will give 
 our readers a good idea. 
 
 It* 
 
 We here see it charging, as its custom is, when sud- 
 denly surprised by the hunter, or brought to bay after a 
 run, headlong upon its foe, striking with the sharp tusks, 
 the upper pair of which stand about eight inches out of the 
 jaw, and the lower pair about three inches. It has been known 
 to cut completely through the fleshy part of a man's thigh at 
 a single stroke, and rip up the belly of a horse. " The natives," 
 saysM. Pallas, "would rather attack a lion in the plain than a 
 wild boar ; for this, though much smaller, comes rushing on a 
 man as swift as an arrow, and throwing him down, snaps hia 
 legs in two, and rips bim up before he can get to strike it 
 and kill it with his javelin."
 
 2! 6 DE. tlYINGSTOWE 
 
 The dwelling-place of this fierce and dangerous animal is 
 under ground, and it always lies with its head to the entrance 
 of the cave, ready to rush forth upon all and sundry, who 
 incautiously approach thereto. 
 
 The authority just quoted mentions a curious fact, which 
 tfhows that, with all its natural ferocity of character, this boar 
 is not wan ting in love for its offspring. " This day I pursued 
 several young pigs with a sow, to shoot one of them ; bat 
 in vain. On a sudden the heads of the old ones, which 
 before were of a tolerable size, seemed to have grown still 
 larger and more shapeless than they were before ; which mo- 
 mentary and wonderful change astonished me so much tho 
 more, as my hard riding over a country full of bushes and pits 
 had hitherto prevented me from giving sufficient attention to 
 the manner in which it was brought about. The secret, 
 however, consisted in this ; each of the old ones, while they 
 were making off, took a pig in his mouth; a circumstance 
 which also explained to me another subject of my surprise, 
 viz., that all the pigs which I was just before chasing along 
 with the old ones had disappeared." 
 
 The Boshvurkens, or Vilde varkens ("Wood or Wild Swine), 
 as the Dutch call these animals, do not appear to bo now at all 
 plentiful about the Cape Colony or contiguous districts, as it 
 is likely they once were. Gordon Gumming, we believe, 
 although he sj/eaks of Kouloubeng, the River of Boars, yet 
 mentions but one instance in which he met with the wild 
 African boar. 
 
 The favourite feeding- time of this animal appears to be 
 early in the morning and late in the evening, and through the 
 night, if it be moonlight, although in districts where fire-arms 
 have not been introduced, it may be met abroad in the
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 217 
 
 day-time. The colonists eat its flesh, as do the Bechuanaa 
 and some other tribes ; but the Kaffirs regard it as unclean, 
 reminding one of the Jewish practice with regard to swine'a 
 flesh. 
 
 And now to complete our group of South African 
 pachydermata, we must just mention a little gregarious 
 animal called the Hyrax (Hyrax Capensis), by the colonists 
 the Dassie ; it is common in the rocky and mountainous dis- 
 tricts; and, although in outward appearance it would seem to 
 be most nearly allied to the hares and rabbits, being covered 
 with fur, yet it is, according to Cuvier, a true pachyderma- 
 tous animal, which, notwithstanding the smallness of its size, 
 is to be regarded as intermediate between the rhinoceros and the 
 tapir. The following short sketch of its habits is interesting ; 
 it was communicated by Mr. "W. R. Read to the Zoological 
 Society of London, from the record of whose proceedings it is 
 extracted : 
 
 " The Hyrax Capensis is found inhabiting the hollows and 
 crevices of rocks, both on the summits and sides of hills, as 
 well as near the sea shore, even a little above high-water 
 mark. It appears to live in families, and is remarkably shy 
 in its wild state. In winter, it is fond of coming out of ita 
 hole, and sunning itself on the lee side of a rock ; and, in sum- 
 mer, of enjoying the breeze on the top ; but, in both instances, 
 as well as when it feeds, a sentinel is on the look-out (gene- 
 rally an old male), which gives notice, usually by a shrill, pro- 
 longed cry, of the approach of danger, or even the least move- 
 ment of any suspicious object. It lives on the young shoots 
 of shrubs, the tops of flowers, herbs, and grass, particularly of 
 all those which are aromatic." 
 
 We have spoken of the Crocodile, the Leviathan of Scrip-
 
 Si 8 DR. i.rTXGBTowE 
 
 ture, that huge scaly monster which is found, we believe, :n 
 all the great rivers in Africa, and sometimes attains the enor- 
 mous length of thirty feet. Like its congeners of the Ganges 
 and the Amazon, the crocodile of Africa, called by naturalists 
 Crocodilus vulgaris, is a sluggish animal, delighting to lie bask- 
 ing in the sun, on a mud bank, or a reedy isle ; and there, 
 until the white man came with his rifle, it might lie in 
 safety, for no animal would venture to attack it, and the 
 weapons of the occupiers of the waters would avail them 
 little against such a coat-of-mail as this creature possesses, the 
 overlapping bony plates covering the whole of the upper part 
 of the body not to speak of the danger of venturing within 
 reach of the monster's jaws, and immense spiny tail, a 
 single blow with which would be certain destruction. Gum- 
 ming found crocodiles plentiful in the Limpopo, consorting 
 peacefully with the hippopotamus, and shot several, the largest 
 being about eighteen feet long, with a body as thick as that of 
 an ox. These animals, as is pretty well known, are carnivo- 
 rous and oviparous, flesh-eaters and egg-layers j their presence 
 in the rivers renders crossing very dangerous ; and many an 
 unfortunate traveller has been bitten in twain by their far- 
 protruding, well-armed jaws, which may be often observed 
 above the muddy water, or amid the rank vegetation, when 
 the rest of the hideous body is altogether hidden from view. 
 The crocodile of the Nile was an object of adoration with the 
 ancient Egyptians. Of its appearance and habits, the following 
 lines are finely descriptive : 
 
 " Erewhile, emerging from the brooding sand, 
 "With tiger-paw he prints the brineless strand ; 
 High on the flood, with speckled bosom swims, 
 Helmed with broad tail, and oar'd with giant limbi ;
 
 HIS LIFE A1TO ADVKNTTTRES. 
 
 Rolls his fierce eye-balls, clasps his iron claws, 
 And champs, with gnashing teeth, his massy jaws : 
 Old Nilus sighs through all his cane-crown'd shores 
 Aud swarthy Memphis trembles and adores." 
 
 219 
 
 "We have here a portrait of the tallest and most stately of 
 all the South African animals, the Giraffe, or Cameleopard, 
 which naturalists call Camelopardalis Giraffa, and which has 
 hitherto been found only in Africa. Of this extraordinary 
 animal the very existence was doubted until up to quite a 
 recent date. Travellers brought home accounts of a creature 
 with a short body and immensely long legs and neck, which
 
 220 DH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 cou] 1 browse on the upper branches of the loftiest trees, and 
 run as swiftly as an antelope; with a beautiful glossy skin, 
 spotted like that of the leopard, and a small, deer- like head, 
 gracefully set upon a long, slender neck ; gentle in its de- 
 meanour, and harmless in its habits ; roaming in small herds 
 amid the forests ; stooping, with fore-legs set wide apart, to 
 crop the herbage of the plains, or to drink of the waters of the 
 fountain in the rocky kloof, or glen ; having a tongue capable 
 of great elongation, which is at once a grasper, a feeler, and 
 an organ of taste, and which, though it possessed not the 
 strength or flexibility of the elephant's proboscis, performed 
 nearly all the same offices ; with short, knobbed horns, and 
 large, lustrous, prominent eyes, so situated that the animal 
 could, without moving its head, sweep the whole circle of the 
 horizon, and detect a foe approaching, from whatever quarter. 
 This account was for a long time set down as a traveller's 
 story, and the giraffe as a fabulous animal ; but now we know 
 that it is all true, for have we not seen the gentle and stately 
 creature, "the observed of all observers," lifting its tall head 
 above the enclosure in our public gardens? have we not 
 admired the graceful symmetry of its colossal proportions, and 
 pictured to ourselves the majesty of its appearance as it roamed 
 in herds amid the wild wide forests and far-stretching kar- 
 roos of its own torrid land ? 
 
 It was about twenty years ago that the Zoological Society 
 first introduced this rare and noble animal to the English 
 public, having procured four from the wilds of Abyssinia. 
 Since then many more have been brought into the country, 
 and we have become somewhat accustomed to the grand and 
 beautiful spectacle which their living and moving forms pre- 
 sent. "We see them traversing with slow and stately steps from
 
 HIS LIFE A.tfj> ADVENTITBES. 221 
 
 side to side of their enclosure, and bending their lithe necks 
 as though in acknowledgment of the admiration which they 
 excite ; turning, the while, their large, lustrous eyes full upon 
 their admirers, with an air of confidence and gentleness which ia 
 extremely winning : and we ask, can these be the animals which 
 Gumming so ruthlessly slaughtered ? these, the gentle, harm- 
 less creatures on whose death-agonies he so often looked with 
 the same fierce exultation as he would upon those of some 
 savage beast, to slay which was to deliver man from a pest 
 and a destroyer? "We can understand, although we can 
 scarcely sympathise with, the feelings of excitement which 
 must possess the hunter at the sight of such noble game ; and 
 wo wonder not that he should desire to obtain and bear away 
 the skin and other trophies of so magnificent an animal, the 
 more especially as its flesh was serviceable as food; but it 
 irks us much to read of the wholesale destruction which 
 ensued among the herds of cameleopards when Gumming 
 reached that wide, ocean-like expanse of grey forests of cameel- 
 dorn and other trees which cover the grassy, undulating 
 country contiguous to the south-eastern border of the great 
 Kalahari desert, and stretching away north to the distant blue 
 hills of Sekhome's land, and east in one level, unbroken plain 
 to the far horizon. Here it was that our hunter first saw what 
 he describes as " a sight the most astounding that a sportsman's 
 eye could encounter." Before him stood ten of these colossal 
 creatures, the majority of which were from seventeen to 
 eighteen feet high ; but, beholding him, they at once mado 
 off, twisting their long tails over their backs with a loud 
 twitching noise, and cantering along at an easy pace, which, 
 however, obliged him to put his best horse to his full speed to 
 keep up \vith them. Ill- selects the finest cow from the herd,
 
 222 *> 
 
 and after much hard riding, and firing several balls into her, 
 finally brings her to a stand. Dismounting, he "gazes in won- 
 der at her extreme beauty, while her soft dark eye, with its 
 silky fringe, looks down imploringly at him, and he really 
 feels a pang of sorrow, in his moment of triumph, for the 
 blood he is shedding ; but his sporting feeling prevails, and 
 pointing his rifle towards the skies, he sends a bullet through 
 her neck. On receiving this, she rears high on her hind legs, 
 and falls backward with a heavy crash, making the earth 
 shake around her : a thick stream of dark blood spouts from 
 the wound ; her colossal limbs quiver for a moment, and she 
 expires." 
 
 The giraffe is widely distributed throughout the whole of 
 Central Southern Africa, but is nowhere met with in great 
 numbers. The herds, which are composed of animals of all 
 ages and sizes from the young, of nine or ten feet, to the 
 old chestnut- coloured bull, of double that height vary from 
 twelve to sixteen, composing, most likely, a single family. 
 Gumming tells us, that he has not unfrequently met with 
 thirty in a herd, and once counted as many as forty. " Some 
 writers," he says, "have discovered ugliness and want of 
 grace in the giraffe, but I consider that he is one of the most 
 strikingly beautiful animals in the creation ; and when a herd 
 is seen scattered through a grove of the picturesque, parasol- 
 topped acacias which adorn their native plains, and on whose 
 uppermost shoots they are enabled to browse, by the colossal 
 height with which nature has so admirably endowed them, 
 he must indeed be slow of conception, who fails to discover 
 both grace and dignity in all their movements." 
 
 The only animal from which the giraffe has much to fear 
 M the lice-, from till others it can escape, or defend itself ;
 
 JUS LITE AND ADVEtfTT/KBS. 223 
 
 and by this king of beasts it is often attacked, especially 
 when it goes to drink at the river or fountain. 
 
 M When the Bushman's kraal at evening sparkles with the heath-flies 
 
 they light ; 
 
 When the varied signal colours from the Tahle-Mount with daylight 
 Cease to flutter ; when the Kaffir lonely tracks the wild karroo, 
 Antelopes in jungles shelter, slumbers by the buck the gnu ; 
 
 Then, behold, the cameleopard stately through the desert paces, 
 With his hot tongue lolling languid, thirsting for the troubled plashes ; 
 Panting o'er the naked barrens, speeds, and kneeling by the shallows, 
 Bends his length of neck, and lapping hard, the muddy water swallows. 
 
 On a sudden stir the sedges ; with a roar the lion, rousing, 
 Springs upon him. What a courser ! Saw ye ever richer housing 
 In the stores of royal stud-rooms, by a king's equerries counted, 
 Than the spotted hide that covers him the prince ot beasts has mounted ?" 
 
 Thus graphically does Ferdinand Frielegrath describe tho 
 commencement of that mad death- ride of the desert monarch, 
 to which we have before alluded, and to give the conclusion 
 of which our temptation is too strong to be resisted : 
 
 " Like the cloud whose flashes guided Israel in the land of Yemen ; 
 Like a misty phantom shapeless like the swift Zahara demon, 
 Or the desert column's whirling sand like rain-spouts in the Atlantic, 
 1 lolls a lurid cloud behind them, as he spurs the courser frantic. 
 
 Whirring through the air, the vulture croaks above liim as ho races ; 
 The sepulchre's desecrator, the hyscna, dogs their traces ; 
 And the panther, sheep-dcvourer of the Cape-land, follows, slavering; 
 Blood and sweat, with signs appalling, mark the progress of their 
 sovereign. 
 
 Scared, they see their master seated on his throne of life out-gushing, 
 With his claws spread keen beneath him, ripping up his mottled cushion ; 
 Thus unresting, till his forces fail, the doomed giraffe must bear him j 
 It iiJ*at so fell a ruler, vaiu is plunging, vain is rearing
 
 324 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 On the desert's edge he tumbles, prone, hard-brcatLing, hoarse oitd 
 
 hoarser 
 Groans his last; the rider banquets on the dust and foam-stained 
 
 courser. 
 
 Eastward, far as Madagascar, morn, ascending, blushes slightly; 
 Thus around his kingdom's frontier doth the monarch beast ride 
 
 nightly. 
 
 Of the horse tribe, or genus Equus of naturalists, there 
 are three species in Africa viz., the mountain zebra (E. mon- 
 tanus], the zebra of the plain (E. zebra), and the quagga 
 (E. quagga}. Between the two former species there seems 
 to be some confusion, their characteristic differences, if such 
 exist, not having been clearly pointed out In the latter, the 
 stripes on the skin are by no means so uniform and distinct, 
 nor do they cover so much of the body. All of these wild 
 asses, as they may "well be called, are extremely beautiful 
 and graceful creatures. Swift as the wind, they scour the 
 arid plains, and bound through the rocky wildernesses, their 
 fleet feet being their only safeguard against many dangers. 
 They go in troops ; are watchful and wary ; are said to con- 
 sort much with the ostrich, whose great quickness of sight is 
 supposed to bo serviceable in detecting approaching danger. 
 Let tho alarm be taken, and off they set, in a whirlwind of 
 sand raised by their nimble hoofs, leaving pursuers far behind. 
 Like the different antelopes, they are hunted by both natives 
 and Europeans, for the sake of their flesh, \vhich resembles 
 young beef. Pringle, in some lines which we have alreody 
 quoted, speaks of 
 
 " The timorous quagga's shrill whistling neigh, 
 Heard by the fountain at twilight grey." 
 
 well, at such a time, may the wild ass of the (V.-cj 1 be
 
 HIS LIFE A5D 1DTEXTT7BES. 225 
 
 timorous; for then it is that the lion, arousing from his lair, 
 and the wild dogs, and the leopards and hyaenas, are sallying 
 forth for their nightly ravages; and some of these furious 
 animals will soon be on the track of the zebras and iheir 
 relatives. 
 
 " Scourers of the desert wide, 
 
 Untamed steeds that bear no rein , 
 Never man on you may ride, 
 Never bit may you restrain. 
 
 With fleet feet, ye spurn the sand, 
 
 As with flying manes ye go 
 Far across the barren land, 
 
 To the rocks whence fountains flow. 
 
 From the feathered shaft away, 
 
 From the Bushman's poisoned dart, 
 V/ho your headlong speed shall stay ? 
 
 Who shall drive your troops apart ? 
 
 Ono member of the ox tribe only do we find in South 
 Africa, this is the Cape Buffalo (Bos kaffir), a most powerful 
 and ferocious brute, which is generally found in herds amid 
 the tall reeds of the swampy grounds, wallowing in the 
 muddy pools. It is one of the most dangerous animals with 
 which the hunter comes in contact, seldom being struck down 
 by a single shot, and, when it is once wounded, often feigning 
 death in order to lure its assailant within reach, when it will 
 start up and attack him with the utmost fury. 
 
 We give (p. 226) a good representation of this wild African 
 ox, and the picture is by no means prepossessing : a body of 
 great bulk, set upon short, stout legs ; a thick neck, like tho 
 breast, shaggy with hair ; a pair of tremendous horns, meet- 
 ing at the base, and spreading out widely, so as to form a
 
 226 
 
 T)Tl. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 helmet for the head, and then curving- upward and imvaid, 
 and terminating in sharp points: close beneath this horny 
 helmet glow the lowering eyes like live coals ; and then, at 
 the bottom of this ponderous head, is the broad muzzle, around 
 which and the under- lip gather the harsh, greyish black 
 hairs, so as to form a scanty beard, altogether a vicious look- 
 ing creature, as indeed it is. Many stories do the colonists tell 
 Dfits ferocity; how it rushes out from its hiding-place amid 
 the reeds, upon any one who approaches the spot, and should 
 the person Attacked not be nimble enough to escape from its 
 desperate charge, gores and tramples him to death, leaving the 
 body and returning to it again and again, as if it could not 
 sufficiently satisfy its malevolence. Although so heavy and 
 stoutly made, the Cape buffalo is a fleet runner, and when pur- 
 sued by the hunter, rushes through the thicket and up the 
 mountain side at a prodigiou* rate, cwryjng all boforc it)
 
 HIS T.IFE A7TD ADVEN-TURES. 227 
 
 when it is the pursuer, a good horse has to exert all its powers 
 to keep a-head of the savage beast, and should a miss-step and a 
 fall take place, the bull conies thundering down upon the fallen 
 animal, and with hoofs and horns generally makes an end of 
 it. All this renders buffalo-hunting a most exciting sport ; and 
 BO much has it been followed by the colonists, that the 
 animal has been driven far into the interior, where it is found 
 in the wild forests and prairie lands in company with the 
 elephant, and other of the larger kinds of African game, which 
 retire before the advance of cultivation. The lion is the only 
 animal which will venture to attack the buffalo,- and even this 
 mighty brute will not do so unless he can spring upon it 
 from behind, and so avoid the thrust of its formidable horns. 
 Sometimes a buffalo, when thus attacked, will be aided by 
 others of the herd, and the lion gets the worst of it, having 
 been found gored to death by numbers. The Hottentots prefer 
 hunting the buffalo on foot, as they can more easily make 
 their escape from his furious charges amid the narrow open- 
 ings of the thickets and swamps, amid which it is generally 
 found, when not in the rocky glens and ravines, which are 
 also favourite haunts with this beast, whose flesh is valuable as 
 an article of food, and its thick hide for rheimpies or ropes, 
 and other purposes. Gumming had several perilous adven- 
 tures with this animal ; he thus details one of them : 
 
 " "We had an adventure with an old bull buffalo, which 
 shows the extreme danger of hunting buffaloes without dogs. 
 We started him in a green hollow among the hills, along the 
 base of which we followed him, sometimes in view, sometimes 
 on the spoor, keeping the old fellow at a pace which made 
 him pant, At length, finding himself much distressed, he had 
 to ft singular stratagem, Doubling round tome
 
 228 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 bushes which concealed him from our view, he found himself 
 close to a small pool of rain-water, just deep enough to cover 
 his body : into this he walked, and, facing about, lay gently 
 down, and awaited our on-coming, with nothing but his old 
 grey face and massive horns above the water, and these con- 
 cealed from view by rank over-hanging herbage. Our atten- 
 tion being entirely engrossed with the spoor, we rode boldly 
 on until within a few feet of him, when, springing to his feet, 
 he made a desperate charge at Ruyter, uttering a low, stifled 
 roar, peculiar to buffaloes (somewhat similar to the growl of a 
 lion), and hurled both steed and rider to the earth with 
 fearful violence. His horn laid the poor horse's haunch open 
 to the bone, making a most fearful ragged wound. In an 
 instant Ruyter regained his feet, and ran for his life; this 
 the buffalo observed, and gave chase, but most fortunately 
 came down with a tremendous somersault in the mud, his feet 
 slipping under him, and thus the Bushman escaped certain 
 destruction. The buffalo rose much discomfited, and at this 
 moment I managed to send one of my patent pacificating pills 
 into his shoulder, when he instantly quitted the field of 
 action, and sought shelter in the dense cover of the moun- 
 tain side, whither I deemed it imprudent to follow him." 
 
 Not so fortunate as Ruyter was one of a party of Boers, of 
 whom Moffat relates that, when hunting this animal, he was 
 pursued by it ; he fled through a quagmire, and endeavoured 
 to climb a mimosa-tree which stood at the end of it ; but the 
 raging beast was too quick for him, and catching him on its 
 terrible horns, tossed him into the air with such fearful 
 violence, that he fell into the cleft of the tree a mangled and 
 lifeless body. From the genus Bos, whose African represen- 
 tative we Uuve just been describing, to the Boviform Antelope*,
 
 HIS LI7E AND ADVEXTTCES. 
 
 229 
 
 :i' bet n step, which wo fake, and find ourselves among some of 
 the most remarkable animals of this part of the world ; a very 
 short description of them must suffice. First, then, we have 
 the Blue-back, or as the Dutch colonists say, Blauwbok, 
 slntelope leucophora; so called on account of its dark blue 
 colour, produced by the black hide reflected through the ashy 
 grey tint that covers it. 
 
 The animal here pictured stands about three and a half feet 
 high at the shoiilder ; it carries a most formidable pair of 
 horns, which it is not slow to use when attacked ; they aro 
 round, uniformly curved backward, and ringed to within about 
 six inches of the points, where they become smooth. Once
 
 230 
 
 3)2. 
 
 common in the Cape colony, the blauwboks are never seen 
 there now ; they have been driven beyond the Orange River, 
 where they may be found feeding on the wide open plains, 
 in pairs, or family groups of five or six ; they are bold and 
 fierce, turning, when wounded, upon the hunter and dog? 
 with great resolution. 
 
 The Oryx (Antelope oryx) is a straight-horned antelope, in 
 shape much like a wild ass. It has a broad, black band on either 
 cheek, which, united with a patch of the same colour on the fore- 
 head, gives the animal a very peculiar appearance, as if it wore 
 a visor. A bold and powerful antelope is this, using its sharp 
 horns, which are about three feet long, with great energy and 
 address ; frequently killing several of the hunter's dogs before 
 ho can get within shot of it. The colonists call this the gems- 
 bok: it is mostly found to the south of the Orange river, on the 
 . desolate karroo, where Gumming hunted, and found it most
 
 HIS I.tFE AND ADVKNTtJKES. 
 
 231 
 
 difficult game to shoot, on account of its wariness and 
 swiftness. He says, " In the whole course of my adventures 
 with the gemsbok, I only remember four occasions, when 
 mounted on the pick of my stud (which I nearly sacrificed in 
 the attempt) that, alone and unassisted, I succeeded in riding 
 the oryx to a standstill." The plan generally adopted by tho 
 Boers is, to place light Hottentots or Bushmen on horses of 
 great endurance, and literally course the antelope, as they do 
 stags in Scotland, with the strong, rough deer-hounds. 
 
 The Canna (Antelope areas) is the eland or elk of tho 
 colonists, and the Sinpoof of the Kaffirs. It is the largest of 
 all the antelopes, being full five feet high at the shoulder, and 
 sometimes weighing as much as nine hundred- weight. 
 
 The male lias large and heavy horns, about a foot and a 
 half long; they are wreathed spirally, but not curved. In the
 
 232 DR. LTTlNGSTOtfE 
 
 female, the horns are much, smaller, and nearly plain. The 
 neck is thick, compressed at the sides, as in the ox, and there 
 is a large protuberance on the throat, and a hanging dewlap 
 All along the back, which is humped, from the forehead to 
 the tail, runs a short, erect mane of dark-brown hair : the tail 
 ends in a black tuft. The general colour of this animal is a 
 reddish fawn above, and white on the under parts, with an 
 ashy-grey tint about the head and neck. No venison is 
 reckoned so fine as the flesh of the Eland, which is, conse- 
 quently, much sought after. It is a mild, inoffensive creature, 
 going in large herds, the males generally keeping apart from 
 the females and young. Browsing upon the plains and low 
 hills, and leading a somewhat inactive life, it becomes very 
 fat, and is said frequently to die of plethora, especially when 
 hard run, at which times, it is said, a red oily perspiration 
 issues from the pores of the skin. These animals are so 
 unsuspicious may we call it, confiding? that a sportsman may 
 ride into a herd, and single out the fattest males; and so 
 often has this been done, that it is said there are some herds 
 without a male amongst them. Dr. Livingston found the 
 elands plentiful in the Earotse country, and all about the 
 Zambesi. As we have already noticed, he speaks of their 
 taraeness as shocking to see in wild animals. Gordon Gum- 
 ming met with this antelope on several occasions, but not 
 often, as we should gather from his general silence respecting 
 it. No doubt, the high regard in which its flesh is held 
 would tend greatly to thin its numbers in all those tracts 
 within reach of the colonists. The parts most esteemed by 
 epicures are the large muscles of the thighs, which, when 
 cured and salted, are called thigh -tongues, on account of their 
 peculiar flavour and fineness of grain.
 
 HIS LIFE AND 
 
 233 
 
 The Koodoo (A. strepsiceros) is another noble antelope, 
 measuring about four feet high, at the shoulder : it has a 
 pplendid pair of horns, frequently as much as four feet long ; 
 they are very thick at the base, and beautifully twisted into 
 wide-sweeping spirals, consisting of about two turns and a 
 half in the whole length ; a prominent ridge or keel follows 
 their flexure, as wen in the cut. 
 
 The Koodoo, or Kudu, as it is sometimes spelled, perhaps 
 more in accordance with the pronunciation, is a haunter of the 
 wooded tracts which follow the course of rivers ; on all those 
 of Kaflraria it is found, and also of other countries further in 
 the interior. It feeds on the shoots and leaves of trees and 
 bushos ; and lives in family groups of five or six. Although
 
 234 Dtt. UVtSGSTOJTE 
 
 heavy, it leaps with wonderful agility, and when pressed fakea 
 to the water and swims vigorously; if brought to bay, it id 
 formidable, on account of its great strength and determination, 
 and the immense weapons with which nature has furnished it. 
 A light fallow brown is the prevailing colour of this antelope ; 
 there is a snow-white ribbon along the spine, the inner parts 
 all light, and there are silvery-grey markings here and there. 
 
 The Gnu (Antelope gnu], called by the Dutch colonists 
 wilde-beest, is a strong and fleet animal, with more of the bo- 
 vine characteristics than appear in any other antelope. Indeed, 
 would seem to be a combination of the horse, the buffalo, and 
 the deer; having the cloven feet of the latter, the body and 
 tail of the former, and the large, rough, shaggy head and horns 
 of the second-named animal, like which it appears to have a 
 strong antipathy to scarlet. "It was," says Pringle, "one of 
 my amusements, when approaching the gnus, to twist a red 
 handkerchief on a pole, and to observe them cnper about, 
 lashing their flanks with their long tails, and tearing up the 
 ground with their hoofs, as if they were violently excited, 
 and ready to rush down upon us ; and then all at once, as we 
 were ready to fire upon them, to see them bound away, and 
 again go prancing round at a safer distance." 
 
 This author states, that notwithstanding the reported 
 ferocity of the T Gnu, as the Hottentots call it, he has never 
 witnessed an instance of this, although he has often hunted 
 and shot the creature, which, if taken young and reared with 
 the domestic cattle, will become perfectly tame, going regu- 
 larly out to pasture with the herds, without evincing any 
 desire to escape into the wilderness. 
 
 The gnu is about the size of a well-grown ass, of a dark 
 ashy -brown colour; the great quantity of grey hair about th
 
 III3 LIFE AXD ADVENTURES. 
 
 235 
 
 head, the lowering eye, and the largo downward curving 
 horns, give it a very ferocious appearance. It inhabits the 
 wild karroos and the hilly districts, migrating from one to the 
 other, according to the season, and taking a wide range, 
 extending as far into the interior as Europeans have yet 
 penetrated ; it goes in large herds, and is hunted for the sake 
 of its flesh, which is much prized by both natives and colo- 
 nists. It is wary and difficult of approach, scouring away at 
 the slightest alarm, not in a tumultuous mass, but in single 
 file, headed by an old bull, the patriarch of the herd. "When 
 wounded by the hunter, or attacked by wild-dogs, and 
 brought to bay, the gnus defend themselves with desperation; 
 dropping on their knees, and then springing up and darting 
 forward with great force and impetuosity, and inflicting fearful 
 wounds with their large honis. Barchcll spcakr, of tLs ails-
 
 236 DK. LTTINGST05E 
 
 lope lamina, a species of gnu, found far to the north; the 
 natives call it KoTioon ; in the shape of the horns, and some 
 other particulars, it more nearly resembles the ox than the 
 common species. 
 
 The Hartebeest (Antelope bdbales) is one of the largest 
 and "handsomest of the antelope family, being of about the 
 same size as the gnu, but of a more slender and elegant make, 
 and with a short, deer-like head. It has rather an extensive 
 range of pasturage, extending from Cape Colony to the tropic 
 of Capricorn, although, in the neighbourhood of the former, 
 it is only found in the wide flats which border on the Kaffir 
 country. It is a mild, inoffensive beast; although, when 
 wounded and incapable of flight, it will use its horns with 
 great desperation and effect. It is rather a heavy runner, and 
 has a habit of turning to look at its pursuers, which enables 
 them to come up with it. Being an easier prey than most 
 of the antelopes, it is frequently attacked by the wild-dogs, 
 hyaenas, and leopards ; the former run it down in the open 
 plain, and the latter lie in wait for it in the kloofs and rocky 
 defiles, and the fountains which ooze from the declivities, 
 which are often thickly strewn with the bones of their 
 victims. 
 
 Of the true antelopes, there are in South Africa several 
 species, which must now be briefly particularised. One of 
 the handsomest and commonest is the Blessbok, which is often 
 called by the colonists the Bontebok, or painted goat, on 
 account of the singular disposition of the colours of the head 
 and body, which appear as if laid on in distinct patches. A 
 brilliant reddish -brown, deepening at places into quite a 
 purple tint, is tho prevailing colour of this beautiful animal : 
 around cither eye is a ring of white, which spreads off down
 
 HIS LIFE AXD 
 
 237 
 
 the cheeks in a mark like that on horses, called a " blaze ;" 
 and hence its common name Blazebuck, or, as the Dutch say, 
 JJlessbok. The muzzle is white, as are the under parts of the 
 body, and there is a disc of the same around the tail, giving 
 occasion for the name, A, pygargu, by 'which naturalists dis- 
 tinguish this animal. 
 
 A glance at this representation of the Elessbok will show 
 that it is a fleet-footed creature. One can fancy with what 
 swiftness it would go bounding off with such long and slender 
 limbs to bear it. "It is," says Gumming, "one of the truo 
 antelopes, and all its movements and paces partake of the 
 grace and elegance peculiar to that species." This hunter 
 describes it as being as large as an English fallow-deer. " It 
 ho soys, "from the Springbok (presently to be dff
 
 219 DR. 
 
 scribed), in the determined and invariable manner in which it 
 scours the plains, right in the wind's eye, and also in the 
 manner in which it carries its nose close to the ground. 
 Throughout the greater part of the year," he continues, " tho 
 blessboks are very wary and difficult of approach, but more 
 especially when the does have young ones. At this season, 
 when a herd is disturbed, and takes away up the wind, every 
 other herd in view follows it ; and the alarm extending for 
 miles and miles down the wind to endless herds beyond the 
 vision of the hunter, a continued stream of blessboks may 
 often be seen scouring up-wind for upwards of an hour." 
 
 Our hunter found it very difficult to get within shooting 
 distance of this swift and wary creature, the flesh of which 
 is fat and delicate : he brought down an old buck running at 
 two hundred yards, and was delighted with its beauty, which 
 nothing could exceed. " Like most other African antelopes, 
 its skin emitted a delicious and powerful perfume of flowers 
 and sweet-smelling herbs; a secretion issues from between 
 its hoofs, which has likewise a pleasing perfume." 
 
 Such is the blessbok, once very common within the district 
 of the Cape Colony, and still, as we learn from Cumming's 
 account, extremely numerous in the open plains beyond. It 
 carries a pair of horns about sixteen inches long, large an d 
 regularly lyrated. In the foregoing cut they are reprcsen cd 
 as not fully grown, the animal being a young one. 
 
 We will now speak of the Springbok, called by naturalis te 
 Antelope euchorc. This, too, is a most graceful and beautiful an- 
 telope, a native of the wild karroos, where it lives in vast troops, 
 which migrate irregularly, so that a plain on which at morn there 
 might be Been several thousands, shall in the evening present 
 Bvt M fiiigle euvi lu tL evawus f drought, whia tL
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVKXTITKKS. 239 
 
 dry up in the karroos, when the pasturage is burnt with exces- 
 sive heat, and every green blade or leaf is withered, then do the 
 springboks, 'in myriads, retire from the scene of barrenness, and 
 invade the fertile districts, over which they pass, swarm after 
 swarm, like a destroying army, ruining the corn-lands and 
 pasture-grounds of the grazier, and leaving a broad track of 
 desolation to mark their line of march. The beasts of prey, 
 the assagais of the natives, and the guns of the colonists, are 
 incessantly at work upon them, but do not seem to thin their 
 countless numbers. "The cry is still they come ;" and the 
 trek-bokken, as the Dutch call these migratory swarms, seems 
 like an exhaustless sea, rolling up, wave after wave, to destroy 
 and overwhelm the land. Mr. Pringle once passed through 
 such an inundation of springboks, near the Little Fish River : 
 he could not profess to estimate their numbers, but there must 
 have been five-and-twenty or thirty thousand in sight at once, 
 they whitened, or rather speckled the plain, as far as the 
 eye could see. Livingston, we may remember, speaks of the 
 vast numbers of these antelopes which he saw passing before 
 him on the northern side of the Zambesi. Their general 
 colour is a light cinnamon-red, with a band of deep reddish- 
 brown passing along the sides, and edging the pure white of 
 the under-surfuce. On the croup is a patch of long white 
 hairs, enclosed by a fold of skin on either side, so as to look 
 like a narrow white stripe, when the animal is quiet ; but 
 when it leaps up, these folds come widely apart, and the hairs 
 spread out so as to cover the whole of the haunch, producing 
 a very striking effect. We shall make bold to quote another 
 graphic picture, painted by Gumming, and exhibiting some of 
 the peculiarities of this lovely creature. 
 
 "Iho springbok is se termed bv the colouiete, on account
 
 210 D. 
 
 of its peculiar habit of springing, or talcing extraordinary 
 bounds, rising to an incredible height in the air, when pur- 
 sued. The extraordinary manner in which they are capable of 
 springing is beat seen when they are chased by a dog. On 
 these occasions, away start the herd, with a succession of 
 strange perpendicular bounds, rising with curved loins high 
 into the air, and at the same time elevating the snowy folds 
 of long white hair on their haunches, and along the back, 
 which imparts to them a peculiar fairy-like appearance, dif- 
 ferent from any other animal. They bound to the height of 
 ten or twelve feet, with the elasticity of an India-rubber ball, 
 clearing at each spring from twelve to fifteen feet of ground, 
 without, apparently, the slightest exertion. In performing 
 this spring, they appear for an instant as if suspended in the 
 air, when down come all four feet together, and, striking the 
 plain, away they soar again, as if about to take flight. The 
 herd only adopt this motion for a few hundred yards, when 
 they subside into a light elastic trot, arching their graceful 
 necks, and lowering their noses to the ground, as if in sporting 
 mood : presently pulling up, they face about, and reconnoitre 
 the object of their alarm. In crossing any path or wagon 
 road, on which men have lately trod, the springbok invariably 
 clears it by a single bound; and when a herd of perhaps 
 many thousands have to cross a track of this sort, it is ex- 
 tremely beautiful to see how each antelope performs the 
 surprising feat, so suspicious arc they of the ground on which 
 the enemy, man, has trodden. They bound in a similar 
 manner when passing to the leeward of a lion, or any other 
 animal of which they entertain an instinctive dread." 
 
 The Pallah (A. melampus) is another noble antelope, in- 
 habiting Tfafrraria, and the country of the Bechuanas, never
 
 HfS LIFE AND ADVKSTUKKS. '241 
 
 descending southward further than the Koosges valley, ia one 
 direction, and the Kamhanni mountains on the other. This 
 species was first discovered by Dr. Lichtenstein, on the ele- 
 vated plains in the neighbourhood of Lattakoo, where it is very 
 much prized by the natives for its flesh : it stands about three 
 feet high at the shoulder, and its general colour is a reddish 
 brown, with white about the under part of the body, the 
 lips, eyebrows, &c. : there are black spots on the knees and 
 heels. It is a strong, fleshy-looking antelope, with very full 
 hinder parts; the horns are about twenty inches long, and 
 ringed irregularly to about two-thirds of their length ; they 
 take, at first, a bold sweep outward and backward, then ap- 
 proach each other again, and bend somewhat forward, leaving 
 the tips about three inches apart. Pallahs generally associate 
 in family groups of six or eight ; they range the open plains, 
 and keep a sharp look-out for enemies, both biped and quad- 
 ruped : they are not so swift as many antelopes, and are oftei 
 run down and destroyed by the wild-dogs. 
 
 The reitbok, or redbuck (A. eliotragus) is not an uncommon 
 species ; it is about two feet six inches high at the shoulder, 
 and has a long bushy tail and a pair of stout horns, annulated 
 at the base, which are straight for about two-thirds of their 
 length, and then take a decided curve, pointing forwards. 
 Gumming frequently met with this animal, which he calls the 
 Water-buck, when exploring the reedy margins of the rivers for 
 other game : it is generally met with near water, plants which 
 grow on humid or marshy ground constituting its food. A 
 dull ashy-grey, tinged with red, is the prevailing colour of this 
 animal, harmonising well with the reeds and water-flags and 
 thick bushes amid which it hides. 
 
 The Kleenbock, or Bluebuck (A, pcrpusitta) is a pretty littl?
 
 242 DR, LTV1JTOST03E 
 
 bush anti-lope, living singly or in pairs amid the thick covert 
 of the woods, where it hides itself so closely, that it is not 
 often seen, even where it is abundant. It stands about a 
 foot high at the shoulders, has a long, pointed head, and 
 horns which are not more than an inch and a half long in the 
 male, and less in the female : the general colour is dark slatcy- 
 brown, passing on the under-parts to ashy-grey; on each side 
 of the brown nose and forehead is a line of sandy red. When 
 domesticated, this animal becomes very tame and familiar. 
 
 There are several other South American antelopes, of 
 which no very clear account has been given ; such, for instance, 
 as the Sable Antelope, which Gumming says was first dis- 
 covered by Capt. Harris, of the Bombay Engineers, in 1837, 
 and which is the " rarest and most beautiful animal in Africa. 
 It is large and powerful, partaking considerably of the nature 
 of the fox ; its back and sides are of a glossy black, beauti- 
 fully contrasting with the belly, which is white as driven 
 enow. The horns are upwards of three feet in length, and 
 bend strongly back with a bold sweep, reaching nearly to the 
 haunches." 
 
 Then there is the Bush-buck of the Lompopo, which tho 
 Bakalahari call Serolomootlooque, the honour of discovering 
 which is claimed by Gumming himself, who has christened it 
 Aiitehpus Roualeynei. He speaks of it as " an antelope of 
 most exquisite beauty, utterly unknown to sportsmen and 
 naturalists, and carrying a very fine wide-set pair of horns." 
 Elsewhere he says, " that it very much resembles the roebuck 
 in form, gait, voice, and habits." He shot several of this 
 species by the Lompopo, but does not seem to have met with 
 it elsewhere. In the same locality, also, he shot the sable 
 antelope, a fine buck, with "knotted scymctar- shaped horns."
 
 HIS 1IFE AND AWVEXTUKES. 243 
 
 Nor must we forget to mention "the darling little Klip- 
 ep ringer," as Gumming calls it; the Rock-leaper, according 
 to Pringle (Antelope oreotragus], " so called on account of the 
 amazing agility Trith which it springs from cliff to cliff, among 
 the crags and mountain rocks, where it makes its abode. Its 
 hoofs are adapted, by a peculiar formation, to enable it to tra- 
 verse with security the giddy heights it delights to frequent." 
 Pringle also mentions two other antelopes, the Bontebok 
 (A. scripta), and the Boschbok. (A. sylviatica), the latter of 
 which, he says, " inhabits the thick forests, but leaves at dawn 
 its sylvan retreats, and may be seen feeding in the adjacent 
 plains and valleys." Probably it may be one of those al- 
 ready described under another name. Our author makes the 
 captive of Camalu, a glen at the source of the Kat River, 
 sigh for the time when 
 
 " He tended on his father's flock 
 
 Along the grassy margined rillo, 
 Or chased the bounding bontC-bok, 
 With hound and spear, among the Lills."
 
 244 
 
 LIVINGSTON*; 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 COTTON AND SLAVERY. 
 
 THERE are few, if any, of 
 the earth's vegetable pro- 
 ductions which have exer- 
 cised so great an influ- 
 ence on the fate and for- 
 tunes of man as cotton, 
 that great staple of the 
 commercial activity of the 
 world, and of England 
 and America especially. 
 Pity it is, that in the 
 latter country its propa- 
 gation and culture should 
 be so intimately associated 
 with the institution of 
 slavery, that a stoppage of the one would almost, if not quite, 
 render the maintenance of the other impossible. So convinced 
 are the advocates of negro-emancipation of this, that they have, 
 for some time past, been turning their anxious attention to 
 other fields of cotton produce than the southern states 
 of America, in the hope that our great manufacturing 
 system might be supplied with the material necessary to its 
 vitality, unstained with the blood and sweat of the tortured 
 falave. Hitherto their efforts have been but partially success- 
 ful. The cottoD produced in the East and West Indies is not
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 245 
 
 BO fine in quality as that from America, and at present can 
 only be obtained in very insufficient quantities; more than 
 four-fifths of the entire produce of the latter country is 
 purchased by Great Britain, and the quantity so purchased 
 constituted, in 1845, six-sevenths of all the cotton brought 
 into this country; the proportion, we believe, is not greatly 
 altered now, for the efforts before alluded to for opening other 
 fields of produce have not as yet produced much effect upon 
 the market, although they will no doubt eventually do so. 
 Farther, to illustrate the importance of cotton-growing to 
 America, we may mention that it constitutes more than the 
 half in value of the entire exports of that country ; and when 
 we consider that this is entirely the produce of the southern 
 states, can understand at once the immense power and influence 
 which is possessed by the planters, and energetically exercised 
 for the upholding of their darling institution. Whether right or 
 wrong, too, it is generally thought in America that cotton can 
 only be produced profitably by the aid of slave-labour ; and 
 hence, the great commercial interests of the country are 
 arrayed against emancipation. 
 
 Quite recently, the reopening of the African slave-trade, 
 for the supply of labourers in the cotton-fields of the south, 
 lias been strongly advocated ; and the day may yet come when 
 this abominable traffic will be legalised and practised, with 
 all its original horrors and miseries that is, as far as America 
 is concerned; for it is not likely that any other great com- 
 mercial state will permit of its re-establishment ; and, indeed, 
 the contingency that we have but hinted at is rather a faint 
 possibility than a probability ; for the whole moral sense of 
 the northern states would rise up against so monstrous a pro- 
 position, and rather incur the hazard of a dissolution of tlio
 
 24fi DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Union than consent to it. Meantime it remains for those who 
 are most warmly interested in the abolition of slavery to 
 demonstrate that cotton can be profitably cultivated by free 
 labour, and that the markets of Europe can be supplied with 
 this valuable material from other sources than those polluted 
 by the injuries, the crimes, and the sufferings of this vile 
 slavery system. An opportunity of making the experiment 
 of cotton-cultivation on a large scale, and under favourable 
 circumstances, would seem to be afforded by the opening up of 
 large tracts of land in Southern Africa to European commerce 
 and civilisation. In our Eastern colonies there are at present 
 many impediments to the production of so large a quantity as 
 to afford anything like a sufficient supply for the manufac- 
 turing industry of Great Britain; and besides this, there 
 seem to be wanting in India those peculiarities of soil and 
 climate which are necessary for the due development of this 
 kind of vegetation ; at all events, certain it is that the best 
 Sea Island cotton of America fetches twice as much per 
 pound in the Liverpool market as the best of that brought 
 from the East. In the "West Indies, it is true, under a 
 system of free labour, cotton cannot be produced at a price to 
 compete with the American article ; but then the cultivators 
 have to contend with much that is adverse to their efforts ; 
 encumbrances upon land, exhaustion of its productive powers, 
 and other relics of the old slavery system. In Africa the 
 great experiment will be tried in a virgin soil, and with 
 every advantage afforded by that peculiar combination of 
 heat, light, and moisture, which appears to have a powerful 
 effect on the production of the quantity as well as quality of 
 this staple article. 
 
 But what is cotton ? It will not be amiss to answer this
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVKXTCaF.S. 2-17 
 
 question as briefly as may be consistent with clearness of 
 explanation, before we proceed to speak further on its more 
 immediate connexion with our present subject. Cotton, then, 
 is a filamentous matter, produced by the surface of the seeds of 
 various species of Gossypium, a genus of plants belonging to 
 the natural order Malvacece, of which we have common repre- 
 sentatives in the mallows of our fields, and the hollyhocks of our 
 gardens. About thirteen species of this genus have been de- 
 scribed : they seem to occupy naturally a broad belt, exceeding 
 the torrid zone in breadth, but in their cultivated state have 
 spread over nearly all the warmer parts of the world. The 
 tracts between which cotton can be successfully cultivated ap- 
 pear to be included between Egypt and the Cape of Good Hope, 
 on the Eastern, and between the southern banks of Chesa- 
 peake Bay and the south of Brazil, in the "Western hemi- 
 sphere. In India the best cotton is procured from the Coast 
 of Coromandel, or other maritime district ; and in the southern 
 states of the American Union, from certain coast islands ; 
 while the coast cotton of Pcrnambuco is inferior to that which 
 is produced in the interior of the country, leading to the 
 inference that, in dry countries, the plant prefers the vicinity 
 of the sea, and the interior districts in those which are 
 naturally damp. Africa offers both these conditions, with her 
 immense coast-lines, east and west, and her moist low-lying 
 tracts of swampy land, extending through the centre, watered 
 by that mighty network of rivers of which the Niger, the 
 Congo, the Zambesi, and others equally large, form the main 
 arteries. Livingston found the cotton-plant growing wild 
 about Ttte, and at various other situations ; and with this, aa 
 with the sight of the coffee-plant, his heart was gladdened, for
 
 248 DB. LIVING STONE 
 
 he saw, in these native productions, BO many agents in tho 
 civilisation and regeneration of Africa. 
 
 The Cotton-plant has been cultivated for purposes of 
 utility from time immemorial; the more ancient historians 
 and travellers Bpeak of it as in use in their times ; but while 
 in Egypt and Assyria, and other contiguous countries, fl;ix 
 was the staple article for spinning and weaving, in India 
 cotton seems to have been the chief or only vegetable fibre. 
 Down to quite a recent period, the muslins and other cotton- 
 stuffs of the East were the most celebrated in the world; but 
 Watt and Arkwright have now driven them out of the Euro- 
 pean market, although it may well be questioned whether the 
 patient Hindoo, sitting at his cottage-door by the Ganges, and 
 working with a hand-loom of the same primitive fashion as 
 his forefathers had used, for it may be two or three thousand 
 years, does not produce a fabric finer and more durable than 
 all the power-looms and spinning jennies of Glasgow and 
 Manchester ; but then, the quantity is the thing : how are the 
 teeming millions of Europe to be clothed, and cheaply, for 
 that is a necessity of the times, by the hand-loom system of 
 spinning and weaving^ It could not be. One half of the 
 population must have sat down to make shirts for the other 
 half, and human labour can be better employed than that, so 
 " the melancholy mad elephants," as Dickens calls the immense 
 engines, which give the motive power to the factory ma- 
 chinery, must work ; and amid much groaning and panting, and 
 twirling of innumerable wheels, and rising and falling of 
 piston-rods, and a smell of hot oils, and a sense of semi-suffo- 
 cation, the work goes merrily on. The raw material is brought 
 from India to Manchester, there woven into cloth, transported 
 back to the Ganges, and sold to the Hindoo or Parsee, or
 
 HIS LTPE AWD ADVENTURES. 249 
 
 Mahomcdan custoaiers, at a lower price than it could be if 
 made at their own doors. In British India, the manufacture 
 of coarse cotton goods is still to a, certain extent carried on, 
 but it is mostly, if not entirely, woven with English yarn, of 
 which large quantities are annually shipped from hence to the 
 eastern colonies, for the clothing of whose population of one 
 hundred and fifty millions, we may imagine what an enormous 
 quantity of cotton-stuffs must be required, when we are told 
 that the consumption of these stuffs for domestic and other 
 purposes has beep estimated at about twenty pounds weight 
 annually for each individual. "We would remind those who 
 question this fact, that in the East, cotton fabric is almost uni- 
 versally worn ; flax, hemp, wool, and hair being but little 
 employed ; true, there is great consumption of silk, but the 
 articles of clothing and utility made from this are confined 
 chiefly to the higher classes ; the great mass of people cannot 
 afford them. Thus, we see that in India a very large supply 
 of cotton is required for the native population, and if she 
 sends her raw produce to Europe, she takes back, in another 
 shape, as much as she gives, or more. 
 
 It may interest our readers if we give a brief sketch of the 
 mode in which cotton is grown and prepared for the market 
 in that distant " clime of the East," where an old traveller 
 records that he saw "the wild trees bear fleeces as their fruit, 
 surpassing those of sheep in beauty and excellence, and that 
 the Indians use cloths made of these trees." 
 
 This fleece-bearing plant was no boubt the species which 
 botanists call Gossypium Indicum, of which we have given a 
 representation at the commencement of the present chapter ; 
 or it might possibly have been the Gossypium arborum, which 
 is really a tree in size. It is found growing in many couutrius
 
 250 DR. uvi \asroNE 
 
 of the East to this day, aud pro-luces a fine, soft, silky filament, 
 well adapted for stuffing cushions, pillows, &c., but not avail- 
 able for spinning. "We may as well remark here that the 
 other two species of cotton generally cultivated are G. Bar- 
 bados and G. Penorarium ; it is these species, or varieties of 
 them, which are cultivated most extensively in America, and 
 come to our markets under the names of sea island, or upland 
 cotton, long or short staple, and so forth. 
 
 The Indian cotton, of which there are several varieties, grows 
 generally to the height of about five feet. It is a biennial or 
 triennial, but may be cultivated as an annual, springing up 
 and producing its downy crop within the course of from fivo 
 to eight months. The leaves are five-lobed, and the flowers 
 are produced singly at the extremity of the branches; the 
 petals are of a bright yellow colour, and there is a small 
 purple spot at the claw ; the seeds are five in number, and are 
 each clothed with a firmly-adhering greyish down, beneath tho 
 white wool which lines tho pods. The pieces of land sown 
 with cotton vary from several square yards to as many acres ; 
 these are in the hands of ryots, as the small native proprietors 
 are called, and the mode of cultivation is the same as that 
 practised for probably a thousand years or more. Just pre- 
 vious to the first setting in of the sunny season, the land, 
 having been cleared of underwood and weeds, is turned up by 
 the hoe, or hand-plough, so as to present ridges about five feet 
 apart ; that is, in rich soil. In poorer ground they will bo 
 closer together, in order that the plants, which under such 
 circumstances do not grow so luxuriantly, may afford a suf- 
 ficient shelter to the ground from the scorching heats of the 
 dry weather, and so keep their roots cool and moist. Some- 
 times the seed is sown broadcast, cad often, if the ground is
 
 /IIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 
 
 251 
 
 in good condition, other seed will be sown with it, BO that 
 there will be two crops in a season upon the same land. The 
 harrow used to fill in the furrows is of a very primitive kind, 
 consisting, as our picture shows, of some branches of a tree, 
 
 
 drawn by oxen, and weighted by the body of a man or woman, 
 who rides in state over the little plot of ground which the 
 ryot calls his own, although it is in reality mortgaged to the 
 mahajan, or money-lender, who is also probably the real 
 owner of the coming crop. Little inducement is there for the 
 cultivator, under such circumstances, to bestow much pains on 
 his agriculture. He plants the seed because he is obliged to, 
 in fulfilment of bis contract, and he brushes over the ground
 
 252 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 in the manner described, and then leaves it until the first 
 rains are over, when up springs a plentiful crop of -weeds 
 along with the young cotton plants, and these must be eradi- 
 cated, or the cotton will be choked and rendered unproductive. 
 He therefore sets to work to remove the intruders, and gene- 
 rally performs this operation by hand; although on well- 
 ordered cotton farms it is more effectually and quickly done 
 by the aid of a light plough. 
 
 " Fair befal the cotton-tree, 
 
 Bravely may it grow, 
 Bearing in its sealed pod 
 Cotton white as snow," 
 
 says Mary Howitt, and a prettier sight can scarcely be ima- 
 gined than the cotton-field, when the plants are just bursting 
 into flower ; the delicate green of the regularly-arranged foli- 
 age, on the graceful, tapering branches, tipped with the pale- 
 yellow blossoms, all bending to the breeze as it passes lan- 
 guidly over the field, laden with odours, and all these steeped 
 in the golden radiance of an oriental summer, fill the gazer 
 with pleasing emotions, and make him exclaim, in substance, 
 if not in these exact words, 
 
 41 Blessed be the cotton tree. 
 Bravely may it grow." 
 
 But, now the delicate yellow flowers are faded and dead, and 
 their places are occupied by the seed-pods, which by-and-bye 
 open, and disclose the downy cotton within, and this is the 
 proper time for gathering, each pod should be removed as soon 
 as the ripened rind displays its white lining ; but this pre- 
 caution is often neglected by the indolent cultivator, and much 
 injury occurs to the crop in consequence. Instead of going
 
 H78 LIFR AKD ADVKSTtTliES. 2-;3 
 
 over the plantation daily, to pick out the pods fit for gathering, 
 bat once or twice a week is made to suffice, and thus, much 
 of the delicate down becomes injured by falling on the ground, 
 and getting mixed with dirt, sticks, &c. But little care ia 
 taken in the gathering of the crop, or preparing it for sale; 
 the machine used in India for separating the seeds from the 
 fibres is of a very rude construction compared with the saw- 
 gin of America : it is called a churka, and does not perform its 
 duty at all effectually. The broker, or middle man, who takes 
 the crop of the cultivator, prefers to have it rough, as it comes 
 from the field, as he can then deduct what he pleases from the 
 gross weight, as an allowance for extraneous matter. In tho 
 different cotton-growing districts there are stores, to which 
 the various crops, small or large, are taken and here they 
 undergo the process, such as it is, of cleaning; after which, 
 the good and the bad are thoroughly incorporated in this 
 wise : The different samples are placed together on the floor 
 of an apartment, which is entered by a low door, and has a 
 small opening above for ventilation. Two men go into this 
 room, having each a bundle of smooth rods, and with these 
 they beat the cotton, making it fly and whirl in all directions, 
 and so effect a complete amalgamation of the different samples 
 in one uniform quality, which cannot, under these circum- 
 stances, be such as to fetch a good price in the market : much 
 waste, also, takes place in the transportation of the article to 
 the port where it is packed for shipment to Europe : it is thrust 
 loosely into coarse bags, but insecurely fastened at the mouths; 
 or, it may be, merely put into the common bullock-cart, or 
 hackery, and tied down with some old ropes, as seen in our 
 illustration. 
 
 And thus it goes jolting along some hundreds of miles of
 
 254 
 
 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 rough ccmntry, collecting dust and defile- 
 ment by the way, and leaving a broad 
 track of fleecy filaments, which adhere 
 lo the bushes, and gather in the nits, as we seo the hay m 
 this country mark the progress of the laden wains. 
 
 Tinnivelly and the M ahratta country are among the largest 
 cotton-producing districts, and much of the way from these 
 lies amid wide plains of loose sandy soil ; and, during the pre- 
 valence of the monsoon, this is taken up, and whirled across 
 the country, insinuating itself into the cotton, and adding to 
 its weight, hut by no means improving its quality : sometimes, 
 too, the strong wind will seize upon large flakes of the ill- 
 8< cured fibre, and bear it off in triumph miles and miles away, 
 lo whiter" the euri'acc cf Ihc distant stream, or flutter arouud the
 
 fltS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 25.") 
 
 lof'.v palm, or fringe the spreading mangroves, or the sacred 
 trues which surround the Hindoo temple : and so, at last, after 
 paying toll by the way to the wind, and receiving tribute from 
 the earth, the cotton reaches the warehouse of the contractor, 
 who, not satisfied with the deterioration it has already under- 
 gone, gives it another mixing with some inferior kind, and 
 throws in, as make-weights, a quantity of dirt and refuse, 
 and then passes it on to the English merchant, who is too 
 anxious to obtain a return freight for his ships, to look very 
 closely into the article sent to him. Sometimes he subjects it 
 to a slight cleansing process, but more frequently the time is too 
 precious to allow of this, and it is pressed by machinery into 
 bales weighing 300 Ibs each, and so shipped for Europe, 
 where it arrives in due time, and helps, by its dirty and badly- 
 prepared state, to confirm and increase the bad repute in which 
 Indian cotton is held by our manufacturers. This is the pri- 
 mitive kind of process by which this valuable article is grown, 
 gathered, and prepared in India. They manage these matters 
 differently in America, by the aid of improved machinery, and 
 human labour forced up to its maximum of exertion ; but we 
 may well doubt whether a system of paid labour would not 
 prove more remunerative to the planters. 
 
 We would gladly take our readers through an American 
 cotton farm, and point out the difference between the eastern 
 and western modes of cultivation ; but this would be travel- 
 ling too much out of the track of our present subject ; as it is, 
 we fear it will be considered that we have made a greatir 
 divergence than is necessary or desirable. We return, there- 
 fore, to Africa, that rich and fertile quarter of the globe, to 
 develop whose vast productive resources, and elevate whose 
 able races in the ecal of humanity, is the great aim and
 
 256 D&. LIVINGSTOBTE 
 
 object of so many of the Christian philanthropists of our a^e 
 ond country, who point to 
 
 " Where the stupendous mountains of the moon 
 Cast their broad shadows o'er the realms of noon ; 
 From rude Kaffraria, where the giraffes browse, 
 "With stately heads, among the forest boughs j 
 To Atlas, where Numidian lions glow 
 With torrid fires beneath eternal snow : 
 From Nubian hills that hail the dawning day, 
 To Guinea's coast, where evening fades away 
 Regions immense, unsearchable, unknown, 
 Bask in the splendour of the solar zone, 
 A world of wonders, where creation seems 
 No more the works of Nature, but her dreams : 
 Great, wild, and beautiful, beyond control, 
 She reigns in all the beauty of her soul, 
 Where none can check her bounty when she showers 
 O'er the gay wilderness her fruits and flowers ;" 
 
 who point, we repeat, to such scenes of splendour and magui- 
 ficeuce as the poet Montgomery here describes, and say with 
 
 him 
 
 " In these romantic regions man grows wild: 
 Hene dwells the negro, nature's outcast child, 
 Scorn'd by his brethren ; but his mother's eye 
 That gazes on him from her warmest sky, 
 Sees in his flexile limbs untutor'd grace, 
 Power on his forehead, beauty in his face ; 
 Sees in his breast, where lawless passions rove, 
 The heart of friendship and the home of IOTC ; 
 Sees in his mind, where desolation reigns, 
 Fierce as his clime, uncultured as his plains, 
 A soil where virtue's fairest flowers might shoot, 
 And trees of science bend with glorious fruit ; 
 Sees in his soul, involved with thickest night, 
 An emanation of eternal light, 
 Ordain'd, 'midst sinking worlds, his dust to fira. 
 And shine for ever when the stars expire.
 
 HIS LIFE A 50) ADVENTtmi-S. 257 
 
 Is he not man, though knowledge never shed 
 Her quickening beams on his neglected head ? 
 Is he not man, though sweet religion's voice 
 Ne'er made the mourner in his God rejoice ? 
 Is he not man by sin and suffering tried ? 
 Is he not man for whom the Saviour died ? 
 Belie the negro's powers, in headlong will, 
 Christian ! thy brother thou shalt prove him still. 
 Belie his virtues ; since his wrongs began, 
 His follies and his crimes have stampt him man :' 
 
 Man ! yes, he is a mail and a brother, though ignorant, 
 debased, and degraded to a level almost with the brutes that 
 perish ; although he occupies the position of a bond- slave in 
 the house of the great Father of us all. Yet one sees not why 
 this should be so ; with qualities as loveable, and capabilities 
 as great, as are possessed by those who think themselves as 
 much his superiors in intellect, as they are in worldly circum- 
 stances and power, he has a right to be received into the 
 family circle of nations, "not as a servant, but above a servant 
 a brother beloved," as the great apostle Paul hath taught. 
 If he bo ignorant, teach him ; if he be grovelling in his habits, 
 nnd debased in soul (and how can he well be otherwise ?) lift 
 him up, and place him in the sunshine of God's truth, and see 
 how that dark face of his will shine in the light of that 
 glorious revelation which says, "God hath made of one blood 
 all nations of men, to dwell upon the face of the. earth." Of 
 one blood, one parentage ; only let them be of one mind and 
 one faith, praising and glorifying together the one God and 
 Maker, the one Christ and Redeemer, and they will be brothers 
 indeed. But until this happy consummation arrive, the poor 
 benighted African is our brother still, and must be kindly, 
 gently, tenderly dealt with; he must be taken by the hand, 
 and guided into the fold of the great Shepherd ; long has hi
 
 258 
 
 DB. IITTNCSTONE 
 
 been wandering in the howling wilderness of his fierce, un- 
 bridled passions, wounding and cutting himself like the 
 demoniac in Scripture ; but we shall yet see him sitting clothed 
 and in his right mind ; we shall yet meet him, if we ourselves 
 be worthy of such honour, as a welcome guest at the marriage- 
 feast prepared for those who inherit the kingdom. "We shall
 
 HT8 T.TPE A\D ADTTyTTTRP.8. 259 
 
 goo, we do sec, as wo cast our eyes over the broad fit-Id of 
 missionary operations, and look upon the many dark, places of 
 the earth, where the spirit of Christianity has breathed its holy 
 influence around, we do, indeed, see that a marvellous chang3 
 has already taken place in the converted African, \vho presents 
 many a bright example of all those estimable virtues and 
 shining qualities of heart and mind, which most clearly dis- 
 tinguish the true follower of Christ. 
 
 Ye who prate of inferiority of race and of mental powers, 
 tell us under what circumstances you have yet seen the sable 
 children of Africa, whom ye consider but a step, if so much, 
 removed above the brute creatures tell us under what cir- 
 cumstances ye have yet seen them ? "Was it cowering beneath 
 the lash of the task-master ? was it in the auction-room, put 
 up for sale, like goods and chattels ? or was it in the dungeon, 
 cast there, perchance, after having been beaten with many 
 stripes, for some attempt to obtain that freedom which is the 
 birthright of every being with an immortal soul, and which 
 no crime has forfeited ; cast there, it may be, for some quite 
 trivial offence, or for that which in one with a white skin 
 would be regarded as natural and proper ? , 
 
 Was it a mother, such as is here depicted, who knows that 
 her child is about to be torn from her, to be sent far away into 
 the unhealthy swamps, to suffer and die, a wretched slave ? 
 Have ye looked upon that last agonising embrace, and beheld 
 the expression, of that mother's countenance, speaking the 
 emotions of a breast, wherein tenderness and sorrow, and 
 fe^r and a terrible hate, and desire for revenge against the 
 oppressoi, struggle for mastery? Have you thought that 
 there was something demoniacal in that face ? that the eyes 
 gleamed like those of a tigress about to be bereft of her cubs ?
 
 260 
 
 Tfc. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 that the spirit of dc?pcration and of murlerous intent, looking 
 out of those gleaming portals, shewed what a fire was raging 
 within ? Perchance you have, and turned away from the sight 
 with loathing and abhorrence, and thought of that poor slave 
 mother, as of one altogether depraved and incapable of any good 
 word or work. But have you thought also of the influences 
 which, even if she be so, have assisted in the formation of 
 her character? Have you thought of the whips and the 
 gyves, and the life-long servitude, of the wretched fare and the 
 brutal treatment ; of the forced union miscalled a marriage, the 
 mere pairing for breeding purposes; and all the unutterable abo-
 
 tllS LIFE AXD ADVEKTURE9. 261 
 
 minations and sufferings of slavery ? Had you done so, you 
 would pity, and not condemn, that wretched sister of yours. 
 Fancy yourself, Oh, finely clad and delicately nurtured 
 Christian mother, in her place, and thank God, without any 
 Pharisaical feeling of self-righteousness, that He has not 
 made you such as she is, nor such as one of those poor 
 miserable African women, with whom Dr. Livingston met, 
 in one of his journeys, as they were travelling with their 
 owner, a Portuguese slave- dealer, to the coast. 
 
 Look at them in their antic dresses and crouching attitudes : 
 scarcely do they seem human. And yet they are beings 
 with immortal souls like your own, with feelings and emo- 
 tions the same aye, and high and noble faculties too; 
 but they wait for the benign influences which can alone call 
 them into activity. Away, then, with the notion of infe- 
 riority of race. Africa has been well called the cradle of science 
 and learning ; she has produced men of mighty intellect; vast as 
 her natural advantages, great as her productive powers, so also 
 is her mental soil rich and greatly capable. How best to de- 
 velop those powers and capabilities is the important question, 
 which brings us back to the main subject of this chapter, 
 cotton- cultivation, which we look upon as one of the means to 
 this great end. In "A Memorandum on the Encouragement of 
 Native Agriculture, especially the Cultivation of Cotton on the 
 "\Vcst Const of Africa," recently issued, and now before us, wo 
 find some facts which will greatly assist us in our inquiries 
 upon this subject. The Memorandum opens, by stating that, 
 * the development of the natural resources of West Africa 
 (and this will, as well, apply to Eastern and Central Africa) 
 by its agriculture and by lawful commerce, involves the 
 best interests of humanity, in the effectual extinction of tuo
 
 2G2 DB, LIVINGSTONE 
 
 slave- trade; but it also involves the still higher interests of 
 the progress and establishment of Christianity, by the social 
 elevation of the converted natives, who now number more 
 than 50,000 at the various stations on the coast." 
 
 From this pamphlet, which is issued by a Native African 
 Agency Committee, consisting of the Earls of Shaftcsbury 
 and Harrowby, the Bishops of London and Oxford, the Bux- 
 tons, and other influential philanthropists, we learn that so 
 much has already been accomplished by native industry and 
 enterprise as to afford a most favourable augury for future and 
 more enlarged operations. " All the chief branches of African 
 trade, as gold-dust, ivory, palm-oil, ground nuts, are conducted 
 wholly by natives, who procure these articles by their own 
 exertions, and sell them to the merchants upon the coast. 
 Two examples, out of many others, may be given to illustrate the 
 negro's aptitude for trade. A large tract of sea -coast, one hun- 
 dred miles in extent, north of Sierra Leone, was, a few years 
 since, occupied by slave-dealers and their barracoons. The vigi- 
 lance of the squadron prevented the shipment of the slaves ; and 
 the owners allowed the slaves to plant ground-nuts on the usual 
 terms of African labour, viz. a share of the produce. In the 
 course of three or four years, the whole number of slaves, 
 amounting to many thousands, had bought their freedom, and 
 thirty French vessels, in one season, were loaded with ground- 
 nuts upon the beach of that coast." 
 
 By this fact, and several others stated in the pamphlet, wo 
 learn that there is much energy of character in these native 
 Africans, as well as aptitude for trade. " A number of them," 
 we are told, " came from the interior to Lagos with palm-oil to 
 Ihe value of 8,000, which they sold. They were the represent- 
 atives of a large body of native palm oil traders, and brought
 
 HIS LIFK AND ADVENTURES. 263 
 
 down the united stock of produce, and took back with them 
 European goods." 
 
 The pamphlet goes on to state that, besides those articles of 
 commerce which require but little skill to procure them, and 
 no machinery, " there are others which are not profitable 
 unless produced on a large scale, and which cannot be so pro- 
 duced until the natives receive instruction, encouragement, and 
 a supply of machinery. Yet these are the articles which 
 would most effectually improve the condition of the natives. 
 Cotton is the chief produce of this class; indigo, vegetable 
 fibres, and many other articles, are of the same class. The 
 great problem for Africa's civilisation therefore is, in what way 
 may cotton and other articles be introduced and extensively 
 cultivated by free native industry? The experiment has 
 been already made with cotton. Till a few years ago, only a 
 few samples from native farms had been brought to Europe. 
 It was not worth the notice of the European merchants on tho 
 coast. The natives had no sufficient means for cleaning am 
 packing it for our markets. But cotton-gins were sent out to 
 Abbeokuta, an interior town, sixty miles from the coast, at 
 Lagos, in the Bight of Benin, and the natives were encouraged 
 to collect and prepare cotton for exportation. Already more 
 than 100,000 pounds of seeded cotton have been cleaned and 
 gent to England, more than one hundred bags of which have, 
 within the last twelve months, been sent by the natives 
 direct to one firm alone in Manchester, and have been sold in the 
 market at the price of sixpence per pound. The Manchester 
 firm, which has thus opened a direct trade with Lagos and 
 Abbeokuta, has already sixty-three native correspondents, who 
 send various products besides <*c 4 ton, and receive British 
 goods in returu. . .
 
 261 DE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 "The merchant "who has thus, for several years, traded di- 
 rectly with the native growers of West- African produce, in- 
 cluding, besides arrow-root, palm-oil, ginger, and various 
 other articles, states, ' They show in their business with us 
 great aptitude for commerce, and much patient and persevering 
 effort in contending with difficulties. Give them the means of 
 cleaning and packing their cotton, suitably for the market, and 
 opportunities to send it home, and rely for every thing else 
 upon their own fondness for trade and love of gain ; their own 
 desire to be great men, principals in whatever they undertake. 
 More may be done for them by throwing them upon their own 
 resources than by any European interference, by superinten- 
 dence or advance of capital.' " 
 
 From this it will be seen that the cultivation of cotton in 
 Africa is likely, at- no distant day, to assume very large di- 
 mensions, and perhaps render the European manufacturer 
 independent of the American planter. It is already culti- 
 vated, as we learn from this pamphlet, along a coact 
 line of one thousand miles in extent, and is of so good a 
 quality, that it sells for Gd. per Ib. at Liverpool, and may be 
 made, by greater care in the cleaning, packing, &c., worth 
 8d. or lOd. The natives only need instruction, a supply of 
 machinery, and the opening of channels for a direct trade 
 with the English markets. Model industrial establishments 
 are especially recommended by the Native Agency Committee,* 
 before alluded to, which society has already one of these esta- 
 blishments in active operation at Abbeokuta, conducted by 
 two native young men, who have been instructed in England, 
 and "is prepared to give assistance and encouragement to 
 similar institutions upon other parts of the coast, and to help 
 
 * Office, 20, Buckingham Street, AdelphL
 
 HIS LIFE AND A.DVKNTUHES. 265 
 
 to bring over and support natives to learn trades in England, 
 BO that they may become competent teachers of their coun- 
 trymen." 
 
 There are other agencies mentioned in the pamphlet, as 
 likely to conduce to the successful working out of this great 
 scheme, on which, however, we need not dwell, further than 
 to allude to one very important feature in the programme re- 
 commended, which is the maintenance, by government, of 
 an efficient marine police, for keeping in check any pro-slavery 
 tendencies which may arise among the native traders themselves, 
 or those who visit the coast for commercial or other purposes; 
 for, as it is well observed, " nothing can be done for the good 
 of Africa on any part of the coast where the slave-trade- 
 exists. This abominable traffic must be put down, or so far 
 repressed as to become unprofitable, before agriculture, lawful 
 commerce, and Christianity can find any effectual footing." 
 
 We observe that the danger of white men attempting to raise 
 cotton in Africa by slave labour, and thus introduce the evil 
 of American slavery into this great continent, has been pointed 
 out in this pamphlet, as elsewhere. Dr. Livingston, in reply 
 to some remarks upon the subject in the I'imes, gives his 
 reasons for believing it improbable that such a. system of 
 monstrous wrong will be the result of encouraging the Afri- 
 cans to produce the raw materials of our manufactures on 
 their own soil. 
 
 The Doctor believes that the idea of tho revival of the 
 slave-trade like that of Africa being unable to produce a 
 sufficient supply of the great staple of European manufacture 
 by free labour is altogether a Yankee notion. At Angola, 
 and elsewhere, he heard the slave-trade spoken of as a thing 
 dead and done for, and past revival. The planters at Port
 
 266 OK. 1IVINGSTOKE 
 
 Natal, lie tells us, who were petitioning the home government 
 for liberty to import Chinamen and Coolies to work their 
 farms, could have had Kaffir labourers by thousands, at their 
 own doors, for seven shillings and sixpence per month. It 
 was capital, and the skill to apply it, which they wanted, 
 and a spirit of conciliation with the natives, and of cordial co- 
 operation with the Cape Town authorities. But we have said 
 as much as our limits will permit on this important subject, 
 which we have desired to impress strongly on the minds of 
 our readers. In conclusion, let us quote a few passages from 
 a noble oration, delivered before the citizens of Munrovia, the 
 capital of the free black republic of Liberia, on the anniver- 
 sary day of national independence, July 26, 1855, by the 
 Rev. Alexander Crummell, B.A., himself a bright example 
 of negro intellect and character. 
 
 " You know the high value of cotton and its great demand ; 
 you know also how important the production of this article 
 has become in the decision of the great moral question of the 
 age the destruction of slavery ; and I need not pause hero 
 to show what a blessing we might become to our race, and to 
 the world, by the ' disturbing element ' of a thousand bales 
 of cotton, competing with oppressors of our race in the ports 
 of Liverpool and Glasgow, and beating down their ill-gotten 
 gains ! It grows all around us here, amid the huts and 
 villages, and the rice-farms of our heathen neighbours, and by 
 the uso of bounties we can largely prompt its growth among 
 them, as also by our own labour lead to its extension and 
 profitable cultivation in our own fields 
 
 "The annual demand for sugar, for coffee, for cotton, haa 
 never yet been fully met in any of the great markets. 
 Within a few recent years, the East Indies, Algiers, Egypt,
 
 HIS LIFE 1XD ADtKjftCRES. 26? 
 
 and the Fantees, below us on this coast, have been increasing 
 the quantity of cotton sent to England, while there has been 
 no sensible diminution of the large masses shipped from 
 America. And yet to the 'Board of Commerce' in Man- 
 chester there are few, if any, questions more puzzling than 
 this that is, ' Whence they can secure new and larger 
 supplies ?'.... 
 
 " Into our listening ears come these clear, audible words, on 
 this natal day of our country, ' the productive agencies of 
 time,' and they only get respect, and notice, and advantage ; 
 all the rest is odious beggarism and contempt. If we wish to 
 rise as a nation, and to be felt as an influencing agency in the 
 world, we must make the ideas of labour and achievement 
 master ideas in our communities, and cause the principles of 
 self-reliance and manly energy to become vital and energetic 
 in our midst. 
 
 " And surely no man here need search for incentive to all 
 this. Here, all around and beyond us, on every side, in our- 
 selves and children, and in the coming days at hand, are spur 
 and stimulus, and high incitement, to every noble work and 
 lofty desire that has circled the brain of the greatest man 
 earth ever saw in all her histories. The ocean, in majesty and 
 magnificence, seems inviting argosies of sails from our ports 
 nnd harbours, laden with tropical products for foreign lands. 
 This vast and wild Africa, to indefinite depths, seems now 
 yearning to throw off the forest, the jungle, and the bush, 
 and to open a pathway for the spade, the hoe, and the scythe ; 
 so that all the world, ere the coming of its last days, may 
 delight itself with its prolific fulness, and its vast and inex- 
 haustible riches. Tribe after tribe, far inward, through 
 marsh, over mountain, dowu bcyoiid the broad valleys, clear
 
 2(53 il 
 
 off to the large central lakes of the continent, starts up, and 
 seems listening to the faint music of the distant Gospel, 
 sweetly sounding on this coast, and craves its blessings and 
 its gifts. The vast rivers and the broad streams, struggling 
 for centuries with the tangled roots, the giant trunks, and the 
 broken branches of the fallen forest, would fain burst forth 
 from all their hindrances, and marry themselves a thousand 
 times to the graceful forms of ships and steamers, who never 
 yet, with gliding keel, have kissed their golden faces, nor 
 ever embraced thsir sweet and liquid forms."
 
 IS LIFE 
 
 ALVENMJ11ES 
 
 2G9 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 JOCBNKY HOME AND HECEPIIO::. 
 
 ETE, where the governor of the 
 Portuguese territory on the 
 east coast of Africa resides, 
 is a large well-built town, 
 situated on elevated ground, 
 in a healthy and fertile dis- 
 trict; it lies about 100 mues 
 to the north- west of Senna, 
 and 150 to the south-east of 
 Zumbo, all three of these 
 places being in the course of 
 the Zambesi. It was here that 
 our traveller rested after the 
 fatigues of his long and toil- 
 some journey, and while 
 
 doing so, made a pretty accurate survey of the country round 
 about, chiefly with regard to its missionary and mercantile 
 capabilities. He found the district rich in mineral wealth ; 
 there were seams of coal, showing themselves on the river 
 banks, and consequently lying very near the surface, so as to be 
 easily worked ; there was native iron of a good quality ; and 
 gold dust, showing that auriferous deposits were near at hand 
 to reward the labour of the seeker. There were elephants 
 and other wild animals in abundance ; there were cotton and 
 .coffee, growing wild, and various kinds P.f vegetable fibres ;
 
 270 DB. LTVTNfiSTOWE 
 
 dye woods, and medicinal plants; all of which would find a 
 ready market iu Europe, aud yield a good return to the cul- 
 tivator and collector. Bees- wax and honey were also abundant, 
 and esculent roots, that wanted but the hand of culture to 
 improve and render them serviceable to man. Fine timber, 
 too, was there, for building and other useful purposes ; and in 
 short, the country possessed all the requisites for the establish- 
 ment of a thriving commercial entrepot, from whence the out- 
 posts of Christian civilisation might be pushed forward into the 
 interior. European capital and Anglo-Saxon energy only 
 are wanting to organise, cherish, and sustain native efforts, and 
 develop the resources of that fine country, towards which the 
 Dutch settlers are slowly creeping up along the eastern coast 
 from Port Natal. The Portuguese have done little or nothing 
 towards the reclamation either of the soil or its inhabitants 
 from their natural state of wildncss and savagery, that is, in 
 comparison with what might be done. True it is, that they have 
 to a certain extent encouraged native commerce, by receiving 
 from the various tribes, who came to their settlements for the 
 purpose, such of the products of their countries as they thought 
 it worth while to collect and offer for barter ; but they had made 
 no attempt to teach them the arts of civilised life, to stimulate 
 them to cultivate the rich vegetation of their lands, or to con- 
 vert their mineral or other treasures into articles or commodities 
 of utility. Year by year did they receive from them ivory, gold 
 dust, and their slaves, for which they made them but a poor 
 return, in such articles as savages most prize, beads, and cotton 
 stuffs, of bright colours and glaring patterns, with weapons of 
 war and ammunition ; but these latter rarely, and at great prices, 
 . for they feared to place in the hands of the naked savages those 
 of death, which might place them on an eouality
 
 HIS LITE AND AT)VF.NTinrE3. 271 
 
 with themselves in respect to physical power, and enable 
 them to expel the intruders from their shores. 
 
 At the time of Dr. Livingston's arrival at Tete, he found 
 the Portuguese and native tribes at variance, the latter being 
 eufficiently powerful to keep the former shut up in their 
 town, in a state of siege; and this position of affairs had 
 continued for the space of two years : a plain proof that tho 
 European lords of the soil, as they would fain be considered, 
 had not made a good use of their means and opportunities. 
 "While the traffic in, and exportation of, slaves was permitted, 
 a greater state of commercial activity prevailed in this fine 
 district ; the slave coflles were constantly arriving from the 
 interior, and paused here on their way to the coast, the 
 native traders bringing much gold, ivory, and other African 
 products, besides the human chattels, which were then the 
 most valuable commodities that they could offer. But this 
 was an unnatural and unhealthy state of excitement, which 
 was sure to be followed by a reactionary collapse ; it stimulated 
 the vilest passions of all parties concerned in the abominable 
 traffic ; it set tribe against tribe, and black against white ; 
 and when the moral sense of Europe rose up in indignation, 
 and declared that this blot upon modern civilisation should 
 no longer exist, there ensued a partial cessation of coinmerci;il 
 intercourse, and, in some cases, an outbreak of long-smothered 
 enmity on the part of the native tribes: If you no longer 
 take our slaves, we will not tolerate your intrusion. This 
 feeling would not exist if the natives had been instructed in 
 Letter ways of turning the resources of their rich country to 
 account. The indigo and senna, the cotton and coffee, which 
 grow wild around them, might have yielded a far richer 
 .-c venue than the bodies of their fellow- err aturcs, for whom
 
 272 PH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 profitable employment might have been ibund in the culti- 
 vation of their natural products : the beeswax, even, TV hi eh 
 they had been accustomed to throw away, after extracting the 
 honey from the combs, if freed from impurities, and stored fur 
 exportation, would have furnished them with the means of 
 obtaining comforts and conveniences now undreamt of. True, 
 they had been accustomed to wash the sand of their streams 
 for the glittering particles of precious ore which it contained ; 
 and they had sought out the spot, where, in the gloomy and 
 trackless forest, the elephant lay him down to die of disease 
 or old age, and secured the tusks ; or, for the same purpose, 
 had hunted and slain, with much danger and difficulty, the 
 ponderous animal ; and they had dug up the iron ore which 
 abounded in some districts, and shaped it into spear-heads, 
 and other instruments ; but they little knew to what extent 
 these branches of native industry might be developed ; they 
 understood not how bountiful had a good Providence been to 
 them how abundantly He had furnished them with the 
 means of taking a proud stand in the great markets of the 
 world, and redeeming their own magnificent country from 
 the curse of ignorance and barbarity. All this they must be 
 taught. Those black veins, which crop out above the ample 
 flow of their broad streams and rivers, and go meandering up 
 and down the banks, read, to the instructed eye, like a written 
 invitation to enter into the bowels of the earth, and possess 
 the rich inheritance of mineral wealth which is theirs ; those 
 noble rivers write, in silver lines, all over their fruitful lands 
 
 How rich, how fair, how fertile, how rife with all that's gocvl. 
 Are the valleys that we water, the grounds we over-floorl ! 
 How bountiful the produce of golden grain and fruits ! 
 How stately is the timber ! how nutritive the roots '.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 275 
 
 They ask for care and culture ; they die and pass a\va7, 
 
 Unblessed, untilled, untended, shall it be so for aye ? 
 
 To spring in wild luxuriance, to cumber but the ground, 
 
 With hungry millions wailing in desert tracts around ; 
 
 With many-peopled cities, that gladly gold would give, 
 
 That thus the naked might be clothed, their famished eat and HTB 
 
 Come listen, oh, come listen ! turn up the virgin soil, 
 
 Dig deep, and ye shall gather more than a kingdom's spoil. 
 
 The bending cane invites you, with sweet juice in its veins ; 
 
 The downy cotton calls you ; the root of deep-blue stains. 
 
 Come, pluck the rich brown berry come, cut the timber down 
 
 And build upon our borders the factory and town ; 
 
 And let the school and temple of God rise side by side, 
 
 And let the ships of commerce upon our bosoms ride. 
 
 We be the silent highways ah ! far too silent now ! 
 
 Unstirred but by the paddle of the men of ebon brow : 
 
 Unstirred but by the plunging of the mighty river-horse, 
 
 Or the scaly monster crushing the swollen and ghastly corse 
 
 Of the son of Afric, slaughtered by savage beast or man, 
 
 In the never-ceasing warfare of native clan with clan. 
 
 We be the fertilisers, but wherefore should we flow, 
 
 Where none have understanding, our hoarded wealth to know ? 
 
 O'er-canopied with sunshine, boon nature spreads the feast, 
 
 But the guests, alas ! how savage ! brute man and ravening beast. 
 
 Oh, give the light to lighten their dark, benighted souls, 
 
 That every stream among us, rejoicing as it rolls, 
 
 May hear the blessed tidings, to spread on every hand, 
 
 That Africa is lifted, she is a ransomed land, 
 
 That her grovelling sons have risen, like men to stand and strive 
 
 Amid the throng of nations, to praise the Lord and thrive."* 
 
 * The following summary of a speech delivered by Dr. Livingston at a 
 meeting at the Mansion-House, London, presently to be again spoken of, 
 will serve to illustrate more fully the state of this portion of South 
 Africa. " He thought the Zambesi would form the highway into the 
 country he had visited, and he had received a note from a lieutenant of the 
 navy that morning, who took the soundings in the two ports at the mouth 
 of the Zambesi, and who verified the statements he had made. Suppose
 
 274 BE. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Intent now upon his homeward journey, and impatient to 
 give an account of his discoveries to the Directors of the Mis- 
 sionary Society and the religious public of England, that 
 immediate measures may be taken for the establishment of 
 missions among the tribes with whom he has come in contact 
 in Central South Africa, our traveller, as soon as the season 
 permits, resumes his journey to the coast, leaving his Mako- 
 lolo friends at Tete, to await his return from Europe. He 
 has no fears about throwing them on their own resources for 
 
 they entered the Zambesi, as they could do, in a small steamer of light 
 draught, they would find the country at each side flat. The delta might 
 be described as a large flat tract of country, much larger than Scotland, 
 intersected with numerous rivers, and covered with coarse grass and 
 cocoa-nut and mangel-trees. On the right there was a well-wooded coun- 
 try, and the chief of the trees was called the goa, the bark of which was 
 used as a kind of poison. When a man suspected his wife of bewitching 
 him, he used the bark of the tree to see whether she had bewitched him. 
 On going further, the river was one and two miles broad, and the land to 
 the north was much more fertile than the land to the south. There was 
 sugar-cane, besides coffee, indigo, and senma-leaves, growing wild. There 
 were also to be found there different kinds of fibre, coal fields, and gold. 
 He described the country as the paradise of a hunter, and then referred to 
 the subject of colonisation. He did not mean to say much about their 
 Kaffir wars, but he believed the English might make the best colonists in 
 the world, notwithstanding their Kaffir wars, which, as a Scotchman would 
 say, made one scunner. He was of opinion that emigrants should take 
 their wives with them, because that he considered was the great secret of 
 successful colonisation. He then described the country beyond the Tete 
 as beautiful and undulating. A few years ago, it was densely peopled, 
 but it is now nearly depopulated. As he advanced, the country attained 
 an elevation of about 4000 feet above the level of the sea, and then began 
 to descend so gradually that a person scarcely knew he had descended 
 until he came into a valley that was wonderfully supplied with rivers, and 
 could be irrigated with the greatest ease. The shape of the country wa 
 hollow in the centre, with elevated sides."
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVKXTUntrS. 275 
 
 a time, as some of them are bold and skilful hunters of ele- 
 phants, -which abound in that district, and others are remark- 
 able for their patient, plodding industry, -which would ensure 
 them a living anywhere. One only of this faithful band does 
 he take with him, that be may see the wonders of European 
 power and civilisation, and report 'them to his countrymen, 
 that the white man may be exalted in their eyes, and find a 
 more willing acquiescence in his wishes and teachings. 
 
 There was now 300 miles to be traversed through the pes- 
 tilential delta of the Zambesi, and the Doctor was far from 
 strong ; but he paid a visit to, and fixed the exact position of 
 Senna and other important points on the way, and arriving at 
 Quillimane, ascertained that it was not on one of the mouths of 
 the Zambesi as was generally supposed, but an insignificant 
 stream, which flowed into it, the navigable extent of the great 
 river lying further to the north. It was on the 14th of May, 
 1856, that he entered the Portuguese town of Quillimane, 
 which is built on an unhealthy marsh, without much regard to 
 regularity of structure ; he finds here but a few substantial 
 houses, but plenty of rude huts, constructed of reeds and thatched 
 with coarse grass. The only public edifices arc a small church, 
 and a number of sheds, for trading and other purposes, in a 
 quadrangle which includes the custom-house, barracks, and 
 prison. This is the chief entrepot for such gold and ivory, 
 &c., as are brought from the interior, and it is consequently 
 visited by numerous trading- vessels. The population of 
 Quillimane, including the country around, is estimated tit 
 15,000, by far the greater part being slaves. The Portuguese 
 have a very precarious hold on their territories, which in 
 Eastern Africa have latterly become much circumscribed in 
 extent ; higher up the coast is their chief town, Mozambique,
 
 276 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 tlic scat of a bishopric ; it is built on three low sandy islands, 
 and is defended by a strong fort, mounting eighty guns ; the 
 staple export here is ivory, now the slave-trade is abolished ; 
 there is a little goM. dust from Sofala and the country round 
 about, and some manna, corn, and orchil, collected chiefly 
 along the coast. The Imaum of Muscat, who is a powerful 
 native prince, having his stronghold at Zanzibar, threatens 
 the existence of this town, and, indeed, Portuguese predomi- 
 nance on the cast coast altogether. Of the 6000 inhabitants 
 of Mozambique, not quite 400 are free ; the British cruisers, 
 by stopping the exportation of slaves, have struck a vital blow 
 at its commercial prosperity, founded, as it was, upon fraud and 
 horrible inhumanity. It was in one of these cruisers, the 
 'Frolic," that our traveller and his attendant were to embark 
 for the Mauritius ; and great was the astonishment of the latter 
 \vhenhe looked for the first time upon the wide open sea, and 
 saw the great ships at anchor by the wharves of Quillimane, or 
 go to and fro with their white sails spread like the wings of 
 somp immense sea-birds. Like the Barotse at Loanda, he 
 was all amazement, not unmingled with terror. The ocean, 
 when he first gazed on it, was agitated by a tempest, which 
 prevented the "Frolic" putting in to take the travellers on 
 board ; so they had to go out in a boat, and as it rose and fell, now 
 vn the crest, now in the trough of the waves, he kept turning 
 to Dr. Livingston, as though looking for safety, and exclaiming, 
 " Is this the way you go ? Is this the way you go ? " doubt- 
 less thinking, all the while, that it was a very strange way 
 indeed ! 
 
 But it was a tragical end which befel the poor Makololo, 
 who was fairly, as it seems, scared out of his wits. The many 
 new objects which he saw, and the constant calls upon his
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADVENTURES; 
 
 277 
 
 faculties of fear anil wonder by all these strange sights, caused 
 too great a strain upon his untutored mind. Having received 
 him and his master on board, the " Frolic " bore away for the 
 ^Mauritius, and there, in the harbour of St. Louis, she was 
 approached by a steamer vomiting black smoke, and churning 
 the water into foam all around her. This was the climax to 
 the awe- stricken native; she appeared like some huge sea- 
 monster, coming to swallow him up, "With a wild shriek, and 
 arms tossed aloft, he sprang over the bulwark of the vessel 
 he was in ; and although great efforts were made to save him, 
 they proved unavailing, and Dr. Livingston had to lament the 
 loss of a faithful and attached friend and servant.
 
 278 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 The Doctor remained a short time at the Mauritius, whera 
 his health got somewhat recruited, and then took passage for 
 England, whose beloved shores he reached in December 1856. 
 The fame of his journeys, his toils, his sufferings, and discove- 
 ries, had come home before him, and his countrymen were 
 prepared to give him an enthusiastic welcome; the most 
 prominent incidents in which we shall now briefly describe. 
 It should be premised here, that previous to Dr. Livingston's 
 arrival in England, the honours which were awaiting him 
 at home had been anticipated in the land where his great 
 toils and perils had been undergone, and his discoveries 
 made. 
 
 On "Wednesday, the 12th of November 1856, a very 
 numerous meeting was held in the Commercial Exchange, 
 Cape Town, for the purpose of taking steps to express the 
 public sense of the eminent services rendered to science, civi- 
 lisation, and Christianity by the Rev. Dr. Livingston. His 
 Excellency, the Governor, Sir George Grey, occupied the 
 chair. The resolutions were moved and seconded by the 
 Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, the Bishop of Cape 
 Town, the Astronomer Royal (Mr. Maclear), Mr. Justice 
 Cloete, Mr. Justice Watermeyer, Rev. Mr. Thompson, &c. &c. 
 Sir George Grey, himself a traveller of some renown, said : 
 
 " I think no man of the present day is more deserving of 
 honour than Dr. Livingston, a man whom we, indeed, can 
 hardly regard as belonging to any particular age or time, but 
 who belongs rather to the whole Christian epoch, possessing 
 all those great qualities of mind, and that resolute desire at 
 all risks to spread the Gospel, which we have been generally 
 in the habit of attributing solely to those who lived in the 
 first ages of the Christian era indeed, that man must be
 
 HIS LIFE AXD ADTEXTtmES. 279 
 
 esteemed as almost of apostolic character, who, animated by a 
 desire of performing his duty to his Maker and to his fellow - 
 men, has performed journeys which we cannot but regard as 
 altogether marvellous." 
 
 The Bishop of Cape Town, at the close of his speech, 
 said: 
 
 " I trust the Society which supports Dr. Livingston, and 
 of which he is a missionary, may be enabled to found its mis- 
 sions in some part of this newly- discovered country. The 
 London Society has been the pioneer of Christianity in this 
 part of the globe. Its missionaries have discovered new 
 regions, and I trust that they will persist in their great and 
 glorious work. But I may be allowed to express a strong 
 hope that the Church of England may also be allowed to join 
 in this work." 
 
 Mr. Maclear gave an account of Dr. Livingston's astrono- 
 mical observations, and of the difficulties he had to encounter 
 in making them. He had taken 148 lunar distances and 888 
 sets of altitudes, and had observed two occultations of Jupiter, 
 and two of other stars. Mr. Maclear produced his survey of 
 the Zambesi, and said : 
 
 "He investigated it, and took a few lunar observations 
 for longitude, and laid down on a map the result of his lunar 
 observations, until he reached the confluence of that river with 
 another large one, the Lonta. I take that, sir, to be the first 
 specimen of sound geographical observation I ever met with, 
 I may safely say, that if you go beyond the Cape district of 
 this colony, there is no river laid down with the accuracy 
 with which the Zambesi has been laid down in the centre of 
 Africa through his observations. . . . Even Timbuctoo 
 although the name is so well known, it is questionable if it
 
 2SD im. UYrWGSTOlTE 
 
 could be reached by means of any recorded observations. 
 Here, on the other hand, you could go to any point across the 
 entire continent, along Livingston's tract, and feel certain of 
 your position." 
 
 The meeting resolved to enter into a subscription for a 
 testimonial to the great traveller, which Sir George Grey 
 headed with a donation of 5QI. 
 
 On the llth of December, the Times informed its readers, 
 that " the Eev. Dr. Livingston arrived at Marseilles from Tunis 
 on the 6th inst., and was then in good health. His left arm 
 is, however, broken and partly useless, it having been torn by 
 a lion. When he was taken on board Her Majesty's ship 
 ' Frolic,' on the Mozambique coast, he had great difficulty iu 
 speaking a sentence of English, having disused it so long while 
 travelling in Africa. He had with him a native from the in- 
 terior of Africa. This man, when he got to the Mauritius, was 
 so excited with the steamers and various wonders of civilisa- 
 tion, that he went mad, and jumped into the sea and was 
 drowned. Dr. Livingston has been absent from England 
 seventeen years. He crossed the great African continent almost 
 in the centre, from west to east, has been where no civilised 
 being has ever been before, and has made many notable disco- 
 veries of great value. He travelled in the twofold character of 
 missionary and physician, having obtained a medical diploma. 
 He is rather a short man, with a pleasing and serious counte- 
 nance, which betokens the most determined resolution. Ho 
 continued to wear the cap which he wore while performing his 
 wonderful travels. On board the ' Candia,' in which he voyaged 
 from Alexandria to Tunis, he was remarkable for his modesty 
 and unassuming manners. He never spoke of his travels, ex- 
 cept in answer to questions. The injury to his arm was su-
 
 HIS LIFE ATH) ADVETTTTmES. 281 
 
 tained in the desert -while travelling with a friendly tribe of 
 Africans. A herd of lions broke into their camp at night, and 
 carried off some of their cattle. The natives, in their alarm, 
 believed that a neighbouring tribe had bewitched them. 
 Livingston taunted them with suffering their losses through 
 cowardice, and they then turned out to face and hunt down 
 the enemy. The Doctor shot a lion, which dropped wounded. 
 It afterwards sprang on him and caught him by the arm, 
 and, after wounding two natives who drew it off him, it 
 fell down dead. The wounded arm was not set properly, 
 and Dr. Livingston suffered excruciating agony in conse- 
 quence."* 
 
 The first public body in England which testified its sense 
 of the value of Dr. Livingston's discoveries, was the Royal 
 Geographical Society, the council of which convened a special 
 meeting for the purpose of presenting the society's gold 
 medal to the distinguished traveller ; this meeting was held 
 on the 15th December. 
 
 The following is a condensed report from the Illustrated 
 News : 
 
 " The Society's rooms were crowded to excess. Dr. 
 Livingston, on entering the room, was warmly greeted by 
 the distinguished assemblage. At half-past eight the chair 
 was taken by Sir Roderick Murchison, president of the 
 society, who, after some highly eulogistic remarks on the 
 important discoveries made by Dr. Livingston, presented him 
 with the gold medal of the society, as a testimonial of their 
 regard and admiration. Dr. Livingston, in returning thaiikg 
 
 * The account here given of the encounter with the lion is somewhat 
 different from one which we had seen elsewhere, and oil which we Lava 
 found*. <l our description. (See pae 1G3.)
 
 282 TVR. 
 
 for the liigli honour they had conferred on him, said he had 
 only done his duty as a Christian missionary in attempting to 
 open up part of southern intertropical Africa to the sympathy 
 of Christendom, and he felt very mueh gratified by finding if 
 the interest which they and many others had expressed ; 
 pledge that the true negro family whose country he had tra- 
 versed would yet become a part of the general community 
 of nations. Mr. Galton, Mr. M'Queen, Colonel Steele, Captain 
 Vardon, Mr. Brande, and Mr. Gordon Camming all of them 
 travellers in Africa bore testimony to the value of Dr. 
 Livingston's discoveries, and to the tact, courage, and un- 
 wearied ardour with which he had pursued, them. Professor 
 Owen also adverted to the interesting acquisitions of zoological 
 science likely to accrue from the labours of the distinguished 
 traveller. The meeting, which was one of great interest, did 
 not terminate until near midnight." 
 
 On the following day, the London Missionary Society gavo 
 a public reception to Dr. Livingston, at Freemasons' Hall, 
 the Earl of Shaftesbury in the chair. In the evening he was 
 entertained at a dinner at the Milton Club, Ludgate-hill, under 
 the auspices of the same society. At both places the African 
 traveller was received with the greatest enthusiasm. On the 
 platform of the Hall, in the morning, were some of the most 
 distinguished scientific and commercial men of the age; 
 eminent divines, and men of all classes and shades of religious 
 and political opinion, were there : Sir Eoderick Murchison, 
 Col. "W. H. Kawlinson, Hon. A. "Kinnaird, Sir Culling Eardley, 
 T. Chambers, M.P., Drs. Yaughan and Tidman ; the Eevs. 
 J. Burnett and E. Prout, In the body of the hall was Kane, 
 the Arctic traveller ; Dr. Massie, and other ministers of various 
 denominations; S, Morley, Esq , and a whole host of men
 
 HIS LTFF AMD AI>Vi:XTClU8. 28.3 
 
 well known upon 'Change, and notabilities of the great world 
 
 of London. 
 
 The following graphic portrait of our traveller as he ap- 
 peared at this meeting is too characteristic to be omitted here. 
 We find it in the Nonconformist newspaper : 
 
 "A foreign-looking person, plainly and rather carelessly 
 dressed, of middle height, bony frame, and Gaelic coun- 
 tenance, with short cropped hair and mustachioa, and 
 generally plain exterior, rises to address the meeting. He 
 appears to be about forty years of age. His face is deeply 
 furrowed, and pretty well tanned. It indicates a man of 
 quick and keen discernment, strong impulses, inflexible reso- 
 lution, and habitual self-command. Unanimated, its most 
 characteristic expression is that of severity ; when excited, a 
 varied expression of earnest and benevolent feeling and re- 
 markable enjoyment of the ludicrous in circumstances and 
 character passes over it. The meeting rises to welcome him 
 with deafening cheers. When he speaks, you think hin.. at 
 first to be a Frenchman ; but as he tells you a Scotch anec- 
 dote in true Glasgowwegian dialect, you make up your 
 mind that he must be, as his face indicates, a countryman 
 from the north. His command of his mother-tongue being 
 imperfect, he apologises for his broken, hesitating speech, by 
 informing you that he has not spoken your language for nearly 
 sixteen years ; and then he tells you, as best a modest yet 
 earnest man can, concerning his travels. In doing this hi 
 leaves out all about his personal sufferings, just remarking 
 that he intends to save those anecdotes for his 'garrulous 
 dotage.' Much of what he says he has already, of course, writ- 
 ten in his journals, and of some circumstances he has before 
 told at other places ; but he is one from whom you could hear
 
 284 DK. 
 
 the same thing more than three times. His narrative is not 
 very connected, and his manner is awkward, excepting once 
 when he justifies his enthusiasm, and once when he graphi- 
 cally describes the great cataract of Central Africa. He ends 
 a speech of natural eloquence and witty simplicity, by say- 
 ing, that he has ' begun his work, and will carry it on.' His 
 broken thanks are drowned by the applause of the audience." 
 
 About a hundred ministers and laymen sat down to tho 
 dinner, which was presided over by Alderman Challis, M.P. 
 Mrs. Livingston was present in the gallery, with other 
 ladies, and received a share of the honour paid to her 
 husband's merits. Dr. Livingston told the company ho 
 was afraid they would spoil him; and spoke of the short 
 period of his intended sojourn in England, where he had but 
 little more than three months to spend, and gave some infor- 
 mation about his mission, and the difficulties he had to con- 
 tend with in a new country. 
 
 On the 5th of January a meeting was held in the Egyptian 
 Hall, Mansion House, for the purpose of raising a fund towards 
 presenting a testimonial to Dr. Livingston. Amongst the 
 gentlemen present were the Lord Mayor, the Sheriffs of London 
 aid Middlesex, Baron Damiar (the Ambassador from Hayti), 
 Sir Peter Laurie, Colonel Sykes, the Bishop of London, the 
 Bishop of Victoria, Sir It. Murchison, Mr. Raikes Currie, M.P., 
 Mr. Gregson, M. P., Mr. Gordon Gumming, Mr. J. Dillon, 
 Alderman "Wire, Mr. Kinnaird, M.P., Mr. Montgomery 
 Martin, &c., &c. The body of the apartment was occupied 
 by a large number of ladies, including the Lady Mayoress and 
 Mrs. Livingston. On appearing on the platform, Dr. Living. 
 Bton was received with applause. 
 
 The Lord Mayor occupied the chair, and expressed his
 
 HIS LIFE AND AT)VEXTTTRES. 285 
 
 gratification that the first meeting over which he was called to 
 preside, since his accession to the mayoralty, was convened for 
 the purpose of paying a tribute of respect to Dr. Livingston, 
 whose researches were of the greatest advantage to them, both 
 as a Christian and commercial community. 
 
 Alderman Wire announced that letters had been received 
 from the Earl of Shaftesbury, Lord Panmure, and other 
 persons, expressing regret at their inability to attend, and do- 
 claring their concurrence in the objects of the meeting. 
 
 The Bishop of London moved the first resolution, "That 
 this meeting, consisting of the merchants, bankers, and others, 
 the citizens of London, hereby present to the Rev. Dr. Living- 
 ston their sincere congratulations on the signal care and 
 protection of Divine Providence vouchsafed to him throughout 
 his prolonged and perilous labours in exploring the interior of 
 South Africa; and the meeting cherishes the gratifying 
 assurance that the important discoveries of Dr. Livingston will 
 tend hereafter greatly to advance the interests of civilisation, 
 knowledge, commerce, and freedom among the numerous tribes 
 and nations of that vast continent." The Right Reverend 
 Prelate could not refrain from expressing his gratification 
 in attending a meeting for such a purpose, and his gratitude 
 and thanks to God for bringing Dr. Livingston back in safety 
 from the perilous work in which he was engaged. 
 
 Sir R. Murchison moved the second resolution "That 
 this meeting, highly appreciating the intrepidity and perse- 
 verance of Dr. Livingston, in his extended and dangerous 
 Journeys, deems it incumbent to originate a pecuniary tribute, 
 as an expression of their admiration and gratitude for his dis- 
 interested and self-denying labours in the cause of science and 
 philanthropy." He begged to state that Ix>rd Clarendon had
 
 286 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 taken every opportunity to befriend Dr. Livingston ; nay more, 
 he knew that his lordship was of opinion that a person pos- 
 sessing the powers of Dr. Livingston should be doubly em. 
 ployed in Africa, in advancing Christianity, and in occupying 
 some, public situation whereby, on the frontier lines, he might 
 prevent the calamities of war, and save many a life and many 
 pound sterling. (Hear, liear.) If Dr. Livingston had devoted 
 his attention to commerce, he might have made a fortune ; but 
 as he had not done that, they should all unite to make a 
 purse for his wife and family. Whatever the Government 
 might do was prospective and subject to many chances; but 
 what was now proposed was an immediate subscription, and 
 that they should all put their hands in their pockets, and do 
 what they could to make such a purse for Dr. Livingston, of 
 their own free will, as would show their appreciation of the 
 services of one of the most disinterested and noblest of Britain's 
 children. 
 
 Colonel Sykes seconded the resolution, and remarked that 
 Dr. Livingston had returned to hia native country poor in 
 purse, but rich in honour. 
 
 The resolution was adopted. 
 
 Alderman Wire read a list of subscriptions handed in by 
 individuals present, without previous concert or arrangement, 
 amounting to nearly 400Z., and before the close of the meeting 
 he announced that the subscriptions had reached 450i 
 Amongst the subscribers were the Lord Mayor, 101. 10s. ; tfe 
 Bishop of London, 10/. 10s. ; the Bishop of Victoria, 31. 3. ; 
 Baron Damiar, 51. 5s. ; the London Missionary Society, 100Z. ; 
 the Sheriffs, 10Z. 10*. each; Aldermen Wire, Eose, and Challis, 
 10J. 10s. each; Sir E. Murchison, 10Z. 10s.; Mr. E. Currie, 
 101. 10s.; Mr. Crogfon, 10J. 10s.; Mr J. Dillon, 107. lC.t.;
 
 tflS LIFE AJTD ADVENTtTRES. 287 
 
 5Ir. Kinnaird, 10J. 10*.; Mr. Samuel Guriicy, IQt. 10s.; 
 C'olonel Sykes, 51. 5s., &c. 
 
 On the motion of Mr. John Dillon, seconded by Mr. 
 Samuel Gurney, it was resolved that, in accordance with the 
 preceding resolution, a fund to be called " the Livingston 
 Testimonial Fund," should be formed, and that the Lord 
 Mayor should be requested to undertake the office of treasurer. 
 
 On the motion of Mr. Sheriff Mechi, seconded by Alderman 
 "Wire, a committee was formed to carry the objects of the 
 meeting into effect. 
 
 Mr. Montgomery Martin next addressed the meeting, and 
 in the course of his observations stated that he had recently 
 visited the West Indies to ascertain if the emancipation of the 
 slaves had produced ruin there. He found there a free, 
 happy, and prosperous population (hear, hear}, and speaking 
 commercially, the West Indies now yielded more rum, sugar, 
 and other produce than it had ever done during the existence 
 of slavery (hear, hear}. Since the abolition of slavery in the 
 West Indies, not a drop of blood was shed not a single 
 crime was committed nor was there any destruction of pro* 
 perty throughout the whole of the West Indies. 
 
 Alderman Wire and the Lord Mayor's Chaplain were 
 appointed honorary secretaries to the committee. A vote 
 of thanks was passed to the Lord Mayor, and the meeting 
 separated. 
 
 We have given an account of the above proceedings as 
 fully as our space will permit us, in order to show the high 
 estimation in which the character and labours of Dr. Living- 
 ston are held by his countrymen. Verily, the prophet is nof 
 without honour in his own country : he has been received in 
 a rnunnor worthy of his deserts. The city of Glasgow, where
 
 288 DE. LIVING STOKE 
 
 he imbibed his early knowledge, has made him free of its 
 time-honoured guild; the burghers of Hamilton, his birth- 
 place, have been proud to present to him the freedom of their 
 busy town ; and the manager and people of the Blantyre 
 Works, where he wrought as a piercer-boy, have been only too 
 happy to meet and entertain him. Congratulatory addresses 
 have poured in upon him from all quarters, and he has re- 
 ceived invitations out of number to attend public meetings, 
 which would be got up especially to honour him ; but these 
 he has firmly, though courteously, refused, alleging the short- 
 ness of his stay in England, and the occupation of his brief 
 time in preparing an account of his travels, which the public 
 are eagerly looking for. Nothing but the most meagre outline 
 of them has yet been given, an unsatisfactory dish, served up 
 in three or four different shapes, extremely tantalising to a 
 hungry appetite. "We should not omit to mention here one 
 very pleasing incident connected with the public recognition 
 of Dr. Livingston's services to humanity. We allude to the 
 spontaneous offering of the boys of the Stockport liagged 
 School, as the manner in which it was received and responded 
 to is highly creditable to the heart of our earnest missionary, 
 and characteristic of the man. We give a copy of the corre- 
 spondence which took place on the occasion : 
 
 Wycliffe Villa, Stockport, January, 1857- 
 
 My dear Sir, I think it will give you pleasure to receive the enclosed 
 thirty postage-stamps. Mr. Jackson, the master of our Stockport Ragged 
 Industrial, told his pupils of your journeys and adventures, and the 
 motives by which you were actuated. One of the lads said, " Let's give 
 him some money !" and with one consent they resolved to do so, and im- 
 mediately commenced a subscription. Some gave all their money, and 
 others, who had no penny, sold their marbles to obtain it. If you could 
 see the lads, and know who and what they are, you would be as much
 
 HIS LIFK A.VD ADVEXTUUES. 283 
 
 astonished as myself, and you would admit the offering is not only spon- 
 tuneous, but as munificent as the one presented you at the Mansion-House. 
 Rejoicing in your honours as homage done to the cause of the Saviour, 
 
 am, dear sir, yours very respectfully, 
 
 "iev. I)r. Livingston. JOHN THORNTON. 
 
 Mission House, Bloomfield-street, London, 23rd January, 1857. 
 My dear Sir, I beg you will assure the boys, who so generously ex- 
 pressed their approbation of my labours in Africa, that nothing has 
 delighted me more since my return to England than their honest, spon- 
 taneous deed. I give them all my warmest thanks, from a heart overflow_ 
 ing with emotion, and wishing that God may abundantly bless them with 
 His favour and love. I have very little time to write to any one, as I am 
 engaged in the preparation of a narrative of my late explorations, and 
 must keep my word with one hundred and ten poor native Africans, who 
 accompanied me from the centre of the country to the cast coast, and now 
 await the fulfilment of my promise at Tete. I ought to be back to them 
 in April, but I fear, after all I can do, I must be about two months later 
 than my appointed time in Apiil. Were it not for this, I should try and 
 visit the boys and speak with them ; but as this can scarcely be. I woolil 
 just commend them all to the care of our blessed Lord Jesu*, and ask them 
 to try Him, as their friend and guide through life. They may make Him 
 their confidant, for He listens to every prayer wafted to Him from the 
 lowliest bosom. " In him we live, and move, and have our being ; " and 
 He is as tender and compassionate to every one of them, and knows all 
 their cases and cares, as if they were the only persons in the world. And 
 then, if they arc like Him, they will all show love to every one about them, 
 and to everything beautiful, and good, and true. 
 
 " He prayeth best who loveth best 
 
 All things, both great and small ; 
 For the dear Lord to whom we pray, 
 He made and loveth all." 
 
 Thanking you and them again, for your most friendly feelings, and 
 hoping that they may not again deprive themselves of any comfort, I am, 
 dear sir, yours most truly, DAVID LIVIXGSTOX. 
 
 Mr. John Thornton, Stockport. 
 
 In speaking of the public honours which have been paid 
 
 a
 
 290 DU, LIVING STONB 
 
 to Dr. Livingston we should not omit to mention those ren- 
 dered by the press, which has been quite unanimous in hia 
 praise ; a few extracts from some of the many leaders which 
 were written upon this subject will serve to show the tone 
 and sentiment of these productions, and to render our report 
 more complete. 
 
 Truly, Dr. Livingston must have a strong head to be 
 proof against the eulogies, none the less marked for being dis- 
 criminating, showered upon him on all sides by the "fourth 
 estate" of the realm. The " leading journal" is eulogistic, if 
 not enthusiastic : 
 
 " Every honour, we trust, will be shown to Dr. Living- 
 ston during his stay in England, for he is soon to resume his 
 pilgrim's staff. He has fairly earned the consideration and 
 respect of his country by his long exertions in behalf of hu- 
 manity, and by the energy with which he has prosecuted 
 researches which will, in all probability, be attended with 
 great results. Dr. Liringston's last travels seem to have been 
 prosecuted between 10 and 18 S., or thereabouts. He speaks 
 of rivers, of negro nations in the interior ruled by politic laws 
 and humane customs, some of which might be copied with 
 advantage by communities of higher pretensions to civilisation 
 and refinement" 
 
 The Daily News is more observant of the noble qualities 
 of our great traveller : 
 
 " Dr. Livingston is one of the few men whose words arc 
 realities. There is a quiet, curt energy about his statements 
 which irresistibly impresses the hearer with a conviction that 
 he has done what he says, and that he will do it again when 
 occasion offers. There is a transparency in the simplicity of 
 hia diction Trhich lets us see the workings of his mind, as if
 
 ITT? T.TFK A\D AT>Vr.MTJRES. 291 
 
 by some process of intuition. . . . There is true subli- 
 mity in Dr. Livingston's allusion to the immediate resumption 
 oC the arduous task which he has been prosecuting for sixteen 
 years, and is about to return to after an interval of only a few 
 months. 'He saw it to be his duty to go, and he was deter- 
 mined to do his duty, whatever others might say about the 
 matter.' ... It was impossible to look round upon 
 those assemblies without feeling a thrill of exultation at the 
 thought that, literally, the whole earth is full of cur labours 
 that there is no region in which our industrial enterprise, our 
 skill in arms, our benevolent eagerness to diffuse the blessings 
 of civilisation and pure and true religion, have not been 
 displayed." 
 
 The Star rises to a still higher strain of comment on the 
 career of the African discoverer : 
 
 ""We believe that along the whole line of eleven thousand 
 miles which he traversed in Africa, the name of Dr. Living- 
 ston will awaken no memories of wrong or pain in the heart 
 of man, woman, or child, and will rouse no purposes of ven- 
 geance to fall on the head of the . next European visitor that 
 may follow in his footsteps. His experience has utterly belied 
 the truculent theory of those who maintain that barbarous and 
 semi-barbarous nations can be influenced only by an appeal to 
 their fears, and that the safety of the traveller consists in a 
 prompt and peremptory display of force. Despite the sneers 
 of modern philosophy, he dared to confide in the fact that the 
 sympathies of our common humanity are not quite extinct 
 even in the bosom of a savage ; and where others, who trusted 
 in the completeness of their armed equipments, have fallen 
 victims to the suspicions which those very eauipmcnts in- 
 fired, Dr. Livingston, clothing himself in a panoply of Chris-
 
 292 DK. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 tian kindness, passed unscathed among the warlike African 
 tribes, and won them to an exhibition of a nohlc generosity of 
 character towards himself and his companions." 
 
 The Spectator thus pithily sums up the result of Dr. Living 
 Eton's labours : 
 
 " Dr. Livingston has proved, experimentally, that the 
 interior of Africa may be trodden by the European ; he has 
 ascertained in his own person that the European can be wi-l- 
 come, and can survive safely through many years; he has 
 observed abundance of natural products, which show the rich- 
 ness of the soil, and are guarantees for a sufficient commerce; 
 he vouches for the certainty that the African tribes can bo 
 brought within the community of nations. These simple con- 
 clusions, which justly result from tho experience of Dr. Living- 
 ston, involve, as a consequence, the ceasing of the African slave- 
 trade." 
 
 The Leader, whilst somewhat ignoring the missionary, 
 honours without stint the discoverer making his way through 
 regions as unknown as America before the voyage of Colum- 
 bus: 
 
 " For seventeen years, smitten by more than thirty attacks 
 of fever, endangered by seven attempts upon his life, con- 
 tinually exposed to fatigue, hunger, and the chance of perish, 
 ing miserably in a wilderness shut out from the knowledge of 
 civilised men, the missionary pursued his way, an apostle ami 
 a pioneer, without fear, without egotism, without desire .f 
 reward. Such a work, accomplished by such a man, deserves 
 all the eulogy that can be bestowed upon it, for nothing is 
 more rare than brilliant and unsullied success." 
 
 In conclusion, we would fain express our warm thanks to 
 Dr. Livingston for what he has accomplished, and our earnest
 
 ItfS LIFE A5I) ADVEXTCRES. 298 
 
 wishes for the success of the great enterprise which lie has yet 
 iu view. We are glad to find that the London Missionary 
 Society contemplate acting at once on the information which 
 they have now received. They propose establishing a mission 
 on the high ground stretching along the north bank of the 
 great river Zambesi, under the charge of Dr. Livingston ; and 
 another, to be superintended by Mr. Moffat, iu the dominions 
 of Mosclckatse. Thus the Matabeles and the Makololo will bo 
 brought within the influence of the Gospel, and will soon, let 
 us hope, lay aside their mutual enmity, and work together for 
 the development of the natural resources of their country, and 
 the civilisation of its savage tribes. Soon may the Sun of 
 llightcousness arise upon those hills along which our tra- 
 veller passed, rejoicing in the hope that is set before him, 
 and shed its beams into these dark, swampy valleys, filled with 
 the abominations of cruelty and barbarism. It does us good, 
 amid the carking cares, the strifes, and petty rivalries of 
 what is called civilised life, to look upon such an earnest, self- 
 devoted man as this missionary; to contemplate his high 
 heroism, and think upon his achievements, his singleness of 
 purpose, his unswerving faith, his pure philanthropy. As it 
 was well and aptly quoted by one of the speakers at the liun- 
 eion- House meeting 
 
 Such thoughts as these shed holy iijht 
 
 On mammon V gloomiest cells. 
 As on some city's cheerless night 
 
 The tide of sunrise swells, 
 Till tower, and dome, and bridgeway proud, 
 Arc mantled with the golden cloud ; 
 And to our hearts this certain hope is given, 
 No mist that morn can raise shall hide the eye of IlcuTea.
 
 294 
 
 DB. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 DESCRIPTION OP THE COUNTRY. EEPOETED DEATH OF 
 LIVINGSTONE. 
 
 ^ E left the great explorer and missionary 
 in a position quite new to him the 
 J > central figure of a public demonstra- 
 s tion ; the admired and respected guest 
 of the wealthy and the refined ; the 
 honoured topic of conversation in society ; 
 the wonder of the day ! He was soon to change 
 all this for the work he had set before him the 
 evangelization and improvement of the poor 
 ignorant negro. 
 
 After remaining in England for about two 
 years, he made up his mind to resume his travels in Africa, 
 this time accompanied hy a small hand of assistants selected 
 and provided for by government. In March, 1858, he set 
 out upon his last expedition to Zambesi, his intention being 
 to extend his researches to a point further inland, and to 
 keep a regular diary of his progress ; Dr. Kirk and several 
 scientific observers joining the expedition. At first we had 
 pretty accurate accounts, of his progress from time to time, 
 and, through the medium of the Geographical Society, the 
 public were kept tolerably well informed as to the doings 
 and wanderings of the brave and devoted band. 
 
 "We hear, too, from the narratives of other travellers, that 
 Dr. Livingston was making successful researches on the west
 
 HIS LIFK ANT) ADVEN'TUKIM. 205 
 
 coast of Tropical Africa; crossing the southern branch of 
 Coungo Eivcr, treading in the footsteps of Da Chaillu, and 
 following up the track of Captain Burton : at one time dis- 
 covering a new kind of palm, at another making acquaintance 
 ndth the hitherto unknown tribes of the Zambesi ; and ever 
 doing good service in opening up the trade of the Mozambique 
 country and the Gaboon, rich in oils, skins, and various 
 kinds of timber. Occasionally a letter from Dr. Livingston 
 reached England, containing scraps of information to the 
 effect, for instance, that he had navigated some hitherto 
 unknown river, but had been obliged to desist from further 
 search in consequence of a rapid and dangerous cataract, or 
 from the fact of his boat being too deep in the water to allow 
 it to proceed. 
 
 In 1860, however, we have a most valuable and interest- 
 ing account of Livingston's discoveries and researches in 
 South Central Africa. It is from the pen of the explorer 
 himself, and presents a very graphic picture of how he and 
 his comrades had passed the latter months of the previous 
 year. After stating that hitherto the men of the expedition 
 had prospered in health, and that the object of his wander- 
 ings was getting daily more defined and better understood, 
 he goes on to describe his new location in detail ; dating from 
 the River Shire, November 4, 1 859 : 
 
 " The River Shire has its source in the green waters of 
 the great Lake Nyassa (lat. 14 23' S., long. 35 30' E. It 
 flows serenely on in a southerly direction, a fine navigable 
 stream from 80 to 120 j r ards in breadth, expanding 1 some 
 twelve or fifteen miles from Nyassa into a beautiful lakelet, 
 with a well-defined water horizon, and perhaps five or six 
 miles wide ; then, narrowing again, it moves quietly on about
 
 296 DB. LITINRSTOXi; 
 
 forty miles, till it reaches Murc.jison's Cataracts. .Aftrr a 
 turbulent course of thirty miles, it emerges from the cataracts 
 a peaceful river capable of carrying a large steamer through 
 the remaining 112 miles of its deep channel, and joins the 
 Zambesi in lat. 17 47' S., 100 miles from the confluence of 
 that river with the sea. The valley through which the 
 Shire flows is from ten to twelve miles broad at the southern 
 extremity of Lake Nyassa, but soon stretches out to twenty or 
 thirty miles, and is bounded all the way on both sides by 
 ranges of hills, the eastern range being remarkably lofty. 
 
 "At Chihisas (lat. 16' 2' 3" S., 35 1' E.), a few miles 
 below the cataracts, the range of hills on the left bank of 
 the Shire is not above three miles from the river, while the 
 other range has receded out of sight. If from Chihisas we 
 proceed in a north-easterly path, a three hours' march places 
 us on an elevation of 'upwards of a thousand feet. This is 
 not far from the level of the Upper Shire valley (1200 feet), 
 and appears to be its prolongation. Four hours' additional 
 travel, and we reach another plateau, a thousand feet higher, 
 and in a few hours more the highest plateau, 3000 feet above 
 the level of the sea is attained, and we are on an extensive 
 table-land, which, in these three distinct divisions, extends 
 to Zomba (lat. of southern end 15" 21' S.). It is they 
 broken ; and natives report that, north of Zomba, which it 
 twenty miles in length from N. to S., there is but a narrow 
 partition between Lakes Nyassa and Tamanclua (Shirwa). 
 Three islands were visible on the west side of what we could 
 see of Nyassa from its southern end. The two ranges of hills 
 stretch along its shores, and we could see looming through 
 the haze caused by burning grass all over the country, the 
 dun outlines of some lofty mountains behind the eastern
 
 TITS T.FFK ANT) ADVK.x'Tf/iKS. 207 
 
 On the table-land are numerous hilis and some nuniii- 
 tuiiis, as Chicadguxa, perhaps 5000 feet high, and Zomba 
 (which we ascended), from 7000 to 8000 in altitude. From 
 this table-land we can see, on the east of Lake Tamandua, 
 the Milanje Mountains, apparently higher than Zomba and 
 Mount Clarendon, not unworthy of the noble name it bears. 
 All this region is remarkably well watered ; wonderfully 
 numerous are the streams and mountain rills of clear, cool, 
 gushing water. Once we passed eight of them and a strong 
 spring in a single hour, and we were then at the end of the 
 dry season. Even Zomba has a river about twenty yards 
 wide, flowing through a rich valley near its summit. The 
 hill is well wooded also ; trees, admirable for their height and 
 the amount of timber in them, abound along the banks of the 
 streams. ' Is this country good for cattle ?' the head man 
 of the Makololo, whose business had been the charge of 
 cattle, was asked. ' Truly,' replied he ; ' don't you see 
 the abundance of such and such grasses, which cattle love, 
 and on which they grow fat ?' And yet, the people have 
 only a few goats, and still fewer sheep. There are no wild 
 animals in the highlands, and but few birds ; and, with the 
 exception of one place, where we saw some elephants, 
 buffaloes, etc., there are none on the plains of the Upper 
 Shire ; but the birds, new and strange, are pretty numerous. 
 " In the Upper part of the Lower Shire, in the highlands, 
 and in the valley of the Upper Shire, there is a somewhat 
 numerous population. The people generally live in villages 
 and in hamlets near them. Each village has its own chief, 
 and the chiefs in a given territory have a head chief, to 
 whom they owe some sort of allegiance. The paramount 
 chiil of one portion of the Upper Shire is a woman, who
 
 298 n. LIVIXGSTOXB 
 
 lives two days' journey from the west side of the river, and 
 possesses cattle. The chief has a good deal of authority ; he 
 can stop the trade till he has sold his own things. One or 
 two insisted on seeing what their people got for the provisions 
 sold to us. The women drop on their knees when he passes 
 them. Mongazi's wife went down on her knees, when he 
 handed her our present to carry into the hut. One evening 
 a Makololo fired his musket without leave, received a scold- 
 ing, and had his powder taken from him. ' If he were my 
 man,' said the chief, ' I would fine him a fowl also.' 
 
 " The sites of their villages are selected, for the most 
 part, with judgment and good taste. A stream or spring is 
 near, and pleasant shade-trees grow in and around the place. 
 Nearly every village is surrounded by a thick high hedge 
 of the poisonous Euphorbia. During the greater part of the 
 year the inhabitants could see an enemy through the hedge, 
 while he would find it a difficult matter to see them. By 
 shooting their already-poisoned arrows through the tender 
 branches, they get smeared with the poisonous milky juice, 
 and inflict most painful, if not fatal, wounds. The constant 
 dripping of the juice from the bruised branches prevents the 
 enemy from attempting to force his way through the hedge, 
 as it destroys the eyesight. The huta are larger, stronger 
 built, with higher and more graceful roofs than any we have 
 <?een on the Zambesi. The Boabab (spreading place) is at 
 one side of the village ; the ground is made smooth and level, 
 and the banians, the favourite trees, throw a grateful shade 
 over it. Here the people meet to smoke tobacco and bang ; 
 to sing, dance, beat drums, and drink beer. (In the Boabab 
 of one small village we counted fourteen drums of various 
 6izc.'s, all carefully arranged on dry grass.) Some useful
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 299 
 
 work, too, is performed in this place, as spinning, weaving, 
 making baskets and fish nets. On entering a village, we 
 proceeded at once to the Boabab, on which the strangers' 
 hut is built, and sat down. Largo mats of split bamboo are 
 politely brought to us to recline on. Our guides tell some 
 of the people who we are, how we have behaved ourselves 
 since they knew us, where we are going, and what our 
 object is. This word is carried to the chief. If a sensible 
 man, he comes as soon as he hears of our arrival ; if timid or 
 auspicious, he waits till he has thrown his dice, and given 
 his warriors, for whom he has sent in hot haste, time to 
 assemble. "When the chief makes his appearance, his people 
 begin to clap their hands, and continue clapping until he sits 
 down ; then his councillors take their places beside him, with 
 whom he converses for a minute or so. Our guides sit down 
 opposite them. A most novel scene now transpires : both 
 parties, looking earnestly at each other, pronounce a word, as 
 ' Amhinatu* (our chief or father), then a clap of the hands 
 from each one another word, two claps a third word, three 
 claps and this time all touch the ground with their closed 
 hands. Next, all rise, clapping sit down again, and clap, 
 clap, clap allowing the sound gradually to die away. They 
 keep time in this most perfectly, the chief taking the lead. 
 The guides now tell the chief all they please, and retire, 
 clapping their hands gently, or with one hand on the breast ; 
 and his own people do the same when they pass the chief in 
 retiring. The customary presents are exchanged, after a 
 little conversation with the chief, and in a short time his 
 people bring provisions for sale. In some villages the people 
 clapped with all their might when they approved what the 
 chief was Baying to us. In others, the clapping seems omitted
 
 300 DK. imx 
 
 in our case, though we could sec it was kept with black 
 strangers who came into the village. 
 
 " The chief at the Lake, an old man, came to see us of his 
 own accord said he had heard that we had come, and sat 
 down under a tree and he came to invite us to take up our 
 quarters with him. Many of the men are very intelligent- 
 looking, with high foreheads and well-shaped heads. They 
 show singular taste in the astonishingly varied styles in which 
 their hair is arranged. Their bead necklaces are really pretty 
 specimens of work. Many have the upper and middle, a? 
 well as the lower, part of the ear bored, and have from three 
 to live rings in each ear. The hole in the lobe of the ear is 
 large enough to admit one's finger, and some wear a piece </ 
 bamboo, about an inch long, in it. Brass and iron bracelets, 
 elaborately figured, are seen; and some of the men gport from 
 two to ci b ht brass rings on each finger, and even the thumbs 
 are not spared. They wear copper, brass, and iron rings on 
 their legs and arms ; many have their front teeth notched, 
 and some file them lill they resemble the teeth of a saw. 
 The upper-lip ring of the women gives them a revolting ap- 
 pearance ; it is universally worn in the highlands. A punc- 
 ture is made high up in the lip, and it is gradually enlarged 
 until the pelele can be inserted. Some are very large. One 
 we measured caused the lip to project two inches beyond the 
 tip of the nose ; when the lady smiled, the contraction of the 
 muscles elevated it over the eyes. 
 
 " ' Why do the women wear these things ?' the venerable 
 chief, Chinsurdi, was asked. 
 
 " Evidently surprised at such a stupid question, he replied, 
 ' For beauty ! They are the only beautiful things women 
 have ; men have beards, women have none. "What kind of
 
 HIS LIFH AND ADVi:N7Ul;F3. lldl 
 
 a person would she be without the pelele ? She would not 
 be a woman at all, with a mouth like a man, but no beard.' 
 
 " One woman, having a large tin pelele with a bottom like 
 a dish, refused to sell it, because, she said, her husband would 
 beat her if she went home without it. These rings are made 
 of bamboo, of iron, or of tin. Their scanty clothing the 
 prepared bark of trees, the skins of animals (chiefly goats), 
 and a thick, strong cotton cloth, are all of native manufacture. 
 They seem to be ac industrious race. 
 
 " Iron is dug out of the hills, and every village has one or 
 two smelting-houses ; and from their own native iron they 
 make excellent hoes, axes, spears, knives, arrow-heads, etc. 
 They roako, also, round baskets of various sizes, and earthen 
 pots, which they ornament with plumbago, said to be found 
 in the Hill Country, though we could not learn exactly where, 
 nor in what quantities : the only specimen we obtained was 
 r,ot pure. At every fishing village on the banks of the River 
 Shire, men were busy spinning buaze and making large 
 fishing-nets from it ; and from Chihisas to the Lake, in ev( ry 
 village almost, we eaw men cleaning and spinning cotton ; 
 while others were weaving it into strong cloth, in looms of the 
 simplest construction, all the processes being excessively slow. 
 
 " This is a great cotton-growing country. The cotton is 
 of two kinds, ' Tonji manga,' or foreign cotton, and 'Toiji 
 carlji,' or native cotton. The former is of good quality, with a 
 staple from three-quarters of an inch to an inch in length. It ia 
 perennial, requiring to bo re-planted only once in three year-;. 
 The native cotton, planted every year in the highlands, is 
 of short staple, and feels something like wool. Every family 
 appears to own a cotton patch, which is kept clear of weed a 
 and grass. "We saw the foreign cotton growing at C ' Lake,
 
 302 PH. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 and in various places for thirty miles south of it, and about 
 an equal number of miles below the cataracts on the Lower 
 Shire. Although the native cotton requires to be planted 
 annually in the highlands, the people prefer it, because, they 
 say, 'it makes the stronger cloth.' 
 
 " It was remarked to a number of intelligent natives 
 near the Shire lakelet, 'You should plant plenty of cotton, 
 and perhaps the English will come soon and buy it.' ' Surely 
 the country is full of cotton,' said an elderly man, who was a 
 trader, and travelled much. Our own observations convinced 
 us of the truth of this statement. Everywhere we saw it. 
 Cotton patches of from two to three acres were seen abreast 
 of the cataracts during the first trip, when Lake Tamandim 
 was discovered, though in this journey, on a different route, 
 none were observed of more than half an acre. They usually 
 contained about a quarter of an acre each. There are ex- 
 tensive tracts on the level plains of both the Lo\ver and 
 Upper Shire, where salt exudes from the soil. Sea island 
 cotton might grow well there, as on these the foreign cotton 
 becomes longer in the staple. The cotton-growers never have 
 their crops cut off by frosts. There are none. Both kinds 
 of cotton require but little labour none of that severe and 
 killing toil requisite in the United States. 
 
 " The people are great cultivators of the soil, and it re- 
 pays them well. All the inhabitants of a village men, 
 women, and children, and dogs turn out at times to labour 
 in the fields. The chief told us all his people were out hoe- 
 ing, and we saw, in other parts, many busy at work. If a 
 new piece of ground is to be cultivated, the labourer grasps 
 as much of the tall dry grass as he conveniently can, ties it 
 intc a knot at the top, strikes his hoe through the roots, de-
 
 HIS LIFE AND ITU KETCHES. 303 
 
 h riling them from the ground with some earth still adhering, 
 which, with the knot, keeps the grass in a standing position. 
 Ho proceeds in this way over the field. "When this work is 
 finished, the field exhibits a harvest-like appearance, being 
 thickly dotted all over with these shocks, which are three 
 feet high. A short time before the rains, several of these 
 shocks are thrown together, the earth scraped over them, and 
 then the grass underneath is set on fire. The soil is thus 
 t routed in a manner similar to that practised on some lands 
 in modern times among ourselves. When they wish to clear a 
 piece of woodland, they proceed in precisely the same way as 
 the farmers in Canada and the Western States do cut the 
 trees down with their axes, and, leaving the stumps about 
 three feet high standing, pile up the logs and branches for 
 burning. They grow lassavcr in large quantities, preparing 
 ridges for it from three to four feet wide, and about a foot 
 high. They also raise maize, rice, two kinds of millet, beans, 
 sugar-cane, sweet potatoes, yams, ground-nuts, pumpkin, 
 tobacco, and Indian hemp. Near Lake Nyassa we saw 
 indigo seven feet high. 
 
 "Large quantities of beer are made, and they like it 
 well. "We found whole villages on the " spree," and saw the 
 stupid type of drunkenness, the silly sort, the boisterous, 
 talkative sort, and, on one occasion, the almost-up-to-the- 
 fightirig-point variety, when a petty chief, with some of the 
 people near, placed himself in front, exclaiming, ' I stop 
 this path ; you must go back.' Had he not got out of the 
 way with greater speed than dignity, an incensed !Makololo 
 would have cured him of all desire to try a similar exploit 
 in future. It was remarked by the oldest traveller in tho 
 party that ho had not seen so much drunkenness during all
 
 304 nr:. r.m.vcsToxE 
 
 the years ho had spent in Africa. The people, not\vitn 
 standing, attain to a great age. 
 
 " One is struck with the large number of old, grey-headed 
 persons in the highlands. This seems to indicate a healthy 
 climate. For their long lives they are not in the least in- 
 debted to frequent ablutions. ' Why do you wash yourselves ? 
 Our men never do,' said some women at Chinsurdi to the 
 Makololo. An old man told us he remembered having 
 washed himself once when a boy, but never repeated it ; and, 
 from his appearance, one could hardly call the truth of his 
 statement in question. A fellow who volunteered some wild 
 geographical information, followed us about a dozen miles, 
 and introduced us to the Chief Moena Moezi by saying, 
 ' They have wandered ; they don't know where they are 
 going.' ' Scold that man,' said a Makololo head to his fac- 
 totum, who immediately commenced an extemporary scolding ; 
 yet the singular geographer would follow us, and we coulil 
 not get quit of him till the Makololo threatened to take him 
 to the river and wash him. The castor oil with which they 
 lubricate themselves, and the dirt, serve as additional clothing, 
 and to wash themselves is like throwing away the only upper 
 garment they possess. They feel cold and uncomfortable after 
 a wash. "We observed several persons marked by the small- 
 pox. On asking the Chief Mongazi who was a little tipsy, 
 and disposed to be very gracious if he knew its origin ? 
 whether it had come to them from the sea ? ' He did not 
 know,' he said, 'but supposed it must have come to them 
 from the English.' Like other Africans, they are somewhat 
 superstitious. A person accused of bewitching another, and 
 causing his death, either volunteers, or is compelled, to diiuk 
 thu Muiori, or orduoL
 
 TTIS 1.1ft. AND ADVENTURES. 303 
 
 " On our way to the lake a chief kindly led U3 past the 
 next two villages, whose chiefs had just been killed by 
 drinking the Maiori. When a chief dies, his people imagine 
 that they may plunder any stranger coming into their village. 
 A chief, near Zomba, at whose village we took breakfast on 
 our way up, drank the Maiori before our return, and vomited, 
 was therefore innocent. His people we found manifesting 
 their joy by singing, dancing, and beating drums. Even 
 Chibisa, an intelligent and powerful chief, drank it once; and 
 when insisting that all his numerous wars were just, that his 
 enemies were always in the wrong, said to us, ' If you doubt 
 my word, I am ready to drink the Maiori.' On the evening 
 of the day we reached Moena Moezi, an alligator curried oft' 
 his principal wife from the very spot where some of us had 
 washed but a few hours before. W learned on our return 
 that he had sent messengers to several villages, saying, ' He 
 did not know whether we had put medicine on the spot, but 
 after we had been there his wife was carried off by an alli- 
 gator.' The first village refused to sell us food, would have 
 nothing whatever to do with us, and the chief of the next 
 village, who happened to be reclining in the Boabab, ran off, 
 leaving his wooden pillow and mat behind. The women 
 seldom run away having more pluck perhaps than the men. 
 When a person dies, the women commence the death-wail, 
 and keep it up for two days. A few words are chanted in a 
 plaintive voice, ending by a prolonged note : a a, or o o t 
 or ea, ea t e o. The corpsv' is buried in the same hut in 
 which he dies. It is then close.! up, and allowed to fall into 
 decay. We found one village in mourning, on the banks of 
 the Tpper Shire. The chief's father had died some tirao 
 previous. They had not washed themselves since, though
 
 306 DH. LIVINGSTON K 
 
 washing is practised more or less on these plains, and they 
 would not wash until some friends at a distance, who pos- 
 sessed muskets, had come and fired over the grave. The 
 badge of mourning consists of narrow strips of Palmyra leaf 
 tied round the head and arms, sometimes round head, ncclc, 
 breast, knees, ankles, arms, and wrists. They have the idea 
 of a Supreme Being, whom they name Pambe, and also of a 
 future state. The Chief Chinsurdi said they all knew that 
 they lived again after death. ' Sometimes the dead came 
 back again ; they appeared to them in dreams, but they never 
 told them where they had gone to.' This is an inviting field 
 for benevolent enterprise. There are thousands needing 
 Christian instruction, and here are materials for lawful com- 
 merce, and a fine healthy country, with none of the noxious 
 insects with which Captains Burton and Speke were tor- 
 mented, and, with the single exception of thirty miles, water 
 communication all the way to England. Let but a market be 
 opened for the purchase of their cotton, and they can raise 
 almost any amount of it, and the slave trade will speedily be 
 abolished." 
 
 This communication was read at the meeting of the 
 British Association, at Oxford, in July, 'I860, and created 
 considerable interest and discussion. 
 
 In the same year an expedition, under the command of 
 Captains Grant and Speke, aided by a grant from Government, 
 proceeded to Eastern Africa ; and thus the progress of geo- 
 graphical discovery in that hitherto little known continent 
 was fostered and encouraged. In fact, every item of intelli- 
 gence from Africa, whether it proceeded from the doubtful 
 pen of a Du Chaillu or the authentic diary of a Livingston, 
 was eagerly received and commented upon by the scientific
 
 TTI.S LIFE AND ADVESXUi:i:3. SO? 
 
 and inquiring public. Dr. Baikie, of the Niger expedition, soon 
 after followed in the track of previous discoverers, and new 
 districts the native homes of the cotton plant and the palm- 
 tree were added to our previous knowledge of Central Africa. 
 The discovery of the Lake Nyanza, the presumed source of the 
 great River Nile, by Speke and Grant, about this time, added 
 increased interest to the newly^wakened curiosity respecting 
 Central Africa ; and equally in the scientific and the religious 
 worlds were the questions of African civilization and com- 
 mercial wealth discussed. 
 
 And so the time passed on ; the Geographical Societ)*, 
 the Missionary Society, and various private friends of the 
 great explorer, hearing occasionally of his progress, through 
 direct or indirect sources. Mr. T. Baines, in September, 
 1865, read an account, before the members of the British 
 Association, of his visit to the Victoria Falls of the Zambesi 
 in 1862, in company with Mr. James Chapman. Their object 
 was to traverse the continent of Africa, from "\Valvisch Buy 
 on the west coast to Quiliame on the east, by way of Lake 
 N'gami and the Zambesi River. He spent three weeks sur- 
 veying the Falls, and photographing and sketching the scenery 
 the result being a more accurate delineation than had pre- 
 viously been given of this remarkable geographical feature of 
 Central Africa, which was discovered by Dr. Livingston iu 
 1855. The cataract is formed by the river, at a point where 
 it is 2000 yards wide, plunging into a deep narrow chasm 
 (lying across its bed), about 400 feet deep and from 70 to 130 
 yards wide ; the waters escaping from this by a narrow gato 
 near the eastern end, and pursuing their course to the lower 
 country along a narrow gorge, prolonged for a great distance 
 in extremely abrupt winding?, traces of which are to be
 
 308 
 
 DK. LIVIXGSTOXK 
 
 800 miles below the cataract. A cloud of spray, resembling 
 smoke, issues from the depths of the chasm, and rises, as was 
 ascertained by the author, to a height of 1200 feet; from 
 this and the roar of the waters is derived the native Makololo 
 name of the Falls, " Mosi-oa-tunya" "the smoke sounding." 
 A luxuriant tropical forest, teeming with animal life, sur- 
 rounds the cataract and also the river above it; but the 
 country further down, lacking the fertilizing influence of the 
 river sunk deep below the surface, is of the usual African 
 aridity. Mr. Baines described in some detail the various 
 excursions he undertook through the difficult country round 
 about the Falls, in search of good points for sketching them ; 
 but owing to their great extent, it was impossible to obtain a 
 good general view from any part. The whole Fall is broken 
 into a number of minor cataracts, one of which, at the 
 western end, is more sloping than the rest, on account of the 
 rocky edge of the Fall having worn away. At this part there 
 is a greater volume of falling water than elsewhere, and it 
 rushes down the steep incline in a fleecy, seething torrent, 
 rcattering spray that flashes like myriads of diamonds in the 
 sunlight. 
 
 Dr. Kirk, who had accompanied Dr. Livingston in his 
 eecond visit to the Victoria Falls, testifies to the accuracy of 
 Mr. Baines' description. He considers it, however, a for- 
 tunate circumstance that Mr. Baines was prevented from 
 descending the river in his boat, as he would have run great 
 risks in the dangerous rapids which intervene between the 
 point he reached and the Portuguese settlement of Tete. The 
 Zambesi in this part is impracticable for navigation. He had 
 himself been upset in the rapids, losing all his instruments, 
 notes, and collections, the result of six months' work. From
 
 ms Lir^ A>*n ADVIXITUES. 309 
 
 the geological character of the land in the neighbourhood of 
 the Falls, he has come to the conclusion that there had been 
 at one time a great lake covering the area, and that th 
 present state has been caused by an earthquake opening tho 
 zig-zag fissures described, and thus draining off the waters 
 towards the eastern coast. 
 
 Then followed a discussion on the physical and mental 
 characteristics of the negro tribes ; and Mr. Conway, of New 
 York, mentioned a peculiar fact that Dr. Livingston had 
 met with a tribe which had discovered or invented a language, 
 which, like that of the Gaboon, possessed a musical idiom ; 
 from which fact he argued that the complete civilization of 
 the negro was a mere matter of time. 
 
 But tho time was quickly coming which was to complete 
 the history and determine the fate of the indefatigable mis- 
 sionary. Early in 1867 news at first very vague and 
 uncertain arrived of the murder of Dr. Livingston by the 
 Mufite Indians, the earliest statement being made by a Johanna 
 man, called Moosa. 
 
 The report was received with the profoundest consterna- 
 tion, and further inquiry was immediately made. At tho 
 annual meeting of the Royal Geographical Society, in May 
 of this year (1867), Sir Roderick Murchison, the President, 
 referred at length to the report, regarding the murder 
 of Dr. Livingston. 
 
 He said he had never admitted that there existed any 
 valid proof whatever of the death of that great traveller. 
 And now that Arab merchants had arrived from a spot closo 
 to the rcpoited scene of the murder, long after tho event was 
 Gaid to have taken place, and brought to the Sultan of Zan- 
 zibar the intelligence that Livingston had passed safuly into
 
 310 DE. LIVINGSTOJTE 
 
 the friendly Babisa country to the westward ; and now that 
 a report had arrived at Zanzibar that a white man had 
 reached the Lake Tanganyika, we had fresh grounds for 
 hoping that he might be pursuing his journey in the interior. 
 In truth, we had recently obtained good evidence of the 
 mendacity of the man Moosa, on whose statement alone tho 
 death was reported it being known that he had given one 
 version of it to the Consul and Dr. Kirk, at Zanzibar, and 
 also to the British resident at Johanna, and an entirely dif- 
 ferent one to the Sepoy examined, on his return to Bombay, 
 by Colonel Rigby. Already Livingston, by crossing the nor- 
 thern end of his own Lake Nyassa, had determined one im- 
 portant point in respect to the watershed of South Africa, 
 for he had proved, according to Dr. Kirk, that this great 
 sheet of water here terminated, and was not connected with 
 the more northerly Lake Tanganyika. If spared, he had 
 before him as grand a career a3 was ever laid out before an 
 African explorer it being now probable that Tanganyika, a 
 fresh-water sea which must have an outlet, was connected 
 on the north with the Albert Nyanza of Baker and others 
 belonging to the Nile system. For, although Burton and 
 Speke estimated the height of Lake Tanganyika to be little 
 more than 1800 feet above the sea the Albert, or lower 
 lake, being, according to Baker, 2720 feet many persons, 
 mistrusting the results obtained by the use of a bad thermo- 
 meter, still thought it probable that the Tanganyika might 
 communicate through a gorge in the mountains at its nor- 
 thern end with the Albert Nyanza of Baker, for all these 
 waters lay in the same meridian. Not believing in the death 
 of Livingston on the sole testimony of his cowardly baggage- 
 bearers who fled, the President felt sure the Society and tho
 
 HT8 LIFE A\D ADVrXTTTRES. 311 
 
 public would approve the course he had recommended, which 
 was cordially supported by the Council, and, to their credit, 
 by her Majesty's Government, to send out a boat expedition 
 to the head of Lake Nyassa, and thus ascertain the truth. 
 Those who were accustomed to obtain rapid intelligence of 
 distant travellers must not despair if a year or more elapsed 
 without news of their undaunted friend. For, if alive, he 
 had with him. a very small band of faithful negroes, no' one 
 of whom could be spared to traverse the wide regions between 
 Lake Tanganyika and the coast. 
 
 Until he himself reappeared and how long was he un- 
 heard of in his first great traverse in Southern Africa ? we 
 had, therefore, little chance of knowing the true result of his 
 mission. The party about to proceed to Eastern Africa to 
 procure accurate information concerning his fate, would be 
 commanded by Mr. E. D. Young, who did excellent service 
 in the former Zambesi expedition in the management of the 
 Lady Nyassa river-boat. With him would bo associated Mr. 
 Henry Faulkner, a young volunteer of great promise, and 
 two acclimatized men, one a mechanic and the other a sea- 
 man. The expedition, he was happy to say, was warmly 
 supported by her Majesty's Government, and the building of 
 the boat was rapidly progressing under the orders of the 
 Board of Admiralty. The boat would be a sailing-boat, 
 made of steel, and built in pieces, no one of which would 
 weigh more than fifty pounds, so that the portage of the 
 whole by natives past the cataracts of the Shire would be 
 much facilitated. 
 
 The Government had arranged for the transport of the 
 party to the Cape, with the boat and stores, by the African 
 mail steamer, on the 9tb of June. Arrived there, one
 
 812 DB. LIViXGSTOHE 
 
 of our cruisers would take them to the Luabo mouth cf the 
 Zambesi, where the boat would be put together, and the 
 party, having engaged a crew of negroes, would be left to 
 pursue their noble and adventurous errand by the Zambesi, 
 the Shire, and the Lake Nyassa. On account of the heavy 
 seas prevailing on the western or leeward side of the lake, the 
 expedition would keep close to the eastward shore, hitherto 
 unexplored, and it was expected it would reach Kampunda, at 
 the northern extremity, by the end of September, and there- 
 ascertain whether our great traveller had perished as reported, 
 or passed forward in safety to Cazembe and Tanganyika. 
 
 At the Society's dinner, which followed the meeting, Mr. 
 Young gave his reasons, based on an eighteen months' 
 acquaintance with the Johanna men, for believing these to 
 be the greatest scoundrels in existence, and utterly unworthy 
 of credence. If Dr. Livingston were dead, he had certainly 
 not been killed in the manner alleged. This very man 
 Moosa had been at one time under his command, so that he 
 knew him thoroughly. In a season of great famine, a bul- 
 lock was killed for the party, and the Johanna men had their 
 share; notwithstanding which, portions belonging to the 
 white men were stolen. Moosa accompanied him all through 
 the village in quest of the thief, but the missing property 
 was eventually found in his own bag ! He hoped the party 
 now about to start would return next year, having cleared up 
 the mystery. 
 
 There was yet hope that Dr. Livingston \vas alive, and 
 the searching expedition above referred to started a few weeks 
 afterwards. A steel exploring boat, constructed from the 
 designs of Mr. E. J. Reed, chief constructor for the JNavy, 
 was speedily got ready, and was shipped on board the mail
 
 HIS IJKE AND ADVfcXTUHES. 313 
 
 P! earner which carried the exploring party to the Cape The 
 boat is thirty feet long by eight broad, and is so made that 
 it can be taken to pieces and readily refitted by means of 
 screws and bolts. This method of construction will enable 
 the boat to be taken to pieces and packed for conveyance 
 across the country by the negroes engaged for that purpose. 
 
 The tide of opinion which had accepted the report of 
 Dr. Livingston's death, then turned as rapidly as it had been 
 formed, and those who had despaired of his safety began to 
 hope, lleports of his existence began to be received iu 
 England, and the following despatch from Dr. Seward, British 
 Consul at Zanzibar, addressed to Lord Stanley, was eagerly 
 read and discussed by people of all classes and opinions. 
 The portion of the despatch relating to Dr. Livingston, and 
 which is dated April 28, is as follows : 
 
 " I promised to send details of the conference held with 
 the Nyassa traders at Kcelwa Kivinja, concerning the alleged 
 murder of Dr. Livingston by the Mafite in the Lake districts. 
 1 have withheld details perhaps too long, in the hope that 
 some intelligence" confirmatory of the confident unbelief ex- 
 pressed by the traders in the explorer's death might reach 
 Keelwa and Zanzibar by the caravan which was then soon 
 expected to reach the coast. The Governor of Keelwa had 
 addressed a letter to the Sultan, in which he expresses him- 
 self confident that Dr. Livingston is not dead, and asks his 
 llighness whether further inquiry into the interior is neces- 
 sary. The following is a translation : ' The following will 
 be grateful and pleasant to our lord the great Majid Bin 
 Saeed concerning the inquiry about the honoured English 
 Doctor who was said to have been murdered. That statement 
 was not true ; we have news that he is alive ; and that he,
 
 31-1 DB. LIVINGS TONE 
 
 some time since, left the country of Makhsoona, intending to 
 go to Beesa. "We were told this by the principal of those 
 traders who have come down from those regions, This man, 
 upon whose word and good faith I can rely, learned this 
 from the chief of Makhsoona himself. Our informant left 
 Makhsoona at the end of El Eejib (8th December, 1866). 
 You intended us to send people into the interior to get at 
 the truth of the matter. Are we still to act upon those 
 instructions ?' This intelligence goes to show that in or 
 about the very district in which Dr. Livingston's grave should 
 be found, the man who of all men Makhsoona himself 
 should be the best informed of events, did not credit Dr. 
 Livingston's death, but believed him on the road to M'eesa, 
 and this down to the beginning of December, long after the 
 Johanna men had reached the sea coast. The news of the 
 explorer's arrival at Compoonda flew through the Makhsoona 
 district, and reached traders at widely divided and distant 
 stations. News of his murder would have as surely spread, 
 and either confirmation or disproof of the rumour would as 
 surely have been obtained by the chief in those parts in the 
 interval between the time of the alleged event and the first 
 
 or second week in December It is true that 
 
 the Keelwa intelligence is not declaratory of the actual 
 existence of Dr. Livingston, but only of Makhsoona's igno- 
 rance of an event of which it is scarcely possible he could 
 have remained in ignorance. "Weighed, however, in conjunc- 
 tion with the damaging evidence of the Arabs, who brought 
 the Johanna men from the lake, it certainly lends force to 
 the unbelief in Dr. Livingston's death, which still prevails 
 amongst the Nyassa traders at Keelwa Kivinja. The removal 
 of lht> embargo on slave transport at the end of this month
 
 UTS LIFE AA T I) ADVENTURES. 313 
 
 (April), with the rush of Keelwa traders to Zanzibar \vhkh 
 may then be expected, will multiply our opportunities of 
 learning what further information may have been gathered. 
 Some stress is naturally laid upon the absence of any written 
 communication from Dr. Livingston, for not one line has 
 reached Zanzibar since the arrival of his despatch from 
 N'donde, in May, 1866. But the letter alleged by Reulen 
 and the Sepoys to have been given by their leader to the 
 Chief Mataka, and by him again entrusted to Silliman Bin 
 Saloom, who conducted them to the coast, has never been 
 seen. Silliman Bin Saloom, who has been examined both 
 by the Zanzibar authorities and by myself, denies all 
 knowledge of any such letter. Moreover, if any despatches 
 had been entrusted by Dr. Livingston to the chiefs along his 
 route and we have no testimony that he did it is still 
 fresh in my memory that duplicate despatches by the lamented 
 Speke, entrusted to the people of M'lesa were brought to me 
 three years after date, with a grave demand for the rich 
 reward promised to the bearer for his prompt delivery of tho 
 papers at Zanzibar. The author was dead, his book pub- 
 lished, and the contents of these despatches in the hands of 
 the public. I incline to the hope that the explorer is 
 alive." 
 
 The hope thus expressed, and which was shared by 
 every man, woman, and child in Great Britain, was speedily 
 doomed to be well-nigh extinguished by a report which 
 reached England on the 28th of June. It was contained in 
 a copy of the " Times of India " of the 17th of the previous 
 month, and was expressed in terms which left little doubt 
 as to the dreadful murder of the great and good man whose 
 life and labours wo have thus far imperfectly recorded :
 
 316 DB. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 " The hopes raised by the news of the rumoured safety of 
 Dr. Livingston have speedily been dispelled, and there can no 
 longer be any doubt that he was killed by a savage of the 
 Mafite tribe. The narrative of the Sepoy belonging to the 
 Marine Battalion (21st Native Infantry) who formed one of 
 the Doctor's escort, and who arrived from Zanzibar in tho 
 'Gazelle* on the 14th of May, turns out to be altogether 
 inaccurate; and, substantially, the tale told by Moosa is 
 proved correct. 
 
 " The ' Nadir Shah,' a vessel of war belonging to the Sultan 
 of Zanzibar, at present used as a trader, reached Bombay on 
 the 15th of May in cargo ; and from information we obtained 
 on board we are enabled to give a more detailed account of 
 the circumstances in connection with the melancholy story of 
 the Doctor's fate than, has yet been published. The ' Nadir 
 Shah ' left Zanzibar on the forenoon of the 28th of March, so 
 that the news she brings is nearly a month later than that 
 brought by the ' Gazelle,' and three days later than the last 
 despatch received from Zanzibar by the Bombay Government. 
 
 "Dr. Livingston took his departure from Zanzibar in 
 March, I860, and was conveyed by Her Majesty's ship 
 ' Penguin' to Pinganeh, at the mouth of the llovuma lliver. 
 The expedition consisted of Dr. Livingston and 35 men, 10 of 
 whom were natives of Johanna, one of the Comoro Islands, 
 13 Africans, and 12 Sepoys of the Bombay Marine Battalion. 
 It was thought by Dr. Livingston that these Africans would 
 be of service to him on his journey into the interior. The 
 Africans were formerly slaves, who had been liberated and 
 educated in the Bombay Presidency. There was no other 
 European in the part)' except the Doctor himself. The beasts 
 t;ikcn TTtrc sLs camel?, four buffaloes from Bombay, five
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVfcXTCKES. 317 
 
 asses, and two mules, and among the baggage there were 
 forage, gunpowder, etc. The ' Penguin' started from Zanzibar 
 on the 19th of March, 1866, and the men in the Doctor's 
 train and the beasts were taken from Zanzibar in a large 
 dhow, which was towed by the ' Penguin.' In three days the 
 w Penguin' arrived off the Rovuma Itiver, but, owing to the 
 strong current, the dhow could not be got into the mouth of 
 the stream. The expedition then made for Minkindany Bay, 
 about thirty miles northward of Cape Delgoa, where Dr. 
 Livingston and his party were successfully landed on the 28th 
 of March. 
 
 " The Johanna men, who had been engaged for the 
 Doctor's service by Mr. Sundley, the English Consul at 
 Johanna, were considered preferable for the service to Zanzi- 
 bar men. On the march into the interior the Sepoys seem to 
 have suffered much, and Dr. Livingston thought it necessary 
 to leave them on the route to enable them to return to 
 Zanzibar. In returning they had but little to eat, and ran 
 great risk of starving. One by one all the Sepoys fell ill, 
 and the sickness that attacked the havildar was fatal, as he 
 died of dysentery. None of the twelve Sepoys who started 
 with the Doctor reached Nyassa, and those who survived 
 returned to Zanzibar in August or September. In October 
 last the Johanna men made their appearance in Zanzibar, and 
 presented themselves before Dr. Seward, the British Consul, 
 when for the first time the intelligence was received of the 
 disaster which had befallen Dr. Livingston. From the 
 accounts of these Johanna men it would seem that the expe- 
 dition reached Lake Nyassa in safety and crossed the lake. 
 They pushed on westward, and in the course of some time 
 reached Goomany, a fishing villaj* on a river. This would
 
 318 DR. ITVIXf.STOVK 
 
 appear to have been on the second or third week of August 
 last. The people of Goomany warned Dr. Livingston that 
 the Mafites, a wandering predatory tribe, were out on a plun- 
 dering expedition, and that it would not be safe to continue 
 the journey. But the dangers thus presented to view were 
 not sufficient to deter a man who had braved so many before ; 
 and, treating th warnings as but of slight moment, he crossed 
 the river in canoes the next morning, with his baggage and 
 train of followers, in safety. Previously to this time the 
 whole of the baggage animals had perished on the journey 
 from the want of water ; and on reaching the further side of 
 the river the baggage had to be carried by the Doctor's men. 
 Being a fast walker, Dr. Livingston kept some distance in 
 advance of the baggage-encumbered men ; and Moosa only, or 
 Moosa and a few others of the party, kept up with him. The 
 march had continued some distance, when Dr. Livingston saw 
 three armed men ahead, and thereupon he called out to Moosa, 
 ' The Mafites are out, after all/ or some such words as those, 
 and these seem to have been the last he uttered. The three 
 Mantes \vere armed with bows and arrows and other weapons, 
 and they immediately commenced hostilities. Evidently the 
 men must have closed on the Doctor, when, finding matters 
 desperate, he drew his revolver and shot two of his assail- 
 ants ; but while thus disposing of the two, the third managed 
 to get behind Dr. Livingston, and with one blow from an 
 axe clove in his head. The wound was mortal, but the assassin 
 quickly met his own doom, for a bullet from Moosa's musket 
 passed through his body, and the murderer fell dead beside his 
 victim. Moosa states that the Doctor died instantly, and 
 that, finding the Mafites were out, he ran back to the baggage 
 party, and told them that their master had been killed. The
 
 HIS LIFE ASD ADVKNTfKi:S. 319 
 
 baggage was hastily abandoned, and the Johanna men, Moosa, 
 and the rest of the party sought safety by a hasty flight, 
 which, according to Moosa's story, they continued until sun- 
 set, when they reached a secure hiding-place in the jungle. 
 They held a consultation, and it is alleged that Moosa pre- 
 vailed on them to go back to look after the body of their 
 late master, and that on regaining the place where the murder 
 had been perpetrated they found Dr. Livingston's body lying 
 there. The Doctor's watch had been carried away, together 
 with his clothes, the only article that remained on the body 
 being the trousers. Moosa and the men who had accom- 
 panied him 'scratched' a hole in the ground just deep 
 enough to bury the body in, and there left, in a far remote 
 and unknown spot, the remains of the self-denying and noble 
 man who, all too soon for his country and for the cause of 
 civilization, but not too soon for him to have earned an 
 enduring fame, found his end at the hand of an ignoble 
 savage. The corpses of the three Mantes were lying on the 
 spot where they had fallen ; but no attention was paid to 
 them by Moosa, who, on searching, could find no memento of 
 his late master to bring with him to Zanzibar. In making 
 their way to the coast great hardships were experienced by 
 Moosa and the other survivors of the party, who were in such 
 a starving condition that they had to live upon the berries 
 they could gather by the way, until they fell in with an Arab 
 caravan, which entertained them kindly. They were thus 
 enabled to reach Keelwah, in the territory of the Sultan of 
 Zanzibar. They were here provided with clothes and neces- 
 saries, and sent on to Zanzibar, at which place they reported 
 all the circumstances to Dr. Seward, by whom they were 
 clo?oly examined. Dr. Kirk, of Zanzibar, an old associate of
 
 320 DR. LIVINGSTONE 
 
 Livingston, also questioned them carefully, and found that 
 their statement of the country through which they alleged 
 they had passed, correctly answered to the leading features of 
 the wilds through which Dr. Livingston had intended to 
 track his way. 
 
 " The Johanna men were taken to Johanna, and carefully 
 interrogated by the Sultan or Kajah, as well as by Mr. Sund- 
 ley, and their answers tallied with Moosa's narrative. The 
 Johanna men asked Mr. Sundley to pay them the nine 
 months' wages due to them for their services with the expe- 
 dition, and, as they were entitled to what they demanded, the 
 money was paid to them. Some of the men who went away 
 with the expedition, and who were not accounted for as 
 having died, were still missing. 
 
 " On the 2Gth of December Dr. Seward left Zanzibar in 
 Her Majesty's ship ' "Wasp,' and proceeded to Keehvah, but he 
 was unable to obtain any fresh information, or to gather 
 additional details." 
 
 And so ends all that is at present known of this dreadful 
 tragedy ; but we cannot conclude our account without pre- 
 senting the reader with the protest of Dr. Roderick Murchi- 
 son, which appears in " The Times " of July 2. He 
 says : 
 
 " After the full consideration by the Royal Geographical 
 Society of the statement of the Johanna man, Moosa, on 
 which alone the belief in the death of Dr. Livingston rests, 
 and after the letters which I have addressed to you, pointing 
 out that this Moosa had already given two accounts of the 
 event, materially differing from each other, I could not have 
 believed that another version of the narrative of this man 
 would reach us by the circuitous route of India. In this,
 
 OTS LIFE AND ADVrXTC;;F.S. 321 
 
 (he third version of his own story, Moosa is, for the first time, 
 brought forward as a combatant, shooting down the savage 
 assassin of Livingston ; while, in his statement to the Consul 
 at Zanzibar, he was hidden behind a tree at some distance, 
 and fled to his companions when he saw the fatal blow struck. 
 Again, one of the Sepoys who had left the expedition of 
 Livingston was told by Moosa at Zanzibar that Livingston 
 was absent on a hunting party when the attack of the natives 
 with bows and arrows occurred, and that when he came to 
 the spot he found Livingston dead. Fully aware of the 
 established character of Moosa for mendacity, as proved when 
 lie formerly served under Livingston, we, who have really 
 sifted the matter, induced Her Majesty's Government to tako 
 the only step by which the fate of Livingston could be really 
 ascertained. Your readers know that the boat expedition to 
 the /ambesi which is to ascend the Shiro and Lake Nyassa 
 to near the spot where Livingston is said to have been killed, 
 left England on the llth of June ; and you were also in- 
 formed that, according to estimate, we expect to have definite 
 evidence, by or before Christmas, of the falsehood or truth of 
 the report of this Johanna man. 
 
 " We, who see many reasons for disbelieving Moosa, which 
 I will not now repeat, cling to the hope, that although ho 
 may have met with a difficulty in the opposition of the ma- 
 rauding Zulu Caffrcs, Livingston may havo forced his way 
 through them, while Mcosa and his Johanna men fled. Now, 
 if the searching-party should ascertain that he want on from 
 the supposed fatal ppot, our great anxiety respecting him will 
 have censed. Per, knowing that he formerly crossed and re- 
 crosstd Africa when attended by a few Makololo only, wo 
 can have no il-ur that, with his present band of negroes, ha 
 
 T
 
 322 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 may have reached Lake Tanganyika, and be now determining 
 the great problem of the true -watershed of Southern Africa." 
 
 "What is there to add, but that the great heart of England, 
 moved to compassion and profound regret for the presumed 
 loss of the noble and pious Livingston, would leap with joy 
 inexpressible, should the hopes entertained by Dr. Murchison 
 and his coadjutors prove to be well founded? For, after 
 all, the case is precisely that in which the knowledge we at 
 present possess of this mysterious and remarkable story, goes 
 /or nothing, till it is confirmed either one way or another 
 scire tuum nihil est, nisi te scire hoc sciat alter. Many 
 members of the Royal Geographical Society share in the 
 sentiments of their President ; and certainly, till every in- 
 quiry has been made that can be made to discover the exact 
 truth, it would be equally injudicious and cruel to hazard an 
 opinion contrary to that which Dr. Murchison has so gene- 
 rously and sanguinely expressed.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTTTKE3. 323 
 
 CHAPTEE XTV. 
 
 DISCOVERT OF LIVINGSTONE FURTHER RESEARCHES- THE 
 
 MANYUEMA COUNTRY DIFFICULTY OF TRAVELLING GRAND 
 
 SCENERY WATERSHED OF THE NILE. 
 
 ^ Y the heroic courage and indomitable persever- 
 ance of an American, H. M. Stanley, gene- 
 rously furnished with funds by the proprietor 
 of a New York paper, the great traveller was 
 discovered at Ujiji, on the eastern shores of 
 Lake Tanganyika, on the 10th November, 1871, 
 surrounded by friendly Arab chiefs, but broken down and 
 baffled with worry, disappointment, and longing. Al- 
 though several relief expeditions and supplies had been 
 forwarded to him from this country during the last few 
 years, they never reached him, owing to the cupidity 
 and dishonesty of the persons (chiefly slaves) to whom 
 they were entrusted at Zanzibar; the goods intended 
 for him had been sold off en route for slaves and ivory 
 for the personal aggrandisement of the leaders of theso 
 expeditions, and Livingstone, in great weakness, was 
 destitute of everything save a few barter cloths and 
 beads, and entertained little hope beyond the miserable 
 prospect of beggary among the Ujijians. "When he had 
 thus got to about the lowest verge, " a vague rumour," 
 lie says, "reached Ujiji in the beginning of last month 
 (Nov. 1871) that an Englishman had come to Unyan- 
 yonibe with boats, horses, men, and goods in abun-
 
 324 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 dance. It was in vain to conjecture who this could br>, 
 and my eager inquiries were met by answers so contra 
 dictory that I began to doubt if any stranger had come 
 at all. But one day I cannot say which, for I was three 
 weeks too fast in my reckoning my man, Susi, came 
 dashing up in great excitement, and gasped out, ' An 
 Englishman coming ; see him ; ' and off he ran to meet 
 him. The American flag at the head of a caravan toLd 
 me the nationality of the stranger. It was Henry M. 
 Stanley, the travelling correspondent of the ' New York 
 Herald,' sent by the son of the editor, James Gordon 
 Bennett, jun., at an expense of ^64,000, to obtain correct 
 information about me, if living, and if dead, to bring 
 home my bones. The kindness was extreme, and made 
 my whole frame thrill with excitement and gratitude." 
 
 The mutual joy of this meeting, when Dr. Livingstone 
 and Mr. Stanley had an opportunity of giving unrestrained 
 flow to their feelings, was very great. After reading a 
 packet of letters brought by his discoverer, the leading 
 events in the civilised world during the last few years were 
 hastily told, and the great traveller in return narrated all 
 that had happened to himself, his weary wanderings, 
 hair-breadth escapes, painful solicitude, and wearisome 
 explorations, since 1865. This meeting had an immediate 
 and beneficial effect upon Livingstone's health and spirits : 
 he received abundance of supplies, new instruments, a 
 companionship of four months, wrote letters to his friends 
 at home, with the certainty of them being delivered, and 
 was left by Mr. Stanley in renewed health and well 
 supplied with stores ample enough to make a feasible 
 UD of the geographical portion of his mission.
 
 HIS LIl-'E ASD ADYEXTUEES. 325 
 
 The story of Dr. Livingstone's adventures is soon told. 
 In March, 1866, he started from Zanzibar, going south- 
 ward to the Rovuma. The expedition he led consisted of 
 twelve sepoys, nine Johanna men, seven liberated slaves, 
 and two Zambesi men in. all thirty persons. At first he 
 travelled inland along the left bank of the Eovuma river ; 
 but, as he pursued his way, his African servants began to 
 grow disaffected and frightened, and, in spite of all his 
 efforts to manage and keep them together, most of them 
 left him and returned to their homes, spreading every- 
 where the report of his death as a reason for their going 
 back. The sepoys, though they did not desert him, showed 
 a mutinous spirit, and he was obliged to discharge them 
 also. In August, 1866, he arrived in the territory of 
 Mponda, a chief who rules over a tribe near the Nyassa 
 Lake ; and here Wykoteni, a protege of the Doctor, in- 
 sisted upon being released from going any farther. After 
 resting a short time in Mponda's ground, Dr. Livingstone 
 proceeded to inspect the upper or northern end of the 
 Nyassa Lake. It was while carrying out this enterprise 
 that the Johanna men, who had till then remained faithful, 
 deserted him, alleging, as their excuse, that a chief 
 named Mazitu had taken suddenly to plundering, and 
 was ill-using travellers who ventured into his neighbour- 
 hood. It is probable that Dr. Livingstone would not 
 have lost the services of these men had their leader been a 
 man of more decided character ; but Musa for that was 
 his name appeared to be more frightened than his subor- 
 dinates, and when he deserted they fled also. To account 
 for their conduct, they also invented a story of Dr. Living- 
 death, and their mendacious tales were the founda-
 
 826 . DH. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 tion of the reports which have circulated more or less 
 ever since. 
 
 In December, 1866, having previously collected a number 
 of natives, Dr. Livingstone decided upon advancing in a 
 northerly direction, from Lake Nyassa to Lake Tanganyika. 
 In pursuance of this determination, he traversed the coun- 
 tries of Babisa, Bobembena, and Borunga, as well as the 
 region of Londa. Approaching King Cazembe's territory, 
 he crossed a stream called the Chambezi, where he found 
 himself in great difficulty, being for a long while unable 
 to discover to what the river belonged. The confusion 
 was greatly increased by the fact that Portuguese travel- 
 lers had previously reported the existence of such a stream 
 and had asserted that it was a tributary of the great 
 Zambesi river, having no connection whatever with the 
 Nile. These statements Livingstone was disinclined to 
 believe, and, determined to satisfy himself as to the rise 
 and falling of the Chambezi, he made up his mind to 
 devote himself to the task. From the beginning of 1867 
 to the middle of March, 1869, he traversed the banks of 
 the stream, tracing it whore it ran, correcting the errors of 
 the Portuguese travellers, and proving conclusively that 
 the Chambezi was not the head of the Zambesi river, as 
 had been hitherto supposed. He has established con- 
 clusively, first, that the Portuguese Zambesi and the 
 Chambezi are totally distinct streams ; and, secondly, that 
 the Chambezi is the head- waters of the Nile. He found 
 that, starting from 1 1 deg. south, the Eiver Nile rolled on 
 until it attained the extraordinary length of 2,600 miles. 
 In the midst of his wanderings Livingstone came upon 
 Lake Liemba, which he discovered to be fed by Lake
 
 IIIS LITE AXV ADVENTUEES. 327 
 
 Tanganyika. His map of the last-mentioned lake shows 
 that it rises in 8 deg. 42 sec. south, and is 325 miles in 
 length, being thus seventy-three miles longer than was 
 supposed by Burton and Speke. Leaving Tanganyika, 
 the Doctor crossed Marungua, and came in sight of a small 
 lake called Lake Moeoro, which he found to be six miles in 
 length, and to be fed by the Chambezi. In his way he 
 traced the Chambezi running through three degrees of 
 latitude ; and, having thus satisfied him of its total inde- 
 pendence of the Zambesi, he returned to King Cazembe's 
 country, and thence made his way to Ujiji, where, early 
 in 1869, he wrote letters, and despatched them by 
 messengers. 
 
 The rest of the narrative may be given in his own 
 words : 
 
 As soon as I recovered sufficiently to be able to march 
 from Ujiji, I went up Tanganyika about sixty miles, and 
 thence struck away north-west into the country of the 
 Manyuema, or Manyema, the reputed cannibals. My 
 object was to follow down the central line of drainage of 
 the great Nile Yalley, which I had seen passing through 
 the great lake Bangweolo, and changing its name from 
 Chambezi to Luapula; then again on passing through 
 Lake Moeoro, assuming the name Lualaba, and after 
 forming the third lake, Kamolondo, becoming itself a 
 great riverine lake with many islands in it. I soon found 
 myself on the large bend which this great lacustrine river 
 makes by flowing west about 180 miles, then sweeping 
 round to the north. Two hours were the utmost I could 
 accomplish in a day, but by persevering gained strength, 
 and in July camo up to tho trading party of Muhamad
 
 328 DB. LIVINGSTONE : 
 
 Bogharib, who, by native medicines and carriage, saved 
 my life in my late severe illness in Marungua. Two days 
 before we reached Bamborne, the residence of the most 
 sensible of the Manyema chiefs, called Moenekuss, \vo 
 met a band of Ujijian traders, carrying 18,000lb. weight 
 of ivory, bought in this new field for a mere trifle in thick 
 copper bracelets and beads. The traders had been obliged 
 to employ their slaves to collect the ivory, and slaves with 
 guns in their hands are often no better than demons. "We 
 heard but one side of the story the slave version and 
 such as would have appeared in the newspaper if they had 
 one. "The Manyema were very bad; were always in 
 the wrong " wanted, in fact, to eat the slaves, and always 
 gave them just reason to capture women and children, 
 goats, sheep, fowls, and grain. The masters did not quite 
 approve of this, but the deeds had been done ; and then 
 masters and men joined in one harmonious chorus 
 "The Manyema are bad, bad, bad; awfully bad, and 
 cannibals!" 
 
 In going west of Bambarro, in order to embark on the 
 Lualaba, I went down the Luamo, a river of from 100 to 
 to 200 yards broad, which rises in the mountains opposite 
 Ujiji, and flows across the great bend of the Lualaba. 
 "When near its confluence, I found myself among people 
 who had lately been maltreated by the slaves, and they 
 naturally looked on me as of the same tribe as their 
 persecutors. Africans are not generally unreasonable, 
 though smarting under wrongs, if you can fairly make 
 them understand your claim to innocence. Two men hero 
 were particularly outspoken in asserting our identity with 
 tlie cruel strangers. On calling to ono vociferous lady
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. C20 
 
 (who gave me the head trader's name) to look at my 
 colour and see if it were the same as his, she replied with 
 a bitter little laugh, " Then you must be his father." The 
 worst the men did was to turn out in force, armed with 
 their large spears and wooden shields, and show us out of 
 their districts. Glad that no collision took place, wo 
 returned to Bambariv, and then with our friend Muhamad 
 : truck away duo north he to buy ivory, and I to reach 
 another part of Lualaba, and buy a canoe. 
 
 The country is extremely beautiful, but difficult to travel 
 over. The mountains of light grey granite stand like 
 islands in new red sandstone ; and mountain and vallay 
 are all clad in a mantle of different shades of green. The 
 vegetation is indescribably rank. Through the grass if 
 grass it can be called, which is over half-an-inch in 
 diameter in the stalk, and from ten to twelve feet high 
 nothing but elephants can walk. The leaves of this me- 
 gatherium grass are armed with minute spikes, which, as 
 we wound our way along elephant walks, rub disagreeably 
 on the side of the face where the gun is held, and 
 the hand is made sore by fending it off the other side 
 for hours. 
 
 The rains were fairly set in by November, and in the 
 mornings, or after a shower, these leaves were loaded with 
 moisture which wet us to the bone. The valleys are 
 deeply undulating, and in each innumerable dells have to 
 be crossed. There may be only a thread of water at tho 
 bottom; but the mud, mire, or (Scottice) " glaur " is 
 grievous. Thirty or forty yards of the path on each side 
 of the stream are worked by the feet of passengers into un 
 adhesive compound. By placing a foot on each side of iho
 
 330 DR. UVIXGSTOXE: 
 
 narrow way one may waddle a little distance along, but 
 the rank crop of grasses, gingers, and bushes cannot spare 
 the few inches of soil required for the side of the foot, and 
 down he comes into the slough. The path often runs 
 along the bed of the rivulet for sixty or more yards, as if 
 he who first cut it out went thai; distance seeking for a part 
 of tlie forest less dense for his axe. In other cases the 
 muale palm, from which here, as in Madagascar, grass cloth 
 is woven, and called by the same name, " lamba," has 
 taken possession of the valley. The leaf stalks, as thick as 
 a strong man's arm, fall off and block up all passage, save 
 by a short path made and mixed up by the feet of 
 elephants and buffaloes ; the slough therein is groan-com- 
 pelling and deep. 
 
 Every now and then the traders, with rueful faces, stand 
 panting ; the sweat trickles down my face, and I suppose 
 that I look as grim as they, although I try to cheer them 
 with the hope that good prices will reward them at the 
 coast for ivory obtained with so much toil. In some cases 
 the subsoil has given way beneath the elephant's enormous 
 weight ; the deep hole is filled with mud, and one, taking 
 it all to be about calf-deep, steps in to the top of the thigh, 
 and flaps on to a seat soft enough, but not luxurious. A 
 merry laugh relaxes the facial muscles, though I have no 
 other reason for it than that it is better to laugh than 
 to nry. 
 
 Some of the numerous rivers which in this region flow 
 into Lualaba are covered with living vegetable bridges a 
 species of dark glossy-leaved grass, with its roots and 
 leaves, felts itself into a mat that covers the whole stream. 
 When stepped upon it yields twelve or fifteen inches, and
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTU11ES. 331 
 
 that amount of water rises up on the leg. At every step 
 the foot has to be raised high enough to place it on the un- 
 bent mass in front. This high stepping fatigues like 
 walking on deep snow. Here and there holes appear 
 which we could not sound with a stick six feet long. They 
 gave the impression that anywhere one might plump 
 through and finish the chapter. Where the water iy 
 shallow, the lotus, or sacred lily, sends its roots to the 
 bottom, and spreads its broad leaves over the floating 
 I ridge, so as to make believe that the mat is its own ; but 
 the grass referred to is the real felting and supporting 
 agent, for it often performs duty as bridge where no lilies 
 grow. The bridge is called by Manyema ' ' Kinlefwelefive," 
 as if he who first coined it was gasping for breath after 
 plunging over a mile of it. 
 
 Between each district of Manyema large belts of the 
 primeval forest still stand. Into these the sun, though 
 vertical, cannot penetrate, except by sending down at mid- 
 day thin pencils of ray into the gloomy recesses. The 
 rain-water stands for months in stagnant pools made by 
 the feet of elephants, and the dead leaves decay on the 
 damp soil, and make the water of the numerous rivulets 
 of the colour of strong tea. The climbing plants, from 
 the size of whipcord to that of a man-of-war's hawsers, 
 are so numerous, the ancient path is the only passage. 
 When one of the giant trees falls across the road, it 
 forms a wall breast high to be climbed over, and the 
 mass of tangled ropes brought down makes cutting a 
 path round it a work of time which travellers never under- 
 take. 
 
 The shelter of the forest from the sun makes it pleasant,
 
 >o2 LI*. Livnca 
 
 but the roots of trees high out of the soil across the path 
 keep the eyes, ox-like, on the ground. The trees are so 
 high that a good shot-gun does no harm to parrots or 
 guinea-fowls on their tops, and they are often so closely 
 planted that I have heard gorillas, here called " sokos," 
 growling about fifty yards oif without getting a glimpse of 
 them. His nest is a poor contrivance. It exhibits no 
 more architectural skill than the nest of our cushat dove. 
 Here the " soko" sits in pelting rain with his hands over 
 his head. The natives give him a good character, and, 
 from what I have seen, he deserves it ; but they call his 
 nest his house, and laugh at him for being such a fool as 
 to build a house and not go beneath it for shelter. 
 
 Bad water and frequent wettings told on us all by 
 choleraic symptoms and loss of flesh. Meanwhile the 
 news of cheap ivory caused a sort of Californian gold fever 
 at Ujiji, and we were soon overtaken by a horde, number- 
 ing 600 muskets, all eager for the precious tusk. These 
 had been left by the Manyema in the interminable forests, 
 where the animals had been slain. The natives knew 
 where they lay, and if treated civilly, readily brought 
 them many half rotten, or gnawed by a certain rodent to 
 sharpen his teeth, as London rats do on leaden pipes. I 
 had already in this journey two severe lessons that travel- 
 ling in an unhealthy climate in the rainy season is killing 
 work. By getting drenched to the skin once too often in 
 Marungua I had pneumonia, the illness to which I have 
 referred, and that was worse than ten fevers that is, 
 fevers treated by our medicine, and not by the dirt sup- 
 plied to Bishop Mackenzie at the Cape as the same. 
 Besides being unwilling to bear the new-comers com^ any,
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 333 
 
 I feared that by further exposure in tho rains the- weak- 
 ness might result in something worse. 
 
 I went seven days south-west, or a little backwards, to 
 a camp formed by the head men of the ivory horde, and 
 on the 7th February went into winter quarters. I found 
 these men as civil and. kind as I could wish. 
 
 A letter from the Sultan of Zanzibar, which I owe to 
 the kind offices of Sir Bartle Frere, has been of immense 
 service to me with most of his subjects. I had no medi- 
 cine ; but rest, shelter, boiling all tho water I used, and a 
 new potato found among the natives as restoratives, soon 
 put me all right. 
 
 The rains continued into July, and fifty-eight inches 
 fell. The mud from the clayey soil was awful, and it laid 
 up some of the strongest men in spite of their intense 
 eagerness lor ivoij. 
 
 I lost no time, after it was feasible to travel, in prepar- 
 ing to follow tho river, but my attendants were fed and 
 lodged by the slave women, whose husbands were away 
 from the camp on trade, and pretended to fear going into 
 a canoe. I consented to refrain from buying one. They 
 then protended to fear tho people, though' tho inhabitants 
 all along the Lualaba were reported by tho slaves to bo 
 remarkably friendly. I have heard both slaves and free- 
 men say, "No one will ever attack people so good" as 
 they found them. Elsewhere I could employ the country 
 people as carriers, and was comparatively independent, 
 though deserted by some four times over. But in Man- 
 yerna no one can bo induced to go into the next district, 
 for fear, they say, of being killed and eaten. 
 
 I was at the mercy of those who had been Moslem
 
 334 DR. LIVIXOSTOXE: 
 
 slaves, and know that in thwarting mo they had the 
 sympathy of all that class in the country, and, as many 
 others would have done, took advantage of the situation. 
 
 I went on with only three attendants, and this time 
 north-west, in ignorance that the great river flows west 
 and by south, but no one could tell me anything about it. 
 
 A broad belt of buga or prairie lies along the right 
 bank. Inland from this it is all primeval forest, with 
 villages from eight to ten miles apart. One sees the sun 
 only in the cleared spaces around human dwellings. 
 From the facilities for escaping, the forest people are 
 wilder and more dangerous than those on the buga 
 lands. 
 
 Muhamad's people went farther on in the forest than I 
 could, and came to the mountainous country of the Ba- 
 legga, who collected in large numbers, and demanded of 
 the strangers why they came ? " "We came to buy ivory," 
 was the reply; "and if you have none no harm is done; 
 we shall return." "Nay," they shouted, "you came to 
 die, and this day is your last. You came to die ! you 
 came to die ! " When forced to fire on the Balegga, the 
 terror was, like their insolence, extreme; and next day 
 when sent for to take away the women and children who 
 were captured, no one appeared. 
 
 Having travelled with my informants, I knew their 
 accounts to be trustworthy. The rivers crossed by them 
 are numerous and large. One was so tortuous they wero 
 five hours in water waist, and often neck deep with a. 
 man in a small canoe sounding for places which they 
 could pass. In another case they were two hours in the 
 water, and they could see nothing in the forest and
 
 niS LITE AXD ADVEXTURE3. S3o 
 
 nothing in tho Balegga country but one mountain packed 
 closely to the back of another, without end, and a very 
 hot fountain in one of the valleys. 
 
 I found continual wading in mud grievous ; for the first 
 time in my life my feet failed. When torn by hard 
 travel, instead of healing kindly as heretofore, irritablo 
 eating ulcers fastened on each foot. The people were in- 
 variably civil and even kind, for curiously enough tho 
 Zanzibar slaves propagated everywhere glowing accounts 
 of my goodness, and of the English generally, because 
 they never made slaves. 
 
 A trading party passed us, and one of their number was 
 pinned to the ground by a spear at dead of night, while I 
 was sleeping with my three attendants at a village close 
 by. Three villages had been burned ; and, as the author 
 of tho outrage told mo, at least forty men were killed 
 because a Manyema man tried to steal a string of beads. 
 The midnight assassination was revenge for the loss of 
 friends there. It was evident that reaction against the 
 bloody slaving had set in. 
 
 The accounts, evidently truthful, given by Muhamad's 
 people, showed that nothing would be gained by going 
 farther in my present course ; and now, being very lame, 
 I limped back to Bambarre, and here I was laid up by 
 the eating ulcers for many months. They are common in 
 the Manyema country, and kill many slaves. If the foot 
 is placed on the ground blood flows, and every night a 
 discharge of bloody ichor takes place, with pain that pre- 
 vents sleep. The wailing of the poor slaves, with ulcers 
 that eat through everything 1 , even bone, is one of the night 
 sounds of a slave cuuip. They are probably allied to fever.
 
 SCG DR. 
 
 A clear idea of the difficulties of exploration in this 
 region can hardly be formed. Satisfactory progress could 
 only bo made in canoes with men accustomed to work. I 
 tried hard to get other men at Ujiji> but all the traders 
 are eager to secure the carriers for themselves, and circu- 
 lated the report that I would go from Manyema, away to 
 my own country, and leave my people to shift for them- 
 selves like Speke. 
 
 They knew perfectly that Speke's men left him first. 
 It was like the case of certain Makololo who left me on 
 the shore, and refused to carry back the medicine to their 
 chief, for which they had come. I was afterwards accused 
 by men similar to the Ujijians of having abandoned them, 
 though I- gave them cattle, even after they deserted mo, 
 these being the wealth that they value most highly. 
 
 I. lived in what may be called the Tipperary of Man- 
 yema, and they are certainly a bloody people among them- 
 selves. But they are very far from being in appearance 
 like the ugly negroes on the west coast. Finely -formed 
 heads are common, and generally men and women are 
 vastly superior to the slaves of Zanzibar and elsewhere. 
 We must go deeper than phrenology to account for their 
 low moral tone. If they are cannibals they are not osten- 
 tatiously so. The neighbouring tribes all assert that they 
 are men- eaters, and they themselves laughingly admitted 
 the charge, but they like to impose on the credulous, and 
 they showed the skull of a recent victim to horrify one of 
 my people. I found it to be the skull of a gorilla or 
 S oko the first I knew of its existence here and this they 
 do oat. 
 
 If I liad believed a tenth of what I heatv from
 
 HIS LIPE A2tt> ADVENTURES. 337 
 
 I might never have entered the country. Their people 
 told tales with shocking circumstantiality, as if of eye- 
 witnesses, that could not be committed to paper, or even 
 spoken about beneath the breath. Indeed, ono wishes 
 them to vanish from memory. 
 
 I have ascertained that the watershed of the Nile is a 
 broad upland between lOdegs. and 12degs. south lati- 
 tude, and from 4,000 to 5,000 feet above the level of tuo 
 sea. Mountains stand on it at various points which, 
 though not apparently very high, are between 6,000 and 
 7,000 feet of actual altitude. The watershed is over 700 
 miles in length from west to east. The springs that rise 
 on it are almost innumerable that is, it would take a 
 largo part of a man's life to count them. A bird's-eye 
 view of some parts of the watershed would resemble the 
 frost vegetation on window panes. They all begin in an 
 ooze at the head of a slightly depressed vallej 7 . A few 
 hundred yards down, the quantity of water fi*om the 
 oozing earthen sponge forms a brisk perennial burn or 
 brook a few feet broad, and deep enough to require a 
 bridge. These are the ultimate or primary sources of the 
 great rivers that flow to the north in the great Nile valley. 
 The primaries unite, and form streams in general larger 
 than the Isis at Oxford or the Avon at Hamilton, and 
 may be called secondary sources. They never dry, but 
 unite again into four largo lines of drainage the head 
 waters or mains of the Eiver of Egypt. These four are 
 each called by the natives Lualaba, which, if not too 
 pedantic, may be spoken of as lacustrine rivers, extant 
 specimens of those which in pre-historic times abounded 
 in Africa, and which in tho south are still called by 
 
 z
 
 338 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 Bechuanas "Melapo;" in the north, by Arabs, "Wadys" 
 both words meaning the same thing river bed, in 
 which no water ever now flows. Two of the four great 
 rivers mentioned fall into the central Lualaba, or Webb's 
 lake river, and then we have but two main lines of 
 drainage, as depicted nearly by Ptolemy. 
 
 The prevailing winds on the watershed are from the 
 south-east. This is easily observed by the direction of the 
 branches, and the humidity of the climate is apparent in 
 the number of lichens, which make the upland forest look 
 like the mangrove swamps on the coast. 
 
 In passing over sixty miles of latitude I waded thirty- 
 two primary sources from calf to waist deep, and requiring 
 from twenty minutes to an hour and a quarter to cross 
 stream and sponge. This would give about one source to 
 every two miles. 
 
 A Sahueli friend, in passing along part of the Lake 
 Bangweolo, during six days counted twenty-two from 
 thigh to waist deep. This lake is on the watershed, for 
 the village at which I observed on its north-west shore 
 was a few seconds into 1 1 degs. south, and its southern 
 shores and springs and rivulets are certainly in 12 degs. 
 south. I tried to cross it in order to measure the breadth 
 accurately. The first stage to an inhabited island was 
 about twenty-four miles. From the highest point her* the 
 tops of the trees, evidently lifted by the mirage, could bo 
 seen on the second stage, and the third stage, the main- 
 land, was said to be as far as this beyond it. But my 
 canoe men had stolen the canoe, and got a hint that the 
 real owners were in pursuit, and got into a flurry to 
 home. "They would como back for me in a fow
 
 HIS LIFE AJTD ADVENTURES. 339 
 
 days trul^;" but I had only my coverlet left to Lire 
 another craft if they should leave me in this wide expanse 
 of water, and being 4,000 feet above the sea, it was very 
 cold, so I returned. 
 
 The length of this lake is, at a very moderate estimate, 
 150 miles. It gives forth a large body of water in the 
 Luapula ; yet lakes are in no sense sources, for no large 
 river begins in a lake, but this and others serve an im- 
 portant purpose in the phenomena of the Nile. It is one 
 large lake, and unlike the Okara, which, according to 
 Suaheli, who travelled long in our company, is three or 
 four lakes run into one huge Victoria Nyanza, and gives 
 out a large river, which, on departing out of Moeoro, is 
 still larger. These men had spent many years east of 
 Okara, and could scarcely be mistaken in saying that of 
 the three or four lakes there, only one the Okara gives 
 off its water to the north. 
 
 The "White Nile " of Speke, less by a full half than 
 the Shire, out of Nyassa (for it is only eighty or ninety 
 yards broad), can scarcely be named in comparison with 
 the central, or "Webb's Lualaba, of from 2,000 to 6,000 
 yards, in relation to the phenomena of the Nile. The 
 structure and economy of the watershed answer very 
 inuch the same end as the great lacustrine rivers, but 
 I cannot at present copy a lost despatch which explained 
 that. 
 
 The mountains on the watershed are probably what 
 Ptolemy, for reasons now unknown, called the Mountains 
 of the Moon. From their basis I found that the springs 
 of the Nile do unquestionably arise. This is just what 
 Ptolemy put down, and is truo geography. "We must
 
 340 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 accept tho fountains, and nobody but Philistines will 
 reject the mountains, though, we cannot conjecture tho 
 reason for the name. 
 
 Mounts Kenia and Kilimanjaro are said to be enow- 
 capped, but they are so far from the sources, and send 
 no water to any part of the Nile, they could never have 
 been meant by the correct ancient explorers, from whom 
 Ptolemy and his predecessors gleaned their true geo- 
 graphy, so different from tho trash that passes current 
 in modern times. 
 
 Before leaving the subject of the watershed, I may 
 add that I know about 600 miles of it, but am not yet 
 satisfied, for unfortunately the seventh hundred is the 
 most interesting of the whole. I have a very strong im- 
 pression that in the last hundred miles the fountains of 
 the Nile mentioned to Herodotus by the secretary of 
 Minerva, in the city of Sais, do arise, not like all the 
 rest, from oozing earthen sponges, but from an earthen 
 mound and half the water flows northward to Egypt, the 
 other half south to Inner Ethiopia. These fountains, at 
 no great distance off, become large rivers, though at the 
 mound they are not more than ten miles apart. One foun- 
 tain rising on the north-east of the mound becomes Bartle 
 Frere's Lualaba, and it flows into one of the lakes proper 
 Kamolondo, of the central line of drainage. Webb's 
 Lualaba, the second fountain, rising on the north-west, 
 becomes Young's Lualaba, which passing through Lake 
 Lincoln, and becoming Loeki, or Lomame, and joining 
 the central line, too, goes north to Egypt. The third 
 fountain on the south-west Palmerston's becomes the 
 Liambai, or Upper Zambesi ; while the fourth Oswcll's
 
 HIS LITE AXP AIWENTTinrg. 841 
 
 fountain becomes the Ivafue, and falls into the Zambesi 
 in Inner Ethiopia. 
 
 More time has been spent in the exploration than I ever 
 anticipated. My bare expenses were paid for two years, 
 but had I left when the money was expended, I could have 
 given little more information about the country than the 
 Portuguese, who in their three slave-trading expeditions 
 to Cazembe, asked for slaves and ivory alone, and heard 
 of nothing else. From one of the subordinates of their 
 last so-called expedition, I learn that it was believed that 
 the Luapula went to Angola ! I asked about the waters 
 till I was ashamed, and almost afraid of being set down 
 as afflicted with hydrocephalus. I had to feel my way, 
 and every step of the way, and was generally groping in 
 the dark, for who cared where the rivers ran ? Many a 
 weary foot I trod ere I got a clear idea of the drainage of 
 the great Nile Valley. The most intelligent natives and 
 traders thought that all the rivers of the upper part of 
 that valley flowed into Tanganyika. But the barometers 
 told me that to do so the waters must flow uphill. The 
 great rivers and the great lakes all rnako their waters con- 
 verge into the deep trough of the valley, which is a full 
 inch of the bai'ometer lower than the Upper Tanganyika. 
 
 After being thwarted, baffled, robbed, worried almost to 
 death in following the central line of drainage down, I 
 have a sore longing for homo ; have had a perfect surfeit 
 of seeing strange new lands and people, grand mountains, 
 lovely valleys, glorious vegetation of primeval forests, 
 wild beasts, besides great rivers and vast lakes the last 
 most interesting from their huge outflowings, which 
 explains one of the phenomena of the grand old Nile.
 
 342 DE. LIVING STONE : 
 
 Let me explain, but in no boastful style, the mistakes of 
 others who have bravely striven to solve the ancient pro- 
 blem. Poor Speke's mistake was a foregone conclusion. 
 When he discovered the Victoria Nyanza he at once leaped 
 to the conclusion that therein lay the sources of the River 
 of Egypt "20,000 square miles of water," confused by 
 sheer immensity. Ptolemy's small lake "Coloc" is a 
 more correct representation of the actual size of the one 
 of three or four lakes which alone send its outflow to the 
 north. Its name is Okara. Lake Kavirondo is three 
 days distant from it, but connected by a narrow arm. 
 Lake Naibash, or Neibash, is four days from Kavirondo. 
 Baringo is ten days distant, and discharges by a river, the 
 Nagardabash, to the north-east. These three or four 
 lakes, which have been described by several intelligent 
 Suaheli, who have lived for many years on their shores, 
 were run into one huge Victoria Nyanza. But no sooner 
 did Speke and Grant turn their faces to this lake to prove 
 that it contained the Nile fountains than they turned their 
 backs to the springs of the Eiver of Egypt, which are between 
 400 and 500 miles south of the most southerly portion of 
 the Victoria Lake. Every step of their heroic and really 
 splendid achievement of following the river down, took 
 them farther and farther from the sources they sought. 
 But for devotion to the foregone conclusion, the sight of 
 the little ""White Nile " as unable to account for the great 
 river, they must have turned off to the west down into the 
 deep trough of the great valley, and there found lacustrine 
 rivers amply sufficient to account for the Nile and all its 
 phenomena.
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 343 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THEORY OF THE NILE BASIN THE MANYEMA CANNIB A.LS 
 APPEARANCE OF THE NATIVES. 
 
 HE next explorer, Baker, believed as honestly 
 as Speke and Grant, that in the lake-river 
 Albert he had a second source of the Nile to 
 that of Speke. He came farther up the Nile 
 than any other in modern times, but turned 
 when between 600 and 700 miles short of the 
 Caput Nili. He is now employed in a more noble work 
 than the discovery of Nile sources, and if, as all must 
 earnestly wish, he succeeds in suppressing the Nile slave 
 trade, the boon he will bestow on humanity will bo of 
 far higher value than all my sources together. 
 
 When intelligent men like these and Bruce have beeu 
 mistaken, I have naturally felt anxious that no one should 
 come after me and find sources south of mine, which I 
 now think can only be possible by water running up the 
 southern slope of the watershed. But all that can in 
 modern times and in common modesty be fairly claimed is 
 the rediscovery of what had sunk into oblivion, like the 
 circumnavigation of Africa by the Phoenician admiral of 
 one of the Pharaohs about B.C. 600. He was not believed, 
 because ho reported that, in passing round Libya, he had 
 the sun on his right hand. This, to us, who have gone 
 round the Cape from east to west, stamps his tale as 
 genuine. The predecessors of Ptolemy probably gained
 
 344 Dn. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 their information from men who visited this very region, 
 for in the second century of our era he gave in substance 
 \vhat we now find to be genuine geography. 
 
 The springs of the Nile, rising in 10 degs. to 12 degs. 
 south latitude, and their water collecting into two largo 
 lacustrine rivers, and other facts, could have been learned 
 only from primitive travellers or traders the true dis- 
 coverers of what emperors, kings, philosophers all the 
 great minds of antiquity longed to know, and longed 
 in vain. 
 
 The geographical results of four arduous trips in dif- 
 ferent directions in the Manyema country are briefly as 
 follow. The great river Webb's Lualaba, in the centre of 
 the Nile Valley, makes a great bend to the west soon after 
 leaving Lake Moeoro, of at least 180 miles, then turning to 
 the north for some distance, it makes another large sweep 
 west of about 120 miles, in the course of which about 30 
 miles of southing are made. It then draws round to the 
 north-east, receiving the Lomame or Loeki, a large river 
 which flows through Lake Lincoln. After the union, a 
 large lake is formed, with many inhabited islands on it, 
 but this has still to be explored. It is the fourth largo 
 lake in the central line of drainage, and cannot be Lake 
 Albert, for assuming Speke's longitude of Ujiji to bo 
 pretty correct, and my reckoning not enormously wrong, 
 the great central lacustrine river is about five degrees west 
 of Upper and Lower Tanganyika. The mean of many 
 barometric and boiling-point observations made Upper 
 Tanganyika 2, 8 80 feet high. Respect for Speko's memory 
 made me hazard the conjecture that he found it to bo 
 nearly the saiae, but from the habit of writing the annum
 
 HIS LIFE AXt) ADVEXTUKES. S<5 
 
 (k:>ifi, a more slip of the pen mado him say 1,844 feet; 
 but I have more confidence in the barometers than the 
 boiling-points, and they make Tanganyika over 3,000 feet, 
 and the lower part o'f Central Lualaba one inch lower, or 
 about the altitude ascribed to Gondokoro. Beyond tho 
 fourth lake, the water passes, it is said, into large reedy 
 lakes, and is in all probability Petherick's branch tho 
 main stream of the Nile in distinction from the smaller 
 eastern arm which Speke, Grant, and Baker took to be tho 
 River of Egypt. 
 
 Tho Manyerna could give no information about their 
 country, because they never travel. Blood feuds often 
 prevent them from visiting villages three or four miles off, 
 and many at a distance of about thirty miles did not know 
 tho great river, though named to them. No trader had 
 gone so far as I had, and their people cared only for ivory. 
 
 In my attempts to penetrate farther and farther I had 
 but little hopo of ultimate success, for the great amount of 
 westing led to a continual effort to suspend the judgment, 
 lest, after all, I might be exploring the Congo instead of 
 the Nile, and it was only after the two great western 
 drains fell into tho central main, and left but tho two great 
 lacustrine rivers of Ptolemy, that I felt pretty sure of 
 being on tho right track. The great bends west probably 
 form one side of tho groat river above that geographical 
 loop, the other side being tho Upper Tanganyika and tho 
 lake-river Albert. A waterfall is reported to exist between 
 Tanganyika and Albert Nyanza, but I could not go to it ; 
 nor have I seen the connecting link between the two tho 
 upper side of tho loop though I believe it exists. 
 
 Tho Manyerna are certainly cannibals. They eat only
 
 346 DR. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 enemies killed in war. They seem as if instigated by 
 revenge in their man-eating orgies, and on these occasions 
 they do not like a stranger to see them. I offered a large 
 reward in vain to any one who would call me to witness a 
 cannibal feast. Some intelligent men have told me that 
 the meat is not nice, and made them dream of the dead. 
 The women never partake, and I am glad of it, for many 
 of them far down Lualaba are very pretty. They 
 bathe three or four times a-day, and are expert divers 
 for .oysters. Markets are held at stated times, and the 
 women attend them in large numbers, dressed in their 
 best. They are light-coloured, have straight noses, finely 
 formed heads, small hands and feet, and perfect forms. 
 They are keen traders, and look on the market as a great 
 institution. To haggle, and joke, and laugh, and cheat, 
 seem the enjoyments of life. The population, especially 
 west of the river, is prodigiously large. 
 
 Near Lomame the Bakuss, or Bakoons, cultivate coffee, 
 and drink it highly scented with vanilla. Food of all 
 kinds is extremely abundant and cheap. The men smelt 
 iron from the block oxide ore, and are very good smiths. 
 They also smelt copper from the ore, and make large 
 ornaments very cheaply. They are generally fine, tall, 
 strapping fellows, far superior to the Zanzibar slaves, and 
 nothing of the West Coast negro, from \rhom our ideas of 
 Africans are chiefly derived, appears among them no 
 prognathous faces, barn-door mouths, or lark-heels are 
 seen. Their defects arise from absolute ignorance of all 
 the world besides. Strangers never appeared among them 
 before. The terror the guns inspire generally among the 
 Manyema seems to arise among the Bakuss from an idea
 
 HIS LIFE AND ADVENTURES. 847 
 
 that they are supernatural. The effect of gunshot ou a 
 goat was shown in order to convince them that the traders 
 had power, and that the instruments they carried were not, 
 as they imagined, the mere insignia of chieftainship. They 
 looked up to the skies and offered to bring ivory to pur- 
 chase the charm by which lightning was drawn down ; 
 and afterwards, when the traders tried to force a passage 
 which was refused, they darted aside on seeing Banyam- 
 wezi's followers place the arrows in the bowstrings, but 
 stood in mute amazement while the guns mowed them 
 down in great numbers. They use long spears in the 
 thick vegetation of their country with great dexterity, 
 and they have told me frankly, what was self-evident, 
 that, but for the firearms, not one of the Zanzibar slaves 
 or half-castes would ever leave their country. 
 
 There is not a single great chief in all Manyema. No 
 matter what name the different divisions of people bear 
 Manyema, Balegga, Babire, Bazire, Bakoos there is no 
 political cohesion, not one king or kingdom. Each head- 
 man is independent of every other. The people are indus- 
 trious, and most of them cultivate the soil largely. We 
 found them everywhere very honest. When detained at 
 Bambarre, we had to send our goats and fowls to the 
 Manyema villages to prevent them being all stolen by the 
 Zanzibar slaves. The slave-owners had to do the same. 
 Manyema land is the only country in Central Africa I have 
 seen where cotton is not cultivated, spun, and woven. The 
 clothing is that known in Madagascar as " lambas," or 
 grass cloth, made from the leaves of the " muale " palm. 
 They call the good spirit above " Ngulu," or the prent 
 one, and the spirit of evil, who resides in the deep,
 
 CIS DS. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 "Mulambu." A hot fountain near Bambarro is sup- 
 posed to belong to this being, the author of death by 
 drowning and other misfortunes. 
 
 * * # # * 
 
 I know about 600 miles of the long watershed of South 
 Central Africa pretty fairly. From this the majority of 
 the vast number of the springs of the Nile do unquestion- 
 ably arise and form great mains of drainage in the great Nile 
 Valley, which begins in latitude 10 degs. to 12 degs. south ; 
 but in the 700 miles four fountains are reported, which are 
 different from all I have seen, in rising from the base of 
 an earthen mountain as full-grown gushing springs, each 
 of which, at no great distance off, becomes a large river. 
 I have heard of this remarkable mound 300 miles distant 
 on the south-west. Mr. Oswell and I heard that the 
 Upper Zambesi, or Liambai, rose at this one point ; then 
 intelligent natives mentioned it 180 miles off, on the east, 
 and again 159 from it on the north-east, and also in the 
 Manyema country, 100 miles north-east. Intelligent 
 Arabs who have visited the mound and fountains, spoke 
 of them as a subject of wonder, and confirmed all my 
 previous information. I cannot doubt of their existence. 
 I have even given names, by anticipation, to the fountains 
 whose rivers I knew. 
 
 But on the next point, which, if correct, gives these 
 fountains a historic interest, I speak with very great 
 diffidence, and would fain apologise for mentioning on 
 the dim recollections of boyhood, and without a single 
 book of reference, to hazard the conjecture that these 
 fountains, rising together, and flowing, two north into the 
 Nile, and two south to Inner Ethiopia, are probably tlio
 
 HIS LIPE AND ADVENTURE*.. 819 
 
 sources of the Nile mentioned to Herodotus by the secre- 
 tary of Minerva, in the city of Sais, in Egypt. The idea 
 imparted by the words of the ancient historian was that 
 the waters of the sources \velled up in unfathomable 
 fountains, and then parted half to Egypt, and the other 
 half to Inner Ethiopia. The ancient traveller or trader 
 who first brought the report down to Egypt would scarcely 
 bo so precise as to explain that waters that seem to issue 
 from nearly one spot flowed on to opposite slopes of tho 
 watershed (sic.} The north-east fountain (Bartle Frere's) 
 flows, as the large River Lufira, into Kamolondo, one of 
 four large lakes, in which is Lualaba, the centre line of 
 drainage. Then that on the north-west of the mound 
 Young's fountain flows through Lake Lincoln, and, as 
 the River Lomame, joins Webb's Lualaba before the fourth 
 large lake is formed, of which the outflow is said to be 
 into Petherick's branch. Two certainly flow north, and 
 two as certainly flow south ; for Palmerston's fountain on 
 tho south-west is the source of the Liambai, or Upper 
 Zambesi, and Oswell's fountain on tho south-east is the 
 Kafue, which, far down, joins the same river in Inner 
 Ethiopia. I advance the conjecture merely for what it is 
 worth, and not dogmatically. 
 
 Geographers will be interested to know tho plan I pro- 
 pose to follow. I shall at present avoid Ujiji, and go 
 about south-west from this to Fipa, which is east of and 
 near the south end of Taganyika; then round the same 
 south end, only touching- it again at Pambette; thence 
 resuming south-west course to cross the Chambezi, and 
 proceed along the southern shores of Lake Bangweolo, 
 which, being in latitude 12 dogs, south, tho course will bo
 
 350 DE. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 due-west to the ancient fountains of Herodotus. From 
 them it is about ten days north to Katanga, the copper 
 mines of which have been worked for ages. The mala- 
 chite ore is described as so abundant that it can only be 
 mentioned by the coalheavers' phrase "practically inex- 
 haustible." 
 
 About ten days north-east of Katanga, very extensive 
 underground rock excavations deserve attention as very 
 ancient. The natives ascribe their formation to the Deity 
 alone. They are remarkable for all having water laid on 
 in running streams, and the inhabitants of large districts 
 can all take refuge in them in case of invasion. Return- 
 ing from them to Kantanga, twelve days north-north- 
 west, I propose to take to the southern end of Lake 
 Lincoln. I wish to go down through it to the Lomame, 
 and into "Webb's Lualaba, and home. I was mistaken in 
 the information that a waterfall existed between Tan- 
 ganyika and Albert Nyanza. Tanganyika is of no in- 
 terest, except in a very remote degree, in connection with 
 the sources of the Nile. But what if I am mistaken, too, 
 about the ancient fountain ? Then we shall see. I know 
 the rivers. They are said to form two north and two 
 south, and in battling down the central line of drainage, 
 the enormous amount of westing it mado caused me at 
 times to feel as if running my head against a stone wall. 
 It might, after all, be the Congo ; and who would care to 
 run the risk of being put into a cannibal-pot and converted 
 into black man for anything less than the grand old Nile ? 
 But when I found that the Lualaba forsook its westing, 
 and received, through Lake Kamolondo, Bartle Frere's 
 great river, and that afterwards, farther down, it takes
 
 HIS LIFE ASD ADVENTURES. 351 
 
 in Young's great stream through Lake Lincoln, I ven- 
 tured to think that I was on the right track. Two great 
 rivers arise somewhere on the western end of the water- 
 shed, and flow north. Two other large rivers rise in the 
 same quarter, and flow south, as the Zambesi, or Liambai, 
 and the Kafue, into Inner Ethiopia. Yet I speak with 
 diffidence. 
 
 I turn to the seventh hundred miles of the great water- 
 shed with pleasure, and hope I want no companion now, 
 though discovery means hard work. Some can mako 
 what they call theoretical discoveries by dreaming. I 
 should like to offer a prize for an explanation of the cor- 
 relation of the structure and economy of the watershed 
 with the structure and economy of the great lacustrine 
 rivers, in the production of the phenomena of the Nile. 
 The prize cannot be undervalued by competitors even who 
 may have only dreamed of what has given me very great 
 trouble, though they may have hit on the division of 
 labour in dreaming, and each discovered one or two 
 hundred miles. In the actual discovery, so far, I went 
 two years and six months without once tasting tea, coffee, 
 or sugar, and, except at Ujiji, have fed on buffaloes, 
 rhinoceroses, elephants, hippopotamus, and cattle of that 
 sort.
 
 o52 DE. LIVINGSTONE: 
 
 CHAPTEE XVI. 
 
 LAST LABOURS DEATH AND CnARACTm. 
 
 doubts may have been 
 entertained in a former part of this 
 narrative as to tho then fate of the 
 great African traveller, there is now 
 authentic information that Dr. 
 Livingstone is no more. After re- 
 ceiving supplies at Ujiji at the end of 1871, Dr. Living- 
 stone resolved, with a rare and noble enthusiasm, to 
 continue his explorations of the region to the south and 
 west of Lake Tanganyika, where he had discovered a 
 number of great lakes and rivers which he believed to be 
 the head sources of the Nile. 
 
 It will be seen, on reference to Dr. Livingstone's last 
 communication, dated 1st July, 1872, that the account 
 given by the doctor's servants of his latest movements 
 agrees i~ the main with the route sketched out by the 
 traveller himself before leaving Unyanyembo. His inten- 
 tion was to go southwards to TJfipa, then round the south 
 end of Tanganyika, and, crossing the Chambeze, to proceed 
 west along the shore of Lake Bangweolo. Being then in 
 latitude 12 deg. south, his wish was to go straight west to 
 the ancient fountains reported at that end of the water- 
 shed, then to turn north to tho copper mines of Katanga,
 
 HIS LIFE AJTD ADVENTURES. 353 
 
 and, after visiting the underground excavations, to proceed 
 to the head of Lake Lincoln, whence he would retire along 
 Lake Kamolindo towards Ujiji and home. He distinctly 
 stated that it was not his intention to return northward 
 through the Manyuemo country ; and as he estimated the 
 duration of his journey from Ujiji and back again at 
 eight months, it is not unreasonable to infer that the 
 design had boon completely carried out, and that Living- 
 stone was on his homeward journey when attacked by the 
 disease to which he fell a victim. 
 
 From information given by the doctor's servant, Chumah, 
 to Lieutenant Cameron, commanding the Livingstone East 
 Coast Expedition, it appears Livingstone proceeded from 
 Ujiji to the middle of the northern shore of Lake Bemba 
 (Bangweolo), and that, being unable to cross it, he 
 retraced his steps, and rounded it to the southward, cross- 
 ing, besides the Chambeze, three other rivers which flowed 
 into the lake. He then went in search of the ancient 
 fountains of Herodotus, and eventually turned to the east- 
 ward and crossed the Luapula. After marching for some 
 diiys through an extremely marshy country, in which, 
 sometimes for three hours at a time, the waters stood 
 above the waists of the travellers, the doctor succumbed 
 to an attack of dysentery, from which he had beta, suffer- 
 ing for some months past. Although well supplied with 
 stores and medicines, he seems to have had a presentiment 
 that the attack would prove fatal. Ho rode a donkey, 
 but was subsequently carried, and thus arrived at Muilala 
 beyond Lake Bemba, in Bisa country, when he said, 
 "Build me a hut to die in." The hut was built by his 
 followers, who first made him a bed. He suffered greatly, 
 
 AA
 
 354 EH. 
 
 groaning day and night. On the third day ho said, " I 
 am very cold ; put more grass over the hut." He prayed 
 much, and when at Muilala he said, "I am going 
 home." Kitumbo, chief of Bisa, sent flour and beans, and 
 behaved well to the party. On the fourth day Livingstone 
 became insensible, and died about midnight. Magnahra, 
 his servant, was present. His last entry in tho diary was 
 on April 27th. He spoke much and sadly of his home 
 and family. When, first seized he told his followers he 
 intended to exchange everything for ivory, to give to them, 
 and to push on to Ujiji and Zanzibar, and try to reach 
 England. On the day of his death the followers seventy- 
 nine in number, two having died and several deserted 
 consulted what to do. The Nassick Boys determined to 
 preserve the remains. They were afraid to inform the 
 chief of Livingstone's death. The secretary removed the 
 body to another hut, around which he built a high fence, 
 to insure privacy. They opened the body and removed 
 the internals, which were placed in a tin box and buried 
 inside the fence, under a large tree. Jacob Wainright cut 
 an inscription on the tree as follows: "Dr. Livingstone 
 died on May 4th, 1873," and superscribed tho name of tho 
 head-man, Susa. The body was preserved in salt, and 
 iHed in tho sun for twelve days. Kltumbo was then in- 
 formed of tho death, and beat drum and fired, as a token 
 of respect, and allowed the followers to remove the body, 
 which was placed in a coffin formed of bark, then journeyed 
 to Unyanyembe about six months, sending an advance 
 party with information, addressed to Livingstone's son, 
 which met Cameron. The body arrived at Unyanyembe ten 
 days after tho advance party, and rested there a fortnight.
 
 TILS LIFE AST) ADVENTURES. 355 
 
 Hero Livingstone's remains were put in another bark 
 case, smaller, done up in a ball to deceive natives, who 
 objected to the passage of the corpse, which was thus 
 carried to Zanzibar, Livingstone's clothing, papers, and 
 instruments accompanying the body. 
 
 It will thus be seen that after braving the toils, the 
 privations, and the sickness of thirty years' residence in 
 Africa, and of twenty years' active travel through savage 
 and pestilential regions never before trod by the foot of 
 civilised man, this heroic missionary died almost within 
 grasp of the object of his life. 
 
 Livingstone, like many other great men, was remark- 
 able for the simplicity of his character. He was a man 
 truly of simple habits and noble aims, living not for him- 
 self, but for Africa and the best interests of mankind. There 
 was a cosmopolitan character about his labours that made 
 all men claim a right of property in him, and follow his 
 wanderings with a common interest. lie attempted, in a 
 spirit of sublime self-devotion, the solution of certain great 
 problems in which religion and science are equally 
 interested, and with indomitable perseverance and match- 
 loss intrepidity ho endeavoured to finish his herculean 
 task. A noble hope inspired him, nnd an unwavering 
 faith in God was tlio secret of his unbending firmness and 
 resolution in all his difficulties and trials. Another namo 
 is added to tho long roll of heroic men whose memories 
 are surrounded with a halo of true glory, and whoso 
 mortal remains are worthy of a place in the venerable 
 precincts of Westminster Abbey. 
 
 K>NDON: R. K. BURT & co., PRINTERS, WINE OFFICE COURT.