Ex Libris C. K. OGDEN r>i A POPULAR ACCOUNT MISSIONARY TRAVELS AND RESEARCHES SOUTH AFRICA. By DAVID LIVINGSTONE. M.D. .T>^^-^: .T^^ ^^ f(h; ■,^,"7?n Jh'.-" j^:-^ ;J^&r Mode in which the female Hippopotamus carries her calf wbtle youn§ WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS. LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. ISGl. The right of Tiavslalvm is ratervfd. ( iii ) CONTENTS. INTRODUCTION. FAGK. Personal Sketch. — Voyage to the Cape and Algoa Bay. . . 1 CHAPTER I. Residence at Kuruman, Lepelole, and Kolobeng. — Sketch OF CAREER OF SeCHELE, CHIEF OF THE BaKWAINS, AND NOTICES OF HIS TRIBE 8 CHAPTER II. The Boers: their infamous treatment of natives. — The Kalahari Desert. — Bushmen and Bakalahari 23 CHAPTER III. Crossing the Desert. — The Zouga. — Discovery of Lake Ngami. — Return to Kolobeng 38 CHAPTER IV. Second and third journeys from Kolobeng. — The Chore. — Ravages of Tsetse. — The Makololo : career of their CHIEF SeBITUANE. DISCOVERY OF THE ZaMBESI. SlAVE- trade. — Return to the Cape 51 CHAPTER V. Last journey from Cape Town. — The Kaiahari : its plants AND animals. — Griquas AND Bechuanas 65 2015G-4 iv CONTENTS. CHAPTER VI. PAGE. KuRUMAX. — Missionaries : their duties and labours. — Out- BAGE OF Boers. — Retaliation. — Notices of Bakwains. .. 75 CHAPTER YII. Diseases of animals. — The Lion. — Serpents. — Native customs, — Bamangwato Hills, — The Ostrich 90 CHAPTER Vni. Missionary labours, — Trees, — Bushmen, — The Sanshureh and Chobe 106 CHAPTER IX. Linyanti — The chief Sekeletu. — Customs of the Makololo 121 CHAPTER X. African fever, — The Makalaka. — Divisions of South • African family 132 CHAPTER XI. Linyanti to Sesheke, — The Leeambye 139 CHAPTER XII. Ascent of the Leeambye. — Bakotse Valley, — ■ Banyeti. — Naliele. — Mambari. — The Marile, — Sesheke 145 CHAPTER ,XIII, Linyanti, — Descent of the Chobe. — Ascent of the Leeambye. 156 CONTENTS. V CHAPTER XIV. rAGE. ASCEXT OF THE LeEAMEYE CONTINUED. — GONYE FaLLS. — NaLIELE. — LiBONTA. — AnIMAL LIFE 1G7 CHAPTER XV. Ascent of the Leeba. — The Balonda and Ambonda. — Femalk CHIEFS 178 CHAPTER XVI. Land journey to Shinte's town. — ■Reception by the chief. — His friendship 192 CHAPTER XVII. The Lonaje. — Cazembe.— Flooded plains. — The Lokalueje. — The Lotembwa. — The chief Katema. — Lake Dilolo .. 206 CHAPTER XVIII. The Kasai. — Crossing the nuana Loke. — Troubles in the territory of the Chiboque .. 222 CHAPTER XIX. Through Bashinje territory to Cassanqe, and thence by Tala Mungongo, the Basongo territory, and the districts of Ajibaca and Golungo Alto, to Loanda 239 CHAPTER XX. The Makololo at Loanda. — The city and district. — Icollo I Bengo. — District of Cazengo. — The Lucalla. — District and town of Massangano. — Return to Golungo Alto .. 264 CHAPTER XXL Residence at Golungo Alto. — Ambaca. — Pungo Andongo. — The CoANZA 276 vi CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXII. PAGE. Tala Mijngk)ngo. — Cassange. — Oedeal. — Teade of LoAia)A. — The Quango. — Bashinje. — More difficulties with the Chiboque. — Feeders of the Congo. — The Loajima .. .. 287 CHAPTER XXIIL Detour southward. — Cabaxgo. — The Kasai and Quango. — The seasons. — Valley of the Loembwe. — Ceosslnq the Kasai 303 CHAPTER XXIV. The Lotembwa. — Watersheds. — Position of Rocks. — Rain south and north of Equator. — Dilolo. — The Leeba. — Social condition of tribes. — Reception at Libonta.. .. 313 CHAPTER XXV. Naliele. — Gonte. — LrNTANTi. — The chief Sekeletu. — Notices of the Makololo. — Diseases, climate, &c 327 CHAPTER XXVI. Descent of the Zambesi. — Victoria Falls. — The Lekone. — Ancient Lakes. — The Batoka. — The Unguesi 338 CHAPTER XXVII. Natural History and Geology. — The Mozuma. — The Batoka, and their chief monze 351 CHAPTER XXVIII. Notices of the Elephant.— The chief Semalembue. — The Kafue. — Albinos. — The chief Mbueuma 367 CHAPTER XXIX. Crossing the Loangwa. — Zumbo. — Difficulties with Mpende. — Crossing the Zambesi, — Game-laws. — District of Chicova 381 CONTENTS. vii CHAPTER XXX. PAGE. Animals. — The Ue. — The Bantai. — Ordeal Muavi, — Arrival AT Tete 395 CHAPTER XXXI. Notices of Tete and its vicikity. — Productions 407 CHAPTER XXXII. Descent of the Zambesi. — Senna. — The Quilimane and Zam- besi. — The MuTa. — Kilimane. — Voyage to Mauritius, and thence to England 419 Appendix 429 Index 432 ( i^ ) LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 1 . The Victoria Falls of the Leeambye or Zambesi River . . . . Frontispiece, 2. Mode in which the female Hippopotamus carries her Calf while young In Title-page. 3. The Missionary's Escape from the Lion To face page 1 4. The Hopo, or Trap for driving Game — 21 5. The Pit at the extremity of the Hope — 21 6. Hottentots. — Women returning from the Water and Men around a dead Hartebeest — 40 7. Lake Ngami, discovered by Oswell, Murray, and Livingstone — 46 8. New African Antelopes (Poku and Leche') — 50 9. The Tsetse 56 10. Three Lions attempting to drag down a Buffiilo — 94 11. Mopane or Bauhinia Leaves, with the Insect and its edible Secretions Ill 12. Egyptian Pestle and Mortar, Sieves, Corn-vessels, and Kilt 133 13. A Batoka Hoe 135 14. A new or striped variety of Eland, found north of Sesheke .. — 145 15. The Marimba, or Musical Instrument of the Balonda 200 16. Shell, and Ornament made of its end , .. 205 17. Kiver Scenery on the West Coast — 225 18. Seed-vessel of the Grapple-plant 233 19. Bashinje Chief's mode of wearing the Hair 246 20. Scene in Angola. — The Angolese Palanquin under a Baobab and Euphorbias — 254 21. Ancient Spinning and Weaving, pei-petuated in Africa at the present day. — From Wilkinson's ' Ancient Egyptians ' 270 22. Double-handled Angola Hoe 275 23-25, Londa Ladies' modes of wearing the Hair 300,301 26. A young Man's fashion 302 27. An African Chief's notion of Dignity 318 28. Boat capsized by a Hippopotamus robbed of her young . . — 329 29. Bashukulompo mode of wearing the Hair 365 30. Female Elephant pursued witli Javelins, protecting her young — 368 31. Coins of Faustina the Elder and Septimius Severus 370 32. The Travelling Procession interrupted — 384 33. The Buaze 414 34. The Kumbanzo Leaves, Pods, and Seeds 417 35. Map of South Africa, showing Dr. Livingstone's Route .. ..At the end. JOURNEYS AND RESEARCHES SOUTH AFRICA. INTEODUCTION. Personal Sketch. — Voyage to the Cape akd Algoa Bat. My own inclination would lead me to say as little as possible about myself ; but several friends have suggested that, as the reader likes to know something about an author, a short account of my origin and early life would lend additional interest to this book. Such is my excuse for the following egotism. My great-grandfather fell at the battle of Culloden, fighting for the old line of kings ; and my grandfather was a small fanner in Ulva, where my father was born. It is one of that cluster of the Hebrides thus alluded to by Walter Scott : — " And Ulva dark, and Colonsay, And all the group of islets gay That guard famed Stafla round."* My grandfather was intimately acquainted with all the legends which that great writer has since, made use of in the ' Tales of a Grandfather' and other works. As a boy I remember listening to him with delight. Many of his never- ending stock of stories M^ere wonderfully like those I have since heard while sitting by the African fires. My grand- mother used to sing Gaelic songs, some of which, as she believed, had been composed by captive islanders languishing hopelessly among the Turks. * Lord of tlie Isles, canto iv. 2 THE AUTHOR'S ANCESTORS. Ixtrod. My grandfather could give particulars of his ancestors for six generations before him ; and the only point of the tradi- tion I feel proud of is this. One of these poor islanders was renowned in the district for great wisdom : and when he was on his deathbed, he called his children around him and said, " I have searched carefully through all the traditions of our family, and I never could discover that there was a dishonest man among our forefathers. If therefore any of you should take to dishonest ways, it will not be because it runs in our blood. I leave this precept with you : Be honest." Should I in the following pages perchance fall into errors, I hope they will be regarded a^ unintentional, and not as indicating that I have forgotten our ancient motto. This event took place at a time when the Highlanders, according to Macaulay, were much like the Cape Caffres, and any one could escape punishment for cattle-stealing by presenting a share of the plunder to his chieftain. Our ancestors were Eoman Catholics ; they were made Protestants by the laird coming round with a man who carried a yellow staff", and the new religion went long after- wards, perhaps it does so still, by the name of " the religion of the yellow stick." Finding his farm in Ulva insufficient to support a numerous family, my grandfather removed to Blantyre Works, a large cotton manufactory^ on the beautiful Clyde, above Glasgow ; and his sons, who had received the best education the Hebrides afforded, were gladly taken as clerks by the proprietors, Monteith and Co. He himself was highly esteemed for his unflinching honesty, and was employed in the conveyance of large sums of money from Glasgow to the works. In his old age, according to the custom of that company, he was pensioned off, so as to spend his declining years in ease and comfort. My imcles all entered His Majesty's service during the last French war, either as soldiers or sailors ; but my father re- mained at home, and, though too conscientious ever to grow rich as a small tea-dealer, yet by his winning ways he made the heartstrings of his children twine around him as firmly as if he could have bestowed upon them every worldly advantage. He reared xis in connection with the Kirk of Scotland — an establishment which has been an incalculable blessing to that country — but he afterwards left it, and for the last twenty Ln-trod. early labours AND INSTRUCTION. 3 years of his life held the office of deacon of an independent church in Hamilton. He deserved my lasting gratitude for presenting me from infancy with a consistent example of piety like that which is so beautifully portrayed in Bui-ns' ' Cottar's Saturday night.' He died in Febniaiy, 1856, in peaceful hope of mercy through the death of our Lord and Saviour. I was then on my way below Zumbo, anticipating no greater plea- sure than sitting by his cottage fire and telling him my travels. I revere his memory. The earliest recollection of my mother recalls a picture often seen among the Scottish poor — that of the anxious housewife striving to make both ends meet. At the age of ten I went to the factory as a " piecer." \Yith a part of my first week's wages I pui'chased Euddiman's ' Eudiments of Latin,' and studied that language for many years with unabated ardour, at an evening school which met between the hours of eight and ten. I continued my labours when I got home till twelve o'clock, or later, if my mother did not interfere by snatching the books out of my hands. I had to be back in the factory by six in the morning, and my work lasted, with intervals for breakfast and dinner, till eight o'clock at night. I read in this yvaj man}' of the classical authors, and knew Virgil and Horace better at sixteen than I do now. Our schoolmaster was supported in part by the company ; he was attentive and kind, and so moderate in his charges that all who wished for education could obtain it. Some of my schoolfellows are now in positions far above what appeared likely then ; and if the system were established in England, it would pi-ove a never- ending blessing to the poor. I read everything I could lay my hands on except novels. Scientific works and books of travels were my especial delight; though my father, believing, with many of his time who ought to have known better, that the former were inimical to religion, would have preferred to see me poring over the ' Cloud of Witnesses,' or Boston's ' Fourfold State.' My difi"erence of opinion reached the point of open rebellion, and his last application of the rod was on my refusal to peruse Wilberforce's ' Practical Christianity.' This dislike to religious reading continued for years ; but having lighted on those admirable works of Dr. Thomas Dick, ' The Philosophy of b2 4 RELIGIOUS IMPRESSIONS. IxmoD. Eeligion,' and ' The Philosophy of a Future State,' it was gratifying to find that he had enforced my own conviction, that religion and science were friendly to each other. Great pains had been taken by my parents to instil the doctrines of Christianity into my mind, and I had no difificiilty in understanding the theory of free salvation by the atonement of our Saviour, hut it was only about this time that I began to feel the necessity of a personal application of the doctrine to my own case. The change was like what it may be sup- posed would take place were it possible to cure a case of " colour blindness." The fullness with which the pardon of all our guilt is offered in God's book drew forth feelings of affectionate love to Him who bought us with His blood, which in some small measure has influenced my conduct ever since. But I shall not again refer to the inner spiritual life which I believe then began, nor do I intend to specify with any promi- nence the evangelistic labours to which the love of Christ has since impelled me : this book will speak not so much of what has been done, as of what still remains to be performed before the gospel can be said to be preached to all nations. In the glow of love which Christianity inspires, I soon re- solved to devote my life to the alleviation of human misery. I felt that to be a pioneer of Christianity in China might lead to the material benefit of some portions of that immense empire ; and therefore set myself to obtain a medical educa- tion, in order to be qualified for that enterprise. In identifying the herbs mentioned in my first medical treatise, that extraordinary old work on astrological medicine, Culpeper's ' Herbal,' I had the guidance of a book on the plants of Lanarkshire, by Patrick. Limited as my time was, I managed to scour the whole countiy-side, " collecting sim- ples." Deep and anxious were my studies on the still more pei-plexing profundities of astrology, and I got as far into that abyss of fantasies as my author said he dared to lead me. It seemed perilous ground to tread on farther, for the dark hint appeared to my youthful mind to loom towards " selling soul and body to the devil." These excursions, often in company with brothers, one now in Canada, and the other a clergj'man in the United States, gi-atified my intense love of nature ; and though we generally returned so hungry and fatigued that the IXTKOD. YOUTHFUL EXCURSIONS. 5 embryo parson shed tears, we yet discovered so many inte- resting things that he was always eager to join us. On one of these exploring tours — long before geology was so popular as it is now — we entered a limestone quarry. It is impossible to describe the wonder Avith which I began to col- lect the shells of the carboniferous limestone which crops out in High Blantyre and Cambuslang. A quarr}-man looked at me with that pitying eye which the benevolent assume when viewing the insane. "However," said I, "did these shells come into these rocks?" "When God made the rocks, He made the shells in them," was the damping reply. My reading in the factory was carried on by placing the book on a portion of the spinning jenny, so that I could catch sentence after sentence as I passed at my work ; I thus kept up a pretty constant study undistui'bed by the roar of the machinery. To this part of my education I owe my power of completly abstracting my mind from surrounding noises, so as to read and write with perfect comfort amidst the play of children or the dancing and songs of savages. The labour of cotton-spinning, to which I was promoted in my nineteenth year, was excessively severe on a slim lad, but it was well paid, and enabled me to support myself while attending medical and Greek classes in Glasgow in winter, and the divinity lectures of Dr. Wardlaw in summer. Looking back now on that period of toil, I cannot but feel thankful that it formed such a material part of my early education ; and were I to begin life over again, I should like to pass through the same hardy training. I never received a farthing from any one, and should have accomplished my project of going to China as a medical missionary by my own efforts, had not some friends advised my joining the London Missionary Society on account of its unsectarian character. It "sends neither episcopacy, nor presbyterianism, nor independency, but the gospel of Christ to the heathen " This exactly agreed with my ideas of what a Missionary Society ought to do ; but it was not without a pang that I offered myself, for it was not agreeable to one accustomed to work his own way to become in a measiu'e dependent on others. Time and travel have not effaced the feelings of respect I imbibed for the inhabitants of my native village. For mo- 6 MEDICAL DIPLOMA. Ixtrod. rality, honesty, and intelligence, they were in general good specimens of the Scottish poor. In addition to the common run of men, there were some characters of sterling worth and ability, who exerted a most beneficial influence on the youth of the place by imparting gi-atuitous religious instruction.* 3Iuch intelligent interest was felt by the villagers in all public (j^uestions, and they furnished a proof that education did not render them an unsafe portion of the population. They much respected those of the neighbouring gentry who, like the late Lord Douglas, placed some confidence in their sense of honour. Through the kindness of that nobleman, the poorest among us could stroll at pleasure over the ancient domains of Bothwell, and other spots hallowed by venerable associations ; and few of us could view the dear memorials of the past without feeling that these monuments were our own. The mass of the work- ing people of Scotland have read history, and are no levellers. They rejoice in the memories of " Wallace and Bruce and a' the lave," who are still much revered as the fonner champions of freedom. AYhile foreigners imagine that we want the spirit to overturn aristocracy, we in tnath hate those stupid revolu- tions which sweep away time-honoured institutions, dear alike to rich and poor. Having finished the medical curriculum and presented a thesis on a subject which required the use of the stethescope for its diagnosis, I unwittingly procured for myself an exami- nation rather more severe than usual, in consequence of a difi"erence of opinion between me and the examiners as to whether this instrument could do what was asserted. How- ever, I was admitted a Licentiate of Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons, and it was with unfeigned delight I became a member of a profession which with unwearied energy pursues from age to age its endeavours to lessen human woe. But though now qualified for my original plan, the opium war was raging, and it was deemed inexpedient for me to pro- * The reader will pardon my mentioning the names of two of tliese most worthy men — David Hogg, who addressed me on his death-bed with tlie words, " Now, lad ! make religion the every-day business of your life, and not a tiling of fits and starts ; for if you do not, temptation and other things will get the- bettfiv of you ;" and Thomas Burke, an old Forty-second Peninsula soldier, who has been incessant and never weary in good works for about I'orty year!). Meji like these are an honour to their country and profession. INIT.OD. KUnUilAN MISSION STATIOX. 7 ccecl to China. I had hoped to gain access to that then closed empire by means of the healing art ; but there being no pros- pect of an early peace, I was induced to turn my thoughts to Africa; I embarked in 1840, and reached the Cape after a voyage of three months. I shortly aftervvards went to Algoa Bay, and soon proceeded inland to the Kuruman mission station iu the Bechuana country'. This station is about seven hundred miles from Cape Town, and had been established, nearly thirty years before, by Messrs. Hamilton and Mofiat. The mission- houses and church are built of stone. The gardens, irrigated by a rivulet, are well stocked with fruit-trees and vines, and 3'ield European vegetables and grain readily. The pleasant- ness of the place is enhanced by the contrast it presents to the surrounding scenery, and the fact that it owes all its beauty to the manual labour of the missionaries. Externally it pre- sents a picture of civilised comfort to the adjacent tribes ; and the printing-press, worked by the original founders of the mission, and several younger men who have entered into their labours, gradually diffuses the light of Christianit}- through the neighbouring region. This oasis became doubly interesting to me, from something like a practical exposition of the text, jilark x. 29; for after nearly four years of African life as a bache- lor, I screwed up courage to put a question beneath one of the fi-ait-trees, the result of which was that in 1844 I became iinited iu marriage to ilr. Moffat's eldest daughter, Mary. Having been born in the country, and being expert in household matters, she was always the best spoke in the wheel at hoine ; and when I took her with me on two occasions to Lake Xgami, and far beyond, she endured more than some who have written large books of travels. In process of time our solitude was cheered by three boys and a girl, and I think it useful to mention that we never had the least difficulty in teaching them to speak English. We made it a rule never to talk to them, nor allow them to talk to us, except in our own tongiie. Indeed the}" rarely attempted to use the native language, though they spoke it perfectly. 'When they went on board ship they refused to utter another word of it, and have now lost it entirely. In consequence of droughts at our station further inward, we were mainly dependent for supplies of food on Kuraman, and were often indebted to the fruit-trees there and to Mrs, 8 THE AL'THOR'S EMPLOYMENTS. Ciiap. I, Moffat's kind foresight for tlie continuance of good liealth. "When visitors arrive at most mission stations, the best of eveiything is provided for them; but having heard that some graceless fellows, -who had been feasted, went back to the colony, saying, " These missionaries live like fighting cocks," we never made any change in our fare even for our friends. I have spent the sixteen years from 1840 to 1856 in medical and missionaiy labours in Africa, and raj life has not been favourable to literary pursuits. This has made composition irksome to me, and I think I would rather cross the African continent again than compose another book. It is far easier to travel than to write. I intended on going abroad to con- tinue my studies ; but as I could not brook the idea of entering into other men's labours, I undertook, in addition to teaching, building and other handicraft work, which left me generally as much exhausted and unfit for study in the evenings as when I was a cotton-spinner. The want of time for self-improve- ment was the only regret I experienced during my African career. The reader remembering this will make allowances for the deficiencies of a student who has the vanity to think himself " not vet too old to learn." CHAPTEE I. Kesidence at Kuruman, Lepelole, and Kolobeng. — Sketch of CAREER OF SeCHELE, CHIEF OF THE BaKWAINS, AND NOTICES OF HIS TBIBE. The instructions I received from the Directors of the London jMissionary Society led me, as soon as I reached Kuruman or Lattakoo, their farthest inland station from the Cape, to turn my attention to the north. Without waiting longer than was necessary to recruit the oxen, which were pretty well tired hy the long journey from Algoa Bay, I proceeded, in company •with another missionary, to the Bakuena or Bakwains, who are a section of the people called Bechuanas. The Bechuanas are divided into numerous tribes, named CiiAP. I. THE BAKWAIXS. 9 after certain animals, which probably indicates that in former times they were addicted to animal-worship like the ancient Egyptians. The term Bakatla means " they of the monkey ;" Bakuena, "they of the alligator;" Batlapi, " they of the fish," AVhen you wish to ascertain what tribe they belong to, you say, " What do you dance ? " from which it may be inferred that dancing was also a part of their ancient rites. Each tribe has a superstitious dread of the animal after which it is called, and never eats its namesake. They use the term " ila," — hate or dread — in reference to killing it. We find traces of many extinct tribes in individual descendants — such as the Batau, " they of the lion ;" the Banoga, " they of the serpent ;" though no such tribes now exist. The use of the personal pronoun they, Ba-Ma, Wa, Va, or Ova, Am-Ki, &c., prevails very extensively in the names of tribes in Africa. A single individual is indicated by the terms Mo or Le. Thus Mokwain is a single person of the Bakwain tribe, and Lekoa is a single white man or Englishman. Makoa is the name for Englit^hmen. We did not stay long on our first visit to the Bakwains, but reti'aced our steps to Kuruman. As the object I had in view was not, however, to be attained by a temporary excursion, I determined to make a fresh start into the interior as soon as possible. Accordingly, after resting three months at Kuruman, which is a kind of head station, I went to a spot called Lepelole (now Litubariiba). Here I secluded myself from all European society for about six months, in order to obtain a knowledge of the native tongue, and gained by this ordeal an insight into the habits, ways of thinking, laws, and language of the Bakwains, which has proved of incalculable advantage in my intercourse with them ever since. In this, my second journey to Lepelole — so called from a cavern of that name — I began preparations for a settlement, by making a canal to irrigate gardens, from a stream then flowing copiously, but now quite dry. When the work was well advanced, I went northwards to the Bakaa, Bamangwato, and Makalaka tribes, living between 22° and 23° south lat. The Bakaa mountains had before been ^^sited by a trader, who, with his people, all perished from fever. Most of my journey beyond Shokuane was performed on foot, in consequence of the draught oxen being sick. Some of my companions, who K) COJIETS— LIONS. CnAP. I. had recently joined ns, and did not know that I understood a little of their language, were overheard by me discussing my appearance : " He is not strong, he is quite slim, and only ap- pears stout because he puts himself into those bags (trousers); he "will soon knock up." This made my Highland blood rise,. and I kept them all at the top of their speed for days together, until I heard them express a favourable opinion of my pedestrian powers. I returned toKuruman, to bring my luggage to our proposed settlement, and was followed by the news that the tribe of Bakwains, who had shown themselves so friendly towards me, had been driven from Lepelole by the Barolongs. Thus my prospect of forming a settlement there was for the present at an end. One of the periodical wars, for the possession of cattle, had bui'st forth in the land, and had so changed the relations of the tribes to each other, that I v.^as obliged to set out anew to look for a suitable locality for a station. As we journeyed north again, a comet blazed on our sight, exciting the wonder of every tribe we visited. That of 1816 had been followed by an irruption of the Matebele, a tribe of Caffres, and the most cruel enemies the Bechuanas ever knew. The present prodigy they thought might prove as portentous, or might only foreshadow the death of a princijial personage. As some of the Bamangwato people had accompanied me to Kumman, I was obliged to restore them and their goods to their chief Sekomi. This made it necessary to go back to his residence, and, for the first time, I travelled a distance of some hundred miles on ox-back. Eetuniing towards Kuruman, I selected the beautiful valley of Mabotsa (lat. 25^ 1-i' south, long. 26° 30' ?) as the site of a missionary station; and thither I removed in 1843. Here an occurrence took place, which, but for the importunities of friends, I meant to have kejot tc) tell my children when in my dotage. The Bakatla of the village i\labotsa were troubled by lions, which leaped into the cattle-pens by night and destroyed their cows. They even attacked the herds in open day. This was so unusual an occurrence that the people believed them- selves bewitched — " given," as they said, " into the power of the lions by a neighbouring tribe." They went once to attack the animals, but, being rather cowa,rdly in comparison witii CUAP. i. A LION ENCOUNTER. 11 the Becliuanas in general, they returned without slaying any. It is well known that if one in a troop of lions is killed the remainder leave that part of the countiy. The next time, therefore, the herds were attacked, I went with the people to encourage them to rid themselves of the annoyance hy destroying one of the marauders. We found the animals on a small hill covered with trees. The men formed round it in a cu'cle, and gradually closed up as they advanced. Being below on the plain with a native schoolmaster named Mebalwe, I saw one of the lions sitting on a pieee of rock within the ring. Mebalwe fired at him, and the ball hit the rock on which the animal was sitting. He bit at the spot struck, as a dog does at a stick or stone thrown at him ; and then leaping away, broke through the circle and escaped unhurt. If the Bakatla had acted according to the custom of the country, they would have speared him in his attempt to get out, but they were afraid to attack him. When the circle was re- formed, we saw two other lions in it ; but dared not fire lest we should shoot some of the people. The beasts burst through the line, and, as it was evident the men could not be prevailed on to face their foes, we bent our footsteps towards the village. In going round the end of the hill I saw a lion sitting on a piece of rock, about thirty yards off, with a little bush in front of him. I took a good aim at him through the bush, and fired both barrels into it. The men called out, " He is shot, he is shot ! " Others cried, " He has been shot by another man too ; let us go to him ! " I saw the lion's tail erected in anger, and, turning to the people, said, " Stop a little till I load again." When in the act of ramming down the bullets I heard a shout, and, looking half round, I saw the lion in the act of springing upon me. He caught me by the shoulder, and we both came to the ground together. Growling horiibly, he shook me as a terrier dog does a rat. The shock produced a stupor similar to that which seems to be felt by a mouse after the fii'st gripe of the cat. It caused a sort of dreaminess, in which there was no sense of pain nor feeling of terror, though I was quite conscious of all that was happening. It was like what patients partially under the influence of chlorofoi-m describe ; they see the operation, but do not feel the knife. This placidity is probably produced in all animals 12 SECHELE. Chap. I. billed by the carnivora ; and if so, is a merciful j^i'ovision of the Creator for lessening the pain of death. As he had one paAv on the back of my head, I turned round to relieve myself of the weight, and saw his eyes directed to Mebalwe, who was aiming at him from a distance of ten or fifteen yards. His gun, which was a flint one, missed fire in both barrels. The animal immediately left me to attack him, and bit his thigh. Another man, whose life I had saved after he had been tossed by a bulialo, attempted to spear the lion, upon Avhich he turned from Mebalwe and seized this fresh foe by the shoulder. At that moment the bullets the beast had received took effect, and he fell down dead. The whole was the work of a few moments, and must have been his paroxysm of dying rage. In order to take out the charm from him, the Bakatla on the following day made a huge bonfire over the carcase, which was declared to be the largest ever seen. Besides crunching the bone into splinters, eleven of his teeth had penetrated the upper part of my arm. The bite of a lion resembles a gun-shot wound. It is generally followed by a great deal of sloughing and discharge, and ever afterwards l^ains are felt periodically in the part. I had on a tartan jacket, which I believe wiped off the virus from the teeth that pierced the flesh, for my two companions in the affray have both suffered from the usual pains, while I have escaped with only the inconvenience of a false joint in my limb. The wound of the man who was bit in the shoulder actually burst forth afresh on the same month of the following year. This curious point deserves the attention of inquirers. From 1840 to 1845 I was employed in preparatory labours, and associated with other missionaries at Kuruman and Mabotsa. From 1845 to 1849 I worked at Chomiane and Kolobeng, aided only by IMrs. Livingstone and two native teachers. I attached myself to the tribe called Bakuena, or Bakwains, the chief of which, named Sechele, was then living with his subjects at a place called Shokuane. I was from the first struck by his intelligence, and by the especial manner in which we felt drawn to each other. He was tall, rather corpulent, had laigo cj'es, and more of the negro features than is common. As this remarkable man has not onlj' Chap. 1. HIS CHIEFTAINSHIP. 13 embraced Ckristianity, bnt expounds its doctrines to his people, I will here give a brief sketch of his career. His great-grandfather Mochoasele was a great traveller, and the first that ever told the Bak wains of the existence of white men. In his father's lifetime two white men, whom I suppose to have been Dr. Cowan and Captain Donovan, passed through the country (in 1808), and descended the river Limpopo. They and their party all died of fever. The rain-makers, fearing lest their waggons might drive away the rain, ordered them to be thrown into the stream. A son of the chief at whose village they perished remembered, when a boy, pai- taking of one of the horses, and said it tasted like zebra's flesh. The Bakwains were then rich in cattle ; and it is one of the many evidences of the subsequent desiccation of the country', that streams are pointed out where thousands and thousands of cattle formerly drank, and in which water now never flows. When Sechele was still a boy, his father, also named Mochoasele, was murdered by his own people for taking to himself the wives of his rich underchiefs. The children were spared, and their friends invited Sebituane, the chief of the Makololo, who was then in those parts, to reinstate them in the chieftainship. He undertook the task, and surrounded the town of the Bakwains by night. Just as it began to dawn his herald proclaimed in a loud voice that he had come to revenge the death of Mochoasele. His followers, who encircled the place, beat loudly on their shields, and the panic was tremendous. There was a rush like that from a theatre on fire, while the Makololo used their javelins on the terrified fugitives with a dexterity which they alone can emploj-^. Sebituane had given orders that the sons of Mochoasele should be spared. One of the men, meeting Sechele, put him in ward by giving him such a blow on the head with a club as to render him insensible. The usuqDer was killed, and Sechele was restored to the chieftainship. He married the daughters of three of his underchiefs who, on account of their blood relationship, had stood by him in his adversit}'. This is one of the modes adopted for cementing the allegiance of a tribe. They are fond of the relationship to gi'eat families. K you meet a party of strangers, and the 14 SECHELE. . CitAP. I. head-man's connection "witb. a chief is not proclaimecl by his attendants, you may hear him whispering, "Tell him who I am." This usually involves a counting on the fingers of a part of his genealogical tree ; and ends in the important announcement that he is half-cousin to some well-known ruler. The goveiTunent is patriarchal, each man being, by virtue of paternity, chief of his own children, and the greater their number the more his importance increases. The towns are formed of numerous circle of huts, and near the centre of each circle there is a spot called a " kotla," with a fireplace ; here they work, eat, or sit and gossip over the news of the day. A poor man attaches himself to the kotla of a rich one, and is considered a child of the latter. The circle of an underchief is girt by a number of subsidiary circles, and in the middle of all is the great circle of the principal chief, composed of the huts of his wives and blood relations. On the first occasion in which I ever attempted to hold a public religious service, Sechele remarked that it was the custom of his nation to put questions when any new subject was brought before them. He then inquired if my forefathers knew of a future judgment. I replied in the affirmative, and began to describe the scene of the "great white throne, and Him who shall sit on it, from whose face the heaven and earth shall flee away," &c. " You startle me," he replied ; " these words make all my bones to shake ; I have no more strength in me : but my forefathers were living at the same time yours were, and how is it that they did not send them word about these terrible things sooner ? They all passed away into darkness without knowing whither they were going." I explained the geographical barriers in the North, and the gradual spread of knowledge from the South, to which we first had access by means of ships ; adding my belief that, as Christ had declared, the whole world would be enlightened by the Gospel. Pointing to the great Kalahari desert, he replied, " You never can cross that country to the tribes beyond ; it is utterly impossible even for us black men, except in certain seasons, when more than the usual supply of rain falls, and an extraordinary gi'owth of water-melons follows." As soon as he had an opportunity of learning, he set Iiimself to read with such close application that, from being OiAP. I. HIS DESIRE TO CONVERT HIS TRIBE. 15 comparatively thin, the effect of being addicted to the chase, he became corpulent from want of exercise. Pie acquired tlie alphabet on the first day of my residence at Chonuane, and I never went into the town but I was pressed to hear him read some chapters of the Bible. Isaiah was a great favourite with him ; and he was wont to exclaim, " He was a fine man, that Isaiah ; he knew how to speak." He seconded my anxiety that his siibjects should become converts to Christianity, and said, " Do you imagine these people Avill ever believe by your merely talking to them ? I can make them do nothing except b}^ thrashing them ; and if you like, I shall call my head-men, and with our whips of rhinoceros-hide we will soon make them all believe together." The idea of using persuasion to subjects, whose opinion he would not have condescended to ask on any other matter, was especially sui-prising to him. He considered that they ought to be happy to embrace Christianity at his command. During the space of two years and a half he continued to profess to his people his full conviction of its truth, and acted uprightly in all the relations of life. He felt the difficulties of his situation, and often said, " 0, I wish you had come to this countrj' before I was entangled in the meshes of our customs I" In fact, he could not get rid of his superfluous wives without appearing to be ungrateful to their parents, who had done so much for him in his adversity. In the hope of inducing others to accept his new faith, he asked me to have family worship in his house. This I did, and by-and-by I was surprised to hear how well he conducted the prayer in his own simple and beautiful style, for he was a thorough master of his language. At this time we were suffering from the effects of a drought, which was ascribed by the natives to Christianity, and none except his famil)^, whom he ordered to attend, came near bis meeting. " In former times," said he, "when a chief was fond of hunting, all his people got dogs and became fond of hunting too. If he was fond of dancing or music, all showed a liking to these amusements too. If the chief loved beer, they all rejoiced in strong drink. But in this case it is different. I love the Word of God, and not one of my brethren will join me." He continued to make a consistent profession for about 10 BAPTISM OF SECHELE. Ciiaf. I. three years. Perceiving tlie diflSciilties of his case, and feel- ing compassion for the poor women, who were by far the best of our scholars, 1 had no desire that he should be in a hurry to make a full profession by baptism, and put away all his* wives but one. His principal wife, too, was the most unlikely person in the tribe to partake his views. I have seen him again and again send her out of church to put on her gown, and she walked away with her lips shot out, the very picture of unutterable disgust at his new-fangled notions. AYhen he at last applied for baptism, I asked him how, being acquainted with the Bible, he thought he ought to act. He went home, and gave each of his supernumerary wives new clothing, together with all the goods they had been ac- customed to keep in their huts for him. He then sent them to their parents with an intimation that he had no fault to find with them, but that he wished to follow the will of God. When he and his children were baptized, gi-eat numbers came to see the ceremony. Some thought, from a stupid story whicli had been circulated by the enemies to Christianity in the south, that the converts would be made to drink an infusion of " dead men's brains," and were astonished to find that only water was used. Seeing several old men in tears during the service, I afterwards asked them the cause of their weeping. They were crying to see their father, as the Scotch remark of a case of suicide, " so far left to himself." They seemed to think that 1 had throwTi the glamour over him and that he had become mine. All the friends of the divorced wives now became the opponents of our religion. The attend- ance at school and church dwindled down to very few besides the family of the chief. They all continued to treat us with respectful kindness, but to Sechele himself they uttered things which, had they ventured on in former times, would, as he often remarked, have cost them their lives. I pass from the chief to give a rapid sketch of our dealing with his people, the Bakuena, or Bakwains. '\Mien first we went to reside at Chonuane about 6/. worth of goods were given for a small piece of land sufficient for a garden. This purchase seemed strange to a tribe with whom the idea of buj-ing land was entirely new ; but we explained to them that we wished to avoid any cause of future dispute when ground had Chap. 1. PROLONGED DROUGHT. 17 become more valuable. They readily acquiesced, and agreed that a similar piece should be allotted to any other missionar}', at any other place to which the tribe might remove. In our relations with this people w-e exercised no authority whatever. Our control depended entirely on persuasion ; and, having taught them by kind conversation as well as by public instruction, I expected them to do what their own sense of right and wi-ong dictated. Five instances are known to me in which by our influence on public opinion w^ar was prevented ; and where, in individual cases, we failed to do good, the people at least behaved no worse than before. In general they were slow, like all the African people, in coming to a decision on religious subjects ; but in questions affecting their worldly affairs they were keenly alive to their own interests. They were stupid in matters which had not come w^ithin the sphere of their observation, but in other things they showed more intelligence than our otati uneducated peasantry. They are knowing in cattle, sheep, and goats, and can tell exactly the kind of pasturage suited to each. They distinguish with equal judgment the varieties of soil which are best suited to different kinds of gi-ain. They are familiar Avith the habits of wild animals, and are well up in the maxims which embody their ideas of political wisdom. During the first year of our residence at Chonuane wo were visited by one of those droughts which occur from time to time in even the most favoured districts of Africa. ITie belief in the power of rain-makin