T WHD-3P ICtO 1 1^1 %OJITCHO^ %ojnvj-jo^ % K 3AM-3WI- 3 JBRARY-Oc 1 3 8 B I I ^ i ^ 5 S I -> s ? \ VUIMW ^IOS ANGELA S ^OFCALIFO^. - ft ^~* S g= > 8 \\EUNIVER% 5 : , irrl lOSANCElfj V. v>;lUiA%tlJ> ^t-LIBKAKTy/C, Xfflt s I/DT-I H irrl 11 O* %BAINIH&? S 5 I f, I 1 L.OF-CAIIF \ *rl 1 A\\E-UNIVER% &v . ^>^ 5 li * I dOSANCElfj: r> :^r 11 irrl ti ir: t THE WORLD'S WONDERS, AS SEEN BY THE GREAT Tropical and Polar Explorers. BEING AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF EXPLORATION, DISCOVERY AND ADVENTURE IN ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD, AND A HISTORY OF SAVAGE RACES OF MEN, CURIOUS AND FEROCIOUS ANIMALS, STRANGE AND DEADLY SERPENTS AND REPTILES WIERD FORESTS, MYSTERIOUS GROWTHS, AND MARVELOUS NATURAL PHENOMENA. EMBRACING EVERY IMPORTANT DISCOVERY AND ADVENTURE IN THE EXPLORATIONS OF SUCH DISTINGUISHED TRAVELERS AS SPEKE AND GRANT, SIR SAMUEL BAKER AND WIFE. LIVINGSTONE, STANLEY, DU CHAILLU, WALLACE, LONG, SQUIER, GORDON, &C., &C., IN TROPICAL WILDS; ALSO OF SUCH RENOWNED HEROES OF ARCTIC RESEARCH AS SIR JOHN FRANKLIN, DR. KANE, DR. HAYES, CAPT. HALL, LIEUT. SCHWATKA, DE LONG, AND MANY OTHERS; WITH A FULL AND OFFICIAL ACCOUNT OF THE GREELY EXPEDITION AND ITS DISASTROUS RESULTS BY J. W. BUEL, Author of " Travels in Russia and Siberia," " Heroes of the Plains" drv., &*c. SPLENDIDLY EMBELLISHED WITH TWO HUNDRED BEAUTIFUL ENGRAVINGS FHOM DESIGNS BY TIIK EXPLORERS THEMSELVES. " Such hooks teach most valuable lessons of self-control, patience and courage." Christian Intelligencer. "We cannot conceive of a more useful hook than this romantic record to put In the hands.of young peo dime novel young people. Give them facts In proper setting, aud they will have little taste for els." Christian Advocate. Such works are not onlv entertaining and informing, but their whole atmosphere is brmc- lng.---.Vw York Observer. SOLD ONLY BY SUBSCRIPTION. PUBLISHED BY .1. DEWING & COMPANY, SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. Copyright, 1884* by j. w. NORTH. Stack Aantt 6 INTRODUCTORY. THE great and universal need of an encyclopedia of travel and discovery, and a compendium of the most remarkable natural wonders of the world, has prompted the production of this book. In it I have attempted to combine the discoveries and adventures of all the noted travelers and explorers in Tropical and Arctic fields, and in so doing to also furnish a history and description of the animals, reptiles, birds, and savage races of men, in all parts of the world, not omitting the natural phe- nomena peculiar to the Tropics and the Arctic regions. In the restless and ambitious disposition of mankind there is more than curiosity, or a misdirected desire for familiarity with remote or insular phases of nature, for there is also that more wisely considerate wish for such extended knowledge as not alone gratifies curiosity, but which stimulates and energizes an am- bition to extend the domain of civilization, with its attendant resources and comforts. In the preparation of a work so comprehensive in scope, it was necessary to give careful perusal to scores of standard publi- cations, and to collate with critical discrimination from them all ; for condensation was imperative, and yet every interesting or valuable incident found in the histories from which this is com- piled, must needs find place in its appropriate narrative. The principal authors consulted on Tropical discovery are : Dr. Liv- ingstone, Sir Samuel Baker, Capts. Speke and Grant, Stanley, DuChaillu, Wallace, Squier, Long, Cummings, and many other? IV INTRODUCTORY. of less note, while in describing Polar exploration, free use has been made of the works of such distinguished explorers as Sit John Franklin, Capt. McClintock, Dr. Kane, Dr. Hays, Capt. Hall, Lieut. Schwatka, Lieut. DeLong, Lieut. Greely, and others. The matter of this book does not pretend to originality, save as an attempt to combine a very large number of books into one Volume, so arranged as to give clearly the important adventures and discoveries of all the renowned travelers of the past several centuries. In this it may be properly classed as an original work and one of inestimable value, particularly to the young, since for them it must possess such interest as to lead them from the vicious literature of the day and inculcate a desire for whole- some reading, and an ambition to- learn more of the wonders of the world, the rounds to that mystic ladder which reaches up- ward from nature unto nature's God. This book is intended to occupy a place in the literature of travel, adventure and exploration that is tilled by encyclopedias of general knowledge, and its mission is to not only instruct, but also to inspire a lofty courage and generous ambition in the hearts of men, to the end that dark places may become lighted by the lamp of a wise intelligence, and the whole earth be reclaimed and made fruitful with the blessings of a perfect civilization. J. W. BUEL. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. Village of the Malay Archipelago 8 Beautiful Birds of Paradise 10 The Baby Mias 12 Battle with a Mias 14 Skull of the Pig Deer 16 A Struggle with a Python 18 Making Sago 20 Native Men of the Malay Archipelago 22 Native Papuan 23 ADyak Girl 24 A Brazilian Forest 32 Steamship and Water-Spout 36 Volcanic Eruption in Island of Java.. 38 Descendants of the Ancient Peruvians 47 Forest along the Amazon River 52 The Two-Horned Rhinoceros 63 Close Quarters 65 A Lucky Shot 66 Sirboko and his Slaves 69 The Royal Musicians 72 Speke and the Rhinoceros Head 76 " N'Yanzziging" to a Superior 80 Mtesa and his Dog 85 Leading a Wife to Execution 89 Licking up the Pombe 91 Capt. Speke saves the Queen's Life.. 94 Mtesa Reviewing his Army 96 The Palace Guards at Dinner 98 The Rain-Doctor receives his Reward. 107 Kamrasi on his Throne 108 The Frolicsome Dwarf no Mohamed's Return 1 16 Sir Samuel Baker and his Wife 122 Drawing the Hippopotamus Ashore.. 129 The Chief and his Daughter 132 A Shir Village and Man and Woman. 134 Baker Entertains Sptke and Grant 140 Baker quells the Mutiny 155 Latooka Funeral Dance 160 Hunting Large Game 164 Chased by a mad Elephant 166 The old Sorcerer on his Travels 1 74 Latooka Natives and Village 177 Kamrasi's Men manifest their Delight.i85 " The Devil's Own" 190 Native Band and Musical Instruments. 197 Kamrasi's Audience Chamber 202 Page. Brewing and Drinking Pombe 204 A Savage Dance 211 Killing a Crocodile 224 Slave Gang 226 Terrible fate of the Blind Gheik 223 The savages driving the cattle off. 236 Towing the Crocodile ashore 239 Elephants in the river 241 Elephant shaking down fruit , 24-? Music-charmed savages 248 Kabba Rega comes in state 251 The Bonosoora 261 Fight with the Natives 26? Ambushed at every hill 268 Spearing game in the net 272 The Drive of Game 274 Women assisting in the Hunt 276 Charge of the Lioness 278 Defeat of Wat-el-Mek's party 281 Dr. David Livingstone 284 Livingstone Attacked by a Lion .... 287 Scene of the Grand Hunt 289 Feasting after the Hunt 291 Women filling egg-shells with water. .293 Three Lions attack a Buffalo 299 A Buffalo Cow Killing a Lion 301 Hippopotami and young. 306 Wedding Dance of Angola Girls 31^ Attacked by a Mad Hippopotamus.. .320 Victoria Falls 322 Frightened Buffaloes 329 Native African Family 332 Traveling Overland in Africa 335 Terrible Fight with a Leopard 346 Slaves Abandoned to Die 351 A Royal Wedding 357 Livingstone visiting the Cave-Dwellers. 36 1 Animals fleeing from an Overflow .... 363 Ca ching Ants for Food 372 Fight with Sokos 379 Manyuema Warriors 380 Arabs murdering Natives 385 Livingstone waylaid in the Jungle 387 Crossing the Water 392 The Last Day's March 395 Wasting Cartridges on Hippopotami. .405 Women Working in the Fields 407 vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. The Slave Gang 409 Traveling by 'Water 414 Wagogo Warriors 422 Taking"Dowa" 428 The Hunter's Paradise 430 The Mutiny in Camp 432 Dr. Livingstone Found 436 Stanley and the Friendly Elephant .... 440 A Moment of Peril 443 Natural Bridge Island 449 Mtesa and his Principal Officers 454 Human Sacrifices 457 Mtesa's Council Chamber 465 The High Priest 470 Stanley's War Boat 472 Watuta Warrior 475 Types of Manyuema 479 The Manyuema Village 481 Lip Ring and Peculiar Hair Dressing. 483 Horrible Feast of the Cannibals ,485 Native Blacksmiths 490 Dragging the Boats around the Rapids.49i Cannibal Warriors seen by Stanley. . .496 A Cannibal Village 598 A Fight on the River 501 King Chumbiri 503 One of Chumbiri's Wives 503 Women of Ngoyo Fishing 508 The Expedition atNsanda 510 Shooting the Gorilla 516 The Cannibal King 518 Adventure with a Snake 523 The Leopard and the Buffalo 525 King Bango and his Subjects 527 Tossed by a Buffalo 529 Capture of a Baby Gorrilla 531 The Nest-Building Ape 533 Leopard and Crocodile Fighting 535 The Witch Doctor 537 Gorilla breaking the Gun 539 Gorilla striking the Hunter 541 Gorillas surprised in a Fores 543 Gorilla Dance 548 A Cannibal Queen in Battle 550 Native Women Mourning 552 Beheading Victims of Witchcraft 554 Du Chaillu and the Dwarfs 556 The Great King Munza 558 Carrying a Snake into Camp 500 Bird's-Eye View of Victoria Falls. . . . 562 Sir John Franklin 569 Ships Frozen Up 572 Page. The Jeannette 579 Lieut. Greely 583 Highest Northern Point Reached 588 Lieut Greely 's Dog Sledge 594 The Camp in the Snow 597 Elison Succumbing on the March 599 Death of Sergeant Rice 606 Sinking of Capt. Leigh Smith's Ship 610 Discovery of the Frozen Elephant .... 637 Dr. Kane's Ship and Sledge Parties.. 642 Esquimau Dogs 645 Types of Esquimaux 647 Esquimau Woman and Child 649 Inside an Esquimau Igloo 650 Sailors Killing Seals with Clubs 652 Esquimaux Hunting Seals 654 Shooting Seals from behind a Screen . .656 The Bear and Dr. Kane's Dogs 658 The Dead Bear and her Cubs 660 A Sociable Bear 662 Fight between Bears and a Walrus. . .664 Battle with a Walrus 668 Hunting Reindeer Hunting Musk-Oxen 67 Arctic Ptarmigan 683 Woman Fishing through the Ice 691 Serpentine Aurora 693 Wonderful Aurora seen by Capt. 1 1 nil. 695 Iceberg seen by Capt. Ross 700 Dr. Kane's Ship in Drift-Ice 702 Dr. Kane's Perilous Journey 708 Huts on the Ice-Floe 710 Esquimau Joe going for the Seal 712 Joe and Hans killing the Bear 714 A Night of Horror 716 Rescue of Capt. Tyson's Party 718 The Netchillik Ambassadress 722 Schwatka on King William's Land... 724 Tennyson's Monument 726 Esquimaux meeting Dr. Hayes 728 An Esquimau Dandy 731 An Esquimau Sledge 733 Dr. Hayes and his Savage Visitors 735 Discovery of the Boat and Skeletons. .741 Driftingto Death 743 Wreck of the "Jeannette" 754 Separation of the Boats 758 Landing of DeLong's Boat 7 Huts of Siberian Exiles 762 Melville's Search Party - - 764 Discovery of DeLong's Body 766 Grave of DeLong and Companions.. . . 767 CONTENTS. THE TROPICAL WORLD. THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. Indescribable Beauties Hunting the Orang-Utaa Fights between the Mias and the Crocodile How the Mias Kills the Python Man-Eating Tigers The Lombock Suicides The Pig-Deer of Celebes Adventure with a Python Birds of Paradise Making Cakes of the Sago Palm The Papuan People Their Remarkable Honesty Absence of all Religious Belief New Guinea, the Unexplored A Primitive Clock Wonderful Gold Fields 925 CHAPTER I. Buckle's observations on Brazil Opposite effects of the sun Ferocious Beasts and deadly Diseases Ocean Vapors Electrical effects of Vapors Cause of the Peculiar taste of Rain-water The Great Equatorial Currents How they are Pro- ducedThe Great Gulf Stream. Its Direction and Effect on Climate What led Columbus to Continue Westward Remarkable Effects of Ocean Currents on the Coast of Alaska Great Air Currents How they are Produced Deluges in Brazil The Change of Seasons Tornadoes, Whirlwinds, Cyclones and Water-spouts The Great Hurricane of 1866 Formation of Whirlwinds and Cyclones Two Theories as to how Islands are formed Wonderful Coral Islands The Great Coral Sea- People, Animals, Birds and Vegetation 25 41 THAPTER II. The Great Plateau and its Wonders The Great Condor Ascending thg Wonderful Puna At an Altitude where fire is Quenched Insensibility Produced by rarified Air Precautions to be taken in Ascending Great Mountains Water-fowls in the Lagoons Close Proximity of Winter and Summer The Sacred Lake Titicaca The Sacred Island A Beautiful Legend City of the Sun Civilization and wealth of the Incas The Sacred Rock of Manco Capac Footprints of a God Fountain of the Incas The Vale of Imperial Delights Wonderful Ruins of a Palace built by the Deity 1,200 Miles of Roadway built of large square stones A Wonderful Ancient Postal Service Wonders of Mexico and Central America Ancient Paintings, and Exquisite Statuary Is our present Civilization Equal to that of Ancient Peru Does Civilization Rise and Fall like the Tides of the Sea Proofs that it does The Won- derful Amazon River Its Length, Depth, and Characteristics Great Tidal Waves Reptiles in its waters Ferocious Beasts And their Peculiarities 4154 1 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. AFRICA. CHAPTER III. Ancient Discoveries The most Wonderful of all Countries Ancient Splendor of North Africa Birth place of the Cross and Crescent Earliest Explora- tions John Ogilby's History Ancient Literature Concerning Africa Disadvantages of Native Africans The Wonders of Egypt The People Infamous Laws Building of the Pyramids and other Great Undertakings The Slave Mark which Ham bore Modern travels through Africa The Source of the Nile known two Centuries ago Wonders of the Nile EXPLORATIONS OF CAPTAINS SPEKE AND GRANT Preparations for the Journey The Scientific Requirements of an Expedition First Sight of Hippopotami Traces of big Game The people of Ugogo A Rhinoceros Hunt Shooting by Moonlight A Grotesque Scene Another Rhinoceros Hunt 1 Hunting Buffaloes Three Exciting Encounters Fifty Lashes for Desertion Hold- ing a King Accountable Recruiting the Force The Land of the Moon 54 67 CHAPTER IV. Between two Fires Manua Sera, the Guerilla Chief Seeking Speke's Aid Meeting with an old Friend ; Queen of a Tribe Liberation of a Slave Circumcision among the Natives King Rumanika The old King's Delight Fat Wives Entertained by Native Musicians Deciding the Right to Rule by Magic A Mystic Drum and three Mighty Maggots Burying five Maidens and fifty Cows wiih a dead King More Magical tests Freaks of a Spirit-directed Thunderbolt More Rhinoceros Hunting- A Magic Gun A Narrow Escape Pigmies and Giants Savage Royalty How Subjects Manifest their Loyalty Drilling with a Red-hot Iron Presentation of young Virgins The Royal Magicians The King's Magic Horn Killing Subjects for looking at the King A Sport-loving Boy King Shooting a man for fun Visit to the King Only a Woman Shot Shooting Birds by Magic Mtesa Dressed like an Organ-grinder's Monkey Executions every day A Monstrously fat Queen Savage Cruelties Sentences of An old Man and a young Girl Horrible death of one of the King's Officers Cutting a. Page's ears off Captain Speke saves the Queen's life The King Reviewing his Army Grant's Arrival with Supplies Sacri- fice of a child Departure of the Expedition for U^yoro 67 100 CHAPTER V. Hard Travelling to reach the Nile Among Crocodiles and Hippopot- ami A wonderful Country Discovering the Nile's Source The Victoria N'yanza A Fight on the Lake Carbine against Spears An Klephant Hunt Dogs witb Horns Kidgwiga's Wonderful Stories Feasting on Mountains, Lakes and Human Flesh A Wonderful Sorcerer How he Found a Stolen Water gauge Meeting witb King Kamrasi Another Royal Beggar Kamrasi's old Maid S-isters Offering to cuJ j up four Wives for Amusement Delays and Broken Promises African Twins Thf queer Dwarf Buying Liberty from Kamrasi Departure of the Expedition fot Madi 101 ur CHAPTER VI. Down the Kafu River in Canoes A Pleasant Journey A Wise Man of Africa Instruments for killing Elephants Remarkable Fish Visit to Chongi Ceremony of the Meeting Naked people A Happy Meeting not Wholly Unalloyed Mahamed, a Tarkish Trader An old Scoundrel How Mahamed outwitted Speke THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 3 An Interesting Hunt; Rhinoceri, Buffaloes and Elands In close Quarters again Joy of the Villagers over a Supper of Meat Journey to Gondokoro Meeting with Sir Samuel Baker Splendid News Speke's Conclusions Only Eighteen Faithful out of Three Hundred The Net Results of Speke's Expedition What may be said in favor of Speke 111121 EXPEDITION OF SIR SAMUEL BAKER. CHAPTER VII. Off for the Nile Mrs. Baker Accompanies her Husband " Whithei Thou goest I will go" Preparations for the Journey at Berber Difficulties A Fight The first Death A Fatal Buffalo Hunt Meeting with a Strange People- Charcoal Smokers Novel Contest with a Hippopotamus Ludicrous Argument among the Blacks Another strange Race of People Starving in the midst of plenty Living on Lizards and Snakes Harpooning fish A Kytch Chief and his pretty Daughter Naked Savages Fighting Black Amazons The Aliab Tribe Descrip- tion of their Homes and Manners of life The Shir Tribe Quaint Costumes for naked People The Women and Warriors '.121135 CHAPTER VIII. Arrival at Gondokoro Characteristics of the Bari Tribe Their dress and weapons Poisoned Arrows Terrible effects of an Arrow Wound Victim s for Crocodiles Fight between Baker and a Mutineer A Troublesome Bird Moham- med's Treachery A Dreadful Plot Discovered A little Boy's Nerve and Faithful- ness Cruel Treatment of two Slave Women An Apollo Chief Going to the Latooka Country Opposed by Turkish Traders Curious Natives The Monkey and the Negroes Legge the Chief, and how he made himself " at home " Dead Men's Bones Chief Moy and his pretty wife A Funeral Dance 136 147 CHAPTER IX. On the March to Latooka Two Lucky Deserters A Disgusting Repast Besieged by Curious Natives The Friendly Humpback Mrs. Baker is declared to be a boy A Monkey and old Ibrahim Making terms with Ibrahim The Bari People Through a Game Country Lions and Buffaloes Arrival at Latome A big Turkish row A terrible Prophesy Its Fulfillment Baker hailed as a Great Magician A Plentiful crop of Dead Men's bones Threatened Attack An African Prince's Argument on the Hereafter Elephant Hunting Three Narrow Escapes in one day..... 147169 CHAPTER X. The Cannibals Power of a Royal Sorcerer A fine old Chief Poison Yams Strange Customs Baboons and Giraffes A Monster Snake Killing a Jumbo Elephant Wild Boars A visit of State Departure for Unyoro Reception by King Kamrasi Sick and troubled The R^yal Beggar 169 188 CHAPTER XI. Departure for the Lake Kamrasi proposes an exchange of wives A Satanic Guard An hour of Sorest Trial Life out of Death Discovery of Albert' Lake Salt Making in Africa A Sail on the Lake Ascending the Somerset River ' Meeting with a Spurious King Kamrasi begs Baker to Fight his Battles A Great' Battle Kamrasi in a Cowardly Retreat 188 209 CHAPTER XII. Adieu to Kamrasi Man's Inhumanity Cruelties of the Slave Hunters Homeward March A Sad Scene Attacked by Bari Savages The Boats are Gone The Plague In a Boat with Death Poor little Saat Arrival at Khar- toum Net Results of Baker's Expedition 210219 4 THE WORLD'S WOJSDEBS. BAKER'S SECOND EXPEDITION INTO AFRICA. CHAPTER XIII. Suppression of the Slave Trade Purposes and Equipment of the Second Expedition Departure of the Fleet Attacked by a Hippopotamus Fine Sport along the River Liberating Slaves A Hippopotamus Kills a Man Capture of a Slaver Attacked by a Vicious Hippopotamus 220234 CHAPTER XIV. Arrival at Gondokoro An Attack by the Bari's Soldiers Eaten by Crocodiles Elephants and Hippopotami Starting for the Albert N'Yanza Wonderful Strength of the Elephant In a Nest of Slave Hunters Establishing a Government A Wonderful Rain-Maker A Dangerous Lump of Iron Music- Charmed Savages King Kabba Rega Suspicions Tortures Inflicted by Slave Hunters A Royal Funeral 234256 CHAPTER XV. Traffic in Slaves A Loving Father Kabba Rega's Bonosoora A Wonderful Entertainment Treachery and a Great Battle Cutting their Way Through A Curious Bird Meeting with Rionga The Cannibals A Great Hunt- How the' Natives Care for their Babies Adventure With a Lioness A Peaceful Gov- ernment Return to Gondokoro Results of the Expedition 257 283 LIVINGSTONE'S TRAVELS IN AFRICA. CHAPTER XVI. Missionary Service and First Adventure Stricken Down by a Lion Entrapping Large Game The Hoppo Crossing an African Desert Wonderful Plants of the Desert A Beautiful Mirage Diseases of Lions and other Animals A Thrilling Incident Serpents Some of the Most Dangerous in Africa Vicissitudes ' of Missionary Service Ludicrous Scenes at Church 283 307 CHAPTER XVII. Dangers from Alligators Among Female Chiefs An Amusing Show How Shinte Proved his Love The Magic Ox African Etiquette Among the Angolas Wonderful Insects Fatal Superstitions Dread of White Men Nar- row Escape from a Buffalo Capsized by a Hippopotamus Victoria Falls Curious Friendship among Animals and Birds The Mother Elephant and her Calf Tossed by a Buffalo Superstition respecting Albinos Settling Disputes 307 331 LIVINGSTONE'S SECOND EXPEDITION. CHAPTER XVIII. Noble Purposes of a Great Man Laughing Rats Wild Dogs- Hippopotamus Attacked by Alligators Death of Mrs. Livingstone Exploration of the Rovuma River A Dreadful Sight Results of Livingstone's Second Expe- dition 331343 LIVINGSTONE'S THIRD JOURNEY. CHAPTER XIX. Search for the Nile's Source An Important Commission Land- ing the Animals Fearful Fight with a Leopard Strange Customs Horrible Scenes Carried Off by a Lion and a Crocodile The Honey-Bird Arrival at Lake Tangan- ika Marriage a la Africa Village of Casembe African Pomp and Splendor A Chief who Crops the Ears and Hands of his Subjects The Troglodytes 343363 CHAPTER XX. Punishment for Unfaithfulness A Grave by the Wayside Discov- ery of Lake Bangweolo In Trouble Killing Prisoners Arrival at Ujiji A Journey into the Manyuema Country Among the Tree Dwellers and Cannibals A Singing Frog and Milk Giving Fish A Soko Hunt Description of the Soko and its Habits A Marvellously Ignorant People, 364382 tan WORLD'S WONDERS. 5 CHAPTER XXI. Description of the People A Dreadful Massacre Cannibals Caught in the Act Meeting with Stanley Explorations with Stanley Taking Leave of Stanley Domestic Life in Africa A Terrible March Painful Illness The End Comes Dead in an Attitude of Prayer African Honors to the Noble Dead Em- balming the Body Enroute for Zanzibar Buried at Westminster Abbey .. 382 400 STANLEY'S TRAVELS IN AFRICA. CHAPTER XXII. In Search of Livingstone An Astounding Order Organizing for the Journey Enroute for the Interior Death of Stanley's Horses Calamities Begin The Belles of Kisemo Tidings of Livingstone A Wonderful City The Sul- tana's Revenge A Terrible March A Fight A Handsome People Entering Ugogo A Curious Incident In a Mob Arrival at Unyanyembe 401 419 CHAPTER XXIII. Ethnographical Features The More Remarkable Tribes of Africa The Wonderful Wagogo People Their Superstitions and Fighting Propen- sities The Wahimbu Agriculturists Singular Punishment for Murder Treatment cf Witches An African Napoleon 420 426 CHAPTER XXIV. A Sore March Death of Shaw Surprised at the Sight of a White Man Taking "Dowa" A Hunter's Paradise Narrow Escape From a Crocodile A Donkey Seized by a Leopard The Monkeys and the Wild Boar News from Livingstone Meeting with Livingstone Joint Exploration of Tangan- ika Lake Off for Unyanyembe Adventure With an Elephant The Separation The Pomp and Circumstance of War Tough Traveling English Jealousy Return to England 426 445 STANLEY'S SECOND EXPEDITION. CHAPTER XXV. Promptings Which Led to His Second Journey The Herald and London Telegraph Departure for the Interior Death of Edward Pocock On the Victoria Nyanza Encounter with Wild Natives An Appearance of Amia- bility Surprising Belligerent Natives King Mtesa's Invitation to Stanley Mtesa Welcomes Stanley Human Sacrifices A Liberal Giver A Grand Review Stan- ley's Impressions of the King Converts Him to Christianity A Sham Naval Battle Resumption of the Lake Voyage Attacked by the Savages of the Lake Death of Fred Barker. '. 446461 CHAPTER XXVI. Lukongeh, the King Some Wonderful Superstitions Curious Modes of Salutation A Wonderful Crocodile A Fierce Battle War in Africa A Great Naval Battle A Fantastic Priest Stanley's War-BoatSome Native Stories Mirambo, the Bandit King 461 4751 CHAPTER XXVIL Circumnavigating Tanganika Lake The Wabembe Cannibals Kind Treatment at a Cannibal Village Savage Dwarfs and Ferocious Cannibals A Terrible Story Marching Upon the Cannibals A Village of Skulls Human Meat A Dwarf Captured Cannibals Again A Hospitable King Into the Un- known Fierce Battles on Livingstone River The Terrible " Bo-Bos" Boy and Woman Attacked by a Python Drowning of Kalulu A Fine Old King Awful Death of Frank Pocock Threatened With Starvation Saved in Time Return to Zanzibar Home Receptions. 4765" 6 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. ADVENTURES OF PAUL B. DuCHAILLU. CHAPTER XXVIII. DuChaillu, the Hunter and Naturalist In the Haunts of Go- rillas and Serpents Stories about Gorillas On the Hunt Shooting his First Gorilla Horrible Aspect of the Gorilla A Visit among the Fan Cannibals Shocking Sights Graveyard Ghouls The Fan Iron Workers 51 1520 CHAPTER XXIX. Adventure with an Enormous Serpent Adventure with a Leopard A Curious Superstition Tossed by a Buffalo Visit to King Bango Cap- ture of a Young Gorilla Its Ferocious Disposition Hunting the Nest-Building Ape Curious Creatures Fight between a Leopard and Crocodile A Witch Doctor A Gorilla Hunt Killed by a Gorilla Habits of the Gorilla The Gorrilla Dance A Cannibal Queen Carnivorous Ants Elephants Fleeing Before Them Executions for Witchcraft Horrible Sights A Leopard seizes a Buffalo A Nation of Dwarfs The Great King Munza Adventure with a Boa Constrictor 520561 THE POLAR REGIONS. CHAPTER XXX. Summary of Polar Expeditions John and Sebastian Cabot, the First to Make a Voyage toward the Pole Important Discoveries Wonderful Ruins in Greenland Icelandic Civilization The Sir John Franklin Expedition Voyages Undertaken for his Relief Dr. Hayes and Dr. Kane Shipwreck and Death Dis- astrous Voyage of the " Jeannette" Fate of DeLong Schwatka's Search Party Fate of the Franklin Party finally Determined 563 581 THE GREELY EXPEDITION. CHAPTER XXXI. Purposes of the Greely Expedition Names of the Members- Sketch of Greely The Departure The Highest Point Ever Reached Lockwood's Achievement A Wonderful Sight Dispovery of Lake Hazen Discipline in Camp Ruins of an Ancient Village 582595 CHAPTER XXXII. The Return From Fort Conger Indescribable Sufferings Poor Jo Elison Feet and Fingers Frozen Off Execution of Private Henry Charity for the Starving A Lecture Official Report of Henry's Execution Death by Starva- tion Resort to Cannibalism Pangs of Hunger Stop the Sense of Reason The Cloak of Charity 595608 CHAPTER XXXIII. Efforts to Relieve Greely Voyage of the Neptune Failure- Voyage of the Proteus and Yantic Sinking of the Proteus Expedition of the Bear, Thetis, and Alert Discovery of the Greely Party A Joyful Meeting Saved by the Grace of God "For God's Sake, Let Me Die in Peace" The Dead Shocking Sights Arrival at St. Johns How the Bodies Were Prepared England Excited Over the Rescue Welcoming the Heroes Home Meeting of Greely with His Wife Reports of Cannibalism Proven Exhumation of Lieut: Kislingbury Awful Revelations What Might Have Been Earning Honors 608 631 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 7 WONDERS OF THE ARCTIC WORLD. CHAPTER XXXIV. Mystery, Fable and Marvellous Facts Stories of the Arctic Siren and Phantom Ship Symmes' Theory of a Hollow Earth Some Novel Facts- Proofs of an Open Polar Sea Change of Climate through Ice Formations Green- land once the Seat of a Great Empire History of the Famous Symmes Theory Tropical Animals found in the Arctic Regions The Frozen Elephant Esquimau Dogs Their Habits and Manner of Training Interesting Facts about Them Ef- fects of an Arctic Night Newfoundland Dogs Life and Habits o'/the Esquimaux Obedienoe of Children Absence of Law Marriages Murder of Female Children Polygamy Exchange and Borrowing of Wives Manner of Dress How their Huts are Made Life in an Igloo Queer Ways of Eating Making Fire.. 632 651 CHAPTER XXXV. Seal Hunting Habits of the Seal How it is Captured by Es- quimaux Perils Capt. Hall's Battle with a Seal Hunting the Polar Bear Peculiar Methods employed by Natives to Kill it A Savage Contest A Bear raids Dr. Kane's Vessel Tossing the Dogs Another Battle with a Bear An Ugly Visitor in Camp- Habits of the Polar Bear Adventures with the Walrus An Exciting Walrus Hunt Battle between Walrus and Bears A Dreadful Struggle The Reindeer Its useful Habits and Enemies The Musk Ox Arctic Foxes Mosquitoes and Gnats Arctic Birds The Great Sea Eagle Voracious Gulls 65 1684 CHAPTER XXXVI. Inhabitants of the Arctic Deep Teeming with Life Wonders of the Whale The Most Marvellous of All Animals How It Nurses Its Young Its Habits Generally Adventure with a Whale The Norwhal Its Wonderful Tusk The Dolphin How It is Killed by Greenlanders Arctic Sharks The Grampus, the Tiger of the Arctic Seas 684692 CHAPTER XXXVIL Natural Phenomena of the Arctic Regions Marvellous Beau- lies of Nature The Aurora Its Cause Wonderful Aurora seen by Capt. Hall' Mock Moons Colored Snow Icebergs and Wonderful Ice-Formations Tussle of - the Giants How Icebergs are Formed Kane's Narrow Escape Wonderful Adven- tures on Icefloes Perilous Position of Dr. Kane Tyson's Marvellous Drift Threat- ened Cannibalism At Sea on a Cake of Ice Battle with a Bear The Most Extra- ordinary Adventure ever Recorded Night in the Arctic Regions Five Months of Darkness Its effects on Man and Domestic Animals 692 J2i CHAPTER XXXVIII. Incidents of Arcuc Life Schwatka and the Old Exquimau Woman Esquimau Ice Cream Dr. Hayes' Singular Experience with the Esquimaux Attacked by Dogs A Dashing Esquimau Widow A Wonderful Feast Esqui- mau Le'gend of the Sun and Moon 721 738 CHAPTER XXXIX. The McClintock Search A Ghastly Discovery Capt Hall's Wonderful Discoveries Esquimau Children Hanging their Parent^ The "Jean- nette" Expedition Two Years' Drift in the Ice Sinking of the Ship Helpless on the Wide Sea Separation of the Boats Terrible Suffering and Starvation Marvel- lous Heroism Search for and Discovery of the Bodies of the Dead Honors to the Brav 738768 THE WORLD S WONDERS. THE WORLD S WONDERS, THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. INDESCRIBABLE BEAUTIES. ALFRED RUSSEL WALLACE, an English naturalist of great repu- tation, has added to ^the sum of geographic knowledge a vast amount of information respecting the Malay ^Archipelago, in which region of the earth he made a protracted t*ur of discovery, extending over eight years. This archipelago proper, the largest group "of islands, including also the greatest islands in size, on the globe, comprises the Indo-Malay islands, the Timour group, the Celebes group, the Moluccas, and the Papuan group, all lying north and northwest of Australia, between that continent and the countries of southeastern Asia. The largest of these islands are, New Guinea, Borneo, Summatra, Java, and Celebes, in the order named, though there are hundreds of islands. in the several groups. This extensive archipelago lies under or near the/ equator, and being bathed by the tepid water of the great tropical ocean, the region enjoys a climate more uniformly hot and moist than any other portion of the globe, and teems with natural pro- ductions which are elsewhere unknown. In some respects it is the most wonderful district of the earth. It not alone teems with animal life, as Africa, but nowhere else does nature revel in such gorgeous hues and enrapturing beauty. Flowers bejewel the 10 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. prolific soil, not only in lowly beds carpeting the earth, but also ascend trailing vines and gather in clusters of richest coloring to BEAUTIFUL BIRDS OF PARADISE. bedeck the trees. Insects flash like prismatic fires from flower to flower, and tree to tree, their iridescent hues reflecting the lam- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 11 bent sunlight like a million of diamonds. Here alone are found the birds of paradise, those gorgeous plumaged warblers whose coats seem fresh with the glory of heaven, or a thousand rain- bows. On every side the eye is charmed with scenes of nature more delectable than a shifting kaleidoscope ; in short, it is a re- gion of pure delight, so far as the sight can measure it, but yet not wholly free from lurking dangers, which seem to be added by beneficent design, in order that the eye might not weary by gazing always on the beautiful. A FLYING FROG. OF the many wonderful things which Wn Wallace describes as having seen during his visits to the several islands, one of the most remarkable is a flying frog, which he found in Borneo. This is a most curious reptile, lives among the trees, and in its habits is not wholly unlike our common flying squirrel, for its food is very similar and its mode of flight almost identical. The body is about four or five inches long and of a deep shimering green color, the under surface and the inner toes yellow, while the webs are black rayed with yellow. The webs, of each hind foot, when expanded, cover a surface of four square inches, the webs of all feet together about twelve square inches, and its body is capable of considerable inflation. It literally flies with its feet, very much like the action of swimming. HUNTING THE ORANG-UTAN. MR. WALLACE spent much of his time in Borneo hunting the great man ape Orang-Utan specimens of which he was anxious to obtain for his friend, Charles Darwin, and the British Museum. This animal is found in great numbers in some parts of Borneo, but to enable him to be more successful in the hunt Mr. Wallace employed someDyaks (natives) to accompany him, as they were familiar with the habits of the animal. On the first day's hunt two medium sized orang-utans which are called mias by the natives were killed, and a small baby one captured. It was so young that, as a substitute for milk, Wallace fed it on rice-water and sugar ; but though it ate heartily 12 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. enough and seemed very tame, it did not grow in the least and at the end of three months died. On the following day a monster male was met with in a deep jungle, and though Wallace repeatedly wounded it, yet so tenacious of life was the animal that it did not succumb until both legs were broken, one hip bone and the root of the spine completely shattered and two bullets were flattened in its neck and jaw. This monster measured four feet two inches in height ind the spread of its arms was seven feet three inches. About ten days after this, some Dyaks came to tell Wallace that the day before a mias had nearly killed one of their companions. A few miles down the river there was aDyak house, and the inhabi- tants saw a large orang feeding on the young shoots of a palm by the river-side. On being alarmed, he retreated toward the jungle which was close by, and a number df men, armed with spears and choppers, ran out to intercept him. The man who was in front tried to run his spear through the animal's body, but the mias seized it in his hands, and in an instant got hold of the man's arm, which he seized in his mouth, making his teeth meet in the flesh above the elbow, which he tore and lacerated in a dreadful manner. Had not the others been close behind him, the man would have been more seriously injured, if not killed, as he was quite powerless, but they soon destroyed the creature with their spear, 3 ai*4 THE BABY MIAS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 13 choppers. The man remained ill for a long time, and never fully recovered the use of his arm. The Djaks all declare that the mias is never attacked by any animal in the forest, with two rare exceptions ; and the accounts received of these are so curious that they are given as related by Dyak chiefs, who lived all their lives in the places where the animal is most abundant. " No animal is strong enough to hurt the mias," said one of the chiefs, " and the only creature he ever fights with is the crocodile. When there is no fruit in the jungle, he goes to seek food on the banks of the river, where there are plenty of young shoots that he likes, and fruits that grow close to the water. Then the crocodile some- times tries to seize him, but the mias gets upon him and beats him with his hands and feet, and tears him and kills him." The chief added that he hud once seen such a fight, and that he believed the mias was always the victor. Another chief relates that the mias has no enemies ; no animals dare attack it but the crocodile and the python. He always kills the crocodile by main strength, standing upon it pulling open its jaws, and ripping up its throat. If a python attacks a mias, he seizes it with his hands, and then bites it, and soon kills it. The mias is very strong ; there is no animal in the jungle so strong as he. THE LOMBOCK SUICIDES. IN the island of Lombock, which is separated from Java by a narrow ?ti*ait, there is a singular people who are peculiar in their remarkable disposition to commit suicide ; yet, the word is a mis- nomer, for they do not kill themselves, but invite death in a manner that is unaccountably strange. The least misfortune, such as loss at gaining, inability to pay debts, insults, sickness, loss of friends, and similar annoyances of life, often provoke them to "run a muck," as they call it. The person thus troubled seizes a sword or spear and runs through the village killing everybody he meets, making no distinction between friend or foe, age or sex, and continues his indiscriminate slaughter until the people set upon him and kill him in self-defense. There is some superstitious 14 THE WORLB'S WONDERS. fear which restrains them from committing suicide, and another superstition which incites them to murder and invite their own death at the hands of the community. Lombock is govertied by a Rajah, who has established some very severe laws, as well as queer ones. Theft is punished with /d BATTLE WITH THE MIAS. eath, without regard for the value of the article stolen. A person found in the house of another after dark, without per- mission, may be killed and thrown into the street. The men are woefully jealous, and this feeling is a fruitful source of crime. A wife must not accept a cigar, flower, or the simplest article THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 15 from a gentleman ; should she be detected in so doing her life would pay the penalty. Infidelity is punished by tying the woman and her paramour back to back and throwing them into the sea, where they are quickly devoured by crocodiles which infest the shore. THE PIG-DEER OF CELEBES. THE wild pig seems to be of a species peculiar to the island of Celebes ; but a much more curious animal of this family is the Babirusa, or pig-deer, so named by the Malays from its long and slender legs, and curved tusks resemWing horns. This extraor- dinary creature resembles a pig in general appearance, but it does not root with its snout, as it feeds on fallen fruits. The tusks of the lower jaw are very long and sharp, but the upper ones, instead of growing downward, in the usual way, are completely reversed, growing upward, out of bony sockets, through the skin on each side of the snout, curving backward to near the eyes, and in old animals often reaching eight or ten inches in length. It is difficult to understand what can be the use of these extraor- dinary horn-like teeth. Some of the old writers supposed that they served as hooks, by which the creature could rest its head on a branch. But the way in which they usually diverge just over and in front of the eyes has suggested the more probable idea that they serve to guard these organs from thorns and spines while hunting for fallen fruits among the tangled thickets of rat- tans and other spiny plants. Even this, however, is not satisfac- tory, for the female, who must seek her food in the same way, does not possess them. It is probable that these tusks were once useful, and were then worn down as fast as they grew ; but that changed conditions of life have rendered them unnecessary, and they now develop into a monstrous form, just as the incisors of the beaver or rabbit will go on growing, if the opposite teeth do not wear them away. ADVENTURE WITH A PYTHON. SNAKES, though not particularly numerous in the Archipelago, are wonderfully sociable, preferring houses to trees and caves, so 16 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. that it is not an unusual thing for a family to be seriously disturbed by a huge boa, which has stealthily gained entrance to the dwell- ing. Wallace met with one of these unbidden guests while on Amboyna island, which he describes as follows : " One night, about nine o'clock, I heard a curious noise and nestling overhead, as if some animal were crawling slowly over the thatch. The noise soon ceased, and I thought no more about 't and went to bed soon afterward. The next afternoon, being SKULL OF THE PIG-DEER. rather tired with my day's work, I was lying on the couch with a book in my hand, when, gazing upward, I saw a large mass of something overhead which I had not noticed~before. Looking more carefully, I could see yellow and black marks, and thought it must be a tortoise-shell put up there out of the way, between the ridge-pole and the roof. Continuing to gaze, it suddenly resolved itself into a large snake, compactly coiled up in a kind of knot ; and I could detect his head and bright eyes in the very centre of the folds. The noise of the evening before was now THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 17 explained. A python had climbed up one of the posts of the house, and had made his way under the thatch within a yard of my head, and taken up a comfortable position in the roof and I had slept soundly all night directly under him. " I called to my two boys, who were skinning birds below, and said, ' Here's it big snake in the roof ;' but as soon as I had shown it to them they rushed out of the house and begged me to come out directly. Finding they were too much afraid to do anything, we called some of the laborers in the plantation, and soon had half- a-dozen men in consultation outside. One of these, -a native of Bouru, where there are a great many snakes, said he would gftt him out, and proceeded to work in a business-like manner. He made a strong noose of rattan, and with a long pole in the other hand poked at the snake, which then began slowly to uncoil itself. He then managed to slip the noose over its head, and getting it well on to the body, dragged the animal down. There was a great scuffle as the snake coiled round the chairs and posts to resist his enemy, but at length the man caught hold of its tail, rushed out of the house (running so quick that the creature seemed quite confounded), and tried to strike its head against a tree. He missed, however, and let go, and the snake got under a dead trunk close by. It was again poked out, and again the Bouru man caught hold of its tail, and running away quickly dashed its head with a swing against a tree, and it was then easily killed with a hatchet. It was about twelve feet long, and very thick, capable of doing much mischief, and of swallowing a dog or a child." MAKING CAKES OF THE SAGO PALM. A SINGULAR tree grows in the island of Ceram, called the sago palm, the trunk of which provides most excellent food aftei pass- ing through a process of beating and washing, which dissolves the pfth from the trunk. Water is then poured on the pith, which is kneaded and pressed against a strainer till the starch is dissolved and has passed through, when the fibrous refuse is thrown away. The water, charged with sago starch, passes on to a trough, with a depression in the centre., where the sediment 2 18 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. is deposited, the surplus water trickling off by a shallow outlet. The sago thus gathered is taken out of the trough and dried into cylinders of about thirty pounds weight. It makes excellent bread and delicious cakes, particularly when eaten with butter and a little sugar. It is truly an extraordinary sight to witness a whole tree-trunk, perhaps twenty feet long and four or five in circumference, con- verted into food with so little labor and preparation. A good- THE STRUGGLE WITH THE PYTHON. sized tree will produce thirty tomans or bundles of thirty pounds each, and each toman will make sixty cakes of three to the pound. Two of these cakes are as much as a man can eat at one meal, and five are considered a full day's allowance ; so that reckoning a tree to produce 1800 cakes, weighing 600 pounds, it wiltsupply a man with food for a whole year. The labor to produce this is very moderate. Two men will finish a tree in five days, and two women will bake the whole into cakes in five days more ; but the raw sago will keep very well, anji can b0 bakecj as w0nt.ec}, SQ THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 19 that we may estimate that in ten days a man may produce food for the whole year. This is on the supposition that he possesses sago trees of his own, for they are now all private property. If he does not he has to pay about two dollars for one ; and as labor here is ten cents a day, the total cost of a year's food for one man is about three dollars. The effect of this cheapness of food is decidedly prejudicial, for the inhabitants of the sago country are never so well off as those where rice is cultivated. Many of these people have neither vegetables nor fruit, but live almost entirely on sago and a little fish. Having few occupations at home, they wander about on petty trading or fishing expeditions to the neighboring islands ; and as far as the comforts of life are concerned, are much inferior to the wild Hill Dyaks of Borneo, or to many of the more barbarous tribes of the Archipelago. THE PAPUAN PEOPLE. As Wallace extended his journey eastward, he found the peo- ple in feature and habit greatly changed, and that the birds wore more beautiful plumage. At the Abu Islands, near New Guinea, he met the original Papuans, who compose one of the most dis- tinct and strongly marked races of the earth. They are intensely black, but with this exception they very little resemble negroes, for all their features, except the nose, which is aquiline with large nostrils, greatly resemble the Caucasian. They have no idea of a hereafter, profess no kind of religion, are not even superstitious, have no laws, and yet they are an apparently happy and con- tented people, free from vice. They recognize only the relation- ship -which commerce gives, and therefore the importance of pre- serving peace and practicing honesty. Concerning these people, Mr. Wallace writes : " Here, as among most savage people with whom I have dwelt, I was delighted with the beauty of the human form a beauty of which stay-at-home civilized people can scarcely have any con- ception. What are the finest Grecian statues to the living, mov- ing, breathing men I saw daily around me? The unrestrained grace of the naked savage as he goes about his daily occupations, or lounges at his ease, must be seen to be understood ; and a 20 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. youth bending his bow is the perfection of manly beauty. The women, however, except in extreme youth, are by no means so pleasant to look at as the men. Their strongly-marked features are very unfcmiiiine, and hard work, privations, and very early marriages soon destroy whatever of beauty or grace they may for a short time possess. Their toilet is very simple, but also, I am sorry to say, very coarse and disgusting. It consists solely of a mat of plaited strips of palm-leaves, worn tight round the body, and reaching from the hips to the knees. It seems not to be MAKING SAGO. changed till worn out, is seldom washed, and is generally very dirty. This is the universal dress, except in a few cases where Malay ' sarongs' have come into use. Their frizzly hair is tied in a bunch at the back of the head. They delight in combing, or rather forking it, using for that purpose a large wooden fork with four diverging prongs, which answers the purpose of separating and arranging the long, tangled, frizzly mass of cranial vegeta- tion much better than any comb could do. The only ornaments of the women are earrings and necklaces, which they arrange in various tasteful ways." Speaking of the remarkable honesty of the Papuans, Mr, Wai- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 21 lace says : " Toward the end of September it became absolutely necessary for me to return, in order to make our homeward voy- age before the end of the east monsoon. Most of the men who had taken payment from me had brought the birds they had agreed for. One poor fellow had been so unfortunate as not to get one, and he very honestly brought back the axe he had re- ceived in advance ; another who had agreed for six, brought me the fifth two days before I was to start, and went off immediately to the forest again to get the other. He did not return, how- ever, and we loaded our boat, and were just on the point of starting, when he came running down after us holding up a bird, which he handed to me, saying with great satisfaction, ' Now I owe you nothing.' These were remarkable and quite unexpected instances of honesty among savages, where it would have been very easy for them to have been dishonest without fear of detec- tion or punishment." MAN-EATING TIGERS. THE island of Java is more thickly populated than any others of the Archipelago, and the people are more nearly civilized, owing to the fact that this island enjoys a large trade with the Dutch who have settled along tlfe coast in considerable numbers. The city of Batavia, which has a population of nearly 200,000, is largely composed of Europeans. The principal large animals of Java are the tiger, tapir and a small species of rhinoceros, which latter frequently visits interior villages in quest of food, but it rarely shows anydisposition to fight. The tigers of Java are similar to those of India, being savage and .bold. Many persons are destroyed by them annually. During Wallace's visit to the island he entered a village where a man-eating tiger had carried off a boy the day before. Nearly the entire village was in arms, ready to pursue the savage beast. The natives, armed only with spears, surrounded a dense jungle, where they believed the animal lay concealed, and began beating it in a rather reckless manner. The tiger was roused at length, and finding itself surrounded, made a savage attack, but a half- dozen natives received it on their spears and killed it without sustaining any injury themselves. 22 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. WONDERFUL RUINS. NEAR the east coast of Java there are found vast ri'ins of an ancient civilization, such as elegantly sculptured figures, forts, palaces, baths, aqueducts, and temples, the latter having been at one time decorated with the most extravagantly rich and delicate sculpture work. On the mountain of Gunoug Prau are the ruins NATIVE MEN OF THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. of a magnificent temple covering a large elevated plateau. To reach this temple four flights of steps were cut in the solid stone of the mountain side, each flight consisting of more than one thousand steps. These gigantic works will doubtless forever remain a mystery ; they show the deteriorating effects of time, and rude houses of bamboo and thatch occupy the site of the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 23 undent temple. The natives regard these ruins as the undoubted productions of giants or demons. NEW GUINEA, THE UNEXPLORED. NEW GUINEA lies immediately north of Australia, from wmch it is separated by Torres strait, which is only ninety miles in width. Since Australia is classed as a continent, New Guinea is the largest island in the world, and certainly one of the most in- teresting regions of the earth. Yet, with all this it is a terra incognita, no explorer having ever penetrated it beyond a distance of fifteen miles from the coast. That it has a salubrious climate toward the interior is attested by the lofty, snow-capped moun- tains which maybe seen from the sea, and the numerous large rivers which pour their sparkling waters into the ocean. It is remarkable that this great island, which has been known since the year 1636, has never been explored, though small Dutch colonies have existed on its southern coast for nearly one hundred years". Frequent attempts have been made to advance into the interior, but always without success, owing entirely to the fact that the parties were not properly equipped or of insufficient strength to give them confidence to proceed. The Papuans, who occupy New Guinea, are uncivilized, but they are much in advance of all other barbaric tribes in many particulars. They live in houses fairly comfortable, resting on a foundation of upright posts which elevate them eight or ten feet above the ground. The place of building is usually over NATIVE PAPUAN. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. streams of water, and the flooring is made of bamboo with intet. stices left, through which all refuse is thrown, so that using the streams to carry off all obnoxious matter, the villages are always clean. They have a novel instrument for measuring time, and are the only savage people known who ever devised any means for this purpose, or who ever conceived the idea of dividing the days into hours. The primitive clock of the Papuans consists of the half of a cocoanut-shell, through the bottom of which a small hole is made. This shell is placed in a basin of water and as it receives a delicate jet, gradually settles until it sinks at the expira- tion of one hour, causing a bubblingsound which attracts the attention of any one standing near. This shell is their only measure of time, but it suggests the idea of a clock, from which a more elaborate time-piece might be made. Capt. Paget, who visited the island in 1871, declares that he found many of the natives wearing anklets and armlets of beaten gold, and that he saw a chief who bore a club made of the same precious metal. Not being able to converse with them, they misconstrued his gestures and fled to the hills, where it was considered inexpedient to follow them. This incident is mentioned as furnishing an additional incentive for a thorough exploration of the island, which will no dor 4 >t be made at an early date. A DYAK GIRL. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. THE TROPICAL WORLD. CHAPTER I. SOUTH AMERICA. IN describing the WORLD'S WONDERS as seen by the Great Explorers, we will divide our subject into three parts, or divi- sions, viz : The Tropical, Arctic, and Antarctic, so as to preserve a sequence, and have system in the narrative. The Tropical World will have precedence, in consideration of its more prolific life, both animal and vegetable, and because it presents more anomalous and curious features than other parts of the globe. Indeed, in the tropics there seems to be a superabundance of growth, which led Sir Thomas Buckle to declare: "Amid this pomp and splendor of nature no place is left for man. He is reduced to insignificance by the majesty with which he is surrounded. The forces that oppose him are so formidable that he has never been able to make headway against them, never able to rally against their accumulated pressure. The whole of Brazil, notwithstanding its immense apparent advantages, has always remained entirely uncivilized ; its inhabitants wandering savages, incompetent to resist those obstacles which the very bounty of nature had put in their way." In the tropics we have two directly opposite effects of the sun, one tending toward the multiplication of life, while the other operates to destroy it. In no other part of the globe do we find great deserts like that of Sahara, or such pestilential vapors as continually arise from a profuse vegetation which is as rapid w 26 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. in its decomposition as in its growth ; in no other zone are there such destructive earthquakes and storms, nor does disease stalk with such dreadful fatality in any other division of the earth. Another characteristic of the tropics is found in the size and ferociousness of its wild animals, whether beasts, birds, or rep- tiles, which find their homes either in the deep jungles or on the craggy peaks of great mountains, where the most intrepid hunter cannot pursue them. But there are many other interesting features found in the tropical zone which should be understood before we proceed to a description of the animal life found within its limits. The lands lying within the tropics comprise a portion of Mexico, all of Central America, and nearly all of South America, Africa, the West India Islands, Polynesia, and about one-half of Australia. The very great excess of water over land within the tropics is one of the most important facts in physical geography, for, were the proportions reversed, there would be a like reduc- tion of growth and a corresponding amount of sterility, without water there can be neither vegetable nor animal life. All the water that gushes up in fountains or swells into brooks and rivers comes from the ocean, whence it is raised by evaporation and carried along unseen channels of the air to be precipitated in the form of rain or snow, sometimes thousands of miles distant from the place whence it was drawn up. This water when first evapo- rated has the salty taste of the ocean or, more directly speaking* is strongly impregnated with salt, but as it is borne upward into clouds, the vapor is subjected to an electrical influence not clearly understood, but which decomposes the salt and precipitates the vapor into pure water ; but in the descent it absorbs from the air fi small quantity of carbonic acid, ammonia, or nitric acid, which imparts to rain-water its peculiar taste. All water that is evapo- rated and ascends into the clouds, of course does not come from the ocean, as every fresh as well as salt body of water contributes to that continual ascent and descent which nourishes the earth and the fullness thereof. It has been computed by some patient calculator that 200,000 cubic miles of water are raised each year THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 27 from the ocean, in the form of vapor. At least three-fourths of this immense volume is raised within the tropics, and a great part falls beyond them. If the extent of the tropical ocean were diminished by half, there is no part, perhaps, of the tem- perate zones which would not be parched by excessive drought, and hardly a river but whose bed would be a dry ravine. The water which fills the great lakes of North America and, thundering down the cataract of Niagara, finds its way through the St. Lawrence Kiver into the ocean almost on the verge of the Polar World, only a few weeks before, perhaps, laved the coral reefs of the tropical seas. If any considerable part of the tropical ocean were converted into land, the heat of the Torrid Zone would become so greatly increased that no animal life, such as now exists, could endure it; and, as the vegetation of a climate is adapted to the prevail- ing temperature, the trees and plants which now flourish would become extinct. Water, in being converted into a gaseous form by the process of evaporation, absorbs heat from surrounding objects, or, as we may say, produces cold. Thus the burning rays of a vertical sun, pouring down upon the ocean, in a measure quench themselves. The same rays, which, falling upon the ocean never raise the water beyond a grateful temperature, falling upon the land produce an intolerable heat. The great extent of the tropical seas is the cause of those mighty ocean currents which sweep from the equatorial to the polar regions. Cool as the waters of the tropics are, they are warm when compared with the other parts of the ocean. The water-thus heated becomes specifically lighter than that of colder regions, is lifted up, and in obedience to the laws of gravitation, runs off in both directions toward the poles. There, having 1 become cooled, the salt waters are heavier than the comparatively fresh ones of the polar regions, and sinking beneath them, return in an undercurrent to their starting-place. This great equatorial current, or rather series of currents, is the marvel of physical geography. Let us follow that of the Atlantic in its long career. Starting on the line of the Equator, 28 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. it flows north-westwardly along the coast of South America, enters the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, from whence it derives the name of the Gulf Stream. It passes out through the Straits of Bernini, between Florida and Cuba, a great river 32 miles wide, 2,200 feet deep, flowing at the rate of four miles an hour. Its volume is a thousand times greater than that of the Amazon or the Mississippi, and its banks of cold water are more clearly defined than are those of either of these rivers at flood. So clear is the line of demarkation between the warm water of the river and its cool liquid banks, that a ship sailing along may be half in one and half in the other ; and a bucket of water dipped from one side will be twenty degrees cooler than one from the other. Skirting the coast at a distance of about 100 miles, its width is increased and its velocity diminished. Striking the projecting banks of Newfoundland, its course is deflected almost due east, until it arrives at mid-ocean. Here it spreads out like a fan, skirting the shores of Spain, France and Great Britain. It then divides, one branch sweeping around the west coast of Iceland, the other approaching the shores of Norway, and its temporary influence is perceptible in the ameliorated climate of Spitzbergen. It is owing to this great ocean river that the temperature of the western shores of Europe is so much higher than that of the eastern shore of America in the same latitudes. Maury estimates that the amount of heat which the Gulf Stream diffuses over the northern Atlantic in a winter's day is sufficient to raise the whole atmosphere which covers France and Great Britain from the freezing point to summer heat. The olives of Spain, the vines of France, the wheat-fields of England, and the green expanse of the Emerald Isle, are the gifts of the tropical seas, dispensed through the Gulf Stream. Near the Azores another branch of the Gulf Stream encounters the return flow from the Arctic Ocean, bends around, and skirting the coast of Africa, returns to its starting-place in the Gulf of Guinea, leaving in its great bend near the Azores an expanse of almost motionless waters larger than the whole of THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 29 France. This is known as the Sargasso Sea, from the surface being covered with a sea-weed called the Sargassum natans. So thick is the covering of weeds that at a little distance it seems solid enough to walk upon. The discovery of the bodies of strange animals and unknown trees and plants flung ashore at the Azores suggested to Columbus the idea that there was land lying beyond the western ocean ; so that to the Gulf Stream we are indebted for the discovery of the New World. Bottles have been thrown overboard at various points in the Gulf Stream, containing the date and position of the ship. Many of these have been picked up. From these it appears that the stream takes eight months to flow from the Gulf of Mexico to the shores of Europe, and the broader and slower current takes a year to travel from the Bay of Biscay back to the gulf of Mexico. The Gulf Stream, though the best known, and in many respects the most remarkable of the great equatorial currents, is by no means the largest. The great current of the Pacific and Indian Oceans may be regarded as one mighty stream flowing from east to west. It crosses the Pacific in a sheet nearly 3,500 miles broad, spreading over almost half the distance from pole to pole; another great current originates in the Indian Ocean, flows into the China Sea through the Straits of Malacca, thence into the North Pacific, between the coast of Asia and the Philip- pine Islands, thence crosses the ocean by the north-westward, modifying the climate of the Pacific coast and Alaska. It is stated by Lieutenant Schwatka, of the U. S. A., who explored the Yukon River in 1883, that the Aleutian Islands have a climate the mean temperature of which is 60, and that this spring warmth is almost perpetual, there being only the slightest difference between the extreme seasons. This statement, how- ever, I have found no where corroborated, but on the other hand openly disputed by the seal and whale fishers of Behrings Strait, who frequently go ashore 1 on the Aleutian Isles. However, Schwatka may have referred to some particular island of the group that was specially sheltered, or perhaps abnormally heated by volcanic influence. 30 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. All the water poured by the trade currents from the tropical ocean, and all raised from it by evaporation and transported through aerial channels to feed the rivers of the temperate and polar regions, must find its way back by counter currents. Heat, according to the dictum of modern Science, may be reduced to force. The force of the sun's rays poured upon the tropical oceans, is sufficient to raise thousands of yards into the air five hundred cubic miles of \Yater every day, and to put and keep in motion the mighty currents which sweep back and forth from the equator to the poles. The study of the course, direction and elevation of these currents has as yet only begun. We know that sometimes, as on the coast of America, the currents of cold and warm water run side by side in opposite directions, sometimes a warm current is on the surface and sometimes below it. In the Gulf Stream the warm current is above, the cold below ; while on the coast of Japan a cold current from the Okotsk Sea runs on the surface, giving rise to a fishery not inferior in magnitude to that caused on the banks of Newfoundland by the cold cur- rents from Baffins Bay. Enough, however, is now known of ocean currents to warrant the assumption that they are mainly governed by the great law of gravitation. The lighter water flows on the surface, the heavier underneath. But the specific gravity of ocean water depends upon two things, the temperature and amount of salt contained. The heated water of the tropics is rendered lighter than that which surrounds it of the same saltness and so floats on the surface ; but the cold currents from the poles are less saline, and consequently lighter than the tropical waters of the same temperature. When these two opposing currents meet there is a struggle ; but at length the one which is specifically heavier sinks, while the lighter rises. So facile is the movement of fluids among each other, that a difference in gravity which we can scarcely detect with our nicest instruments may be abundantly sufficient to decide which of two opposing currents shall run above and which below. The air has currents as well as the ocean, and these have very much to (Jo in modifying the climate of the tropical THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 31 world. Rarified by the intense heat of a vertical sun, the air within the tropics rises in perpendicular columns high above the surface of the earth, and thence flows off toward the poles ; while, to fill up the void, cold air currents come rushing in from the Arctic and Antarctic regions ; but tlie rotation of the earth gradually diverts the direction of these cold currents, and changes them into trade-winds which regularly blow over the greater portion of the tropical ocean from east to west and materially contribute to the health and comfort of the navigator whom they waft over the equatorial waters. The trade-wind is an air current of even greater importance than the water current known as the Gulf Stream. This wind covers no less than 56 of latitude 28 north and 28 south of the equator. In this large tract, which comprises many of the most fertile countries on the globe, the trade-wind blows during the whole year, either from the north-east or from the south-east. The causes of this regularity are now well understood, and are known to depend partly on the displacement of air at the equator, and partly on the motion of the earth ; for the cold air from the poles is constantly flowing toward the equator and thus producing northerly winds in the northern hemisphere, and southerly winds in the southern. The trade- wind, blowing on the eastern coast of South America, and proceeding from the east, crosses the Atlantic Ocean, and therefore reaches the land surcharged with the vapors accumula- ted in its passage. The vapors, on touching the shore, are, at periodical intervals, condensed into rain ; and as their progress westward is checked by that gigantic mountain chain, the Andes, which they are unable to pass, they pour the whole of their moisture on Brazilj which, in consequence, is often deluged by the most destructive torrents. This abundant supply, being aided by that vast river system peculiar to the eastern part of South America, and being also accompanied by heat, has stimu- lated the soil into an activity unequaled in any other part of the world. Brazil, which is nearly as large as the whole of Europe, is covered with a vegetation of incredible profusion. A great part of this immense country is filled with dense and tangled 32 THE WORLD'S WONDEKS. forests, whose noble trees, blossoming in unrivaled beauty, and exquisite with a thousand hues, throw out their products in endless prodigality. On their branches are perched birds of gorgeous plumage ; below, their base and trunks are crowded THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 33 with brushwood, creeping plants, innumerable parasites, all swarming with life. There, too, are myriads of insects of every variety ; reptiles of strange and singular forms ; serpents and lizards; spotted with deadly beauty : all of which find means of existence in this vast workshop and repository of nature. Dr. Gardener, who looked at these things with the eye of a botanist, says that near Eio Janeiro the heat and moisture are sufficient to compensate even the poorest soil; so that "rocks, on which scarcely a trace of earth is to be observed, are covered with a profuse vegetation, all in the vigor of life." That nothing may be wanting in this land of marvels, the forests are skirted by enormous meadows which, reeking with heat and moisture, supply countless herds of wild cattle, that browse and fatten on their herbage ; while the adjoining plains, rich in another form of life, are the chosen abode of the subtlest and most ferocious animals, which prey upon each other, but which it might almost seem no human power can hope to extirpate. Mr. Darwin, the eminent naturalist, says, " In England, any person fond of natural history, enjoys in his walks a great advantage, by always having something to attract his attention ; but in these fertile climates, teeming with life, the attractions are so numerous that he is scarcely able to walk at all." We have spoken of the trade winds as extending oVer the whole breadth of the Tropical World. But to this there is a notable exception. Near the equator, but a little to the north of it, the two currents from the Arctic and Antarctic regions meet and neutralize each other, producing a belt of calms, which sailors call the "Doldrums," of about six degrees in breadth. Here it rains almost every day during the year, for the ascending currents of heated air loaded with moisture become suddenly cooled in the higher regions, and are forced to give up the water 'which they have lifted from the ocean. Toward noon, dense clouds form in the sky, and dissolve in torrents of rain. Toward evening the vapors disperse, and the sun sets in a cloudless horizon. The quantity of rain which here falls during the year is enormous. In the United States the annual rainfall is 8 34 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. from 25 to 70 inches ; in Europe from 15 to 104 ; in the Atlantic doldrums it reaches 225. So copious is tho rainfall at times that fresh water has been dipped up from the surface of the tropical seas. Proceeding north or south from the belt of calms, we come to a region characterized by two rainy and two dry seasons. The rainy seasons take place while the sun is passing the zenith, more or less neutralizing the influence of the trade winds. In Jamaica, for example, the first rainy season begins in April, the second in October ; the first dry season in June, the secon^ in December. Toward the verge of the tropics follow the zones characterized by a single rainy and a single dry season ; the rains lasting from the vernal to the autumnal equinox. The two rainy seasons which characterize the middle zone between each tropic and the equator have a tendency to merge into one rainy season of six months' duration on advancing toward the tropics, and into a perpetual rainy season on approaching the equator. As the sun goes north or south he opens the flood-gates of the heavens, and closes them behind him as he passes to the other hemisphere ; while he keeps them continually open where he is always vertical. But this general state of things, which would be the normal condition of the tropical regions if their surface was an unbroken sheet of water, and no disturbing forces existed, is liable to great modifications. Thus in the monsoon region, extending from the eastern coast of Africa to the northern part of Australia, and from the tropic of Capricorn to the Himalayas and China, it is not the sun directly, but the winds that regulate the periodical rains. Thus in India and the Malayan peninsula the western coasts are watered during -the southwest monsoon, which prevails from April to October ; Tind the eastern coasts during the northeast monsoon, from October to April. For example, the southwest wind, condenses its vapor on the western side of the Ghauts, the northeast on the eastern, so that violent rains fall daily on the coast of Coro- mandel, while it is the reverse on that of Malabar, and vice versa. In the southern hemisphere the rainy season corresponds THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 35 with the northern monsoon, the dry season with the south- eastern. In South Africa and Australia winter is the rainy season. In South America, in the same latitudes, summer is the rainy season on the eastern side of the Cordilleras, and winter on the western side. TORNADOES AND HURRICANES rage in the tropical world with a frequency, extent and violence unknown in other climes. They sometimes move with a direct velocity of forty-five miles per hour ; but the violence and destructiveness of a whirlwind depends less upon the velocity with which the whole storm moves than upon the speed with which the wind whirls around and in upon the centre. The great Bahama hurricane of 1866 moved forward at the rate of thirty miles per hour ; but the velocity of its whirling motion was from eighty to 100, and for short intervals from 100 to 120 miles an hour. The diameter of the great storms of the tropi- cal Atlantic is often from 600 to 1,000 miles; those of the Indian Ocean 1,000 to 1,500. These, however, move but slowly. The smaller storms are usually more rapid than the larger ones. The revolving motion accounts for the sudden and violent changes observed during hurricanes. In consequence of this rotation, the wind blows in opposite directions on each side of the axis of the storm ; the violence increases from the circum- ference inward ; but at the centre the air is in repose. Hence, when the body of a storm passes over a place, the wind begins to blow moderately, and increases to a hurricane as the centre of the whirlwind approaches ; then, in a moment, a dead calm suc- ceeds", followed suddenly by a renewal of the storm in all its Violence, but now blowing in a direction opposite to which it hadj before. From this rotary motion it follows that the direction of the wind at any moment is no indication of the direction which the body of the storm is pursuing. Water-spouts and cyclones belong to the same class of phe- nomena as whirlwinds and hurricanes. In fact, water-spouts are but whirlwinds at sea, while the term cyclone is used to distin- 36 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. guish the most violent hurricanes or tornadoes. Whirlwinds may be formed by the rapid rotary movement of either ascending or descending currents of air ; when the former occurs over a body of water not infrequently water-spouts are the result, and A STEAMSHIP ENCOUNTERING A WATER-SPOUT AT SEA. at times so violent are these that at their base they have power to wreck a small boat, and to lift an immense column of water which is drawn upward with a noise like the rush of Niagara. In cloud-bursts we have the very opposite, for they are produced by THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 37 the rapid rotary motion of descending currents, and in the equa- torial regions they often deluge and desolate vast tracts of land, destroying buildings and stock, and sometimes washing up large trees. FORMATION OF ISLANDS. NINE-TENTHS of the islands which dot the ocean lie within the tropics. These islands are divided into two great classes. The one class is of volcanic origin, upheaved from the depth of the ocean ; or, rather, they are lofty peaks of- mountains, whose sides and base lie deep in the water. There are two opposite theories to account for the existence and present appearance of these islands. According to one theory a continent once occu- pied a large portion of the Pacific Ocean within the tropics, a great portion of which has sunk beneath the water, and these islands are but the peaks and table-lands of that lost continent. The other theory is that these islands have been for unknown ages, and now are, slowly being lifted up from the depth below. Both theories rest upon so wide an induction of facts that both may be accepted as true ; or rather as parts of the one great truth, that the crust of the earth, which we are wont to consider so firm and stable, is now, as it always has been, rising and falling, as truly as the surface of the water rises and falls by the attraction of the sun and moon ; only that these periodic changes are measured by ages instead of by hours. Who shall say that in the higher knowledge which we shall gain during the ages of the future we may not attain to the understanding that the rise and sinking of continents is like that of the tWes, gov- erned by law, and that we may not be able to express in figures, which will then be quite finite to us, though now seeming infinite, the years that have elapsed since " heaven and earth rose out of chaos?" Volcanic islands are found in all oceans. Iceland has its Heckla, Sicily its ^Etna, Hawaii its Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, Niphon its Fusiyama. From Sumatra, Java and Sumbawa, Ternate and Tidore, Borneo, Celebes and Gilolo, close by the equator, thence northward and north-westward to the Kurile 38 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. Islands, hard by the frozen coast of Kamchatka, is one great belt of volcanic islands, spreading out like a fan through Polyn- VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS AS SEEN IN THE ISLAND OF JAVA. esia. But in the tropical seas, and there alone, are coral ine islands, built up, grain by grain, by minute living beings. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 39 The simplest form of these coral islands is a ring enclosing a portion of the ocean. Sometimes this ring is barely two miles in diameter ; sometimes it reaches a hundred miles, rising only a half-score of feet above the level of the water,, and owing to the convexity of the surface of the ocean invisible from the deck of a ship at a distance of a mile or two, unless they happen to be covered with tall palms or pandanus. The roar of the surf dashing upon their windward side is often heard be- fore the island itself comes into view. On the outer side this ring, or atoll, slopes gradually for a hundred yards or more, to a depth of twenty-five fathoms, and then plunges sheer down into the waters with a descent more rapid than the cone of any volcano. At a distance of five hundred yards no bottom has been reached with a sounding line of a mile and a half in length. All below the surface of the water to the depth of one hundred feet is alive, all above and below this section dead, for the coral insect can live only within this range. These atolls assume every form and condition. Sometimes they are solitary specks in the waste of waters. Oftener they occur in groups. The Caroline Archipelago has sixty groups extending over a space of 1,000 square miles. Some- times a group of atolls becomes partially joined into one, the irregular ring encircling an island-studded lagoon, with open- ings through which a ship may enter. Sometimes these coral formations take the form of long reefs bordering an extensive coast. Such a reef runs parallel to the coast of Malabar for nearly 500 miles. It consists of a series of atolls arranged in a double row, separated by a sea whose depth no line has sounded ; yet from outer to inner edge of the double row is a space of but fifty miles. Such a broken coral reef often girdles a volcanic island. Tahiti, the largest of the Society group, is a fine example of this kind. The island rises in mountains 7,000 feet high, with only a narrow plain along the shore. The lagoon which encompasses it like a great moat is thirty fathoms deep, and is shut out from the ocean by a coral band at a distance of from half a mile to thre miles. 40 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. But there are coral reefs of far greater magnitude. The grandest is that extending along the northeast coast of Australia. Rising from an unfathomed ocean, it extends for 1,000 miles along the coast, with a breadth of from 200 yards to a mile, and at an average distance of twenty or thirty miles, though sometimes double that space. This long, narrow lagoon is never less than ten fathoms deep, and often six times as much, so that the " Great Eastern," the hugest vessel that ever floated, if it once passed through one of the openings in the reef, might sail as though in a tranquil harbor for 1,000 miles in sight of land on either side, without its keel for an instant reaching half-way to the bottom. The direct influence of the ocean upon the islands of the Tropical World is great in every respect. It gives an almost temperate climate to low lauds lying under the equator, and thus modifies their fauna and flora, in accordance with known laws of nature. But the ocean and air in their currents also determine the vegetable, animal and human life of the islands of the Tropical World in an accidental manner. Time was when the volcanic islands of the tropics were masses of naked rock, the coralline islands patches of barren sand. The elements disintegrated the surface of the rock and ground the coral into the soil. Some day a fruit, perhaps a cacoa or bread-fruit, drifted along by currents, touched the island, or a bird, swept far out to sea, having in its crop an undi- gested seed, rested its weary wing upon solid land. The chance- planted fruit or seed took root and grew, and produced its kind, and in time the waste island was clothed with verdure. Other birds found a home in the new forests, built their nests, and raised thjeir young, so that the islands became populous with the winged tribes. Animals, of course, could only rarely cross the waste of waters. Hence the comparative paucity of this form of life in islands remote from the main land. Swine were almost the only quadrupeds which the early European navi- gators found in Polynesia ; and they were doubtless brought there by human means. Mankind reached the islands in a like THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 41 I accidental manner. Perhaps a canoe from the Malayan shores drifted upon the Fiji Islands, and its rowers became the progeni- tors of the black cannibals ; or a junk from China or Japan was cast away upon Tahiti or Hawaii. These wanderers, cut off from intercourse with the rest of the world, developed their barbarism or semi-civilization in their own way, under the influ- ence of altered conditions, climate and productions. The story of the " Bounty," and the first settlement of Pitcairn's Island, too well known to require more than a passing allusion, shows that such a canoe or junk voyage is altogether possible, and how widely in the course of a single generation a group of isolated individuals deviate from their original stock. CHAPTER II. THE GREAT PLATEAU AND ITS WONDEES. WITHIN the geographical limits of the tropical world is found every variety of climate upon the globe. There are great moun- tain ranges which even at the equator rise above the limits of perpetual snow. Their summits, untrodden by man, and unvisi- ted by any other form of animal life, must be more desolate than the most extreme polar regions to which explorers have been unable to penetrate. Of living creatures the strong-winged condor alone has reached so high. Upon these dreary crags this great bird is king of all ; here it rears its brood unmolested, and from its eyrie surveys the valleys below and swoops down, with rushing wings, upon defenceless flocks and bears away in its cruel talons the young of the various folds. Keen of vision, and no less wary, it has no enemies to fight and thus lords its way in the world, multiplies and annually becomes more destruc- tive in its ravages. Nature has provided this wonderful bird with a power which is given to no other bird or animal, that of sustaining life at such great altitudes. The most remarkable, as well as one of the most lofty plateaus 42 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. that has heen occupied by man, is known as tliefuna or Altos of Peru. It extends through a great part of the length of Peru and Bolivia at a height of 10,000 to 14,000 feet above sea level. It is that cold and rugged region which forms the broad summit of the Cordillera. It has the aspect of an irregular plain and is diversified with mountain ridges and snowy volcanic peaks, imposing in their proportions, notwithstanding that they rise from a level of 14,000 feet above the sea. Squier, who has writ- ten much on South America, describing his travels through its several countries, presents a very graphic picture of the Puna and its ascent as follows : " Pocla is a poor but picturesque little village, with a small white church gleaming out against the dull brown of the bare mountain side. It is 9,700 feet above the sea. Still ascending, our mules began to pant under the influence of the soroche, or rarification of the air, but which the drivers insisted was from the veta, or influence due to the veins of metal in the earth. At La Portada, 12,600 feet above sea level, or 1,000 feet higher than the Hospice of the grand St. Bernard, I witnessed a scene more wild and desolate than I have beheld in crossing the Alps by the routes of the Simplon, the Grand St. Bernard or the St. Gothard. There is neither tree nor shrub ; the frosty soil cherishes no grass, and the very lichens find scant hold on the bare rocks. The native rum which I had purchased for making a fire for preparing my coffee, refused to burn, and extinguished the lighted match thrust into it as if it were -water. I was obliged to abstract some refined alcohol from my photo- graphic stores to supply its place-. At the pass of Guaylillos, 14,750 feet above the sea, one of my companions fell from his saddle under the influence of the rarified air. On lifting him from the ground we found him nearly senseless, with blood trick- ling from his mouth', ears, nostrils, and the corners of his eyes. Copious vomiting followed and we administered the usual rem- edies with good effect. In doing this I drew off my gloves, and was surprised to find my hands swollen and covered with blood, which appeared as if it had oozed from a thousand minute punct- ures.v THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 43 PERILS OF HIGH ALTITUDE. OTHER travelers give similar accounts of the climate of the Puna. Cold winds from, the icy Cordilleras, whose summits often rise 8,000 feet above the plateau, sweep over their surface, and during eight months of the year they are daily visited by fearful storms. In a few hours the change of the temperature often amounts to forty or fifty degrees, and the sudden fall is rendered still more disagreeable to the traveler by the biting winds which irritate the hands and face. The lips suffer especial- ly, breaking out into deep rents which heal with difficulty. The eyes also suffer intensely. The rapid changes from a cloudy sky to the brilliancy of a snow-field, glistening in the sun, produces an affection which the natives call the sarumpe. So intolerable is the burning and stinging that even the stoical Indian, when attacked, will fling himself on the ground uttering cries of an- guish and despair. Chronic ophthalmia, suppuration of the eye- lids, and total blindness, are frequent consequences of the sarumpe, against which the traveler over the highlands endeavors to guard himself by wearing green spectacles or a dark veil. The first symptoms of the veto, or soroche usually appear at an elevation of some 12,000 feet above the level of the sea. They frequently manifest themselves in those who ride, but are greatly aggravated when the traveler ascends on foot. The giddiness and nausea are accompanied with an insupportable sense of lassi- tude, difficulty of breathing, and violent palpitation of the heart, followed by spitting of blood and a bloody diarrhoea. This last affliction is, however, to a considerable extent, occasioned by the noxious character of the water. "All the water of the Despobla- do," says Squier, " even that which does not display any evidence of foreign or mineral substances in solution, is more' or less pur- gative, and often productive of very bad effects. In many parts the thirsty traveler discovers springs as bright and limpid as those of our New England hills ; yet when he dismounts to drink, his muleteer will rush forward in affright, with the warning cry, * Beware, es agua de Verugaf The Veruga water is said to pro- duce a terrible disease called by the same name, which manifests 44 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. itself outwardly in both men and animals in great bleeding boils and carbuncles, which occasion much distress, and often result in death." The veto, shows itself also in animals unaccustomed to moun- tain traveling. They proceed more and more slowly, frequently stop, trembling all over, and fall to the ground. If not allowed to rest they inevitably die. The natives are accustomed to slit the nostrils of their mules and horses in order to allow a greater influx of air. Mules and asses are less affected by the veto, than horses ; but it is fatal to cats, who are unable to live at a height of more than 13,000 feet. Another consequence of the diminished pressure of the air is that water boils at so low a temperature that meat, vegetables and eggs cannot be boiled sufficiently to be edible, and whoever wishes a warm meal in the Puna must have it baked or roasted. Winter and spring are no where in such close proximity as in the Peruvian highlands, for deep valleys furrow the bleak Puna, and when the traveler, benumbed by the cold blasts of the moun- tain plateaus, descends into these valleys, he finds the change as great as between the rigors of a Polar climate and the soft balm of delicious spring redolent with nature's perfumes. There are regions in Peru where a traveler may, in the morning, leave the snow-covered Puna hut in which he has shivered over night, and before sunset pluck pine-apples and bananas on the cultivated margin of a forest and repose in comfort under no other cover- ing than the drooping feathery leaves of gigantic palms. But in this vast elevated region there is nothing else which possesses so deep human interest as Lake Titicaca, for in it is embosomed the sacred island, to which the Incas traced their origin, and which to this day is to their descendants all that Jerusalem and Mecca are to Christians and Mohammedans. This beautiful body of fresh water is at the elevation of 12,864 feet above the sea, higher than any point in Europe except the ten loftiest peaks of the Alps. It is 120 miles long, and from fifty to sixty miles wide. Though the temperature falls quite low the lake never freezes over, but ice forms along its shores. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 45 Tn the winter months the temperature of the lake is usually ten or twelve degrees higher than that of the atmosphere. SACRED LAKES AND BEAUTIFUL TRADITIONS. THE largest island in this lake is the sacred island of Titicaca, bare and rocky, about six miles long and five miles broad. Tradition tells us that here Manco Capac and Mama Oella, at once his wife and sister, who were both children of the sun and messengers of that luminary, started on their errand to civilize the barbarous tribes which then occupied the country. Manco Capac was directed to travel northward until he should reach a spot where his golden staff would sink inlo the ground of its own accord ; and there he was to fix the seat of his empire. In obedience to these directions he traveled slowly along the western shore of lake Titicaca, through the barren Puna lands, until he reached the Vilcanota river, one of the principal branches of the Amazon, when he descended its valley and after a journey of three hundred miles his golden staff sank into the ground upon the spot where the city of Cuzco now stands. Here he fixed his seat of empire, and here arose the city of the sun, the capital of the Inca Empire, which in time spread over a length of 37 of latitude, and in breadth from the eastern base of the Andes westward to where the Pacific beats against the deeply planted feet of the Cordilleras. So runs the legend ; but there is much mythical matter incor- porated into the traditions respecting Manco Capac. We find his counterpart in the Fohi. of the Chinese, the Buddha of the Hindus, the Osiris of Egypt, the Odin of Scandinavia, the Jatza- coal of Mexico, and the Votan of Central America. Still there can be no doubt that he is a real historical character, to whom, how- ever, have been attributed many of the achievements of those who preceded him, and perhaps of some who followed him. The time when he lived is altogether uncertain. Some, studying the quippus, or knotted cords, which are the only records of ancient Peruvian history, place his advent back to within five centuries after the deluge. But the best authorities give the date approximately at about four centuries before the arrival of 46 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. the Spaniards under Pizarro, or about 1000, A. D., the period when all Christendom was hurling itself in the crusades upon the Holy Land. WONDERS OF AN EXTINCT CIVILIZATION. THIS civilization, in some respects one of the most remarkable which the world has ever seen, had its origin in the lofty table- land of the Puna, which we are now considering ; and far and wide as the reign of the Incas subsequently extended, they and their subjects always retained their reverence for the little rock; islet in Lake Titicaca, where it had its origin. At the northern end of the island is a frayed and water-worn mass of red sand- stone, about 225 feet long and twenty-five feet high. This is the sacred rock of Manco Capac, the most Holy spot in all Peru. Upon it, as was believed, no bird would alight, no animal venture, and upon which no human being not of royal blood dared sev his foot. From this rock the sun first rose to dispel the primal vapors and illuminate the world. It was, so runs the legend, planted all over with gold and silver, and except upon the mosf. solemn occasions, covered with a veil of cloth of costly material and gorgeous colors. The gold and silver, as well as the gorgeous covering, have long since disappeared, and what is now seen is only a bare rock, on the crest of the island, which rises 2,000 feet above the waters of the lake. Yet .even now, when the Indian guides come within sight of it, they raise their hats, bow reverently, and mutter words of mystic import, which they themselves most likely do not understand. In front of the rock is a level artificial terrace 372 feet long and 125 feet broad, sup- ported by a low stone wall. According to tradition the soil which once covered this terrace was carried upon the backs of fcnen from the distant valleys of the Amazon, so that it might 'nourish a vegetation denied by the hard, ungrateful soil of the island. Everywhere on the holy island are the ruins of Inca structures, and the sites of the most sacred spots are still shown. Here is the sheltered bay where the Incas landed when they came to visit the spot consecrated to the sun. Halfway up the ascent are the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 47 "footprints" of the great Inca Tupanqui, marking the place where he stood when, catching his first view of the hallowed rock, he removed the imperial covering from his head in token of adoration of the divinity whose shrine rose before him. These so-called foot prints bear strong resemblance to the impressions of a gigantic foot, thirty-six inches long and of proportionate 48 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. breadth. Their outline is formed by hard ferruginous veins around which the softer rock has been worn away, leaving them in relief. THE FOUNTAIN OF THE INCA8. THE Fountain of the Incas is situated in a sheltered nook, surrounded with terraces upon which grow patches of maize with ears not longer than one's finger. The bath is a pool forty feot long, ten wide, and five deep, built of worked stones. Into this [pour four jets of water, as large as a man's arm, from openings 'cut in the stones behind. The water comes through subterranean passages from sources now unknown, and never diminishes in volume. It flows to-day as freely as when the Incas resorted here and cut the deep hill-sides into terraces, bringing the earth all the way from the Valley of Yucay, or "Vale of Imperial Delights," four hundred miles distant. Over the walls droop the tendrils of vines ; and what with the odors, and the tinkle and patter of the water, one might imagine himself in the court of the Alhambra. Besides the sacred Island of Titicaca, there are eight smaller ones in the lake. Soto was the Isle of Penitence, where the Incas were wont to resort for fasting and humiliation. Coati was sacred to the moon, the wife and sister of the sun, and on it is the palace of the Virgins of the Sun, one of the most remark- able and best preserved remains of aboriginal architecture on the continent of America. At Tihuanico, on the border of the lake, are immense ruins which clearly" antedate the time of the Incas. They were ruins when the Spaniards made their appearance, and the natives could give no account of them. They supposed that they were built by divine architects in a single night. Cieza do Leon, one of the companions of Pizarro, writes of them : " What most surprised me was that the enormous gateways were formed on other great masses of stone, some of which were thirty feet long, fifteen wide, and six thick. I can not conceive with what tools or instru- ments these stones were hewn out, for they must have been vastly larger than we now see them . It is supposed that some of these THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 49 structures were built long before the dominion of the Tncas ; and I have heard the Indians affirm that these sovereigns constructed their great building at Cuzco after the plans of the walls of Tihuanico." The most remarkable thing in these ruins are the great doorways of a single block of stone. The largest of these is ten feet high and thirteen broad, the opening cut through it being six feet four inches high, and three feet two inches wide. The whole neighborhood is strewn with immense blocks of stone elaborately wrought, equalling if not surpassing in size any known to exist in Egypt, India, or any part of the world. Some of these are thirty feet long, eighteen broad, and six thick. All these gigantic remains of a past civilization are found in the Jofty table-land of the Puna. When these come to be fully described and illustrated, it will be seen that here, in a climate so cofd that hardly a vegetable will grow which man can use for food, were planted the seeds of a civilization as remarkable as any which ever existed. More wonderful, perhaps, than these great architectural works were the great military roads con- structed by the Incas. One reached from Cuzco down to the ocean. The other stretched from the capital, along the very crest of the Cordilleras, and down their ravines, to Quito, 1,200 miles distant. The length of these great roads, including branches, was not less than 3,000 miles. Modern travelers com- pare them with the best in the world. They were from eighteen to twenty-five feet broad, paved with immense blocks of stone, sometimes covered with asphaltum. In ascending steep moun- tains, broad steps were cut in the rock ; ravines were filled with heavy embankments flanked with parapets, and, wherever the climate permitted, lined with shade trees and shrubs, with houses at regular distances for the accomodation of travelers, and specially serving as post-stations. For there was a regular pos- tal service by which the Incas could send messages from one extremity of their dominion to the other. This service was per- formed by runners ; for the Peruvians had no beasts of burden stronger or swifter than the llama. These messengers were trained to great speed. On approaching a station they gave a 50 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. loud shout to warn the uext courier of their approach, so that he might be ready to take the message or parcel without delay. In this manner it is said that dispatches were sent at the rate of 150 miles a day, a speed unequaled until within our own times, when the railway and the telegraph have brought the ends of the world almost together. WONDERS OF THREE DEAD CITIES. THE only parts of America which, before the arrival of Europeans, were in some degree civilized, were Mexico and Peru ; to which may probably be added that long and narrow tract which stretches from the south of Mexico to the Isthmus of Panajna. In this latter country, which is now known as Central America, the inhabitants, aided by the fertility of the soil, seem to have worked out for themselves a certain amount of knowledge, since the ruins still extant prove the possession "of a mechanical and architectural skill too considerable to be acquired by any nation entirely barbarous. Beyond this, nothing is known of their history ; but the accounts we have of such build- ings as Copan, Palenque and Uxmal, make it highly probable that Central America was the ancient seat of a civilization in all essential points similar to those of India and Egypt ; that is to say, similar to them in respect to the unequal distribution of wealth and power, and the thraldom in which the great body of the people consequently remained. Mr. Squier, who explored Nicaragua, says of the statues which he saw in large numbers about the ruins of old palaces : " The material, in every case, is a black basalt, of great hardness, which, with the best of modern tools, can only be cut with diffi- culty." Mr. Stephens, another explorer of Central America, say a he found at Palenque " elegant specimens of art and models for study," and of the paintings he found at Chichen he writes : " They exhibit a freedom of touch which could only be the result of discipline and training under masters." At Copan the ame writer declares that " it would bo impossible, with the bost instruments of modern times, to cut stones more per- fectly." These evidences unmistakably confirm the impression THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 51 that in many respects the civilization of Europe or the United States does not show a greater degree of intellectual refinement or any more progress in the arts and sciences than the people of Mexico, Central America and Peru were acquainted with.. The same is true of Egypt, and we cannot contemplate these wonders to-day without being impressed with the belief that civilizations, like tides, ebb and flow, their rise and fall being dependent upon change of climate, revulsions of nature, or protracted wars, though measured by centuries. THE AMAZON RIVER. THE wonders of South America do not, however, cluster around the ruins of a past civilization, for one of the greatest of natural wonders is the mighty Amazon River and its marvel- lous effect upon the vegetation and animal life of Brazil. This remarkable stream was discovered by Yanez Pinzor in the year 1500, and was first navigated by one of Pizarro's officers named Orellana, in 1541. The word Amazon is supposed to be derived from the story of Orellaua's fight with a body of Amazons a nation of female warriors, although some declare it is from an Indian word, Amassona boat destroyer which is decidedly im- probable. The men who opposed Orellana wore long tunics and parted their hair in the middle, which fact, aided by the fabled Amazons of the Caucasus, doubtless led him to believe them women. The total length of this gigantic stream, as estimated by Lieutenant Herndon, is 3,944 miles, and its average depth forty- three feet, quite enough to float the largest ocean steamers, but owing to the numerous falls and rapids it is really navigable for steam vessels only about 500 miles from its mouth. A singular feature of the Amazon is its abrupt v banks, there being no shoal water near trie shore as in other rivers, soundings taken from the bank often showing fifty feet or more, equalling the greatest depth of the mid-stream. Like nearly all tropical rivers, the Amazon is subject to periodical inundations. The banks, which are generally high, are overflowed and vast tracts of land flooded to such an extent, indeed, that its freshening effects are percept- 52 THE WORLD'S WONERS. ible for many miles on either side The rise above the lowest level of the stream is sometimes as great as fifty feet, and the ocean tide, following the river, is noticeable nearly 500 miles from the mouth. The bore tidal wave of the Amazon exceeds that of any other river of the world. La Condamine, more THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 58 than 100 years ago, accurately described it in these words: DESTRUCTIVE TIDES OF THE AMAZON. " DURING three days before the full and new moons, the period of highest tides, the sea, instead of occupying six hours to reach its flood, swells to its highest limits in one or two minutes. The noise of this terrible flood is heard five or six miles and increases as it approaches. Presently may be seen a liquid promontory, twelve or fifteen feet high, followed by another and another, and sometimes by a fourth. These watery mountains spread across the whole channel, and advance with a prodigious rapidity, rending and crushing everything in their way. Im- mense trees are instantly uprooted by it, and sometimes whole tracts of land are swept away." Another characteristic feature is the system of back channels joining the tributaries, and the canoe paths through the forest. Following these narrow water roads one may go in a canoe from Santaren 1,000 miles up the Amazon without once ever enter- ing the river. The enormous valley of the Amazon is walled in by the Andes and the highlands of Guiana and Matto Grosso. No other region of equal area has such a remarkably uniform character, and its geological formation is of deep interest. The territory through which the Amazon flows is covered with vast forests and pos- sesses a soil of extraordinary fertility. "If," says Humboldt, " the name of primeval forest can be given to any forests on the face of the earth, none, perhaps, can so strictly claim it as those that fill the connected basin of the Orinoco and Amazon." " From the grassy steppes of Venezuela to the treeless pampas of Buenos Ayres," says a later traveler, " expands a sea of ver- dure in which we may draw a circle of 1,100 miles in diameter, which shall include an evergreen, unbroken forest. There is a most bewildering diversity of grand and beautiful trees a wild, unconquered race of vegetable giants, draped, festooned, corded, matted and ribboned with climbing and creeping plants, woody and succulent in endless variety." Animal life is not so conspicuous in the forest as on the river; 54 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. the latter is fairly crowded with strange fishes, alligators, great turtles, porpoises, manitees sea cow and enormous anacondas. Through the forest are scattered mammals, birds and reptiles, the more common being the ferocious puma and jaguar, tapir, copyboras, piccaries, sloths, deer, armadillos, monkeys, parrots, to weans and macaws. The shores of the Amazon are but thinly inhabited ; the most important tribes being Mundurucus, Tucunas and Yagnos, who are an idle, vagabondish people, regardless of the past and heedless of the future. AFRICA. CHAPTER III. ANCIENT DISCOVERIES. FROM the foregoing outline of the interesting phases of nature in South America, we now turn to that most interesting of all countries, Africa, which, though lying within the same zone belts as South America, and having a somewhat similiar physical aspect, is yet possessed of very many peculiar features not found elsewhere in the world. Here the most ancient records place the beginning of creation, which, though in allegory, give evidence of the birth of civilization in the neighborhood of that mighty and wonderful river, the Nile. It was in Africa that the father of history was born, and on its north-eastern coast or interior were builded the great cities of Carthage, Memphis and Alexan- dria, which for a time, in succession, ruled the world. Here also the Saracens, in their practice of alchemy, found greater than philosophers' stones, in discovering, by accident, so many useful facts in chemistry. The history of Ancient Africa is unwritten, nor has it ever THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 55 been determined from whence the name originated, though hun- dreds of philologists have attempted to explain its origin. The earliest mention we have of any attempt to explore the country is the following, from a book published by John Ogilby, " Master) of His Majesties Revels in the Kingdom of Ireland" in 1670, the full title of which would occupy nearly one page of this work, but which is descriptive of Africa. In the quaint style then used, it says : " Amongst the Ancients, Hanno, a Carthaginian, sent forth by that State, discovered long since much of the Coasts of Africa, but pierced not far the Inland Country, nor did his Voyage give great light that they might after steer by, though translated from the Puriick Language into Greek, and published by Sigismund Gelenius at Brazill in 1533. And in the reign of Necho, King of Egypt, some Phenicians from the Red- sea sayl'd by the Coast of Africa to Gibralter, from thence returning the same way they came. Of which Herodotus (Herodotus wrote nine Books of History, according to the number of the Muses, entituling them in order by one of their names) in his Melpomene (Fourth Book) says : The Phenicians sayling from the Red-sea, came into the Southern Ocean, and after three years reaching Hercules Pillars, returned through the Mediterranean, reporting wonders ! how that they had the Sun at Noon on their Starboard, or North-side, to which I give little credit, and others may believe as they please. Nor did Sataspes' Voyage in the Reign of Xerxes, King of Persia, in the year of the world 3435, give us any better Hints ; of which thus Herodotus in the same book : ** 'Sataspes, Teaspes' son, ravishing a virgin, and condemned to be crucified, by the mediation of his Mother, Darius' sister* was to suffer no more than to undertake a voyage round Africa, which he but slightly performed ; for passing Gibralter, he sayl'd to the utmost point called Siloe (Cape de Verd), from thence sayling on southward ; but being weary, returning the same way he came, made a strange relation to Xerxes, how he had seen remote countreys, where he found few people in Tynan Purple, but such as when they drew near the Land, forsook their abodes, 56 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. and fled up into the Mountains, and that they only drove some of their Cattle thence, doing them no further damage ; adding also, that he had sayled round Africa, had it not been impossible : To which the King giving small credit, and for that Sataspes had not performed his Undertaking, remitted him to his former sentence.' . " As little availed that expedition of the Nasamones (a People inhabiting Tunis) to this discovery, who (as Herodotus relates in his Euterpe, second book) chose by lot five young men of good Fortunes and Qualifications, to explore the African Deserts, never yet penetrated, to inform themselves of their Vastness, and what might be beyond ; these setting forth with fit Provisions, came first where only wild Beasts inhabited ; thence travelling westward through barren Lands, after many days, they saw a Plain planned with- Trees, to which drawing near they tasted their Fruits, whilest a Dwarf-like People came to them about half their stature, neither by speech understanding the other, they led them by hand over a vast Common, to their City, where all the inhabitants were Blacks, and of the same size ; by this City ran towards the East a great River, abounding with Croco- diles, which Etearchus, King of the Ammonians, to whom the Nasamones related this, supposed to be the Nile. This is all we have of Antiquity, and from one single Author, who writ 420 years before the Incarnation, which sufficiently sets forth the Ignorance of the Ancients concerning Africa." . THE DISADVANTAGES OF NATIVE AFRICANS. WHAT has been written of South America in no inconsiderable measure applies to Africa, but there are disadvantages noticeable in the latter against which natives of the former country do not have to contend. Africa has ever appeared like a country cursed by God, its people in the greater part bearing a mark that has descended apparently from posterity to posterity since the day that Ham was bitterly cursed by his father, and made a slave to his heartless brothers. Egypt, the seat of learning, the birth-place of genius, with her Alexandria palace and her great philosophic schools, is now only a mausoleum of a dead civilization, like an TME WORLD'S WONDERS. 57 instrument once giving forth the most exquisite melody, now broken and stringless. From a wonderfully brilliant sunlight, which once lighted her forums, palaces, specimens of art and culture, she has fallen under the pall of age, and her glory now abides under the sands ; her Memphis and her Thebes are inurned by pelting storms, the Sphynx and the Pyramids, broken, and crusted by time, are now only curious monuments of a past age that will return no more. The blood of Hypatia, the noblest woman that ever championed a cause, rose round the temples which her murderers desecrated, and the demons of vengeance made brooding night settle upon its ruins. In Egypt, as in all Africa, there has ever been an impassable barrier between the rich and poor. In the olden time, when Egypt was in her glory, the laws were atrociously oppressive ; if a member of the industrious classes changed his usual employment, or was known to pay any attention to political matters, he was severly punished, and under no circumstances was the possession of land allowed to an agricultural laborer, to a mechanic, or indeed to any one except the King, the Clergy, and the Army. The people at large were little better than beasts of burden ; and all that was expected of them was unremitting and unrequited labor. If they neglected their work they were flogged ; and the same punishment was frequently inflicted upon domestic servants, and even upon women. Hence it was that the industry of the whole nation, being at the absolute command of a small part of it, there arose the possibility of rearing those vast edifices, which inconsiderate observers admire as a proof of civilization, but which in reality are evidences of a state of things altogether depraved and unhealthy. That in such a society as this, much regard should be paid to human suffering, it would be idle to suppose. Still, we are startled by the reckless prodigality with which, in Egypt, the upper classes squandered away the labor and lives of the people. In this respect, as the monuments yet remaining abundantly prove, they stood alone, without a rival. We may form some idea of the almost incredible waste, when we hear that two 68 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. thousand men were occupied for three years removing a single stone from Elephantine to Sais ; that the canal of the Red Sea cost the lives of a hundred and twenty thousand Egyptians ; and that to build one of the Pyramids required the labor of three hundred and sixty thousand men for twenty yeiu-s. This reckless disregard for the people so impoverished the lower classes, chiefly by confiscations, that subsistence became finally so difficult that families were compelled to support life almost exclusively from the fruit of date trees. This was the condition of the most civilized portion of Egypt, but when we describe the life found in Central Africa, there will be seen influences so nearly identical that we must conclude there were the same causes operating throughout the whole country, to keep it in darkness and terror. While the poten- tates of Central Africa are never wealthy, as we value posses- sions, yet they hold their subjects by hooks of steel, as it were, and place no estimate whatever on human life, using it only as it may please or advantage them. Through all Africa, therefore, as well as in Egypt, there is seen the slave-mark, the curse of all uncivilized nations. THE RIVER NILE. Of all rivers which traverse the habitable portions of the earth, the Nile is pre-eminently the grandest ; grand not alone because it flows through the wild, dark, pathless region, nor because of its long hidden source, but because of its singular character in its adaptation to the sand-covered, scorching desert which it cleaves, spreading a wondrous fertility over the otherwise barren and uninhabitable waste, fructifying the sands and establishing a seat for the earliest civilization. Oh, marvellous Nile! Oh, wonderful Egypt I That great country in which the infant of industry and progress was cradled ; which gave to science its swaddling clothes, and nursed art and religion into strong and imperishable vitality, has not only been sustained by the Niles' gifts of prodigal fertility, but was created by the alluvial soil which flowed down through the long centuries, and deposited in continual accretions to the delta. Thus has Egypt grown v THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 59 out into the sea, a creature of that wonder of wonders, the great Nile. At so remote a period that history cannot even approximate, Egypt came into existence, washed down from hills and mountains, lagoons and lakes, to take her rank as mother of the civilized world. "Egypt," as Sir Samuel Baker says, "was not only created by the Nile, but the very existence of its inhabitants depended upon the annual inundation of the river. Thus all that related to the Nile was of vital importance to the people ; it was the hand- that fed them. "Egypt, depending so entirely upon the river, it was natural that the origin of those mysterious waters should have absorbed the attention of thinking men. It was unlike all other rivers. In July and August, when streams in all portions of the world are at their lowest, by reason of the summer heat, the Nile is at its flood I In Egypt there is no rainfall not even a drop of dew in those parched deserts through which, for 860 miles of latitude, the glorious river flowed without a tributary. Licked up by the burning sun, and gulped by the exhausting sand of Nubian deserts, supporting all losses by evaporation and absorption, the noble flood shed its annual blessings upon Egypt. An anomaly among rivers ; flooding in the driest season ; everlasting in sandy deserts ; where was its hidden origin? where were the sources of the Nile? This was, from the earliest period, the great geo- graphical question to be solved." MODERN TRAVELS THROUGH AFRICA. STRANGE as it appears, it is none the less true, that one of the most -accurate maps of Africa ever published, was printed in Ogilby's book over two hundred years ago, not only showing tho true source of the Nile, just as Stanley found it, but generally all the water ways and topography of the entire country are faithfully exhibited. Vasquez de Gamma, who figures so conspicuously in the discoveries of North America, was the first explorer we have any authentic history of who circumnavigated Africa, and incited a national desire to effect a thorough exploration of its interior, though it was twenty years after his death before an expedition 60 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. suitably equiped, attempted to cross the country. Since that time African exploration parties have been very numerous, nearly every nation on the globe contributing adventurous spirits to battle with the wild animals and wilder jungles which charac- terize its interior, in pursuit of a curiosity which every person possesses more or less. In this volume T shall confine myself to the results and more exciting incidents, discoveries and ad ventures of the great modern explorers of Africa, giving prominence to those whose achieve- ments entitle them to public recognition. CAPT. J. H. SPEKE'S TRAVELS. THE first to be considered is Capt. J. H. Speke, of the Eng- lish army, as he was the first to claim the discovery of the source of the Nile, although subsequent explorations have shown that he discovered only one of the principal lakes or reservoirs that feed that wonderful river. Capt. Speke made three expeditions into the heart of Africa, first as the companion of the celebrated traveler, Richard Francis Burton, during which they discovered lake Tanganika. On his second expedition, which he undertook alone, Speke discovered Victoria Lake, one of the principal reservoirs from which the Nile is fed, and which for some years was supposed to be the real source of this mysterious river. His third expedition was undertaken in 1860, in company with Capt. J. W. Grant, also an officer in the British army, and who had previously made extensive explora- tions in Australia. As this third expedition contains the most important results of Capt. Speke's discoveries, we shall confine ourselves principally to it. The explorers were aided in this expedition by a contribution of $12,000 from the Royal Geographical Society of England, and THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 61 $15,000 granted by the Cape Parliament. They set sail on an English steamer for Zanzibar, and upon nearing that place they encountered a Spanish slaver which was just leaving the African coast with 544 starving slaves penned up in the deadly atmos- phere of the ship's hold, where the dead and dying were lying in ghastly confusion. The slaver was captured and the miserable black wretches returned to their native shores. Directly after this event Speke and his companion arrived at Zanzibar, where preparations were made, and on October 2d, with two hundred men, they departed for the interior of Africa. Capt. Speke thus describes the manner of taking observations and making up the records of his journey : " My first occupation was to map the country. This is done by timing the rate of inarch with a watch, taking compass-bear- ings along the road or on any conspicuous marks as, for instance, hills off it and by noting the watershed in short, all topographical objects. On arrival in camp every day came the ascertaining, by boiling a thermometer, of the altitude of the station above the sea-level ; of the latitude of the station by the meridian altitude of a star taken with a sextant ; and of the com- pass variation by azimuth. Occasionally there was the fixing of certain crucial stations, at intervals of sixty miles or so, by lunar observations, or distances of the moon either from the sun or from certain given stars, for determining the longitude, by which the original-timed course can be drawn out with certainty on the map by proportion. Should a date be lost, you can always discover it by taking a lunar distance and comparing it with the Nautical Almanac, by noting the time when a star passes the meridian if your watch is right, or by observing the phases of the moon, or her rising or setting, as compared with the Nautical Almanac. The rest of my work, besides sketching and keeping a diary, which was the most troublesome of all, consisted in making geological and zoological collections. With Captain Grant rested the botanical collections and ther- mometrical registers. He also boiled one of the thermometer's, kept the rain-gauge, and undertook the photography ; but after 62 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. a time I sent the instruments back, considering this work too severe for the climate, and he tried instead sketching with water-colors, the results of which form the chief part of the illustrations in my book. The rest of our day went in break- fasting after the march was over a pipe, to prepare us for rum- maging the fields and villages to discover their contents for scien- tific purposes dinner close to sunset, and tea and pipe before turning in at night." FIRST SIGHT OF HIPPOPOTAMI. THE journey was without special incident until the vicinity of Mbume was reached, when they passed an immense lagoon in which many hippopotami were seen sporting very near, as if inviting attack. There were also numerous traces of elephants, buffaloes, rhinoceros and antelopes, but no stoppage was made for a hunt. They had now proceeded far enough into the interior to be al- most constantly beset by native chiefs, who demanded tribute for the privilege of crossing their respective districts. On the 24th of October the party reached the Ugogo plateau, the inhabi- tants of which are a fierce, repulsive and dangerous people. The men, indeed, are never seen without their usual arms the spear, the shield, and the assegai. They live in flat-topped, square, tembe villages, wherever springs of water are found, keep cattle in. plenty, and farm enough generally to supply not only their own wants, but those of the thousands who annually pass in caravans. They are extremely fond of ornaments, the most common of which is an ugly tube of the gourd thrust through the lower lobe of the ear. Their color is a soft ruddy brown, with a slight infusion of black, not unlike that of a rich plum. Impulsive by nature, and exceedingly avaricious, they pester travelers beyond all conception by thronging the road, jeering, quizzing, and pointing at them ; and in camp, by intru- sively forcing their way into the midst of the kit, and even into the stranger's tent, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 63 A RHINOCEROS HUNT. UPON arriving on the farthest border of Ugogo, at a settlement called Kanyenye, eight of the porters deserted, taking with them as many mules laden with stores, which compelled a day's stoppage. While here, one of the natives, upon noticing fire- arms among the party, told Capt. Speke that in the immediate locality were not a few two-horned rhinoceros, which every night visited the bitter pools near by to bathe. This information greatly delighted Speke % and Grant, who directly made prepara- THE TWO-HORNED RHINOCEROS. lions to indulge their bent for a hunt, while others of the party vere sent in search of the deserters and stolen mules. At ten o'clock, an hour before the moon would rise, they set out for the lagoons, accompanied by a guide and two sheikh boys carrying rifles. Reaching the foot-hills, the party hid themselves until midnight to await the rising moon and their dangerous game. They had not long to wait, for presently a gigantic beast loomed up against the horizon and came on t- 64 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. ward a large pool of water. Speke attached a bit of white paper to the sight of his rifle and crawled undercover of the bank until within eighty yards of the animal. It chanced that the shot struck in a vital spot, penetrating the beast's heart, so that it died with but few struggles. Capt. Speke, being anxious to in- crease his store of meat, then retired to his former position and again waited. After two hours had elapsed two more rhinoceros approached in the same stealthy, fidgety way as the first one. They came even closer than the first, but the moon having passed beyond their meridian, he could not obtain so clear a mark. Still they were big marks, and Speke determined on doing his best before they had time to wind him ; so, stepping out, with the sheikh's boys behind, carrying the second rifle to meet all emergencies, he planted a ball in the larger one, and brought him round with a roar and whooh-whooh, exactly to the best position that one could wish for receiving a second shot ; but, alas ! on turning sharply round for the spare rifle, Speke had the mortification to see that both the black boys had made off, and were scrambling like monkeys up a tree. At the same time, the rhinoceros, fortunately, on second consideration, turned to the right-about, and shuffled away, leaving, as is usually the case when conical bullets are used, no traces of blood. Thus ended the night's work. The party now went home by dawn to apprise all the porters that they had flesh in store for them, when the two boys who had so shamelessly deserted, instead of hiding their heads, described all the night's scenes with such capital mimicry as set the whole camp in a roar. They had all now to hurry back to the carcass before the native Wagogo could find it ; but, though this precaution was quickly taken, still, before the tough skin of the beast could be cut through, the Wagogo began assembling like vultures, and fight- ing with Speke's men. A more savage, filthy, disgusting, but, at the same time, grotesque scene than that which followed can not be conceived. All fell to work, armed with swords, spears. Knives, and hatchets, cutting and slashing, thumping and bawl- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 65 ing, fighting and tearing, tumbling and wrestling up to their knees in filth and blood in the middle of the carcass. When a tempting morsel fell to the possession of any one, a stronger neighbor would seize and bear off the prize in triumph. All right was now a matter of pure might, and lucky it was that it did not end in a fight between the opposing parties. The natives might be afterward seen, one by one, covered with blood, scam- pering home each with his spoil a piece of tripe, or liver, or lights, or whatever else it might have been his fortune to get CLOSE QUARTERS. On the 7th of November, through sickness and desertion, Speke's followers were so much reduced that it became necessary for hi ill to secure more recruits, for which purpose he halted three days and sent to Sheikh Said for several men. That the time of waiting might not hang heavily on his hands, he went upon another hunt. Shortly after starting out he came suddenly upon a two-horned rhinoceros which stood quietly feeding off a bush. He shot the beast at a distance not exceeding five paces. Proceeding farther, he soon came upon a herd of buffaloes and secured four shots before the animals discovered him or from whence the shots had conie. They then galloped off with Speke 66 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. after them, and he succeeded in killing four or five and wounding several, among the latter a large bull, full of fight and sullen- ness ; this one, struck in the flank, charged down upon him and his boy, who carried the rifles ; the boy, nimble as a monkey, swung himself from a friendly bough just as the bull swept under him like a cyclone, and made directly for Speke, who had but a single gun left. Happily this was enough, for the bullet was so well directed that it broke the infuriated beast's neck. Speke had barely escaped from one bull before another, that had also been wounded, charged at him, giving only sufficient time for A LUCKY SHOT. him to pick up another gun that had been dropped by the nimble boy. As the bull came rapidly on, Speke jumped behind a small knoll and fired, but the shot did not take effect ; most fortunately, however, the smoke from the discharge hung so 'heavy about the bull's head that he could not see his assailant, knd after fighting it awhile, he bolted off into the woods, to the intense delight of the now defenceless banter. At the end of five days seventy porters were secured, to whom were given sixteen pieces of cloth each, in advance, for their ser- vices as carriers. Two of the deserters were also captured, and having received fifty lashes each for their offense, were again THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 67 placed in service. While waiting for the Sheikh to return, how- ever, some of the villagers stole several loads of beads, for which Speke held the chief responsible. After a long and heated argu- ment, fifteen cows were given as a compensation for the loss, whereupon the expedition started forward again and did not halt, except at night, until Unyanyembe was reached, which is the most considerable place within the rich district of the Land of the Moon. Up to November 23d the losses sustained by the expedition were as follows : One Hottentot dead and five returned ; one freeman sent back with the Hottentots, and one flogged and turned off ; twenty-five of Sultan Majid's gardeners deserted ; ninety-eight of the original Wanyamuezi porters deserted ; twelve mules and three donkeys dead. Besides which, more than half of the property had been stolen ; while the traveling expenses had been unprecedented, in consequence of the severity of the famine throughout the whole length of the march. CHAPTER IV. BETWEEN TWO FIRES. AFTER leaving the Land of the Moon, Speke encountered many serious difficulties which crippled his force materially and threatened him with disaster. The country in which he was now travelling was particularly precarious on account of a war then waging between the Arabs and a deposed native chief, named Manua Sera, who proved himself a bitter antagonist, full of strategy and the daring of a guerilla. This chief paid a visit tof the explorer, and after detailing the wrongs which had been done him, begged Speke to join him against the Arabs. To have de- clined this request abruptly might have imperiled his own safety, so Speke was compelled to resort to strategy to avoid serious trouble. While deferring his answer, the Arabs, in pursuit of Manua ' Sera, reached the country and were soon in com- 68 TILE WOULD *S WONDERS. munication with Speke, whom they besought to join them in expelling or destroying the guerilla chief. Speke was there- fore put to it again, for the interior tribes generally sympathized with Manua Sera, and had the English explorer combined with the Arabs, he would have certainly met with disaster. After passing Masange and Zimbili, Speke put up a night in the village of Iviri, on the northern border of Unyanyembe, and found several officers there, sent by Mkisiwa, to enforce a levy of soldiers to take the field with the Arabs at Kaze against Manua Sera ; to effect which, they walked about ringing bells, and bawling out that if a certain percentage of all the inhabitants did not muster, the village chief would be seized, and their plan- tations confiscated. Speke's men all mutinied here for increase of ration allowances. To find themselves food with, he had given them all one necklace of beads each per diem since leaving Kaze, in lieu of cloth, which hitherto had been served out for that purpose. It was a very liberal allowance, because the Arabs never gave more than one necklace to every three men, and that, too, of inferior quality to what Speke served. He brought them to at last by starvation, and then went on. Dip- ping down into a valley between two clusters of granitic hills, beautifully clothed with trees and grass, studded hereand there with rich plantations, they entered the district of Usagari, and on the second day forded the Gornbe Nullah again in its upper course, called Kuale. Here ("apt. Speke met with a chief whose wife was an old friend, formerly a waiting-maid at Ungugu, whom he had met on previous voyages. Her husband, the chief, was then absent, engaged in war with a neighbor, so the queen gave Speke such assistance as enabled him to avoid joining either the Arabs or Manua Sera, without inciting their hostility. On Christmas day the expedition halted to await the arrival of three hundred porters that had been sent for by a chief named Musa, who had accompanied Speke for several weeks, giving much valuable service as guide and interpreter. The expedition did not move again until January 2d, the interim being employed WOKLD'S WONDE&S. 70 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. by Speke and Grant in collecting specimens, stuffing birds and animals, and making sketches. While thus employed, they came upon a poor slave, owned by a chief named Sirboko, who was chained up in a most merciless manner. The pitiful appear- ing fellow cried out to Speke : " Hal Baua wangi, Bana wangi (Oh, my lord, my lord) take pity on me ! When I was a free man I saw you at Uvira, on the Tanganyika Lake, when you were there ; but since then the Watuta, in a tight at Ujiji, speared me all over and left me for flead, when I was seized by the people, sold to the Arabs, and have been in chains ever since. Oh, I say, Bana wangi, if you would only liberate me I would never run away, but would serve you faithfully alt my life." This touching appeal was too strong to be withstood, so Speke called up Sirboko, and told him if he would liberate this one man he should be no loser ; and the release was effected. He was then christened Farhan (Joy), and was enrolled with the rest of the freedmen. Inquiry was then made if it were true the Wabembe were cannibals, and also circumcised. In one of the slaves the latter statement was easily confirmed. Speke was assured that the slave was a cannibal ; for the whole tribe of Wabembe, when they cannot get human flesh otherwise, give a goat to their neighbors for a sick or dying child, regarding such flesh as the best of all. No other cannibals, however, were known of; but the Masai, and their cognates, the Wahumba, Wataturu, Wakasange, Wanyar- amba, and even the Wagogo and Wakimbu, circumcise. THE KING OF KARAGUE AND HIS FAT WIFE. SUCH slow progress had been made, owing to wars, desertions, oppositions from chiefs, etc., that it was not until the latter part of October, more than one year after starting, that Capt. Speke reached the Karague country. Here he found a fine stretch of elevated lands which are drained by the Kitangule River directly into the Victoria lake. It was here also that he met Rumanika, the king, and Nnanaji, his brother, a famous Doctor. Both these men had most regular features, denoting the best blood of Abyssinia. Speke paid a visit to the king, and was received in THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 71 a becoming manner; his surprise was great to hear him inquire so intelligently about people and governments in other lands, and when he asked his visitor to take two of the princes with him to England, that they might become educated, and return to tell him all about the world, his admiration was greatly increased . As to the domestic character and tastes of Eumanika, Capt. Speke writes : "In the afternoon, as I had heard from Musa that the wives of the king and princes were fattened to such an extent that they could not stand upright, .1 paid my respects to Wazezeru, the king's eldest brother who, having been born before his father ascended the throne, did not come in the line of succession with the hope of being able to see for myself the truth of the story. There was no mistake about it. On entering the hut, I found the old man and his chief wife sitting side by side on a bench of earth strewed over with grass, and partitioned like stalls for sleeping apartments, while in front of them were placed numer- ous wooden pots of milk, and, hanging from the poles that sup- ported the hee-hive shaped hut, a large collection of bows six feet in length, while below them were tied an even larger col- lection of spears, intermixed with a goodly assortment of heavy- handled assegais. I was struck with no* small surprise at the way he received me, as well as with the extraordinary dimensions, yet pleasing beauty, of the immoderately fat fair one, his wife. She could not rise ; and so large were her arms that between the joints the flesh hung down like large, loose-stuffed puddings. Then in came their children, all models of the Abyssinian type of beauty, and as polite in their manners as thorough-bred gen- tlemen. They had heard of my picture-books from the king, and all wished to see them ; which they no sooner did, to their infinite delight, especially when they recognized any of the animals, than the subject was turned by my inquiring what they did with so many milk-pots. This was easily explained by Wazezeru himself, who, pointing to his wife, said, This is all the product of those pots ; from early youth upward we keep these pots to their mouths, as it is the fashion at court to have very fat wives.' " 72 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. Before leaving the Karague country, Capt. Speke sent the king's brother a blanket and seventy-five blue egg beads as a present, which were received with many signs of pleasure. The king then, ever attentive to his guests, sent his royal musicians to play for Speke and Grant. The men composing the band were a mixture of Waganda and Wanyambo, who played on reed THE ROYAL MUSICIANS. instruments made telescope fashion, marking time by hand- drums. At first they marched up and down, playing tunes exactly like the regimental bands of the Turks, and then com- menced dancing a species of " hornpipe," blowing furiously all the while. DECIDING THE EIGHT TO RULE BY MAGIC. SPEKE gave the king a rifle, together with some ammunition, whereat the royal savage was so intensely delighted that he insisted upon explaining how he was the rightful successor to the throne, being moved thereto by the fact that his brother, Rogero, was contesting the succession by war then. Rumanika, the king, thus explained : When Dogara, my father, died, and myself, Nnanaji and Rogero were the only three sons left in line of suc- cession to the crown, a small mystic drum of diminutive size was placed before them by the officers of state. It was only a feather's weight in reality, Hut, being loaded with charms, became so heavy to those who were not entitled to the crown, THE WORLD*S WONDERS. 73 that none of them could lift it. Now, of all the three brothers, he, Rumanika, alone could raise it from the ground ; and while his brothers labored hard, in a vain attempt to move it, he with his little finger held it up without exertion. This disclosure led to inquiries concerning a king's death and burial, when the king related that according to the customs of the country, when a king died his body was sewed up in a cow- skin, and placed in a boat floating in the adjacent lake, where it remained for three days, when decomposition set in and maggots were engendered, three of which were taken from the putrid body, and carried into the palace ; after remaining there three days, one of the maggots was transformed into a lion, another into a leopard, and the third into a stick. After this the body of the dead king was taken out of, the boat and carried to a sacred hill, where it was deposited on the ground and alargehut built over it ; in this hut were placed five maidens and fifty cows to provide entertainment and food for the royal spirit. The doorway to the hut was then so strongly closed that the maidens and cows perished. Rumanika continued to explain his greatness and that of his ancestors, by declaring that his grandfather was a most wonder- ful man ; indeed Karague was blessed with more supernatural agencies than any other country. Rohinda the Sixth, who was his grandfather, numbered so many years that people. thought he never would die ; and he even became so concerned himself about it, reflecting that his son Dagara would never enjoy the benefit of his position as successor to the crown of Karague, that he took some magic powders and charmed away his life. His remains were then taken to Moga-Namirinzi, in the same manner as were those of Dagara ; but, as an improvement on the maggot story, a young lion emerged from the heart of the corpse and kept guard over the hill, from whom other lions came into existence, until the whole place became infested by them, and has since made Karague a power and dread to all other nations ; for these lions became subject to the will of Dagara, who, when attacked by the countries to the northward, instead of assembling an army 74 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. of men, assembled his lion force, and so swept all before him. Another test was then advanced at the instigation of K'yengo, who thought Rumanika not quite impressive enough of his right to the throne ; and this was, that each heir in succession, even after the drum dodge, was required to sit on the ground in a cer- tain place of the country, where, if he had courage to plant him- self, the land would gradually rise up, telescope-fashion, until it reached to the skies, when, if the aspirant was considered by the spirits the proper person to inherit Karague, he would gradually be lowered again without any harm happening ; but otherwise, the elastic hill would suddenly collapse, and he would be dashed to pieces. Now Rumanika, by his own confession, had gone through this ordeal with marked success ; so Speke asked him if he found the atmosphere cold when so far up aloft, and as he said he did so, Speke, laughing at the quaintness of the question, told him that he saw he had learned a good practical lesson on the structure of the universe, which he wished he would explain to him. In a state of perplexity, K'yengo and the rest, on seeing him laugh, thought something was wrong; and turning about, they thought again, and said, "No, it must have been hot, because the higher one ascended the nearer he got to the sun." This led on to one argument after another, on geology, geog- raphy, and all the natural sciences, and ended by Rumanika showing Speke an iron much the shape and size of a carrot. This he said was found by one of his villagers while tilling the ground, buried some way down below the surface ; but, dig as he would, he could not remove it, and therefore called some more men to his help. Still the whole of them united could not lift the iron, which induced them, considering there must be some magic in it, to inform the king. "Now," says Rumanika, "I no sooner went there and saw the iron, than, without the smallest exertion, I uplifted the iron, and brought it here as you see it. What can such a sign mean?" " Of course that you are the rightful king," said his flatterers. " Then," said Rumanika, in exuberant spirits, " during Dagara's time, as the king was sitting with many other men outside his hut, a fearful storm of thunder fttti WORLD'S WONDERS. 75 and lightning arose, and a thunderbolt struck the ground in the midst of them, which dispersed all the men but Dagara, who calmly took up the thunderbolt and placed it in the palace. I, however, no sooner came into possession, and Rogero began to contend with me, than the thunderbolt vanished. How would you account for this?" The flatterers said, " It is clear as pos- sible ; God gave the thunderbolt to Dagara as a sign he was pleased with him and his rule ; but when he found two brothers contending, he withdrew it to show their conduct was wicked." ANOTHER RHINOCEROS HUNT. ON the 9th of December, before leaving the Karague country, Capt. Speke, learning that the immediate district in which he was encamped abounded with rhinoceros, took two attendants and posted to the foot-hills about Little Windermere lake. Taking up a position in a thicket of acacia shrubs, he sent the men out to beat the brush toward him. In a few minutes a large male rhinoceros came lumbering through the brush until he was within a few yards of the concealed hunter, who delivered a broadside from his Blissett rifle, which sont the huge beast off in a trot toward the beaters ; but after going a short distance it fell and was quickly disposed of by another shot. The natives then came running up to Speke, surprised beyond measure at what they saw, for they did not believe that a rhinoceros could be killed by shooting with a rifle. Among those who assembled to view the dead beast was a native who exhibited frightful scars on his abdomen and shoulder, which he declared were the result of a wound he had received by a rhinoceros thrusting its horn through his body. Just at this time a cry went up from several beaters that another rhinoceros was near, concealed in a, thicket. Speke at .Dnce set off to find it. He traveled as rapidly as possible along a path made by the animals, with his two gun bearers directly in the rear. Suddenly he was confronted by a full grown female, with her young one close behind, which came " whoof whoofing " toward him. To escape and shoot at the same time, he was compelled to push to one side in the prickley acacias, and as THE WORLD'S WONDERS. THE WOKJLD'S WONDERS. 77 the huge beast approached he fired at her head ; the bullet only served to divert her course, for she received no perceptible injury. She broke away from the brush into an open, with Speke follow- ing. He fired again, but the animal kept on and took to the hills, crossed over a spur and entered another thicket. The hunter kept up the pursuit, but as he came to the head of a glen he was greatly astonished to find three more rhinoceros, all of which charged towards him. Fortunately the gun bearers were at his heels and he was thus enabled to shoot all three of the brutes ; one of them dropped dead, but the other two kept on dow r n the glen, though one had its leg broken. The wounded one was given over to the natives, but so savage were its charges that another shot was necessary before the negroes could dispatch it with their spears and arrows. On the following d;iy Speke called on the king and had a head of the largest rhinoceros brought into court. Rumanika, in his surprise, said : "Well, this must have been done with something more potent than powder, for neither the Arabs nor Nnannji, although they talk of their shooting powers, could have accomplished such a great feat as this. It is no wonder the English are the greatest men in the world." Neither the Wanyambo nor the Wahuma would eat the rhinoc- eros, so Speke was not sorry to find all the Wanyamuezi porters of the Arabs at Kufro, on hearing of the sport, come over and carry away the flesh. They passed by the camp half borne down with their burdens of sliced flesh, suspended from poles which they carried on their shoulders ; but the following day Speke was disgusted upon hearing that their masters had for- bidden their eating " the carrion," as the throats of the animals had not been cut. PIGMIES AND GIANTS. IN confirmation of Musa's old stories, the king told Speke that in Ruanda, a near country, there existed pigmies who lived in trees, but occasionally came down at night, and listening at the hut doors of the men, would wait until they heard the name of 78 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. one of its inmates, when they would call him out, and firing an arrow into his heart, disappear again in the same way as they came. But, more formidable even than these little men, there were monsters who could not converse with men, and never showed themselves unless they saw women pass by; then, in voluptuous excitement, they squeezed them to death. After a long and amusing conversation with the king in the morning, Speke called on one of his sisters-in-law, married to an elder brother who was born before Dagara ascended the throne. She was another of those wonders of obesity, unable to stand excepting on all fours. He was eager to obtain a good view of her, and actually to measure her, and induced her to give him facilities for doing so by offering in return to show her a bit of his naked legs and arms. The bait took as he wished it, and after getting her to sidle and wriggle into the middle of the hut, he took her dimensions, which were as follows : Round the arm, 1 foot 4 inches ; chest 52 inches ; thigh 31 inches ; calf 20 inches ; height 5 feet 8 inches. All of these are exact except the height, which Speke believed he could have obtained more ac- curately if he could have had her laid on the floor. Not knowing what difficulties he should have to contend with in such a piece ot engineering, he tried to get her height by raising her up. This, after infinite exertions, was accomplished, when she sank down again, fainting, for her blood had rushed into her head. Mean- while, the daughter, a lass of sixteen, sat stark-naked before them, sucking at a milk-pot, on which the father kept her at work by holding a rod in his hand ; for, as fattening is the first duty of fashionable female life, it must be duly enforced by the rod if necessary. Speke got up a bit of flirtation with missy, and induced her to rise and shake hands with him. Her features were lovely, but her body was as round as a ball. SAVAGE ROYALTY IN A SAVAGE LAND. THE next stoppage was in the land of the Wahuma, the most interesting district of Africa, and one which has an extended importance now on account of the commercial aid rendered England and France by its present King, Mtese. The country THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 79 was formerly a portion of Karague, but became separated by reason of a contention between two brothers who both claimed the rulership, but who were satisfied to separate the district so that each might become a king. The ceremonies connected with the royal household of Wahuma, and also the officials and their duties, are so exceedingly strange that some of them must be described: The various offices held, without regard for prece- dence, for I do not know the order of rank, are : The lima, a woman whose good fortune it was to cut the umbilical cord at the king's birth ; the king's barber ; admiral of the fleet of canoes ; guardian of the king's sisters ; first and second-class executioners ; commissioner in charge of the tombs ; the brewer ; the cook ; commander of the guards ; seizer of refractory per- sons ; the drummers ; the pea-gourd rattlers ; the flute players ; clarionet players ; also players on wooden harmonicans and lap harps, and lastly men who whistle on their fingers, for music is more than one-half tie amusement of the court. Uganda is the palace seat of the Wahuma country, and everybody who lives there is expected to keep spears, shields, and dogs, the Uganda arms and cognizance, while the wakungu (officers) are entitled to drums. There is also a Neptune Mgussa, or spirit, who lives in the depths of the lake, communicates through the medium of his temporal nikungu, and guides to a certain extent the naval destiny of the king. It is the duty of all officers, generally speaking, to attend at court as constantly as possible; should they fail, they forfeit their lands, wives, and all belongings. These will be seized and given to others more worthy of them, as it is presumed that either insolence or disaffection can be the only motives which would induce any person to absent himself for any length of time from the pleasure of seeing his sovereign. Tidiness in dress is imperatively necessary, and for any neglect of this rule the head may be the forfeit. The punishment for such offenses, however, may be commuted by fines of cattle, goats, fowls, or brass 1 wire. All acts of the king are counted benefits, for which he must be thanked ; and so every deed done to his subjects is a 80 THE WORLD 8 AVONDEKS. gift received by them, though it should assume the shape of flog- ging or fine ; for are not these, which make better men of them as necessary as any thing? The thanks are rendered by groveling on the ground, floundering about and whining after the manner of happy dogs, after which they rise up suddenly, take up sticks spears are not allowed to be carried in court make as if "N'YANZIGING" TO A SUPERIOR. charging the king, jabbering as fust as tongues can rattle, and so they swear fidelity for all their lives. This is the greater salutation ; the lesser one is performed kneeling in an attitude of prayer, continually throwing open the hands, and repeating sundry words. Among them the word ** n'yanzig" is the most frequent and conspicuous ; and hence these gesticulations receive the general designation n'yauzig, a THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 81 term which will be frequently met with, and which it is necessary to use like an English verb. In consequence of these salutations, there* is more ceremony in court than business, though the king, ever having an eye to his treasury, continually finds some trifling fault, condemns the head of the culprit, takes his liquidation- present, if he has anything to pay, and thus keeps up his revenue. No one dare stand before the king while he is either standing still or sitting, but must approach him with downcast eyes and bended knees, and kneel or sit when arrived. To touch the king's throne or clothes, even by accident, or to look upon his women, is certain death. When sitting in court holding a levee, the king invariably has in attendance several women, Wabandwa, evil-eye averters or sorcerers. They talk in feigned voices raised to n shrillness almost amounting to a scream. They wear dried lizards on their heads, small goatskin aprons trimmed with little bells, diminutive shields and spears set off with cock-hackles, their functions in attendance being to administer cups of marwa (plantain wine). To complete the picture of the court, one must imagine a crowd of pages to run royal messages ; they dare not walk, for such a deficiency in zeal to their master might cost their life. A farther feature of the court consists in the national symbols a dog, two spears, and a shield. With the company squatting in a large half-circle, or three sides of a square, many deep, before him, in the hollow of which are drummers and other musicians, the king, sitting on his throne ir> high dignity, issues his orders for the day much to the following effect : "Cattle, women, and children are short in Uganda ; an army must be formed of one to two thousand strong to plunder Unyoro. The Wasoga have been insulting his sub- jects, and must be reduced to subjection, for this emergency another army must be formed, of equal strength, to act by land in conjunction with the fleet. The Wahaiya have paid no tribute to his greatness lately, and must be taxed." For all these matters the commander-in-chief tells off the divisional officers, who are approved by the king, and the matter is ended in court. 82 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. The divisional officers then find subordinate officers, who find men, and the army proceeds with its march. Should any fail with their mission, re-enforcements are sent, and the runaways, called women, are drilled with a red-hot iron until they are men no longer, and die for their cowardice. All heroism, however, insures promotion. The king receives his army of officers with great ceremony, listens to their exploits, and gives as rewards women, cattle, and command over men the greatest elements of wealth in Uganda with a liberal hand. As to the minor business transacted in court, culprits are brought in bound by officers, and reported. At once the sentence is given, perhaps awarding the worst torture, linger- ing death probably without trial or investigation, and for all the king knows, at the instigation of some one influenced by wicked spite. If the accused endeavors to plead his defense, his voice is at once drowned, and the miserable victim dragged off in the roughest manner possible by the officers who love their king and delight in promptly carrying out his orders. Young virgins, the daughters of officers, stark naked, and smeared with grease, but holding, for decency's sake, a small square of cloth at the upper corners in both hands before them, are presented by their fathers in propitiation of some offense, or to fill the harem. Seizing-officers receive orders to hunt down offending officers, and confiscate their lands, wives and children. An officer observed to salute informally, is ordered for execution, when everyone near him rises at once, the drums beat, drowning his cries, and the victim of carelessness is dragged off, bound by cords, by a dozen men at once. Another man, perhaps, exposes an inch of naked leg while squatting, or has his cloth tied con- trary to regulation, and is condemned to the same fate. CHARMS AND MAGIC. STICK-CHARMS, being pieces of wood of all shapes, supposed to have supernatural virtues, and colored earths, endowed with similar qualities, are produced by the royal magicians ; the master of the hunt exposes his spoils, such as antelopes, cats, gebras, lions, etc. ; the fishermen bring their catches ; the cutlers THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 83 show knives made of iron, inlaid with brass und copper ; the furriers, most beautifully-sewn patchwork of antelopes' skins ; the habit-maker, sheets of mbugu bark-cloth ; the blacksmith, spears ; the maker of shields, his productions, and so forth ; but nothing is ever given without rubbing it down, then rubbing the MTESA AND HIS DOG. the face, and going through a long form of salutation for gracious favor the king has shown in accepting it. When tired of business, the king rises, spear in hand, and, leading his dog, walks off without word or comment, leaving his company, like dogs, to take care of themselves. Strict as the discipline of the exterior court is, that of the inte- rior is not less severe. The pages all wear turbans of cord made from aloe fibres. Should a wife commit any trifling indiscretion, 84 TUT! WORLD'S WONDERS. either by word or deed, she is condemned to execution on the spot, bound by the pages and dragged out. Notwithstanding the stringent laws for the preservation of decorum by all male attend- ants, stark-naked full-grown women are the valets. On the first appearance of the new moon every month, the king shuts himself up, contemplating and arranging his magic horns the horns of wild animals stuffed with charm-powder for two or three days. These may be counted his Sundays or church festivals, which he dedicates to devotion. On other days he takes his women, some hundreds, to bathe or sport in ponds ; or, when tired of that, takes long walks, his women running after him, when all the musicians fall in, take precedence of the party, followed by the officers and pages, with the king in the centre of the procession, separating the male company from the fair sex. On these excursions no common man dare look upon the royal procession. Should anybody by chance happen to be seen, he is at once hunted down by the pages, robbed of everything he possesses, and may count himself very lucky if nothing worse happens. Pilgrimages are not uncommon, and sometimes the king spends a fortnight yachting ; but whatever he does, or wherever he goes, the same ceremonies prevail his musicians, officers, pages, and the wives take part in all. His sorcerers are important personages, who are always upon attendance, especially on all journeys whicna young king, who is not yet crowned, takes, when by signs of certain trees and plants, they determine what destiny awaits the king. According to the prognostics, they report that he will either have to live a life of peace, or, after coronation, take the field at the head of an army to fight east, west or both ways, when usually the inarch is first on Kittara or the second on Usogo. These preliminaries being completed, the actual coronation takes place, when the king ceases to hold any communion with his mother. The brothers are burnt to death, and the king, we shall suppose, takes tho field at the head of his army. A SPORT-LOVING BOY KING. SHOOTS A MAN FOR FUN. MTESA, though now more nearly civilized than any other of the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 85 Central African kings, when he came to the throne, was certainly one of the most singularly unfeeling savages that white men have ever come in contact with. Speke's visit to this dusky potentate, however, was one which he had no reason to regret, for, on account of a message carried forward from the Karague king, requesting Mtesa to receive the white man graciously, Speke's reception was very cordial, the king granting him privileges which even the highest officers in the realm were denied. On Speke's second visit to Mtesa at the palace, he carried with him some rifles as presents for the king, being anxious to ingratiate himself into his favor, to the end that he might obtain such assistance as would be needed. Upon being admitted to the palace, which was no more than an unusually large grass hut, the king was found sitting on his throne, while mats were arranged on the ground for the guests to sit on, no one being allowed to sit upon any kind of raised seat in the presence of the monarch. The magic horns, by which his magicians determined his destiny, occupied a 'prominent place before Mtesa. Four cows were grazing near the palace, unconscious of the presence of royalty or the fate that awaited them. Speke presented the guns to his sable majesty, who immediately requested him to try them on the cows. He did so with fatal accuracy, killing them all, whereat the king was greatly delighted, and directed the carcasses to be delivered to Speke's men. Mtesa then loaded one of the rifles with his own hands, and, cocking it, gave it to a page and ordered him to " go out and shoot a man," with a view to discovering if the weapon would kill men as readily as it had dispatched the cows. The order was obeyed with alacrity* and the young man soon returned in high glee over his success. " Did you do it well ?" asked Mtesa. " Oh, yes, capitally," was the response. He spoke the truth, for he dared not trifle with the king. The affair created no special interest, no curiosity being exhibited as to what particular man had been slaughtered. A DOUBLE CHARGE ONLY A WOMAN KILLED. MTESA was so delighted with fire-arms that he continually begged his guest to shoot before him, usually at cows for a mark f 86 TBE WORLD'S WONBERS. and as these were generally given to the men for food, Speke had no compunctions of conscience in complying. Only occasionally, however, would the king use the gun himself, appearing to have suspicions that in some way it was under the control of a wicked spirit. Once he loaded the weapon, putting in a double charge of powder, and fired at a cow ; the bullet not only passed through the animal, but also through a fence, and then through the center of a woman who chanced to be passing along on the outside. fThis shot greatly pleased the king, leading him to believe that one bullet, well directed, might slay an entire line of soldiers, and that he might be able to shoot down an army by ranks. DROLL DELIGHTS OF A BOY KING. ON the following day the king sent for Speke, to join him on a neighboring hill, and to bring the shot>guns with him. He cheerfully complied, and on reaching the appointed place, he found Mtesa hat in hand and his face wreathed in smiles of welcome. After examining the gun, the king led off toward a large tree in which were many adjutant birds and vultures nesting. He requested his companion to shoot some of the birds for his amusement, but Speke passed the gun back to him and asked him to display his own skill. Mtesa, however, was still fearful lest there might be dangerous magic in the gun. To please him, therefore, Speke killed an adjutant as it sat in a nest, and as a vulture flew out, he brought that down with the other barrel. This created immense excitement, and the natives were spell-bound with astonishment, while the king jumped about, clapping his hands and shouting, " Woh 1 woh ! woh ! what wonders I Oh, Bana, Banal what miracles he performs!" in which exultation he was joined by his servants and under-officers. " Now load, Bana load, and let us see you do the same again," cried the king, but before the loading was half completed he said, " Come along, and let us see the birds." Then directing the officers which way to go for, by the etiquette of the palace, every one must precede the king he sent them through a court where his women, afraid of the guns, were concealed. Here some fences interfered with the impetuous rush, but the king THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 87 shouted to his officers to tear them down, which was no sooner said than done, by the attendants in a body shoving on and trampling them under as an elephant would crush small trees to keep his course. So pushing, floundering through plantain and shrub, pell-mell one upon the other, that the king's pace might not be checked, or any one come in for a royal kick or blow, they came upon the prostrate bird. " Woh. woh, woh !" cried the king again, " there he is, sure enough ; come here women come and look what wonders!" And all the women, in the highest excitement, " woh-wohed " as loud as any of the men. But that was not enough. " Come along, Bana," said the king, " we must have some more sport ;" and, saying this, he directed the way toward the queen's palace, the attendants leading, followed by the pages, then the king, next Speke, and finally the women, some forty or fifty, who constantly attended him. To make the most of the king's good humor, while he wanted to screen himself from the blazing sun, Speke asked him if he would like to enjoy the pleasures of an umbrella ; and without giving him time to answer, he held his own over him as they walked side by side. The wakungu were astonished, and the women prattled in great delight ; while the king, hardly able to control himself, sidled and spoke to his flatterers as if he were doubly created monarch of all he surveyed. Then, growing more familiar, he said, "Now, Bana, do tell me did you not shoot that bird with something more than common ammunition? I am sure you did, now ; there was magic in it." And all that could be said to the contrary would not convince him. " But we will see again." " At buffaloes?" said Speke.' " No, the buffaloes are too far off now ; we will wait to go after them until I have given you a hut close by." Presently, as some herons were flying overhead, he said, "Now shoot, shoot!" and Speke brought a couple down right and left. He stared, and everybody stared, believing the white man to be a magician, when the king said he would like to have pictures of the birds drawn and hung up in the palace ; " but let us go and shoot some more, for it is truly wonderful." Similar results followed, for the herons were 88 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. continually whirling round, as they had their nests upon a neighboring tree ; and then the king ordered his pages to carry all the birds, save the vulture which, for some reason, they did not touch and show them to the queen. He then gave the order to move on, and they all repaired to the palace. Arrived at the usual throne-room, he took his seat, dismissed the party of wives who had been following him, received pombe a* brewed drink from his female evil-eye averters, and ordered Speke and his men to sit in the sun facing liim, till the traveler complained of the heat, and was allowed to sit by his side. Kites, crows, and sparrows were flying about in all directions, and as they came within shot, nothing would satisfy the excited boy-king but that Speke must shoot them, and his pages take them to the queen, till the ammunition was totally expended. He then wanted to send for more shot ; but was told to wait until new supplies could be had, whereupon he con- tented himself with taking two or three sample pellets and ordering his ironsmiths to make some like them. THE KING DRESSED LIKE A MONKEY. SPEKE had given KingMtesa odd garments from time to time, until at length the royal stripling appeared dressed in European garb, although, on account of the shortness of the pantaloons and the arms of the coat, his black ankles and wrists stuck out so that his appearance was almost identical Avith that of an organ grinder's monkey. To add to his inimitably grotesque costume, the king's cockscomb of hair was surmounted by a little rod-fez cap, which completed his dressed-monkey appearance, though he felt that no one was ever dressed more becomingly. Thus attired, the king held a levee, at which twenty naked virgins, all smeared and shining with grease, each holding a very small, square piece of cloth to serve for a fig leaf, marched in a line before the king and his white guest. These were fresh additions to the royal harem, and the happy fathers groveled on the ground, giving thanks in profuse " n'yanziging," for the gracious favor of the king's acceptance. The sight was in keep- ing with the whimsical tastes of Mtesa, so that Speke could not THE WORLD'S WONDERS. S9 control his mirth, but laughed out, whereupon the king and all others present also began laughing, in imitation, like a crowd of apes. A sedate old dame then arose, and turning the maidens right about, sent them marching out of the tent with their backs completely exposed. In describing this levee with the king, Speke adds the following : "I have now been for some time within the court precincts, and have consequently had an opportunity of witnessing court customs. Among these, nearly every day since I have changed my residence, incredible as it may appear to be, I have seen one, LEADING A WIFE TO EXECUTION. two, or three of the wretched palace women led away to execu- tion, tied by the hand, and dragged along by one of the body- guard, crying out, as she went to premature death, " Hai minange!" (Oh my lord!) " Kbakka !" (My king!) " Hai n'yawo !" (My mother !) at the top of her voice, in the utmost despair and lamentation ; and yet there was not a soul who dared lift hand to save any of them, though many might be heard privately commenting on their beauty." , A MONSTROUSLY FAT QUEEN. MTESA, who was not more than twenty years of age at the time Speke visited him, was ruler of Uganda, but not absolute, 90 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. for his mother, a woman of about forty years, was queen- dowager, whose influence in civil matters was almost equal to that of her royal son. She was goodnatured and received Speke with great friendliness, even offering him any one of her many daughters for a wife. This offer led the Captain to inquire what ceremony was connected with marriage in the Uganda country, to which the queen replied in substance as follows : There are no such things as marriages in Uganda ; there are .no ceremonies attached to it. If any mkungu possessed of a pretty daughter committed an offense, he might give her to the king as a peace-offering ; if any neighboring king had a pretty daughter, and the king of Uganda wanted her, she might be demanded as a fitting tribute. The wakungu officers in Uganda are supplied with women by the king, according to their merits, from seizures in battle abroad, or seizures from refractory officers at home. The women are not regarded as property, though many exchange their daughters ; and some women, for misdemeanors, are sold into slavery, while others are flogged, or are degraded to do all the menial services of the house The company now became jovial, when the queen improved the opportunity by making a significant gesture, and with roars of laughter asking Speke if he would like to be her son-in-law, for she had some beautiful daughters, either of the Wahuma or Waganda breed. Rather staggered at first by this awful proposal, he consulted his interpreter as to what he should do with one if he got her. Bombay, looking strictly to number one, said, " By all means accept the offer, for if you don't like her, we should, and it would be a good means of getting her out of this land of death." The queen appeared much amused at Bombay's selfish solici- tude, and became quite hilarious with her visitors under the influence of the pombe that she had swallowed, and they all seemed bent upon having a truly royal time of it. Cups were not enough to keep up the excitement of the occasion, so a large wooden trough was placed before the queen and filled with liquor. If any wa6 spilled, the officers instantly fought over it, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 91 dabbing their nosos on the ground, or grabbing it with their hands, that not one atom of the queen's favor might be lost; for every thing must be adored that comes from royalty, whether by design or accident. The queen put her head to the trough and drank like a pig from it, and was followed by her ministers. The band, by order, then struck up a tune called the LICKING UP THE POMBE. Milele, playing on a dozen reeds, ornamented with beads and cow-tips, and five drums, of various tones and sizes, keeping time. The musicians, dancing with zest, were led by four band- masters, also dancing, but with their backs turned to the company to show off their long, shaggy goatskin jackets, sometimes upright, at other times bending and on their heels, like the hornpipe-dancers of western countries. 92 THE WORLD'S WONBEBS. SAVAGE CRUELTIES. THE savage nature of Mtesa is well described in the incidents following : While holding a levee with Speke one day, a large body of officers entered the palace with an old man whose two ears had been cut off for having been too handsome in his youth ; with the old man was a young girl who, after a dis- appearance of four days, had been found by a searching party in the old man's house. These two were brought before the king for his judgment. No one but the plaintiff was suffered to make any statement, and he, after bowing and kissing the ground, declared that he had lost the girl, and after considerable search, had found her concealed in the house of the old man, who was, indeed, old enough to be her grandfather. From all appearances, one would have said the wretched girl had run away from the plaintiff's house in consequence of ill-treatment, and had harbored herself on this decrepit old man without asking his leave ; but their voices in defense were never heard, for the king instantly sentenced both to death, to prevent the occurrence of such impropriety again ; and, to make the example more severe, decreed that their lives should not be taken at once, but, being fed to preserve life as long as possible, they were to be dismembered bit by bit, as rations for the vultures, every day, until life was extinct. The dismayed victims, struggling to be heard, in utter despair were dragged away boisterously in the most barbarous manner, to the drowning music of the milele and drums. The king, in total unconcern about the tragedy he had thus enacted, immediately on their departure said, " Now, then, for shooting, Bana ; let us look at your gun." It happened to be loaded, but fortunately only with powder, to fire S^eke's announce- ment at the palace ; for the king instantly placed caps on the nipples and let off one barrel by accident, the contents of which stuck in the thatch. This created a momentary alarm, for it was supposed 'the thatch had taken fire ; but it was no sooner suppressed than the childish king, still sitting on his throne, to astonish his officers still more, leveled the gun from his shoulder. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 93 th? contents of the second barrel into the faces of his squatting officers, and then laughed at his own trick. At the next levee the king gave one of his officers a woman, as a reward of merit. This gift displeased the officer, who grumbled because he had not been given more than one wife. This made the king so angry that he ordered his men to seize the officer and cut him to pieces. The sentence was immediately carried out, but not with knives, for they are prohibited, but with slips of sharp-edged grass, after the executioners had first dislocated his neck by a blow delivered behind the head with a heavy-headed club. Following these exhibitions of savagery was another, illustrating the whimsical nature of this anomalous ruler. On the day succeeding the execution of the officer, a lad, not yet twenty, came upon the king suddenly and attempted to kill him, at the same time declaring that he ought not to live because he took the lives of men unjustly. The king had a revolver with him, which had been presented by Speke, and though it was unloaded, he threw its muzzle against the young man's cheek, which so frightened him that he fled in great terror. For this grave offense it would be natural to suppose that the savage king would order his immediate execution, but instead of capital punishment, he only required the young man to pay a fine of one cow, and then released him. Mtesa's eccentricities were constanty being displayed, but his savage nature was seldom tempered by deeds of mercy. Every day, while Speke was sojourning in Uganda, waiting the arrival of Capt. Grant and new supplies, he was in the company of the boy king, whose importunities to see the white man shoot were incessant. One day he requested Speke to accompany him on a hunt for hippopotami. They started early in the morning, accompanied by pages and fifty or more of the king's wives. After a long and useless pursuit of wary hippopotami in canoes, Mtesa ordered the boats rowed ashore to give his guest a picnic entertainment. The party there indulged themselves drinking pombe and plucking delicious fruits, which grew in great abun- ds^ce everywhere in the forest. There was ne Kttl enjeyment 94 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. manifested by all until, by unlucky chance, one of the royal wives, a most charming creature, and one of the best in the harem, found some unusually fine fruit which she gathered and graciously offered to the king, thinking to please him much ; but he, like a savage monster or madman, flew into a towering passion, declared it was the first time a women had ever had the impertinence to CAPT. SPEKE SAVES THE QUEEN'S LIFE. offer him anything, and ordered the pages to seize, bind and lead her off to execution. The order was no sooner given than the whole bevy of page? slipped their cord turbans from their heads, and rushed like a pack of cupid beagles upon the fairy queen, who, indignant at the little urchins daring to touch her majesty, remonstrated with the king, and tried to beat them off like flies, but she was soon captured, overcome, and dragged away,. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 95 crying, in the names of the kamraviona and mzungu (Speke), for help and protection ; while Lubuga, the pet sister, and all the other women, clasped the king by his legs and, kneeling, im- plored forgiveness for their sister. The more they craved for mercy the more brutal he became, till at last he took a heavy stick and began to belabor the poor victim on the head. Speke says that hitherto he had been extremely careful not to interfere with any of the king's acts of arbitrary cruelty, knowing that such interference, at an early stage, would produce more harm than good. This last act of barbarism, however, was too much for his English blood to stand ; and, as he heard his name im- ploringly pronounced, he rushed at the king, and, staying his uplifted arm, demanded from him the woman's life. Of course he ran imminent risk of losing his own life, in thus thwarting the capricious tyrant ; but his caprice proved the friend of both. The novelty of interference even made him smile, and the woman was instantly released. Upon returning from the picnic, a little page brought a mes- sage to the king, which was of course oral ; but it happened that the message was not given exactly correct, whereupon Mtesa cut the little boy's ears off and sent him away from the palace. THE KING AND HIS ARMY. ON the day following this incident, Colonel Congow, com- mandant of the king's army, returned from a neighboring district, tvhere they had been plundering the Unyoro people, and drew his troops up before the palace for review. The king soon ap- peared, armed with spears and shield, and accompanied by his little dog and his chiefs who sat upon the ground. The battalion, consisting of what might be termed three companies, each con- taining 200 men, being drawn up on the left extremity of the parade-ground, received orders to march past in single file from the right of companies, at a long trot, and re-form again at the other end of the square. Nothing conceivable could be more wild or fantastic than the sight which ensued the men all nearly naked, with goat or cat skins depending from their girdles, and smeared with war colors 96 THE WOKLD JS WONDERS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 97 according to the taste of each individual one-half of the body red or black, the other blue, not in regular order as, for instance, one stocking would be red, the other black, while the breeches above would be the opposite colors, and so with the sleeves and waistcoat. Every man carried the same arms two spears and one shield held as if approaching an enemy, and they thus'moved in three lines of single rank and file, ut fifteen to twenty paces asunder, with the same high action and elongated step, the ground leg only being bent, to give their strides the greater force. After the men had all started, the captains of companies followed, even more fantastically dressed ; and last of all came the great Colonel Congow, a perfect Robinson Crusoe, with his long white-haired goatskins, a fiddle-shaped leather shield, tufted with white hair at all six extremities, bands of long hair tied below the knees, and a magnificent helmet, covered with rich beads of every color, in excellent taste, surmounted with a plume of crimson feathers, from the centre of which rose a bent stem, tufted with goat-hair. Next they charged in companies to and fro; and, finally, the senior officers came charging at their king, making violent professions of faith and honesty, for which they were applauded. The parade then broke up, and all went home. GRANT'S ARRIVAL WITH SUPPLIES. AFTER weeks of patient waiting, Capt. Speke had the pleasure of again seeing his anxiously looked for comrade approaching Uganda, borne in a litter carried by four porters. Capt. Grant had been suffering from a stubborn ulcer on his heel, and for a long while was unable to travel, which accounted for the long delay of his arrival. On the day after reaching Uganda, Mtesa sent one of his ambassadors to bring Captains Speke and Grant to his palace, where he had arranged for another levee in honor of the new guest. In the afternoon the two travelers repaired to the court, where the king gave them a courteous welcome, being particularly well pleased because they presented him with another double-barreled shot-gun and some more ammunition. Grant showed the king many of his sketches, not a few of which were 7 98 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. pictures of the natives, whereupon the royal barbarian besought him to sketch his highness and the scene of the levee. MAKING THINGS EVEN IN THE HAREM. On the following day, when Speke and Grant went to visit the king, they found the guards at the gate of the palace f eeeding on scraps of meat that had been thrown to them as though they were dogs, and they faithfully carried out the simile by fighting over pieces of the meat just as dogs do, the strongest and fiercest THE PALACE GUARDS AT DINNER. gettingthe best part of the dinner. Reaching the palace, the visitors found his majesty sitting on the ground, within a hut, behind a portal, encompassed by his women, and they took their seats outside. At first all was silence, till one told -the king the white men had some wonderful pictures to show him, when in an instant he grew lively, crying, "Oh, let us see them I" and they were shown, Bombay explaining. Three of the king's wives then came in, and offered him their two virgin sisters, n'yanziging incessantly, and beseeching their acceptance, as by that means THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 99 they themselves would become doubly related to him. Nothing, however, seemed to be done to promote the union, until one old lady, sitting by the king's side, who was evidently learned in the etiquette and traditions of the court, said, " Wait and see if he embraces, otherwise you may know he is not pleased." At this announcement the girls received a hint to pass on, and the king commenced bestowing on them a series of huggings, first sitting on the lap of one, whom he clasped to his bosom, crossing his neck with hers to the right, then to the left, and, having finished with her, took post in the second one's lap, then on that of the third, performing on each of them the same evolutions. He then retired to his original position, and the marriage ceremony was supposed to be concluded, and the settlements adjusted, when all went on as before. Speke says that during this one day they heard the sad voices of no less than four women dragged from the palace to the slaughter-house. It seemed to be the king's method of keeping his harem stocked with fresh wives. SACRIFICE OF A CHILD BY COOKING. A FEW days before the departure of Speke and Grant from Mtesa's palace, one of his officers, K'yengo, informed them that, considering the surprising events which had lately occurred at court, the king being anxious to pry into the future, had resolved upon a very strange measure for accomplishing that end. This was the sacrifice of a child by cooking, and K'yengo was detailed to perform the barbarous ceremony, which is described as follows : The doctor places a large earthen vessel, half full of water, over a fire, and over its mouth a grating of sticks, whereon he lays a small child and a fowl side by side, and covers them over with ar second large earthen vessel, just like the first, only inverted, to' keep the steam in, when he sets fire below, cooks for a certain period of time, and then looks to see if his victims are still living or dead. If dead, as they usually are, the omen is consid- ered propitious, and the king at once proceeds upon whatever enterprise he may have been contemplating. 100 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. LEAVING UGANDA. ON returning home from the palace, the evening before their departure, one of the king's wives overtook Speke and Grant, walking, with her hands clasped at the back of her head, to execution, crying " N'yawo ! " in the most pitiful manner. A man preceded her, but did not touch her ; for she loved to obey the orders of her king voluntarily, and, in consequence of previous attachment, was permitted, as a mark of distinction, to walk free. Wondrous world ! it had not been ten minutes since they had parted from the king, yet he had found time to transact this bloody piece of business. The next day they repaired early to the palace to make their final adieus, and after a very friendly reception they arose to depart, the white men making English bows and placing their hands upon their hearts, Mtese instantly imitating whatever they did, with the mimicking instincts of a monkey. The king and his entire court followed them to their own camp, where Mtesa expressed a wish to have a final look at Speke' s men, and he accordingly ordered them to turn out with their arms and " li'yan- zig" for the many favors they had received. Mtesa, much pleased, complimented them on their goodly appearance, remark- ing that with such a force Speke would have no difficulty in reach- ing his destination; and exhorted them to follow him through fire and water; then, exchanging adieus again, he walked ahead in gigantic strides up the hill, the pretty favorite of his harem, Lubuga beckoning and waving with her little hands, and crying "Banal Bana ! " trotting after him conspicuous among the rest, though all showed a little feeling at the severance. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 10 1 CHAPTER V. HARD TRAVELING TO REACH THE NILE. TRAVELING in Africa is necessarily slow, on account of the dense jungles, the great heat and annoying insects. After pro- ceeding about thirty miles one of the escort sent by Mtesa was set upon and killed by lurking natives, which caused much excitement, as the party desired to engage in war at once to avenge the death of their comrade. No such stoppage, of course, was allowed, but the expedition was continually harassed by lurking foes, who resisted the advance of Speke's party through their country. As a corrective measure Grant was hurried for- ward with a small party to Kamrasi, king of Unyoro, to whom a visit was contemplated, with a request for his protection. In fourteen days after departing from Uganda, Speke reached the Victoria Nile, in a beautiful natural park full of wonders. The stream at this point was from 600 tq 700 yards wide, dotted with islets and rocks, the former occupied by fishermen's huts, the latter by sterns and crocodiles basking in the sun, flowing between fine high grassy banks, with rich trees and plantains in the background, where herds of the n'sunnu and hartebeest could be seen grazing, while the hippopotami were snorting in the water, and florikan and Guinea-fowl rising at their feet. Unfor- tunately, the chief district officer, Mlondo, was from home, but Speke took possession of his huts clean, extensive, and tidily kept facing the river, and felt as if a residence there would do h ; men good. This camping-place was confronting Usoga, a country which may be said to be the very counterpart of Uganda in its richness and beauty. Here the people use such huge iron-headed spears with short handles, that they appear to be better fitted for digging potatoes than piercing .men. Ele- phants had been very numerous in this neighborhood, but a short time before Speke's arrival a party from Unyoro, ivory-hunting, had driven them away. Lions were also described as very numerous and destructive to human life. Antelopes were com- 102 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. mon in the jungle, and the hippopotami, though frequenters of the plantain gardens and constantly heard, were seldom seen on land in consequence of their unsteady habits. DISCOVERING THE NILE'S SOURCE. AFTER remaining a day in this beautiful retreat, the expedition started again and filed along the left bank of the Nile until the Isambo Rapids were reached. Here the surroundings were weird and suggestive of dark and bloody deeds ; a jutting cliff, over- shadowed by deep foliage which bars the sun's rays, and below, a dangerous pit of boiling water lashed by hungry crocodiles seeking prey. Pushing further on, across hills and over planta- tions devastated by elephants, the party arrived at the extreme end of the journey, the farthest point ever visited by the expe- dition on the same parallel of latitude as kingMtesa's palace, and just forty miles east of it, on Victoria Lake. Speke writes, " We were well rewarded ; for the * stones,' as the Waganda caJJ the falls, were by far the most interesting sight I had seen in Africa. Everybody ran to see them at once, though the march had been long and fatiguing, and even my sketch-block was called into play. Though beautiful, the scene was not exactly what I expected ; for the broad surface of the lake was shut out from view by a spur of hill, and the falls, about twelve feet deep, and 400 to 500 feet broad, were broken by rocks. Still it was a sight that attracted one to it for hours the roar of the waters, the thousands of passenger-fish, leaping at the falls with all their might, the Wasoga and Waganda fishermen coming out in boats and taking post on all the rocks with rod and hook, hippopotami and crocodiles lying sleepily on the water, the ferry at work above the falls, and cattle driven down to drink at the margin of the lake, made, in all, with the pretty nature of the country small hills, grassy-topped, with trees in the. folds, and gardens on the lower slopes as interest- ing a picture as one could wish to see." Spcke felt certain that he had really discovered the source of the Nile, and in his exultation procured some boats, intending to have a sail on the lake. He had not gone far on its tranquil THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 108 bosom before he saw a large canoe, well laden with natives, who came toward him a short space, then retreated to the shore with drums beating. This was a signal of war, but Speke did not understand it, though cautioned by his guides. He had heard the drum beat daily at Uganda, and could not believe that within fprty miles of that place the customs could be so widely variant. As he came near the shore, a large party of the Unyoro natives were seen dancing, beating drums, and jabbing their spears, challenging Speke's boats to come to shpre. It was now growing dusk, and hoping to conciliate the vengeful barbarians, he offered them presents ; but these were disdained, and as the shadows of darkness increased, the hostile natives pushed out in boats and attacked Speke's men, who numbered only twenty ; these, instead of offering resistance, as ordered, began to cry out for mercy, and refused abjectly to use their carbines. The resistance, therefore, fell entirely upon Speke, who shot three of the attacking party. The noise and effect of the gun produced a panic among the enemy, who returned to shore as quickly as possible, and gaining that, scrambled up the bank and rapidly disappeared. After boating on the lake for some time, Speke resumed his march toward the palace of Kamrasi, who had already been apprised by Grant of his coming, and he sent 150 of his warriors to conduct Speke to the capital of his dominion. This accession of men was very fortunate, as Speke's party had been reduced by desertion to less than twenty, and they would have been compelled to abandon a portion of the supplies except for the opportune arrival of Kamrasi's men. On the 9th of September Unyoro was reached. There was much disappointment at the failure of king Kamrasi to receive the party, but after some parley with the chief officer, quarters were provided in some miserable little huts outside of the palace grounds. They also received a small supply of provisions, and were told to wait until the next day, when better accommo- dations would be provided. The afternoon was spent ia conver- 104 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. sation with Kidgwiga, the king's embassador, who proved himself not an uninteresting conversationalist. Among many other things, he said that Kainrasi and Mtesa in fact, all the Wahuma came originally from a stock of the same tribe dwelling beyond Kidi. All bury their dead in the same way, under ground ; but the kings are toasted first for months till they are like sun-dried meat, when the lower jaw is cut out and preserved, covered with beads. The royal tombs are put under the charge of special officers, who occupy huts erected over them. The umbilical cords are preserved from birth, and, at death, those of men are placed within the door-frame, while those of women are buried without this last act corresponding, according to Bombay, the interpreter, with the custom of the Wahiyow. On the death of any of the great officers of state, the finger-bones and hair are also preserved ; or, if they have died shaven, as sometimes occurs, a bit of their mbugu dress is preserved in place of the hair. Their families guard their tombs. Kidgwiga also confirmed a story which Speke first heard at Karague, that there were dogs in Unyoro that had horns, and to carry his assurance further, declared that he had seen one in the possession of an official person, but it died. The horns of these fabled dogs are filled with magic powder and placed on a war-track for the marching army to step over, to secure them a victory. Sometimes a child is roasted with a cock to subserve a like purpose. Kidgwiga also stated that all the bachelors of his tribe have their habitations in trees, where they invariably sleep, while married people dwell in houses. FEASTING ON MOUNTAINS, LAKES, AND HUMAN FLESH. IT was several days before Kamrasi would consent to receive, personally, Speke or Grant, giving all manner of excuses, appointing meetings, but never appearing at them, though he sent pombe, plantains and flour, with his regards. Bombay was dispatched to the king sometimes twice a day, requesting an audience for his masters, but could only get promises, until he carried a rifle with him and, at the king's request, shot a cow THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 105 before a large number of visiting natives from an adjoining kingdom. The king then became quite communicative, and finally gave to Bombay the following curious reasons for his conduct : " You don't understand the matter. At the time the white men were living in Uganda, many of the people who had seen them there came and described them as such monsters, they ate up mountains and drank the lake dry ; and although they fed on both beef and mutton, they were not satisfied until they got a dish of the ' tender parts ' of human beings three times a day. Now I was extremely anxious to see men of such wonderful natures. I could have stood their mountain-eating and lake- drinking capacities, but on no consideration would I submit to sacrifice my subjects to their appetites." This was quite a sufficient reason, for the king evidently wanted to wait until he could determine whether indeed the white men were such great feasters as they had been represented. After much more parleying and deceiving, the king at length appointed an interview at a hut which he had specially built for the purpose, where, as he said, no strange eyes could see them. When Speke and Grant arrived at the new palace, they found the king sitting on a low wooden stool which rested upon a double matting of cow and leopard skins. The presents which were brought for his highness were spread before him, whereupon he expressed great delight, and then referring to the absurd stories told of the white men, said he did not believe them, else his rivers, deprived of their fountain sources, would have run dry ; and that even if they did eat hills and the tender parts of man- kind, they should have had enough to satisfy any reasonable appetite before reaching Unyoro. A WONDERFUL SORCERER. THEREAFTER the travellers had no difficulty in seeing the king, as his simple fancy was usually tickled by some new present. On one occasion, Speke relates that when the usual hour arrived for him to measure the rainfall for the past twenty-four hours, he found the rain-guage and bottle had been removed. 106 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. He therefore sent Kidgwiga to the king to request him to send his magician, and institute search for it. Kidgwiga soon returned with an old man, who was almost blind, whose dress consisted of strips of leather fastened to his waist. In one hand he carried a cow's horn primed with magio powder; the mouth of which was carefully covered with a piece of leather, from which dan- gled an iron bell. The old creature jingled the bell, entered Speke's hut, squatted on his hams, looked first at one, then at the other ; inquired what the missing things were like, grunted, moved his skinny arm round his head, as if desirous of catching air from all four sides of the hut, then dashed the accumulated air on the head of his horn, smelt it to see if all was going right, jingled the bell again close to his ear, and grunted his satisfac- tion ; the missing articles must be found. To carry out the incantation more effectually, however, all of Speke's men were sent for to sit in the open before the hut, when the old doctor rose, shaking the horn and tinkling the bell close to his ear. Then, confronting one of the men, he dashed the horn forward as if intending to strike him on the face, then smelt the head, then dashed at another, and so on, till he became satis- fied that the thief was not among them. He then walked into Grant's hut, inspected that, and finally went to the place where the bottle had been kept. There he walked about the grass with his arm up, and jingling the bell to his ear, first on one side, then on the other, till the track of a hyena gave him the clew, and in two or three more steps he found .it. A hyena had carried it into the grass and dropped it. Bravo for the infallible horn ! and well done the king for his honesty in sending it ! So Speke gave the king the bottle and guagc, which delighted him amaz- ingly ; and the old doctor, who begged for pombe, got a goat for his trouble. EFFORTS TO LEAVE UNYORO. KAMRASI proved himself as persistent a beggar as Mtesa, and to enable him to get more than Speke was willing to give, the old king cunningly held his white guests prisoners, though all the time professing the warmest friendship and promising whatever THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 107 aid he could give. Kamrasi was hardly so blood-thirsty as Mtesa, but his propensities were very far from the merciful, particularly to women, whom he destroyed with savage delight at times. On one occasion he offered to entertain his visitors by having four women cut to pieces in their Dresence, just for amusement. 108 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. King Karnrasi's sisters arc not allowed to wed ; they live and die virgins in his palace. Their only occupation in life consists in drinking milk, of which each 'one consumes the produce daily of from ten to twenty cows, and hence they become so inordinately fat that they cannot walk. Should they wish to see a relative, or go outside the hut for any purpose, it requires eight men to lift anyone of them on a litter. The brothers, too, are not al- lowed to go out of his reach. This confinement of the palace family is considered a state necessity, as a preventive to civil KAMRAS! ON HIS THRONE. wars, in the same way as the destruction of the Uganda after a certain season, is thought necessary for the preservation of peace there. On one occasion, when Speke went to visit Kamrasi, the latter became quite communicative, and informed his guest that he was sadly afflicted with a disorder which no one but the white man could cure. " What is it, your majesty?" said Speke ; " I can see nothing in your face ; it msiy,^ perhaps, require a private THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 109 inspection." "My heart," he said, "is troubled because you will not give me your magic horn the thing, I mean, in your pocket, which } T OU pulled out one day when you were discussing the way ; and you no sooner looked at it than you said, * This is the way to the palace.' ' It was Speke's chronometer, the only one he had with him, that the old fellow was angling for. The instrument was very valuable, and could not well be spared, so he begged the king to wait until he could go to the white man's country and send him another. " No, I must have the one in your pocket," said Ivamrasi ; " pull it out and show it." Speke reluctantly obeyed, when the impetuous savage seized chronometer, chain and all, and deposited it on his own greasy person. The next day Speke sent a message to Kamrasi asking that he might be allowed to depart. The king, thinking him angry for having taken the watch so rudely, took fright at the message, and sent the chronometer back by an attendant, but in a badly damaged condition, as he had used his fingers in showing his people how the hands worked. AFRICAN TWINS. A GREAT deal of superstition surrounds the birth of twin chil- dren in Africa. If one should die the mother continues to milk herself every evening for five months, in order that the spirit of the dead child may have plenty to eat and not persecute her. Twins are not buried as ordinary people, under ground, but are placed in earthenware pots and carried to the jungle, where the pots are left, mouths downward, near the roots of a tree. Among some tribes, on the death of a twin, the mother ties a little gourd around her neck, and puts into it a trifle of everything she gives to the living child, lest the spirit of the dead one should become jealous. In some localities, on the death of a child the mother smears herself with butter and ashes, and runs frantically about, tearing her hair and bewailing piteously ; while the men of the place use toward her the foulest language, apparently as if in abuse of her person, but in reality to frighten away the demons who have robbed her nest. Delays and broken promises at length so exasperated Speke, 110 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. who was exceedingly anxious to return home, that he sent a mes- sage to Kamrasi reminding him of his deceptive promises, and declaring that unless he was permitted to depart at once he would return all the presents the king had given him and regard his actions as hostile. Upon receiving this message Kamrasi was much concerned, and sent Speke a present of a dwarf called Kimenya, thinking to thus allay his wrath. This dwarf was less than a yard in height, had many deformities, and walked with a cane much taller than himself. He made himself quite familiar with the travelers, and amused them by dancing, singing **<3 THE FROLICSOME DWARF. performing many queer antics, ending by giving the charging- march and asking for 500 beads. The colored beads were given him, and he was then sent back to the king, because no possible use could be made of him. i Two days more were spent persuading Kamrasi to consent to a departure of the expedition, but to all requests he returned some cunning reply : it was impossible to get his men together so soon ; or, he was fearful lest they should fall into the hands of savages, who had already threatened to exterminate the white travelers ; or, that the weather was unfavorable, and a dozen THE WORLD'S WONDERS. Ill other pretenses equally unreasonable and vexatious. Forbearance finally lost its virtue, and Speke began to declare his independ- ence, notwithstanding his great need for an escort and some pro- visions which the king had promised him. His bold attitude had the desired effect upon Kamrasi, and his consent to their depar- ture was finally obtained. Before saying adieu, however, the old beggar asked for medicine that would prevent the death of offspring, which is a calamity that overtakes a very large propor- tion of children in that country before they are able to walk. He also wanted a medicine that would cause his subjects to love him. Both these remedies, of course, had to be denied, where- upon the king compromised on six carbines, a hair brush, some matches, a pot, and a quantity of ammunition. An escort of twenty-four warriors was then provided/and ten cows were given for meat. The expedition now began its march to Madi. CHAPTER VI. HOMEWARD BOUND. UPON leaving Kamrasi' s, Speke and his men proceeded part of the way by water, in canoes, on the Kafu river, on which they saw many floating islands of grass and reeds, frequently large and compact enough to support cattle, which grazed upon them. One evening, after camping on the banks of the river, a half- drunken native brought them a pot of pombe, and greatly amused them with frantic charges, as if he were fighting with his spear; and after settling the supposed enemy, he delighted in trampling him under foot, spearing him repeatedly through and through, then wiping the blade of the spear in the grass, and finally pol- ishing it on his tufty head, when, with a grunt of satisfaction, he shouldered arms and walked away a hero. They continued their water journey until they reached Parau- 112 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. goni, where they halted to please the governor, Magamba, who received them with great kindness. This titled savage was anxious to see all the white men's possessions, which he regarded with inexpressible wonder. He told the travelers, among other things, that in the neighboring district of Ururi, which is a province of Unyoro, there was a very noted governor, named imeziri, whose wisdom was greater than that of any other man in Africa. This wise man had an original way of doing things ; for example, when his wives presented him children there was always more or less doubt about their paternity ; so, to settle the question, he covered the new infants with beads and threw them into the lake ; if they sank he accepted the fact as proof that they were not his offspring. It may be inferred that Kime- ziri had very few children out of the lake. Speke did not tarry long with the hospitable Magamba, for he was in a country badly infested by thieves', who were daily making efforts to reduce the small store of provisions which he had with much difficulty accumulated. Ukoro, governor-general of Chopi, sent a message to Speke, requesting him not to proceed further down the river, lest the Chopi ferryman at Karuma falls should take fright at the strange appearance of white men and flee away. Careful to give no offence, he complied with this singular request, and sent his packs overland. The ground on the line of march was highly cultivated, and intersected by a deep ravine of running water, whose sundry branches made the surface very irregular. The sand-paper tree, whose leaves resemble a cat's tongue in roughness, and which is used in Uganda for polishing their clubs and spear-handles, was conspicuous ; but at the end of the journey only was there any thing of much interest to be seen. There suddenly, in a deep ravine, the formerly placid river, up which vessels of moderate size might steam two or three abreast, was changed into a turbu- lent torrent. Beyond lay the land of Kidi, a forest of mimosa trees rising gently away from the water in soft clouds of green. This the governor of the place, Kija, described as a sporting- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 113 field, where elephants, hippopotami and buffalo are hunted by the occupants of both sides of the river. The name given to the Karuma Falls arose from the absurd belief that Karuma, the agent or familiar of a certain great spirit, placed the stones that break the waters in the river, and, for so doing, was applauded by his master, who, to reward his services by an appropriate distinction, allowed the stones to be called by his own name. Near this is a tree which contains a spirit whose attributes for gratifying the powers and pleasures of either men or women who summon its influence in the form appropriate to each, appeared to be almost identical with that of Mahadeo's Ligra in India. AMONG ELEPHANTS, BUFFALOES AND HARTEBEEST. WITH an increased force the party moved on through very high grass with great difficulty. This was a rich pasture-ground for elephants, buffaloes and hartebeest, many of which were seen, but none happened to be within gun shot, except a single large buffalo, which Speke put a bullet through and then allowed the savage porters who accompanied him the pleasure of dispatching the wounded animal in their own wild fashion with spears. It was a sight quite worthy of a little delay. No sooner was it observed that the huge beast could not retire, than, with springing bounds, the men, all spear in hand, as if advancing on an enemy, went top speed at him, over rise and fall alike, till, as they nearedthe maddened bull, he instinctively advanced to meet his assailants with the best charge his exhausted body could muster _up. Wind, however, failed him soon ; he knew his dis- advantage, and tried to hide byplunging into the water the worst policy he could have pursued ; for the men from the bank above soon covered him with bristling spears, and gained their victory. They then proceeded to cut up and cook the carcass, all the while indulging in loud praises of their personal bravery and prowess. After a journey of more than one whole day, Speke accom- plished the distance which lay between the spot where he bad 114 THE WORLD'S WONTERS. shot the buffalo and the village of Koki, in the province of Gani. The weather now was fine, and the view afforded wag very beautiful, looking toward the village, which was composed of about fifty conical huts, located on the ridge of a small chain of granitic hills. As they approached nearer, knots of naked men could be seen perched like monkeys on the granite blocks awaiting their arrival. According to the usage of the country, Speke and his porters halted while the guides were sent forward to notify Chongi, the governor-general, that a party of visitors from Kamrasi were coming to be his guests for a day or more. This information was very pleasing to Chongi, who had been appointed governor of the district by Kamrasi. All the notables of the place, covered with war-paints, and dressed, so far as their nakedness was covered at all, like clowns in a fair, charged down the hill full tilt with their spears, and, after performing their customary evolutions, mingled with Speke's men and invited them up the hill, where they no sooner arrived than Chongi, a very old man, attended by his familiar, advanced to receive them one holding a white hen, the other a small gourd of pombe and a little twig. Chongi gave the party a friendly harangue by way of greeting, and, taking the fowl by one leg, swayed it to and fro close to the ground in front of his assembled visitors. After this ceremony had been repeated by the familiar, Chongi took the gourd and twig and sprinkled the contents all over the travellers ; retired to the Uganda, or magic house a very diminutive hut sprinkled pombe over it ; and, finally, spreading a cowskin under a tree, bade Speke and Grant sit, and gave them a jorum of pombe, making many apologies that he could not show them more hospi- tality, as famine had reduced his stores. What politeness in the midst of such barbarism ! Nowhere had they seen such naked creatures, whose sole dress consisted of bead, iron, or brass orna- ments, with some feathers or cowrie-beads on the head. Even the women contented themselves with a few fibres hung like tails before and behind. The hair of the men was dressed in the same fantastic fashion. Babies were carried at their mother's backs, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 115 erx in all savage countries, and the women placed gourds over them to protect them from the sun. These people, like the Kidi. whom they much fear, carry diminutive stools to sit upon wherever they go. A HAPPY MEETING NOT WHOLLY UNALLOYED. NEARLY two days were spent with Chief Chongi, who enter- tained his white guests very agreeably, but when Speke desired to move again, he found his porters in a mutinous mood, and more than one-half of them deserted. With such a diminution of their carrying force, they were seriously inconvenienced, but they pushed on anxious to meet an expedition under Petherick, who had come to their relief, and was reported to be then in the Ma- di country. Late in the afternoon of the day of their departure they came in sight of what they supposed was Petherick' s out- post, under charge of a very black Turk named Mohamed. Guns were fired, flags waved, and other evidences of joy mani- fested. Mchamed came out and greeted Speke and Grant with hugs and kisses, and in reply to inquiries declared that Petherick was then at Gondokoro, about fifteen days' marches distant. Speke was anxious to set off at once, but Mohamed detained him by various excuses, until at length, by a cunning stratagem, he induced Speke to remain and guard the camp until he returned from a short expedition into the interior on a trading expedition. Mohamed marched his regiment out of the place, drums and fifes playing, colors flying, a hundred guns firing, officers riding, some of them on donkeys, and others .on cows ! while a host of the natives under Kionga, a rebellious brother of Kamrasi, accom- panied them, carrying spears and bows and arrows. The outfit looked very little like a peaceful caravan of merchants, but much more like a band of marauders, as they really were. In this matter Speke was badly outwitted, for the wily Turk was an independent trader, having no connection with Petherick whatever, but by his pretenses induced Speke to guard the camp while he went out to plunder one of Kamrasi's allies. When Mohamed returned to carnp he brought his army in laden with iv<>ry, and drove before him five slave girls and thirty head of 116 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 117 cattle. During the time that Speke guarded the camp he was surprised to see an entire village of Madi people removing their habitations from the vicinity. They had suffered enough from Mohamed, and when they saw their opportunity, they literally took up the frames of their houses and went off to found another village, where they hoped the brutal Turk would not find them. Shortly after Mohamed's arrival with his spoils of victory, there came into camp the head man of a village which the Turk had assisted Rionga in destroying, carrying with him a large tusk of ivory with which to ransom his daughter, who was one of the five girls seized for slaves. As girls were numerous and of no value, Mohamed accepted the ransom. On the following day his villainous character was again illustrated. Some men who had fled from their vrllage when his plundering party passed by them, surprised that he did not stop to sack their homes, now brought ten larpre tusks of ivory to him to express the gratitude they said they felt for his not having molested them. Mohamed, on finding bow easy it was to get taxes in this fashion, instead of thanking them, assumed the air of the great potentate, whose clemency was abused, and told the poor creatures that, though they had done well in seeking his friendship, they h:id not suffi- ciently considered his dignity, else they would have brought double that number of tusks, for it was impossible he could be satisfied at so low a price. " What," said these poor creatures, " can we do, then, for this is all we have got?" " Oh," says Mohamed, " if it is all you have got now in store, I will take these few for the present, but when I return from Gondokoro I expect you will bring me just as many more. Good-by, and look out for yourselves." Impatient of delays, and disgusted with Mohamed's barbarity, Speke at length procured two guides from him, and pushed ahead for the Nile, which they reached after several hard marches, at a place called Jaifi. Here they were overtaken by the advanced guard of -the Turks, who killed a crocodile and ate him on the spot, much to the amusement of Speke' s men, who immediately shook their heads laughingly, and said, " Ewa Allah ! are these men, then, Mussulmans? Savages in onr country don't much like a crocodile," 118 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. JOYFUL MEETING WITH SIR SAMUEL BAKER. Two days later Mohamed overtook Speke, and together they journeyed, with plundered cattle, slave girls and ivory, which the old Turk had so cruelly wrested from the helpless savages, on to Gondokoro. On reaching that place, they met the noted English traveler, Samuel White Baker, and his wife, on their way to the interior of Africa. This meeting must be described in Speke' s own language : " Walking down the bank of the river where a line of vessels was moored, and on the right hand a few sheds, one-half broken down, with a brick house representing the late Austrian mission establishment we saw hurrying on toward us the form of an Englishman, who for one moment we believed was the Simon Pure [Petherick] ; but the next moment' my old friend Buker, famed for his sports in Ceylon, seized me by the hand. A little boy of his establishment had reported our arrival, and he in an instant came out to welcome us. What joy this was I can hardly tell. We could not talk fast enough, so overwhelmed were we both to meet again. Of course we were his guests in a moment, and learned everything that could be told. I now first heard of the death of H. R. H. the Prince Consort, which made me reflect on the inspiring words he made use of, in compliment to myself, when I was introduced to him by Sir Roderick Murchison a short while before leaving England. Then there was the terrible war in America, and other events of less startling nature, which came on us all by surprise, as years had now passed since we had received news from the civilized world. " Baker then said he had come up with three vessels one dyabir and two nuggers fully equipped with armed men, camels, horses, donkeys, beads, brass wire, and everything neces- sary for a long journey, expressly to look after us, hoping, as he jokingly said, to find us on the equator in some terrible fix, that he might have the 'pleasure of helping us out of it. He had heard of Mohamed's party, and was actually waiting for him to come in, that he might have had the use of his return-men to t start with comfortably. Three Dutch ladies, also, with a viw THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 119 to assist us in the same way as Baker (God bless them), had come here in a steamer, but were driven back to Khartum by sickness. Nobody had even dreamed for a moment it was pos- sible we could come through. An Italian, named Miani, had gone farther up the Nile than any one else, and had cut his name on a tree by Apuddo, at the furthest point reached by him. But what had become of Petherick? He was actually trading at N'yambara, seventy miles due west of this, though he had, since I left him in England, raised a subscription of XI, 000 from my friends to aid him in finding me." ALARM ABOUT PETHERICK. SPEKE felt some alarm about the safety of Petherick, and was upon the point of going to his succor, especially as it was reported he had already had one engagement with the natives. But when he was about ready to start, Petherick returned to Gondokoro, and the joy of meeting was complete. We have now followed Speke through Africa, describing all the important facts and incidents recorded in his journal, but before dismissing him to call up another, will present his conclu- sions, which, as will hereafter be seen, were frequently at fault. He says : " Having now, then, after a period of twenty-eight months ? come upon the tracks of European travelers, and met them face to face, I close my Journal, to conclude with a few explanations, for the purpose of comparing the various branches of the Nile with its affluents, so as to show their respective values. " The first affluent, the Bahr el Ghazal, took us by surprise; for, instead of finding a huge lake, as described in our maps, at an elbow of the Nile, we found only a small piece of water! resembling a duck-pond buried in a sea of rushes. The old Nile swept through it with majestic grace, and carried us next to the Geraffe branch of the Sobat river, the second affluent, which we found flowing into the Nile with a graceful semicircular sweep and good stiff current, apparently deep, but not more than fifty yards broad. " Next in order came the main stream, of th Sobat, flowing 120 THE WoltLD's into the Nile in the same graceful way as the Geraffe, which in breadth it surpassed, but in velocity of current was inferior. The Nile by these additions was greatly increased ; still, it did not assume that noble appearance which astonished us so much, immediately after the rainy season, when we were navigating it :n canoes in Unyoro. " The Sobat has a third mouth farther down the Nile, which unfortunately was passed without my knowing it ; but as it is so Well known to be unimportant, the loss was not great. "Next to be treated of is the famous Blue Nile, which we found a miserable river, even when compared with the Geraffe branch of the Sobat. It is very broad at the mouth, it is true, but so shallow that our vessel with difficulty was able to come up it. It had all the appearance of a mountain stream, subject to great periodical fluctuations. I was never more disappointed than with this river ; if the White river was cut off from it, its waters would all be absorbed before they could reach Lower Egypt. "The Atbara River, which is the last affluent, was more like the Blue River than any of the other affluents, being decidedly a mountain stream, which floods in the rains, but runs nearly dry in the dry season. " I had now seen quite enough to satisfy myself that the White River, which issues from the lake at the Ripon Falls, is the true or parent Nile ; for in every instance of its branching, it carried the palm with it in the distinctest manner, viewed, as all the streams were by me, in the dry season, which is the best time for, estimating their relative perennial values." Of the original number of three hundred porters, guides and interpreters, only eighteen remained faithful and returned with Capt. Speke to Alexandria. These were well provided for, and greatly lionized by the English residents of that city, who took them to places of amusement, gave them liberal purses and then returned them to Zanzibar, to remain under the protection of the English consul there. Speke proved himself to be a good traveler, in some respects THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 121 superior to those who preceded him or came after, for he managed so well as to avoid collisions with the natives, and to leave Africa with the good will of all its savage kings and eaiefs, all of whom were treated with kindly consideration and bsttered by reason of his visit among them. EXPEDITION OF. SIR SAMUEL BAKER. CHAPTER VII. OFF FOR THE NILE. SAMUEL WHITE BAKER, subsequently knighted in recognition o/ his services as an African explorer, thus begins the account of his first expedition up the Nile : " In March, 1861, I commenced an expedition to discover the sources of the Nile, with the hope of meeting the East African expedition of Captains Speke and Grant, that had been sent by the English Government from the South, via Zanzibar, for that object. I had not the presumption to publish my intention, as the sources of the Nile had hitherto defied all explorers, but I had inwardly determined to accomplish this difficult task or die in the attempt. From my youth 1 had been inured to hardships and endurance in wild sports in tropical climates, and when I gazed upon the map of Africa, I had a wild hope, mingled with humility, that, even as the insignificant worm bores through the hardest oak, I might by perseverance reach the heart of Africa. 122 THE WORLD'S WONDERS " I could not conceive that anything in thir world had power to resist a determined will, so long as health ai?d life remained. The failure of every former attempt to reach the Tale's source, did not astonish me, as the expeditions had consisted of parties which, when difficulties occur, generally end in difference of opinion and retreat j I therefore determined to proceed alono, THE WORLD'S 'WONDERS. 123 trusting in the guidance of a Divine Providence, and the good fortune that sometimes attends tenacity of purpose. I weighed carefully the chances of the undertaking. Before me untrodden Africa ; against me the obstacles that had defeated the world since its creation ; on my side a somewhat tough constitution, perfect independence, a long experience in savage life, and both time and means which I intended to devote to the object without limit. England had never sent an expedition to the Nile sources previous to that under the command of Speke and Grant. Bruce, ninety years ago, had succeeded in tracing the source of the Blue or Lesser Nile: thus the honor of that discovery belonged to Great Britain ; Speke was on his road from the South ; and I felt confident that my gallant friend would leave his bones upon the path rather than submit to failure. I trusted that England would not be beaten ; and although I hardly dared to hope that I could succeed where others greater than I had failed, I determined to sacrifice all in the attempt. Had I been alone it would have been no hard lot to die upon the untrodden path before me, but there was one who, although my greatest comfort, was also my greatest care ; one whose life yet dawned at so early an age that womanhood was still a future. I shud- dered at the prospect for her, should she be left alone in savage lands at my death ; and gladly would I have left her in the luxuries of home instead of exposing her to the miseries of Africa. It was in vain that I implored her to remain, and that I painted the difficulties and perils still blacker than I supposed they really would be ; she was resolved, with woman's constancy and devotion, to share all dangers and to follow me through each rough footstep of the wild life before me. And Ruth said, * Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee : for whither thou goest I will go, and where thou lodgest I will lodge ; thy people shall be jny people, and thy God my God : where thou diest will I die, and there will I be buried : the Lord do so to me and more also, if aught but death part thee and me.' " Thus accompanied by my wife, on the 15th of April, 1861, 124 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. I sailed up the Nile from Cairo. The wind blc\v fair and strong from the north, and we flew towards the south against the stream, watching those mysterious waters with a firm resolve to track them to their distant fountain." When Baker arrived at Berber, he found that a knowledge of Arabic was essential to his success, and therefore devoted the first year to exploring affluents of the Nile from the Abyssinian range of mountains, which gave him a very excellent means for acquiring the language, as association is a better school than study. STARTING FOR THE NILE SOURCE. HAVING made himself familiar with Arabic, as .did also his wife, Baker prepared, in December, 1862, to proceed with his original purpose. The principal requirement now was a force of arms-bearers and sailors. This preparation had to be made at Kartoum, where many men could be had, but they were gener- ally of a dissolute and perfidious character. However, he enlisted ninety-six men, forty of whom he armed with double- barreled guns and rifles, forty others were sailors, and the remainder servants. He had three boats specially built, which he loaded with twenty-one donkeys, four camels and four horses, hoping these would render him independent of porte.s, who are so given to desertion. Each man received five months' wages in advance, and just before starting they were treated to an entertainment at which they had an abundance to eat and drink. Everything was now ready for the departure, all the supplies and animals having been taken on board, and the' men at their several posts, when an officer arrived from Divan to demand a poll-tax from Baker for each of his men, equal to one months' wages per head, threatening to detain the boats if it was not paid forthwith. Baker ordered his captain to hoist the British flag upon each of the boats, aitd then answered the demand by declaring that he was neither a Turk nor a trader, but an English explorer, and therefore not responsible for the tax, and that if any official attempted to board his boats he would lake pleasure, in the name of Great Britain, in throwing him overboard. Thu THE WOKLU'S \VOXl) KKS. . ! 25 tax-gatherer made no effort to force a collection, hut quietly departed. A FIGHT. THE boats were now got under way, but had moved or.ly a short distance when a government boat came sailing swiftly down the river and in a most reckless manner crushed into Baker's boat, breaking the oars and otherwise damaging it. The reis, or captain, instead of apologizing, broke forth in the wildest abuse and invectives, positively refusing to make repara- tion for the damage done, and dared any one of Baker's men to come- on board. This captain of the government boat was a gigantic black, so conscious of his physical powers that he felt a savage pride in parading them. As the boats had fallen foul of each other, Baker brushed aside his men and stepped over to the government vessel, where the muscular black stood ready to receive him. A fight took place between the two, with natural weapons, in which Baker pommeled his adversary so soundly that the black captain was exceedingly glad to escape further punish- ment by giving Baker new oars in the place of those that were broken and to abjectly apologize for his conduct. The expedition met with no further embarrassments and pro- ceeded up the river for Gondokoro, which is the head of naviga- tion on the Nile. THE FIRST DEATH. IN the party engaged at Kartoum was an adventurous German named John Schmidt. He had been an old hunter in India, well experienced in tropical sports and exposures, and a most service- able man with such an expedition as Baker now commanded, but the poor fellow was badly afflicted with consumption. He was very anxious to accompany Baker, feeling that such a journey would improve his health, which he did not believe was seriously impaired. Baker tried hard to advise him against such an under- taking, dwelling upon the extreme hardships which he must certainly suffer ; but Schmidt was determined, and Baker, on the ground, of old comradeship, finally consented to take him, espe- 126 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. dally since he had rendered such excellent service in preparing for the departure. Baker's diary, which was kept throughout the long journey, shows how poor Schmidt began to fail, though his great energy kept him from giving up for a long time, but the struggle grew less until the year began to fade out, when with it sped the brave spirit. Baker's chronicle of this event is as follows : "Johann is in a dying state, but sensible ; all his hopes, poor fellow, of saving money in my service and returning to Bavaria are past. I sat by his bed for some hours ; there was not a ray of hope; he could 'speak with difficulty, and the flies wajked across his glazed eyeballs without his knowledge. Gently bathing his face and hands, I asked him if I could deliver any message to his relatives. He faintly uttered, ' I am prepared to die ; I have neither parents nor relations ; but there is one she ' he faltered. He could not finish his sentence, but his dying thoughts were with one he loved ; far, far away from this wild and miser- able land. Did not a shudder pass over her, a chill warning at that sad moment when all was passing away? I pressed his cold hand and asked her name. Gathering his remaining strength he murmured, ' Es bleibt nur zu sterben.' * Ich bin sehr dankbar.' These were the last words he spoke, *I am very grateful.' I gazed sorrowfully at his attenuated figure, and at the now power- less hand that had laid low many an elephant and lion in its day of strength ; and the cold sweat of death lay thick upon his forehead. Although the pulse was not yet still, Johann was gone. I made a huge cross with my own hands from the trunk of a tamarind tree, and by moonlight we laid him in his grave in this lonely spot." " No useless coffin enclosed his breast, Nor in sheet nor in shroud we wound him ; But he lay like a Pilgrim taking his rest, With his mantle drawn around him." A FATAL BUFFALO HUNT. ON the evening of January 9th, while the boats were moving at the rate of five niiles an hour against tbe current, a buffalo WORLD'S WONDERS. 127 was sighted m the deep grass about one hundred yards from the river. As meat was scarce, Baker had the boats run to bank, and as the buffalo's head appeared above the grass he fired, and the animal dropped as if struck dead. Several of the men ran pell-mell after it, and as the beast still appeared to be dead, instead of falling to at. once and cutting it up, they danced about it in savage delight, one holding its tail while another danced on the body brandishing his knife. Suddenly the buffalo jumped up, scattered the blacks, and ran off into a morass, where it fell again. The boats tied up for the night, and on the following morning the groans of the wounded animal could plainly be heard. About forty of the men now took their guns and waded knee-deep through mud, water and high grass in search of it. One hour after Baker heard shouting and shooting, which lasted fully twenty minutes ; by aid of the telescope he could see a crowd of his men standing on an ant-hill three hundred yards distant, from which point they were still shooting at some indis- tinguishable object. The death-howl then followed, and the men were seen to rush down from their secure position, and directly afterward returned to the boats, carrying the dead and mangled body of Sali Achmet, Baker's most valuable man. It truiiupired that this man had been attacked by the wounded buffalo and killed in sight of his comrades, who were too cowardly to render him any assistance. The poor fellow was horribly mangled, and, as usual with buffaloes, the furious beast had not rested content until it pounded the breath out of the body, which was found imbedded and trampled so tightly in the mud that only a portion of the head appeared above the marsh. In relating the story to Baker, the men stated that three men were with Sali when the buffalo charged him, but that the cowards bolted without firing a gun, and took position on an ant hill, from which they saw their comrade tossed into the air and heard his distressing cries for help without responding. This was a fair sample of the courage of the native Africans, who exalt their bravery when danger is not near, but who run like sheep at the first intimation of peril. 123 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. The buffalo was found dead from exhaustion, its shoulder having been broken, and was secured, while poor Suli was buried according to the usages of his countrymen. The boats were then got under way again. MEETING WITH A STRANGE PEOPLE. ON the 13th of January the expedition stopped near a village on the right bank of the river. The natives came down to the boats, they were something superlative in the way of savages ; the men as naked as they came into the world ; their bodies rubbed with ashes, and their hair stained red by a plaster of ashes and cow's urine. Baker says these fellows were the most unearthly-looking devils he ever saw there was no other expression for them. The unmarried women were also entirely naked ; the married had a fringe made of grass around their loins. The men wore heavy coils of beads about their necks, two heavy bracelets of ivory on the upper portion of the arms, copper rings upon the wrists, and a horrible kind of bracelet of massive iron armed with spikes about an inch in length, like leopard's claws, which they used for a similar purpose. The chief of the Nuehr village, Joctian, with his wife and daughter, paid a visit to the boats, and asked for all they saw in the shape of beads and bracelets, but declined a knife as useless. They went away delighted with their presents. The women were very ugly. The men were tall and powerful, armed with lances. They carried pipes that contained nearly a quarter of a pound of tobacco, in which they smoked simple charcoal should the loved tobacco fail. The carbonic acid gas of the charcoal produces a slight feeling of intoxication, which is the effect desired. Baker took the chief's portrait ; of course he was delighted. In reply to a question as to the use of the spiked iron bracelet, he exhibited his wife's arms and back covered with jagged scars. Charming people, these poor blacks ! He was quite proud of having clawed his wife like a wild beast. NOVEL CONTEST WITH A HIPPOPOTAMUS. ON the 15th of January, while the men ashore were drawing THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 129 the boats, their heads being invisible on account of the tall grass, a hippopotamus was frightened out of his lair and appeared directly under the bow of the boat. In an instant, about twenty men, thinking the animal an infant one, jumped overboard to grapple with it, but as the supposed baby suddenly 9 130 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. appeared again about three times as large as they expected it was, they showed no further eagerness to close with it. How- ever, the captain of the boat, more courageous than the rest, pluckily seized the hippopotamus by one of its hind legs, where- upon the others rushed in and a grand tussle followed. Ropes were thrown from the boat and nooses slipped over the animal's head, but these efforts for its capture were so futile that the hip- popotamus swam rapidly toward midstream and would have carried everything with it, had not Baker put an end to the sport by shooting the beast. He was scored all over by the tusks of some other hippopo- tamus that had been bullying him. The men declared that his father had thus misused him ; others were of opinion that it was his mother ; and the argument ran high and hecam-3 hot. These Arabs have an extraordinary taste for arguments upon the most trifling points. Baker says he has frequently known his men to argue throughout the greater part of the night, and recommence the same argument on the following morning. These debates generally end in a fight ; and in the present instance the excite- ment of the hunt only added to the heat of the argument. They at length agreed to refer it to the master, and both parties approached, vociferously advancing their theories ; one-half persisting that the young hippo had been bullied by his father, and the others adhering to the mother as the cause. Baker, being referee, suggested that "perhaps it was his uncle." " Wah Illahi sahe I" (By Allah, it is true !) Both parties were satisfied with the suggestion ; dropping their theory they became practical, and fell to with knives and axes to cut up the cause of the argument. The hippopotamus was as fat as butter, and was ^i perfect godsend to the people, who divided him with great 'excitement and good humor. A STRANGE RACE OF PEOPLE. ON the 19th of January the boats emerged from the apparently endless region of marsh-grass and saw on the right bank a large herd of grazing cattle tended by naked natives. This proved to be the Kytch country, a tribe of the most strange and singular THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 131 people that can be found in Africa. At the principal station, Zareebo, one of the natives generously offered Baker a bullock, which he refused, until he saw that the man was affronted. Notwithstanding the vast herds of cattle these people own, their misery is beyond description. They will not kill their cattle, nor do they ever taste meat unless an animal dies of sickness ; neither will they work, and thus starvation is common among them, as they exist almost wholly upon rats, lizards, snakes and fish. They capture fish by means of a harpoon, which is a neatly made instrument, attached to a reed pole about twenty feet in length, and secured by a long line. They cast the harpoon haphazard, anywhere among the reeds, without regard for signs of fish ; thus they may make and do make hundreds of casts before striking a fish. Occasionally, but always by accident, they har- poon species of fish weighing as much as two hundred pounds ; and in such an event a long and exciting chase ensues, for the fish carries' away the harpoon and the spearman has to swim with the line and play with the fish until it is tired out. Baker was introduced to the chief of the Kytch tribe, and he describes him and his people as follows: "The chief of the Kytch people wore a leopard skin across his shoulders, and a skull-cap of white beads, with a crest of ostrich feathers ; but the mantle was merely slung over his shoulders, and all other parts of his person were naked. His daughter was the best-looking girl that I have seen among the blacks ; she was about sixteen. Her clothing consisted of a little' piece of dressed hide, about a foot wide, slung across her shoul- ders, all other parts being exposed. All the girls of this country wear merely a circlet of little iron jingling ornaments round their waists. They came in numbers, bringing small bundles of wood, to exchange for a few handfuls of corn. Most of the men are tall, but wretchedly thin ; the children are mere skeletons, and the entire tribe appears thoroughly starred. The language is that of the Dinka. The chief carried a curious tobacco-box, an iron spike about two feet long, with a hollow socket, bound with iguana-skin ; this served for either tobacco-box, club, or dagger. 132 THE WORLD S WONDERS. The whole day we were beset by crowds of starving people, bringing small gourd-shells to receive the expected corn." Among the Kytch polygamy is, of course, common. When a man becomes too old for his several wives his eldest son becomes his substitute. s THE CHIEF AND HIS DAUGHTER. FIGHTING BLACK AMAZONS. SHORTLY after leaving the Kytch country, a squall of wind came up, which took away one mast of the best boat and left it |:i wreck. Baker had now to proceed entirely by cordelling, which process was very slow and not without danger to the men, who had to wade through marshes in which were numerous croc- odiles, snakes and hippopotami ; besides, the country was filled with malaria, mosquitoes and a sultry atmosphere. Thus day by day passed, and but for one incident the monotony of the journey THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 133 would have been vexatiously wearisome. This diversion was afforded, strange enough, by the fighting black women on board, who worried, quarreled and scratched like Gehenna cats. Among these was one little black terrier named Gaddum Her, very short, but wonderfully strong and plucky ; she was the embodiment of long-cultivated vice, and was always spoiling for a fight. On one occasion this little wretch fought with another of her tribe until they rolled all over the boat, and finally down into the hold, where they landed upon a number of water-jars, which they broke. On the next day the fight was renewed, and did not end until both had fallen into the river. This irritability was not only manifested among the women, but the donkeys, horses and camels also had their daily fights. THE ALIAS TRIBE. ON January 28th Baker passed two bivouacs of Aliabs, who were tending large herds of cattle. These people appeared quite friendly ; they were hardly so bad as the Kytch tribe, but were very low in the scale of humanity. They not only milk their cows, but bleed them every month, by driving a lance into a vein of the neck, and boil the blood for food. Living in a country where mosquitoes are so numerous, they make tumuli of dung, which are kept constantly on fire, fresh fuel being added as fast as wasted ; this burns like smudge, producing a heavy smoke that drives the mosquitoes away. Around these smouldering dung-heaps the cattle crowd in hundreds, living with the natives in the smoke. By degrees the heaps of ashes become about eight feet high ; they are then used as sleeping places and watch stations by the natives, who, rubbing themselves all over with the ashes, have a ghastly and devilish appearance positively hor- rible to look upon. THE SHIR TRIBE. Two days later, Baker came upon the Shir tribe, which he describes as follows : " The men are, as usual in these countries, armed with well-made ebony clubs, two lances, a bow (always strung), and a bundle of arrows : their hands are completely full 134 THE WORLD'S WONDEBS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 135 of weapons ; and they carry a neatly-made miniature stool slung upon their backs, in addition to an immense pipe. Thus a man carries all that he most values about his person. The females in this tribe are not absolutely naked ; like those of the Kytch, they wear small lappets of tanned leather as broad as the hand ; at the back of the belt, which supports this apron, is a tail which reaches to the lower portions of the thighs ; this tail is formed of finely-cut strips of leather, and the costume has doubtless been the foundation for the report I had received from the Arabs, that a tribe in Central Africa had tails like horses. The women cany their children very conveniently in a skin slung from their shoulders across the back, and secured by a thong round the waist ; in this the young savage sits delightfully. The huts throughout all tribes are circular, with entrances so low that the natives creep both in and out upon their hands and knees. The men wear tufts of cock's feathers on the crown of the head ; and their favorite attitude, when standing, is on one leg while leaning on a spear, the foot of the raised leg resting on the inside of the other knee. Their arrows are about three feet long, without feathers, and pointed with hard wood instead of iron, the metal being scarce among the Shir tribe. The most valuable article of barter for this tribe is the iron hoe generally used among the White Nile negroes. In form it is precisely similar to the * ace of spades.' The finery most prized by the women are polished iron anklets, which they wear in such numbers that they reach nearly half-way up the calf of the leg ; the tinkling of these rings is considered to be very enticing, but the sound reminds one of the clanking of convicts' fetters." 136 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. CHAPTEE VHT. ARRIVAL AT GONDOKORO. ON the 1st of February, Baker arrived at Gondokoro, which is a Turkish slave and trading station, composed of miserable little grass huts and the ruins of an old mission. Here a long stay was made, waiting the arrival of a Turkish trader from the interior, whom Baker hoped to accompany on the return to Central Africa. The natives of Gondokoro belong to the Bari tribe, a singular people who have become savage in their nature by contact with the barbarous Turks. Their dwellings are very cleanly, but far from picturesque. The domicile of each family is surrounded by a hedge of impenetrable thickness, and the interior of the enclosure usually consists of a yard neatly plastered with a cement of ashes, cow-dung and sand. The huts have projecting roofs, in order to afford shade, and the entrance is only about two feet high. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BARI TRIBE. WHEN a member of the family dies he is buried in the yard ; a few ox-horns and skulls are suspended on a pole above the spot, while the top of the pole is ornamented with a bunch of cock's feathers. Every man carries his weapons, pipe, and stool, the whole (except the stool) being held between his legs when standing. The men are well grown, the women are not prepos- sessing, but the negro type of thick lips and flat nose is wanting ; their features are good, and the woolly hair alone denotes the trace of negro blood. They are tattooed upon the stomach, sides, and back so closely that it has the appearance of a broad belt of fish-scales, especially when they are rubbed with red ochre, which is the prevailing fashion. This pigment is made of a peculiar clay, rich in oxide of iron, which, when burnt, is reduced to powder, and then formed into lumps like pieces of soap ; both sexes anoint themselves with this ochre, formed into THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 137 a paste by the admixture of grease, giving themselves the appearance of new red bricks. The only hair upon their persons is a small tuft upon the crown of the head, in which they stick one or more feathers. The women are generally free from hair, their heads being shaved. They wear a neat little lappet, about six inches long, of beads, or of small iron rings, worked like a coat of mail, in lieu of a fig-leaf, and the usual tail of fine shreds of leather or twine, spun from indigenous cotton, pendant behind. Both the lappet and tail are fastened on a belt, which is worn round the loins, like those in the Shir tribe ; thus the toilette is completed at once. It would be highly useful, could they only wag their tails to whisk off the flies which are torments in this country. The cattle are very small ; the goats and sheep are quite Lilli- putian, but they generally give three at a birth, and thus multiply quickly. The people of the country were formerly friendly, but the Khartoumers pillage and murder them at discretion in all directions ; thus, in revenge, they will shoot a poisoned arrow at a stranger unless he is powerfully escorted. The effect of the poison used for the arrow-heads is very extra- ordinary. A man came to Baker for medical aid ; five months before he had been wounded by a poisoned arrow in the leg, below the calf, and the entire foot had been eaten away by the action of the poison. The bone rotted through just above the ankle, and the foot dropped off. The most violent poison is the produce of the root of a tree, whose milky juice yields a resin that is smeared upon the arrow. It is brought from a great dis- tance, from some country far west of Gondokoro. The juice of the species of euphorbia, common in these countries, is also used for poisoning arrows. Boiled to the consistence of tar, it is then smeared upon the blade. The action of the poison is to corrode the flesh, which loses its fibre, and drops away like jelly, after severe inflammation and swelling. The arrows are barbed with diabolical ingenuity ; some are arranged with poisoned heads that fit into sockets ; these detach from the arrow on an attempt to withdraw them ; thus the barbed blade, thickly smeared with 138 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. poison, remains in the wound, and before it can be cut out, the poison is absorbed by the system. Fortunately the natives are bad archers. The bows are invariably made of the male bam- boo, and are kept perpetually strung ; they are exceedingly stiff, but not very elastic, and the arrows are devoid of feathers, being simple reeds or other light wood, about three feet long, and slightly knobbed at the base as a hold for the finger and thumb ; the string is never drawn with the two fore-fingers, as in most countries, but is simply pulled by holding the arrow between the middle joint of the fore-finger and the thumb. A stiff bow drawn in this manner has very little power; accordingly the extreme range seldom exceeds a hundred and ten yards. The Bari tribe are very hostile, and are considered to be about the worst of the White Nile. They have been so often defeated by the traders' parties in the immediate neighborhood of Gondo- koro, that they are on their best behavior while within half a mile of the station ; but it is not at all uncommon to be asked for beads as a tax for the right of sitting under the shade of a tree, or for passing through the country. The traders' people, in order to terrify them into submission, were in the habit of bind- ing them,, hands and feet, and carryingthem to the edge of a cliff about thirty feet high, a little beyond the ruins of the mission house ; beneath this cliff the river boils in an eddy, and into this watery grave the victims were remorsely hurled as food for crocodiles. It appeared that this punishment was dreaded by the natives more than the bullet or rope, and it was accordingly adopted by the Turkish trading parties. BAKER'S TROUBLES IN GONDOKORO. BAKER was regarded by the Turks in Gondokoro as an intruder 'or as a spy sent by England to obtain information concerning the slave trade ; they therefore set about to create dissatisfaction among his men and to annoy him into a hasty departure. The slaves were kept out of sight as much as possible, being heavily manacled and confined in close stockades. There were about six hundred traders in the town, who spent their leisure drinking, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 139 quarreling and maltreating the slaves. The majority were con- tinually intoxicated, and in this condition amused themselves by promiscuous firing of guns, so that there was no safety from stray bullets, one of which killed a little boy in Baker's party. Baker had remained in Gondokoro only a short time before he observed a general discontent among his men ; its first outcrop- ping was a demand made upon him for privilege to steal some cattle from the natives for a feast ; this being refused, they threatened to steal such cattle as they wanted, regardless of orders. Baker then had the men called for muster, and made them a sharp address, but this only served to provoke an outburst of insolence. The ringleader, named Elsar, was so impertinent and violent, that Baker ordered him to be bound and given twenty-five lashes. When an attempt was made to enforce this order, a large number of the men came to Elsar's assistance and a mutiny was raised. There was now no other alternative than for Baker himself to carry out the order, as any concessions would have entirely destroyed his power over the men ; accord- ingly he attempted to seize Elsar, when the savage black rushed at him with a stick, eager for a fight. Baker accepted the challenge, and with a powerful blow of his fist knocked him sprawling on the ground and followed up his advantage by administering a severe punishment with his boot. His savage companions suffered their ringleader to be well castigated, apparently awed at Baker's boldness ; but soon they rallied and set upon him with sticks and stones. The affair would no doubt have terminated seriously for Baker, had not his wife, seeing the danger, rushed to the rescue, and by ordering the drums beaten, stopped the fray. A settlement of the difficulty was effected by Baker remitting the further punishment of Elsar upon condition that the mutineer should kiss his hand and apologize. This incident proved to Baker how unreliable his men were, and that to take such a force with him into Africa would only invite danger and defeat his objects, although the men swore fidelity again, and Elsar declared that he would stand before his master and receive every arrow rather than have him injured. 140 THE WORLD 8 WONDERS. MEETING WITH SPEKE AND GRANT. Two days after the mutinous outbreak, Baker was startled by the rapid firing of guns and shouts apparently from the whole village. Rushing out of his hut he was overjoyed to see two white men approaching, who, upon close inspection, proved to be his old friend Capt. Speke, accompanied by Capt. Grant, botn THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 141 ragged, lean and much careworn. After embracing, the three adventurous Englishmen repaired to one of the boats, and there, seated under an awning, they talked upon the one subject so absorbing to them all, namely, the source of the Nile. Speke gave Baker much information concerning the natives of the inte- rior and the best routes for his journey, at the same time encour- aging him to pursue his intended explorations, as there were possibly other sources of the Nile than the Victoria lake, which circumstances had not permitted him to seek for. Speke enter- tained some doubts about Victoria lake being the sole source of the Nile, because he had been told by Kamrasi that there was a river or lake called the Luta N'zige, which extended in a direct line from south to north with the same general system of drainage as the Nile, and in like direction, and which he believed held a very important position in the Nile basin. Speke gave Baker his maps and written instructions how to proceed. On the 26th of February Speke and Grant sailed from Gon- dokoro for home, while Baker at once proceeded to strike for the interior, regardless of the danger which threatened him from his treacherous force, relying almost wholly upon the protection and assistance of the Turk Mohammed, who promised to accom- pany him to where his ivory was stored, which would require but a few days' time. A TROUBLESOME BIRD. AFTER the departure of Speke and Grant, Baker moved his tent to the high ground above the river ; the effluvium from the filth of some thousands of people was disgusting, and fever was prevalent in all quarters. Baker and his wife were both sick, also several of the men, one of whom died. The animals were all healthy, but the donkeys and camels were attacked by a bird, about the size of a thrush, which caused them great uneasiness. This bird is a greenish brown color, with a powerful red beak and excessively strong claws. It is a perfect pest to animals, and positively eats them into holes. The original object of the bird in settling upon the animal is to search for vermin, but it is not contented with the mere insects, and industriously pecks 142 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. holes in all parts of the beast, more especially on the back. A wound onCe established adds to the attraction, and the unfortu- nate animal is so pestered that it has no time to eat. Baker was obliged to hire little boys to watch the donkeys, and to drive off these plagues ; but so determined and bold were the birds, that they would run under the body of the donkey, clinging to the belly with their feet, and thus retreating to the opposite side of the animal when chased by the watchboys. In a few days the animals were full of wounds, excepting the horses, whose long tails were effectual whisks. With the exception of this annoy- ance everything appeared in fair condition for the journey. Mahommed had promised to accompany the expedition through, in consideration of such presents as Baker had agreed to give him, but he had not reckoned on the duplicity of the Arab scoun- drel thus engaged. While professing friendship, he was doing all in his power to hinder and defeat Baker's expedition, by circulating false and alarming stories among his ignorant and superstitious men. Influenced by these stories, they began to evince a sullen demeanor, which was not long developing into an insurrection, having for its purpose the murder of Baker and the confisca- tion of his property. It chanced, however, that among his force there were two really faithful subjects, one named Richarn, a fellow of dissolute habits, but honorable and trustworthy ; the other a little boy named Saat, only twelve years of age, whom Mrs. Baker had taken compassion on at Kartourn as a friendless outcast, and adopted. This boy had received some Christian instruction and was anxious to be taught more, which made him a source of tender care to Mrs. Baker, and in return for this he was obedient, loving, ready to lay down his innocent life for his master and mistress. / A DREADFUL PLOT DISCOVERED. How these two faithful servants saved Baker's life is related by himself as follows: " We were to start upon the following Monday. Mahommed had paid me a visit, assuring me of his devotion, and begging me to have my baggage in marching order, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 143 as he would send me fifty porters on the Monday, and we would move off in company. At the very moment that he thus pro- fessed, he was coolly deceiving me. He had arranged to start without me on the Saturday, while he was proposing that we should march together on Monday. This I did not know at the time. One morning I had returned to the tent after having, as usual, inspected the transport animals, when I observed Mrs. Baker looking extraordinarily pale, and immediately upon my arrival she gave orders for the vakeel (headman) to be brought. There was something in her manner so different to her usual calm that I was utterly bewildered when I heard her question the vakeel, 'whether the men were willing to march?' 'Perfectly ready,' was the reply. ' Then order them to strike the tent and load the animals ; we start this moment.' The man appeared confused, but not more so than I. Something was evidently on foot, but what I could not conjecture. The vakeel wavered, and to my astonishment I heard the accusation made against him that, ' during the night, the whole of the escort had mutinously con- spired to desert me, with my arms and ammunition that were in their hands, and to fire simultaneously at me should I attempt to disarm them.' At first this charge was indignantly denied, until the boy Saat manfully stepped forward, and declared that the conspiracy was entered into by the whole of the escort, and that both he and Richarn, knowing that mutiny was intended, had listened purposely to the conversation during the night ; at day- break the boy had .reported the fact to his mistress. Mutiny, robbery and murder were thus deliberately determined." Realizing that it would never do to attempt to penetrate Africa with such men, Baker determined to get rid of them. He first disarmed them, with the assistance of his courageous wife and the faithful Richarn and Saat, and then gave them their dis- charges, writing the word "mutineer" above his signature on each of them. None of the men being able to read, they uncon- sciously carried the evidence of their own guilt, which he resolved to punish should he ever find them on his return to Kartourn. Most of the men that Baker disaimed at once joined trading 144 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. parties, while the others made off at the first intimation of trouble and were seen no more. It was the expressed intention of the mutineers to shoot Baker, which no doubt would have been done had they not found him so well prepared to return their shots. GLOOMY REFLECTIONS. HAVING been deserted by Mohammed and compelled to dis- charge the force he had engaged at Kartoum, Baker sent for a Circassian chief, named Koorshid, from whom he requested the service of ten elephant hunters and two interpreters ; but his request was denied, for the reason that no men could be hired to serve under him. This denial took away all hope from Baker, and nothing remained for him to do but establish a depot and remain at Goudokoro for another season. No expedition had ever been more carefully planned ; everthing being prepared under his own directions and without regard for expense, but the promise of success and reward was defeated by the very ones whom he had employed to assist him. These reflections weighed heavily upon the minds of Baker and his courageous wife. During the night they were startled by a succession of loud screams, and upon listening attentively, heard the heavy breath- ing of something in their hut ; searching through the dark, they discovered an object cowering close to the head of the bed. Baker noiselessly drew a revolver from under his pillow, and pointing it at the crouching object, asked, "Who is that?" Just as he was upon the point of firing, a voice replied, " Fadeela !'* It was one of the black women of the party, who had crept into the tent for an asylum. Upon striking a light Baker found that the woman was streaming with blood, being cut in the most frightful manner with the coorbatch (whip of hippopotamus hide). Hearing the screams continued at some distance from the tent, he found a party in the act of flogging two women ; two men were holding each woman upon the ground by sitting upon her legs and neck, while two men with powerful whips operated upon each woman alternately. Their backs were cut to pieces, and they were literally covered with blood. The brutes had taken upon themselves the task of thus THE WOULU'S WONDEUS. 145 punishing the women for a breach of discipline in being absent without leave. Fadeela had escaped before her punishment had been completed, and came near being shot by running to the tent without giving warning. Seizing the coorbatch from the hands of one of the executioners, Baker administered them a dose of their own prescription, to their intense astonishment, as they did not appear conscious of any outrage ; " they were only slave women." In all such expeditions it is necessary to have women belonging to the party to grind the corn and prepare the' food for the men ; Baker had accordingly hired several from their proprietors at Kartoum, and these had been maltreated as described. DETERMINED TO LEAVE GONDOKORO. BAKER determined at all hazards to leave Gondokoro, having engaged seventeen men whom he knew to be fully as treacherous as those he had dismissed, but he hoped to overcome their evil designs by kind treatment and by impressing them with the importance of yielding obedience, as the only way of successfully penetrating a country filled with hostile savages. A party of Koorshid's people had just arrived from the Latooka country, bringing with them a number of porters. These people wore helmets of glass beads and were remarkably handsome, though destitute of clothing. Adda, the chief, pre- sented himself at Baker's tent, accompanied by a few of his men ; he was a man of remarkable symmetry, a dusky Apollo ; he was very friendly with Baker and gave much information about the Latooka country, at the same time urging the white man to visit him. To further excite his friendship, Baker took the chief's portrait, and made him a variety of presents, such as copper bracelets, beads and a red cotton handkerchief. This latter article Adda carefully folded in the shape of a triangle and tied it around his body so that the pendant corner would fall behind, occupying half an hour in arranging it to suit his fancy. Finding their chief so cleverly entertained, the others crowded around, asking for presents, which they generally received, as Baker was anxious to promote their friendship, hoping to 146 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. i accompany them back to Latooka, as the chief had requested. There was a party of Turks also in Gondokoro, who were going to the Latooka country, and these declared that Baker should not follow. Adda despised the Turks, but was compelled to labor in their service, carrying ivory, his tribe being too poorly equipped to contend with them. Though he would have been glad to treat Baker as a friend, the open hostility displayed by these Turks caused him to remain neutral. Notwithstanding the threats repeated by the Turks, Baker resolved to follow with his small force of seventeen men. On the route between Gondokoro and Latooka there was a powerful tribe amqng the mountains of Ellyria. The chief of that tribe (Legge) had formerly massacred one hundred and twenty men of a traders' party. He was an ally of Koorshid, whom the Turks declared would raise an army against Baker to defeat and destroy him. It would only be necessary for the traders to request the chief of Ellyria to attack his party to inspire its destruction, as the pi under of the baggage would be an ample reward. Baker, however, had great faith in presents. The venality of Arabs is proverbial, and having many valuable effects with him, he trusted that when the proper moment should arrive, he would be able to overcome all opposition by an open hand. A MOMENTOUS HOUR. THE day arrived for the departure of Koorshid' s people. They commenced firing their usual signals ; the drums beat ; the Turkish ensign led the way ; and they marched at two o'clock, P.M., sending a polite message, "daring" the Englishman to follow them. Baker immediately ordered the tent to be struck, the luggage to be arranged, the animals to be collected, and everything to be ready for the march. Richarn and Saat were in high spirits, even Baker's unwilling men were obliged to work, and by seven p. M., they were all ready. The camels were too heavily loaded, carrying about seven hundred pounds each. The donkeys were ajsp overloaded, but there was no help for it. JVIrs. Buker wa? THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 147 well mounted on a good Abyssinian horse, and was carrying several leather bags slung to the pommel, while her husband was equally loaded on his horse, in fact, they were all carrying as much as they could stow. They had neither guide nor interpreter. Not one native was procurable, all being under the influence of the traders, who had determined to render their advance utterly impossible by pre- venting the natives from assisting them. They commenced the desperate journey in darkness about an hour after sunset. "Where shall we go?" said the men, just as the order was given to start. "Who can travel without a guide? No one knows the road." The moon was up, and the mountain of Belignan was distinctly visible about nine miles distant. Know- ing that the route lay on the east side of that mountain, Baker led the way, Mrs. Baker riding by his side, and the British flag following close behind as a guide for the caravan of heavily- laden camels and donkeys. CHAPTER IX. ON THE MARCH TO LATOOKA. IT being late when the cavalcade started, Baker halted after a march of three hours and went into camp one-half mile from where the Turks had bivouacked, hoping to conciliate Ibrahim, the Turkish chief, and procure a guide from him. The haughty Mussulman, however, rejected all overtures, and repeated his threat to have the Englishman annihilated by the Ellyrians. Baker now saw that his safety lay in out-traveling the Turks and passing the Ellyrian mountains before Ibrahim could communi- cate with the savages. Accordingly, he struck his tents before daylight the next morning and pushed on with all possible speed, but on account of his badly overloaded camels and donkeys, he could travel but slowly. Having no guides, the route taken was extremely bad, being obstructed by deep ravines, and penetrating a jungle that was 148 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. composed chiefly of thorn bushes. The camels being tall the overhanging branches caught in their packs, either shifting the loads or dragging them off altogether, and while going down ravines the animals frequently stumbled, and would sometimes roll over and over to the bottom. Thus it was that the men would have to unload, carry the packs up the opposite hill, and reload the camels about every half hour. The Turks made slow progress also, as they were trading with the natives along the route, and had no object to hurry them. While proceeding under great difficulty, two Latookas, who had deserted Ibrahim for being severely beaten by him, overtook Baker and offered to guide him through the Ellyria country ; this was a piece of extraordinarily good luck, for his men, having neglected to supply themselves with water, were now suffering much from thirst. The Latooka guides led the way, and soon brought the half-famished party to a place where water was pro- cured by digging a few feet in a dry basin. While the men were regaling themselves and the animals at the wells thus made, some natives appeared, carrying the head of a wild boar that was in a horrible state of decomposition and fairly alive with maggots. They made themselves familiar with Baker's men, and building a fire proceeded to cook the unsavory dish. The skull becoming too hot for its inhabitants, the maggots wriggled out from the ears and nose like a jam of people escaping from the doors of a theatre on fire. The natives tapped the skull with a stick to hasten their exit, and when the cooking was done they devoured the meat and sucked the bones. No matter how putrid meat may be, it does not appear to affect the health or stomach of native A-fricans. BESIEGED BY CURIOUS NATIVES. THE blacks having finished their repast, joined the caravan, which now moved on again, with Mr. and Mrs. Baker about one mile in advance, accompanied by the Latooka guides. Crossing a deep gully they halted under a large fig tree at the extremity of a vale, to await the party. They were soon observed by the Tolloga natives, who emerged from their villages among the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 149 rocks and surrounded them. They were all armed with bows and arrows and lances, and were much excited at seeing the horses, which to them were unknown animals. Says- Baker : "There were five or six hundred natives pressing round us. They were excessively noisy, hallooing to us as though we were deaf, simply because we did not understand them. Finding that they were pressing rudely around us, I made signs to them to stand off, when at that moment a curiously ugly, short, humped- back fellow came forward and addressed me in broken Arabic. I was delighted to find an interpreter, and requesting him to tell the crowd to stand back, I inquired for their chief. The hump- back spoke very little Arabic, nor did the crowd appear to heed him, but they immediately stole a spear that one of my Latooka guides had placed against the tree under which we were sitting. It was getting rather unpleasant ; but having my revolver and a double-barreled rifle in my hands, there was no fear of their being stolen. " In reply to a question to the humpback, he asked me ' Who I was ? ' I explained that I was a traveler. * You want ivory ? ' he said. * No,' I answered, * it is of no use to me.' ' Ah, you want slaves ! ' he replied. * Neither do I want slaves,' I answered. This was followed by a burst of laughter from the crowd, and the humpback continued his examination. * Have you got plenty of cows? ' * Not one ; but plenty of beads and copper.' ' Plenty? Where are they?' * Not far off; they will be here presently with my men,' and I pointed to the direction from which they would arrive. What countryman are you? ' An Englishman.' He had never heard of such people. * You are a Turk? ' All right,' I replied ; ' I am anything you like.' * And that is your son? ' (pointing at Mrs. Baker). No, she is my wife.' Your wife ! What a lie ! He is a boy.' Not a bit of it,' I replied ; * she is my wife, who has come with me to see the women of this country.' * What a lie ! ' he again politely rejoined in the one expressive Arabic word, ' Katab.' "After this charmingly frank conversation he addressed the crowd, explaining, I suppose, that I was endeavoring to pass off 150 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. a boy for a womari. Mrs. Baker was dressed similar to myself in a pair of loose trousers and gaiters, with a blouse and belt the only difference being that she wore long sleeves, while my arms were bare from a few inches below the shoulder." , A MONKEY AND OLD IBRAHIM. TOMBE, chief of the tribe, was not long in making his appear- ance, with a gourd full of honey and a pot of native beer, which was very refreshing. The chief drove the importunate natives away, Baker having gained his favor by giving him a variety of beads and copper bracelets. This display of presents brought the natives back again, when they discovered Mrs. Baker's pet monkey, one of a red species of Abyssinia, quite unknown to them. This attracted their attention, but the monkey resisted all attempts at familiarity by viciously attacking their unprotected legs, which made the crowd roar with laughter, and resulted in winning their friendship. The humpback was employed as interpreter, and the party then moved on, Baker believing that he had distanced the hated Turk, and would be able to pass through Ellyria, which was now only six miles distant, before they could reach there. The remainder of the road, however, was extremely rough, and ran through a rocky defile, from the heights of either side of which a fe\r savages might, by rolling down stones, have destroyed an army Baker could not help feeling some alarm at the position he was now in, for it would take him several hours to pass through thie place ; he knew it was here that more than one hundred traders met their deaths at the hands of the barbarous Ellyrians, and he therefore felt a growing insecurity as he neared the principal village of that tribe, realizing that the Turks must be very clos? in his rear. Just before emerging onto the plain, within a mile of Ellyria, he was horrified to see the Turks immediately in the rear of hi? party, and they soon marched by without the slightest recogni'- tion. He felt that all must now bg lost, and with no definite plan to pursue he stood still till the "hated caravan had gone by f and Ibrahim, who was some distance iu the rear, approached- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 151 This man had the visage of a demon, a merciless, cold, villainous face, and the scowl of a savage brute. He did not turn his head to recognize Baker, who, in turn, was too proud and defiant to notice him. But Mrs. Baker insisted upon her husband calling to Ibrahim and placating him, and upon his refusal she called to the Turk herself. With a sullen look he turned and gruffly asked what she wanted. Baker now saw that his wife's ideas were more reasonable than his own, and he accordingly addressed the Turk as follows : " Ibrahim, why should we be enemies in the midst of this hostile country? We believe in the same God, why should we quarrel in this land of heathens, who believe in no God? You have your work to perform ; I have mine. You want ivory ; I am a simple traveler ; why should we clash? If I were offered the whole ivory of the country I would not accept a single tusk, nor interfere with you in any way. Transact your business, and don't interfere with me : the country is wide enough for us both. I have a task before me, to reach a great lake the head of the Nile. Reach it I will (Inshallah). No power shall drive me back. If you are hostile I will imprison you in Kartoum ; if you assist me, I will reward you far beyond any reward you have ever received. Should I be killed in this country you will be suspected ; you know the result ; the Goverament would hang you on the bare suspicion. On the contrary, if you are friendly, I will use my influence in any country that I discover, that you may procure its ivory for the sake of your master Koorshid, who was generous to Captains Speke and Grant, and kind to me. Should you be hostile, I shall hold your master responsible as your employer. Should you assist me, I will befriend you both. Choose your course frankly, like a man friend or enemy?" This speech caused Ibrahim to pause, whereupon Baker fur- nished him a new double-barreled gun and some gold, which completely won the old scoundrel, and they marched into Ellyria together. LEGGE, THE SAVAGE CHIEF. THE party had not time to unpack their loads before they were 152 THE WORLD'S surrounded by a large body of Ellyrians, and among the first was their chief, Legge, who was intent on securing blackmail. His first demand was for fifteen heavy copper bracelets and ten pounds of assorted beads. A bottle of spirits had accidentally been broken in one of the packs, and smelling the liquor he immedi- ately clamored for a " belly-fully," as he expressed it. A pint bottle of the strongest spirits was given him, which he emptied without once removing it from his mouth. Baker says : "Although I had presented Legge with what he desired, he Would give nothing in return, neither wou-ld he sell either goats or fowls ; in fact, no provision was procurable except honey. I purchased about eight pounds of this luxury for a hoe. My men were starving, and I was obliged to serve them out rice from my sacred stock, as I had nothing else to give them. This they boiled and mixed with honey, and they were shortly sitting round an immense circular bowl of this rarity, enjoying themselves thoroughly, but nevertheless grumbling as usual. In the coolest manner possible the great and greedy chief, Legge, who had refused to give or even to sell anything to' keep us from starving, no sooner saw the men at their novel repast than he sat down among them and almost choked himself by cramming handfuls of the hot rice and honey into his mouth, which yawned like an old hippopotamus. The men did not at all approve of this assistance, but as it is the height of bad manners in Arab etiquette to repel a self-invited guest from the general meal, he was not interfered with, and was thus enabled to swallow the share of about three persons." Legge, although the worst of his tribe, had a similar formation of head. The Bari and those of Tollogo and Ellyria have generally bullet-shaped heads, low foreheads, skulls heavy behind the ears and above the nape of the neck : altogether their appearance is excessively brutal, and they are armed with bows six feet long, and arrows horribly barbed and poisoned. THROUGH A GAME COUNTRY. THE Ellyrians would sell nothing but honey, while their inces- sant begging wap very annoying, so that the halt among them TttE WORLD'S WONDERS. 153 was only for one day. The route from this place toward Latooka led generally through a flat country, with few difficulties to surmount, The Turks took the lead, with Ibrahim in advance, alongside of whom rode Mr. and Mrs. Baker. They soon got into friendly conversation, which Baker improved by flattering the old Turk and winning his friendship. Ibrahim at length became confidential and told Baker that his men had agreed to mutiny as soon as they should arrive at Latooka, and named the leader. This was bad news in one sense, but good in another, for it gave Baker time to prepare for the trouble, whereas he might otherwise have been shot down and his wife left to perish in that barbarous region. They pushed on together, and two days after leaving Ellyria they came into the Wakkula country which, owing to its rich pasturage and abundant water, abounded with all kinds of game, such as elephants, rhinoceros, buffaloes, giraffes, wild boars, and several varieties of large antelope. Just before going into camp in this beautiful region, some of Baker's men found a buffalo that had been caught in a trap and partially eaten by a lion ; that which remained the men devoured with great relish, as it was the first meat they had tasted since leaving Gondokoro. Baker went on a hunt in'this paradise and bagged several antelope, enough to provision the force until their arrival at Latooka, but his great anxiety to push forward pre- vented him from enjoying a hunt for larger game. Shortly after leaving the lovely plain on which he had found such an abundance of game, still in the company of Ibrahim and his party, they saw a large Latooka town, named Latorne, in the distance, and could discover a considerable crowd of Turks assembled in the shade of two enormous trees. These issued forth, upon observing the approaching columns, and com- ing near, fired their guns off with great rapidity, as a salute. This was the place where Baker's men had agreed to mutiny, and the salute was therefore no indication of an agreeable spot to camp. Directly afterward, however, a Turkish trading party, under Mohammed Her, that had bivouacked in the village, came out and forbid the passage of Ibrahim through the country, 154 THE WORLD'S WONDERS, claiming an exclusive right to trade there. A big row was the result, in which Mohammed was strangled almost to death by one of Ibrahim's sergeants. Baker's men showed an unmistakable sympathy for Mohammed, though their time had not yet arrived for making an outbreak. ANOTHER MUTINY. AFTER violent quarreling for some hours, the several parties repaired to their tents and slept, but on the following morning when Baker called his men to resume the march, they sullenly disobeyed and four of them rose, seized their guns and assumed a threatening attitude. He knew that the mutiny was now about to manifest itself, and acted accordingly. Belaai, the leading spirit of this outbreak, stood near, and upon being ordered to fall in and begin loading the camels, he advanced upon Baker, looking him fiercely in the eyes, and dashing the butt of his gun violently to the ground, said, " Not a man shall go with you! go where you like with Ibrahim, but we won't follow you, nor move a step farther. The men shall not load the camels ; you may employ the ' niggers' to do it, but not us." " I looked at this mutinous rascal for a moment," says Baker ; "this was the burst of the conspiracy, and the threats and inso- lence that I had been forced to pass over for the sake of the expedition all rushed before me. ' Lay down your gun !' I thundered, * and load the camels !' * I won't ' was his reply. * Then stop here !' I answered ; at the same time lashing out as quick as lightning with my right hand upon his jaw. " He rolled over in a heap, his gun flying some yards from his hand ; and the late ringleader lay apparently insensible among the luggage, while several of his friends ran to him, and did the good Samaritan. Following up on the moment the advantage I had gained by establishing a panic, I seized my rifle and rushed into the midst of the wavering men, catching first one by the throat, and then another, and dragging them to the camels, which I insisted upon their immediately loading. All except three, who attended to the ruined ringleader, mechanically obeyed. Richarn and Sali both shouted to them to hurry ' j THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 155 and the Vetke^l Arriving at this moment and seeing how matters stood, himself assisted, and urged the men to obey. "Ibrahim's party had started. The t animals were soon loaded, and leaving the vakeel to take them in charge we cankered on to overtake Ibrahim, having crushed the mutiny, and given such an example that, in the event of future con- spiracies, my men would find it difficult to obtain a ringleader." A short time after the event just related, Belaal and four others deserted and joined Mohammed Her, taking- their guns and ammunition with them. Baker roundly abused his leader for permitting them to escape, and declared that the vultures 156 . THE WORLD'S WONDERS. would pick the bones of the base recreants who had abandoned them. This threat seemed to have much effect upon the men, and when, three days later, Belaal and his four compatriots were killed by a bartd of savage natives, the superstitious people believed that it was through some magic power exerted by Baker, so that they hailed him as a powerful magician. This belief he did not attempt to dispel, and it was fortunate that he did not, for it served him well on future occasions. THE PEOPLE OF TARRANGOLLE. THIRTEEN miles from Latome lay the largest village in the Latooka country, Tarrangolle, where Moy, the chief, resided. This was Ibrahim's destination, the place where he collected his ivory and slaves, and carried them back to Gondokoro, which, by dead reckoning, was only 101 miles distant, but nearly a month is required to make the journey. Crowds of natives came out of the village to receive Baker and the Turks, but their curiosity was attracted almost exclusively to the camels and the white .woman, paying little heed to Baker himself, because he was brown as an Arab. The Latookas are doubtless the finest made savages in all Africa. A score or more of them who came into Baker's tent were measured, and averaged five feet eleven and one-half inches. Not only are they tall, but they possess a wonderful muscular development, having beautifully proportioned legs and arms ; and although extremely powerful, they are never fleshy or corpu- lent. The formation of head and general physiognomy is totally different from all other tribes in the neighborhood of the Whito Nile. They have high foreheads, large eyes, rather high cheek- bones, mouths not very large, well shaped, and the lips rather full. They have a remarkably pleasing cast of countenance, and are a great contrast to other tribes in civility of manner. They are frank but warlike, excessively merry, ready either for a laugh or fight. The town of Tarrangolle contains about three thousand houses, which are not only surrounded by iron-wood palisades, THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 157 but every individual house is fortified by a stockaded courtyard. The cattle are kept in large kraals and very carefully tended, even to the lighting of fires to keep annoying insects from them. The houses are bell-shaped, rising into a sharp-pointed cone, twenty-five feet high, resting on a circular wall four feet in height. The doorway is only two feet high, so that entrance is made by crawling; the interior is clean, but unlighted by windows, the only light received being through the door. A PLENTIFUL CROP OF DEAD MEN'S BONES. BAKER says he noticed during the march from Latome, that the vicinity of every town was announced by heaps of human remains, bones and skulls forming an incipient Golgotha within a quarter of a mile of every village. Some of the bones were in earthenware pots, generally broken ; others lay strewn here and there ; while a heap in the centre showed that some form had originally been observed in their disposition. This was explained by an extraordinary custom most rigidly observed by the Latookas. Should a man be killed in battle the body is allowed to remain where it fell, and is devoured by the vultures and hyenas ; but should he die a natural death, he or. she is buried in a shallow grave within a few feet of his own door, in the little courtyard that surrounds each dwelling. Funeral dances are then kept up in memory of the dead for several weeks ; at the expiration of which time, the body being sufficiently decomposed, is exhumed. The bones are cleaned, and are deposited in an earthenware jar, and carried to a spot near the town, which is regarded as the cemetery. The costume of the Latookas is simple enough, as they make no effort to cover any part of the body, but infinite care is bestowed upon the hair, which is trained to grow into the shape of a helmet, the perfecting of which requires unremitting attention for eight or ten years. Their weapons consist of the lance, a powerful iron head mace, a long-bladed knife, and an ugly iron bracelet, armed with knife-blades about four inches in length by one-half inch broad ; this latter weapon is used to 158 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. strike with if disarmed and to cut with when struggling with an enemy. The women are as plain as the men are fastidious ; they are not even acquainted with the use of a loin cloth. They are not well made as the men, for while the latter are sinewy and graceful, the women are immense creatures, with prodigious limbs and in all respects appear to be admirably fitted for the drudgery service they are put to. CHIEF MOY AND HIS WIFE. ON the day after Baker's arrival he was visited by the chief, who had never before seen a white person. Seating him upon a piece of Persian carpet, Baker poured out a quantity of beads, riecklaces, copper bars and colored cotton handkerchiefs. Among the gifts was a necklace composed of opal beads, the size of marbles. He seized them like a greedy child and requested a similar necklace for his wife, Bokke ; this being also given him, the chief said, " What a row there will be in the family when my other wives see Bokke (who was his chief wife) dressd up with this finery." This was, of course, a demand for more opal beads, whereupon Baker gave him three pounds of beads to be divided among his wives. On the next day Bokke called at Baker's hut, covered with beads, and presenting a singular spectacle by reason of the scars on her cheeks, tattoo marks on her temples, and a piece of ivory pending from a perforation through her lower lip. Despite these disfigurations she was real pretty, and her daughter, Baker declares, was the handsomest savage girl he ever saw. Bokke made herself entertaining by asking how many wives the white man had, and laughing with scorn, if not incredulity, when told that he had but one. She also suggested to Mrs. Baker that her looks would be very much improved by knocking out her four lower front teeth, according to the custom of that country, and wearing red ointment on her hair and a piece of bone through her lower lip. In the afternoon of the following day she came again, with the information that Mohanimed Her and his party of 110 men had THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 159 been massacred by the Latookas, one of whose villages he had tried to destroy and to make slaves of the inhabitants. Very soon after other runners arrived with particulars of the fight, confirming the first reports. This news put the people of Tar- rangolle into a furore of excitement, particularly as Ibrahim's followers had been maltreating the Latooka women. A big fight threatened, the war drums were beaten, and several thousand warriors assembled to exterminate the Turks in their village, and Baker as well ; but chief Moy, who had become somewhat attached to his white guests, on account of the presents given, prevented his people from making an attack. Although there were not less than 10,000 head of cattle belong- ing to the people of Tarrangolle, they would not sell a single beef. The want of meat was so badly felt that Baker had to resort to his gun. Fortunately ducks and geese were very plen- tiful in a stream near the town, and every day he shot a sufficient number to supply his men. A FUNERAL DANCE. A VERY interesting ceremony was witnessed by Baker at Latooka, being nothing less than a funeral dance in honor of one of the brave warriors of the tribe. The dancers were grotesquely appareled, as is the custom of all savage tribes during such cere- monies. A dozen very large ostrich feathers adorned their helmets of hair, while leopard or black and white monkey skins were suspended from their shoulders, and a leather strap tied round the waist supported a large iron bell, which was girded upon the loins like a woman's bustle ; this they rung to the time of the dance, by jerking their posteriors in the most ridiculous manner. Every dancer wore an antelope's horn suspended round the neck, which he blew occasionally in the height of his excitement. These instruments produced a sound partaking of the braying of a donkey and the screech of an owl. Crowds of men rushed round and round in a sort of "galop infernel," brandishing their lances and iron-headed maces, and keeping tolerably in line five or six deep, following the leader who headed them, dancing kackwarcj. The women kept outside t)ie line, dancing a low, 160 THE VVOKLD S WONDERS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 161 stupid step, and screaming a wild and most inharmonious chant, while a long string of young girls and small children, their heads and necks rubbed with red ochre and grease, and prettily orna- mented with strings of beads around their loins, kept a very good line, beating the time with their feet, and jingling the numerous iron rings which adorned their ankles, to keep time with the drums. One woman attended upon the men, running through the crowd with a gourd full of wood-ashes, handfuls of which she showered over their heads, powdering them like millers ; the object of the operation Baker could not understand. The " premiere danseuse" was immensely fat ; she had passed the bloom of youth, but despite her unwieldy state, she kept up the pace to the last, quite unconscious of her general appearance, and absorbed with the excitement of the dance. AN AFRICAN PRINCE'S IDEA OF THE HEREAFTER. WHEN the funeral services were over, Baker, anxious to learn something of the origin of the ceremonies he had just witnessed, and hoping to find in them some analogy to Christian rites and beliefs, sent for Commoro (the " Lion "), brother of Moy, the chief, and entered into conversation with him on the resurrection of the body. He declares that Commoro was one of the most clever and common-sense savages any white man ever met with, and reports the conversation, which was interpreted, as follows : " Have you no belief in existence after death? " asked Baker. " Existence after death ! " exclaimed the savage. " Can a dead man get out of his grave unless we dig him out? " " Do you think man is like a beast, that dies and is ended? " " Certainly ; an ox is stronger than a man, but he dies and his bones last longer ; they are bigger. A man's bones break quickly he is weak." " Is not a man superior in sense to an ox ; has he not a mind to direct his actions?" " Some men are not so clever as an ox. Men must sow corn to obtain food, but the ox and wild animals can procure it without sowing." 11 162 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. " Do you not know that there is a spirit within you more than flesh? Do you not dream and wander in thought to distant places in your sleep? Nevertheless, your body rests in one spot. How do you account for this ?" "Well, how do you account for it? " said Common), laughing. " It is a thing I cannot understand ; it occurs to me every night." " The mind is independent of the body ; the actual body can be fettered, but the mind is uncontrollable ; the body will die and will become dust, or be eaten by vultures, but the spirit will exist forever." " Where will the spirit live ?" " Where does fire live? Cannot you produce a fire by rubbing two sticks together, yet you see no fire in the wood ? Have you no idea of the existence of spirits superior to either man or beast? Have you no fear of evil except from bodily causes? " "I am afraid of elephants and other animals when in the jungle at night, but of nothing else." "Then you believe in nothing; neither in a good nor evil spirit ! And you believe that when you die it will be the end of body and spirit ; that you are like other animals ; and that there is no distinction between man and beast ; both disappear and end at death?" " Of course they do." " Do you see no difference in good and bad actions? " " Yes, there are good and bad in men and beasts." " Do you think that a good man and a bad must share the same fate, and alike die, and end?" "Yes; what else can they do? How can they help dying.' Good and bad all die." , "Their bodies perish, but their spirits remain; the good in happiness, the bad in misery. If you have no belief in a future state, why should a man be good? Why should he not be bad, if he can prosper by wickedness? " " Most people are bad ; if they are strong they take from the weak. The good people are all weak ; they are good because they are not strong enough to be bad." THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 1G3 Some corn had been taken out of a sack for the horses, and a few grains lying scattered on the ground, Baker tried the beau- tiful metaphor of St. Paul as an example of a future state. Making a small hole with his finger in the ground, he placed a grain within it; "That," he said, "represents you when you "die." Covering it with earth, he continued, " That grain will decay, but from it will rise the plant that will produce a reappear- ance of the original form." " Exactly so ; that I understand. But the original grain does not rise again ; it rots like the dead man, and is ended ; the fruit produced is not the same grain that we buried, but the production of that grain : so it is with man, I die, and decay, and am ended ; but my children grow up like the fruit of the grain. Some men have no children, and some grains perish without fruit ; then all are ended." Baker saw it was useless to argue further, and frankly says : " I was obliged to change the subject of conversation. In this wild, naked savage there was not even a superstition upon which to found a religious feeling ; there was a belief in matter ; and to his understanding everything was material. It was extraor- dinary to find so much clearness of perception combined with such complete obtuseness to anything ideal." ELEPHANT HUNTING. BAKER remained at Latooka two weeks or more, waiting the return of Ibrahim from Gondokoro, whither he had gone for a new supply of ammunition ; and to better employ the time of his detention, on the 15th of April, just as the rainy season was setting in, he resolved upon a hunt for large game, traces of which were numerous within five miles of Latooka. Accordingly,! with a good guide and several servants to carry the guns, he set out, and coming to a plain covered with long rich grasses, he was suddenly startled by a rhinoceros bolting out of a copse close to his horse's head, and plunging into another before he could seize his gun. He would have followed had not his attention been called away from the rhinoceros by a shout from his servants, 164 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. who reported a herd of large bull elephants browsing in a forest at the edge of the plain. Stopping short to locate the herd, he was delighted to see two large bulls bearing down toward him, less than one hundred yards distant. He dismounted to get a steady shot, but the elephants saw the Latookas and, taking fright, rushed off to join the main herd, only a short distance THE WORLD'S WONDERS. lf>5 away. Baker soon mounted and dashed toward the elephants, but his horse stepped into a buffalo hole and fell hard on his leg. He fortunately extricated himself without difficulty, and, mount- ing another horse, rode at full speed toward the fugitive game, which had gained considerable distance, and disappeared in the wood. After a quarter of an hour of hard riding he saw an enormous bull ploughing through the brush like an im- mense engine, tearing down everything in his way. The country was unfavorable for the hunter, on account of buffalo holes, and though approaching within twenty yards, he was unable to get a fair shot. Away they flew over ruts and gullies until the ponderous brute was chased to another open plain, when a ball was planted in his shoulder ; though badly struck the elephant did not alter his course or speed until another shot was put close to the first one. The animal now slackened his speed, then turned about and made straight for his assailant, screaming like an infuriated demon. Baker put spurs to his horse, having urgent business in another vicinity, and as he was not pursued more than a hundred yards, made his escape. He prepared for another attack by taking a larger gun and starting after the wounded beast, but had gone less than a dozen yards when he saw a closely packed herd of eighteen elephants coming directly toward him ; but as soon as they discovered him they broke off In another direction. In the herd he noticed an uncommonly large bull that was armed with an immense and beautiful pair of tusks ; this one he determined to cut out from the others, and by shouting succeeded in scattering them ; he now rode for the chosen one, but the elephant seeing himself pursued, turned and charged so determinedly upon his assailant that his escape appeared for a time impossible ; fortunately, again the elephant stopped, almost at the moment he might have caught the bold hunter, and entered a thicket where a horse could not well follow. Baker went into the woods to find the herd again, and soon came upon the one he had wounded. It was standing in a painful attitude as if upon the very point of dissolution, but the moment its fiery eyes rested upon the hunter the maddened beast charged 166 THE WOfctl/s \VoNbfiKS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 167 him again ; another shot brought the elephant to his knees, but he rallied quickly, and lifting his great trunk and screaming with rage, he rushed after Baker, whose horse was now badly jaded. The race this time was more exciting than before, for, instead of stopping after a short run, the elephant kept its swift pace and followed for more than a mile, all the while gradually gaining, until the distance between pursued and pursuer was not more than ten yards, while the horse was nearly ready to fall from exhaustion. The cowardly servants, who were also mounted on horses, were so mindful of their own safety that they made no effort to divert the attention of the elephant, but ran as swiftly and as far away as possible. Baker was almost upon the point of despair ; he knew that the climax must soon be reached, which would be hastened should his horse fall. In a moment of desper- ation he turned his horse aside, like a hare doubling on the dogs, just in time to feel the swish of the elephant's trunk as it grazed him, but the momentum of the great brute carried him by. Seeing his enemy now running in a new direction, the elephant broke off up hill, and on the following morning was found dead in a jungle not far distant from where he had abandoned the pursuit. ELEPHANT PITS AND NATIVE HUNTERS. ELEPHANT flesh is very poor eating to white men, but it is highly esteemed by the black races of Africa, notwithstanding its leathery consistency and strong taste ; the fat is prized above the meat, however, as it is used both for food and to grease their bodies. The more common method used by the natives to capture ele- phants, is by pit-falls ; these are dug near some drinking place and trees are so felled that they leave only a pathway in which the pitfalls are placed. These pits are usually three feet broad, twelve feet long and nine feet deep, tapering to ward the bottom ; they are concealed by straw and sticks over which elephant dung is scattered to complete the deception. When an animal falls into the pit his two feet are jammed together in the narrow 168 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. bottom and so nearly upright that he can scarcely move, in which helpless condition he is easily dispatched with spears. Another way of killing elephants, much resorted to, generally in January, when the prairies are parched, is by locating a large herd and then firing the grass. Surrounded by a circle of fire, the animals huddle together or blindly rush from one side of the circle to another and become so panic-stricken that there is no danger incurred in attacking them with spears or lances. The next method of hunting is perfectly legitimate. Should many elephants be in the neighborhood, the natives post about a hundred men in as many large trees ; these men are armed with heavy lances specially adapted to this sport, with blades about eighteen inches long and three inches broad. The elephants are driven by a great number of men toward the trees in which the spearmen are posted, and those that pass sufficiently near are speared between the shoulders. The spear being driven deep into the animal, creates a frightful wound, as the tough handle, striking against the intervening branches of trees, acts as a lever, and works the long blade of the spear within the elephant, cutting to such an extent that he soon drops from exhaustion. The best and only really great elephant-hunters of the White Nile are the Bagara Arabs, on about the 13 N. lat. These men hunt on horseback, and kill the elephant in fair fight with their spears. The lance is about fourteen feet long, of male bamboo ; the blade is about fourteen inches long by nearly three inches broad, and as sharp as a razor. Two men, thus armed and mounted, form the hunting party. Should they discover a herd, they ride up to the finest tusker and single him from the others. One man now leads the way, and the elephant, finding himself pressed, immediately charges the horse. There is much art required in leading the brute, who follows the horse with great determination, and the rider adapts his pace so as to keep his horse so near that his attention is entirely absorbed with the hope of catching him. The other hunter should by this time have followed close to the elephant's heels, and, dismounting when at full gallop, with wonderful dexterity, he plunges his THE WORLD'S WONJDERS. 169 spear with both hands into the animal about two feet below the junction of the tail, and with all his force he drives the weapon deep into the abdomen, and withdraws it immediately. Should he be successful in his stab, he remounts his horse and flies, or does his best to escape on foot, should he not have time to mount, as the elephant generally turns to pursue him. His comrade immediately turns his horse, and dashing at the elephant, in his turn dismounts, and stabs the beast with his lance. Generally, if the first thrust is scientifically given, the elephant is at once disabled. Two good hunters, will frequently kill several out of one herd ; but in this dangerous hand-to-hand fight the hunter is often the victim. Hunting the elephant on horseback is certainly far less dangerous than on foot, but although the speed of the horse is undoubtedly superior, the chase generally takes place upon ground so disadvantageous that he is liable to fall, in which case there is little chance for either animal or rider. So savage are the natural instincts of Africans, that they attend only to the destruction of the elephant, and never attempt its domestication. CHAPTER X. THE MAKKARIKA CANNIBALS. AMONG the Turkish soldiery Ibrahim had left at Latooka, was a black Bornu man, named Ibrahimawa, who had been captured when a lad twelve years old and sold at Constantinople to Moham- med Ali Pasha. This man had been to London, Paris, and all over Europe, and besides being a great traveler was smart and valorous. He was an object of much interest to Baker, from the fact that, in addition to his travels, he had served for some years with a trading party that had penetrated through the Makkarika 170 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. country. This country lies two hundred miles west of Gondokoro and is inhabited by cannibals. The stories of his adventures among these man-eaters were highly edifying and of no little importance, since Baker's steps were bent in that direction. . Ibrahimawa and many of his party had been frequent witnesses to acts of cannibalism during their residence among the Makka- rikas. They described these cannibals as remarkably good people, but possessing a peculiar taste for dogs and human flesh. They accompanied the trading parties in their raids, and invariably ate the bodies of the slain. The traders complained that they were bad associates, as they insisted on killing and eating the children which the party wished to secure as slaves : their custom was to catch a child by its ankles, and to dash its head against the ground ; thus killed, they extracted the stomach and intestines, and tying the two ankles to the neck, they carried the body by slinging it over the shoulder, and thus returned to camp, where they divided it by quartering, and boiled it in a large pot. On one occasion, many slave women and children, on witness- ing such a scene, rushed panic-stricken from the spot and took refuge in the trees. The Makkarikas, seeing them in flight, were excited to give chase, and pulling the children from their refuge among the branches of the trees, they killed several, and in a short time a great feast was prepared for the whole party. ON THE MARCH TO OBBO. IBRAHIM returned from Gondokoro on the last day of April, having made the trip with much expedition, considering the large supply of ammunition that he brought back with him. Having had some very favorable reports from the Obbo country, whose natives desired to trade with the Turks, Ibrahim decided to pay it a visit, much to the delight of Baker, who had now only fifteen men and no porters ; besides, Obbo lay directly in the path of Baker's intended journey to the Nile source. Accord- ingly, on the 2d of May the two parties started from Latooka for the new country, forty miles distant, their friendship being now well and truly cemented. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 171 Most of the country traversed in going to Obbo was exceed- ingly beautiful, being richly diversified by mountains, on the peaks of which native villages could be seen, impregnable by position, and green valleys covered with large herds of wild game lent variety to the view. There was also an abundance of wild fruits and nuts of most delicious taste, providing sufficient- support for the natives. The journey was made without special incident, and on arrival they were most hospitably received by the chief, Katchiba, who was an old man, but a great clown and joker. He had one specially good point, however he did not beg. In the evening an entertainment was provided by the chief for his visitors, which Baker describes as follows : " About a hundred men formed a circle ; each man held in his left hand a small, cup-shaped drum, formed of hollowed wood, one end only being perforated, aud this was covered with the skin of the elephant's ear, tightly stretched. In the centre of the circle was the chief dancer, who wore, suspended from his shoulders, an immense drum, also covered with the elephant's ear. The dance commenced by all singing remarkably well a wild but agreeable tune in chorus, the big drum direct-ing the time, and the whole of the little drums striking at certain periods with such admirable precision, that the effect was that of a single instru- ment. The dancing was most vigorous, and far superior to anything that I had seen among either Arabs or savages, the figures varying continually, and ending with a * grand galop * in double circles, at a tremendous pace, the inner ring revolving in a contrary direction to the outer, the effect of which was excellent." CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OBBO PEOPLE. THE men of Obbo wear a dress consisting of a skin slung across the shoulder and loins, but the women are almost naked, and instead of wearing the leather apron and tail of the Latookas, they are contented with a slight fringe of leather shreds, about four inches long by two broad, suspended from a belt. The unmarried girls go entirely naked ; or, if they are 172 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. specially rich in finery, they wear two or three strings of beads as a covering. The old ladies are antiquated Eves, whose dress consists of a string around the waist, in which is stuck a bunch of green leaves, the stalks uppermost. Some of the more prudish young ladies indulge in a like covering, but they do not appear to be fashionable. One great advantage of this leaf costume is that it may be always clean and fresh, as the nearest bush (if not thorny) provides a clean petticoat. "When in the society of these very simple and really modest Eves, one cannot help reflecting upon the Mosaics! description of our first parents, " and they sewed fig leaves together." A ROYAL SORCERER. CHIEF or as Speke would call him, king Katchiba, holds his subjects by a power which is most effective among savages, viz : sorcery. Should one of his people displease him or refuse a gift asked for, the old chief threatens to curse his goats and wither his crops, and the fear of his power usually forces obedience. Should there be either a drouth or destructive rainfall, Katchiba assembles his subjects and in a fatherly way expresses his regrets that their conduct has forced him to afflict them with unfavorable weather, but that it is their own fault. If they are so greedy or stingy that they will not supply him properly, how can they expect him to regard their ^terests? He must have goats and corn " No goats, no rain ; that's our contract, my friends." Should his people complain of too much rain, he threatens to pour storms and lightening upon them forever, unless they bring him corn, beer and provisions. No man would think of starting upon a journey without first receiving the old chief's blessing, which is supposed to act as a spell to avert all evil. In case of sickness he is called in to charm away the disease, but his practice exhibits the same fluctuating results that attend the efforts of all doctors. In order to propitiate this royal sorcerer, his people frequently pre- sent him with their prettiest daughters, so that he is enabled to keep a harem at every village in his country, and in his journeys he is at home wherever he goes. His multiplicity of wives has THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 173 made him a famous father ; at the time of Baker's visit the ol that there was con- stant danger of annihilation should combined attacks be made by the natives upon the scattered forces. He considered well his position and therefore sent a small party back to Gondokoro for a reinforcement of two hundred men, with instructions to bring some milch cows. When Abou Saood left Fabbo, the natives began to enlist under the government standard, and therefore, when news came that a large body of the Arab slave hunters, including three thousand Makkarika cannibals, had arrived on the Nile from the far west, to take the ivory, the people of Fabbo became very much alarmed ; this alarm was greatly increased by a second re- port that the cannibals had reached the Koshi country, which was separated frem the Madi, in which Fabbo was situated, only by the Nile river. Every day people arrived at Fatiko with horrible reports of the cannibals, who were devouring the children in the Koshi district. Spies went across the river and brought every intelligence. It appeared that the three thousand Makkarikas had been engaged by Ali Erameen under the pretense that they were to go to Fatiko 272 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. and fight a chief called "the Pasha," who had enormous flocks and herds, together with thousands of beautiful women and other alluring spoil ; but they had not heard that they were to carry three thousand elephants' tusks to the station of Atroosh. Baker's spies now told them the truth. "Fight the Pasha!" they exclaimed ; "do you not know who he is? and that he could kill you all like fowls? He has no cows for you to carry off, but THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 273 he has guns that are magic, and which load from behind instead of ut the muzzle !" This was a terrible disappointment to the deluded Makkarikas, which at once spread dissension among them, when they found that they had been cajoled in order to transport the heavy loads of ivory. A providential visitation suddenly fell upon them. The small-pox broke out, and killed upward of eight hundred blood-thirsty cannibals who had been devouring the country. This visitation of small-pox created a panic that entirely broke up and dispersed the invading force, and defeated their plans. A GREAT HUNT. ABOU SAOOD'S plans had failed, and there was now compara- tive peace, while prospects for the future were all flattering. Mtesa had sent a messenger to Baker offering his aid to destroy Kabba Rega, while Rionga had sworn allegiance to the Khedive and had been made the vakeel, or ruler of the Unyoro country, so that Kabba Rega was really now only a wandering outcast, incapable of offering any serious resistance. , Baker had won the good opinion and friendship of many na- tives during his first journey through Africa, by joining with them in the chase and so effectively killing and sharing with them the large game. It was now the hunting season, and as arrange- ments were being made for the great annual hunt, he resolved to participate with the natives, which gave them much pleasure, for they appreciated his gun, which was certain to secure for them considerable meat.* The natives, in their annual hunts, use a large net, or a number of nets, which are made fast successively to stakes so as to form a large quarter circle stretching across the country which they have previously selected to beat. They then form a circle them- selves, more than a mile in diameter, facing the nets, and fire the grass to windward. In the high grass the net would be invisible until the game, in trying to escape, would rush into it, when they were checked and speared to death by hunters who remained secreted, two to each section of netting. 274 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. After the grass had been burnt, large quantities of the crimson fruit of the wild ginger showed in many directions, growing half-exposed from the earth. This is a leathery, hard pod, about the size of a goose-egg, filled with a semi-transparent pulp of a subaeid flavor, with a delicious perfume between pine-apple and lemon-peel. It is very juicy and refreshing, and is decidedly the best wild fruit of Central Africa, THE WORLD'S WONDE-RS. 2?5 Everything was ready and the men had already been stationed at regular intervals about two miles to windward, where they waited with their fire-sticks ready for the appointed signal. A s-hrill whistle disturbed the silence. This signal was repeated at intervals. In a few minutes after the signal, a long line of sep- arate thin pillars of smoke ascended into the blue sky, forming a band extending over about two miles of the horizon. The thin pillars rapidly thickened and became dense volumes, until at length they united and formed a long black cloud of smoke that drifted before the wind over the bright yellow surface of the high grass. The fire traveled at a rate of several miles an hour and very soon, from an ant-hill which he had selected, Baker saw the startled game begin to move about. A rhinoceros was first to appear, but it was too far for a successful shot, and kept along an. incline toward the nets ; antelopes shot by, and presently a lion and lioness leaped into view, but just as Baker was about to fire, the head of a native rose in the direct line of aim. Beauti- ful lencotis, hartebeests and antelopes were now running on every side, affording excellent shots, which Baker thoroughly improved until he had killed nearly a dozen of these animals without mov- ing from the ant-hill. The natives killed many antelopes, but the rhinoceros ran through the net as though it had been a cob- web, followed by a number of buffaloes. HOW THE NATIVES CARE FOR THEIR BABIES. THE results of the hunt were very gratifying, enough meat having been obtained to last the village for several (Jays. The women who participated in the hunt, to carry the game, took their babies with them, slung across their backs by a piece of bark-cloth and protected against rain by inverted gourd-shells ; yet with this burden they managed also to carry large loads of meat. The treatment of children in Central Africa is most inhuman and accounts for the extraordinary mortality among them. According to the population of the village, there are certain houses built upon pedestals, or stone supports, about three feet from the ground. Jn the clay wall of the circular building is a 276 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. round hole about a foot in diameter ; this is the only aperture, At sunset, when the children have been fed, they are put to bed in the simplest manner, by being thrust head-foremost through the hole in the wall, assisted, if refractory, by a smack behind, until the night-nursery shall have received the limited number. The aperture is then stopped up with a bundle of grass, if the nights are cool. The children lie together on the clay floor like a litter of young puppies, and breathe the foulest air until morn- WOMEN, WITH THEIR CHILDREN, ASSISTING IN THE HUNT. ing, at which time they are released from the suffocating oven, to be suddenly exposed to the chilly day-break. Their naked little bodies shiver round a fire until the sun warms them, but the seeds of diarrhoea and dysentery have already been sown. ADVENTURE WITH A LIONESS. ON December 30th, a week after the hunt just described, another hunt was arranged for, which was attended with even greater excitement than the first, though the preparations were THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 277 all the same. Baker had taken position on an ant-hill and directly after the grass was fired, a beautiful picture was presented, for they had surrounded an unusually large number of animals, which advanced slowly as the pace of the fire was hardly more than two miles an hour. As Baker was firing with deadly effect upon a herd of antelopes, he saw a yellow tail rise suddenly from a water hole not far distant, immediately followed by glimpses of an im- mense lion, which disappeared again in the grass, with its head in the direction of the hunter, as though approaching. Presently a rustling in the dry grass within forty yards of his stand, apprised him that the ferocious beast was coming nearer ; he had three guns with him, suited for different kinds of game, and seizing a rifle which was specially suited for lion shooting, in another moment he caught a fair view of the animal and fired. Instead of being the one he had first seen, it proved to be a lioness ; she rolled over backward and turned three convulsive somersaults, at the same time roaring furiously ; she then re- covered and rose as if unharmed ; Baker fired again, but must have missed, for she charged at him, roarrig all the while; a load of buck-shot, however, sent her back again and she disap- peared in the high grass. The lioness could he heard groaning at a short distance, so carefully picking his way, Baker approached near enough to get another shot, which broke her ankle joint, but again she got away. Several natives now came upon the scene, and locating the wounded beast, offered to throw their spears at her, which would result in bringing her out so that a fair shot could be secured. Baker would not allow this, but fired at her as she lay partially concealed in a bottom. The reply was an immediate charge, and the enraged brute came bounding toward him w r ith savage roars. The natives threw their spears, but missed, and some one would have been badly torn had not a shot from a smooth-bore No. 10 gun caused her to retreat again into the grass. Baker now took his large rifle and followed stealthily until he saw the lioness sitting up on her haunches like a dog. A careful aim put a bullet in the back of her neck, from which 278 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. she fell over dead. She measured nine feet six inches from nose to tail extremity, and upon being cut open, they found the half of a leucotis, which had been simply divided by her teeth into two-pound lumps. These were greedily seized by the natives and divided between them as a particularly dainty dish. . A PEACEFUL GOVERNMENT. THESE hunts had a very beneficial influence, for they served to establish confidence in Baker on the part of the natives. The THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 27^ women were especially friendly and loyal, to such a degree that they visited him in a body and begged that he would not go upon the hunt again lest he should fall a victim to some wild animal, in which event they declared the slave-hunters would return and either kill or carry them again into captivity. They looked upon him as their sole protector, and therefore were ever anxious for his life. Everything was now peaceful ; there were no quarrels, no intoxication, no thieving. The troops were all Mohammedans without an opposing sect ; therefore, for lack of opposition, they were lukewarm. The natives believed in nothing. Baker notes the following : "The curious fact remained, that without the slightest prin- ciple of worship, or even a natural religious instinct, these people should be free from many vices that disgrace a civilized commu- nity. I endeavored to persuade the most intelligent of the exist- ence of a Deity who could reward or punish ; but beyond this I dared not venture, as they would have asked practical questions, which I could not have explained to their material understanding." HOW TO CIVILIZE THE AFRICANS. BAKER arrives at the following conclusions in regard to the best methods of civilizing the savage tribes of Africa: "The Madi and Shooli tribes would be found tractable, and capable of religious instruction. It is my opinion that the time has not yet arrived for missionary enterprise in those countries ; but at the same time a sensible man might do good service by living among the natives, and proving to their material minds that persons do exist whose happiness consists in doing good to others. The personal qualifications and outfit for a single man who would thus settle among the natives should be various. If he wished to secure their attention and admiration, he should excel us a rifle- shot and sportsman. If musical, he should play the Highland bagpipe. He should be clever as a conjuror, and be well pro- vided with conjuring tricks, together with a magic lantern, mag- netic battery, dissolving views, photographic apparatus, colored pictorial illustrations, etc., etc. He should be a good surgeon 280 THU WORLD'S WONDERS. and general doctor, and 1)6 well supplied with drugs, remember- ing that natives have a profound admiration for medical skill. 11 A man who in full Highland dress could at any time collect an audience by playing a lively air with the bagpipes, would be regarded with great veneration by the natives, and would be list- ened to when an archbishop by his side would be totally disre- garded. He should set all psalms to lively tunes, and the natives would learn to sing them immediately. Devotional exercises should be chiefly musical. In this manner a man would become a general favorite ; and if he had a never-failing supply of beads, copper rods : brass rings for arms, fingers, and ears, gaudy cotton handkerchiefs, red or blue blankets, zinc-mirrors, red cotton shirts, etc., to give to his parishioners, and expected nothing in return, he would be considered a great man, whose opinion would carry considerable weight, provided that he only spoke of sub- jects which he thoroughly understood. A knowledge of agricul- ture, with a good stock of seeds of useful vegetables and cereals, iron hoes, carpenters' and blacksmiths' tools, and the power of instructing others in their use, together with a plentiful supply of very small axes, would be an immense recommendation to a lay missionary who should determine to devote some years of his life to the improvement of the natives." PREPARING TO RETURN TO ENGLAND. ON January 15, 1873, envoys arrived from Mtesa, bringing a letter offering an army of his men to Baker, with which to destroy Kabba Rega and place Rionga on the throne, as the Egyptian representative over Unyoro. He also desired Baker to visit him, and expressed much anxiety to promote such commercial inter- course as the Khedive desired to establish. All these matters had been arranged, for Kabba Rega had been deposed and Rionga was in full possession of Unyoro, which facts were communicated to Mtesa, with thanks for his very kind offer of assistance. Baker had felt no little solicitude for Wat-el-Mek, whom he had sent to Gondokoro for reinforcements, double the time he had allowed for the return having now elapsed. At length, on March 8, on the ninety-second day after their departure, he was THE WORLD'S WOKDERS. 281 rejoiced to see the advance-guard approaching, and forming his troops quickly, he went out to give them a military welcome. After an inspection of the men, Baker was annoyed very much by the fact that not a single head of cattle had been brought with them ; a quarrel had taken place between Wat-el-Mek and Tayib Agha, the two commanding officers, a Bari village had been burned, and in a battle with the natives twenty-eight of the sol- 282 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. diers had been killed, their arms taken, and all the cattle cap- tured. The ill-feeling between the two officers was the cause of all their calamities. There had been enough recruits brought from Gondokoro, however, to swell the total force to six hundred and twenty men, with which Baker strongly garrisoned Fatiko, Fabbo, and the stockade he had built opposite Rionga's island, at Foweera. Unyoro was now completely in the power of Rionga, and a route was opened from Fatiko to Zanzibar. Everything was in per- fect order, so leaving Major Abdullah commandant at Fatiko, ho gave him full instructions as to the government of Central Africa, and then departed with a small body-guard for Gondokoro, whk-h place was reached without special incident on April 1st, 18V3, the date on which his commission from the Khedive expired. After turning over his effects to the government officers at Gondokoro, he secured a vessel and started for Khartoum. Enroute he overtook three vessels having on board seven hundred slaves, among whom the small-pox had broken out and the mor- tality was frightful. He hailed the slavers and was astonished to learn that the vessels belonged to Abou Saood, who had been to Cairo and so established himself in the confidence of the au- thorities that he could continue his nefarious traffic without fear of any unpleasant results ; nor was this the only discouraging news which Baker heard, for he learned positively that ever since his departure from Gondokoro for Fatiko the slave vessels had been carrying their human cargoes directly on to Alexandria or the Red Sea, meeting with no opposition they could not easily overcome by bribery. He now saw that all his labors for a sup- pression of the slave trade in Central Africa had been without fruit ; that the government, so far from renderingits aid to that end, had nullified its declarations and orders by refusing to pun- ish convicted slavers, and by receiving them as worthy merchants at the Khedive's capital. Sick with disgust, he quitted Egypt and sailed for England. Colonel Gordon, R. E., now known as " Chinese Gordon," was appointed Baker's successor, and at this writing is invested at Khartoum by El Mhadi, the false prophet. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 283 The annexation of the Soudan has been of much advantage to Egypt, and has resulted in diminishing the slave trade, since ivory traffic is found to be more profitable ; but Egypt is not entitled to the credit of this improvement more than America and the European powers, which have demanded a suppression of the slave trade. LIVINGSTONE'S TRAVELS IN AFRICA. CHAPTER XVI. MISSIONARY SERVICE AND FIRST ADVENTURE. DR. DAVID LIVINGSTONE, a Scotchman, has won a greater reputation for travel and research in Africa than any other man, though his actual discoveries have not been so important as those of our own Stanley. Livingstone was a born philantropist. The son of uncommonly observant and strict Presbyterians, he was encouraged to read only theological literature, all other reading being prohibited under pain of condign punishment. As might be expected, he disliked religion in his youth, and smuggled books of travel and adventure to such retreats as offered immu- nity from detection. He mentions it as a fact that the last pun- ishment he ever received from his father was for reading books which he declared were inimical to religion. Livingstone gained the means to school himself by spinning cotton, and completed a course of medicine by the same ener- getic application. He was now ready to see the world, and his 284 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. desire was first to visit China, which was then closed to all na- tionalities, existing as a government in a marvellous exclusiveness which could alone incite the building of a wall as a protection against intrusion. About this time, however, the London Mis- sionary Society desired to send a missionary into Southern Africa, and Livingstone's friends recommended him as a most DR. DAVID LIVINGSTONE. / suitable person. As sectarianism was not a characteristic of the society, which urged the teachings of Christ only, and salvation without creed or discipline, it pleased Livingstone, whose ideas were strictly in accord with these principles. Accordingly he was engaged, and in 1840 embarked for Africa, reaching Cupe Town after a voyage of three months. Spending but a short time X THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 285 there, he started for the interior, where he spent the following sixteen years of his life in explorations and missionary and medi- cal labors, without cost to the inhabitants. During his short stay at Cape Town, he became acquainted with a fellow-missionary named Robert Moffat, whose daughter he married, and she sub- sequently accompanied him on his various expeditions. Soon after his marriage he started by ox-team for the mission- ary station at Kuruman, in the Bechuana country, about 600 miles north-east of Cape Town, where, after resting three months, he journeyed to Litubaruba, fifteen miles to the south. He entered upon a study of the native language and in six months had gathered enough to express himself in the Bechuana tongue. He now went north to visit the Bakaa Mountains, much of which journey he was compelled to make on foot on account of his oxen being sick. Here he tried to found a settlement, but' a war between neighboring tribes put an end to his plans. A return to Kuruman became necessary, to secure provisions, which, being obtained, he went into a beautiful valley called Mabotsa (lat. 25 14' south, long. 26 30') and there founded a missionary station, to which he removed in 1843. The natives of Mabotsa were called Bakatla, and were a very superstitious but friendly people. About this place lions were very troublesome, as they carried off cattle, both in the night and day-time, so that the Bakatla came to believe that the beasts were witches sent by their enemies to prey upon their flocks, and they made little effort to kill them. It is a well-known fact that if one of a troop of lions is killed, the others will leave that part of the country ; and in order to take advantage of this pecu- liarity, Livingstone resolved to destroy at least one of the marauders. The. order for a hunt was given, which was obeyed by the natives forming in a large circle to drive in whatever they might surround. In this way one of the lions was discovered sitting on a rock within the now closed circle. A native fired at it, but the ball struck the rock, which caused the lion to bite at the spot as a dog will at a stick thrust at him, but in another moment he founded off and rushed through the circle, the 2&S TIIT? \7OKl,?'? WOWDKBS giving way instead of spearing him, owing to their fear of witK craft. When the circle was reformed and advanced, two more lions were found within it, but these also escaped without injury. The cowardly action of the Bakatla so disgusted Livingstone that he decided to hunt the lions on his own account, though a number of the more courageous natives followed hkn. They were not long in discovering another lion sitting on a rock not more than thirty yards distant ; Livingstone aimed at the body and fired both barrels, at which the natives cried out, " He is shot ! he is shot!" and were making toward it while Livingstone stood to reload his gun. When in the act of ramming down the bullet, a shout attracted his attention just as the lion sprang upon him, catching his shoulder and bearing him to the ground. With a horrible growl the lion seized him by the arm, crunching the bone and shaking him like a terrier dog does a rat. Of the im- mediate effect of the bite, Livingstone writes : " The shock produced a stupor similar to that which seems to be felt by a mouse after the first shake of the cat. It caused a sort of dreaminess, in which there was no sense of pain nor feeling of terror, though quite conscious of all that was happening. It was like what patients partially under the influence of chloro- form descr-ibe, who see all the operation, but feel not the knife. This singular condition was not the result of any mental process. The shake annihilated fear, and allowed no sense of horror in looking round at the beast. This peculiar state is probably pro- duced in all animals killed by the carnivora ; and if so, is a mer- ciful provision bv our benevolent Creator for lessening the pain of death." As he turned to relieve the weight of the animal's paw, which rested upon his head, he saw one of the men of his party trying to shoot at a distance of ten yards, but his gun missed fire. At the same instant a dog belonging to one of the natives rushed in and bit the lion on the leg, which attracted his attention away from Livingstone, but he im- mediately sprang upon a native named Mebalwe, and dreadfully THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 287 lacerated his thigh. In an instant another brave fellow rushed to the assistance of his comrade, with a spear, but the lion seized him by the shoulder and would doubtless have killed the poor native except for the fact that the 288 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. loss of blood from the wound inflicted by Livingstone's shots had so weakened him that his grip soon relaxed, and he fell dead. All this was the work of a few moments, and was evidently done by the animal in his dying paroxysms of rage. Besides crunch- ing the bone into splinters, he left eleven teeth wounds on the upper part of Livingstone's arm. A wound from a lion's tooth resembles a gun-shot wound ; it is generally followed by a great deal of sloughing discharge, and pains are felt in the part period- ically ever afterward. Livingstone had on a tartan jacket on this occasion, and it evidently wiped off all the virus from the teeth that pierced the flesh, for his two companions in this affray both suffered from the peculiar pains, while he escaped with only the inconvenience of a false joint in the limb. The man whose shoulder was bitten showed his wound actually burst forth afresh on the same month of the following year. ENTRAPPING LARGE GAME. THE settlement at Mabotsa soon became a flourishing place, as the natives were anxious to be near Livingstone, whom they re- garded as a great chief and doctor able to cure their ills and pro- tect them against their enemies. One of the principal chiefs of the Bakwains was named Sechele, an intelligent fellow, who quickly perceived how superior the white man was to his people, and he therefore sought to imitate Livingstone as nearly as pos- sible. He was easily converted to Christianity, and became a very active disciple whose labors for a time seemed to bear ex- cellent fruit, for he converted a great many of his people and had them attend a school, which Livingstone established, that they might learn to read the Bible. Everything appeared pro- pitious, until a dreadful drought set in ; vegetation parched up, the streams ran dry, and even the birds and insects perished.' In vain the rain-maker practiced his magic, the clouds would roll up and break in copious showers, sometimes within ten miles of Mabotsa, but never a drop in the scorched fields of the Bakwains. Patience at length ceased, and the people openly declared that the drought was a curse sent upon them for becoming Christains, a belief wbicfr was readily received because rajn fell in abunrj- THE WORLD 8 WONDERS. 289 ance an-o.ig all the neighboring tribes. Yet they continued to h % eat Livingstone w:th the greatest kindness, though constantly him to quit praying, lest his wickedness in so doing should bring other calamities upon the country. The drought having destroyed all corn and other vegetables upon which the natives were dependent, to obtain food a hunt 290 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. was proposed by Livingstone, which suggestion was received with general satisfaction, though some werj3 doubtful if any suc- cess could be had with the " drought-maker" among the hunters. Nevertheless, a hunt was organized. Some miles from Mabotsa there was a small creek not yet quite dry, which Livingstone knew must be resorted to by numbers of wild animals, and in this neighborhood he had the natives construct what they call a " hopo." The hopo consists of two brush hedges in the form of an open-ended V, which are high and thick near the angle. Instead of the hedges being joined, they are made to form a lane about fifty yards in length, at the extremity of which is a pit eight feet deep and fifteen feet in breadth and length. Trees are laid carefully about the borders so as to overlap the edge of the pit to prevent entrapped animals from leaping out. The entire pit is carefully covered over with green rushes, to make it appear like a roadway, thoroughly disguising the pitfall. As the hedge-wings are generally a mile or more in length and as broad at the entrance, by beating up the adjacent covert, a large amount of game is driven into the hopo, particularly as two 'or three hundred hunters make a great circuit and by loud shouts drive in the game from an immense district of country. In the hunt which Livingstone organized, an unusually large quantity of game was beat up, consisting of rhinoceri, antelopes, hartebeests and lions, so that the pit was not only filled, but hundreds escaped over the bodies of the less fortunate. The natives destroyed those Jhat were entrapped with spears and javelins, while Livingstone added much to the store of meat by shooting several antelopes that would have otherwise escaped. A great feast followed and cnousdi food was secured to last until ^.he rains came to freshen vegetimon again. CROSSING AN AFRICAN DESERT. AFTER a residence of eight years at Mabotsa, Livingstone had thoroughly established the Christian doctrine and had so far edu- cated many of the Bakwains that they were qualified to continue the schools. Two English sportsmen, named Murray and Os- well, -^ho had penetrated to Lattakoo, hearing of Livingstone THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 291 292 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. at Mabotsa, paid him a visit and requested him to accompany them across the great Kalahari desert to Lake Ngami, which i? in lat. 20 30' ; long. 23. ' Kalahari is not, strictly speaking, a desert, but is called so from the fact that it contains no running water, and very little can be procured by digging wells ; notwithstanding this, it is covered with grass and a great variety of creeping plants, while game, especially antelope, abounds in numbers like buffaloes on our western plains twenty years ago. A peculiarity of this so- called desert is the vast amount of delicious tubers and refreshing vine fruits which are everywhere found on its surface. One of these is the Leroshua, which is a small plant with linear leaves and a stem not larger than a crow's quill ; on digging down a foot or eighteen inches, a tuber is found, generally four to six inches in diameter. The meat, which is enclosed within a thin rind, is most excellent. Another plant, named Mokuri, which grows only in parched districts, is found here. It is an herbacious creeper and deposits under ground a number of tubers, in a circle of a yard or more, some of which are as large as a man's head. The natives, who are Bushmen, strike the ground on the circum- ference of the circle with stones, until by a peculiar sound they know the tuber is beneath. They then dig a foot or so and find it. Strange enough, this tuber does not contain food, but is filled with deliciously cool water, furnishing an inestimable blessing to the natives when traveling through the country. PECULIAR WATERMELONS. Bur the most surprising plant of the desert is a peculiar sort of watermelon. The elephant, true lord of the forest, revels in this fruit, and so do the different species of rhinoceros, although naturally so diverse in their choice of pasture. The various kinds of antelopes feed on them with equal avidity, and lions, hyenas, jackals, and mice, all seem to know and appreciate the common blessing. These melons are not, however, all of them eatable ; some are sweet, and others so bitter that the whole are named by the Boers the " bitter watermelon." The natives select them by striking one melon after another with a hatchet, and applying th THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 293 tongue to the gashes. They thus readily distinguish between the bitter and sweet. The bitter are deleterious, but the sweet are quite wholesome. This peculiarity of one species of plants bearing both sweet and bitter fruit occurs also in a red, eatable cucumber, often met with in the country. WOMEN FILLING UP EGG-SHELLS WITH WATER. The Bushmen, also known as Bakalahari, choose their resi- dences far from water on account of their dread of visits from strange tribes. They not unfrequently hide their liquid supplies in pits and build fires over them. When water is desired, the women come with twenty or thirty of their vessels in a bag or net on their backs. These water-vessels consist of ostrich egg- shells, with a hole in the end of each barely large enough to admit one's finger. The women tie a bunch of grass to one end of a reed about two feet long, and insert it in a hole dug as deep as the arm will reach ; then ram down the wet sand firmly round it. Applying the mouth to the free end of the reed, they form a vacuum in the grass beneath, in which the water collects, and in a short time rises into the mouth. An egg-shell is placed on 294 THK WORLD'S WONDERS. the ground alongside the reed, some inches below the mouth x>f the sucker. A straw guides the water into the hole of the vessel, as the woman draws mouthful after mouthful from below. The water is made to pass along the outside, not through the straw. If any one will attempt to squirt water into a bottle placed some distance below his mouth, he will soon perceive the wisdom of the Bush- woman's contrivance for giving the stream direction by means of a straw. The whole stock of water is thus passed through the woman's mouth as a pump, and, when taken home, is carefully buried. A DREARY MARCH ACROSS THE DESERT. To turn from such a refreshing scene the bubbling spring, that wells up like an eternal joy and picture a hoary waste, whitened by the glare of a scorching sun, one vast sheen of track- less, waterless, arid desert, is not a pleasurable transformation ; yet we must now view Livingstone on his march across the Baka- lahari desert in quest of new fields, untrodden by the European. It was on the 1st of June, 1849, that he, in company with three English hunters, started upon the march, provided with oxen and horses to convey their baggage, and guides to direct the way. From the beginning the journey was a painful one, for there was a sandy stretch before them over which it was most difficult to draw the wagons. The distance from Mabotsa to Lake Ngami is about three hundred and fifty miles, two points west of north. Water was nowhere obtainable on the route except at Bushman settlements, which were so far apart that the party often went for forty hours without wetting their parched lips. Oxen are naturally slow travelers, but in this burning waste they some- times made only six miles a day, being so nearly overcome by heat and thirst that any attempt to drive them further would have caused their death. Hartebeests and antelopes were very numerous notwithstanding the want of water, which led Living- stone to examine the alimentary canal of several that he killed, in order that he might discover by what peculiar endowment nature enabled them to subsist without water so long ; but he found nothing in them that was not common to other animals. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 205 A REMARKABLE SALT BASIN. AT Nchokotsa, a little more than half-way from Mabotsa to Ngaini, the party came upon a great number of salt basins, cov ered with an efflorescence of lime. This salt basin, which is twenty miles in circumference, is obscured, however, in approach- ing from the southeast, by a thick belt of mopaue trees ; and, at the time the basin burst upon their view, the setting sun was casting a beautiful blue haze over the wide incrustations, making the whole look exactly like a lake. Here not a particle of imagi- nation was necessary to enable them to believe that they were gazing upon a large body of water ; the waves seemed to dance along the shore, and the shadows of the trees were vividly reflected beneath the surface in such an admirable manner that the loose cattle and the horses, dogs, and even the Hottentots. *;. i <>fr toward the deceitful lake. A herd of zebras in the miragt .txi..-v so exactly like elephants that preparations were made ^- ^~o-.- them, but a break in the haze dispelled the illusion. DISCOVERY OF LAKE NGAMI. ON August 1, 1849, exactly two months after leaving Mabotsa, the party came in sight of Lake Ngami, they being the first white men that had ever gazed upon its placid bosom. The lake is not very large, perhaps fifty miles in circumference, but it is the basin for many rivers, which pour their waters into it during the wet season until it inundates an immense district of country. One of the principal rivers which flow into it from the south is the Zouga, a considerable stream, but remarkable chiefly for its fish and the prodigious amount of game that lines its shores. Elephants and a new species of antelope, called leche, were par- ticularly numerous, but the former are inferior in size to those found further south. The natives of this locality, called Bakurutse, who are gener- ally friendly, live chiefly on fish, which they spear, and also catch iil nets that are woven exactly like fish-nets in America ; and with these they catch such great quantities that they do not pre- tend to consume them all. 296 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. After some days sper t on the banks of the lake, Livingstone resolved upon a visit tf> Sebituane, chief of the Mak >lol >s, tiree hundred miles north, th^re to begin again his missionary labors- As Oswell and Murray' vere elephant hunters, they h<:re sepa- rated from Livingstone and continued their sport in the surround- ing country, but not w thouh first giving a quantity cf new dress goods to Mrs. Livingstone, 1'or herself and three children, who were greatly in need of clotnes, their old ones be ng fairly in tatters. Six months after'his arrival at the Makololo country, Living- stone met Mr. Oswell again, and together they tra v( led one hun- dred and thirty miks northeast, lo a place called tjesheko, which was near the very centre of the continent. On hm-ting through this country they fortunately discovered the Zambosi riv^er, one of the most considerable streams in Africa, bein.'j fro.n three hundred to six hundred yards broad at extreme low wacer, and rising twenty feet perpendicularly at : ts flood. Livingstone met with difficulties in the Makololo country which he had not anticipated: the people were hospitable, lut had recently engaged i i the slave-trade, wh'ch seemed tc render them impervious to Christian teaching. Mrs. Livingsl one and her children were also suffering severely from fever, which rasisted all the remedies and became so serious that he decided to return to Cape Town with them, and from there :-end tl-em to England, and th3n return to Makololo to prosecite his work alone. This he .'Accomplished, and was much encouraged <;o see his family greatly improved in health when they took passage on the vessel for home. STRANGE DISEASES AND PECULIARITIES OF ANIMALS. LIVINGSTONE procured several oxen and two guidos at Cape Town, with such necessaries as his journey required, and started on his return to the Makololo country, ne-irly fifteen hui dred miles from the Cape. Being free from anxie y, he descnbe/j this trip as a pleasant picnic, for all the people on hi? rcute were friendly, hundreds of whom received medical and surgical atten- tion from him ; for his fame as a physician seemed to precede THJB WORLD'S WONDERS. 297 him, so that at every village great crowds came begging his pro- fessional services. Being in no special haste, he spent much of his time hunting and studying the animal life which came under his observation. He was somewhat astonished to learn, in dissecting the large game which he killed, that it was subject to most annoying and fatal diseases, not wholly unlike those from which our domestic animals Buffer. He saw several gnu, giraffes?, buffaloes, harte- beestes, etc., afflicted with a mangy disorder, from which they died with a frothing at the nostrils. He saw one buffalo blind from ophthalmy, and rhinoceri that were worried by worms which infested the conjunction of the eyes. The carnivora, too, become diseased and mangy ; lions grow lean and perish miserably by reason of the decay of the teeth. When a lion becomes too old to catch game, he frequently takes to killing goats in the villages ; a woman or child happening to go out at night falls a prey, too ; and as this is his only source of subsistence now, he continues it. From this circumstance has arisen the idea that the lion, when he has once tasted human flesh, loves it better than any other. A man-eater is invariably an old lion ; and when he overcomes his fear of man so far as to come to villages for goats, the people remark, "His teeth are worn, he will soon kill men." They at once acknowledge the necessity of instant action, and turn out to kill him. When living far away from population, or when, as is the case in some parts, he entertains a wholesome dread of the Bushmen, as soon as either disease or old age overtakes him, he begins to catch mice and other small rodents, and even to eat grass ; the latter may be eaten as medicine, however, as is observed in dogs. When encountered in day time, the lion stands a second or two gazing, then turns slowly round, and walks away for a dozen paces, looking over his shoulder ; then he begins to trot, and when he thinks himself out of sight bounds off like a grey- hound. By day there is not, as a rule, the least danger of lions which are not molested attacking man, nor even on a clear moon- light night, except when breeding ; at such times they will brave 298 TUB WORLD'S WONDERS. almost any danger ; and if a man happens to cross to the wind, ward of them, both lion and lioness will rush at him, in the man- ner of a bitch with whelps. This- does not often happen, and Livingstone knew of only two or three instances of the kind. In one case a man, passing where the wind blew from him to the animals, was bitten before he could climb a tree ; occasionally a man on horseback has been caught by the leg under the same circumstances. So general, however, is the sense of security on moonlight nights, that travelers seldom tie up their oxen, but let them lie loose by the wagons ; while on a dark, rainy night, if a lion is in the neighborhood, he is almost sure to venture to kill an ox. His approach is always stealthy, except when wounded ; and any appearance of a trap is enough to cause him to refrain from making the last spring. This seems characteristic of the feline species. When a lion is very hungry, and lying in wait, the sight of an animal may make him commence stalking it. In one case a man, while stealthily crawling to ward a rhinoceros, happened to glance behind him, and found to his horror a lion stalking him; he only escaped by springing up a tree like a cat. At Lopepe a lioness sprang on the after quarter of Mr. Oswell's horse, and when his companions came up to him they found the marks of the claws on the horse, and a scratch on Mr. O.'s hand. The horse, on feeling the lion on him, sprang away, and the rider, caught by a wait-a-bit thorn, was brought to the ground and rendered insen- sible. His dogs saved him. Another English gentleman (Cap- tain Codrington) was surprised in the same way, though^not hunting the lion at the time, but turning round he shot him dead in the neck. By accident a horse belonging to Codrington ran away, but was stopped by the bridle catching a stump ; there he remained a prisoner two days, and when found the whole space around was marked by the footprints of lions. They had evi- dently been afraid to attack the haltered horse from fear that it was a trap. Two lions came up by night to within three yards of Livingstone's oxen, which were tied to a wagon, and a sheep tied to a tree, and stood roaring but afraid to make a spring. THE WOULD *S WONDERS. 299 Most of the feats of strength which Livingstone saw performed by lions, such as the taking away of an ox, etc., were not by carrying, but by dragging the carcase along the ground. They will spring, on some occasions, on to the hind-quarters of a horse, but no one has ever seen them on the withers of a giraffe. They do not mount on the hind-quarters of an eland even, but try to tear it down with their claws. 300 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. Oswell and Vardon, while hunting together once, saw three lions endeavoring to drag down a buffalo which was mortally wounded, but they were unable to do so. This very exciting circumstance is thus described by Mr. Yardon in a letter to Liv- ingstone : "Oswell and I were riding this afternoon along the banks of the Limpopo, when a water-buck started in front of us. 1 dismounted and was following it through the jungle, when three buffaloes got up, and, after going a short distance, stood still, and the nearest bull turned round and looked at me. A ball from the two ouncer crashed into his shoulder, and they all three made off. Oswell and I followed as soon as I had reloaded, and when we were in sight of the buffalo, and gaining on him at every stride, three lions leaped on the unfortunate brute ; he bellowed most lustily as he kept up a kind of running fight, but he was, of course, soon overpowered and pulled down. We had a fine view of the struggle, and saw the lions on their hind legs tearing away with teeth and claws in most ferocious style. We crept up within thirty yards, and, kneeling down, blazed away at the lions. My rifle was a single barrel, and I had no spare gun. One lion fell dead almost 041 the buffalo ; he had merely time to turn to- ward us, seize a bush with his teeth, and drop dead with the stick in his jaws. The second made off immediately; and the third raised his head, coolly looked round for a moment, then went on tearing and biting at the carcass as hard as ever. We retired a short distance to load, then again advanced and fired. The lion made off, but a ball that he received ought to have stopped him, as it went clean through his shoulder-blade. He was followed up and killed, after having charged several times. Both lions were males. It is not often that one bags a brace of lions and a bull buffalo in about ten minutes. It was an exciting adventure, and I shall never forget it." In general the lion seizes the animal he is attacking by the flank near the hind-leg, or by the throat below the jaw. It is questionable whether he ever attempts to seize an animal by the withers. The flank is the most common point of attack, and that is the part he begins to feast on first. The natives and lions are THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 301 very similar in their tastes in the selection of tid-bits : an eland may be seen disemboweled by a lion so completely that he scarcely seems cut up at all The bowels and fatty parts form a full meal for even the largest lion. The jackal comes sniffing about, and sometimes suffers for his temerity by a stroKe from the lion's paw laying him dead. When gorged, the lion falls fast asleep, and is then easily dispatched. Hunting a lion with dogs involves very little danger as compared with hunting the Indian 302 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. tiger, because the dogs bring him out of cover and! make him stand at bay, giving the hunter plenty of time for a good delib- erate shot. A man is in much more danger of being run over when walking in the streets of New York, than he is of being de- voured by lions in Africa, unless engaged in hunting the animal. The lion has other checks on inordinate increase besides man. He seldom attacks full-grown animals ; but frequently, when a buffalo calf is caught by him, the cow rushes to the rescue, and a toss from her often kills him. It is questionable if a single lion ever attacks a full-grown buffalo. The amount of roaring heard at night, on occasions when a buffalo is killed, seem* to indicate there are always more than one lion engaged in the on- slaught. On the plain, south of Sebituane's ford, a herd of buffaloes kept a number of lions from their young by the males turning their heads to the enemy. The young and the cows were in the rear. One toss from a bull would kill the strongest lion that ever breathed. Livingstone says that in one part of India even the tame buffaloes feel their superiority to some wild animals, for they have been seen to chase a tiger up the hills, bellowing as if they enjoyed the sport. Lions never go near any elephants except the calves, which, when young, are sometimes torn by them ; every living thing retires before the lordly elephant, yet a full-grown one would be an easier pre,y than the rhinoceros ; the lion rushes off at the mere sight of this latter beast. SERPENTS. THE Zouga river, besides attracting large numbers of wild game to its waters, seems also to be the resort of many serpents, not a few of which are of the most venomous kind. Livingstone mentioned having seen one at Kolobeng of a dark brown, nearly black color, that measured eight feet three inches in length ; and it continued to distil clear poison for several hours after its head was cut off. This serpent is so copiously supplied with poison that it can strike an ox dead. It is sometimes called the " spit- ting serpent," and is believer' fro be able to eject its poison a considerable distance. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 303 Along the reedy and marshy banks of the Zouga are also found several species of vipers, and that most dangerous serpent, the puff-adder, which, when angered, distends the skin about its neck to wonderful proportions and is so vicious that it will read- ily attack anything, whether man or beast. There is a snake peculiar to this region which the natives call " Noga-putsane," or serpent of a kid, so named because at night it utters a cry exactly like the bleating of that little animal. Cobras are quite numerous, and greatly feared by the people, yet it is seldom that any one is bitten by them, as they usually give ample warning by rearing up and swaying their heads back and forth several times before striking. The large python, measuring from fifteen to twenty feet in length, is also found near the Zouga. Their bite is harmless, but they often kill and devour animals of medi- um size, which they crush and swallow like the boa constrictor ; generally, however, their food is small animals, such as field mice, rats, etc. The python is hunted by the natives for its flesh, which they greatly esteem, indeed preferring it to the flesh of nearly all animals. TEACHING THE NATIVES. NOTWITHSTANDING the journey was a pleasant one, Living- stone was glad when he arrived at Makololo, for much traveling becomes tedious however great the attractions may be on the route. He found a hearty welcome among the people, and everything propitious for the establishment of a successful missionary school. He invited the chiefs to come first, but they held books in mysterious awe, fearing there was some lurking danger in a thing which could relate in- cidents that had transpired in remote localities. At length Matibe, father-in-law of the principal chief, Sekeletu, offered himself as a student, but he affected the disposition of a doctor who must first take his own medicine in order to show his patients that it contains no poisonous ingredi- ent. Gradually the school increased, and so soon as one had mastered the rudiments he was sent out to become a teacher of others, 304 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. LUDICROUS SCENES AT CHURCH. ON each Sunday Livingstone held religious service, which was very largely attended, but not always with becoming seriousness or beneficial effects. When all knelt down, many of those who had children, in following the example of the rest, would bend over their little ones ; the children, in terror of being crushed to death, would set up a simultaneous yell, which so tickled the whole assembly that there was often a subdued titter, to be turned into a hearty laugh as soon as they heard Amen. Long after Livingstone had settled at Mabotsa, when preaching on the most solemn subjects, a woman might be observed to look round, and, seeing a neighbor seated on her dress, give her a hunch with the elbow to make her move off ; the other would return it with interest, and perhaps the remark, " Take the nasty thing away, will you ?" Then three or four would begin to hustle the first, offenders, and the men to swear at them all, by way of enforc- ing silence. INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. AFTER laying the foundation for a mission at Makololo, hav- ing taught several of the tribe to read, Livingstone departed for the northwest, having for his ultimate destination Loanda, which is at the mouth of the river Coanza where it empties into the Atlantic ocean. Sekeletu had taken such an interest in the mis- sion and was so devoted to Livingstone that he resolved to ac- company his white friend a considerable portion of the journey, and provided an escort to protect him from harm. Being fully prepared for a long trip, with provisions, oxen and guides, Livingstone departed from Makololo, taking his route along the Leeambye river, on which he had several canoes launched that were of great service in transporting the baggnge. The country was generally fine, and thickly inhabited, but none of the natives manifested hostility, being disposed rather to friendly curiosity on observing the first white man who had ever visited them. Approaching the Loeti river they came upon a number of hippopotamus hunters who fled with every indication THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 305 of terror upon seeing Livingstone, whom they no doubt regarded us some mysterious being. The numbers of large game above Libonta are prodigious, and they proved remarkably tame. Eighty-one buffaloes defiled in slow procession before the camp-fire one evening, within gun- shot ; and herds of splendid elands stood by day, without fear, at two hundred yards distance. They were all of the striped variety, and with their forearm markings, large dewlaps, and sleek skins, were a beautiful sight to see. The lions here roar much more than in the country near the lake. One evening they had a good opportunity of hearing the utmost exertions the animal can make in that line. They had made their beds on a large sand-bank, and could be easily seen from all sides. A lion on the opposite shore amused himself for hours by rdaring as loudly as he could, putting, as is usual in such cases, his mouth near the ground, to make the sound reverberate. The river was too broad for a ball to reach him, so they let him enjoy himself, certain that he durst not have been guilty of the im- pertinence in the Bushman country. Wherever the game abounds, these animals exist in proportionate numbers. Here they wej'e very frequently seen, and two of the largest seemed about as tall as common donkeys ; but the mane made their bodies appear rather larger. SINGULAR BIRDS, REPTILES AND ANIMALS. ROWING along the river, there were always interesting sights of birds, reptiles, and animals. Fish-hawks sailed through the air, or ^attacked the full-pouched pelican ; the alligator-bird, the tinc-tinc-tinc, or iron-beating bird, the great ibis* the rhinoceros- bird, and a thousand other singular species. Numbers of iguanos sat sunning themselves on overhanging branches of trees. They are highly esteemed as an article of food, so the chief boatman sits at the bow of his canoe armed with a javelin to spear those that are not too quickly out of sight. The rapids in the part of the river between Katima-molelo and Xaineta are relieved by several reaches of still, deep water, fifteen or twenty miles long, lu these very large herds of hippopotami 306 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. are seen, and the deep furrows they make in ascending thebankh to graze during th6 nights, are everywhere apparent. They are guided back to the water by the scent, but a long-continued pour- ing rain makes it impossible for them to perceive, by that means, in which direction the river lies, and they are found bewildered on the land. The hunters take advantage of their helplessness on these occasions to kill them. It is impossible to judge of the numbers in a herd, for they are almost always hidden beneath the waters ; but as they require to come up every few minutes to breathe, when there is a con- stant succession of heads thrown up then the herd is supposed to be large. They love a still reach of the stream, as in the more rapid parts of the channel they are floated down so quickly tluit much exertion is necessary to regain the distance lost by fre- quently swimming up again : such constant exertion disturb* them in their nap. They prefer to remain by day in a drowsy ? THE WORLD'S WO.NDERS. 307 yawning state, and, though their eyes are open, they take little notice of things at a distance. The males utter a loud succession of snorting grunts, which may be heard a mile off. Livingstone says that in passing over a wounded one in a canoe a distinct grunting was elicited, though the animal lay entirely under water.. The young, when very little, take their stand on the neck of the dam, and the small head, rising above thelarger, comes soon- est to the surface. The dam, knowing the more urgent need of her calf, comes more frequently to the surface when it is in her care. But in the rivers of Londa, where they are much in danger of being shot, even the hippopotamus gains wit by experience ; for, while those in the Zambesi put up their heads openly to blow, those referred to keep their noses among water-plants, and breathe so quietly that one would not dream of their existence 'n the river except by footprints on the banks. CHAPTER XVII. DANGERS FROM ALLIGATORS. PART of Livingstone's company marched along the banks with the oxen, and part went in the canoes, but their pace was regu- lated by the speed of the men on shore. Their course was rather difficult, on account of the numbers of departing and re-entering branches of the Leeambye, which they had to avoid or wait at till ferried over. The number of alligators is prodigious, and in this river they are more savage than in some others. Many children are carried off annually at Sesheke and other towns ; for, notwithstanding the danger, when they go down for water they almost always must play a while. This reptile is said by the natives to strike the victim with its tail, then drag him in and drown him. When lying in the water watching for prey, the body never appears. Many calves are lost also, and it is seldom that a number of cows can swim over at Sesheke without some 308 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. loss. Livingstone says he never could avoid shuddering on seeing his men swimming across these branches, after one of them had been caught by the thigh and taken below. He, however, retained, as nearly all of them in the most trying circumstances do, his full presence of mind, and having a small, square, ragged-edged javelin with him, when dragged to the bottom gave the alligator a stab behind the shoulder. The alligator, writhing in pain, left him, and he came out with the deep marks of the reptile's teeth on his thigh. The great abundance of game which was constantly met with, was consoling to the invariably hungry natives, but on account of certain difficulties it had its unpleasant features to Livingstone. He tried in vain to instruct certain men in his company how to shoot, but with all his care they fired so wildly that if they had been his sole reliance all the ammunition must have been expended without any game to show for it ; thus the shooting all devolved on Livingstone. His arm had never recovered fully from the lion's bite, which he received near Mabotse, as, owing to the lack of proper surgical attention, the broken and crushed bone had not united well. Continual hard manual labor, -and several falls from oxen had lengthened the ligament by Which the ends of the bones were united, and a false joint was the consequence. On this account he could not himself shoot well, and a great part of his time had to be spent hunting in order to supply his men with meat. AMONG FEMALE CHIEFS. PASSING out of the Leeambye river, which in some places further east is called the Zambesi, Livingstone's party came to another river called the Luba. He was now among the Belonda people, a tribe that has a vague idea of spirit life, which we may possibly call religion, but instead of this idea benefitting them, it has a contrary effect, for their superstitions only seem to degrade them the more. They file their teeth to a point and tattoo them- selves in various parts, but chiefly on the abdomen : the skin is raised in small elevated cicatrices, each nearly half an inch long and a quarter of an inch in diameter, so that a number of them THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 309 may constitute a star or other device. The dark color of the skin prevents any coloring matter being deposited in these figures, but they love much to have the whole surface" of their bodies anointed with a comfortable varnish of oil. Sheakondo was chief of the Barotse tribe, and his wife ruled over the Balonda, a neighboring people, considerably intermixed with the former. Beyond these is another tribe of Balonda, over whom the great female chief, Nyamoana, ruled. She was reputed to have been a woman of much cunning and immense influence, due princi- pally to her powers of necromancy. Nyamoana treated Living- stone in a most hospitable manner, and besides giving him some oxen insisted on furnishing a guide to conduct him to the next village, which was also governed by a woman, named Maneuko. She was a finely formed young woman, having no other covering upon her person than a thick daubing of yellow ochre. She was a dealer in charms, and when one of Livingstone's Masiko guides entered a tent of her tribe without first requesting permission, she expressed her belief that it was for the purpose of leaving some wicked charm ; she therefore raised a big row, and detained the party two days. Like women in general, this chief suddenly changed her mind, and became as friendly as at first. She not only suffered Livingstone to depart in peace, but accompanied him to the next village, named Kabompo, which contained many thousand people, ruled by a chief called Shinte. Here Living- stone was treated to a royal reception, at which Shinte sat on his throne and had his warriors go through their military exercise of leaping and throwing 'spears. AN AMUSING SHOW. OWING to the fact that Livingstone was now suffering from an enervating fever, he was unable for several days to visit Shinte, as that chief had repeated!}' requested him to do. When he was a little recovered, however, he called upon the chief, and to amuse him exhibited a magic lantern which threw pictures life- size. Shinte at once sent for all his wives and the dignitaries of his small court, and upon their assembling, the show was begun. The first picture exhibited was Abraham about to slaughter his 310 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. son Isaac ; it was shown as large as life, and the uplifted knife was in the act of striking the lad ; the Balonda men remarked that the picture was much more like a god than the things of wood or clay they worshiped. Livingstone explained that this man was the first of a race to whom God had given the Bible, now held, and that among his children our Savior appeared. The ladies listened with silent awe ; but when he moved the slide, the uplifted dagger moving toward them,. they thought it was to be sheathed in their bodies instead of Isaac's. " Mother ! mother !" all shouted at once, and off they rushed helter-skelter, tumbling pell-mell over each other, and over the little idol-huts and tobacco-bushes : nor could they be induced to come back again. Shinte, however, sat bravely through the whole perform- ance and afterward examined the instrument with interest. An explanation was always added after each time of showing its powers, so that no one should imagine there was aught super- natural in it. HOW SHINTE PROVED HIS LOVE. IT being now in the rainy season, everything was so wet that it was almost impossible to procure guides, and more especially 'since Shinte had contracted such a great liking for Livingstone that he was anxious to detain him, believing that so long as the white man remained in the village there would befall himself and people nothing but good luck and pleasure. One miserably rainy day, while Livingstorie was alone in his tent, Shinte stepped in as though anxious uo one should observe him ; after examining such curiosities as a looking-glass, books, hair brushes, comb, watch, etc., he closed the tent opening that no one might witness the extravagance of which he was about to be guilty. He then drew out from his limited clothing a string of beads and the end of a conical shell which he hung about Liv- ingstone's neck with the remark, " There, now, you have a proof of my friendship." The value of this present in the estimation of Shinte was very great, for such a shell is considered in that region of as much value as the Lord Mayor's badge in England. For two of them a slave might be bought, and five would be con- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 311 sidered a handsome price for an elephant's tusk worth in England $150. AFRICAN ETIQUETTE. AFTER leaving Shinte, Livingstone proceeded northward, and he observed that the guides furnished him at the various villages had much more etiquette than any of the tribes further south. They would not partake of food which they had given to his party, nor would they eat their own food in their presence. When it was cooked they retired into a thicket and ate their porridge ; then all stood up and clapped their hands and praised Intemese for it. The dress of the Balonda men consists of the softened skins of small animals, as the jackal or wild cat, hung before and behind from a girdle round the loins. The dress of the women is of a nondescript character ; but they were not immodest. They stand before strangers perfectly unconscious of any indecorum. But, while ignorant of their own deficiency, they could not maintain their gravity at the sight of the nudity of Livingstone's men behind. Much to their annoyance the young girls laughed out- right whenever their backs were turned to them. THE TAILLESS OX. WHILE passing through a village governed by a chief named longa Panza, one of the guides deserted, and stealing some articles from the chief, made off. The chief held Livingstone -responsible for the loss of his property, as he had brought the thief into the country, and the controversy came near ending in a row ; but in order to avoid such a calamity, Livingstone agreed to give Panza an ox in place of the stolen articles. It happened that the ox had lost part of his tail, which led the natives to suspect that it had been purposely cut off and some witchcraft medicine inserted, whereupon they rejected the ox and another had to be substi- tuted. Livingstone now had only four oxen left, and, seizing upon the idea which this incident had suggested, he had his men cutoff apart of each of their tails, in which "magical" con- dition he had no difficulty in retaining them. 312 THE WORLD'S WONDERS, ST. PAUL DE LOANDA. THE objective point of the expedition was the Portuguese set- tlement of St. Paul de Loanda, on the southwestern coast of Africa, and as they drew near the sea, Livingstone observed that his men became very uneasy. On ascending some hills near the town they caught a glimpse of the ocean, which the men re- garded with the utmost awe. On describing their feelings after- Ward, they remarked that "we marched along with our father, believing that what the ancients, had always told us was true, that the world has no end ; but all at once the world said to us, * I am finished : there is no more of me ! ' ' They had always imagined that the world was one extended plain without limit. Livingstone arrived at Loanda on the 31st of May, 1854< almost worn out, with fatigue and severe dysentery. Loanda, with a population of twelve thousand souls, com tained but a single Englishman, who was a commissioner for the suppression of the slave trade. This man looked upon Liv- ingstone as a brother, and took him at once to his house, giving him his own bed and making him comfortable in every way. A JOURNEY ACROSS THE CONTINENT. LIVINGSTONE remained at Loanda nearly four months, much of which time he was bedridden by fever, although under excel- lent medical care all the while. There was an English man-of- war anchored in Loanda or Bengo bay, the surgeon of which devoted most assidious attention to the traveler, but he was so emaciated and debilitated and the malaria had such firm hold that his system was almost incapable of rallying, and thus, despite his anxiety to return to the interior and open up a route across the continent by way of the Zambesi river, he was forced to either keep to his bed or act with great prudence during a long convalesence. During his stay in Loanda, when able to sit up, he wrote sev- eral letters which were published in the town paper, elaborating his plan for opening up an interior and transcontinental trade, which so commended itself to the Portuguese residents that they proffered him such aid as he might require to complete his pur- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 313 poses. The merchants gave to each of bis men a good horse and an elegant uniform, and also, by a public subscription, presented to Livingstone handsome specimens of all their articles of trade, and two donkeys. Having at length recovered from the fever, he prepared to re- enter Africa and make a crossing by way of the Zambesi, if that should prove possible, which his slight knowledge of the stream led him to believe could be done. He says : "I took with me a good stock of cotton cloth, fresh supplies of ammunition and beads, and gave each of my men a musket. As my companions had amassed considerable quantities of goods, they were unable to carry mine, but the bishop fur- nished me with twenty carriers, and sent forward orders to all the commandants of the districts through which we were to pass to render me every assistance in their power. Being now supplied with a good new tent made by my friends on board the Philo- mel, we left Loanda on the 20th of September, 1854, and passed round by sea to the mouth of the Eiver Bengo." He ascended the Bengo for a hundred miles and then took to the country, passing over the same route he had come for several hundred miles, as he found any deviation from the regular route impracticable. In order to familiarize himself with the district generally, he made short incursions on transverse water-ways to villages, in many of which he found primitive iron works and sugar refineries, which had been abandoned, no doubt, on account of wars, for there were proofs that they had been profitable when unmolested. AMONG THE ANGOLAS. ONE of the most interesting people whose country borders the Bengo river, and also the Atlantic, are the Angola tribe, which at one time possessed a higher culture than at present'. Through- out their country may still be seen ruins of convents and forts, as well as of manufacturing industries. They have greatly retro- graded, but from what cause is indifferently understood. The chief recreations of the natives of Angola are marriages and funerals. When a young woman is about to be married, she is 314 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 315 placed in a hut alone and anointed with various unguents, and many incantations are employed in order to secure good fortune and fruitfulness. Here, as almost everywhere in the south, the height of good fortune is to bear sons. They often leave a hus- band altogether if they have daughters only. In their dances, when any one may wish to deride another, in the accompanying song a line is introduced, " So and so has no children, and never will get any." She feels the insult so keenly that it is not un- common for her to rush away and commit suicide. After some days the bride elect is taken to another hut, and adorned with all the richest clothing and ornaments that the relatives can either len^l or borrow. She is then placed in a public situation, saluted as a lady, and presents made by all her acquaintances are placed around her. After this she is taken to the residence of her hus- band, where she has a hut for herself, and becomes one of several wives, for polygamy is general. Dancing, feasting, and drinking on such occasions are prolonged for several days. In case of separation, the woman returns to her father's family, and the husband receives back what he gave for her. In nearly all cases a man gives a high price for a wife, and in cases of mulattoes, as much as $300 are often given to the parents of the bride. In cases of death the body is kept several days, and there is a grand concourse of both sexes, with beating of drums, dances, and debauchery, kept up with feasting, etc., according to the means of the relatives. The great ambition of many of the blacks of Angola is to give their friends an expensive funeral. Often, when one is asked to sell a pig, he replies, I am keeping it in case of the death of any of my friends." A pig is usually slaughtered and eaten on the last day of the ceremonies, and its head thrown into the nearest stream or river. A native will sometimes appear intoxicated on these occasions, and, if blamed for his intemperance, will reply, " Why ! my mother is dead !" as if he thought it a sufficient justification. The expenses of funerals are so heavy that often years elapse before they can defray them. 316 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. A CURIOUS INSECT. IN the Angola country there is found a very singular insect, which inhabits trees of the fig family. Seven or eight of these small bugs cluster around a spot, generally on a small branch of the tree, and there keep up a constant distillation of a clear fluid which, dropping to the ground, forms a little puddle below. If a vessel is placed under them in the evening it will contain three or four pints of fluid in the morning. Naturalists assert that the water thus obtained is really the tree sap which these insects, by a process they do not attempt to explain, draw from the tree, but Livingstone, after making many experiments, denies this, and says the fluid is undoubtedly obtained by a condensation of the atmosphere, but he does not undertake to explain how it is done. AFRICAN ANTS. AT Tola Mungongo, about four hundred miles east of Loanda t Livingstone's attention was called to a peculiar red ant that in- fests that part of the country. He accidentally trod upon one of their nests, and hardly an instant seemed to elapse before a sim^ ultaneous attack was made on various parts of his body, up the trousers' legs from below and on his neck and breast above. The bites of these, furies were like sparks of fire, and the only means of ridding himself of them was by hurriedly removing his cloth- ing and picking them off one by one. It is astonishing how such small bodies "can contain such an amount of ill-nature. They not only bite, but twist themselves round after the mandibles are inserted, to produce laceration and pain, more than would be effected by the Dimple bite. They are very useful in consuming the dead animal matter of the country, and when they visit human habitations they clean them entirely of the destructive white ants and other vermin. The severity of their attacks ia greatly increased by their vast numbers, and rats, mice, lizards, and even the great python when in a state of surfeit from recent feeding, fall victims to their fierce onslaught. When an ox ia slaughtered, the natives are compelled to build fires around the carcass to prevent the red ants from devouring it. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 317 FATAL SUPERSTITIONS. IN the Cassanga country, which adjoins that of Mungongo, the people are extremely superstitious, and pray to a god whom they call Buriino. They believe that the spirits of the dead, instead of taking up their abode in remote regions, remain always with the tribe and spend their time in vexing the living. A person accused of witchcraft must consent to undergo the ordeal of drinking a tea made from an infusion of a poisonous tree ; if the first dose nauseates and causes the stomach to reject it, the accused must drink again, so that death is certain. The same superstitious ideas being prevalent through the whole of the country north of the Zambesi, seems to indicate that the people must originally have been one. In sickness, sacrifices of fowls and goats are made to appease the spirits. It is imagined that they wish to take the living away from earth and all its enjoy- ments. When one man has killed another, a sacrifice is made, as if to lay the spirit of the victim. A sect is reported to exist who kill men in order to take their hearts and offer them to the Barimo. The chieftainship is elective from certain families. Among the B&ngalas of the Cassange valley the chief is chosen from three families in rotation. A chief's brother inherits in preference to his son. The sons of a sister belong to her brother ; and he often sells his nephews to pay his debts. By this and other unnatural customs, more than by war, is the slave-market supplied. The prejudices in favor of these practices are very deeply rooted in the native mind. Even at Loanda they retire out of the city in order to perform their heathenish rites without the cognizance of the authorities. Their religion, if such it may be called, is one of dread. Numbers of charms are employed to avert the evils with which they feel themselves to be encompassed. DREAD OF WHITE MEN. AMONG nearly all the nations of South Africa the sight of a white person excites terror. In the villages the dogs run away with their tails between their legs, as if they had seen a lion. The women peer from behind the walls ^11 he comes near them, 318 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. and then hastily dash into the house. When a little child, uncon- scious of danger, meets you in the street, he sets up a scream at the apparition, and conveys the impression that he is not far from going into fits. Among the Bechuanas Livingstone was often obliged to reprove the women for making a hobgoblin of the white man, and telling their children that they would send for him to bite them. AFRICAN DANDIES. ON a- rivulet called Tamba, Livingstone foand a people of a light olive color, who were timid and civil. They file their teeth to a point, which makes the smile of the women frightful, as it reminds one of the grin of an alligator. Many of the men are dandies ; their shoulders are always wet with the oil dripping from tlieir lubricated hair, and everything about them is orna- mented in one way or another. Some thrum a musical instru- ment the livelong day, and when they wake at night proceed at once to their musical performance. Many of these musicians are too poor to have iron keys to their instruments, but make them of bamboo, and persevere, though no one hears the music but themselves. Others try to appear warlike t>y never going out of their hut except with a load of bows and arrows, or a gun ornamented with a strip of hide for every animal they have shot ; and others never go anywhere without a canary in a cage. Ladies may be seen carefully tending little lap-dogs, which are intended to be eaten. Their villages are generally in forests, and com- posed of groups of irregularly-planted brown huts., with banana and cotton trees and tobacco growing around. Round baskets are laid on the thatch of the huts for the hens to lay in, and on the arrival of strangers, men, women, and children ply their call- ing as hucksters with a great neal of noisy haggling ; all their transactions are conducted with civil banter and good temper. NARROW ESCAPE FROM A BUFFALO. LIVINGSTONE tarried a few days with his good friend Shintc, already spoken of, and then began a descent of the Leeba river. This is a beautiful stream, and aside from its tranquil, clear bosom, its banks are adorned with a rich and varied vegetable THE WORLD'S WONDEKS. 319 production, while game is found in great abundance. As they arrived at a village on the river banks, several of the inhabitants came out and entreated Livingstone to attack a herd of buffaloes that were then feeding in the village garden, and so tame were the animals that he was able to come within six yards of them. His arm was so badly disabled by the lion bite already described, that he could shoot only with the greatest effort and uncertainty, which made him a very inferior shot. Presently he saw a large buffalo running directly toward him, evidently with hostile inten- tions. He glanced around, but the only tree on the plain was a hundred yards off, and there was no escape elsewhere. He there- fore cocked his rifle, with the intention of giving the buffalo a steady shot in the forehead when he should come within three or four yards. The thought flashed across his mind, " What if your gun misses fire?" 'He placed it to his shoulder as the brute came on at full speed, and that is tremendous, though generally he is a lumbering-looking animal in his paces. A small bush and bunch of grass fifteen yards off made him swerve a little, and exposed his shoulder. Livingstone fired j and heard the ball strike, at the same time falling flat on his face. The pain must have made the buffalo renounce his purpose, for he bounded close past and on to the water, where he was found dead. CAPSIZED BY A HIPPOPOTAMUS. UPON reaching Libonta in the Makololo country, and the neigh- boring villages, Livingstone was received with manifestations of much joy by the simple-hearted natives. There were some awk- ward scenes at this reception, however ; several of the Makololos who had left their wives to accompany him to Loanda, upon re- turning now found them remarried and not a few had children to show by their new husbands. But as polygamy is almost universally practiced among all African tribes, their feelings are naturally blunted in regard to such things, and they are but little- thought of. Livingstone left Naliele on the 13th of August, and while pro- ceeding along the shore at midday a hippopotamus struckthe canoe with her forehead, lifting one-half of it quite out of the water. 320 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. so as nearly to overturn it. The force of the butt tilted Mash- auana, one of the natives, out into the river ; the rest sprang to the shore, which was only about ten yards off. Glancing back, Livingstone saw the hippopotamus come to the surface a short way off, and look to the canoe, as if to see if she had done mgch mischief. It was a female, whose young one had been speared THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 321 the day before. No damage was done except wetting their per- sons and goods. The attack was so unusual an occurrence, when the precaution is taken to coast along the shore, that the men exclaimed, "Is the beast mad?" There were eight in the canoe at the time, and the shake it received shows the immense power of this animal in the water. THE WONDERFUL VICTORIA FALLS. LIVINGSTONE continued down the river, and being in the vicin- ity of Victoria Falls resolved to visit them. The Leeba river had no\v given place to the Leeambye, which is further east called the Zambesi, all being one and the same, only called differently by the natives of the northeast, south, central and eastern tribes. Approaching to where the rapids begin he saw an island quite large enough for a considerable town, and upon going ashore he found the grave of a chief, named Sekote, ornamented with seventy large elephant tusks planted round it with the points turned inward. This was an indication of his wealth and great- ness. The falls of Victoria, called by the natives Mosioatunya, or more anciently Shongwe, were not far off, and on the following day he pushed on with only one native as a guide, and soon came near enough to see five great columns of vapor ascending and moving off like smoke, descending again in torrents of rain upon a thick covert of trees a mile or more distant. Describing this sight and the falls, Livingstone says : * * * No one can imagine the beauty of the view from any thing witnessed in England. It had never been seen before by European eyes ; but scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight. The only want felt is that of mountains in the background. The falls are bounded on three sides by ridges 300 or 400 feet in height, which are covered with forest, with the red soil appearing among the trees. When about half a mile from the falls, I left the canoe by whjch we had come down thus far, and embarked in a lighter one, with men well acquainted with the rapids, who, by passing down the centre of the stream in the eddies and still places caused by many jutting 322 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 323 rocks, brought me to an island situated in the middle of the river, and on the edge of the lip over which the water rolls. In com- ing hither there was danger of being swept down by the streams which rushed along on each side of the island ; but the river was now low, and we sailed where it is totally impossible to go when the water is high. But, though we had reached the island, and were within a few yards of the spot, a view from which would solve the whole problem, I believe that no one could perceive where the vast body of water went ; it seemed to lose itself in the earth, the opposite lip of the fissure into which it disappeared being only 80 feet distant. At least I did not comprehend it until, creeping with awe to the verge, I peered down into a large rent which had been made from bank to bank of the broad Zam- besi, and saw the stream of a thousand yards broad leap down a hundred feet, and then become suddenly compressed into a space of fifteen or twenty yards. The entire falls are simply a crack made in a hard basaltic rock from the right to the left bank of the Zambesi, and then prolonged from the left bank away through thirty or forty miles of hills." These falls are, without doubt, one of the greatest natural curiosities on the earth, and should they ever become accessible to the civilized world, they will attract millions of tourists and pleasure seekers. Victoria Falls may in truth be designated as one of the " World's Wonders." After indulging in a long view of the falls, measuring the stream, and estimating the character of the surrounding soil for garden purposes, Livingstone planted some peach and apricot seeds, and some coffee grains, on the little island shown in the illustration, and then proceeded on his journey to the east coast, CURIOUS FRIENDSHIP AMONG ANIMALS AND BIRDS. ON the Kolomo river he saw an elephant which had no tusks, a sight quite as rare in Africa as it is to see one with tusks in Ceylon. The elephant was extremely wary and made off with great haste at sight of the men. Buffaloes were plentiful, and shooting into a herd, Livingstone brought one down ; the others, not perceiving their enemy, tried to gore their wounded comrade, 324 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. and in so doing actually lifted him with their horns and bore him a considerable distance. All wild animals usually gore a wounded .companion and expel it from the herd; even zebras bite and kick a diseased one. This instinct is a wise provision of nature to prevent any but the perfect and healthy from propagating their species. Among the great numbers of buffaloes Livingstone noticed that nearly every animal was attended by a peculiar bird, which served the double purpose of ridding them of insects and sound- ing an alarm when danger threatened. Rhinoceri were also plentiful, and these, too, were followed by a companion-bird, which seemed attached to the huge beast out of pure affection, for owing to its hard, hairless skin it is not much troubled with insects. One species of this bird possesses a bill of a peculiar scoop or stone forceps form, as if intended only to tear off insects from the skin ; and its claws are as sharp as needles, enabling it to hang on to an animal's ear while performing a useful service within it. This sharpness of the claws allows the bird to cling to the nearly insensible cuticle without irritating the nerves of pain on the true skin, exactly as a burr does to the human hand. THE MOTHER ELEPHANT AND HER CALF. ONE evening, on the Zambesi, Livingstone shot an elephant and on the following day, while his men were cutting it up, great numbers of the villagers came to enjoy the feast. They were on the side of a tine green valley, studded here and there with trees and cut by numerous rivulets. Livingstone had retired from the noise, to take an observation among some rocks of laminated grit, when he beheld an elephant and her calf at the end of the valley, about two miles distant. The calf was rolling in the 'mad, and the dam was standing fanning herself with her great ears. As he looked at them through his glass, he saw a long string of his own men appearing on the other side of them, while one of the men came and told him that these had gone off saying, '* Our father will see to-day what sort of men he has got." He then went higher up the side of the valley, iu on : Tttfi WORLD'S WONDER^. 325 to have a distinct view of their mode of hunting. The beast, totally unconscious of the approach of an enemy, stood for some time suckling her young one, which seemed about two years old ; they thea went into a pit containing mud, and smeared themselves all over with it, the little one frisking about his dam, flapping his ears and tossing his trunk incessantly, in elephantine fashion. She kept flapping her ears and wagging her tail, as if in the height of enjoyment. Then began the piping of her enemies, which was performed by blowing into a tube, or the hands closed together, as boys do into a key. They called out to attract the animal's attention, " O chief! chief ! we have come to kill you. O chief! chief! many more will die besides you, etc. The gods have said it," etc., etc. Both animals expanded their ears and listened, then left their bath as the crowd rushed toward them. The little one ran for- ward toward the end of the valley, but, seeing the men there, returned to his dam. She placed herself on the danger side of her calf, and passed her proboscis over it again and again, as if to assure it of safety. She frequently looked back to the men, who kept up an incessant shouting, singing, and piping ; then looked at her young one and ran after it, sometimes sideways, as if her feelings were divided between anxiety to protect her off- spring and desire to revenge the temerity of her persecutors. The men kept about a hundred yards in her rear, and some that distance from her flanks, and continued thus until she was obliged to cross a rivulet. The time spent in descending and getting up the opposite bank allowed of their coming up to the edge, and discharging their spears at about twenty yards distance. After the first discharge she appeared with her sides red with blood, and, beginning to flee for her own life, seemed to think no more of her young. Livingstone sent word to spare the calf. It ran very fast, but neither young nor old ever enter into a gallop ; .'their quickest pace is only a sharp walk. Before the messenger could reach them, the calf had taken refuge in the water, and was killed. The pace of the d:im gradually became slower. She 326 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. turned with a shriek of rage, and made a furious charge back among the men. They vanished at rigl;t angles to her course, or sideways, and, as she ran straight on, she went through the whole party, hut came near no one except a man whB wore a piece of cloth on his shoulders. Bright clothing is always dan- gerous in these cases. She charged three or four times, and, except in the first instance, never went farther than 100 yards. She often stood after she had crossed a rivulet, and faced the men, though she received fresh spears. It was by this process of spearing and loss of blood that she was killed ; for at last, making a short charge, she staggered round and sank down dead in a kneeling posture. ADVENTURES WITH WILD ANIMALS. CHANGING his course to get back to the Zambesi river, Living- stone reached a great plain covered with broad-leaved bushes, in which he found elephants so numerous that several times he had to shout and fire his gun in order to frighten them out of the path so as to enable his party to get through. At an open space a herd of buffaloes came trotting up to the oxen, and were only driven away after Livingstone had shot one of their number. The elephants were generally good-natured, but at one place a female with three young ones of different sizes charged through the center of the extended line and produced a panic ; one of the men was courageous enough, however, to thrust a spear into her side which caused her to retreat without doing any injury. Along the Zambesi Livingstone found enormous flocks of water-fowl, chiefly geese and ducks, which, having never been hunted, were exceedingly tame, and might have been killed with stones. This great game country, which perhaps excels that of any other section of Africa, was near the conjunction of the Kaf ue with the Zambesi river. SUPERSTITION RESPECTING ALBINOS. OCCASIONALLY white or albino children are born in Africa, and they are regarded with dread and superstition. Livingstone relates that during the time he resided at Mabotsa, a woman THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 327 came to the station with a fine albino boy. The father had ordered her to throw him away, but she e^ung to her offspring for many years. He was remarkably intelligent for his age. The pupil of the eye was of a pink color, and the eye itself was unsteady in vision. The hair, or rather wool, was yellow, and the features were those common among the Bechuanas. Some time after Livingstone left the place the mother is said to have become tired of living apart from the father, who refused to have her while she retained the son ; so she took him out one day and killed him close to the village. In some tribes a case of twins renders one of them liable to death ; and an ox, which, while lying in the pen, beats the ground with its tail, is treated in the same way. It is thought to be call- ing death to visit the tribe. If a fowl crows before midnight, it is guilty of " tlolo," and is killed. Livingstone's men often carried them sitting on their guns, and if one began to crow in a forest, the owner would give it a beating, by way of teaching it not to be guilty of crowing at unseasonable hours. SETTLING DISPUTES. LIVINGSTONE says that only on one occasion did he ever wit- ness anything like a fist-tight between natives. An old woman, standing by his camp, continued to belabor a good-looking young man for hours with her tongue. Irritated at last, he uttered some words of impatience, when another man sprang at him, exclaiming, " How dare you curse iny Mama?' " They caught each other, and a sort of pushing, dragging wrestling-match- ensued. The old woman who had been the cause of the affray wished Livingstone to interfere, and the combatants themselves hoped as much ; but he preferred to remain neutral, and allow them to fight it out. It ended by one falling under the other, both, from their scuffling, being in a state of nudity. They picked up their clothing and ran off in different directions, each threatening to bring his gun and settle the dispute in mortal com- bat. Only one, however, returned, and the old woman continued her scolding till the men, fairly tired of her tongue, ordered her to be gone. Their disputes are usually condupted with great 328 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. volubility and noisy swearing, but they generally terminate by both parties bursting into a laugh. PECULIARITIES OF THE BATOKA TRIBE. THE Batokas inhabit a part of the country near the Kafue river. They are friendly, and came out in great numbers to see the white man, bringing with them presents of corn and provis- ions. The men go entirely naked. They walk about without the smallest sense of shame. They have even lost the tradition of the " fig-leaf." Livingstone asked a fine, large-bodied old man if he did not think it would be better to adopt a little covering. He looked with a pitying leer, and laughed with surprise at being thought at all indecent ; he evidently considered himself above such weak superstition. It was regarded as a good joke when Livingstone told them that if they had no other clothing, they might put on a bunch of grass. Their mode of salutation is quite singular. They throw them- selves on their backs on the ground, and, rolling from side to side, slap the outside of their thighs as expressions of thankful- ness and welcome, uttering the words " Kina bomba." Living- stone says that this method of salutation was to him very disagreeable, and he never could get reconciled to it. He would call out, " Stop, stop; don't do that;" but they, imagining he was dissatisfied, only tumbled about more furiously, and slapped their thighs with greater vigor. "A chief named Monze came to us one Sunday morning," says Livingstone, "wrapped in a large cloth, and rolled himself about in the dust, screaming Kina bomba/ as they all do. The sight of great naked men wallowing on the ground, though intended to do me honor, was always very painful : it made me feel thankful that my lot had been cast in such different circumstances from that of so many of my fellow-men. One of his wives accompanied him : she would have been comely if her teeth had been spared ; she had a little battle-axe in her hand, and helped her husband to scream. She was much excited, for she had never seen a white man before 1 THE WORLD 8 WONDERS. 320 ADVENTURE WITH THUEE BUFFALOES. One day, in passing through some thick trees and brush, Liv- ingstone and his men were surprised by the sudden appearance II St,,, . J. '-, '.,%. .. ,: ..,. /I yz 1 of three buffaloes, which had scented them, and imagining they were surrounded, dashed through the lines. Livingstone's ox 330 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. set off at a gallop, and when he could manage to glance back he saw one of the men up in the air about five feet above a buffalo, which was tearing along with a stream of blood running down his flank. The poor fellow alighted on his face, and though he had been carried on the horns of the buffalo about twenty yards before getting the final toss, the skin was not pierced nor was a bone broken. When the beasts appeared, he had thrown down his load and stabbed one in the side. It turned suddenly upon him, and before he could use a tree for defense, carried him off. His bruises were dressed, and in about a week he was able to perform his customary duties. COMPLETING THE JOURNEY. SHOOTING of elephants, rhinoceri, and hyenas was a daily occurrence, but no special incident took place until they reached Tete, which is on the Zambesi, about three hundred miles from the coast. Here Livingstone was greatly astonished to find a Portuguese fort and settlement, and his reception was of the most cordial character. The commandant provided every dainty that was procurable, and lodged his guest and his entire party in the best possible manner. After resting a few days a canoe was* obtained, and eight of the men accompanied Livingstone to Quilimane, on*the seacoast, paddling the canoe down the Zambesi. One of the men, old Sekwebu; had become so attached to his white friend that he begged to accompany him to England, and Livingstone finally consented, at the same time warning him that he might die if he went to so cold a country. " That is nothing," replied Sekwebu ; " let me die at your feet." They sailed on the brig " Frolic," and reached Mauritius on the 12th of August, 1856. Sekwebu was picking up English and 'becoming a favorite with both men and officers. He seemed a little bewildered, everything on board a man-of-war being so new and strange ; but he remarked to Livingstone several times, "Your countrymen are very agreeable," and "What a strange country this is all water together!" When they reached the Mauritius a steamer came out to tow them into the harbor. The MOULD'S WONDERS. 331 Constant strain on his untutored mind seemed now to reach a climax, for during the night he became insane. He had descended into a boat, and when Livingstone attempted to go down and bring him into the ship, he ran to the stern and said, " No ! no ! it is enough that I die alone. You must not perish ; if you cornel shall throw myself into the water." The officers pro- posed to secure him by putting him in irons ; but, being a gen- tleman in his own country, Livingstone objected, knowing that the insane often retain an impression of ill treatment, and he could not bear to have it said in Sekwebu's country that he had chained one of the principal men as they had seen slaves treated. In the evening a fresh accession of insanity occurred ; he tried to spear one of the crew, then leaped overboard, and, though he could swim well, pulled himself down hand under hand by the chain cable. They never found the body of poor Sekwebu. .LIVINGSTONE'S SECOND EXPEDITION CHAPTER XVHI. NOBLE PURPOSES OF A GREAT MAN. THE sixteen years which Livingstone had spent in Africa served to largely increase the spirit of adventure which first led him to renounce the influences of civilization for the barbarous regions of an unknown country. He was restless in England, and longed to return and continue the labors he had begun in Africa. He Tttfi WORLD'S woxofiftfl. longed to strike a death blow to the accursed slave trade, which at that time existed in nearly all parts of Africa, destroying happy families, debasing and degrading the people, and keeping up a constant state of alarm which rendered futile all efforts to civilize or Christianize the natives. He had witnessed happy domestic scenes in Africa, and the good of that people lay close to his great heart. THE WOULD g WUNDERS. 33o To give expression to his wishes he wrote several papers to the English Geographical Society, and proposed an expedition to the Zambesi, with the avowed double intention of promoting com- mercial intercourse with the interior natives and suppressing, as far as possible, the infamous slave-trade, which flourished throughout Africa to the disgrace of the civilized world. He also wished to make the Zambesi a highway by which commerce and Christianity could pass into the interior of the country. A considerable fund was raised, one gentleman contributing $5,000, to aid the expedition, which was organized and set sail on the 10th of March, 1858. Livingstone was accompanied by his wife, also his brother Charles, and Dr. Kirk, superintendent of the Kew Gardens, London. They embarked on the steamer Pearl, and carried with them a steam launch, in sections. Arriv- ing at the mouth of the Zambesi, the launch was put together, and in this an ascent of the river was begun. Owing to several sand-bars in the lower end of the Zambesi, after penetrating a few miles it was found that a lateral stream, named the Kongone, was more easily navigated, and into this the launch was turned. The banks of this stream, which is a branch of the Zambesi, were lined with a profusion of tropical growth, mangroves, screw-palms, and climbing plants, which imparted a most pictur- esque and charming view. LAUGHING RATS. ONE hundred miles from the Zambesi's mouth Livingstone discovered the river Shire, which was such a considerable stream that he ascended it several hundred miles, until he entered a large lake, to which he gave the name Nyassa. He coasted the lake a distance of nearly two hundred miles, and found it to be a basin into which a great portion of Central Africa is drained. He found the slave-trade flourishing here to a fearful extent, pro- moted by continual wars, in which all prisoners on either side were reduced to slavery. Criminals were also sold into slavery. From Lake Nyassa the expedition returned down the Shire to Vfazaro, where they camped two days, preparatory to following p the Zambesi. During this stop they were grievously annoyed 334 THE WORLD'S WONDERS.. by a singular species of rat, whose continual laughing was sorely perplexing and uncanny. They were so numerous that at night sleep was impossible, on account of their boldness in scampering over the men, and their loud, unceasing " he ! he ! he !" almost exactly like a human laugh. Any effort to get rid of them was certain to be followed by a most diabolical " he-he-iug," so weird as to be suggestive of the infernal regions, AMONG ELEPHANTS. LIVINGSTONE was now in the elephant country again, and every day there was some adventure with these animals. One morning the launch ran into a herd that was bathing in the river, and so frightened were they that'a young one was caught. Its screams attracted the dam, which came immediately to the rescue of her calf ; but ropes were thrown over the little one so quickly, while the vessel moved off rapidly, that she was left behind. The little fellow was brought on board and soon became quite friendly, but, unfortunately, one of the natives employed on the boat had cut its proboscis during the capture, from which it died after several days. On the same day a large female elephant was killed, and as it was then growing late a halt was made for the night. The ele- phant was cut up, a big fire lighted, and a royal feast began. Says Livingstone : " We had the elephant's forefoot cooked for ourselves in native fashion. A large hole was dug in the ground, in which a fire was made: and when the inside was thoroughly heated, the entire foot was placed in it, and covered over with the hot ashes and soil ; another fire was made above the whole, and kept burning all night. We had the foot thus cooked for breakfast next morning, and found it delicious. It is a whitish mas;;, slightly gelatinous, and sweet, like marrow. A long march, jto prevent biliousness, is a wise precaution after a meal of ele- phant's foot. Elephant's trunk and tongue are also good, and, after long simmering, much resemble the hump of a buffalo and the tongue of an ox; but all the other meat is tough and, from its peculiar flavor, only to be eaten by a hungry man. The quan- tities of meat our men devour is quite astounding. They boil as THE WORLD S WONDERS. 335 much as their pots will hold, and eat till it becomes physically impossible for them to stow away any more. An uproarious dance follows, accompanied with stentorian song ; and as soon as they have shaken their first course down, and washed off the s\teat and dust of the after performance, they go to work to roast more ; a short snatch of sleep succeeds, and they are up and at it again ; an night long it is boil and eat, roast and devour, with a few brief interludes of sleep. 336 THE WORLD'S WOXDEKS. The Portuguese had introduced rum into the country through which they were now traveling, in connection with the slave trade, and its painfully degrading effects were manifested among the people. One chief remarked that the white men were greatly favored by their God, who was so kind as to send them guns and powder from heaven, and to cause rivers of rum to flow ,through their country all the year round. He said he would like to live on the banks of such a river. WILD DOGS. THE expedition proceeded up the river above three hundred miles, to the head of navigation, and from thence by oxen, don- keys, and on foot to a place near Bazizulu, where there is a very dense jungle. Here the attention of Charles Livingstone was attracted by a ferocious yelping, like dogs fighting. Proceeding forward to locate the sound, he was astonished to behold a troop of dogs wrangling over the remains of a buffalo, which they had killed and nearly devoured. This was a strange sight, for wild dogs were not previously known. This singular animal has a large head and jaws of great power ; the ears are long, the color black and yellow in patches, with a white tuft at the tip of the tail. They hunt their game in packs, and perseveringly follow the animal they first start till they bring him down. The Balala of the Kalahari desert are said to have formerly tamed them and to have employed them to hunt. An intelligent native at Kolo- beng remembered when a boy to have seen a pack of the dogs returning from a hunt in charge of their masters, who drove them like a herd of goats, and for safety kept them in a pit. A HIPPOPOTAMUS ATTACKED BY ALLIGATORS. THE explorers continued their journey along the banks of tho Zambesi until the Zongwe river was reached, up which they went by canoes nearly fifty miles, then crossed the country to Victoria Falls. Being now in the Makololo country, Livingstone's first inquiries were for Sekeletu and the fate of the Mabotso mission. The report was most discouraging, for Sekeletu was fatally afflicted with leprosy and his power among the tribe whollv lost THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 337 by reason of his helpless condition, his people believing him to be bewitched. Mr. Helmore and his wife, who had succeeded Livingstone at the Mabotse mission, had both died of fever, and there was now scarcely a remembrance left of his labors among the Makololo tribe. There was nothing now to detain him in that country, as the fate of the mission destroyed all hope of any good coming from further Christian labors in that district ; so they visited Victoria Falls and then by canoe descended the rapids. We give a bird's- eye view of these wonderful falls on page 562, showing the very singular condensed and winding form of the river after its plunge down the precipice. This is one of the most remarkable curiosities of nature, even surpassing Niagara Falls or the won- ders of the Yellowstone region. While going down the stream, which is considered very dangerous, an old native offered his> services to pray for their safe passage for a small remuneration, which was, however, declined, and when the canoes safely descended through the chasm of boiling water, there was great surprise manifested by the natives. Upon reaching a flat place under the cliffs where an eddy was formed, a large herd of hip- popotami, thirty or more in number, were found sporting ; while a number of native boys were amusing themselves by pelting them with stones. The native canoemen were afraid to pass through the herd, declaring that there was a certain old bull who, from anger or viciousness, would attack canoes if run in among them. Livingstone, to frighten the animals, killed one, which floated off but was caught a short distance below. An effort was made to drag it from the water, but at this moment the huge car- cass was attacked by a dozen or more alligators, and despite the throwing of stones, shooting and shouting, the ferocious reptiles dragged the hippopotamus away and feasted upon it. Directly after this incident a fine water-buck was shot while drinking from the river ; the animal fell and was instantly seized by a crocodile, but being only wounded it regained its feet, though still held by the reptile, and for some minutes there was a dreadful contest. The water-buck got away, however, but as 338 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. it attempted to swim the stream, another crocodile seized it and dragged it under. A few nights afterward, while encamped on a small stream, they were aroused by a scream of anguish, and quickly running to the bank of the river, they found that a woman had been caught by a crocodile ; they seized a boat and pushed off to the rescue, but just as they were almost within reach of the unfor- tunate woman, she gave a fearful shriek : the horrid reptile had snapped off her leg at the knee. Mangled and fainting she was carried to the village and her limb bandaged, but she soon died. RETURN TO LAKE NYASSA. LIVINGSTONE journeyed about one hundred miles west of Vic- toria Falls, then retraced his steps, varying his route by a few short detours, to Lake Nyassa, which he desired to more fully explore. A considerable boat was constructed and ah effort made to cross the lake, but a storm arose and for six hours threatened their boat with destruction and forced them to return. The country lying north of the lake is mountainous, but well suited for agriculture, and occupied by a tribe of Zulus. These people own large herds of cattle and are constantly increasing in num- bers by annexing other tribes. Referring to this fact, Living- stone says : " Never before in Africa have we seen anything like the dense population on the shores of Lake Nyassa. In the southern part there was an almost unbroken chain of villages. On the beach of wellnigh every little sandy bay, dark crowds were standing, gazing at the novel sight of a boat under sail ; and wherever we landed we were surrounded in a few seconds by hundreds of men, women, and children, who hastened to have a stare at the chirombo ' (wild animals). To see the 'animals' feed was the greatest attraction ; never did the Zoological So- ciety's lions or monkeys draw more sight-seers than we did. Indeed, we equaled the hippopotamus on his first arrival among the civilized on the banks of the Thames. " How far is it to the end of the lake?' we inquired of an intelligent-looking native at the south part. * The other end of the lake!' he exclaimed, hi real or well-feigned astonishment ; THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 339 ' who ever heard of such a thing? Why, if one started when a mere boy to walk to the other end of the lake, he would be an old, gray-headed man before he got there. I never heard of such a thing being attempted.' ' This answer indicates how little the tribes of Central Africa travel. The end of the lake was not more than one hundred miles from the place where this ignorant native resided, and yet neither he nor any of his companions had any idea of the dis- tance, having lived and fished all their lives in one place. DEATH OF MRS. LIVINGSTONE. LIVINGSTONE'S exploration of the lake extended from Septem- ber 2 to October 27, 1861, when, having expended or lost most of his goods, it was necessary to go back to the ship. He did not return again to the lake, but established several missions and devoted himself to freeing slaves, being now in a country where slavery appeared to be the principal occupation of the natives. There was incessant war, one tribe preying upon another, cap- turing and selling, massacreing and burning, until barbarity could go no further. Fever broke out among the party on board the vessel, and became exceedingly virulent and obstinate. About the middle of April Mrs. Livingstone was prostrated by this dis- ease ; and it was accompanied by obstinate vomiting. Nothing is yet known that can allay this distressing symptom, which of course renders medicine of no avail, as it is instantly rejected. She received whatever medical aid could be rendered from Dr. Kirk, but became unconscious, and her eyes were closed in the sleep i)f death as the sun set on the evening of the Christian Sabbath, the 27th of April, 1862. A coffin was made during the night, a grave was dug next day under the branches of the great baobab-tree, and with sympathizing hearts the little band of his countrymen assisted the bereaved husband in burying his dead. At his request, the Rev. James Stewart read the burial service ; and the seamen kindly volunteered to mount guard for some nights at the spot where her body rests in hope. Those who are not aware how this brave, good English wife made a delightful home at Kolobeng, a thousand miles inland from the Cape, and 340 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. as the daughter of Moffat and a Christian lady exercised most beneficial influence over the rude tribes of the interior, may wonder that she should have braved the dangers and toils of this down-trodden land. She knew them all, and, in the disinterested and dutiful attempt to renew her labors, was called to her rest instead. EXPLORATION OF THE ROVUMA RIVER. IT was Livingstone's intention to launch a steam vessel on Lake Nyassa, and he had one built for this purpose, but when ready the Shire river had fallen so low that the attempt had to be aban- doned. Learning from some natives that the Eovuma river had its source in Lake Nyassa, he determined to explore that stream. So preparations were made for a final departure from the Zam- besi. Upon reaching the mouth of the Rovuma, they found the stream too shallow to admit anything but small, flat-bottomed crafts, which, fortunately, they had brought with them. In three light-draught sail-boats they began an ascent of the river. There was a fertile valley reaching several miles on each side near the mouth, but as they proceeded inland, hills arose, until at several places the river ran zig-z;ig through a deep cut which was almost like piercing a mountain. There was an utter absence of game and the natives were far from friendly. While passing by an island, several natives appeared armed with bows and muskets and demanded toll ; a long parley ensued in which Livingstone understood that he would have to either pay toll or fight ; he paid the toll, thirty pieces of cloth, but had proceeded less than a mile when another party attacked the boats ; bullets fairly riddled the sails, but a few well-directed volleys from the boats dispersed the enemy with some loss. I The expedition ascended a distance of one hundred and fifty- six miles, and then found the river so narrow and obstructed by dangerous cataracts, that it was necessary to return, much to their disappointment, as they had not gained any particularly valuable information concerning its source. Crocodiles are scarce in the Rovuma, on account of being hunted so persistently by tbe natives, who relish their meat * English do roast beef, while THE WORLD'S WOSTDERS. 341 crocodile eggs are considered even more delicious, tasting some- thing like hen's eggs, with a slight flavor of custard. There is only one other animal whose habitat is near the Ro- vuma that the natives make any show of hunting, viz : the seuze, which in size equals our domestic cat, but in shape somewhat resembles a pig or peccari. It keeps from sight in dense reeds, where it feeds on succulent young vegetable growths, and perhaps also on snakes and toads. The natives set fire to the reeds dur- ing the dry season, and as the seuze rush out to escape a scorch- ing they are speared or shot in great numbers. TERRIBLE EFFECTS OF SLAVERY. THEY now descended the Rovuma to their large vessel, and returned to the Zambesi, hoping that by this time the Shire river would be navigable for the steam launch. While proceeding up the Zambesi several natives were employed as sailors, and thou- sands offered their services for a few pieces of cloth. Owing to a severe drought in the country between Luputa and Kebrabosa, the people were driven to the woods by hunger, where they were subsisting on such wild fruits as the country afforded. Game was abundant, but the natives are such poor hunters that they cannot depend upon it. The Shire river having risen so as to promise successful navi- gation, on January 10, 1863, they departed from Shupanga. They had scarcely got well into the river before .they became wit- nesses of the dreadful atrocities being then perpetrated by a chief named Mariano. He was a Portuguese slave-agent, and had invaded the country, capturing slaves, burning villages, killing and robbing the people. Says Lfvingstone : "Dead bodies floated past us daily, and in the mornings the paddles had to be cleared of corpses, caught by the floats during the night. For scores of miles the entire population of the valley was swept away by this scourge, Mariano. The sight and smell of dead bodies was everywhere. Many skeletons lay beside the path, where in their weakness they had fallen and expired. The corpse of a boy floated past the ship ; a monstrous crocodile rushed at it with the speed of a greyhound, caught it, and shook 342 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. it as a terrier does a rat. Others dashed at the prey, each with his powerful tail churning the water into froth as ho furiously tore off a piece. In a few seconds it was all gone. The sight was fearful to behold." So numerous were the reptiles that Livingstone counted sixty. seven lying on a single bank. One of the men, in reaching down to dip up a cup of water, was seized, but fortunately he grasped a tree branch and held fast, while the ferocious reptile tugged desperately to drag him into the water. The crocodile did not release its hold until it had terribly gashed and lacerated the man's hand. The little steamer was taken by water within thirty-five miles of Lake Nyassa, and there she was taken apart, having been constructed in sections so as to be portable. It was neces- sary, however, to cut a road through the intervening forests, which required great labor and patience, so many trees having to be felled and stones removed. The object of placing this boat on the lake was to use her as a corvette in breaking up the slave- trade, and carrying ivory, and in opening up a commercial route to the sea by way of the Rovuma river. The vessel was carted half the distance, when Dr. Kirk and Charles Livingstone became so ill from dysentery that they were compelled to abandon the expedition and return to England ; Dr. Livingstone was also attacked and reduced to a mere skeleton. In addition to these troubles, the lack of food was seriously felt, and a number of the carriers deserted. Against all these annoyances Livingstone struggled, but he found, as the road became more difficult, that it would be impossible to convey the boat to the lake, and rather than lose her by the desertion of his carriers, he had the vessel carried back and floated in the Shire. He could not endure the idea of returning without seeing more of the lake, and he therefore left a dozen of his party in charge of the vessel while, with twice as many more, he went on to the lake and followed its banks until within sight of the head waters, which were very shallow. He noted many small streams on the left bank flowing into the lake, but no considerable river. He remained in the vicinity. THE WORLD'S WONDERS* 343 Speaking of the results of his second expedition, Livingstone says : " We opened a cotton-field, which, taking in the Shire and Lake Nyassa, was 400 miles in length. We had gained the con- fidence of the people wherever we had gone ; and a new era had commenced in a region much larger than the cotton-fields of the Southern States of America." His hopes for the future of that country, however, were not fulfilled, and it is yet almost as wild and barbarous as when he visited it, the curse of slave-hunting seeming to rest upon it from generation to generation. LIVINGSTONE'S THIRD EXPEDITION. CHAPTER XIX. SEARCH FOR THE NILE'S SOURCE. SOON after his return from Africa, in '1864, Livingstone was apprised of the results of Speke and Grant's discoveries, and upon reading their journals was impressed with a belief that they had not found the true source of the Nile, which he thought must be in a chain of lakes lying south of Victoria N'Yanza. Revolv- ing the matter much in his own mind, he soon concluded to visit Africa for the third time, to test the claims put forth by Speke and Grant and to make other explorations. It chanced that at this time the government of India desired to present to the Sultan of Zanzibar the steamer Thule, which had 344 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. belonged to Captain Osborne's Chinese fleet, but was no longer required in that service. Dr. Livingstone was commissioned to make the formal presentation, and just previous to his departure, Sir Bartle Frere gave him a note to the Sultan, warmly com- mending him to his Excellency and begging the favor that the distinguished traveler might be assisted in making a journey into Central Africa. With these advantages he set sail for Zanzibar in the steamer Thule and after a voyage of twenty-three days from Bombay, landed his vessel January 23, 1866, and reported to the Sultan who was representing the Arabian government. Dr v . Livingstone was cordially received by the Sultan, and also by Dr. Seward, acting British consul at Zanzibar. The presen- tation of the steamer was made according to the terms of his commission, before a gathering of English officers from the steamers Wasp and Vigilant, which were lying off the port, and so pleased was the Sultan that he not only was ready to fulfill the request of Sir Bartle Frere, but his kindness went so far as to 'offer Livingstone a vessel, crew and provisions, and to give him any protection which the Arabic arms could afford. A stay of nearly two months was made at Zanzibar, outfitting and perfecting details for the contemplated march, Livingstone being provided with a handsome house in the meantime and his desires carefully attended to. On March 18th he arranged witl. a Banian who farmed the custom-house revenue, to send a sup- ply of beads, cloth, flour, tea, coffee and sugar to Ujiji, on Lake Tanganika, with a man to remain in charge of the goods on their arrival. Ujiji was made a principal base for supplies, and the first journey was therefore directed toward that place. The steamer Penguin was placed at his disposal, and on March 19th he set sail for the Rovuma river. On the following day the river was reached, where a dhoW (a coasting vessel of East Africa) was in waiting to receive the animals which Livingstone took with him for riding and as beasts of burden ; these com- prised six camels, three buffaloes and a calf, two mules and four donkeys. The men in his company consisted of thirteen Sepoys, ten Johanna men, nine Nassick boys, two Shupanga men, and THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 345 others, members of interior tribes, making forty in all. Several of these had accompanied Livingstone on his second journey, and were of the greatest service to him. LANDING THE ANIMALS. OWING to shallow water and extremely miry banks he found it quite impossible to land his animals at the Rovuma, and had to search for a safer spot, which, he at length found at Mikindamy Bay, which lies twenty-five miles north of Rovuma. The animals were so badly bruised by being tossed about in the dhow, that a rest was necessary before starting for the interior. Twenty natives were engaged here to carry some of the burdens, and saddles were made for the camels and donkeys. During this delay a buffalo gored one of the donkeys so badly that it had to be shot, which was a loss much to be deplored, as no other animal is so well suited for carrying purposes in Africa. It was not until April 6th that the expedition started for the interior along the Rovuma valley. BURNING A LEOPARD. ON the 23d they passed a spot where, on the previous night, a leopard had been burned. Upon questioning the natives, Liv- ingstone found that it was the custom to burn the bodies of leopards that are killed, but to preserve the skins. The reason which they gave for not eating the flesh, as nearly all other tribes do, is that the leopard devours men ; this shows the opposite of an inclination to cannibalism. Upon reaching the Makoa country, a queer people were met with, quite unlike those of any tribe toward the south. The men have their faces thickly tattooed in double raised lines of about half an inch in length. After the incisions are made char- coal is rubbed in and the flesh pressed out, so that all the cuts are raised above the level of the surface. The women are gen- erally tall and well-made, with fine limbs and feet, and are pro- fusely tattooed all over ; even the hips and buttock are elaborately marked, no shame being felt at an exposure of those parts. 34(5 WORLD'S WONDERS. TERRIBLE COMBAT WITH A LEOPARD. ON May 21st, while they were encamped, a leopard slipped in among the tents and caught a little dog which Livingstone had brought with him. Its yelps and agonizing cries awakened him, and hto rushed out0f his tent in time to catch a glimpse of the retreating leopard as it made off with the dog. Mentioning the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 347 incident at the next village, winch was near, the natives related an adventure which some of them had had with perhaps the same leopard on that day. Having lost many of their goats and calves by wild animals, a spring-gun was set by the natives, near which a small goat was tied so that any attempt to seize the goat would fire the gun. After waiting several hours, five of the natives went to see the result, but as they approached, one of them, being in advance, was attacked by a large leopard that leaped upon his shoulder and with the utmost ferocity began to tear him with its huge claws. The suddenness of the attack prevented him from using his spear, and he would have been torn to pieces in a moment except for the assistance of his comrades, who, hearing his agonized screams, ran to his assistance, and after a terrible battle, in which several of them were wounded, they suc- ceeded in dispatching the brute with their spears. It was one of the largest of its species, and being pressed with hunger, was doubtless in the act of springing upon the decoy goat when the man appeared, and it at once directed its fury against him. The men who had slain the leopard had suddenly become heroes in the eyes of their countrymen, and the lofty manner in which they strutted about showed how much they appreciated their honors. STRANGE CUSTOMS. THE cattle of Africa are like the Indian buffalo, only partially tamed ; they never give their milk without the presence of the calf , or its stuffed skin, the "fulchan." The women adjacent to Mozambique partake a little of the wild animal's nature ; for, like most members of the inferior races of animals, they refuse all intercourse with their husbands when enceinte, and they con- tinue this for about three years afterward, or until the child is \veaned, which usually happens about the third year. Living- stone was told, on most respectable authority, that many fine young native men marry one wife, and live happily with her till this period ; nothing will then induce her tocontinue to cohabit with him ; and as the separation is to continue for three years, the m an is almost compelled to take up with another wife : this 348 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. was mentioned as one of the great evils of society. The same absurdity prevails on the West Coast, and there it is said that the men acquiesce from ideas of purity. The beasts o burden which had been bitten by the tsetse fly, continued to droop and die, while one of the camels was beaten to death by the Sepoys, who proved to be the most worthless and irresponsible people Livingstone had ever met with. Their con- duct was so bad, and they were so lazy and worthless, that he $vas finally obliged to discharge and send them back. HORRIBLE SCENES. THEY were now Hearing Lake Nyassa, a fact which became evident from the number of slave parties that were met on the route, whose tallow marks showed that they came from the region of the Lake. Livingstone's journal shows the following entry on June 19th : " We passed a woman tied by the neck to a tree, and dead. The people of the country explained that she had been unable to keep up with the other slaves in a gang, and her master had determined that she should not become the property of any one else if she recovered after resting for a time. I may mention here that we saw others tied up in a similar manner, and one lying in the path shot or stabbed, for she was in a pool of blood. The explanation we got invariably was that the Arab who owned these victims was enraged at losing his money by the slaves becoming unable to march, and vented his spleen by mur- dering them. A poor little boy with prolapsus ani was carried yesterday by his mother many a weary mile, lying over her right shoulder the only position he could find ease in ; an infant at the breast occupied the left arm, and on her head were carried, two baskets. The mother's love was seen in binding up the part when we halted, while the coarseness of low civilization was evinced in the laugh with which some black brutes looked at the sufferer." HABITS OF THE NATIVES. THE natives about Metaba are more intelligent than those found farther east on the Rovuma, and their appearance is not at all THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 349 displeasing. Stone boiling is unknown in their country, but ovens are made in ant-hills. Holes are dug in the ground for baking large heads of game, such as of zebras, the feet of ele- phants, and humps of the rhinoceros. In the production of fire they use two sticks, which are usually carried with them, one of which has a hole through the center. They wet the blunt end of the upright stick with the tongue and dip it in the sand to cause some particles of silica to adhere before inserting it in the hori- zontal piece, which they then rub briskly. The wood of a cer- tain wild fig-tree is esteemed as yielding fire readily. In wet weather they usually carry fire in the dried balls of elephant's dung. The country is generally beautiful, but the curse of slave- trading had blighted it until at the time Livingstone passed through, famine and starvation were rife ; skeletons by the way- side, and slaves in galling yokes dying for want of food. He mentions having met with a number of slaves, all yoked together, that had been abandoned by their captors to die of starvation ; some of them were already in an unconscious condition from want of food, and others barely able to raise their heads from the ground. It was a shocking sight, but only one of a thousand such. CARRIED OFF BY A LION AND A CROCODILE. LIVINGSTONE reached Lake Nyassa at the confluence of the Misinje on August 8th, having surmounted many obstacles, not the least of which was a distressing scarcity of food. He passed around the south end of the Lake and was most hospitably en- tertained at all the villages. So dense is the population that there is a succession of villages with scarcely any break or line of sep- aration between them. At a village called Mponda he found an Arab party with nearly eight hundred slaves confined in a pen made of dura stalks ; nearly all of them were in the taming stick except the boys, who were tied together by a thong passing round their necks. Livingstone remained two days at Mponda ; on the morning of the second day a woman was found in a bush by the village who 350 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. had been killed by a lion and more than one-half eaten. It is n common occurrence for women and children to be carried off by lions in this vicinity, the beasts being much encouraged in their attacks bj the cowardice of the na{iyes, who never hunt them. Two days later a native drank so much beer that he went to sleep near the edge of the lake and was seized by a crocodile and car- tried off. A great wail was raised by his wives, of which he pos- sessed twenty, and this was kept up for several days. AFRICAN IRON FURNACES. THE people about the lake are much engaged in iron working, though their furnaces and smithies are extremely crude. There is an abundance of iron ore in the district, but it is not rich. Livingstone watched a founder Drawing off slag from the bottom of a furnace, which process he describes in the following manner : " He broke through the hardened slag by striking it with an iron instrument inserted in the end of a pole, when the material flowed out of the small hole left for the purpose in the bottom of the furnace. The ore (probably the black oxide) was like sand, and was put in at the top of the furnace, mixed with charcoal. Only one bellows was at work, formed out of a goat-skin, and the blast was very poor. Many of these furnaces, or their re- mains, are met with on knolls ; those at work have a peculiar!} tall hut built over them." Hoes and spears are the articles chiefly manufactured, the for- mer being generally supplied with two handles so that it may be worked by two persons at the same time. The people are good- looking and friendly. They do not commonly wear the lip-ring, but submit to what must be keen torture, in ornamenting thc-ir arms, which are covered with large, ridge scars, lattice shaped, extending also to the back and shoulders, which are produced by deep gashing, the wounds being afterward irritated to prevent quick healing. INHUMANITY AND SUPERSTITION. THE people who live about the northern shores of the lake, while friendly and in a measure industrious, are most inhuman THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 351 and superstitious. They usually have a store-house in some large hill, where grain is kept but not touched except in case of war ; over this store-house they place a cow, which occupies a shed on the summit of the hill ; the people believe that this cow will in- dicate, by lowing, when an enemy is near, and will bring good influences in case of war. Their inhumanity extends to selling their own people, and even their children. Livingstone, upon 352 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. remonstrating with an old chief for selling his subjects to the Portuguese and Arabs for slaves, was astonished at the reply, " Oh, I have too many people, they cause me trouble, and I will be better off without them." The helpless children of a mother who dies are left to the mer- cies of nature only, as no one will care for another's child, except, sometimes, a near relative. Livingstone mentions seeing a little child in a village crying and calling its dead mother ; those who heard it as they passed by, would say, " She is coming,*' but no one would give it food or shelter, and death from starvation soon relieved the little sufferer. THE HONEY-BIRD. LIVINGSTONE left the banks of Nyassa in November, and took a course northwest, which led through dense forests, where game was plentiful but very difficult to come at. Nyassa is 2,600 feet above sea level, but toward the west the elevation increases to 2,800 feet, and in fifty miles there is a descent into a large valley of surpassing fertility. The people west of the lake were almost continually at war, and in consequence provisions could not be purchased at any price. At one time Livingstone was positively in fear of starving, being reduced to the most desperate straits. Fortunately, he encountered some bee-hunters, who were using the honey-bird as a guide. The bird came quietly with them, and patiently waited on the limb of a tree while the hunters sat for half an hour smoking and chatting with Livingstone's men. This extraordinary bird flies from tree to tree in front of the hunter, chirruping loudly, and will not be content till he arrives at the spot where the bees'-nest is ; it then waits quietly till the honey is taken, and feeds on the broken morsels of comb which fall to its share. Livingstone followed the bird a mile or more, and was rewarded with a rich store of honey, enough to appease the hunger of his men for two days, and until they reached a village, where an elephant had recently been killed, and a small quantity of its dried flesh was purchased. THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 353 DANGER FROM SERPENTS. As food was scarce in all the villages, Livingstone could not stop in any of them, but pushed on where everything appeared distressingly gloomy. On January 1, 1867, he had reached the Chambeze river, but now the rains set in, and ten miles a day was all that could be made, as rank grass obscured the paths, and even the guides had to depend upon the configuration of the country. Snakes were numerous, and there was an ever-present danger lurking in the grass. One morning Livingstone sat down by a tree, and accidentally glancing down by his side saw a large cobra, and a little further off a puff-adder, both of which, how- ever, were somewhat benumbed by the cold. FAMINE AND A SERIOUS LOSS. RAIN and hunger now united to stay further progress, and a less resolute man must have succumbed to these deperate obsta- cles. On the 20th of January the most serious loss that Living- stone could sustain befel him : Two Waiyan carriers, who had served most faithfully for several weeks, deserted, carrying with them, among other things, the medicine chest; they took also all the dishes, a large powder-box, two guns, a cartridge-pouch, and all the tools ; these latter, though of inestimable value in such a country, could be dispensed with, but in the medicine chest lay all the hope and possibility of the expedition, for no constitution can withstand the malarial exhalations of tropical Africa unaided by that fever specific, quinine Livingstone says : " I felt as if I had now received the sentence of death." MEETING WITH CHIEF CHITAPANGWA. LIVINGSTONE came upon a small stream called the Lopiri, a branch of the Chambeze, on the last day of January, and follow- ing it down some distance he entered a village over which Chita- pangwa, sometimes called Motoka, was ruler. Fish were very plentiful in the Lopiri, and this fact mainly induced Livingstone to make a short stay in the village, where he supposed food must be procurable. Entering the place he was gladdened by the sight of a party of Arabs, who were upon the point of going 354 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. to Zanzibar for supplies. He sent by these men for coffee, candles, sugar, quinine, calomel, resin of jalap, and some other things, to be forwarded to TJjiji, but only with a slight hope that the articles would reach him, as the Arabs were unfriendly to Livingstone's purposes. Chitapangwa, who was a great chief among his people, was not long in seeking an audience with his white guest, whose goods he appeared very anxious to inspect. The first meeting was a very friendly one, during which Chitapangwa gave Livingstone a large cow, and begged him to remain several days in his country. On the following day, however, when the cow was about to be slaughtered, one of the chief's head men objected, saying that a blanket must first be given ; as Livingstone had no blanket that he could spare, a long palaver took place, which resulted in the cow being sent back, and Livingstone's party had either to fast or eat dried hippopotamus meat, that was anything but appetizing. At his next audience with the chief, Livingstone declared his intention to go a little way east to buy goats, but at this Chita- paugwa appeared angry, and said that he would give the cow first offered, which was finally brought and slaughtered. Chita- pangwa was a singular creature, so jolly in his intercourse and full of good promises, but provokingly chary about fulfilling them. He wanted cloths, which were given to the value of two or three cows ; but he still demanded a blanket, and was so per- sistent that he refused Livingstone permission to depart until a well-worn blanket belonging to one of the men was given him. He had an idea that Livingstone's purpose in visiting his country was for individual gain, and upon being assured that there was no selfish object connected with the expedition, he pulled down -the underlid of his eye exactly like some of our precocious lads Iwhen they ask, " Do you see anything green in my eye?" Liv- ingstone finally obtained the confidence and good-will of the chief, who then declared that he had given the cow in the first place as an evidence of his friendship ; that he had instructed his head man to ask for a blanket, but in case this was refused to give the cow anyhow, and beg the white man to send any THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 355 pretty thing which he might have. This explanation Livingstone, of course, had to accept, though he knew it to be a falsehood. He remained three weeks, and on taking leave Chitapangwa gave him a brass knife with ivory sheath, and sent some of his men to accompany him and show the way to Lake Tanganika, which was nearly two hundred miles distant. ARRIVAL AT LAKE TANGANIKA. THE country was somewhat more open on the route north than that which Livingstone had pasr.ed through to reach Chitapangwa's village, but food continued scarce. At Moamba, a village about twenty miles north of Chitapangwa's, and ruled over by that chief's brother, Livingstone was well received and provided with meat and guides, much to his surprise, for it had been repre- sented that here he would meet with hostility. Upon leaving this place food again became scarce, and to add to his troubles he was attacked with fever. Wearied, sick and hungry, he still con- tinued his journey, sustained wholly by his wonderful will power ; and on March 31st he came in sight of Lake Tanganika. So mountainous are its shores, that from the point where he first observed the lake he had to descend two thousand feet before reaching the level of the water. It seemed about twenty miles broad, and in the view of thirty miles northward he could see four different rivers pouring their waters into it. After.a fort- night's stay on the lake Livingstone writes of it as follows : "Its peacefulness is remarkable, though at times it is said to be lashed up by storms. It lies in a deep basin, whose sides are nearly perpendicular, but covered well with trees; the rocks which appear are bright-red argillaceous schist; the trees at present all green : down some of these rocks come beautiful cas- cades, and buffaloes, elephants, and antelopes wander and graze on the more level spots, while lions roar by night. The level place below is not two miles from the perpendicular. The village (Pambete), at which we first touched the lake, is surrounded by palm-oil-trees not the stunted ones of Lake Nyassa, but the real West Coast palm-oil-tree, requiring two men to carry a bunch of the ripe fruit. In the morning and evening huge crocodiles 356 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. may be observed quietly making their way to their grounds ; hippopotami snort by night and at early morning." THE LAKE PEOPLE. THE Balungu people, who inhabit the south shores of the lake, are exceedingly affable, and would be superior subjects for the civilizing influences of missionaries, were it not for their cowardice and laziness. The Mazitu tribe attack theiri very often, and take their women and children captives without meeting any resist- ance. Their politeness, however, is remarkable ; in marching with them they labor incessantly to promote the comfort of strangers, and bow and salute on every occasion, like the most fastidious Frenchman. There is nothing interesting in a heathen town. All are busy in preparing food or clothing, mats or baskets, while the women are cleaning or grinding their corn, which involves much hard labor. They first dry this in the sun, then put it into a mortar, and afterward with a flat basket clean off the husks and the dust, and grind it between two stones ; the next thing is to bring wood and water to cook it. The mode of salutation among relatives is to place the hands round each other's chests, kneeling; they then clasp their hands close to the ground. Some more abject individuals kiss the soil before a chief ; the generality kneel only, with the forearms close to the ground, and the head bowed down to them, saying, " O Ajadla chiusa, Mari a bwino." The Usanga say, "Aje senga." The clapping of hands to superiors, and even equals, is in some villages a perpetually-recurring sound. Aged persons are usually saluted : how this extreme deference to each other could have arisen cannot be conceived; it does not seem to be fear of one another that elicits it. Even the chiefs {inspire no fear, and those cruel old platitudes about governing savages by fear seem unknown, yet governed they certainly are, and upon the whole very well. A WEDDING IN AFRICA. LIVINGSTONE'S intention was to pass along the lake coast, but from this purpose he was persuaded by a report that a powerful THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 357 chief, named Nsama, was at war with the Arabs under Hamees, and that between these two he would be certain to fall into diffi- culty. To evade these hostile people, he turned southwest, intending to make a circuit back to the lake. The country through which he was now traveling was very fertile, and the food supply of every village was abundant ; but this lasted for 358 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. u distance of only fifty miles, when it was necessary, in making a detour, to pass through the village of Hara, in the Itawa country, which had recently been burned by Hamees ; here they were so near Nsama that he heard of Livingstone's being in his vicinity, and sent for him to visit him at his new stockade, about five miles from Hara, but to bring no guns. Livingstone com- plied with the request, and was received becomingly, except that the chief insisted on searching his person to see if any arms were concealed. The Arabs had defeated him in a desperate battle, and though previously Nsama had been regarded as invincible, now his influence was almost destroyed. Yet, for commercial purposes, Hamees desired to make peace with him, and came to Hara to cement the friendship by marrying one of his daughters. The proposal was not readily acceded to, and the people were sorely concerned as to the outcome. In the midst of these doubts, however, a daughter of Nsama came riding piok-a-pack on a man's shoulder into Hara, to be a wife and sacrifice herself for the sake of peace. She was a nice, modest, good-looking young woman, her hair rubbed all over with grease and a red pigment made from the cam-wood, and much used as an orna- ment. She was accompanied by a dozen young and old female attendants, each carrying a small basket with some provisions cassava, ground-nuts, etc. The Arabs were all dressed in their finery, and the slaves, in fantastic costumes, flourished swords, fired guns, and yelled vociferously. When she was brought to Hamees' hut she descended from her perch, and with her maids passed in at the door. She and her attendants had all small, neat features. Livingstone had been sitting beside Hamees, and as he got up and walked away he heard the Abrab chief say to himself, " Hamee wadini Tagh I " "See to what you have brought yourself." This completed the marriage ceremony. Nsama's people have generally small, well-chiseled features, and many are really handsome, and have nothing of the. West Coast Negro about them ; but they file thtir teeth to sharp points, and greatly disfigure their mouths. The only difference between them and Europeans is the color. Many of the men have very THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 359 finely-formed heads, and so have the women ; and the fashion of wearing the hair sets off their foreheads to advantage. The forehead is shaved off to the crown, the space narrowing as it goes up. THE VILLAGE OF CASEMBE. DURING his stay at Hara, which was really enforced by pro- tracted rains, Livingstone gained the friendship of Hamees, and when ne left the village on the 22d of September, he was accom-/ panied by several Arabs, while Hamees followed a short distance, and then supplied guides to take him to Lake Moero. The journey thence was through a beautiful country, very thickly populated, but the natives were so terror-stricken at the sight of guns, owing to the recent Arab incursions and battles, that they would not stop to barter, but ran off and hid themselves ; thus food was somewhat difficult to obtain ; fortunately, however, a considerable amount was brought along. Beaching the Kalongi river the natives were more friendly dis- posed, and as the river teemed with fish, there was feast succeed- ing a famine. Rapid progress was now made, and on November 1st the village of Casembe was entered, to the great delight of the tired travelers. Casembe is a term applied to both village and governor, or, literally, General. Just before Livingstone's arrival there had been an interregnum in the rulership, the old Casembe having recently died. As the son or heir does not suc- ceed to the chieftainship, the village was without a ruler for nearly a year before a new Casembe was selected to succeed the dead chief. The plain extending from the Lunde river to Casembe is level, and studded thickly with red-ant hills, from fifteen to twenty feet high. The chief's residence is inclosed in a wall of reeds, eight or nine feet high and three hundred yards square ; the gateway is ornamented with about sixty human skulls ; a shed stands in the middle of the road fronting the gate, under which is a cannon ornamented with gaudy cloth. A number of noisy fellows tried to stop Livingstone and his party and compel them to pay a tribute for the cannon, but they burst through without 360 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. regarding the demand. Mohamid bin Saleh, the Arab leader at this place, met Livingstone and gave him a reception by firing guns, then ledjiis party to a large shed for further ceremonies, such as bowing, firing salutes, rubbing elbows, etc. After this a large hut was given Livingstone for his residence until others could be built. The town is a headquarters for the Arab slave- trade, and there is a very large stockade for slaves, which Liv- ingstone found full. Many of the Casembe people appeared with their ears cropped and hands lopped off. Upon inquiring the cause, Livingstone was told that it was the practice of the Casembe to mutilate his subjects for petty offenses, and sometimes merely to gratify his barbarous inclination. AFRICAN POMP AND SPLENDOR. THE third day after his arrival, Livingstone was tendered a reception by the Casembe, who was seated in grea^t state in front of his council chamber, while his principal chiefs squatted on the ground around him. A " tom-toming " was kept up by two musicians on native drums, while Casembe's wives danced up to Livingstone with small branches of trees in their hands, with which they swept the ground as they bowed before him. One of the principal officers was instructed to present the white guest with an elephant's tusk, as an evidence of the great esteem with which he was regarded. The affair was one of the most stately that Livingstone had ever witnessed in Africa, and he describes the incident and the people at some length. "The present Casembe," says Livingstone, "has a heavy, uninteresting countenance, without beard or whiskers, and some- what of the Chinese type, and his eyes have an outward squint. He smiled but once during the day, and that was pleasant enough, though the cropped ears and lopped hands, with human skulls at the gate, made me indisposed to look on anything with favor. His principal wife came with her attendants, after he had de- parted, to look at the Englishman (Moengerese). She was afine, tall, good-featured lady, with two spears in her hand. The prin- cipal men who had come around made way for her, and called on THE WORLD 8 WONDERS-. 361 me to salute ; I did so ; but she, being forty yards off, I invol- untary beckoned her to come nearer : this upset the gravity of all her attendants : all burst into a laugh, and ran off. "Casembe's smile was elicited by a dwarf making some un- couth antics before him. His executioner also came forward to look: he had a broad Lunda sword on his arm, and a curious 362 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. scissor-like instrument at his neck for cropping ears. On saying to him that his was nasty work, he smiled, and so did many who were not sure of their ears a moment ; many men of respecta- bility show that at some former time they have been thus pun- ished. Casembe's chief wife passes frequently to her plantation, carried by six, or more commonly by twelve, men in a sort of palanquin : she has European features, but light-brown complex- ion. A number of men run before her, brandishing swords and battle-axes, and one beats a hollow instrument, giving warning to passengers to clear the way ; she has two enormous pipes ready filled for smoking. She is very attentive to her agriculture ; cassava is the chief product, but they also raise sweet-potatoes, maize, sorghum, millet, ground nuts and cotton. The people seem more savage than any I have yet seen ; they strike each other barbarously from mere wantonness, but they are civil enough to me." THE TROGLODYTES. LIVINGSTONE took leave of Casembe on December 22d, and on January 1st, after a severe journey through dreadful bogs, reached Moero Lake, which lies in a basin surrounded by the Rua Mountains. Its shape is almost circular, wit't a diameter of about fifty miles. Numerous villages line its shores, and large game, such as buffaloes, elephants, zebras, lions and leopards, abound. In the vicinity of Moero are found that singular race or species known as Troglodytes, which, like the bat, are impossible of classification. They live in under-ground houses along the Rua Mountain sides for twenty miles or so. In some cases the door- ways are level with the adjacent country, while a ladder is used in reaching others. Generally, these habitations are caves, a singularly large number of which are found in the Rua Mountains, but not a few are artificial excavations. Livingstone had left Casembe with the assurance of his guides, that they should reach Ujiji within a month, but the rains wer& so incessant that traveling was nearly impossible for several months, and necessitated a stay in the vicinity of Lttt WONDE&S. and Casembe for nearly four months. During this time, how- ever, he was not entirely idle, but went from village to village as far as the floods would permit. At a small place, called Mofwe, he found an Arab digging and fencing up a well, to prevent his slaves from being taken away by crocodiles ; this precaution was not thought of until after he had lost three slaves. The coun- try, being almost covered with water, was badly infested by crocodiles ; while the wild animals were driven from their accus- WILD ANIMALS DRIVEN TO HIGH GROUND BY THE FLOODS. tomed haunts and forced to seek refuge on hills, knolls, and other high places. Their terror seemed to rob them of their fierce propensities and natural instincts, and lions, hyenas, leopards, antelopes, monkeys, and other animals were often seen huddled close together in small dry spots, without any attempt of the strong and ferocious to attack the weak and defenceless. Such scenes were very remarkable and made Livingstone think of the time when " the lion and + u lamb shall lie down together." 364 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. CHAPTER XX. PUNISHMENT FOR UNFAITHFULNESS* IT was not until the first of June that the floods had subsided sufficiently to admit of a resumption of the journey, which was now to be directed toward Lake Bangweolo, of which Living- stone had heard much. As he was upon the point of leaving Casembe, he was struck by the sight of a sub-chief's wife, who was uncommonly good-looking, in a slave chain-gang. Enquiry elicited the fact that she had been sold for unfaithfulness ; her husband, Kapika, was an old man, while she was both youthful and pretty ; her offense, therefore, was but the counterfeit of what we frequently see among civilized people who are similarly mis-mated. The case of the chieftainess excited great sympathy among the people ; many brought her food, and one man offered to redeem her with three slaves. The matter was finally brought before Casembe, but this chief, owing to the fact that he himself was an old man having a pretty young wife, declared that ten slaves could not redeem the faithless woman. He pronounced this judgment with a scowl and looked at his own wife at the same time. On the sixth day after leaving Casembe, a small party of na- tives was met, carrying a dead lion slung across a pole. The lion had killed a man and it was being taken to Casembe for judgment ; its mouth was carefully strapped and the paws tied tightly across its chest. Some of the lions of this district stand more than five feet high, and are nearly as large as a buffalo. JOY AMONG SLAVES. ONE day Livingstone met a gang of slaves being driven along the path, and some of them were singing as if they did not feel the weight and degradation of the slave-sticks. Livingstone asked the cause of their mirth, and was told that they rejoiced at the idea " of coming back after death, and haunting and kill- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. f 365 ing those who had sold them." Some of the words he had to inquire about; f or instance, the meaning of the words " to haunt and kill by spirit power;" then it was, " Oh, you sent me off to Manga (sea-coast), but the yoke is off when I die, and back I shall come to haunt and to kill you." Then all joined in the chorus, which was the name of each vendor. It told not of fun,r but of the bitterness and tears of such as were oppressed. Kapika's wife was among the slaves, and she was asked if she would return to kill Kapika. Her heart was evidently sore : for a lady to come so low down is to her grievous. She had lost her jaunty air, and with her head shaved, was ugly ; but she never forgot to address her captors with dignity, and th'ey seemed to fear her. A GRAVE BY THE WAYSIDE. ON June 25th, Livingstone reached the Luongo Kiver, along which were several villages, but the people wjere afraid of the " white man," whose purposes and singular color they could not comprehend, so that no stop was made among them. Wild beasts were so numerous and daring in their depredations that the vil- lages were protected by high hedges. Leaving these villages, he came to a grave in the forest ; it was a little rounded mound, ,as if the occupant sat in it in the usual native way ; it was strewn over \Vith flour, and a number of the large blue beads put on it : a little path showed that it had visitors. " This," says Living- stone, " is the sort of grave I should prefer : to lie in the still, still forest, and no hand ever disturb my bones. The graves at home always seemed to me to be miserable, especially those in the cold, damp clay, and without elbow-room : but I have nothing to do but wait till He who is over all decides where I have to lay me down and die. Poor Mary (his wife) lies on Shu- panga brae, * and beeks foment the sun.' ' A more pathetic allusion to a sad circumstance was never made than is contained in these few lines. He must have a hard heart indeed, who can read them without emotion as he thinks of the wild, lonesome spot where this noble and courageous woman re- poses, so far from home and civilization, wrapt in the mysteries of nature, alone with nature's Hod. 366 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. DISCOVERY OF LAKE BANGWEOLO. ON July 18th, Livingstone's heart was gladdened by the dis- covery of Lake Bangweolo, one of the largest bodies of water in Central Africa, and thirty-six hundred feet above sea level. The modesty with which he announces this important discovery is re- markable, after reading Baker and Speke's self-laudations on similar occasions. Livingstone does not even give " thanks for being made the instrument in God's hands for exploring this great lake, and adding so much to the geography of Africa." His modest announcement is as follows: "Reached the chief village of Mapuni, near the north bank of Bangweolo. On the 18th I walked a little way out, and saw the shores of the lake for the first time, thankful that I had come safely hither." The people living near Bangweolo Lake are called Mboghwa ; their features would not be unpleasant if they abstained from the practice of filing'their teeth to a point and tattooing their fore- heads and chins. Their occupation is chiefly fishing, in which they show much skill ; a singular thing is the fact that their fish- hooks are made exactly like those we use in America, excepting that there are no barbs on them. The shores of the lake being shallow, many men may be seen on stilts strapped to their knees on which they wade far out into the water and fish from their precarious perch. A very large canoe, capable of carrying twenty men, was en- gaged by Livingstone, and in this he visited several islands in the lake, all of which he found thickly inhabited. The lake is com- puted to be one hundred and fifty miles long, by eighty broad ; its water is clear as crystal and the bottom is of beautiful white sand, so that objects are visible at a great depth. IN TROUBLE. LIVINGSTONE had gone directly away from Ujiji in proceeding to Bangw^lo, which is nearly one hundred miles south of Cas- embe, bud" tne importance of his discovery recompensed him for the trouble" he had encountered. But when he was about to re- turn to Casembe, the news reached him that hostilities had broken THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 367 out between the Arabs and natives, under the following cir- cumstances : The Mazitu tribes had overrun Casembe's territory and so devastated it that the trade in ivory had been almost utterly destroyed. To preserve their own interests, therefore, the Arabs had joined Casembe and defeated the Mazitu with great slaughter. This success gave the Arabs a hope of finally possess- ing the entire country, but Casembe soon became aware of their ambitions, and forming an alliance with another strong chief, named Chikumbi, the two attacked Kombokombo, an Arab leader, but were repulsed. There was now fighting on all sides, so that Livingstone could not hope to go unmolested through so large a district as lay between him and Casembe. Shortly after leaving Bangweolo Lake, he was intercepted by a large body of furious Imbozhwa (Casembe soldiers) who, mis- taking his party for plunderers, raised their 'spears and were upon the point of attacking, when an old man who had seen Living- stone at Casembe, rushed % out in front of his people and ordered them to desist. It was only by a piece of extraordinary good fortune that Livingstone was not killed, but on the following day his party was again besieged by another army of natives under the false impression that he was heading a crowd of Mazitu, but for a second time good luck attended him. On the 23d of September he fell in with some Arab traders and four hundred Wanyamwezi people, who were trying to get out of the country, and together they marched northward. In antici- pation of attacks they built fences each night around their camp and kept out a sharp watch for enemies until reaching the Kalon- gosi river, which is the southern boundary of Casembe's territory. KILLING PRISONERS. LIVINGSTONE hardly expected an attack after reaching Cas- embe's country, but in this he was mistaken ; for, on account of the killing of a woman by an Arab, the Imbozhwa turned out in strong force and attacked the combined parties of Livingstone, the Wanyamwezi , and Arabs. A stockade was hastily constructed , but this would have afforded little protection had it not been for the Wanyamwezi, who shot vigorously with their arrows and 368 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. occasionally charged the Imbozhwa. The women went up and down the village with sieves, as if winnowing, and singing songs and lullilooing to encourage their husbands and friends who were fighting: each had a branch of the Ficus Indica in her hand, which she waved as a charm. About ten of the Imbozhwa were killed, but dead and wounded were at once carried off by their countrymen. They continued the assault from early dawn till 1 p. M., and showed great bravery, but they wounded only two with their arrows. Their care to secure the wounded was admir- able : two or three at once seized the fallen man, and ran off with him, though pursued by a great crowd of Wanyamwezi with spears, and fired at by the Arabs Victoria-cross fellows truly many of them were ! Those who had a bunch of animals' tails, with medicine, tied to their waists, came sidling and ambling up to near the unfinished stockade, and shot their arrows high up into the air, to fall among the Wanyamwezi, then picked up any arrows on the field, ran back and returned again. They thought that by the ambling gait they avoided the balls, and when these whistled past them they put down their heads, as if to allow them to pass over: they had never encountered guns before. When a man was killed and not carried off, the Wanyamwezi brought his head and put it on a pole on the stockade : six heads were thus placed. A fine young man was caught and brought in by the Wanyamwezi ; one stabbed him behind, and another cut his forehead with an axe. Livingstone called in vain to them not to kill him. As a last appeal, he said to the crowd that sur- rounded him, " Don't kill me, and I shall take you to where the women are." "You lie," said his enemies; "you intend to take us where we may be shot by your friends ;" and they killed him. For two weeks or more the Imbozhwa kept up the siege, and finally forced the Arabs to restore all the prisoners taken ; but still they did not leave, and when a small party of Wanyamwezi went out to feel the enemy they were set upon and driven back. At length it was decided to quietly abandon the stockade at night, and under cover of darkness steal away, a stratagem which worked THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 3GU successfully, and on December llth Livingstone, in company with the Arabs and their strings of wretched slaves, yoked together in heavy slave sticks, started for TJjiji. It was with great disgust and humiliation that he marched with such a motley crowd, but self-preservation compelled him to, for had he under- taken to go alone he would certainly have fallen a victim to the furious hordes which swarmed and plundered the country. For- tunately, no more enemies appeared to impede the march, but owing to stoppages on account of escaping slaves, which the Arabs always tried to recapture, though nearly always in vain, the journey was a slow one. Many streams had to be waded, and this, with the worry and lack of rest, brought the fever back again on Livingstonei On New Year's day the party came to the Lofuko river, which they crossed by wading waist deep ; this exposure, in his already enfeebled condition, caused such severe illness that Livingstone was unable to march any further. He was attacked by pneumonia in the right lung, and soon his brain became so affected that he lost count of the days of the week and mouth. In his delirium he* fancied himself lying dead on the road to Ujiji. The Arabs were very kind, however, and carried him for sixteen days, until they arrived at Tanganika Lake. Here arrangements were at once made for transporting him by canoe to Ujiji, on the east side of the lake, more than one hundred miles north of the point where he now lay. The Lake air, and some medicine administered by the Arabs, revived him, and when, on February 27, 1869, he embarked for Ujiji, he was able to sit up and eat a little gruel. High winds on the lake proved a serious obstacle, sometimes days being spent ashore on account of dangerous waves, so that it was not until March 14th that Ujiji was reached. Great was his disappointment to find that only a small part of the goods which he had ordered sent from Zanzibar had reached Ujiji, the most having been stolen by the Arab who was commis- sioned to bring them. This was a sad blow, at a time, too, when his bodily infirmities were so sreat that he had to be assisted to M 370 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. rise from his bed, yet so infinite was his patience and so strong his courage, that he mentions the fact only as a passing event, and hopes on. Ujiji is an Arab settlement, and Livingstone naturally ex- pected, in view of the letter which he carried from the Sultan at Zanzibar, to receive every attention becoming his position, but instead, so vicious had been the rule of the governor at this place, that he would allow no one to carry Livingstone's communica- tions to the coast, lest the injustice, brutality, and corruption of his rule might be made public. Anxious to communicate with civilized people, he wrote forty-two letters while in his enfeebled state, to friends who had not heard from him for years, and entrusted them to an Arab for conveyance to Zanzibar, but not one of these precious missives reached its destination. While at Ujiji Livingstone conceived the idea that the Tan- ganika was rather the expansion of a river than a lake, an opin- ion which he formed by observing that there was a current of about one mile per hour flowing northward. This led him to suppose that it was connected with the Nile, and that indeed the large chain of lakes in Central Africa were all connected, and that the Nile derived its waters from them all. He therefore determined, as soon as he was able, to explore the region around Lake Tanganika, going as far south as Lake Bangweolo, and westward into the Manyuema country, to ascertain if the large river on that side of Lake Tanganika was the Nile or the Congo. He sent again to Zanzibar for men and supplies, with little hope, however, of receiving them. A JOURNEY INTO THE MANYUEMA COUNTRY. ALTHOUGH still weak and much reduced in flesh, on the 12th of July he procured a boat and some rowers, also several carriers, and crossing Lake Tanganika landed at Kasinge, in pursuance of his intention to visit the Manyuema country, about two hundred miles northwest of Ujiji. This was an unexplored district, not even the Arab traders having ever visited it, chiefly because the people \vere reputed to be cannibals. Some Arab traders became so much interested in the proposed trip, that they decided alsp THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 371 to visit the country, since their chief trade in the southwest was now destroyed, at least for a time, by the wars then waging. A native of Kasange was engaged by Livingstone to act as guide, and on August 4 the party started on the land journey. There was no incident worthy of record until September 2d, when they reached Katemba, fairly exhausted from continual traveling. Game was plentiful in the vicinity of Katemba, especially buffa- loes and elephants. One of the latter was killed, and Living- stone had the heart cooked for himself, and found it a surpris- ingly savory dish. On the 9th another stop was made to shoot elephants and buffaloes, which were so abundant that they were scarcely ever out of sight from the wayside. On arriving atBamberre, Livingstone found a singular country and a curious people. The roadways were all good, and appeared to have been used for hundreds of years, as indicated by worn passages in the rocks, sometimes two or more feet deep. The forests were so dense that nothing but wild animals could pene- trate them, so that though game is wonderfully plentiful, it is almost impossible to shoot. The people tattoo themselves with figures of crocodiles, elephants, and other animals. The houses are all kept well filled with firewood on shelves, and each has a bed on a raised platform in an inner room. They were so simple and unused to strangers that on the appearance of the white traveler they thought he had come from another world to kill them. They have little wooden idols and charms, and believe in the efficacy of the beetle to prevent harm. There is a wood in this country which, when burned, emits a horrid fecal odor, and, as Livingstone says, " one would think the camp polluted if the fire were made of it." SOLDIER-ANTS. LIVINGSTONE'S quarters were very comfortable at Manyuema, and he improved in health and flesh rapidly. The only incon- venience suffered was from the depredations of soldier-ants, which filled his hut and not only destroyed every kind of food within their reach, but at times they would even attack the occupants. But these ants have deadly enemies in what is called the siruf u 372 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. ant, which sometimes swarm into the huts and devour every soldier-ant in them ; an incident of this kind occurred in Living- stone's hut, which he describes as follows : " A whole regiment of soldier-ants in my hut were put into a panic by a detachment of driver-ants, called siruf u. The chungu, or black soldiers, rushed out with their eggs and young, putting them down and running for more. A dozen siruf u pitched on one chungu, and killed him. The chungu made new quarters for 'themselves. When the white ants cast off their colony of winged METHOD OF CATCHING ANTS FOR FOOD. emigrants, a canopy is erected like an umbrella over the ant-hill. As soon as the ants fly against the roof, they tumble down in a shower, and their wings instantly become detached from their bodies. They are then helpless, and are swept up in baskets to be fried, when they make a very palatable food.'* The soldier-ants are deadly enemies of the white species, and if it were not so, the latter would overrun the country, as they increase with great rapidity. When on their way to attack the THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 373 abode of the white ants, they march in a column of three or four abreast, like soldiers, and are led by several officers, who are larger than the rest and direct their movements, but never carry loads. As they approach the homes of their victims, the latter may be observed rushing about in the greatest alarm. The black leaders seize the white ants one by one, and inflict a sting, which seems to inject a portion of fluid similar in effect to chloroform, as it.renders them insensible, but not dead, and only able to move one or two front legs. As the leaders toss them on one side, the rank and file seize them and carry them off. The natives of nearly all parts of Africa are exceedingly fond of white ants as a dish* On one occasion, while camping on the banks of the Zouga, Livingstone was visited by a chief, and as he was at dinner at the time, he gave him a piece of bread and some preserved apricots. The chief seemed to relish it very much, and Livingstone asked him if he had anything equal to that in his country. "Ah," said he, "did you ever taste white ants?" Livingstone assured him that he had never tried that delicacy. "Well, if you had," replied the chief, licking his mouth with pleasant memories, "you never could have desired anything better." AMONG THE TREE DWELLERS. AFTER more than a month's stay among the Manyuema, chiefly at Bambarre, Livingstone concluded to explore theLualaba river, which is a stream of considerable size, flowing through the Man- yuema country and discharging its waters into Lake Kamalondo, to the south. On the journey he met with no little opposition from the natives ; some of these people mistrusted his intentions and endeavored to turn him back, but great caution prevented a collision. The women, all of whom are stark naked, appeared more hostile, or, rather captious, than the men, but a few beads or other trinkets usually placated them. Ivory was exceedingly plentiful, and little or no value was placed upon it by the natives. The Arab traders brought with them several slaves with the expectation of trading them to the Manyuernas for ivory, but the latter would have none but female 374 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. slaves, which they desired for wives, and refused to receive a mat slave even as a present. This was a sore disappointment to the Arabs, who scarcely knew what to do with their slaves, unless they liberated them. They finally concluded to go further north and try traffic with other natives. Livingstone met with no better success than the Arabs, for with all his persuasion and proffers of presents, he could not hire a canoe, and was forced to abandon his intended exploration of the Lualaba. The forests which lined the road were exceedingly dense, and Livingstone noticed that wherever any clearing had been attempted gigantic grass usurped the place in a very short time ; this grass, however, is burned frequently. Large trees do not readily suc- cumb to the fire, but put out new wood below the burnt places. Upon these Livingstone found large numbers of parrots building their nests, while above, the natives construct straw huts and live secure from the attacks of wild animals. The men make a stair up one hundred and fifty feet by tying climbing plants (called binayoba) around, at about four feet distance, as steps. Near the confluence of the Luaino, men build huts on this same species of tree for safety against the arrows of their enemies. A SINGING FROG AND FISH THAT GIVE MILK.' BEING defeated in his purposes of exploring the river, Living- stone returned to Bambarre, and there joined the Arabs in a journey to the north. The route lay through a marshy district and so many streams had to be crossed that fever again attacked him, which, aided by a severe spell of dysentery, so exhausted his strength that he could scarcely support himself. They came to a village among fine gardens of maize, bananas, ground-nuts, and cassava, but the villagers said, " Go on to next village ;" which meant, "We don't want you here." The main body of the Arabs was about three miles in advance ; but Livingstone was so weak he sat down in the next hamlet, and asked for a hut to rest in. A woman with leprous hands gave him hers, a nice clean one, and a very heavy rain came on : of her own accord she pre- pared dumplings of green maize, pounded and boiled, which are THE WORLD'S WONDEES. 375 sweet, for she said that she saw he was hungry. Seeing that he did not eat for fear of the leprosy, she kindly pressed him : "Eat; you are weak only from hunger; this will strengthen you." He put it out of her sight, and blessed her motherly heart. February 3d Livingstone made the following memoranda : " Caught in a drenching rain, which made me fain to sit, ex- hausted as I was, under an umbrella for an hour trying to keep the trunk dry. As I sat in the rain, a little tree-frog, about half an inch long, leaped on to a grassy leaf, and began a tune as loud as that of many birds, and very sweet ; it was surprising to hear so much music out of so small a musician.'* After a rest of eight days, during which time he used water only that had been boiled, and lived principally upon a species of potatoes called nyumbo, much famed among the natives as a restorative, Livingstone found his health very much improved. The village in which he was resting was on the banks of a con- fluent of the Lualaba, which abounded with fish ; among the sev- eral species is one called Mamba, which has breasts with milk, and which utters a peculiar cry. Its flesh is very white and savory. While here, an elephant was killed which had three tusks, all of good size ; the third tusk grew out from the base of the trunk, mid-way between the other two. On June 26th Livingstone resolved to start again for the Lu- alaba river by a north-west route, although he had been deserted by all but three of his followers, Chuma, Susi and Gardner. His purpose was accelerated by the fact that the Arabs had made war on the Manyuema people, ostensibly on account of a string of beads which had been stolen, but really because they could not trade their men slaves for ivory ; forty of the natives had been killed and several villages burned. Knowing that general hostilities would follow, Livingstone decided that Arabs were bad companions, and that he would be safer alone than with them. But for once he made a mistake. After traveling several days, wading rivers breast and neck deep, through awful beds of mud, over fallen trees and through dense brush, he discovered 376 ! WORLD'S WONDERS. that the Lualaba did not lay where he expected to find it, but he had gone far to the north, directly away from the object of his search. His feet were dreadfully lacerated, and instead of heal- ing as heretofore, the sores became irritable eating ulcers, s( painful that it was only by the utmost determination that he could limp back to Bambarre. THE MANYUEMA CANNIBALS. LIVINGSTONE had heard much concerning the cannibal propen. sities of the Manyuema people, but principally from the tribe& around Lake Nyassa, so that he was disposed to believe the reports were little else than traditions, similar to those which asserted that white men live in the sea, that there is a tribe in North Africa whose people have tails like cows, and another race that has four eyes, two in front and two behind, while another race has but a single eye. Actual contact of several months with the Manyuema, however, convinced him that the reports he had received of them were in no wise exaggerated. He says : " On August 17th, Monayembe, the chief, came bringing two goats ; one he gave to Mohamad, the other to Moenekuss' son, acknowl- edging that he had killed his elder brother : he had killed eleven persons over at Linamo in our absence, in addition to those killed in villages on our southeast, when we were away. It transpired that Kandahara, brother of old Moenekuss, whose village is near this, killed three women and a child, and that a trading man came over from Kassangangaye and was murdered too, for no reason but to eat his body. When they tell of eaoh other's deeds they disclose a horrid state of blood-thirsty callousness. The people over a hill north-north-east of this killed a person out hoeing : if a man is alone in the field, he is almost sure of being slain. Some said that people in the vicinity, or hyenas, stole the buried dead ; but Posho's wife died, and, in Wanyamesi fashion, was thrown out of camp unburied. Mohamad threatened an attack if Manyuema did not cease exhuming the dead. It was effectual ; neither men nor hyenas touched her, though exposed now for seven days. " The head of Moenekuss is said to be preserved in a pot io THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 377 his house, and till public matters are gravely communicated to it, as if his spirit dwelt therein ; his body was eaten ; the flesh was removed from the head and eaten too ; his father's head is said to be kept also. The foregoing refers to Bambarre alone. In other districts graves show that sepulture is customary, but here no grave appears : some admit the existence of the practice here others deny it. In the Metamba country, adjacent to the Lualaba^ a quarrel with a wife often ends in the husband killing her and eating her heart, mixed up in a huge mess of goats' flesh : this has the charm character. Fingers are taken as charms in other parts, but in Bambarre alone is the depraved taste the motive for cannibalism." A GORILLA, OR SOKO, HUNT. FOR a period of eighty days Livingstone was laid up at Bam- barre by the ulcerations in his feet. The only thing which afforded the slightest relief was malachite, rubbed down with water on a stone and applied with a feather. While he was suffer- ing with this worst of all afflictions, thirty slaves died in Bam- barre of the same complaint, which shows with what fatality it attacks the natives. During his prolonged enforced stay at Bambarre, some natives went on a gorilla hunt, that animal being quite numerous through- out the Manyuema country. It is probable, however, that the gorilla of which Livingstone writes, and which he usually calls a soko, is a species of chimpanzee, and not the true gorilla, which is much larger than the animal referred to in the following description, which he gives of the hunt and the animal; *' Four gorillas, or sokos, were killed yesterday : an extensive grass-burning forced them out of their usual haunt, and coming on the plain, they were speared. They often go erect, but place the hand on the head, as if to steady the body. When seen thus, the soko is an ungainly beast. The most sentimental young lady would not call him a ' dear,' but a bandy-legged, pot-bellied, low-looking villain, without a particle of the gentleman in him. Other ahimals are graceful, especially the antelope, and it is pleasant to see them, either at rest or in motion ; the natives are 378 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. also well made, lithe, and comely to behold, but the soko, if large, would do well to stand for a picture of the devil. He takes away my appetite by his disgusting bestiality of appear- ance. His light-yellow face shows off his ugly whiskers and faint apology of a beard ; the forehead, villainously low, with high ears, is well in the back-ground of the great dog-mouth ; the teeth are slightly human, but the canines show the beast by their large development. The hands, or rather the fingers, are like those of the natives. The flesh of the feet is yellow, and the eagerness with which the Manyuemas devour it leaves the impression that eating sokos was the first stage by which they arrived at being cannibals ; they say the flesh is delicious. The soko is represented by some to be extremely knowing, success- fully stalking men and women while at their work, kidnapping children and running up trees with them : he seems to be amused by the sight of the young native in his arms, but comes down when tempted by a bunch of bananas, and, as he lifts that, drops the child : the young soko in such a case would cling closely to the arm-pit of the elder. One man was cutting out honey from a tree, and naked, when a soko suddenly appeared and caught him, then let him go. Another man was hunting, and missed in his attempt to stab a soko : it seized the spear and broke it, then grappled with the man, who called to his companions, Soko has caught me :' the soko bit off the ends of his fingers and escaped unharmed. Both men are now alive at Bambarre. " The soko is so cunning, and has such sharp eyes, that no one can stalk him in front without being seen ; hence, when shot it is always in the back ; when surrounded by men and nets, he is generally speared in the back, too ; otherwise he is not a very formidable beast ; he is nothing,- as compared in power of dam- aging his assailant, to a leopard or lion, but is more like a man unarmed, for it does not occur to him to use his canine teeth, which are long and formidable. Numbers of them come down in the forest within a hundred yards of our camp, and would be unknown but for giving tongue like fox-hounds: this is their nearest approach to speech. A man hoeing was stalked bj a THE WORLD S WONDERS. 379 soko and seized : he roared out, but the soko giggled and grinned, and left Lira as if he had done it in play. A child caught up by a soko is often abused by being pinched and scratched, and letfalL " The soko kills Ihe leopard occasionally, by seizing both paws and biting them so as to disable them ; he then goes up a tree, groans over his wounds, and sometimes recovers, while the leop- ard dies : at other times both soko and leopard die. The lion 380 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. kills him at once, and sometimes tears his limbs off, but does not eat him. The soko eats no flesh ; small bananas are his dainties, but not maize. His food consists of wild fruits, which abound. The soko brings forth at times twins. A very large soko was seen by Mohamad's hunters sitting picking his nails: they tried to stalk him, but he vanished. Some Manyuema think that their juried dead rise as sokos, and one was killed with holes in his ears, as if he had been a man. He is very strong, and fears guns, but not spears ; he never catches women. " Sokos collect together, and make a drumming noise, some say with hollow trees, then burst forth into loud yells, which are well imitated by the natives' embryotic music. If a man has no spear the soko goes away satisfied ; but if wounded, he seizes the wrist, lops off the fingers, and spits them out, slaps the cheeks of his victim, and bites without breaking the skin : he draws out a spear (but never uses it), and takes some leaves and stuffs them into his wound to staunch the blood : he does not wish an encounter with an armed man. He sees women do him no harm, and never molests them : a man without a spear is nearly safe from him. They beat hollow trees as drums with hands, and then scream as music to it : when men hear them, they go to the sokos, but sokos never go to men with hostility. Manyuema say, * Soko is a man, and nothing bad in him.' " They live in communities of about ten, each having his own female : an intruder from another camp is beaten off with their fists and loud yells. If one tries to seize the female of another, he is caught on the ground, and all unite in boxing and biting the offender. A male often carries a child, especially if they are passing from one patch of forest to another over a grassy space ; he then gives it to the mother." A MARVELOUSLY IGNORANT PEOPLE. LIVINGSTONE was detained at Bambarre a considerable time, even after his ulcerated feet had healed, for, since all but three of his men had deserted, he was forced to send back to Ujiji for more, expecting now the arrival of those sent for to Zanzibar, aa before explained ; but he was doomed to sorest disappointment- THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 381 Nothing could engage his attention during this long delay except the habits of the Manyuema, whose characteristics, however, were striking enough. His journal at Bambarre is therefore rambling and disconnected, giving information on a variety of matters just as they chanced to come under his observation, as, the following will show : "December 16, 1870. Oh, for Dugumbe or Syde to come !f (the messengers sent to Zanzibar for men and medicine) but this delay may be all for the best. The parrots all seize their food and hold it with the left hand: the lion, too, is left-handed ; he strikes with the left ; so are all animals left-handed save man. " I noticed a very pretty woman come past quite jauntily about a month ago, on marriage with Monasiamba. Ten goats were given ; her friends came and asked another goat, which, being refused, she was enticed away, became sick of rheumatic fever two days afterward, and died yesterday. Not a syllable of regret for the beautiful young creature does one hear; but for the goats Oh, our ten goats !' they cannot grieve too much < Our ten goats oh ! oh !' " Basanga wail over those who die in bed, but not over those who die in battle : the cattle are a salve for all sores. "A man died near this: Monasiamba went to his wife, and after washing he may appear among men. If no widow can be obtained, he must sit naked behind his house till some one hap- pens to die ; all the clothes he wore are thrown away. The man who killed a woman without cause goes free ; he offered his grandmother to be killed in his stead, but after a great deal of talk nothing was done with him. 'Heresi,' a ball of hair rolled in the stomach of a lion, is a grand charm to the animal and to Arabs. Mohamad has one. " Lion's fat is regarded as a sure preventive of tsetse or bungo. This was noted before, but I add now that it is smeared on the ox's tail, and preserves hundreds of the Wanyamwesi cattle in safety while going to the coast : it is also used to keep pigs and hippopotami away from gardens ; the smell is probably the effi- cacious part in heresi,' as they call it. 382 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. " The neggeri, an African animal, attacks the tenderest parts of man and beast, cuts them off, and retires contented ; buffaloes are often castrated by him. Men who know it squat down, and kill him with knife or gun. The zibu, or mbuiue, flies at the ..tendon Achilles : it is most likely the ratel." CHAPTER XXI. DEPARTURE FROM BAMBARRE. ON February 4 Livingstone was much encouraged by a report that ten of his men from the coast were come near to Bambarre, and would arrive that day. In his great exultation, he writes : " I am extremely thankful to hear it, for it assures me that my packet of letters was not destroyed. They know at home by this time what has detained me, and the end to which I strain !" On the next day, however, his hopes were dissipated, when his men arrived with the information that only one of his letters reached Zanzibar. After referring to his disappointment, he writes: "James was killed by an arrow to-day; the assassins hid in the forest till my men, going to buy food, came up. They found indisputable proof that his body had been eaten by the Manyuema who lay in ambush." DESCRIPTION OF THE PEOPLE. ON the 16th of February, Livingstone started from Bambarre again on a third attempt to explore the Lualaba river. The people whose villages he passed through generally received him kindly, as his reputation for justice, as distinguished from the depredations of the Arabs, had preceded him. Before getting out of the Manyuema country he adds another paragraph to his journal, concerning the comely features of the people, in the fol- lowing language : " The Manyuema are far more beautiful than either the bond or free of Zanzibar : I overheard the remark often, If we had Manyuema wives, what beautiful children we should beget.' THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 383 The men are usually handsome, and many of the women are very pretty ; hands, feet, limbs, and forms perfect in shape, and the color light-brown, but the orifices of the nose are widened by snuff-takers, who ram it up as far as they can with the finger and thumb : the teeth are not filed, except a small space Between the two upper front teeth. The men here deny that cannibalism is common : they eat only those killed in war, and, it seems, in re- venge ; for, said Mokandira, the meat is not nice ; it makes one MANYUEMA WARRIORS. dream of the dead man.' Some west of Lualaba eat even those bought for the purpose of a feast ; but I am not quite positive on this point: all agree in saying that human flesh is saltish, and needs but little condiment. And yet they are a fine-looking race. I would back a company of Manyuema men to be far superior in shape of head, and generally in physical form too, against the whole Anthropological Society. Many of the women are very light-colored , and very pretty ; they dress in a kilt of many folds 7f gaudy lambaB," 384 THE WORLD '8 WONDERS. ON THE BANKS OF THE LUALABA. ON the 30th of March, after a pleasant journey of about fifty miles, Livingstone reached the Lualaba river at a village called Nyangwe. He found the stream to be much larger than he ex- pected, at its narrowest parts being at least half-a-mile broad and so deep that at no season of the year is it fordable ; the banks are steep and deep, though the current is hardly more than two miles an hour, running toward the north. Several soundings showed a depth from nine feet near shore to twenty feet in the center of the stream. Villages lined the river bank, and so nu- merous are the people that one morning Livingstone counted seven hundred market women file past him. Yet, notwithstand- ing the great number of people, he was unable to get any canoes ; to gain the confidence of the natives, he built a hut and con- cluded to remain awhile among them, or until they concluded to assist him. The market scenes in the villages along the river are interest- ing and not altogether unlike those which may be witnessed in Billingsgate fish-market, except in the articles offered for sale. Here were queer vessels, snails, fruits, cowrie-shells, and name- less things without number. One man had ten human under- jaw-bones hung by a string over his shoulder ; on inquiry, he professed to have killed and eaten the owners, and showed with his knife how he cut up his victims. When Livingstone expressed disgust, he and others laughed. Two nice girls were trying to sell their venture, which was roasted white ants, called "gumbe." A DREADFUL MASSACRE. A VERY popular market had been established at the village of Nyangwe, where Livingstone and a party of Arabs were stopping, to which hundreds of people came daily with their simple wares, from both sides of the river. No fear of the dreadful sequel seemed to haunt the natives, but the Arabs had determined to turn this little earthly paradise into a hell of murder. It was almost an invariable custom with them to add murder to their other horrid crimes, and as the traffic in slaves among the natives THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 385 of the Lualaba had not been profitable, they seemed more blood, thirsty than usual. One morning Livingstone was startled by the sound of guns in the market, and running out of his hut, he saw that the massacre had commenced. Arabs were firing indiscriminately upon the people, hundreds of whom had come to the market that day. 386 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. The murdering was continued nearly all day ; seventeen villages were burnt, and many hundreds of the natives killed. Living- stone saved scores who rushed to him for protection, the Arabs not daring to murder them in his presence. He exerted himself to the utmost to stop the bloodshed, and also ministered to the wounded, and showed a friendship which the natives had never known before. An old man, called Kabono, came to him and asked for his wife, who had taken shelter, like many others, under Livingstone's protection. Kabono expected him to keep her as his slave, according to the custom of the Arabs, and even the natives, unless he could buy her back ; he was, therefore, not prepared for the good luck which awaited him. Turning to the old woman, Livingstone asked her if Kabono was her husband ; she went to the old man, and putting her arms lovingly around him, replied, " Yes." Livingstone gave them, in addition to his blessings, five strings of beads with which to buy food, as all their stores had been destroyed with their home. She bowed down and put her forehead to the ground as an expression of her thanks, Kabono did the same ; tears stood in their eyes as they went away. FORCED TO RETURN TO UJIJI. ALL the canoes available were taken by the Arabs, so that, how- ever friendly the natives might be with Livingstone, he could not get a single boat ; but this was not his worst misfortune, for the hostilities now inaugurated so frightened the men (who were Banian slaves) sent to him from Zanzibar, that they ran off and made their way as fast as possible to the coast. Here was a ter- rible dilemma to face ; nothing but a return to Ujiji, nearly six hundred miles distant, was possible, and accordingly, on July 20th, he again turned his back on the Lualaba without having made a last exploration of its source or outlet. A few Arabs and friendly Manyuemas accompanied him back to Bambarre, but the country was so excited that traveling was extremely dangerous. They were frequently waylaid and attacked by scouting parties of Manyuemas, but happily without serious results. Twice in one day Livingstone miraculously escaped THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 387