IN URANGI.--A NOISY RECEPTION.--WONDERFUL HEAD-DRESSES.--A TREACHEROUS
ATTACK.--ANIMAL LIFE ALONG THE RIVER.--BIRDS AND BEASTS OF THE GREAT
STREAM.--A BATTLE WITH THE BANGALA.--FIRE-ARMS IN THE HANDS OF THE
NATIVES.--THE SAVAGES, ALTHOUGH IN SUPERIOR NUMBERS, ARE REPULSED.--HIGH
WINDS AND STORMS.--EFFECT OF THE CLIMATE ON MR. STANLEY'S HEALTH.--A
GREAT TRIBUTARY RIVER.--FRIENDLY PEOPLE OF IKENGO.--PROVISIONS IN
ABUNDANCE.--ISLANDS IN THE RIVER.--DEATH OF AMINA.--A MOURNFUL
SCENE.--THE LEVY HILLS.--HIPPOPOTAMUS CREEK.--BOLOBO.--THE KING OF
CHUMBIRI.--A CRAFTY POTENTATE.--HIS DRESS, PIPE, WIVES, AND
SONS.--INCONVENIENT COLLARS.--CURIOUS CUSTOMS.
It was Frank's turn to read on the next day, and, promptly at the
appointed hour, the reader and his audience were in their places.
Without any preliminary remarks, the youth plunged at once into the
midst of his subject.
[Illustration: DOUBLE IRON BELLS OF URANGI.]
"On the morning of the 10th of February natives from down river
appeared to escort us, and our friends of Rubunga also despatched a
canoe and five men to introduce us to Urangi. In about two hours we
arrived at the very populous settlement of Urangi, consisting of
several villages almost joining one another. I doubt whether the
people of Urangi and Rubunga are cannibals, though we obtained
proof sufficient that human life is not a subject of concern with
them, and the necklaces of human teeth which they wore were by no
means assuring--they provoked morbid ideas.
"We received a noisy and demonstrative welcome. In the afternoon
the great chief of Urangi made his presence known by sounding his
double iron gong. This gong consisted of two long, iron,
bell-shaped instruments, connected above by an iron handle, which,
when beaten with a short stick with a ball of india-rubber at the
end, produced very agreeable musical sounds. He had a kindly
reception, and though he manifested no desire or declared any
intention of reciprocating our gift, he did not leave our camp
dissatisfied with his present. He loudly proclaimed to the assembly
in the river something to the effect that I was his brother; that
peace and good-will should prevail, and that everybody should
behave, and 'make plenty of trade.' But on his departure his people
became roguish and like wild children. Scores of canoes flitted
here and there, up and down, along the front of the camp, which
gave us opportunities of observing that every person was tattooed
in the most abominable manner; that the coiffeur's art was carried
to perfection; that human teeth were popular ornaments for the
neck; that their own teeth were filed; that brass wire to an
astonishing quantity had been brought to them by the Bangala; as
they had coils of it upon their arms and legs, and ruffs of it
resting upon their shoulders; that while the men wore ample
loin-coverings of grass-cloth, their women went naked; that ivory
was to be purchased here to any amount, and that palm-wine had
affected the heads of a great many. We also discovered that Urangi
possessed about a dozen muskets.
"During the night we heard drumming and the report of muskets, but
were not otherwise disturbed. As we departed down the river in the
morning we were treacherously attacked by a fleet of canoes, and
had a hard fight to beat them off. Hitherto, on the river, we had
only the arrows and spears of the natives to fear, but now they
were using muskets.
[Illustration: BEAK OF THE BALINÆCEPS REX.]
"There was an abundance of animal life along the river. On the
islands we saw several elephants; the river was full of crocodiles
and hippopotami, and along the islands and banks there were flocks
of storks, cranes, ducks, egrets, flamingoes, spur-winged geese,
and other aquatic birds. We saw many fine specimens of the
Balinæceps Rex, identical with the one inhabiting the Upper Nile.
He makes his home among the lotus-flowers and papyrus-plants, and
is noticeable for his enormous beak.
[Illustration: THE BALINÆCEPS REX.]
"During the forenoon of the 14th of February, while anxiously
looking out lest we should be taken by some erratic channels in
view of other villages, we arrived at the end of an island, which,
after some hesitation, we followed along the right. Two islands
were to the right of us, and prevented us from observing the
mainland. But after descending two miles we came in full view of a
small settlement on the right bank. Too late to return, we crept
along down river, hugging the island as closely as possible, in
order to arrive at a channel before the natives should sight us.
But, alas! even in the midst of our prayers for deliverance, sharp,
quick taps on a native kettle-drum sent our blood bounding to the
heart, and we listened in agony for the response. Presently one
drum after another sounded the alarm, until the Titanic drums of
war thundered the call to arms.
"In very despair I sprang to my feet, and, addressing my distressed
and long-suffering followers, said, 'It is of no use, my friends,
to hope to escape these blood-thirsty pagans. Those drums mean war.
Yet it is very possible these are the Bangala, in which case, being
traders, they will have heard of the men by the sea, and a little
present may satisfy the chiefs. Now, while I take the sun you
prepare your guns, your powder and bullets; see that every shield
is ready to lift at once, as soon as you see or hear one gun-shot.
It is only in that way I can save you, for every pagan now, from
here to the sea, is armed with a gun, and they are black like you,
and they have a hundred guns to your one. If we must die, we will
die with guns in our hands, like men. While I am speaking, and
trying to make friendship with them, let no one speak or move.'
"We drew ashore at the little island, opposite the highest village,
and at noon I obtained by observation north latitude 1° 7' 0".
Meanwhile savage madness was being heated by the thunder of drums,
canoes were mustering, guns were being loaded, spears and
broadswords were being sharpened, all against us, merely because we
were strangers, and afloat on their waters. Yet we had the will and
the means to purchase amity. We were ready to submit to any tax,
imposition, or insolent demand for the privilege of a peaceful
passage. Except life, or one drop of our blood, we would sacrifice
anything.
"Slowly and silently we withdrew from the shelter of the island and
began the descent of the stream. The boat took position in front,
Frank's canoe, the _Ocean_, on the right, Manwa Sera's, _London
Town_, to the left. Beyond Manwa Sera's canoe was the uninhabited
island, the great length of which had ensnared us and hedged us in
to the conflict. From our right the enemy would appear with muskets
and spears and an unquenchable ferocity, unless we could mollify
him.
"We had left Observation Island about half a mile behind us when
the prows of many canoes were seen to emerge out of the creek. I
stood up and edged towards them, holding a long piece of red cloth
in one hand and a coil of brass wire in the other. We rested on our
oars, and the men quietly placed their paddles in their canoes, and
sat up, watchful, but ready for contingencies. As we floated down,
numbers of canoes advanced.
"I hailed the natives, who were the most brilliantly decorated of
any yet seen. At a distance they all appeared to wear something
like English University caps, though of a white color. There was a
great deal of glitter and flash of metal, shining brass, copper,
and bright steel among them.
"The natives returned no answer to my hail; still I persisted, with
the same artfulness of manner that had been so successful at
Rubunga. I observed three or four canoes approaching Frank's vessel
with a most suspicious air about them, and several of their canoes
menacing him, at which Frank stood up and menaced them with his
weapon. I thought the act premature, and ordered him to sit down
and to look away from them. I again raised the crimson cloth and
wire, and by pantomime offered to give it to those in front, whom I
was previously addressing; but almost immediately those natives who
had threatened Frank fired into my boat, wounding three of my young
crew--Mambu, Murabo, and Jaffari--and two more natives fired into
Frank's canoe, wounding two--Hatib and Muftah. The missiles fired
into us were jagged pieces of iron and copper ore precisely similar
to those which the Ashantees employed. After this murderous outrage
there was no effort made to secure peace. The shields were lifted,
and proved capital defences against the hail of slugs. Boat,
shields, and canoes were pitted, but only a few shields were
perforated.
[Illustration: A CANNIBAL CHIEF.]
"The conflict began in earnest, and lasted so long that ammunition
had to be redistributed. We perceived that, as the conflict
continued, every village sent out its quota. About two o'clock a
canoe advanced with a swaggering air, its crew evidently
intoxicated, and fired at us when within thirty yards. The boat
instantly swept down to it and captured it, but the crew sprang
into the river, and, being capital swimmers, were saved by a timely
arrival of their friends. At three o'clock I counted sixty-three
opposed to us. Some of the Bangala distinguished themselves by an
audacity and courage that, for our own sakes, I was glad to see was
not general. Especially one young chief, distinguished by his
head-dress of white goat-skin and a short mantle of the same
material, and wreaths of thick brass wire on neck, arms, and legs,
sufficient, indeed, to have protected those parts from slugs, and
proving him to be a man of consequence. His canoe-mates were ten in
number; and his steersman, by his adroitness and dexterity, managed
the canoe so well that, after he and his mates had fired their
guns, he instantly presented its prow and only a thin line of
upright figures to our aim. Each time he dashed up to deliver his
fire all the canoes of his countrymen seemed stimulated by his
example to emulate him. And, allowing five guns on an average to
each of the sixty-three canoes, there were three hundred and
fifteen muskets opposed to our forty-four. Their mistake was in
supposing their slugs to have the same penetrative effect and long
range as our missiles had. Only a few of the boldest approached,
after they had experienced our fire, within a hundred yards. The
young chief already mentioned frequently charged to within fifty
yards, and delivered a smashing charge of missiles, almost all of
which were either too low or too high. Finally Manwa Sera wounded
him with a Snider bullet in the thigh. The brave fellow coolly, and
in presence of us all, took a piece of cloth and deliberately
bandaged it, and then calmly retreated towards shore. The action
was so noble and graceful that orders were given to let him
withdraw unmolested. After his departure the firing became
desultory, and at 5.30 P.M. our antagonists retired, leaving us to
attend to our wounded, and to give three hearty cheers at our
success. This was our thirty-first fight on the terrible river--the
last but one--and certainly the most determined conflict that we
had endured.
"The Bangala may be said to be the Ashantees of the Livingstone
River, though their country has comparatively but a small populated
river front. Their villages cover--at intervals of a mile or half a
mile--a line of ten miles. They trade with Ikengo and Irebu down
the river all the ivory they have purchased from Upoto, Gunji,
Mpisa, Ukeré, Rubunga, Urangi, Mpakiwana, and Marunja. I observed
soon after the fight began that many canoes emerged out of a river
coming from a northerly direction. For a long period the river of
Bangala has appeared on West African maps as the Bancaro River. The
word Bangala, which may be pronounced Bangara, Bankara, or Bankaro,
signifies the people of Mangala or Mangara, Mankara or Mankaro. I
have simply adopted the more popular term.
[Illustration: THE ATTACK OF THE SIXTY-THREE CANOES OF THE
PIRATICAL BANGALA.]
"We continued our journey on this eventful day until an hour after
sunset, when we proceeded to establish a camp at the head of a
narrow, tortuous channel, which lost itself amid the clusters of
small islets.
"On the 15th, at noon, we reached north latitude 0° 58' 0". The
strong winds which at this season blow daily up river impeded our
journey greatly. They generally began at 8 A.M., and lasted until 3
P.M. When narrow channels were open to us we were enabled to
proceed without interruption, but when exposed to broad open
streams the waves rose as high as two feet, and were a source of
considerable danger. Indeed, from the regularity and increased
force of the winds, I half suspected at the time that the
Livingstone emptied into some vast lake such as the Victoria
Nyanza. The mean temperature in the shade seldom exceeded 74°
Fahrenheit, and the climate, though not dry, was far more agreeable
than the clammy humidity characteristic of the east coast. The
difference between the heat in this elevated region and that of the
east coast was such that, while it was dangerous to travel in the
sun without a sun-umbrella, near the sea on the east coast a light
double-cotton cloth cap saved me from feeling any inconvenience
when standing up in the boat under a bright glaring sun and
cloudless sky. While sitting down in the boat, a few minutes was
sufficient to convince me it was dangerous, without an umbrella,
even here. While at work at the Stanley Falls the umbrella was not
used. The nights were uncomfortable without a blanket, and
sometimes even two were desirable.
[Illustration: POISONED ARROWS.]
"The winds which prevail at this season of the year are from the
southwest, or south, which means from the temperate latitude of the
South Atlantic, and slightly chilled in their passage over the
western ranges. In the early morning the thermometer was often as
low as 64°. From 10 A.M. to 4 P.M. it ranged from 75° to 85°
Fahrenheit in the shade; from 4 P.M. to sunset it ranged from 72°
to 80°. From the 12th of January until the 5th of March we
experienced no rain.
"One remarkable fact connected with our life in this region is,
that though we endured more anxiety of mind and more strain on the
body, were subject to constant peril, and fared harder (being
compelled for weeks to subsist on green bananas, cassava, and
sugarless tea, and those frequently in scanty quantities),
we--Frank and I--enjoyed better health on the Livingstone than at
any other period of the journey; but whether this unusual health
might not be attributed to having become more acclimatized is a
question.
"The mirage on the Livingstone was often ludicrously deceptive,
playing on our fears at a most trying period, in a manner which
plunged us from a temporary enjoyment of our immunity from attack
into a state of suspicion and alarm, which probably, in nine cases
out of ten, arose out of the exaggerated proportions given to a
flock of pelicans or wild geese, which to our nerves, then in a
high state of tension, appeared to be a very host of tall warriors.
A young crocodile basking on a sandy spit appeared to be as large
as a canoe, and an ancient and bleached tree a ship.
[Illustration: A CROCODILE HUNT.]
"At noon of the 17th we had reached north latitude 0° 18' 41", our
course during the 16th and 17th having been southwest, but a
little before sunset the immense river was gradually deflecting to
south.
"I quote the following from my note-book:
"'_February_ 18, 1877.--For three days we have been permitted,
through the mercy of God, to descend this great river uninterrupted
by savage clamor or ferocity. Winds during two days seriously
impeded us, and were a cause for anxiety, but yesterday was fine
and calm, and the river like a sheet of burnished glass; we
therefore made good progress. In the afternoon we encountered a
native trading expedition from Ikengo in three canoes, one of which
was manned by fifteen paddlers, clothed in robes of crimson
blanket-cloth. We hailed them, but they refused to answer us. This
sight makes me believe the river must be pretty free of cataracts,
and it may be that there are no more than the Sundi cataract, and
the Falls of Yellalla reported by Tuckey in 1816, otherwise I
cannot account for the ascent of three trading vessels, and such
extensive possession of cloths and guns, so far up the river.
"'Since the 10th of February we have been unable to purchase food,
or indeed approach a settlement for any amicable purpose. The
aborigines have been so hostile that even fishing-canoes have fired
at us as though we were harmless game. God alone knows how we shall
prosper below. But let come what may, I have purposed to attempt
communicating with the natives to-morrow. A violent death will be
preferable to death by starvation.
"'_February_ 19, 1877.--This morning we regarded each other as
fated victims of protracted famine, or the rage of savages, like
those of Mangala. But as we feared famine most, we resolved to
confront the natives again. At 10 A.M., while we were descending
the Livingstone along the left bank, we discovered an enormous
river, considerably over a thousand yards wide, with a strong
current, and deep, of the color of black tea. This is the largest
influent yet discovered, and after joining the Livingstone it
appeared to command the left half to itself--it strangely refuses
to amalgamate with the Livingstone, and the divisional line between
them is plainly marked by a zigzag ripple, as though the two great
streams contended with one another for the mastery. Even the
Aruwimi and the Lowwa united would not greatly exceed this giant
influent. Its strong current and black water contrast very strongly
with the whitey-brown Livingstone. On the upper side of the
confluence is situate Ibonga, but the natives, though not openly
hostile, replied to us with the peculiar war-cries "Yaha-ha-ha!"
"'We continued our journey, though grievously hungry, past Bwena
and Inguba, doing our utmost to induce the staring fishermen to
communicate with us, without any success. They became at once
officiously busy with guns, and dangerously active. We arrived at
Ikengo, and as we were almost despairing we proceeded to a small
island opposite this settlement and prepared to encamp. Soon a
canoe with seven men came dashing across, and we prepared our
moneys for exhibition. They unhesitatingly advanced, and ran their
canoe alongside us. We were rapturously joyful, and returned them a
most cordial welcome, as the act was a most auspicious sign of
confidence. We were liberal, and the natives fearlessly accepted
our presents, and from this giving of gifts we proceeded to seal
this incipient friendship with our blood with all due ceremony.
[Illustration: ELEPHANT HUNTERS ON THE CONGO.]
"'After an hour's stay with us they returned to communicate with
their countrymen, leaving one young fellow with us, which was
another act of grace. Soon from a village below Ikengo two more
canoes came up with two chiefs, who were extremely insolent and
provoking, though after nearly two and a half years' experience of
African manners we were not to be put out of temper because two
drunken savages chose to be overbearing.
[Illustration: AFRICAN KNIFE AND AXES.]
"'By and by they cooled down. We got them to sit and talk, and we
laughed together, and were apparently the best of friends. Of all
the things which struck their fancy, my note-book, which they
called "tara-tara," or looking-glass, appeared to them to be the
most wonderful. They believed it possessed manifold virtues, and
that it came from above. Would I, could I, sell it to them? It
would have found a ready sale. But as it contained records of
disaster by flood and fire, charts of rivers and creeks and
islands, sketches of men and manners, notes upon a thousand
objects, I could not part with it even for a tusk of ivory.
"'They got angry and sulky again. It was like playing with and
coaxing spoiled children. We amused them in various ways, and they
finally became composed, and were conquered by good-nature. With a
generous scorn of return gifts, they presented me with a gourdful
of palm-wine. But I begged so earnestly for food that they sent
their canoes back, and, while they sat down by my side, it devolved
upon me until their return to fascinate and charm them with
benignant gestures and broken talk. About 3 P.M. provisions came in
basketfuls of cassava tubers, bananas, and long plantains, and the
two chiefs made me rich by their liberality, while the people began
also to thaw from that stupor into which impending famine had
plunged them. At sunset our two friends, with whom I had labored
with a zealot's enthusiasm, retired, each leaving with me a spear
as a pledge that they would return to-morrow, and renew our
friendly intercourse, with canoe-loads of provisions.
[Illustration: SPEARS, AND SHIELD OF ELEPHANT-HIDE.]
"'_February_ 20, 1877.--My two friends brought most liberal
supplies with them of cassava tubers, cassava loaves, flour, maize,
plantains, and bananas, and two small goats, besides two large
gourdfuls of palm-wine, and, what was better, they had induced
their countrymen to respond to the demand for food. We held a
market on Mwangangala Island, at which there was no scarcity of
supplies; black pigs, goats, sheep, bananas, plantains, cassava
bread, flour, maize, sweet potatoes, yams, and fish being the
principal things brought for sale.
"'The tall chief of Bwena and the chief of Inguba, influenced by
the two chiefs of Ikengo, also thawed, and announced their coming
by sounding those curious double bell-gongs, and blowing long horns
of ivory, the notes of which distance made quite harmonious. During
the whole of this day life was most enjoyable, intercourse
unreservedly friendly, and though most of the people were armed
with guns there was no manifestation of the least desire to be
uncivil, rude, or hostile, which inspired us once more with a
feeling of security to which we had been strangers since leaving
Urangi.
"'From my friends I learned that the name of the great river above
Bwena is called Ikelemba. When I asked them which was the largest
river, that which flowed by Mangala, or that which came from the
southeast, they replied, that though Ikelemba River was very large,
it was not equal to the "big river." They said it would take me
thirty days to reach the cataracts of the lower part of the river.
"'Every weapon these natives possess is decorated with fine brass
wire and brass tacks. Their knives are beautiful weapons, of a
bill-hook pattern, the handles of which are also profusely
decorated with an amount of brass-work and skill that places them
very high among the clever tribes. These knives are carried in
broad sheaths of red buffalo-hide, and are suspended by a belt of
the same material. Besides an antique flint-lock musket, each
warrior is armed with from four to five light and long assegais,
with staves of the _Curtisia faginea_, and a bill-hook sword. They
are a finely formed people, of a chocolate brown, very partial to
camwood powder and palm-oil. Snuff is very freely taken, and their
tobacco is most pungent.
"'_February_ 21.--This afternoon at 2 P.M. we continued our
journey. Eight canoes accompanied us some distance, and then parted
from us, with many demonstrations of friendship. The river flows
from Ikengo southwesterly, the flood of the Ikelemba retaining its
dark color, and spreading over a breadth of three thousand yards;
the Livingstone's pure, whitey-gray waters flow over a breadth of
about five thousand yards, in many broad channels.'
"From the left bank we crossed to the right, on the morning of the
22d, and, clinging to the wooded shores of Ubangi, had reached at
noon south latitude 0° 51' 13". Two hours later we came to where
the great river contracted to a breadth of three thousand yards,
flowing between two low, rocky points, both of which were populous,
well cultivated, and rich with banana plantations. Below these
points the river slowly widened again, and islands well wooded,
like those farther up the river, rose into view, until by their
number they formed once more intricate channels and winding creeks.
[Illustration: SPECTATORS AMONG THE TREES.]
"Desirous of testing the character of the natives, we pulled across
to the left bank, until, meeting with a small party of fishermen,
we were again driven by their ferocity to seek the untravelled and
unpopulated island wildernesses. It was rather amusing than
otherwise to observe the readiness of the savages of Irebu to
fire their guns at us. They appeared to think that we were human
waifs without parentage, guardianship, or means of protection, for
their audacity was excessive. One canoe with only four men dashed
down at us from behind an island close to the left bank, and fired
point-blank from a distance of one hundred yards. Another party ran
along a spit of sand and coolly waited our approach on their knees,
and, though we sheered off to a distance of two hundred yards from
them, they poured a harmless volley of slugs towards us, at which
Baraka, the humorist, said that the pagans caused us to 'eat more
iron than grain.'
"Such frantic creatures, however, could not tempt us to fight them.
The river was wide enough, channels innumerable afforded us means
of escaping from their mad ferocity, and if poor purblind nature
was so excessively arrogant, Providence had kindly supplied us with
crooked by-ways and unfrequented paths of water which we might
pursue unmolested.
"At noon of the 23d we had reached 1° 22' 15" south latitude.
Strong gales met us during each day. The islands were innumerable,
creeks and channels winding in and out among the silent scenes. But
though their general appearance was much the same, almost uniform
in outline and size, the islands never became commonplace. Was it
from gratitude at the security they afforded us from the ruthless
people of these regions? I do not know, but every bosky island into
whose dark depths, shadowed by impervious roofs of foliage, we
gazed had about it something kindly and prepossessing. Did we love
them because, from being hunted by our kind, and ostracized from
communities of men, we had come to regard them as our homes? I
cannot tell, but I shall ever and forever remember them. Ah, had I
but space, how I would revel in descriptions of their treasures and
their delights! Even with their gad-flies and their tsetsé, their
mosquitoes and their ants, I love them. There was no treachery or
guile in their honest depths; the lurking assassin feared their
twilight gloom; the savage dared not penetrate their shades without
a feeling of horror; but to us they were refuges in our distress,
and their solitudes healed our woes. How true the words,
'Affliction cometh not out of the dust, nor doth trouble spring out
of the ground.' Innocence and peace dwelt in the wilderness alone.
Outside of these retreats glared the fierce-eyed savage, with
malice and rage in his heart, and deadly weapons in his hand.
"To us, then, these untenanted islets, with their 'breadths of
tropic shade, and palms in clusters,' seemed verily 'knots of
paradise.' Like hunted beasts of the chase, we sought the gloom and
solitudes of the wilds. Along the meandering and embowered creeks,
hugging the shadows of the o'erarching woods, we sought for that
safety which man refused us.
"The great river grew sealike in breadth below Irebu on the morning
of the 24th; indeed, it might have been one hundred miles in
breadth for aught we knew, deep-buried as we were among the
islands. Yet there were broad and deep channels on every side of
us, as well as narrow creeks between lengthy islands. The volume of
water appeared exhaustless, though distributed over such an
enormous width. There was water sufficient to float the most
powerful steamers that float in the Mississippi. Here and there
among the verdured isles gleamed broad humps of white sand, but on
either side were streams several hundred yards wide, with as much
as three fathoms' depth of water in the channels.
"At noon we reached south latitude 1° 37' 22". The Mompurengi
natives appeared on an island and expressed their feelings by
discharging two guns at us, which we did not resent, but steadily
held on our way. An hour afterwards faithful Amina, wife of
Kachéché, breathed her last, making a most affecting end.
"Being told by Kachéché that his poor wife was dying, I drew my
boat alongside of the canoe she was lying in. She was quite
sensible, but very weak. 'Ah, master,' she said, 'I shall never see
the sea again. Your child Amina is dying. I have so wished to see
the cocoanuts and the mangoes; but no; Amina is dying--dying in a
pagan land. She will never see Zanzibar. The master has been good
to his children, and Amina remembers it. It is a bad world, master,
and you have lost your way in it. Good-bye, master; do not forget
poor little Amina!'
"While floating down we dressed Amina in her shroud, and laid her
tenderly out, and at sunset consigned her body to the depths of the
silent river.
"The morning of the 25th saw us once again on the broad stream
floating down. We got a view of the mainland to the right, and
discovered it to be very low. We hurried away into the island
creeks, and floated down among many reedy, grassy islets, the haunt
of bold hippopotami, one of which made a rush at a canoe with open
mouth, but contented himself fortunately with a paddle, which he
crunched into splinters.
"On the 26th the grassy islets became more frequent, inhabited by
the flamingo, pelican, stork, whydahs, ibis, geese, ducks, etc. The
salt-makers find a great source of wealth in the grasses, and the
smoke of their fires floated over the country in clouds.
"At 10 A.M. the Levy Hills rose into view about two miles beyond
the river, on the left bank, which as we neared Kutumpuku
approached the river, and formed a ridge. Instantly the sight of
the approaching hills suggested cataracts, and the memories of the
terrible struggles we had undergone in passing the Stanley Falls
were then brought vividly to our mind. What should we do with our
sadly weakened force, were we to experience the same horrible
scenes again?
"At noon I took an observation, and ascertained that we were in
south latitude 2° 23' 14". Edging off towards the right bank, we
came to a creek, which, from the immense number of those amphibious
animals, I have called 'Hippopotamus Creek.' Grass-covered islets,
innumerable to us as we passed by them, were on either side. When
about half-way through this creek we encountered seven canoes,
loaded with men, about to proceed to their fishing haunts. Our
sudden meeting occasioned a panic among the natives, and as man had
hitherto been a dreaded object, it occasioned us also not a little
uneasiness. Fortunately, however, they retreated in haste, uttering
their fearful 'Yaha-ha-has,' and we steadily pursued our way down
river, and about 3 P.M. emerged in view of the united stream, four
thousand yards wide, contracted by the steep cultivated slopes of
Bolobo on the left, and by a beautiful high upland--which had
gradually been lifting from the level plains--on the right bank.
"For a moment, as we issued in view of the stream, with scores of
native canoes passing backward and forward, either fishing or
proceeding to the grassy islets to their fish-sheds and
salt-making, we feared that we should have another conflict; but
though they looked at us wonderingly, there was no demonstration of
hostility. One man in a canoe, in answer to our question, replied
that the bold heights two hundred feet above the river, which
swarmed with villages, was Bolobo. Being so near the border of the
savage lands above, we thought it safer to wait yet one more day
before attempting further intercourse with them.
"On the 27th, during the morning, we were still among islets and
waving branches, but towards the afternoon the islets had
disappeared, and we were in view of a magnificent breadth of four
miles of clear water. On our left the cultivated uplands of Bolobo
had become elevated into a line of wooded hills, and on our right
the wall of the brown, grassy upland rose high and steep, broken
against the sky-line into cones.
"Gradually the shores contracted, until at 3 P.M. the right bank
deflected to a southeast course, and finally shot out a long rocky
point, which to us, accustomed to an enormous breadth of river,
appeared as though it were the commencement of a cataract. We
approached it with the utmost caution, but on arriving near it we
discovered that the mirage had exaggerated its length and height,
for between it and the left bank were at least two thousand five
hundred yards of deep water.
"The time had now come when we could no longer sneak among reedy
islets, or wander in secret among wildernesses of water; we must
once more confront man. The native, as we had ascertained opposite
Bolobo, was not the destructive infuriate of Irebu or Mompurengi,
or the frantic brute of Mangala and Marunja. He appeared to be
toning down into the MAN, and to understand that others of his
species inhabited this globe. At least, we hoped so. We wished to
test the accuracy of this belief, and now eagerly searched for
opportunities to exchange greetings, and to claim kindred with him.
As we had industriously collected a copious vocabulary of African
languages, we felt a certain confidence that we had been
sufficiently initiated into the science of aboriginal language to
be able to begin practising it.
"Behind the rocky point were three natives fishing for minnows with
hand-nets. We lay to on our oars and accosted them. They replied to
us clearly and calmly. There was none of that fierce fluster and
bluster and wild excitement that we had come to recognize as the
preliminary symptoms of a conflict. The word _ndu_--brother--was
more frequent. To our overtures of friendship there was a visible
inclination of assent; there was a manifest desire to accept our
conciliatory sentiments; for we received conciliatory responses.
Who could doubt a pacific conclusion to the negotiations? Our tact
and diplomacy had been educated in a rough school of adversity.
Once the attention of the natives had been arrested, and their
confidence obtained, we had never failed to come to a friendly
understanding.
[Illustration: ENCOUNTER WITH A HIPPOPOTAMUS.]
"They showed us a camping-place at the base of the brown, grassy
upland, in the midst of a thin grove of trees. They readily
subscribed to all the requirements of friendship,
blood-brotherhood, and an exchange of a few small gifts. Two of
them then crossed the river to Chumbiri, whose green, wooded slopes
and fields, and villages and landing-place, were visible, to tell
the King of Chumbiri that peaceable strangers desired friendship
with him. They appeared to have described us to him as most
engaging people, and to have obtained his cordial co-operation and
sympathy in a very short time, for soon three canoes appeared
conveying about forty men, under three of his sons, who bore to us
the royal spear, and several royal gifts, such as palm-wine, a
goat, bananas, and a chicken for myself, and a hearty welcome
from the old king, their father, with the addition of a promise
that he would call himself the next day.
[Illustration: A PRESENT FROM CHUMBIRI.]
"About 9 A.M. of the 28th, the king of Chumbiri appeared with
_éclat_. Five canoes filled with musketeers escorted him.
[Illustration: THE KING OF CHUMBIRI.]
"Though the sketch below is an admirable likeness of him, it may be
well also to append a verbal description. A small-eyed man of fifty
years or thereabout, with a well-formed nose, but wide nostrils and
thin lips, clean shaved--or rather clean-plucked--with a quiet yet
sociable demeanor, ceremonious and mild-voiced, with the instincts
of a greedy trader cropping out of him at all points, and cunning
beyond measure. The type of his curious hat may be seen on the head
of any Armenian priest. It was formed out of close-plaited
hyphene-palm fibre, sufficiently durable to outlast his life though
he might live a century. From his left shoulder, across his chest,
was suspended the sword of the bill-hook pattern, already described
in the passages about Ikengo. Above his shoulder stood upright the
bristles of an elephant's tail. His hand was armed with a buffalo's
tail, made into a fly-flapper, to whisk mosquitoes and gnats off
the royal face. To his wrist were attached the odds and ends which
the laws of superstition had enjoined upon him, such as
charm-gourds, charm-powders in bits of red and black flannel, and a
collection of wooden antiquities, besides a snuff-gourd and a
parcel of tobacco-leaves.
[Illustration: GREAT PIPE OF KING OF CHUMBIRI.]
"The king's people were apparently very loyal and devoted to him,
and his sons showed remarkable submissiveness. The little
snuff-gourd was in constant requisition, and he took immoderate
quantities, inhaling a quarter of a teaspoonful at a time from the
palm of his hand, to which he pressed his poor nose until it seemed
to be forced into his forehead. Immediately after, one of his
filially affectionate children would fill his long chibouque, which
was six feet in length, decorated with brass tacks and tassels of
braided cloth. The bowl was of iron, and large enough to contain
half an ounce of tobacco. He would then take two or three
long-drawn whiffs, until his cheeks were distended like two
hemispheres, and fumigate his charms thoroughly with the smoke. His
sons then relieved him of the pipe--at which he snapped his
fingers--and distended their cheeks into hemispherical
protuberances in like manner, and also in the same way fumigated
their little charms; and so the chibouque of peace and sociability
went the round of the circle, as though it were a council of Sioux
about to hold a pow-wow, and as the pipe passed round there was an
interchange of finger-snaps in a decorous, grave, and ceremonious
style.
"Our intercourse with the king was very friendly, and it was
apparent that we were mutually pleased. The only fault that I, as a
stranger, could find in him was an excessive cunning, which
approached to the sublime. He had evidently cultivated fraud and
duplicity as an art, yet he was suave and wheedling. Could I
complain? Never were people so willing to be victimized. Had we
been warned that he would victimize us, I do not think that we
should have refused his friendship.
"An invitation was extended to us to make his own village our home.
We were hungry; and no doubt we were approaching cataracts. It
would be welcome knowledge to know what to expect below in that
broad defile filled by the great river; what peoples, countries,
tribes, villages, rivers we should see; if the tribes were amenable
to reason in the unknown country; if white men had ever been heard
of; if there were cataracts below, and if they were passable. We
accepted the invitation, and crossed the river, drums and double
bell-gongs sounding the peaceful advance of our flotilla upon
Chumbiri.
"We were proud of our reception by the dames of Chumbiri. Loyal and
submissive to their king, they exhibited kindly attentions to the
strangers. We held a grand market, and won the natives' hearts by
our liberality. Back rations for several days were due to our
people, and, filled with an extravagant delight--even as Frank and
I were--they expended their ration moneys with a recklessness of
consequences which only the novelty of the situation explained. We
had arrived at port, and weather-beaten voyagers are generally free
with their moneys upon such occasions.
[Illustration: ONE OF THE KING'S WIVES AT CHUMBIRI.]
"The dames of Chumbiri were worth seeing, even to us, who were
sated with the thousand curious things we had met in our long
travels. They were also pretty, of a rich brown color many of them,
large-eyed, and finely formed, with a graceful curve of shoulder I
had not often observed. But they were slaves of fashion. Six tenths
of the females wore brass collars two inches in diameter; three
tenths had them two and a half inches in diameter; one tenth were
oppressed with collars three inches in diameter; which completely
covered the neck, and nearly reached the shoulder ends. Fancy the
weight of thirty pounds of brass, soldered permanently round the
neck! Yet these oppressed women were the favorite wives of
Chumbiri! And they rejoiced in their oppression!
"I believe that Chumbiri--who, as I said, was a keen and
enterprising trader, the first aboriginal African that might be
compared to a Parsee--as soon as he obtained any brass wire, melted
it and forged it into brass collars for his wives. That the collars
were not larger may be attributed, perhaps, to his poverty. He
boasted to me he possessed 'four tens' of wives, and each wife was
collared permanently in thick brass. I made a rough calculation,
and I estimated that his wives bore about their necks until death
at least eight hundred pounds of brass; his daughters--he had
six--one hundred and twenty pounds; his favorite female slaves
about two hundred pounds. Add six pounds of brass wire to each wife
and daughter for arm and leg ornaments, and one is astonished to
discover that Chumbiri possesses a portable store of one thousand
three hundred and ninety-six pounds of brass.
"I asked of Chumbiri what he did with the brass on the neck of a
dead wife. Chumbiri smiled. Cunning rogue; he regarded me
benevolently, as though he loved me for the searching question.
Significantly he drew his finger across his throat.
"The warriors and young men are distinguished for a characteristic
style of hair-dressing, which belongs to Uyanzi alone. It is
arranged into four separate plaits, two of which overhang the
forehead like lovers' curls. Another special mark of Uyanzi are two
tattooed lines over the forehead. In whatever part of the lower
Livingstone these peculiarities of style may be seen, they are
indubitably Wy-yanzi, or natives of Uyanzi.
"The country of Uyanzi embraces many small districts, and extends
along the left bank of the great river, from Bolobo, in south
latitude 2° 23' 14", to the confluence of the Ibari Nkutu, or river
of Nkutu, and the Livingstone, in 3° 14' south latitude. The
principal districts are Bolobo, Isangu, Chumbiri, Musevoka,
Misongo, and Ibaka. Opposite is the country of the Bateké, a wilder
tribe than the Wy-yanzi, some of the more eastern of whom are
professed cannibals. To the north is the cannibal tribe of the
Wanfuninga, of ferocious repute, and dreaded by the Wy-yanzi and
Bateké.
"On the 7th of March we parted from the friendly king of Chumbiri,
with an escort of forty-five men, in three canoes, under the
leadership of his eldest son, who was instructed by his father to
accompany us as far as the pool, now called Stanley Pool, because
of an incident which will be described hereafter.
"For some reason we crossed the river, and camped on the right
bank, two miles below Chumbiri. At midnight the Wy-yanzi awoke us
all by the fervor with which they employed their fetishes to guide
us safely from camp to camp, which they named. As they had been
very successful in charming away the rain with which we had been
threatened the evening before, our people were delighted to hear
them pray for success, having implicit faith in them."
[Illustration: A BOWMAN.]