CHAPTER XIV. -- OUR JOURNEY FROM UJIJI TO UNYANYEMBE.

We felt quite at home when we sat down on our black bear-skin, gay

Persian carpet and clean new mats, to rest with our backs to the wall,

sipping our tea with the air of comfortable men, and chat over the

incidents of the "picnic," as Livingstone persisted in calling our

journey to the Rusizi. It seemed as if old times, which we loved to

recall, had come back again, though our house was humble enough in its

aspect, and our servants were only naked barbarians; but it was near

this house that I had met him--Livingstone--after that eventful march

from Unyanyembe; it was on this same veranda that I listened to that

wonderful story of his about those far, enchanting regions west of the

Lake Tanganika; it was in this same spot that I first became acquainted

with him; and ever since my admiration has been growing for him, and I

feel elated when he informs me that he must go to Unyanyembe under my

escort, and at my expense. The old mud walls and the bare rafters, and

the ancient thatched roof, and this queer-looking old veranda, will have

an historical interest for me while I live, and so, while I can, I have

taken pains and immortalized the humble old building by a sketch.

I have just said that my admiration for Livingstone has been growing.

This is true. The man that I was about to interview so calmly and

complacently, as I would interview any prominent man with the view

of specially delineating his nature, or detailing his opinions, has

conquered me. I had intended to interview him, report in detail what he

said, picture his life and his figure, then bow him my "au revoir,"

and march back. That he was specially disagreeable and brusque in his

manner, which would make me quarrel with him immediately, was firmly

fixed in my mind.

But Livingstone--true, noble Christian, generous-hearted, frank

man--acted like a hero, invited me to his house, said he was glad to see

me, and got well on purpose to prove the truth of his statement, "You

have brought new life unto me;" and when I fell sick with the remittent

fever, hovering between life and death, he attended me like a father,

and we have now been together for more than a month.

Can you wonder, then, that I like this man, whose face is the reflex of

his nature, whose heart is essentially all goodness, whose aims are so

high, that I break out impetuously sometimes: "But your family, Doctor,

they would like to see you, oh! so much. Let me tempt you to come home

with me. I promise to carry you every foot of the way to the coast.

You shall have the finest donkey to ride that is in Unyanyembe. Your

wants--you have but to hint them, and they shall be satisfied. Let the

sources of the Nile go--do you come home and rest; then, after a year's

rest, and restored health, you can return and finish what you have to

do."

But ever the answer was, "No, I should like to see my family very much

indeed. My children's letters affect me intensely; but I must not go

home; I must finish my task. It is only the want of supplies that has

detained me. I should have finished the discovery of the Nile by this,

by tracing it to its connection with either Baker's Lake, or Petherick's

branch of the Nile. If I had only gone one month further, I could have

said, 'the work is done."'

Some of these men who had turned the Doctor back from his interesting

discoveries were yet in Ujiji, and had the Government Enfield rifles in

their hands, which they intended to retain until their wages had been

paid to them; but as they had received $60 advance each at Zanzibar from

the English Consul, with the understanding entered into by contract that

they should follow their master wherever he required them to go; and as

they had not only not gone where they were required to proceed with him,

but had baffled and thwarted him, it was preposterous that a few men

should triumph over the Doctor, by keeping the arms given to him by the

Bombay Government. I had listened to the Arab sheikhs, friends of the

Doctor, advising them in mild tones to give them up; I had witnessed

the mutineer's stubbornness; and it was then, on the burzani of Sayd bin

Majid's house, that I took advantage to open my mind on the subject, not

only for the benefit of the stubborn slaves, but also for the benefit

of the Arabs; and to tell them that it was well that I had found

Livingstone alive, for if they had but injured a hair of his head, I

should have gone back to the coast, to return with a party which would

enable me to avenge him. I had been waiting to see Livingstone's guns

returned to him every day, hoping that I should not have to use force;

but when a month or more had elapsed, and still the arms had not been

returned, I applied for permission to take them, which was granted.

Susi, the gallant servant of Dr. Livingstone, was immediately despatched

with about a dozen armed men to recover them, and in a few minutes we

had possession of them without further trouble.

The Doctor had resolved to accompany me to Unyanyembe, in order to meet

his stores, which had been forwarded from Zanzibar, November 1st, 1870.

As I had charge of the escort, it was my duty to study well the several

routes to Unyanyembe from Ujiji. I was sufficiently aware of the

difficulties and the responsibilities attached to me while escorting

such a man. Besides, my own personal feelings were involved in the case.

If Livingstone came to any harm through any indiscretion of mine

while he was with me, it would immediately be said, "Ah! had he not

accompanied Stanley, he would have been alive now."

I took out my chart--the one I had made myself--in which I had perfect

faith, and I sketched out a route which would enable us to reach

Unyanyembe without paying a single cloth as tribute, and without

encountering any worse thing than a jungle, by which we could avoid all

the Wavinza and the plundering Wahha. This peaceable, secure route

led by water, south, along the coast of Ukaranga and Ukawendi, to Cape

Tongwe. Arriving at Cape Tongwe, I should be opposite the village of

Itaga, Sultan Imrera, in the district of Rusawa of Ukawendi; after which

we should strike my old road, which I had traversed from Unyanyembe,

when bound for Ujiji. I explained it to the Doctor, and he instantly

recognised its feasibility and security; and if I struck Imrera, as I

proposed to do, it would demonstrate whether my chart was correct or

not.

We arrived at Ujiji from our tour of discovery, north of the Tanganika,

December 13th; and from this date the Doctor commenced writing his

letters to his numerous friends, and to copy into his mammoth Letts's

Diary, from his field books, the valuable information he had acquired

during his years of travel south and west of the Tanganika. I sketched

him while sitting in his shirt-sleeves in the veranda, with his Letts's

Diary on his knee; and the likeness on the frontispiece is an admirable

portrait of him, because the artist who has assisted me, has with an

intuitive eye, seen the defects in my own sketch; and by this I am

enabled to restore him to the reader's view exactly as I saw him--as he

pondered on what he had witnessed during his long marches.

Soon after my arrival at Ujiji, he had rushed to his paper, and indited

a letter to James Gordon Bennett, Esq., wherein he recorded his thanks;

and after he had finished it, I asked him to add the word "Junior" to

it, as it was young Mr. Bennett to whom he was indebted. I thought the

letter admirable, and requested the Doctor not to add another word to

it. The feelings of his heart had found expression in the grateful words

he had written; and if I judged Mr. Bennett rightly, I knew he would be

satisfied with it. For it was not the geographical news he cared so much

about, as the grand fact of Livingstone's being alive or dead.

In this latter part of December he was writing letters to his children,

to Sir Roderick Murchison, and to Lord Granville. He had intended to

have written to the Earl of Clarendon, but it was my sad task to inform

him of the death of that distinguished nobleman.

In the meantime I was preparing the Expedition for its return march to

Unyanyembe, apportioning the bales and luggage, the Doctor's large tin

boxes, and my own among my own men; for I had resolved upon permitting

the Doctor's men to march as passengers, because they had so nobly

performed their duty to their master.

Sayd bin Majid had left, December 12, for Mirambo's country, to give the

black Bonaparte battle for the murder of his son Soud in the forests

of Wilyankuru; and he had taken with him 300 stout fellows, armed with

guns, from Ujiji. The stout-hearted old chief was burning with rage

and resentment, and a fine warlike figure he made with his 7-foot gun.

Before we had departed for the Rusizi, I had wished him bon voyage,

and expressed a hope that he would rid the Central African world of the

tyrant Mirambo.

On the 20th of December the rainy season was ushered in with heavy rain,

thunder, lightning, and hail; the thermometer falling to 66 degrees

Fahrenheit. The evening of this day I was attacked with urticaria,

or "nettle rash," for the third time since arriving in Africa, and I

suffered a woeful sickness; and it was the forerunner of an attack of

remittent fever, which lasted four days. This is the malignant type,

which has proved fatal to so many African travellers on the Zambezi, the

White Nile, the Congo, and the Niger. The head throbs, the pulses bound,

the heart struggles painfully, while the sufferer's thoughts are in a

strange world, such only as a sick man's fancy can create. This was the

fourth attack of fever since the day I met Livingstone. The excitement

of the march, and the high hope which my mind constantly nourished,

had kept my body almost invincible against an attack of fever while

advancing towards Ujiji; but two weeks after the great event had

transpired my energies were relaxed, my mind was perfectly tranquil, and

I became a victim.

Christmas came, and the Doctor and I had resolved upon the blessed and

time-honoured day being kept as we keep it in Anglo-Saxon lands, with a

feast such as Ujiji could furnish us. The fever had quite gone from me

the night before, and on Christmas morning, though exceedingly weak, I

was up and dressed, and lecturing Ferajji, the cook, upon the importance

of this day to white men, and endeavouring to instil into the mind of

the sleek and pampered animal some cunning secrets of the culinary

art. Fat broad-tailed sheep, goats, zogga and pombe, eggs, fresh milk,

plantains, singwe, fine cornflour, fish, onions, sweet potatoes, &c.,

&c., were procured in the Ujiji market, and from good old Moeni Kheri.

But, alas! for my weakness. Ferajji spoiled the roast, and our custard

was burned--the dinner was a failure. That the fat-brained rascal

escaped a thrashing was due only to my inability to lift my hands for

punishment; but my looks were dreadful and alarming, and capable of

annihilating any one except Ferajji. The stupid, hard-headed cook only

chuckled, and I believe he had the subsequent gratification of eating

the pies, custards, and roast that his carelessness had spoiled for

European palates.

Sayd bin Majid, previous to his departure, had left orders that we

should be permitted to use his canoe for our homeward trip, and Moeni

Kheri kindly lent his huge vessel for the same purpose. The Expedition,

now augmented by the Doctor and his five servants, and their luggage,

necessitated the employment of another canoe. We had our flocks of

milch-goats and provision of fat sheep for the jungle of Ukawendi, the

transit of which I was about to attempt. Good Halimah, Livingstone's

cook, had made ready a sackful of fine flour, such as she only could

prepare in her fond devotion for her master. Hamoydah, her husband, also

had freely given his assistance and attention to this important article

of food. I purchased a donkey for the Doctor, the only one available in

Ujiji, lest the Doctor might happen to suffer on the long march from his

ancient enemy. In short, we were luxuriously furnished with food, sheep,

goats, cheese, cloth, donkeys, and canoes, sufficient to convey us a

long distance; we needed nothing more.

The 27th of December has arrived; it is the day of our departure from

Ujiji. I was probably about to give an eternal farewell to the port

whose name will for ever be sacred in my memory. The canoes--great

lumbering hollow trees--are laden with good things; the rowers are

in their places; the flag of England is hoisted at the stern of the

Doctor's canoe; the flag of America waves and rustles joyously above

mine; and I cannot look at them without feeling a certain pride that the

two Anglo-Saxon nations are represented this day on this great inland

sea, in the face of wild nature and barbarism.

We are escorted to our boats by the great Arab merchants, by the

admiring children of Unyamwezi, by the freemen of Zanzibar, by wondering

Waguhha and Wajiji, by fierce Warundi, who are on this day quiet, even

sorrowful, that the white men are going-"Whither?" they all ask.

At 8 A.M. we start, freely distributing our farewells as the Arabs and

quidnuncs wave their hands. On the part of one or two of them there was

an attempt to say something sentimental and affecting, especially by the

convicted sinner Mohammed bin Sali; but though outwardly I manifested no

disapprobation of his words, or of the emphatic way in which he shook

my hand, I was not sorry to see the last of him, after his treachery to

Livingstone in 1869. I was earnestly requested to convey to Unyanyembe

"Mengi salaams" to everybody, but had I done so, as he evidently desired

me to do, I would not have been surprised at being regarded by all as

hopelessly imbecile.

We pushed off from the clayey bank at the foot of the market-place,

while the land party, unencumbered with luggage, under the leadership of

gigantic Asmani and Bombay, commenced their journey southward along the

shores of the lake. We had arranged to meet them at the mouth of every

river to transport them across from bank to bank.

The Doctor being in Sayd bin Majid's boat, which was a third or so

shorter than the one under my command, took the lead, with the British

flag, held aloft by a bamboo, streaming behind like a crimson meteor.

My boat-manned by Wajiji sailors, whom we had engaged to take the canoes

back from Tongwe Cape to Ujiji Bunder--came astern, and had a much

taller flagstaff, on which was hoisted the ever-beautiful Stars and

Stripes. Its extreme height drew from the Doctor--whose patriotism and

loyalty had been excited--the remark that he would cut down the tallest

palmyra for his flagstaff, as it was not fitting that the British flag

should be so much lower than that of the United States.

Our soldiers were not a whit behind us in lightheartedness at the

thought of going to Unyanyembe. They struck up the exhilarating song of

the Zanzibar boatmen, with the ecstatic chorus--

Kinan de re re Kitunga,

rowing away like madmen, until they were compelled to rest from sheer

exhaustion, while the perspiration exuded from the pores of their bodies

in streams. When refreshed, they bent back to their oars, raising the

song of the Mrima--

O mama, re de mi Ky,

which soon impelled them to an extravagant effort again, It was by

this series of ferocious spurts, racing, shouting, singing, perspiring,

laughing, groaning, and puffing, that our people vented their joyous

feelings, as the thought filled their minds that we were homeward bound,

and that by the route I had adopted between us and Unyanyembe there was

not the least danger.

We have given the Waha, the slip! ha, ha!

The Wavinza will trouble us no more! ho! ho!

Mionvu can get no more cloth from us! by,by!

And Kiala will see us no more---never more! he, he!

they shouted with wild bursts of laughter, seconded by tremendous and

rapid strokes with their oars, which caused the stiff old canoes to

quiver from stem to stern.

Our party ashore seemed to partake of our excitement, and joined in the

wild refrain of the mad African song. We watched them urging their steps

forward to keep pace with us, as we rounded the capes and points, and

rowed across the bays whose margins were sedge, and rush, and reed; the

tiny and agile Kalulu, little Bilali, and Majwara were seen racing the

herds of goats, sheep, and donkeys which belonged to the caravan, and

the animals even seemed to share the general joy.

Nature, also--proud, wild nature-0-with the lofty azure dome upheaved

into infinity--with her breadth and depth of vivid greenness and

enormous vastness on our left--with her immense sheet of bright,

glancing water--with her awful and intense serenity--she partook of and

added to our joy.

About 10 A.M. we arrived at Kirindo's, an old chief, noted for his

singular kindness to Dr. Livingstone, while he bore animosity to the

Arabs. To the Arabs this was unaccountable--to the Doctor it was plain:

he had but spoken kind and sincere words, while all the Arabs spoke to

him as if he were not even a man, least of all a chief.

Kirindo's place is at the mouth of the Liuche, which is very wide; the

river oozes out through a forest of eschinomenae (pith tree). This was

a rendezvous agreed upon between shore and lake parties, that the canoes

might all cross to the other side, distant a mile and a half. The mouth

of the Liuche forms the Bay of Ukaranga, so named because on the other

side, whither we were about to cross our party, was situated the village

of Ukaranga, a few hundred yards from the lake. All the baggage was

taken out of the largest canoe, and stowed snugly in the smaller one,

and a few select oarsmen having taken seats, pushed off with the Doctor

on board, who was to superintend pitching the encampment at Ukaranga;

while I remained behind to bind the fractious and ill-natured donkeys,

and stow them away in the bottom of the large canoe, that no danger

of upsetting might be incurred, and a consequent gobbling-up by hungry

crocodiles, which were all about us waiting their opportunity. The flock

of goats were then embarked, and as many of our people as could be got

in. About thirty still remained behind with myself, for whom my canoe

was to return.

We all arrived safe at Ukaranga, though we got dangerously near a herd

of hippopotami. The crossing of the wide mouth (the Liuche being then in

flood) was effected in about four hours.

The next day, in the same order as on our departure from Ujiji, we

pursued our way south, the lake party keeping as closely as possible to

the shore, yet, when feasible, wind and weather permitting, we struck

off boldly across the numerous small bays which indent the shores of

the Tanganika. The shores were beautifully green, the effect of the

late rains; the waters of the lake were a faithful reflex of the blue

firmament above. The hippopotami were plentiful. Those noticed on this

day were coloured with reddish rings round the base of their ears and on

the neck. One monster, coming up rather late, was surprised by the canoe

making full for him, and in great fright took a tremendous dive which

showed the whole length of his body. Half way between the mouth of

the Malagarazi and that of the Liuche we saw a camp on shore--that of

Mohammed bin Gharib, a Msawahili, who figured often in Livingstone's

verbal narrative to me of his adventures and travels as one of the

kindest and best of the Moslems in Central Africa. He appeared to me

a kindly disposed man, with a face seldom seen, having the stamp of an

unusual characteristic on it--that of sincerity.

The vegetation of the shores as we proceeded was truly tropical, each

curve revealed new beauties. With the soft chalky stone, of which most

of the cliffs and bluffs are made, seen as we neared the mouth of the

Malagarazi, the surf has played strange freaks.

We arrived at the mouth of the Malagarazi about P.M., having rowed

eighteen miles from Ukaranga. The shore party arrived, very much

fatigued, about 5 P.M.

The next day was employed in crossing the caravan across the broad mouth

of the Malagarazi to our camp, a couple of miles north of the river.

This is a river which a civilised community would find of immense

advantage for shortening the distance between the Tanganika and the

coast. Nearly one hundred miles might be performed by this river, which

is deep enough at all seasons to allow navigation as far as Kiala,

in Uvinza, whence a straight road might be easily made to

Unyanyembe. Missionaries also might reap the same benefit from it for

conversion-tours to Uvinza, Uhha, and Ugala. Pursuing our way on the

30th, and rounding the picturesque capes of Kagongo, Mviga and Kivoe, we

came, after about three hours' rowing, in sight of villages at the

mouth of the swift and turbid Rugufu. Here we had again to transport the

caravan ever the crocodile-infested mouth of the river.

On the morning of the 31st we sent a canoe with men to search for food

in the two or three villages that were visible on the other side.

Four doti purchased just sufficient for four days for our caravan

of forty-eight persons. We then got under weigh, having informed the

kirangozi that Urimba was our destination, and bidding him keep as

closely as possible to the lake shore, where it was practicable, but

if not, to make the best he could of it. From the debouchement of the

Rugufu, the headwaters of which we had crossed on our random route

to Ujiji, to Urimba, a distance of six days by water, there are no

villages, and consequently no food. The shore party, however, before

leaving Ujiji, had eight days' rations, and on this morning four days',

distributed to each person, and therefore was in no danger of starvation

should the mountain headlands, now unfolding, abrupt and steep, one

after another, prevent them from communicating with us. It must be

understood that such a journey as this had never been attempted before

by any Arab or Msawahili, and every step taken was in sheer ignorance

of where the road would lead the men ashore. Rounding Kivoe's steep

promontory, whose bearded ridge and rugged slope, wooded down to the

water's edge, whose exquisite coves and quiet recesses, might well have

evoked a poetical effusion to one so inclined, we dared the chopping

waves of Kivoe's bay, and stood direct for the next cape, Mizohazy,

behind which, owing to wind and wave, we were compelled to halt for the

night.

After Mizohazy is the bold cape of Kabogo--not the terrible Kabogo

around whose name mystery has been woven by the superstitious

natives--not the Kabogo whose sullen thunder and awful roar were heard

when crossing the Rugufu on our flight from the Wahha---but a point

in Ukaranga, on whose hard and uninviting rocks many a canoe has been

wrecked. We passed close to its forbidding walls, thankful for the

calm of the Tanganika. Near Kabogo are some very fine mvule trees, well

adapted for canoe building, and there are no loud-mouthed natives about

to haggle for the privilege of cutting them.

Along the water's edge, and about three feet above it, was observed very

clearly on the smooth face of the rocky slopes of Kabogo the high-water

mark of the lake. This went to show that the Tanganika, during the rainy

season, rises about three feet above its dry season level, and that,

during the latter season, evaporation reduces it to its normal level.

The number of rivers which we passed on this journey enabled me to

observe whether, as I was told, there was any current setting north.

It was apparent to me that, while the south-west, south, or south-east

winds blew, the brown flood of the rivers swept north; but it happened

that, while passing, once or twice, the mouths of rivers, after a

puff from the north-west and north, that the muddied waters were seen

southward of the mouths; from which I conclude that there is no current

in the Tanganika except such as is caused by the fickle wind.

Finding a snug nook of a bay at a place called Sigunga, we put in for

lunch. An island at the mouth of the bay suggested to our minds that

this was a beautiful spot for a mission station; the grandly sloping

hills in the background, with an undulating shelf of land well-wooded

between them and the bay, added to the attractions of such a spot.

The island, capable of containing quite a large village, and perfectly

defensible, might, for prudence' sake, contain the mission and its

congregation; the landlocked bay would protect their fishery and trade

vessels; more than sustain a hundred times the number of the population

of the island. Wood for building their canoes and houses is close at

hand; the neighbouring country would afford game in abundance; and the

docile and civil people of Ukaranga but wait religious shepherds.

From beautiful Sigunga, after a brief halt, we set off, and, after

three hours, arrived at the mouth of the River Uwelasia. Hippopotami

and crocodiles being numerous; we amused ourselves by shooting at them,

having also a hope of attracting the attention of our shore party, the

sound of whose guns we had not heard since leaving the Rugufu.

On the 3rd of January we left Uwelasia, and, passing by Cape Herembe,

were in the bay of Tongwe. This bay is about twenty-five miles broad,

and stretches from Cape Herembe to Cape Tongwe. Finding themselves so

near their destination, Urimba being but six miles from Herembe Point,

the men of both boats bent themselves to their oars, and, with shouts,

songs, and laughter, encouraged each other to do their utmost. The flags

of the two great Anglo-Saxon nations rippled and played in the soft

breeze, sometimes drawing near caressingly together, again bending away,

like two lovers coy to unite. The tight little boat of the Doctor would

keep ahead, and the crimson and crossed flag of England would wave

before me, and it seemed to say to the beautiful laggard astern, "Come

on, come on; England leads the way." But was it not England's place

to be in the front here? She won the right to it by discovering the

Tanganika; America came but second.

Urimba, though a large district of Kawendi, has a village of the

same name peopled by refugees from Yombeh, who found the delta of

the Loajeri, though the unhealthiest of spots--equal to that of the

Rusizi--far preferable to the neighbourhood of Sultan Pumburu, of

Southern Kawendi. A good chase by the victors seems to have given a

shock to their systems, for they are very timid and distrustful of

strangers, and would by no means permit us to enter their village, of

which, to say the truth, I was very glad, after a glance at the

reeking corruption on which they were encamped. In the immediate

neighbourhood--nay, for a couple of miles on either side--I should

suppose that to a white man it were death to sleep a single night.

Leading the way south of the village, I found a fit camping-place at

the extreme south-east corner of Tongwe Bay, about a mile and a half due

west of the lofty peak of Kivanga, or Kakungu. By an observation taken

by the Doctor, we found ourselves to be in latitude 5 degrees 54 minutes

south.

None of the natives had heard of our shore party, and, as the delta of

the Loajeri and Mogambazi extended for about fifteen miles, and withal

was the most impassable of places, being perfectly flat, overgrown with

the tallest of matete, eschinomenae, and thorny bush, and flooded with

water, it was useless to fatigue our men searching for the shore party

in such an inhospitable country. No provisions were procurable, for the

villages were in a state of semi-starvation, the inhabitants living from

hand to mouth on what reluctant Fortune threw into their nets.

The second day of our arrival at Urimba I struck off into the

interior with my gun-bearer, Kalulu, carrying the Doctor's splendid

double-barreled rifle (a Reilly, No. 12), on the search for venison.

After walking about a mile I came to a herd of zebras. By creeping on

all-fours I managed to come within one hundred yards of them; but I was

in a bad spot--low prickly shrubs; and tsetse flies alighting on the

rifle-sight, biting my nose, and dashing into my eyes, completely

disconcerted me; and, to add to my discontent, my efforts to disengage

myself from the thorns, alarmed the zebras, which all stood facing the

suspicious object in the bush. I fired at the breast of one, but, as

might be expected, missed. The zebras galloped away to about three

hundred yards off, and I dashed into the open, and, hastily cocking the

left-hand trigger, aimed at a proud fellow trotting royally before his

fellows, and by good chance sent a bullet through his heart. A fortunate

shot also brought down a huge goose, which had a sharp horny spur on

the fore part of each wing. This supply of meat materially contributed

towards the provisioning of the party for the transit of the unknown

land that lay between us and Mrera, in Rusawa, Kawendi.

It was not until the third day of our arrival at our camp at Urimba that

our shore party arrived. They had perceived our immense flag hoisted on

a twenty-feet long bamboo above the tallest tree near our camp as they

surmounted the sharp lofty ridge behind Nerembe, fifteen miles off, and

had at first taken it for a huge bird; but there were sharp eyes in the

crowd, and, guided by it, they came to camp, greeted as only lost and

found men are greeted.

I suffered from another attack of fever at this camp, brought on by the

neighbourhood of the vile delta, the look of which sickened the very

heart in me.

On the 7th of January we struck camp, and turned our faces eastward,

and for me, home! Yet regretfully! There had been enough happiness and

pleasure, and pleasantest of social companionship found on the shores

of the lake for me. I had seen enough lovely scenes which, siren-like,

invited one to quiet rest; gentle scenes, where there was neither jar

nor tumult, neither strife nor defeat, neither hope nor disappointment,

but rest-a drowsy, indolent, yet pleasant rest. And only a few drawbacks

to these. There was fever; there were no books, no newspapers, no wife

of my own race and blood, no theatres, no hotels, no restaurants, no

East River oysters, no mince-pies, neither buckwheat cakes, nor anything

much that was good for a cultivated palate to love. So, in turning to

say farewell to the then placid lake and the great blue mountains, that

grew bluer as they receded on either hand, I had the courage to utter

that awful word tearlessly, and without one sigh.

Our road led up through the valley of the Loajeri, after leaving its

delta, a valley growing ever narrower, until it narrowed into a ravine

choked by the now roaring, bellowing river, whose resistless rush seemed

to affect the very air we breathed. It was getting oppressive, this

narrowing ravine, and opportunely the road breasted a knoll, then a

terrace, then a hill, and lastly a mountain, where we halted to encamp.

As we prepared to select a camping-place, the Doctor silently pointed

forward, and suddenly a dead silence reigned everywhere. The quinine

which I had taken in the morning seemed to affect me in every crevice of

my brain; but a bitter evil remained, and, though I trembled under the

heavy weight of the Reilly rifle, I crept forward to where the Doctor

was pointing. I found myself looking down a steep ravine, on the other

bank of which a fine buffalo cow was scrambling upward. She had just

reached the summit, and was turning round to survey her enemy, when I

succeeded in planting a shot just behind the shoulder blade, and close

to the spine, evoking from her a deep bellow of pain. "She is shot! she

is shot!" exclaimed the Doctor; "that is a sure sign you have hit her."

And the men even raised a shout at the prospect of meat. A second,

planted in her spine, brought her to her knees, and a third ended her.

We thus had another supply of provisions, which, cut up and dried over

a fire, as the Wangwana are accustomed to do, would carry them far over

the unpeopled wilderness before us. For the Doctor and myself, we had

the tongue, the hump, and a few choice pieces salted down, and in a few

days had prime corned beef. It is not inapt to state that the rifle had

more commendations bestowed on it than the hunter by the Wangwana.

The next day we continued the march eastward, under the guidance of

our kirangozi; but it was evident, by the road he led us, that he knew

nothing of the country, though, through his volubility, he had led us to

believe that he knew all about Ngondo, Yombeh, and Pumburu's districts.

When recalled from the head of the caravan, we were about to descend

into the rapid Loajeri, and beyond it were three ranges of impassable

mountains, which we were to cross in a north-easterly direction; quite

out of our road. After consulting with the Doctor, I put myself at the

head of the caravan, and following the spine of the ridge, struck off

due east, regardless of how the road ran. At intervals a travelled road

crossed our path, and, after following it a while, we came to the ford

of the Loajeri. The Loajeri rises south and south-east of Kakungu Peak.

We made the best we could of the road after crossing the river, until

we reached the main path that runs from Karah to Ngondo and Pumburu, in

Southern Kawendi.

On the 9th, soon after leaving camp, we left the travelled path, and

made for a gap in the are of hills before us, as Pumburu was at war with

the people of Manya Msenge, a district of northern Kawendi. The country

teemed with game, the buffaloes and zebras were plentiful. Among the

conspicuous trees were the hyphene and borassus palm trees, and a tree

bearing a fruit about the size of a 600-pounder cannon-ball, called by

some natives "mabyah,"* according to the Doctor, the seeds of which are

roasted and eaten. They are not to be recommended as food to Europeans.

* In the Kisawahili tongue, "mabyah," "mbyah, "byah," mean

bad, unpleasant.

On the 10th, putting myself at the head of my men, with my compass in

hand, I led the way east for three hours. A beautiful park-land was

revealed to us; but the grass was very tall, and the rainy season, which

had commenced in earnest, made my work excessively disagreeable. Through

this tall grass, which was as high as my throat, I had to force my way,

compass in hand, to lead the Expedition, as there was not the least sign

of a road, and we were now in an untravelled country. We made our camp

on a beautiful little stream flowing north; one of the feeders of the

Rugufu River.

The 11th still saw me plunging through the grass, which showered drops

of rain on me every time I made a step forward. In two hours we crossed

a small stream, with slippery syenitic rocks in its bed, showing the

action of furious torrents. Mushrooms were in abundance, and very large.

In crossing, an old pagazi of Unyamwezi, weather-beaten, uttered, in

a deplorable tone, "My kibuyu is dead;" by which he meant that he had

slipped, and in falling had broken his gourd, which in Kisawahili is

"kibuyu."

On the eastern bank we halted for lunch, and, after an hour and a half's

march, arrived at another stream, which I took to be the Mtambu, at

first from the similarity of the land, though my map informed me that it

was impossible. The scenery around was very similar, and to the north we

had cited a similar tabular hill to the "Magdala" Mount I had discovered

north of Imrera, while going to the Malagarazi. Though we had only

travelled three and a half hours the Doctor was very tired as the

country was exceedingly rough.

The next day, crossing several ranges, with glorious scenes of

surpassing beauty everywhere around us, we came in view of a mighty and

swift torrent, whose bed was sunk deep between enormous lofty walls of

sandstone rock, where it roared and brawled with the noise of a little

Niagara.

Having seen our camp prepared on a picturesque knoll, I thought I would

endeavour to procure some meat, which this interesting region seemed to

promise. I sallied out with my little Winchester along the banks of the

river eastward. I travelled for an hour or two, the prospect getting

more picturesque and lovely, and then went up a ravine which looked very

promising. Unsuccessful, I strode up the bank, and my astonishment may

be conceived when I found myself directly in front of an elephant, who

had his large broad ears held out like studding sails--the colossal

monster, the incarnation of might of the African world. Methought when

I saw his trunk stretched forward, like a warning finger, that I heard

a voice say, "Siste, Venator!" But whether it did not proceed from my

imagination or--No; I believe it proceeded from Kalulu, who must have

shouted, "Tembo, tembo! bana yango!" "Lo! an elephant! an elephant, my

master!"

For the young rascal had fled as soon as he had witnessed the awful

colossus in such close vicinage. Recovering from my astonishment, I

thought it prudent to retire also--especially, with a pea-shooter loaded

with treacherous sawdust cartridges in my hand. As I looked behind, I

saw him waving his trunk, which I understood to mean, "Good-bye, young

fellow; it is lucky for you you went in time, for I was going to pound

you to a jelly."

As I was congratulating myself, a wasp darted fiercely at me and planted

its sting in my neck, and for that afternoon my anticipated pleasures

were dispelled. Arriving at camp I found the men grumbling; their

provisions were ended, and there was no prospect for three days, at

least, of procuring any. With the improvidence usual with the gluttons,

they had eaten their rations of grain, all their store of zebra and

dried buffalo meat, and were now crying out that they were famished.

The tracks of animals were numerous, but it being the rainy season the

game was scattered everywhere; whereas, had we travelled during the dry

season through these forests our larders might have been supplied fresh

each day.

Some time about 6 P.M., as the Doctor and I were taking our tea outside

the tent, a herd of elephants, twelve in number, passed about 800 yards

off. Our fundi, Asmani and Mabruki Kisesa, were immediately despatched

in pursuit. I would have gone myself with the heavy Reilly rifle, only

I was too much fatigued. We soon heard their guns firing, and hoped

they were successful, as a plentiful supply of meat might then have been

procured, while we ourselves would have secured one of the elephant's

feet for a nice delicate roast; but within an hour they returned

unsuccessful, having only drawn blood, some of which they exhibited to

us on a leaf.

It requires a very good rifle to kill an African elephant. A No. 8 bore

with a Frazer's shell, planted in the temple, I believe, would drop an

elephant each shot. Faulkner makes some extraordinary statements,

about walking up in front of an elephant and planting a bullet in his

forehead, killing him instantly. The tale, however, is so incredible

that I would prefer not to believe it; especially when he states that

the imprint of the muzzle of his rifle was on the elephant's trunk.

African travellers--especially those with a taste for the chase--are too

fond of relating that which borders on the incredible for ordinary men

to believe them. Such stories must be taken with a large grain of salt,

for the sake of the amusement they afford to readers at home. In future,

whenever I hear a man state how he broke the back of an antelope at 600

yards, I shall incline to believe a cipher had been added by a slip of

the pen, or attribute it to a typographical error, for this is almost an

impossible feat in an African forest. It may be done once, but it could

never be done twice running. An antelope makes a very small target at

600 yards distance; but, then, all these stories belong by right divine

to the chasseur who travels to Africa for the sake only of sport.

On the 13th we continued our march across several ridges; and the series

of ascents and descents revealed to us valleys and mountains never

before explored streams; rushing northward, swollen by the rains, and

grand primeval forests, in whose twilight shade no white man ever walked

before.

On the 14th the same scenes were witnessed--an unbroken series of

longitudinal ridges, parallel one with another and with Lake Tanganika.

Eastward the faces of these ridges present abrupt scarps and terraces,

rising from deep valleys, while the western declivities have gradual

slopes. These are the peculiar features of Ukawendi, the eastern

watershed of the Tanganika.

In one of these valleys on this day we came across a colony of

reddish-bearded monkeys, whose howls, or bellowing, rang amongst the

cliffs as they discovered the caravan. I was not able to approach

them, for they scrambled up trees and barked their defiance at me, then

bounded to the ground as I still persisted in advancing; and they would

have soon drawn me in pursuit if I had not suddenly remembered that my

absence was halting the Expedition.

About noon we sighted our Magdala--the grand towering mount whose

upright frowning mass had attracted our eyes, as it lifted itself from

above the plain in all its grandeur, when we were hurrying along the

great ridge of Rusawa towards the "Crocodile" River. We recognised

the old, mystic beauty of the tree-clad plain around it. Then it

was bleached, and a filmy haze covered it lovingly; now it was vivid

greenness. Every vegetable, plant, herb and tree, had sprung into quick

life--the effect of the rains. Rivers that ran not in those hot summer

days now fumed and rushed impetuously between thick belts of mighty

timber, brawling hoarsely in the glades. We crossed many of these

streams, all of which are feeders of the Rugufu.

Beautiful, bewitching Ukawendi! By what shall I gauge the loveliness of

the wild, free, luxuriant, spontaneous nature within its boundaries? By

anything in Europe? No. By anything in Asia? Where? India, perhaps. Yes;

or say Mingrelia and Imeritia. For there we have foaming rivers; we have

picturesque hillocks; we have bold hills, ambitious mountains, and broad

forests, with lofty solemn rows of trees, with clean straight stems,

through which you can see far, lengthy vistas, as you see here. Only in

Ukawendi you can almost behold the growth of vegetation; the earth is

so generous, nature so kind and loving, that without entertaining any

aspiration for a residence, or a wish to breathe the baleful atmosphere

longer than is absolutely necessary, one feels insensibly drawn towards

it, as the thought creeps into his mind, that though all is foul beneath

the captivating, glamorous beauty of the land, the foulness might be

removed by civilized people, and the whole region made as healthy as

it is productive. Even while staggering under the pressure of the awful

sickness, with mind getting more and more embittered, brain sometimes

reeling with the shock of the constantly recurring fevers--though I

knew how the malaria, rising out of that very fairness, was slowly

undermining my constitution, and insidiously sapping the powers of mind

and body--I regarded the alluring face of the land with a fatuous love,

and felt a certain sadness steal over me as each day I was withdrawing

myself from it, and felt disposed to quarrel with the fate that seemed

to eject me out of Ukawendi.

On the ninth day of our march from the shores of the Tanganika we

again perceived our "Magdala Mount," rising like a dark cloud to the

north-east, by which I knew that we were approaching Imrera, and that

our Icarian attempt to cross the uninhabited jungle of Ukawendi would

soon be crowned with success. Against the collective counsel of the

guides, and hypothetical suggestions of the tired and hungry souls of

our Expedition, I persisted in being guided only by the compass and my

chart. The guides strenuously strove to induce me to alter my course and

strike in a south-west direction, which, had I listened to them, would

have undoubtedly taken me to South-western Ukonongo, or North-eastern

Ufipa. The veteran and experienced soldiers asked mournfully if I were

determined to kill them with famine, as the road I should have taken

was north-east; but I preferred putting my trust in the compass. No sun

shone upon us as we threaded our way through the primeval forest, by

clumps of jungle, across streams, up steep ridges, and down into deep

valleys. A thick haze covered the forests; rain often pelted us; the

firmament was an unfathomable depth of grey vapour. The Doctor had

perfect confidence in me, and I held on my way.

As soon as we arrived at our camp the men scattered themselves through

the forest to search for food. A grove of singwe trees was found close

by. Mushrooms grew in abundance, and these sufficed to appease the

gnawing hunger from which the people suffered. Had it not been such

rainy weather I should have been enabled to procure game for the camp;

but the fatigue which I suffered, and the fever which enervated me,

utterly prevented me from moving out of the camp after we once came to

a halt. The fear of lions, which were numerous in our vicinity, whose

terrible roaring was heard by day and by night, daunted the hunters so

much, that though I offered five doti of cloth for every animal brought

to camp, none dared penetrate the gloomy glades, or awesome belts of

timber, outside the friendly defence of the camp.

The morning of the tenth day I assured the people that we were close

to food; cheered the most amiable of them with promise of abundant

provender, and hushed the most truculent knaves with a warning not to

tempt my patience too much, lest we came to angry blows; and then

struck away east by north through the forest, with the almost exhausted

Expedition dragging itself weakly and painfully behind me. It was a most

desperate position certainly, and I pitied the poor people far more than

they pitied themselves; and though I fumed and stormed in their presence

when they were disposed to lie down and give up, never was a man

further from doing them injury. I was too proud of them; but under the

circumstances it was dangerous--nay, suicidal--to appear doubtful or

dubious of the road. The mere fact that I still held on my way according

to the Doctor's little pearly monitor (the compass) had a grand moral

effect on them, and though they demurred in plaintive terms and with

pinched faces, they followed my footsteps with a trustfulness which

quite affected me.

For long miles we trudged over smooth sloping sward, with a vision of

forest and park-land beauty on our right and left, and in front of us

such as is rarely seen. At a pace that soon left the main body of the

Expedition far behind, I strode on with a few gallant fellows, who,

despite their heavy loads, kept pace with me. After a couple of hours we

were ascending the easy slope of a ridge, which promised to decide in

a few minutes the truth or the inaccuracy of my chart. Presently we

arrived at the eastern edge of the ridge, and about five miles away, and

1,000 feet below the high plateau on which we stood, we distinguished

the valley of Imrera!

By noon we were in our old camp. The natives gathered round, bringing

supplies of food, and to congratulate us upon having gone to Ujiji

and returned. But it was long before the last member of the Expedition

arrived. The Doctor's feet were very sore, bleeding from the weary

march. His shoes were in a very worn-out state, and he had so cut and

slashed them with a knife to ease his blistered feet, that any man of

our force would have refused them as a gift, no matter how ambitious he

might be to encase his feet a la Wasungu.

Asmani, the guide, was very much taken aback when he discovered that the

tiny compass knew the way better than he did, and he declared it as his

solemn opinion that it could not lie. He suffered much in reputation

from having contested the palm with the "little thing," and ever

afterwards his boasted knowledge of the country was considerably

doubted.

After halting a day to recruit ourselves, we continued our journey on

the 18th January, 1872, towards Unyanyembe. A few miles beyond Imrera,

Asmani lost the road again, and I was obliged to show it to him, by

which I gained additional honour and credit as a leader and guide. My

shoes were very bad, and it was difficult to decide whose were the worst

in condition, the Doctor's or mine. A great change had come upon the

face of the land since I had passed northward en route to Ujiji. The

wild grapes now hung in clusters along the road; the corn ears were

advanced enough to pluck and roast for food; the various plants shed

their flowers; and the deep woods and grasses of the country were

greener than ever.

On the 19th we arrived at Mpokwa's deserted village. The Doctor's feet

were very much chafed and sore by the marching. He had walked on foot

all the way from Urimba, though he owned a donkey; while I, considerably

to my shame be it said, had ridden occasionally to husband my strength,

that I might be enabled to hunt after arrival at camp.

Two huts were cleared for our use, but, just as we had made ourselves

comfortable, our sharp-eyed fellows had discovered several herds of game

in the plain west of Mpokwa. Hastily devouring a morsel of corn-bread

with coffee, I hastened away, with Bilali for a gunbearer, taking

with me the famous Reilly rifle of the Doctor and a supply of Fraser's

shells. After plunging through a deep stream, and getting wet again,

and pushing my way through a dense brake, I arrived at a thin belt of

forest, through which I was obliged to crawl, and, in half an hour, I

had arrived within one hundred and forty yards of a group of zebras,

which were playfully biting each other under the shade of a large tree.

Suddenly rising up, I attracted their attention; but the true old rifle

was at my shoulder, and "crack--crack" went both barrels, and two fine

zebras, a male and female, fell dead under the tree where they had

stood. In a few seconds their throats were cut, and after giving the

signal of my success, I was soon surrounded by a dozen of my men, who

gave utterance to their delight by fulsome compliments to the merits of

the rifle, though very few to me. When I returned to camp with the meat

I received the congratulations of the Doctor, which I valued far higher,

as he knew from long experience what shooting was.

When the eatable portions of the two zebras were hung to the scale, we

found, according to the Doctor's own figures, that we had 719 lbs. of

good meat, which, divided among forty-four men, gave a little over

16 lbs. to each person. Bombay, especially, was very happy, as he had

dreamed a dream wherein I figured prominently as shooting animals down

right and left; and, when he had seen me depart with that wonderful

Reilly rifle he had not entertained a doubt of my success, and,

accordingly, had commanded the men to be ready to go after me, as soon

as they should hear the reports of the gun.

The following is quoted from my Diary:

January 20th, 1872.--To-day was a halt. On going out for a hunt I saw

a herd of eleven giraffes. After crossing Mpokwa stream I succeeded in

getting within one hundred and fifty yards of one of them, and fired at

it; but, though it was wounded, I did not succeed in dropping it, though

I desired the skin of one of them very much.

In the afternoon I went out to the east of the village, and came to a

herd of six giraffes. I wounded one of them, but it got off, despite my

efforts.

What remarkable creatures they are! How beautiful their large limpid

eyes! I could have declared on oath that both shots had been a success,

but they sheered off with the stately movements of a clipper about to

tack. When they ran they had an ungainly, dislocated motion, somewhat

like the contortions of an Indian nautch or a Theban danseuse--a dreamy,

undulating movement, which even the tail, with its long fringe of black

hair, seemed to partake of.

The Doctor, who knew how to console an ardent but disappointed young

hunter, attributed my non-success to shooting with leaden balls, which

were too soft to penetrate the thick hide of the giraffes, and advised

me to melt my zinc canteens with which to harden the lead. It was

not the first time that I had cause to think the Doctor an admirable

travelling companion; none knew so well how to console one for bad luck

none knew so well how to elevate one in his own mind. If I killed a

zebra, did not his friend Oswell--the South African hunter--and himself

long ago come to the conclusion that zebra meat was the finest in

Africa? If I shot a buffalo cow, she was sure to be the best of her

kind, and her horns were worth while carrying home as specimens; and was

she not fat? If I returned without anything, the game was very wild, or

the people had made a noise, and the game had been frightened; and who

could stalk animals already alarmed? Indeed, he was a most considerate

companion, and, knowing him to be literally truthful, I was proud of his

praise when successful, and when I failed I was easily consoled.

Ibrahim, the old pagazi whose feelings had been so lacerated in

Ukawendi, when his ancient kibuyu broke, before leaving Ujiji invested

his cloth in a slave from Manyuema, who bore the name of "Ulimengo,"

which signifies the "World." As we approached Mpokwa, Ulimengo absconded

with all his master's property, consisting of a few cloths and a bag of

salt, which he had thought of taking to Unyanyembe for trade. Ibrahim

was inconsolable, and he kept lamenting his loss daily in such

lugubrious tones that the people, instead of sympathizing, laughed at

him. I asked him why he purchased such a slave, and, while he was with

him, why he did not feed him? Replied he, tartly, "Was he not my slave?

Was not the cloth with which I bought him mine? If the cloth was my own,

could I not purchase what I liked? Why do you talk so?"

Ibrahim's heart was made glad this evening by the return of Ulimengo

with the salt and the cloth, and the one-eyed old man danced with his

great joy, and came in all haste to impart to me the glad news. "Lo,

the 'World' has come back. Sure. My salt and my cloth are with him also.

Sure." To which I replied, that he had better feed him in future, as

slaves required food as well as their masters.

From 10 P.M. to midnight the Doctor was employed in taking observations

from the star Canopus, the result of which was that he ascertained

Mpokwa, district of Utanda, Ukonongo, to be in S. latitude 6 degrees 18

minutes 40 seconds. On comparing it with its position as laid down in my

map by dead reckoning, I found we differed by three miles; I having laid

it down at 6 degrees 15 minutes south latitude.

The day following was a halt. The Doctor's feet were so inflamed and

sore that he could not bear his shoes on. My heels were also raw, and I

viciously cut large circles out of my shoes to enable me to move about.

Having converted my zinc canteens into bullets, and provided myself with

a butcher and gun-bearer, I set out for the lovely park-land and plain

west of Mpokwa stream, with the laudable resolution to obtain something;

and seeing nothing in the plain, I crossed over a ridge, and came to

a broad basin covered with tall grass, with clumps here and there of

hyphene palm, with a stray mimosa or so scattered about. Nibbling off

the branches of the latter, I saw a group of giraffes, and then

began stalking them through the grass, taking advantage of the tall

grass-grown ant-hills that I might approach the wary beasts before their

great eyes could discover me. I contrived to come within 175 yards, by

means of one of these curious hummocks; but beyond it no man could crawl

without being observed--the grass was so thin and short. I took a long

breath, wiped my perspiring brow, and sat down for a while; my black

assistants also, like myself, were almost breathless with the exertion,

and the high expectations roused by the near presence of the royal

beasts. I toyed lovingly with the heavy Reilly, saw to my cartridges,

and then stood up and turned, with my rifle ready; took one good, long,

steady aim; then lowered it again to arrange the sights, lifted it up

once more--dropped it. A giraffe half turned his body; for the last time

I lifted it, took one quick sight at the region of the heart, and

fired. He staggered, reeled, then made a short gallop; but the blood was

spouting from the wound in a thick stream, and before he had gone 200

yards he came to a dead halt, with his ears drawn back, and allowed

me to come within twenty yards of him, when, receiving a zinc bullet

through the head, he fell dead.

"Allah ho, akhbar!" cried Khamisi, my butcher, fervently. "This is meat,

master!"

I was rather saddened than otherwise at seeing the noble animal

stretched before me. If I could have given him his life back I think

I should have done so. I thought it a great pity that such splendid

animals, so well adapted for the service of man in Africa, could not

be converted to some other use than that of food. Horses, mules, and

donkeys died in these sickly regions; but what a blessing for Africa

would it be if we could tame the giraffes and zebras for the use of

explorers and traders! Mounted on a zebra, a man would be enabled to

reach Ujiji in one month from Bagamoyo; whereas it took me over seven

months to travel that distance!

The dead giraffe measured 16 feet 9 inches from his right fore-hoof to

the top of his head, and was one of the largest size, though some have

been found to measure over 17 feet. He was spotted all over with large

black, nearly round, patches.

I left Khamisi in charge of the dead beast, while I returned to camp

to send off men to cut it up, and convey the meat to our village. But

Khamisi climbed a tree for fear of the lions, and the vultures settled

on it, so that when the men arrived on the spot, the eyes, the tongue,

and a great part of the posteriors were eaten up. What remained weighed

as follows, when brought in and hung to the scales:

1 hind leg.... 134 lbs.

1 " .... 136 "

1 fore leg.... 160 "

I " .... 160 "

Ribs...... 158 "

Neck...... 74 "

Rump...... 87 "

Breast..... 46 "

Liver..... 20 "

Lungs..... 12 "

Heart..... 6 "

Total weight of eatable portions.. 993 lbs.

Skin and head, 181 lbs.

The three days following I suffered from a severe attack of fever, and

was unable to stir from bed. I applied my usual remedies for it, which

consisted of colocynth and quinine; but experience has shown me that

an excessive use of the same cathartic weakens its effect, and that it

would be well for travellers to take with them different medicines to

cause proper action in the liver, such as colocynth, calomel, resin

of jalap, Epsom salts; and that no quinine should be taken until such

medicines shall have prepared the system for its reception.

The Doctor's prescription for fever consists of 3 grains of resin of

jalap, and 2 grains of calomel, with tincture of cardamoms put in just

enough to prevent irritation of the stomach--made into the form of a

pill--which is to be taken as soon as one begins to feel the excessive

languor and weariness which is the sure forerunner of the African type

of fever. An hour or two later a cup of coffee, unsugared and without

milk, ought to be taken, to cause a quicker action. The Doctor

also thinks that quinine should be taken with the pill; but my

experience--though it weighs nothing against what he has endured--has

proved to me that quinine is useless until after the medicine has taken

effect. My stomach could never bear quinine unless subsequent to

the cathartic. A well-known missionary at Constantinople recommends

travellers to take 3 grains of tartar-emetic for the ejection of the

bilious matter in the stomach; but the reverend doctor possibly forgets

that much more of the system is disorganized than the stomach; and

though in one or two cases of a slight attack, this remedy may have

proved successful, it is altogether too violent for an enfeebled man in

Africa. I have treated myself faithfully after this method three or

four times; but I could not conscientiously recommend it. For cases of

urticaria, I could recommend taking 3 grains of tartar-emetic; but then

a stomach-pump would answer the purpose as well.

On the 27th we set out for Misonghi. About half-way I saw the head of

the Expedition on the run, and the motive seemed to be communicated

quickly, man after man, to those behind, until my donkey commenced to

kick, and lash behind with his heels. In a second, I was made aware of

the cause of this excitement, by a cloud of wild bees buzzing about

my head, three or four of which settled on my face, and stung me

frightfully. We raced madly for about half a mile, behaving in as wild a

manner as the poor bestung animals.

As this was an unusually long march, I doubted if the Doctor could march

it, because his feet were so sore, so I determined to send four men

back with the kitanda; but the stout old hero refused to be carried, and

walked all the way to camp after a march of eighteen miles. He had been

stung dreadfully in the head and in the face; the bees had settled in

handfuls in his hair; but, after partaking of a cup of warm tea and some

food, he was as cheerful as if he had never travelled a mile.

At Mrera, Central Ukonongo, we halted a day to grind grain, and

to prepare the provision we should need during the transit of the

wilderness between Mrera and Manyara.

On the 31st of January, at Mwaru, Sultan Ka-mirambo, we met a caravan

under the leadership of a slave of Sayd bin Habib, who came to visit us

in our camp, which was hidden in a thick clump of jungle. After he was

seated, and had taken his coffee, I asked,

"What is thy news, my friend, that thou bast brought from Unyanyembe?"

"My news is good, master."

"How goes the war?"

"Ah, Mirambo is where? He eats the hides even. He is famished. Sayd bin

Habib, my master, hath possession of Kirira. The Arabs are thundering at

the gates of Wilyankuru. Sayd bin Majid, who came from Ujiji to Usagozi

in twenty days, hath taken and slain 'Moto' (Fire), the King. Simba

of Kasera hath taken up arms for the defence of his father, Mkasiwa of

Unyanyembe. The chief of Ugunda hath sent five hundred men to the field.

Ough--Mirambo is where? In a month he will be dead of hunger."

"Great and good news truly, my friend."

"Yes-in the name of God."

"And whither art thou bound with thy caravan?"

"Sayd, the son of Majid, who came from Ujiji, hath told us of the road

that the white man took, that he had arrived at Ujiji safely, and that

he was on his way back to Unyanyembe. So we have thought that if the

white man could go there, we could also. Lo, the Arabs come by the

hundred by the white man's road, to get the ivory from Ujiji.

"I am that white man."

"You?"

"Yes."

"Why it was reported that you were dead--that you fought with the

Wazavira."

"Ah, my friend, these are the words of Njara, the son of Khamis. See"

(pointing to Livingstone), "this is the white man, my father *, whom I

saw at Ujiji. He is going with me to Unyanyembe to get his cloth, after

which he will return to the great waters."

* It is a courteous custom in Africa to address elderly

people as "Baba," (Father.)

"Wonderful!--thou sayest truly."

"What has thou to tell me of the white man at Unyanyembe?"

"Which white man?"

"The white man I left in the house of Sayd, the son of Salim--my

house--at Kwihara."

"He is dead."

"Dead!"

"True."

"You do not mean to say the white man is dead?"

"True--he is dead."

"How long ago?"

"Many months now."

"What did he die of?"

"Homa (fever)."

"Any more of my people dead?"

"I know not."

"Enough." I looked sympathetically at the Doctor, and he replied,

"I told you so. When you described him to me as a drunken man, I knew he

could not live. Men who have been habitual drunkards cannot live in

this country, any more than men who have become slaves to other vices.

I attribute the deaths that occurred in my expedition on the Zambezi to

much the same cause."

"Ah, Doctor, there are two of us gone. I shall be the third, if this

fever lasts much longer."

"Oh no, not at all. If you would have died from fever, you would have

died at Ujiji when you had that severe attack of remittent. Don't think

of it. Your fever now is only the result of exposure to wet. I never

travel during the wet season. This time I have travelled because I was

anxious, and I did not wish to detain you at Ujiji."

"Well, there is nothing like a good friend at one's back in this country

to encourage him, and keep his spirits up. Poor Shaw! I am sorry--very

sorry for him. How many times have I not endeavoured to cheer him up!

But there was no life in him. And among the last words I said to him,

before parting, were, 'Remember, if you return to Unyanyembe, you die!'"

We also obtained news from the chief of Sayd bin Habib's caravan that

several packets of letters and newspapers, and boxes, had arrived for me

from Zanzibar by my messengers and Arabs; that Selim, the son of Sheikh

Hashid of Zanzibar, was amongst the latest arrivals in Unyanyembe. The

Doctor also reminded me with the utmost good-nature that, according to

his accounts, he had a stock of jellies and crackers, soups, fish, and

potted ham, besides cheese, awaiting him in Unyanyembe, and that he

would be delighted to share his good things; whereupon I was greatly

cheered, and, during the repeated attacks of fever I suffered about this

time, my imagination loved to dwell upon the luxuries at Unyanyembe.

I pictured myself devouring the hams and crackers and jellies like a

madman. I lived on my raving fancies. My poor vexed brain rioted on such

homely things as wheaten bread and butter, hams, bacon, caviare, and I

would have thought no price too high to pay for them. Though so far

away and out of the pale of Europe and America, it was a pleasure to

me, during the _athumia_ or despondency into which I was plunged by ever

recurring fevers, to dwell upon them. I wondered that people who had

access to such luxuries should ever get sick, and become tired of life.

I thought that if a wheaten loaf with a nice pat of fresh butter were

presented to me, I would be able, though dying, to spring up and dance a

wild fandango.

Though we lacked the good things of this life above named, we possessed

salted giraffe and pickled zebra tongues; we had ugali made by Halimah

herself; we had sweet potatoes, tea, coffee, dampers, or slap jacks; but

I was tired of them. My enfeebled stomach, harrowed and irritated with

medicinal compounds, with ipecac, colocynth, tartar-emetic, quinine,

and such things, protested against the coarse food. "Oh, for a wheaten

loaf!" my soul cried in agony. "Five hundred dollars for one loaf of

bread!"

The Doctor, somehow or another, despite the incessant rain, the dew,

fog, and drizzle, the marching, and sore feet, ate like a hero, and I

manfully, sternly, resolved to imitate the persevering attention he paid

to the welfare of his gastric powers; but I miserably failed.

Dr. Livingstone possesses all the attainments of a traveller. His

knowledge is great about everything concerning Africa--the rocks, the

trees, the fruits, and their virtues, are known to him. He is also full

of philosophic reflections upon ethnological matter. With camp-craft,

with its cunning devices, he is au fait. His bed is luxurious as a

spring mattress. Each night he has it made under his own supervision.

First, he has two straight poles cut, three or four inches in diameter;

which are laid parallel one with another, at the distance of two feet;

across these poles are laid short sticks, saplings, three feet long,

and over them is laid a thick pile of grass; then comes a piece of

waterproof canvas and blankets--and thus a bed has been improvised fit

for a king.

It was at Livingstone's instigation I purchased milch goats, by which,

since leaving Ujiji, we have had a supply of fresh milk for our tea

and coffee three times a day. Apropos of this, we are great drinkers of

these welcome stimulants; we seldom halt drinking until we have each

had six or seven cups. We have also been able to provide ourselves with

music, which, though harsh, is better than none. I mean the musical

screech of parrots from Manyuema.

Half-way between Mwaru--Kamirambo's village--and the deserted Tongoni of

Ukamba, I carved the Doctor's initials and my own on a large tree, with

the date February 2nd. I have been twice guilty of this in Africa once

when we were famishing in Southern Uvinza I inscribed the date, my

initials, and the word "Starving," in large letters on the trunk of a

sycamore.

In passing through the forest of Ukamba, we saw the bleached skull of

an unfortunate victim to the privations of travel. Referring to it, the

Doctor remarked that he could never pass through an African forest, with

its solemn stillness and serenity, without wishing to be buried quietly

under the dead leaves, where he would be sure to rest undisturbed. In

England there was no elbow-room, the graves were often desecrated; and

ever since he had buried his wife in the woods of Shupanga he had sighed

for just such a spot, where his weary bones would receive the eternal

rest they coveted.

The same evening, when the tent door was down, and the interior was made

cheerful by the light of a paraffin candle, the Doctor related to me

some incidents respecting the career and the death of his eldest son,

Robert. Readers of Livingstone's first book, 'South Africa,' without

which no boy should be, will probably recollect the dying Sebituane's

regard for the little boy "Robert." Mrs. Livingstone and family were

taken to the Cape of Good Hope, and thence sent to England, where Robert

was put in the charge of a tutor; but wearied of inactivity, when he

was about eighteen, he left Scotland and came to Natal, whence he

endeavoured to reach his father. Unsuccessful in his attempt, he took

ship and sailed for New York, and enlisted in the Northern Army, in a

New Hampshire regiment of Volunteers, discarding his own name of Robert

Moffatt Livingstone, and taking that of Rupert Vincent that his tutor,

who seems to have been ignorant of his duties to the youth, might not

find him. From one of the battles before Richmond, he was conveyed to a

North Carolina hospital, where he died from his wounds.

On the 7th of February we arrived at the Gombe, and camped near one of

its largest lakes. This lake is probably several miles in length, and

swarms with hippopotami and crocodiles.

From this camp I despatched Ferajji, the cook, and Chowpereh to

Unyanyembe, to bring the letters and medicines that were sent to me from

Zanzibar, and meet us at Ugunda, while the next day we moved to our

old quarters on the Gombe, where we were first introduced to the real

hunter's paradise in Central Africa. The rain had scattered the greater

number of the herds, but there was plenty of game in the vicinity. Soon

after breakfast I took Khamisi and Kalulu with me for a hunt. After a

long walk we arrived near a thin jungle, where I discovered the tracks

of several animals--boar, antelope, elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus,

and an unusual number of imprints of the lion's paw. Suddenly I heard

Khamisi say, "Master, master! here is a 'simba!' (lion);" and he came

up to me trembling with excitement and fear--for the young fellow was

an arrant coward--to point out the head of a beast, which could be seen

just above the tall grass, looking steadily towards us. It immediately

afterwards bounded from side to side, but the grass was so high that it

was impossible to tell exactly what it was. Taking advantage of a tree

in my front, I crept quietly onwards, intending to rest the heavy rifle

against it, as I was so weak from the effects of several fevers that I

felt myself utterly incapable of supporting my rifle for a steady aim.

But my surprise was great when I cautiously laid it against the tree,

and then directed its muzzle to the spot where I had seen him stand.

Looking further away--to where the grass was thin and scant--I saw the

animal bound along at a great rate, and that it was a lion: the noble

monarch of the forest was in full flight! From that moment I ceased to

regard him as the "mightiest among the brutes;" or his roar as anything

more fearful in broad daylight than a sucking dove's.

The next day was also a halt, and unable to contain my longing for the

chase, where there used to be such a concourse of game of all kinds,

soon after morning coffee, and after despatching a couple of men with

presents to my friend Ma-manyara, of ammonia-bottle memory, I sauntered

out once more for the park. Not five hundred yards from the camp, myself

and men were suddenly halted by hearing in our immediate vicinity,

probably within fifty yards or so, a chorus of roars, issuing from a

triplet of lions. Instinctively my fingers raised the two hammers, as

I expected a general onset on me; for though one lion might fly, it

was hardly credible that three should. While looking keenly about I

detected, within easy rifle-shot, a fine hartebeest, trembling and

cowering behind a tree, as if it expected the fangs of the lion in its

neck. Though it had its back turned to me, I thought a bullet might

plough its way to a vital part, and without a moment's hesitation I

aimed and fired. The animal gave a tremendous jump, as if it intended

to take a flying leap through the tree; but recovering itself it dashed

through the underbrush in a different direction from that in which I

supposed the lions to be, and I never saw it again, though I knew I

had struck it from the bloody trail it left; neither did I see nor hear

anything more of the lions. I searched far and wide over the park-land

for prey of some kind, but was compelled to return unsuccessful to camp.

Disgusted with my failure, we started a little after noon for Manyara,

at which place we were hospitably greeted by my friend, who had sent men

to tell me that his white brother must not halt in the woods but must

come to his village. We received a present of honey and food from

the chief, which was most welcome to us in our condition. Here was an

instance of that friendly disposition among Central African chiefs when

they have not been spoiled by the Arabs, which Dr. Livingstone found

among the Babisa and Ba-ulungu, and in Manyuema. I received the same

friendly recognition from all the chiefs, from Imrera, in Ukawendi, to

Unyanyembe, as I did from Mamanyara.

On the 14th we arrived at Ugunda, and soon after we had established

ourselves comfortably in a hut which the chief lent us for our use, in

came Ferajji and Chowpereh, bringing with them Sarmean and Uledi

Manwa Sera, who, it will be recollected, were the two soldiers sent

to Zanzibar with letters and who should Sarmean have in charge but the

deserter Hamdallah, who decamped at Manyara, as we were going to Ujiji.

This fellow, it seems, had halted at Kigandu, and had informed the chief

and the doctor of the village that he had been sent by the white man to

take back the cloth left there for the cure of Mabruk Saleem; and the

simple chief had commanded it to be given up to him upon his mere word,

in consequence of which the sick man had died.

Upon Sarmean's arrival in Unyanyembe from Zanzibar, about fifty days

after the Expedition had departed for Ujiji the news he received was

that the white man (Shaw) was dead; and that a man called Hamdallah,

who had engaged himself as one of my guides, but who had shortly after

returned, was at Unyanyembe. He had left him unmolested until the

appearance of Ferajji and his companion, when they at once, in a body,

made a descent on his hut and secured him. With the zeal which always

distinguished him in my service, Sarmean had procured a forked pole,

between the prongs of which the neck of the absconder was placed; and

a cross stick, firmly lashed, effectually prevented him from relieving

himself of the incumbrance attached to him so deftly.

There were no less than seven packets of letters and newspapers from

Zanzibar, which had been collecting during my absence from Unyanyembe.

These had been intrusted at various times to the chiefs of caravans, who

had faithfully delivered them at my tembe, according to their promise

to the Consul. There was one packet for me, which contained two or

three letters for Dr. Livingstone, to whom, of course, they were at once

transferred, with my congratulations. In the same packet there was also

a letter to me from the British Consul at Zanzibar requesting me to take

charge of Livingstone's goods and do the best I could to forward them on

to him, dated 25th September, 1871, five days after I left Unyanyembe on

my apparently hopeless task.

"Well, Doctor," said I to Livingstone, "the English Consul requests me

to do all I can to push forward your goods to you. I am sorry that I did

not get the authority sooner, for I should have attempted it; but in the

absence of these instructions I have done the best I could by pushing

you towards the goods. The mountain has not been able to advance

towards Mohammed, but Mohammed has been compelled to advance towards the

mountain."

But Dr. Livingstone was too deeply engrossed in his own letters from

home, which were just a year old.

I received good and bad news from New York, but the good news was

subsequent, and wiped out all feelings that might have been evoked had I

received the bad only. But the newspapers, nearly a hundred of them, New

York, Boston, and London journals, were full of most wonderful news. The

Paris Commune was in arms against the National Assembly; the Tuileries,

the Louvre, and the ancient city Lutetia Parisiorum had been set in

flames by the blackguards of Saint-Antoine! French troops massacring

and murdering men, women, and children; rampant diabolism, and incarnate

revenge were at work in the most beautiful city in the world! Fair women

converted into demons, and dragged by ruffianly soldiery through the

streets to universal execration and pitiless death; children of tender

age pinned to the earth and bayoneted; men innocent or not, shot, cut,

stabbed, slashed, destroyed--a whole city given up to the summa injuria

of an infuriate, reckless, and brutal army! Oh France! Oh Frenchmen!

Such things are unknown even in the heart of barbarous Central Africa.

We spurned the newspapers with our feet; and for relief to sickened

hearts gazed on the comic side of our world, as illustrated in the

innocent pages of 'Punch.' Poor 'Punch!' good-hearted, kindly-natured

'Punch!' a traveller's benison on thee! Thy jokes were as physic; thy

innocent satire was provocative of hysteric mirth.

Our doors were crowded with curious natives, who looked with

indescribable wonder at the enormous sheets. I heard them repeat the

words, "Khabari Kisungu"--white man's news--often, and heard them

discussing the nature of such a quantity of news, and expressing their

belief that the "Wasungu" were "mbyah sana," and very "mkali;" by which

they meant to say that the white men were very wicked, and very smart

and clever though the term wicked is often employed to express high

admiration.

On the fourth day from Ugunda, or the 18th of February, and the

fifty-third day from Ujiji, we made our appearance with flags flying

and guns firing in the valley of Kwihara, and when the Doctor and myself

passed through the portals of my old quarters I formally welcomed him to

Unyanyembe and to my house.

Since the day I had left the Arabs, sick and, weary almost with my

life, but, nevertheless, imbued with the high hope that my mission would

succeed, 131 days had elapsed--with what vicissitudes of fortune the

reader well knows--during which time I had journeyed over 1,200 miles.

The myth after which I travelled through the wilderness proved to be

a fact; and never was the fact more apparent than when the Living Man

walked with me arm in arm to my old room, and I said to him, "Doctor, we

are at last HOME!"