Size of Party.--The best size for a party depends on many considerations.
It should admit of being divided into two parts, each strong enough to
take care of itself, and in each of which is one person at least able to
write a letter,--which bus servants, excellent in every other particular,
are too often unable to do. In travel through a disorganised country,
where there are small chiefs and bands of marauders, a large party is
necessary; thus the great success of Livingstone's earlier expeditions
was largely due to his being provided with an unusually strong escort of
well-armed and warlike, but not too aggressive, Caffres. In other cases
small parties succeed better than large ones; they excite less fear, do
not eat up the country, and are less delayed by illness. The last fatal
expedition of Mungo Park is full of warning to travellers who propose
exploring with a large body of Europeans.
Solitary Travellers.--Neither sleepy nor deaf men are fit to travel quite
alone. It is remarkable how often the qualities of wakefulness and
watchfulness stand every party in good stead.
Servants.--Nature of Engagements.--The general duties that a servant
should be bound to, independently of those for which he is specially
engaged, are--under penalty of his pay being stopped, and, it may be, of
dismissal--to maintain discipline, take share of camp-duties and
night-watch, and do all in his power to promote the success of the
expedition. His wages should not be payable to him in full, till the
return of the party to the town from which it started, or to some other
civilised place. It is best that all clothing, bedding, etc., that the
men may require, should be issued out and given to them as a present, and
that none of their own old clothes should be allowed to be taken. They
are more careful of what is their own; and, by supplying the things
yourself, you can be sure that they are good in quality, uniform in
appearance, and equal in weight, while this last is ascertainable.
The following Form of Agreement is abridged from one that was used in Mr.
Austin's expedition in Australia. It seems short, explicit, and
reasonable:--
"We the undersigned, forming an expedition about to explore the interior
of ----, under Mr. A., consent to place ourselves (horses and equipments)
entirely and unreservedly under his orders for the above purpose, from
the date hereof until our return to----, or, on failure in this respect,
to abide all consequences that may result. We fully recognise Mr. B. as
the second, and Mr. C. as the third in command; and the right of
succession to the command and entire charge of the party in the order
thus stated.
"We severally undertake to use our best endeavours to promote the harmony
of the party, and the success of the expedition.
"In witness whereof we sign our names. (Here follow the signatures.) Read
over and signed by the respective parties, in my presence." (Here follows
the signature of some person of importance in the place where the
expedition is organised.)
By the words, "abide all consequences," the leader would be justified in
leaving a man to shift for himself, and refusing his pay, if the case
were a serious one.
Good Interpreters are very important: men who have been used by their
chiefs, missionaries, etc., as interpreters, are much to be preferred;
for so great is the poverty of thought and language among common people,
that you will seldom find a man, taken at hazard, able to render your
words with correctness. Recollect to take with you vocabularies of all
the tribes whom you are at all likely to visit.
Engaging Natives.--On engaging natives, the people with whom they have
lived, and to whom they have become attached and learnt to fear, should
impress on them that, unless they bring you back in safety, they must
never show their faces again, nor expect the balance of their pay, which
will only be delivered to them on your return.
Women.--Natives' Wives.--If some of the natives take their wives, it
gives great life to the party. They are of very great service, and cause
no delay; for the body of a caravan must always travel at a foot's pace,
and a woman will endure a long journey nearly as well as a man, and
certainly better than a horse or a bullock. They are invaluable in
picking up and retailing information and hearsay gossip, which will give
clues to much of importance, that, unassisted, you might miss. Mr. Hearne
the American traveller of the last century, in his charming book, writes
as follows, and I can fully corroborate the faithfulness with which he
gives us a savage's view of the matter. After the account of his first
attempt, which was unsuccessful, he goes on to say,--"The very plan
which, by the desire of the Governor, we pursued, of not taking any women
with us on the journey, was, as the chief said, the principal thing that
occasioned all our want: 'for,' said he, 'when all the men are heavy
laden, they can neither hunt nor travel to any considerable distance; and
if they meet with any success in hunting, who is to carry the produce of
the labour?' 'Women,' said he, 'were made for labour: one of them can
carry or haul as much as two men can do. They also pitch our tents, make
and mend our clothing, keep us warm at night; and in fact there is no
such thing as travelling any considerable distance, or for any length of
time, in this country without their assistance.' 'Women,' said he again,
'though they do everything are maintained at a trifling expense: for, as
they always stand cook, the very licking of their fingers, in scarce
times, is sufficient for their subsistence.'"
Strength of Women.--I believe there are few greater popular errors than
the idea we have mainly derived from chivalrous times, that woman is a
weakly creature. Julius C aesar, who judged for himself, took a very
different view of the powers of certain women of the northern races,
about whom he wrote. I suppose, that in the days of baronial castles,
when crowds of people herded together like pigs within the narrow
enclosures of a fortification and the ladies did nothing but needlework
in their boudoirs, the mode of life wasvery prejudicial to their nervous
system and muscular powers. The women suffered from the effects of ill
ventilation and bad drainage, and had none of the counteracting
advantages of the military life that was led by the males. Consequently
women really became the helpless dolls that they were considered to be,
and which it is still the fashion to consider them. It always seems to me
that a hard-worked woman is better and happier for her work. It is in the
nature of women to be fond of carrying weights; you may see them in
omnibuses and carriages, always preferring to hold their baskets or their
babies on their knees, to setting them down on the seats by their sides.
A woman, whose modern dress includes I know not how many cubic feet of
space, has hardly ever pockets of a sufficient size to carry small
articles; for she prefers to load her hands with a bag or other weighty
object. A nursery-maid, who is on the move all day, seems the happiest
specimen of her sex; and, after her, a maid-of-all work who is treated
fairly by her mistress.