TO MUTA NZIGÉ AND BACK TO UGANDA.
The ladies of Mtesa’s family—Sambuzi ordered to take me to Muta Nzigé—My
last evening with Mtesa—_En route_ for Muta Nzigé—Sambuzi suffers from
“the big head”—We come to an understanding—The white people of
Gambaragara—War music—Through a deserted country—Sinister auguries—A
cowards’ council of war—Panic in the camp—Sambuzi announces his
intention of deserting me—The flight when none pursued—The “Spoiler”
eaten up—Mtesa tries to persuade me to return—At Kafurro.
_Oct. 29._—On the 29th of October Mtesa and his grand army arrived at
the old capital of Ulagalla. There was but little demonstration made to
welcome the monarch from the war, except what was made by the females of
the imperial household, who were mustered in strong force under the
leadership of Nana Mazuri, the Emperor’s mother, a venerable old lady of
decidedly masculine mind, and of a revengeful and fierce disposition.
The Emperor honours his mother greatly, and bestowed hearty embraces
on her and on the ancient relicts of Suna his father, who were also
brought to meet him and to do him honour, and to receive the son of
heroic Suna as became their respect for him and their awe of his rank
and power. Lu-lu-luing and welcomes and fond smiles were the order of
the day; a great drinking of maramba wine and potent beer followed; and
musketry salutes, killing of beeves and goats, and interchanging of
presents, closed the day of the return to the capital.
After allowing a few days to transpire for rest, I began to recall to
the Emperor’s mind the original purpose of my visit to him, and of his
promise to conform to my request. He consented to my departure, and
kindly permitted me to make my own choice out of his chiefs for the
leader of the force which was to give its aid to our Expedition for the
exploration of the country between Muta Nzigé and Lake Victoria. I
selected Sambuzi, a young man of thirty years of age or thereabouts,
whose gallantry and personal courage had several times been
conspicuously displayed during the war with the Wavuma, and whose rank
and station guaranteed a force strong enough to withstand, if well
managed, a greater power than the king of Unyoro—then at war with Gordon
Pasha—could conveniently despatch to oppose us.
[Illustration:
DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATION.—1. East Manyema spear. 2. Urundi,
Karagwé, and Uhha spear. 3. Unyoro shield. 4. Uregga knife. 5. Rua
knife. 6. Uvuma and Usoga knife. 7. Manyema knife. 8. Uregga knife.
9. Uganda knife. 10. Ukerewé knife. 11. Clubs and walking stick. 12.
Ordinary spear of Unyamwezi. 13. Uregga spear. 14. Uganda macheté.
15. Manyema shield. 16. Uhyeya billhook. 17. Uganda shield. 18.
Unyamwezi billhook. 19. Usongora and Bumbireh shield. 20. Usongora
and Bumbireh macheté. 21. Manyema spear. 22. Uganda spear.
]
Mtesa, admitting that Sambuzi was a wise choice, stated with the usual
exaggeration of an African or an Oriental that he should have 5000
warriors, and all the chiefs at the levee concurred with him. On my
request to him that he would repeat, clearly and within hearing of all,
his commands to Sambuzi, Mtesa called the chief to him, who, while
prostrate on the ground, received the following command in a loud and
clear voice:—
“Sambuzi, my guest Stamlee is going to Muta Nzigé. He has asked that you
should lead the Waganda to the lake, and I have consented. Now listen to
my words. Nearly all the white men who have accepted my people as escort
complain that the Waganda gave great trouble to them. Let me not hear
this of you. I shall send messengers to Kabba Rega to inform him of your
object, and command him to abstain from molesting you. Now go, muster
all your men, and I shall send four sub-chiefs with 1000 men each under
Watongoleh to assist you. Do whatever Stamlee advises or suggests should
be done, and by no means return to Uganda until you have absolutely
performed my commands. If you do return without Stamlee’s letter
authorizing you to abandon the project, you will dare my anger. I have
said.”
“Thanks, thanks, thanks, oh, thanks, my lord!” Sambuzi replied, rubbing
his face in the dust. Then standing up, he seized his spears, and,
levelling them, cried out: “I go at the Emperor’s command to take
Stamlee to the Muta Nzigé. I shall take Stamlee through the heart of
Unyoro to the lake. We shall build a strong boma, and stay there until
Stamlee has finished his work. Who shall withstand me? My drum shall be
sounded for the muster to-day, and I shall gather all the young men of
the Katonga valley under my flag! When Sambuzi’s flag is seen, the
Wanyora will fly and leave my road white and free, for it is _Kabaka_
who sends him, and Sambuzi comes in the name of _Kabaka_! Thanks,
thanks, oh, many thanks, my lord, my own dear lord!”
The eve of my departure was spent in conversation with the Emperor, who
seemed really sorry that the time had arrived for a positive and final
leave-taking. The chief subject of conversation was the Christian
church, which had just begun to be erected, where the rites of the
Church were to be performed by Dallington after the style and manner
shown to him by the Universities mission at Zanzibar, until one more
worthy to take his place should arrive.
We went together over the grounds of the Christian faith, and Mtesa
repeated to me at my request as much as he knew of the advantages to be
gained by the adoption of the Christian religion, and of its superiority
to that of Islam, in which he had first been taught. By his remarks he
proved that he had a very retentive memory, and was tolerably well
posted in his articles of belief. At night I left him with an earnest
adjuration to hold fast to the new faith, and to have recourse to prayer
to God to give him strength to withstand all temptations that should
tend to violate the commandments written in the Bible.
Early next morning my convert sent me many presents as tokens of his
esteem, such as four shields, sixteen spears, twelve knives, ten
billhooks, six walking-sticks, twelve finely prepared skins and furs of
wild animals, 20 lbs. of myrrh, four white monkey-skins, ten beeves,
sixteen goats, bananas and beer and wine, and an escort of one hundred
warriors to proceed by the lake to Dumo.
For our mutual friend Lukongeh, king of Ukerewé, he sent at my request
five long tusks of ivory, one comely virgin of fifteen as a wife
suitable for a king, being of the beautiful race of Gambaragara, also 20
lbs. of fine iron wire, six white monkey-skins, and one large new canoe,
capable of carrying fifty men.
For my friend the king of Komeh Island and the lake shore of Uzinja he
sent the same, and distributed beeves among the ambassadors from the
king, whom I had brought to receive these presents.
From myself I sent to my kind friend Lukongeh one bale of assorted
cloth, two coils of brass wire, 60 lbs. of fine beads, and two suits of
blue and red flannel, besides a plush velvet rug.
Happy that I had so prospered despite the vexatious delay which was
unavoidable, and that I had been able to do even more than I had
promised to the kings of Ukerewé and Komeh, I set out from Ntewi with
twenty large canoes full of Waganda warriors, five canoes for my own
special escort, two to escort the embassy of Ukerewé home, two to escort
the embassy of Komeh home, and eleven to open trade by the lake route,
with Unyanyembé viâ Kagehyi—also a suggestion of mine.
On the same day that I set out from Ntewi, Sambuzi led a thousand men
from Ulagalla overland to our rendezvous on the Katonga river, where he
was to be joined by the Expedition from Dumo, and the four sub-chiefs
Sekajugu, Mkoma, Kurji, and Ngezi.
Our party proceeding by the lake were hospitably entertained at Nakavija
by the grand admiral of Mtesa, Gabunga, and by Jumba, vice-admiral at
Unjaku, with beeves, milk, wine, beer, bananas, tomatoes, and sweet
potatoes.
At Ujaju our india-rubber pontoon was condemned, and a new and light
canoe was substituted for it, and named the _Livingstone_, to take to
Muta Nzigé to assist the _Lady Alice_ in the exploration of that lake.
After four days’ coasting we arrived at Dumo, and greeted the Expedition
after an absence of three months and five days. Frank Pocock had enjoyed
splendid health, and the soldiers showed by their robust forms that they
had lived on the best in Uddu, and that the Emperor’s commands
respecting them had not been neglected. All this time they had been
sustained free of cost to me, and I could not find it in my heart to
return the Waganda escort back to the Emperor without some token of my
gratitude, and accordingly I made up a present of four bales of cloth,
and 140 lbs. of choice beads, besides various other presents.
A few days sufficed to reform the Expedition, repack all loads, and to
prepare the boat, which had now seen nearly nine months of rough service
on Lake Victoria, for transport overland to Muta Nzigé.
The _Livingstone_ canoe was also taken to pieces, and made into portable
loads for the journey. This canoe was 23 feet long, 34 inches wide, and
2 feet deep, and was formed of four long planks and one keel-piece sewn
together with cane fibre, which, with the thwarts and bow-piece, formed
light portable loads for seven men.
On the seventh day after my return to Dumo we began the march towards
the general rendezvous of the exploring army on the Katonga river. We
journeyed through Uddu in a north-north-westerly direction, until,
striking the Kyogia river, we followed the course of that tributary of
the Katonga river as far as Kikoma, when we crossed the stream and
entered the country of Bwera, which lies parallel to Uddu, and extends
from Koki westward of Uddu as far as the Katonga river.
At Kikoma we were compelled to come to a halt until Sambuzi was informed
of our arrival, and guides could be obtained from him to lead us to the
rendezvous.
Meanwhile I took advantage of the halt to hunt game and to obtain
meat-provision for the expedition. During the five days of our halt
here I was so fortunate as to shoot fifty-seven hartebeest, two zebra,
and one water-buck. The abundance of game in this wild debatable
district, and the immunity they enjoy from man—in consequence of the
numerous lions and leopards, and also the neighbourhood of raiders
from the hostile country of Ankori—was the principal cause of my great
success. The first day I set out I bagged five fine animals within
a few minutes, which astonished not only the Waganda body-guards of
Mtesa, but also myself.
We heard of lions as being abundant in the neighbourhood of Kikoma, but
though I roved far into the wilderness west of Kikoma, I never saw the
slightest trace of either lions or leopards.
The arrival of guides from “General” Sambuzi broke up our halt, and
caused us to resume our march, and the second day brought us to the
Katonga river, or rather lagoon, for I could detect no running water.
The bed of the Katonga is about half a mile wide, choked with spear
grass and papyrus, with stagnant water 3, 4, and even 7 feet deep in
some places.
The crossing of the Katonga consumed an entire day, and was effected by
means of the _Lady Alice_, which had to be forced through the dense
reeds. At Ruwewa, on the north bank of the Katonga, Sambuzi’s delay
caused us another halt of five days, which was a sore tax on my
patience, and but little in accordance with either my hopes or Mtesa’s
instructions. However, we were so far entered into the enterprise, and
were now so remote from any other possible means of advance, that we had
to console ourselves with the reflection that “what cannot be mended
must be borne,” though mentally I cruelly condemned our dilatory
general. The landscape between Dumo and the Katonga river presents
smooth, rounded, hilly ridges separated by broad, grassy valleys dotted
with ant-hills and scantily clothed with brushwood. It is a fine
pastoral country, eminently suited for grazing, but in the absence of a
sufficient population it is a famous haunt for noble game, so
unsuspicious as to be easily accessible to a tolerable shot. In the
uninhabited portions of the country few trees are seen, save the rugged
euphorbiæ.
The eye here commands many views of extensive prospects of rolling
country, of grassy hills and grassy valleys, following one another in
regular series.
As we all enjoyed unusual good health during our journey through this
country, one could not help fancying that it was to the far-receding
prospects opening on every side that we owed much of our healthfulness.
It was certain that the blood flowed quicker, that the eye kindled with
brighter light, and that we breathed more freely when we stood on one of
those high, commanding grassy ridges and somewhat fondly compared the
land to others we had seen elsewhere, where fever and ague were not so
prevalent.
To describe Uddu and Bwera in detail would be a tedious task, for there
is much sameness of outline in hill and valley, swell and hollow, ridge
and basin, but viewed as a whole from the summit of any eminence, there
is something really noble and grand in the survey.
I observed that the parts inhabited by the Waganda are, as a rule, the
ridges and tabular summits of the hills, and that the hollows and basins
are left for grazing purposes to the roving Wahuma shepherds.
On the sixth day after our arrival at Ruwewa, in the district of
Kahwangau, we marched to Laugurwe, where we met—as courtiers had
pre-informed us—General Sambuzi with a thousand men. We camped half
a mile off from the general, occupying an entire village, from the
plantations of which we were at liberty to help ourselves to our
hearts’ content. Sambuzi’s force occupied the villages north of us.
In the afternoon I called to pay my respects to the general, for common
sense informed me that the best way of attaining the objects in view was
to pay the utmost possible attention to the failings of this African
general, and to observe all ceremony and politeness towards him.
During the war with Uvuma, while I was a constant and honoured attendant
at the morning levee of the Emperor, Sambuzi had occupied with his force
the ground in rear of our detachment, and this chief had then courted my
friendship most assiduously. This in fact was one of the reasons why I
had made choice of him, and preferred his name to Mtesa. But when I now
saw him, I found his behaviour to be an overacted imitation of the
Emperor, without the monarch’s courtliness and kindliness of manner.
As I entered the court, which had been constructed with a view to
enhance his dignity, if space can be said to increase dignity, I
observed that the general stood up from amongst his subordinates and
stiffly maintained that position until I grasped him by the hand, when
he managed to utter a faint greeting in response to mine.
I was not altogether unprepared for this result of his promotion; still
it chilled me, angered me a little, I must confess, and induced me to
ask him if anything was wrong. “No,” he said, “nothing was wrong.”
“Then why are you so stiff with your friend?” I asked. “Do you not like
the idea of going to Muta Nzigé? If you regret your appointment, I can
apply for another man.”
“My liking or not liking the journey will not alter the command of
_Kabaka_,” he replied. “I have received my commands to take you to Muta
Nzigé, and I will take you there. I am not a child, I am a man, and my
name is known pretty well in Unyoro, for the Wanyoro and Wasongora have
felt the sharpness of my spear, and it is not likely that they can turn
me back before I bring you to the lake. I stand in the place of _Kabaka_
now, for I represent him here, and the army is under my command.
Sambuzi, your friend at Uvuma, is changed now to Sambuzi the general.
You understand me?”
“Perfectly,” I answered. “I have a few words to say in reply, and you
will then understand me as well as I understand you. I wish to go to
Muta Nzigé lake. So long as you take me there and do exactly as the
Emperor has commanded you, you shall have as much honour and respect
from me as though you were the Emperor himself, and besides that you
shall have so rich a reward that the Katekiro of Uganda himself will
envy you. With your mode of marching and camping I have nothing to do so
long as we are in Uganda, but when we enter Unyoro, I would advise you
as a friend, since we are about to enter the country against the will of
the people, that you keep the army together, that one camp be made and
good positions occupied, and that when any trouble threatens us, you do
not act without the advice of others, able and willing to give advice.
That is all.”
“It is well,” he said, “we understand one another now. We will march by
slow degrees as far as the frontier, that the other chiefs may have time
to come up, and you shall then judge for yourself whether the Waganda
know how to march.”
Considered as we would consider of things European, Sambuzi could not be
blamed for assuming dignity, and I therefore excused what otherwise
might be called gross behaviour on his part. Sambuzi’s force would be
quite twenty times stronger in numbers than mine, and he was my only
means of pushing through Unyoro. Prudence counselled me therefore not to
let false pride be an obstacle to the accomplishment and success of the
enterprise, and I determined to listen to its counsel.
Our journey to Kawanga, on the frontier of Uganda, was along the north
bank of the Katonga, through an open rolling country, cut up frequently
by watercourses which feed the Katonga. These watercourses, though
called rivers, show no running stream, but only river-like marshes or
broad “rush drains,” choked with spear-grass and papyrus of the same
nature as the Katonga. North or south of the Katonga, at the distance of
ten miles or so, the land rises rapidly, and here numerous streams of
clear, sweet water take their origin, but in their descent to the
Katonga valley they become united and absorbed by great breadths of
river-like marshes, the oozy contents of which are drained by the broad
lagoon-like Katonga.[31] It maintains this character until near the base
of a low hill which separates the feeders of Muta Nzigé from those of
Lake Victoria. The crest of this hill is not more than 250 feet above
the bed of the Katonga, and it is not more than two miles from its
eastern to its western base, yet along the eastern base curves the bed
of the Katonga from the north-west, and along the western rushes the
Rusango, from the foot of Mount Lawson southward towards the Muta Nzigé.
Except in the vicinity of the Katonga there is scarcely one square mile
of level ground to be seen. Our eyes dwelt everywhere on grassy hollows,
slopes, and ridges, and the prospect each day was bounded by lines of
blue hills, which, as we progressed westward, assumed mountainous
altitudes.
At Kawanga, when Sambuzi’s force had been all collected, our army
consisted of fighting-men as follows:—
The _Daily Telegraph and New York Herald_ expedition 180
Sambuzi, general 1000
Mkoma, colonel 250
Ngezi, colonel 250
Sekajugu, colonel 450
Mrowla, captain 100
Kurji, captain 40
———
2270
Mtesa’s bodyguards under Sabadu (sergeant) 20
———
Total 2290
Following this little army there were about 500 women and children,
giving a grand total of nearly 2800 souls.
With Colonel Sekajugu were four men of Gambaragara, who were of a
remarkably light complexion, approaching to that of dark-faced
Europeans, who differed altogether in habits and manners from the
Waganda. They possessed their own milch-cows, and their diet appeared to
consist entirely of milk. The features of these people, besides their
complexion, were so regular and remarkable that my curiosity was aroused
to the highest pitch concerning them. I had seen stray representatives
of these people at the court of Mtesa, but I had not the opportunity
then that I had now to enquire definitely about them. I here set down,
as I was told, what I gathered respecting them, both from their own lips
and those of Colonel Sekajugu, who was the best informed of the Waganda.
These light-complexioned, regular-featured people are natives of
Gambaragara—a country situated between Usongora and Unyoro. Gambaragara
embraces all the immediate districts neighbouring the base of the lofty
Mount Gordon-Bennett, upon the summit of which snow is often seen. We
caught a view, as we travelled through Unyoro, of this lofty mountain,
which lay north-westerly from Western Benga, in Unyoro; but the distance
was too great for me to describe it exactly. It appeared to be an
enormous and blunted cone about 14,000 or 15,000 feet high.
According to Sekajugu, the mountain springs up in a series of terraces
from a level plain; numerous waterfalls plunge down its steep slopes,
and two days are usually occupied in the ascent to the highest summit.
The king, Ny-ika, with his principal chiefs and their families, live
during war-time on the highest part of the mountain, which appears to
be, from report, something like an extinct crater. They described it to
me as a hollow surrounded by high walls of rock, which contains a small
round lake, from the centre of which rises a lofty columnar rock. It is
very cold there, and snow frequently falls. The slopes, base, and summit
are thickly populated, but though powerful in numbers, the courage and
skill of the people in war are much derided by the Waganda, who speak of
them as preferring to take refuge in caves, and on the summits of almost
inaccessible rocks, to venturing into the open for a fair fight.
Though probably inferior in courage to the Waganda, they must have
distinguished themselves in war at one time, otherwise I cannot account
for the brave and warlike people of Usongora being the subjects of
Nyika, king of Gambaragara.
This king possesses several villages in different parts of the mountain,
and appears to move from one to another, as his numerous herds of cattle
become stinted in their pasture. Milk being the principal diet of these
people, it may be supposed that cattle are abundant in Gambaragara and
Usongora. The Katekiro of Uganda in his great raid on this region is
said to have collected “50,000” head of cattle. General Sambuzi
accompanied him during that famous time, and has often amused my leisure
hours with lively descriptions of his adventures.
The people are a peculiarly formed race. At one time they are said to
have been all white, and to have emigrated from Northern Unyoro, but at
the present time the black and light-complexioned are about equal in
numbers. The blacks are the result of successive wars during ancient
times and intermarriages between the captors and captives, the result
being a singularly long-limbed and slender-bodied people. The royal
family and the chiefs’ families continue to preserve their
exclusiveness, and hence it is that the original colour of the founders
of the state has been preserved. The women are said to be singularly
beautiful; I have seen several of them, and though I will not call them
beautiful, as we understand the term in Europe and America, they are
superior to any women I have seen in Africa, and have nothing in common
with negroes except the hair. They are said also to be entrusted with
the keeping of the charms of Kabba Rega, and to be endowed by hereditary
right with the privilege of priests of the Muzimu of Unyoro.
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[_To face page 336._
[Illustration: MARCHING THROUGH UNYORO: MOUNT GORDON-BENNETT IN THE
DISTANCE.]
----------------------------------------------------------------
To my disappointment I heard of nothing that would lead me to suppose
they were superior to their less favoured neighbours in manners or
customs or their ways and means of life.
_Jan. 1._—On New Year’s Day, 1876, the exploring army, nearly 2800
strong, filed out from under the plantain shades of Kawanga, each
detachment under the flag of its respective leader, and each known by
the particular style of music adopted by the great chief to whom it owed
martial service. Thus Sambuzi’s own force could be distinguished at a
great distance by a peculiar strain, which, as the Waganda explained,
announced, “Mta-usa, Mta-usa is coming!” or, “The Spoiler, the Spoiler
is coming!” Lukoma’s bands of music in the same way rang out, “Mkoma,
Lukoma is near!” “Look out for Lukoma!” Sekajugu’s name, on the other
hand, appeared after the style of ding-dong-bell, or drawn out into
“Se-ka-ju-gu, Sekajugu!”
On emerging from under the shelter of our plantain-embowered camp,
we were drawn up in a long line along the narrow road. Sekajugu was
appointed to take the advance, Lukoma the rear, Sambuzi and the
Anglo-American Expedition the centre, while the smaller detachments,
under Colonel Ngezi, Mrowla, and Kurji, took positions on the right
and left, to keep the main column undisturbed by ambuscades. There was
no time lost in these arrangements, and at sunrise the great drum of
Sambuzi gave the signal for the march. At noon we occupied a deserted
camp, known as the Salt Bunder, on the Nabutari river, which separated
Unyoro from Uganda. The heights on the opposite side were observed to
be manned by many Wanyoro.
With the eastern bank of the Nabutari, or Nabwari, river terminated the
soft pastoral scenes among which our route had lain ever since leaving
Dumo, on Lake Victoria, for from the western bank began a more rugged
country, which, as we proceeded westward, daily assumed a more
mountainous character. The country resolved itself into mountain masses
of great altitude—bare and serrated hilly ridges, isolated craggy hills,
separated by a rolling country, whose surface often presented great
sheets of ironstone rock, mixed with fragments of granite. Each day’s
march presented two or three mountains of unusual height, which,
dwarfing all others, became of great service to us in taking bearings
and laying down a correct route.
_Jan. 2._—On the 2nd of January we crossed the Nabutari, or Nabwari,
river, and entered hostile Unyoro, and, undisturbed, made a march of ten
miles, occupying at the end of it several villages in Southern Ruoko,
Unyoro. Had we not been informed of the change, we should have
recognised at once the fact that we had entered into a new country, by
the difference in the construction of the huts, and in the vegetables
which formed the principal subsistence of the natives. While in Uganda
bananas formed our principal food—and very good, wholesome, and
digestible they proved—throughout Unyoro our diet consisted of sweet
potatoes and salt, varied with such other vegetables as foraging could
obtain.
It was an amusing scene to see the haste with which the several
detachments rushed about to dig up their rations. It appeared at first
glance as if we had brought the exploring army to recultivate Unyoro, so
thickly strewn and so busy were the diggers over the village fields. The
digging was continued until sunset, and such quantities of potatoes came
to camp that I fancied something like a desire to plunder the Wanyoro
animated our people.
In the meantime our advance was unchecked, and our occupation of
Southern Ruoko unmolested; Sambuzi and Sekajugu drew from this sinister
auguries. “The Wanyoro,” said they, “must be mustering elsewhere to
oppose us; for usually, when we make a raid on this country, the natives
hail us from the hill-tops, to learn the motive of our coming; but now
the country is all silent and deserted; not one native can be seen.”
They therefore determined to send out spies in all directions, to
ascertain the feeling of the natives respecting our strange invasion of
their country; and in order to give time to obtain correct information,
a halt was ordered for the next day.
_Jan. 5._—On the 5th January the various musical bands and war-drums
announced another march. The Waganda being unencumbered with baggage,
except such bedding, mats, and superfluous robes as their women carried,
marched quickly, and tasked the heavily loaded expedition greatly; but
my people did not fail me; they had long ago been thoroughly drilled for
such occasions as the present, and they kept step and pace with the
lightly equipped Waganda. The men who carried the boat-sections and
canoe raced like horses, and arrived soon after the advanced-guard at
camp. Traversing the district of South Ruoko, we plunged into an
uninhabited tract of mountain country, and, after a march of eleven
miles, camped at Kazinga, in Eastern Benga.
_Jan. 6._—The next day we crossed the Katonga, for our course was now
westerly, and occupied Western Benga, from the summit of a tall hill in
which we obtained a faint view of an enormous blue mass afar off, which
we were told was the Great Mountain in the country of Gambaragara. I
named it Gordon-Bennett, in honour of my American chief.
[Illustration: MOUNT EDWIN ARNOLD.]
Our foragers here obtained for the first time a sight and hearing of
some natives, who shouted out that we might proceed without fear, though
they doubted our ability to return, unless we took wings like birds and
flew aloft. Some hiding-places of the natives were also discovered by
accident amongst the tall grass beyond the fields. A little way from the
village we found many deep pits, with small circular mouths, which
proved, on examination, to lead by several passages from the mouth of
the pit to more roomy excavations, like so many apartments. These
underground dwellings are numerous in Southern Unyoro.
_Jan. 8._—After a march of sixteen miles through a wild country we
camped, on the 8th of January, on the east bank of the Mpanga river.
This stream takes its rise near the base of Mount Gordon-Bennett, and,
flowing a few miles to the east of the lofty hump of Mount Edwin Arnold,
is met by the Rusango river, flowing north-west from Mount Lawson, in
the district of Kibanga, in Ankori; the two streams then, united, rush
with impetuous force a little north of west, and, after several falls,
plunge into Beatrice Gulf. Mount Edwin Arnold, of an altitude of some
9000 feet above the sea, stood west of our camp, on the Mpanga, at the
distance of six miles.
We had now left Unyoro proper and entered Ankori, or Usagara. An old
dilapidated wooden enclosure denoted that this extreme corner of Ankori
was sometimes visited by Wasagara herdsmen for the sake of pasture.
The average altitude of our several camps since leaving the Victoria
Lake did not exceed 4600 feet; but as we drew west, the nights were
bitterly cold. On the night of the 7th the thermometer fell to 53°
Fahr., and on the night of the 8th to 55° Fahr., this cold temperature
being, no doubt, caused by night winds from Gordon-Bennett Mountain.
Fogs, rivalling the famed November fogs in London, prevailed as a rule
every morning, rendering the earlier part of each day damp,
disagreeable, and cheerless. It was so thick that a man’s form could not
be seen at the distance of fifty yards, and horn and drums alone guided
us on our march. During the afternoons the atmosphere slightly cleared,
and the sun, struggling in the western skies from behind deep banks of
sullen clouds, endeavoured to announce to us that the day was far spent.
_Jan. 9._—On the 9th of January, 1876, the drums sounded for the march
two hours before sunrise, for we had a long journey before us, and
Uzimba, the country of chief Ruigi, was to be entered on this day.
Until daylight we journeyed along, or not far from, the Rusango, its
many falls, rapids, and cascades telling of the rapid rush and furious
plunge of the river towards Muta Nzigé. Dawn found us in a singularly
wild and beautifully picturesque country, the Switzerland of Africa.
Peaks, cones, mountain humps, and dome-like hills shot up in every
direction, while ice-cold streams rolled between riven and dismantled
rocks or escaped beneath natural bridges of rock, with furious roar.
These gritty sandstone obstructions to the Rusango’s waters presented
most distorted and eccentric forms, appearing often like masses of
scoriæ. The traces of some agency, which long ago had convulsed this
region, were visible in what appeared to be the wreck of mountains. The
strata were perpendicular, seams of white quartz travelled along the lay
of the strata in some places, and in others it appeared to have been
encased in round moulds, which the impetuous waters, with their
ceaseless wear and tear, had worn through, sweeping away the quartz, and
leaving large hollows, cavities, and fissures in the sandstone. A small
tributary of the Rusango from the south ran over a bed of polished
basalt, which likewise contained large veins of quartz.
Soon after noon the main column arrived at the centre of a dip in the
Uzimba ridge, 5600 feet above the sea, whence, far below us, we viewed
the fields, gardens, and villages of the populous country of King Ruigi.
But the sudden advance of the vanguard amongst the surprised natives,
with banners flying and drums beating, had depopulated for the time the
fair, smiling country, and left a clear, open road for the main body.
Had the natives known of our approach, they might have reaped a rich
harvest of revenge amongst the laggards in the rear, for the long march
of nineteen miles had irremediably dissolved the hitherto compact
Expedition into small knots of dispirited and tired stragglers. One
fellow, named Andrew, of the British Mission at Zanzibar, had thrown his
load down, and plunged into the bushes to sleep his weariness off, and a
rescue party of twenty men had to be sent back five miles from camp to
hunt up news of him, and they, fortunately, saved him, though menaced by
a band of natives. Some sick Waganda fell victims in the evening to the
wrath of a roving party of the natives, who had been disturbed in mind
by our presence.
Our descent into the fields of Uzimba was so unexpected that the
inhabitants were utterly ignorant of our character and country. As they
ran away, they asked the advance guard why the king of Ankori had sent
his people to their country, and warned them that the next day they
would come to fight. At night, however, the great war-drum of General
Sambuzi revealed far and wide the character of the force, and announced
that the Waganda were amongst them.
A council of all the chiefs and leaders of our Expedition was held next
day, at which it was resolved to send out that night 200 men to capture
a few prisoners, through whom we could communicate our intentions to
Ruigi of Uzimba, and Kasheshé, king of Unyampaka, which country bordered
the lake west of Uzimba. As the lake was only four miles distant, it
became necessary to know how we were regarded by the natives, and
whether we might expect peaceful possession of a camp for a month or so.
Some ten prisoners were captured, and, after receiving gifts of cloth
and beads, were released, to convey the news to their respective chiefs
that the Waganda had brought a white man, who wished to see the lake,
and who asked permission to reside in peace in the country a few days;
that the white man intended to pay for all food consumed by the
strangers; that he would occupy no village, and injure no property, but
would build his camp separate from the villages, into which the natives,
having food to sell, were requested to bring it, and to receive payment
in cloth, beads, brass, or copper, assured that, so long as they offered
no cause, and kept the peace, they should receive no annoyance. An
answer, we said, was expected within two days.
_Jan. 11._—On the 11th of January we left the villages of Uzimba, and
marched to within a mile of the edge of the plateau,[32] at the base of
which, about 1500 feet below, lay the lake. True to our promise, we
occupied no village, but built our camp on the broad summit of a low
ridge, whence we commanded a clear, open view of our neighbourhood. The
Expedition occupied the lake end of the ridge, while the Waganda
occupied the centre and eastern end. On the southern and northern sides
the hill sloped down to open grassy hollows. No trees or other
obstructions impeded our command of the approaches. The Waganda camps
were surrounded by huts, the doors of which turned outwards, whence
night and day the inmates could observe, without being observed.
_Jan. 12._—The next day an answer was brought that the inhabitants were
not accustomed to strangers, and did not like our coming into their
country; that Uzimba and Unyampaka belonged to Unyoro; that as the king
of Unyoro was fighting with white men, how could the white man come
behind him and expect peace? that our words were good, but our purposes,
they were assured, were none the less wicked; and that we must,
therefore, expect war on the morrow.
[Illustration:
HOUSE AND WOODEN UTENSILS OF UZIMBA AND ANKORI.
1. Wooden stool. 2. Wooden milking vessel. 3. Wooden stool. 4. Wooden
goblet. 5. Wooden porridge dish. 6. Wooden porridge plate. 7. Wooden
milking vessel of Ankori. 8. Wooden bowl. 9. Earthenware cooking
pot. 10. Earthenware cooking pot. 11. Earthenware water vessel. 12.
Wooden dish. 13. Wooden cup. 14. Wooden family banana and sweet
potato dish. 15. House in Uzimba. 16. Wooden water vessel of Uzimba.
17. Wooden bowl of Uzimba.
]
This answer was brought by about three hundred natives, who, while they
delivered their message, were observed to have taken precautions not to
be caught at a disadvantage. Having announced their object, they
withdrew in the direction of Mount Uzimba.
This declaration of war unsettled the nerves of the Waganda chiefs,
principally the inferior chiefs and the bodyguards of Mtesa, and a
stormy meeting was the result. Sabadu and Bugomba, the brother of the
Premier, used their utmost eloquence to persuade Sambuzi to return;
while Sekajugu and Lukoma cunningly held out strong reasons why they
should, return immediately. At the same time they said they were quite
willing to stay by Sambuzi to the death.
The danger of a panic was imminent, when I begged that Sambuzi would
listen to a few words from me. I explained to him that, though we were
only a bullet’s flight from the Nyanza, we had not yet seen the lake,
and that Mtesa had ordered him to take me to the Nyanza; that, before we
had even looked for a strong camp, we were talking of returning; that,
if they were all resolved to return, I required them to give me two days
only, at the end of which I would give them a letter to Mtesa, which
would absolve them from all blame; that, in the meantime, five hundred
of the Waganda and fifty of my people should be sent out to select a
path to the lake by which the boat, canoe, and loads could be let down
the plateau wall without injury, and to endeavour to discover, on their
arrival at the lake, whether canoes were procurable, to embark the
expedition. This advice pleased the chiefs; and, as no time was to be
lost, at 8 A.M. five hundred Waganda and fifty of our Expedition were
sent, under Lukoma and Manwa Sera, my captain, to the lake, with
instructions to proceed cautiously, and by no means to alarm the natives
of the lake shore. I also led a party of fifty men to explore the
plateau edge for a feasible and safe descent to the lake. The lake lay
below us like a vast mirror, tranquil and blue, except along the shore,
which was marked with a thin line of spluttering surf. The opposite
coast was the high ridge of Usongora, which I should judge to be about
fifteen miles distant, though the atmosphere was not very clear.
Usongora bounds Beatrice Gulf westward.
At noon Lukoma and Manwa Sera returned from the lake and reported that
it would be a difficult job to lower the boat down the precipice of 50
feet, which marked the first descent to the lake, without long and
strong ropes; that the natives in passing up from the salt market on the
lake hoisted their salt-bags, well wrapped in bull-hides, up the
precipice; that no man could either descend or ascend with a load on his
back, as he required the use of both his hands for the climbing. They
also reported that they could only find five small fishing canoes, which
would be perfectly useless for the transport of men or goods on the
lake. Great stores of salt had been seen, which had come from Usongora,
and abundance of Indian corn, millet, sweet potatoes, bananas, and
sugarcane had also been seen on the lake shore.
This unwelcome news infused a fever in the minds of the Waganda to be
gone on the instant. Large numbers of natives, posted on the summit of
every hill around us, added to the fear which took possession of the
minds of the Waganda, and rumours were spread about by malicious men of
an enormous force advancing from the south for the next day’s fight.
This urged the Waganda to pack up large stores of sweet potatoes for
their return journey through the wilderness of Ankori. The members of
the Expedition even caught the panic, and prepared in silence to follow
the Waganda, as common-sense informed them, that, if a force of over
2000 fighting men did not consider itself strong enough to maintain its
position, our Expedition consisting of 180 men could by no means do so.
They were observed openly preparing for flight, before any commands had
been issued to that effect, or even the alternative had been discussed.
Others wandered off to mix with gadding crowds of Waganda, well disposed
in mind to participate in their fears.
The Wangwana captains of the Expedition, extremely depressed in
spirit, came to me in the afternoon, and requested to know what I had
determined upon. I informed them that I hoped to be able to bribe
Sambuzi with one-fourth of the entire property of the Expedition to
stay by us two days, during which time I hoped to be able to lower the
boat and canoe down the cliffs, and launch them on the Nyanza, by which
I could free sixty soldiers from encumbrances, to act as guard for the
land party. The boat and canoe would follow the coast line, to act as
auxiliaries to the land party, in case of attack, or to transport them
across rivers, until we should arrive in the neighbourhood of some
uninhabited island, to which place of safety the Expedition might be
conveyed, until exploration should discover more peaceable lands or
other means of prosecuting our journey. The captains approved this
method of meeting the danger which threatened us.
At 5 P.M. a messenger from Sambuzi called me to a council, at which all
of his chief men were present, to discuss what advantages we possessed
for offence and defence, for meeting the danger or for flight. Sabadu
the captain of the detachment of Mtesa’s bodyguard with us, was called
upon to speak, which he did with all the cowardly malice of a Thersites.
Every hint that could damp a virtuous resolution to obey Mtesa’s
commands was thrown out with all the effect that his position as chief
of the bodyguard and his supposed influence with the Emperor lent his
opinions, and he confidently assumed the power to charm away the anger
of his dread master, and turn it upon the head of Kabba Rega, the king
of Unyoro. Bugomba, the brother of the Premier of Uganda, though only a
lad of sixteen, having far more influence in this council, and far more
ability than would possibly be believed by Europeans, seconded Sabadu in
an assumed humble voice, and what Sabadu had neglected to urge, youthful
Bugomba, the Emperor’s page, adroitly threw in, and thus clenched the
argument for absolute and immediate flight.
The council heard him with great approval, and many were of the opinion
that it would be best to fly at once, without waiting for night or for
morning. Lukoma and Sekajugu, the colonels under Sambuzi, gravely
besought Sambuzi to think well of the numbers that would certainly
oppose us in the battle next day; to remember that we were far from
assistance, if overcome; that all the advantages of war were on the side
of the enemy. The enemy would fight on his own soil, and mindful that he
was fighting for his own home. If repulsed the first day the enemy would
come again in greater numbers than ever, and each day, as the bruit of
war should spread and time gained, the whole strength of Unyoro, a
country as large as Uganda, would be drawn to dislodge and massacre us.
However, Sambuzi, was their general and chief, and if he thought it best
to stand by “Stamlee,” they would stand by their chief to the death.
Sambuzi then asked me to speak. Wrath almost choked my speech, for I
felt bitterly angry that I should be asked to speak when they were all
so resolved to act contrary to the object and purpose of the journey
that even fear of the Emperor was not sufficient to induce them to stay,
and that a chief like Sambuzi, of such experience and acknowledged
bravery, should stoop to listen to boys like Bugomba and such men as
Sabadu. However, I summoned up my patience, and said: “I do not see much
use in my saying anything, because I know you will act against all
advice I can give; but, that you may not blame me for not giving the
advice, and pointing out the danger you run into in returning, I will
speak. You, Sambuzi, at Laugurwe, told me you were not a child, but a
man. If you are a man how comes it that you allow a boy like Bugomba,
whose fears have run away with his wits, to speak in a council of tried
warriors such as I see here? Do you think that Bugomba can save your
head when the Emperor hears of your cowardly flight? No; that boy’s love
which he professes to have for you, will fly when he sees the frown on
Mtesa’s face. Will the Katekiro stand by you because you love his
brother Bugomba? No; the Premier will scourge Bugomba, and be the first
to slay you. If you are a man and a chief, why is it that you listen to
this slave Sabadu, who no more dares approach the footstool of Mtesa
than he would dare meet the Wanyoro to-morrow in battle? Is Sabadu the
chief and general of the Waganda, or is it Sambuzi, the chief who fought
so well at Uvuma? If your chiefs, Lukoma and Sekajugu, advise you to run
away, you do wrong to listen to them, for it is not they whom Mtesa will
punish, but you. I therefore, as your friend, advise you to stay here
two days, while I fix the boat and canoe. At the end of two days I will
write a letter to Mtesa, which will absolve you from all blame; and if
you so far concede to me two days, I will give one-fourth of my moneys—
nay, I will give one-half of all beads, wire, and cloth I have to you,
with which you may reward yourself and your friends. Be not afraid of
the Wanyoro; to-night we can build a palisade so strong that, were Kabba
Rega himself here, he could do nothing against us. There is no great
danger in staying a couple of days, but in returning to Uganda without
my letter you go to certain death. I have spoken.”
After a little pause, during which he interchanged some remarks with
his people, Sambuzi said: “Stamlee, you are my friend, the Emperor’s
friend, and a son of Uganda, and I want to do my duty towards you as
well as I am able to; but you must hear the truth. We cannot do what
you want us to do. We cannot wait here two days, nor one day. We shall
fight to-morrow, that is certain; and if you think I speak from fear,
you shall see me handle the spear. These people know me from past
times, and they are well aware that my spear is sharp and fatal. We
shall fight to-morrow at sunrise, and we must cut our way through the
Wanyoro to Uganda. We cannot fight and continue in camp; for once the
war is begun, it is war which will last as long as we are alive—for
these people take no slaves as the Waganda do. Then the only chance for
our lives that I see is to pack up to-night, and to-morrow morning at
sunrise to march and fight our way through them. Now tell me as your
friend what you will do. Will you stop here, or go with us, and try
another road? For I must tell you, if you do not know it and see it for
yourself, that you will never put your boat and the canoe on the Nyanza
at this place. How can you get your boat down the cliffs while you
are fighting, and thousands pressing round you? Even if you reach the
water’s edge, how can you work on her two days, and fight?”
To his questions I replied:—“I knew what your decision would be from
what the Waganda have done on former occasions. When Magassa was sent
with me to Usukuma by the lake, he ran away and left me to fight
Bumbireh alone. When the Waganda were sent with Abdul Assiz Bey (M.
Linant de Bellefonds) to Gondokoro, they followed him as far as Unyoro,
and when they saw the Wanyoro coming, they deserted him, and stole
nearly all his boxes, and Abdul Assiz Bey had to fight his way to
Gondokoro alone. We white men will soon learn that there is no man so
cowardly as a native of Uganda. For your advice I thank you; to-night I
will give you my answer.”
As soon as I left the council, Sambuzi caused the great war-drum to be
sounded for the morrow’s march and expected battle. It also announced to
the anxious members of the Expedition that the Waganda had resolved to
return. On arriving at camp, I saw looks of dismay on each face. I
called Pocock and the captains of the Expedition, and proceeded to
unfold our position and Sambuzi’s intention to return, described to them
what dangers environed us, and what hopes were left, and then asked them
to give their own opinion of the matter freely.
After a long hesitation and silence the gallant and ever faithful
Kachéché spoke and said:—“Master, I do not know what my brothers here
think of the matter, but I see plainly that we have been brought to the
edge of a deep pit, and that the Waganda will push us into it if we do
not follow them. For my part, I have nothing further to say, except that
I will do exactly as you command. Live or die, all is one to me. If you
say, let us go on, and leave the Waganda to return without us, I say so
also; if you say, return, I also say, return. That is my opinion. But I
would like to ask you, if we determine to go on by ourselves, have we
any chance at all of being able to start from this camp, because I see
we are surrounded by natives bent on war? If all these Waganda with our
help are not able to make our position good, how can such a small party
as we are hope to do so? This is what is in my heart, and what I believe
is the cause of the panic in the Expedition. And I will tell you one
thing; when Sambuzi beats the drum to-morrow to march, more than half of
this Expedition will follow him, and you cannot prevent it.”
“Well,” I replied, “this is my decision. I was sent to explore this
lake. When I started from Usukuma, I doubted if I could do it unaided by
Waganda, because there are no people on this lake friendly to strangers;
it was for this reason I requested Mtesa to lend me so large a body of
men. As no friendly port could be found where you might rest while I
navigated the lake in my boat, I thought of taking possession of a port
for a month or two and holding it. The force I relied on now fails me,
and the people are hostile; it therefore only remains for me to return
with Sambuzi, and to try the lake by another road. If no other road can
be found, we must even be content with what we have done.”
The Wangwana outside heard the decision with joy, and shouted, “Please
God, we shall find another road, and the next time we go on work of this
kind we shall do it without Waganda.”
Sambuzi was made acquainted with our resolution, and requested to send
twenty men to assist our wearied men to carry the goods back to Uganda.
At dawn we mustered our forces, and with more form and in better order
than we had entered Unyampaka, prepared to quit our camp on the cliffs
of Muta Nzigé. A thousand spearmen with shields formed the advanced
guard, and a thousand spearmen and thirty picked Wangwana with shields
composed the rear-guard. The goods and Expedition occupied the centre.
The drums and fifes and musical bands announced the signal for the
march.
The natives, whom we expected would have attacked us, contented
themselves with following us at a respectful distance until we were
clear of Uzimba, when, perceiving that our form of march was too compact
for attack, they permitted us to depart in peace.
Our return route was to the southward of that by which we had entered
the lake-land of Uzimba. It penetrated Ankori, and our camp that day was
made at 4 P.M. on the banks of the Rusango river.
_Jan. 15._—On the morning of the 15th, after crossing a low ridge, two
miles in width, we crossed the Katonga coming from the north-west, and
entered Unyoro once more. Our Expedition was the rear-guard this day,
and when within a few miles of Kazinga, in Benga, a furious attack was
made on our rear from an ambuscade, which was in a short time repulsed
without loss to us.
_Jan. 27._—On the 27th we were encamped at Kisossi, in Uganda, a little
east of where Sambuzi had joined us with his force. At this camp we
parted; Sambuzi, or Mta-usa, the Spoiler, to his own land close by, I to
what fortune, or misfortune, had still reserved in store for me and
mine. The “Spoiler” made his cognomen good, for on the road from the
lake he despoiled me of 180 lbs. of variously assorted beads, by failing
to return three loads of beads given him for carriage to Uganda, thus
adding another reason to my dissatisfaction with him.
I halted at Kisossi three days to give the Expedition a little of that
rest they so well deserved. During this time I despatched Kachéché and
two others with a letter to Mtesa, wherein I did not fail to report to
him of the failure of Sambuzi to perform what he had promised me, of his
theft of three bags of beads, and of the strange conduct of Sabadu and
Bugomba.
The effect of my letter on Mtesa and his court, Kachéché informed me a
few days later, when he overtook us at Charugawa, was one of shame,
surprise, and rage. Kachéché was called to the Durzah, and told to
repeat in a loud voice all that had happened between Sambuzi and myself
since we had met at Laugurwe, while Mtesa and his chiefs listened
intently, the recital broken by violent exclamations and ominous
ejaculations from the Emperor.
When Kachéché had ended, Mtesa said, “Do you see now how I am shamed by
my people? This is the third time I have been made to break my word to
white men. But, by the grave of Suna” (a strong oath in Uganda), “my
father, I will teach Sambuzi, and all of you, that you cannot mock
Kabaka! Stamlee went to this lake for my good as well as for his own,
but you see how I am thwarted by a base slave like Sambuzi, who
undertakes to be more than I myself before my guest. When was it I dared
to be so uncivil to my guest as this fellow has been to Stamlee? You,
Saruti,” he said suddenly to the chief of his bodyguard, “take warriors,
and eat up Sambuzi’s country clean, and bring him chained to me.”
Saruti prostrated himself, and swore he would eat the “Spoiler’s” land
clean, and become the “Spoiler” himself, and that Sambuzi should be
brought to him chained like a slave. Yet let it be noted here that
Saruti and Sambuzi were as loving at the Nakaranga camp as two sworn
brothers.
“And you, Katekiro,” said Mtesa, turning his glowing eyes on him, “how
is it that your brother Bugomba—a mere little boy—plays the great man on
duty? Tell me whence he obtained this ‘big head’ of his?”
“My lord” (“Mkama ange”), “Bugomba is a child, and deserves a rod for
this conduct, and I myself will see that he suffers for it.”
“Very well, send for Bugomba, and that long-tongued Sabadu, and bring
them to me at once, and I will see that they never use their tongues
against a guest of mine again.”
“Now, Kachéché,” said Mtesa, “what is Stamlee going to do now? Do you
suppose that, if I give him 100,000 men, under Sekebobo and Mkwenda,
that he will be induced to try the lake Muta Nzigé again?”
“He may, Kabaka, but I do not think he will believe the Waganda again,
for this is twice they have deceived him. Magassa ran away, and Sambuzi
ran away, and he, perhaps, will say Sekebobo will do the same. The
Waganda are very good before you, Kabaka, but when away from you they
forget your commands, and steal people, cattle, and goats,” said
plain-spoken Kachéché.
Sekebobo and Mkwenda sprang to their feet before the Emperor, and said
loudly, “Nay, let us go, Kabaka, and we will cut through the heart of
Kabba Rega of Unyoro, or through Mtambuko, king of Ankori, to the Muta
Nzigé, and all the nations round about shall not drive us back!”
“It is well,” said the Emperor. “Now you, Dallington,” said he to the
English mission pupil left at his court, “write a letter to Stamlee.
Tell him to come to the Katonga once again, and Sekebobo and Mkwenda
with 60,000, even 100,000, shall take him to Muta Nzigé, and stay there
until he has finished his work. Tell him that if these fail him he shall
execute his own pleasure on every chief that returns to Uganda.”
At Charugawa, near the Alexandra Nile, I received Dallington’s letter,
asking me to return and attempt the lake once more.[33] This letter
plunged me into perplexity, but after long and calm deliberation I
decided that it was not safe to trifle away time in this manner;
besides, such an undisciplined force would be uncontrollable, and would
no doubt entail misery on the people. I was also too far from Muta Nzigé
now, and to return for an uncertainty, such as the character of the
Waganda caused me to believe it to be, despite the protestation and
promises of the Emperor, was in my opinion well deserving a fool’s cap.
I accordingly wrote to this effect to Mtesa, and closed the letter with
thanks for his kindness, and a friendly farewell.
Kachéché, on returning from the capital with the Emperor’s letter met
the unfortunate Sambuzi loaded with chains, and the blunt, plain-spoken
soldier, far from pitying him, could not refrain from taunting him with,
“Ah, ha, Sambuzi, you are not so fine as you were a while ago. You are
going to Mtesa to play Kabaka before him; fare you well, Sambuzi.”
Saruti, the “eater,” obtained great spoil, for he was now lord over 200
wives and 300 milch-cows, besides a large, fat district in the Katonga
valley, well populated with lusty, industrious peasants and warriors,
all of whom were from henceforth subject to him.
The final farewell letter to Mtesa terminated our intercourse with the
powerful monarch of Uganda, and concluded our sojourn in that land of
bananas and free entertainment. Henceforth the Expedition should be
governed by one will only, and guided by a single man, who was resolved
not to subject himself or his time to any other man’s caprice, power, or
favour any more.
As we neared the Alexandra Nile, at a place called Ndongo, this virtuous
resolution came near being put to the test, for the unquiet immigrants
settled here proclaimed that we should not pass through until we had
paid something to the chief to obtain his good-will. But, after
receiving a firm refusal they permitted us to cross the Alexandra Nile
without molestation.
Reports and rumours of the breadth and powerful current of the river
called the “Kagera,” the “Kitangule,” and the “Ingezi,” received from
representatives of Uganda, Kiziwa, and Karagwé, some of whom were very
intelligent natives, and professed a perfect knowledge of its course,
had created in me a constant desire to examine the river more carefully
than I had previously done at its exit into Lake Victoria. At the
crossing between bank and bank it was about 450 yards in width; but
about 350 yards of this breadth flowed or oozed, with little current,
amongst sedge, water-cane, and papyrus. The remaining 100 yards was a
powerful and deep body of water, with a current of three knots and a
half an hour. The water had a dull iron colour, yet extremely pure for a
large river, and such as might proceed from some lake at no great
distance off.
The Waganda and Wanyambu of Rumanika’s court style this river the
“Mother of the River at Jinga” (Victoria Nile), but the former have very
wild ideas about its source. They say it issues from Muta Nzigé in
Mpororo, and, flowing south, cuts Ruanda in halves, and, rounding
Kishakka, runs north, dividing Karagwé from Ruanda.
[Illustration:
CANOES AND PADDLES OF AFRICA.
1. Usukuma.
2. Ujiji and Urundi.
3. Unyampaka (Beatrice Gulf.)
4. Manyema, on Luama river.
5. Uganda.
6. Ukerewé.
7. Karagwé, on Alexandra Nile.
8. Arab dhow at Ujiji.
]
Rumanika, king of Karagwé, is no less singular in his theory of the
source of the Alexandra Nile, for he says it issues from Lake Tanganika,
through Urundi. However, these and sundry other reports only roused my
interest in the noble river, and created a greater inclination to pursue
the subject to its ultimate end. For a very few soundings of it enabled
me, after my circumnavigation of Lake Victoria, and on examination of
the several streams emptying into it, to judge this to be the principal
affluent and feeder of the lake.
A journey of fourteen miles southerly across the valley of the Alexandra
from its southern bank brought us to the base of the lofty ranges of
Karagwé. This country comprises all the mountainous ridges between
Usongora on the east and the Alexandra Nile to the west. It appears as
if at a distant epoch these ridges had been connected with the uplands
of Koki and Ankori north, and Ruanda west, but that, as Lake Victoria
had channelled a way for its outlet through the clays and shale of Usoga
and Uganda, and its altitude above the sea had subsided, the furious
current of the Kagera or Alexandra had channelled a deeper course
through the heart of what was formerly a lofty plateau, and that its
thousands of petty tributaries then rushed down into the deep depression
formed by it.
On the 24th of February we were camped at Nakahanga, a village situated
twelve miles west of south of Kiyanga, and the next day, after a march
of thirteen miles, we entered the Arab depot of Kafurro, in Karagwé.
-----
# 31:
At the confluence of the Wakassi with the Katonga, boiling-point
showed an altitude of 4111 feet above the sea, only 18 feet higher
than Ripon Falls!
# 32:
Our camp by boiling-point was at an altitude of 4724 feet above the
sea.
# 33:
The following is the epistle verbatim:—
“MY DEAR SIR, H. M. STANLEY,
“What meant by his news that we see Sabadu coming without a letter in
time? He came first. I asked him, ‘Where is the letter that you
brought?’ So he answered me, ‘The letter is my mouth’; but I believed
not in his words. Then went I to the Sûltan and told him these things.
Then the Sûltan called Sabadu and asked him, ‘Where is the letter?’
and he answered, ‘There is no letter.’ So he send him to Pokino—the
Katekiro; but I who know in my heart that they been run away from you.
So now he send others people instead of them, and he go to punish
Sambuzi. It is far better for you to waite for Waganda to take you to
Mutanzige, because they see that Sambuzi been punished, and all the
others will obey the word of the king. I, Dallington, the servant of
wite men, I won’t tell you lie, but I will tell you the truth. The
Sûltan (Mtesa) is not bad. This letter I write it in a hurry, and send
me two or three papers to write the last to you.
“SEYYID MTESA.
“Son of Sûltan Suna of Uganda,
“January 30th, 1876.”