3S2= 
 spy 1 
 
HE 
 
 CONGO. 
 
 ^ 
 
 Edited from 
 
 -NqUs and Q$nmrMti(m& of ] 
 Missionaries by 
 
 Mrs, H. a, Guinness 
 
 
UPPER CONGO FISHERMAN. 
 
. 
 
 CONGO RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 EDITED 
 
 FROM NOTES AXD COXVERSATIONS 
 
 OF MISSIONARIES. 
 
 BY 
 
 MRS. H. GRATTAN GUINNESS, 
 
 Hon. Sec. of the East London Institute for Honu attd Foreign Missions 
 Harley H: -,:■:. Bom x E. 
 
 HODDER AXD STOUGHTOX. 
 
 2;, PATERNOSTER ROW. 
 
 MDCCCXC. 
 
13; v 
 
 9 O'OO 
 
 BUTLER & TANNER, 
 
 THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS, 
 
 FROME, AND LONDON. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The following recollections of some of our dear 
 Congo missionaries may serve to bring men and 
 incidents in this part of Central Africa before the 
 minds of those who are interested in the Dark 
 Continent. 
 
 Mr. Harvey went out ten years ago, and Mr. 
 McKittrick about six years ago. Both were con- 
 nected with the Livingstone Inland Mission, which 
 was the first to take the gospel into this region. Its 
 earliest members landed at Banana in January, 1878, 
 just after Stanley's journey through the Dark Con- 
 tinent had made known to the world the vast entrance 
 to Central Africa from the west. This Mission 
 —which in 1884 was transferred to the American 
 Baptist Missionary Union, in Boston — has borne 
 already most encouraging fruit. Several native 
 Churches, with hundreds of converts — numbers of 
 whom are themselves preachers of the gospel — are 
 now connected with it. 
 
 Mr. J. McKittrick has become leader in a new 
 English extension of the Mission, on to the southern 
 tributaries of this mightiest river of Africa. It is 
 called the Congo-Balolo Mission, and its sphere of 
 labour is the country of the Balolo-speaking people, 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 who occupy the great horse-shoe bend of the Congo, 
 and are supposed to number about ten million. The 
 first party of missionaries for this new field started 
 in April, 1889. Two stations are already occupied 
 on the Lulonga and Maringa rivers, and eleven mis- 
 sionaries connected with this effort are now in Africa, 
 and a third will be opened this spring. A steamer 
 called the Pioneer has been sent out for the use of 
 the Mission. It is intended to found stations also 
 on the Juapa, the Ikelemba, and the Bosira. 
 
 It is difficult for civilized Europeans to realize 
 what life in Central Africa is like, and it is still harder 
 for Christian people to conceive heathen existence. 
 We ought however to try and understand it, in order 
 that we may sympathise, pity, and help. May these 
 sketches enable some readers to do so ! 
 
 Further information can be obtained from our 
 larger work on the same subject, " The New World 
 of Central Africa." 
 
 Who would not like to help to carry the light from 
 heaven into the darkness of Africa ? 
 
 '^isUsCct&Af. 
 
 Harley House, Bow, 
 London, E„ 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 MEN AND MANNERS ON THE CONGO. KING 
 KANGAMPAKA AND THE KROO-BOYS. THE NATIVE 
 MIND AND THE GOSPEL. THE CONGO TELEPHONE. 
 A WALK IN BALOLOLAND. A CHAT WITH MR. 
 RICHARDS, OF BANZA MANTEKA. 
 
<r 
 
Sketch Map to show the Locality occupied by the Ealolo People, and the First Two Stations of the Nf; 
 A Third will (d.v.) be opened on the Juapa River in 1890. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 KING KANGAMPAKA AND THE KROO-BOYS. 
 
 The following chapter contains 
 recollections by Mr. Charles 
 Harvey, of Lukunga, who first 
 went out in 1880, and is still on 
 the Congo. He was married 
 to a missionary, Miss Harris, 
 and had the sorrow of losing 
 his wife. 
 
 The name of the old chief 
 
 of Palabala was Kangam- 
 
 paka or Nkangampaka. 
 
 He was a very shrewd 
 
 man, apparently about 
 
 sixty years old, but, 
 
 , like most Africans, he 
 
 .- had no idea of his own 
 
 age ; for once, when 
 
 asked how old he was, 
 
 he said that he believed 
 
 he was " about twenty." 
 
 He was very polite to all white men ; in fact, his 
 
 politeness was pushed so far as to be an annoyance to 
 
 any one unacquainted with the ways of African chiefs. 
 
 When visited by a white man, he would send a 
 
 A CONGO KING. 
 
io « CATCH HIS SPIRIT! CATCH HIS SPIRIT! 
 
 slave for a chair for the guest, while he would sit on 
 an empty gin box. He would then bring out some 
 palm wine, or malava mamputu (trade gin) if his 
 visitor would take it, inquiring in the meantime, with 
 much apparent concern, respecting his health, etc., 
 etc. ; and as it was contrary to etiquette to ask him 
 to state the purpose of his visit, the guest could 
 choose his own time for this, and could speak as 
 long as he chose without fear of interruption, unless 
 anything was mentioned that required explanation. 
 
 The old man, however, broke down signally on one 
 occasion, and completely forgot his dignity. 
 
 In company with Mr. Picton, I was paying him 
 a visit, after a long absence. An elderly man, a 
 stranger to me, was present in the courtyard, seated 
 near to the chief. Kangampaka was making a speech 
 to this man, full of nauseating compliments respecting 
 myself, when suddenly the old stranger fell forward 
 on his face in an epileptic fit. The king became 
 at once very excited, and, invoking the aid of his 
 nkissi, or fetish, he cried out loudly again and again, 
 " Catch his spirit ! catch his spirit ! " The courtyard 
 in a few minutes was filled with men all armed with 
 guns, whilst on the outside of the fence were women 
 and children with terrified faces trying to peep over 
 and ascertain the cause of the disturbance. Kangam- 
 paka at once told the men who ran in that the wicked 
 old stranger who was lying struggling on the ground 
 had endeavoured to work evil upon him, but that his 
 own nkissi was too powerful for him, and had found 
 him out. I could easily see, by the way he was look- 
 
A VISIT TO KANGAMPAKA. 
 
 ing at the man, his face being full of horror and hatred, 
 that he meant mischief to the stranger ; I therefore 
 rose, and, addressing the king, told him that the man 
 was only ill, and was not necessarily a bad man. The 
 old chief here interrupted me, saying, very rudely, 
 that it was none of my business, but that this was a 
 matter that must be settled Fiote fashion. I knew, 
 of course, that this would mean death to the poor old 
 stranger, so I insisted upon being heard, telling the 
 king that in our country we knew all about that 
 sickness, for we had plenty of people who were taken 
 ill in the same way, and some of them were very good 
 people. I further told him that God would be angry 
 if he took away the man's life because he was sick, 
 and not only would he have to answer to God in the 
 other world, but to man in this world, if he did not let 
 the poor fellow alone. I could see that he felt him- 
 self in a dilemma, but he thought for a minute or 
 two, and at length said, — 
 
 " You say you know all about this sickness in your 
 country ; well then, if so, give him medicine to cure 
 him, and then we shall know that it is a sickness." 
 
 I at once accepted the challenge, believing that the 
 fit could not last very long, and that a little brandy 
 would do him no harm. Leaving Picton to watch 
 events, I started off to the mission house to procure 
 it, and in the meantime the man came to, and was 
 allowed to depart unharmed. 
 
 Kangampaka was of a very revengeful disposition, 
 especially towards those he considered to be the 
 enemies of his town. 
 
12 A CONGO DYNAMITARD. 
 
 On one occasion he came to me and asked for 
 some of that stuff like Bula Matari (Stanley) used 
 in blowing up some rocks near Vivi — dynamite, of 
 course. Being curious to know why he wanted it, I 
 asked him, and he said : " Those Noki people are 
 bad people. Give me some of that stuff like Bula 
 Matari has, and I will put some under their hill, and 
 blow them all into the air." 
 
 He laughed very incredulously when I told him 
 that I had none, and added that if I had, I should not 
 dare to give it to him for such a dreadful purpose, as 
 God had told us to love our enemies — not to blow 
 them in the air ! He looked hard at me, as much as 
 to say, " Do you white men really believe in loving 
 enemies ? " I fancy that he had a difficulty in recon- 
 ciling such a creed with the big cannon of which he 
 had heard ! 
 
 The old man had a very great veneration for a 
 book or anything written. I was obliged to take 
 advantage of this one day. 
 
 It happened that we had cut down some trees in 
 a sacred wood near the station, which displeased the 
 chiefs very much. My first intimation of this was by 
 a messenger, who said, " The chief is angry, and is 
 coming to see you." Soon afterwards the old man and 
 two other chiefs arrived. He tried very carefully to 
 explain that he was my friend, and not at all displeased 
 with me, but that a number of other chiefs were very 
 angry, not only with me, but also with him, for not 
 being angry with me in the matter of the desecration 
 of the sacred wood. 
 
HENRY CRAVEN, OF LIVERPOOL, 
 THE FIRST MISSIONARY TO THE CONGO. 
 
 SAILED IN JAN., 1878 \ DIED AT KABINDA, OCT. 14TH, 18 
 13 
 
H "DON'T WRITE ANYTHING, WHITE MAN!" 
 
 I replied that I was so glad he had not sided with 
 the other chiefs, for now the matter would be very 
 simple, for if he would only tell me their names, I 
 would see about it. So getting a large sheet of paper 
 and pen and ink, I asked him to tell me the name 
 of the first, that I might write it down. This 
 evidently caused much consternation, for there was a 
 good deal of whispering among them. They had not 
 calculated upon this. Who could foresee what might 
 come about if names were put in a letter ? After a 
 few minutes, the king said, " Don't write anything 
 down, white man. The matter is settled ! " And I 
 never heard any more of it ! 
 
 Kangampaka was very fond of Craven, and would 
 do anything for him, except give his heart to God, and 
 this of course was what Craven desired most of all. 
 At times there seemed to be a probability that he 
 would yield, for undoubtedly more than once he was 
 under serious concern for his soul ; but there was one 
 thing that hindered, and that was the white mans 
 drink ! 
 
 Long before he knew the missionary the old man 
 had acquired a craving for the fiery spirit sold by the 
 lower river traders, and no inducement could per- 
 suade him to give it up. On this point he was all 
 along openly at variance with the missionaries, and 
 he considered that Craven's only fault was refusing to 
 supply him with gin. Craven made very earnest and 
 persistent efforts to reclaim him from the power of 
 this curse, and often sent coffee to the king's house 
 (when he had promised to try and give up the drink), 
 

 I.-'- v " ■''''' 
 
 AN AFRICAN GRAVE, WITH BROKEN CROCKERY. 
 
1 6 KANGAMPAKA'S FUNERAL. 
 
 hoping that it would be substituted for the wretched 
 gin ; but, alas ! the demon prevailed, for up to the day 
 of his death, twelve months ago, he was, body and 
 soul, the slave of drink. 
 
 In accordance with Congo custom, his body was 
 kept for a long time in the house in which he had 
 died, until sufficient cloth had been given by his 
 relatives and friends to wind around the corpse, and 
 bury with him. After months had elapsed, and an 
 enormous quantity been contributed, the funeral took 
 place; but by this time the body with its multitu- 
 dinous wrappings resembled a large hogshead, painted 
 over with a number of strange devices. He was 
 buried in a great pit which was dug close to the spot 
 where he had so long conducted both his court and 
 his revels. 
 
 Poor, guilty, and yet victimized Kangampaka ! 
 • He could never bear to hear of the resurrection of the 
 dead, yet rise again lie mast ! But who in that great 
 day would not rather be the drunken heathen chief 
 than the so-called Christian trader, with blood-guilti- 
 ness for the ruin of that old man, among thousands 
 of others, upon his soul ? Beyond all doubt trade-gin 
 was the stumbling-block that kept him from Christ. 
 The fascination of the drunkard's delirious paradise 
 was too great for the morally weak and helpless 
 heathen to resist. Woe to those who lured him, — 
 and are daily luring thousands like him — to degrada- 
 tion, ruin, and death, for the sake of selfish gain ! 
 
C. R. 
 
 AN N'GANGA, OR MEDICINE-MAN. 
 
 T7 
 
1 8 frail tenements. 
 
 Houses at Palabala. 
 
 The first house put up at Palabala was built of 
 native material almost entirely, the only exception 
 being the doors and windows, which were made out 
 of Morton's provision boxes ! 
 
 The roof was thatched with dried grass, but the 
 thatching was not well done, and there was consider- 
 able leakage in various places during the tornadoes 
 which occurred at least every other day in the wet 
 season. 
 
 When the first sound of a storm came, waterproofs 
 ground sheets, and mackintoshes would be brought 
 out to cover everything that could spoil or be 
 damaged by wet, such as beds, blankets, and books. 
 Where the leakage was very bad, pails would be 
 placed underneath, to prevent large pools forming 
 on the floors of the various rooms. But what was to 
 be dreaded more than tornadoes was a fog or Scotch 
 mist, such as frequently enveloped the Palabala hill, 
 which was 1,700 feet high. The walls of the house 
 being made only of papyrus-mats, were more useful 
 for ventilation than for protection from the weather. 
 It was no unusual thing to go to bed, the stars shin- 
 ing brightly outside, and to wake very early in the 
 morning, feeling shivery and uncomfortable. If the 
 matches were not too damp, a light would be struck, 
 and then the cause of the trouble would be only too 
 apparent, for the room would be seen to be full of a 
 thick fog which would chill one to the bone. During 
 the night the clouds had gathered, and one black, 
 
COMFORTLESS CONDITIONS. 
 
 19 
 
 dense rain-cloud had struck the hill and penetrated 
 everywhere. In the morning, boots, socks, trousers 
 Bible, everything, would be clammy and damp. 
 
 What wonder therefore that we all, without excep- 
 tion, had many fevers, or that some of our number 
 died ! That so many escaped, although usually with 
 broken health, was the surprising thing. Such risks 
 as we ran by living in so poor and unsuitable a house 
 should, if possible, be avoided, even at the begin- 
 ning of a local work, and, with sufficient resources, 
 experience, and due foresight, they can and ought 
 to be. 
 
 Some little time before the present iron house was 
 put up, matters began to assume a very bad appear- 
 ance as regards the safety of the old house and of 
 the out-houses. 
 
 One day, while a tornado was raging, we heard 
 
20 TROPICAL TORNADOES. 
 
 above the storm a loud noise succeeded by screams 
 of terror from the children. 
 
 " The cook-house must be blown down/' said 
 Craven. 
 
 I ran to the nearest door, but I was an invalid and 
 not strong at that time, and as it faced the storm and 
 opened outwards, the storm completely mastered me. 
 Try all in my power, I could not open that door ! In 
 the meantime Craven had got through a side door, 
 and was overjoyed to find that although the cook- 
 house had indeed fallen, it had fallen over and round 
 the poor frightened children, and had not hurt a 
 single one of them. Our evening worship that day 
 became a service of praise ! 
 
 The next tornado after this nearly brought the 
 dwelling-house down about our own ears. It was a 
 very wild storm. The lightning was terrible, flash suc- 
 ceeding flash with hardly any intermission. The wind 
 roared and shrieked among the trees of the plantation 
 close by, while the thunder boomed and crashed in- 
 cessantly. The wall on the storm side of the station 
 began to sway. It seemed as if any moment might 
 see us buried beneath the ruins of the house. Craven 
 called to me, shouting at the top of his voice because 
 of the storm, " We had better get into the store : it's 
 safer there ! Where is Johnson ? " I found Johnson 
 in his room watching with dismay the swaying wall 
 I laid hold of him, and said, " Come along " ; but he 
 protested, " Wait, wait ; I believe the house will 
 come down." As this seemed to me to be an urgent 
 reason why we should not wait, I pulled him for- 
 
J A CAT- OF- ALL- TRADES. 
 
 21 
 
 cibly out ; but just then one of the sudden lulls pecu- 
 liar to tropical tornadoes came, and we were saved 
 for that time. 
 
 Soon after this the old house was propped and 
 shored up, which proved sufficient to keep it from 
 being blown down until it was superseded by a good 
 corrugated iron structure, built on a site a little dis- 
 tance away. In this there is no need to fear rain, fog, 
 or storm, although it is built in a much more exposed 
 position than was the old house. 
 
 The Kroo-Bov. 
 
 In the early stages of 
 the mission's history the 
 natives could not be de- 
 pended upon for labour of 
 any kind, so it became ne- 
 cessary to hire Kroo-boys 
 (or Kroo-men, for they are 
 usually full-grown men) 
 from the Guinea Coast, 
 and these have proved 
 themselves to be the best 
 kind of black labourers a 
 white man can employ. 
 
 The Kroo-boy gene- 
 rally has the most profound veneration for his white 
 master, and if ordinarily well treated, becomes much 
 attached to him, and will go through fire and water 
 to serve him. 
 
 He will work from sunrise to sunset at the hardest 
 
12 
 
 CONGO CARRIERS. 
 
 CARRIERS CROSSING A RIVER. 
 
 kind of labour, such as carrying stones to make the 
 foundation for a house, or puddling clay to make 
 walls. He will work quite cheerfully, and will be 
 thoroughly satisfied with about a pound of rice, or a 
 few heads of maize, and some plantains per day, with 
 the addition of some fish or meat once or twice a 
 
SOLVING A PROBLEM. 23 
 
 week. If required (and of course he is not by mis- 
 sionaries), he is quite willing to shoulder a gun and 
 fight his master's enemies with much bravery if his 
 master will only lead him ; or he will without a 
 murmur (or, at the most, with a murmur) throw down 
 his spade or pick, and within a quarter of an hour 
 start on a journey of a hundred miles, carrying a load 
 of sixty pounds weight, with the addition of his own 
 rations for the journey. All this he will do for about 
 6d. or gd. per day and his food. 
 
 The Kroo-boy usually discards his own name, and 
 adopts one given to him by the purser of the steamer 
 or others, probably on account of the unpronounce- 
 ability of the Kroo-names by the unfacile English 
 tongue. The distribution of these names is often 
 very facetious, and not unseldom positively ludicrous. 
 Sometimes when a Kroo-boy is asked his name, he 
 will give "Jim Crow," " Snowball," "Red Herring," or 
 even " Frying Pan " or " Pea Soup." It sounds very 
 comical when a messenger comes and tells you that 
 "Jim Crow " has been pitching into " Pea Soup," or 
 that " Frying Pan " won't give up the cooking pot, or 
 has insulted poor "Tea Kettle" by calling him a black 
 bushman. 
 
 Although he is intelligent, the Kroo-boy is by no 
 means highly civilized, and appliances puzzle him. 
 At a certain station a quantity of earth had to be 
 carried from a pit to make a foundation for a house, 
 and a wheelbarrow was introduced to save time and 
 labour. The Kroo-boy loaded the barrow very care- 
 fully, and then stood still, scratched his head, and 
 
24 
 
 KROO-BOY PARAPHRASE OF 
 
 KKOO "BOYS" IN THE WATER. 
 
 looked completely mystified. What was to be done 
 next ? In a minute or two he had solved the pro- 
 blem, and walked away with the loaded wheelbarrow 
 on the top of his head ! 
 
 The Kroo-boy is very ready to listen to Christian 
 teaching, but his language is the great hindrance to a 
 communication of the gospel message to him, while 
 his own knowledge of the English tongue is extremely 
 imperfect. The medium generally employed is a kind 
 of " pidgin English, which hardly answers the pur- 
 pose of conversing upon the ordinary affairs of life ; 
 consequently when the sublime truths of the gospel 
 are the subject, its poverty and imperfectness is but 
 too apparent ; nevertheless some eternal impressions 
 have doubtless been made upon the hearts of these 
 poor simple-minded heathen servants. The mis* 
 
THE PRODIGAL SON. 25 
 
 sionary, indeed, has a choice between speaking good 
 English to one of their number, who understands 
 better than his neighbours, and can translate into 
 Kroo — and speaking in broken English, such as the 
 Kroo-boys themselves use. The latter is usually 
 preferred, as the interpreter cannot be followed, and 
 cannot be detected when he has misapprehended and 
 misrepresented truth ; but the difficulties are very 
 great either way. 
 
 The following is a specimen of Kroo-boy English, 
 and is, as will be seen, a paraphrase of the " Prodigal 
 Son." 
 
 " One man live for dem other country, he catch two 
 boy. 
 
 " Dem young boy he say to him father, 'I no fit to 
 stop here. I fit to go far 'way ; give me cloth.' 
 
 " Him father he feel sick for heart ; he no want 'm 
 go, but dem boy he say, ' I go.' 
 
 " Dem boy, he go for road, he sleep plenty night for 
 path, den he see one town, he say, 'I fit to stop here.' 
 
 " Dem men for dat town sabby (know) plenty cheat, 
 dem boy he buy palm wine, he buy gin, he buy pig he 
 give dem men. Every night, plenty, plenty dance. 
 
 " One day he look in box, no see cloth; cloth finish. 
 
 " Dem men for town dey say, ' We no catch cloth 
 for you. Go 'way.' 
 
 " Dem boy he no catch kwanga, no catch plantain ; 
 he live for die ! (i.e. he is about to die). 
 
 " He see one man, he say, 'I fit to work for you, 
 massa.' Dem man he say, ' All right. Pigs dere, live 
 for field, go keep 'm.' 
 
26 
 
 PARAPHRASE OF THE PRODIGAL SON. 
 
 " Dem boy he go, he see pig's chop (pig's food), 
 him 'tummack too much sick (faint with hunger), he 
 chop 'm (ate some). 
 
 "Dem boy he say, ' All dem Kroo-boy (servants) for 
 my father catch plenty chop. I no fit to stop here. 
 'Spose I stop here, den I live for die' (I shall die). 
 
 " He sleep plenty nights for road, den he see dem 
 house for him father. Him father he look, he look, 
 he say, ' My boy he live for come ' (just coming). 
 " He run plenty ; he look dat boy, he kiss 'm. 
 " Dem boy he say to 'm father, ' I be bad too 
 much ; I no be chile for you any more* I fit to be 
 Kroo-boy (servant) for you/ 
 
 " Him father he say to dem boy, ' You come 'long.' 
 " Dem father he tell dem Kroo-boy, ' You go catch 
 calf. Make plenty chop (food). You sabby (know) 
 dis boy come back ? All same 'spose he come back 
 from grave. We fit to dance plenty to-night/ " 
 
 CENTRAL AFRICAN POTTERY. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 Telephonic com- 
 munication is by no 
 means one of the new things under the sun, especially 
 under the tropical Congo sun ; for the various tribes 
 dwelling on the banks of the Congo, both on the upper 
 and lower river, have for ages had a very complete 
 system of telegraphing by sound, or telephoning as it is 
 called. They are perfectly able to communicate in this 
 way any word or sentence ; anything, in fact, which 
 they are able to speak themselves, they can transmit 
 to towns a long distance off, but which are within 
 hearing distance. 
 
 This communication is effected by means of a kind 
 of drum, which is made of very hard wood, hollow 
 throughout, and varying in thickness so that when 
 struck from the inside, as many as four different tones 
 or sounds can be produced. 
 
 The operator holds in each hand a drum-stick ; 
 and by varying the intervals between the beats upon 
 the different toned sides of the drum, an almost 
 
28 NATIVE TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION. 
 
 infinite variety of signals can be conveyed to the ear. 
 Usually the natives take this drum down to the 
 water's edge, as they know by practical experience 
 that sound travels much farther over water surface 
 than over land. The town is first " called," and w r hen 
 reply is made the message to be conveyed is beaten 
 out syllable by syllable. But its uses are by no means 
 confined to communication with neighbouring towns, 
 but far more frequently it is employed for local 
 purposes ; for instance, the drum will suddenly sound 
 out the name of some individual who belongs to the 
 same town and who is perhaps in the forest hard by, 
 or at the mission station ; and he is told that his chief 
 wants to speak to him, or his wife may intimate that 
 dinner is quite ready, or a trusting friend will publicly 
 advise him that he will be very glad of repayment 
 of the fifty brass rods borrowed in the more or less 
 remote past, and so on. 
 
 In the Cataract Region, in towns away from the 
 river, the natives communicate with other towns 
 chiefly at night, when everything is so still and quiet 
 that the cry of the jackal or the hooting of the owl 
 can be heard many miles away. 
 
 At Palabala they carry the drum to the side of the 
 hill when they wish to send a message to Nokki, a 
 town on a neighbouring hill, but which is six to seven 
 miles ofif as the crow flies. After some amount of 
 beating in a peculiar irregular way, they pause ; and 
 the sound of an answering drum at Nokki can be 
 distinctly, though faintly heard. Then some words 
 or part of message is telephoned, and the answering 
 
pfam 
 
 1 Thirty-two Cataracts 
 8 J J 
 
 AN 
 
 D Ra 
 
 PIDS OF THE 
 
 Lower Congo. 
 
 29 
 
THE PREACHING DRUM. 
 
 signal u all right" is given after each pause. Then 
 the Palabala drum will stop, and the Nokki drum 
 beat out some reply, to which the responses will be 
 given in due order. 
 
 These drums are especially valuable in time of dis- 
 pute or war ; for an international question can be 
 argued under the very best possible conditions, when 
 every one is calm, and the wit and wisdom of each 
 town fully available to assist negotiations. In case 
 of an attack being intended upon a neighbouring 
 town, due notice would be given as a matter of course 
 by means of the drum, and the day and the time of 
 the day (or position of the sun) duly notified when 
 the attack might be expected ! 
 
 The missionaries at the Equator Station had once 
 practical evidence of the usefulness of the telephone 
 drum, and of the fulness and accuracy of the news 
 conveyed by it. 
 
 Before starting upon an expedition to towns not 
 previously visited, Mr. McKittrick had engaged the ser- 
 vices of a drummer. This man would take his station 
 in the fore part of the canoe, and some time before 
 they got to a town he would tell the people all about 
 the missionary, how peaceable his errand was, and the 
 good things he had to tell them. Consequently, instead 
 of an armed, suspicious crowd to meet them at the 
 landing-place, the chiefs and the people would be 
 waiting to accord them a hearty welcome. In this 
 way quite a number of towns were visited without 
 danger to the missionary or the people who accom- 
 panied him. One day, while returning to Equator 
 
THE LANGUAGE. 31 
 
 ville, but. several miles away, the drummer conveyed 
 to the natives at the station tidings of the doings of 
 the expedition, the names of the towns visited, the 
 substance of what the chiefs said, the shooting of a 
 hippopotamus, and other incidents. All this the 
 people told the missionary left in charge of the sta- 
 tion before his colleague arrived, and it was found by 
 comparison to agree in every particular with the facts. 
 Who can say to what other uses this valuable 
 means of communication may yet be brought ? May 
 it not reasonably be hoped, that in time to come other 
 messages than those of dispute and war will be con- 
 veyed, and the wonderful story of God's love to man, 
 as shown by the gift of His only begotten Son, be the 
 subject of many a message to many of the towns yet 
 unevangelized, and especially to those which would 
 not be disposed at first to permit a missionary to go 
 among them. In this way not only an entire town, 
 but often a number of towns, might at the same 
 time listen to the " glad tidings of great joy," sounded 
 forth on some Gospel Telephone Drum. 
 
 Linguistic Difficulties. 
 
 The curse of the Tower of Babel is very specially 
 realized by those whose duty and privilege it is to 
 pioneer in a perfectly heathen and uncivilized country 
 where the language has never been reduced to writing 
 and where there are no interpreters of any kind. 
 
 If an Englishman travels abroad, in most parts of 
 the world he is able to secure the services of an 
 interpreter ; he can carry a pocket dictionary, and 
 
32 
 
 THE WHITE BOGIE. 
 
 by help of the literature of the country he can soon 
 make himself understood. But in a land absolutely 
 without dictionaries, grammars, or interpreters, the 
 case is very different ! 
 
 When we first landed on the Congo, communication 
 with the natives was principally by pantomime, and 
 the acquisition of the first little vocabulary was diffi- 
 cult and slow work. 
 
 THE CEREMONY OF MAKING PRESENTS, OR "DASH." 
 
 Let us suppose the missionary has just reached 
 the country — fresh from Europe ; his tent has been 
 pitched not far from a Congo village, with a view 
 to cultivating amicable relations with the people. 
 
 At first the natives seem very timid, and hardly 
 dare to approach nearer than to be able to com- 
 mand a distant view of the camp. But the mission- 
 aries are both inside their tent, which emboldens 
 
BABEVS CURSE. 33 
 
 some of the more venturesome of the people to hazard 
 themselves a few yards nearer; but suddenly the can- 
 vas door of the tent is flung on one side, and out steps 
 the man with the bogie-looking white skin (the native 
 bogie is always white). Instantly there is a general 
 panic, and young and old scamper away in terror, and 
 hide themselves in the long grass. In a few minutes 
 however they recover somewhat ; and a few of the 
 men, feeling a little ashamed of themselves, begin to 
 cuff the small boys and demand very indignantly why 
 they ran away from the white man. 
 
 But now the fowl-merchant makes his appearance, 
 carrying on his head a long basket made of palm 
 branches full of fowls. He ranks in public estimation 
 as a very dreadnought, for he for years has made 
 periodic excursions down the country right into the 
 white man's lair for purposes of trade, and has always 
 returned triumphantly, bearing rich spoils in the 
 shape of handkerchiefs, beads, and bottles of the white 
 man's palm wine {inalavu mamputu) y or gin. But 
 even he keeps at a respectful distance, and places 
 his fowls on the ground about a dozen yards from the 
 tent. The missionary goes over to him, and at once 
 the native addresses him in what is to him an un- 
 intelligible jargon. Which of that jumble of sounds 
 is a word ? 
 
 How impossible it seems to be, even to make a 
 beginning with such a language ! 
 
 The poor missionary shakes his head and looks 
 helpless. 
 
 But one of the Kroo-boys, just fresh from the 
 
 a*. 3 
 
34 " YOU FIT BUY DEM FOWL t" 
 
 Guinea Coast, sees the situation, and although he does 
 not understand a word of the native language, offers 
 his services as interpreter. 
 
 " Any port in a storm/ 5 thinks the missionary. 
 Besides, the responsibility of failure will be shifted, 
 or at least divided, so he makes no objection. 
 
 " Snowball," the Kroo-boy (who by the bye is 
 unusually black even for a Kroo-boy) says, — 
 " You fit to buy dem fowl, massa ? " 
 " Yes, Snowball, I want to buy them." 
 " How much massa fit to give ? " 
 " Oh, that depends. How much does he want ? " 
 Snowball sidles over towards the native — who 
 shrinks away a little, and looks as if he wishes he 
 hadn't come — he then shouts in his ear : ■" Look'ee, 
 you black bushman — dem fowl — how much?" 
 
 The native scratches his head and looks puzzled, 
 then rattles away at a great rate in his own language 
 as a kind of self-defence, which makes " Snowball " 
 look perplexed in his turn. However he tries again, 
 and taking four fowls out of the basket, he hands 
 over a piece of cloth, which the native carefully exa- 
 mines, then proceeds to ascertain for how many 
 fowls he is supposed to have been paid. He slowly 
 counts twice over, Imosi^ toie, itatii, ia, one, two, three, 
 four. These are evidently some of the numerals, so 
 the missionary repeats after him, as if counting him- 
 self, Imosi) iole^ itatu, ia, to the delight of the native, 
 who thinks he must know more of the language than 
 he pretends. He consequently breaks forth in quite 
 a tornado of eloquence ; but his auditor by this time 
 
"IMOSI, /OLE, ITATU, IA" 
 
 35 
 
 is carefully noting down " imosi, iole y itatii, ia" and 
 feels that whatever the four fowls may eventually cost 
 him in cloth, they will be cheap with these adjectives 
 thrown in. 
 
 But the fowl-merchant is evidently dissatisfied, for 
 he takes up one of the fowls and puts it back in the 
 basket, still keeping the cloth in his hand, repeating 
 again and again, " Nsusu zitatio, nsusu zitatu? The 
 " itatii " is three, can " nsusu " be the word for fowl ? 
 It is put to the test, and after almost as much ex- 
 penditure of breath as would be sufficient to capture 
 an African butterfly, the word is 
 caught, and duly transferred to the 
 note-book always kept handy for 
 that purpose. 
 
 In the mean- 
 time the other 
 natives have ap- 
 proached nearer 
 and nearer, being 
 unable to resist 
 the temptation of 
 seeing a bargain 
 struck ; for next 
 to the pleasure of 
 buying and sell- 
 ing personally, 
 the Congo native 
 enjoys looking on 
 while others trade. 
 The business is 
 
 KROOBOY. 
 
VALUE OF SCOLDING IN ENGLISH. 
 
 now at last completed, and the fowls sold at the rate 
 of three for one piece of cloth ; and finally all parties 
 go away satisfied, but none more so than "Snowball," 
 who feels that he is getting on well with the native lan- 
 guage, or, as he himself calls it, " dem bushman talk." 
 
 Still better opportunities of acquiring the language 
 occurred during school teaching. The quick boys of 
 the school soon discovered that the highway to favour 
 with the teacher was to help him to get hold of words 
 in their language ; and, indeed, the pleasure of being 
 the teacher of the teacher — and that teacher a white 
 man too — was so highly appreciated that it was freely 
 indulged in by all. 
 
 But the teacher was compelled to be judicious in 
 his employment of words and phrases thus acquired, 
 otherwise it would neither minister to the edification 
 nor to the discipline of the school. It was early dis- 
 covered that the missionary would act wisely if he did 
 his scolding in English : if not, he was in danger of 
 breaking down in the middle of his expostulations in 
 a ludicrous manner ; or he would perhaps express him- 
 self so funnily, that not only would the whole school 
 be put in a roar, but even the culprit under reprimand 
 has been known to fall from his seat and kick about 
 on the floor in a fit of uncontrollable laughter, the 
 unintended effect of solemn exhortations in broken 
 Fiote. On the other hand, a little declamation in 
 English usually produced an awed hush throughout 
 the school, and the misdemeanant would look as if he 
 never would dare to do the like again ! 
 
 Common nouns were comparatively easy to get, 
 
TRANSLATION WORK. 37 
 
 but verbs and words expressing abstract ideas very 
 far from easy. Many of these last were only acquired 
 after years of patient endeavour after them, or wait- 
 ing for them to turn up. Even some quite ordinary 
 words were not obtained until they had been sought 
 for weeks. One missionary very soon got the word 
 " to-morrow," but try all he would for a long time he 
 was not able to get hold of ".yesterday," until one 
 day quite accidentally he heard it, and was able to 
 secure it. 
 
 The tenses of the verbs were puzzling and easily 
 mistaken. One of the missionaries, through systema- 
 tically using a past tense which should only be used 
 for things that have just happened, unwittingly gave 
 the natives the idea that in some mystical sense Christ 
 died for us every day. 
 
 The discovery of any but the principal and ele- 
 mentary rules of the grammar was a painfully slow 
 process. The first attempt at a grammar was an 
 elementary one by Rev. H. Grattan Guinness, which 
 was published in 1882. This was soon after followed 
 by a vocabulary of some three thousand words of the 
 Palabala dialect by Rev. H. Craven, and two years 
 ago Rev. W. Holman Bentley, of the English Baptist 
 Mission, published a dictionary of the language as 
 spoken at San Salvador, as well as some copious 
 grammatical notes of very great value. 
 
 Some translation work has also been accomplished. 
 Besides "Peep of Day " (an outline of Bible history for 
 children), the four Gospels, the First Epistle of John, 
 most of Genesis, and twenty chapters of Exodus, have 
 
38 "MOTHER OF THE LAST BLUE BEADS." 
 
 been translated by various members of the mission ; 
 and quite recently the Acts of the Apostles has been 
 rendered into Fiote by a native convert now studying 
 in a college in America. 
 
 As the language has been reduced, it has been 
 found to be exceedingly rich in inflexions ; and owing 
 to the native rule requiring all speakers at their 
 " palavers " to employ only the highest class Fiote 
 of which they are capable, the purity and integrity 
 of the language has been remarkably preserved, at 
 least in the interior. 
 
 There are many difficulties in translation peculiar 
 to Africa, or to a tropical climate. For instance, the 
 people have no idea of ice or snow, and consequently 
 have no words for them. Their sheep, as a rule have 
 no wool, but hair ; and those which do have wool are 
 black. In the interior they have not the least notion 
 of the sea, and the only word that approaches the idea 
 means the wide part of a river. They know, more- 
 over, nothing of coin as currency, therefore Mr. 
 Richards, in his version of Luke, has had to render 
 the word " talents " in the parable as pieces of cloth. 
 And in the verse where our Lord says : " Verily I say 
 unto thee, Thou shalt in no wise come out until thou 
 hast paid the uttermost farthing," " uttermost far- 
 thing" has been rendered " mother of the last blue 
 beads," which is the exact equivalent in the Congo 
 language ! 
 
 It is somewhat discouraging to remember, that 
 much as has been done towards giving the gospel to 
 the African, it is almost nothing to what yet remains 
 
AFRICAN DIALECTS. 
 
 39 
 
 to be accomplished. On the banks of the Congo and 
 its tributaries alone, a considerable number of lan- 
 guages are spoken, as distinct as French and Italian, 
 and requiring separate translation work. It is true 
 that the mastery of one language will assist greatly 
 in the reduction of the rest, as they all belong to the 
 great Bantu family; but each requires separate study, 
 and hence the 
 need of many 
 students. May 
 God thrust forth 
 more labourers 
 into this great 
 harvest field ! 
 
 H * /'"" 
 
The natives have usually passed 
 through three distinct 
 stages in relation to the 
 gospel before they have accepted it ; viz. indifference, 
 curiosity, and opposition. Each of these stages may 
 have been of longer or shorter duration, and their 
 order may not always have been exactly the same ; 
 but as far as our observation extends, the work at 
 each of the stations has passed through them all 
 before there has been anything like a general appre- 
 ciation of the truth. 
 
'foolishness: 4 i 
 
 The first stage, indifference, extended over a long 
 period of the early history of the Mission, and the 
 cause is not difficult to discover. 
 
 Here were a few white men, for some time unable 
 to communicate their message except in a poor broken 
 Fiote ; much of their time taken up in house-building, 
 travelling, transport of goods, etc. ; often very sick, 
 and seldom quite well ; knowing little of the manners 
 and customs, modes of thought and prejudices of the 
 people ; foreign in speech, dress, ideas upon every- 
 thing, and especially upon religion ; of course un- 
 believers in the traditions of their forefathers handed 
 down from past generations, and wishful to supersede 
 them by a religion that apparently forbad indulgence 
 in almost all the chief pleasures and gratifications of 
 life ! And when perhaps a little progress had been 
 made, the white man's God had little attraction to 
 the native mind ; for not only was He unable to 
 keep them from being sick (the chief object of their 
 own superstitious rites), but many of them had even 
 been allowed to die. Where then was the advantage 
 of such a religion as that, which was unable to help 
 even its own propagators ? 
 
 At first, indeed, apparently, interest was displayed 
 but it was only apparent, or rather, it was in the 
 white man, and not in his message. There was the 
 utmost desire to be on good terms with him, but 
 the greatest indifference as to his God. They would 
 meet and listen patiently while he discoursed in such 
 broken, strange Fiote, that sometimes they thought 
 that it must be the language of the white man's 
 
42 GOD AND MAMMON. 
 
 country to which they were listening ! They would 
 shut their eyes while he talked with his own eyes shut, 
 into the air it seemed, but the white man said it was 
 to Nzambi, the great God ; and they would say Amen 
 at the end of it all, with much unction and fervour, 
 but no further would they go. And, indeed, many of 
 them believed that this was as far as they were 
 expected to go, and would relate to the missionary, 
 as quite commendable, that on the previous Saturday 
 night they had attended a fetish dance, but that 
 this did not make them neglect the meetings for the 
 worship of Nzambi, evidently thinking it possible to 
 serve God and Belial at the same time. (Not the 
 only people who have made this mistake since the 
 world began !) 
 
 But when at length they began to understand that 
 God claimed nothing less than themselves, and would 
 not be satisfied with anything they could do, they 
 said quite candidly that that might be a good religion 
 for the white man, but it was not suitable for the black 
 man, w r ho had different customs altogether, and zvas 
 in himself different. 
 
 It was almost heart-breaking at times to go into 
 the towns to preach, knowing that men, women, and 
 children were hiding away, or to hear them make any 
 excuse rather than listen to the word, or to see them 
 standing listlessly by, as they patronisingly assented 
 to the most heart- searching truths. Some would 
 confess they were sinners, declare that they had re- 
 pented, believed in Jesus, that they loved God with 
 all their heart and soul, and were keeping all His 
 
KNOWN BY OUR FRUITS. 43 
 
 commandments : and all the time we were morally 
 certain their hearts were as dark as Satan and super- 
 stition could make them. 
 
 After this came the next stage — curiosity. 
 
 The unanimity of the testimony of the Mindele 
 mia Nzambi (God's white men — a name they gave 
 to the missionaries) was one of the causes of this. 
 " You all speak the same thing," they said on more 
 than one occasion. " It doesn't matter which mission- 
 ary it is that comes here, all tell us the same story." 
 
 Then the lives of the missionaries, in contrast with 
 those of many of the traders and others, impressed 
 them. In Africa there must of necessity be very little 
 private life. The white man has to be a "living 
 epistle, known and read of all men," and it was 
 especially so in the early history of the mission. Then 
 almost every little word or act was watched, noted, 
 and interpreted. Very little escaped their notice. 
 Wherever we went, and whatever we did, there was sure 
 to be a number of curious eyes and ears always open 
 and ready to find in us anything inconsistent with our 
 professed object in coming amongst them. And did 
 we never fail then ? Our pitiful Father in heaven, 
 who knoweth our frame, knows how often. So often, 
 indeed, that the remembrance should cause much 
 humbleness of mind ; and yet withal we have much 
 cause to praise the grace that on the whole did keep 
 us faithful and consistent under very trying condi- 
 tions of bodily and spiritual life. 
 
 There w r as also another cause of native curiosity 
 which should not be left out of the account. It was 
 
44 
 
 " THE WHITE MAN IS 
 
 t^^^^^m 
 
 NATIVE WOMAN HOEING. 
 
 a sign given by God 
 Himself, — rain sent in 
 ansiver to prayer, and it 
 attracted much atten- 
 tion. 
 
 The rainy season had 
 come, but no rain ! The 
 women had sown their 
 seed, and the blade had 
 appeared ; but as one 
 month and then nearly 
 another passed over, and 
 not a shower visited the earth and watered it, the 
 green shoot began to turn yellow, and the young 
 crops flagged and drooped. Another month or two 
 of such drought, and famine would be the consequence. 
 In their distress they tried the rain fetish. 
 
 One evening, as one of the missionaries was taking 
 his usual walk, passing through the town, he heard 
 the beating of a drum, and seeing one of the mission 
 school lads, he asked what it meant, and was told 
 that the people were to assemble that night and dance 
 for rain. 
 
 The missionary said to the lad : " But you know 
 that will not bring rain, don't you ? " 
 " Oh, yes, teacher, it will." 
 
 "Nonsense ! How can beating a drum and dancing 
 make the rain to fall ? If God wants it to rain, it 
 will, but not otherwise." 
 
 " Ah, well, teacher, you will see. Just notice now 
 if it does not rain before to-morrow morning." 
 
STOPPING THE RAIN!" 45 
 
 That evening walk was saddened by the conversa- 
 tion held with the lad. How dark everything seemed ! 
 After years of toil and prayer, not only were the 
 people as much wedded to their superstition as ever, 
 but even hopeful scholars of the mission school 
 were still in gross darkness and believing lies. Alas ! 
 this heathenism ! What a dreadful, real power it 
 seemed to be ! When would the people be delivered 
 from the bondage of its yoke ? " O God ! " groaned 
 out the missionary, " forbid that Thy rain should fall 
 in apparent response to their invocation of devils ! 
 Keep back Thy clouds until they seek the blessing 
 from Thee." 
 
 That night and many others passed, and no rain 
 came. Notwithstanding all the drumming and danc- 
 ing, the clouds were obstinate, and w r ould not obey 
 the most powerful spells. More than two months of 
 the rainy season had now gone by, arid no drop of 
 rain had fallen. Scarcity, disease, and death, such as 
 the old men said had come upon the land in former 
 days, seemed to be impending. But why was it? 
 Who was the cause of the drought ? who was it that 
 was hindering the rain from coming? The conver- 
 sation of the boy with the white man was reported. 
 Yes, that was it ! That was why their medicine-men 
 could do nothing. The white man mas stopping the rain ! 
 
 The news soon spread, " The white man it is who 
 is stopping the rain," and the rage of the people — 
 especially the women — was very great. Had it been 
 one of themselves, and not a white man, his life would 
 not have been worth many hours' purchase. But a 
 
46 TESTING THE WHITE MAN'S GOD. 
 
 white man was different ! To kill him would mean 
 bringing unknown dangers upon the whole com- 
 munity. And, moreover, the king protected him ! 
 Let Kangampaka protest then against this bad con- 
 duct to the white man himself, and perhaps when he 
 knows that he is found out he will let the rain come. 
 The king thereupon sent his headman to the sus- 
 pected missionary, and told him that all the people, 
 
 A CONGO WOMAN. 
 
 especially the. women, were very angry with him, be- 
 lieving him to be keeping back the rain from them. 
 The missionary replied that it was not he, but the 
 people themselves. 
 
 " How was that ? " 
 
 "Just this way. God owns all the clouds, for He 
 made them. Season by season He has sent the rain 
 to you unasked, and you have had plenty to eat in 
 all your towns. But who among you have ever once 
 
AN ANSWERED PRAYER. 47 
 
 thanked Him ? Instead of doing that, you have 
 done that which He abominates in praising and 
 thanking your rain fetish." 
 
 " What then shall we do, white man ? " 
 
 Here was a most practical question ! How ought 
 it to be answered ? There seemed to be but one way, 
 and that to take up the challenge of the heathen chief 
 in God's name. 
 
 " Tell Kangampaka," replied the missionary, " to 
 appoint a day for all the people to come together, 
 and wait upon God to give them rain ; and if they 
 come to Him with sincere hearts, and put away their 
 fetishes, He will hear them." 
 
 The answer came back very soon. " The words 
 of the white man are good. The king appoints 
 to-morrow." 
 
 The morrow came, and the people flocked in large 
 numbers to the little church, which was full to over- 
 flowing ; chiefs and people from all the adjacent towns 
 were there. After some exhortation prayer was offered, 
 and the people dispersed. 
 
 All through the rest of that day the missionaries 
 agonised in prayer to God, and towards evening the 
 answer seemed to be at hand, for thick, black clouds 
 rolled overhead, but, alas ! dispersed again. 
 
 It was a sore trial of faith, but still they prayed on, 
 and gave the Lord no rest. Through that night they 
 watched and prayed, and before the dawn of the next 
 day the clouds came overhead again, and this time 
 did not disperse until a glorious, refreshing shower 
 had fallen upon the thirsty land. 
 
4 8 
 
 INGRATITUDE. 
 
 In -the morning the king himself came to the station 
 and asked, " What shall we do now ? " 
 
 " Come together again to thank God for what He 
 has sent, and ask Him for more," was the reply. 
 
 They came, but not nearly in such large numbers 
 as at first. Alas poor human nature ! However 
 public prayer was offered once again, and within a 
 few hours more rain fell. During the evening how- 
 ever the missionaries heard the noise of a drum in 
 the town. What could it be ? Upon inquiry they 
 found it was a dance in honour of the rain fetish ! 
 
 It was some weeks before another shower of rain 
 descended upon that plateau, but they had received 
 an unmistakable sign from the Lord, unmistakable 
 to all but the wilfully blind ; and now sufficient rain 
 was sent to give them a second crop and prevent 
 starvation. 
 
 '" A "^ W /* - Ml 
 
 
 NATIVES COMING FOR MEDICINE TO THE MISSIONARY S TENT. 
 
THE RAIN FETISH. 
 
 49 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 T Banza Manteka a few weeks after- 
 wards a like event occurred ; but 
 in that case the natives them- 
 selves asked to be allowed to 
 meet and pray for rain, having 
 doubtless heard what had taken 
 place at Palabala. They met 
 at the mission house, when Mr. 
 Richards exhorted them to re- 
 ceive the truth of God. Nkoiyo, 
 a converted scholar, and Lutete, 
 the first Banza Manteka convert 
 (and the only one then), gave 
 earnest exhortations to various 
 little groups of the people both 
 before and after the address. The 
 people subsequently dispersed, and soon after the 
 three missionaries and the two converts met in a 
 room for united prayer to God for the rain ; and while 
 the last prayer was being offered down it came, ful- 
 filling that promise, " While they are yet speaking I 
 will hear." 
 
 As at Palabala however, that night the people 
 drummed and danced in honour of the rain fetish, 
 and it was long before another shower fell in that 
 district. 
 
 C. R, 4 
 
So PERSECUTION. 
 
 In pondering these cases, it should be remembered 
 that this drought came on in the wet season, when it 
 usually rains at least every other day ; that at Pala- 
 bala two months preceded and one month followed 
 the two showers of rain there, while at Banza Manteka 
 three months preceded and one month followed ; and, 
 above all, it should be noted that the two showers 
 in three months' drought and the one shower during 
 four months' drought came at the time that special 
 prayer was made for rain. 
 
 But what was the spiritual outcome ? At the time 
 perhaps nothing more than to lead the people from 
 indifference to the gospel to curiosity with regard to 
 it. But that was a great gain ! 
 
 The stage of opposition to the work is a most 
 hopeful one, for when the natives oppose, it is a sign 
 that they are conscious of the power of the word 
 preached, and dread its effect upon them should they 
 continue to listen to it. As the harpooned whale 
 rushes away from its intending captors and dives 
 to the bottom of the sea, so at first the native under 
 conviction of sin will go farther and farther away 
 from the truth and sink deeper than ever into iniquity ; 
 until at last, wearied of self and of sin, he gives up 
 his struggling, and yields himself to the Lord. 
 
 The opposition of the chiefs is usually of an 
 insidious character. As at Palabala they will some- 
 times pretend to be very desirous for the people to 
 attend the preaching, but in reality will give them 
 secretly to understand, that it is only those specially 
 permitted who may attend the meetings. 
 
TRIAL BY POISON. 51 
 
 At Mukimbungu however, where the first con- 
 verts were baptized, the opposition has always been 
 strong, and quite open, amounting at times to posi- 
 tive persecution. 
 
 On one occasion when I passed through Mukim- 
 bungu, I found the brethren discussing what they 
 should do in the event of the station being attacked. 
 It appeared that the native chiefs had been raging 
 against the converts, had actually put some of them 
 to death, and had declared that on the following 
 Sunday they would burn down the mission station 
 and kill the missionaries. The ferocious character of 
 these chiefs made it appear to be something more than 
 an idle threat. However they were not allowed to do 
 the Lord's servants any harm ; for Sunday passed by, 
 and many another day, without anything more being 
 heard of such an attack. 
 
 The chiefs have seldom been known to kill the 
 converts ostensibly on account of their religion, but 
 they usually effect their purpose by a charge of 
 witchcraft. Any one who displeases the chief, or who 
 may be disliked in the town, is in danger of being got 
 rid of in this way. One young man, an earnest 
 Christian, lost all his relatives in this w r ay in a com- 
 paratively short time, and himself only escaped the 
 same fate by removing to another district. 
 
 A noble instance of self-sacrifice occurred at 
 Mukimbungu. Two sisters were very constant in 
 their attendance of the meetings, and were hated by 
 the heathen in consequence. At length the elder was 
 accused of witchcraft, and had to take the poison 
 
52 
 
 MURDER OF TWO SISTERS. 
 
 water. She was a very weakly woman, and the 
 probability was that she would not survive the ordeal, 
 whether she vomited it (and thus established her 
 innocence) or not. Knowing this, her younger sister 
 came forward, and asked to be allowed to drink it 
 instead of her sister. This, after some demur, w r as 
 permitted. She drank, and vomited it ; but, alas ! 
 it did not save either of them, for on some slight 
 
 "the natives seemed excited." 
 
 pretext they were both afterwards killed ! Cruel, 
 cruel heathenism ! 
 
 On some rare occasions the missionaries , lives have 
 been threatened when they have gone to a town to 
 preach, especially at Mukimbungu. Mr. Westlind 
 went on one occasion to one of the towns there, 
 taking with him several converts to give their testi- 
 mony. A§ t soon as they entered the place they sa\y 
 
J 
 
 MR. WESTLIND, 
 Of MukimbungU) Swedish Mission Station on tJie Congo. 
 
 53 
 
54 "I WILL KLLL YOU." 
 
 something was wrong, for the people were running in 
 every direction for their guns, and the chief made his 
 appearance fully armed, and used very threatening 
 language. The converts became excited, and a col- 
 lision seemed imminent, when Mr. Westlind called 
 out to the chief to know w r hat was the matter. He 
 replied, " I will not have you preach in my town ; if 
 you do, I will kill you." 
 
 Mr. Westlind at once replied that he was told in 
 God's book not to force people to hear if they did 
 not wish, but to go away and leave them, shaking 
 the very dust off from their feet as a testimony 
 against them. " The next time I come will be when 
 you send for me," said Mr. Westlind, and he left 
 them. When I passed through Mukimbungu some 
 little time after this, these people were debating 
 among themselves, whether they should not send for 
 the white man, to visit them once more. 
 
 As stated before, it was at Mukimbungu that the 
 first baptisms on the Congo took place. It would not 
 be easy for us to forget the memorable day of the 
 simple but most significant ceremony. The baptism 
 of those first five converts from heathenism was a 
 cause of joy, not only because of their individual 
 deliverance from the bondage of darkness, but also 
 because they were regarded as firstfruits, after the 
 long years of toil, — firstfruits to Christ from Congo- 
 land. 
 
 It was a day we had longed and prayed for, while 
 yet it seemed to be distant. We knew a blessing 
 would come, but not whether we should be permitted 
 
FIRSTFRUITS. 55 
 
 to witness it, or only our successors, when we were 
 gone for ever. But now it was come ! 
 
 How would the dear pioneers who sleep in Jesus 
 have rejoiced to see that day — Telford and Petersen, 
 Lanceley and McCall, and others ! Was it certain 
 they were not present with us ? At least they 
 rejoiced, for there was joy in the presence of the 
 angels of God over these penitent sinners, as they 
 turned from their devil worship to God, and publicly 
 confessed their faith in the gospel. 
 
 It seemed to us the dawn of a new epoch ! Hence- 
 forth the conversion of multitudes of the heathen 
 would be only a question of time ! The seed had 
 begun to germinate, there would in due season be a 
 crop. Each of these converts w T ould be a missionary, 
 and all converted through them would in turn become 
 missionaries too ! How much easier would be the 
 work in time to come, when each w 7 hite missionary 
 might be assisted by earnest native evangelists, men 
 of the same colour and language as the people them- 
 selves ! The heathen could not then regard the 
 gospel as exclusively the white man's religion. In 
 the salvation of these five converts from heathenism 
 we had the earnest of Congo for Christ, and saw a 
 marvellous work begun ! We praised God for what 
 we believed He was going to do, as well as for the 
 glad sight which our eyes witnessed. 
 
 Within twelve months of this time a great awaken- 
 ing took place in the district of BANZA MANTEKA- 
 Mr. Henry Richards, who had founded the mission 
 there, and had been sowing the good seed for years 
 
MR. HENRY RICHARDS, 
 OF BANZA MANTEKA. 
 
 56 
 
AN IMPORTANT STEP IN ADVANCE. SI 
 
 with no slack hand, noticed a special interest in the 
 word preached. The arm of the Lord had awoke. 
 He was conscious that the Spirit of the Lord, in 
 answer to much prayer, was upon him, to preach the 
 gospel in such a way and with such success as he 
 had not before seen in Africa. One reason for the 
 change was possibly that his greater familiarity with 
 the language enabled him to use it more freely and 
 forcibly, and his more perfect knowledge of Congo 
 life put him in a position to employ Congo illustra- 
 tions, as windows to let the light in. He saw that in 
 proportion as he did this his meaning was grasped, 
 and his teachings felt as they had not previously 
 been. 
 
 When he went into the towns to preach, large 
 numbers came to listen, and often when he had 
 finished an address of an hour or an hour and a half 
 in length, they would ask him not to go away, but 
 tell them more. The interest increased and spread, 
 until the people almost besieged the station ; from 
 outlying districts they came also, bringing provisions, 
 that they might stay and hear the word of God con- 
 stantly. From morning till night Mr. Richards w r as 
 engaged in preaching, teaching, and examining con- 
 verts ; and this went on for w r eeks. So busy was he 
 that he often had not opportunity even to eat. He 
 contented himself with two daily meals, reluctant to 
 spare time for a third. 
 
 The conversions which took place seemed to be 
 sound and satisfactory. A son of the old king 
 Makokila was one of the first, and this greatly 
 
58 THE CONVERTED MEDICINE-MAN. 
 
 displeased the nephew of the king, who, according 
 to Fiote custom, would succeed the chief when he 
 died. 
 
 " Whatever is the matter with you ? " he said very 
 angrily ; " I can't make it out "; and he went dow*n 
 to the meeting in the evening in a great rage, intend- 
 ing by his presence to prevent any more conversions. 
 But the Spirit of God convinced him so powerfully 
 of sin, that he too had to plead for mercy there and 
 then, and soon found peace in believing in Jesus. 
 The king's son was delighted, but could not help 
 rallying him a little, saying in his turn, " Well, and 
 whatever is the matter with you ? " " Oh !" replied he 
 u I am so happy ! I understand it all now." 
 
 Soon after this the gray-haired old chief himself 
 (Makokila) surrendered his heart to God, and became 
 a humble follower of the Lord Jesus ; for the power 
 of the Lord was present to heal, even in very 
 obstinate cases. 
 
 One man had been exceptionally vile. He was a 
 " medicine man," and had been a great deceiver of 
 the people. Clearly stamped upon his face were the 
 marks of the villain. He openly opposed the gospel, 
 and tried to persuade the people not to listen to it, 
 and often when Mr. Richards passed by him, on his 
 way to preach, this man would spit after him in con- 
 tempt, and curse him horribly. 
 
 When I was visiting Banza Manteka, soon after 
 the revival had begun, I saw this man on the path 
 coming towards me. I knew him very well by sight, 
 and said to myself, " Can this be the same man?" 
 
Tom, one of the Christian lads of the Mission, wearing the 
 head-dress of a Congo witch-doctor. 
 
 He hastened towards me, his face aglow with a light 
 not of earth. From being one of the ugliest old men 
 I ever saw, he had so changed as to be positively 
 beautiful. Formerly he might have sat for one of 
 
 59 
 
6o " YOU ALSO WILL LOVE JESUS .'" 
 
 Dore's demons ; but now the peace of God that 
 passeth all understanding lit up his countenance, and 
 joy in the Holy Ghost made it radiant. He seemed 
 to have saved body as well as soul, and I marvelled 
 at the power of the grace which had transformed 
 him, 
 
 And not only men, but women and boys and girls 
 in considerable numbers were brought under great 
 concern for their souls. It was pitiable to hear the 
 confessions that were made from time to time by 
 mere lads, showing how old in vice they had already 
 become ! Strange to say, some young cliildren gave 
 the clearest and brightest testimony of having 
 received salvation. 
 
 One day a woman brought a very little girl to be 
 examined as a candidate for baptism. Mr. Richards 
 and I were surprised that one so young (she could not 
 have been more than six or seven) should be brought 
 as a candidate. 
 
 " Do you think she understands ? " asked Mr. 
 Richards. " Try her," said the mother quite confi- 
 dently ; and we both plied her with questions, and were 
 astonished at her answers. How wonderful it was! 
 Only a few days before both mother and child were 
 in heathen darkness and ignorance ; now a wonderful 
 wisdom was given to this poor little lamb ! Some 
 of the worldly-wise might have sat at her feet and 
 learned lessons of priceless value. We said to each 
 other in amazement, " This is the doing of God ! He 
 is revealing His truth to babes — heathen babes ! " 
 
 We commended the woman for endeavouring to 
 
BANZA MANTEKA CHRISTIANS. 61 
 
 take her. children with her to heaven. She looked 
 radiantly happy, and said, " Not only this one, but 
 you also" (apostrophising an infant at her breast), "you 
 also will give your heart to Jesus when you are old 
 enough to know, won't you ? " 
 
 Much care had however to be exercised in the 
 receiving of candidates for baptism. Mr. Richards 
 felt the responsibility to be very great. He knew 
 how easy it was to be deceived by those who were 
 really in earnest, but who were perhaps at the same 
 time to some extent self-deceived. 
 
 He decided to baptize at first only those of whom 
 he was thoroughly confident, and of these to form 
 a small Church, Afterwards they would help in the 
 decision of the cases of other candidates, at least to 
 the extent of judging of their outward conduct. This 
 plan has been found to answer remarkably well, and 
 it is the practice followed at each of the stations. 
 No foreigner can know a native as well as a fellow 
 native can. Their knowledge of each other is al- 
 most complete, as even domestic life is lived quite 
 openly, and there is no such thing as reserve or 
 privacy. 
 
 This carefulness in receiving candidates for baptism 
 has made the Church growth slow. The Banza 
 Manteka Church numbers now only a little over two 
 hundred baptized believers, though the number of 
 converts is much larger. At Mukimbungu, Lukungu, 
 and Palabala there are also smaller Churches, bring- 
 ing the number of baptized members to above five 
 hundred. It might have been double this, but purity 
 
62 
 
 " WILLINGLY OFFERED THEMSELVES:' 
 
 and future usefulness have been sought rather than 
 numbers, and rightly so. 
 
 It will be asked, Of what quality are these con- 
 verts ? Do they stand well ? Are they zealous for 
 God ? Do they provoke one another to love and 
 good works ? The answer is cheering. 
 
 There have up to the present been w r onderfully few 
 cases of backsliding or falling into open sin. The 
 Churches in this respect will compare very favourably 
 with average European or American Churches. 
 
 The converts are also self-denying and zealous. 
 They will go away for days from their homes and 
 families to take the gospel to outlying districts, 
 without any fee or reward, and entirely at their own 
 
 charges. 
 
 Some little time ago 
 Dr. Gordon's Church, of 
 Boston, Mass., U.S.A., 
 gave an iron building 
 capable of holding six 
 hundred people to the 
 Banza Manteka Church, 
 on the condition that 
 the members of the 
 Church would carry it 
 from the lower river. 
 This they have done by 
 a great amount of self- 
 sacrificing toil. The 
 loads numbered about 
 seven or eight hundred, 
 
CHARACTER OF THE CONGO CHRISTIANS. 63 
 
 and some of them were very heavy. The able- 
 bodied men of the Church went down five or six 
 times to Underhill, a distance of fifty-five miles, and 
 brought back on their heads each time loads of at 
 least sixty pounds weight ! The women and children 
 of course were not able to do this, so they worked in 
 their fields, sold their surplus stock of vegetables, and 
 with the cloth gained they engaged other men to 
 go and share in the transport on their behalf. The 
 average value of the labour that each of these converts 
 gave thus to the Lord would be between three and 
 four pounds, no small contribution from poor native 
 Congoese ! 
 
 The converts as a rule are simple-minded and 
 single-hearted. They sincerely love their Lord, and 
 try heartily to obey Him. The contrast between 
 their former heathen state and their present condition 
 is so great, that they are constantly full of wonder 
 and gratitude to God. They are not troubled with 
 doubts and fears, but rely with the simplicity of chil- 
 dren on the sweet promises of their Father God. 
 
 One of the chiefs in a district near Lukungu (where 
 there is a Church of believers) became converted 
 through a man who was our cook for about twelve 
 months. He had himself been led to Christ durine 
 the stir that took place at Lukungu on the news of 
 the awakening at Banza Manteka. The cook spoke 
 to his chief about his soul and about the Saviour, 
 creating an interest which brought him soon after- 
 wards as an inquirer to the station, and resulted 
 in his becoming a decided Christian. This chief in 
 
64 A CHILD HEALED BY FAITH. 
 
 turn has been the means of the conversion of several 
 others in his own town. He is, thank God ! a burn- 
 ing and shining light wherever he goes. He en- 
 deavours to live out the Lord's command, " As ye go, 
 preach," for he is notorious as one " instant in season, 
 out of season " in testifying for the Lord. 
 
 A short time ago I received a letter from one of 
 the converted lads, telling me of a remarkable circum- 
 stance that had just happened in this man's town. 
 His child was very sick, and it seemed to be unto 
 death. Mayala, the chief, being much concerned, 
 went to the mission station and procured medicine 
 for him, and administered it, but without any satis- 
 factory result. At last some of his people came to 
 him, and Pegged him to take the child to the fetish 
 house, but he refused. Still the child did not get 
 better, but rather grew worse. At length the people 
 fetched the medicine-man, but Mayala positively 
 declined to allow him to interfere with his child, 
 saying that he believed in the power of God. The 
 people somewhat derisively replied, " We should like 
 to see this power of God ! " "You shall see it" re- 
 sponded Mayala. So entering his hut, he shut to 
 the door, and prayed, and his " Father which seeth 
 in secret," rewarded him openly. 
 
 The sick child was outside the house under the 
 verandah, and while his father was in the hut praying 
 for him, he fell into a deep sleep. Still the father 
 wrestled with God in prayer for his child, and the 
 people gathered round in curious wonderment. At 
 last Mayala received the ^ssurange he wanted, and 
 
" The Last shall be first:' 65 
 
 he went outside his hut to the people. They were 
 all expectation, and so zvas he ; and God, who has pro- 
 mised that " the prayer of faith shall save the sick," 
 raised the child up. He awoke, got up, and was 
 soon playing about as if nothing had been the matter 
 with him. 
 
 Who taught Mayala this " healing by faith " ? The 
 Holy Spirit of God. No one had taught him the 
 doctrine. It was his own childlike interpretation of 
 such promises as " what things soever ye desire when 
 ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall 
 have them." They led him to take his child's case to 
 the Lord Himself, instead of to the medicine-man ; 
 and the more so as he had already been to the dis- 
 ciples, and they could not render him any help. He 
 felt too that the very existence of Divine power had 
 been challenged, and he asked God to show forth that 
 power in the sight of the people. 
 
 Sometimes when I have seen such men as these 
 living earnest, consecrated lives, and walking by 
 simple faith, I have thought : " Shall what the Lord 
 has prophesied indeed come to pass, that the last 
 shall be first, that the poor, dark, downtrodden 
 Africans shall yet be called into the kingdom of 
 grace, and through their child-like and whole-hearted 
 reception of God's eternal truth become bright illus- 
 trations of faith and devotion, in these last days of 
 scoffing unbelief and Laodicean selfishness ? " 
 
 C. R. 
 
MR. JOHN McKlTTRICK, OF BELFAST, 
 
 Leader of the Congo- Balclo Mission. 
 
 66 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 A WALK IN BALOLOLAND. 
 Recollections by Mr. J. McKittrick. 
 
 For several months after reaching Wangata I 
 waited in vain a favourable opportunity to visit a dis- 
 trict said to be large and populous, twenty miles east 
 of our mission station. The people told me of " big 
 towns " up the Juapa, Ikelemba, and Lulonga rivers, 
 and of Welu, a " strong chief/ 5 residing at a place 
 called Bonsole. They would also often tell me of the 
 land from which their fathers came, saying with an 
 air of pride, " We are few and weak here," meaning 
 on the banks of the Congo between Wangata and 
 Ikengo ; "but we are very many and very strong 
 away yonder," pointing southward. 
 
 Wishing to know more of the Balolo, I decided to 
 visit Bonsole, and made arrangements to have our 
 canoe cleaned and prepared for the trip. Whilst 
 Bojuela was engaged in making ready the canoe, I 
 went to see how he was getting on. A man came to 
 the landing stage and asked where the white man was 
 going ; returning, he told his townsfolk, most of whom 
 came out a few minutes later to hear the news. 
 
 " Where are you going, Bondele ? " inquired a 
 
 67 
 
68 A JOURNEY TO BON SOLE. 
 
 spokesman of the people, a good-natured fellow called 
 Ngolo, observing the preparations. 
 
 " To Bonsole," I replied. 
 
 " All right, Bondele ; if you bring your rifle, and 
 agree to fight with the Boluke, we'll go with you ; but 
 if not, we won't," said Ngolo frankly. 
 
 " I'll take my rifle, but I can't fight ; you know that 
 I am a man of peace," I replied decidedly. 
 
 " We know you are a coward, Bondele ! " said he 
 laughing ; " so we won't go by water. But we'll go 
 overland with you if you like, and carry your things 
 for you." 
 
 " All right ; that will do just as well. We will get 
 off to-morrow morning." 
 
 They occupied themselves the rest of the day in 
 making ready, and next morning we started. Taking 
 the Inganda road, which led us through a large 
 district of the same name, and keeping down the 
 right bank of the Congo for about five miles, we soon 
 turned off into the Bonsole and Bolenge track. 
 
 I was pleasantly surprised at the size of the towns 
 and the number of their inhabitants in the prosperous 
 district through which we walked, and could not help 
 saying to myself, "Here I have lived at Wangata all 
 these months ignorant of the thousands of this highly 
 favoured Inganda ! " But till one has more or less 
 of the language, even local exploration is difficult. 
 We wended our way over elevated land, through 
 large plantations and clearings, covering a vast tract 
 of country, which must have taken many years to 
 reclaim from the virgin forest and bring under cul- 
 
GAME AND WILDFOWL ON AN AFRICAN RIVER. 
 6 9 
 
FOREST COVERED BANKS OF THE CONGO. 
 
 tivation. Then we descended into a dense wooded 
 swamp, where I had to divest myself of boots and 
 socks, and splash through water and mud ; several 
 heavy tornadoes, a day or two before, having so 
 flooded the road that in some places the water was 
 knee deep. Yet even here, strange to say, though 
 the trees grow thick and tall, w r ith innumerable 
 creepers and thick underbush between, I perceived 
 none of the offensive malarious odour, so common in 
 the thickets of the Lower Congo. 
 
 Swampy valleys like this alternated with ridges 
 throughout our twenty-mile walk. We were going 
 south, so the watery vales we kept crossing ran 
 parallel to the Congo, and some of them were of 
 sufficient depth to form tortuous channels of water. 
 
WANDOU!" "HAIL, KING!' 
 
 7i 
 
 According to native report, one of these channels 
 leads from the Juapa River to Lake Matumba, and 
 by it the Boluke traders are said to go down to Irebu 
 and Ngombe, when there is war in the neighbourhood 
 of, or at the mouth of the Juapa. I have little doubt 
 that such a channel exists, and if so Wangata is 
 built on a great island, and not on the mainland. 
 
 About noon we reached a town called Bompafu, an 
 outlying portion of Inganda, where resides an old and 
 influential chief. We did not halt here, but, seeing 
 the old man as we passed, my men saluted him, bow- 
 ing almost to the ground, and clapping their hands 
 as they cried out, " Wandou /" " Hail, king ! " 
 
 On again through the forest after a lunch of dried 
 fish and cassava. About four in the afternoon we 
 reached the outskirts of Bonsole, where I found the 
 main entrance to the place barricaded and carefully 
 guarded by a few watchmen. The barricade, which 
 consisted of the end of a house placed across the 
 entrance and secured to a number of upright poles, 
 was owing to hostilities with the people of another 
 
 YALULINA NATIVES. 
 
72 UNDER THE PALM TREES. 
 
 district, which were fortunately suspended for the time. 
 An aperture in the end of the house thus placed in 
 the road was the only entrance, and by no means an 
 easy one, measuring about three feet by one and a half. 
 After exchanging presents with an elder, we walked 
 through the town. The people were very civil ; the 
 children flocked out to see the white man ; the little 
 fellows would run past me, and then wait in the path 
 to take a good look at my white face as I came for- 
 ward, and then hastily scamper off. I do not know 
 that I have seen finer or more lively boys, bright, 
 smiling, well fed, and clean, just what all lads should 
 
A ROYAL AUDIENCE. 
 
 73 
 
 be ! It was near sun-down when we reached Welu's 
 residence. He was absent when I arrived; but his son 
 hastened to give me a kind welcome, and to show me 
 the hut in which I was to stay. Here I was glad to 
 rest my weary limbs ; but, alas ! it was not for long. 
 Young Welu soon came to say that it was a custom 
 among them that strangers should sit outside, so that 
 all the people may have an opportunity of looking at 
 them. Yielding to his persuasive eloquence, I went 
 out, and took up my seat beneath the palms, and re- 
 signedly made myself 
 a public gazing stock 
 for fifteen or twenty 
 minutes. 
 
 I then learned that 
 I was to receive a 
 present from the king, 
 and was of course 
 expected to make a 
 handsome one. in re- 
 turn. For this I was 
 prepared. After tak- 
 ing a little food ac- 
 cordingly, I was sum- 
 moned forth once 
 more, but this time 
 to a very formal and 
 imposing audience, 
 for which elaborate 
 preparations in the 
 way of hair-dressing 
 
 HAIR-DRESSING/' 
 
74 AN AFRICAN ALBINO. 
 
 and personal decoration had evidently been made. I 
 was seated in the midst of a large, representative 
 assembly of men and women, which had been sum- 
 moned by drum. A goat was brought (bound), and 
 laid at my feet ; fowls, palm nuts, plaintains, and a 
 dish out of which to take food were also given. Welu 
 made an effective speech. When it was over I pro- 
 duced my " dash," — a brass helmet and a piece of 
 savelist. Welu looked gloomy ! I then produced 
 some beads and cowries, some spoons and forks, and 
 a plate ; and forthwith the cloud was replaced by the 
 broad grin of satisfaction, so often seen on similar 
 occasions on the countenances of these " children of a 
 larger growth " in Central Africa ! 
 
 Strolling later on through the town, I was told that 
 in one quarter of it there resided a white woman just 
 like myself ! On reaching the place, I saw an albino 
 with a child in her arms. " Is she not white ? " said 
 they ; " like the Englese wo talu-tale " (the English- 
 man of length, a name by which they called me owing 
 to my stature). 
 
 She was an unnatural looking creature, like neither 
 African nor European, with light complexion, red 
 eyes, and a peculiar expression of face. She did not 
 enjoy being likened to the white man, and soon re- 
 treated into a house. 
 
 I had my accordion with me, and it quickly 
 gathered a crowd. Seating myself on a log of wood, 
 I played a few hymn-tunes. Our boys who were 
 with me would sometimes sing the hymns, but on 
 this occasion the little fellows were shy. An old 
 
A SUPERABUNDANCE OF "CHOP." 75 
 
 dame called out to her little grandchild in the crowd 
 " Come away ! come away from the spirit ! " Some 
 of the men laughed, but some looked serious. It 
 would never do to have the story that I was "a 
 spirit " go abroad, as it would block my way every- 
 where. But how disprove the assertion ? I pulled 
 up my jacket, unbuttoned my shirt sleeve and bared 
 my arm. Then extending it I said : " Feel that ! is it 
 not flesh and bone? A spirit has not these!" A 
 laugh against the old lady went round, and the people 
 were re-assured. It was hard to get away from them. 
 
 On my way back I was stopped at the house of an 
 old chief, and entreated to begin again to play the 
 instrument. The kind women had ready for me on 
 our return such an abundance of dainty dishes of 
 their own preparation, that I had an emb arras de 
 richesses. Matron after matron arrived, each bearing 
 a vessel carefully covered with a plantain leaf, bound 
 on with a cord, to exclude dust and insects. There 
 was food enough for a week and to spare. What was 
 I to do ? My men, seeing such a superabundance of 
 " chop," volunteered their services, and I was saved 
 all further trouble ! The vessels were speedily ready 
 to be returned to their owners. 
 
 As I was anxious to see the whole district, I started 
 again the following morning, accompanied by Bojuela 
 and one or two of our schoolboys, in the opposite 
 direction. Our way led, for the most part, through a 
 succession of villages, without any protection from the 
 sun. By the time we reached the extreme end of the 
 "town" our clothes were tolerably well saturated! 
 
76 NATIVE INDUSTRIES. 
 
 The villages of this part of the country are situated 
 on a high ridge of land. The soil, which in the forests 
 is of deep alluvium, is exceedingly rich and fertile, as 
 seen by the luxuriant abundance that everywhere 
 meets the eye. Food is much cheaper hereabouts 
 than at Wangata, for the people attend more to agri- 
 culture than do those nearer the river. Maize and 
 mandioca are the principal crops, and flourish every- 
 where. Much attention is given to the cultivation 
 of the sugar cane, which grows to an extraordinary 
 height and thickness, and is exceedingly sweet and 
 juicy. Large patches of it are met with near the 
 towns for convenience, the other fields being as a rule 
 farther removed from the dwellings. 
 
 Even the old people are not without a local indus- 
 try ; they engage in grinding camwood, which is 
 carefully prepared and forwarded to Ikango, Inganda, 
 and other places, whence it is taken by native mer- 
 chants to tribes as far down the river as Stanley Pool. 
 This wood is found in great abundance in the forests 
 of the interior, and when ground into powder and 
 prepared, is used for dyeing purposes ; it imparts a 
 rich and beautiful crimson. It is used by the natives 
 as a cosmetic also. 
 
 On the whole, the people in this neighbourhood 
 seemed more superstitious than their neighbours, and 
 less kindly disposed towards Europeans. This may 
 have arisen from the losses that they had sustained 
 from their recent battle with the Bandaka. One of 
 the deceased warriors had been a man of considerable 
 standing in his town, so they were about to have a 
 
HEARING THE GOSPEL FOR THE FIRST TIME. 77 
 
 human sacrifice at his funeral. But the chief, whose 
 guest I was, brought the matter before his counsellors, 
 and it was decided to postpone the ceremony till I 
 was gone ; for, said he, " the white man does not like 
 to hear of people being killed." The victim was 
 marked out and possibly bound ; but the execution, 
 which they carry out w r ith terrible barbarity, was post- 
 poned in deference to me, an illustration of the effect 
 of the mere presence of a white man among these 
 people. 
 
 On reaching what is called the ntiindu, or the end 
 of the village, I was led a little way beyond the houses 
 to a high palisade, which — securely fastened and 
 carefully guarded at night — is used as a sort of citadel 
 in case of attack. The people soon flocked round me; 
 but, oh ! how miserable they seemed when compared 
 with the inhabitants of other villages ! how timid 
 and fearful ! 
 
 In Africa the state of uncertainty and insecurity 
 created by war ruins a village very quickly. Owing 
 to the frail nature of the houses, from the perishable 
 building material used, decay sets in immediately, 
 unless the buildings are kept in constant repair. 
 Dilapidated houses, and others fast falling into ruin, 
 meet the eye on all sides in this unhappy place. 
 
 To the best of my ability I tried to tell them of 
 the Friend and Saviour of sinners. They seemed inte- 
 rested, the story was new to them. It was the first 
 and only occasion on which they heard the name of 
 Jesus, but the gospel which Christ committed to His 
 disciples will, please God, before long overthrow all 
 
7% THE CHARM OF MUSIC, 
 
 their superstitions, and save them from their sins and 
 sorrows ! Such is our hope and expectation. 
 
 On our way back I stopped at a place where a 
 goodly number of leading men had assembled to 
 discuss a question, which, judging from the numbers 
 present, must have been of some considerable import- 
 ance. They were seated in a quiet spot by the wayside 
 under the shade of a few friendly banana trees. Most 
 of them were well armed, as is usual in this part of the 
 interior, where all men when travelling are armed 
 to the teeth. I was again called upon to " kunda 
 u'sauge" play the instrument ; and taking my seat in 
 the midst of the wise men of Bonsole, I succeeded in 
 interesting them for a considerable time. One big 
 fellow was captivated with the music, and insisted on 
 handling the accordion for himself, to see that there 
 was nothing supernatural about it. 
 
 We inspected afterwards several of the troughs in 
 which the sugarcane is reduced to a pulp. The 
 trough is divided into two parts, the smaller is narrow 
 at the bottom, and in this the sugarcane is pounded ; 
 the other is much larger, and as wide at the bottom 
 as at the top. In this the cane is steeped for some 
 time before pressing and straining into huge earthen 
 jars, in which it is carefully covered up. The remains 
 of the woody substance create fermentation, and in 
 a few days it is ready for use. When fresh it is a 
 pleasant and wholesome drink, and not intoxicating. 
 
 Farther on we came to a part of the village which 
 had evidently once been more thickly populated. On 
 the site of a house there were heaped up a number of 
 
a n'guma-bayansi. 
 
 b NATIVE OF URINDI. 
 C TYPE OF MABUNGU. 
 d, d MEN SMOKING ELAND-HORN PIPES. 
 
8o MURDER OF SLAVES AT KING'S FUNERAL. 
 
 earthenware vessels. They looked red, as if the house 
 had been burned over them. A solitary and large 
 hut stood near ; in front of it, on the other side of the 
 street, was a pole about three feet high, with a human 
 skull of extraordinary size on the top. 
 
 The earthenware, the burned hut, the skull, and the 
 deserted appearance of the place, all combined to tell 
 the sorrowful tale. The chief had been carried off by 
 death, and the skull on the pole was that of the poor 
 victim who had been sacrificed at his funeral. These 
 human sacrifices used to be of frequent occurrence at 
 Wangata, but are now forbidden by the Congo Free 
 State. They are continued still, however, at Inganda, 
 and all over the interior. 
 
 My men were by this time anxious to start home- 
 wards, and though Welu would fain have detained 
 us longer, I thought it best to leave the interesting, 
 good-natured people of Bonsole. I had proved that 
 a missionary would be welcomed in that district, and 
 that the people would even be proud to entertain 
 him. I had learned that the banks of the great river 
 are by no means the most populous or desirable 
 locality for mission stations, though in some respects 
 the most convenient. But they give access to the 
 great interior, and oh the immensity of that field ! 
 
 My men got the start of me, and at a forest village 
 on the outskirts of the Bonsole district were stopped 
 by an attempt of the local chief to levy blackmail. 
 But even in these wild regions there is a measure of 
 law, and this man Eanga knew that he, in trying to 
 demand a price for permission to pass, was breaking 
 
A CONGO FOREST. 
 
 Si 
 
 native Law. It was only a 
 fowl he wanted ; but without 
 this tax he would not let my 
 man carrying the goat pass. 
 I resolved not to pay what 
 was an unfair demand ; so 
 leaving the goat and all the 
 rest of Welu's presents, I 
 ordered him to carry them 
 back to the chief and explain. 
 
 We had not got far on 
 our way before, first young 
 Welu and then his father, 
 came up breathless, angry, 
 
 excited, apologising for the insult, and threatening 
 that unless I would overlook it and take the present 
 with me, Eanga and all his must perish ! Of course 
 we yielded, obtaining a promise that no harm should 
 come to the culprit. 
 
 After parting from Welu, we continued for some 
 time crossing densely wooded high land, but then 
 gradually descended inwards to a forest swamp — a 
 " dismal swamp " indeed ! The path was thick with 
 mud and dead vegetation ; we felt the slippery net- 
 work of roots underneath, making the road most diffi- 
 cult, while stately forest monarchs towered high over- 
 head, creating a perpetual semi-darkness. Young trees 
 and bushes strove for the mastery below, and owing 
 to the thickness of the foliage the sun's rays scarcely 
 ever penetrate this grim solitude. Here the eagle, the 
 hawk, and other large birds make their homes, and 
 
 C R, 6 
 
82 DISCOURTEOUS TREATMENT. 
 
 their voices alone, as they are roused by the foot- 
 steps of the traveller, disturb the stillness. The place 
 is such that the leopard could scarcely make his lair 
 in it, as the ground is for the most part under water. 
 We were thankful to emerge on drier ground. 
 
 As we approached Wangata, the men tried, before 
 entering the town, to make themselves as neat and 
 clean as circumstances would permit. I resolved to 
 pass the night at the house of an old chief, whom 
 I had met on a former occasion at our station. He 
 seemed somewhat disconcerted by my arrival at first, 
 and proposed giving me very poor accommodation for 
 the night — an old cook house, which, though it had a 
 good roof, boasted no walls. Telling mymen to have 
 my things placed inside, I sat down among the 
 people ; but my two confidential friends, Boyela and 
 Eakola, soon came and whispered, " White man, these 
 people are thieves, and if you stay in this place you 
 will lose your things." 
 
 " Well," I replied, " the chief told me to stay in it. 
 You had better tell him that if anything is stolen I 
 shall hold him responsible." 
 
 He soon returned and said, " Come along, Bondele ; 
 you shall stay in another house," and I was pleased 
 to find that a room in the chiefs own house had been 
 appointed for me. His residence consisted of three 
 rooms, one of which was occupied by the mother and 
 little ones, the other one by the father and older 
 members of the family, whilst the centre apartment 
 was appointed for me. 
 
 When it grew dark bright fires were lighted outside. 
 
ONLY ONE WHITE MAN AMONG SO MANY!" 83 
 
 the surroundings were illuminated by bonfires, and 
 a torch of gum-copal, which had been placed in the 
 centre, served as a flambeau. The people all engaged 
 in the dance, and one of my men was the leading 
 spirit of the revel, his song could be heard above all 
 the rest. I was watching them, and overheard one of 
 the onlookers say to his fellow in the crowd, " How is 
 it that this man is not afraid ? he is only one white 
 man among so many ! " It was the very town where 
 Bolesi the slave, whom I had ransomed five or six 
 months before, had been so cruelly treated ; but I 
 was about my Master's business, and feared no evil. 
 
 Giving my host a fathom of cloth in return for his 
 kindness, we were starting early next morning, when 
 to my surprise several of the principal men grouped 
 themselves on the street in front of us. They ap- 
 peared anxious to make a lasting friendship, and 
 insisted on my accepting a present of three or four 
 goats. I told them I had nothing in the shape of a 
 return present, and therefore could not take their 
 gift ; but as they insisted, I arranged that they should 
 bring their presents to Wangata, which they did most 
 willingly. 
 
 This place is called Upper Wangata, and must con- 
 tain I think not less than two thousand inhabitants, 
 The houses are oblong in shape, fairly and well built 
 and arranged on either side of the street in admirable 
 order. The country between this town and the 
 Congo is not swampy, but covered with a dense 
 forest. Half a day's brisk march brought us to our 
 own station. 
 
8 4 "N'KO JOL" 
 
 The cannibalism of the Balolo is not quite so 
 revolting as that described on the Mobangi, and in 
 other parts of the Congo Free State. As far as I 
 was able to observe or ascertain, human flesh is not 
 bought and eaten merely for food. It is eaten, but 
 mainly as a superstitious rite connected with funerals. 
 
 When an old chief thinks his end draws nigh, he 
 calls together his family relations and slaves, appoints 
 the disposition of his wives and property, and men- 
 tions the slaves who are to be slain at his interment. 
 As each name is called aloud, the destined victim of 
 superstition replies, " N'ko joi " (I care not). Then 
 addressing himself to his nearest relation, the old 
 man, striking one hand on the other, adjures them to 
 carry out this last injunction, saying, " If these die 
 not, may ye all die ! 5) 
 
 Such is the force of custom and the cruelty of 
 superstition, that the poor, ignorant people feel as if 
 they had no voice. The murders must follow the 
 death. 
 
 As soon as the old man is gone, and before any 
 death wail is raised, a quiet search is made for the 
 foredoomed men or women, who are bound fast in 
 a place of safety and starved till the day of execution, 
 the mode of which we have described elsewhere. 
 The body of the victim is at once divided, cooked, 
 and eaten. The head is taken down from the tree, 
 soaked till the skull is cleaned of flesh, and stuck up 
 on a pole before the dead man's house. 
 
 In the case of great chiefs, children are killed and 
 buried in the grave. The Balolo are in this respect 
 
CANNIBALISM. ^ 
 
 fearfully cruel. The boys are stuffed with food, 
 especially prepared by the relations of the late chief, 
 and led forth to the slaughter. Strong creepers like 
 ropes from the forest are secured round their necks. 
 A man climbs a tree ; when high enough he seeks a 
 firm foothold, and then raises the victim from the 
 
 ground — higher and higher, till the rope is suddenly 
 let go and the child killed by the fall, or not killed, 
 as the case may be. If not, the mangled victim is 
 brutally beaten to death ! 
 
 It would be considered a proof of the utmost 
 disrespect to omit these horrible customs ; the family 
 
S6 "HABITATIONS OF CRUELTY:' 
 
 doing so would lose all social standing, and become 
 the jest of the community. 
 
 Conceive it if you can, English Christians ! All 
 through the towns and villages of the ten millions 
 of Balolo, these horrors are being continually enacted, 
 and worse horrors still in many parts of the Congo 
 Free State. Death is bad enough anywhere ; but 
 death in Congoland when the deceased is above the 
 rank of slave is invariably followed by murder, and 
 often by many murders. Tens of thousands of such 
 murders must take place each year. The law forbid- 
 ding them in the Congo Free State can be enforced 
 — as yet — at comparatively few points only. 
 
 Observing grown men suddenly hiding themselves 
 behind trees, under bushes, or otherwise, without any 
 apparent reason, I one day inquired the cause, and 
 found it was because the man's mother-in-law had 
 come in sight. " But why should a big man hide 
 away from a woman ? " I asked. " O Bondele ! he 
 ashamed ! " " Ashamed ! of what ? " " He afraid 
 too !" " Afraid ! how so?" Then I learned that for 
 a man to face his mother-in-law is esteemed a breach 
 of the Balolo laws of marriage, and that a woman so 
 insulted would bring a charge against her son-in-law 
 before the elders of the town, who would inflict heavy 
 damages ! " Bondele," said Bompole to me one day, 
 soon after his arrival at Harley House, "doctor's 
 mother-in-law come here, he run away ? " " No, 
 my boy, no ! " said I, laughing at the idea. " Oh ! you 
 no do so ? " he replied gravely ; then catching the fun 
 of the notion, he laughed too. But many of our 
 
BALOLO MARRIAGE CUSTOMS. 
 
 87 
 
 customs seemed as strange to him as Balolo usages 
 had done to me. 
 
 Unless for a very serious offence a husband does 
 not put away his wife, if she is a free woman. Her 
 friends possess the dowry or price he paid for her, 
 and unless he can get that back he will not part with 
 her ! If she wishes to leave her husband, and her re- 
 lations consent, the dowry is returned, and she is free. 
 Even in the case of a slave wife — one bought with 
 
 money, not betrothed with dowry — the husband can- 
 not, without some grave charge against her, sell her 
 again. The elders of the town expostulate, if they 
 hear he has any desire to do so, try to moderate 
 his displeasure, and show that she is really valuable 
 to him. He may not be persuaded, but few care to 
 oppose the chief men of the district, and thus many 
 disputes and misunderstandings are settled without 
 separation. 
 
 The Balolo quite understand family life, and the 
 
88 FAMILY LIFE. 
 
 women are really industrious and domestic. Their 
 daily life is simple and natural. The wives and chil- 
 dren start early for the fields or gardens, often at 
 a distance from the village, and work diligently till 
 noon, clearing, weeding, hoeing, planting, or reaoing, 
 as the case may be. At noon they take a mid -day 
 meal, and rest, resuming toil afterwards. Towards 
 evening they return to their houses, carrying large 
 bundles of firewood, should there be a scarcity round 
 the village, and then they prepare the evening meal, 
 
 Unlike the people on the Lower Congo, each father 
 takes his seat in the centre of the family group c 
 wives and children, frequently with the younges 
 child on his knee, and he divides the fish or meat, 
 while the wives distribute the other food. I have 
 often shared such pleasant evening meals with Balolo 
 families. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A CHAT WITH MR. RICHARDS, OF 
 BANZA MANTEKA. 
 
 WANT you to tell me something about the 
 African Christians. You were labouring 
 some years, I think, before you had any 
 converts ? 
 
 Yes ; six years more or less ! Of course 
 I had at first to build and plant and get 
 acclimatized. Then I had to learn the lan- 
 guage—no easy task when you have no 
 teacher and no books. It was years before 
 I could understand and enjoy hearing it, 
 and before I could use it with any power. 
 
 Yes, of course ! And you had illnesses 
 and deep sorrows ? 
 
 I had. God blessed them to me. On my 
 first visit to England on account of health 
 ras greatly exercised about the apparent lack 
 I felt I must be blessed 
 And when I got 
 A great 
 
 I w 
 
 of blessing in Africa, 
 f I was to be made a blessing. 
 back my one desire was for converts. 
 
 \ earning for souls took possession of me. I could not sleep 
 for it sometimes, and had to pray God to take it away, for it 
 was consuming me. But there was no sign of blessing. I 
 resolved to go elsewhere if the word bore no fruit at Banza 
 Manteka. But first I asked myself what was the fault ? I 
 was preaching the truth, and the people listened ; but they 
 did not seem to feel in the least. 
 
 Yet you were in earnest, were you not ? 
 
 Dead in earnest ! But as I read I began to see I had been 
 
 8 9 
 
90 THE MISSIONARY'S FIRST WORK. 
 
 trying the wrong way to do good to the heathen. I had been 
 much occupied with many things, and the one great thing to 
 which a missionary should devote himself mainly, if not exclu- 
 sively, preachings had not been made prominent enough. It is 
 so easy in Congo to get distracted. There is so much to do. 
 Building, planting, ordinary business of various sorts, learning 
 the language, teaching, writing, travelling, — all these things are 
 apt to squeeze the preaching into a corner. 
 
 I can easily understand that ! Congo is like England in that 
 respect. 
 
 Ay ! but the consequences are more serious there. Preaching 
 — "the foolishness of preaching" — is God's one great ordinance 
 for the salvation of men. When the revival came I was no 
 longer satisfied with occasional services and regular Sunday 
 work. I gave myself to preaching daily— twice a day. One 
 year I preached seven hundred times. And the people don't 
 care for short sermons. They like a full hour or hour and a 
 half, They have so much to learn. 
 
 But surely people could never attend so many and such long 
 meetings ? 
 
 Ah ! but they do. I asked them to choose their own time. 
 They fixed one o'clock, when all their field work is done and 
 they have had their mid-day meal. And again, later in the 
 evening, they come freely and eagerly. But they like to hear 
 the same teacher. Changes put them out very much, for they 
 do not gain confidence all at once. They want the same voice, 
 and the same thing taught over and over again. They learn 
 only from the preacher, at first at any rate ; not, as here, from 
 books and from intercourse. The preaching consequently should 
 be daily, and, if possible, two or three times a' day. Weekly 
 preaching is no use ; it is all forgotten before the next service. 
 
 But a missionary must do other things. He must teach the 
 school, for instance. 
 
 No ! that is mere waste of time at first. When the people 
 are converted, then have schools for the Christians, that they 
 may learn to read the word of God and teach it in their turn 
 But preaching with a view to conversion, immediate conver- 
 sion, this is God's commandment and this is the missionary's 
 
CONVERSION, THE FIRST STEP. 91 
 
 work— his prime, principal, paramount, peculiar duty. If you 
 want schools, send out teachers ; but missionaries go to make 
 converts. 
 
 But when people are converted they need teaching ? 
 
 Undoubtedly. That is the object of our incessant meetings. 
 We have to teach them to observe all things that Christ has 
 commanded ; and I assure you it takes a lot of teaching to do 
 that among the Congoese ! We want to get the converts ready 
 to be in their turn teachers and preachers as quickly as possible. 
 As regards the Christians, it is teach, teach, teach, all the time. 
 They soon learn more than you would think. The Spirit of 
 God seems to make them intelligent. They learn to read fast ; 
 they open little schools in other villages to teach their own 
 townsfolk to do the same. They send their children to school 
 too fast enough as soon as they are converted — though before 
 we had actually to ransom slave children in order to get a 
 school at all. The heathen want to be paid for coming to 
 school. 
 
 Yes ! conversion makes all the difference. What truths did 
 you find most fitted to awaken attention and touch the heart ? 
 
 Ah ! that is the core and kernel of the whole thing. I went 
 to work the wrong way at first. My first idea was to teach the 
 heathen the folly of idolatry and superstition, the nature of 
 God, about His will as expressed in the law, about duty and 
 morality and such things, as well as about Christ, His words, 
 His miracles, and parables, His death and resurrection. But 
 I found it all no use. At the end of six years I had not a 
 convert. 
 
 Well ? 
 
 Then in bitterness of spirit I prayed and searched the Scrip- 
 tures, and noted what the apostles did, and began to follow 
 their example. 
 
 But surely they did all the things you just named. 
 
 Afterwards ! But they did something else first. They 
 preached Christ and Him crucified ; they made people feel 
 their guilt in killing and rejecting Him, in not resembling Him, 
 in not caring for and coming to Him. They kept to the one 
 point, and Christ Himself bade them do so. They were to 
 
92 EVIDENCES OF THE NEW CREATION. 
 
 proclaim repentance and remission of sins through Him ! Not 
 a hundred things. One thing — Christ and Him crucified. 
 
 Yes, and you were trying to lead up to that, to prepare the 
 people to appreciate the gospel. 
 
 Ay ! But when I gave up all leading to it, and preached that^ 
 day by day and week by week, then I speedily saw a glorious 
 change ! Then I had proof that Paul was right, when he said 
 that it is the gospel itself that is the power of God to salvation. 
 I don't go into the philosophy of the thing, but I saw the facts ; 
 and I think facts are more convincing than philosophy. When 
 once I took this ground, and charged the people with sin for 
 not believing in Christ, and urged that He was the only Saviour, 
 and ready to save them then and there, then I felt clothed 
 with power, and that it was the Spirit of God who spoke through 
 me. 
 
 And what were the results ? 
 
 Heart-cheering ! Marvellous ! The stolid, stupid people 
 waked up. I saw looks and whispers, and nudges between 
 neighbours, astonishment, eager interest, and soon conviction 
 and shame, tears of penitence ; restless desire to hear, more 
 shame, alarm, and very soon I was assailed on all sides with 
 the question, " What must I do to be saved ? " I was alone 
 most of the time, and positively I had no time, no, not so much 
 as to eat some days. The whole place and the country-side 
 was in a stir. I had to neglect all else ; I was preaching, and 
 dealing with inquirers all day long. And soon the converts 
 were numbered by hundreds. 
 
 What proof had you they were real converts, that the move- 
 ment was not one of mere excitement ? 
 
 Every proof I could desire, or that you would desire here. 
 The people loved Christ and obeyed Him. They began to 
 love their Bibles, or rather such portions of Scripture as they 
 had. They cared for nothing compared to worship and prayer. 
 They began to bear witness for Christ among their people. 
 They cheerfully endured persecution, and risked their lives for 
 the sake of their new faith. The thieves — and they are all 
 thieves to begin with — became honest ; the liars — and lying was 
 customary — became truthful ; the women became modest, and 
 
THE CLOTHES QUESTION. 93 
 
 wanted dresses directly they were converted. I remember one 
 who, as soon as she had received Christ and was rejoicing in 
 Him, said to the sister who had been evangelizing her, " But 
 now I want some clothes ; I don't like having my skin outside ! n 
 
 Poor dear woman ! But do the Christians then dress like 
 we do ? 
 
 Oh, no ! we should be very sorry to urge that. I greatly 
 object to any attempt to Europeanise Africans. Africans they 
 are, and Africans they must continue in all their habits and 
 customs. But the dress of the heathen is not sufficient either 
 for decency or comfort, and the Christians, poor as they are, 
 invariably manage to cover themselves. The husbands do all 
 the sewing in Congo, and Christian husbands soon make their 
 wives a dress, or get them a cloth. The women like dresses j 
 that is, garments made like a nightgown with a good deep yoke 
 for the neck and a band, and coming down to the ankles. 
 When we have such, we give them, but we get very few ! My 
 wife is very anxious to take back a good stock. They should 
 be made of strong stuff like dusters, blue checked cloth which 
 we call " domestics " and use for trade. 
 
 Do they like that better than dark prints of various colours ? 
 
 Well, at present the women have not seen those, and, like ladies 
 here, they wish to be in the fashion, not peculiar. They don't 
 like to be looked at. If everybody wore print they would. like 
 it. If you can get us a number of dresses made, all alike, it 
 would not much matter what sort of calico was used. Only 
 as the women sit at times on the ground, light or white dresses 
 would soil quickly. 
 
 What do the men wear ? 
 
 Generally a cloth round the legs and waist, and a loose jacket 
 or smockfrock, something like a shirt, outside. We often sell 
 them shirts for the purpose. I hate to see an African in 
 trousers ! They suit us, but they spoil them ! And they never 
 keep them in good order. 
 
 Do they feel the heat as you do ? 
 
 Yes, so much so that when carrying — toiling in the sun up steep 
 hills with loads on their heads — they perspire most copiously. 
 Then of course they divest themselves of their garments, as 
 
94 
 
 •DIFFERENCE IS ONLY SKIN BEEF." 
 
 CARRYING. 
 
 do the women while they work in the fields. But the mornings 
 and evenings are chilly, and garments are a comfort. If the 
 thermometer does not stand above jo° the people shiver and 
 say, " How cold it is ! " 
 
 Those dear converts of whom you speak, — can you love them 
 and feel to them as you would to English fellow Christians ? 
 
 Oh ! precisely. They ai'e exactly like us inside; the dif- 
 ference is only skin deep ! They are intensely sincere. What 
 is in comes out ! There are no restraints of any kind — no 
 delicacy or consideration or deference to public opinion or con- 
 ventionalities, of course. A man in the audience, if he does 
 
1 WHITE PEOFLE A CTUALL Y LOVE EA CH THER ! » 95 
 
 not agree with my conclusion, or follow my explanation, will 
 exclaim,-" Oh, I don't think so," or, " I don't see that at all" ; 
 or if one is teaching any special duty, he will object, " Then 
 why did you do so and so ? " But that is a matter of custom ; 
 their hearts are just like ours. 
 
 But are they affectionate, kind, grateful, faithful to those they 
 love, like Europeans? 
 
 That is just what they ask about white men ! My dear wife 
 was very ill one night ; I was up with her and anxious, and I 
 suppose I looked pale next day. Lydia, a woman who kindly 
 came in to help, observed it, and I overheard her saying to a 
 neighbour, "What do you think ? These white people actually 
 love each other like we do / She is ill, and he looks pale.'"' It 
 was evidently a new discovery to her that white folks had 
 human feelings ! I have come to the conclusion that there is 
 little difference in reality. There is a mutual want of apprecia- 
 tion at first. 
 
 Well, but how treacherous and unkind they often are to 
 white people, and how awfully cruel to each other at times, 
 killing the innocent, burning and drowning, and selling into 
 slavery ! 
 
 True. But all that is easily accounted for. As to the mission- 
 aries, remember that they knew white men before they knew mis- 
 sionaries/ It is not long since slavery was done away. Traders 
 and officers are not always so kind as they should be. Any 
 way, the African idea of a white man is that he is a devil j and 
 it takes a good deal of intimate association with one who obeys 
 the law of love, and treats him as a brother and an equal, before 
 he begins to feel that a white man can be a human brother ! 
 Then their cruelty to each other is the fruit of love, blinded and 
 maddened by superstition. It is love to each other that makes 
 them seek out and kill those they believe to be witches ! 
 Nothing else. I once thought that they cotild not in their hearts 
 believe the nonsense of the medicine-men, or that the accused 
 persons were really guilty of death. But I assure you they 
 actually do, and it is equally useless to ridicule them and to 
 blame them. I once said to Lutete, our first convert, a former 
 nga?iga, " Surely you did not really believe all that ? ; ' " I did 
 
96 BARN ABA AND LYDIA. 
 
 indeed," he replied, " thoroughly. The devil deceived me as 
 much as that ! " If he believed it, how much more the common 
 people ! Their cruelty is indeed base and cowardly, but it is 
 born of superstition, and superstition is a terrible tyrant. 
 
 The Christian of course gives up all that superstition after 
 conversion ? 
 
 Entirely. His superstitions never once seemed to trouble 
 Lutete after he trusted in Christ. Our house had a ceiling of 
 mats, forming a kind of loft — of which no use was made — under 
 the roof. The natives however believed that in that loft we 
 kept the spirits of all that died of the strange sad " sleeping 
 sickness," which has carried off large numbers in our neighbour- 
 hood lately, including twenty of our Church members. It was 
 in vain we tried to show them the folly of the notion, and that 
 there was nothing there. " No, not in the day time, but at 
 night — ah ! " After Lutete's conversion he came to live near us, 
 because his life was in danger in his own place. But his wife 
 would not come ; she was afraid of these spirits, out of which it 
 was alleged we got some profit. Lutete was accused of being 
 a traitor to his people, for the sake of sharing in these fabulous 
 " profits " ! After a while he tried to persuade his wife to come 
 and live with him again. " I've been there for weeks, and I've 
 seen no spirits. Come ! And I promise you that, if you see 
 them, we will move away." She came, heard the gospel daily, 
 and the Lord soon opened her heart and took away all her 
 fears. We baptized her before long under the name of Lydia. 
 Her husband was called Barnabas, because as my first Chris- 
 tian brother among the natives he was such a comfort to me, a 
 real son of consolation ! The people cannot pronounce a ter- 
 minal s, so they call him Barnaba. 
 
 Why do you change their names on baptism in that way ? 
 
 They wish it themselves. They feel they are new creatures, 
 entering on a new life, and they want a new name. Besides 
 many of their names have bad meanings— associated with evil 
 heathen customs. They give us fresh names too, for very often 
 they can't pronounce our English ones. Mine— Richards — is 
 a regular puzzle to them. Both the initial R and the final s 
 a/e beyond them. They call me Uguankasi or uncle, and my 
 
CHURCH GOVERNMENT. 97 
 
 wife Mundele Nkentu (white woman), or simply " Mama." 
 Lydia was a -thoroughly intelligent woman, and quite under- 
 stood the difference between flesh and spirit, faith and works, 
 and so on. She was a great help among the women inquirers 
 when my wife was in England. 
 
 Do you ever have occasion to excommunicate any of your 
 Church members ? 
 
 Yes, we have done so four or five times. I do not initiate 
 such action myself. I leave all questions of receiving and reject- 
 ing to the Church, because I don't want to make them like 
 children depending on me. I am intensely anxious to develop 
 them as rapidly as possible into a self-governing and self- 
 extending Church. They cannot become this till they have the 
 Scriptures, and can read them. That is why we are pressing 
 on as much as possible with translations. But I teach them to 
 refer everything to Scripture, and decide every case according 
 to its precepts. They perfectly understand that all wicked 
 persons must be put away from among them, and they are 
 inclined to be rather severe. But it is a good fault at first. 
 
 What sort of cases do you put away ? 
 
 One man was put out for marrying a second wife, while his 
 first was alive. The other cases were for immorality. This 
 sin is very common on the Congo, and Christians sometimes 
 fall into it. They will come spontaneously and with tears and 
 shame confess their sin. But the Church is very firm, and puts 
 them away, and keeps them away a long time. They sometimes 
 need to be urged to accept evident contrition and restore the 
 offender. We have had three or four such cases. 
 
 How do you manage about polygamy? 
 
 If a man is a polygamist when converted we do not make 
 him put away any of his wives. To do so in Africa would be 
 very wrong. But we don't allow a Christian to marry more than 
 one of course. They see the benefits of having only one wife, 
 and say, " Ah ! it is the devil misleads our people about this." 
 They see that we are far better off with one wife than they are 
 with several. One day an unhappy fellow who had three had 
 somehow offended them all. When he went to the first house 
 — for a husband builds a separate house for each wife — the door 
 
 C R. 7 
 
98 * "SEE, THOSE TWO ARE ONE!" 
 
 was rudely shut in his face. He tried the second, only to be 
 greeted with " Go away, I don't want you ! " Nor was the third 
 any more willing to admit him. So he bewailed himself to me 
 and said, " I have three wives, and yet none of them will let me 
 in ! " They see our ways, and say : " When you go home, your 
 ife get you cup of tea, make you lie down if tired, nurse you if 
 sick ; kind ! good ! Why does she respect you and be so kind 
 to you ? We wish our wives were like that." Then I explain 
 • that they must first respect and love their wives and treat them 
 as I do mine. I may say that the Christians do so. One of the 
 first things I observed when Lutete was converted was that 
 he was helping his wife in the field ! The people were much 
 struck when they first saw us walking arm in arm. " See ! " I 
 overheard them saying, " see ! those two are one ! " 
 
 Are they kind to their children ? 
 
 The mothers are very much so, and the fathers too, if they 
 are free men, and the children are their own. But so often the 
 father is a slave. Then the children belong to his master, and 
 he does not care much about them. But the mothers are very 
 kind, as a rule. In order to keep the public meetings quieter 
 by dispensing with the babies I once proposed a creche, in 
 which one or two women might mind all the infants. But the 
 idea was laughed to scorn. What ! leave their babies to other 
 people f Impossible ! 
 
 Do the Christians take any part in public worship ? 
 
 Oh, freely ! They pray in public — men and women, using 
 at times of course curious expressions. I remember one man 
 when pleading earnestly for holiness said, " Lord, make our 
 hearts pure, make them clean : as clean as a white man's 
 plate ! " I could not but smile ; but our washing up dishes, and 
 keeping them bright and clean is strange to them, and had 
 struck this man. As to preaching, the converts are some of 
 them really gifted, and speak with great power. 
 
 Mr. Ingham wrote to me lately of a boy who has been con- 
 verted since I left, who can hold in rapt attention an audience 
 of hundreds. Yet Congo folk are like people here : they won't 
 stay in a meeting unless they are interested. 
 
 Was that lad one you knew ? 
 
 J 
 
CONGO MOTHERS 
 
 99 
 
 Ay ! and one I had prayed for, and striven with, and taught, 
 and longed for many a year ! A good, bright boy, bat an 
 inveterate thief. We could not trust him out of our sight. He 
 seemed to steal for the sake of stealing, even when he could 
 make no use of the thing stolen. Now all is changed. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Ingham are pretty slow to believe in the natives ; but 
 they write that this lad is so good, so earnest, and so gifted, 
 that he ought to be sent to America for a good education at 
 one of the Southern colleges. I hope he may be. 
 
 Then you believe in educating Congo lads in Europe and 
 America ? 
 
 No, not as a rule. I think it generally 
 makes them very troublesome. But there 
 exceptional character. We must have some 
 teachers and preachers by-and-by, to be 
 colleges, and so on. I would prepare a few such lads who can 
 stand it without getting spoiled. Tommy is such a nice bright 
 fellow, that I never could help loving him, even when he was 
 always giving me trouble by his dishonesty. He would be 
 utterly ashamed when convicted or caught, but seemed as if he 
 could not help it. Now 
 
 spoils them, and 
 
 are cases of an 
 
 high-class native 
 
 heads of native 
 
 grace has altered him ; he 
 is honest and trustworthy, 
 and so gifted, that he 
 quite eclipses Lukoke of 
 Lukunga. 
 
 Have you many such 
 preachers ? 
 
 Not so good ; but we 
 
 ttfC 
 
FLOGGING AS A PUNISHMENT. 
 
 have many. Indeed, all the men feel it their duty to testify 
 for Christ, and some of the women. And they do it to white 
 men as well as black sometimes ; for they always ask about 
 any one they meet, " Is he a child of God?" If we cannot say 
 yes, they conclude at once that he is a child of the devil ; for 
 they have no conception of a neutral condition, and I am not 
 sure but they are right in that ! They perfectly distinguish be- 
 tween the two classes, and that the whites differ just as much 
 as they do among themselves. One of our Christians began 
 evangelizing a young officer once. This man wrote and asked 
 me: "What has come over your Banza Manteka men? I can't 
 understand what has changed them so wonderfully. Do tell 
 me." Ah ! the grace of God is a wonderful power ! 
 What do you think about flogging as a punishment ? 
 I altogether and unhesitatingly object to it, even for boys. I 
 consider it quite as ungodly to beat an African as an English- 
 man. What right have we — missionaries, traders, or travellers 
 — to beat men ? None whatever. I have seen horrid, blood- 
 curdling cruelties of this kind perpetrated on helpless natives, 
 on women, ay, and on young women too, by traders. But it 
 is wicked, unprincipled, and unjust ! We have no more right 
 to commit a personal assault on a naked black man who is 
 willing to work for us, than on a white labourer employed here. 
 It is a remnant of slavery, and a detestable crime. There is no 
 need for it, only selfishness and passion in possession of un- 
 bridled power lead to it. Other punishments might be annexed 
 to crime. The natives themselves never thrash anybody. They 
 are very angry if they are struck, and feel it to be a gross insult. 
 I made it a principle never under any provocation to strike man 
 or boy. I believe that Africans should be treated precisely like 
 Europeans; kindly, respectfully, and in a brotherly, manly way. 
 Patronage they hate ! We may think ourselves superior, but 
 they do not see it. They often think white men uncommonly 
 poor creatures. We can't do many things they can do, and 
 they don't understand the assumption of Europeans. A white 
 man who strikes a native loses influence with them at once, 
 and can never do them any good. They must be won by 
 love, just like Englishmen. We must forget that they are 
 
JOSEPH CLARKE, OF PALABALA, 
 AND TWO CHRISTIAN LADS. 
 
 black, it makes no real difference. They are men. Even with 
 children, we punish some other way — never by striking. 
 
 But what would you do with a naughty boy ? 
 
 Well, I had trouble with one who had been in England. He 
 was cross and sulky, and wanted toilet soap, if you please, and 
 better food, and I caught him domineering over other boys, 
 and even beating them and making them cry. I took him into 
 my room, reminded him he was only a slave to the king, and 
 of all I had done for him and taught him, upbraided him for 
 ingratitude, and told him decidedly I would have no nonsense. 
 "If I see any more such conduct, I take off your clothes and 
 send you away back to the town to be a slave again." The boy 
 
102 NATIVE QUICKNESS +N LEARNING, 
 
 was quite broken down, ashamed, and grieved, and I had no 
 more trouble with him. After the revival I got the king, who 
 set a high price on the lad, to set him free. He is married now, 
 a good Christian man. 
 
 Are the children in the schools fairly quick in learning ? 
 
 Not the little ones. But after five or six years old I should 
 say they are remarkably so. N'snuda, a girl of nine or ten, 
 learned to read well in about eight months ; so did Wamba 
 and N'kimba, younger boys, and to do some arithmetic also. 
 One week N'snuda learned by heart perfectly the first, third, 
 and fourth of John. David, a young fellow of twenty, learned 
 to read in public right well. He preached, too, so well that an 
 American lady who heard him said, " If I had known you had 
 such evangelists as that, I do not think I should have come to 
 Africa ! " 
 
 And you hope to be able to leave the Church at Banza 
 Manteka some day, commending its native elders to God and 
 to the word of His grace ? 
 
 I do indeed ; as soon as they shall have the word of His 
 grace, or the greater part of it. But as yet they have not this 
 by any means. We have the gospels, and parts of Romans and 
 Genesis and other books ; but there is very much yet to be done 
 in translation. The language is a most rich and complicated 
 one. Very few missionaries understand it thoroughly yet. The 
 people need much instruction before they will be able to stand 
 alone. But really if they had the Bible I should scarcely fear 
 to leave them even now ! The Lord would lead them on ! 
 They have set apart some of their number as evangelists, 
 and they strongly realize their joyful duty to spread the glad 
 tidings. 
 
 That sleeping sickness seems sadly prevalent ? Can it not 
 be cured ? 
 
 No ; patients invariably die. The nature of the complaint 
 is not well understood. I think it is a brain disease, from a 
 strange look in the eyes, which I have always noticed as pre- 
 ceding it. The victim becomes stupid after a time, and loses 
 memory and power of motion. Many die too from small- 
 pox. But the State Government has done good by introducing 
 vaccine, and forbidding sick carriers to enter the towns. The 
 people have learned to vaccinate themselves, and villages have 
 been saved from attack by this. But we have lost many 
 members from both diseases. Not unfrequently w r hen a name 
 is mentioned in calling over the roll at a Church meeting the 
 answer comes, " Balukidi v —gonz up ! 
 
APPENDIX A. 
 
 List of present Missionary Agencies 
 in the Congo Free State. 
 
 Eleven different missionary agencies are already at work in the Congo 
 Free State— three Roman Catholic and eight Protestant. 
 
 1. The Mission du Saint Esprit, at Banana and Boma, under the 
 care of Mgr. Carrie. Four priests and two lay brethren are connected 
 with this mission, which has small schools, and gives some industrial 
 training to the children. 
 
 2. The Belgian Mission, established only in 1888 at Kwamouth, on 
 the Upper Congo, and hoping to plant a second station at Luluaberg, 
 on the Kasai, shortly. 
 
 3. There is a mission worked by the Peres o? Alger ie (or Algerian 
 priests) in the south-east part of the Free State. It has two stations at 
 Mpala and Kibango, on Lake Tanganyika, but it does not seem to be 
 having much success. The Romanists are showing more activity in 
 Portuguese territory than in the Free State. 
 
 The Protestant missions are : 
 
 1. The Livingstone Inland Mission of the American Baptist Mis- 
 sionary Union, with seven stations — Mukimvika, opposite Banana on 
 the coast, Palabala, Banza Manteka, and Lukunga, in the Cataract 
 gorge ; and Leopoldville, Bwemba, and Wangata on the upper 
 river. This mission has now about thirty missionaries, and has many 
 schools and chapels, with some hundreds of baptized Church members, 
 including many native preachers. It has a steamer on the upper 
 river, and has prepared, in the various dialects spoken through seven 
 hundred miles of country, many translations from the Scriptures, 
 besides vocabularies, grammars, and school books. It has also medical 
 
 103 
 
104 PROTESTANT MISSIONS 
 
 missions at Mukimvika and Kinchassa. It has been working for the 
 last twelve years, and exerts a good deal of influence among the natives. 
 
 2. The English Baptist Missionary Society has seven stations — 
 Tundwa, on the lower river, St. Salvador (Portuguese territory), 
 ? Ngombe, or Lutete, in the Cataract region, and Kinchassa, Bolobo, 
 and Lukolela, on the upper river. The steamer Peace belongs to this 
 mission, and in it Mr. Grenfell has done much good service by ex- 
 plorations of many of the tributaries of the Congo. Mr. Bentley, of 
 'Ngombe, is the author of the best dictionary extant of the Ki-kongo 
 language : and several translations have also been prepared. Mrs. 
 Bentley is endeavouring to teach the natives the working of the tele- 
 graph, in preparation for the time when the railway will require young 
 telegraphists. She took back with her from Europe a miniature tele- 
 graph line for teaching purposes. Many native converts are connected 
 with this mission, which has also been working twelve years in the 
 country. 
 
 3. The excellent Swedish Missionary Society's work was originally 
 connected with the Livingstone Inland Mission, and occupied its 
 station of Mukimbungu, between Isanghila and Manyanga ; but when 
 the transfer of this Mission to the American Baptist Missionary Union 
 took place in 1884, it was arranged that the Swedes should work an 
 independent mission from that station as a centre, supported and directed 
 from their own country. They have now about twenty missionaries, 
 and have formed two additional stations on the north side of the Congo 
 — Diadia and Kibunzi. They have many converts, Mr. Westlind is a 
 remarkably good linguist, and has translated John's Gospel. 
 
 4. Bishop Taylor* s Mission was formed to work on the great southern 
 tributary of the Congo, the Kasai ; but though commenced four 
 years ago (in 1886), with an unusually large first party, consisting of 
 twenty-four missionaries, under the bishop's own leading, it has not 
 yet reached its field of labour, or commenced any missionary work 
 proper. The peculiar plans which were adopted have proved totally 
 unsuited to the country. Very large sums of money were expended 
 on a raft and traction-engine, brought from America, and subsequently 
 on a steamer, so constructed that its heavier portions could not be 
 landed at Vivi or carried up country. None of this machinery has 
 been of any use as yet. The principle of self-support was attempted ; 
 and as a result the agents of the mission have suffered great privations, 
 many having died, and others have left the Congo. The rest are scattered 
 around Banana, Vivi, and Isanghila, and are making a brave struggle 
 
IN THE CONGO FREE STATE. 105 
 
 to sustain life by shooting hippopotami, and selling the dried flesh to 
 the natives, in exchange for the produce of the country. Four of the 
 party are occupying an old State station at Kimpoko, on Stanley Pool, 
 and attempting a little agriculture and trade ; but none of the would- 
 be missionaries have been able to devote much time to studying the 
 languages, or teaching the people. None of their stations exert as yet 
 any spiritual influence over the neighbouring districts, and consequently 
 no converts have been made. But the mission has not been long at 
 work. 
 
 New plans are not always an improvement on old ones ! Nothing 
 can exceed the bishop's cheerful courage and confidence in the ultimate 
 success of his methods, nor his enthusiastic desire to do good in Africa. 
 We hope that he may yet — by somewhat modifying his plans, and 
 adapting them to the backward state of development in the country — 
 succeed in planting his mission on the Kasai. He has come to the 
 conclusion that he will have, like others before him, to found a chain 
 of stations before he can launch a steamer on the Pool, and that the 
 heavy one first taken out is no use for this purpose. He intends to 
 reconstruct and use it on the lower river, where however trading 
 steamers are now plying. 
 
 5. A second American agency has tried to follow somewhat on these 
 lines, The Missionary Evangelical Alliance ; but its operations, at 
 present, consist only of one small attempt near Vivi, where the mis- 
 sionaries reside in a little native hut, and live by hunting buffalo and 
 antelopes. They smoke the flesh of these animals, and sell it to the 
 natives. It is clear that men who have to support themselves and 
 their families in Africa will never have much time for either study or 
 teaching ! The Congo country is not one for colonists : its climate 
 renders it totally unlike South Africa in this respect. For European 
 teachers to live in it at all is difficult, and every working hour of their 
 lives ought consequently to be devoted to direct missionary work. It 
 is a pity if the Church of Christ, which gives such large sums to 
 sustain its ministers at home, cannot afford to sustain its ministers 
 abroad, and thus liberate them from the necessity of wasting their 
 priceless time and risking their precious lives in order to procure them- 
 selves food. 
 
 6. In the south-east part of the Congo Free State, among the sources 
 of the Congo in the Garengange country, Mr. F. S. Arnot has estab- 
 lished his mission. After years of weary peregrinations through the 
 Zambesi and Barotse districts he found this location suitable for the 
 
106 MISSIONS IN THE CONGO FREE STATE. 
 
 residence of Europeans. The mission is still in its infancy, though 
 Mr. Arnot has not yet succeeded in making his way back to his station 
 with his wife and new helpers, and in rejoining his colleagues there. 
 It is one of the most interesting and heroic of missions, very far 
 removed from all communication with other Europeans, and hundreds 
 of miles distant from any base of supplies. The climate of Garangange 
 is fairly healthy, and the king of the country friendly. But the immense 
 distance from the coast, and the absence of a connecting chain of 
 stations, make the difficulties, dangers, and expenses very great. 
 
 7- The London Missionary Society's Mission, on Lake Tanganyika, 
 is also in the Congo Free State. Their stations are Kavala Island 
 and Fwamboon, the southern extremity of the lake. This mission, 
 long under the care of Captain Hore (who is now in England), has 
 endured severe trials, and has felt the immense difficulties arising from 
 its remote position — a walk of 800 miles from Zanzibar being involved 
 in getting to the lake. The only other means of access {via the Zam- 
 besi, Shire, Lake Nyassa, and the Stevenson Road) being, though easier, 
 too precarious to depend upon, and frequently blocked by Arabs. This 
 mission has the steamer Good News 011 the lake, and has done some 
 excellent work in schools and preaching the gospel ; but the sphere is 
 a hard one. 
 
 8. The Congo-Balolo Mission, on the Upper Congo — our own mis- 
 sion born last spring — has selected for its sphere the six southern 
 tributaries of the Congo beyond Equatorville, the Lulonga, Maringa, 
 Lopori, Ikelemba, Juapa, and Bosira, presenting together about 2,000 
 miles of navigable water-way, with towns and villages on both banks. 
 It has eleven missionaries. The first party reached their destination 
 about six months after leaving England, though taking with them a 
 considerable amount of material for the construction of their first 
 stations. They have the use of the A.B.M.U. steamer Henry Reed, 
 kindly lent for a year, before the expiration of which it is hoped their 
 own steamer, the Pioneer — sent out in December, 1889, for recon- 
 struction — will be ready for the use of the mission. Mr. and Mrs. 
 McKittrick, Messrs. Whytock, Haupt, Howell, Todd, and Blake, 
 together with Miss de Hailes, formed the first party of this mission. 
 They were reinforced early in 1890 by Messrs. Adamson, Luff, and 
 Cole. The two former went out in charge of the new steamer ; and 
 the latter as missionary agriculturist to assist on the Lulonga. The 
 mission has already two stations, Mulonga and Ikau. 
 
UNEVANGELIZED AFRICA. 10? 
 
 When wg remember that all this country was unknown eleven years 
 ago, and that the Congo Free State itself dates only from 1885 — such 
 an array of agencies, scattered over its vast area already, is a most 
 hopeful sign. Christianity, even in its least pure form, is a vast ad- 
 vance on the cruelties and fetish of Central Africa. In its pure form 
 it is life from the dead. 
 
 When the Livingstone Inland Mission began its operations in January, 
 1878, it stood alone; now it is, thank God! one among a dozen dif- 
 ferent organizations having the spread of Christianity for their object. 
 We hear also that the American Presbyterians intend to enter the field, 
 which is vast enough — being as large as all India — to welcome a dozen 
 more agencies. 
 
 All these missions together only muster about a hundred effective 
 workers, and there are about fifty millions to be evangelized in the 
 Congo Free wState alone, and probably five times that number in the 
 rest, of unevangelized Africa. 
 
 From the last mission station on the Upper Congo, a journey of a 
 thousand miles would be needed to reach the nearest stations on the 
 east — those on the great lakes. Seventeen hundred miles to the north- 
 east lies the Red Sea, and there is no mission station between ! Two 
 thousand two hundred miles due north is the Mediterranean, and no 
 mission station between ; while two thousand five hundred miles to 
 the north-west are the stations of the North African Mission, but no 
 single centre of light between ! Seven hundred miles to the west is the 
 Cameroons Station, but the whole intervening country is unvisited ; and 
 in the south-west the American Mission at Bihe is fully a thousand 
 miles distant. 
 
 Our Lord Jesus Christ said, "If ye love Me, keep My command- 
 ments." His last commandments were : 
 
 "GO YE INTO ALL THE WORLD, AND PREACH THE GOSPEL TO 
 EVERY CREATURE." And 
 
 "YE SHALL EE WITNESSES UNTO ME . . . UNTO THE UTTER- 
 MOST PARTS OF THE EARTH." 
 
THE EAST LONDON INSTITUTE 
 
 FOR HOME AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. 
 
 Founder and Hon. Director : 
 H. GRATTAN GUINNESS, D.D., F.R.G.S. 
 
 Hon. Secretary: 
 MRS. H. GRATTAN GUINNESS. 
 
 Treasurer : 
 
 SIR ARTHUR BLACKWOOD. 
 
 Bankers : 
 
 London and South-western Bank (Bow Branch). 
 
 Hon. Auditors: 
 Arthur J. Hill, Vellacott & Co., Finsbury Circus. 
 
 Trustees : 
 Theodore Howard, Esq., Westleigh, Bickley, Kent. 
 Capt. the Hon. R. Moreton, Hamilton, Ontario. 
 Rev. J. Stephens, M.A., Somerset Villa, Dartmouth Park Hill, N. 
 J. van Sommer, Esq. , 13, New Inn, Strand, W.C. 
 Sir Arthur Blackwood, K.C.B., Shortlands House, Shortlands, 
 Kent. 
 
 Hon. London Director: 
 
 H. GRATTAN-GUINNESS, M.R.C.S. 
 
 This Institute was founded in March, 1872, with a 
 view to increase the number of ambassadors for Christ 
 among the heathen, and in the darker regions of 
 Christendom. 
 
 THE WORLD'S POPULATION, according to the best 
 estimates, is at present about 1,400 millions. Only 
 about 400 millions are, even in name, Christians, and 
 the remainder of over a thousand millions are conse- 
 quently non-Christians, and for the most part heathen. 
 The greater part of this almost inconceivable mass 
 have never heard of Christ, and have little chance of 
 doing so, for Protestant missionaries are scattered 
 among them only in the proportion of ONE to every 
 
 iog 
 
no THE EAST LONDON INSTITUTE 
 
 three or four hundred thousand. No single indivi- 
 dual could possibly minister the word of life to such 
 a multitude, even in Christendom ; how much less in 
 heathendom ! 
 
 The supply is clearly inadequate, and yet 
 the evangelical Churches at home are rich both in 
 men and money. There is no reason why it should 
 not speedily be doubled, trebled, multiplied tenfold. 
 There are in our home Churches thousands of con- 
 verted and devoted young men and women suitable 
 for missionaries, and willing to become such ; and 
 there is wealth enough in the hands of Christians to 
 send them forth and sustain them among the heathen. 
 Some of these are educated, and have already engaged 
 more or less in the service of God in this land, and 
 having means of their own, can go forth into heathen- 
 dom when they will. Others hear the call of God, 
 and desire to obey, but lack the needful education, 
 and have neither leisure nor means to acquire it, nor 
 the ability to go forth at their own charges. 
 
 Our Institute seeks to arouse men and women 
 of this latter class, to hear and heed the last great 
 command of Christ : it helps them to fit themselves 
 for service in heathendom, or in other needy spheres, 
 by offering them, freely, a course of suitable study 
 and practical training. It then introduces them to the 
 field for which they seem best adapted, and, if need 
 be, sustains or helps to sustain them in it. It seeks 
 also, and in order to all this, the diffusion of informa- 
 tion by press and platform as to the world's wants 
 and the Lord's work, so as to deepen in the hearts of 
 Christians at home practical compassion for the heathen 
 and a sense of responsibility to give them the gospel. 
 
 Two COLLEGES, each adapted for fifty men — one 
 in East London and the other in North Derbyshire — 
 
FOR HOME AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. 
 
 are connected with the Institute, which has also a 
 Training Home for thirty young women stu- 
 dents preparing for missionary work. The course 
 of study and practical training is adapted to afford 
 the students such help as they are capable of receiv- 
 ing, and as will fit them for future usefulness in the 
 sphere to which they may seem best adapted. It 
 extends over three years, and, in the case of regular 
 medical students, over a longer time. All the stu- 
 dents receive a certain measure of medical preparation, 
 both theoretical and practical. 
 
 An extensive Home Mission work, in which 
 the students receive practical training, is carried on 
 in connexion with the Institute, among the working 
 classes in East London. Its operations comprise a 
 medical mission with a numerously attended dispen- 
 sary, and a maternity department worked under a 
 certificated lady by the young women students ; 
 mothers' meetings ; night schools for men, for lads, 
 and for factory girls ; a soup kitchen ; Band of Hope 
 and temperance meetings ; house-to-house visitation, 
 open-air preaching, tent meetings in summer, Sunday 
 schools and Bible classes, and gospel preaching. 
 Two mission halls in Bow and Bromley, with school- 
 rooms and classrooms attached, are worked directly 
 and exclusively by the Institute, and the students 
 help in a large number of other mission halls, and 
 preach also in churches and chapels. 
 
 The Institute is broadly catholic in its 
 PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE ; it trains men of all 
 evangelical denominations, of all nationalities, and of 
 all classes ; and it trains them for all societies, all 
 lands, and all spheres of Christian effort. It is as 
 comprehensive as it is possible to be, within the limits 
 of evangelical truth. It seeks to be GODLY and 
 practical in character and in methods : to cultivate 
 
ii2 EAST LONDON INSTITUTE 
 
 devotion, dependence on God, self-denial, self-support 
 as far as possible, and self-sacrifice ; and it aims 
 especially at " the regions beyond," or neglected and 
 unevangelized fields at home and abroad. 
 
 The students have been of various nation- 
 alities : not only English, Scotch, Irish, and Ame- 
 rican, but French, German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, 
 Danish, Russian, Bulgarian, Syrian, Egyptian, Kaffir, 
 Negro, Hindu, Parsi, Kurdish, and Jewish. They 
 have also been of various denominations. The large 
 majority of those who have gone out as missionaries 
 are now connected with about twenty different so- 
 cieties and associations, while a number are working 
 ndependently as self-sustaining missionaries, medical 
 or otherwise. 
 
 More than five hundred missionaries, 
 former students in the Institute, are now labouring in 
 China, India, Syria, Armenia, Egypt ; in France, 
 Spain, Portugal, Italy; East, West, North, South, and 
 Central Africa, in Natal and Cape Colony ; in Prince 
 Edward's Isle, Cape Breton, Canada, and the Western 
 States of America ; in the West Indies, Brazil, and 
 the Argentine Republic ; in Australia and New 
 Zealand ; as well as in various parts of the home 
 mission field. The object of the Institute is especially 
 to send evangelists to " the regions beyond " those 
 already evangelized. 
 
 One hundred and twenty students are now 
 in training, and some of their number are continually 
 passing out into the great world-field. One every 
 week, on an average, enters on active missionary life. 
 
 Contributions in aid of any of the objects of the Institute may be 
 sent either to the Treasurer, Sir Arthur Blackwood, K.C.B., 
 Shortlands House, Shortlands, Kent ; or to the Secretary, Mrs. H. 
 Grattan Guinness, Harley House, Bow, London, E., from whom 
 fuller information can be had on application. 
 
AND CONGO BALOLO MISSION. 113 
 
 Gbe CongoBalolo fllMasion 
 
 is formed for the evangelization of the millions of Balolo people 
 dwelling in the great horseshoe-shaped territory of the Upper Congo, 
 and accessible by its southern affluents, the Lulonga, Lopori, Maringa, 
 Ikelemba, Juapa, and Bosira. 
 
 It is a continuation and extension of the Livingstone Inland Mission, 
 commenced in 1878, and now occupying and working a chain of seven 
 Stations from the Coast to the Equator. 
 
 It was founded in the spring of 1889, and has eleven Missionaries, 
 two Stations, and the steamer Pioneer. 
 
 DIRECTORATE. 
 
 The Managers of the East London Institute. 
 
 TREASURER. 
 
 Sir Arthur Blackwood, K.C.B., Shortlands House, Kent. 
 
 BANKERS. 
 
 The London and County Banking Company, Limited, 
 Lombard Street, E.C. 
 
 HON. AUDITORS. 
 
 Arthur J. Hill, Vellacott & Co., Finsbury Circus. 
 
 HON. SECRETARY. 
 H. Grattan Guinness, Jun., M.R.C.S., Harley House, Bow, E. 
 
 ADVISORY COUNCIL. 
 
 Rev. Archibald G. Brown, 22, Bow Road, E. 
 
 P. S. Badenoch, Esq., Mildmay Conference Hall, N. 
 
 Richard Cory, Esq., Oscar House, Cardiff. 
 
 Dr. H. Grattan and Mrs. Guinness, Cliff House, Curbar, via 
 
 Sheffield. 
 Mr. and Mrs. H. Grattan Guinness, Jun., Harley House, Bow, E. 
 Miss L. Guinness, Cliff House, Curbar, via Sheffield. 
 Richard Hill, Esq., 3, Lombard Court, E.C. 
 E. J. Kennedy, Esq., Exeter Hall, W.C. 
 Dr. Macrae, i, Bow Road, E. 
 W. Seagram, Esq., 86, Piccadilly, W. 
 
 C. R. ' 8 
 
Just Published, Second and enlarged Edition of 
 
 Coloured Map, Portrait, and numerous Illustrations. In cloth, price 
 5^*. Direct from Harley House, post free, y. 6d. In boards, 
 45". ; post free, 2s. 6d. 
 
 " Instinct with life. Yet all is told so gently and with such effusive • 
 ness of love for the work, that many, we hope, may be led to recognise 
 the beauty of individual self-devotion, animated by a principle so lofty 
 as to be able to sustain itself undaunted, in view of difficulties that, to 
 human sight, might well be deemed invincible. The volume is beauti- 
 fully illustrated." — Scottish Guardian. 
 
 " A beautifully prepared and tastefully illustrated book on Chinese 
 mission work. The evident sincerity breathed in every line, and the 
 
spiritual needs of the vast Chinese empire lying as a heavy burden on 
 the writer's heart, find constant expression in burning words of self- 
 consecration and appeal." — Methodist Recorder. 
 
 "Very bright and graphic letters, . . . charmingly 'got up, 5 
 under skilful editorship ; . . . altogether most attractive. The 
 veiy thing to read aloud." — Church Missionary Intelligencer. 
 
 "A choice and dainty volume, beautifully illustrated with pictures 
 of Chinese life and scenery. The letters are worthy of the setting, 
 being natural and picturesque descriptions of missionary travel, life, 
 and work, bringing China and its millions home to us in all their need. 
 The tone is high and earnest." — Church of Scotland Mission Record. 
 
 " I have been dipping into your so beatctiful i In the Far East,' with 
 my dim, dim eyes." — Dr. Davia Brown. 
 
 " Thank you most sincerely for sending me this book. I have read 
 it with great interest, and will do what little is in my power to make 
 its burning pages known." — Professor Henry Drummond. 
 
 "The best account of the first experiences of China to a traveller 
 and missionary that I have ever met with ; altogether beside their 
 value for deep piety. The extreme taste and beauty of the illustrations 
 and general get up of the volume leave nothing to be desired." — Rev. 
 F. B. Meyer, M.A. 
 
 "I have greatly enjoyed l In the Far East.' God blessing it, the 
 book should send armies of believers to invade the Flowery Land. 
 Your sister is happy in her editor. God bless you, and all the beloved 
 household. Yours heartily." — C. H. Sfiurgeou. 
 
 "The gift of writing well for the great cause of missions, joined 
 with the consecrated art of working well therefor, we see admirably 
 exhibited in this little volume. The earlier letters of the collection we 
 were privileged to hear read in the English home from which the 
 beloved daughter went forth, and to which she sent back these glowing 
 records of her evangelistic journeyings and labours. We were deeply 
 impressed then, as we have been in the re-reading, with the graphic 
 beauty and evangelical richness of these missionary epistles. They 
 are worthy of publication for the spirit which is in them, for the in- 
 formation which they convey, and for the fire which they are sure to 
 communicate to Christian hearts by the burning zeal which kindles ic 
 their every word and sentence." — A. J. Gordon. 
 
 "5 
 
The following works, in various Congo languages, have been prepared, 
 among others, by members of the mission : 
 
 A SMALL DICTIONARY OF THE LANGUAGE (English-Congo and Congo- 
 English) : together with a list of useful sentences for Missionaries and Travellers 
 in the Congo Cataract Region. By the late Henry Craven and John Bar- 
 field, B.A. 248 pages. 
 
 THE FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN, EXODUS XX., AND GENESIS I.-III. Trans- 
 lated into Ki-kongo. By T. H. Hoste. 
 
 A VOCABULARY OF KILOLO, as spoken by the Bankundu, a section of the 
 Balolo tribe, at Ikengo (Equator), Upper Congo. With a few Introductory 
 Notes on the Grammar. By J. B. Eddie. 200 pages. 
 
 A GRAMMAR OF THE CONGO LANGUAGE, as spoken 200 years ago. Trans- 
 lated from the Latin of Brusciotto. Edited by H. Grattan Guinness, D.D. 
 112 pages. 
 
 A GRAMMAR OF THE CONGO LANGUAGE, as now spoken in the Cataract 
 Region below Stanley Pool. By H. Grattan Guinness, D.D. 267 pages, 8vo. 
 
 MOSAIC HISTORY AND GOSPEL STORY, Epitomised in the Congo Language. 
 By H. Grattan Guinness, D.D. 87 pages, 8vo. 
 
 THE CONCORDS OF THE CONGO LANGUAGE. Being a Contribution to the 
 Syntax of the Congo Tongue. By John Barfield, B.A. 160 pages, small 8vo. 
 
 THE PEEP OF DAY, translated into the Ki-kongo Language. By J. B. Eddie. 
 
 THE PEEP OF DAY, translated into N'Kundu, a dialect of the Kilolo Language, 
 as spoken at the Equator, Upper Congo. By J. B. Eddie. 120 pages. 
 
 THE GOSPEL OF ST. MARK, translated into the Ki-kongo Language. By 
 C. H. Harvey. 98 pages. 
 
 RIBANGI VOCABULARY. By A. Sims, M.B. hi pages. 
 
 YALULEMA VOCABULARY. By A. Sims, M.B. 35 pages. 
 
 CONGO READING BOOK. 96 pages. 
 
 THE GOSPEL OF ST. LUKE, translated into the Ki-kongo Language. By H. 
 Richards. 154 pages. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW V.-VII. (Mataiona), translated into Ki-kongo. 
 
 EXODUS (Wavaikttiti), translated into Ki-kongo. By Chas. E. Ingham. 89 
 pages. 
 
 Two Reading Books, compiled by C. E. Ingham, consist of the 
 
 following : 
 
 No. 1. HOME LESSONS, by Mrs. Ingham. Short Sentences, etc. Collection of 
 
 Congo Fables. 
 No. 2. HOME LESSONS. Genesis i.-iii. ; Romans i., ii. ; Luke i., ii. ; Sermon on 
 
 Mount ; Romans viii. ; Hymns. 
 
 1. GENESIS I.-XXII. By C. E. Ingham. 
 
 2. MATTHEW I.-XI. By H. Richards. 
 
 3. JOHN'S GOSPEL. By Westlind, S.M.S. 
 
 4. MARK'S GOSPEL. By Cameron, of B. M.S. 
 
 5. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. By Nkoiyo, A.B.M.U. 
 
 6. KITEKE VOCABULARY. By A. Sims, M.B. As spoken by the Beteke and 
 
 kindred tribes of the Upper Congo. 190 pages. 
 
 7. THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS. By H. Grattan Guinness, D.D. 
 
 assisted by Nkoiyo. 
 
 8. THE FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN. By H. Grattan Guinness, D.D., assisted 
 
 by Nkoiyo. 
 
 9. JOHN'S GOSPEL. By A. Sims, M.B. Translated into Kiteke. 
 
f^EGIOJ^S 
 
 BEYOJME). 
 
 MONTHLY ORGAN OF THE 
 
 Cast £on)on institute for lome an) 
 jfcretgn ifflfesions, 
 
 AND OF THE 
 
 Balolo JHfeKtoit to tbe ©pper Congo* 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 MRS. H. GRATTAN GUINNESS. 
 
 CONTAINS 
 
 Leading Articles on Missionary Questions. 
 
 Notices of Unevangelized Nations and Newly Opened Spheres. 
 
 Current Missionary News, and Special Notice of all Advance in 
 
 Africa. 
 Tidings from former Students of the East London Institute, now 
 
 working in various parts of the World. 
 The Record of the Congo-Balolo Mission. 
 Letters from Miss Guinness in China. 
 Accounts of Home Mission Work, especially that of the East London 
 
 Institute. 
 Poetry, Music, Portraits, Maps, and Illustrations. 
 
 3Lon&0tt : 
 S. W. PARTRIDGE & CO., 9, PATERNOSTER ROW, E.C. 
 
 America : 
 TREMONT TEMPLE, BOSTON, MASS. 
 
Works by Dr. & Mrs. H. GRATTAN GUINNESS. 
 
 THE DIVINE PROGRAMME OF THE WORLD'S 
 
 HISTORY. By Dr. and Mrs. H. Grattan Guinness. Demy 
 8vo, cloth, 7j. 6d. Direct from the Authors, post free, for 6s. 2d. 
 
 LIGHT FOR THE LAST DAYS: a Study, Historical 
 and Prophetical. By Dr. and Mrs. H. Grattan Guinness. 
 In 8vo, cloth, with two Coloured Diagrams, price *js. 6d. Direct 
 from the Authors, post free for 6s. 2d. 
 
 ROMANISM AND THE REFORMATION. From 
 the Standpoint of Prophecy. By Dr. H. Grattan Guinness. 
 In cloth, crown 8vo, price $s. Direct from the Author, post free, 
 for 4s. 2d. 
 
 THE APPROACHING END OF THE AGE. Viewed 
 in the Light of History, Prophecy, and Science. By Dr. H. 
 Grattan Guinness, F.R.G.S. Tenth edition, in one large 
 volume, with four Diagrams, crown^ 8vo, 700 pages, cloth, price 
 7 J. 6d. Direct from the Author, post free, for 6s. 2d. 
 
 FALLACIES OF FUTURISM. By Dr. and Mrs. H. 
 Grattan Guinness. 93 pages, demy 8vo. For distribution, 
 3d. each. Single copies, post free, price 6d. 
 
 THE WEEK AND ITS ORIGIN. By Dr. H. Grattan 
 
 Guinness, F.R.G.S. A Reply to the Article of the Bishop of 
 Carlisle in the Contemporary Review. Price, post free, 3d. 
 
 THE HERESY OF THE REV. G. O. BARNES 
 
 (the "Kentucky Evangelist") Exposed and Answered. By H. 
 Grattan Guinness. Price, post free, 2d. 
 
 SHE SPAKE OF HIM. Being Recollections of the loving 
 Labours and Early Death of Mrs. Henry Dening. By Mrs. 
 Guinness. Seventh Edition, with nine Illustrations. 256 
 pages, large 8vo. Price, in cloth, post free, is. 6d. 
 
 LEAFLET PACKET {New Edition). Containing Twenty- 
 four Assorted and Illustrated MISSIONARY LEAFLETS. By 
 Mrs. H. Grattan Guinness. Suitable for inclosing in letters. 
 Price, post free, 6d. 
 
 THE NEW WORLD OF CENTRAL AFRICA: Its 
 
 Condition and Claims on Christians. Including a History of the 
 Livingstone Inland Mission. With Maps, Portraits, and 
 Illustrations. By Mrs. Grattan Guinness. Price, post free, 5«r. 
 
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