.;,'5;v > ' iV,J \:V '\ 'A^ 5.' 'Xi\ \^..^ ^;r.x . i^i 4c ;i;w-... I., i ; r * 1, n, ' '.: (-^^^i'^>'^^ ^ \J r.^ FORNIA LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY OF T FORNIA LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY OF T a ^N^ TY OF CALIFORNU LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CUiFORNIA CM ALIFORNIA LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA r"^"^^ Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from IVIiorosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/amongzulusamatonOOIeslrich AMONG THE ZULUS A'ST) AMATONGAS, PHOTOGRAPHED BY T. ANNAN, GLASGOW; FROM AN ALTO-RELIEVO, BY G. E. EWING, SCULPTOR. Printed by the Woodbury Permanent Photogrnphic Company, 157, Great I'orlland St/ •eet, London, ]V AMOI^G THE ZULUS AND AMATONGAS: WITH SKETCHES OP THE NATIVES, THEIR LANGUAGE AND CUSTOMS ; AND THE COUNTRY, PRODUCTS, CLIMATE, WILD ANIMALS, &c. BEINU PRINCIPALLY « CONTRIBUTIONS TO MAGAZINES AND NEWSPAPERS; BY THE LATE DAVID LESLIE. EDITED BY THE HON. W. H. DRUMMO]S"D, Author of " The Large Game and Natural History of South and South-East Africa.' SECOND EDITION. EDINBURGH: EDMONSTON & DOUGLAS. LOXDOX: MACMILLAN & CO. GLASGOW: J. MACLEHOSE. 1875. GLASGOW : PRINTED BY WM. GILCHRIST, HOWARD STREET. INDEX -xqL45 \%15 Preface — By the Hon. W. H. Drummond, Obituary Notices, ..... Port Natal, ..... A Hunting and Tradino Expedition in South Africa, A Zulu Foray, ..... Kaffir "Doctors," .... A Trip into the Zulu, and a Visit to King Panda, Wild Life in South Africa — . I. — Mornmg in Soutk-Eastern Africa, II.— A Day in Wild Life, III. — A Zulu Mawriage, IV.— A Zulu Story of a Haunted Wood, v.— Ool Bottibo, .... VL— A Night Round the Fire, . VII. — A Runaway Match, ' VIIL— A Buflfaio Hunt in the Water, IX. — A Few Odds and Ends about the Zulus, X.— A Kaffir Hunter's Story, . XL— Making the Most of It in "Wild Life, Transvaal versus Zulu, .... The Native Custom of Hlonipa, The Tsetse Fly— ..... Remarks on Mr St. Vincent Erskine's Paper, Answer to Mr Leslie*s Critique, Kaffir Character and Customs, The Labour Question, Suggestions for Governing the Kaffirs, Marriage Customs, The Training of Children, . The Kaffir Character, Kaffir Etiquette, .... Kaffir Cosmogony, . . Vll xiii 1 8 32 41 58 104 105 107 114 118 124 127 I 133 138 141 ' 150 155 162 167 182 184 186 188 189 191 193 197 199 203 207 lvi57a76G VI INDEX. The Zulu Word for "Life," Katal Scenery — Kaffir Music axd a TiCxEr Hunt, A Border Eaid, .... African Travel, Travellers, and their Books, Among the Asiatonga, . . . Taken by the Portuguese, A Zulu Romance, .... Letters to the Press — Native Labour, .... The Gun Trade with the Natives, . Defence, .... The Kaffir Rising in Natal, . Natal and Ashantee, The Native Rising in Natal, The New African Gold Discoveries, Is Dr Livingstone Dead ? The Isle in the Eastern Sea: A Missionary Story A Dublin "Boy," .... Plimsoll's "Jack," . . . Extracts from Hunting Journal— Agreement for Imi^ortation of Native Labour, Specimen of Savage King- Craft, Names and Interpretations of JSIoons, in Kaffir, Reflections of the Day, \ . Statement of my Claim against the Portuguese Government for Illegal Seizure, &c., 210 218 221 229 242 260 275 285 294 301 303 304 310 317 322 325 375 382 392 393 394 396 411 APPENDIX. The Delagoa Bay Arbitration — Marshal MacMahon's Award, . . . 417 Leader in " Daily News " thereon, . 420 Leader in " Times " .... 425 Leader in " Morning Post " . . . 430 Leader in "Herald of Peace," . . . 434 Leader in "Newcastle Daily Chronicle," (Excerpt) 436 Sharp Practice with Spain ! — What about Portugal ? 436 PEEFACE. In placing this book before the notice of the public, and, more especially, before those who knew the author, the late Mr David Leslie, it is necessary I should say a few words in explanation of the objects aimed at in its publication ; and in which, it is hoped that some measure of success has been attained. These are, primarily, to make such a selection from his published writings, as shall best recall him, as he lived amongst them, to the recollection of his friends ; secondly, to preserve, in a compact form, many of his contributions to literature, which might otherwise have been lost ; and thirdly, to enable the general public to appreciate, from his writings, the life of a man who, in an indirect yet practical manner, has influenced the future of South- East Africa more than almost any other of his contemporaries. The Obituary Notices, to be found in another part of this Volume, tell all that is necessary regarding his career ; and, to those who knew him, it would be superfluous to say more ; but the general public may reasonably expect to know what his qualifications were for writing on the subject to which the greater proportion of these pages is devoted, i. e., Life in South-East Africa ; and, as I spent many of the best years of my life— years to which I now look back with pleasure, which would be unmixed, had not Mr Leslie's death precluded the possibility of their ever repeating themselves in the future — alone with him, among the native tribes, and in the unin- habited districts of the interior ; I will endeavour to afford the desired information. It would indeed be difficult to imagine a man more thoroughly fitted, both by nature and education, for the life of a colonist ; or to be a pioneer among savage tribes. His abilities and practical knowledge were so great, that he left his mark upon every colonial question he took up ; as several of the articles in this collection, especially those on the much vexed questions of Labour and Polygamy, sufficiently show ; while his shrewdness and capacity in business matters were Vlll PREFACE. such, as to render his success in life assured, had he only been permitted to live a few years longer. It will be observed in the Obituary Notices, that, after having spent almost his whole life in the Colony of Natal, he came home in May, 1873, for the purpose of joining his uncle in a business, than which nothing more dissimilar to the wild-free -life, he had so long been accustomed to lead, could well be imagined; and it says much both for his personal character, and the versatility of his talents, that he at once and markedly succeeded in the new sphere he had entered upon. His acquain- tance with the languages, politics, customs, and feelings of the natives of Natal, and of the important semi-independent States lying between the British and Portuguese possessions on the East Coast, was probably greater than that of any other man ; while the paper read before the Natural History Association of Natal, on the native custom of ^' Hlonipa,'' as well as the discussion on the Zulu word for *' Life," and the remarks on the names and interpretations of the native Months, and, indeed generally throughout his papers, show a knowledge of his subject, as well as a power of grasping it, certainly unsurpassed, and, in my opinion, unequalled, by that of even those who have made it the study of their lives. These qualifications, added to a temper which nothing could ruffle, to powers of cheerfully undergoing fatigue and hardships of every kind, which I have seldom seen fipproached : (I have seen him, after walking and hunting in the blazing sun for fourteen or fifteen hours, without having tasted food the whole day, insist upon his men divid- ing among themselves, the small basket of boiled maize which the villagers had brought for his personal consumption ! ) : and that aptitude for turning his hand to the work of the moment, whether it was digging his waggon out of some hole, or conducting a delicate negotiation with a native potentate, without which no one can hope to succeed in "wildlife," enabled him to control with complete success the large number of natives who attended him in his expe- ditions — a task, the difficulty of which is only known to those who have experienced it ; and it may truthfully be said that in him the country has lost one who was peculiarly suited for the post of leader of any of those great exploring expeditions into the far interior, which we may expect to be undertaken, from time to time, until the whole of that continent has been thoroughly explored. PREFACE. IX I cannot pass from my subject, without saying a few words on the personal character of a man, who was liked and respected by his acquaintances, and loved by all his friends. His honesty, straight- forwardness, and industry commanded respect ; while, as a pleasant and intelligent companion, he possessed the happy knack of suiting himself to any society into which he might be thrown. He was equally popular with his fellow- colonists and among the great Chiefs of the interior, numbering among his friends the late and present Kings of the Zulus ; and, although somewhat cautious in forming a friendship, having once made it, he never forgot it ! As a hunter among the large game, with which his various expeditions made him acquainted, he was brave without rashness, cool and self-reliant in the midst of dangers, fertile in resources in emergencies, and was physically endowed with such strength as enabled him to bear, in favourable comparison to the natives, the tremendous fatigue such sport entails. Kind-heartedness and good-nature were his special characteristics, and many a poor white hunter or trader, beyond the boundaries of the Colony, has cause to remember his name with gratitude. Nor can I do less than repeat here, what I have already stated in the preface to my book, The Large Game and Natural History of South and South-East Africa, that " to his kindly placing at my disposal, during my expeditions, the large number of hunters and natives in his service, I owe many of my opportunities for obser- vation ; " nay, I must add, that it is chiefly to his skill, attention, and kindness in illness, and to his assistance in many of the dangers and difficulties incident to travel and hunting among the natives in the interior, that I attribute my having ultimately returned alive to this country. It would be an easy and pleasant task for me to dilate on this subject, and to commit to paper some of the many characteristic anecdotes which occur to me, as I think over the years we spent together ; but enough has perhaps been already said to enable the reader to form a just idea of the Author of these pages ; and, before passing on to a few short remarks on their contents, I will only add that, while to all of us who knew him, his loss is one that can never be replaced, we have the comfort of knowing that throughout his life, not less than in its closing scenes, he was ready for the great change which has now overtaken him ; and that, whatever comfort X PREFACE. there is to be found in tlie knowledge of a life well and usefully spent, and an end worthy of the life, his bereaved mother, relations, and friends have that well-grounded consolation ; for he was, in the best sense of the term, a Christian gentleman. The original object in the selection and printing of this Volume was to preserve to his friends the fugitive papers, " In Memoriam " of the Author ; but, at the urgent solicitations of friends, who knew the permanent value of these papers, it has been agreed to give them to the public in a second edition, which will shortly be issued by Messrs Edmonston & Douglas, Edinburgh. It will be observed that every article which has been selected for publication has the date of its original appearance attached to it. For some of them, this was, no doubt, needless ; but in the case of such papers as " Port Natal," "Transvaal vei^sus Zulu," and others, circumstances are so altered since they were written, that the point would have been lost, had the date of their writing not been mentioned. As true pictures of Zulu life and modes of expression, nothing could be more perfect than "A Zulu Foray," "A Runaway Match," and "A Zulu Romance." I leave the reader to judge of their literary merits for himself, and I only offer the testimony, which my knowledge of the Zulus themselves enables me to give, of their truthfulness. " Wild Life " will have its own peculiar charm for those who have exper- ienced it, as well as for the general reader ; and each of the other papers has been selected as containing something charac- teristic of the Author, or of interest to the reader ; but I cannot help referring to the Extracts from his Hunting Journal, wherein the "Reflections of the day" show the bent of his mind, these being written in the wilds of Africa, after an exhausting day's hunting and travelling, without the slightest expectation that they would ever be seen and criticised by others. His gun and his books were his inseparable companions in his expeditions; the one procuring his physical sustenance — the other providing his mental pabulum. It is unnecessary to say anything here regarding the Delagoa Bay Dispute, and Mr Leslie's claim against the Portuguese Government, which depended upon the late Arbitration Case. But if, by the subject becoming more widely known through these pages, the British Government is induced to make an arrangement with the Portuguese, by which Delagoa Bay may return to its original owners, PREFACE. XI and the rampant Slavery of the East Coast be put down, the cause will not have altogether failed, for which Mr Leslie fought so well, and in which he lost so much, for even his death may, in a great measure, be attributed to the fever he caught on that very expedi- tion. In conclusion, I must express my thanks to Mr Robert M 'Tear, of Glasgow (the late Mr Leslie's uncle), for the assistance he has afforded me in editing this Volume ; an assistance, indeed, so gTeat and valuable — but a labour of love to him — that, although I would most willingly have done it all out of respect for my late dear friend, my share of the labour has been almost nominal ; and, while apologising for any errors which may have been allowed, inad- vertently, to creep in, or been passed over, I leave it in the hands of the public, satisfied that, under the circumstances, they will be generous in their judgment. W. H. DRUMMONB. London, Oct. 4th, 1875. OBITUARY NOTICES OF THE LATE MR DAVID LESLIE. *' Our obituary to-day announces the death of Mr David Leslie, whose career has been such, that it deserves some more extended notice. Mr Leslie, who had only attained his 35th year, was born at Taymount, Perthshire. His father was accidentally killed by being thrown from his gig six months before the deceased was born, 80 that he was left to push his own way in the world. He went to Katal when he Was only eleven years of age, and having become proficient in the Zulu language, Was, at the early age^of fourteen, appointed interpreter to the courts of law in Natal. Subsequently he became one of the principal merchants in Natal, and for several years was a member of the firm of Acutt & Leslie. Through a commercial crisis, which occurred there about ten years ago, he was obliged to abandon his mercantile connection, and from that time until his return to this country, he was engaged trading and hunting in the interior of Africa, having been a most ardent Nimrod and accom- plished marksman. Mr Leslie was long on intimate terms with the native chiefs of Natal. His knowledge of the country, and of the habits and customs of the natives was extensive, and he delivered frequent lectures on the subject, before the Natural History Society of Natal. The local papers published numerous contributions of great interest from his pen, and since his return to this country, Mr Leslie has written a great deal of instructive matter, regarding Africa and its inhabitants, in various newspapers and magazines. One of his letters, which appeared in the Times, gave so truthful and able a description of the country, that it attracted the attention of Sir Bartle Frere, who took occasion to have an interview with him during his late brief stay in Glasgow. Whilst on a hunting expedition in his schooner, the ' William Shaw,' Mr Leslie and his vessel were seized by the Portuguese authorities, in what were con- sidered British waters. The question of the exact marine boundary between the British and Portuguese was thus raised, and referred to XIV OBITUARY NOTICES. the arbitrament of the President of the French Republic, who has been in no hurry to give his decision. Mr Leslie was consulted by the Colonial Office in the matter of adjusting their claim, and his individual claim for illegal seizure, against the Portuguese Govern- ment was, of course, held in abeyance until that of the British Government should be determined. After the seizure, and while detained at Lorenzo Marques pending negotiations, Mr Leslie was attacked by fever, which is believed to have seriously aflfected his constitution. On recovering, he started for this country, arriving about fourteen months ago, and since his return he has resided with his uncle, Mr Robert M'Tear. For some time his health has been indifferent ; but, a few weeks ago, he was seized with a severe affec- tion of the lungs, to which he succumbed after much suffering. Mr Leslie's relations on the maternal side are all in Natal, with the exception of Mrs M 'Tear ; but his paternal relatives reside at Blair- gowrie. The funeral of the deceased will, we believe, take place on Friday, when his remains will be interred in the Necropolis. We may add that Mr Leslie, since his arrival in Glasgow, had gained the respect of many friends, who will sincerely mourn his loss." — Glasgow Citizen, 13th May, 1874- "Brief as is the time allowed us, we cannot permit the formal obituary notice, in another column, to pass, without a word regard- ing the late Mr David Leslie. Little more than twelve months since he left Natal, his home from boyhood, to enter and eventually take over the extensive and flourishing business in Glasgow of his uncle, Mr Robert M'Tear. A mail or two ago, news were received that he had been seized with inflammation of the lungs, but a later telegram, via Brindisi, reported him to have somewhat rallied from the attack, and stated that hopes were entertained of -his recovery. By the mail just arrived, we learn that he sank on the 11th May, in his 35th year. "Mr Leslie arrived in the Colony in March, 1850, being then a lad of about ten years of age, as one of the large party headed by our veteran colonist, Mr John Forbes, his grandfather. For some years he was engaged in business in Durban, but the best years of his life were spent in hunting and trading among the native tribes to the north, and many a graphic tale he had to tell of ' hair- breadth OBITUARY NOTICES. XV 'scapes by flood and field.' His intimate acquaintance with the politics, as well as the manners and modes of thought, of the Zulus and other northern tribes enabled him, by means of a ready pen, to contribute to the Natal Herald more than one able paper, which attracted the notice and commendation of the Secretary for Native Affairs ; and not the local journals only, but leading newspapers at home — notably the Times, during these late troubles — gladly wel- comed his contributions. He read at least two interesting and valu- able papers, on Hlonipa and other native customs, before the Natural History Association in Durban ; and, to this journal, prior to his departure for his native country, he contributed an interesting series of letters on native politics, and the gun trade. " But we must close, however we may shrink from reverting to the sudden ending of a life, which appeared to have just opened out a new vista of hope and prosperity, to one endowed with many amiable qualities, and much beloved. To the widowed mother, whose only child he was, and who hoped soon to join him in Scotland, to the venerable grand-parents, and to the rest of his bereaved relatives, from whom he has thus suddenly been taken in the prime of his days, we can only, in common with many attached friends in Natal, offer the most heartfelt sympathy." — Natal Colonist, 7th July, 1874- "We much regret to hear by this mail of the death of a former fellow-townsman, who, though much absent from the colony of late, occupied for many years an honourable position here. Mr Leslie was noted here for his intelligence, public spirit, and enterprise. The rapidity of his rise amongst us, as a commercial man, was entirely due to his remarkable sagacity and shrewd sense, and his death will be much lamented by many old friends. His bereaved mother and her family, will have the warm sympathy of all, in their sad affliction. It cannot be doubted that, had he lived, Mr Leslie would have made no inconsiderable mark in the world ; and been of great service to Africa, to whose interests he was devoted. We have only room in this issue to give the following appreciative notice from the Glasgow Citizen of 12th May last."( Vide ante). — Natal Mercury, 7th July, 1874. XVI EXTRACT FROM PREFACE. EXTRACT FROM PREFACE to the Hon. W. H. Drummond's Work on "The Large Game and Natural History of South and South-East Africa:" — " It would be unjust to the memory of my late friend Mr Leslie, were I to omit to mention that, to his great knowledge and experience, I owe much of whatever may be of value in these pages ; and that, to his kindly placing at my disposal, during my expedi- tions, the large number of hunters and natives in his service, I owe many of my opportunities for observation." AMONG THE ZULUS AISTD AMATONGAS. PORT NATAL. (Chambers' Journal, ilth June, 1859.) A FEW facts concerning the Colony of Port Natal, which has lately begun to attract a share of public attention as a new field of emigration, may be interesting both to intending emigrants and to readers generally. There are three things currently believed throughout this country to be detrimental to Natal — namely, the heat, the unhealthy climate, and the very inadequate supply of labour. Now, such remarks, which I have often heard made, only show the great want of correct information which exists regarding the colony. According to Government statistics, the thermometer on the coast during winter averages 72 degrees, and in summer 80 degrees; further up and above the capital (Pietermaritzburg), the climate is very much the same as in Britain; at D'Urban, and along the coast, the sea breezes cool the atmosphere. Hot winds, as in Australia, are seldom felt; so much so, that when one does come, people go about very much sur- prised, informing one another that it is "actually a hot wind!" When warm in Natal, it is always dry; few and far between are those close, humid, sultry days, so much felt in India, in which men go about as if the exertion of dragging one leg after another was too much, and when the only B 2 PORT NATAL. comfcg^table position to be in, is up to your chin in cold water; when to eat is a nuisance, and to drink is a necessity. The rains in summer are constant; scarcely a day passes without a shower, and when it rains there, it does rain — not as it is in Britain, an unpleasant drizzle, but "an even down pour." So much, however, is the earth parched by winter droughts, and so great the evaporation, that no rain, however heavy, lies on the surface more than three days; and, of course, fever and all diseases arising from decayed vegetable matter and stagnant water are unknown. Now, in what is called the Amatonga country, about 250 miles from D'Urban, the decayed vegetable matter and stagnant swamps are so great, that it is death to any European to venture there. Miles upon miles of flat country; in fact, one great rich swamp, covered with game, is there inhabited by a people civilized in comparison with their neighbours, the Zulus; but where death or disease is sure to attack any white man who enters. Great is the contrast Avithin so short a distance! Tor Natal is a country without one virulent disease peculiar to itself, where consumption and scrofula are unknown, where health is, in fact, rampant, where the ladies are all in despair about getting so stout and so strong, and where many have saved their lives from the grasp of those fearful diseases so prevalent in the old country. The Colony of Natal contains a population of about 10,000 whites and 225,000 Blacks. Now, with this im- mense number, the most credulous cannot believe the assertion that labour is scarce; for, allowing one servant to every white man, woman, and child, what an immense number there remains for future emigrants ! It may be said that the greater portion of the 225,000 are women and children; but it is they who, at their own homes, labour most. The women hoe, plant, and reap, carry water, cook. NATIVE LABOUR IN NATAL. 3 and, in fact, do everything except build tlie huts, miik the cows, and hunt. AVhere, also, would you get better pickers of cotton than Kaffir children? Such is the increasing fondness of the Kaffirs for money, and the articles which it will procure, that they are fast overcoming the j>rejudice about letting their women and children go out to work. It is also plain that, as they begin to feel the advantages and security of being under British government, the chances of any outbreak are constantly lessening. I have heard many people say — " Oh, but your natives are a very bad set — are they not? — always warring and plundering;" but they have been confounding the Kaffir war in the Cape Colony, a place 700 miles away, with Natal. Every Kaffir in Natal knows well that, were the white men gone from the colony, the surrounding nations would at once make a clean sweej), so envious have they become of their accumulations of cattle and other riches; and at the same time the Europeans are well aware that, should any of the surrounding nations attempt anything against Natal, there are Kaffirs enough in the colony, who, combined together under a European leader, would "eat them up" altogether, as their own expression is. The fact being so, then, and the price of labour so low — ranging from 5s. to 10s. per month, according to the style of servant, and about 7s. more to feed them — ^there need be no fear about want of labour to carry out any kind of agri- cultural operations whatever.* Having endeavoured to explain away the prejudices con- * Experientia docet. This was written in 1859, when hopes were high and expectations were sanguine ; but time has told a different tale ; and the disinclination of the natives for work, and the induce- ments to lazinesss which polygamy offers, have forced the colonists to introduce Coolies, at a great expense, to do what the Kaffirs ought to do. — Ed. 4 PORT NATAL. cerning the climate, and the scarcity of labour in Natal, the next thing to be done is to give as fair a description, as my limits will permit, of the general outline of the port and harbour, the country, and the articles of commerce which it produces. Upon arriving in the outer anchorage, the emigrant is struck by the quiet beauty of the bay — one broad sheet of water — stretching up into the country about six miles, with one or two islands towards the north-west side; on the left a majestic bluff looks down upon i30or ocean fretting at its. feet; to the right — a low sandy point, partially covered with a peculiar creeper, and gradually rising as it recedes, dips into the level flat upon which stands the town of D'Urban; then rising again abruptly into the range of hills called the Berea; stretching up ste-p by step, wall upon wall, until it meets the grass-land upon the top, almost as level a& the sea itself. Between the aforesaid point and the bluff is the entrance to the bay, and rather outside of that the bar — the much dreaded bar — whereon there is, at high-water and spring-tides, generally from 12 to 18 feet of water, and which, there is no doubt whatever, might be very much improved by the expenditure of a little more money. The present bar would not, in Great Britain, be suffered to remain six months; and Natal is only waiting until, by the introduction of more people and more capital, she is enabled to make it a splendid harbour. A prospectus has lately been issued for a railway from the landing-place to the town, a distance of three miles, and all the shares have been taken up within the colony itself As it is a dead- level all the way along the beach, it is not expected to cost more than £10,000. It is very much wanted, and no doubt will pay, as all goods under the present system have to be carted up to town at a great expense. PRODUCTS OF NATAL. 5 The agricultural part of the colony is, as it were, in two divisions. On the coast line of about 120 miles long by 20 broad, all tropical products, such as sugar, arrowroot, coffee, indigo, cotton, &c., grow with great facility; and not as in mere experimental gardening, but in such quantities as to assure the people of Natal that they will all, ere long, become staple articles of export. Last season's crop of sugar was 750 tons; arrowroot forms now a great part of the cargoes from Natal; the cultivatior of indigo is being vigorously prosecuted by several wealth} planters from Java; cotton grows wild throughout the lower parts of the colony; the Natal coffee is considered equal to that of Mocha — one planter sold his crop for home consump- tion at 95 s. per cwt.; oil-nuts, flax, fibrous plants of every description, and, indeed, the difficulty is to say what will mt grow in Natal, and grow well too. The cocoa-nut is the only exception that I know of. Of course, in sj^eaking of the products of a country in a commercial point of view, it is not usual to enumerate gooseberries, black currants, and such small game, and it must be acknowledged that in these Natal shows her weakness. But, as a compensation, she produces, in the greatest luxuriance, pine apples, oranges, bananas, peaches, and other fruits which here are considered luxuries. Land, which, eight or ten years ago, was sold for Is. per .acre, now fetches 30s. ; and it may be assumed that a good sugar farm may, at the present time, be purchased at about the latter rate. Oxen — with which all ploughing is done at Natal^may be got for £5. Ploughs, carts, &c., ought all to be brought from Great Britain, as the emigrant will find a considerable difference between Natal and British prices. How very different the style of farming there is to what I have seen in travelling through Britain. Here, every inch of land 6 PORT NATAL. is cultivated up to the railway; in Xatal, a man in starting takes, a look over 400 or 500 acres of land ; sees a piece which he thinks will do; away he goes, breaks it up, ploughs it over, banks and ditches it round, and there it is. Then for another piece, half-a-mile away it may be. In fact, there is so much rich land that he is difficult to please, and he picks and chooses like an epicure. Again, that part of the colony which is called, in colonial parlance, "up the country" — that is, high table-lands sprinkled with forests of yellow-wood, sneeze-wood, and other timber indigenous to the colony — is best suited for sheep, cattle, and horses. Sheep have lately been introduced to a great extent, and many Dutch farmers have emigrated from the Orange Eiver Free State to Natal, preferring security under British government to so-called independence under their own Ee- publicj and the greatest part of the aborigirial white in- habitants — ^that is, those who have been there ten or twelve years — ^have been giving up cattle and horses; the former of which constituted the principal merchandise of the people of Natal before they turned their attention to sheep and sugar. Natal is the country for the sportsman — from a blue buck of nine inches to an elephant of twelve feet high, and, through all the intermediate sizes there is game in especial abundance. In the vicinity of the settlement it has been rather thinned off; but within 100 miles of D-'Urban — the seaport town — you may in one hour fill a bag which it would take fourteen oxen to draw; and then think of the hairbreadth escapes, the running, the dodging, the getting-up thorny trees, to tho great detriment of your original and only pair of trousers, with a buffalo or a rhinoceros grunting at your heels ! I do not wish to give the impression that people in Natal are almost as barbarous as the natives, or without the AMENITIES OF NATAL. 7 amusements of society. Such an idea would be extremely- erroneous. Let any one look at the Natal papers; let him see its advertisements of balls, pic-nics, concerts, botanical and agricultural shows, &c., and he will allow that Natal is one of the gayest little places in the world. The society is equal to that in most towns in this country, and superior in many respects; for there you .have all its amenities, courtesies, and enjoyment, without its conven- tionalities. Even the Dutch Boers, who are, generally speaking, a heavy, respectable set of people, give their balls and parties, and attend them with the greatest zest. Though it does seem rather ridiculous to see a sixteen stone fellow whirling about in a waltz with a partner as big as himself! I have gone to a Dutch party, and on entering the room been very much surprised to find a Kaffir, dressed in a white shirt, standing in one corner of the room grinding away at a barrel-organ, producing polkas and waltzes with as great an indifference as if they had been pepper or coffee for domestic consumption. But this is an exceptionally ludicrous case. Natal, however, is not the place for a large emigration of the poorer, classes to be directed to — that is, of agricultural labourers and mechanics. The field is, no doubt, extensive, and land plenty and fertile; but still a man must have some thing to keep him while his crops are groAving. The number of farmers who can afford to employ white men, in the face of native labour being so cheap, is at present very small. But every man who goes to Natal with a capital of from £100 up to £20,000, it does not matter how much, and has anything like energy and determination, is almost sure to succeed. A HUNTING AND TRADING EXPEDITION IN SOUTH AFEICA. (GLASGOW Hebald, 7th and 14th February, 1859.) The foUowing most interesting and graphic description of a hunting and trading expedition from Natal into the Zulu country is from the pen of a young Perthshire gentleman, aged 19, who, about nine or ten years ago, was a pupil in the High School of Glasgow, It is a private journal, writ- ten for friends in Glasgow, and not intended for publication; but we believe it will be equally interesting to the general reader, from the capital description it gives of the manner in which an important branch of business in Natal is carried out: — On Monday the 16th of February, I crossed the Tugela, the boundary of Natal and Zulu-land. It is not such a large river as I thought it would be from the traders' description. The water was up to my chin in fording it, and there were plenty of alligators strewed about the banks. All the way from the Tugela to Emtente's kraal, on this side Enginginblovo, it rained, and consequently both I and the goods were very wet. We got to Emtente's about half- an-hour before dark, and after great difficulty I managed to get one hut, with the promise that so many of the Kaffirs as could not sleep with me, should sleep among the natives. Now I wanted one side of the hut for myself, and when I wished to go to sleep I turned out five of them, and had just got to sleep when back they came, as they could not get in any- where. There we were — nine Kaffirs, nine parcels, and myself ACTING AS " MEDICO." 9 in one small hut, about eight feet in diameter. What with heat, dirt, &c., I was almost smothered : my first night in Zulu-land ! Next morning we started off without any- thing to eat — passed Enginginblovo, one of Cetshwyo's (the king's son) principal kraals, with about sixty-five huts in it; and about mid-day had to stop at a kraal, both to get something to eat and to dry the goods. The owner of the kraal happening to have the stomach-ache from eating too much beef, I gave him some castor oil. His gratitude was so fervent that he gave me two huts, as much food as I could eat — that is thick milk, whey, and sweet-milk — and killed a small ox for myself and Kaffirs, so that I determined on sleeping there, as I was rather comfortable in comparison with the night before. I had a slight sort of feverish touch; but I made a big fire in the hut till I perspired freely, and then took two pills, and next morning felt all right. When he was skinning the ox I asked if he would sell me the skin. He said " Yes, for a rely" — about 2d. worth. Next morning I started, and walked, I should think, about fifteen miles from kraal to kraal. Such hills ! I never perspired so much in- my life as when toiling up them, and my eyelashes were fringed with drops. Some of the Zulus are excellent fellows; they bring you food and anything you want, taking any- thing you like to give them without a grumble. Others again make the most exorbitant demands, and are imperti- nent if you don't give it them. In the evening I reached a kraal belonging to the brother of Gaon an Induna, or Captain of Panda's (the king), and there I did my first trade — a beast for two blankets, and hard work I had to do it too. I heard that a Moloonga, with a boy, had passed the day before. I think it is John . Speaking to an old Zulu to-day about the fight at the 10 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. Tugela,he says: — "Wow! the police, they saved all Umbulazi's: people that got away ! If it had not been for them we would have finished them entirely, and," he said, "the police were only a handful. How did they manage it 1 It was only by about as much as my finger-nail that tve did not run, instead of Umbulazi's people. And it was all through the police^ as they (Umbulazi's people) didn't fight at all." The place where the fight took place is a succession of round green knolls all the way to the Tugela. To-day (the 18tli) has been the most fatiguing day we have had as yet. We started in the morning from Jubana's kraal, and walked about five miles to a kraal where I learned that a Kaffir at another kraal, about three miles off", wanted to sell a cow. Off I started, taking one Kaffir and his bundle with me, telling the others to stop where they were, as I would come back, and we would go on and sleep at Gaon's kraal. However, when we got to the kraal, I found the cow was up on the "gangalla" (highlands), and when I got there we could not trade after all; and being near Gaon's, and far from where I had left the Kaffirs, I decided upon going there. We arrived about eight o'clock at night, regularly done up. Gaon himself is a very good fellow ; he gave us lots of food and a hut directly I asked for it ; but next morning I had great difficulty in getting food for my people. Gaon's finger-nails are at least two inches long, and some of his people's are nearly as long. They seem to take a pride in it. All the natives here are very "hlaugana- peely" (wide-awake). They ask two blankets for a cow, and some beads on the top of it. My Kaffirs grumbled terribly about being left behind. They said they had no hut and no "scoff" (food), they were "feely"(dead) entirely. If the 18th was the most fatiguing day I have yet had, A ZULU SHAM-FIGHT. 11 the 19th was the most bothersome. I rose in the morning, and after getting something to eat for my hungry Kaffirs I set to work to buy from the Induna. The first beast he brought me was a small one. He began by asking two blankets for it. I said No ! He brought up another, and wanted seven bunches (about £1 worth of beads) for it. It was a good cow, and I offered him 12s. worth. There we were, bargaining and bargaining on into the afternoon, till I was thoroughly disgusted. I never in my life had such a day's talking, and all for nothing. I left in the afternoon, and slej)t at a kraal about four miles from Gaon's, on the road to the Norwegian Mission House. Trade was very bad: the Kaffirs say they never saw anything like it. From Gaon's kraal I saw two parties draw up for a fight. The young fellows of one kraal and those of another had a row about where their separate cattle ought to graze, and they assembled in two parties of about ten each to fight it out. They advanced in Hne till within about ten yards of each other, when one of them broke and ran as hard as they could, and were pursued by the others, till they in turn were met by two Indodu's men, who entirely dispersed them, so that the encounter did not come off after all. On the 20th, it rained in the morning, and one of the Kaffirs being sick, I determined upon staying in the kraal where I was, as I had rather good quarters. In the afternoon the Zulus said to me, " Why don't you go out and shoot the buffalo — ' Eesa Zotwa' (they only) — there in the 'hlauzen' (bush)?" So I took the gun, one Zulu, Jacob, Numbona, and Emjeeba, and off I went. We had walked about two miles along the road, when the Zulus said " Nausia Engapesliea," and there they were, a 12 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. regular drove. Down we went as quietly as possible; and after a good deal of hiding and creeping, we got close upon them. They seemed just like black cattle, if it had not been for the horns. I had loaded the gun after my o"wti principle — viz., 2^ drams fine powder. I sat down and took a steady aim at the shoulder of the foremost cow. I fired — crack! sounded the ball. I had just time to take one look at her on the ground, when down came the whole drove right on the top of us. I ran, and all the Kaffirs, except Jacob. He saw that the buffaloes had not charged us, but were only what he called " banye " (stupid). They heard the shot, and just ran. They happened to run past us. Jacob "ciba'd" them, and missed. The others did the same, and all missed except the Zulu, and his assegai went off mtli them. I ran forward to cut them off at the turn of the hill, and just caught sight of them. I fired amongst them, and missed. We followed the cow I had wounded, and found a bull had gone off with her to help her. She lay down and rose up three times, and at last both of them, in attempting to go down a place like a precipice, so as to cross the " Umklatuse," the cow, with her game leg, fell, and rolled over and over down into the river. She picked herself up and got across, the bull helping her all the time, to another herd on the other side of the river. The Kaffirs say they never saw such a place for buffaloes. We saw three herds, forty-six in all. On Sunday, I think the 21st, I was awoke by the cry of " nansia esinblovo " the elephants ! Up I got, seized the gun, and called the Kaffirs; and in case the Zulus, who by this time were running from -all quarters, should give him the first stab, I ran just as I was, in my flannel shirt and hat, no shoes or trousers. After running for about two miles I found them in a little clump A FIGHT ':fOR an ELEPHANT. 13 of bush, in the course of a burn, a famous place to shoot them in. I ran down as they cried " they are coming out;" and out they came, rather too far off, however, for shooting at. The sight of them just then was quite enough for me, so I ran back and gave "Potassa" the gun, and told him to shoot them. He started after them, and fired at one, and struck it in the belly. Just at the same time Dideesa flung his assegai at the other, and hit it in the rump, so that, by " hunter's law," they were both secured to me if we killed them. The one went down the burn, the other up. Potassa went after the one he fired at, and gave it the other barrel, only he fired so far off, being afraid, that the ball struck its shoulder, but did not seem to hurt it a bit. The other Kaffirs were all saying to me, " Oh ! Ponda [my Kaffir name], if you had only given me the gun that elephant would not have gone so far." And just then Potassa fired again, and missed it altogether. So, getting rather savage, I ran down and took the gun from him; and, as the enormous creature was standing amongst some bushes, I crept up till about three yards from him. I gave him just one shot : it went right to his brain, and finished him. Then began the row. The Zulus said they had hit him first, and that Potassa had missed him. We managed to convince them, however, that it was ours, and got possession of the tail. It had one tooth, and that very small. Of course it was Potassa's elephant. One Zulu I used rather forcible arguments with. He jamp on the carcase, called me some name or other, and said the beast was theirs. I also jumped up and knocked him off, heels- overhead for his pains. After this elephant, I should think I ran, not walked, five miles. The Zulus stopped by the elephant, and I and Dideesa started after the other one. 14 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH ^iFRICA. We saw a lot of people running, and ran too, and found another lot of Zulus had turned him, and got him into a patch of reeds. I had only four bullets, so I sent Aplain back for more, and ran do"\vn with Dideesa to where he was. I sent him ahead to tell the Zulus that it was our elephant, and came myself just as he ran out after a dog, which he caught and trampled to pieces. I fired at his head, but my breath was gone, and I missed him. I fired again and hit him in the ear, but rather too far back on liis neck, and just at this moment a Zulu flung his assegai — it struck him in the ear and stuck there, notwithstanding all his endeavours to pull it out. The assegai was flung over my head, and the beast made a dead set at me just as I was loading. I had to run as fast as I could, but luckily the hill was near; I ran up to it, and when he got to the foot he stopped. I fired my other two bullets at him, with I don't know what effect: they struck him, but did not seem to damage him at the time. Then I had to sit down and wait till Aplain came with the bullets. The Zulus were throwing stones at him to get him out of the reeds, but he wouldn't move; just then, after a great deal of tugging, he managed to get the assegai out, and champed it to pieces -with his mouth. At last the bullets came, and I determined to repeat my former manoeuvre, so I told the Zulus to make a -row at the other side, while I crept up to him in the reeds. I gave him just one shot in the ear, and down he went. The upshot was that I had some trophies in the shape of three teeth and two tails, but, from running about till afternoon in nothing but my shirt and trousers, I was burnt all over with the sun, and felt very tender. When I came back to the kraal, I found that Gaon had been there to call me to trade in the morning, so that I hope to do some good with him. AT THE MISSION STATION. 15 Time will show. I forgot to say that for the elephants I loaded four drains of fine powder, and found it not a bit too much. On the 22nd that old scoundrel Gaon did me completely. I went as he called me, and found him just as hard as ever. But I thought, well, I will give him what he wants, and then I shall be able to buy the cattle cheaply his people may bring, and I knew of about ten being about, at different kraals, waiting till I had done buying from the " umnennzaua " (headman). So for one cow, worth about £2, I gave him 27s. 6d. worth of beads, and for another, beads and a blanket to 20s. 6d. However, I found that, instead of his people selling, they brought all their cattle for him to sell to me, so that I was as badly off as ever, and I therefore packed up and came away. On the 23rd I reached the Missionary's, and had a long talk with him. He says the report here in the Zulu about Machian is that he fought two battles with the Kaffirs Mr Shepstone sent against them, and beat them, and that he was coming over the Buffalo with all his cattle to be a subject of Panda's, but that the Zulus would not receive him, being afraid of lung sickness, and that then the white people got his cattle. The Missionary has a very nice place; it is in a valley or amphitheatre of about a mile in circumference. There are two white people here — one married. It is just above the Choi Bush. Mr Schraeder (the Missionary,) says that Cetshwyo's army was at least 23,000 or 24,000 men, and Umbulazi's (his rival) was not more than one-third. They both passed by his place, and he had a good opportunity of judging. He says he considers Cetshwyo a much superior sort of man to Umbulazi — ^the latter behaved like a fool throughout. He says the population of the Zulu country is over 200,000, 16 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. and out of that there are about 40,000 soldiers. He says also that the Zulu country during the late war lost from 15,000 to 20,000 peoi^le — 5000 in one way or another killed, and 10,000 or 15,000 over to Natal; and also about 20,000 cattle as well. He adds the loss was not so much felt in the country, as the people who ought to have been fed by these cattle went over to Natal. On the 24th, in the morning, I left Mr S.'s. I did so enjoy the tea, bed, and breakfast there, I had great difficulty in tearing myself away. I descended such a hill — it was like going down a ladder, or an angle of 60 degrees, for a mile. I got to Maukle Silo's kraal, where I stayed till next morning, it was so fearfully hot, about lOO"" in the shade. Nothing worth mentioning occured there, except in the morning, before leaving, I managed to buy a beast. On the 25th, I started again, and called at two or three kraals — no trade. At the top of a hill we got to Zonklubo's kraal, and had a tremendous thunderstorm in the evening, after which it got cooler. Here I noticed a peculiarity amongst the Zulus; they did not allow the spoon to stand upright in the food, it must lie across the dish. They say that if it is. allowed to stand up, the " scoff" will stick in your stomach and not digest. In the evening, of course I went to sleep, nothing very eventful having happened that day. On the 26 th, I bought some cattle at Zonklubo's, and after that, hearing that some Kaffirs wanted blankets, a little way off, I took two Kaffirs and their bundles, and set off on a small tour. I was unsuccessful, that day; however, I heard that there was to be a dance, or marriage, at a kraal a little way off next day, and, as the owner promised there would be cattle for sale then, I waited that day also at Zonklubo's. At night all Zonklubo's Kaffirs gathered to try how they A ZULU DANCE BY MOONLIGHT. 17 could dance — in fact to get their hands, or feet, in for next day's work. The way they gathered put me in mind of what Mr Schraeder said about Cetshwyo's army. He said a quarter of an hour before they passed, there was not a vestige of them to be seen, and then, as it were the sudden rush of a volcano, they spread over the country. So at Zonklubo's, before the dance I had only seen two or three men, but when I heard the row outside, and went to look, there they were, at least thirty — where they came from I don't know. My Kaffirs were dancing with them, but in my opinion could'nt come up to them at all ; they wanted that disciplined regularity of movement the Zulus had, and were altogether much more fantastic, and not so solemn and dignified in their gestures. The dance coming off at night, under a clouded moon, seemed under the influence of Casta Diva to have a sort of dim veil thrown over it, giving it all a much greater appearance of uniformity than it actually had, — it seemed to me, as it were, in one piece. Well, that went on till about ten o'clock, and then all was quiet; it made me feel so excited that I too sang (not) "like a lint^e." On the 27th I got up and walked to a kraal about three miles off, to try and buy some cattle, but couldn't, so came back and started off. After walking till afternoon, I came in sight of a river. I asked if it was the "Umblutuse." "Wow!" said Potassa, "that's the Tugela, and there is the Slonquise" (Natal). I felt — I don't know how I felt — a sort of yearning to cross the river, and put my foot in Natal, if it was only for half-an-hour; it revived all the home sickness I had felt two or three days before, and of course I was quite miserable. We were just opposite the " Entoongambele," a thing like a man's head stuck on the end of a high table- land. At night, the song "Sweet Home" came into my C 18 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. head, I sang it, and, upon my honour, it nearly made me "greet." I thought the Zulu country was very much broken, but the Natal side from here looks quite as much, if not more so. On the 28th, being Sunday, I determined to stop when I was near Mashoban's. At night I was terribly bitten with fleas — they were jumping about on the floor, just as they were on the Berea, and, of course, I didn't get much sleep. All Sunday I lay still, and on the 29th, in the morning, Mashoban brought a bull and wanted other skins ; after a great deal of bargaining, I managed to get it for three of them. After that I started off", and after walking all day, I got to Debe Blango's kraal, where I stayed all night. I had then, for the first time in the Zulu country, great difiiculty in keeping the hut clear of girls. They flocked in, a dozen at a time, to see the " Moolongo " (white man). At last I got to sleep, and in the morning, being the 30th, I started and walked in by far the hottest day I had yet felt; and, having started early in the morning, I had not eaten anything, expecting to get something to eat at the next kraal; however, in that I was disappointed, and got nothing till evening, when I had some porridge, of stamped mealies and water; however, it was the nicest "pallitch" I ever tasted, by Jove ! During the day I stayed at a kraal a few minutes, and there saw a boy about two feet high "geaing" (dancing). The men were shouting to encourage him, and they shouted " Bob e Ka Foges, Bob e Ka Foges" (Bob of Forbes). The natives, in asking the name of any person, always ask who was his father, who did he belong to. Bob e Kaba? Bob e Ka Foges — the native style of pronunciation. I asked how it was, and they told me Bob had been there, and given him that name. "AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER T' 19 On the 31st, I started for Lolioonga's (a chief), and there saw a sort of human creature, whom I don't know how to describe. He was about 2 J feet high; no arms, only hands out from his shoulders; he managed with them, however, very well, eating and snuffing, &c., cleverly. Lohoonga himself is a famous fellow; and, to please him, I gave him my knife. He was describing to me all the different battles he had been in, from the time of Chaka downwards. He came out of every one of them scatheless. He showed me the place where he had killed Tobolongwan in a quarrel they had. Now this Tobolongwan was his brother, and upon my asking whether he had buried him, the only answer I got was "Magwababa, magwababa, magwababa," — the crows, the crows, the crows ! Rather a cool answer. He is a great, tall, strong fellow, a great friend of Bob's, according to his own account. I stayed there all the 1st of March, buying cattle, or trying to do so; but trade was very bad. I had a nasty attack of diarrhoea, but cured it by drinking whey till I was nearly exploding. On the 2nd, in the morning, I bought a beast at Lolioonga's, and in the after- noon set out after buffaloes, but could not find any. In the heart of the Eukauhla bush we found a lot of honey, and had a jolly good blow-out; but it set my diarrhoea agoing again, and bothered me. The Eukauhla bush is a most extraordinary place. It is not a bush like the Berea, but a succession of very steep hills, precipices some of them, and in the bottoms and up the sides of some is all large timber. The different hills seem to run up to a point as if it had once been one gigantic mountain, and had by some eruptive process or other been fluted down the sides. Lohoonga's kraal is just at the bottom of the bush. The Zulus showed me a place where they had driven seven 20 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. elephants over a precipice, and killed tliem all. I managed to buy one elephant's tusk from Lohoonga. He said it was wounded by Tozak (a hunter of Bob's), and one of his people had found it after it died. I started from Lohoonga's, and had a very long walk, without buying anything. Walking along the side of a hill I noticed a peculiarity in the Kaffir paths from which you might draw a very good moral for every-day life. You may think that all the paths lead to one goal, but if you do not take care to keep up you insensibly slide away to the bottom, and you have a hard pull to get up again, and the chances are that you wet your feet at the bottom. We walked along, keeping up the Ensuse, the finest water I had yet seen in the Zulu, except at the Missionary's, until we got considerably above Maxondo's, when we turned down towards the Tugela, determined to follow it up. Next day was Sunday, and I stayed all day at Maxondo's. In the morning I started up the river — passing a place where we heard sea-cows making a noise — determined, if we found trade bad, to stop and have a shot. Looking at Entoongam- bele from this side, it looks more like the figure of the Sphinx than a man's head. I remained all day at the river, and blazed away, but only managed to kill one sea-cow. Such a feast- ing as we had ! I returned at night to Emfuleui's, leaving the gun with Aplain; he wanted to shoot a buffalo, and came back saying he had wounded one. In the morning he went after it, and found it dead. I had to use strong measures to get the Kaffirs away. At Emfuleui's I bought 30s. in money for 12s. worth of goods. The Tugela just here, with the sea-cows in it, put me very much in niind of Gordon Cumming's picture, in the Illustrated London News, of " The River Limpopo, with a herd of sea-cows eating." REFINEMENT OF CRUELTY. 21 There were the same large trees on the banks, and on the river itself just such a sprinkling of rocks. The sea-cow I killed had no teeth, which the Kaffirs said was very remark- able. Everywhere I go the talk is about the fight at Endonda Gosuka, and the Zulus say how well the police fought, and what a great coward John Dunn was. They say that when the O'Sato (Cetshwyo's Pootie) showed its front above the hill, lie fired his revolver at them, rode away to the right, and saw them coming up; to the left saw the same, and then rode away as hard as he could. They all had instructions — those with guns to shoot the horse — but they say he never gave them the chance. All the people up the Tugela were at it. The descriptions some of them gave of it are most thrilling. Their language is not complete enough to enable them to describe it as they would like; but what they cannot do with their mouth, they make up with their hands, and you can tell by their gestures what they mean, almost as well as if they spoke. One fellow told me that there was no " emkuba" (torture) that was not done at the fight — the pursuing army played with their victims. Two of them would catch hold of a man, and another would stand in front and say, "Where shall I put the assegai inf and then put it slowly in and cut him up, while he would be "singing out" all the time. Others they cut the arms off by the shoulders, and then let them go. "Just a stick," the fellow said who told me. From Emfuleui's went to Godeed, from there to Banda- manas, and from there to Umvoonielwa, and there slept. Nothing particular to record, except that I shot a baboon. From there we went on to Sofotca, and there we stayed as it rained. The last few days have been very destitute of adventure. The country all about Sofotca's is "gangalla* 22 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. (highland), with bush simnkled here and there. Plenty- buffaloes here they tell me, so I shall go and have a shot. I have noticed that all the Zulu country that I have yet seen has been very stony, so much so that I doubt whether any use could be made of it for agricultural purposes. After I passed the Missionary's it was very much more stony than before. On Saturday, as usual, it rained. We were still at Sofotca's, so I went with several Zulus and Jacob to have a shot at the buffaloes. I never saw so many in one place ; they were like cattle over the country. We stood on a high conical hill, and whichever way we looked we saAv game. We started to stalk one herd, and on the way started three. They were over the hill before I could get a shot. When we got to the top of the hill we looked down into a sort of ravine, and there saw one bull — and an old one he was too — standing looking at us. We — Jacob and I and a Zulu — went to one side of the valley, and we sent the Zulus in at the other to drive them out. Luckily I had taken my station near a tree, too large, however, to climb. Jacob was beside me, and the Zulu rather behind. The Zulus turned them out. Besides the bull, there were a cow and calf lying down. They passed within ten yards of us. I iired at the bull — he was last — he fell. I stepped out from behind the tree ; he saw me, was up in a moment, and at me. I had just time to step behind the tree ; but the poor unfortunate Zulu seemed to have lost all presence of mind, for he stood till the brute struck him right on the breast with his forehead, one horn on one side, and one on the other. He dashed almost all the breath out of his body, and then passed on and died. I had shot him through the lungs. We picked the poor fellow up, with the blood running out of his mouth and nose, and carried him home. "VAULTING AMBITION DOTH O'ERLEAP ITSELF !" 23 Next day (Sunday) he was better, and I think would do well. I had a very narrow escape myself, and was very much disgusted, as the Zulus were all on my top for letting their brother be made "feely" (dead). The Zulus here have a sort of fibrous root which they place on the top of their huts, as a charm against lightning. They have some peculiar customs : instead of the lover going to see his mistress, she comes to him. While here one came from the Tugela, a distance of twenty miles, to see a young gentle- man here. From there I started and had a long walk, first to Fogoza's, and from there to Makupula's, on the Italia, where the Boers and Zulus had a battle. It is on the Ensuse — a valley surrounded by steep hills, with rocks on the face, as if precipices had been trying to shove themselves through, and had only managed it in one or two places. While there I had a most peculiar dream — hona-fide. I think it must have been suggested to me by a print I saw at Jack's of the Christmas tree. I dreamt that we were all walking along — the Kaffirs and I — and that in the 2:>ath we came to a fig-tree, and that on it there were only two figs, but they were such beauties that I determined to secure at least one of them. One was at the top of the tree where I should have to climb; but though the branches were easy to climb, they were so shaken about by the wind that it was rather dangerous, as they seemed to be sweeping about in all directions, and you were very likely to get swept off". The other was near the ground, within reach of your hand; but to get to it you had to go through thorns and nettles and a great many holes, and as, beside, the one at the top looked by far the finest, I determined to try for it. By-the- by, I had just noticed that I had ten Kaffirs instead of nine; 34 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. but I did not think much of it at the time, as he (the tenth) might be a Zuhi. After a great deal of hard climbing and scrapes, and nearly fallings-off, I thought I reached the top and plucked the fig, and put it in my mouth; when, lo and behold ! it turned to ashes. I descended very much disgusted, and Avas telling the Kaffirs, when the tenth one seemed to swell out most marvellously, and thundered out that I had chosen the one that looked the fairest; that I had only thought it fair because so far out of my reach; that had I chosen the one near the ground the thorns would have vanished, the holes would have filled up under my feet, and, when reached, I would have found it sweet and good; that now, however, it was too late — that I must just go on my way hungry. I was very much dissatisfied with myself, as may be imagined. From Makupula's I started, and reached Machian's. He is a famous fellow — a tall, black "Kehla" (top-knotted). I drank such a quantity of Kaffir "ionalla" (beer) that, as the ladies say, I felt quite giddy. He professed to be a great friend of mine, and sold me five head of cattle to prove it. Here I saw kraals built of stone. They make good dykes, better than I can recollect at home. They also, by some means or other, manage to make an exact circle. At Maku- pula's they had gone a little out, and were pulling it down to make it exact, while I was there. All the country I travelled over — bare of a single bush — burn cows' dung as fuel. Altogether, however, it was a fine country. I never felt better or more jolly than when travelling over it. From Machian's I went to a Kaffir called " Bye-and-Bye ;" from there to Uhlonte, and from there to Faku's. On the road to Faku's, I was told that John had passed by the day before on his way back. I don't know how it is, I hear of people passing in front of me and past me, and yet A SPEAKING ANIMAL 25 I buy; while the Zulus themselves say they only look at them. I buy, I think, pretty well too. I have now 57 head of cattle, and have been five weeks in the Zulu, and hope in another three weeks to turn homeward. At Faku's the Zulus were what they called " Fetaing an Ecalla," i.e., having a law case. They commenced talking in the morning, and carried it on till sunset, and I don't know whether they finished it even then. At night, while at Faku's, we heard a great noise of men shouting and dogs barking. Upon enquiring next day what it was about, I was told that they were chasing an "Esedowan." I asked what it was, and, to my great astonishment, was told that it was a beast about the size of a wolf — rather larger — with a hole in its back about the size of a Kaffir basket ; that it only lived upon the brains of people, and the way it obtained them was this : it would come to the hut-door at night, and say something ; for instance, it would tell one of the men that the captain wanted him, or ask for something in the hut; and the instant he put his head out of the door it would whisk him away into the hole in its back, and off to some stone, and there dash his brains out ! I endeavoured to convince them what nonsense it was ; but Aplain swore it was true, and referred me to Makovella, who, lie said, had escaped from one as it was carrying him off, by clinging to the branch of a tree. He also told me to ask the Zulus — which I did at the first kraal I came to; when they said one had been killed some time before as it was carrying off a boy. It had got him in the hole in its back, and was walking him off, when, at the gate, it was met by a man, who happened to be coming from a distance. He stabbed it, and roused the other people, and between them they finished it. After this circumstantial evidence, of course it was of no use 26 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. attempting to convince them what nonsense it was — a beast speaking ! I expect it is some goblin story. At night, while sleeping, Grout (a Kaffir) slept with me ; something came to the door of the hut and tried to open it. We got up, and, on looking through the door, saw an animal which our fears at once magnified into an esedowan. Grout got an assegai, and ran it through the door, when a great howl convinced us of our mistake. Notwithstanding I knew what nonsense it was, I confess I was rather frightened. Next morning I started, and had a very hard walk to Duabu's, and from there to a kraal on the White Umvelose, where I saw a woman with a hole right through her nose. A tiger had one night broken into the hut, killed two people, and wounded three. She was one of the wounded. At Duabu's I saw him thrash one of his people with a knob-kerrie, and he very nearly killed him. The country about Duabu's is fearfully stony — large masses of rock piled together in all sorts of fantastic shapes; as Aplain said: " Ponda, don't you see those stones, like a kitchen? " He meant they w^ere in the form of a chimney. Wolves were about in any quantity. There are a tre- mendous quantity of traders in the country; I hear of them on all sides of me, and I could not get clear of them, whichever way I went. Next day I started, and crossed the White Umvelose, and had a very long walk for nothing. Not a beast did I buy that day. I saw a man afflicted with lockjaw, or something like it, who lived on thick milk and porridge, by rubbing it in with his hand. On my road I also saw a troop of animals; the Kaffirs called them Euhloselis. I could not make out what they were; they were larger than hartebestes — at least I thought so. From there I went to Chingwair, near Entabaenkulu (the " Great PANORAMA OF THE ZULU. 27 Hill "). From there I struck away seawards ; and in the afternoon I climbed a hill, and had the most splendid view I ever witnessed. I sat with my face towards Nodwengo (Panda's Palace) : in front of me was the Black Umvelose, winding amongst hills and rocks — black with "hlangi" (Mimosa bush) — with a hill the Kaffirs call the "Esehlalo'* towering above all. To the right was a grazing country, flat, and bare of a single tree, with the Black Umvelose, like a thread of silver, running through it, Entabaenkulu shutting out the view. To the left I saw the sea at a distance of at least 70 miles, and the country in that direction was actually black with bush everywhere I looked — all flat, except just at the sea, where it seemed to rise. The Zulu country must be very thinly populated, for the extent ; as, from the hill, I saw at least fifty miles on every side, and on the seaward at least seventy, and, within my view, I don't think there were more than thirty kraals. At the Black Umvelose I saw nothing but snakes ; in the morning, climbing a hill, I stepped over one in the path, and Jacob, who was behind me, tramped on it twice ; it was a little one, and got away. About mid-day, while crossing a brook, Umsungulu tramped on an Emfesi (water snake); he tramped on it near its head, and broke its back: we killed it. In the afternoon, going along over the Gangalla, I stepj^ed over a Mamba — a black one, about a yard long. Umsungulu, who was behind, tramped on it ; he sprung away, and alighted just where it was going, and tramped on it again. I killed it with a stick. In the evening, just as we were crossing the Umve- lose, Potassa, who was before me, sung out suddenly — " Mei Mame ! " He had tramped on a black Mamba, at least ten feet long ; its tail was across the road, and its head in a bush. He sprang away, and in doing so took the snake 28 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. witli him ; it had twisted its tail round his leg. He looked round, and just saw it bringing its head out of the bush to bite him ; he flung down his bundle and ran. It alighted right on it, and while it was trying to get away, I killed it. In the evening, just as we got to the kraal, we heard a great noise, and all ran to see, and were just in time to kill a Hlangi. All that in one day was pretty fair, I think. After leaving Chingwair, I saw Nobeta, the fattest Umum- zana I had yet seen in the Zulu country. He would not buy, as he said his mother had just died. She had sent for the Xyanga (doctor) to find the Tagati (witch). He said his mother had started in the morning in good health from a kraal, about a mile off, to see him, and that some people coming along the road an hour or two after had found her dead and rotten I Also, that a man that same morning had gone out of the hut to let out the cattle, and a little while after some of the people going out had found him within a few yards of the kraal, dead and rotten! I don't know what to make of it; but I suspect they must have been poisoned. At night we slept at an Umumzana's with a most unpro- nounceable name, "Cxraw." All Sunday I stayed there, and did nothing but get a history of his battles from an old man at the kraal. He had been one of Dingaan's army, when fighting with Panda, and had gone away with Dingaan to Hlatievolo, in the Umserazi. It seems Dingaan sent away all his remaining army to carry his goods to where he was, intending to start away northward and find another country to settle in ; and while they were away the Umserazi came on him and killed him, and all that were there. The old fellow added that Dingaan just died because he was an "Inkosi" (king): he had only one wound, a stab in the leg. I noticed a custom the Zulus here have. A man com- " BUT IT WAS A GLORIOUS VICTORY ! " 29 ing home kisses all his wives, a young man his sisters, and so on. Next day I started and reached the Squebes, a small river with a great many alligators in it. It runs through a very fine valley belonging to IJmniamana; he is captain of the district. In the evening I slept at a kraal, the owner of which was covered with scars gained in battles. He had a shot in his thigh; it came out at his groin, struck his knee, and fell to the ground; he had a scar across his head from the butt-end of a gun; these he got from the Boers. His shoulder was all scarred from an encounter with a lion. His thigh was pierced by a buffalo. His knee was laid open by an assegai in the battle between Panda and Dingaan. He had a gash down his back, and another through his arm, and last of all, he had his arm broken by a shot at Endona Gosuku. I am still on the Squebes. There is, I think, a fair prospect of my goods being finished here. The people buy pretty freely. I marched away up the river until I came to a large bush the Zulus called the Engome; and there, having reduced my stock to four blankets, I turned homewards. I sent the Kaffirs back to pick up the cattle, and took a turn round myself to finish up my goods. On my road I saw at a distance what I thought were two white people going naked, but on approaching close I found they were white Zulus, the most horrible looking beings I ever saw. They were as white as I am, and their bodies were covered with red inflamed sores. They had white eyes and white hair — one a girl and one a boy. Bege, king of a people called the " Amagaons," lived just under the Engome before Chaka conquered him — or rather Dingaan — as although Chaka began, Dingaan finished him. The Zulus 30 HUNTING AND TRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA. shot him and his people and cattle in the bush, and starved the lot. The Zulu country proper is on the ISTatal side of the Umhlatuse; all the remainder of the now Zulu country was occuj)ied by different kings till Chaka conquered them all. On returning to Cxraw's I learned that two people had been killed at his kraal while I was away. They were accused of killing Nobeta's mother. Also, at a kraal a few miles off, the Zulus had a fight amongst themselves, and fourteen were killed, besides the two at Cxraw's. There were eight others killed in different places, and all because an old woman died. Nobeta himself must be at least sixty years old. At Cxraw's Emjuba fell sick — a sort of fever — and one of the cattle broke out of the kraal at night and fell over a precipice; and as it was unable to proceed, I had to stop five days there. The second day one of the Zulus in the bush found a buck just killed by the tiger. He brought it to the kraal. I took it back and set the gun for it. I had not left half-an-hour before we heard the report, and on going back to look we found master tiger stretched out before the gun with a bullet through his head. I skinned it, and took great pains, intending to send it home. Cxraw gave me a small beast for killing it. On the Tuesday we started from there — Emjuba still very sick — and crossed the Black Umvelose on our Avay home. We slept at the hut where they had killed one of the Tagati's, and learned that ten of his relatives had fled a day or two ago for Natal. Next day we came to the place where the Euhloseli's were. I had only one shot left, which I kept religiously for them. I tried to stalk one, and after getting within about one hundred yards, had the satisfaction of seeing it whisk up its tail and off like the wind. The Zulus tell me that Panda now is killing a great many people — so many, that Cetsh-vvyo FINANCIAL RESULTS OF THE TRIP. 31 has remonstrated with him, saying that he will drive all the people over to Natal. I am now on my way home. This is my eighth Sunday in the Zulu. I don't know what sort of trip I have made; I am afraid not a very good one. I have 78 head of cattle clear, after paying the Kaffirs, for £50 worth of goods. They are all large cattle — ^most of them cows. Eeckoning the cows at £2 each, I have about £120 worth over: if I get tliat I shall be well satisfied; but I am afraid I have been very "green" all throughout. I had bad goods — large beads, and not good blankets — and trade was so very bad at the beginning that I got frightened, and bought at very high prices; if I had gone on to where I had finished my goods, I think I should have had 100 head of cattle. To-day I noticed that one of the cattle I bought at the Squebes coughed very much. I asked the Kaffirs about it, and they said it had coughed in that way from the first. They also said that they thought it was "Nakau," a sickness that will finish off" a herd in no time. Altogether they so frightened me that I determined on killing it, which I did, and found it was ill with what they called " Embela," not "Nakau." I asked the Zulus the symptoms of "Nakau," and they told me that a beast with that disease just pined away and died, but never coughed. I did pitch into the Kaffirs for humbugging me ! I lost my pencil here. I am very glad to get back to the store- again. — Yours truly, David Leslie. A ZULU FORAY. (ilACMlLLAN'S MAGAZINE, October, 1861.) True, 'tis pity ; pity 'tis, 'tis true. " Imagine yourself, my dear Bob, after having toiled for an hour up the sunny side of a South African hill, among stones and sand, trees and rank undergrowth, holes and ant-heaps, with the sun beating on your back until it almost calcines your vertebrae and fries your spinal marrow, not a breath of wind to cool the super-heated air, not a sound to- disturb the stagnant atmosphere, except the laborious, breathing of your Kaffir attendants, and now and then the rustle of some snake or lizard hastening to hide itself from man, the destroyer — imagine yourself, I say, arrived at the summit at last. \\Tiat a glorious breeze ! ^Vhat a lovely prospect ! How cool, how delicious ! You feel as if all nature were re-animated. " You look down before you and see a country covered with black mimosa trees, appearing even more dark and rugged because it lies in the deep shade of the lofty mountain on which you stand. Beyond that again the land rises on all sides ; the trees are scattered in picturesque clumps ; and the same sun which you had felt to be an unmitigated torture on the other side, now enhances the beauty of the prospect, by enabling you to mark the strik- ing difference between the bright and happy-looking country AN UNREASONABLE INTERLOCUTOR. 33 behind, and the dark gloomy valley in front. On the right you have hills and valleys, rivers and plains, kraals, kloofs and trees, until the view is bounded by the Drack- ensberg mountains. On the left you have the same description of landscape, with the sea in the distance, looking bright and ethereal, as if — as if " " ' As if ! As if ! ' — So you have got out of your depth at last, have you 1 Well, that's one comfort, at any rate. I asked you what he said, and hmv he told it, and you bolt off into a rambling, ranting description of country, that I can neither make head nor tail of. Now, what did he tell your' ** Well, confound it, I was just coming to that," said I, by no means pleased with the interruption ; '* but, since you're in such an unreasonable hurry, I'll give in to your whim and tell you, without any more preface. I turned to go down the hill, expecting to get some ' mealies ' and milk at the next kraal." " Did he say tJiaf ? " " No, of course he didn't." " Oh ! I beg your pardon — go on — " " Come now, none of yo2i7' nonsense — no sarcasm, or no story." "As I was saying, I felt as if the slightest sensation of dinner would not come amiss, and the smallest donation in that way, even although it was only a few mealies, was sure to be most thankfully received. So I made for a kraal at a little distance off, intending to stay over night there, but found, on reaching it, that there was no room, and nothing wherewithal to refresh my inner man. This, al- though at the moment very provoking, proved in the sequel to be a very fortunate circumstance, as it compelled me to D 34 A ZULU FORAY. move farther on, and had thus the effect of bringing me into contact with an old warrior, who gave me the best description I have ever heard of a Zulu foray into the terri- tory of a neighbouring potentate. Indeed, I quite despair of being able to give it to you with anything like the effect of the original delineator. You know too well the extraor- dinary descriptive powers of the Kaffirs, their natural eloquence and expressive action, to expect that. But, when you consider the external circumstances — the mise en schne, so to speak — ^you will at once perceive the impossibility of my being able to give you anything but an outline of the word-picture. " Imagine the scetie — a Kaffir kraal, with the the dramatis jpersonoe, consisting" of the old warrior, your humble servant, and about a dozen of Zulus, congregate/! round a fire in the open air — time, night ; the occasional growl of the tiger, and howl of the hyena, speaking through the stillness, and the fitful gleams of the fire lighting w]} the dark countenances of the savages. Imagine, too, the effect on the wild, im- pulsive natures of the native listeners, alternately swayed by the different emotions of hope and fear, as the speaker unfolded his ' strange eventful history.' You may perhaps be disposed to smile, when I tell you that even I, usually so cool, was, while I heard and looked, almost as excited as they were ; that I felt every reverse of the Zulus almost as a personal calamity ; and that when the narrator came to the triumphant denouement, my feelings were so acute and raised to such a pitch, that I almost started up from the ground and shouted for joy, in spnpathy with the stalwart warriors around me ! It would, of course, be absurd in me to hope, for a moment, that my recital at second-hand, and under circumstances so comparatively tame, can produce a A ZULU "MARK ANTONY." 35 like impression. No matter ; I shall endeavour to give you the story as I heard it, and, making due allowances for the want of scenic effect and the imperfections of translation, I trust it may still be interesting to you. Thus, then, the veteran began : — " A great many years ago, just after Dingaan became our king, our captain, Umniamana, called his head men toge- ther ; and, after we were full of meat and angry with beer, he said, ' My father was a great chief, and I am a great chief ; are you not all my children, and ought I not to feed you and kill oxen, so that all the Zulu may say, Umniamana is a king ; every day he kills his cattle, and gives to his people — we will go and join him ; he alone in this land is a great captain — he is a lion ! he is the man tliat is black ? " We admitted it. " ' But how can I give you meat, if I have no oxen ? How can my young men and girls get milk, if I have no cows 1 We are at peace ; we are becoming women. Sur- rounding nations will say that we are no longer warriors, but women : we fight no more, but dig the ground ; our assegais have become hoes, our men have no hearts ! Is it to be so 1 Shall the Umswazi herd their cattle in our sight, and we Zulus not take them ? Say ! Answer me ! are we to hide our heads for the strength that is gone, or shall we cross the river and show to our enemy that we are Zulus, not men (cravens) f " My ears are old, and many sounds have entered them since then; but the shout of mingled rage and defiance, that answered our chief's words, still rings in my ears. When I think of the great warriors and the wise men that were there assembled, and the deeds that they afterwards did ; I say, when the thought of these things comes in my 36 A ZULU FORAY. mind — if it were not that the tears of a man are far away — I could weep to think that I am the last of them. I have lived too long, because I have lived to see the degeneracy of my race. " The chief's speech had kindled the war spirit in our warriors' minds ; and, after all had agreed to take the cattle of the Umswazi, the evening passed away in rejoicings, caused by the knowledge that the young men would have the opportunity of proving themselves heroes worthy to be subjects of our great king — our lion ! " The intended expedition was kept secret from the nation, as it was the wish of Umniamana that ours alone should be the risk, and ours alone the glory ; and accord- ingly, on the appointed day, his own people assembled in the valley, and on counting them it was found that we numbered only three regiments ; whereupon some of the old men wished to get help from Segetwaio, our neighbour- ing chief. Umniamand rose ; Umniamand spoke ; and his words were like the firebrand api^lied to dry grass in winter. * Were the Umswazi more than one nation, and were not we three regiments 1 And who among us was afraid of encountering a whole nation with one Zulu regiment ? How many men did it take to drive a herd of cattle 1 The Umswazi were dogs that should be made to eat the offal of the Zulus ! ' He was a great man, our captain ; as he wished, so we did ; as he motioned, so we went ; if he commanded, then we died ! " We marched towards the enemy's country ; we thirsted, yet we marched ; we hungered, yet we marched. On and on we went, determined to quench our thirst with Umswazi water, and satisfy our hunger with Umswazi cattle. " I need not tell you how they fled at our approach ; THE DREAM OF KING DINGAAN. 37 how the name of Zuhi caused their hearts to die ; how the name of Umniamana caused their women to weep ! We gathered their cattle like stones off the ground ; and the «moke of their kraals obscured the land ! " Onwards and onwards we went ; oftentimes hearing the lowing of their oxen far beneath us ; they had retreated to their holes in the earth, like wolves as they were, and had taken their cattle with them.* " One night we had encamped on a hill, with our sjDoils in the midst, when there came a runner from our great father, our king, who ever thinks of the welfare of his children, and he said, ' Listen to the words of the Lion of the Zulus ! — I have heard that some of my people have gone to war without my knowledge ; I have heard that a great captain of mine has led them ; but I forgive both them and him, because I have dreamed a dream, and my great bro- ther — he that is dead — appeared to me ; and his words were partly good and partly evil. He said, " It is I that have kindled the war-flame amongst your warriors on the Pongola; it is I that have induced Umniamand, to lead them j and now I conie to warn you of their danger. The Umswazi have found that their number is small, and the nation is roused to attack them. Quick, then, send them word, or the cattle that would be yours will return to their €aves; and the women of the Zulus will hoe mealies in vain, for there Avill be no one to eat them." ^' These were the words of Cliaka, my brother ; and mine to you are, ' Be watchful, be wary ; sleep not, till you come back — return victorious, or return not at all ! ' * There are many caves in the Umswazi country, and among them one so large, that the whole nation with their cattle took refuge in it during a great raid of the Zulus into their country. 38 A ZULU FOKAY. " The message of the king was ended. Those who were to watch took their posts, and those who could sleep lay down with anxious hearts, wishing the dawn would come, so that they might go their way. The words of our father troubled the chief, and he slept not at all. " At the break of day we sprang up, and, behold, it was true what the king had dreamed ! Danger was before us — danger in ten thousand, thousand shapes ! * The hill on which we slept sloped gently down towards a deep brook, and on the other side was a large grassy plain, which was black with people. The Umswazi were there ; they were more in number than the grass — they covered it. " I have said before that we were three regiments, each about one thousand people ; two of these were boys, but the one I belonged to were warriors indeed — Umniamana's own regiment. All of us had wounds to show, and all on our breasts. The two younger he posted, one at each ford of the brook, and his own he kept on the hill as a reserve. " The enemy crossed the river ; they attacked the young men ; they came like a cloud of locusts in summer, and our regiments were like to be eaten up by the swann. Nearer and nearer they came, still fighting, still struggling. What deeds of valour were done 1 AYith what determination they fought ! The Umswazi slipped and fell in their own blood, and he who slipped died. Still up the hill they came — our brave young men contending every inch of the way — and, still as they came, we sat and sharpened our assegais, and said not a word ; not a face moved, not a limb faltered. * The Zulus have no number to express so many ; but I have translated in this way some figurative expression relating to an extraordinary quantity. THE TURN OF THE BATTLE. 39 " Then up spoke Umniamana and said, ' My children ! you see how this is ; you see our enemy coming nearer and nearer ; my young men cannot stop them. You know that, in coming here for cattle, we came without the sanction of the king. You remember our father's message, " Eeturn victorious, or return not at all." But in this attempt I alone have led you. I alone induced you to come. Go, there- fore, while there is yet time ; cross the hill, and dej^art ; mine alone will be the blame with the king. Go, then, my children; escape death; but, as for me, I will stay here!* And he folded his arms and sat down. We sprang up (the old savage gasped with excitement) — we sprang up as one man, we clashed our shields together, we shook our assegais in the air, and we shouted from the bottom of our hearts, ' Stay, chief, stay ! we will not go ; we will bear you company. If we are to die, let us die together ; but never shall it be said that a Zulu army turned before Um- swazi's while one man remained to show front ! ' " And we sat down, calm and black, like the thunder- cloud before it bursts. Our chief replied — " ' That is well with such warriors. How can we die 1 ' " Still the Umswazi came up the hill ; nearer and nearer came the mixed throng of warriors, their path black with bodies, and red with blood, until they came so close that we could distinguish their faces. Then ! then ! upon them we went, thundering down the hill ! The cloud had burst, and they saw the lightning flash, which next moment anni- hilated them. Friend and foe, foe and friend, in one indiscriminate mass of struggling, shrieking fiends we drove them before us ; we carried them on our assegais, we brained them with the poles of our shields, we walked over the brook on their bodies ! A panic had seized them ; 40 A ZULU FORAY. and the plain, which in the morning was black with living people, two days after was white with their bones. " Slowly we returned, glad for our victory, but sorrowing for the friends who were slain ; and, leaving the crows to bury the dead, we commenced our homeward march with the spoil. " We crossed the boundary, and everywhere were met by the rejoicings of the people. No moaning for dead men was there ; they had died in their duty ; they had died for their king, who liberally gave to his people the cattle we had brought, which were so great in number that no ten men could stop them at a ford. " On arrival at the king's kraal, our father killed cattle for us, gave us beer to drink, and gave us permission to marry, as we had earned it by our deeds. The day we spent in dancing and feasting, and in the evening we fought our battles over again, as I have now been doing to you." Note. — The Zulu style of speaking is very sententious : they bring out their remarks in jerks ; such as, " Our king is great " — ** Our king is black " — " Terrible to look at " — "Great in war," &c. KAFFIR "DOCTORS." SOUTH AFRICAN SPIRITUALISM. (Glasgow Herald, May, 1S62.) A GOOD grievance has become a necessary to an Englishman's existence ; and " John GrimiHe " may therefore be looked upon as a representative man. This phase of character shows itself in a thousand ways ; but as this paper is not intended to be an essay on that subject, I shall be excused from entering into it, further than to refer to one exemj^li- fication of it, which, to a certain extent, has been the impelling cause of my writing the following paper. We have all of us either personally experienced, or heard our friends complain, of " the most miserable day in my life, which I spent in Wales," or " that horribly wretched day in the Highlands," when in a lonely country inn, with a howling wind and a pouring rain, without society, and with nothing to read but an old Almanac, a " Ready-Reckoner," a Times^ Supplement a week old, and one of those lively and entertaining tracts, which seem always to be dropping from the clouds, where and when nobody wants them. Well, I admit that this sort of thing must be very wretched to any man of a suicidal turn of mind. But in order to fully comprehend the idea of utter loneliness, let your grumbler transport himself to South Africa, and in a waggon, hundreds of miles away from civilisation, with next to nothing to read, and none but savages as companions, and ten to one but we should hear nothing more of his 42 KAFFIR DOCTORS. petty grievances. In such a position did I find myself in the Zuhi country not very long ago. I had, unfortunately, mislaid or lost my books, and was reduced to a few numbers of " All the Year Eound," containing a portion of Bulwer Lytton's " Strange Story," and as it was very incomplete, having neither beginning nor end, I had a fine opportunity opened up to me for exercising my imagination in filling up the hiatus, which, I must confess, afforded me considerable amusement. I wondered whether Fenwick would, as usual, wake up and find it was all a dream, or whether by some steady, practical adaptation of electro-biology, animal magnetism, or what not, it will be all explained at last ; and, giving imagination and conjecture full play, with the Jielp of the smoke from my pipe, I built quite a beautiful " castle in the air," which, like many other " things of beauty," ended in smoke ! But this, on Mrs Nickleby's " association of ideas " prin- cij^le, set me to thinking on some things, bordering on the supernatural, which have come under my own observation in this land of utter savagedom y'clept '' the Zulu ; " and I set them down to wile away the weary hours, without, however, having the vanity to suppose that, strange and unaccountable as my narrative may be, it can, like the literary " Icenhse," imperatively draw the reader to its perusal. But I would ask him to apply some of Jules Fabre's practical philosophy to the solution of the various wonders, juggles, or facts of my " strange story." I feel a considerable amount of timidity in beginning this narration, because I am fully aware of the feeling of incredulity, and even contempt, with which such subjects are received by a very large body of readers who make broad their literary and intellectual phylacteries, pride themselves on their AN AP0L0C4Y AND A VINDICATION. 45 superior intelligence, and laugh to scorn such " old wives' fables," as they are pleased to term them. Whatever may be thought of it by the reader, I conscientiously declare that it is written in sober earnest — no romance ; no mere foundation only on fact, with an imaginary superstructure ; no attempt to foist " travellers' tales " on a credulous public ; but a plain, straightforsvard declaration of facts which occurred within my own knowledge and experience. If it wants that easy flow of language which adds so much grace to the writings of our popular litterateurs; if it be not embellished by gems of learning or deep thought ; if it do not sparkle with racy narrative or witty dialogue ; if I can- not fill out this short story with philosophical treatises, vivid descrijjtions, and startling sensational incidents — yet^ because I shall " a plain, unvarnished tale deliver," and shall " tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," I confidently ask for it a candid perusal and a gen- erous consideration from those who are not afraid of the truth, however plainly it may be told, and however strange it may seem, even in these days of wonders and surprises ; and let my Lord Hamlet's sage dictum be kept in mind, " There are stranger things in nature than are dream't of in our philosophy ! " Amongst the Kaffirs of South Africa there are certain indi- viduals known colloquially as " Doctors," but whose powers, whether really possessed or merely attributed, vary very greatly — from the curing of a cut finger to the concocting of a love philter or a deadly 2)oison — and who also pretend to the attributes of the pythoness, the old Highland spae- wife, and all that " clamjamphray " who profess to tell, with exact precision, what will happen to-morrow, next day, or the day after, and who always make the generally vain 44 KAFFIR DOCTORS. request that the ** anxious inquirer " make his arrangements accordingly. The first time I heard 'anything of the power which these Kaffir " Doctors " exercise over the native mind, was when one of my Kaffir servants had^the sum of ten shilHngs stolen from him, while in my service. Of course, as may be ima- gined, the hullaballoo was something awful. " Oh ! master, I'm dead ; my heart is dead ; my strength is gone ; that for which I have expended my life has been taken from me ;" and other ejaculations he kept giving vent to contin- ually. In plain English, somebody had prigged his month's wages. In answer to his wailing appeal to me, I told him to go down to the Magistrate and have the matter investigated, which he did, more to please me, however, than from any faith he had in the result, and after being assured that he is in no danger, and will have nothing to pay — an important consideration with Kaffirs. In two or three hours he comes back very disconsolate, accompanied by a Kaffir policeman, who has been despatched by his superior officer to make the necessary inquiries, and who does so with a perfectly careless air and demeanour, as one who considers his mission altogether useless, speaking and looking as if he thought it "served him right" for not taking better care of his money, rather than as an officer deputed to protect the lives and property of her Majesty's lieges in the colony of Natal from depredations, losses, "hame-sucken" or raid. The sufferer himself seems as if devoid of hope, stricken helpless and hopeless, by the, to him, great loss : for the Kaffirs are a very avaricious lot. Then a white policeman comes, a stolid, respectable friend of mine; which places the victim in a worse condition, as he A KAFFIR POLICEMAN. 45 is deprived of the "sweet sorrow" of relating and talking- over the particulars of his misfortune — whether it was white or red money that he had lost; whether it was tied round his- neck or his waist ; who he got it from ; how long he had possessed it ; and what he intended doing with it. He is perfectly impervious to the well-meant but ill-understood or appreciated consolations of the " Bobby," which generally run to the effect that it is, or will be, " all right ; " and he is quite sceptical as to any great detective powers in our friend, whom he only recognises by having seen him on Saturday afternoons at the Volunteer band performance,, wearing a tiger skin in front, and beating the big drum. After all this, I must beg that your readers consider themselves served by an awfully hypochondriacal Kaffir for a couple of days — one who might well say with Burns, so. keenly does he feel it — " Oppressed with grief, oppressed with care, A burden more than 1 can bear, I sit me down and sigh ! " Until at last you get so disgusted with the fellow that you feel inclined either to make him a present of the ten shil- lings, or give him a jolly good kicking, and send him about his business. About six o'clock of the morning after the event I called out "Caesar!" Caesar, from the next room, answers " Swae 1 " (Sir.) " My bath ready 1 " " All light, Swae !" I then get up, shove on my " continuations," or entre nous, perhaps do without them, as the neighbourhood is not by any means thickly inhabited, and off I go for my " wallow." As I am luxuriating in cold water, it strikes me suddenly that something has come over Csesar, for he is actually 46 KAFFIR DOCTORS. chirping like a black nightingale, with alternate grunts, as of a prize pig — which, allow me to inform you, is the very perfection of Kaffir melody — and, of course, I immediately conclude that he has found his "life's blood," his "heart's darling," or in plain words, his ten shillings — that he is now, figuratively, killing his fatted calf over his prodigal " tin ; " and, if you are a stranger in the land, and still in your bath, thereby being prevented from seeing Caesar's opera- tions, you may conclude, from an occasional squeal in his song, that the custom is the same amongst the natives here as it was in Israel of old, only the animals differ — the Kaffir's calf being a j^iff- Being amused at the sudden change in Caesar's spirits, I ask him, " Caesar, what's the matter 1 " He answers, " Nutting, Swae." I ejaculate, " Oh ! " and then the dia- logue ends. But, notwithstanding his pro forma denial of anything having happened to him, I find on after inquiry that some friend of his has been kind enough to lend him a shilling, and with that amount of currency he is going to the " Doctor," from whom he expects to learn, without the slightest doubt on his part, what has become of his missing treasure. Hereupon ensues argui^ient and expostulation, and a few observations as to the value of information derived from such a source ; but nothing shakes him in his belief that he is now in the right road, and will certainly recover his money ; and so you let him go. In the evening Caesar's voice is again heard in the kitchen, and inquiry as to his success immediately follows ; and he then recounts to you a long rigmarole of what the " Doctor " said to him : — " You come from a house on a hill." " Your master is a young man." " You come to inquire about DANGEROUS POWER OF THE KAFFIR DOCTORS. 47 some money of yours which has been stolen," &c., &c., all of which, however, may very easily have been known, in the ordinary way, to the " Doctor," as the theft has been the talk of the Hack neighbourhood ever since its occurrence. But the result of it all is that the Kaffir is quite confident he will have his money again in a few days. I must request your readers to remember that all this talk and argument has not been confined to two or three people, but has been the topic of the day, and night too, amongst all the Kaffirs within visiting distance. Two days after, Caesar brings his recovered treasure to show me, in a state of great triumph and jubilation, stating that he had found it at his feet on awaking that morning ! This shows, in a two-fold manner, the great power over the native mind possessed by these " Doctors." Eminently pernicious is this power, and eminently dangerous are these so-called " Doctors," who claim, and to whom is attributed, without question, by the superstitious Kaffirs, the power of bringing to light, and home to the criminal, T)y supernatural means, any theft, murder, robbery, &c. And not only this, but they also claim to be able to prophesy things to come ; to commune with the spirits of departed friends of natives applying to them ; and they are constantly telling their dupes that the sickness with which they may be afflicted ; the non-success they have met with in hunting ; or, in short, any ill with which they are, or imagine themselves to be afflicted, is caused by the restlessness of their father, their mother, or their uncle, who requires an ox to be slaughtered ere his or her restless sj)irit can lie quiet in the ^ave. All this, of course, involves a Doctor's fee. By the way, I may mention that the Kaffirs believe that after death their spirits turn into a snake, which they call 48 KAITIR DOCTORS. " Ehlos6," and that every living man has two of these familiar spirits — a good and a bad. When everything they undertake goes wrong with them, such as hunting, cattle- breeding, &c., they say they know that it is their enemies who are annoying them, and that they are only to be appeased by sacrificing an animal ; but when everything prospers, they ascribe it to their good Elilos6 being in the ascendant. Now, can any of your readers . find any analogy in this creed, so far as it goes, to any other 1 I fancy there would be little difficulty in such an investigation. The Kaffir Doctors also profess to be able to tell what any person at a distance is doing at the moment of inquiry, and also the precise spot where he may be at the time ; and really some of their performances in that way are positively marvellous, and would put to the blush the Davenports and Homes, who have been astonishing the enlightened white man for so long. I shall subsequently endeavour to show this wonderful power of theirs in two cases, selected from many equally astonishing, which I might have quoted. But by far the most pernicious attri- bute claimed by the Doctors, and universally believed in and admitted by the natives, is that of detecting witches and witchcraft. This, like Sir Peter Laurie with suicide, has been " put dowm " by the British Government in the colony ; but when I inform your readers that under inde- pendent chiefs it is in full sw^ay, and that in savage and independent tribes, such as the Zulu, no person is ever believed to have died a natural death, unless in battle or in a row, and not always even then, but must have been " done to death " by witchcraft, which these Doctors are employed to ferret out; it will easily be perceived w^hat an immense DISCOMFORTS OF TRAVELLING IN THE ZULi:. 49 power for evil they exercise. I have seen all this and deeply regretted it, as everyone must do when they become acquainted with the results. But, nevertheless, I have seen so many instances of the occult powers or sagacity of these extraordinary men, that I have sometimes half-fancied that they had a familiar spirit — a Puck or a Robin Goodfellow — ^which kept them ate courant of matters hidden from mortal ken, and brought to them intelligence of everything which had happened, or was going to happen, within a radius of hundreds of miles. And, as an apology for a vindication of this weakness of mine, I proceed to give some more serious experiences than the first I have submitted to your readers. Some years ago I had occasion to travel beyond the boundary of the colony of Natal, in a country where the Kaffirs' savage nature and the Kaffirs' savage king ruled rampant. When, so far from being able to "take mine ease in mine inn," I considered myself fortunate if by chance I arrived at a kraal (or Kaffir village), where the usual concomitants of Kaffir domesticity only allowed you to take your uneasy rest in a private house, or rather hut, and where even these equivocal havens of rest were so few* and far between, and the country so infested with wild animals, that I was glad to pay almost any price, and submit to almost any amount of inconvenience, for the privilege of shelter. I had arrived at a kraal just as it was growing dark ; and from the top of the hill I noticed that there was an unusual commotion — many fires and many people passing to and fro. Being rather anxious about my accommodation for the night I pressed on, and on arriving at my destina- tion was surprised at finding that, instead of the usual greetings and boisterous welcome, no one spoke to me or E 50 KAFFIR DOCTORS. noticed me in any way. I need not say that I felt annoyed at this cool reception, it was so unusual, as at a Zulu kraal you are always welcomed with hearty salutations ; hut if, like the auld Hielan wife, " She disna mak' ony sliarge " for the hospitality, it is expected, and you generally have to "pay for your whistle" in the shape of a handsome present at parting. At last, on becoming urgent for lodging and something to eat, I was told that I could not be attended to or allowed sleeping room, as a great " Doctress " from Natal, with all her suite, was there staying for the night, en route to King Panda, by whom she had been summoned to prescribe for him in some trifling illness, and to counteract the spells of his enemies, to which, of course, he ascribed his illness. One part of the duty which she was expected to perform rather amused me, although it was related with all imagin- able gravity. The Zulus in the north-east had been very greatly annoyed by lions, which had during that season appeared in great numbers, killing the people and the cattle ; and, as I stated before, nothing of this kind, or death by sickness, is ever allowed to arise from natural causes. It had been told the king that certain poAverful Doctors amongst the Ama- tongas — the tribe bordering on the north-east — had cast spells over the lions, and despatched them into Zululand to destroy the people and cattle of the king. This the Natal Doctress, being of great repute — a black " Dr Mary Walker " in fact — was expected to counteract — exorcise the bad Ehlose of the Amatongas, remove the spell Avhich caused the king's sickness, and send the lions back to their original habitat. Both of these objects, I afterwards heard, were effected ; although the most probable way of PORTRAIT OF A KAFFIR AVITCH-EXORCLST. 51 accounting for it was that, the approach of summer causing the game to go inland for "pastures green," the lions " followed suit " as a matter of course, while the inability to eat and drink — in fact, a little wholesome starvation — had restored the king's appetite and health. I decided at last on appealing to this great lady for a hut for the night ; and, knowing that she would be all-powerful, I took my measures accordingly. To my surprise, however, she needed no bribing, but received me, metaj)horically, with open arms, and said that " as we were fellow-subjects of <3ueen Victoria, she would procure me the usual hospitality." I have never in my life seen such a horrible-looking being «as this woman was. In height she was about the middle size, and very fat. From her ankles to the calf of the leg was wrapped round with the entrails of a cow, or some animal of the kind, filled with fat and blood. Then came the usual petticoat, made of hide, secured and embroidered with lions' and tigers' teeth, snakes' bones, beads, round bulb- looking things, little buck horns, and such-like savage bijouterie ; round the loins was one mass of entrails, snake skeletons, medicine bags, roots, human and other teeth, brass buttons, and wire. The body was tattooed all over, iind smeared with red and black earth ; round the neck was a repetition of the above " ornaments." The hair was long and smeared with all sorts of abominations, with a stuffed snake round the forehead by way of decoration ; a tiger skin hung down her back, with the grinning physog. showing over her head, and the head of the snake peering, with a startling lifelikeness, out of its mouth. And, "oh! ye gods and little fishes," didn't she sm — 1 — ahem ! Keeping at a respectful distance — which was necessary under the circumstances — I entered into a conversati( n with 52 KAFFIR DOCTORS. my lady friend, and I confess with sorrow that I was so unpoHte, or impoHtic rather, as to commence " chaffing "" her about the powers she claimed. The argument lasted a long time, and at last she promised me that I should have instances of her j)ower ere long, which would completely convince me. She would not condescend on particulars, but simply said that I would recognise her hand in the matter, as I should go out of the country uithout a coinimnion or a hoof of cattle ! This I laughed at, saying she might bribe or frighten my companions (my Kaffir servants) away, and might induce them or others to steal my cattle. But I had soon cause to wish that I had never seen or spoken to her, as, by a coincidence as strange as it was unpleasant, her words came true. r give these experiences as instances of the power which these Doctors possess over the native mind. No arguments will have the slightest effect in counteracting the wildest speech or threat; and everything which haj^pens afterwards, which is at all out of the common, is at once twisted and turned so as to be evidence in favour of the Nyanga's (doctor's) power. We were very hospitably treated that night — coffee and wine were amongst our protectress' stores — and I j^arted from her in the morning with a laughing reminder of her promise of the night before. The only answer I got was in English, "All right!" We had scarcely travelled five miles when one of my men pointed out a herd of buffalo a little way off the road, and it was immediately decided that we should try and kill one. Leaving two natives with the cattle, we started. We could see two of the animals standing in a capital position, just below a clump of thick bush, which afforded us cover to KAFFIRS KILLED BY BUFFALO AND ALLIGATOR. ,53 creep round. I told one of my people to go one way and stand by a tree, about three or four feet from the chmip, but hidden from the buffalo, while I went in the other "direction and took the first shot. Thus far all went well. I got pretty close, fired, and dropped one. Directly I fired the rest of the herd started out of the clump in all direc- tions, and one of them charged right out at the man at the tree and " pinned " him before he could look round or make the slightest effort to escape. I was terribly shocked at this fatal termination to our day's sport ; but never for one moment did the prophecy of the Doctress cross my mind. Not so with my Kaffirs, however, for they looked j^articularly queer, although such "trifles" don't usually disturb their equanimity; and while they said nothing to me, I could perceive that they discussed the occurrence long iind seriously among themselves. All went well again after that for a couple of days, with the exception that the cattle took the hoof sickness, and could only travel very slowly, and with long intervals of rest. On the third day we had to cross a river famed for alliga- tors. The water was a little high, up to our waists, and flowing rapidly over slippery stones. The drift, or ford, was pretty good, but just below there was a deep pool. In crossing, one of the cattle turned down the river drinking, when one of the Kaffirs took two or three rapid steps to turn it, but, imfortunately, missed his footing, and in a second was shouting for help and S2:)lashing in the deep pool below. He was not more than three yards from us, and I was reaching out a stick to him, when suddenly his arms were thrown up with a yell, there was a swirl in the water, something like a log appeared for a moment, and — the poor fellow was gone ! 54 KAFFIR DOCTORS. We remained staring at one another for two or three- seconds, then ont we went, helter-skelter, as best we could. Not a word was spoken by the Kaffirs for several hours ; and when I tried to break through their taciturnity, wdiich made me feel rather miserable, I could elicit no response. At last, without any preface, one of them got up and said, " Let us go home." " Yes," I said, " that is just what I want — let us go." Still, I never thought of the Doctress ; but the Kaffirs did, and it appeared that when they said, " Let us go home," they meant to go without the cattle, and leave me alone ; and they excused themselves by saying that it was of no use fighting against the predic- tion, and, if they remained, they would only be killed like the others, or else die. Threats, arguments, and promises were all in vain ; I might kill them if I liked — it was the end they expected ; I knew nothing — how indeed could I T — of the powers of their Doctors. What was the use of plenty of money to them, when, if they accepted it, they would die or be killed on the road 1 and so the end of it w^as that they w^ent off in a body, and I was left in a, precious quandary. Certainly I was in a pretty predicament. Drive the cattle without assistance I could not, for there were about a hundred, footsore and inclined to straggle as they were; and I was compelled to leave them at the first kraal, with a l^romise of liberal joayment if they were taken care of until I could proceed to Natal and get other Kaffirs. And thus it happened that / left the country without a companion or a hoof of cattle ! The coincidence struck me as " passing strange," and it annoyed me excessively as I saw at once that nothing would now shake the belief of the natives who had been with me^ INTERVIEW WITH A KAFFIR DOCTOR. 55 who would to a certainty inoculate a large circle of their friends with the virus. But as all I suffered at that time was only a little inconvenience, I did not mind it so much. I went into Natal and procured other Kaffirs; but, alas! on my return I found that the lung-sickness had broken out at the kraal, where I had left my cattle, and all I brought back with me was seven head out of a hundred ! Surely "a heavy blow and sore discouragement " enough for my unbelief in the supernatural powers of the " Nyanga." Certes, I never again meddled with Kaffir notions of their Doctors. I had got "the redder's lick!" Some time afterwards I was obliged to proceed again to the Zulu country to meet my Kaffir elephant hunters, the time for their return having arrived. They were hunting in a very unhealthy country, and I had agreed to wait for them on the N.E. border, the nearest point I could go to with safety. I reached the appointed rendezvous, but could not gain the slightest intelligence about my people, at the kraal. After waiting some time, and becoming very uneasy about them, one of my servants recommended me to go to the Doctor, and at last, out of curiosity and pour passer les temps, I did go. I stated what I wanted — information about my hunters — and I was met by a stern refusal. " I cannot tell anything about white men," said he, " and I know nothing of their ways." However, after some persuasion and promise of liberal payment, impressing upon him the fact that it was not white men but Kaffirs I wanted to know about, he at last consented, saying " he would open the gate of distance, and would travel through it, even although his body should lie before me." His first proceeding was to ask me the number and names 56 KAFFIR DOCTORS. of my liunters. To this I demurred, telling him that if he obtained that information from me he might easily substi- tute some news which he may have heard from others, instead of " the spiritual telegraphic news " which I ex- pected him to get from his " familiar." To this he answered, " I told you I did not understand white men's ways ; but if I am to do anything for you it must be done in my way — not in yours." On receiving this fillip I felt inclined to give it up, as I thought I might receive some rambling statement with a considerable dash of truth — it being easy for anyone who knew anything of hunting to give a tolerably correct idea of their motions. However, I conceded this point also, and otherwise satisfied him. The Doctor then mad^ eight little fires — that being the number of my hunters ; on each he cast some roots, which emitted a curious sickly odour and thick smoke ; into each he cast a small stone, shouting as he did so, the name to which the fire was dedicated ; then he ate some " medicine," and fell over in what appeared to be a trance for about ten minutes, during all Avhicli time his limbs kept moving. Then he seemed to wake, went to one of the fires, raked the ashes about, looked at the stone attentively, described the man faithfully, and said, " This man has died of the fever, and your gun is lost." To the next fire as before, " Tliis man (correctly described) has killed four elephants,/ and then he described the tusks. The next, " This man (again describing him) has been killed by an elephant, but your gun is coming home ; " and so on through the whole, the men being minutely and correctly described ; their success or non-success equally so. I was told where the survivors were and what they were doing, and that in three months they would come out, but as they would not expect KAFFIR DIABLERIE. 57 to find me waiting on them there so long after the time appointed, they would not pass that way. I took a par- ticular note of all this information at the time, and to my utter amazement it turned out cmred in every jmrtimlarl It was scarcely within the bounds of possibility that this man could have had ordinary intelligence of the hunters. They were scattered about in a country two hundred miles away ; and, further than that, he could not have had the slightest idea of my intended visit to him, and prepared himself for it, as I called upon him within an hour of its being suggested to me. I could give many more instances of this " power," " diablerie," or whatever it may be called, but this last related was the most remarkable ; and I must acknowledge that I have no theory to urge or explanation to offer re- garding it, for I have in vain puzzled my own brains, and those of some of the shrewdest men in the colony, for some sort of elucidation of the mystery. I am afraid I may tire your readers with these crude anecdotes ; but if you and they think otherwise, I shall be happy to send you some other papers on Kaffir matters, which will show to those " who stay at home at ease " something antipodical to English civilisation, but which will still, I hope, tend to prove that Kaffirs, like a gentleman who shall be nameless, are " not so black as they are sometimes painted." A TRIP INTO THE ZULU, AND A VISIT TO KING PANDA. (Glasgow Her alp, February and March, 1868.) My trip was from that " brightest jewel in the British crown," Natal, in South Africa, into a neighbouring terri- tory belonging to the Zulus ; and I took with me a waggon, twelve oxen to draw it, six Kaffir servants, and an omnium gatherum of goods for the purposes of trade. I am inclined to think that a description of my cavalcade may not be uninteresting, and therefore subjoin a pen-and- ink photograph of it. Those who have seen the model of the South African waggon in the Exhibition of 1862, or "the genuine article" in poor Gordon Cummin g's Museum, may recollect the shape and make of it ; but unless they have travelled in one over such a country as this — for I cannot say roads unless on the hccus a nan lucendo j^rinciple — they can have no conception of its capabilities and wonderful adaptability to its purposes. A machine on four wheels, about fourteen feet long, loosely, yet strongly, put together, the joints and bolts working all ways, so that one wheel may be buried in a hole, and the front or hind j^art of the waggon sunk with it, and yet the other wheel will be per- fectly straight and upright ! It is well covered with canvas, which makes it so far comfortable. To see this "ship of the desert" coming sailing over ground full of stones and holes, is something wonderful; it twists and wriggles IN APPRECIATION OF COLENSO. 5^ about in the most incomprehensible, yet safe, manner, and jolts frightfully. Nine of the oxen were steady old stagers, but three of them were young, undergoing the process of " breaking-in," which consists in tying them between two old oxen until the yoke is on, then thrashing them until they kick and pull, and then thrashing them until they are quiet and steady again ! After undergoing this ordeal a few times they are generally quite as quiet and tractable as Craiser after his Rarey-fied course of treatment. Such being the waggon and oxen, we now come to the noble Zulus. They are a very decent lot; but, "oh I ye gods ! " must I confess it ? — not one of them ever heard of Colenso. When I spoke to them of the benefits they have received by being brought by him before the notice of the generous Christianising and civilising British public — when I pointed out to them the churches and schools whicli are, no doubt, spread over the land by his means and with the sums raised by him from generous Christian philanthropists for the benefit of his diocese, and reminded them of the care and anxiety he has always taken in and shown towards them, in order to render them cognisant and worthy of the blessing they enjoy in living- under a civilised government, and in the care of such a bishop ; and which they may have in richer abundance by turning from their own ways, which, of course, must be evil, to those of a Christian people, which, of course, must be good — upon my word, wonderful as it may appear, they are so blind that they positively do not or will not see it ! Then, again, when determined to add my mite to the Bishop's Imidahle endeavours for the benefit of his flock, I took the trouble to read to them — ^translating as I went 60 A TRIP INTO THPJ ZULU. Along into the purest Zulu — liis " First Book on the Penta- teuch," which I happened to have with me, omitting none of the algebraic or mathematical signs, but giving every- thing — such is the perverseness or stupidity of this people that they didn't seem to be any the better for it ; so, €oming to the conclusion that they must be utterly irre- claimable — " Anathema Maranatha " — I just did what the Bishop does — let them alone I But to return. In describing my Kaffirs, I shall begin with " Jacob," a very " grave and reverend signior," highly impressed with the dignity of his position, middling honest, very obliging, rather lazy, and has been in my service (off and on) for ten years. " Sequata," the leader, a boy very much given to tears, ■dirt, and food — especially food — a new hand. " Entabin," the hunter, has been in my service since he was a boy — twelve or fourteen years ago — a good shot and very handy for looking after the guns, loading cartridges, •&C. — cleanly in his person — conceited, but faithful. " Jacob," the carrier, came to me at the same time as Entabin— can drive and shoot a little, but cannot be consi- dered very accomplished in either — "cheeky," and swears by his "Boss." " Salt," the cook, ^Y^^gol\-maid^ laund?'e55, and house- keeper ; has been in my employ many years — a very good fellow^ — cleanly in his habits, and prides himself upon his English. Being asked (in Kaffir) what he is looking for revents him; his invari- able answer to any suggestion of this nature being, "It is not our custom — we are Kings of the Zulu" ("Zulu" in native parlance means "the heavens"). Any attempt, therefore, to improve upon this "heavenly" state, he thinks a work of supererogation. He is kind to the whites, both from his natural disposition, and because he is acute enough to see that any quarrel with them would be niinous to him. In person, he is a good-looking, tall, powerful man, but he is developing the characteristic of all Ensensengakona's jirogeny — terrible fatness — especially about the hips and 82 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. legs; and he has, hi common with all Panda's children, small hands and feet — the mark of good birth. He remained at the capital but one night, and then he left for the headquarters of his own regiment, "Toolwan." It is amusing to see the natives doing what they call woi'h The other day the King wanted some wattles for a hut; and immediately, instructions were sent round all the kraals in the Mahlabate, to the Amakanda (heads) as they are called. The whole of the young men turned out to the bush, each cut a wattle (or branch), leaving the leafy head upon it, and returned marching up the hill, looking as if "Birnam wood had come to Dunsinane." When they came into the kraal each man threw down his wattle with the air of one who had done some great deed; then they had a dance, and each "went his several way," entirely satisfied with the great day's icork which he had done. Nodwengo, the capital, lies in the northern end of an amphitheatre about eight miles in diameter. The surround- ing hills are very beautiful — partly green and partly covered with mimosa trees, and broken up here and there into precipices. The White Umvelose river runs through the centre, and smaller streams intersect the area in all direc- tions. The consequence is, that from its situation it is very hot in summer, while from the plenteousness of water it is very cold in winter. The kraal itself contains, I should think, about five hundred huts. I have not counted them, but judge by comparison with the Escepene. Over the hills to the north is a large Hlanzi called the Ewela, from which I have just returned after two days' unsuccessful buff'alo shooting. The heat — it is the middle of summer — was something frightful; it must have been 140° in the sun. Not a DELIGHTS OF BUFFALO HUNTING. . 83 breath of air can penetrate the dense mimosa clumj)s. The country is very broken, and stones are strewn thickly amongst the grass, which reaches up to your thighs, render- ing walking extremely difficult and exhausting. Then at night, after a hard day's work, to come home and take "a feed" of roasted beef half-raw, some sour milk and mealies, and go to sleep in one of the native huts on a hard clay floor, is not, by any means, either luxurious or refreshing. I should not have spoken of buffalo shooting at all, but that my experience of it bears out a free-and-easy description which I once heard, viz., — "Buffalo hunting is devilish hard work, but then, by Jove, it's glorious fun!" This is true. The rising in the morning before the dawn, the walk to the ground while you are fresh, the taking your stand upon some high point to watch for the game, and the noting, as light increases, the gradual unfolding of peak after peak, valley after valley — the chiar-oscuro, the light and the shade, with here and there a nebulcB of mist hiding some spot on which you feel assured there must be buffalo — is positively delightful. You forget for a time the object of your excursion in admiring the beauties of the landscape, and the exquisite and ever-varying Turneresque atmospheric effects, until at last you are recalled to the work in hand by a sudden cry of "Nanzya!" (there they are) from the native at your side, who has no artistic or ideal sympathies, but whose whole soul has been concentrated on buffalo beef all this time. Then comes a consultation as to how the game may be best approached, and the direction of the wind has to be ascertained and considered. They are travelling towards the bush for shade and rest, and the lay of the land has to be 84 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. noted. When all is settled the start is made, and then comes the hard work. The jDurity of the atmosphere is such that distance is almost annihilated, and what seems close at hand is, in reality, miles away; therefore you have generally a long- and weary tramp before you strike the trail. The word is passed, "Steady now, no talking, they are in that bush, look outl" and away we go. Eyes roving in all directions, foot-falls as if on velvet, and the nostrils of the natives — and doubtless my own, too — expanded with excitement. Presently we come to the dense part of the bush, where they lie during the heat of the day, and creejnng is the word — moving like mice as regards noise, like the tortoise as regards speed. Suddenly the boy in front of me halts, and I creep up to his side; no words are necessary. I gently move aside a leafy screen, and there they are. And noble fellows they are too ! Some standing, some lying down, some snoring away, and one old bull looking out in our direc- tion, evidently susj^icious, yet not sufficiently so as to induce him to alarm his fellows. He is within about ten yards; so, as gingerly as possible, I come into something like Hythe position, and in a second the woods ring with the report which accompanied the bullet as it entered his brain. There is a snort and a heavy fall, a rush like thunder through the thick tangled bush, and amidst the smoke I deliver the second barrel at a glancing black object, and, above the reverberation of retiring hoofs, a "Ba — a — a — a'' is heard, which assures us that that shot has also been successful. This is all. One minute of intense excitement in the day, with your life on the hazard; but it is enough, and repays all the toil and risk, as there is not only the pride of killing such nol)le game — accounted the most dangerous in South Africa — l)ut there is also the pleasure A KAFFIR STORY-TELLER. 85 of supplying the natives with meat, which they seldom get by any other means, and whose imichant for it is in the inverse ratio to its scarcity. I need scarcely say after this ei)isode that I am fond of shooting, and that I consider the sport here worth following; but as for those books indited by " mighty Nimrods," I'd as lief read a season's game-book in England as their lucubra- tions, for, like your "Alpine Club" adventures, if not "toast and waterish," there is generally too strong an infusion of " bosh and bunkum," and pervading self-glorification. I heard a story the other day which, if the power of writing fiction were possessed by me, I might have worked up into a first-class sensational novel. It was at night, while we were all sitting round the fire at the waggon. The fitful light was thrown on the narrator, who being right opposite to me, I had a full view of his gestures and the action of his body, without which, I greatly fear, my description will lose half its interest. I fancy that not even the Eastern story-tellers can come up to the Kaffir in power of pictorial narration; their language is not very copious, but, notwithstanding, by the combined effects of oratory and expressive pantomine, they can bring circum- stances, time, and place most vividly before you. When any person is accused of witchcraft, it is generally one who has a good stock of cattle, so that his destruction may be profitable to the King. If he is found guilty — which, by the way, is always a foregone conclusion — " an army," small or large, according to the size of his kraal, is sent against him. The proceedings are kej^t a profound secret, and the first notice he has of the trouble he has got into is the shout of " the avengers" surrounding the kraal. 86 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. It was a case of this kind which the Kaffir described. It appears that some years ago one of Panda's wives was taken ill. The " doctor" was sent for, and, having made his diagnosis, pronounced that she was bewitched — a convenient method, by the way, of covering his ignorance — whereupon he was ordered to discover the culprit; and, after a little fugleing, he "smelt out" a petty chief who lived high-up on the Tugela. It was necessary to be particularly careful in dealing with this man, as he lived so near to the border that, if he had the slightest inkling of what was intended, he could easily slip over into Natal. Everything, however, was well managed, and at night the kraal was surrounded.* The kraals, as I have said elsewhere, are built in a circle, and where they are anyways near the bush they are encircled on the outside with a thorn fence about the height of a man, besides the inner fence, which forms the cattle stand; and between the two are ranged the huts. The modus operandi is first silently to surround the outer fence, then open the gate, which is made of branches, enter, and surround the huts. When all is complete, they set uj) a shout and call on the unhappy inmates to come forth and be killed, which they generally do without any fuss or noise, both from their sense of the uselessness of struggling against their opponents, and from the fatalism which runs in all their natures. They say it is their Ehlose, i.e., fate, and "who can prevent it?" But in this case it happened that the chief was a powerful, active, daring young fellow, who, besides the natural love of life, had another incentive to * The practice is, if one of the people is condemned to be executed for witchcraft, to kill the whole kraal, even the very dogs and fowls do not escape. They then set fire to the huts, and so ends tlie dismal tragedy. The cattle, of course, are driven off to the King. AN ARTFUL DODGE. 87 escape in the shape of his intended, who was on a visit to him, and in his hut.* The people, aroused from sleep by the yells of the King's messengers, knew at once what their fate would be, and without any ado submitted to it. But the chief determined to make a dash for it, and, at all events, try to save the girl. Together they rolled up a mat, fastened a shield and some assegais on the top as if held by a man, and thrust it suddenly out into the midst of those guarding the door. Immediately they closed on to it, stabbing and striking it in the dark. Before they had discovered their mistake the man had got out of the little door — the most difficult part — and, placing his back against the outer fence, was able to defend himself for a few moments. As the attacking force drew off to assail him, the girl got out, and, seizing the " dummy," threw it over the outer fence amongst those who were guarding round the kraal, where the same scene was repeated. Those inside, seeing another suddenly appear, and fearing that there might be more, halted, puzzled for a moment; then the two, seizing the opportunity, sprang clear through or over the fence, and got away, stabbing two of their opponents who " stopped the way." Now, the escape of any one under such circumstances is supposed to show such bravery and acuteness that it is always reckoned a condonation of past offences; and the successful is sure to arrive at high honour in the Zulu country. They infer that he cannot be a witch if he is such a brave man. Therefore the chief and his bride might with perfect safety have appeared at the King's kraal — if they could have escaped * The Kaffirs have no notion that there is any immodesty in tho two sexes occupying the same hut at night. 88 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. pursuit — and, once there, would have been respected highly, and, in all probability, have his cattle returned to him. But this chief's " heart was red," and, having " a large liver" (great bravery), he determined first to avenge the slaughter of his friends, and then cross over to Natal. No one in the Zulu country would molest him except those sent by the King for the purpose. This party, after completing the destruction of the kraal, drove off the cattle to the King's, having first despatched six men and an officer on the trail of the fugitives. The Kaffir's ideal description of the runaways was in- imitable. He employed few words, but the action of his body, head, and arms brought vividly before your eyes the fugitives — ^the stumbling over stones and into holes, the hard breathing, the wiping away the perspiration, and at last the halt, when a tolerably safe distance had been reached; the sitting on the ground in despair — nothing said, but constant mutual exclamations of grief and anger escap- ing from them, the start from the ground to flee " at the turning of a leaf," the re-seating themselves, and the gradual return to " mitigated grief;" the conversation between them as to future prospects and ^proceedings, and the decision at last that the girl should hide and the man return to see the results of the fray, and, if possible, avenge the destruction which he felt too certain had overtaken his people. The parting — " Ah ! my child, take care. Walk as the snake goes through the grass. Strike as it does and dis- appear. Remember that though I remain here, the assegai that strikes you is my death. But go; you are a man. In after days we shall talk over this matter in Natal, and with the more pleasure that you will have appeased the Ehlose of your friends who are gone." A ZULU HERO. 89 The girl was hid away in a hole in the side of a rocky- hill. The man rolled a large stone to the mouth of the recess; and, to prevent it from falling away, stayed it round with smaller ones. Ah ! too fatal precaution ! The remainder of the tragedy is brief but sorrowful. After a smart but short walk, the chief saw the pursuing party advancing up the side of the hill by a path which at the top passed between two high banks. He posted him- self under cover of a bush in their front and waited for them. Expecting nothing less than that he would come of his own accord to meet them and deliver himself up, the seven men were hurrying carelessly up. As they passed the bush the chief sprang out, and with two short sharp stabs despatched two men, and had effected his escape before they recovered from their surprise. It was not long, however, before, with shouts and yells, the remainder plunged into the bush after him; and in the confusion they, mistaking one another for their intended victim, fought amongst themselves, and the result was the loss of two more. The other three, when they saw how their numbers were reduced, determined to return home and give up the pursuit. For this purpose they proceeded up the path, but on one of the high banks at the top the vin- dictive and. undaunted avenger was awaiting them, and, hurling a huge boulder from his coign of vantage, dashed out the brains of the officer as he came beneath him. Seeing his enemies reduced to two, he considered it beneath his manhood to use strategy, and he therefore descended to engage them hand-to-hand. Ah! rash adventurer — forget- ful lover ! Why will he forget the warning of his affianced, that the assegai which reached him equally wounded her? 90 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. Many days passed and went, and at Nodwengo the people began to wonder that there was no appearance of the party sent in pursuit of the chief, and another corps was des- patched to endeavour to obtain some tidings of them. They arrived at the ruins of the kraal, and there took up the trail. First they found the skeletons — picked by the wolves — of the four who had been slain at and in the bush; then those of the three at the top. They marvelled greatly at the prowess of the chief, and wondered what had become of him. One of them, however, struck his trail, and the party following it soon came to the cavity where the girl had been hid. In front of it lay the bones of the chief, and, directed by the effluvia, they rolled away the stone, and there discovered the corpse of the unfortunate girl ! Her figurative words had come, in effect, literally true. The wounds which her lover had received in the fight had just left him strength sufficient to creep to the hiding place of his intended, but not enough to remove the stone ; and he had fastened it in such a manner that she from the inside could not free herself! There they both died — he, most likely, quickly, owing to his wounds; but she slowly, lingeringly, the agonising death of famine ! Who shall paint the heart-rending scene ? — the bleeding lover on the outside ; his feeble and ineffectual attempts to release her ; the blood welling-out afresh at every abortive effort; at last the despairing conversation as the awful reality of their hopeless position stares them in the face; the agonising cries of the poor girl immured in her living tomb as the voice of her lover gradually faded away in death ; thsn the loving aj^peals of the girl meet no response; and, at length, the conviction steals over her that no more shall she hear the voice of her beloved — no more shall she A ZULU TRAGEDY. 91 see his dear form ; and she Draw the curtain ! Their agonies are past ; but while they lasted, ah ! who shall paint their bitterness 1 It is a sad, mournful story, which has deeply touched even the native heart, callous as it is to scenes of rapine and slaughter. It is a custom in the Zulu country that every year, just as the Indian com is filled, but yet still milky and soft, the people repair to the King at Nodwengo, and there hold " a feast of first-fruits," when the King has a grand review of all his troops, big and little, old and young, male and female — all who are able to go up, like the Jews to the Passover ; and, after the King has eaten of the green food, and put his army "through their facings," they all disperse again as- rapidly as they collected together. This they call " Hlala^ bkos;" literally, "Playing to the King!" The feast will begin in about ten days, and, from all I have heard, and what I have seen of the smaller one, I am sure it will be worth witnessing and describing. The lesser one was celebrated about a fortnight ago, when about three thousand men came up to the kraal, caught the^ bull, and danced the " Ingoma." The natives call the smaller feasts the " Niatella," or the "Treader on heels;" and at it every year a bull is turned out, which a i:>articular regiment — this year " Tool wan " — is ordered to kill. They must not use assegais or sticks, but must break its neck or choke it with their bare hands. It is then burned, and the strength of the bull is supposed to enter into the King, thereby prolonging his health and strength. The bull — which on this occasion was a fine three-year- old — is turned out, and the men throw themselves upon it 92 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. like ants. It accepted their embraces quietly for a while, until finding that something more than a joke was intended, it commenced to kick and plunge furiously. Three or four got kicked and gored ; but it was of no use, for despite of its tremendous exertions, they at last fairly choked it, shouldered it off to the kraal, and then burned it. Then they danced the " Ingoma." This is the national song of the Zulus, and has as great an effect on them as our national anthem has on us. It is a very old song, but became all of a sudden famous in Chaka's time, who made it his war song, and to this African " Lullibullero" conquered all of what is now the Zulu-land and Natal as well ; and €ver since then it has become a sort of combination of the ''Queen's Anthem" and "Scots wha ha'e" among the people. When the soldiers commenced the cantata, in front of the King, they had it all to themselves for a few minutes, but gradually the patriotic feeling got roused, and all the bystanders — old women and children, the chiefs, and the Koyal attendants, and at last the old King himself — ^joined in the loyal chorus, and the air became full of " J6, J6, J6 — J^, J6, Je," accompanied by regular stamps on the ground, steadily increasing in intensity until everything rattled again. Then leaving off the chorus they struck up — speaking of the Zulus — ' * They cut them to pieces, They put them to rights; (ironically) By the way, you are not one of them. We are braves, that fear the King ; By the way, you are not one of ug. Je, Je, Je, (stamp) Je, Je, Je," (stamp). The words will not seem to express or even suggest much to an Englishman, and would not appear at all striking even THE ZULU NATIONAL ANTHEM. 93 if I could convey the idioms ; but to Zulus, accompanied as they are with glorious remembrances, they are sufl&cient thoroughly to arouse their savage blood ; and, therefore, when the " Ingoma " is sung, an extra number of captains are always spread about, as a sort of special constables, as a necessary measure of precaution, in order to quell any attempt at tumult which may arise. And, I may add, that tumults always do arise. A wry word or a crooked look sets the whole in a blaze like a spark among powder ; and then the captains immediately commence to hammer away with heavy sticks or " knob-kerries " till they cry " hold, enough ! " The stick is the great disciplinarian and " argumentarium " in the Zulu. The young men have a saying, "We never can hear, unless we first feel the stick!" The whole of the kraals on the Mahlabate are filling fast ; the people are trooping in from all directions, each party with its household goods and a package of Indian corn for their support ; for, although the King will kill a number of cattle for them, there will be only a tit-bit for each, so they must attend to their own commissariat. It is the custom for all the young men in the country to spend a few months every year " Konsaing," i.e., laying their respects at Court ; but " not to put too fine a point upon it," this means in fad that they have to hoe the King's corn, and at the same time find themselves in provant. Those who live close at hand are pretty well off, but those who come from a distance have generally veiy short commons. They, however, can stand starvation wonder- fully. They will travel or work for days on nothing but an occasional drink of water ; but then, on the other hand, when they have the chance they can eat enormously and continuously. 54 A TRIP INTO THE ZULU. This is a time when all the Zulus are full of old recollec- tions, always speaking and boasting of old deeds and glories; consequently, I have the history of the rise and progress of Zulu greatness continually dinned into my ears; and, having been overdosed with this sort of thing, I have determined to dispense a modicum of it to the readers of my " Trip." This cannot be grumbled at, however, seeing that I have ^iven fair warning ; so that, if Zulu history possesses no charms, it may be skipped; but as forty-two years of " strange eventful history " will only occupy as many lines, I think I may anticipate having a few readers among " anxious enquirers " into that most romantic of all romances — history. About the year 1820 Ensensengakona "died in his bed" peaceably. He was, like all his ancestors, merely a petty chief of a country extending over the now " Mahlabati," the then MUtat of the Zulus. " Chaka," his son, succeeded him, and reigned peaceably enough for two years. Then a tribe called the " Endwandwe," who lived at the extreme northern end of what is now the Zulu country, began to aim at " universal dominion," and, with that end in view, under their chief " Zweete "■ — a would-be South African Caesar — conquered all the tribes around them up to the Zulu. Chaka felt uneasy, but did not know how to oppose them, his tribe being so small. Just then, however, as the fates would have it, a tribe called " Zoongoo," abutting on the Zulus, quarrelled amongst themselves "for the throne!''' One party craved the assistance of the Endwandwe, and the other asked the armed intervention of Chaka. This was the beginning of Chaka's wars. In the first campaign, however, he and his Zoongoo allies were beaten, and driven HISTORY OF THE ZULUS. 95 eak to, look at, or eat with his mother-in-law. And neither husband, nor wife must utter their relations' names. This is called "Hlonipa."" 4tli, — If any one complains of a headache, and says it arises- from an old wound, they shave the hair from the spot, cut into the bone, scraj^e well for about five minutes, and during the operation have water constantly squirted from the mouth into the gash. Tlds is a certain cure fm' headache ! 5 th, — If you sprain your thumb, get some one to pile about a couple of inches of sand over your hand, which you have resting on the ground ; make a fire over it until the thumb is half-roasted, then cut about twenty slits above the joint, and — the spmn is cured/ I might add numerous other hints, social, political, and medicinal, but these will suffice for the present. I may, however, on a future occasion devote a j)ai:)er to these " curios" of South African life and manners. Ah, me ! my days in Zulu-land come to an end. " Home- ward bound" is now the mot d'ordre. Isiotwithstanding the pervading roughness, and occasional annoyances and dis- comforts, I have thoroughly enjoyed the open air, the free, happy life, and the novel and interesting circumstances by which I was surrounded. When I reached the Tugela on my return, I felt inclined to parody Juliet, and exclaim — " All ! Tugela, Tugela, wherefore art tliou Tugela? Why aren't you the other boundary?" But then, again, I think of home and the comforts and delights of civilised life, for which, e7itre iious, I have still HOME AGAIN. 103 an arriere pemee, and I come to the conclusion tliat " my lines have fallen in pleasant places" after all, seeing that I shall have — in a verse from "Cymbeline," altered to suit the circumstances — '* No more to brave the summer's sun, Nor yet the furious buffalo's rages ; My work iu Zulu-land all done, Home I go to get my ivages!" WILD LIFE IN SOUTH AFRICA. (Stab, February and JSIarch, 1870). Ah, Wild life ! — Wild life ! what a charm there is about it. I used to wonder, and have often laughed at the rhapsodies — as I then thought them — indulged in by Mayne Reid regarding his prairie days; but never, never more shall I be guilty of such silly incredulity, for have I not had similar experience? And while writing this paper exactly the same feelings come over me — ^my heart throbs; my blood boils; my frame tingles; and I long to be at the old game again. I have given it up — I am afraid for ever; but am still subject to ever-recurring attacks of the prairie-fever, which, doubtless, is the same in its symptoms and effects in South- Eastern Africa as in AVestern America. No one who has not lived such a Wild life can know the fascination which after-thoughts of it exert. It is not so much felt at the time, but when one has at last settled down in the midst of civilisation, the mind reverts to the old scenes with a vividness, a fondness, and an excitement, which must be experienced to be appreciated. The glorious freedom of Wild life — free from every fetter except what you yourself may choose to wear; free from the constantly irritating contacts and annoyances to which you are subject in an old country; free to come; free to go; free to halt; free — and often necessitated — to experience the extremes of hunger and satiety, heat and cold, wet and dry; plenty of adventure to season your food; tale-tellers equal MORNING IN S.E. AFRICA. 105 to the Eastern ones to amuse your leisure hours ; and the study of the habits, customs, and pecuHarities of the wild races amongst which you may be thrown — constitute a life delightful to experience, and pleasant to look back upon. These thoughts — or rhapsodies if you like — came crowding upon me, after reading over some sketches in a journal of old times — for, although not many years ago, it looks an age — and it struck me that a few of them might not be un- interesting, even in these days when everybody must relate his experiences to everybody else, whether he may travel to Aldgate Pump or to Timbuctoo, or whether he may scale Primrose Hill or the Matterhorn, or whether he may make a voyage in the Eob Eoy or the Great Eastern. I have no pretensions to be considered a litterateur^ so that my reminiscences of Wild life, while wanting in dash and polish, may be pardoned on the ground that they are a faithful record of scenes I have mixed in, stories I have heard, and of some peculiarities of the natives I have observed. It is Zulu-land I write about, and the Sketches are taken at random. I. — Morning in South-Eastern Africa. Nothing, in South-Eastern Africa, can be so charming to my mind as a fine morning after the first rain of the season. For months a dull, dry haze, called by the natives "■ Lofusseemba," has covered the face of the country, causing i'ven the nearest hills to loom as if in the far distance. The atmosphere has been dry and close ; your beard frizzles and your skin crumples up from the want of moisture. Hunting is most unpleasant, from the dust and black ashes — the remnants of the grass fires — which you raise at every step. 106 WILD LIFE — MORNING IN S.E. AFRICA. The feet of the natives get cut up by constant trampHng on the sharp stems of grass, left by the same cause; and altogether you feel as if the greatest luxury in life would be to "paidle in the burn" the live-long day; but, unfortunately, owing to the long drought, there isn't the tiniest pool to be seen. The rains come at last, and with a vengeance too ! For three days you have to endure the stifling atmosphere of a native hut — a sort of exaggerated beehive — and as the grass of which it is constructed has contracted during the long spell of dry weather, you may say you have a covering, but no shelter. However, that doesn't matter much — all your care is for the guns and ammunition ; as for yourself, you won't melt, nor take harm by exposure in this fine cHmate, and it isn't the first time you have slept in the wet. Towards morning one of the natives looks out of the door and exclaims "Le^Balele" (it shines — it is fair). You also rise at last from your damp couch and go out; when immediately you forget all the previous discomfort in the exquisite charm of the lovely morning. The country lies dark, yet distinctly defined, before you; the relief is magical, and would have enraptured Turner. No glimmering haze to pain the eye — no blur in the landscape — but all the out- lines and details clearly majoped out before you. The sheen of the river is seen below, its heretofore dry bed now filled with a tumultuous flood ; and here and there amongst the peaks, and dotting the flat-land, lie white, soft, fleecy nebulae of mist. The freshness and balminess of the air is delicious; the breeze — the handmaid of the morn — rises so pleasantly, dispelling the misty spots and Avi^eaths ; and then Aurora, on the wings of the morning, bursts upon us, bathing the whole face of tJie country in a flood of light; and all nature. INTENSE HEAT IN THE PONGOLO VALLEY. 107 animate and inanimate, seems to liail the advent of morning in a chorus of joy ! Such a morning is worth seeing, and worth writing about, and I only regret that I am so in- capable of doing it justice. II. — A Day in AVild Life. The waggon has been "out-spanned" u2)on a hill over- looking miles upon miles of Hlanzi (o^^en bush), dark and sombre-looking at this winter time in all parts. Here and there are small peaked and table hills, which, however, but slightly diversify the landscape. Beyond rise the high bare hills of Amaswazi* and the Bombof. Through the middle of the fiat runs the river Pongolo. The uniformity of colour imparts a dull yet grand aspect to the river. You feel, in descending to the habitat of the game, as if you could realise Dante's famous inscription on the gate of the Inferno. Although there may be a cool breeze blowing in the hills you have left, directly you reach the flat, and are fairly amongst the mimosa trees, it ceases. The sun beats down on your head in such a manner — so directly and with such persever- ance — that you are half inclined to believe in the ancient mythology, and ascribe the infliction to some offence un- wittingly given to Phoebus. Occasionally the chirrup of a bird is heard, but otherwise all is hot, silent, and lonely. When, however, you are once fairly in the Hlanzi the sense of oppression ceases in the excitement of hunting. Game is abundant and sufficiently wild to give zest to success. First, most probably, the graceful Pallah will be seen in troops, gazing with evident wonder and terror in your * Amaswazi, the tribe on the N. and N.W. of Zulu. + See "Bombo," Sketch No. 4. 108 WILD LIFE — A DAY IN WILD LIFE. direction. As you draw nearer and nearer a little movement Avill be seen — one or two will change their places, then suddenly the whole herd, without any further preliminary motion, will start away, each leaping high as they go. The effect is very pretty, for as they leap the red of their backs and sides, and the white of their bellies, alternately appear and disappear, producing a glittering zoetropic effect on a magnificent scale. Next your attention is drawn to the other side by a loud sneeze, and on looking thither you behold a troop of Gnu and Quagga mixed. They, on the other hand, are in constant motion — gnu and quagga passing and repassing each other without pause. A single gnu will every moment plunge out, whisk his tail, give a sneeze, and then back again to the ranks ; but the head quagga stops any impudent mani- festation of this kind by laying his ears back and biting any forward youngster which attempts to pass him. When this herd considers you are near enough for any agreeable pur- pose, away it goes, kicking and plunging with such an evident " catch me if you can" expression that you feel very much inclined to send a bullet among them to give them a lesson of respect to the genus homo ; but we are after "metal more attractive" and therefore leave them alone. It is very interesting to notice the discipline kept uj) in gnu families. Any laggard amongst the youngsters is immediately taken to task by its mother or by a bull, and well switched with their horse-tails to make it keep up. From this circumstance the natives say that a gnu's tail is "medicine," and that, however tired you may be, if you bnish your legs with it the .sense of fatigue passes away. Of course, one hair of faith is more effectual than all the hairs on the tail in producing this result. GAME AND THORNS IN THE HLANZI. 1()1> A little further on a troop of the noble-looking bull Koodoos i;;; geeu — thc most wary buck I know — with their spiral liorns and large ears laid Imck, glancing between the mimosas ; when, if you manage to get within range, a bullet either arrests the flight of one, or hastens the stampede of the whole. Again you march on, when with a crash out rushes a noble Wild Boar from the thicket in which he has been lying. AVith head up and tail on end away he goes at a short, quick gallop, and, as he breaks through the long grass and thick, tangled underwood, a flock of Guinea-fowl and Phea- sants are roused, and, flying hither and thither, the air is filled with their discordant notes, and also with a shower of sticks which the natives shy at them with some success. To this noise and confusion is added the cry of a species of Caurie, which attracted by the din, perches on a tree close by, and reiterates "go away" as plainly as an angry child of four or five years of age would do, and with something like the same eff'ect on your nerves. Again on the tramp towards the thickest part of the Hlanzi — the deepest gloom of this Tartarus — where larger trees of the mimosa species prevail — where the creeper, the "wait-a-bit" thorn (called by the natives " catch-tiger" and "come-and-I'll-kiss-you"), a long-spiked thorny bush (called by the natives "the cheeky"), the cactus-thorn of three inches long, the nettle, and all sorts of such abominations most do abound ; and on entering there, in sternest silence as regards speech and footfall, the business of the day com- mences. With a very black, lithe, active native in front, whose most prominent features are the whites of his eyes, and whose name, " Bah-pa," deserves to be recorded, away we 110 WILD LIFE — A DAY IN WILD LIFE/ go, to be met by a Black Eliinoceros, who, having smelt our wind, is coming to see who has ventured to intrude into his habitat and disturb his mid-day siesta. He is the only wild animal I know who, deliberately and without provocation, will set himself to hunt down man on the slightest intimation of his presence. He comes! The thunder of his gallop and the sounds of his displeasure are only too audible. It is stand fast, or up a tree like a squirrel, for there is no running away from such an antagonist in such a thicket. Fortunately, however, his sight is not very good, and a very slight screen suffices to save you; and, as he furiously plunges past, a shot through the lungs brings his career to a termination; but even his dying scream is indi- cative of pain and anger, not of fear. Certainly he deserved to live for his pluck, but is bound to die from his vicious disposition, for there is no quarter in the battle with such as him. The sound of the shot seems to vivify the bush around, and crash, crash ! on all sides is heard, caused by the hurried flight of the startled game. Never mind ! they leave tracks by which we can easily follow and find them through the wood. On emerging from the thicket we come across a White Rhinoceros, much larger than his sable cousin, but not at all vicious. Our sudden apj^earance startles him into a trot, which presently breaks into a gallop, especially if he has a dog at his heels. His trot and gallop are exactly like those of a well-bred horse. He is a heavy animal, but what splendid action he shows ! He keeps his head well'up, and lifts his feet cleverly from the ground, and goes at a pace which few horses can equal. What a sensation a Bhinoceros race would create among your Dundrearys and Verisophts at^^Epsom! When he has "gone from our gaze" we follow buffalo tracks which evidently lead to another thicket, and FIGHT BETWEEN A LION AND A BUFFALO. Ill on approaching it we hear sounds of wild-animal warfare — grunting, bellowing, and roaring, and roaring, bellow- ing, and grunting, as Tennyson would jingle it; but the Kaffirs call it "belching." Cautiously Bah-pa whispers ''Lion, Lion'" and warily we draw near to the scene •of the commotion. In a clear space are a Lion and a Buffalo cow fighting; and a Buffalo calf lying dead, sufficiently •explains the casus belli. The lion springs — immediately the cow rushes through the thick bush and wipes him off, turning instantly and pounding away at him on the ground; the lion wriggles free after tearing the nose and face of the buffalo ; ^nd the same process is repeated, all so quickly and in such a whirl of motion, that you can only'see the result and guess how it has been effected. The last time the lion is brushed off, he evidently gives up the game, as we can hear the buffalo tearing after him through the bush. Two or three of my fellows creep forward and quickly draw away the calf; the cow returns, smells about for a little, and finding her lui inachree gone, dashes off, more furious than before, after the lion again, and we can hear the renewal of the conflict, gradually dying away in the distance. On, on again; this time towards the river. We have rhinoceros and buffalo beef for lunch; ^^but although ravenously hungry, we are too thirsty to eat or even to talk, and in silence therefore we make our w^ay towards the water. On our road we put up a herd of " Peeva" (water- buck). One goes down; the remainder dash to the river — their haven of refuge — we following close on their heels. As we use the last little incline, before coming in sight of the Pongolo, the natives, with eyes and fingers on the stretch, point to the other side, where a file of Elephants are slowly making their way down to the drift or ford, and, forgetting 112 WILT) LIFE — A DAY IN WILD LIFE. hunger and thirst, we creep carefully to the edge, and fonn an ambuscade for their reception on crossing. They enter the river ; on their way over, one halts for an instant and looks back, then goes on again, but he appears to be dragging a weight at his leg; and when he comes into the shallows on our side, we observe an Alligator holding on to his knee. AVithout much ado the elephant drags him out on to the bank and utters a peculiar shriek, when immediately anothei- turns round, and, seizing the alligator between his trunk and his teeth, carries him to a stiff-forked thorny tree, and ther(^ deposits him with a smash — hung in chains one may say — and before long his bones would be all that remained of the A'oracious brute — causing some curious speculations in the mind of some future hunter as to how the animal found its Avay there. During our wandering observations we have allowed the elephants to go. Never mind, we can follow after lunch, or even mid-day, as we know where they were heading for. Then the tramp home — coffee and biscuits, and biscuits and beef, round the fire, and consumed wdth such an appetite I The recapitulation by the natives of the whole day's sporty in animated language and appropriate gesture — one story leading to another till far on in the night — then the last pipe and cup of coffee, and to bed with a healthy frame and a clear conscience. Such is a day you may spend in Wild life; and ah! tell me, if you can, what is there to equal it? Or it may be a quieter day, yet full of its own beauty and excitement. I wish I had the pencil of a John Leech, who delighted so much in, and depicted so well, sporting scenes; as a sketch of " waiting for dinner" in wild life would have been a first-rate subject. PANORAMIC DISSOLVING VIEW. 113 It is the day of a great hunt. The whole country-side for many miles around has been warned; and, literally, ''a thousand men have turned out to hunt the deer with hound and horn." It is arranged that those with guns are to take their places at the fords of the river, and wait there for the game crossing. Early in the morning we start — not because it is necessarj^ seeing that it will be hours before anything in the shape of game makes its aj^pearance at the water; but when everybody else is off, what is the use of us staying at home. In the bustle and stir, breakfast has been forgotten — but never mind, we'll enjoy an early dinner all the better — so away we saunter in the cool fresh air of the morning. We mark the changing hues of the landscajDe, as here the sun makes brilliant a patch of springing green, and there a cloud throws a dark shade on what had a moment before been bright and beautiful; and, as the breeze springs up, the view becomes quite panoramic — here a peak coming suddenly into distinct outline, there as suddenly darkening as the shadows envelope it — and in that half-hour every charm which sun, clouds, wind, atmosphere, hills, flats, verdure, trees, and flowers — all of their brightest and best — can develope, pass in ever-changing and rapidly-dissolving view before your delighted vision ! Or, on to the river, through and past game in hundreds, and we there take up our post and " wait for dinner." We are seated on the high bank of the river, snugly hidden behind a bush quietly smoking a pipe, and watching, as only hungry hunters can or will watch, for a chance of a shot. But let me tell you that by this time the poetical aspects of the scene have, so far as we know or care, pretty well evanished, and the practical question of dinner is the great so that it is after having satiated the cravings of I 114 WILD LIFE — A DAY IN WILD LIFE. the inner man you think over and thoroughly enjoy the scene which has all this time been displayed before you. Up and down are the windings of the river, here silent and deep, flowing between reedy banks; there, swift and tumultuous, tearing over its stony bed ; cranes and ducks flying and wheeling about ; and on the flat stones and sand banks alligators " waiting for tJieir dinners " also. There wait, and yet longer wait, till a low " hist " from one of the watchful natives sends your eyes from mooning over the flowing waters below you, over to the opposite side; and there, amongst the mimosas, you see, glancing along, the first head of the day. It proves to be a female Koodoo — a sign of good luck ! — and graceful and " wide awake " she appears as she comes out on the open ; many a look thrown behind — many a one before ; her large ears moving quickly from side to side ; a step as light as Venus when she danced with Adonis ; a halt for a moment, and then a dash to the river, there to meet her fate. After that began to be heard the shouts of the natives, and thick and fast came the game. For half-an-hour the sounds of battle — for battle it is — wake the echoes around ; then a silence while we count our trophies; and then . . . Ah! then, we take that "one step," and subside to dinner! There is nothing but fire, beef, and water; but I agree with Hawkeye in "The Prairie," "there's nothing to beat it if you're healthy and hungry!" III. — A Zulu Marriage. Among the Zulus marriage is a very elaborate ceremony, and etiquette is as strictly observed among them as at those fashionable affairs enacted at St. George's, Hanover Square. I have seen all classes of them married, and the forms and ceremonies are in all cases the same, the only diff'erence ZULU MARRIAGE PRELIMINARIES. 115 being, as at home, more people, more food, and finer dresses, according to the rank of the parties. And, as the marriage question is occupying an unusual amount of attention at home, a description of a marriage ceremony abroad may not be uninteresting even to Belgravian mammas. First, then, when the preliminaries have been agreed upon — i.e., the number of cattle to be given in exchange for the bride, being settled — and that young lady's consent having been obtained, although, as in some civilised communities, that is generally a mere form, an ox is slaughtered, and a brewst of beer is prepared — the relations of the bride are invited to the feast, of which, however, she does not j)artake. The bride's dress is got ready, and it depends upon the wealth of her people the quantity of beads and extent of coloured worsted and other finery with which she is de- corated. She also receives in presents her household utensils, such as pots, gourds, spoons, mats, &c., and, if the father can afford it, a blanket. When all is ready the party sets out ; it consists of the bride, a head man to *' Endeesa" her (to have her married), young men — the number of whom depends upon the rank of the parties — and young girls, under the same conditions. They set out, frequently on a two or three days' walk — hospitality in a case of this kind never being refused, nor ever, as is sometimes the case with chance travellers, grudgingly given. When they arrive near the bridegroom's Kraal they halt, as it is against all etiquette for the bride and party (called Emteemha) to enter the bride- groom's home in the daytime.* When all are supposed to * "And at midnight there was a cry made, Behokl, the bridegroom Cometh !" (Matt. xxv. 6.) I have been tokl that in old times the custom in Zuhi was thus : — The bridegroom went to the bride's Kraal, and took her away; but now it is reversed — much war having altered the position of women, and doubtless led to the change. 116 WILD LIFE — A ZULU MARRIAGE. be asleep tliey enter the Kraal, singing and dancing, no one daring to look out of doors. The huts for their occupation are empty, and in them they rest. Early in the morning, before any of the others are astir, they all go down to the nearest brook, where they remain — washing, dressing, and eating the food sent do^vn to them, until about eleven o'clock, by which time the bridegroom and his party have taken their places beside the spot appointed for the dance. When all is ready, the young men of the bride's party come singing and dancing up, pass in pro- cession twice or thrice round the bridegroom and hii^ party, then tliey halt, and the spokesman begins a long-^ story. For instance, he will say, " We are a party of Amaswazi, who are travelling through the country, and ha^^e just called to see how you are — ^you are a good-looking fellow;" and away they go. Presently back they come with the old man at their head, who says, " The young man you saw just now lied — we are an * Emteemba,' and have come from so and so, who has sent his daughter to be married to you. She is a verj^ good and clever girl, and her father hopes you will treat her well, and give her plenty of food," &c., &c., and whatever else he may have been told to say by her relations. Then away they go. After a short time the whole lot come singing uj) with the bride hidden in the middle, so that no one can see her. They stand fronting the bridegroom for a little; then the bride starts a song, which they all join in. When that is done they break away suddenly, and the bride is discovered standing in the middle,, with a fringe of worsted or beads round her brow and covering her face. The men then lay aside their shields and assegais, and the dancing of the bride's party commences; the bridegroom and his party sitting still all the while. They have no particular song which they sing on an occasion ZULU MARRIAGE FESTIVITIES. 117 of this kind, except one at the end, in Avhich everyone joins, «and which they call " Esehlabello," and in which they all clap their hands in correct time to the tun^. The words generally have no signification, and vary very much. During the " Emteemba's" dancing, the bridegroom, and here and there a young man of his party " Geea,'' that is they spring out, jump about, and, to show their strength and agility, go through a number of antics — a sort of Kaffir '' Houlaghan," but tameness itself compared with the classic "Eumenides" or the Parisian "Carmagnoles;" and another part of the ceremony is that two or three old women run up and down between the parties, wailing and shouting, and every now ^nd then coming up to the bridegroom and swearing at him, calling him all the annoying names they can think of, and disking him how it is that such a stupid, ugly fool as he has managed to secure such a good-looking girl ! When the " Emteemba" has finished dancing, the bride- groom and his party begin their part in the dance, and it is :a great matter of emulation as to which dances the best. The proceedings close towards evening, generally with a fight. I omitted to mention that the bride, when the dancing of her party is drawing to a close, creeps up to the wives (if he has any) or mother of the bridegroom, and says she has come to stay, and hopes they will be good to her, &c., &c., other- wise she will go back to the father, mother, and reflations ^vho were so loath to part with her. They reply that they do not know — they are not sure — they will see how she behaves herself, and so on. She then makes a simulated ^it tempt to run away, when she is at once laid hold of and biought back by one of the bridegroom's female relatives, who is watching for the opportunity. In the evening, the bride, with her face unveiled, runs 118 WILD LIFE — A ZULU MARRIAGE. about the Kraal with a following of girls crying after her. She is siij^posed to be running back to her old home, and tlie girls are supposed to be preventing her ! Next day the bridegroom kills an ox, and there is a general eating and drinking match. The bride " Hlo7ii]^a\s" (hides) from the male sex ; but, in the afternoon, she comes out into the cattle kraal with some girls, and commences the ceremony of ^' Illambeesa," literally, "washing." The nearest relatives of the bridegroom sit down, the bride takes some beads and water in a large gourd-spoon, and, coming singing up, throws it about the male relative ; she then goes back and breaks the assegai which she carries in lier hand. (No widow re-marrying breaks the assegai!) She then repeats the bead and water ceremony with the female relative, striking her at the same time Avith a stick, as a symbol that she takes authority as a wife from that time. No sooner is. this done than she makes a bolt for the gate of the kraal,, which is supposed to be a last attempt to return home, when one of the young men cuts off her retreat, and she then gives, in. There have been cases, however, where the bride got out of the gate, which was a terrible disgrace to the young man who had been appointed to stop her, to the husband, and to all concerned; besides the expense, seeing that the whole ceremony had to be gone through again. lY. — A Zulu Story of a Haunted Wood. "Don't go into that wood." "Why not?" "Oh! be- cause," &c., &c., and here came out a whole chapter of native superstition, which was altogether new to me, and may not be uninteresting to others. To give the story literally as I heard it is well nigh im- possible, from the difficulty of translating the innumerable SOMETHING LIKE A KING. 119 idiomatic phrases in the Zuhi hmguage ; but, as near as I can, I mil give the narrator's experience, premising that, however much the narrative may resemble the ghost stories and fairy tales of other lands, it is essentially Zulu. "Many years ago a tribe called ' Endwandive' lived here- abouts, a numerous and powerful tribe. There was no ^ Nakau' * then, and all those hills which you see were covered by their cattle. All the chiefs in the country, even the Zulu, paid homage to the Endwandive ' Zweeti,' who was loved by his people, and respected everywhere his name penetrated — and where did it not 1 At last came the bad time, when the country went wrong — when all the tribes fought against themselves till the rivers ran red, and evt^n the corn took a redder tinge. The end of that was, that the Endwandive were scattered, their chief killed, and Chaka with his Zulus became king over all. "While Zweeti lived he did everything like a king. When he wanted to kill any of his wives or girls he always had them taken to the same place, the pool below the ftills on the Umkool. When any of his captives or the common people were to be the sacrificial victim, the wood over the hill there, was where they had to submit to the will of their chief; and his own relations were conducted to the wood before us on such occasions ; and he himself was * flung in ' there after his death, and there he keeps his state now." " What do you mean," I interrupted, " by a dead man keep- ing his state ; are there people living in the wood 1" He replied, " Of course, Zweeti and all his people ; only they are not quite people you know, they are Esemkofu." I asked, * "Nakau," a fatal disease amongst cattle, which of late years has spread greatly in Zulu. It is supposed by many to be caused by the Tsetse fly. 120 WILD LIFE — A HAUNTED WOOD. " What are Esemkofu ?" '' An Esemkofu is a person who has been dead, and has been raised again by witches, who cut off his tongue, and so j^revent him from talking and telling secrets ; he can only utter a wailing noise — ' Maieh ! maieh!' and whenever any one hears that sound, if outside, he runs away ; or, if in his hut, he eats medicine. Yes ! very few people have been bewitched by the Esemkofu, because they don't like their duty, and always give notice with their warning cry." " What do you mean," I exclaimed, " by talking such nonsense to me? Do you think — " "Wait a moment, don't be in a hurry, listen to what I have got to say, first; remember you asked me to tell you the storj\ The Esemkofu is a very different thing from a man who has been dead, and is sent back by the Mahlose." " Are there, then, two kinds of people raised from the dead?" "Of course, there are people who have died and come back again in the proper way. My brother was one, and it was through him I went into that wood and saw what I was going to tell you about." " But tell me first about the Mahlose; what or who are they, and where are they?" "They are all the people who have died, whose breath has gone out of them. I don't know exactly what they are, or where they are, biit they revisit the kraals that belonged to them, in the form of a snake; and whenever we see it, we sacrifice a beast; or, if we are sick in the kraal, or unfortunate in hunting, we know that our Ehlose (or familiar spirit) is angry, and we sacrifice to it, when all comes right again ! My brother died and was ' flung away' in the usual manner. W^e dug a hole and sat him up in it, put in his blanket, his dress, his sticks, assegais and mat, beside him, covered him up, and left him. Next day we saw him walking up to the kraal. Of course we knew he had been sent back by the Mahlose, and bade A ZULU PURGATORIA. 121 liim welcome. He told us that he had been m a fine country, where the corn and sugar-cane grew thick and tall, and the cattle were as fat as fat could be; and that he met a cousin of his, who had died a long time before, who told him to go back immediately, that instant, ' because,' said he, ' you will meet some one else just now if you don't, who will give you food, and then you must remain an Ehlose for ever.' ' I remembered nothing more,' my brother said, ' till I found myself lying on that hill. I looked at my legs and arms, said ^'ivotof" and came home, thinking all the way, ah ! what a delightful country I have been in.' " "Then why didn't he stay there*?" I asked. "He couldn't, you know, after the Ehlose of one of his relatives had told him to go back." "And suppose he had met the Ehlose of a stranger, what would have been the consequence?" " Why, of course, just what his cousin told him; he would have given him food, he would have taken it, and he would then have been obliged to remain. And that accounts, you see, for so few coming back, for if you think of the number of people who have died, and then think how small the chance is that the first man you meet should be a relative." "Ah! I see," cried I, *' well, go on with your story." "My brother went about the kraal, but he seemed con- tinually to mourn for the good things he had left; would speak to no one, and wandered about as if he did not belong to us. At last it began to be Avhispered that he must be an Esemkofu, as he never spoke, but constantly wailed; and the question was mooted whether he ought not to be killed. I objected to this on the grounds that it was well known to ])e impossible to kill an Esemkofu, and, therefore, if we put my brother to death it would be but a poor satisfaction to lind that, after all, he was a real man. At last, it was 122 WILD LIFE — ^A HAUNTED WOOD. agreed that I should take him to that wood — ^the Emagoodo — ^which was known to be haunted, and, if he fraternised with the others, it would set the matter at rest, and wo should get rid of him from the kraal. To avoid giving cause for suspicion, I told my brother to get axes to cut wood ; without saying anything he did so, and away we went — I, with fear and trembling ; he seeming to care for nothing. I had heard that the wood was full of Zweeti's people, and that the ^ JBayete' ('King of Kings' — the greeting to majesty), was often heard mysteriously soughing through the trees ; but I was determined to do what I could for my brother, and so if there was danger in the attempt, I must run the risk at all hazards. "We entered the wood. AVlien we had gone about ten paces, a sound, as if the wind was rising and moaning amongst the trees, began to be heard. Yet it was not altogether like wind, but dull and heavy, as if you could almost feel it. I looked towards my brother, but he seemed unconscious of anything peculiar. I cut a wattle. Immedi- ately the sound increased in density — came nearer us, round us, over us, under us, and, I may say, in us ; and amidst it I seemed to hear half-broken ejaculations of the human voice. I looked towards my brother; he seemed wakening up, more life was visible in his face. Cheered by this I cut another wattle. No sooner had my axe struck the wood than immediately were heard on all sides exclamations of surprise and anger; the sound increased in loudness, and a heavy pressure seemed to be upon me. I could scarcely breathe, and felt as if something was fingering my axe and assegais. I looked towards my brother ; he evidently was now alive to his situation ; terror was in his countenance, and he looked beseechingly towards me. Con\dnced now that he ANGRY SPIRITS. 12^ was no Esemkofii, I shouted aloud for joy, and struck one more blow at a tree. With the blow there came a rushing, irresistible force — like a great river after mighty rains — and from the midst we heard the angry exclamation — 'Wow, wow! who comes here? Do they dare us?' Eesistance was impossible — we never thought of it; something we could not see, but almost felt, twitched the axes and assegais out of our hands ; there came at us, propelled by some unseen but powerful agency, showers of stones and branches of trees ; but not one struck us. We were swept out of the Avood in less time than I take to tell it, and when we reached the open country the angry spirits became reconciled, their furious attack ended, and even the faintest sound was inaudible. "My brother was, of course, rehabilitated in his tribe — the ordeal being held to be perfectly complete and satisfactory, his humanity being held to be proved to a demonstration. But my brother took me severely to task for having been so foolhardy as to dare to enter such a place, which I must have known was full of Esemkofu. I ansAvered him nothing, although I might easily have vindicated myself by telling him that thereby I had saved his life; but I wished to avoid raising unpleasant feelings in his mind against those who were now his friends. Ever after he was his old self again ; but both of us have carefully avoided going near 'the haunted wood' again, or indeed speaking of it to each other." It is scarcely necessary to say that I entered the wood, that I cut wattles there, and that I saw or heard nothing of all their wonders. But that did not shake his belief in them in the slightest degree, and he merely remarked that the inhabitants, knowing me for a white man who cared nothing 124 WILD LIFE — OOL BOMBO. for these things, did not trouble themselves about me. The legend, I may state, is implicitly believed in by the natives to this day. The pity is that belief in such fables is not excused for interpolating an instance of this. The Tongas are sj^lit up under a great many small chieftains, who all of them "put their hands" (pay homage or fealty) to the Zulus — some paying tribute to one chief and some to another. Not long ago a Zulu chief got permission to kill a small Tonga chief and his people, who had bewitched one of his- own Tongas to death. He sent a small army, but when they arrived they found the whole district deserted, the Tongas having by some means got information of what was coming, and fled. Thus disappointed, the Zulus were returning home, when they stayed for a night at another Tonga's called Mangaleesa, who paid tribute to Masipula, another great Zulu chief By some means the cry got up that Mangaleesa had given information of their coming to the- other tribe, and during the night the Zulus set to work and killed the chief and most of his people. When I heard of this I asked if Masipula would not be very angry at having this source of revenue destroyed. " Yes," I was answered. " Would he not fight with Mapeeta *?" " No 1 do you think the King would allow a dead Tonga to make work between two big people of the Zulu V And that was all his regret ! To return to my story, from which I am a " runaway "" myself Angry and pursuing fathers, and danger of broken limbs from overturning coaches, driven recklessly by drunken postboys, were the principal risks incurred in " the good old times " by an attempt to get " o'er the borders and awa' wi*" Jock o' Hazeldean," or somebody else, to get Hymen's chain rivetted by the blacksmith of " Gretna Green." In these A ZULU "GRETNA GREEN." 135 degenerate times of railways, telegraphs, and reform bills, I don't know how they manage these things at home, never having ventured on a trial; but here in the Zulu a " Gretna Green" journey is attended with hardships and dangers sufficient to damp the courage of the most devoted lovers. In the first place, if caught, the man is killed to a dead certainty ; but even should they escape from their pursuers, they both run a good chance of death in a flight to the North. One night, while lying on one side of the hut, with about a dozen Zulus on the other side, who had come to Ott-e-hanhla — a figurative expression, meaning literally to " heat them- selves at the fire" — I being considered to be the fire, dispensing light and warmth around ! — all chattering away, my attention was attracted by one fellow who had found an acquaintance in one of my hunters, and was describing to him how he had won his wife. I have inadvertently called them Zulus, but they were Bombo people — this one, however, was a Zulu, who had fled with his sweetheart and settled there. He described it capitally, and, one by one, the others became silent and listened to the story, so congenial to their nature. Runaway matches, when they do happen in Zulu, come Avith a rush. So long as the young man has his girl to himself he is content ; but, when a regiment has permission to marry, it takes all the supply in the country, of marriage- able girls, to meet the demand of the dusky warrior Coelebs' in search of wives, and thus the other young fellows are deprived of their sweethearts, and have consequently to wait till others grow up, unless they adopt active measures to overcome the difficulty by " a runaway match." The fol- lowing is the little episode : — " I had had two sweethearts, and both were taken away 136 WILD LIFE — A RUNAWAY MATCH. by ' Toolwan ' (the name of a regiment) : so when I got the third I determined not to lose her. After a good deal of persuasion on my part, she agreed to run away with me, and there only remained to be arranged the way it was to be managed, and whither we were to go. We spoke of Natal, but the great extent of Zulu to be traversed frightened us ; consequently, although we had friends there, we agreed that it would be better to strike north for the Bombo, the distance being so much less, and the country more thinly peopled. It was decided that we should meet at a ^rook about ten miles from my kraal, and there make a start together. I got up in the morning and wanted to take my blanket, but my mother asked me where I was going to. I told her that I intended to visit some friends in the opposite direction. * Why then,' she said, ' don't trouble yourself with your blanket, or people will say you're afraid of the cold, for young Zulus don't carry their blankets about with them when they go visiting.' To avoid suspicion I had to leave it, but I caught up a bit of girls'-cloth that was in the hut, and ran off with it laughing. On the road I had to pass some kraals where there were friends of mine, one of whom met me at the gate and insisted that I should go in and drink beer with him; and, as that is an invitation which no one thinks of refusing, I was obliged to go in, although very anxious, as you may suppose, to proceed to the place of meeting. While in the hut they asked where I was going to ; I told them to a kraal where there were friends of mine. 'Why,' said they, 'this is not the road.' I answered, 'No, but I'm carrying this cloth to a girl.' They wanted me to stay all night, but I refused, and went away as rapidly as I could. I think, however, they knew what I was about, they ' chaffed ' me so slyly. "PUIRTITH CAULD !" 137 " I at last arrived at the place of assignation, and found my girl, true to her promise, anxiously waiting for me, but very much frightened at my long delay. I however soon soothed her by explaining the cause of the delay, and then, leaving the usual path, we started across the country. " Night fell before we arrived at the last kraal ere you enter the long stretch of uninhabited country running to the Bombo. We were very hungry, I having had nothing that day but the drink of beer, and my poor girl nothing what- ever; so we determined to try for some food. We dared not ask for it, because, as you know, they would have seized tht^ girl and taken possession of her, whilst they would have killed me.* " So I hid her, and went to see whether there was a chance of stealing any. The kraal, fortunately, was not very well fenced, which enabled me to creep quietly in and go upon my hands and knees, feeling for a pot with some mealies in it, as I knew there must be some about at that time. I could hear the people talking in the huts as I crawled past, and I was in momentary fear that the dogs would discover me, but fortunately they did not. At last I found what I was in search of, and took them to my girl, when, after having satisfied our ravenous appetites, w^e started again on our journey, carrying the remainder with us. You know the kraals I speak of. They are situated on a high hill, from which you descend to the wooded flats of the Bombo. Well, when we had got about half way down, my heart suddenly told me not to go further, and I said to the girl, ' Let us go back a little and stay till morning.' She replied, * No ; let us get far away before morning ;' but I refused, and went * Such is tlie law, and it is rigidly carried into practice, as a girl is a very valuable "chattel" in the marriage market. 138 WILD LIFE — A RUNAWAY MATCH. back. The influence of my Ehlose was strong that night. We had not gone up again but a few steps when a lion com- menced roaring within a few yards of where we had stood — quite close, as close as that door — and answering him, others- at the foot of the hill made up a pretty chorus. * Wow !' said I to the girl, 'get up this tree.' I heljied her up ; then took post at the bottom with my shield and assegais. It was sl- pitch-dark night, and I could hear the lions snuffling and growling all round about me, and a more unpleasant night I never spent. Morning came at last, when we ate the mealies- in sight of the kraal we had stolen them from, and then marched off" merrily for the Bombo ; for our hearts were full of happiness, because we had escaped not only from the Zulus, but also from the lions ; and we felt that our diffi- culties and dangers were now near an end. When we arrived near our destination, Lamban, the Bombo chief, married us, and gave my wife a pick, and an axe, and a hut to live in ; and here we are settled as Makekani for the rest of our days.'" The last words were given with a half sigh, as if, amid all his happiness in the land of his adoption, a feeling of home- sickness would steal over him, and induce him to regret that even "a Runaway match " should have been the cause of his. expatriation from his beloved Zulu-land. VIII. — A Buffalo Hunt in the Water. There is one red day in my calendar, which will never fade from my recollection — a day upon which we started with quite a small army of natives with a firm resolution to '' do or die !" For years afterwards the Zulus spoke of it as- an era in their hunting life, and I myself often look back upon it as a day worth any fifty in a town. BUFFALO IN THE RIVER. 13^ We were all marching along in single file, "and the boldest held his breath for a time," for there was not a word spoken; when, suddenly, to our right was heard the thunder- ing noise and vibration, and was seen the dust raised by the stampede of a herd of buffaloes. It was a call to skirmish,, and was answered with much greater promptitude than that of the bugle. In a moment the Hlangi"* was alive with people, running in all directions, some toward the sound, some ahead, some behind, and in five minutes' time my hunters' guns spoke out, and two fine animals " bit the dust.'" In the confusion I got separated from my hunters, having followed another herd on my own account, with a tail of about twenty Zulus. After walking about two miles we lost the track, or rather gave in, as we had passed all the thick clumps of bush, in which the natives expected the buffaloes to have taken refuge. " It's of no use going further," said they, " for they have crossed the Pongolo." This made me look towards the river, and there they were, sure enough, on the sand in the bed of the stream; but nearly on the other side of it. The river is about seventy yards wide, with high reedy banks, principally shallow, but with deep pools here and there. At the ford, from constant crossing of game, the banks were very much broken down ; and, for a distance of several hundred yards, this was the only place where large game, like buffaloes, could get out. I ran down, under shelter of the reeds, and fired at a s{)lendid bull which stood nearest the bank on the other side; the commotion was instantaneous and tremendous. " Ba-a-a-al" cried the poor animal as he fell; those behind pressed forward, those in front wheeled round, thinking the Khot came from the bank nearest them, and at last the whole * Country covered, but not very thickly, with minosa bush. 140 WILD LIFE— A BUFFALO HUNT IN THE WATER. herd of about three hundred plunged into the deep water below the ford, and tried in vain to ascend the steep banks on either side. The natives dashed' across the river further down and guarded the other bank, and the noise of my firing having brought my hunters to my assistance, there we had them fairly dominated in a sort of pond, some parts of which were shallow enough to allow them to get a footing. We soon fired away all our bullets, and then we took to the assegai, and engaged them at close quarters in the water. The scene which ensued baffles description — the excitement and shouts of the natives, the bellowing and madness of the game, the whole pond being in one whirl of constant motion — the buifaloes being bad hands at the water. You would see one old bull facing defiantly three or four enemies who were pegging away at him, up to their shoulders in water, while another would gently swim up in the deep water behind, and send his spear home to a vital part, then round goes the bull and down goes the native ; the bull swims about a little, then gets his depth again to have the same process repeated, till, being utterly exhausted and mortally wounded, he becomes an easy prey to the spoiler. Once, when about a dozen of them were swimming up under the the reeds, one fellow tried to lean over the bank and stab one en passant, but the earth gave way and down he plungeposed to do so of his OAvn accord, yet the consent of his captains is required. He is despotic, but his despotism must not traffigress known laws; in fact, as it has been well said by the Rev. Mr. Shaw in his " Story of my Mission," " The chief or king is all powerful to preserve things as they are, but not to alter ; as the king governs- I ORIGIN OF THE ZULUS — THP^ LOST TRIBES. 149 the nation, so does each chief his people, and each head man his kraal." All the tribes in South Eastern Africa seem to have had one common origin, and it would be interesting, as far as possible, to trace their descent. The data are neither positive nor extensive ; but the more I see of their habits and customs, the more strongly do I incline to the opinion, that they originally, and, comparatively speaking, at no very distant period, migrated from the Xorthernmost parts of ^ Africa, and I would even go as far as Asia for their origin. The question of the lost ten tribes of Israel is too abstruse and dark a one for me to enter into, and besides, it would far exceed the limits of these Sketches, to give such a minute description of their little ways and peculiarities, which would be utterly uninteresting, excej^t for the purpose of supporting such an ethnological hypothesis, and I therefore, in the meantime, merely suggest the idea, and leave to a future and more appropriate occasion the elucidation of it. The natives have absolutely no traditions as to religion or origin, except the Ehlose, and one confused idea about Inkulumkulu, which may be translated "the big one of all." The first man, who they say " tore them out of the reeds;" Uhlanga, literally "reed," they use for "custom." For instance, any peculiarity in a tribe they account for by .saying it is our "reed" or custom. They never try to arrive at the causes of things ; even the names of their kraals or their chiefs, or the king's kraals, they can seldom give you an interpretation of. They say "it is a name." "But what is the meaning of the name V "How should we know? it is just a name." You ask again " What do you think the fiun isf "Oh, it is just the sun." "Yes, but what do you think it is V " How should we know, the sun is the 150 WILD LIFE — A KAFFIR HUNTERS STORY. sun, and the moon is the moon — they shme." One fellow, however, said he heard there was a great fire somewhere in the sea, where the sun and the moon rise from; and that a spark sprang from the fire, stuck in the sky, grew and grew till mid-day, and afterwards faded away, and that was the sun ! The moon they thought was a hole in the heavens. What the firmament was they could not com- prehend. X. — A Kaffir Hunter's Story. To " Wild life," with all its freedom and enjoyment, there is, not unfrequently, a tragic side, caused in many cases by quarrels between Kaffir hunters. When a batch of them are sent away from their masters with guns and ammunition, many a tragic scene is enacted. No cognisance can be taken of them by any court of justice, the quarrels and crimes usually taking place out of the colony, consequently they establish rough courts amongst themselves, and administer a sort of Lynch law ; the only two punishments recognised by which being a thrashing, and what is called the last penalty of the law. No one who is not intimately acquainted with the ways and habits of the Kaffir hunter, and who has not frequently mixed with and lived among them in " Wild life," can know anything of these incidents ; for when, on returning to the colony, inquiry is made about any missing man it is the simplest thing in the world to place the blame on the broad shoulders of an elephant or a buffalo, and no more is said about it. I speak now, be it understood, of an earlier period of the history of the colony than the present, when the whites were few and far between, and Kaffir lives, owing to the feeling induced by recent wars, were thought MYSTERIES OF WILD LIFE. 151 of small consequence ; and besides, as lives of both blacks and whites were risked every day in many ways, the loss of one was an incident merely, and nothing more. Those unused to "Wildlife" are very apt to consider stories of this kind exaggerated ; and more than probably I may get the credit of exaggeration ; but, as such has been the fate of even the greatest of those who have gone before me, in describing savage countries and "Wild life," I am con- tent to take my chance in such goodly company, merely premis- ing that what I describe in these Sketches I have either seen with my own eyes, or have every reason to believe in their truth. Many times have I heard the hunters, in talking to one another, say that so and so was dead ; and, on being asked what he died of, the answer would invariably be " I don't know," but said in such a peculiar manner that the questioner would immediately respond with an appreciative " Ah !" long drawn out. I had noticed this several times, and never could manage to get any explanation, until at last I prevailed upon one who had been in my service for several years, and the result of his confidence was the following story : — " There were fifteen of us crossed the Tugela together, and Dugusa was our captain. We were bound for the Um- suto, the river near Delagoa Bay, where we had heard elephants were in plenty, while nearer at hand they were scarce and wild, having been so much shot. You must know that the Amatongas, the people down there, are a very cowardly lot; for, whatever may be the case now, in those days they would submit to anything from the hunters, who would take their girls for wives, and eat up the food in their kraals, and for payment would thrash or shoot them. The consequence was that when the hunters came to the kraals 152 WILD LIFE — A KAFFIR HUNTER'S STORY. the inmates used to run away, so that at last they could get no one to assist them in carrying the ivory out. " Our master when we left, seeing this difficulty, gave us some beads and knives, and warned us to behave properly to the people, pay for what we could with meat, and when we failed to kill any animals, to use the goods he had given us; and he wound up by saying that he would hold Dugusa responsible, and that he would be sure to find out if we did anything wrong, as he would be down in the country him- self in the winter. '* On the road we began talking about our instructions, and all agreed to follow them out, except one fellow, who had been down there before. He said he meant to be comfortable, and would take some wives when he arrived there. Dugusa told him he should do no such thing. ' "Wlio will prevent me?' 'I will.' 'Then I'll go off by myself and leave you.' ' You shall go without your gun, then.' And this was the beginning of ill-feeling between them, which was occasionally breaking out all the way to the Umsuto. None of us liked the man, and several of us warned Dugusa to be cautious, and keep a good watch on the fellow; but he only laughed, and said, ' Wait till he really does something, and then you will see if I don't put him to rights.' Poor fellow ! when that something was done, it was too late. " We reached the Umsuto and built our hut, which was no sooner done than it began to rain. The captain of a lot of hunters is only captain while they are hunting, or in giving directions about the district to shoot in, and how to hunt it. After the hunt, and in the kraal, his authority depends very much upon the kind of man he is, and the amount of deference which the others may be inclined to A DEADLY QUARREL. 153 pay liim. It may be said of him that he has only a voice, albeit a potent one, in all matters except hunting; but in that, as representing the master, he is all powerful. While in our hut, of course, we were all thrown together like cattle in a kraal, and with just about as much comfort. It is at these times that bad blood is engendered and aggravated, which, in the excitement of a hunt, with the deadly materials in one's hands, frequently breaks out with tragical results; and so was it in this case. The two I have spoken of quarrelled and scolded day after day, so much so that we all predicted that something serious wovdd be the result. At last the weather cleared up, and we were all started off to try the bush, which was close by. Our instructions from Dugusa were that two were to remain with him, and the others were to go right round the bush, dropping two at regular intervals, until it was surrounded, and then all were to enter simultaneously. Just as the last two were getting to their place, we all heard a shot, and immediately the trumpeting and crashing of elephants. They broke out in a troop, not having been separated, and got away with only a flying shot or two sent after them. Dugusa immediately came running round, angrily inquiring, 'Who did this V and soon found out that it was Umgona, the fellow I have been speaking of, when he at once felled him, and the others having closed in on him and taken his gun from him, he was prevented from doing further mischief. He rose up bleeding and muttering vengeance, and walked off to the hut, we following close at his heels, expecting to see the ijuarrel renewed when he arrived there. But, no ! he had washed his face and seemed very penitent, asking for his gun back, and promising to behave better for the future. Dugusa gave it to him, saying. ' Ah ! I thought I would 154 WILD LIFE — A KAFFIR HUNTERS STORY. mend him.' But we all had our doubts about it, although we said nothing. " It came on to rain again, and the river rose very high. We were all crowded together in the hut, cold, wet, and hungry, and by no means good tempered, when one of us, happening to go out, saw a file of elephants making for the river, with the evident intention of crossing. He came back instantly with the news, and Umgona said he would go and watch them. Dugusa agreed, but told him to leave his gun. ' No,* replied he ; ' no one walks without his stick, so I will take it with me, but will be careful not to frighten them.' All agreed, warning him to be cautious, which he promised to be. After he went away the others began to get their guns and ammunition in order, when, just as they were preparing to start, they heard a shot. ' Umgona again,* cried Dugusa, and rushed out, we following at some little distance. We saw Dugusa run up to Umgona in a threatening manner; we saw Umgona raise his gun and fire ; we saw Dugusa fall, and we heard the bullet whistling past us. We arrived in time to prevent Umgona from throwing Dugusa into the river, to which he was dragging him, not having seen us coming up. Dugusa was dead 1 What was to be done 1 We first tied the murderer, who maintained a dogged silence ; and we counselled with one another as to what should be done. Some proposed to take him to Natal; others objected, on the reasonable grounds that we could not take him through the Zulu country as a prisoner, and that, if we once let him go, we should never see him again ; others, again, proposed that he should be handed over to Dugusa's relations, who were with us, to do as they liked with him. This was objected to by some, because, they said, it was throwing the duty of his punish- A FEARFUL PUNISHMENT. 155 ment on a few, which they were all bound to execute. At last, after a great deal of talk, it was agreed that we should do nothing that night, but tie him up and watch him till the morning, when we should again deliberate what to do. " Next morning, before the sun had risen from its bed in the sea, we had resumed the discussion; and, after long and anxious deliberation, it was resolved that the culprit should be given up to the friends of Dugiisa, and that they should carry out the sentence of death, to which we unanimously condemned him. They therefore took possession of the prisoner, and, after a short consultation amongst themselves, they proceeded to carry the sentence into effect in a manner which, to us, accustomed to see many a dreadful death, seemed the very refinement of cruelty. The living murderer was taken and bound to his dead victim, face touching face, and hand tied in hand, and then slowly, and in solemn silence, the dead and the living, clasped in this horriblt> embrace, were carried to the bank of the river. We heard one fearsome cry, and the swollen waters closed over, and buried the victims of this double tragedy!" XL — Making the Most of it in "Wild Life." Among all the benefactors of humanity, I reckon Charles Dickens one of the chiefest; and among his many delightful characters who really " point a moral and adorn a tale," Mark Tapley is one of my special favourites, because over and over again, when, in "Wild life" — aye, even in civilised life — I have been beset by apparently inextricable dangers and difficulties, Mark's philosophy of common sense, self- reliance, and good nature has come to the rescue, and carried me through it all victoriously. 156 WILD LIFE — MAKING THE MOST OF IT. It is really wonderful how comfortably one can get through the world, and how little is positively necessary for enjoy- ment, if a fellow lays his mind to " make the most of it," and, like Mark Tapley, resolves to be "jolly under any circumstances." In " Wild life" I find unfailing solace, in wet weather, in my books and my pipe, and " many a time and oft" have I (in my Livy), albeit as hungry as a hawk, made a sumptuous repast off the delights of Capua, and the hardships of the Saguntines and Tarentines have induced me to endure my own miseries with more equanimity. It affords great fun, too, to stand up in the waggon and, book in hand, gravely spout Shakespeare to the natives. If you keep your countenance well, they will take it very seriously, and when you have finished they will, like your learned critic at home, sagely nod their heads, look wise, and say, " It is good, very good, only — is he a missionary?" One line my Kaffirs have got hold of, which they seem to enjoy exceedingly, because, I suppose, " it feels grand," as poor Artemus Ward said. " What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba T' They seem to have a glimmering of the meaning of it, and they lug it in on every opportunity, with studied dramatic effect, especially to the Zulus, who generally appreciate it, and say, " Yes, it is very nice;" and then my fellows are quite proud at being able to disi^lay such very superior knowledge. The query has frequently suggested itself to my mind on such occasions : *' Is there not a good deal of this ignorant pride and show otherwheres than in Zulu-land?" I wot there is; and as I *' cram" my Kaffirs, so are others " crammed" by the banks of the Cam and the Isis, and elsewhere; and with very similar results too ! Then, when the raining powers are omnipotent, you esconce yourself under the awning of your waggon, and pull "CASTLES IN THE AIR!" 157 away at your favourite meerschaum, watching the smoke as your imagination shapes it into all manner of eccentricities, and commence to " build castles in the air." Now, this sort of thing I consider to be decidedly luxurious, and a very jolly way of enjoying the dolce far niente ; and I cannot help saying commend me to " Castles in the Air," for I look upon the privilege of building them as a great, glorious, and free institution. For instance, now, while in the position de- scribed, I think over these Sketches — something noteworthy I have that day seen, and am turning over in my mind how it may be best described. From one thing, I am insensibly led on to another ; from composing these Sketches to tran- scribing them ; from transcribing to posting them ; and to their reception by the editor, and there my fancy runs away with me entirely. I picture to myself a liberal cheque, pleasant thanks and profuse praise ; the fame of a Dickens or a Bulwer ; people wondering who wrote that first-rate thing " Wild Life," and myself walking through the throng, proudly conscious of being " the great unknown ;" and, for an hour or two, " Lord bless you," as Tommy Traddles says, " I'm just as happy as if I had them !" I don't think either that these imaginary building specula- tions are in any way hurtful to anybody ; for my part, I always find that the waking to reality — and, mind, you must wake to it some time or other — spurs me on to try and realise the pleasant dream. Therefore, I'll never, without protest, hear a word against Chateaux en Espagne; and, if any- one will give me such a property in reality — I'll — I'll — why, I'll send some one to look after it, and remit me the rents, Avhilst I indulge in "Wild life" in the Zulu, and otherwise, as it seemeth good to me. But if I can't be a landed proprietor in the country of " pronunciamentas," of active 158 WILD LIFE — MAKING THE MOST OF IT. revolutions and passive debt, of bigoted religionists and ex- emplary queens; then, with the " Castles in the Air" which, with the help of my pipe, I can build in my waggon, and the stern realities of this work-a-day world, I shall learn to be content. In " Wild life" everything is free and easy, and the absence of starch is something perfectly delightful. In your inter- course with the natives, only a simulating prude would pretend to be shocked; but "to the pure all things are pure !" and, although ajJjJearances msiy he against them, there is nothing immodest about the natives, because of their entire ignorance of anything like obscenity or grossness. I feel impelled to say a word or two en passant about Starch. Possibly it may be the effect of the climate, but I don't like starch. I dislike it on Dr. Johnson's principle ; I can't say I liate it, but I don't like it. I dislike it particularly in my clothes ; it seems to give a false position to everything it touches, whether it be a man, or a lady's dress. For instance, there is Mr. Meff. Istoffyles, yellow's the white of his eye, he has a down look, a flat nose. He is known to stick at nothing to effect his purpose, lies and swears to it, falsifies statements, makes use of his own power and that of those whom he can influence, to oppress any one who may have the honesty and courage to expose his dishonest nature. Yet, by sheer force of " starch," this man is not only tolerated in society, but is even looked up to as a sort of moral Turvey- drop ! A starched beard and hair, ditto coat, waistcoat, continuations, and demeanour, cover present rottenness and scurvy antecedents. But, bother starch, and all its votaries, for they are " always crossing my path !" It is no doubt a perfectly gratuitous assertion on my part to say that printing has been of immense benefit to mankind. "THE LARGEST CIRCULATION IN THE WORLD!" 159 Of course it is needless to attempt to prove such a self-evident ]>roposition; but I wish, nevertheless, to record my own personal gratitude to the inventors, for it is impossible for those who travel in a savage country, far away from the haunts of men, to prevent this feeling from frequently recurring to their minds. I don't speak of books merely, or of popular works, but of every, or any printed thing, for in '*Wild life" the merest trifle is often a God-send, and is valued accordingly. It is not so very long since that, while travelling far in the interior, with absolutely nothing in the shape of a book, or even a missionary magazine to read, I was so fortunate as to have a piece of beef sent to me wrapped in a Daily Telegraph newspaper. It was really food for both mind and body, and "I speak the words of truth and soberness" when I say that I devoured the paper with even more relish than the meat which it enclosed, although, sooth to say, my larder was reduced to its last extremity at the time. "The great pennyworth," had rather too much of the amleur de rose in some places, as may naturally be supposed, from the purpose to which it had been applied, but was rather the better of that than otherwise, because it rendeied the task of deciphering more difficult, and thus protracted the pleasant occupation ; and as, for this reason, I could not bolt the savoury morsel, I was compelled to " read, learn, and inwardly digest " it the more leisurely ; and, looking out for a shady nook, I set to work to enjoy the intellectual feast, and commenced operations in a .systematic manner. Starting from " the Telegraph dial," I went straight on through the theatre advertisements, enjoying " in my mind's •eye" the syren notes of the pirtia donna, and took a peep into the somewhat grotesque mirror which is professed to be 160 WILD LIFE — MAKING THE MOST OF IT. held up to Nature on the stage, and in which it would be somewhat difficult to " see oursel's as ithers see us." I dis- cussed the editor's politics, and was astonished at his descend- ing to such Billingsgate in his abuse of Mr Disraeli, and " concluded" that the Asian mystery was past the compre- hension of even the clever editor of the Telegraph. I then proceeded on and on till I ariived at the impimahcr, and again and again returned to my feast ; sjieculating, as I went along, over the various advertisements, picking out the estates I should like to buy, the furniture with which I should plenish "that desirable mansion," and the pictures and vertu with which I should decorate it ; the books I should like to- read, and the tours I should like to take ; and, in imagination,. I seemed to enjoy them all. I wondered at the various notices in Chancery, and whether, under another name, there might not be a prototype of " Jarndyce v. Jarndyce." The law and police courts induced me to philosophise upon the comparative advantages and disadvantages of savagedom and civilization, and I came to the sage conclusion that "much could be said on both sides !" The "wind-bags" of Parlia- ment, and the " spouters" at that institution for letting off the steam — the public meeting — ^made me think that if less notice, or none at all in many cases, were taken by the papers of your bore with the cacoethes loquendi, we would be less bothered with them; for it is unquestionable that the vanity of knowing that " a chiel's amang them takin' notes, an' feth he'll prent them," is the inducing cause of more than a half of the speechifying with which this age is afflicted. The letter of the Paris correspondent amused me exceedingly, with its self-complacent egotism, so pleasant withal ; and the ubiquitous Sala too, playing with words and phrases as a Japanese juggler does with his magic tojDS and butterflies I "WHERE IS SPIKINSl" 161 Before the day was half over I feared I had exhausted the sheet ; but it happened that I noticed a corner turned down, and flying at it greedily, my anxiety was rewarded with this one line : — ' ' Where is Spikins ? " This rather curt advertisement, which if the proverb holds good must be ivitty, afforded me employment for the rest of the afternoon. " Methought," as the Spectator used to say, that "Where is Spikins" might cover a multitude of feelings; and that, under this simple query, what a tragedy, what sorrow, what love-lorn plaint might be hid; or it might be some comedy or broad farce. However it might be, I managed to construct a very nice little romance, a la Wilkie Collins, abounding in the most improbable and astounding sensational situations, but which, although quite satisfactory to myself, I fear would be " laughed at consumedly" by your readers; so in the exercise of a wise discretion I shall neither trouble them, nor risk my reputation, by giving even an out- line of the "Wild life" I led Spikins. Moreover, Dickens is. the only man I know, who can make a readable story with characters having the most ridiculous names. I now conclude, trusting that these rough Sketches may give some idea of what we see, what we do, and how we- enjoy ourselves in " Wild life" in South Eastern Africa. M TEANSVAAL VERSUS ZULU. (Leader in Xatal Hekald, October, 1SG9.) In the issue of the Mercunj of the 23rd October appeared a communication from their Utrecht correspondent, giving the Transvaal version of the present embrogho with the Zulus regarding the boundary question. Now, as the Zulus have no " Own Correspondents" of any public print, residing amongst them, it is but just that their side of the story should be laid before the colonists and the mother country, as, in consequence of Boer misgovernment, and that inor- dinate lust of land by which they are actuated — especially when it is in the possession of black races — trouble will, we are afraid, ensue on our north-eastern frontier, and we may be drawn in, as we w^ere with the Basutos; in fact, we shall be compelled to interfere, to prevent the results of the quarrel spreading into our own colony. The information we now lay before our readers we have taken considerable pains to procure, and we think it may be depended upon as correct. It has been obtained from those, whose occupations have detained them for some considerable time at the head- quarters of the Zulu Government, who know the language and the ways of the people, and who have often had occasion to admire and appreciate the friendly feeling displayed and felt towards the British, and to note the utter contempt and dislike of everything Boer, which are the characteristics of the present generation of Zulus, and of their ruler Cetchwayo. LAND TENURE IN THE ZULU. IQ^ In considering this matter, wv. should remember tliat, ^dtlioiigh Panda is nominally King, yet for many years (to ;i great extent before, but altogether since, the battle of the Tugela in 1856) Cetchwayo has been virtually so, and by what is considered a legal title in the Zulu. He is the Prime Minis- ter of his lather, or, perhaps more correctly speaking. Grand Vizier. What he says is law, as if the King had said it. He is an acknowledged power in Zulu, and, sjjeaking apart from his legal status, he has such power that, although he has, with rare policy and self-command for a savage chief, continued to accord to his father all the outward tokens of Koyalty, he could at any moment, and in any way he chose, remove him and reign in his place. Again, we must consider the conditions of property in land to the Zulu. The land belongs to the nation and the King is trustee. Xo man can hold it as his own and dispose of it at his pleasure ; — he may squat, but that is all, and is liable to be removed for mis- behaviour. The King, properly speaking, cannot allot any land without the consent of the tribe in Council, though in some small matters he may do so — say to a single family— without thinking it necessary to consult his people, and without their thinking it worth while to go against him. The Zulus have no idea of selling land away from their con- trol. When they speak of so-and-so having bought a piece of land from the King, they invariaT>ly consider that it is only the right to live on it during good behaviour, which has been sold, and they never say, so-and-so has purchased the land, but "a place to build on;" this of course only applies to the whites, who are the only buyers. Now, bearing this in mind, let us give a little history of the transaction. The Utrecht Correspondent of our contemporary says that it was a regular purchase and sale, that cattle were 164 TRANSVAAL I'. ZULU. given in payment, and the deed of transfer signed by Panda iind all his Indunas, that " Koobooloo " (Kebiila) was sent to deliver up the land, and that boundaries were pointed out and beacons set up. But what was the true state of the case? About 1858 (the date mentioned) the lung-sickness was sweeping off the cattle in the Zulu country. Panda sent a message to the Boers, saying that he was hungry, his cattle were all dead, and he had nothing to eat. This is a common thing amongst the natives, and is a token of friendship : a return would become necessary, if ever the donor asked for anything in the same way, — it is what is called " gupana." The Boers, in answer to his message, sent him fifty head of cattle and some sheep, saying " here is a mouthful of beef for you." {Emta was the word used, which is a piece cut off a roasted strip, of sufficient size to put in the mouth). These cattle were put with those belonging to one of his head kraals (" Um-dumoezuln " — the thunder of Heaven, and, by implication, of the Zulus), and they very shortly after died of the lung-sickness. Not long afterwj^rds there comes a message from the Boers — " We also are hungry — we are hungry for land — we have no place to live on — we are too crowded — allow our people to live on your land" (not sell us land), "the Blood Eiver, the U-bivana, and the U-pongolo." On the principle of " gn^ana" the King could not refuse, and besides, as the upper districts are comparatively thinly populated, he thought there would be no harm in allowing them to squat. He accordingly sent some Indunas to tell them so — Kebiila very likely amongst them, but Si-ry-o (Assegaio) was the head one. The Boers immediately said to Si-ry-o, " Show us our beacons." Eeply: "I do not understand you." " Show us where we are to live." Reply: "Oh, wherever you like DISPUTE ABOUT LAND. 165 about here." "Make an 'uicwadV" Eeply: "No, that I oan't do, I had no instructions from the King." Notwith- standing this they took Si-ry-o's hands, forcibly placed a stick in them, and made him make a mark! They then proceeded to drive in stakes for beacons, and marked off ^ibout one-third of the Zulu country as belonging to them ! When Cetchwayo heard of this high-handed proceeding, he immediately sent a party, who drove the Boers away and tore up their beacons — but those few who chose to squat peaceably in the Zulu and near the borders, in terms of his father's permission, he did not meddle with, and there they are to this day. Ever since then, the Boers have been demanding this land, xmd Cetchwayo and the Zulus, as well as Panda, refusing to ^ive it, alleging that it was a cheat from beginning to end, and that they cannot part with the land on any terms. " But," say the Boers, " you have got our cattle ;" and the -Zulus answer that they got permission to squat, but not to 43rect an independent state within ten miles of the " Mahla- ImH," the original nest of the Zulus, sacred to the King and his military kraals. " But here," say the Boers, " we have a paper showing that the King and his Indunas agreed to the sale of this land." " We know nothing about your papers," reply the Zulus, " nor their contents. We never meant to sell the land ; we never said we would do so, and we won't do so now," and so the parties separated for the time. Still, however, there is this constant irritating mes- sage-carrying about the land, and at last the Zulus gather together to hold council as to what is to be done. The first -cry is for war, and they hold a council of war and decide how it is to be carried on should it break out ; let us hope, however, that this may be averted. They then decide that 166 TRANSVAAL V. ZULU. tliey will first of all make a fair offer to tlie Boers. They say, ''This affair seems to have been a misunderstanding- altogether ; the King thought he was only asking you for a hit of beef when he was hungry. You thought you were buying a tract of country. To end this matter we will jjay you back. You gave the King fifty head of cattle and some sheep in 1858 : they all died, but that is not your fault ; they might have bred with you. We will therefore give you back 1,050 head, the odd thousand for their produce, and we trust you will accept this and end the matter — if not, we suppose we must fight, and we are quite ready." Thus at present stands the affair. The Zulus have re- ])oi*ted tlie proceedings to our Government regularly (they consider themselves tributary, or rather, under our guidance^ as regards all their foreign relations), and we trust they will make sufficiently strong representations, to prevent the Transvaal meddling Avith the Zulus, whose only wish is to live on veiy good terms with us, and to be at peace with all white men. We shall never be free from trouble of this kind until Britain agrees to extend her authority over the whole of South Africa. The Boers are no more fit to govern the native races than they are — what shall we say"? well — to govern themselves ! THE NATIVE CUSTOM OF " HLONIPA." Kead by the Author before the Natural History Association of Natal. (Reprinted from the Natal Mercury.) When last in Durban, Mr Sanderson requested me to prepare a paper on " Hlonipa," to be read before this Asso- ciation. I promised to do so, and have now come before you for the purpose of fulfilling my promise, to the best of my ability. It was a difficult matter for me, being utterly without experience in this sort of thing, to judge how to render the subject most interesting, and most in accordance with the customary style of papers read to an Institution of this kind. Ikit I decided that I had better do it in my own way, and trust to the interest of the matter itself, and to your leniency for any shortcomings there might be in my treatment of it. The study of Kaffir habits and customs is a very curious one. To my mind, it would take a lifetime of close applica- tion to make one thoroughly acquainted with their modes of thought, their peculiarities of speech, their untranslateablo idioms, and their superstitions— the last of which are legion. Were I to endeavour even to number them to you, I am afraid I should occupy more time than you would be inclined to spare me; but in a paper of this kind, though supposed to be only on one subject, I may be excused if I merely indicate a few of the subjects I refer to. There are two diiferent kinds of superstitions — those con- nected with witchcraft, and simple omens, lucky or unlucky. 168 NATIVE CUSTOM OF HLONIPA. ^ The former are the most deeply rooted, because (besides being actually afraid of the consequences to themselves of witches living amongst them) they have the motive of interest to support their belief. The plunder of a dead sorcerer is always shared — in different proportions, however — amongst his slayers; and no one in the country (conscious of his own freedom from witchcraft) ever fancies, until his fate comes upon him, that he himself stands a chance of being put to death for a witch. They allow, however, that sometimes people are "smelt out" who are not witches; but in this case they consider that the doctors only act as a necessary engine of state, and each one who talks to you is free from any idea that he may fall under the envy or displeasure of the King. He lives and goes on his way without fear, believing (by the way, a thoroughly Kaffir idea) that "whatever is, is right!" There are also the omens connected with every occurrence in life — hunting; starting on a journey; eating; marrying; or even simply moving about the kraal — there is always a something, from which the natives infer whether they will be successful or not in their journey or their hunt, or whether something evil or good is going to happen. In a hunt, various birds or animals crossing their path, or even seen, are ominous of success or failure. On a journey it is the same, but especially as to whether they will be lucky in procuring food at their destination; and at kraals, rats, cats, dogs, and even things inanimate, are supposed to influence their destinies, or at all events to bring about pleasure or pain. Dreams especially they are devout believers in, and many a hunter will leave his work and hasten home — perhaps 150 miles away — to ascertain whether some bad dream was founded in fact or not. If he does not go so far as this, he BELIEF IN DREAMS AND SACRIFICES. 160 will, at all events, spend some time and money in a visit to the diviner, whose interpretation is always satisfactory for the time. Again; I have often noticed a good hunter who has been unsuccessful for some days appear one morning quite radiant, announcing that he is certain to kill that day, as he had dreamt it; and — he does so! It is curious, and shows how deeply-rooted the belief is, that the fact of having dreamed, gives him the confidence necessary to be successful. It is also curious to observe how a first-class hunter — a brave man and a good shot — will, after having missed, or failed to kill, for two or three shots, go on in an unbroken course of failure for weeks, until at last he goes to the *' doctor," who tells him the cause — nearly always that some spiritual relation of his is dissatisfied; whom, having appeased by sacrifice, his hunting succeeds as before. Or else he goes to some known medicine man, who prescribes for his gun, so as to relieve it from the spell which some evil-disposed person has cast, or caused to be cast, upon it. Everything in nature is under the power of '' isinvanga " — rain, storms, sunshine, earthquakes, and all else, which we ascribe to natural causes, are brought about or retarded by various people to whom this power is ascribed. Every rain that comes is spoken of as belonging to somebody, and in a drought they say that the owners of the rain are at variance amongst themselves : and, of course, if they can find out the one who stops the way, they kill him ! There are many idiomatical expressions which, literally translated into English, sound ridiculous; but one who understands their language cannot help admiring how ex- pressive the phrase or the word is. For instance, ^^unesisila;' you have dirt or are dirty — but it means that you have 170 NATIVE CUSTOM OF HLONIPA. done or said something, or somebody else has done so,, which has bespattered you with metaphorical dirt — in the Scriptural sense, has defiled you. It is nearly the same as our expression "his hands are not clean," but only it is stronger ; as, in saying so, we but refer to some failing of the man, but they, when they say so, mean that he is radically bad. I have spoken, too, of their peculiarities of speech, and may mention one or two instances to show what I mean. Fat, in English, is fat, whatever it may be on. We say a fat man or a fat cow. It would not be correct to say so in Kaffir. A fat cow is oionile ; cow fat is amanoni, but only whilst it is eatable ; afterwards it becomes amafuta. A man is kuhqMle if in good condition ; if very fat he is said to be zimuUli, which latter I take to be a word related to hlonipa^ as they will sometimes say of cattle also, that they are kiiliqjde (though they will never use the other word, nomlt\ to a man), and are ashamed to use the same word in speaking of their chief (fat is always a sign of j^osition), as they do in the case of their ox. Again ; speaking in English, we would say young grass, or last year's grass ; and, if older than that, it would require a sentence to describe it. But, in Kaffir, young grass would simply be ihlungu, old grass isikofa or umlalane. The first, I take it, is derived from the appearance of the ground, the black ashes seen through the young grass looking like isi- hlungu — snake medicine, or medicine to give deadliness to a man's hand or weapon ; and, as it purges the cattle, they call it ihlungu. The second means literally " it is licking," and I fancy is derived from the peculiar motion of the cattle when eating succulent, well-grown grass. They gather it with their DOMESTIC RELATIONS. 171 tongue and throw their mouths forward as if licking the ground. The interpretation of the last I am not quite so sure about, but I think it comes from lala, to sleep, and a^ the Kaffirs use it, means that it has missed, or slept over, the regular grass-burning. The Kaffir language I consider much more copious and minute, as well as concise, than our own, in terms relating to things material — which they can see with their eyes — but is not fitted for sustaining a 2)hilosophical or metaphysical argument, and that naturally so. Again ; there are all the customs connected with the con- owers, their honesty and civility. Marriage Customs. I will endeavour to-night to impart to you a portion of the little I have learned, during my rather intimate and 194 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. extensive intercourse with them, about the natives witli whom we daily mix, with the hope that it may be of interest to you as members of this Association, as masters and mistresses of househohls and plantations, and as British l^eople who hold in their hands the destinies of the savag(^ nations of South Africa. I think I may reasonably begin my endeavour to delineate their manners, temperament, and customs, at those connected with marriage, as it is a good starting point for an exposi- tion of Kaffir character. It is a mistake to imagine that a girl is sold by her father in the same manner, and with the same authority, with which he would dispose of a cow. There may be a few instances of such things being done, but they are the excep- tion, not the rule. Amongst people of high rank it is not etiquette for the girl to choose her husband. She will take a pride in saying that such as she has no choice; and that she is of sufficient position to be compelled to go where the chief or the King sends her. Amongst the middle class the young men have always their sweethearts, whom they know will marry them immediately they are in a position to claim the fulfilment of their promise. They are, as a rule, faithful to them; and if any other richer suitor send a couple of friends, with one or two young heifers, to the father, to " T'libula" (i.e., " shoot the daughter"), if she refuses, they are quietly sent back. Perhaps a more literal translation of this phrase ivould be " hit her hard," as the interpretation ^' shoot" has only been applicable since their knowledge of fire-arms. The word is here used in a joking sense. The heifer is the " arles-penny," which, if accepted, clinches the bargain — ergo, he has shot, winged, crippled her, so that she can't get away from him. I know of many men, with plenty MARRIAGE CUSTOMS. 195 of cattle, who arc obliged to remain bachelors because tluy •<3an't get a girl to accept them. When the parties are agreed, great prej^arations are made. Both sides have new dances and songs, and it is a matter of •emulation as to which shall excel. The bride has always ready a stock of mats, spoons, dishes, &c., which she has been preparing; and her father gives her a blanket, and cattle according to his rank. But no girl ever goes to her husband without one beast, which is ever afterwards looked upon as the ox of the '^ Amadhlozi;" the loss of wdiich by death would be considered a token of desertion by the protecting spirits of her father's house; and the slaughter of which, in the event of any calamity such as disease or barrenness, is an acceptable sacrifice. When the eventful day has arrived, the bride and party— the higher the rank the more followers — set out for the bridegroom's kraal; wdiicli, however, they wdll not enter until it is night, singing and dancing as they come. Then^ are certain huts prepared for them, and " no one looketh upon their approach." If the j)air live close together, the party of the bride will go straight to the spot appointed for the ceremony. If not, it is as I have stated above. Early in the morning they go down to some stream, wasli and dress, and, about mid-day, come up and begin the dance, tlu', bridegroom's party looking on. When both sides havt^ finished, which may or may not be the first day, a beast, which belongs to the bride's party, is slaughtered by the bridegroom. At night the girl goes wandering about th(^ kraal, with a following of her own sex, but relations of th(; man's. She is crying for her father's house, where she was well treated. Now she is coming into a strange household, where she may be ill used, and has the certainty only of 196 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. hard work and cliildbirtli. She is supposed to be trying to run away, and the girls to be preventing her. Next day the husband, his brother, sister, and friends, take their seats in the cattle kraal, and the second and last part of the ceremony, " tikuhlamhm" takes place. The bride comes in with her party of girls, carrying in her hand an assegai — which, by the way, she has carried all through. One girl bears a pot of water, and a calabash spoon ; another some beads. The bride pours some water into the spoon, as also some beads. Then, coming up, singing and dancing, she throws it over her husband. She repeats this with her brother and sister-in-law, striking the latter at the same time, as a S3anbol that she from that time takes authority over the girls in her husband's household. Immediately this is done she breaks the staff of the assegai which she has all along held in her hand, and makes a run for the gate of the kraal as a last effort to get away. If she is not stopped by ar young man appointed for the purjjose, it is looked upon as a great disgrace, and the husband has to pay a beast to get her back. " VhuhlamUsa " means, to give wherewithal to wash the hands. I think it is a symbol that on that day she has washed away all her old life. The marriage rites are then finished. No widow when re-married breaks the staff of the assegai. The principal idea in a Kaffir wedding seems to be, to show the great unwillingness of the girl to be transformed into a wife. When an English girl is married, it is incumbent upon herself, her bridesmaids, and all her female relatives, to shed tears abundantly, as if the great event of their lives were one of sorrow and woe ! Just so with the Kaffirs. The whole ceremony is based upon this assumption. A modest girl will omit nothing, but fight tooth and nail for TRAINING OF CHILDREN. 197 4ill the observances. Hence most of the charges of cruelty we were entertained with some time ago ; and which only showed ignorance of the native customs. For some time after marriage the wife will not eat sour milk. She was paid for with milk-giving cattle, and she ■could not eat her own purchase price. She would be "nesisila" — would have dirt, would be defiled. But after a time she will go home to her father's, taking the broken iissegai with her, and come back with a goat, a sheep, or a beast, according to the rank of the parties. This is .slaughtered, and the " isisila " — the dirt or defiling principle — goes off the milk into the dead animal, and henceforth the milk may be eaten ! In native metaphorical phrase — ''she has cleaned her spoon." Each wife in a kraal has her separate hut, her independent household. The Training of Children. . It is part of Kaffir law that, if no children result from the union, the wife may be returned, or compensation claimed. The latter is often done; the former very seldom. It is also the case that if any of the cattle, which have been paid for her, die within the year, they must be replaced. This custom causes much litigation, as a man may, through pre- valence of disease or a bad locality, have to go on paying for years. This is also the case in bargains amongst themselves. If a man buys a cow from another, or gets one given him by his chief, and she dies, the seller or the giver has to replace ; but as this is no object to them, it- may be years before this is done. When a child is born, all in the kraal eat medicine, i.e., something to protect them from any evil influence. They 198 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. do the same on the occasion of a death. The little one is for the first two or three days fed upon sour milk. It is not until the third day, at soonest, that it receives its natural sustenance. Kaffir children's training is a very hard one. They roll about in the sun or the rain, they scramble for what they get to eat, they sleej) in the huts without covering, and the result is that only those .of hardy constitutions sur- vive. I never yet, even in a single instance, inquired of an old Kaffir woman who had had children, but I found shcv had lost one or more of them in this way. AVhen they become a little older, say about eight or nine, the boys' first duty is to herd the calves ; and the girls to do- any little odd jobs about the kraal which their mothers may desire — principally fetching water — and you will see a little thing tottering along, not much bigger than the pot or dish she carries on her head. How well and gi^acefully these Kaffir girls and women carry burdens in that way ! I have seen them with a round clay pot, holding about six gallons, full of water ; they twist a little grass into a ring of about three or four inches in diameter, place that on their heads,, on it they place the pot, and away they go, up and down hill, and along broken ground; they will stop and turn, but never put a hand to it; and yet they never break or spill ! This I may safely say is all the training native children get. They learn other things, such as — the females, mats, dress, pot making, and hoeing ; and the boys hunting and cow milking — of themselves. The natives have no idea of " training up a child in the way he should go." If a girl or a boy refuses to do anything they are told, the parents simply say that he or she is not old enough yet ; in a few years- they will have grown up, and have more sense ! untruthfulness and laziness. 199 The Kaffir Character. The natives have no idea of morahty whatever. A lie is useful in daily life; but they admit that it is awkward, if found out; if successful, it is considered rather a clever thing than otherwise. In trading with them, you may make up your mind that all they tell you is untrue, and act accordingly. Give no heed to their representations as to the age of a cow, or the value of any article. But yet, in " a deal," if you adhere to the truth, " it bothers them entirely." Your own natives, on the other hand, if they like you, will lie for your benefit as strongly as the opposite ])arty against you ; and both sides think it all fair trade. The natives have been brought up in one fixed idea, viz.^ to do as little as they can for anybody. They have been used to work for the King and their chiefs without pay, and the shirking feeling has been bred in the bone; therefore, though we, with our notions of what work ought to be, cry out against the laziness of the Kaffirs, and grumble at the trouble they are to us, yet I do not really think that it is so much their fault as their breeding, which they cannot over- come in a day. The dislike to stead}^, constant work, is inherent in them. Hoeing from morning till night is especially irksome. For a rush of work and then a long interval of rest, Kaffirs are good; but for steady manual labour, as we understand it, they require constant super- vision. But, again, this supervising is a difficult matter. It is not easy to get the right quantity of work out of a native and yet have him to like you. It is not to be done by constant "nagging," nor yet by the solitary system, which I have heard has been adopted in the colony; I mean posting them out here and there, so that they have 200 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. no opportunity of speaking to one another, and it is supposed they must therefore work; but it is only to be done by the constant presence of some one who can understand their language and their habits, who will neither bully nor joke with them, who knows how to put in a word of commendation when deserved, and, on the other hand, to give them a short, sharp admonition, when necessary, with a threat of punishment in case of repetition of the offence, which threat must always be carried out. It is a difficult matter to say what is the best form of punish- ment for a native, but I incline to the old plan, which I have heard freely described as " hitting him over the head with a hoe ! " If you fine him, he suffers loss, and the punishment rankles, and he feels as if he had been injured; whereas if you thrash him, after it is over he is no worse, but would not like to have to go through it again. If he is in the wrong, twenty to one he will not complain. Never let a woman lift her hand to a Kaffir; it is a disgrace to him; I say nothing of w^hat it is to her. Let her com- 2)lain to some male relative or to a Magistrate; but — keep her hands off ! I have often heard people complain of the disobHging nature of the Kaffir. If you ask him to do the simplest thing, when he is not in your employ, the answer invariably is, " What will you give me V Naturally so, I think. They Are not our equals, neither do we live amongst them. We do not visit at their homes, and do them little kindnesses. The only relation, betwixt the generality of whites and blacks, is that of employer and employed. The one tries all he can to get as much as possible out of the other. There is no idea of reciprocity. I hear nothing but " tax as high as possible" on the one side, and "ask plenty wage" on DISHONESTY OF THE KAFFIRS. 201 the other. We never attempt to teach them in any way. What they learn they pick up of themselves, and they do not often pick up much good. We try to get at their purses just now, because we are poor, and they are supposed to be comparatively rich ; but we ought to have the manliness to say that it is necessity which presses us on to this course. I never yet heard that protection to the exile, be he white or black, was a thing that he must pay for in Britain, or in a British colony. It is often said that the Kaffirs are arrant thieves : well, perhaps they are so, in a way. That they cannot be trusted with anything, I don't admit. If you show a native that you distrust him ; if you are constantly on the watch against theft; if, on something being mislaid, you don't take the trouble to look for it, but, priding yourself on you own care and method, at once tax the Kaffir with having stolen it ; if you constantly express the opinion that your sugar is diminished, your wine lessened in quantity, your meal not so much as there was yesterday, and every day ask your Kaffir " Who has been at my wine, my sugar, or my meal?" why then you had better put everything under lock and key i\t once, because your native will most certainly steal some when he gets a chance. On the other hand, if you can raise ■courage enough to say, " Here, Tom, see this meal, sugar, &c., well, mind you look after everything, as I am going away," I think, without doubt, your goods and chattels would be taken care of. Trust him, and, as a rule, he will be faithful; show that you distrust him, and he will give cause to justify the feeling. There is one thing, however, you may make up your mind to, and that is — there are few Kaffirs who will not leave the impress of two fingers and a thumb in the sugar-bowl ; for, like others, they have a sweet tooth ! 202 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. Their moral principles are very low. A theft, a lie, or even a murder are all very well, providing the first two are not found out, and sufficient provocation is given for the last. The value they put upon life is so little, that the killing^ another is consequently not thought by them such an enormous crime as Avith us. If a man has given sufficient provocation, it is his part to see that he does not get killed for it. The natives are not bound by their law to give up any- thing they may have found, which has been lost by some one else. Tlie loser should have taken better care of his. property, is their moral theory. I have heard also of their cruelty. Yes, they are cruel^ as we look upon it, but, like the dogs in Watts' hymns, "it is their nature to." We ought to try and teach them better, instead of vilifying them for wliat they cannot help — or, rather, for what they do not see the wickedness of. We might as well censure the alligator, for stowing away the man he has drowned, in his larder in the reeds, until he becomes properly tender, and then eating him. We shudder at the cruelty of the death, but we do not blame the reptile's modus operandi. Again, I may refer to the many scenes of confusion and I'ecrimination between the Kaffir and his master, which arise from a want of knowledge of the language ; and I cannot give a better example of what I mean than the word with which a native often prefaces a speech wherein he has to- express a difference of opinion. " Amanga " literally means "lies;" but, idiomatically, it is the most polite form of contradiction. It is equivalent to our " I beg your pardon, I must differ from you." How often liave I heard a white man say, speaking of some conversation with a native,. KAFFIR ETIQUETTE. 20^ *' Why, the first word the so-and-so fellow said, was that I lied. Didn't I warm him 1 He won't do that again." No, I should think not. You may take it for granted that a Kaffir will never be deliberately insolent without cause. If you speak to him properly he will answer you so, but if you liabitually speak harshly, and in an angry voice, you will "raise his corruption," and get insolence in return. People speak of Kaffirs being so far below whites, while they act as if they considered them of a higher nature; for, if Englishmen were sjioken to in the way that many masters and whites- generally speak to natives, it strikes me there would be a breach of the peace in a very short time ; but then they are only " adjectived niggers !" Every employer of Kaffir labour ought either to study, or have some one about him who has studied the customs, feelings, and nature of the natives. He would then know what to expect from them, and never be disappointed; because, on that knowledge he would base his calcultions, :ind his conduct to them. I say that the Kaffirs are — when you know them and they know you — notwithstanding all their shortcomings, a kindly, hospitable race ; and in time, with good management, good training, and good treatment, will become good subjects, iiood workers, and faithful friends. Kaffir Etiquette. Their forms of politeness are very strictly adhered to, and are many. When a stranger arrives at a kraal, he will most likely — if in the daytime — find the owner sitting out by the gate, and he will hdeJca (salute) ; he will say wngane (literally " friend"), but it is a respectful salutation. If he is his. ■204: KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. superior he will place his assegais at a little distance, advance, and sit down, saying nothing until he is saluted in turn. Presently the head man will say — Saka bona, abbreviation of ge sa u gu hona (literally, "I will see you," equivalent to our "good morning !"), and all round, one by one, will give him the same greeting. He will answer to each one separa- tely — Yeho (yes, I agree) ; after that, conversation may go on. If the owner is not at the gate, but in his hut, even although the visitor did not come to him, yet he will not leave without going up to salute him, as it might be said that he was sneaking about the kraal. If it is his chief, or any other chief's kraal, he will find the captain or head man under the chief, and after saying ^'umgane" to him, will ex- press his wish to see the great man, or explain his business. The captain then takes him up, and he " kukkas," giving the chief his proper title, such as '^ Zungu" for the head of this tribe, or " Ubtelesi" for the head of that one (he is the Zungu or the Ubttetesi, just as a Highland chief was the Macnab or the Macpherson), accompanied most likely by Baba (father) and a portion of his "isibongo," or name of thanks. If he is of sufficient consequence, the chief will salute him in return, -and ask what has brought him there ; if not he will sit out- side the hut, nothing being said to him, until he sees an opening, when he will begin his business. I should like to explain the *^ Islbongo," or name of thanks. It is a very curious custom. When a Chief or the King gives a man anything, or agrees that he shall do something that he wished to do, he thanks him. He will go outside, and walk up and down for perhaps ten minutes, shouting out all the praise he •can think of. This '' Isibongo" is taken from some trait or traits in a man's character, from his bravery, his strength, or his comeliness. For instance, I can quote a j)ortion of one KAFFIR ETIQUETTE — THE OFFICE OF " TASTER." 205 — " You who stick a man running." [The word used is " hlaba" which means to throw the assegai into anytliing, in contradistinction to " gicaza," holding it in your hand and stabbing with it.] This does not sound Hke any very high praise, but the interpretation of it is that he is very liberal — that a man has not to stand and ask, but that, even as he runs past, he will throw him something of his own accord. AYhen the native is brought into the presence of the King the same ceremony is gone through. He gives him all his, titles, and sits down outside the hut. It is not etiquette for an inferior to stand in the presence of a superior. He must squat down. They reverse our idea. They say, " Is he to- overshadow the chief?" When he takes his leave of any one he has been visiting, he says " a usalehe" or " ealcake" literally "please remain and build;" but, inferentially, it means " remain healthy and well, extend your kraal, may you become great." A curious piece of thanks from a native is, when he tells his superior to ^^iimana" literally stand still, or stand up, but it means that he hopes he will take root and grow, and always be in a position to give him pre- sents or protect him as he has done that day. The Kaffir's idea is, that those of high rank are the dispensers of bounty to those of lower position, for which the latter render them service. It is exactly our "work and wages" under another name. The chief is only supposed to give, not to pay, yet by custom, he is bound to do it. It is not etiquette to give you beer, without first tasting it. I have heard many whites say, " Bother them, putting their dirty mouths into the pot;" but I think it a loyal custom,, similar to the office of " taster" in the old feudal times; and it is meant to insure you against there being " death in the pot." While any one is eating, you must not spit, but you 206 KAFFIR CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS. may blow your nose as much as you like; and there are no handkerchiefs amongst the Zulus ! To the King, or to his sons and daughters, the cook will never say that the meat, which he had cut up for him to roast, is all done. That would be a great breach of etiquette, lioot him in the head !" I gave him the gim, but, instead of damaging his os frontis, he hit him on "the head's (ndqjodes," "and the consekens of the manoeuvre," as old Tony Weller says, was that the beast got up with a roai\ A\'hich made the Kaffir in front beat a precipitate retreat, in doing which he knocked me over, dropped the lantern, and the light went out. I lost my helmet, Mr F. his cap, and tlie Kaffir the lantern; and having a wholesome dread of losing something more mhiahle than either, we didn't lose a moment, I can assure you, in getting out of the bush, and the difficulty, at the same time. Fortunately the tiger didn't follow us, as I suspect he was stunned with the shot, otherwise I am afraid it would have been a rather awkward 220 NATAL SCENERY AND TIGER HUNT. job. Next iiioriiing three of us, with a whole lot of Kaffirs, went down to find him, and directly he saw us he bolted. I fired at him, but my gun snapped ; he then turned — " his soul in arms, and eager for the fray," open-mouthed, and roaring terribly. Mr F.'s gun snapped also ; but luckily Mr P.'s went off, and just grazed his cheek as he was leaping the fence at us. The Kaffirs ran "like winking;" indeed we never saw more than two out of the thirty after that. I put i30wder in the nipple of my gun and a fresh caj) ; and going up, caught sight of the tips of his ears ; directly lie .saw me, he crouched for the spring. I took a sight at the top of his head, and, with a steady aim, fired, and shot him dead as he was sjDringing over the fence. Although I killed him, the skin belongs to Mr F., as hunter's law here is that he who gives the animal the first wound, however slight, gets him, Avhoever may kill him. A BORDER RAID. AYhen I was a boy I used to make great friends with our watch-dog, "Rover." After reading "The Tales of the Borders," " The Lay of the Last Minstrel," or " The Seven (Jhampions of Christendom," I would go out, and with him rehearse the different "passages of arms." Rover, I think, understood the matter quite as well as I did, and enjoyed it as much in his own way. The usual proceeding was some- what as follows : — After, in fancy, driving the enemy's cattle, I would make a stand at the Border, mount my horse, Rover, and shout, in the most approved manner, opprobrious chivalric language to my pursuers. Armed with a pitchfork, I would charge to meet them, and the result was a general capsize by the bringing uj) of Rover's tether; then he, erst my horse, now my foe, towsled me most unmercifully. As gallant knight should do, however, I regained my feet and drove my enemy to his cas-kennel. In those merry days, when everything glittered in the light of romance, when the hardships and discomforts, which the Knights and Raiders must have endured, were unknown or unthought of, how little did I think that I should one day, in an opposite quarter of the globe, be engaged in a veritable Border Raid. If chronicled by Froissart or Blind Harry, and the time removed a few centuries back, I have no doubt it would read as well as the usual specimens of this kind of romance. But now-a-days, in matters like this, there is little of the "Away false traitor !" style of conversation, 222 A BORDER RAID. and more of the "You, be d d." Thus it is difficult to make it wear a romantic appearance. As a specimen of " Wild Life," however, of an existence where your hands have to guard your head, Avhere you have to be your own law-maker and law-enforcer, I hope it may be interesting. Fortunately, at home in England this stat*^ of affairs is unknown; but, on the other hand, fortunately, I think, for our youth and enterprise, there are countries where Anglo-Saxons may learn the lessons of self-dependence, and receive the physical training which fits them for their posi- tion, as natives of a country, whose Empire is so extended and of such variety. I had been hunting with a friend, D , about the Eiver Pongolo, which is at the northern end of the Zulu country, in Eastern Africa. I had with me about fifty Kaffir hunters, and the extent of territory we ranged over was very con- siderable. AYe were pretty close to the so-called Transvaal Republic (a small Dutch Boer State, which the British have allowed to establish itself in the interior), and part of the district — say about as large as a good sized English county — was claimed by a Boer, as having been given him by the Swazi King — a tributary to the Zulu power. This man was a Pariah amongst his o^vn people, and one who carried out *' The good old rule, the shuple plan, That he shall take who has the power, And he shall keep who can." I had frequently been warned by the natives that he would give me trouble, either by shooting or robbing my hunters. However, as two could play at that game, I was not particularly troubled. The way we managed was this : — My friend and I pitched our headquarters in some spot tolerably accessible A BOER REIVER. 223 to waggons, and from there the hunters radiated, bringing back their hides, horns, and ivory as they had collected sufficient, or as their ammunition gave out. We all of us lived upon meat and pure water, and took plenty of exercise for vegetables. Some of the men would be 30 or 40 miles away ; but, as I had possession of the country by mandate from the Zulu King, I had no lack of natives to carry the spoils any distance. Generally there were four or five hundred hanging about for the sake of the meat. One evening, after the fatigues of the day, my friend and I were lying under the trees, by the fire, listening to the songs of the natives, and watching the re-acting of the cxjDloits of the day, when two of my hunters made their appearance in sorry plight. They were unarmed — " like women" — and altogether looked very miserable. After a great deal of difficulty we managed to get a coherent story out of them, something as follows: — It appeared that they had met this famous and dreaded Boer, who had, at first, been very kind and chatty with them. They had sat down together — ^they and the Boer, two of his sons and his son-in- law. They had fed and smoked together, and, while in the full swing of confidence and friendship, he requested them to show him their guns. This they unhesitatingly did, and then he immediately ordered them to begone; beating them severely when they lingered about. They came away at length, infonning him that they would go and tell their master, and he replied that their master and the King at his back — i.e. of the Zulu — might come and — behave our- selves in a way we were not likely to do ! Now this would never do. I had not only lost my guns, but I had lieen insulted in the persons of my natives. My prestige Avas gone, and I was bound to recover it. Besides 224 A BORDER RAID. this, I must say that a somewhat savage feelmg had grown up within me. My " corruption" was raised at his message. However, for the time I simply told the men that I would see about it ; bullied them for being such fools, and turned away. For days after, there was great surmising amongst the natives as to what I would do. I kept very quiet until I had reported the affair to the King, who very simply told me that, as the Boer had begun it, I had better go and " Xova Xova" him, an expression meaning to mix the malt with the beer by grasping it with outstretched fingers, time after time — a very strong figure of speech ! He recommended me at the same time to be careful, so as not to have any "shooting around." "You know," said he, "that white men have a stupid prejudice against that sort of thing, and I don't want any 'talk' with the British or Transvaal Govern- ments." Promising to be as w\ary as possible, I went my way. About a fortnight afterwards, behold my friend and I, at the head of some thirty good men and true, on our way for a Border Eaid. We had a large retinue besides, and our proposed expedition made more noise in the country than pleased me. I was told that our friend " Koonclana" ("Conrad" Kaffirised) was on the look-out, with all his clan about him, and therefore thought it better to spend a month in hunting, about one hundred miles from his location. I felt sure the natives would not tell him of my whereabouts, as they both hated and feared him; and thus time would be allowed for his fears and suspicions to die away. After a month's thorough good sport, we started for his place. As in all expeditions of that kind in that country, the gun was the only provider. And, as is always the case. CIRCUMVENTING THE RASCAL. 225 being particularly hungry, we could shoot no game. On the third day we arrived at a Zulu village, within about 20 miles of his location ; and then my friend and I got a good feed of milk and Indian corn, though my poor fellows had nothing. " Never mind," said they, " we shall get plenty to-morrow. Eat, master; if you are satisfied, we are full!" Next day, before sunrise, we were off in light marching order. On arriving at Conrad's house, we found that there was no way of surj^rising him. There was no bush about. All was open round the house, and I felt sure that, if we were seen, the enemy would retreat to the house and stand a siege. We did not know how many they were ; and we knew that there were more of his people within a short distance, so that we had no time to spare. Remembering my injunctions, to have no bloodshed, I was in a dilemma, but, at last, my hunters came forward, and we circumvented the rascal. They proposed that we whites, with the most of the men, should remain on the hill where we were, and that eight or ten of them should lay aside their guns and bandoliers, and, appearing as Zulus simply, should go down to him, as a jjarty in pursuit of a runaway girl of their own tribe. So said, so done, and away went my forlorn hope, trusting principally in their own pluck, but also trusting to the effect of the surprise. I gave them strict orders to come back if they found their scheme impracticable without danger ; in no case to lay a finger upon the women and children, and to be careful that they did not hurt the men. All this I was most anxious about, since, although good and brave men, they were but savages after all. I must do them the justice to say, however, that in the very heat of triumph — resistance there was none — they remembered and obeyed my orders. Q ±26 A BORDER RAID. They went down and acted their part to a miracle. The Boer was mending a gun just inside his own door. One of his sons lounging about ; the others were away. Little by little some of my fellows edged in, crying to one another to come and see how guns were made, others disposed them- selves about the son, and, at a given signal, seized them ; while one or two guarded the old woman, who, seizing a spade, seemed very much inclined to come to the rescue. T had told them to shout for me, if successful. Instead of that, they commenced firing off the loaded guns of the Boer's which were in the house. . The result of tins was, that we thought they had been discovered, and pelted down the hill as fast as we could, everybody carrying a couple of guns each, and expecting to meet the remains of our forces in full flight. When we arrived, we found the Boer sitting on the ground, tied hand and foot, but none the worse; the son held by a couple of my men; and the old woman dodging backwards and forwards with her spade. My natives were shouting, jumping, and dancing, in the full swing of triumph, and many of the people of the country, who were by this time gathered laces in which the birds or animals were killed, would read as well, only that their scenes would be laid in a country which boasts no dangerous carnivori or pachydermata. Still we are not inclined to condemn this class of book. If it tempts people to go out on a crusade against wild animals, whether in Africa or India, it leads them to a better life than wasting health, time, and money in London. They gain by the change, and become men, in the strongest sense of the word. As an example of the steady, practical traveller who wastes no time in sport or romance, who is a thorough specimen of the Utilitarian in his travels and their results, we have Dr Livingstone. His books put us in mind of nothing so much as the business catalogue of an old- established, steady-going publisher, which includes a little " sensation." There is no going out of his way to cater to the public taste. He tells what he has seen and done, and if you don't like it, you may, to use a vulgar but expressive phrase, " lump it." But certainly there is generally enough, and much more than enough, in his books to hold the DR LIVINGSTONE'S AND CAPT. GALTON's BOOKS. 233 attention of the public closely riveted. AMiat Dr Living- stone describes, he describes well; coldly but clearly, as matters of business ought to be done. The public seem to have the idea, that all other travellers travel for their own pleasure, give us very readable books, but are scarcely to be ■depended on. Here, they seem to say, we have a man who is well used to the business; who knows what we sober old geographists want, and who will give it us. Egyptian Pashas, Equatorial Gorillas, Turkish Hadjis, and Armenian Dervishes, may be very interesting, but we prefer our steady old friend, who has catered for us so long. Captain Galton's is a wonderful book of its kind. The amount of research shown in its pages is enormous. Yet we must decide that it is only fit, as it mostly purports to be, for those who travel for amusement, to whom money is no object, and time less. It is utterly impossible for an exploring party, which has a wild, uninhabited country to go through, to carry such stores and magazines as he recom- mends. We are writing, of course, of what is portended in this article; that what we say is true, will be seen farther on. Besides the books which treat of sporting, solus, there are often very good articles in such papers as The Field and Land and JFater. They give much information regarding the habits of animals, as well as the modes of killing them. Notably some papers on rhinoceri, leopards, and lions, signed W. H. D., " Upindo," &c. We have, as we have said, travelled much and long in Southern and Eastern Africa, and have always taken an interest in the country and the natives. The consequence is, we cannot help arriving at the conclusion, that, not- withstanding all which our travellers have written, w^e have not yet a book of travels such as there ought to be. 234 AFRICAN TIIAVEL, TRAVELLERS, AND THEIR BOOKS. Row miicli there is to describe in Africa! What a vast field for science! What scope for the ethnologist, the natural historian, the philologist, the botanist, the geologist, and the geographer! Who will, who can, give us all this as it ought to be given, to complete our knowledge of this still little-known country, of its character and products, and of the manners and customs of its people 1 No one man can. It is impossible. The scientific societies ought to join in despatching an expedition, consisting of properly-qualified men, who have a thorough knowledge of these subjects, and Avho are able to compile solid information into a readable book. The interest in such a quest ^s^oulcl be immense. Government ought to contribute. The public would 'do so freely; as witness the munificence of Mr Young of Kelly. Men who love science for its own sake, are never backward in volunteering their services, even though life may be risked in carrying out their plans. Large sums of money would, no doubt, be required. Years Avould also pass before the survey was completed ; but the result would be a standard book for the present, and of reference for all time to come. How much benefit would also accrue to the natives from the knowledge that we were doing such a work ! The anarchy Avliich exists behind and around the Portuguese settlements, could do so no longer. If the attention of the civilized world was drawn to it, Portugal must alter or give up. She has not the power nor, seemingly, the inclination to improve matters ; but she would be compelled to give place to those who have both. It is not necessary that Britain alone should carry out this exploration. Science is cosmopolitan. Germany, France, Italy, and Portugal, would no doubt gladly contribute both men and monej^ What there is a paucity of in one nation. NECESSITY FOR A WELL-ORGANISED EXPEDITION. 235 may exist in superabundance in another. Poitugal in Europe is, and always has been, honourably anxious for pre-eminence in all that is good, and of use to mankind. It would be of great service to her, and to humanity, wert^ her emissaries to see Avliat goes on in her Eastern African possessions, in the company of men of other nations, of unbiassed judgment and undoubted integrity — men who would not be content with official reports, or judge by official civility, but look for themselves into the state of the people and tribes around. Such an expedition, well organized and well led, could go through the length and breadth of Africa, and, with care, might experience but few of the usual dangers and hardships. It would have the support of money to any amount, which is the sinews of travel, as well as of war ; and the more quietly and unostentatiously it went about its work, the less liable it would be to interruption. The peculiar "madness' of white men, other than Portuguese, is beginning to be well known in Africa ; namely, that many of them simply travel for knoAvledge and not for profit ; and, as a consequence, they are cheated, laughed at, and not molested. Thus both sides can afford to laugh, as both sides win. We are now, however, not so certain as to what will be the treatment < 'f travellers in Northern Africa. The fact of Sir Samuel Baker having first ajopeared as an explore]*, and then returned with an army, will spread through the countries around a fear that all others may be spying out the land for the same purpose ; and we doubt very much whether the "Jtimate results of Sir Samuel's expedition will be of so much 1 >enefit to mankind generally, as to make up for the obstruc- tions which we fear will be thrown in the way of scienc(^ and missionary enterprise — the true and lasting civilizers. 236 AFRICAN TRAVEL, TRAVELLERS, AND THEIR BOOKS. Speaking of such an expedition as this, naturally leads us into the subject of African exploration, as carried out under the fostering care of the Eoyal Geographical Society. It is •deplorable to see such a fiasco as the great Livingstone relief party, under Lieutenants Dawson and Henn; and yet we do not altogether blame the young commanders. Who, at their age and in their position, would refuse such a chance of renown as this leadership offered? Who would have «elf-abnegation enough to say, *'No, )^ou had better get some one more acquainted with this sort of thing. We are afraid we have not sufficient experience ; and we know nothing of Africa." We are no admirers of Mr Stanley's rather offensive •depreciation of others and glorification of himself; but we must allow that his strictures on the Royal Geographical Society are not altogether devoid of truth. One great mistake is made, which is this. No exj^loring party can possibly be strong enough for defence, in the event of a serious attack ; therefore, none ought to be rich enough to excite the cupidity which infallibly leads to such a result. An example ought to be taken from Livingstone himself. How much he has accomplished with so little means ! It may be said that he is sui generis ; but it is not so. Any man who throws himself heartily into such work, ought to be prepared to go with staff and scrip ; his instruments and medicines, the only real necessities ; his knowledge of native character, his high resolution, and undaunted heart, standing him in place of all else. An expedition which might be mistaken for the baggage-guard of an Indian army, which is laden with patent rifles, patent saddles, food, tents, and pontoons, which is an endeavour to take the comforts, and €ven the luxuries of home into Central Africa, is ridiculous. It might by this time have been recognized that, whatever HOW TO CONDUCT AN EXPLORING EXPEDITION. 237 amount of Inggage, parties of this kind have started with, the j^rincipal work has been done with very little. A man's guns, his medicines, and his instruments, he can get better in London ; but for all else, it is wiser to go with the money, and buy what he wants at the place from which he starts. It ought not to require demonstration that, at Zanzibar, goods necessary for inland travel are more likely to be got of the right quality and kind than in Cheapside. It is on these grounds that we have expressed such an opinion of Captain Galton's book as appears in the foregoing. A little knowledge of the seasons, in different parts of the world, would also be advisable, so as to avoid sending out expeditions to arrive at the beginning of the rains; as was the case with that of Lieutenants Dawson and Henn, and the true reason, to our mind, for its breaking up. We know many men who have started on long expeditions in Africa, covering distances in wild, unknown, and in- liospitable countries, which would bear comparison with those of our great travellers who are Fellows of the Eoyal Geographical Society, but who think very little of it ; so little, in fact, that it is difficult to get them to advert to their exploits. We are quite aware that it is a very different matter ta conduct or take part in a scientific exploration, to simply travelling through a country on business with which all the natives are acquainted ; but still we adhere to our opinion that it is easy to do, if a knowledge of the natives, the <«)untry, and the difficulties, is possessed by the leader, who above all things ought to be somewhat acclimatized. In support of this we refer to Captain Frederic Elton's explora- tion of the Limpopo. We might well take example by military matters. In the conducting of an army there is one commander-in. chief, but many subordinate ones. Each has. his defined station and his share of duty. :238 AFRICAN TRAVEL, TRAVELLERS, AND THEIR BOOKS. If such a combined expedition as we advocate is ever de- spatched, it wouhl be well that the leader of it was one who is acquainted with African travel, even if he had no scientific attainments. Or if that be thought infra dignitate, make him " sailing-master." It is not necessary that a man should liave been all over the continent, to enable him to travel in any part of it. His experience in one part, will serve him well in another, as witness Dr Livingstone himself. It is a mistake to accept it as a principle, that men who have done well in another cpiarter of the world, must do equally well in Africa ; the conditions are so different. Just as correctly might we say that he who is a good dancer, must be a good musician. African travel is of itself and by itself. AVerc there no other proof of this, the mere fact of it all having to be done on foot, would be sufficient. Let it be borne in mind, that we do not for one moment wish to depreciate the work which has been done by men, who travel in the interests of science. The hardships they endure are no doubt very great, such as would deter any but those who were supported by a genuine enthusiasm for, iind love of, exploration, or an honourable ambition to associate their names with the advance of science and civili- zation. They endure hunger and thirst, rain and sun, heat iind cold ; are exposed to dangers from disease, wild animals, and savage men. Still, these are but olives to their wine. Dr Livingstone has said that, after long association with black men, one forgets that they are black, and accepts the €olour as a matter of course. We know this to be true from experience. So it is with the dlsagreinens of travel. That Avhich, when we first encounter or read of it, feels, or sounds, insupportable hardship, comes to be takeii as a usual occur- rence. It is as in some of our every-day amusements in England, the danger is good fun, while in the pursuit or PORTUGUESE COLONIES A DISGRACE. 239 -e'xecution ; the brush or the prize is an honour, the prospect of which only adds zest to the game itself. If the scientific explorer has not this feeling he will never succeed. The hunter and trader has it in full force. He loves tlie life, and liis success enables him to pursue it. Englishmen, above all, ought to Ije greatly interested in, and, as we admit they do, support African travel. The Anglo-Saxon race has already struck root in the southern parts of the continent : and, if diplomatists do their duty with reasonable quickness and decision, no other power will gain a footing there, and we shall avoid disputes of the San Juan character. AVe have said that no other power will gain a footing ; it may be answered, that one other power has already done so. Portugal has been there, ere English- men had made to themselves a name beyond the boundaries of Europe, and its settlements still exist. Truly they do ; but they are no credit to the nation. Slavery, debauchery, drunkenness, anarchy, war, murder, and robbery stalk in the midst, and around, unchecked and unheeded ; nay, rather fostered, so as to render it an easy task for the few who are there to nde. There is no spring, no life in the Portuguese of East Africa. As they traded three hundred years ago, so they do now. As they Christianized and civilized three hundred years ago, so do they not now. They have inaugu- rated no new era of commerce and civilization. Anglo-Saxon settlements would do this ; and the Portuguese factories — like those of all worn-out and effete nations — would cpiickly and surely die out. Britain has done much for the putting down of slavery. No nation can question her disinterestedness in this matter. So long as she commands the sea she can j^revent slaves being exported in that way; but all the treaties in the world. 240 AFRICAN TRAVEL, TRAVELLERS, AND THEIR BOOKS. will not have the effect of doing away with domestic slavery^ until public opinion is brought to bear on it, and, Avithout travellers, how can that be] We ourselves, while waiting on business in the Government office at one of the Portu- guese settlements, have read the treaty between " the high, contracting Powers;" and, shortly afterwards, have been offered boys by the Banians at £5 each. Another time wa were witness to a quarrel between a Banian and a German, which arose as follows : — A certain Portuguese had left for Mozambique, and given his power of attorney to the German (first) and to the Banian (second). He had left eight slaves whom the German employed, but regularly paid them wages. This was against all precedent, and the Banian threatened to complain to the Governor that the slaves were being spoiled, by being taught to look for payment for their work 1 These East African j^eople — white, black, or yellow — ^will sign as many treaties as you like, and — keep none of them. The Court of Lisbon, no doubt, fancies that all is as it should be. It depends upon the representations of its- officials, who risk their lives to make as much money as they can, in as short a time as possible; and our British Govern- ment, which is accustomed to keep its word (in philan- thropical matters), takes all for granted. The country is no doubt unhealthy, but we consider that its deadliness has been much exaggerated, and that it is. more especially a consequence of the life which people lead there. The habitual residents have no amusements of any kind whatever. They seldom or never take to sporting, and their time is passed in sedentary employment, varied too often by excess, as a relief from monotony. Travellers, especially such as are unacquainted with the country, have hardships to endure which a little knowledge would avert. SELF-ABNEGATION OF THE TRUE EXPLORER. 241 They come fresh from hurrying, driving Europe, and expect that everything is to give way to push and dash, as there. It is not so. The African, with no sense of the value of time, cannot be hurried; and as regards the travelling itself — through marsh and river, forest and plain — over hills and amongst hostile or phlegmatic tribes — the longest way round, is generally the shortest in the end. Stanley found it so. Let them take time therefore. Look at Livingstone, how quietly and comfortably he takes it; no hurry there. He is determined to work out his problem thoroughly. Years are no object, and truly they are not. If a man, or party of men, spent their whole lives in opening up to European gaze, with a view to occupation, the lovely and fertile lands of xifrica, would any one say their lives had been wasted? Surely not. We want men for this exploration, who will look beyond a gold medal for their reward; who take such an interest in their species that they will become apostles of Africa — it would be a great name — apostles of science, civilization, and religion; who would give us a true and unexaggerated report upon this continent, the one portion of the globe which is still, to the disgrace of modern philanthropy, allowed, except on the sea-coasts, to take its chance as to all which we con- sider of value among men. The names of men who shall do this Avork, will live in the memories of mankind, surrounded by a brighter halo than those of warriors or statesmen; and though they may rest at last far from St Paul's or Westminster Abbey, yet shall their deeds be their brightest monument ! AMONG THE AMATONGA. (Glasgow Herald, I7th April, 1875.) In May, the first of the winter months of 1871, I started from Natal on a pioneer hunting and trading triji amongst the people whose name heads this article. They occupy the low, flat country to the east of the Bombo range of hills, from the Zulu on the south to the River of Spiritu Sanchi (English River) on the north (including all the southern shores of Delagoa Bay), and to the Indian Ocean on the east. It is a territory of about 150 miles long by 80 broad. It reaches to a little beyond the 26th parallel of s^uth latitude, and its northern boundary is the line between their last African possessions, now in dispute between Great Britain and Portugal. There are different tribes of Amatonga {Itonga the person, Amatonga the people — a general name for all the tribes thereabouts) in this country under different chiefs, but the principal, and by far the largest, is that of Mabudtu ("Mapoota") or Temby. Their king's name is Unozingili, and it was to him I was bound. We started on the 11th May from the port of Natal in a little schooner, with about fifty Portuguese natives, who were returning from work, as passengers. These people come regularly to earn money on the sugar and coff'ee plantations, and after two or three years' service go back to their homes, where they spend, in a very short time, in riotous living and debauchery, what they have been so long in gaining. The schooner crept up the coast, little by little, anchoring when the wind was foul, and creeping on when fair though light, FEAR OF NATIVES OF THE SHIP WANDERING. 243 until, on the second day before arriving at Loren90 Marques, we had a good stiff S. W. breeze, which brought us up abreast of the Island of Unyaka (Inyack). But, lo and behold ! when the next day dawned, the set of the current had been such, that we were out of sight of land, and then such a commotion amongst the natives on board 1 It was a day of fasting, of lugubrious faces, of much whispering and gathering in comers. They were to be taken and sold as slaves. The way was lost. The high wind of yesterday had obliterated the tracks of former vessels, so that the road could not be ilistinguished. They would all be starved, and would never see their homes any more. The sailors, when appealed to, •comforted them by saying that food would not fail with so many Amatonga on board. That when the head, hands, and feet were thrown overboard, Itonga meat would look like beef, and taste much nicer ! Water we had in plenty. My own natives (four Zulus whom I had taken with me) •came, in some trepidation, to consult me about this, but I laughed them out of their fears, and they went away satisfied. All this day we had been leading westward, and, towards (.'vening, high land was seen. This was at length recognised as Unyaka, and a general jubilee was the result. We anchored for the night inside the northern point of the island, the captain fearing to cross Delagoa Bay in the dark, because of the many shoals and the intricacy of the navigation. The island of Unyaka (Inyack) is about eight miles long, in its greatest length, and about six broad. It has evidently at one time been an extension of Cape Colatto on the eastern or seaward side of Delagoa Bay, which it encloses and shelters for half its length. It is perfectly healthy, summer and 244 AMONG THE AMATONGA. winter. The N.E., E., and S.E. winds blow from tlie sea„ The S.W., W., and N. winds come from the land, but they seem to cross enough of salt water to take the fever out of them. Two ridges run throughout its length, both terminat- ing in ^bluffs at their northern ends, and covered with bush; between the ridges is a valley where cultivation is principally carried on. The soil seems to be pure sand — in some parts white, in some red — yet it grows good crops of rice, beans of variou!> descriptions, yams, maize, Kaffir com, manioc, turmeric, eschalots, and pistachio nuts. Pigs and fowls are reared in great numbers, and cattle do pretty well. Orchilla weed is gathered on it in great quantities. It is separated from Cape Colatto, on the mainland, by a channel of about half-a-mile, and Elephant Island — a small spot of land on tlie inside of the northern point of its western ridge — forms the good and safe harbour of Port-Melville. The inhabitants number about eight hundred, and are part of the tribe of Mabudtu, under the chief Unozingili. It has been proclaimed a British possession, and gazetted as part of Natal in the Gazette of that colony, but the right to it is disputed by Portugal, and the matter is now, I believe, under arbitration. As a trading station it is first-class, and as a point of departure by sea for the yearly influx of labourers to Natal from the far interior, it would be invaluable to the colony, since the planters are forced to expend large sums on the importation of coolies, because the thousands of the Xorthern tribes are deterred from coming by land, by the great extent of hostile and law- less nations they have to traverse ; and by sea, by the many obstacles thrown in their way by the Portuguese. Next day, at half-past eleven A.M., we anchored in English Eiver, opposite the Portuguese settlement of Loren9o Mar- SEIZED BY THE PORTUGUESE-7^ CASUS BELLI. 245 ques, having crossed tlie bay (about 20 miles) with a good north-east breeze. We were cleared at the Natal Custom- Hoiise for the Usutu River (called on the maps Mapoota) ; but we called at Lorenco Marques to land our native pas- sengers — who were by this time very hungry — intending then to proceed. It is not my purpose, in this present paper, to •describe Lorenco Marques and its inhabitants, so I will merely tell what befell us there. After landing the Kaffirs, we wished to go whither we were bound, but the Governor would not allow us, threatening, in case we did so, to seize the ship, on the grounds that the Portuguese claimed all the southern coasts of Delagoa Bay. The consequence was, that I had to land in Lorenco w^ith my goods and pay duty. After this was done, the people were kind and polite enough. Major S , the Governor, lent me one of the Government boats to take myself and my property up the Usutu. I had difficulty in procuring one, through the jealousy of the Banians, the principal boat-owners and traders to Mabudtu. We started one morning at daybreak from Lorenzo Marques in a large boat of five or six tons, half-decked, and •carrying one immense lateen sail. We had a crew of eight men and a padrone ; and capital oarsmen and sailors they were. Their oars consist of a long mangrove-pole with a flat piece of wood bound to the end, which works in a piece of rope tied round the thole-pin. It was a calm when we started, and the men had to pull. They generally stand up on the thwarts, with their faces to the bow, and as they row they sing. I much prefer the Tonga singing to the Zulu. The former keep good time, and in their tunes tliere is melody; whereas that of the Zulus is a series of •shrieks, grunts, and bellowing, great sound, good time, but not the slightest approach to harmony. 246 AMONG THE AMATONGA. It was very pleasant tliat bright winter niornii]g as we lazily rolled over the placid waves of Delagoa Bay, passing along a coast which was new to me. Every point and bluff' was of interest. Each had its native tradition; especially a wall of rocks on the Teniby shore called by the natives- " Joinhbvana" — the little houses — where the breakers had excavated caves in the sandstone, approachable at low water, but not at high — which long ago had aff'orded refuge in time of war. Towards evening, we entered between the two l^oints (Hood and Flamingo), which constitute the mouth of the river. It was too dark to see much, but I saw it many a time afterwards in the daytime, from its mouth to 35 miles u]), and a noble river it is — I mean for South Africa. Flowing through flat country, its course is not interrupted by falls and rapids as are the rivers in the hill countries of the Zulu and Natal. For the distance that I know it, there is water, summer and winter, for vessels drawing five or six feet, and so far the influence of the tide is felt. Up to the Bombo Mountains, 80 miles from its mouth, there is three and a-half feet of water. Its banks are mostly covered with mangrove and reeds, though in some places they are high and dry. The natives rowed against the tide, which has a rise of about eight feet, and about eleven P.M. we put ashore at a ferry on the right bank. When I awoke in the morning we were lying high— but not dry — on a bed of mud. The tide had receded and left us there, and the river was covered with a thick mist which smelt of fever in every globule of it. There was no way of getting on to firm land, except by laying out two or three oars, and sliding along them. By that means you reached mud which was not above your thighs, through which you could wade to the bank. STUCK IN THE MUD. 247 As tlie birthplace of mankind was Asia, so, I believe, the birthplace of the mosquito-kind must have been upon the Usutu. From there, I believe, as they increased and filled the country, they spread over all the world, but none of them leave the spot, so long as there is room to fly. About eleven A.M. we started again, and passing through many herds of hippopotami, and starting many an alligator and strange bird, we reached our destination at night. On the way we had to land a Portuguese passenger, and did so (excuse the Hibernicism) 07i a tree that hung over the water. It is the strongest and toughest wood I have seen — a branch, the thickness of two fingers' breadth, easily })earing the weight of a man ; and ropes made from its bark are stronger than the strongest hemp. The natives call it " Ublolo." It grows to no great size, and has a large thick, soft, bright green leaf. On this voyage, I also made acquaintance with another very useful shrub, the ^' Uqum- bukwekwe." It has a small green leaf, with a very dark smooth bark. The leaves of it, when bruised, are used as soap, and a very good substitute they are, for washing either your clothes or your skin. Next morning we commenced landing the goods, and as we did so, though in the middle of the dry season, it came on to rain. The bales and cases had to be carried about half-a-mile over a swamp to the ferryman's kraal, which was situated on the first low ridge running parallel with the river, and ere we had finished I was thoroughly drenched. That night one of my Zulus complained of his head : it was the beginning of the fever. Next day also it rained, and we all had to lie up in the kraal, bitten by mosquitoes and stifled Avith smoke. I had been told that it was necessary to have rum with 248 AMONG THE AMATONGA. me, botli for purposes of trade and for gifts. I took none for sale; but I took with me a thirty-five gallon cask and a piece of very nice fancy twilled stuff as a present to the King; and next day apj^earing fine, we started for his kraal, about 20 miles distant, carrying a five-gallon keg as a sample. On the way, however, it rained again, and having no change of clothes I was constrained to wear the wet ones until they dried. Unozingili's head kraal is situated in the heart of a thick bush, the living and decayed vegetation of which smelt rankly as we passed through it. The name of this town is " 'Ncin'amacebo'ezwe," meaning "where all lying and false accusations current in the country come to an end" — i.e., find their level. It is shortly called " 'Ncina." It contains about a hundred huts, and is sur- rounded by smaller kraals inhabited by his wives, servants, and captains. In one, belonging to one of the last men- tioned, I was told to sleep, and in the evening a chamberlain came down for the present. He got the keg and the piece of cloth, and I told him of the cask, which the king would have to send for. That night I heard a tremendous uproar in the big kraal, and on inquiry found that they had been using my undiluted rum, as if it had been that of the Portu- guese, which is first reduced by two-thirds water, and then strengthened with cayenne pepper and tobacco juice. An old man, who lived where I was staying, was carried in about nine p.m. in a frightful state — he was roaring like a maniac, and foaming at the mouth. When I saw him I thought he would surely die, and was blaming myself for having given the King the liquor. I need not have troubled myself about the matter. Next morning he was up at day- break, none the worse, and telling me that mine was remark- ably good rum (or, as they call it, " Isopi "); it made them so AMATONGA INTEMPERANCE AND IMMORALITY. 249 very tipsy in so very short a time ! Euin and arrack are like mother's milk to these people. Even children of six or seven years old will drink a tumblerful, raw, without winking. I have seen one of the King's sons, a l)oy of eight, drink a bottle at a sitting. This is one of the delightful habits taught them by the Portuguese. It is the most profitable merchandise they deal in, and to do any trade in Mabudtu you must have rum as well as other goods. " All that a man hath will he give for his life," but to such an extent is the love of drink carried amongst the Amatonga, that they will give even that for rum, since they care not though they die, if they only die drunk ! Morality in the men, virtue in the women, are things unknown amongst the Amatonga. The slave girls and servants of the King, l)ear children for the King, and to whom they please. The females of the King's kin are not allowed to marry, but their families rank as of the blood royal. The price of a wife is £5, or its equivalent in rum or goods; and the Tonga men buy children of eleven or twelve years old, who grow up with their husbands. A man will go away to work in Natal, leaving his wife, or wives, at home. On his return they will show him the goods they have gained by prostitution in his absence, and be praised for their diligence ! Yet adultery, when '• discovered," is 23unislied by the *' co-respondent" paying the price of a wife. Disease prevails amongst them to a frightful extent, and, having no proper medicines, the result may be fancied. All this is another of the delightful customs taught them by the Portuguese, since it is only in the tribes with which they have contact, that such open debauchery is seen. The rule of Portugal in Eastern Africa is a curse to black, a shame and disgrace to white humanity. Murder, anarchy, 250 AMONG THE AMATONGA. plunder, and licentiousness arc the normal conditions of the nations inhabiting the territory which it claims. Tlie Portu- guese have no power to control them. They only exist by setting one tribe against another, and in consequence of their possessing the only markets where the natives can sell their produce and purchase the goods they require. We have had great and successful agitation against slavery in America, Cuba, and Brazil. Slavery exists amongst the Poiiu- f/uese/ Were only half the iniquity, misrule, and efFeteness of Portugal in Eastern Africa known, not Britain only, but the civilised world, would compel her to part with her possessions, since she is too weak and too bigoted, to improve matters. The King has a most Caliban-like way of carrying hi& immense hands and feet; and with him, as with all his people who can get spirits, it is impossible to do any business after mid-day. He has sense enough to know this, however; and although he may listen to what you have to say, he will return no answer until next morning. The number of his wives and slave girls is immense, and they live all about him. There are generally about five hundred soldiers in his kraal, two of whom are continually marching up and down in front of his hut, armed with double-barrelled guns, who give every few minutes a ludicrous imitation of the Portuguese cry of " Sentinela Alerta." There is, in 'Ncina, a dwarf who was a chamberlain to the King's grandfather, who died about 1854. He is not more than 33 inches high, and is not in any way deformed, except, if you may call it a deformity, the fact of his having immense ears, such as would be w^ondered at in a full-grown man. He is so old that the people say he is a spirit, was not born of woman, but came down from the heavens. I AN ANCIENT DWARF; AND AN AUTOCRATIC KING. 251 myself was told by the Portuguese that they have papers in the archives of Loreiico Marques with this man's name written as witness ninety years ago ! He witnessed the ceremony of Captain Owen's (with the present King's grand- father's consent) taking possession of the Usutu Eiver and the surrounding territory for Great Britain in 1823. I have often heard of this treaty from the natives; and it is a common saying amongst them that the country belongs to the Englishman. The Government is a clesj^otism pure and simple. The land, the people, their goods and their crops, tlie cattle, goats, and sheej^, belong to the King. He can, and does on occasion, take what he chooses from them. They have to supply him with food for his numerous wives, and for the soldiers who may be at headquarters; and the latter can, when sent on errands and expeditions, take what food the)^ require, even that which is being sent to the King; for, he says, they are myself — I am King by reason of them. In the Zulu nation the captains and councillors can save a man. If they say he shall not be killed, the King must give way; though it is not often they do so, since they share in the plunder. In Mabudtu the King's word is >uifficient — the lives of all are in the breath of his mouth. He is friendly to Englishmen, hoping by their means to <'scape from under the power of the Zulus, of whom he is in daily fear. He has a great contem2:)t for the Portuguese, whom he plunders with impunity; and would sweep Loren90 Marques off the face of the earth, were it not that he would tlien be unable to procure his supply of goods. The only method of retaliation which the Portuguese can adopt, when plundered, is to stoj) the trade; and this makes them so jealous of the British. claim to the English River boundary, since, if they had a settlement there, not only Unozingili's, 252 AMONG THE AMATONGA. but all the tribes around would be independent of them, and Loren90 Marques be among the things of the past. AVell that it was so ! The King is a very superstitious man. Every day, and nil day, some of his councillors are sitting with the diviners, who pretend to tell them what is going on in all parts of his country, what will happen, and with what dangers he is threatened. They divine with shells, stones, and knuckle- bones of sheep and goats. These they throw down out of their hands on the ground, muttering incantations the while ; iind from the position they fall in they foretell events, and find out secret plots against him. I need not say that most of the prophecies and revelations are obscure enough to warrant any interpretation. While I was in his country his mother died. Immediately the King was begirt with ^'medicine" and charms, to keep the evil from him. Catth^ were killed for food on her way, and two of her servants sent to attend on her. All the peo2:)le of the country came up to the King, under their different chiefs, to mourn with him ; they also had to be charmed and purified, which took many days, cattle being sacrificed the while, with solemn dancing and ceremonies. Last of all they went to " close up her house." The whole country, with the King at the head, went to her kraal, sacrificed cattle at the door of her hut, then sprinkled it over with the gall, and at last carried it away into the bush. After this the people returned to their homes, and the King was " a man again !" At another time, while I was at 'Ncina, the army was there. It appeared that a chief of one of the tribes, under the so-called rule of the Portuguese, had sent to the King to say, that he was ready for him whenever he chose to come — a defiance. Of course he accepted the challenge, and called THE ORDEAL OF FIRE. 25 S up his people to tell him of the great deeds they Avould do, and to be "doctored." They killed many cattle, and ate many medicines for good luck ; and, last of all, he set ta work to make them courageous. They came round him in their regiments, one after another. One of his chamberlains took in his hand a huge lighted torch, with which he went round the circle, and, through the flame of it, he blew some oily substance out of his mouth into the faces of the men, renewing the supply, when exhausted, out of a bottle which the King held. It was a most amusing sight. Some of them stood the flame well; others drew back in fright; others, again, it was plain he had a grudge against, as he thrust torch and all under their noses, singeing their beards- and their eyebrows, and setting their already well-greased hair on fire. When all was over, they were dismissed to. their homes, to await his summons for the war. I have spoken of his power for life and death, and will mention one instance which came under my own observation, both as illustrating that power, and as an episode in savage life. While in Mabudtu, there came to me one day a native from Loren90 Marques, who told me he wished to go under my protection through the Zulu to Natal. It happened afterwards that thisihan ("Umtabula 'Nhlesio," the splitter of hearts ; he was brave in war), although then under the Portuguese, had been Unozingili's. He did not tell me this, or I would have sent him on at once. He was recognised l)y the people, who immediately reported him to the King. On the third evening, I heard that this man had committed some crime, and would very likely get into trouble about it. After calling him, I asked if it was so. He did not , 2itli April, 1875.) When I left Natal for iiiy trip among the Amatonga,* I had arranged that the schooner "William Shaw" should come up again in September, 1871, with guns, powder, and Kaffir hoes, and to take away what produce I might have ready to- send. I wished her to come into the Usutu River (Mai3oota) direct, not thinking that the Portuguese would dare to seize a British ship in British, or at all events disputed, waters,, especially after the lesson they had in 1823, when Captain Owen, in H.M.S. "Leven," forcibly released the schooner " Orange Grove," of Capetown, Avliich had been seized by the authorities of Lorenco Marques when trading in the same river, and compelled the Governor to pay a debt of £250 which he had incurred to the supercargo, and thought he had got rid of by the seizure of the vessel. I knew also that the Usutu was well within the boundary line of the territory, belonging to certain chiefs, who ceded it to that officer for Great Britain, by treaty, in the same year. Accordingly, on the 8th of September, two friends who were in her, came up- to me, at the King's, with the information that she had arrived in the river. I must tell, however, that, as far back as July, I had arranged with Unozingili for jjeople to carry the hides of the game killed by my hunters, from the Bomba hills to the mouth of the Usutu, a distance of 90 miles, and fully expected that all Avould be done by the time the vessel * See " Among the Ainatonga." BOARDED AND 8EIZED BY THE PORTUGUESE. 261 ■came. In the interim happened the death of his mother, 4ind everything was thereby put in confusion in the country, and all work suspended, Avhen only about one-third had been carried, and I was then expecting the people with the re- mainder. I found the ship anchored about six miles up the river, and immediately had the cargo landed and carried away, by people I had provided for the purpose. We lay in the river some six or seven days, with a part of the cargo in, consist- ing of hides and ivory, and waiting for that w Inch was to <:ome. We amused ourselves trying to shoot ducks, geese, mid hippopotami, and, without that, had plenty of occupa- tion in defending ourselves from the assaults of numberless mosquitoes, which were almost as bad as the Portuguese. On the 1 3tli of the month we saw the lateen sails of two large boats coming round a bend in the river, and suspected that our friends w^ere going to pay us a visit. They came up (twelve soldiers, the Government Secretary, and the Clerk of the Customs,) and boarded us; and after inspecting our papers, informed the skipper that he would have to go into Loren90 Marques, about 22 miles to the northward, situated just half-a-mile to the north of 26" south. To this we duly protested, and handed in a formal protest, but were told this must be done to the Governor in person. Two or three days passed away before we got a fair wind, iind during that time, we w^ere on very friendly terms indeed with our captors. On the Sunday they attempted to tow the vessel down with the tide, but it resulted in our running ashore on a mudbank, to the great alarm of the Secretary and Clerk, since, if she had been wrecked before being condemned l^y their Courts, they would perhaps have had to bear the loss. 262 TAKEN BY THE PORTUGUESE. On the Monday there came a change of wind, and we went quietly down the river, across the bay, and u^t English Eiver, till we anchored opposite the fort, and were then left with a guard of a corporal and four different coloured soldiers on board, to see that we did not run away with her. ^¥[\i\e in the schooner, and coming down to Lorenzo Marques, I had many conversations with the Secretary, who Avas most kind and polite (as one of the seamen said, " Too- b dy polite altogether"), and who exjiressed a most gentlemanly regret at the contretemps; no doubt, however, it was all a mistake ; they were very sorry indeed to- interfere with British ships, but they were bound by their orders from Portugal, and so on; I should only have to explain matters — although I was rather puzzled as to what I could explain — and I could go back to the river for the remainder of my cargo. But when they got us fairly in their power the tune changed. Nothing then could be done — ship and people must be tried. It was a matter for the civil court at Mozambique to decide on appeal; even the Governor-General of the Portuguese possessions on the East Coast could do nothing. I was anxious about the vessel, as she was only chartered, and offered to pay duty and the fine under protest ; but after they had told me the amount of the fine — £111 — and I had asked for a day to consider, but really to get the money, I was told that they had found a new clause in their law, which precluded them from doing anything but trying the ship, and condemning or releasing her. But I must mention that, even when at first they agreed to take the fine, they refused to allow me to j^rotest against the seizure of the schooner, I must jjay and hold my tongue. The trial went on for some days in the most wearisome manner — many times interrupted by St Some- RELEASED BY THE " GOVERNOR GENERAL." 263 body's day. All the while the sailors and myself were hanging about the Custom-Hoiise, and I had to provide food for all hands. While this w^as going on, I again wished to hand in my protest; but the answer was that I must wait the result of the trial, and, if the ship was condemned, I could at any time do so. Afterwards, I took an opportunity of asking one of the officials to go with me to the Governor for that purpose, and was then told that, as I had not done it within twenty-four hours, I could not now do it at all. Next day we were turned out of the ship and had to live on shore. The sailors were provided with food and a room to lie in. I was not allowed to leave, and had to provide for myself. I determined to try one day, and marched off to the shore; but I w^as stopped. Fortunately, however, the Governor-General, who was just then on his round, paid Loren9o Marques a visit, and released me after eighteen days' detention. Thus it was that I was "taken by the Portuguese," and thus, and from previous visits, I came to know something about their settlement, the country round about, the tribes under their so-called rule, and, generally, their little goings-on. The seizure of the " William Shaw," and the boundary question, are before the Arbitration Commissioners, but the result of the whole affair is not yet known. I need not speak more of that matter, but it struck me that a truthful description of this little-known country, and of the effeteness and misrule of the Portuguese, might do good, and be interesting to British readers. So, allons! Delagoa Bay is a piece of water about 40 miles long from north to south, by 20 broad from east to west. For about half of its length on the south it is enclosed by Cape Colatto 264 TAKEN BY THE PORTUGUESE. and the Island of Unyaka (Inyack), and in the north-west corner lie the Islands of Sefeen, three low-lying banks covered with mangrove, between wdiich and the mainland is the mouth of the river Umkomati (St George's). The bay itself, although so large, is very shallow in most parts, and the navigation consequently very difficult. But one comfort is, that though you may run on a sandbank you can easily get off again. Right in the centre of the bay enters the river, called by the Portuguese " Spiritu Sanctu;" by our- selves, English Eiver. For some eight or ten miles up it is more like a firth than the usual outlet of a South African stream — there being no bar at the mouth either of it, or of the Umkomati — ^they flow into a bay, instead of into the open sea, and for this distance it runs directly east, so that the 26tli parallel divides it in the centre, and is not only a mathe- matical line but a natural boundary. The Portugueses Government, in a late treaty with the Transvaal Eepublic (a small independent Dutch State which the British have allowed to establish itself on the north-east corner of Natal), settled, between themselves, their southern boundary at 26" 30^' south. This was evidently done so as to give the former the whole of Delagoa Bay — for no other purpose and on no other groun^. It is simply an arbitrary line drawn through the territory of the chief of Mabudtu (Mapoota), the grand- son of him who ceded the country to Great Britain. It would give them the mouth of the Usutu (Mapoota) and about 12 or 15 miles inland from the southern beach of Delagoa Bay. Through this belt all imports and exports, into or from the remainder of the country, would have to pass, and Britain, on her northern boundary, would be denied all access from the sea, to her possessions, by a narrow band of Portuguese territory. The TransA^aal was only too proud DISPUTED BOUNDARY. 265 to luive arrived at the dignity of treating with a European State at all, to object to anything; and, besides that, it was not their business to demur to any boundary in this quarter. Britain was entirely ignored in this treaty between these two. In the other case — i.e., the line claimed by Britain — there is the broad division of the river, and, besides that, there is the fact, that the undoubted owner of the country fully ceded it to Captain Owen ; and although the Portu- guese persist in speaking of the Chief of Mabudtu as their subject, on the one side, and of the " Amanundwana," an- other tribe on the "Umkomati" (St George's) Eiver, on the other ; yet both parties are continually plundering their so-called masters, and making war upon each other, and scout the idea of dependence. The Portuguese, I believe, base their claim to this terri- tory on a treaty made with the Emperor '' Monopotapa" (a Prester John kind of character), who they say reigned in the sixteenth century; but how that can be I do not know, since it is not so many years ago that they paid rent for the very ground on which Lorenzo Marques stands. There must have been some treaty since, of an opposite character, which they say nothing about, if the first is anything more than a myth. On the south bank of English river the country is most beautiful. It is, although perfectly fiat, high and healthy. Plenty of good water, and large trees dotted all over it. The soil is sandy, but underneath it must be good, as the country is very fertile. On the northern side, it is also high, but being very swampy, it is decidedly unhealthy. Round about Loren90 Marques, for 20 miles, there are very few inhabitants; the constant wars, which the Portuguese are unable to .suppress, having depopulated the country. Further north, 266 TAKEN BY THE PORTUGUESE. from tlie latitude of St George's River 20 miles from its embouchure, to away beyond that of Sofala, there is a teeming population, willing, nay anxious, to come to work in Natal, but who are prevented by the distance and the danger, consequent upon frequent disturbances amongst themselves, and the enmity which they have engendered. The great advantages which all this northern coast has^ are its river navigation, splendid soil, abundance of fuel, and cheap labour ; yet all are useless for want of a good Govern- ment. Indeed, worse than useless, because these good things not only lie neglected by whites, but even the natives are not allowed to enjoy them in that peace and quietness which the power of Britain or Germany would give. The Portuguese have no care for improving the condition of the natives, either temporally or spiritually. If they became wealthy, they would be "powerful. If they were instructed, they would no longer remain dependent uj^on Lorenzo Marques for their suioplies, nor submit to be guided or influenced by the advice or the bribes of a people in many essential ways no better, and, in some respects, worse than themselves. It is a curious physiological study, why the character of a native of Portugal, high or low, changes so completely when he comes to Eastern Africa. I have generally understood that, in Europe, they are an honourable people, generous and hospitable, straightforward and truthful. Perhaps it is the weakness of their miserable settlements, surrounded by many, if not hostile, yet contemptuous natives, which so alters their nature. They are obliged to truckle and bribe, submit to insult and exactions, and are laughed at and plundered, whenever they step outside their walls ; so perhaps, after all, they are deserving of pity as well as censure. ADVANTAGES OF THE DISPUTED TERRITORY. 267 The whole country, in dispute between Britain and Portugal, is one immense alluvial fiat, where there is every facility for communication, either by water or on land. It is the same up the coast, as far as I know it. We must also remember that up the banks of English River is the nearest and best routes to the interior of the Transvaal — a district capable of producing everything required by man, and rich in minerals — gold amongst them. The new fields of Marabastadt, where there is a British company at w^ork, are about a hundred miles from its mouth, and are actually in independent native territory, although the Transvaal has a better and more convenient mode of annexing, than many other States; they simply make a map, and when adventurers come before the British public for railways in that little known country, the length of the line necessary and the difficulties, diminish wonderfully. No doubt a railway would be the making of the territory, and open up a trade w^hich would pay both trader and carrier, but let those who enter into the affair ascertain all about it. The present idea seems to be — let the company only commence, the line will then be finished somehow. Regarding the tribes considered by the Portuguese to be under their authority, and the hitter's misrule and effeteness generally, I will only tell one story. It is one which did actually happen, and is susceptible of plenty of proof. This, T think, will show the state of things much more strongly tlian any declamatory writing on my part, and as I am merely stating matters of fact, I shall be free from any suspicion of malice or exaggeration. I have already spoken of the natives from the northward constantly wishing to come to work in Natal on the sugar and coffee plantations. A few do so. This is also true of 268 TAKEN . BY THE PORTUGUESE. some tribes of the Basuto nation who Hve to the westward of Lorenzo Marques, but a long way in the interior. In the beginning of 1871, sixty of these peoj^le left Natal together on their journey home. They belonged to the tribe of Umjantji, in the N.E. corner of what the Boers consider Transvaal territory. They had each their pack of goods — blankets, calicoes, &c. — and each had money. Their most direct road would have been through Zulu and then through Amaswazi-land; but the latter and their own tribe, although the one nominally in Boer territory, and the other tributary, had been at war. So they chose to go along the coast, till they reached the latitude of their own country, and then struck inland. They passed through Zulu and Mabudtu in .safety, the chief of the latter tribe even giving them convoy to the banks of English River, to prevent them being maltreated or plundered by his people ; and they crossed to the Portuguese side. In July, 1871, I had been down to the Island of Inyack, and on my return landed at the usual passage of the Usutu. It was dark. When I came up to the ferryman's kraal, I saw some miserable-looking wretches seated round a fire, on which there was a pot with some maize in it. There were ten of them, and they, on inquiry, told me that they were the survivors of the sixty men who had passed, in good health and high spirits, two months before. Poor fellows ! I wish some of our diplomatists had seen them as they then were. Emaciated, and coveretl with wounds, many of them burnt in the inside of the thighs, and on the breast, by sitting till they fell asleep over the fire in the cold nights, hungry and broken. It would have stirred the bile of even a member of the Peace Society. I learnt afterwards that about ten more had escaped in different directions. Forty were killed, and DANGERS OF THE MIDDLE PASSAGE. 269 tliis was the how and the wherefore. On crossmg Enghsh Kiver they came amongst the i)eople of a httle tribe called *'Madtolo/' the head kraal of the chief of which is within eight miles of Loren90 Marques gates. This tribe, 1 daresay, could muster about four hundred men (they have since been nearly exterminated by Unozingili, the chief of Mabudtu), and are considered by the Portuguese, as peculiarly their own. The Basutos encamped under a tree outside the kraals, and some of them went that afternoon into the settlement to buy guns, and returned to sleep. Just before daylight in the morning, all the fighting men of "Madtolo" came down upon them, killed forty men, wounded the others, and plundered them of everything they possessed. The only reason given for this was that some of the plunderers' relatives had lost their lives some years ago in Umjantji's country. It was not pretended that these men were the murderers, or even that they knew anything about it. There is no doubt that the prospect of plunder was the real reason for the massacre. The consequence of all this was, that the remnant of these poor fellows were now trying to find their way back to Natal, destitute of everything ; subsisting on charity, and, from weakness and wounds, most likely to die on the way. Fortunately, however, I fell in with them, fed and cured and sent them out to Natal. What became of the others who escaped I never heard. The Portuguese did nothing ; too weak to punish, too indifferent to help the survivors. I heard afterwards that the Governor of Loren90 Marques had sent to the Chief of Madtolo demanding the property of these people. He returned him three pounds sterling (X3) in derision, with a message to the effect that, if he did not like to take that, he could leave it alone. So much for the ])0wer of Portugal in her possessions in Eastern Africa 1 270 TAKEN BY THE PORTUGUESE. The comment of tlie Chief of Malmdtu, Unozingili, who i-onsiders himself an " Enghshman," both by reason of his grandfather's treaty, and because he, being a vassal of the Zuhi, knows that they are tributary to us, was that lie had been a fool. If he had thought the plunder was to go to Madtolo he would have had it himself. After this, what chance will the next batch of labourers have, who return through his territories, I should like to know 1 This continual anarchy does harm to Natal and to the natives, directly and indirectly — to the former by preventing the influx of a regular supply of labour; to the latter because they not only lose their lives and their property, but because they lose the chance or the amount of civilisation they would ^gain in Natal, and which they would carry back with them to their distant homes. Need I harp longer upon this topic ? Surely not. When I can speak of so foul a murder having happened within cannon-shot of a Portuguese settlement, considered by them the capital of a territory, I have surely said enough to prove that in those days, when good govern- ment is felt to be a necessity as well as a duty, Portugal must either alter or give up. Her colonial possessions are a disgrace to any civilised community. In the nineteenth century, she is debasing instead of raising mankind, and wilfully too, so as to make-believe keep her power in the ascendant. Until Sir Bartle Frere's recommendation of the appointment of consuls in the Portuguese ports on this coast is carried out, there will be no security for British natives, or knowledge in Europe of one-half the slavery and anarchy which exist in the so-called civilised colonies. The harbour of Lorenzo Marques is in the open mouth of the river, where it is about a mile across. There is very good holding-ground and plenty of water. It blows occa- PUBLICITY OBJECTED TO BY THE PORTUGUESE. i^71 sionally liard from the S.W., but there is no danger. On landing you may, if the tide is high, get close to the land ; but if it is low water you have to be carried on a Kaffir's back for perhaps a hundred yards. Ashore, you must be •careful of your feet, as the worship of "Cloacina" is carried into practice on the beach. All goods have to be landed in the same manner, at great risk and trouble. For all tlie •centuries the Portuguese have been there, they have made no improvements, and a quay might be run out at very little expense. Splendid, straight mangrove poles are abundant •close around the settlement — but no I change is abhorrent to them, except for the worse. The idea seems to be that, in tlie event of improvement, a knowledge of their proceedings would be disseminated, and they would be obliged to alter, so they keep themselves to themselves. In this idea the Court of Lisbon seems to concur, as they have lately refused to grant a subsidy to the Union Steamship Company, which is running steamers up the eastern coast, calling at the different ports. They refuse, although it would be a good thing for them- selves, commercially S2)eaking, setting aside the philanthropic motive which alone actuates Great Britain. I have known the various settlements to be six months without any com- munication with each other, or with headquarters at Mozam- bique, before the Union Company had established this branch of their line. The settlement of Lorenco Marques is situated on the north bank, about two miles from Point Eeuben — the northern point at the mouth of the river. It is built on a sandbank, which has a swamp between it and the mainland, nnd is about 500 yards long by 200 yards broad. There <,ould not have been a more unhealthy spot selected, since whatever benefit it gets by the sea breeze is neutralised by 272 TAKEN BY THE. PORTUGUESE. the efFects of the swamp at the back, the stench from which, in the ^ houses close to it, is anything but pleasant or even bearable. Add to this seventy-one other, from every descrijv tion of filth and ordure, and you have a place v»rhicli — not for variety perhaps, but for pungency — beats Cologne in Coleridge's days; but safety had to be considered. At the west and east ends, and on the north side, it is surrounded by a wall. To seaAvard there is a tumble-down old fort, which is used as a barrack and a jail. In the whole place there are about ten guns of different sizes; and 120 various coloured soldiers, half of Avhom are constantly in hospital^ form the garrison. These soldiers are, indeed, a Falstaffian company, with the addition that the clothes, which they seem to have procured by following that great commander's advice, have not been properly distributed — the big men have got the small clothes, and vice versa. Within these walls the Portuguese may be said to govern, and those who are really their people amount to about five or six hundred. The west end of the settlement is the native quarter. There they are as thick as bees in a hive, and at night the sounds of drunkenness and debauchery are frightful ; it is a perfect brothel ! The Portuguese rule these people by terror. For a trifling offence I have seen a man lashed over a gun, and then two men, with each a stick about an inch thick, laying on to him — one, two! one, two! — till he was half-dead. There is no restriction on the sale of rum to the natives. In fact, I have seen palm wine (not nearly so intoxicating as the other) prohibited from being brought into the place, for no other reason that I could see, than that they sjDent their money on it instead of on rum, with less harm to themselves, but less profit to the customs. Outside of their HOSPITALITY OF THE GERIHANS AND FRENCH. 273 walls the Portuguese have neither power nor respect, they dare not step out in anger. They carry on, or rather prevent, their wars, by setting one tribe against another, and Loren^to Marques itself exists but on sufferance; yet they claim — and Euroj^ean diplomatists may perhaps allow it — territory to a vast extent and of great value and im- portance ! There are perhaps thirty white men and one white woman in Lorenzo Marques, the latter the very kind, hospitable Portuguese wife of a German merchant. Amongst the former are the Governor, Secretary, Collector and Clerk of Customs, and an officer, generally an ensign, of the troops. There is also a representative of a large French house in Marseilles, who carried with him to this miserable spot the kindness, politeness, and hospitality of his native country. I often used to wonder, with regard to the German and this last, not that they were peculiarly "rich or rare" sjiecimens of their two nations, but "how the devil they got there !" The houses are flat-roofed, built of adobe, cool and spacious ; sanded floors, little glass, and less furniture. The two streets are ankle deep in sand. About Lorenzo there are a few cocoa-nut trees, but fruit and vegetables are almost unknown. If they attempt gardens or plantations outside, their own so-called natives plunder and bum them, as has happened. The latter seem willing that the whites may keep a store there ; but are determined that they shall make no settlement, such as they see in Natal. In one thing the Portuguese are fortunate, and that is, that they have a splendid supply of fish at their door. The trade is considerable for so small a place, and might be increased fifty-fold, were it not for the high protective T 274 TAKEN BY THE PORTUGUESE. duties, the want of security, and the jealousy of the presence of foreigners, evinced every day. There are only three im- porting houses — two French and one German. These sell to the Banyans and half-castes, who travel through the native tribes trading for ivory, orchilla weed, ground nuts, and they had done so on the report of our coming. We were travelling along a ridge of mountains, when the sound of cattle lowing was heard, seemingly underneath and all about us. A halt was called, to consider how we should get at them. Parties were sent out in all directions to try and fall on an opening, but, for a long time, none could they find. At last one of them came upon a small hole in the rock, of size about sufficient for a man to creep in. One was instantly directed to make the attemj^t, and laying down his shield, he took an assegai in one hand, and in he went. We heard a shout, a groan, and all was still ; our man came not back. Another was at once sent after him, and shared the same fate. Now we began to hang back. It was certain death to refuse ; it seemed to be the same to go in. So far it was equal ; but we loathed the idea of being killed like a porcupine in a hole. I considered for a moment, and then it struck me that I had the idea, and I said to myself, ' Now is the time to show above the others ; now for some cattle.' I spoke out; I cried out, 'I will go in.' 'Who is thaf?' inquired one of the officers. ' Myself, father,' I answered. ' Appear T was the next word, and I did so. I was greatly praised, and told that my fortune was made. May be^ thought I, but what use if I'm killed. However, there's nothing wrong, my snake may be good, and I may escape. Laying down my shield, and taking off my dress, I crept in on my belly, having asked those outside to make a great noise, so that my movements should not be heard. I went along very €[uiet]y, witli my spear in my hand, till I felt the feet of the dead man who had gone before me. I lifted them up very gently, and 'swurmed' along until I had got liim fairly on my back ; then with him in that i^osition, I went on for about my own length, and felt stab, stab, thud, thud, 280 A ZULU ROMANCE. as they ran assegais into his body and struck him with sticks. I shouted ' Mai6 ' [oh, dear], groaned, and gave a wriggle or two, then lay still. It was quite dark, and all was quiet outside. Immediately some one said, ' That is the third ; move the stone and let us see him,' and one stepped over me in obedience to the command. I grasped my assegai, and, just as the first light came in by the opening he was making, I sprang up and stabbed him, shouting at the same time to our people, ' In with you, in with you ; I am holding the pot on the fire; quick and shove it up ;' and, turning, defended myself from those who were in the entrance. I had only to do so for a few moments. Our people came rushing in, and I escaped with a few cuts. By this time we could hear the hum of the alarmed Amaswazi, like bees in a hole ; so like was it, that the instantaneous cry was, ' Let us dig out this honey-nest, it is fat ;' but our officers made us wait for more force ; it came, and we went forward. We walked along a good way on a fine grassy glade, a stream of water running through the centre, and the rocks nearly meeting overhead, until at last we came to a large circular piece of ground — as large as the flat outside there (say a mile in diameter), a waterfall at one end, precipices all round, and wood here and there about the foot of them, but not a soul was to be seen. We hunted until at last we found many openings into caves at the sides, and these we at once stormed, our whole force having by this time come up. The people within fought well, and we were hunting one another; but we got lights, and then we finished them off. Did we kill the women and children, say you 1 Ay, that did we. Why nof? The children would grow up into soldiers to fight us, and the women would bear more. " I came to one girl. As I raised my assegai she looked " LOVE IS LIKE A DIZZINESS 1" 281 at me, clasped her hands over her eyes, and said ' Ow um- ta-ka-baba' [oh, child of my father, my brother] ; that was all, and, do you know, I could not kill her. Chaka! I couldn't [swears by his king]. She had ' medicine,' that girl. I had killed that day till my assegai was blunt and my arm was weary, but all anger seemed to go out at my fingers and toes. So I said, 'Rise, Tdadte, [literally, Sister, l)ut in meaning, as in sound, the same as the Scotch "dawty"], no one will hurt you.' I defended her from others. Many would have attacked me, but I was always recognised in time, as the brave who had gained the entrance; and the cry was, ' Let him alone; let him keep the girl.' ' Ah, but,' cried others, ' he'll have to give her up to the King.' Then, for the first time, I remembered the orders, and I looked up to see if I had not come suddenly under a waterfall. I turned towards the girl; she was gazing on the ground. ' Lulama' [straighten yourself], I cried. Our eyes met. Something seemed to soften and melt, warmly and gradually, within me. I began to be disgusted with the blood which covered me. I thought of my sisters and my mother at home, and I thought of her father and mother, most likely killed that day. Somehow or other it came into my mind that she was alone and in sorrow, and would be torn from her country and her people, and given to be a slave to the King, for no fault of her own; and still I warmed and melted, until at last I became a child, and determined to save her from our army, and send her back to her folk, if, haply, any were alive. I tell you she had medicine, that girl. I took her quietly to one side, and said, ' Look here ! I must give you up to the officers for the King ; but watch ; be quick to understand what I say or do, and I'll find an opportunity of letting you go safely.' She did not answer 282 A ZULU ROMANCE. — she only looked at me ; but something in the look wa."* better than spoken words. Well, when all was over, we^ gathered together our cattle and our captives, ready for our homeward march ; and by way of reward I was appointed an officer of the guard of the latter, just what I would have wished for. We travelled for a day without being able to- exchange a word with the 'Swazi girl, though I wanted to,, very much ; I felt just as if I was hungry. She was some- where in the centre of the throng, and has told me since that she kef)t edging outwards, until she got close to where I was, hoping that I would, yet fearing I would not, address her. When I saw her near I began to look about for an opening to let her go. I made a sign to keep close by me. She did so ; and towards dusk, as we were marching by a wooded ravine, I managed to give her a push. She sprang clear in, and I purposely fell in the way of the man behind, who was jumping in after her. She got away, the mor(^ easily, as I shouted to my men to stand firm and guard those who were left, in case they should go too. I thought I had managed so cleverly ; but I was to hear more of it, as you shall see. I would have been killed, only my snake stood straight up. "We reported to the generals the loss of the captive; they said it could not be helped, and spoke of something else. We travelled on without further adventure until we got near the King's again ; when we halted, and messengers were sent forward to announce our return. A day was. appointed for a review at Nodwengo, and we all brushed ourselves up to look our best. The day came. We defiled l)efore the great one, and each had our little praise ; then came the giving out of the cattle. A great many had received their rewards, when the cry was raised for the bravo REVIEW AND REWARDS. 283 wlio had gained the entrance, to show himself, and I had to step forward. ' To me,' said the King, ' you have shown yourself a soldier indeed, and deserving of a King's notice ; there is a troop of cattle for you. But , now I shall Idll 3^ou for helping one of the captive girls to escape. AVhat say you*?' I saw it was no use attempting to get out of the hobble, so I spoke boldly. I knew that kings like those who speak out, but I trembled all the while. ' Yes, father; yes, wild beast; yes, you that are black,' I replied. ' The King is, of course, right. I ought to be killed; but I could not help it. She bewitched me.' ' How sol' asked he; and I told him the whole affair, with all the symptoms. AVhen I had done, he burst out laughing, and said, ' Wow ! the idiot fell in love with her. Go, go; you are a brave soldier, but a fool in these matters. I should have thought a young man of your age and appearance would have known more. Wow! the fool! What was it like? Was it sore 1' 'No, father, I can't say it was sore. It was like a sickness, though. It was just " Umhlolo." '* 'Go, go,' he said, 'You have escaped.' I went quickly, took my cattle, and thanked my snake all the way home. That was the beginning of my rise; till now, as you see me, I have many kraals, much people, and plenty cattle. " Well, when I had been at home for about ten days, I went paying visits all round, was everywhere 2)raised and fed; but still something was wanting. My heart continually ached with a dull pain. I felt a want. At night I dreamt about the 'Swazi girl. By day I thought of her. I saw her face in the burning coals of fire. I halted while eating my food to think of her, until my people said, ' How much that * Anything out of the v/ay. Anything unnatural ; not explain- able in ordinary or natural grounds. Used in a great many senses. I 284 A ZULU ROMANCE. young man speaks to his heart' [thinks]. I went hunting, but I used to forget what I was about. In the dance I would stop and not know it. Wow 1 that love is an Umhlolo indeed. At last, one morning while lying lost in my hut, my sisters came rushing in, saying that they had found a girl half-dead with cold in the garden, and that she was 'Swazi by her tongue. My heart leapt up at once, and with it my body. I knew it was she. It was as if something was drawing me with a rope. The girls laughed; they had a shrewd idea as to what was the matter. I ran out, and there I found her: pinched with hunger, shrivelled with cold, done with weariness; but yet with the same glancing look I remembered in the cave. I spoke to her ; enefits he receives, from a scheme something Hke the one I am proposing. I say No ; but rather tax the employer one shilling per month. If labour becomes plentiful, it will eventually be paid by the labourer ; but if it be scarce, it is simply one shilling per month higher wages, and this course will prevent rumours, of immense sums having to be paid, circulating amongst them. I think I have pointed out sufficient ways and means, and even if I have not, surely Government and the planters will not grudge a little more, when they are going to ten times the expense for Coolies. Now for the Sea route. I see that Captain Elton has been commissioned by the Government to proceed to Mozambique, to arrange with the Portuguese authorities, for leave to the natives to embark from their settlements for Natal. No man is more fitted for this than Captain Elton. He will arrange his treaty. Our polite neighbours will express them- selves anxious to do all their " possibilities " for their good friends the British. He will come back with flying colours and — it tvill be money throivn away ! I saw some time ago an account of a meeting of the Immi- grants' Aid Office, at which it was stated that Captain Kaminski, of the " Sea Nymph," said that the Portuguese imthorities prevented natives embarking for Natal. This was denied by Mr Peace, the vice-consul for Portugal. Nevertheless, Captain Kaminski was right and Mr Peace was wrong. I remember hearing a story from some one, of Captain Elton asking the Governor of Lorenzo Marques if the natives might embark in the " May," and his being told that, as they were free now, they might do as they liked, there being nothing to prevent them. Captain Elton's agent, 294: LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATIVE LABOUR. I was told, procured fifty-two men, and while they wero^ collected outside the office, waiting for their tickets, some soldiers from the garrison passed among them. They gradually melted away and the vessel came back empty. It does not suit the Portuguese that their natives should come; to work in Xatal ; for they would get notions of liberty and good government which are entirely contrary to Portuguese ideas. Besides that, seeing large numbers of Britons and their power and progress, they would be sure to imbibe a very unpleasant contempt for their masters and their miser- able ordure-scented settlements. If we had a station on Inyack Island — then indeed the sea route would become the best. All the natives from the Interior would come })y it. They would just come quietly round the walls of the Portuguese settlements, — they could not stop them, — cross over to Inyack and there wait for a vessel. The Island is perfectly capable of growing food for their support, and it is healthy. By this means they would avoid the Swazi, the Zulu, and the Mabudtu, and the very name of Britons being settled on Inyack would draw out thousands who now fear the distance and the danger. I am, Sir, your obedient servant, Peter Schlemil. Durban, February 17, 1873. The Gun Trade with the Natives. (Natal Colonist, 4th April. 1873.) To THE Editor of the Natal Colonist. Sir, — The vexed question of the trade in arms and ammu- nition with the natives, and how to stop it, is one which just GUN TRADE WITH THE NATIVES. 295 now occupies a great share of public attention. To my mind, no one who has spoken or written, on this subject, has gone deep enough. The cure of a wound must begin from the interior — if cicatrised it only bursts forth again — worse than before — and, perhaps, dangerously affects other parts of the ))ody. I see that the Lieutenant Governor has put a stop both to the importation and exportation of guns — the latter either l)y land or sea. I cannot say " very good," since this is only cicatrisation. There have been three routes by which guns and powder have hitherto reached the natives, with whom we in Natal might come into collision : — 1. From the Cape Colony and the Diamond Fields overland. 2. From our own Colony of Natal, with and without the I»ermission of the Government — nior(^ without than with, liowever. 3. Through the Portuguese settlement of Loren9o Marques, situated about two miles up the left bank of English Eiver, which runs into Delagoa Bay. I believe that, owing to the representations of the Free- State and Transvaal, Sir Henry Barkly and Mr Southey have, or are about to, put a stop, not only to the sale of lirearms to natives, but to their indiscriminate importation and sale altogether. So far so good, but will Sir Henry prevent them being exported by the new line of steamers to Loren9o Marques? I need not speak of the settlement to the North of that one. Or, if he does that in Capetown and Algoa Bay, can he stop, in transhipment, guns, shipped in ICngland, consigned to Lorenco direct 1 Supposing, however, all this be done, combined with what has already 296 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — GUN TRADE. been done in Natal, it will prevent any guns or ammunition from leaving the British Colonies in South Africa for the Portuguese settlements ; hut Avhat does that help 1 They themselves can, and do, import from France, Britain, and Portugal. The next proceeding, I su2)pose, would be a treaty, between Great l^ritain and Portugal, to the effect that neither Power should dispose of arms to the natives. All would be properly settled, diplomatically, and, after all, it would be a mere farce. I could not help laughing to myself the other day, when I saw something in the Mercuiij, about the 500 guns having been delivered to the Zulus by the Governor of Lorenco Marques, "to the great dissatisfaction of the inhabitants." Dear me ! There are perhaps thirty pure white inhabitants — the only ones who dare call their souls their own — in the jilace, besides those among the soldiers who are white, but who count for nothing. If they were dissatisfied, take my word for it, that it was only because the j)rofit did not go into their pockets ! As for the Governor, he could not do otherwise. If he offended the Zulus, who would keep the Amaswasi and Mabudtu tribes from him % Here I cannot help digressing, to remark how ignorant people are, who might be enlightened by the slightest enquiry, not only of the tribes surrounding us, and their politics and proceedings, but also of the geography of the surrounding countries. A good while ago I saw in your own journal, or that of your contemporary, an extract from a Transvaal paper, to the effect that Mr George Moodie has inspected the route of the proposed road from New Scotland to the mouth of the Usutu Eiver, as far as the Bombo range. That up to that 2:)oint he had found no difficulties, and, from there, it was only dghteen miles of level country, free from MISSTATEMENT OF DISTANCES. 297 obstructions, to Delagoa, Bay. It is eighty every inch of it, and if he goes down the right bank of the Usutu, he has the Pongolo to cross — if down the left, he has lakes and morasses — which will necessitate a detonr. Again, quite lately, I saw that the President of the Transvaal had been to the Swazi Queen's head kraal " Lotito" (Udidti), one. me." Now the Natal Government do their best; wlienever they give a permit to export guns to the Free State or Transvaal, they take a bond, to be redeemed by the Land- rost's certificate. This gives the authorities tlie information that certain guns have come into their country: and it surely then becomes their business to see that they are properly disposed of. The Governing powers of the Re- public may rest assured, that, so long as their officers are amenable to reason, and the profits will allow of reason being shown, guns will be sold to the natives, whatever nation may bear sway in Natal, the Cape Colony, or the Diamond Fields. I have pointed out, what I believe to be the only thorough preventive of the sale of arms and ammunition, by the Portu- guese, to the natives bordering on Natal: and, as regards our own Colonies, I think that the various Governments ought to take the trade in guns into their own hands, just as they have done that in powder. They can appoint agents for the sale of fire-arms, at a fixed salary, and they can always keep a stock on hand. I do not think that bona fide buyers of guns would object to this, as the Government (;ould afford to sell cheaper than importers, since what they want is safety, not profit. As at j)resent, the Magistrates could give permits. They would never be required to adjudicate on an application for a great number, because, as nobody can sell, nobody would buy, except what they required for their own use; although I think that one l)rivate individual may sell his gun to another, provided the Magistrate is satisfied. It is only the imjmiation of guns that I would have in Government hands. From the 15th to the 31st of every January, might be the time in which registered owners of guns should be compelled to show or 300 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — GUN TRADE. account for tliem, at their respective Magistracies. As regards guns going Overberg, I don't think that the present arrangement can be improved upon. The Free State and Transvaal may rest assured, that the first use of these guns, if they get into the possession of the natives, will not be in war ic'ith the British! Instead of grumbling at us, let them look closer after their disposal. There is one thing, however, which our Government is remiss in, and that is, the allowing so much' gun and powder .smuggling to be carried on. Many cases of guns, and casks of i:>owder, pass yearly into Natal, without paying duty, or being registered. It is impossible to say more, but this islight reference ought to be enough ; verhum scqj : ! Notwithstanding all I have proj^osed, and other people may propose, and all that the Government can do, we may rest assured that, while the profits are so high, the trade will be carried on, but it is our duty to do all we can to stop it. The more strict and vigilant the Government is, the greater the risk to the illicit traders. To cover that risk, he can only sell a class of gun which is much more dangerous to the man behind it, than to the one in front ; and, after all, it is not what an undisciplined horde of natives can do with firearms, that I am afraid of, but what they think they can do, so that, if they can only get a class of weapon, which will quickly betray their confidence, in a disastrous manner, the result might almost be better, than if we could stop the trade altogether. It is known that the Zulus (The Ma Zitu) about tlic Zambezi and Shire, will have nothing to do with guns, and when they take them from tlie enemy, they beat the iron into assegais. Some time ago I was conversing with one of the Mabudtu Tongas, and I made the remark — speaking of DIFFICULTIES OF THE GUN TRADE. 301 the late war — " Now you liave taken the Portuguese guns, I suppose every man in Mabudtu is armed." " Oh ! " he repUed, "guns help nothing. They are very well for hunting, but not for war. You fire one shot, and before you can load again they are on you with the assegai ! " These tribes have learned by experience; but that of other tribes has yet to come. I am &c., Peter Schlemil. Defence. (NATAL Colonist, lOtli April, I87;i.) To THE Editor of the Natal Colonist. Sir, — In common with everyone in the Colony — especially those who live in the country — I take a great interest in this subject, and that must be my apology for offering a suggestion or two. The Volunteer law is a good one, but it is not sufficient. We ought most decidedly to have a militia law to supple- ment it. This would, however, most likely be a dead letter, since everyone would then join the Volunteers — as they ought to do. I have not the law by me to refer to, and (consequently cannot say whether there is a compulsory clause or not ; but, if there is not, there ought to be. Any man, who has once voluntarily joined a corps, ought to be compelled to keep up his drill and practice. If he does not, let him fall back into the militia. Sure am I that no employer will grudge the necessary time to any employe. 502 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — DEFENCE. Another thing tliat comes within tlie compass of this subject, is the arming of our natives. What is there to prevent our training two hundred Kaffirs, at eacli magistracy 'i I feel perfectly confident that we could find trustworthy natives, who would stand by us in any war ; and the fact of there being diff'erent tribes, at difi"erent magistracies, would prevent them ever coalescing against us. They might drill twenty-four days in a year, and receive one shilling per day pay. The same on service — besides rations, but no rations during j^ractice or drill. These men might be attached to, and officered by, the different Volunteer corps ; and we should thus, with our Volunteers and militia, be prepared for any outbreak in the Colony — and, with the addition of our Kaffir Sepoys, be ready for any inroad from, or war beyond, our borders. Their arms, after drilling, to be deposited in the care of the magistrate. It is well known that the Kaffir " in authority " — say the policeman — is harder on his coloured brethren, than the whites are. So I believe it w^ould be, in the event of mak- ing them soldiers. And we could obviate any chance of a rebellion, such as that of the Hottentots of the Cape Corps, by keeping their arms from them, except at drill, or on service. But I reiterate — and I have some knowledge of the natives — that I believe they would make faithful soldiers. Besides that, it would be a step in the right direction, as showing them that we identified our interests with theirs, and expected them to do their sliare in defending a country in which they, as Avell as ourselves, have their homes. I am. Sir, yours, Peter Schlemi]>. Durban, Fehruary 22, 1873. THE KAFFIR RISING IN NATAL. 303 The Kaffir Rising in Natal. (Times, 2nd January, 1874.) To THE Editor of tue Times. Sir, — As one who has lived many years among the natives of Natal and surrounding countries, I would say a few words .as to the alarm, no doubt felt by many, about the recent outbreak in Natal, of which we have such scant news, in •consequence of the detention of the mail, and Avhy I think it of little moment. At intervals of a few years, a tribe becomes rich and unmanageable. Something happens to cause a quarrel and disobedience, and the tribe is punished. There have been two cases of this in Natal, before the present one of Langalibalele (Anglice, " The sun, it shines") — those of Isidoi and Matyana. Both were "eaten up" and driven from the country. Some of the other tribes were gathered by Mr Shepstone, and, in company with a few whites, perfectly succeeded in their expeditions. They took all the cattle and scattered the offenders. Their place knew them no more. Among such an agglomeration of petty nationali- ties as there is in Natal, it is certain that every now and then one will be contumacious — ^just as in civilized com- munities there are always individuals who commit crime. The unfortunate part in this case is, that what was intended as simple punishment, should have ended in something like a battle, in which we were defeated, and the natives escaped with their cattle, which are all in all to them. I have no fear whatever of any general war in Natal, unless some question is raised which would band the tribes together. Summary interference with polygamy might do it. 304 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — KAFFIR RISING. There is one thing, however, which I have constantly advocated, in the Natal newspapers and in papers read before the Natural History Association of that place, and that is the necessity for education. It applies equally to West Coast and East. Missionary exertions are good so far, but they are slow. Let us have Mr Forster's Act out there. The natives have been used to plenty of room for their cattle and their gardens. As time goes on, under the peaceful rule of Britain, they increase and multiply, and, unless they are educated into a different mode of livings they become crowded, they quarrel, and wars are the result; simply because, in their own idea, they had not room to exist. It has been an infallible law in the history of all savage and half-civilized peoples (in that of others, too, perhaps), that a long peace bred a bloody war, but this is the principal reason for it among natives — they must have room; and wars, once begun, are hard to put a stop to. I am, Sir, your obedient servant, David Leslie. Natal and Ashantee. (Glasgow Herald, January 6th, 1874.) To THE Editor of the Glasgow Herald. Sir, — I see that you have done me the honour, in to-day's issue, of republishing my note to the Timei< of the 2nd inst. I wish to mention that that letter was written on 31st December, and I am now glad to see that the news by the Anglian, corroborates my opinion of the so-called "rising." My object in addressing you to-day is to point out the i:)arallel which, to a certain extent, exists in the conditions ZULUS THE ASHANTEES OF THE EAST OF AFRICA. 305 of the tribes on the West and East coasts; as also the position in which a different mode of Government and a different pohcy, has placed them to their English rulers. Xatal has not the disadvantage which the West coast labours under, viz., that of being an unhealthy country, but as regards the number of natives to rule, the position is the same ; nay, in that colony it is not so favourable, since it is but the other day that the Zulu immigrants were constantly at war, and still they are naturally turbulent, brave, and warlike, whereas the natives of the Protectorate are the opposite. Natal is surrounded by strong and restless tribes, > et are they all friendly. A severe, yet just and honourable policy, has always been adopted towards them, and though in the case of the Zulu nation beyond the border — the Ashantees of the East — it has been aided by the accident of fear of civil war amongst themselves, and by the influence exerted by Mr John Dunn, Secretary to their King; yet Ave may truly say, that it has been successful in the highest degree. Natal proper, is inhabited by a number of tribes, each of which preserves its autonomy, and is governed by its chief, who exercises magisterial authority, but is subject to the white magistrate of the district in which his tribe is situated. He has a right of appeal, however, as have any of his people — nominally to the Lieutenant-Governor, as Great Chief, ])ut virtually to the Secretary for Native Affairs, the Hon. Theo. Shepstone, C.M.G., to whom Britain is greatly indebted, not only for what he has done in Natal, but because he has thereby shown that natives in our depen- dencies can be well and easily governed, and at the same time improve their condition morally and physically, yet remain loyal subjects and good friends. X 306 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATAL AND ASHANTEE. Thus, tlien, one tribe keeps the other in check ; and whenever a case like the 2)resent one of LangaHbalehi happens, they are only too anxious, for love, or for hatred, or reward — perhaps all three — to help the whites against their contumacious brethren. It is inevitable, ''in the unalterable fitness of things," that such quarrels should happen in Natal. Although the present affair began by the chief's refusal to register guns, bought by his people when working at the diamond fields, yet he has long been known as one who had a great opinion of his own power. These natives are located — i.e., portions of the land of Natal are laid off for occupation by them. Each tribe holds a title from the Government. The people, however, are at Uberty to, and thousands of them do, reside on private property, if they prefer the locality, and can arrange with the proprietor. Much has been said against this system of locations, but I myself cannot see how, for the present, it can be altered. As I wrote in the Times — it is worth repeating — unless they are educated to a knowledge of, and desire for, a higher mode of life, they cannot exist on small plots of land, as could a white man ; and to throw them abroad in the colony with no foot of ground — no locus standi — compelled to find place for their kraals where they could arrange with the landholder, would subject them to, in their opinion, persecutions and fleecings, and drive them into rebellion against what the white men Avould only consider their just claims. Education is the great civiliser. The mandate of the Governor, as Great Chief, of course supported by the Legis- lative Council, Avill be more simple and efficacious than Mr Forster's Act. The natives can very well pay taxes to support the schools, and education will do no more than it CAPE JEALOUSY OF NATAL. 307 lias done in this country, when it induces reform amongst the Kaffirs of Xatal. I must also point out as the brightest side of all, that there is less drunkenness, debauchery, and crime — the usual con- <:omitants of civilization — amongst the natives under the Government of Natal, than in any other colony I have seen or read of. The Cape papers abuse the Natal Government for strictness in its native policy — the Natal colonists cry out against its too great leniency, and call it negrophilism. Be sure, therefore, that the happy medium has been hit. The Cape is always pleased to get a bone to pick with its younger sister ; but yet it has not been so successful in its own native policy, as to entitle its criticism to weight. Natal, since it has been a colony, has never cost the Imperial Government a penny, or a man, through its wars or its rumours of w^ars. That is only negative praise; l)ut it has done more. From the Zambezi southwards the natives come to Avork in its sugar and coffee plantations. They compare the ■condition of things in Natal with the anarchy, murder, and robbery which prevail in countries, which we allow to t)e under the degraded so-called rule of Portugal, and they spread the name of Euglishman (Scotch though I am, I must acknowledge that W(^ go by no other) as a synonym for jus- tice, honour, and humanity. This is the state of things in the East. On the West Coast, as on the East, there seems to be a belt of coast land which is unhealthy. Throughout those low-lying countries there are a number of tribes under our protectorate, who bear the same relation to the Ashantees us do the Amatonga tribes, under so-called Portuguese rule, on the East, to the Zulus. The latter can neither control nor protect the Amatongas. They encourage them in forays on 308 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATAL AND ASHANTEE. one another, so as to j^revent themselves from bemg over- whelmed ; and they actually make their complaints and pay tribute, in the shape of presents, to the Zulu power, which is tributary to the British, against the very people whose territory they now claim, notwithstanding its cession to us 1 The result of the question being at present under arbitration is, that we are unable to give the peoj^le that ^jrotection, from themselves and from the Zulus, which the presence of a single British official would afford them. We have hitherto been in much the same position on the West Coast as the Portu- guese on the East. The difference is, that we are able and willing to do what is right. AVe only require awakening. In consequence of our having nothing but trading posts on the Gold Coast, the demoralisation caused by us amongst the natives has been something frightful. There has been no colony, little authority, and no public opinion. By taking possession of the Ashantee country, and establishing our headquarters there, our trooj^s and officials would be free from disease, and we should be enabled to keep our factories on the coast. Those who reside in them, would no doubt risk their lives for money-making, but, if they choose to do it, neither themselves, nor any one else, has a right to grumble. A railway from the low to the higher lands, would reduce the risk from fever on the passage to a minimum. The Ashantees, like the Zulus, seem to be, upon the whole, a manly, brave, and generous people. But again, like the Zulus, as they have gained their power by an utter disregard for human life and a love for war, created and fostered by early successes — and through their possessing finer constitutions, both physically and morally, in conse- quence of living in a hilly, healthier country, and being far from the debauchery and drunkenness which inevitably don't spare the rod. 309 €xist in the vicinity of the factories — they have a love for, and consider it necessary to keep np, their bloody customs and wars, in the belief that without them they would neither be respected nor unmolested. A thorough beating first, and good treatment (though firm and just) afterwards, will at once reconcile them to the temperate rule of Britain, and to the safety for their persons and property which would obtain. It has been so on the East, where the Zulu Power desolated the South-East Coast, until they came in contact with the Dutch Boers, who com- pletely defeated them; and afterwards, the British having defeated the Boers, their supremacy was accepted, and the Zulus became good neighbours and vassals. This, of course, does not apply to the Xorth, as the way is open there for the Zulu forays, through the claim of the Portuguese to the territory. The natives of Africa, East and West, are born traders. It is about trade that the quarrels on the West principally arise. Give them peace and security — by conquering them — and an immense trade with the interior would result. Adopt the system at work in Natal, where the one tribe keejis the other in check, and we should have a magnificent dependency in Western Africa, easily and inexpensively ruled, with prospects for commerce scarcely to be equalled, except, perhaps, in China. Adopt the other plan which is openly advocated, and what is the results We avenge our honour, re-establish our X^restige, and — what ? We leave the country a j^rey to war, anarchy, and crime of every kind. The slave trade would revive in all its horrors. (It has never died out on the East Coast, under Portuguese rule, notwithstanding treaties and Sir Bartle Frere's embassy 1) Britain would falsify her 310 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATAL AND ASHANTEE. past liistory as the coiintiy which has preferred benefit U> humanity to her own profit; as the nation wliich never calcuhited the cost, wlien what she thought good was to be done to oppressed and degraded peoj^les. We need not go to Coomassie for that end. Halt now, and leave the countr}'. Our honour and our prestige have had many a worse rul> than what they would suffer from doing so, especially with the princii:)le avowed that "the game is not worth the candle." In one sense — the lowest — it is not; but let us hope that higher motives will prevail. If they do, we shall undoubtedly meet our reward, even in a pecuniary sense. I am, &c., David Leslie. The Native Rising in Natal. To THE Editor of the Times. Sir, — In writing of the circumstances of the late outbreak in Natal, it is necessary, to a true understanding of the affair, to have a knowledge of the condition of the tribes in that colony; of the position which they occupy towards the whites, and of their character and customs. Most Natalians ■will know my name, and will not deny my acquaintance with the subject, though they have generally considered me a "negrophile," in consequence of my always having defended Mr Shepstone's policy towards the natives; and their rights, against rash politicians, who, either on the one side wish to reduce them to something like serfdom, or, on the other, adopt the Exeter Hall cry of " a man and a brother. — our equal in all respects." I know Langalibalele personally, his country, and his tribe. AT ODDS WITH "EVEN-HANDED JUSTICE." 311 The letter of " Even-handed Justice," which appeared in your issue of the ITtli January, is, except on one point which I will notice, merely a tirade which shows how much harm an "amiable enthusiast" may do, when he takes upon himself to write, on so grave a question as this, on second- hand information. Even in his first paragraph there is a gross mistake, calculated to mislead. The tribes in Natal were never "vanquished" by us. They came in for pro- tection from the Zulus and other large and warlike nations. Naturally, therefore, it must be considered a more heinous crime to rebel against those who have protected, than against those who conquered or " vanquished" them. I have no objection to his adoption of such a noin de])lume. Let us see, however, whether he remembered it in writing. 1st. — He quotes from the letter of a correspondent, "above suspicion of misrepresentation" — -"hundreds of men killed." Very likely. That generally does happen in a rebellion. We ought to feel thankful that they who rebelled, and not those whom they rebelled against, were the sufferers — " thousands of men, women, and children made prisoners, who are to be converted into slaves for the benefit of the colonists." In this case the " correspondent" has certainly not simply misrepresented, he has made an assertion which is positively untrue, and I cannot see that it is " even- handed justice" to brand the struggling colonists of Natal, in the columns of the leading journal of the Empire, as a slaveholding community, on no other foundation than an extract from a letter, which has no date, and comes from no l)lace, to an anonymous writer who dates from " London." Some time ago I saw a sort of circular from the Peace Society on the same matter, and thought of replying to it. I was very busy, however, and thinking that the senile 312 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATIVE RISING IN NATAL. complaints of these sixteen-cup-of-tea-and-bread-and-butter- philanthropists did not press for refutation, I let it pass. Now, however, as it crops up again in a more virulent manner, I think it but right to lay the truth before your readers, for simply to deny the assertion may not l)e enough. When Langalibalele and his men decided to leave the colony, they deserted their women and children (in the usual Kaffir fashion) by the thousand, thinking that once they (the men) were fairly settled somewhere else, these poor creatures would find their way to them. In all Kaffir wars the women have to look after themselves and their children. These unfortunates Avere found by the Govern- ment forces in all sorts of out-of-the way places — in the bush, the caves, and amongst the rocks; and when it was decided to follow up the tribe (rightly so, as I shall show) the question arose, What was to be done with the captives'? To have let them alone, would have resulted in the star- vation of one half, and the dispersion of the other amongst the loyal and auxiliary tribes, who would have made them the captives of their spear and shield. Mothers would hav(; gone one way, children another. Families would have been broken up, and intense misery the result. Under these circumstances, the Government wisely and mercifully decided that these helpless women and children should be placed out amongst respectable colonists, ])y whom they would be j^aid, fed, and taught — thus caring for them in the meantime, and endeavouring to raise them in the social scale in the future, just as helpless pauper children, deserted by their natural guardians, are apprenticed out in this free country of ours. It was always provided, further, that should the husbands and fathers of these women and children return peaceably. HOW GUNS ARE GOT BY TIIP] NATIVES. 313 and settle down in the colony as good citizens, they might claim tlieir families and receive them. Tlie remainder of the paragraph from the "correspon- dent's " letter is mere clap-trap. "Even-handed Justice" then goes on to "narrate the events which have led to so shocking a history," and, in doing so, makes a gross misrepresention (whether for the sake of argument or through ignorance, I do not know). He says that many young Natalians paid these natives for work at the diamond-fields in guns, the possession of which Avas the first cause of the rebellion. This is not so. They paid their labourers — and they came from all parts of South Africa — in money, and these men purchased firearms and brought them liome, although they knew that, by the law of the colony, they were not allowed to own them without permission. He makes several other insinuations as excuses for the natives, and tending to throw tlie blame upon the whites, such as " a near relative of the district magistrate icas supposed to have dealt in the i:)rohibited merchandise" (the italics are mine), and "the old chief having been taught to love rum by the white man." Is it " even-handed justice " to make use of under- hand, unsupported aspersions of this kind in a grave contro- versy concerning matters of so much moment 1 " Even-handed Justice " goes on to say (and here I must begin to mix up his two letters, of the 17th and 26th inst.) that there was really no outbreak, no rebellion in the usual sense of the term. Let me tell him, tliat a refusal to come to head-quarters, when called by his supreme chief, is the worst rebelHon a native can be capable of, short of plundering the residence of the King. It is as much as to say, " You have no right to call me. I am as good as you. If you 314 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATI\'E RISING IN NATAL. want to see me, come to me. If you want my arms, come and take them." He asks also why this tribe should not have been allowed to go in peace when they wanted to take refuge with the Basutos. He evidently is in ignorance that the Basutos are also under British rule. How, then, could we have allowed a tribe, which had defied and then left us, to take up a habitation amongst a nation which is still l)oiling and heaving with the excitement of the last war with the Dutch 1 Again, if they had been allowed to go in peace, taking their cattle with them, and their wives, children, and household goods, having plenty of time to follow, what l)unisliment would that have been for insubordination ? The native is not rooted to his native soil, as we are. This chief would have gone away victorious, and all the other tribes would have seen that they were in effect independent if they chose. There would have been an end to all rule and order. The colonists of Natal were sitting on a mine, and they hiew it, as do all who have personal knowledge of tlie colonj^ AYith regard to the death of the three volunteers at the Bushman's Pass, your correspondent says that about " sixty volunteers " were posted there. There were thirty, " backed by a body of Basutos as auxiliaries." There were twenty "when the natives came up by twos and threes, quite peace- ably, until about two hundred had assembled, of whom not more than one-fourth were armed [with guns, I suppose he means], and then a parley began." What followed, according to your correspondent, created the savage desire for vengeance in the minds of the colonists. Major Durnford's orders were not to fire on the natives until fired at, but to try and stop them peaceably; and it THE BEGINNINGOF THE FIGHT. 315 was in endeavouring to fulfil these orders, by reasoning with them on their conduct, that his men were fired at, were then l)anic-struck, and in the flight the three were shot down. I will not say that they were " basely murdered." Savages deal after their kind;\but it'is difficult for the fathers and l)rothers of these young men,"to excuse the natives by saying, " Poor fellows ; they knew no better." The fact of the natives leaving the colony under such circumstances would be no " remedy for the i)re2:)onderance in numbers" in the colony. Are they to go, creating a wave of war throughout South-Eastern Africa, and leaving insub- ordination and rebellion amongst those who remain behind'? Your correspondent's remarks on the Court of Inquiry are worth nothing — since all was done under native law, by which the tribes have preferred to be governed, and which is administered, with the exception of questions of polygamy, consistently with Christian jirofession — if not with the " usages and laws of Britain." Now I come to the only point on which I agree with the letters of " Even-handed Justice," only here again he is dis- ingenuous. In your issue of the 17th he quotes from a letter of Mr H. Bucknall. I at once allow that it is a brutal letter. In your issue of the 26th he says : — " I will not pile up horrors, but take almost at random the following extract from a letter in the Natal Times to illustrate my meaning," and then goes on to quote another account of the same occurrence as described hy Mr Bucknall. He has, at all events, here jailed one horror into tiuo, which shews that what I said in the l)eginning of my letter about an "amiable enthusiast" is truly the case. And now, Sir, I would say one or two more words before I end my trespass on your space. 316 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NATIVE RISING IN NATAL. Is it '' even-handed justice," that in every case Avhere the colonists endeavour to defend themselves from massacre in cold blood, which would entail upon Britain a costly exj)edi- tion — as in Jamaica, so now in Natal — that there should be in this country a party of crack-brained enthusiasts as regards the rights of the black men — rights which they too often show they do not appreciate amongst the whites — to villify them for their pains '? Is it " even-handed justice," that because a few men have committed the crime of being cruel, and the blunder of boasting of it, that the whole body of colonists is to be aspersed as slaveholders and "ferocious" shedders of blood 1 Is it reasonable to suj^pose, think you, that our brethren and our fathers, who left here but yester- day, should have so far changed their nature and forgotten their training, as to trample upon all the rights and feelings of the natives, who, thoughlower in the scale of humanit}-, are still their fellowmen 1 Is it in any way fair that philanthropists, who sit in their easy chairs, with no personal knowledge of the circumstances, are to be judges of the conduct of men who are changing a wilderness into a smiling land, and really doing much to raise so many nations, morally and socially, but who, sur- rounded by these savage thousands in an uneasy state of transition, carry their lives in their hands 1 Are they to be judges of they know not what ? — to cry shame ! when there is no shame, except to themselves for misjudging 1 Are the colonists first to see their fields and houses in ashes, and then only to retalifate, or to cry for assistance to Britain, and hear the univeral growl, "Why can't you defend yourselves, you colonists ? What good are you 1 Only an expense !" Xo, Sir, I have lived amongst these same natives many years, and have liked, and for many things, admired them. COLONISTS MISJUDGED BY PSEUDO-PHILANTHROPISTS. 317 I have always been their reasonable advocate ; but in this case of the rebeUion of Langahbalele and its certain conse- quences, if unchecked, the colonists have done well for them- selves, the natives in general, and the Anglo-Saxon name. Look at the aifair in all its points, and give, I also say, " oven-handed justice " to all concerned. I am, &c., David Leslie. The New African Gold Discoveries. (Times, 19th January, 1874.) To THE Editor of the Times. Sir, — By the last mail we have important news from Natal. Some years ago the people and journals of that colony, led away by Herr Mauch's vivid descriptions, announced to all parts of the world that gold had been discovered in immense fields. The result was that many came from all parts of the world and were disappointed. Gold there was, no doubt, but it was not to be found in (quantities which would pay the diggers. Since then, there lias been continual talk of finding the precious metal in different localities; but the papers, warned by the odium they incurred on that occasion, have been very careful as to ])ublishing the various reports. This time I have no hesitation in believing what is told us. In 1871, when I was in the neighbourhood of the dis- trict in which auriferous deposits have been discovered, I heard many stories from the natives of gold being there. There were white men also at work, and they said very little as to their progress — a very good sign of success ; and now, 318 LETTj:rxS to the press — new gold discoveries. instead of l)eiiig suddenly blazoned forth, the stories have gradually increased in volume, until the announcement has been, in a manner, forced from the'Natal papers. Within a year or two I fully believe that we shall see a large mining population at work, and the exports of gold beginning to rival those from Austraha, the gold-bearing districts of which are in much the same parallels of latitude. Now, Sir, what is the present position as between the white and black races in South-Eastern Africa, and what will be the position if my anticipations be realized 1 We all know how that Britain was compelled to assert her rights over the country in which the diamond fields are situated, so as to prevent the Dutch Boers of the Orange Free States from assuming the sovereignty, over a country and a popula- tion, which they could neither have governed nor kept in order. The present gold fields are situated in a country which is claimed by the Transvaal Republic, another i)etty Dutch Boer State Avhich Britain has allowed to establish itself on the north-east of Xatal, but Avliich is in reality native territory. The Boers have many curious modes of annexing native lands. 1 will give you two out of my experience. A certain district was required, so as to give a right of way to the coast from New Scotland (a settlement in the eastern part of Transvaal). The operating agent, who Avas in this case an Englishman, approached the chief with a request to be allowed to cut a few trees in the forest, for which he paid him about £15 or £20 worth of blankets. Of course, the request was granted, and some timber was felled. It so happened that this forest swarmed with monkeys, the skins of which were valuable for purposes of trade among the neighbouring and powerful nation of tlu^ "THE SIMPLE PLAN " OF LAND ANNEXATION. 311) Zulus. I wished to place some native hunters there, for the purpose of shooting these monkeys, and applied to the chief for the purpose of doing so, offering him a couple of blankets in return, which usually avouIcI have been ample remunera- tion. '' No, no," said the chief. " The white man has given me all these goods for mere permission to cut trees. You, who wish to deprive us of every means of existence, since it is only by possessing these skins that we are enabled to pay tribute to the Zulus, only offer me two blankets. No, no." I met the Englishman afterwards, and he acknowdedged that it had been done with a view to asserting that the land had been bought ! Again, a certain Boer, named Conrad Vermack — a man of the nomadic class, which moves about with their flocks and herds, and exist by hunting — applied to the King of the Amaswazi, a tribe bordering on the east of Transvaal, for permission to hunt in a certain district (say about the size of Lancashire), and to squat there (by the laws of the tribes land cannot be sold, as we understand it, and this is well known to whites who have any relations with the natives) ; also for the general assistance and countenance of his people while hunting. This was granted, and now I see that the country is included in the map of Transvaal as j)art of that republic ! Up to the present time these transactions have only led to constant bickerings with the natives. Wars have been prevented by the interposition of the English Government of Natal, and the sparseness of the white population has so far prevented the natives from feeling any pressure ; l)ut, when we remember the results of this class of bargains be- tween the whites and Maories in New Zealand, we may wt^U anticipate trouble, and adopt measures to avoid it. 320 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NEW GOLD DISCOVERIES. Again, on tlie coast of Delagoa Bay — tlie nearest seaport ]jy far to the gold fields — we have the Portuguese shut up in their factory of Lorengo Marques, and holding on their ground only by keeping up wars and anarchy among the natives. In 1823, Captain Owen, in her Majesty's ship "Leven," visited the bay, and entered into a treaty with the chiefs south of English river (on the north bank of which Lorenco Marques is situated), by which they ceded their territory to Great Britain fully and freely. I have had the ceremony described by old natives who Avitnessed it. While Captain Owen was there, a schooner from the Cape, called the "Orange Grove," entered the river Mapoota for purjioses of trade. The " Leven " went on a cruise to Madagascar ; during her absence the crew of the schooner fell sick of the fever, and the Portuguese took advantage of the opportunity to seize her. Captain Owen returned and compelled her restitution, together with all of which she had been plundered, thus setting at rest, once and for ever, as one would think, the question of ownership of the territory. Ever since then, that country has been held to belong to Great Britain. The Island of Inyack (a portion of it) was, in 1861, Gazetted as a j)art of Natal, in the Government Gazette of that colony. The diocese of the bishof> of Zulu- land was marked for him as including it, and it was only in September, 1871, when I took a schooner into the same river, and for the same purposes as the "Orange Grove" had in view, that the Portuguese seized it with its cargo, and our Government agreed to refer the territory in dispute to arbitration, without even insisting, that they should first l)ut matters in the same position as before the agreement, by restoring the vessel. OUR LAISSEZ FAIliE POLICY A BLUNDER. 321 Surely the mere fact of agreeing to arbitrate, on the part of the Portuguese, showed there was some doubt as to the ownership of the territory, and that they had no right whatever to act in this high-handed manner. It may be asked by all, what this has to do with the gold discoveries in Eastern Africa. This much — that a giving way to the pretensions of a petty, but obtrusive and self-sufficient State like Portugal, from a wish to save trouble, is as great a sign of weakness in policy, and w^ant of the just regard which we ought to have to our own power, and the protection which is due to our fellow-citizens in all parts of the world, as it is to bend to the fear of consequences, in dealing with a great one like Russia or America. The "let alone" policy which has enabled petty states, like the Orange and Transvaal Republics, to establish them- selves in such close proximity to our Colonies, and in the midst of a teeming population of natives which they are unable to control, will surely end by our being drawn into wars, which the aggressions and misgovernment of these states will create. Remember how, some years ago, we had to establish a protectorate over the Basutos, so as to put a stop to the war, in which they were then engaged with the Orange Free State, which was dragging its weary length along, and creating a feeling of restlessness among all the natives around. If the present laissez faire, and careless dilettante policy in Eastern Africa, is persisted in, and my anticipation of a large and motley gathering of miners on the Gold-fields becomes a fact, (and I unhesitatingly i:)rognosticate its fulfilment), what will be the result? It will be this, that rowdies and ruffians, from all quarters, will flock to the diggings, the more numerously and the more readily, that Y 322 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — NEW GOLD DISCOVERIES. they will be in a country where there is neither law nor strong Government. Then will follow wars with the natives, plunder and massacre. Will our own Colonies escape from fermentation, with the malt in such close contact '? If Britain does not retain a footing in Delagoa Bay, she cannot control these diggers, unless she first annexes the Transvaal, and then only through 500 miles of weary, rugged road from Natal, the nearest seaport. If she retains her undoubted right to the south bank of English Eiver, she is within 150 miles of the fields, with a country between, which is remarkably fertile, level, and easily travelled. On grounds of self-respect, of right, of justice to ourselves, and to the claims of humanity, and for political and com- mercial reasons, our Government (I speak of no party) ought to listen to the advice of that Christian gentleman and wise politician (Sir Bartle Frere), whose addresses in Edinburgh and Glasgow, show how well and how thoroughly he understands the present position and future prospects of Eastern Africa. — I am, &c., David Leslie. Glasgow, January 16th, 1874. Is Dr Livingstone Dead? (Glasgow Herald, 23r(l February, 1874.) To THE Editor of the Glasgow Herald. Sir, — Every man in this country will mourn for the death of Dr Livingstone, and all of us would be glad to grasp at any straw of hope that the news is untrue. I have travelled for some years in South-Eastern Africa, and have some experience of the natives, and knowledge IS DR LIVINGSTONE DEAD? 323 of their character and customs. I have lived entirely amongst them, have made them my study, and am not satisfied with the accounts we have received of the death of the great traveller. The tribes I know, which are those inhabiting the low-lying coast-lands round the Portuguese settlements, are the same, in all their characteristics, as those inland from Zanzibar, and it is upon my knowledge of them, that I ground my doubts as to the truth of the reports. What we are told regarding the Doctor's death is so circumstantial, and seems to be believed by so many, who ought to have means of judging, that I am afraid to say "he is not dead;" but I think we ought to suspend our decision, and await further intelligence, before accepting and bewailing such a loss to the nation. Lieutenant Cameron's report is grounded on the story of " Tshunia," a faithful servant of the Doctor's. Dr Living- stone's son thinks Tshuma " too faithful to desert his master and too honest to tell a lie." It may be so. But Mr Living- stone has spent much of his time in this country, and has not better means of judging, than others who are not satisfied. The Johanna men were also " faithful servants," and they lied. Dr Kirk, who travelled much in the interior, before lie rested in his well-earned and well-filled position at Zanzibar, seems to question the fact of the Doctor's death. I do the same, on the following grounds : — I remember, in 1871, that I had occasion to send a messenger a distance of about seven days' walk. I was in an unhealthy country, and he was a native of Natal, who had followed my fortunes. Knowing that he was liable to be struck down, I applied to the King for men to go with him, both to show him the way and to aid him in the event of sickness. Four messengers went with him, men well known throughout the country as being about the person of 324 LETTERS TO THE PRESS — IS LIVINGSTONE DEAD 1 the King. On the way back he was taken ill, and came in a very weak condition to a village at night. The influence of the King's men gained him entrance, but in the night the owners of the village, fearing that he would die, insisted on his being carried out to the hillside, and there his com- panions watched him, kept the wolves away, until towards dawn he " went home !" ]N"ot even for fear of the King would the jDeople allow the man to die in their village ; and sure am I that for no con- sideration would the natives of Eastern Africa carry a dead body any distance, let alone marching with it day after day. They have an utter horror of a corpse. After in any way coming in contact with one, they eat "medicine" to avert the baleful influence, to carry oft' the defilement; and the mere fact of having such a circumstantial account raises, in my mind, a doubt of its correctness. It has also been truly asked, " Where would the natives procure salt and brandy to embalm the corpse"?" Salt they might get, as " salt pans" are plentiful through the country. But brandy 1 No ; it is impossible ! Let us rest patiently awhile, and hopefully. It cannot be long ere the news is authenticated or denied. If we have to mourn, we may remember this, that Dr Livingstone never expected any other death than the one now reported. He considered himself a soldier whose end would most likely be the battle-field; and if he has died as we are told, the greatest proof to my mind of the ascendancy he gained in Africa, of the power which his A^ery name was possessed of, would be the fact of his men having carried his remains to Zanzibar, and having been allowed to do so by the inhabitants of the villages through which they passed. — I am, &c., David Leslie. THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. (Xews of the Week, Dec. 1S74, and Jan. 1875.) Chapter I. Voyagers, driven into obscure regions by untoward winds, may have passed a low peninsula jutting out from one of the islands of the Eastern Archipelago. Twenty years ago they would have admired the luxuriant beauty of the vegetation, and the many lovely nooks created by the entrance of the sea, forgetting that in its depths hovered the voracious .shark, and unaware that ashore they would have found this seeming paradise, apparently so green, so cool, and yet so gaudy with lovely hues, to be teeming with snakes, and rank with miasma. The island itself was not a large one, but was peculiarly formed. On the eastern side, it sloped gradually down from a, high ridge, and the slopes were covered with jungle, which had, however, in many j^laces yielded to the slight labour necessary for cultivation in that favoured region. Springs towards the loftier parts of the range were the parents of innumerable little streams, which here and there sparkled and glanced in the sun, as they wandered on their way, through forest and open country, to the sea. And the shady nooks and tiny waterfalls were seldom without an occupant, in the shape of a native enjoying that greatest luxury of all in a hot climate — fresh, clear, and cold water. The banana, the plantain, the cocoa-nut, the pine-apple, iind every rich and luscious fruit known to the clime, 326 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. bountifully and almost spontaneously offered tlieir product to the hand that wished to gather ; while numberless gaudy creepers and flowers of many hues, relieved and set off the dark green of the jungle. Birds of the most brilliant plum- age and discordant cries, fluttered and glanced through the foliage, and made their nests in the gigantic ferns which lined the courses of the streams. But in the most lovely spots of this most beautiful part of the island — in the under- wood, or in the open glades — coiled or basked the most deadly snakes ; and at night, amongst other noises which spoke of danger to man, the roar of the tiger was heard predominant. The numerous prahms which lay upon the beach, and the number of people walking up and down, or gambling and carousing in the shade, spoke of a community supported by piracy at sea, and debauched by a sensual life on shore — men with black skins and long hair, some of them grown grey in their career of crime, others showing in every feature the sensual and brutal life they led, and all of them wearing that villainous physiognomy peculiar to the lowest class of the tribes of the Eastern Archipelago. "Ramesamy," said an old man (speaking the Malay language) who appeared to have some authority amongst them, "it is time the prahms Avere out. Know, my son, that, for our sins, the gods have given us far to go, before we can procure what we require, to support our modest life in this island." " It is true," said the other. " Still, that distance is our safety. Think how long we have been without those accursed British ships paying us a visit. Shall I call the men together this evening, to decide as to the expedition 1 They are willing, nay, anxious to go." " Do so ; but stay. Are we not rather short of slaves V* A TRADITION OF SURVIVING ABORIGINES. 327 " My father speaks with his usual correctness. Many of our men will have to labour as well as fight." " I do not know that," said the old man. " Have you never heard, Ramesamy, that when our fathers first landed here, though they were suj^posed to have destroyed the original inhabitants, yet a few families did manage to make their escape 1" " Yes, I have heard so," replied the other, " and there is a vague tradition amongst us, that they still exist on the western side of the island." " I believe it to be true, and I will tell you why. You know, when Moonesamy stole my daughter — whose bones, for her disobedience, lie bleaching in the jungle — that they passed some days near the top of yonder ridge you see in the far distance. Well, on his return, and after receiving my pardon " " For which he paid well," interposed the other. " He related his adventures," continued the chief, without noticing the interruption, " and, amongst others, asserted positively that he had seen smoke arising from the jungle on the western side, where there is a peninsula. I have never spoken of this, although it is years ago, until now, because I did not wish the attention of the men to be drawn from richer booty, which sails far afloat. But we will see about it." It is with the simple people, referred to in the foregoing dialogue, that we have now to do. Let us, therefore, leave this fair scene of nature, the principal blot on which is the presence of man, and transport our readers to the western end of the island. The ridge to which we have already referred as rising gradually from the eastern shore, extended the whole breadth 328 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. of tlie island, from north to south. At its highest elevation, it suddenly broke into a precipice, fronting, like a huge wall, the gales from the westward. Below this was the peninsular- shaped i^ortion of which we have spoken — level ground, stretching almost to the sea. The ground itself was broken and rocky, covered with plants and trees of the aloe and cactus, mixed with thick grasses and creepers peculiar to the East. Towards the beach, slimy and foetid mud abounded, and nourished patches of the mangrove, amongst which the sea wound in clear green channels, haunted by sharks, and by fish as gaudy as the birds on land. Of timber, properly so called, there was none; neither were there wild animals. They had either found it impossible, or thought it not worth while, to scale the precipice which divided the island. The coral reefs which encircled the shore, and the fact of the j)lace being far out of the track of vessels, constituted it a safe refuge for the unfortunate few who were its inhabitants. These people looked, and most likely were, amongst the most miserable of the earth. Long residence in an unhealthy locality, caused by the heat arising from the reflection of the sun against the precipice, and the exhalations from the beds of mud, had reduced them to poor, sickly specimens of humanity, content to be in the shade of a rock by day, and to bury themselves in the grass at night. They lived on what they could pick up from the sea, and what few yams they could coax from amongst the rocks and prickly j)lants; but yet withal they were a kindly, innocent race. Many years before, their ancestors had occupied the fertile eastern declivity, from which, as mentioned by the old Indian, they had been driven on the advent of the Malay pirates from the mainland. They had not increased in number, and amounted, at the time of which we write, to about one hundred families. A DERELICT. , 329 Chapter II. The scene changes, and this time there is no landscape to describe. It is at sea we first make acquaintance with the other characters in our story. The circumstances under which we find them, are sufficiently fearful to test their courage, and their trust in a higher power. The sky is over- cast with clouds in wild commotion; the sea whirling and heaving; the waters wearing that leaden hue, sprinkled with drifts of spray, which shows the force of the hurricane, before which the ship has been driven for days; and the driving rain, which has lately begun to fall, seems to join sea and sky into one element. The masts of the vessel have long gone, and the helpless hulk drives before the wind. Shortly after the storm arose, the captain had been washed overboard, wdiile superintending the wearing of the ship, to get her before the gale ; the mate, scarcely recovered from sunstroke, had succumbed to the resumption of duty at such a time ; and now the second mate, a rough and good enough sailor, but not competent to control such a crew, was in command. The "Criterion " had been unfortunate in her men. She had left New York when the gold fever — the rage for California — was at its height, and her captain had to be content with anyone who offered his services — in very many cases the lowest of the low. And now, after many days of license and riotous living, the fear of that death, to which they seemed too surely driving, impelled them to work as hard as the heaving and rolling of the vessel would permit, at strengthening and stowing different articles in the boats, of which only two were in any way serviceable. On the main-deck, sheltering themselves as well as they could by what was left of the bulwarks, stood, or rather 330 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. crouched, a grouj) consisting of eight persons, the principal figures in which, were a female, who was clinging to her husband, and an old man, her father, whom she seemed to he supporting and soothing, while her two children clung weeping to the folds of her gown. The other three were unmarried men, and they all were a party of missionaries, who had started with joyful hopes and high ambition to do their work amongst the heathen. It is the fortunes of this family party which we are princi- pally concerned to narrate. Some years before the date we are speaking of, John Maxwell had received holy orders, and at the same time decided that he would carry the glad tidings of the Gospel to those who knew them not. This determi- nation was a sad blow to Mary Munro, his betrothed bride. She was the only daughter of a widowed father, and could not leave him. After a long struggle, however, John com- promised with his conscience, so far as to agree to remain at home during the lifetime of Mr Munro, and they married. Time passed on, and two children, a boy and a girl, were born to them. Their parents might have been happy, were it not that, as year succeeded year, his heart upbraided and vexed him more and more. He felt that he had not obeyed the call — that he was not in the way of his appointed duty. To two, who bore each other such deej) affection, the unhappi- ness of one was that of both, and she felt it the more, as it was her influence which had led him to this dereliction. His father-in-law saw this, and mourned that he should be the cause of keeping his son from doing what he felt was right, and thus inducing misery to two he loved so well. One day he thus abruptly and decidedly settled the question of their future course : — "John, my dear son, I have watched, with great disquiet, A patriarch's resolution. 331 the struggle going on in your bosom, between what you con- sider your duty to your God and your duty to me ; and, after much prayer and calm thought, I have come to a con- clusion. It is useless for you to attempt to dispute it, as there is no other course by which I can be assured of peace of mind in my old age. I am now an old man, near the grave, and it matters not, in my estimation, where I lay my head, provided I am in my appointed path at the time. I notice that, in about a month, the " Criterion" will sail for Shanghai, and both you and I know that our board is want- ing missionaries to send out by that opj^ortunity. AVe will gather together our substance and go. Who can tell 1 It may be that I shall be as a second Jacob, going to see the establishment of another people of the Lord; and, after all, come back to lay my bones in my native land. Besides, my son, you know that warm climates are favourable to old people, so that, in doing what is right, I may be renewing my lease of life." And so, on the old man's j^art, with this mixture of religi- ous feeling and the kindly wish to make light of the journey for his son's sake; and, on the other side, the two with a sacred joy at being at last in the right way; and the children, with feelings of unmixed delight at the romantic prospect; they sailed for China in the good ship "Criterion." As the vessel drew nearer and nearer to the breakers, now distinctly visible through the clearing of the sky, many eyes were strained, in the anxious endeavour to spy out a passage to the quiet waters beyond. The sailors' preparations for escape in the boats Avere hurried on, and to a few anxious inquiries made by the troubled missionaries, rough and coarse answers were returned. 332 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. Everything being at last in order, those on deck prepared to launch their largest boat, their comrades in her standing ready to cast-ofF the moment she touched the water. To all the prayers of the passengers that they might be allowed to enter, the same answer was given, namely, that they must wait, and it would be lucky for them if there was room in the other boat. At all events, it did not matter much, as those who came to show others the way to live and die, could not surely fail in the last act of their lesson ; and further, that it was all through having so many " Jonahs " on board that their ship had " come to grief." As the ship rolled, the launch was fairly got into the water, through the gangway cut in the bulwarks. " Now for the other boat," was the cry. "Lower her down from the davits, it's the safest way ; " and everything was made ready for so doing. After a little consultation among the men, one came aft, and addressed the party. " We have only room for three ; who goes 1 " was all he said. To all prayers, to all commands or offers of reward, he was deaf. " It's no use, when I tell you there's no room. It is each for himself here, and your money would be of precious little use to those who had to stay behind." "Quick! you on deck, there," came from the boat, "or we shall be stove in. AVe can't hold on much longer." " You hear that 1 " cried the spokesman ; " decide quickly. I count twenty, and then leave you. Hold-on a moment, mates. One, two, three, four " — "Save my children, at least," was the father's anxious plaint ; but the mother interposed with a holier confidence. " No, husband. AYe have always been a loving and united THE CATASTROPHE. 333 family, putting our trust in the Lord, and so shall we continue in life or in death, whichever God pleases to send. Let us leave it in His hands, and, rest assured, that all will be ordered as is best for us." Then turning to the three unmarried missionaries who had stood watching this discussion, and ready at any moment to acquiesce in the decision which would apparently consign them to certain death, and give the family party, or at all events a portion of it, a chance of safety, she said — "Go, my friends. We have made up our minds to abide by the vessel. It is evidently God's providence that the boats should be for you. Go, and carry, if you are permitted, the tidings of how calmly we met our fate. It may be that, in punishment of our former dereliction of duty, in thinking of ourselves instead of obeying our call, this dispensation is sent us. If so, we thankfully and cheerfully submit to our chastisement ; and it maybe that the land now visible, and which you have a chance of reaching, is that in which you are destined to labour." The sailor had in the meantime forgotten to count, and stood watching the scene vrith emotions new to him. The sight of such unselfishness, and of such an entire faith and trust in an overruling power, stirred within his breast good thoughts, long slumbering. They were destined never to bear fruit. After a silent embrace all round, the three turned towards him, and went forward to meet their fate. Everything seemed fair for safety. The gale had broken, the land was not far away, and there must be a passage in the reef The one boat was fairly afloat, the other coming over — but it was not to be. A surging wave brought the launch back directly under the one descending. There was a cry, a crash, and immediately the freights of both boats 334 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. were struggling for life in the waves. The scene was heart- rending. Those who had been so selfish and so sure of safety, were now at death's door, through the very means they had thought were to carry them to life. Those who were swimmers were gradually, but surely, swept towards the breakers and the sharp coral reef, while others sunk immediately. Amongst the latter, consigned to a swifter, but more merciful death, were the three missionaries, who, feeling the uselessness of struggling for safety, with a farewell wave of the hand to their friends on the deck of the now much- desired haven of refuge, went to that death which they had sought to avoid, though they feared it not. Not one of the sailors who had deserted the family party so unfeelingly, survived to repent of their misdeeds. They all perished; and those who had so nobly accepted a death, apparently certain, to give others a chance of life, now looked on the scene with feelings of mingled sorrow and thankfulness for the mercy which God had vouchsafed to themselves. After a few moments spent in prayer, they began to look to their own position, and that with some feelings of hope- fulness. The gale had evidently spent its force, and although the waves were as high and as wild as ever, yet the progress made by the vessel to seemingly sure destruction was evidently slower. All their faces were now turned to the breakers in silent prayer, and hope that there might be some passage. After a time, it became evident that the ship was taking a slanting direction — still surging on towards the breakers — but, at the same time, bearing more to the northward, as if taken by some current. This circumstance gave them fresh hope, and they began to look about for means of escape, should the A SAFE HAVEN. 335 vessel reach the sheltered water, which they felt certain must be within the reef. After some minutes of intense watchfulness, those on board became aware of a channel of tolerably smooth water leading into the inner basin, and it was evident that the vessel was slowly approaching it. Nothing, however, could they do to help themselves. They had only to wait. It was plain enough that, if they reached the inside safely, the vessel would not break up at once, and they would have plenty of time to gather together what they wanted to take on shore; whereas, if they struck on the reef, amidst the enormous breakers — the hoarse roar of which deafened, and the spray from which by this time was sprinkled over them — they would require nothing more in this world. Onwards rolled and heaved the vessel, gradually drawing nearer and nearer to the passage. It seemed fearfully narrow, and the rollers, which on each side broke upon the reef, swelled through it with fearful velocity. Closer and closer comes the disabled ship, and now on both sides of it there is broken water. It seems to the devoted party on lunder that would be brought back. There were still some discontented spirits — men who regretted the change which was evidently coming over them, who longed for bloodshed, robbery, and licence. These stood obstinately aloof; but they were not many in number. One thing there was that troubled the missionaries — what would be the result of the return of the fleet, especially if it returned victorious and laden with plunder? They were afraid that the sight of such success would throw the Malays into piracy or barbarism, or if it did not, that they would all have much trouble — perhaps persecution — ^from the returned warriors. Then, again — how had these poor natives stood the fiery trial 1 All seemed very dark ahead. The old chief — ^who was by this time a Christian at heart — comforted Mr Munro when he spoke to him about this. "Yes," he said, "It may be so. It most likely will be so ; but what can you do 1 You have told us* much about God, and, amongst other things, of His power. Let us wait patiently and see the result. I will do what I can, but you see that those who are here are not unanimous, and those who are coming are the largest number. In a matter of this kind my power is little." Day followed day, quietly and peacefully; and, resting on the Lord, they waited. One day, just as the sun was setting behind the island, and throwing its beams to the eastward, some prahms were discovered by the discontented Malays, who had been anxiously looking out, in the hope that when their friends came back, all things would be changed. RETURN OF THE PIRATES. 369 In a few minutes, word was passed from house to house, that the fleet was returning, and they all gathered on the shore. But was this the gallant and numerous flotilla which, nine months ago, had put out to sea, full of hopes of plunder, and a glorious return l Eickety, broken boats, much dimin- ished in number, and with scarcely anyone to be seen on board, coming slowly and painfully towards the land ; and, at last, when they touched the beach, what a lamentable sight was there ! Those who were well, were scarcely able to work the vessels, and in the bottoms of them, lay thickly, the sick and the wounded. Battle and tempest had done their work; all their friends and relatives crowded to help, and with much tenderness carried them up to their houses. Our natives also attended to their friends on board — now, alas, how few ! and the missionary party dispensed their help, and their medical knowledge, to all alike. Nothing of moment took place for some days, except the occasional laying in the earth of some slave, or the burning of some Malay, who had succumbed to wounds or to disease. Many a black look was cast by the discontented Malays, who had remained on shore, at our friends, as if they, by some magic art, had been the cause of this calamity. Others, who had allowed the influence of the Gospel to reach their hearts, and had been inclined to believe its doctrines, now looked upon this catastrophe with awe, and accepted it as a proof of the truth of the teaching. They had heard that such a life as they had hitherto led, was abhorrent to God, and could not be continued without His long-suff'ering mercy })eing exhausted, and retribution coming upon them. They 2b 370 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. determined to go and sin no more. It was the turning- point, and by God's goodness and wisdom, it turned the right way. Even the Malays who survived, when they found food abundant, seasoned with kindness and affection, no complaint, no scoff addressed to them — when they saw the comfort of their houses, and generally the change for the better which had come about, softened and lowered by affliction, they instinctively turned to God, as the flowers to the sun. They had precept and example to guide them. The missionaries sowed and watered, and God gave the increase. The natives of the peninsula had suffered much in the expedition, but they had stood the trial well. Some of the Malays said that the example of their resignation, coupled with their resolute denunciation of all that was bad, coming after what the missionaries had told them before their departure, had a great effect, even w^hile at sea. There was much grief for those who were lost, but time, and the belief that they should meet again, tempered and softened their sorrow. Now, indeed, there was a change in the island. It became an earthly paradise. As year succeeded year, they increased more and more in the knowledge and love of God. Some few, I am sorry to record, resolutely refused to listen, or to quit their old ways, but as they were few, the others kept them in order. At last they announced their deter- mination of leaving to join some other tribe, to which many objected, saying that they would be sure to bring other tribes upon them, and they should be involved in war. The missionaries, however, considered that, some day or other, the change must become known, and the sooner the better. Against invasion they hoped to be able to defend SOCIAL REFORMATION. 371 themselves. So, by their influence, the malcontents were allowed to depart. I may mention here, that the fears of the people were realized. Some time after, they were invaded by a party, headed by the runaways; but they were defeated, and learned such a lesson, that the island was never troubled again. The slaves were freed, and all dwelt together as brethren. Polygamy was abolished, and marriage held sacred. They tilled the soil greatly, though for many years they stored what they did not use, as they refused to listen to the recommendations of the missionaries, to open communica- tions with Singapore. They were, they said, happy and prosperous. They wanted for nothing. They were not now afraid of harm coming to them, through intercourse with white men; but why should they advertise their j)eaceful and unwarlike state, amongst the other islands ; why sub- ject themselves to the risk of evil 1 Mr Munro and Mr Maxwell — to whom they looked up, as their fathers in God — argued the matter with them, told them that they must be strong to resist the evil, and that they had no right to hide their light under a bushel ; it was their duty to dis- seminate the blessings they had received amongst others. Englishmen at Singapore would cheerfully and heartily helj) and protect them in doing so. In the summer of 1871, 1 was cruising about, on a trading expedition amongst the islands of the Eastern Archipelago. It was rather dangerous work, and we were well-manned and armed. One evening, we found ourselves in sight of an island, of which no one on board knew the name. We had 372 THE ISLE IX THE EASTERN SEA. encountered a gale, and were considerably out of the usual trading track. The night fell while we were still some distance off, but as it was nearly calm we hung about, keeping good watch, and determined to have a nearer look at it in the morning. The night passed without any visitors, and at dawn we found ourselves closer in. Many telescopes were directed to the shore, and in a few moments the second mate shouted, in an accent of great surprise, *'I see the American flag flying !" And truly there it was. We, of course, imagined that some vessel had been wrecked, and that the crew had found their way on land ; but knowing the character of the inhabitants of these islands, we wondered by what miracle they had remained alive, and, most of all, how they were allowed to communicate with us. We manned a boat, and armed it well, in case this should only be a ruse, though by this time we saw some few people sauntering down to the beach, as if to meet us. We could not understand the apathy which was evinced, still less the absence of white men, although the flag was still flying ; and there was apparently no preparations for launching the prahms, which, when the inhabitants mean well, and in some cases when they do not, is always done. Imagine our great surprise, on cautiously approaching the beach, to hear ourselves hailed in English, and asked to land, as there were some of our brethren there in great sorrow; and on our showing some hesitation, the people shouted to us not to be afraid, as they were Christian men like ourselves. Little did we know what was the true state of things, though we afterwards learned all that is here recorded from Mr and Mrs Maxwell, and their son and daughter. On reaching the shore, we immediately began to inquire LAST SCENE OF ALL. 373 into this strange state of affairs, but were answered only with the sorrowful request, that we would follow them to the hill where we saw the flag, and where (here the tears flowed freely) we would find their fathers dying. Alas ! it was too true. Mr Munro and the chief, now brothers in Christ and in heart, white-headed and broken, had been carried to say their last farewell to their people — to die in the light of God's day, and to be an example to their flock of the joy, the bliss of dying in the Lord. Hand in hand, they were proj^ped-up, on mats, under the "feathery shade'' of the cocoa palm. Eound them knelt, in great yet calm sorrow, Mr and Mrs Maxwell, Robert and Eflie, and, in the outer circle, the people both of the peninsula and island. So impressed were we with the touching solemnity of the scene — which we comprehended at a glance — that we also, without one word, took up our position amongst the mour- ners, and listened to the last words of the dying patriarchs. " My brother," said Mr Munro in feeble accents, " we are to-day to die. We leave our friends and our relatives, but we exchange this world, for one of everlasting joy and felicity, where we shall again meet them. Is this a matter for sorrow "?" " No," said the chief, " not altogether so. The shortest parting is a matter of grief, but the joy is the greater when we meet again. Thanks to God, who sent you, and to thee, my brother, that we have that hope. God grant that I may desire that certainty, and He will give it ; of that I feel assured." " See how good He is," said the missionary ; all I have wished and prayed for, has come to us in good time. The commerce and protection of our people will be assured. The work of God will be continued. My friends and relatives 374 THE ISLE IN THE EASTERN SEA. ■\vill have the blissful knowledge of our existence. Our people will be brought into contact with a good and Christian nation. He has brought these strangers to cheer our dying moments." We waited in solemn silence, only broken by occasional whispers from the two friends, and sobs from — I am not ashamed to own it — ourselves, as well as the people, till at last, as the sun sank in the west, with words of affection and Avisdom on their lips, these two good men passed away. Their rest cannot be otherwise than calm and happy.. May their example ever be remembered ; so may God's work, thus happily begun, have His blessing to a good continuance^ A DUBLIN "BOY." (GLAsaow Weekly Herald, May 8th, 1875.) I WAS travelling once from Glasgow to Dublin by one of the Clyde steamers. It was a very stormy night, and we had a regular game of pitch and toss. I tried to keep out of the heated atmosphere of the cabin as long as I could, but an extra gust and a roll, sent me down nolens volens. I got to my feet again, and while removing my wet wrappers, and shaking myself generally, I was accosted by a stout, sturdy, bullet-headed respectably-dressed man, with Irish- man written in every feature of his face, and heard in every roll of his tongue. " Thry some of this, sur," said he, handing me a smoking tumbler. " It won't agree wid the cowld, an' it will dhrive it out, for sure it's the better man av the two." I did so, and soon found that my friend was right, so to turn what was still an undecided battle into a complete victory, I ordered a jorum for myself and sat down beside him. It was my first trip to Ireland, and, of course, I could talk about nothing except the country and the people. The " Dublin Boy," as he called himself, was evidently a man who, although perhaps a "broth of a boy" once, and even yet not objecting to a jollification, had evidently "done well" in the world. He knew, and cared, nothing about politics. Perhaps that accounted for his success. "Arrah! go way wid ye now. What do I know about Fanienism an' Home Rule? Begorra, what do they want? Let them attend to their business; pay twenty shillings in 376 A DUBLIN "BOY." the pound (somehow this sounded so strange in the Irish brogue), an' those that have no business let them work stiddy — there's plenty jobs for them — an' you'll soon hear the last of their cries. I have thravelled over ivery bit of Ireland, an' a great deal of England and Scotland. In them two counthries I seen ivery man minding his own business, an' not botherin' about the Government; an' what's the con- sequence ? The Government don't bother them. In Ireland you'll see every bog-throther's son of a pitatie patch, if he isn't polthougueing his neighbour, he's sure to be blowing away about the wrongs of Ireland, and the oppression of the English. Sorra a wrong I iver seen, nor heerd of nayther, from a man as could pay his way. I see by the papers, sur, that they be doin' the same thing in France and Spain. It's in the blood, it's in the blood ! I've seen some of them fur- riners — and they do be more like the Irish than you English are. Nothin' will put things right, but time and the strong- hand. I don't mane that the strength of England should be always held up before Ireland, but let the people know and see that it is there, and will be used if occasion requires. The Government is good enough; though it is not so very long ago since yees icere hard upon us." " Yes, that is true." "Well, well, that oughtn't to matter now; he's a good boy that gets better as he gets older. Time '11 do it, sur. Time '11 do it. We didn't — English or Irish ayther — lie down in our paint and skins at night, and get up in frock coat and throusers in the marnin'. Did we now?" " No, we did not. I quite agree with you in all you say." " Ah, to be sure; well, let's say no more about it. It's only waste av time. Take another tumbler and a pipe. Do you smoke?" THE DONNYBROOK DAYS. 377 I agreed to both my friend's recommendations, and finding that he would say no more about pohtics, I tried him in another direction, being anxious to ascertain if the wild ^' divarsion" of their social life, as portrayed by Barrington, Lover, and Lever, was still " to the fore." " What sort of a life do people lead in Dublin 1" " Arrah, it's better now, but it was a wild divil-may-care life at one time." " In your own young days, now, how was it '?" '' Don't spake of it, sur. What with whisky, an' fighting, an' dancing, an' horse racin' — sure horse racin' bruk all Ireland, it did !" The sudden change, from the hilarious look and voice to the mournful brow and quaver, was indescribable ; it was as plain as a pikestaff that my friend had at one time been ^' bruk," or near it, by a fondness for the sport, an' divilment of all kinds. " We had some rare goin's-on in Dublin in the owld time. A lot of us young fellows, twenty years ago, would go on the batter, night after night, and feel none the worse for it. Sure, everybody did the same, an' why shouldn't they. Maybe it's me that is changed, but sure it can't be that, since my eyes is to the fore yet. It seems to me, anyway, that the people is changed. Donnybrook, and most of that kind of divarsion, is done away wid ; there's more quiet drinking, I think, but not the divilment there wunst was. What wid Fanienism, Home-Rule, emigration, fine-art exhibitions, an', an' botheration of all kinds, the fun of Dublin is clean gone entoirely. " I'm not so very ould ; how ould would yees think I am 1 No, no ; I'm just six-an'-forty, so that the times I speak of are not so very long ago. I'll tell yees now of a night me 378 A DUBLIN "BOY." and some other boys had — wild divils they was, too — some- five-aii'-twinty years agone. There wor just five of us. an' we had all come up from Baldoyle races together. We had won a bit of money, an' bed ad ! nothin' would sarve us but we must spend some of it. There was an owld fellow kep* a hotel, that I knew well ; so, on my recommendation, we decided to go there ; it was in a good quarther for society, sure, an' we thought we could get a few together an* make a night of it. It was late when w^e got there, but, be gorra ! we wor decaived. The owld man, a rich, comfortable, well- to-do owld fellow, had gone an' cut his t'roat." " What did he do that for 1" " Bedad, not a mother's son could tell. Yees see this, now. His head waither had left him some time before, an' started in opposition. He took away a great deal of his thrade ; particularly the commercial men, with whom he had been a great favourite. The owld fellow wor vexed at this, an*^ took it to heart so, that the night before we came up, he went down to the hotel that belonged to his waither, an' tuk a bed there. AVell, when they came to wake him up in the mornin', they found he had spoiled the bed and a new carpet, sure he had ; an' it was as plain as the nose on yer face, that he had done it for nothin' else but to injure the opposition business. Wasn't he a 'cute owld fellow, now ?" " Well, I don't know. But did it have that effect ?" " Begorra an' it did, sur. Not a man-jack went near the place for a twelvemonth after. Well, sur, we could not well have our fun, when the man of the house was lying dead in it ; and as it wor gettin' late, w^e were thinking of going to our homes. The old fellow had been a friend of mine, so I did not like going over to the opposition, seein' wdiat he'd done, an' why he'd done it, an' we wor just biddin' one AN IRISH WAKE. 37^ another good night, when up comes a waither, and he says, 'Gintlemen,' says he, 'yees want some liquor an' divarsion,. why wouldn't yees go up to the wake ? Yees'd get both there; an sure the frinds would take it kindly av ye.'' 'Where is it, Dan?' says I. *It's jist round behind the hotel,' says the waither. ' I'm sure they'll make yees wel- come, an' it'll be health to the owld woman's sowl, to see yees at it 1 ' " Nothin' more was wanted. Away we went, primed an'' ready for anything. When we came to the door, we found a crowd of ragged vagabonds outside. Yees'll see the l)eggars in Dublin, an' can guess we had throuble in gettin' through, but at last we managed to get upstairs an' into the room where the owld woman lay on a bed forenint the door. In the middle, there was a bit of a table at the foot of the bed, an' on it wor whisky, pipes, an' tibaccay. Eound the room the people, male and faymale, wor sittin' three deep. B' the powers! the old lady had more visitors and good words whin dead, nor ever she had whin livin'. Takin' them upon the average, they was all half dnmk, an' one pair was croonin' an' dhronin' away at a song. All the others was lukin' towards them, tho', faix, little could they see for the smoke that filled the place. We squeezed in, an' room was made for us as well as they could. We got seats someway,, half on the people an' half on nothin', but one of our party nearly made throuble, by dhriving his way up close to the bed ; he wor a gallows young bird, that one. " Barrin' some black looks an' mutterin's, that our im- pident talk and ways occasioned, everything went very comforthable for a while, till the whisky got done, an' then such a screechin' and clatterin' for more. A fresh supply came in, an' at it we went airain. 380 A DUBLIN "BOY." " By-an'-by, there came in a purty counthry-luckin' girl, that stud by the door, as if she belonged to no one in particular, just a dissolute faymale orphan; an' as I wor the same, I thought I'd go over and help her, wid her lonesome- ness. I scrooged along, until I had got nigh forenint the door, when in came Biddy wid a fresh supply of spirits an' hot wather in a tray. She just gave wan luck at me (as I thought), an' wid a ' Agh-O-A,' down she went, the contints of the thray powdering a-toj) of her, an' she kicked an' she scramed, as if she was possessed wid siven divils. Begorra, sir, it shuk me, it did. Here was I a-goin' to comfort a young cratur, and somethin' horrible about me that frightened Biddy out of her sinses; but just then there was a yell from all in the room, an' I turned my head. Oh, Holy Mother ! there was the corpse a-sittin' up in the bed, noddin' its head iit us, an' says she " "Says who r' "Blue blazes, sur, amn't I tellin' ye. ' The corpse,' says she, * Bless yer sowls,' she says, * aren't yees a pretty lot of nagurs, niver to ax me to join yees; an' the liquor mine, an' the tibaccay too.' Be all the saints, sur, I thought I shud have dropped, an' most in the room was on their knees, or a top av one another. The corpse, sur, turned round, as if she were goin' to get out av the bed. Iverybody roared an' tried to run. There was sich a crun- -chin' an' crowdin' at the door. Some fell over the banisthers, an' some fell down the stairs. I got away wid my head broke, my ilbows skinned, an' my coat torn off me back, sure I did. B' me sowl, sur, when I think av it now, I'm like to split my coat agin wid laughin', I am; but it wor no laughin' matther thin. An' what do yees think it was all iibout, nowf A SERIOUS JOKE. 381 " How can I tell^ Some trick, I suppose." " Thrick ! Begor it icor a tlirick, an' no mistake. It wor just that blackguard spalpeen, young Dick O'Flynn, as I towld yees was a-dhriving his way up to the bed. He had tied a cord round the owld lady, an' passed it round the fut av the bed; an' he underneath it at the other side, pulled away till he raised the dead an' nearly killed the living; bedad so he did. I didn't hear how it was done for some time afther. The rascal kept quiet till we all got better av our bruises, an' well for him too. There Avor many av us so sore, in our minds an' our bodies, that we would ha' spared him some av the pain wid pleasure." *' Well, I suppose you didn't try for any more ' divarsion' thatnightr' " Divil a bit, sur. It kep' us quiet for a week afther; but let us go to bed, sur; and if yees have no objections, I'll give yees a wake, av another kind, in the marnin'." PLIMSOLL'S "JACK." (Glasgow Weekly Herald, 22d May, 1875.) There is no doubt whatever that Mr Plimsoll has clone ^ood service in agitating on the subject of unseaworthy ships. I am inclined to think, however, that he has not been discreet enough in his advocacy. To look upon his picture, one would imagine that the life of a sailor is one of -exceptionable hardship and low wages ; that they are unable to combine, as do workmen on shore, so as to control their labour market ; that they are ill-fed, hard worked, and frequently offered up, as unconscious sacrifices to the genius of swindling, especially in the department dedicated to insurance companies and underwriters; or, when that is not wilfully done, that they are looked upon as the crew of the commercial fireship, with this difference, that no honour accrues to them if they escape, though substantial profit may result to the sender. Such partisanship tends to mislead. I believe there is good foundation for Mr Plimsoll's stric- tures, so far as home-going. North-sea, and short-voyage ships are concerned. It is in the forecastles of these that you often hear the sailors say — ** He who would go to sea for pleasure, "Would go to hell for pastime. " And, certainly, some stories I have heard from the men show that reform is needed. I remember a Swede telling me of ii Russian prize having been condemned, and sold for £65. Instead of being broken up, she was despatched from London COFFIN SHIPS. 383 by her owner, a Norwegian, with a cargo of coals for Malaga. At the time, after the war, the shipping trade was very bad, and this man had been loafing about for two months, living from hand to mouth, unable to get a berth. At last, he signed articles for the voyage in this " old coffin," and she sailed. They had pretty fair weather and fair winds, till near their destination. Nevertheless they had to be con- stantly at the pumps. At last it came on to blow, and the timbers of the "old hooker" opened and shut "just like as many oysters." She was perfectly rotten at the stem, and at last a hole opened " that let in the water faster than we could take it out again." They tried many ways of stopping it, and at last the captain succeeded ; he himself went over, fast to a line, and stuffed salt beef into the opening 1 With only this between them and destruction, they reached their port. They could get no cargo for anywhere there. So, after some patching up, away they went, in ballast, for the St Lawrence. By the mercy of Providence they scrambled over somehow, and loaded with timber for London again ! After being blown and battered for a month, losing their deck cargo, with enough of her under water to enable the men to " lean over the bulwarks and wash their hands," they got back as far as Queenstown; and there my informant, hearing that ships were more plentiful and wages better, forfeited his wages by leaving her — so what became of her afterwards, I had not the pleasure, or pain, of knowing. Of course, at any j^ort he might have left the vessel, and got his wages, too ; but what was Jack to do 1 He says, " I did try ; but none of us had no money for the lawyers, and v/e didn't know nothin' about how to go to work, and so we slipped South as soon as we could, and forgot all about it after a bouse out." Again, on being asked why he shipped 384 tlimsoll's jack. in sucli a vessel at all, he says, "Why, we didn't know nothin' at all about that either ; and if we had, I, for one, was so blessed hard up, that I'd have gone to sea on a gratin' for grub and wages. Besides, we were well treated ; plenty to eat, and none of your confounded teetotal ships; so what's the odds so long as you're happy?" Such is Jack all through the piece ; and, being such an indispensable member of the community, it is but right that his friends should see he is well treated, and his life cared for. Having said this much in favour of Mr PlimsoU and his championship, it becomes us now to point to the peculiarities of Jack in fighting against himself, and to show long-voyaged Jack especially, as one who is well fed, lightly worked, and in a better position by far, than his fellow-workman on shore, to save money, so as to be in comfort in his old age; that he has time, and, in very many ships, opportunity, for improv- ing his knowledge of the art he lives by, and that generally Jack, if he would only take care of himself, might be as happy and prosperous as he is useful. Jack is like the herring — the prey of every other variety of his own species; but none are so fatal to him as those who, as quoted in one of the magazines some time ago, when the ship arrives at St. Katherine's Docks, " Come down in flocks ; " and, as the writer did not continue, say ** Come on, Jack, you're welcome back, And I'll go you shares in your three years' whack, For I see you're homeward bound." It is characteristic of the sailor that he sings those songs — and enjoys them too — although they tell so much against his usual proceedings on shore. Another verse of the same I jack's unthrift. 385 "shanty," is referring to Jack just returned from sea, and Jack who has been some time on shore, and, as a natural consequence, in a state of impecuniosity : — ' Then, in comes the landlady with a smile, Says, * Taste this liquor, it's worth your while.' For I see you're, &c. ' ' Then, in comes the landlady with a frown. Says, 'Get up, Jack, let John sit down.' For you'll soon be outward bound." I remember one old sailor telling me that his last pay-day was .£48, "and in twelve days I hadn't a cent!" " What did you do with iti" I inquired. " Do with it ! why, spent it like a man !" And nothing would convince him that he hadn't done so. "What's the use?" he says. "If it was known in the forecastle that I was a ' miser,' what a pretty life I'd lead. And if I gave it to some one to take care of — some of your institutions or such like — they'd be sure to burst up, and I'd lose it. No, no; I'll take the benefit of it while I can. This voyage I want clothes bad enough. I'm just thinking whether I shall spend all my money in clothes or none." Giving up the attempt at conversion as hopeless, I saunter away aft, and ruminate over the opportunities which Jack has of doing himself good, and how completely and per- sistently he neglects them. Notwithstanding all the sailor's coarse ways and modes of expressing himself, his too often filthy conversation, and licentious habits, it is wonderful how he respects a man who is consistently and quietly the opposite — always i3ro- vided that he is liberal with his money. We knew one Swedish carpenter who was a staid, well-behaved man, never mixed in the wild talk of the other men — rather discouraged 2c 386 plimsoll's "jack." them than otherwise — read his Bible on a Sunday, never swore, and did his work without grumbHng, which was as extraordinary as any other trait in his character. It was pleasant to see how this man was respected. How the oath would die away upon the lips of the speaker, as " chips" eluded with the King's Government the Convention of the 28th of July for the suppression of the slave trade. " In fact, Clause 12 of that Convention must be interpreted to designate the whole of the Bay bearing the name of Delagoa, or Lorenzo-Marques, as forming part of the Portuguese possessions." Furthermore, in 1822 the British Government, having sent out an officer to make a hydrographic survey of tlie Bay and the rivers flowing into it, recommended him to the good offices of the Portuguese Government. This, no doubt, is strongly on the Portuguese side, according to all the theories which prevail as to national rights; but we find within the limits of Marshal MacMahon's own judgement ample evidence that all substantial authority had passed away from Portugal. He says that "though the accidental weakening of the Portuguese authority in those parts, may, in 1823, have led Captain Owen erroneously, yet in good faith, to regard the Native Chiefs of the territories now contested as really independent of the Crown of Portugal,, the Conventions concluded by him with those Chiefs were not the less contrary to the rights of Portugal." The fact that an intelligent officer could mistake the Natives for the independent tribes, shows that there could have been no efficient representative of the Portuguese Government in the- vicinity; and the effect of this is not lessened by the cir- cumstance that, subsequently, the Portuguese Government obtained anew from the Chiefs a recognition of its authority. But the rights of Portugal, acquired by discovery in the sixteenth century, asserted by force of arms as well as diplomatically in the eighteenth, recognised incidentally in the early part of the nineteenth, appear to the French President, sufficiently established, and he gives to His Most I'aithful Majesty all the territory claimed. We do not 430 THE DELAGOA BAY DISrUTE. contest the justice of the Award, but Ave may regret a decision which will tend to retard the settlement and civilization of those regions, which can now only be accom- plished by union with the great South African community growing up under the British Crown. In the end we may fairly expect that no obstacles, raised by a strict interpreta- tion of the rights of nations, will impede a consummation .so beneficial to the world. Leader in Morning Post, August 23, 1875. The text of Marshal M'Mahon's award on the Delagoa Bay controversy has at length been made public. On the 23d March, not very long after the latest representations appear, by the document in question, to have been made to the Marshal by the British Ambassador and Portuguese Minister at Paris, Ave Avere enabled to announce to our readers Avhat Avould be the result of the arbitration, and the statements made subsequently in Parliament confirmed our information. It is only noAv, hoAvever, that the official decree is made public, and it rather briefly and summarily disposes of our claims. The convention agreeing to the arbitration seems to have been signed at Lisbon on the 11th September, 1872, and as the aAvard is dated Versailles the 24th July, it has taken nearly three years to come to a conclusion. We cannot complain of unnecessary haste in the matter, therefore, inasmuch as nearly a year seems to have elapsed betAA^een each move in the affair. The com- mission of investigation AA^as appointed by the Marshal on the 23d of March, 1873. On the 15th September folloAving, the representatives of the tAvo parties presented their KEMARKS FROM ''MORNING POST." 431 memoranda to the arbitrator, and exactly a twelvemonth later counter-memoranda were handed in, the case on either side being finally closed by letters dated the 8th of February in the present year. Two different points arose in the question, the one having reference to the territory on the northern side of Delagoa Bay, as far as the Espiritu Sancto, or English Eiver; and the other being in regard to the territory on the southern side, known as Maputa, and -embracing the island of Inyack. With respect to the former, we had imagined all along that the Portuguese claim to that was established, but we had also considered that our title to the latter portion of the Bay was one that could be sus- tained. Whatever might have been the Portuguese assump- tions as regarded the Dutch and Austrians, and however much those Powers might have given in to their pretensions, we had certainly never acknowledged them; at any rate, in reference to the Southern half of the Bay ; and we cannot now see how the fact, so markedly dwelt upon in the award, of our Government recommending Captain Owen to the kind offices of the Portuguese authorities, when making in 1823 his survey of the bay and rivers discharging them- selves into it, is to be construed into our having admitted the right of Portugal to the whole of the territory. The Portuguese had a settlement at Lorenzo-Marques, and what could be more natural than that our Government should request their officials to tender the Captain their good offices should occasion require it. But indeed the proof that we had no intention of acknowledging them as complete masters of the territory is self-evident from the conduct of Captain Owen in dealing with the native chiefs in the vicinity, whom he treated as quite independent of Portuguese authority. Nor are we prepared to admit that the terms of our previous 432 . THE DEIAGOA BAY DISPUTE. convention with Portugal in 1817, for the suppression of the slave trade, are such as to imply a recognition of their right to the whole of the Bay. We never intended any- thing of the kind. The decision is, however, given against us, and as it was agreed in the arrangement of September, 1872, that the question should be decided by the President of the French Eepublic without appeal, all we can now do is to make the best of a bad bargain, if so it may be termed. Since the result first became known to the public in England, a very strong feeling has been evinced, that an endeavour should be made to come to terms with Portugal for pur- chasing the Bay, or at any rate that portion of it which it is advisable we should possess, and which, indeed, we claimed. Its growing importance is acknowledged, and, now that its reputation for unhealthiness is proved to be greatly un- deserved, there is the more reason why we should be anxious to retain it. Its situation at the entrance to the Mozam- bique Channel, and its being the only available seaport for the Transvaal, destined at no distant day to be one of the South African Confederate States, and which it is well to remember is already attracting a good many Australian diggers, greatly enhance its value. With every disposition to trust in the good intentions of the Portuguese Govern- ment, and in its willingness to offer facilities for commerce at the Bay, we would much j^refer to have the port in our own hands. It is tolerably certain that British subjects will be the parties chiefly interested in the trade that will be carried on at the Bay, and a far larger traffic is likely to take place under British jurisdiction, than if it be exercised by a foreign Power, however much it may be actuated by good intentions. The inhabitants of the Transvaal, we are satisfied, would much rather that the port were in English hands, and it is REMARKS FROM "MORNING POST." 433 needless to remark how the project for railway communica- tion between the Bay and its proposed terminus in the Kepublic would be furthered under British auspices. It is not of the present alone that we think; Southern Africa is destined to become a confederation of States owning British supremacy, and whatever objection may at the moment exist amongst certain parties in the two Eepublics against union under the British flag, is pretty sure to die away. The increased settlement of British subjects within their l)orders must of itself necessarily tend to this, and it is most desirable that, when a confederation is established, every inch of territory in the neighbourhood should be held by ourselves. We have no apprehension that Portugal will enter into negotiations with any other foreign Power for the disposal to it of Delagoa Bay — a proceeding which would be very injurious to our interests. But at the same time Portugal will, doubtless, wish to reap some advantage from the award, which, rightly or A\Tongly, has handed over to it territory we had reason to believe belonged to ourselves. It is not probable that Portugal has any special interest in retaining possession of the port. Its African territories are not of paramount importance to it, and in surrendering a small portion of them it would have no objection to make a good bargain. Very likely the award is an unexpected slice of good luck to Portugal, and if we can only come to reasonable terms with her for the purchase of the Bay, we may eventually not have so much reason to grumble at what has happened. Perhaps, even, it may become a subject of rejoicing, as it may act as a lesson to us in the future to be distrustful of the arbitration system, which, somehow or other, however good a case we may think that we have, results in our being the losers. If it only leads us to dis- countenance the practice in the future, the award in the 2f 434 THE DELAGOA BAY DISPUTE. Delagoa Bay controversy will not be without its advantage. Of international arbitration the British public is beginning to think we have had quite enough, for it only ends in every other State getting the better of us, a consummation by no means to be desired. From the Herald of Peace, London. The award on the recent Delagoa Bay case went in favour of Portugal. This fact, coupled with the adverse decisions on the Alabama and San Juan questions, has considerably disturbed the equanimity of our press, and led to some hard things being said against the principle of arbitration. We are told that wherever that method of settling disputes is had recourse to, the issue is unfavourable to our country. This is not quite correct as a matter of fact. The Anglo- American Commission, which was only arbitration under another name, and which dealt with a great variety of irritating questions, some of long standing, between us and the United States, gave, on several points, judgment in our favour, and decided that the United States should pay Great Britain various sums, amounting in the aggregate to about half a million sterling. It is gratifying to find that, while many of our journals are dissatisfied, and perhaps naturally so, at finding the award of an arbitrator for the third time going against us, there is not, so far as we know, in any quarter the slightest whisper of repudiation. It is honourable to our countrymen that the universal and un- hesitating conclusion is, that we should abide loyally by the decision of the French President, however unpalatable it may be to ourselves. Nor is there any serious attempt to impeach the fairness of that decision on the grounds sub- mitted to the arbitrator. Indeed, the Times distinctly says, ** We do not contest the justice of the award;" and, after REMARKS FROM '^ HERALD OF PEACE." 435 stating the reasons specified by Marshal MacMahon as the ground of his judgement, the same paper adds, " This, no doubt, is strongly on the Portuguese side, according to all the theories which prevail as to national rights;" though it afterwards somewhat qualifies this admission by affinning that the Portuguese rights had lapsed, or, at least, become doubtful by desuetude. We have no doubt that Delagoa Bay would be of greater use, not only to ourselves, but possibly to the interests of civilisation, if it were in British rather than in Portuguese hands, though our contribution to the civilisation of Africa has hitherto been of a very equivocal kind indeed. But the same thing may be said, probably, of Lisbon or Oporto, and a hundred other ports in all parts of the world, upon which we may choose to cast a covetous eye, and, if that be a sufficient ground of claim — and especially if the claimant himself is to be the judge — it would let loose all mankind to engage in one universal game of mutual spoliation. We should be glad to see Delagoa Bay pass by rightful means into the possession of Great Britain, but we contend that the settlement of the in- dispensable and preliminary question of title, will servo rather to facilitate than to frustrate negotiations for that purpose. But on the subject of arbitration, if we find the award going against us on so many occasions, where we have no reason to call in question the competency or the integrity of the arbitrators, would it not be well for us to ask ourselves whether this does not point to the fact, that, nationally, we are of an aggressive and masterful spirit; not consciously unjust, but prone, from a sense of our enormous power, to be somewhat arrogant and exacting in our claims? Nations, even more than individuals, have reason to say — ** wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oorsells as ithers see xis." 436 THE DELAGOA BAY DISPUTE. The Newcastle Daily Chronicle, of 15th September, in an article on "The Conservative Government and Slavery," animadverting on the Admiralty order ^prohibiting Ships of War being made a harbour of refuge for runaway Slaves, says : — "It is of some importance to know if the law officers of the Crown have been consulted as to this Order. It would also be interesting to learn who are the parties the Govern- ment thus means to favour*? Is it because the decision was against us in our dispute with Portugal, that we are about to propitiate the slave powers on the coast of Africa I Portugal is the European protector of slavery, and it must be either the Portuguese Government we are anxious to ' pleasure,' or some one or other of those barbarous African Chiefs to whom slavery is wealth. There has of late been much in our transactions with Portugal that will scarcely bear criticism. Whoever has read the very able statement, by the late Mr David Leslie, of his claim against the Portu- guese Government for illegal seizure, can scarcely fail to be satisfied on this point. The treatment that accomplished man received from 'this petty but obtrusive and self- sufficient power' was a public scandal, which Mr Leslie's premature death does not absolve us from avenging. But the Circular of the Admiralty is another pertinent illustra- tion of that ' spirited foreign policy ' the Premier promised would distinguish his reign. Seriously, the subject with which this Circular , deals is something far transcending mere party politics. The interests and honour of the nation are compromised thereby." SHARP PRACTICE WITH SPAIX 1-WHAT ABOUT PORTUGAL? Fatal Encounter between British and Spanish Forces.— A telegram from the Gibraltar correspondent of the Western Morning Neics, dated September 1.5, 1875, 9 p.m., says an investigation was being held concerning a serious affair which took place on Tuesday, it being reported that a French vessel had been captured by the Spanish Coastguard in British waters. A steam-launch from Her Majesty's ship Express went in chase, and took both in tow. The Spaniards resisted, and, although warned by the British Officers, persisted in attempting to cut the tow-rope. During the affray a Spaniard was accidentally shot dead. NEW BOOK ON AFRICAN SPORT. Now ready in 1 vol., large 8vo,, with Woodcuts and Coloured and Tinted Sketches, price, 21s., THE LARGE GAME AND NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AND SOUTH-EAST AFRICA. By the Hon. W. H. DRUMMOND. 1. Buffalo. 2. Rhinoceros, 3. Eland. 4. Elephant. 5. Lions. 6. Leopards. 7. Hunting with Dogs. 8. Game Birds. 9. Anecdotes op Antelopes. OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. Scotsman. ' ' The freshest and most interesting sporting book that has appeared for many a day. Freshest in subject and in treatment, most interesting in the novelty of its scenes and the greatness of its adventures is the Hon. W. H. Drummond's * Large Game of South and South-East Africa.'" Globe. " Wielding his pen almost as successfully as his rifle, he has succeeded in delineating a graphic picture of Sporting Life in South African Wilder- nesses, with all its perils, privations, and pleasures." Liand and "Water. ' ' We can recommend it strongly." Standard. " For hair-breadth escapes, exciting struggles, and desperate combats, it far surpasses any similar book we have ever read, and we can but wonder at the good fortune which carried him almost scatheless through so many adventures." Daily News. "He is one of the best types of the traveller and the sportsman ; he is indomitable in courage, unswerving in determination^ always ready to submit to what must be endured." Liverpool Albion. " It has attractions, alike for the traveller, the sportsman, the student of natural history, and the general reader and lover of adventure. To its value as a practical educational book, it adds the charm of thrilling and always interesting narrative, of a kind which carries its character for horesty and competency in its face." New Book on African Sport. Court Journal. ''The volume is a record of numerous exciting adventures with hair- breadth escapes, and it contains much that will interest the student of natural history." Edinburg-h Courant. ** The Hon. W. H. Drummond has given us one of the very finest books in the library of sport. The sportsman hoping some day to stalk game under the southern cross, or wishing to enjoy at his own fireside lifelike pictures of hunting scenes, cannot turn to a better book than this ; while the naturalist who desires new light on animal nature, and the general reader who likes picturesque grouping and lucid description, will be certain to enjoy this narrative of an African hunter." New York Evening: Post. "The entire book is one of great interest." Glasgow News. "The great fault of Livingstone's writings about Africa— dryness of style — cannot be imputed to this one, which is as attractive in manner as it is instructive in matter. * * * ♦ rpj^g simplicity of the tnie sportsman beams from every page, and the reader is charmed with the freshness and vividness of the pictures drawn by an artist who is absorbed in his subject," Pall Mall Gazette. " Abook that contains an adventure on almost every page ; may be taken iip anywhere with the certainty of amusement ; and Mr Drummond's adventures and hair-breadth escapes are of an exciting description." Leeds Mercury. " It is quite within the truth to state that every page of the volume contains some adventure of the greatest interest." Glasgow Herald. "Such a book as this, it maybe easily understood, is one to be read and enjoyed. * ♦ * * ^jj. Drummond may rest assured that the public will not soon get tired of his Avell digested knowledge and lively narrative." Saturday Review. "This is probably one of the most genuine books ahout big game that we have had since the volumes of Mr Gordon Gumming * * * We can concientiously recommend Mr Dnimmond's book to those who desire information either about the vicissitudes of sport or the chances of colonization in a land of striking scenery and great game," Similar laudatory notices have appeared in the Spectator, Observer, Morning Post, Daily Free Press, Daily Ilevieio, Dundee Advertiser, Chambers' Journal, d-c. EDINBUEGH : EDMONSTON & DOUGLAS, and all BookseUers. 88 Princes Street, Edinburgh, June 1875. EDMONSTON & DOUGLAS' LIST OF WORKS. -000- The Culture and Discipline of the Mind, and other Essays. By JOHN ABERCROMBIE, M.D, New Edition. Fcap. 8vo, cloth, 3s. 6d. Wanderings of a Naturalist in India, The Western Himalayas, and Cashmere. By Dr. A. L. ADAMS of the 22d Regi- ment. 8vo, with Illustrations, price 10s. 6d, " The author need be under no apprehension of wearying his readers. . . 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