Kind Reception from
the Commandant -- His Generosity to my Men -- The Village of Tete -- The
Population -- Distilled Spirits -- The Fort -- Cause of the Decadence of
Portuguese Power -- Former Trade -- Slaves employed in Gold-washing --
Slave-trade drained the Country of Laborers -- The Rebel Nyaude's Stockade
-- He burns Tete -- Kisaka's Revolt and Ravages -- Extensive Field of
Sugar-cane -- The Commandant's good Reputation among the Natives --
Providential Guidance -- Seams of Coal -- A hot Spring -- Picturesque
Country -- Water-carriage to the Coal-fields -- Workmen's Wages -- Exports
-- Price of Provisions -- Visit Gold-washings -- The Process of obtaining
the precious Metal -- Coal within a Gold-field -- Present from Major
Sicard -- Natives raise Wheat, etc. -- Liberality of the Commandant --
Geographical Information from Senhor Candido -- Earthquakes -- Native
Ideas of a Supreme Being -- Also of the Immortality and Transmigration of
Souls -- Fondness for Display at Funerals -- Trade Restrictions -- Former
Jesuit Establishment -- State of Religion and Education at Tete --
Inundation of the Zambesi -- Cotton cultivated -- The fibrous Plants Conge
and Buaze -- Detained by Fever -- The Kumbanzo Bark -- Native Medicines --
Iron, its Quality -- Hear of Famine at Kilimane -- Death of a Portuguese
Lady -- The Funeral -- Disinterested Kindness of the Portuguese.
I was most kindly received
by the commandant Tito Augusto d'Araujo Sicard, who did every thing in his
power to restore me from my emaciated condition; and, as this was still
the unhealthy period at Kilimane, he advised me to remain with him until
the following month. He also generously presented my men with abundant
provisions of millet; and, by giving them lodgings in a house of his own
until they could erect their own huts, he preserved them from the bite of
the tampans, here named Carapatos.[Another insect, resembling a maggot,
burrows into the feet of the natives and sucks their blood. Mr. Westwood
says, "The tampan is a large species of mite, closely allied to the
poisonous bug (as it is called) of Persia, `Argos reflexus', respecting
which such marvelous accounts have been recorded, and which the statement
respecting the carapato or tampan would partially confirm." Mr. W. also
thinks that the poison-yielding larva called N'gwa is a "species of
chrysomelidae. The larvae of the British species of that family exude a
fetid yellow thickish fluid when alarmed, but he has not heard that any of
them are at all poisonous."] We had heard frightful accounts of this
insect while among the Banyai, and Major Sicard assured me that to
strangers its bite is more especially dangerous, as it sometimes causes
fatal fever. It may please our homoeopathic friends to hear that, in
curing the bite of the tampan, the natives administer one of the insects
bruised in the medicine employed.
The village of Tete is
built on a long slope down to the river, the fort being close to the
water. The rock beneath is gray sandstone, and has the appearance of being
crushed away from the river: the strata have thus a crumpled form. The
hollow between each crease is a street, the houses being built upon the
projecting fold. The rocks at the top of the slope are much higher than
the fort, and of course completely command it. There is then a large
valley, and beyond that an oblong hill called Karueira. The whole of the
adjacent country is rocky and broken, but every available spot is under
cultivation. The stone houses in Tete are cemented with mud instead of
lime, and thatched with reeds and grass. The rains, having washed out the
mud between the stones, give all the houses a rough, untidy appearance. No
lime was known to be found nearer than Mozambique; some used in making
seats in the verandas had actually been brought all that distance.
The Portuguese evidently
knew nothing of the pink and white marbles which I found at the Mbai, and
another rivulet, named the Unguesi, near it, and of which I brought home
specimens, nor yet of the dolomite which lies so near to Zumbo: they might
have burned the marble into lime without going so far as Mozambique. There
are about thirty European houses; the rest are native, and of wattle and
daub. A wall about ten feet high is intended to inclose the village, but
most of the native inhabitants prefer to live on different spots outside.
There are about twelve hundred huts in all, which with European households
would give a population of about four thousand five hundred souls. Only a
small proportion of these, however, live on the spot; the majority are
engaged in agricultural operations in the adjacent country. Generally
there are not more than two thousand people resident, for, compared with
what it was, Tete is now a ruin. The number of Portuguese is very small;
if we exclude the military, it is under twenty. Lately, however, one
hundred and five soldiers were sent from Portugal to Senna, where in one
year twenty-five were cut off by fever. They were then removed to Tete,
and here they enjoy much better health, though, from the abundance of
spirits distilled from various plants, wild fruits, and grain, in which
pernicious beverage they largely indulge, besides partaking chiefly of
unwholesome native food, better health could scarcely have been expected.
The natives here understand the method of distillation by means of
gun-barrels, and a succession of earthen pots filled with water to keep
them cool. The general report of the fever here is that, while at Kilimane
the fever is continuous, at Tete a man recovers in about three days. The
mildest remedies only are used at first, and, if that period be passed,
then the more severe.
The fort of Tete has been
the salvation of the Portuguese power in this quarter. It is a small
square building, with a thatched apartment for the residence of the
troops; and, though there are but few guns, they are in a much better
state than those of any fort in the interior of Angola. The cause of the
decadence of the Portuguese power in this region is simply this: In former
times, considerable quantities of grain, as wheat, millet, and maize, were
exported; also coffee, sugar, oil, and indigo, besides gold-dust and
ivory. The cultivation of grain was carried on by means of slaves, of whom
the Portuguese possessed a large number. The gold-dust was procured by
washing at various points on the north, south, and west of Tete. A
merchant took all his slaves with him to the washings, carrying as much
calico and other goods as he could muster. On arriving at the
washing-place, he made a present to the chief of the value of about a
pound sterling. The slaves were then divided into parties, each headed by
a confidential servant, who not only had the supervision of his squad
while the washing went on, but bought dust from the inhabitants, and made
a weekly return to his master. When several masters united at one spot, it
was called a "Bara", and they then erected a temporary church, in which a
priest from one of the missions performed mass. Both chiefs and people
were favorable to these visits, because the traders purchased grain for
the sustenance of the slaves with the goods they had brought. They
continued at this labor until the whole of the goods were expended, and by
this means about 130 lbs. of gold were annually produced. Probably more
than this was actually obtained, but, as it was an article easily
secreted, this alone was submitted to the authorities for taxation.
At present the whole amount
of gold obtained annually by the Portuguese is from 8 to 10 lbs. only.
When the slave-trade began, it seemed to many of the merchants a more
speedy mode of becoming rich to sell off the slaves than to pursue the
slow mode of gold-washing and agriculture, and they continued to export
them until they had neither hands to labor nor to fight for them. It was
just the story of the goose and the golden egg. The coffee and sugar
plantations and gold-washings were abandoned, because the labor had been
exported to the Brazils. Many of the Portuguese then followed their
slaves, and the government was obliged to pass a law to prevent further
emigration, which, had it gone on, would have depopulated the Portuguese
possessions altogether.
A clever man of Asiatic
(Goa) and Portuguese extraction, called Nyaude, now built a stockade at
the confluence of the Luenya and Zambesi; and when the commandant of Tete
sent an officer with his company to summon him to his presence, Nyaude
asked permission of the officer to dress himself, which being granted, he
went into an inner apartment, and the officer ordered his men to pile
their arms. A drum of war began to beat a note which is well known to the
inhabitants. Some of the soldiers took the alarm on hearing this note, but
the officer, disregarding their warning, was, with his whole party, in a
few minutes disarmed and bound hand and foot. The commandant of Tete then
armed the whole body of slaves and marched against the stockade of Nyaude,
but when they came near to it there was the Luenya still to cross. As they
did not effect this speedily, Nyaude dispatched a strong party under his
son Bonga across the river below the stockade, and up the left bank of the
Zambesi until they came near to Tete. They then attacked Tete, which was
wholly undefended save by a few soldiers in the fort, plundered and burned
the whole town except the house of the commandant and a few others, with
the church and fort. The women and children fled into the church; and it
is a remarkable fact that none of the natives of this region will ever
attack a church. Having rendered Tete a ruin, Bonga carried off all the
cattle and plunder to his father. News of this having been brought to the
army before the stockade, a sudden panic dispersed the whole; and as the
fugitives took roundabout ways in their flight, Katolosa, who had hitherto
pretended to be friendly with the Portuguese, sent out his men to capture
as many of them as they could. They killed many for the sake of their
arms. This is the account which both natives and Portuguese give of the
affair.
Another half-caste from
Macao, called Kisaka or Choutama, on the opposite bank of the river,
likewise rebelled. His father having died, he imagined that he had been
bewitched by the Portuguese, and he therefore plundered and burned all the
plantations of the rich merchants of Tete on the north bank. As I have
before remarked, that bank is the most fertile, and there the Portuguese
had their villas and plantations to which they daily retired from Tete.
When these were destroyed the Tete people were completely impoverished. An
attempt was made to punish this rebel, but it was also unsuccessful, and
he has lately been pardoned by the home government. One point in the
narrative of this expedition is interesting. They came to a field of
sugar-cane so large that 4000 men eating it during two days did not finish
the whole. The Portuguese were thus placed between two enemies, Nyaude on
the right bank and Kisaka on the left, and not only so, but Nyaude, having
placed his stockade on the point of land on the right banks of both the
Luenya and Zambesi, and washed by both these rivers, could prevent
intercourse with the sea. The Luenya rushes into the Zambesi with great
force when the latter is low, and, in coming up the Zambesi, boats must
cross it and the Luenya separately, even going a little way up that river,
so as not to be driven away by its current in the bed of the Zambesi, and
dashed on the rock which stands on the opposite shore. In coming up to the
Luenya for this purpose, all boats and canoes came close to the stockade
to be robbed.
Nyaude kept the Portuguese
shut up in their fort at Tete during two years, and they could only get
goods sufficient to buy food by sending to Kilimane by an overland route
along the north bank of the Zambesi. The mother country did not in these
"Caffre wars" pay the bills, so no one either became rich or blamed the
missionaries. The merchants were unable to engage in trade, and commerce,
which the slave-trade had rendered stagnant, was now completely
obstructed. The present commandant of Tete, Major Sicard, having great
influence among the natives, from his good character, put a stop to the
war more than once by his mere presence on the spot. We heard of him among
the Banyai as a man with whom they would never fight, because "he had a
good heart." Had I come down to this coast instead of going to Loanda in
1853, I should have come among the belligerents while the war was still
raging, and should probably have been cut off.
My present approach was
just at the conclusion of the peace; and when the Portuguese authorities
here were informed, through the kind offices of Lord Clarendon and Count
de Lavradio, that I was expected to come this way, they all declared that
such was the existing state of affairs that no European could possibly
pass through the tribes. Some natives at last came down the river to Tete
and said, alluding to the sextant and artificial horizon, that "the Son of
God had come," and that he was "able to take the sun down from the heavens
and place it under his arm!" Major Sicard then felt sure that this was the
man mentioned in Lord Clarendon's dispatch. On mentioning to the
commandant that I had discovered a small seam of coal, he stated that the
Portuguese were already aware of nine such seams, and that five of them
were on the opposite bank of the river. As soon as I had recovered from my
fatigue I went to examine them. We proceeded in a boat to the mouth of the
Lofubu or Revubu, which is about two miles below Tete, and on the opposite
or northern bank. Ascending this about four miles against a strong current
of beautifully clear water, we landed near a small cataract, and walked
about two miles through very fertile gardens to the seam, which we found
to be in one of the feeders of the Lofubu, called Muatize or Motize. The
seam is in the perpendicular bank, and dips into the rivulet, or in a
northerly direction.
There is, first of all, a
seam 10 inches in diameter, then some shale, below which there is another
seam, 58 inches of which are seen, and, as the bottom touches the water of
the Muatize, it may be more. This part of the seam is about 30 yards long.
There is then a fault. About 100 yards higher up the stream black
vesicular trap is seen, penetrating in thin veins the clay shale of the
country, converting it into porcellanite, and partially crystallizing the
coal with which it came into contact. On the right bank of the Lofubu
there is another feeder entering that river near its confluence with the
Muatize, which is called the Morongozi, in which there is another and
still larger bed of coal exposed. Farther up the Lofubu there are other
seams in the rivulets Inyavu and Makare; also several spots in the Maravi
country have the coal cropping out. This has evidently been brought to the
surface by volcanic action at a later period than the coal formation.
I also went up the Zambesi,
and visited a hot spring called Nyamboronda, situated in the bed of a
small rivulet named Nyaondo, which shows that igneous action is not yet
extinct. We landed at a small rivulet called Mokorozi, then went a mile or
two to the eastward, where we found a hot fountain at the bottom of a high
hill. A little spring bubbles up on one side of the rivulet Nyaondo, and a
great quantity of acrid steam rises up from the ground adjacent, about 12
feet square of which is so hot that my companions could not stand on it
with their bare feet. There are several little holes from which the water
trickles, but the principal spring is in a hole a foot in diameter, and
about the same in depth. Numbers of bubbles are constantly rising. The
steam feels acrid in the throat, but is not inflammable, as it did not
burn when I held a bunch of lighted grass over the bubbles. The mercury
rises to 158 Deg. when the thermometer is put into the water in the hole,
but after a few seconds it stands steadily at 160 Deg. Even when flowing
over the stones the water is too hot for the hand. Little fish frequently
leap out of the stream in the bed of which the fountain rises, into the
hot water, and get scalded to death.
We saw a frog which had
performed the experiment, and was now cooked. The stones over which the
water flows are incrusted with a white salt, and the water has a saline
taste. The ground has been dug out near the fountain by the natives, in
order to extract the salt it contains. It is situated among rocks of
syenitic porphyry in broad dikes, and gneiss tilted on edge, and having a
strike to the N.E. There are many specimens of half-formed pumice, with
greenstone and lava. Some of the sandstone strata are dislocated by a
hornblende rock and by basalt, the sandstone nearest to the basalt being
converted into quartz.
The country around, as
indeed all the district lying N. and N.W. of Tete, is hilly, and, the
hills being covered with trees, the scenery is very picturesque. The soil
of the valleys is very fruitful and well cultivated. There would not be
much difficulty in working the coal. The Lofubu is about 60 yards broad;
it flows perennially, and at its very lowest period, which is after
September, there is water about 18 inches deep, which could be navigated
in flat-bottomed boats. At the time of my visit it was full, and the
current was very strong. If the small cataract referred to were to be
avoided, the land-carriage beyond would only be about two miles. The other
seams farther up the river may, after passing the cataract, be approached
more easily than that in the Muatize; as the seam, however, dips down into
the stream, no drainage of the mine would be required, for if water were
come to it would run into the stream. I did not visit the others, but I
was informed that there are seams in the independent native territory as
well as in that of the Portuguese.
That in the Nake is in the
Banyai country, and, indeed, I have no doubt but that the whole country
between Zumbo and Lupata is a coal-field of at least 2-1/2 Deg. of
latitude in breadth, having many faults, made during the time of the
igneous action. The gray sandstone rock having silicified trees lying on
it is of these dimensions. The plantation in which the seam of coal exists
would be valued among the Portuguese at about 60 dollars or 12 Pounds, but
much more would probably be asked if a wealthy purchaser appeared. They
could not, however, raise the price very much higher, because estates
containing coal might be had from the native owners at a much cheaper
rate. The wages of free laborers, when employed in such work as
gold-washing, agriculture, or digging coal, is 2 yards of unbleached
calico per day. They might be got to work cheaper if engaged by the moon,
or for about 16 yards per month. For masons and carpenters even, the
ordinary rate is 2 yards per day. This is called 1 braca. Tradesmen from
Kilimane demand 4 bracas, or 8 yards, per day. English or American
unbleached calico is the only currency used. The carriage of goods up the
river to Tete adds about 10 per cent. to their cost. The usual conveyance
is by means of very large canoes and launches built at Senna.
The amount of merchandise
brought up during the five months of peace previous to my visit was of the
value of 30,000 dollars, or about 6000 Pounds. The annual supply of goods
for trade is about 15,000 Pounds, being calico, thick brass wire, beads,
gunpowder, and guns. The quantity of the latter is, however, small, as the
government of Mozambique made that article contraband after the
commencement of the war. Goods, when traded with in the tribes around the
Portuguese, produce a profit of only about 10 per cent., the articles
traded in being ivory and gold-dust. A little oil and wheat are exported,
but nothing else. Trade with the tribes beyond the exclusive ones is much
better. Thirty brass rings cost 10s. at Senna, 1 Pound at Tete, and 2
Pounds beyond the tribes in the vicinity of Tete; these are a good price
for a penful of gold-dust of the value of 2 Pounds. The plantations of
coffee, which, previous to the commencement of the slave-trade, yielded
one material for exportation, are now deserted, and it is difficult to
find a single tree. The indigo (`Indigofera argentea', the common wild
indigo of Africa) is found growing every where, and large quantities of
the senna-plant [These appear to belong to `Cassia acutifolia', or true
senna of commerce, found in various parts of Africa and India. -- Dr.
Hooker.] grow in the village of Tete and other parts, but neither indigo
nor senna is collected. Calumba-root, which is found in abundance in some
parts farther down the river, is bought by the Americans, it is said, to
use as a dye-stuff. A kind of sarsaparilla, or a plant which is believed
by the Portuguese to be such, is found from Londa to Senna, but has never
been exported.
The price of provisions is
low, but very much higher than previous to the commencement of the war.
Two yards of calico are demanded for six fowls; this is considered very
dear, because, before the war, the same quantity of calico was worth 24
fowls. Grain is sold in little bags made from the leaves of the palmyra,
like those in which we receive sugar. They are called panjas, and each
panja weighs between 30 and 40 lbs. The panja of wheat at Tete is worth a
dollar, or 5s.; but the native grain may be obtained among the islands
below Lupata at the rate of three panjas for two yards of calico. The
highest articles of consumption are tea and coffee, the tea being often as
high as 15s. a pound. Food is cheaper down the river below Lupata, and,
previous to the war, the islands which stud the Zambesi were all
inhabited, and, the soil being exceedingly fertile, grain and fowls could
be got to any amount. The inhabitants disappeared before their enemies the
Landeens, but are beginning to return since the peace. They have no
cattle, the only place where we found no tsetse being the district of Tete
itself; and the cattle in the possession of the Portuguese are a mere
remnant of what they formerly owned.
When visiting the hot
fountain, I examined what were formerly the gold-washings in the rivulet
Mokoroze, which is nearly on the 16th parallel of latitude. The banks are
covered with large groves of fine mango-trees, among which the Portuguese
lived while superintending the washing for the precious metal. The process
of washing is very laborious and tedious. A quantity of sand is put into a
wooden bowl with water; a half rotatory motion is given to the dish, which
causes the coarser particles of sand to collect on one side of the bottom.
These are carefully removed with the hand, and the process of rotation
renewed until the whole of the sand is taken away, and the gold alone
remains. It is found in very minute scales, and, unless I had been assured
to the contrary, I should have taken it to be mica, for, knowing the gold
to be of greater specific gravity than the sand, I imagined that a stream
of water would remove the latter and leave the former; but here the
practice is to remove the whole of the sand by the hand. This process was,
no doubt, a profitable one to the Portuguese, and it is probable that,
with the improved plan by means of mercury, the sands would be lucrative.
I had an opportunity of examining the gold-dust from different parts to
the east and northeast of Tete.
There are six well-known
washing-places. These are called Mashinga, Shindundo, Missala, Kapata,
Mano, and Jawa. From the description of the rock I received, I suppose
gold is found both in clay shale and quartz. At the range Mushinga to the
N.N.W. the rock is said to be so soft that the women pound it into powder
in wooden mortars previous to washing.
Round toward the westward,
the old Portuguese indicate a station which was near to Zumbo on the River
Panyame, and called Dambarari, near which much gold was found. Farther
west lay the now unknown kingdom of Abutua, which was formerly famous for
the metal; and then, coming round toward the east, we have the
gold-washings of the Mashona, or Bazizulu, and, farther east, that of
Manica, where gold is found much more abundantly than in any other part,
and which has been supposed by some to be the Ophir of King Solomon. I saw
the gold from this quarter as large as grains of wheat, that found in the
rivers which run into the coal-field being in very minute scales. If we
place one leg of the compasses at Tete, and extend the other three and a
half degrees, bringing it round from the northeast of Tete by west, and
then to the southeast, we nearly touch or include all the known
gold-producing country. As the gold on this circumference is found in
coarser grains than in the streams running toward the centre, or Tete, I
imagine that the real gold-field lies round about the coal-field; and, if
I am right in the conjecture, then we have coal encircled by a gold-field,
and abundance of wood, water, and provisions -- a combination not often
met with in the world. The inhabitants are not unfavorable to washings,
conducted on the principle formerly mentioned. At present they wash only
when in want of a little calico. They know the value of gold perfectly
well, for they bring it for sale in goose-quills, and demand 24 yards of
calico for one penful.
When the rivers in the
district of Manica and other gold-washing places have been flooded, they
leave a coating of mud on the banks. The natives observe the spots which
dry soonest, and commence digging there, in firm belief that gold lies
beneath. They are said not to dig deeper than their chins, believing that
if they did so the ground would fall in and kill them. When they find a
`piece' or flake of gold, they bury it again, from the superstitious idea
that this is the seed of the gold, and, though they know the value of it
well, they prefer losing it rather than the whole future crop. This
conduct seemed to me so very unlikely in men who bring the dust in quills,
and even put in a few seeds of a certain plant as a charm to prevent their
losing any of it on the way, that I doubted the authority of my informant;
but I found the report verified by all the Portuguese who knew the native
language and mode of thinking, and give the statement for what it is
worth. If it is really practiced, the custom may have been introduced by
some knowing one who wished to defraud the chiefs of their due; for we are
informed in Portuguese history that in former times these pieces or flakes
of gold were considered the perquisites of the chiefs.
Major Sicard, the
commandant, whose kindness to me and my people was unbounded, presented a
rosary made of the gold of the country, the workmanship of a native of
Tete, to my little daughter; also specimens of the gold-dust of three
different places, which, with the coal of Muatize and Morongoze, are
deposited in the Museum of Practical Geology, Jermyn Street, London. All
the cultivation is carried on with hoes in the native manner, and
considerable quantities of `Holcus sorghum', maize, `Pennisetum
typhoideum', or lotsa of the Balonda, millet, rice, and wheat are raised,
as also several kinds of beans -- one of which, called "litloo" by the
Bechuanas, yields under ground, as well as the `Arachis hypogaea', or
ground-nut; with cucumbers, pumpkins, and melons.
The wheat is sown in
low-lying places which are annually flooded by the Zambesi. When the
waters retire, the women drop a few grains in a hole made with a hoe, then
push back the soil with the foot. One weeding alone is required before the
grain comes to maturity. This simple process represents all our subsoil
plowing, liming, manuring, and harrowing, for in four months after
planting a good crop is ready for the sickle, and has been known to yield
a hundred-fold. It flourished still more at Zumbo. No irrigation is
required, because here there are gentle rains, almost like mist, in
winter, which go by the name of "wheat-showers", and are unknown in the
interior, where no winter rain ever falls. The rains at Tete come from the
east, though the prevailing winds come from the S.S.E. The finest portion
of the flour does not make bread nearly so white as the seconds, and here
the boyaloa (pombe), or native beer, is employed to mix with the flour
instead of yeast. It makes excellent bread. At Kilimane, where the
cocoanut palm abounds, the toddy from it, called "sura", is used for the
same purpose, and makes the bread still lighter.
As it was necessary to
leave most of my men at this place, Major Sicard gave them a portion of
land on which to cultivate their own food, generously supplying them with
corn in the mean time. He also said that my young men might go and hunt
elephants in company with his servants, and purchase goods with both the
ivory and dried meat, in order that they might have something to take with
them on their return to Sekeletu. The men were delighted with his
liberality, and soon sixty or seventy of them set off to engage in this
enterprise. There was no calico to be had at this time in Tete, but the
commandant handsomely furnished my men with clothing. I was in a state of
want myself, and, though I pressed him to take payment in ivory for both
myself and men, he refused all recompense. I shall ever remember his
kindness with deep gratitude. He has written me, since my arrival in
England, that my men had killed four elephants in the course of two months
after my departure.
On the day of my arrival I
was visited by all the gentlemen of the village, both white and colored,
including the padre. Not one of them had any idea as to where the source
of the Zambesi lay. They sent for the best traveled natives, but none of
them knew the river even as far as Kansala. The father of one of the
rebels who had been fighting against them had been a great traveler to the
southwest, and had even heard of our visit to Lake Ngami; but he was
equally ignorant with all the others that the Zambesi flowed in the centre
of the country. They had, however, more knowledge of the country to the
north of Tete than I had. One man, who had gone to Cazembe with Major
Monteiro, stated that he had seen the Luapura or Loapula flowing past the
town of that chieftain into the Luameji or Leeambye, but imagined that it
found its way, somehow or other, into Angola. The fact that sometimes
rivers were seen to flow like this toward the centre of the country, led
geographers to the supposition that inner Africa was composed of elevated
sandy plains, into which rivers ran and were lost. One of the gentlemen
present, Senhor Candido, had visited a lake 45 days to the N.N.W. of Tete,
which is probably the Lake Maravi of geographers, as in going thither they
pass through the people of that name. The inhabitants of its southern
coast are named Shiva; those on the north, Mujao; and they call the lake
Nyanja or Nyanje, which simply means a large water, or bed of a large
river.
A high mountain stands in
the middle of it, called Murombo or Murombola, which is inhabited by
people who have much cattle. He stated that he crossed the Nyanja at a
narrow part, and was 36 hours in the passage. The canoes were punted the
whole way, and, if we take the rate about two miles per hour, it may be
sixty or seventy miles in breadth. The country all round was composed of
level plains covered with grass, and, indeed, in going thither they
traveled seven or eight days without wood, and cooked their food with
grass and stalks of native corn alone.
The people sold their
cattle at a very cheap rate. From the southern extremity of the lake two
rivers issue forth: one, named after itself, the Nyanja, which passes into
the sea on the east coast under another name; and the Shire, which flows
into the Zambesi a little below Senna. The Shire is named Shirwa at its
point of departure from the lake, and Senhor Candido was informed, when
there, that the lake was simply an expansion of the River Nyanja, which
comes from the north and encircles the mountain Murombo, the meaning of
which is junction or union, in reference to the water having parted at its
northern extremity, and united again at its southern. The Shire flows
through a low, flat, marshy country, but abounding in population, and they
are said to be brave. The Portuguese are unable to navigate the Shire up
to the Lake Nyanja, because of the great abundance of a water-plant which
requires no soil, and which they name "alfacinya" (`Pistia stratiotes'),
from its resemblance to a lettuce. This completely obstructs the progress
of canoes. In confirmation of this I may state that, when I passed the
mouth of the Shire, great quantities of this same plant were floating from
it into the Zambesi, and many parts of the banks below were covered with
the dead plants.
Senhor Candido stated that
slight earthquakes have happened several times in the country of the
Maravi, and at no great distance from Tete. The motion seems to come from
the eastward, and never to have lasted more than a few seconds. They are
named in the Maravi tongue "shiwo", and in that of the people of Tete
"shitakoteko", or "shivering". This agrees exactly with what has taken
place in the coast of Mozambique -- a few slight shocks of short duration,
and all appearing to come from the east. At Senna, too, a single shock has
been felt several times, which shook the doors and windows, and made the
glasses jingle.
Both Tete and Senna have
hot springs in their vicinity, but the shocks seemed to come, not from
them, but from the east, and proceed to the west. They are probably
connected with the active volcanoes in the island of Bourbon. As Senhor
Candido holds the office of judge in all the disputes of the natives, and
knows their language perfectly, his statement may be relied on that all
the natives of this region have a clear idea of a Supreme Being, the maker
and governor of all things. He is named "Morimo", "Molungo", "Reza",
"Mpambe", in the different dialects spoken. The Barotse name him "Nyampi",
and the Balonda "Zambi". All promptly acknowledge him as the ruler over
all. They also fully believe in the soul's continued existence apart from
the body, and visit the graves of relatives, making offerings of food,
beer, etc. When undergoing the ordeal, they hold up their hands to the
Ruler of Heaven, as if appealing to him to assert their innocence. When
they escape, or recover from sickness, or are delivered from any danger,
they offer a sacrifice of a fowl or a sheep, pouring out the blood as a
libation to the soul of some departed relative. They believe in the
transmigration of souls, and also that while persons are still living they
may enter into lions and alligators, and then return again to their own
bodies.
While still at Tete the son
of Monomotapa paid the commandant a visit. He is named Mozungo, or "White
Man", has a narrow tapering head, and probably none of the ability or
energy his father possessed. He was the favorite of his father, who hoped
that he would occupy his place. A strong party, however, in the tribe
placed Katalosa in the chieftainship, and the son became, as they say, a
child of this man. The Portuguese have repeatedly received offers of
territory if they would only attend the interment of the departed chief
with troops, fire off many rounds of cartridges over the grave, and then
give eclat to the installment of the new chief. Their presence would
probably influence the election, for many would vote on the side of power,
and a candidate might feel it worth while to grant a good piece of land,
if thereby he could secure the chieftainship to himself.
When the Portuguese traders
wish to pass into the country beyond Katalosa, they present him with about
thirty-two yards of calico and some other goods, and he then gives them
leave to pass in whatever direction they choose to go. They must, however,
give certain quantities of cloth to a number of inferior chiefs beside,
and they are subject to the game-laws. They have thus a body of exclusive
tribes around them, preventing direct intercourse between them and the
population beyond. It is strange that, when they had the power, they did
not insist on the free navigation of the Zambesi. I can only account for
this in the same way in which I accounted for a similar state of things in
the west. All the traders have been in the hands of slaves, and have
wanted that moral courage which a free man, with free servants on whom he
can depend, usually possesses. If the English had been here, they would
have insisted on the free navigation of this pathway as an indispensable
condition of friendship. The present system is a serious difficulty in the
way of developing the resources of the country, and might prove fatal to
an unarmed expedition. If this desirable and most fertile field of
enterprise is ever to be opened up, men must proceed on a different plan
from that which has been followed, and I do not apprehend there would be
much difficulty in commencing a new system, if those who undertook it
insisted that it is not our custom to pay for a highway which has not been
made by man. The natives themselves would not deny that the river is free
to those who do not trade in slaves. If, in addition to an open, frank
explanation, a small subsidy were given to the paramount chief, the
willing consent of all the subordinates would soon be secured.
On the 1st of April I went
to see the site of a former establishment of the Jesuits, called Micombo,
about ten miles S.E. of Tete. Like all their settlements I have seen, both
judgment and taste had been employed in the selection of the site. A
little stream of mineral water had been collected in a tank and conducted
to their house, before which was a little garden for raising vegetables at
times of the year when no rain falls. It is now buried in a deep shady
grove of mango-trees.
I was accompanied by
Captain Nunes, whose great-grandfather, also a captain in the time of the
Marquis of Pombal, received sealed orders, to be opened only on a certain
day. When that day arrived, he found the command to go with his company,
seize all the Jesuits of this establishment, and march them as prisoners
to the coast. The riches of the fraternity, which were immense, were taken
possession of by the state. Large quantities of gold had often been sent
to their superiors at Goa, inclosed in images. The Jesuits here do not
seem to have possessed the sympathies of the people as their brethren in
Angola did. They were keen traders in ivory and gold-dust. All praise
their industry. Whatever they did, they did it with all their might, and
probably their successful labors in securing the chief part of the trade
to themselves had excited the envy of the laity.
None of the natives here
can read; and though the Jesuits are said to have translated some of the
prayers into the language of the country, I was unable to obtain a copy.
The only religious teachers now in this part of the country are two
gentlemen of color, natives of Goa. The one who officiates at Tete, named
Pedro Antonio d'Araujo, is a graduate in Dogmatic Theology and Moral
Philosophy. There is but a single school in Tete, and it is attended only
by the native Portuguese children, who are taught to read and write. The
black population is totally uncared for. The soldiers are marched every
Sunday to hear mass, and but few others attend church. During the period
of my stay, a kind of theatrical representation of our Savior's passion
and resurrection was performed. The images and other paraphernalia used
were of great value, but the present riches of the Church are nothing to
what it once possessed. The commandant is obliged to lock up all the gold
and silver in the fort for safety, though not from any apprehension of its
being stolen by the people, for they have a dread of sacrilege.
The state of religion and
education is, I am sorry to say, as low as that of commerce; but the
European Portuguese value education highly, and send their children to Goa
and elsewhere for instruction in the higher branches. There is not a
single bookseller's shop, however, in either eastern or western Africa.
Even Loanda, with its 12,000 or 14,000 souls, can not boast of one store
for the sale of food for the mind.
On the 2d the Zambesi
suddenly rose several feet in height. Three such floods are expected
annually, but this year there were four. This last was accompanied by
discoloration, and must have been caused by another great fall of rain
east of the ridge. We had observed a flood of discolored water when we
reached the river at the Kafue; it then fell two feet, and from subsequent
rains again rose so high that we were obliged to leave it when opposite
the hill Pinkwe.
About the 10th of March the
river rose several feet with comparatively clear water, and it continued
to rise until the 21st, with but very slight discoloration. This gradual
rise was the greatest, and was probably caused by the water of inundation
in the interior. The sudden rise which happened on the 2d, being deeply
discolored, showed again the effect of rains at a comparatively short
distance. The fact of the river rising three or four times annually, and
the one flood of inundation being mixed with the others, may account for
the Portuguese not recognizing the phenomenon of the periodical
inundation, so well known in the central country.
The independent natives
cultivate a little cotton, but it is not at all equal, either in quantity
or quality, to what we found in Angola. The pile is short, and it clings
to the seed so much that they use an iron roller to detach it. The soil,
however, is equal to the production of any tropical plant or fruit. The
natives have never been encouraged to cultivate cotton for sale, nor has
any new variety been introduced. We saw no palm-oil-trees, the oil which
is occasionally exported being from the ground-nut. One of the merchants
of Tete had a mill of the rudest construction for grinding this nut, which
was driven by donkeys. It was the only specimen of a machine I could
exhibit to my men. A very superior kind of salad oil is obtained
from the seeds of cucumbers, and is much used in native cookery.
An offer, said to have been
made by the "Times", having excited attention even in this distant part, I
asked the commandant if he knew of any plant fit for the production of
paper. He procured specimens of the fibrous tissue of a species of aloe,
named Conge, and some also from the root of a wild date, and, lastly, of a
plant named Buaze, the fibres of which, though useless for the manufacture
of paper, are probably a suitable substitute for flax. I submitted a small
quantity of these fibres to Messrs. Pye, Brothers, of London, who have
invented a superior mode for the preparation of such tissues for the
manufacturer. They most politely undertook the examination, and have given
a favorable opinion of the Buaze, as may be seen in the note below.
[These appear to belong to
`Cassia acutifolia', or true senna of commerce, found in various parts of
Africa and India. -- Dr. Hooker.]
80 Lombard Street, 20th March, 1857.
Dear Sir, -- We have the
pleasure to return you the specimens of fibrous plants from the Zambesi
River, on which you were desirous to see the effects of our treatment; we
therefore inclose to you,
No. 1. Buaze, in the state received from you. 1 A. Do. as prepared by us.
1 B. The tow which has come from it in hackling.
No. 2. Conge, as received from you.
2 A. Do. as prepared by us.
With regard to both these
fibres, we must state that the VERY MINUTE QUANTITY of each specimen has
prevented our subjecting them to any thing like the full treatment of our
process, and we can therefore only give you an APPROXIMATE idea of their
value. The Buaze evidently possesses a very strong and fine fibre,
assimilating to flax in its character, but we believe, when treated IN
QUANTITY by our process, it would show both a stronger and finer fibre
than flax; but being unable to apply the rolling or pressing processes
with any efficiency to so very small a quantity, the gums are not yet so
perfectly extracted as they would be, nor the fibre opened out to so fine
a quality as it would then exhibit.
This is even yet more the
case with the Conge, which, being naturally a harsh fibre, full of gums,
wants exactly that powerful treatment which our process is calculated to
give it, but which can not be applied to such miniature specimens. We do
not therefore consider this as more than half treated, its fibre
consequently remaining yet harsh, and coarse, and stiff, as compared with
what it would be if treated IN QUANTITY. Judging that it would be
satisfactory to you to be in possession of the best practical opinion to
be obtained on such a subject, we took the liberty of forwarding your
little specimens to Messrs. Marshall, of Leeds, who have kindly favored us
with the following observations on them:
"We have examined the
samples you sent us yesterday, and think the Conge or aloe fibre would be
of no use to us, but the Buaze fibre appears to resemble flax, and as
prepared by you will be equal to flax worth 50 Pounds or 60 Pounds per
ton, but we could hardly speak positively to the value unless we had 1
cwt. or 2 cwt. to try on our machinery. However, we think the result is
promising, and we hope further inquiry will be made as to the probable
supply of the material."
We are, dear sir, your very
obedient servants,
Pye, Brothers.
The Rev. Dr. Livingstone.]
A representation of the
plant is given in the annexed woodcut, as a help to its identification. I
was unable to procure either the flowers or fruit; but, as it is not
recognized at sight by that accomplished botanist and eminent traveler,
Dr. J. D. Hooker, it may safely be concluded that it is quite unknown to
botanists. It is stated by the Portuguese to grow in large quantities in
the Maravi country north of the Zambesi, but it is not cultivated, and the
only known use it has been put to is in making threads on which the
natives string their beads. Elsewhere the split tendons of animals are
employed for this purpose. This seems to be of equal strength, for a firm
thread of it feels like catgut in the hand, and would rather cut the
fingers than break.
Having waited a month for
the commencement of the healthy season at Kilimane, I would have started
at the beginning of April, but tarried a few days in order that the moon
might make her appearance, and enable me to take lunar observations on my
way down the river. A sudden change of temperature happening on the 4th,
simultaneously with the appearance of the new moon, the commandant and
myself, with nearly every person in the house, were laid up with a severe
attack of fever. I soon recovered by the use of my wonted remedies, but
Major Sicard and his little boy were confined much longer.
There was a general fall of
4 Deg. of temperature from the middle of March, 84 Deg. at 9 A.M., and 87
Deg. at 9 P.M.; the greatest heat being 90 Deg. at midday, and the
lowest 81 Deg. at sunrise. It afforded me pleasure to attend the invalids
in their sickness, though I was unable to show a tithe of the gratitude I
felt for the commandant's increasing kindness. My quinine and other
remedies were nearly all expended, and no fresh supply was to be found
here, there being no doctors at Tete, and only one apothecary with the
troops, whose stock of medicine was also small. The Portuguese, however,
informed me that they had the cinchona bark growing in their country --
that there was a little of it to be found at Tete -- whole forests of it
at Senna and near the delta of Kilimane. It seems quite a providential
arrangement that the remedy for fever should be found in the greatest
abundance where it is most needed.
On seeing the leaves, I
stated that it was not the `Cinchona longifolia' from which it is supposed
the quinine of commerce is extracted, but the name and properties of this
bark made me imagine that it was a cinchonaceous tree. I could not get the
flower, but when I went to Senna I tried to bring away a few small living
trees with earth in a box. They, however, all died when we came to
Kilimane. Failing in this mode of testing the point, I submitted a few
leaves and seed-vessels to my friend, Dr. Hooker, who kindly informs me
that they belong "apparently to an apocyneous plant, very nearly allied to
the Malouetia Heudlotii (of Decaisne), a native of Senegambia." Dr. H.
adds, "Various plants of this natural order are reputed powerful
febrifuges, and some of them are said to equal the cinchona in their
effects." It is called in the native tongue Kumbanzo. The flowers are
reported to be white. The pods are in pairs, a foot or fifteen inches in
length, and contain a groove on their inner sides. The thick soft bark of
the root is the part used by the natives; the Portuguese use that of the
tree itself. I immediately began to use a decoction of the bark of the
root, and my men found it so efficacious that they collected small
quantities of it for themselves, and kept it in little bags for future
use. Some of them said that they knew it in their own country, but I never
happened to observe it. The decoction is given after the first paroxysm of
the complaint is over. The Portuguese believe it to have the same effects
as the quinine, and it may prove a substitute for that invaluable
medicine.
There are numbers of other
medicines in use among the natives, but I have always been obliged to
regret want of time to ascertain which were useful and which of no value.
We find a medicine in use by a tribe in one part of the country, and the
same plant employed by a tribe a thousand miles distant. This surely must
arise from some inherent virtue in the plant. The Boers under Potgeiter
visited Delgoa Bay for the first time about ten years ago, in order to
secure a port on the east coast for their republic. They had come from a
part of the interior where the disease called croup occasionally prevails.
There was no appearance of the disease among them at the period of their
visit, but the Portuguese inhabitants of that bay found that they had left
it among them, and several adults were cut off by a form of the complaint
called `Laryngismus stridulus', the disease of which the great Washington
died. Similar cases have occurred in the South Sea Islands. Ships have
left diseases from which no one on board was suffering at the time of
their visit.
Many of the inhabitants
here were cut down, usually in three days from their first attack, until a
native doctor adopted the plan of scratching the root of the tongue freely
with a certain root, and giving a piece of it to be chewed. The cure may
have been effected by the scarification only, but the Portuguese have the
strongest faith in the virtues of the root, and always keep some of it
within reach. There are also other plants which the natives use in the
treatment of fever, and some of them produce `diaphoresis' in a short
space of time. It is certain that we have got the knowledge of the most
potent febrifuge in our pharmacopoeia from the natives of another country.
We have no cure for cholera and some other diseases. It might be worth the
investigation of those who visit Africa to try and find other remedies in
a somewhat similar way to that in which we found the quinine. [I add the
native names of a few of their remedies in order to assist the inquirer:
Mupanda panda: this is used in fever for producing perspiration; the
leaves are named Chirussa; the roots dye red, and are very astringent.
Goho or Go-o: this is the ordeal medicine; it is both purgative and
emetic. Mutuva or Mutumbue: this plant contains so much oil that it serves
as lights in Londa; it is an emollient drink for the cure of coughs, and
the pounded leaves answer as soap to wash the head. Nyamucu ucu has a
curious softening effect on old dry grain. Mussakasi is believed to remove
the effects of the Go-o. Mudama is a stringent vermifuge. Mapubuza dyes a
red color. Musikizi yields an oil. Shinkondo: a virulent poison; the
Maravi use it in their ordeal, and it is very fatal. Kanunka utare is said
to expel serpents and rats by its pungent smell, which is not at all
disagreeable to man; this is probably a kind of `Zanthoxylon', perhaps the
Z. melancantha of Western Africa, as it is used to expel rats and serpents
there. Mussonzoa dyes cloth black. Mussio: the beans of this also dye
black. Kangome, with flowers and fruit like Mocha coffee; the leaves are
much like those of the sloe, and the seeds are used as coffee or eaten as
beans. Kanembe-embe: the pounded leaves used as an extemporaneous glue for
mending broken vessels. Katunguru is used for killing fish. Mutavea
Nyerere: an active caustic. Mudiacoro: also an external caustic, and used
internally. Kapande: another ordeal plant, but used to produce
`diaphoresis'. Karumgasura: also diaphoretic. Munyazi yields an oil, and
is one of the ingredients for curing the wounds of poisoned arrows.
Uombue: a large root employed in killing fish. Kakumate: used in
intermittents. Musheteko: applied to ulcers, and the infusion also
internally in amenorrhoea. Inyakanyanya: this is seen in small,
dark-colored, crooked roots of pleasant aromatic smell and slightly bitter
taste, and is highly extolled in the treatment of fever; it is found in
Manica. Eskinencia: used in croup and sore-throat. Itaca or Itaka: for
diaphoresis in fever; this root is brought as an article of barter by the
Arabs to Kilimane; the natives purchase it eagerly. Mukundukundu: a
decoction used as a febrifuge in the same way as quinine; it grows
plentifully at Shupanga, and the wood is used as masts for launches. I may
here add the recipe of Brother Pedro of Zumbo for the cure of poisoned
wounds, in order to show the similarity of practice among the natives of
the Zambesi, from whom, in all probability, he acquired his knowledge, and
the Bushmen of the Kalahari. It consists of equal parts of the roots of
the Calumba, Musheteko, Abutua, Batatinya, Paregekanto, Itaka, or Kapande,
put into a bottle and covered with common castor-oil. As I have before
observed, I believe the oily ingredient is the effectual one, and ought to
be tried by any one who has the misfortune to get wounded by a Bushman's
or Banyai arrow.]
The only other metal,
besides gold, we have in abundance in this region, is iron, and that is of
excellent quality. In some places it is obtained from what is called the
specular iron ore, and also from black oxide. The latter has been well
roasted in the operations of nature, and contains a large proportion of
the metal. It occurs generally in tears or rounded lumps, and is but
slightly magnetic. When found in the beds of rivers, the natives know of
its existence by the quantity of oxide on the surface, and they find no
difficulty in digging it with pointed sticks. They consider English iron
as "rotten"; and I have seen, when a javelin of their own iron lighted on
the cranium of a hippopotamus, it curled up like the proboscis of a
butterfly, and the owner would prepare it for future use by straightening
it COLD with two stones. I brought home some of the hoes which Sekeletu
gave me to purchase a canoe, also some others obtained in Kilimane, and
they have been found of such good quality that a friend of mine in
Birmingham has made an Enfield rifle of them. [The following remarks are
by a practical blacksmith, one of the most experienced men in the
gun-trade. In this trade various qualities of iron are used, and close
attention is required to secure for each purpose the quality of iron
peculiarly adapted to it: The iron in the two spades strongly resembles
Swedish or Russian; it is highly carbonized. The same qualities are found
in both spades. When chilled in water it has all the properties of steel:
see the piece marked I, chilled at one end, and left soft at the other.
When worked hot, it is very malleable: but cold, it breaks quite short and
brittle. The great irregularity found in the working of the iron affords
evidence that it has been prepared by inexperienced hands. This is shown
in the bending of the small spade; the thick portion retains its
crystallized nature, while the thin part has been changed by the hammering
it has undergone. The large spade shows a very brittle fracture. The iron
is too brittle for gun-work; it would be liable to break. This iron, if
REPEATEDLY heated and hammered, would become decarbonized, and would then
possess the qualities found in the spear-head, which, after being curled
up by being struck against a hard substance, was restored, by hammering,
to its original form without injury. The piece of iron marked II is a
piece of gun-iron of fibrous quality, such as will bend without breaking.
The piece marked III is of crystalline quality; it has been submitted to a
process which has changed it to IIII; III and IIII are cut from the same
bar. The spade-iron has been submitted to the same process, but no
corresponding effect can be produced.]
The iron ore exists in
great abundance, but I did not find any limestone in its immediate
vicinity. So far as I could learn, there is neither copper nor silver.
Malachite is worked by the people of Cazembe, but, as I did not see it,
nor any other metal, I can say nothing about it. A few precious stones are
met with, and some parts are quite covered with agates. The mineralogy of
the district, however, has not been explored by any one competent to the
task.
When my friend the
commandant was fairly recovered, and I myself felt strong again, I
prepared to descend the Zambesi. A number of my men were out
elephant-hunting, and others had established a brisk trade in firewood, as
their countrymen did at Loanda. I chose sixteen of those who could manage
canoes to convey me down the river. Many more would have come, but we were
informed that there had been a failure of the crops at Kilimane from the
rains not coming at the proper time, and thousands had died of hunger.
I did not hear of a single
effort having been made to relieve the famishing by sending them food down
the river. Those who perished were mostly slaves, and others seemed to
think that their masters ought to pay for their relief. The sufferers were
chiefly among those natives who inhabit the delta, and who are subject to
the Portuguese. They are in a state of slavery, but are kept on farms and
mildly treated. Many yield a certain rental of grain only to their owners,
and are otherwise free. Eight thousand are said to have perished. Major
Sicard lent me a boat which had been built on the river, and sent also
Lieutenant Miranda to conduct me to the coast.
A Portuguese lady who had
come with her brother from Lisbon, having been suffering for some days
from a severe attack of fever, died about three o'clock in the morning of
the 20th of April. The heat of the body having continued unabated till six
o'clock, I was called in, and found her bosom quite as warm as I ever did
in a living case of fever. This continued for three hours more. As I had
never seen a case in which fever-heat continued so long after death, I
delayed the funeral until unmistakable symptoms of dissolution occurred.
She was a widow, only twenty-two years of age, and had been ten years in
Africa. I attended the funeral in the evening, and was struck by the
custom of the country. A number of slaves preceded us, and fired off many
rounds of gunpowder in front of the body. When a person of much popularity
is buried, all the surrounding chiefs send deputations to fire over the
grave. On one occasion at Tete, more than thirty barrels of gunpowder were
expended. Early in the morning of the 21st the slaves of the deceased
lady's brother went round the village making a lamentation, and drums were
beaten all day, as they are at such times among the heathen.
The commandant provided for
the journey most abundantly, and gave orders to Lieutenant Miranda
that I should not be allowed to pay for any thing all the way to the
coast, and sent messages to his friends Senhors Ferrao, Isidore, Asevedo,
and Nunes, to treat me as they would himself. From every one of these
gentlemen I am happy to acknowledge that I received most disinterested
kindness, and I ought to speak well forever of Portuguese hospitality. I
have noted each little act of civility received, because somehow or other
we have come to hold the Portuguese character in rather a low estimation.
This may have arisen partly from the pertinacity with which some of them
have pursued the slave-trade, and partly from the contrast which they now
offer to their illustrious ancestors -- the foremost navigators of the
world. If my specification of their kindnesses will tend to engender a
more respectful feeling to the nation, I shall consider myself well
rewarded. We had three large canoes in the company which had lately come
up with goods from Senna. They are made very large and strong, much larger
than any we ever saw in the interior, and might strike with great force
against a rock and not be broken. The men sit at the stern when paddling,
and there is usually a little shed made over a part of the canoe to shade
the passengers from the sun. The boat in which I went was furnished with
such a covering, so I sat quite comfortably. |