Leave Tete and proceed down
the River -- Pass the Stockade of Bonga -- Gorge of Lupata -- "Spine of
the World" -- Width of River -- Islands -- War Drum at Shiramba -- Canoe
Navigation -- Reach Senna -- Its ruinous State -- Landeens levy Fines upon
the Inhabitants -- Cowardice of native Militia -- State of the Revenue --
No direct Trade with Portugal -- Attempts to revive the Trade of Eastern
Africa -- Country round Senna -- Gorongozo, a Jesuit Station -- Manica,
the best Gold Region in Eastern Africa -- Boat-building at Senna -- Our
Departure -- Capture of a Rebel Stockade -- Plants Alfacinya and Njefu at
the Confluence of the Shire -- Landeen Opinion of the Whites -- Mazaro,
the point reached by Captain Parker -- His Opinion respecting the
Navigation of the River from this to the Ocean -- Lieutenant Hoskins'
Remarks on the same subject -- Fever, its Effects -- Kindly received into
the House of Colonel Nunes at Kilimane -- Forethought of Captain Nolloth
and Dr. Walsh -- Joy imbittered -- Deep Obligations to the Earl of
Clarendon, etc. -- On developing Resources of the Interior --
Desirableness of Missionary Societies selecting healthy Stations --
Arrangements on leaving my Men -- Retrospect -- Probable Influence of the
Discoveries on Slavery -- Supply of Cotton, Sugar, etc., by Free Labor --
Commercial Stations -- Development of the Resources of Africa a Work of
Time -- Site of Kilimane -- Unhealthiness -- Death of a shipwrecked Crew
from Fever -- The Captain saved by Quinine -- Arrival of H. M. Brig
"Frolic" -- Anxiety of one of my Men to go to England -- Rough Passage in
the Boats to the Ship -- Sekwebu's Alarm -- Sail for Mauritius -- Sekwebu
on board; he becomes insane; drowns himself -- Kindness of Major-General
C. M. Hay -- Escape Shipwreck -- Reach Home.
We left Tete at noon on the
22d, and in the afternoon arrived at the garden of Senhor A. Manoel de
Gomez, son-in-law and nephew of Bonga. The Commandant of Tete had sent a
letter to the rebel Bonga, stating that he ought to treat me kindly, and
he had deputed his son-in-law to be my host. Bonga is not at all equal to
his father Nyaude, who was a man of great ability. He is also in bad odor
with the Portuguese, because he receives all runaway slaves and criminals.
He does not trust the Portuguese, and is reported to be excessively
superstitious. I found his son-in-law, Manoel, extremely friendly, and
able to converse in a very intelligent manner. He was in his garden when
we arrived, but soon dressed himself respectably, and gave us a good tea
and dinner. After a breakfast of tea, roasted eggs, and biscuits next
morning, he presented six fowls and three goats as provisions for the
journey. When we parted from him we passed the stockade of Bonga at the
confluence of the Luenya, but did not go near it, as he is said to be very
suspicious. The Portuguese advised me not to take any observation, as the
instruments might awaken fears in Bonga's mind, but Manoel said I might do
so if I wished; his garden, however, being above the confluence, could not
avail as a geographical point. There are some good houses in the stockade.
The trees of which it is composed seemed to me to be living, and could not
be burned. It was strange to see a stockade menacing the whole commerce of
the river in a situation where the guns of a vessel would have full play
on it, but it is a formidable affair for those who have only muskets.
On one occasion, when
Nyaude was attacked by Kisaka, they fought for weeks; and though Nyaude
was reduced to cutting up his copper anklets for balls, his enemies were
not able to enter the stockade.
On the 24th we sailed only about three hours, as we had done the day
before; but having come to a small island at the western entrance of the
gorge of Lupata, where Dr. Lacerda is said to have taken an astronomical
observation, and called it the island of Mozambique, because it was
believed to be in the same latitude, or 15d 1', I wished to verify his
position, and remained over night: my informants must have been mistaken,
for I found the island of Mozambique here to be lat. 16d 34' 46" S.
Respecting this range, to
which the gorge has given a name, some Portuguese writers have stated it
to be so high that snow lies on it during the whole year, and that it is
composed of marble. It is not so high in appearance as the Campsie Hills
when seen from the Vale of Clyde. The western side is the most abrupt, and
gives the idea of the greatest height, as it rises up perpendicularly from
the water six or seven hundred feet. As seen from this island, it is
certainly no higher than Arthur's Seat appears from Prince's Street,
Edinburgh. The rock is compact silicious schist of a slightly reddish
color, and in thin strata; the island on which we slept looks as if torn
off from the opposite side of the gorge, for the strata are twisted and
torn in every direction. The eastern side of the range is much more
sloping than the western, covered with trees, and does not give the idea
of altitude so much as the western. It extends a considerable way into the
Maganja country in the north, and then bends round toward the river again,
and ends in the lofty mountain Morumbala, opposite Senna. On the other or
southern side it is straighter, but is said to end in Gorongozo, a
mountain west of the same point. The person who called this Lupata "the
spine of the world" evidently did not mean to say that it was a
translation of the word, for it means a defile or gorge having
perpendicular walls. This range does not deserve the name of either
Cordillera or Spine, unless we are willing to believe that the world has a
very small and very crooked "back-bone".
We passed through the gorge
in two hours, and found it rather tortuous, and between 200 and 300 yards
wide. The river is said to be here always excessively deep; it seemed to
me that a steamer could pass through it at full speed. At the eastern
entrance of Lupata stand two conical hills; they are composed of porphyry,
having large square crystals therein. These hills are called Moenda en
Goma, which means a footprint of a wild beast. Another conical hill on the
opposite bank is named Kasisi (priest), from having a bald top. We sailed
on quickly with the current of the river, and found that it spread out to
more than two miles in breadth; it is, however, full of islands, which are
generally covered with reeds, and which, previous to the war, were
inhabited, and yielded vast quantities of grain. We usually landed to cook
breakfast, and then went on quickly. The breadth of water between the
islands was now quite sufficient for a sailing vessel to tack, and work
her sails in; the prevailing winds would blow her up the stream; but I
regretted that I had not come when the river was at its lowest rather than
at its highest. The testimony, however, of Captain Parker and Lieutenant
Hoskins, hereafter to be noticed, may be considered conclusive as to the
capabilities of this river for commercial purposes. The Portuguese state
that there is high water during five months of the year, and when it is
low there is always a channel of deep water. But this is very winding; and
as the river wears away some of the islands and forms others, the course
of the channel is often altered. I suppose that an accurate chart of it
made in one year would not be very reliable the next; but I believe, from
all that I can learn, that the river could be navigated in a small
flat-bottomed steamer during the whole year as far as Tete. At this time a
steamer of large size could have floated easily. The river was measured at
the latter place by the Portuguese, and found by them to be 1050 yards
broad. The body of water flowing past when I was there was very great, and
the breadth it occupied when among the islands had a most imposing effect.
I could not get a glimpse of either shore. All the right bank beyond
Lupata is low and flat: on the north, the ranges of hills and dark lines
below them are seen, but from the boat it is impossible to see the shore.
I only guess the breadth of the river to be two miles; it is probably
more.
Next day we landed at
Shiramba for breakfast, having sailed 8-1/2 hours from Lupata. This was
once the residence of a Portuguese brigadier, who spent large sums of
money in embellishing his house and gardens: these we found in entire
ruin, as his half-caste son had destroyed all, and then rebelled against
the Portuguese, but with less success than either Nyaude or Kisaka, for he
had been seized and sent a prisoner to Mozambique a short time before our
visit. All the southern shore has been ravaged by the Caffres, who are
here named Landeens, and most of the inhabitants who remain acknowledge
the authority of Bonga, and not of the Portuguese. When at breakfast, the
people of Shiramba commenced beating the drum of war. Lieutenant Miranda,
who was well acquainted with the customs of the country, immediately
started to his feet, and got all the soldiers of our party under arms; he
then demanded of the natives why the drum was beaten while we were there.
They gave an evasive reply; and, as they employ this means of collecting
their neighbors when they intend to rob canoes, our watchfulness may have
prevented their proceeding farther.
We spent the night of the
26th on the island called Nkuesi, opposite a remarkable saddle-shaped
mountain, and found that we were just on the 17th parallel of latitude.
The sail down the river was very fine; the temperature becoming low, it
was pleasant to the feelings; but the shores being flat and far from us,
the scenery was uninteresting. We breakfasted on the 27th at Pita, and
found some half-caste Portuguese had established themselves there, after
fleeing from the opposite bank to escape Kisaka's people, who were now
ravaging all the Maganja country. On the afternoon of the 27th we arrived
at Senna. (Commandant Isidore's house, 300 yards S.W. of the mud fort on
the banks of the river: lat. 17d 27' 1" S., long. 35d 10' E.)
We found Senna to be
twenty-three and a half hours' sail from Tete. We had the current entirely
in our favor, but met various parties in large canoes toiling laboriously
against it. They use long ropes, and pull the boats from the shore. They
usually take about twenty days to ascend the distance we had descended in
about four. The wages paid to boatmen are considered high. Part of the men
who had accompanied me gladly accepted employment from Lieutenant Miranda
to take a load of goods in a canoe from Senna to Tete. I thought the state
of Tete quite lamentable, but that of Senna was ten times worse. At Tete
there is some life; here every thing is in a state of stagnation and ruin.
The fort, built of sun-dried bricks, has the grass growing over the walls,
which have been patched in some places by paling. The Landeens visit the
village periodically, and levy fines upon the inhabitants, as they
consider the Portuguese a conquered tribe, and very rarely does a native
come to trade. Senhor Isidore, the commandant, a man of considerable
energy, had proposed to surround the whole village with palisades as a
protection against the Landeens, and the villagers were to begin this work
the day after I left. It was sad to look at the ruin manifest in every
building, but the half-castes appear to be in league with the rebels and
Landeens; for when any attempt is made by the Portuguese to coerce the
enemy or defend themselves, information is conveyed at once to the Landeen
camp, and, though the commandant prohibits the payment of tribute to the
Landeens, on their approach the half-castes eagerly ransom themselves.
When I was there, a party of Kisaka's people were ravaging the fine
country on the opposite shore. They came down with the prisoners they had
captured, and forthwith the half-castes of Senna went over to buy slaves.
Encouraged by this,
Kisaka's people came over into Senna fully armed and beating their drums,
and were received into the house of a native Portuguese. They had the
village at their mercy, yet could have been driven off by half a dozen
policemen. The commandant could only look on with bitter sorrow. He had
soldiers, it is true, but it is notorious that the native militia of both
Senna and Kilimane never think of standing to fight, but invariably run
away, and leave their officers to be killed. They are brave only among the
peaceable inhabitants. One of them, sent from Kilimane with a packet of
letters or expresses, arrived while I was at Senna. He had been charged to
deliver them with all speed, but Senhor Isidore had in the mean time gone
to Kilimane, remained there a fortnight, and reached Senna again before
the courier came. He could not punish him.
We gave him a passage in
our boat, but he left us in the way to visit his wife, and, "on urgent
private business," probably gave up the service altogether, as he did not
come to Kilimane all the time I was there. It is impossible to describe
the miserable state of decay into which the Portuguese possessions here
have sunk. The revenues are not equal to the expenses, and every officer I
met told the same tale, that he had not received one farthing of pay for
the last four years. They are all forced to engage in trade for the
support of their families. Senhor Miranda had been actually engaged
against the enemy during these four years, and had been highly lauded in
the commandant's dispatches to the home government, but when he applied to
the Governor of Kilimane for part of his four years' pay, he offered him
twenty dollars only. Miranda resigned his commission in consequence.
The common soldiers sent
out from Portugal received some pay in calico. They all marry native
women, and, the soil being very fertile, the wives find but little
difficulty in supporting their husbands. There is no direct trade with
Portugal. A considerable number of Banians, or natives of India, come
annually in small vessels with cargoes of English and Indian goods from
Bombay. It is not to be wondered at, then, that there have been attempts
made of late years by speculative Portuguese in Lisbon to revive the trade
of Eastern Africa by means of mercantile companies. One was formally
proposed, which was modeled on the plan of our East India Company; and it
was actually imagined that all the forts, harbors, lands, etc.,
might be delivered over to a company, which would bind itself to develop
the resources of the country, build schools, make roads, improve harbors,
etc., and, after all, leave the Portuguese the option of resuming
possession.
Another effort has been
made to attract commercial enterprise to this region by offering any
mining company permission to search for the ores and work them. Such a
company, however, would gain but little in the way of protection or aid
from the government of Mozambique, as that can but barely maintain a hold
on its own small possessions; the condition affixed of importing at the
company's own cost a certain number of Portuguese from the island of
Madeira or the Azores, in order to increase the Portuguese population in
Africa, is impolitic. Taxes would also be levied on the minerals exported.
It is noticeable that all the companies which have been proposed in
Portugal have this put prominently in the preamble, "and for the abolition
of the inhuman slave-trade." This shows either that the statesmen in
Portugal are enlightened and philanthropic, or it may be meant as a trap
for English capitalists; I incline to believe the former. If the
Portuguese really wish to develop the resources of the rich country beyond
their possessions, they ought to invite the co-operation of other nations
on equal terms with themselves. Let the pathway into the interior be free
to all; and, instead of wretched forts, with scarcely an acre of land
around them which can be called their own, let real colonies be made. If,
instead of military establishments, we had civil ones, and saw emigrants
going out with their wives, plows, and seeds, rather than military
convicts with bugles and kettle-drums, we might hope for a return of
prosperity to Eastern Africa.
The village of Senna stands
on the right bank of the Zambesi. There are many reedy islands in front of
it, and there is much bush in the country adjacent. The soil is fertile,
but the village, being in a state of ruin, and having several pools of
stagnant water, is very unhealthy. The bottom rock is the akose of
Brongniart, or granitic grit, and several conical hills of trap have burst
through it. One standing about half a mile west of the village is called
Baramuana, which has another behind it; hence the name, which means "carry
a child on the back". It is 300 or 400 feet high, and on the top lie two
dismounted cannon, which were used to frighten away the Landeens, who, in
one attack upon Senna, killed 150 of the inhabitants. The prospect from
Baramuana is very fine; below, on the eastward, lies the Zambesi, with the
village of Senna; and some twenty or thirty miles beyond stands the lofty
mountain Morumbala, probably 3000 or 4000 feet high. It is of an oblong
shape, and from its physiognomy, which can be distinctly seen when the sun
is in the west, is evidently igneous.
On the northern end there
is a hot sulphurous fountain, which my Portuguese friends refused to allow
me to visit, because the mountain is well peopled, and the mountaineers
are at present not friendly with the Portuguese. They have plenty of
garden-ground and running water on its summit. My friends at Senna
declined the responsibility of taking me into danger. To the north of
Morumbala we have a fine view of the mountains of the Maganja; they here
come close to the river, and terminate in Morumbala. Many of them are
conical, and the Shire is reported to flow among them, and to run on the
Senna side of Morumbala before joining the Zambesi. On seeing the
confluence afterward, close to a low range of hills beyond Morumbala, I
felt inclined to doubt the report, as the Shire must then flow parallel
with the Zambesi, from which Morumbala seems distant only twenty or thirty
miles.
All around to the southeast
the country is flat, and covered with forest, but near Senna a number of
little abrupt conical hills diversify the scenery. To the west and north
the country is also flat forest, which gives it a sombre appearance; but
just in the haze of the horizon southwest by south, there rises a mountain
range equal in height to Morumbala, and called Nyamonga. In a clear day
another range beyond this may be seen, which is Gorongozo, once a station
of the Jesuits. Gorongozo is famed for its clear cold waters and
healthiness, and there are some inscriptions engraved on large square
slabs on the top of the mountain, which have probably been the work of the
fathers. As this lies in the direction of a district between Manica and
Sofala, which has been conjectured to be the Ophir of King Solomon, the
idea that first sprang up in my mind was, that these monuments might be
more ancient than the Portuguese; but, on questioning some persons who had
seen them, I found that they were in Roman characters, and did not deserve
a journey of six days to see them.
Manica lies three days
northwest of Gorongozo, and is the best gold country known in Eastern
Africa. The only evidence the Portuguese have of its being the ancient
Ophir is, that at Sofala, its nearest port, pieces of wrought gold have
been dug up near the fort and in the gardens. They also report the
existence of hewn stones in the neighborhood, but these can not have been
abundant, for all the stones of the fort of Sofala are said to have been
brought from Portugal. Natives whom I met in the country of Sekeletu, from
Manica, or Manoa, as they call it, state that there are several caves in
the country, and walls of hewn stones, which they believe to have been
made by their ancestors; and there is, according to the Portuguese, a
small tribe of Arabs there, who have become completely like the other
natives. Two rivers, the Motirikwe and Sabia, or Sabe, run through their
country into the sea. The Portuguese were driven out of the country by the
Landeens, but now talk of reoccupying Manica.
The most pleasant sight I
witnessed at Senna was the negroes of Senhor Isidore building boats after
the European model, without any one to superintend their operations. They
had been instructed by a European master, but now go into the forest and
cut down the motondo-trees, lay down the keel, fit in the ribs, and make
very neat boats and launches, valued at from 20 Pounds to 100 Pounds.
Senhor Isidore had some of them instructed also in carpentry at Rio
Janeiro, and they constructed for him the handsomest house in Kilimane,
the woodwork being all of country trees, some of which are capable of a
fine polish, and very durable.
A medical opinion having
been asked by the commandant respecting a better site for the village,
which, lying on the low bank of the Zambesi, is very unhealthy, I
recommended imitation of the Jesuits, who had chosen the high, healthy
mountain of Gorongozo, and to select a new site on Morumbala, which is
perfectly healthy, well watered, and where the Shire is deep enough for
the purpose of navigation at its base. As the next resource, I proposed
removal to the harbor of Mitilone, which is at one of the mouths of the
Zambesi, a much better port than Kilimane, and where, if they must have
the fever, they would be in the way of doing more good to themselves and
the country than they can do in their present situation. Had the
Portuguese possessed this territory as a real colony, this important point
would not have been left unoccupied; as it is, there is not even a native
village placed at the entrance of this splendid river to show the way in.
On the 9th of May sixteen
of my men were employed to carry government goods in canoes up to Tete.
They were much pleased at getting this work. On the 11th the whole of the
inhabitants of Senna, with the commandant, accompanied us to the boats. A
venerable old man, son of a judge, said they were in much sorrow on
account of the miserable state of decay into which they had sunk, and of
the insolent conduct of the people of Kisaka now in the village. We were
abundantly supplied with provisions by the commandant and Senhor Ferrao,
and sailed pleasantly down the broad river. About thirty miles below Senna
we passed the mouth of the River Zangwe on our right, which farther up
goes by the name of Pungwe; and about five miles farther on our left,
close to the end of a low range into which Morumbala merges, we crossed
the mouth of the Shire, which seemed to be about 200 yards broad.
A little inland from the
confluence there is another rebel stockade, which was attacked by Ensign
Rebeiro with three European soldiers, and captured; they disarmed the
rebels and threw the guns into the water. This ensign and Miranda
volunteered to disperse the people of Kisaka who were riding roughshod
over the inhabitants of Senna; but the offer was declined, the few real
Portuguese fearing the disloyal half-castes among whom they dwelt. Slavery
and immorality have here done their work; nowhere else does the European
name stand at so low an ebb; but what can be expected? Few Portuguese
women are ever taken to the colonies, and here I did not observe that
honorable regard for the offspring which I noticed in Angola. The son of a
late governor of Tete was pointed out to me in the condition and habit of
a slave. There is neither priest nor school at Senna, though there are
ruins of churches and convents.
On passing the Shire we
observed great quantities of the plant Alfacinya, already mentioned,
floating down into the Zambesi. It is probably the `Pistia stratiotes', a
gigantic "duck-weed". It was mixed with quantities of another aquatic
plant, which the Barotse named "Njefu", containing in the petiole of the
leaf a pleasant-tasted nut. This was so esteemed by Sebituane that he made
it part of his tribute from the subjected tribes. Dr. Hooker kindly
informs me that the njefu "is probably a species of `Trapa', the nuts of
which are eaten in the south of Europe and in India. Government derives a
large revenue from them in Kashmir, amounting to 12,000 Pounds per annum
for 128,000 ass-loads! The ancient Thracians are said to have eaten them
largely. In the south of France they are called water-chestnuts." The
existence of these plants in such abundance in the Shire may show that it
flows from large collections of still water. We found them growing in all
the still branches and lagoons of the Leeambye in the far north, and there
also we met a beautiful little floating plant, the `Azolla Nilotica',
which is found in the upper Nile. They are seldom seen in flowing streams.
A few miles beyond the
Shire we left the hills entirely, and sailed between extensive flats. The
banks seen in the distance are covered with trees. We slept on a large
inhabited island, and then came to the entrance of the River Mutu
(latitude 18d 3' 37" S., longitude 35d 46' E.): the point of departure is
called Mazaro, or "mouth of the Mutu". The people who live on the north
are called Baroro, and their country Bororo. The whole of the right bank
is in subjection to the Landeens, who, it was imagined, would levy a
tribute upon us, for this they are accustomed to do to passengers. I
regret that we did not meet them, for, though they are named Caffres, I am
not sure whether they are of the Zulu family or of the Mashona. I should
have liked to form their acquaintance, and to learn what they really think
of white men. I understood from Sekwebu, and from one of Changamera's
people who lives at Linyanti, and was present at the attack on Senna, that
they consider the whites as a conquered tribe.
The Zambesi at Mazaro is a
magnificent river, more than half a mile wide, and without islands. The
opposite bank is covered with forests of fine timber; but the delta which
begins here is only an immense flat, covered with high, coarse grass and
reeds, with here and there a few mango and cocoanut trees. This was the
point which was reached by the late lamented Captain Parker, who fell at
the Sulina mouth of the Danube. I had a strong desire to follow the
Zambesi farther, and ascertain where this enormous body of water found its
way into the sea; but on hearing from the Portuguese that he had ascended
to this point, and had been highly pleased with the capabilities of the
river, I felt sure that his valuable opinion must be in possession of the
Admiralty. On my arrival in England I applied to Captain Washington,
Hydrographer to the Admiralty, and he promptly furnished the document for
publication by the Royal Geographical Society.
The river between Mazaro
and the sea must therefore be judged of from the testimony of one more
competent to decide on its merits than a mere landsman like myself. `On
the Quilimane and Zambesi Rivers'. From the Journal of the late Capt. HYDE
PARKER, R.N., H. M. Brig "Pantaloon". "The Luabo is the main outlet of the
Great Zambesi. In the rainy season -- January and February principally --
the whole country is overflowed, and the water escapes by the different
rivers as far up as Quilimane; but in the dry season neither Quilimane nor
Olinda communicates with it.
The position of the river
is rather incorrect in the Admiralty chart, being six miles too much to
the southward, and also considerably to the westward. Indeed, the coast
from here up to Tongamiara seems too far to the westward. The entrance to
the Luabo River is about two miles broad, and is easily distinguishable,
when abreast of it, by a bluff (if I may so term it) of high, straight
trees, very close together, on the western side of the entrance. The bar
may be said to be formed by two series of sand-banks; that running from
the eastern point runs diagonally across (opposite?) the entrance and
nearly across it. Its western extremity is about two miles outside the
west point. "The bank running out from the west point projects to the
southward three miles and a half, passing not one quarter of a mile from
the eastern or cross bank. This narrow passage is the BAR PASSAGE. It
breaks completely across at low water, except under very extraordinary
circumstances. At this time -- low water -- a great portion of the
banks are uncovered; in some places they are seven or eight feet above
water.
"On these banks there is a
break at all times, but in fine weather, at high water, a boat may cross
near the east point. There is very little water, and, in places, a nasty
race and bubble, so that caution is requisite. The best directions for
going in over the regular bar passage, according to my experience, are as
follows: Steer down well to the eastward of the bar passage, so as to
avoid the outer part of the western shoals, on which there is usually a
bad sea. When you get near the CROSS-BAR, keep along it till the bluff of
trees on the west side of the entrance bears N.E.; you may then steer
straight for it. This will clear the end of the CROSS-BAR, and, directly
you are within that, the water is smooth. The worst sea is generally just
without the bar passage.
"Within the points the
river widens at first and then contracts again. About three miles from the
Tree Bluff is an island; the passage up the river is the right-hand side
of it, and deep. The plan will best explain it. The rise and fall of the
tide at the entrance of the river being at springs twenty feet, any vessel
can get in at that time, but, with all these conveniences for traffic,
there is none here at present. The water in the river is fresh down to the
bar with the ebb tide, and in the rainy season it is fresh at the surface
quite outside. In the rainy season, at the full and change of the moon,
the Zambesi frequently overflows its banks, making the country for an
immense distance one great lake, with only a few small eminences above the
water. On the banks of the river the huts are built on piles, and at these
times the communication is only in canoes; but the waters do not remain up
more than three or four days at a time.
The first village is about
eight miles up the river, on the western bank, and is opposite to another
branch of the river called `Muselo', which discharges itself into the sea
about five miles to the eastward. "The village is extensive, and about it
there is a very large quantity of land in cultivation; calavances, or
beans, of different sorts, rice, and pumpkins, are the principal things. I
saw also about here some wild cotton, apparently of very good quality, but
none is cultivated. The land is so fertile as to produce almost any
(thing?) without much trouble. "At this village is a very large house,
mud-built, with a court-yard. I believe it to have been used as a
barracoon for slaves, several large cargoes having been exported from this
river.
I proceeded up the river as
far as its junction with the Quilimane River, called `Boca do Rio', by my
computation between 70 and 80 miles from the entrance. The influence of
the tides is felt about 25 or 30 miles up the river. Above that, the
stream, in the dry season, runs from 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 miles an hour, but in
the rains much stronger. The banks of the river, for the first 30 miles,
are generally thickly clothed with trees, with occasional open glades.
There are many huts and villages on both sides, and a great deal of
cultivation. At one village, about 17 miles up on the eastern bank, and
distinguished by being surrounded by an immense number of bananas and
plantain-trees, a great quantity of excellent peas are cultivated; also
cabbages, tomatoes, onions, etc. Above this there are not many inhabitants
on the left or west bank, although it is much the finest country, being
higher, and abounding in cocoanut palms, the eastern bank being sandy and
barren. The reason is, that some years back the Landeens, or Caffres,
ravaged all this country, killing the men and taking the women as slaves,
but they have never crossed the river; hence the natives are afraid to
settle on the west bank, and the Portuguese owners of the different
`prasos' have virtually lost them. The banks of the river continue mostly
sandy, with few trees, except some cocoanut palms, until the southern end
of the large plantation of Nyangue, formed by the river about 20 miles
from Maruru. Here the country is more populous and better cultivated, the
natives a finer race, and the huts larger and better constructed. Maruru
belongs to Senor Asevedo, of Quilimane, well known to all English officers
on the east coast for his hospitality.
"The climate here is much
cooler than nearer the sea, and Asevedo has successfully cultivated most
European as well as tropical vegetables. The sugar-cane thrives, as also
coffee and cotton, and indigo is a weed. Cattle here are beautiful, and
some of them might show with credit in England. The natives are
intelligent, and under a good government this fine country might become
very valuable. Three miles from Maruru is Mesan, a very pretty village
among palm and mango trees. There is here a good house belonging to a
Senor Ferrao; close by is the canal (Mutu) of communication between the
Quilimane and Zambesi rivers, which in the rainy season is navigable (?).
I visited it in the month of October, which is about the dryest time of
the year; it was then a dry canal, about 30 or 40 yards wide, overgrown
with trees and grass, and, at the bottom, at least 16 or 17 feet above the
level of the Zambesi, which was running beneath. In the rains, by the
marks I saw, the entrance rise of the river must be very nearly 30 feet,
and the volume of water discharged by it (the Zambesi) enormous.
"Above Maruru the country
begins to become more hilly, and the high mountains of Boruru are in
sight; the first view of these is obtained below Nyangue, and they must be
of considerable height, as from this they are distant above 40
miles. They are reported to contain great mineral wealth; gold and copper
being found in the range, as also COAL (?). The natives (Landeens) are a
bold, independent race, who do not acknowledge the Portuguese authority,
and even make them pay for leave to pass unmolested. Throughout the whole
course of the river hippopotami were very abundant, and at one village a
chase by the natives was witnessed. They harpoon the animal with a barbed
lance, to which is attached, by a cord 3 or 4 fathoms long, an inflated
bladder.
The natives follow in their
canoes, and look out to fix more harpoons as the animal rises to blow,
and, when exhausted, dispatch him with their lances. It is, in fact,
nearly similar to a whale-hunt. Elephants and lions are also abundant on
the western side; the latter destroy many of the blacks annually, and are
much feared by them. Alligators are said to be numerous, but I did not see
any. "The voyage up to Maruru occupied seven days, as I did not work the
men at the oar, but it might be done in four; we returned to the bar in
two and a half days.
"There is another mouth of
the Zambesi seven miles to the westward of Luabo, which was visited by the
`Castor's pinnace'; and I was assured by Lieutenant Hoskins that the bar
was better than the one I visited." The conclusions of Captain Parker are
strengthened by those of Lieut. A. H. H. Hoskins, who was on the coast at
the same time, and also visited this spot. Having applied to my friend for
his deliberate opinion on the subject, he promptly furnished the following
note in January last: "The Zambesi appears to have five principal mouths,
of which the Luabo is the most southern and most navigable; Cumana, and
two whose names I do not know, not having myself visited it, lying between
it and the Quilimane, and the rise and fall at spring tides on the bar of
the Luabo is 22 feet; and as, in the passage, there is NEVER less than
four feet (I having crossed it at dead low-water -- springs), this would
give an average depth sufficient for any commercial purposes.
The rise and fall is six
feet greater, the passages narrow and more defined, consequently deeper
and more easily found than that of the Quilimane River. The river above
the bar is very tortuous, but deep; and it is observable that the
influence of the tide is felt much higher in this branch than in the
others; for whereas in the Catrina and Cumana I have obtained drinkable
water a very short distance from the mouth, in the Luabo I have ascended
seventy miles without finding the saltness perceptibly diminished.
This would facilitate navigation, and I have no hesitation in saying that
little difficulty would be experienced in conveying a steam-vessel of the
size and capabilities of the gunboat I lately commanded as high as the
branching off of the Quilimane River (Mazaro), which, in the dry season,
is observed many yards above the Luabo (main stream); though I have been
told by the Portuguese that the freshes which come down in December and
March fill it temporarily. These freshes deepen the river considerably at
that time of the year, and freshen the water many miles from the coast.
The population of the delta, except in the immediate neighborhood of the
Portuguese, appeared to be very sparse. Antelopes and hippopotami were
plentiful; the former tame and easily shot. I inquired frequently of both
natives and Portuguese if slavers were in the habit of entering there to
ship their cargoes, but could not ascertain that they have ever done so in
any except the Quilimane. With common precaution the rivers are not
unhealthy; for, during the whole time I was employed in them (off and on
during eighteen months), in open boats and at all times of the year,
frequently absent from the ship for a month or six weeks at a time, I had
not, in my boat's crew of fourteen men, more than two, and those mild,
cases of fever. Too much importance can not be ascribed to the use of
quinine, to which I attribute our comparative immunity, and with which our
judicious commander, Commodore Wyvill, kept us amply supplied. I hope
these few remarks may be of some little use in confirming your views of
the utility of that magnificent river. A. H. H. Hoskins."
It ought to be remembered
that the testimony of these gentlemen is all the more valuable, because
they visited the river when the water was at its lowest, and the surface
of the Zambesi was not, as it was now, on a level with and flowing into
the Mutu, but sixteen feet beneath its bed. The Mutu, at the point of
departure, was only ten or twelve yards broad, shallow, and filled with
aquatic plants. Trees and reeds along the banks overhang it so much, that,
though we had brought canoes and a boat from Tete, we were unable to enter
the Mutu with them, and left them at Mazaro. During most of the year this
part of the Mutu is dry, and we were even now obliged to carry all our
luggage by land for about fifteen miles. As Kilimane is called, in all the
Portuguese documents, the capital of the rivers of Senna, it seemed
strange to me that the capital should be built at a point where there was
no direct water conveyance to the magnificent river whose name it bore;
and, on inquiry, I was informed that the whole of the Mutu was large in
days of yore, and admitted of the free passage of great launches from
Kilimane all the year round, but that now this part of the Mutu had been
filled up.
I was seized by a severe
tertian fever at Mazaro, but went along the right bank of the Mutu to the
N.N.E. and E. for about fifteen miles. We then found that it was made
navigable by a river called the Pangazi, which comes into it from the
north. Another river, flowing from the same direction, called the Luare,
swells it still more; and, last of all, the Likuare, with the tide, make
up the river of Kilimane. The Mutu at Mazaro is simply a connecting link,
such as is so often seen in Africa, and neither its flow nor stoppage
affects the river of Kilimane. The waters of the Pangazi were quite clear
compared with those of the Zambesi.
[I owe the following
information, of a much later date, also to the politeness of Captain
Washington. H. M. sloop "Grecian" visited the coast in 1852-3, and the
master remarks that "the entrance to the Luabo is in lat. 18d 51' S.,
long. 36d 12' E., and may be known by a range of hummocks on its eastern
side, and very low land to the S.W. The entrance is narrow, and, as with
all the rivers on this coast, is fronted by a bar, which renders the
navigation, particularly for boats, very dangerous with the wind to the
south of east or west. Our boats proceeded twenty miles up this river, 2
fathoms on the bar, then 2-1/2 -- 5 -- 6 -- 7 fathoms. It was navigable
farther up, but they did not proceed. It is quite possible for a
moderate-sized vessel to cross the bar at spring tides, and be perfectly
landlocked and hidden among the trees.
"The Maiudo, in 18d 52' S.,
36d 12' E., IS NOT MENTIONED IN HORSBURGH, NOR LAID DOWN IN THE ADMIRALTY
CHART, but is, nevertheless, one of some importance, and appears to be one
of the principal stations for shipping slaves, as the boats found two
barracoons, about 20 miles up, bearing every indication of having been
very recently occupied, and which had good presumptive evidence that the
`Cauraigo', a brig under American colors, had embarked a cargo from thence
but a short time before. The river is fronted by a portion of the Elephant
Shoals, at the distance of three or four miles outside. The eastern bank
is formed by level sea-cliffs (as seen from the ship it has that
appearance), high for this part of the coast, and conspicuous. The western
side is composed of thick trees, and terminates in dead wood, from which
we called it `Dead-wood Point'. After crossing the bar it branches off in
a W. and N.W. direction, the latter being the principal arm, up which the
boats went some 30 miles, or about 10 beyond the barracoon. Fresh water
can be obtained almost immediately inside the entrance, as the stream runs
down very rapidly with the ebb tide. The least water crossing the bar
(low-water -- springs) was 1-1/2 fathom, one cast only therefrom from 2 to
5 fathoms, another 7 fathoms nearly the whole way up. "The Catrina,
latitude 18d 50' south, longitude 36d 24' east. The external appearance of
this river is precisely similar to that of the Maiudo, so much so that it
is difficult to distinguish them by any feature of the land. The longitude
is the best guide, or, in the absence of observation, perhaps the angles
contained by the extremes of land will be serviceable. Thus, at nine miles
off the Maiudo the angle contained by the above was seven points, the
bearing being N.E. W. of N.W. (?); while off the Catrina, at the same
distance from shore (about nine miles), the angle was only 3-1/2 to 4
points, being N. to N.W. As we did not send the boats up this river, no
information was obtained."]
My fever became excessively
severe in consequence of traveling in the hot sun, and the long grass
blocking up the narrow path so as to exclude the air. The pulse beat with
amazing force, and felt as if thumping against the crown of the head. The
stomach and spleen swelled enormously, giving me, for the first time, an
appearance which I had been disposed to laugh at among the Portuguese. At
Interra we met Senhor Asevedo, a man who is well known by all who ever
visited Kilimane, and who was presented with a gold chronometer watch by
the Admiralty for his attentions to English officers. He immediately
tendered his large sailing launch, which had a house in the stern. This
was greatly in my favor, for it anchored in the middle of the stream, and
gave me some rest from the mosquitoes, which in the whole of the delta are
something frightful. Sailing comfortably in this commodious launch along
the river of Kilimane, we reached that village (latitude 17d 53' 8" S.,
longitude 36d 40' E.) on the 20th of May, 1856, which wanted only a few
days of being four years since I started from Cape Town.
Here I was received into
the house of Colonel Galdino Jose Nunes, one of the best men in the
country. I had been three years without hearing from my family; letters
having frequently been sent, but somehow or other, with but a single
exception, they never reached me. I received, however, a letter from
Admiral Trotter, conveying information of their welfare, and some
newspapers, which were a treat indeed. Her majesty's brig the "Frolic" had
called to inquire for me in the November previous, and Captain Nolluth, of
that ship, had most considerately left a case of wine; and his surgeon,
Dr. James Walsh, divining what I should need most, left an ounce of
quinine. These gifts made my heart overflow. I had not tasted any liquor
whatever during the time I had been in Africa; but when reduced in Angola
to extreme weakness, I found much benefit from a little wine, and took
from Loanda one bottle of brandy in my medicine chest, intending to use it
if it were again required; but the boy who carried it whirled the box
upside down, and smashed the bottle, so I can not give my testimony either
in favor of or against the brandy.
But my joy on reaching the
east coast was sadly imbittered by the news that Commander MacLune, of H.
M. brigantine "Dart", on coming in to Kilimane to pick me up, had, with
Lieutenant Woodruffe and five men, been lost on the bar. I never felt more
poignant sorrow. It seemed as if it would have been easier for me to have
died for them, than that they should all be cut off from the joys of life
in generously attempting to render me a service. I would here acknowledge
my deep obligations to the Earl of Clarendon, to the admiral at the Cape,
and others, for the kind interest they manifested in my safety; even the
inquiries made were very much to my advantage. I also refer with feelings
of gratitude to the Governor of Mozambique for offering me a passage in
the schooner "Zambesi", belonging to that province; and I shall never
forget the generous hospitality of Colonel Nunes and his nephew, with whom
I remained. One of the discoveries I have made is that there are vast
numbers of good people in the world, and I do most devoutly tender my
unfeigned thanks to that Gracious One who mercifully watched over me in
every position, and influenced the hearts of both black and white to
regard me with favor.
With the united testimony
of Captain Parker and Lieutenant Hoskins, added to my own observation,
there can be no reasonable doubt but that the real mouth of the Zambesi is
available for the purposes of commerce. The delta is claimed by the
Portuguese, and the southern bank of the Luabo, or Cuama, as this part of
the Zambesi is sometimes called, is owned by independent natives of the
Caffre family. The Portuguese are thus near the main entrance to the new
central region; and as they have of late years shown, in an enlightened
and liberal spirit, their desire to develop the resources of Eastern
Africa by proclaiming Mozambique a free port, it is to be hoped that the
same spirit will lead them to invite mercantile enterprise up the Zambesi,
by offering facilities to those who may be led to push commerce into the
regions lying far beyond their territory. Their wish to co-operate in the
noble work of developing the resources of the rich country beyond could
not be shown better than by placing a village with Zambesian pilots at the
harbor of Mitilone, and erecting a light-house for the guidance of
seafaring men. If this were done, no nation would be a greater gainer by
it than the Portuguese themselves, and assuredly no other needs a
resuscitation of its commerce more. Their kindness to me personally
makes me wish for a return of their ancient prosperity; and the most
liberal and generous act of the enlightened young king H. M. Don Pedro, in
sending out orders to support my late companions at the public expense of
the province of Mozambique until my return to claim them, leads me to hope
for encouragement in every measure for either the development of commerce,
the elevation of the natives, or abolition of the trade in slaves.
As far as I am myself
concerned, the opening of the new central country is a matter for
congratulation only in so far as it opens up a prospect for the elevation
of the inhabitants. As I have elsewhere remarked, I view the end of the
geographical feat as the beginning of the missionary enterprise. I take
the latter term in its most extended signification, and include every
effort made for the amelioration of our race, the promotion of all those
means by which God in His providence is working, and bringing all His
dealings with man to a glorious consummation. Each man in his sphere,
either knowingly or unwittingly, is performing the will of our Father in
heaven. Men of science, searching after hidden truths, which, when
discovered, will, like the electric telegraph, bind men more closely
together -- soldiers battling for the right against tyranny -- sailors
rescuing the victims of oppression from the grasp of heartless
men-stealers -- merchants teaching the nations lessons of mutual
dependence -- and many others, as well as missionaries, all work in the
same direction, and all efforts are overruled for one glorious end.
If the reader has
accompanied me thus far, he may, perhaps, be disposed to take an interest
in the objects I propose to myself, should God mercifully grant me the
honor of doing something more for Africa. As the highlands on the borders
of the central basin are comparatively healthy, the first object seems to
be to secure a permanent path thither, in order that Europeans may pass as
quickly as possible through the unhealthy region near the coast. The river
has not been surveyed, but at the time I came down there was abundance of
water for a large vessel, and this continues to be the case during four or
five months of each year. The months of low water still admit of
navigation by launches, and would permit small vessels equal to the Thames
steamers to ply with ease in the deep channel. If a steamer were sent to
examine the Zambesi, I would recommend one of the lightest draught, and
the months of May, June, and July for passing through the delta; and this
not so much for fear of want of water as the danger of being grounded on a
sand or mud bank, and the health of the crew being endangered by the
delay.
In the months referred to
no obstruction would be incurred in the channel below Tete. Twenty or
thirty miles above that point we have a small rapid, of which I regret my
inability to speak, as (mentioned already) I did not visit it. But, taking
the distance below this point, we have, in round numbers, 300 miles of
navigable river. Above this rapid we have another reach of 300 miles, with
sand, but no mud banks in it, which brings us to the foot of the eastern
ridge. Let it not, however, be thought that a vessel by going thither
would return laden with ivory and gold-dust. The Portuguese of Tete pick
up all the merchandise of the tribes in their vicinity, and, though I came
out by traversing the people with whom the Portuguese have been at war, it
does not follow that it will be perfectly safe for others to go in whose
goods may be a stronger temptation to cupidity than any thing I possessed.
When we get beyond the hostile population mentioned, we reach a very
different race. On the latter my chief hopes at present rest. All of them,
however, are willing and anxious to engage in trade, and, while eager for
this, none have ever been encouraged to cultivate the raw materials of
commerce. Their country is well adapted for cotton; and I venture to
entertain the hope that by distributing seeds of better kinds than that
which is found indigenous, and stimulating the natives to cultivate it by
affording them the certainty of a market for all they may produce, we may
engender a feeling of mutual dependence between them and ourselves. I have
a twofold object in view, and believe that, by guiding our missionary
labors so as to benefit our own country, we shall thereby more effectually
and permanently benefit the heathen. Seven years were spent at Kolobeng in
instructing my friends there; but the country being incapable of raising
materials for exportation, when the Boers made their murderous attack and
scattered the tribe for a season, none sympathized except a few Christian
friends. Had the people of Kolobeng been in the habit of raising the raw
materials of English commerce, the outrage would have been felt in
England; or, what is more likely to have been the case, the people would
have raised themselves in the scale by barter, and have become, like the
Basutos of Moshesh and people of Kuruman, possessed of fire-arms, and the
Boers would never have made the attack at all.
We ought to encourage the
Africans to cultivate for our markets, as the most effectual means, next
to the Gospel, of their elevation. It is in the hope of working out this
idea that I propose the formation of stations on the Zambesi beyond the
Portuguese territory, but having communication through them with the
coast. A chain of stations admitting of easy and speedy intercourse, such
as might be formed along the flank of the eastern ridge, would be in a
favorable position for carrying out the objects in view. The London
Missionary Society has resolved to have a station among the Makololo on
the north bank, and another on the south among the Matebele. The
Church -- Wesleyan, Baptist, and that most energetic body, the Free Church
-- could each find desirable locations among the Batoka and adjacent
tribes. The country is so extensive there is no fear of clashing. All
classes of Christians find that sectarian rancor soon dies out when they
are working together among and for the real heathen. Only let the healthy
locality be searched for and fixed upon, and then there will be free scope
to work in the same cause in various directions, without that loss of men
which the system of missions on the unhealthy coasts entails. While
respectfully submitting the plan to these influential societies, I can
positively state that, when fairly in the interior, there is perfect
security for life and property among a people who will at least listen and
reason.
Eight of my men begged to
be allowed to come as far as Kilimane, and, thinking that they would there
see the ocean, I consented to their coming, though the food was so scarce
in consequence of a dearth that they were compelled to suffer some hunger.
They would fain have come farther; for when Sekeletu parted with them, his
orders were that none of them should turn until they had reached Ma Robert
and brought her back with them. On my explaining the difficulty of
crossing the sea, he said, "Wherever you lead, they must follow." As I did
not know well how I should get home myself, I advised them to go back to
Tete, where food was abundant, and there await my return. I bought a
quantity of calico and brass wire with ten of the smaller tusks which we
had in our charge, and sent the former back as clothing to those who
remained at Tete. As there were still twenty tusks left, I deposited them
with Colonel Nunes, that, in the event of any thing happening to prevent
my return, the impression might not be produced in the country that I had
made away with Sekeletu's ivory. I instructed Colonel Nunes, in case of my
death, to sell the tusks and deliver the proceeds to my men; but I
intended, if my life should be prolonged, to purchase the goods ordered by
Sekeletu in England with my own money, and pay myself on my return out of
the price of the ivory. This I explained to the men fully, and they,
understanding the matter, replied, "Nay, father, you will not die; you
will return to take us back to Sekeletu." They promised to wait till I
came back, and, on my part, I assured them that nothing but death would
prevent my return. This I said, though while waiting at Kilimane a letter
came from the Directors of the London Missionary Society stating that
"they were restricted in their power of aiding plans connected only
remotely with the spread of the Gospel, and that the financial
circumstances of the society were not such as to afford any ground of hope
that it would be in a position, within any definite period, to enter upon
untried, remote, and difficult fields of labor."
This has been explained
since as an effusion caused by temporary financial depression; but,
feeling perfect confidence in my Makololo friends, I was determined to
return and trust to their generosity. The old love of independence, which
I had so strongly before joining the society, again returned. It was
roused by a mistaken view of what this letter meant; for the directors,
immediately on my reaching home, saw the great importance of the opening,
and entered with enlightened zeal on the work of sending the Gospel into
the new field. It is to be hoped that their constituents will not only
enable them to begin, but to carry out their plans, and that no material
depression will ever again be permitted, nor appearance of spasmodic
benevolence recur. While I hope to continue the same cordial co-operation
and friendship which have always characterized our intercourse, various
reasons induce me to withdraw from pecuniary dependence on any society. I
have done something for the heathen, but for an aged mother, who has still
more sacred claims than they, I have been able to do nothing, and a
continuance of the connection would be a perpetuation of my inability to
make any provision for her declining years. In addition to "clergyman's
sore throat", which partially disabled me from the work, my father's death
imposed new obligations; and a fresh source of income having been opened
to me without my asking, I had no hesitation in accepting what would
enable me to fulfill my duty to my aged parent as well as to the heathen.
the reader remembers the way in which I was led, while teaching the
Bakwains, to commence exploration, he will, I think, recognize the hand of
Providence. Anterior to that, when Mr. Moffat began to give the Bible --
the Magna Charta of all the rights and privileges of modern civilization
-- to the Bechuanas, Sebituane went north, and spread the language into
which he was translating the sacred oracles in a new region larger than
France. Sebituane, at the same time, rooted out hordes of bloody savages,
among whom no white man could have gone without leaving his skull to
ornament some village.
He opened up the way for me
-- let us hope also for the Bible. Then, again, while I was laboring at
Kolobeng, seeing only a small arc of the cycle of Providence, I could not
understand it, and felt inclined to ascribe our successive and prolonged
droughts to the wicked one. But when forced by these and the Boers to
become explorer, and open a new country in the north rather than set my
face southward, where missionaries are not needed, the gracious Spirit of
God influenced the minds of the heathen to regard me with favor; the
Divine hand is again perceived. Then I turned away westward rather than in
the opposite direction, chiefly from observing that some native
Portuguese, though influenced by the hope of a reward from their
government to cross the continent, had been obliged to return from the
east without accomplishing their object. Had I gone at first in the
eastern direction, which the course of the great Leeambye seemed to
invite, I should have come among the belligerents near Tete when the war
was raging at its height, instead of, as it happened, when all was over.
And again, when enabled to reach Loanda, the resolution to do my duty by
going back to Linyanti probably saved me from the fate of my papers in the
"Forerunner". And then, last of all, this new country is partially opened
to the sympathies of Christendom, and I find that Sechele himself has,
though unbidden by man, been teaching his own people. In fact, he has been
doing all that I was prevented from doing, and I have been employed in
exploring -- a work I had no previous intention of performing. I think
that I see the operation of the unseen hand in all this, and I humbly hope
that it will still guide me to do good in my day and generation in Africa.
Viewing the success awarded
to opening up the new country as a development of Divine Providence in
relation to the African family, the mind naturally turns to the probable
influence it may have on negro slavery, and more especially on the
practice of it by a large portion of our own race. We now demand increased
supplies of cotton and sugar, and then reprobate the means our American
brethren adopt to supply our wants. We claim a right to speak about this
evil, and also to act in reference to its removal, the more especially
because we are of one blood. It is on the Anglo-American race that the
hopes of the world for liberty and progress rest. Now it is very grievous
to find one portion of this race practicing the gigantic evil, and the
other aiding, by increased demands for the produce of slave labor, in
perpetuating the enormous wrong. The Mauritius, a mere speck on the ocean,
yields sugar, by means of guano, improved machinery, and free labor, equal
in amount to one fourth part of the entire consumption of Great Britain.
On that island land is excessively dear and far from rich: no crop can be
raised except by means of guano, and labor has to be brought all the way
from India. But in Africa the land is cheap, the soil good, and free labor
is to be found on the spot. Our chief hopes rest with the natives
themselves; and if the point to which I have given prominence, of healthy
inland commercial stations, be realized, where all the produce raised may
be collected, there is little doubt but that slavery among our kinsmen
across the Atlantic will, in the course of some years, cease to assume the
form of a necessity to even the slaveholders themselves. Natives alone can
collect produce from the more distant hamlets, and bring it to the
stations contemplated. This is the system pursued so successfully in
Angola.
If England had possessed
that strip of land, by civilly declining to enrich her "frontier
colonists" by "Caffre wars", the inborn energy of English colonists would
have developed its resources, and the exports would not have been 100,000
Pounds as now, but one million at least. The establishment of the
necessary agency must be a work of time, and greater difficulty will be
experienced on the eastern than on the western side of the continent,
because in the one region we have a people who know none but
slave-traders, while in the other we have tribes who have felt the
influence of the coast missionaries and of the great Niger expedition; one
invaluable benefit it conferred was the dissemination of the knowledge of
English love of commerce and English hatred of slavery, and it therefore
was no failure. But on the east there is a river which may become a good
pathway to a central population who are friendly to the English; and if we
can conciliate the less amicable people on the river, and introduce
commerce, an effectual blow will be struck at the slave-trade in that
quarter. By linking the Africans there to ourselves in the manner
proposed, it is hoped that their elevation will eventually be the result.
In this hope and proposed effort I am joined by my brother Charles, who
has come from America, after seventeen years' separation, for the purpose.
We expect success through the influence of that Spirit who already aided
the efforts to open the country, and who has since turned the public mind
toward it. A failure may be experienced by sudden rash speculation
overstocking the markets there, and raising the prices against ourselves.
But I propose to spend some more years of labor, and shall be thankful if
I see the system fairly begun in an open pathway which will eventually
benefit both Africa and England.
The village of Kilimane
stands on a great mud bank, and is surrounded by extensive swamps and
rice-grounds. The banks of the river are lined with mangrove bushes, the
roots of which, and the slimy banks
on which they grow, are alternately exposed to the tide and sun. The
houses are well built of brick and lime, the latter from Mozambique. If
one digs down two or three feet in any part of the site of the village, he
comes to water; hence the walls built on this mud bank gradually subside;
pieces are sometimes sawn off the doors below, because the walls in which
they are fixed have descended into the ground, so as to leave the floors
higher than the bottom of the doors. It is almost needless to say that
Kilimane is very unhealthy. A man of plethoric temperament is sure to get
fever, and concerning a stout person one may hear the remark, "Ah! he will
not live long; he is sure to die."
A Hamburgh vessel was lost
near the bar before we came down. The men were much more regular in their
habits than English sailors, so I had an opportunity of observing the
fever acting as a slow poison. They felt "out of sorts" only, but
gradually became pale, bloodless, and emaciated, then weaker and weaker,
till at last they sank more like oxen bitten by tsetse than any disease I
ever saw. The captain, a strong, robust young man, remained in
perfect health for about three months, but was at last knocked down
suddenly and made as helpless as a child by this terrible disease. He had
imbibed a foolish prejudice against quinine, our sheet-anchor in the
complaint. This is rather a professional subject, but I introduce it here
in order to protest against the prejudice as almost entirely unfounded.
Quinine is invaluable in fever, and never produces any unpleasant effects
in any stage of the disease, IF EXHIBITED IN COMBINATION WITH AN APERIENT.
The captain was saved by it, without his knowledge, and I was thankful
that the mode of treatment, so efficacious among natives, promised so fair
among Europeans.
After waiting about six
weeks at this unhealthy spot, in which, however, by the kind attentions of
Colonel Nunes and his nephew, I partially recovered from my tertian, H. M.
brig "Frolic" arrived off Kilimane. As the village is twelve miles from
the bar, and the weather was rough, she was at anchor ten days before we
knew of her presence about seven miles from the entrance to the port. She
brought abundant supplies for all my need, and 150 Pounds to pay my
passage home, from my kind friend Mr. Thompson, the Society's agent at the
Cape. The admiral at the Cape kindly sent an offer of a passage to the
Mauritius, which I thankfully accepted.
Sekwebu and one attendant
alone remained with me now. He was very intelligent, and had been of the
greatest service to me; indeed, but for his good sense, tact, and command
of the language of the tribes through which we passed, I believe we should
scarcely have succeeded in reaching the coast. I naturally felt grateful
to him; and as his chief wished ALL my companions to go to England with
me, and would probably be disappointed if none went, I thought it would be
beneficial for him to see the effects of civilization, and report them to
his countrymen; I wished also to make some return for his very important
services. Others had petitioned to come, but I explained the danger of a
change of climate and food, and with difficulty restrained them. The only
one who now remained begged so hard to come on board ship that I greatly
regretted that the expense prevented my acceding to his wish to visit
England. I said to him, "You will die if you go to such a cold country as
mine." "That is nothing," he reiterated; "let me die at your feet."
When we parted from our
friends at Kilimane, the sea on the bar was frightful even to the seamen.
This was the first time Sekwebu had seen the sea. Captain Peyton had sent
two boats in case of accident. The waves were so high that, when the
cutter was in one trough, and we in the pinnace in another, her mast was
hid. We then mounted to the crest of the wave, rushed down the slope, and
struck the water again with a blow which felt as if she had struck the
bottom. Boats must be singularly well constructed to be able to stand
these shocks. Three breakers swept over us. The men lift up their oars,
and a wave comes sweeping over all, giving the impression that the boat is
going down, but she only goes beneath the top of the wave, comes out on
the other side, and swings down the slope, and a man bales out the water
with a bucket. Poor Sekwebu looked at me when these terrible seas broke
over, and said, "Is this the way you go? Is this the way you go?" I smiled
and said, "Yes; don't you see it is?" and tried to encourage him. He was
well acquainted with canoes, but never had seen aught like this. When we
reached the ship -- a fine, large brig of sixteen guns and a crew of one
hundred and thirty -- she was rolling so that we could see a part of her
bottom.
It was quite impossible for
landsmen to catch the ropes and climb up, so a chair was sent down, and we
were hoisted in as ladies usually are, and received so hearty an English
welcome from Captain Peyton and all on board that I felt myself at once at
home in every thing except my own mother tongue. I seemed to know the
language perfectly, but the words I wanted would not come at my call. When
I left England I had no intention of returning, and directed my attention
earnestly to the languages of Africa, paying none to English composition.
With the exception of a short interval in Angola, I had been three and a
half years without speaking English, and this, with thirteen years of
previous partial disuse of my native tongue, made me feel sadly at a loss
on board the "Frolic".
We left Kilimane on the
12th of July, and reached the Mauritius on the 12th of August, 1856.
Sekwebu was picking up English, and becoming a favorite with both men and
officers. He seemed a little bewildered, every thing on board a man-of-war
being so new and strange; but he remarked to me several times, "Your
countrymen are very agreeable," and, "What a strange country this is --
all water together!" He also said that he now understood why I used the
sextant. When we reached the Mauritius a steamer came out to tow us into
the harbor. The constant strain on his untutored mind seemed now to reach
a climax, for during the night he became insane. I thought at first that
he was intoxicated. He had descended into a boat, and, when I attempted to
go down and bring him into the ship, he ran to the stern and said, "No!
no! it is enough that I die alone. You must not perish; if you come, I
shall throw myself into the water." Perceiving that his mind was affected,
I said, "Now, Sekwebu, we are going to Ma Robert." This struck a chord in
his bosom, and he said, "Oh yes; where is she, and where is Robert?" and
he seemed to recover. The officers proposed to secure him by putting him
in irons; but, being a gentleman in his own country, I objected, knowing
that the insane often retain an impression of ill treatment, and I could
not bear to have it said in Sekeletu's country that I had chained one of
his principal men as they had seen slaves treated. I tried to get him on
shore by day, but he refused. In the evening a fresh accession of insanity
occurred; he tried to spear one of the crew, then leaped overboard, and,
though he could swim well, pulled himself down hand under hand by the
chain cable. We never found the body of poor Sekwebu.
At the Mauritius I was most
hospitably received by Major General C. M. Hay, and he generously
constrained me to remain with him till, by the influence of the good
climate and quiet English comfort, I got rid of an enlarged spleen from
African fever. In November I came up the Red Sea; escaped the danger of
shipwreck through the admirable management of Captain Powell, of the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Company's ship "Candia", and on the 12th of
December was once more in dear old England. The Company most liberally
refunded my passage-money. I have not mentioned half the favors bestowed,
but I may just add that no one has cause for more abundant gratitude to
his fellow-men and to his Maker than I have; and may God grant that the
effect on my mind be such that I may be more humbly devoted to the service
of the Author of all our mercies! |