They also told us that one or two nights previous, two persons had been seized by lions, just beyond a mountain near us. To-day we saw the first lion track since we left Kuruman. After reaching Great Chuae, travelers must, at night, make their oxen fast to their wagonwheels, to prevent their being destroyed or driven away by lions.

character is a young man, not over twenty-five years of age, who we are told is a brother of the king, and acts as deputy to Kalipi in his absence from the Basin, and whose name we afterwards learned is Tibeni or Lapili. They all shook hands in a very friendly manner. So soon as they had saluted us, Tibeni informed us that the king had sent a message, which arrived this morning, requiring us to go to the residence of Kalipi, whom he would immediately send, and that when he had learned we were there, he would come himself. He said also that the king was very glad we

4. On the flat where we outspanned two rhinosceroses were discovered, one old one, and a calf two or three years old. The natives distinguish several species of the rhinosceros, as the white and black, though there is not a great difference in color, but more in their dis-had come to live with him. positions. The black one when attacked is apt to turn against his assailants, while the white one will generally take to fight. As the plain was naked and they proved to be black rhinosceroses, the people did not like much to approach them. I took our horse to ride to the water, and as I was going, I heard a number of shots in quick succession. On my return I learned that as the people were going towards the black rhinosceroses, two white ones, an old one and a young one, which were lying down, sprung up near them, and that they had killed the old one. It lay near our road, about a mile ahead. I found it an immensely large carcass, not less in weight, I think, than three thousand pounds.

A little after ten o'clock, A. M., we arrived at the town where Kalipi resides, as also the king does, when in the Basin. This town is not far from the centre of the Basin, in latitude twenty-five south, and longitude twenty-seven, forty-seven east; and is called Matsenyateng. Before reaching this place we passed two towns, out of which came many women and children, and some men, to look at us. The women made much noise.

6. This is the anniversary of our landing at the Cape. We little thought then, that we should now be this side the field in which we hope to labor for our Master until he shall say our work is done. But it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. For several days I have felt some desire to reach Mosika to-day, but a wise Providence has ordered otherwise.

7. Over each of Moselekatsi's towns, an officer presides whose title is intuna. Kalipi, who is the second intuna of Moselekatsi's realm, there being one higher in rank than he, has a general jurisdiction over the Basin, the other intunas of the district being subordinate to him. We learned that he is now with the king. Kalipi was recommended to us by Mr. Moffat as the most suitable of ficer to be applied to, should we wish to transact any business with the king. Of him Mr. Moffat had formed a very favorable opinion.

9. This morning we were visited by six fine looking men, who, our people said, were proper Matebele. They had three guns, which they fired as they approached, as a salute. The principal

Houses-Dress-A Dance.

The mode of building their towns is adapted to their pastoral life. To fences, built of bushes and the branch.es of trees, at a proper distance apart, one being within the other, constitute the double inclosure of a square or oblong space, in which the cattle stand at night. The space between the fences is occupied by their houses, which are hemispherical, some of them being high enough for a man to stand erect in the middle, but many of them much lower. The frame work of the houses is made with small poles and rods, crossing each other at small intervals, and tied with cards of plaited grass, or of bark. This frame-work is very strong, and is neatly and closely thatched over, excepting the door, which is quite small, often only large enough to admit the body of a man who must stretch himself flat on the ground to creep in. The first town we saw had about seventy-five houses; the next fifty, and Kalipi's may contain eighty. The Matebele do not congregate in so large towns as the Bechuana tribes.

This people go almost naked. The men wear a string around the loins, to which is attached before and behind strips of the skin of some animal; and about the adjustment of these they are not at all careful. They appear, however, entirely unconscious of their na

kedness. The women wear a piece of king wishes us to use our pleasure, skin, made soft by rubbing, fastened whether we visit him now or when the around their loins, and passing around house is done; but he does not wish to them so as to lap over on one side. hinder the work. Since we came here Those of unmarried women do not reach the intuna has said nothing about the to their knees; but those of married || visit to the king; but has always seemed women are lengthened in proportion to much pleased with the progress of our the number of their children, until some work. They are utterly astonished at reach nearly to the ancle. the dispatch with which we use up timber.

The Zoolahs, or Matebele, whom we have seen, are a fine looking people. Some of them are very black, others lighter, and some approaching a mulatto color. Kalipi is a fine formed man, of about middling size, of a dark brown color. When animated his countenance Introduction to Moselekatsi-Return to is lively, but when still he has a thoughtful appearance. He has quite the air of a gentleman. We were struck and highly pleased with his appearance and deportment. The women are generally rather corpulent, and the appearance of the people indicates a land of plenty.

Most High.-About one o'clock, P. M., Kalipi, attended by men with two calabashes of beer, came to our wagon. He informed us that the king had sent one calabash of beer to us, and directed him to drink the other, which he did with the assistance of Tibeni; then laid himself down and slept soundly.

tance from the kraal. While the people were spanning out, the king came out to meet us, and we advanced towards him. We shook hands, and he gave us the Dutch salutation, "Goen day," and then gave us to understand that he would go on to the waggon, where he seated himself on the fore chest, and afterwards on our seat. Kalipi immediate- About two o'clock, P. M., the king ly began to make an oration in praise of called on us. After seating himself he his master, during which he was con- harrangued his men for some time, telstantly in motion, walking over a space ling them how great he was; which beof ten or fifteen feet backwards and for- ing ended, we entered into a conversawards. While advancing towards the tion with him, using William as interking he spoke, but when receding he preter. We stated to him our object in was silent. We afterwards learned that coming to reside in his country. To he gave the king credit for taking care every thing we said, he replied, Żingtle, of us while on the way to visit him, and (good), or tanta, (I love). In conversasaid the magnitude of the mountains was tion his attention cannot be secured. nothing compared to that of his majesty. Wherever he is, people are constantly As Moselekatsi was coming out to the coming with messages, which are delivwagon, one of his regular official prais-ered to intunas, who deliver them to him. ers came out, took his stand at a dis- While in conversation he is also attendtance, and continued praising him for ing to these messages, and frequently some time as loud as he could bawl. making remarks to those around him. His majesty left us abruptly, not notifying us of it, as on yesterday.

We held some conversation with his majesty, which had to go first to Baba in Dutch, from him to Leselo in Sichuan; and as Leselo cannot speak directly to the king, he must tell it to Kalipi, and he to the king. And what the king said came back through the same line, but in a reversed order. A number of people came out of the kraal following the king, who took their seats on the ground at a little distance, on each side, in front of the wagon. As Kalipi came with us, and is our organ of communication with his master, he seated himself on the place where the driver puts his feet. The king harrangued the retinue about him for some moments on his own greatness, to which they constantly responded with some high sounded title, as, "Yes great king," "Yes great mountain," etc.

10. Sabbath. Early this morning Kalipi came, attended by a man bringing a goat, which he said the king sent us;

and when we told him that as it is the Sabbath, we cannot slaughter to-day, he politely replied, he was aware of that, but it was the king's order; and immediately sent it back to the kraal. To these people there is no Sabbath; they are in gross darkness. To-day many people are beating skins to make shields, and twenty-nine women came from distant places, bearing large calabashes, and pots of beer on their heads. They approached the place, singing no doubt the praises of their despotic master. May the time speedily come, when on this sacred day their voices shall be employed in singing the praises of the

VOL. XXXIII.

11. There cannot be less than a thousand oxen here, besides a hundred or two milch cows, which supply the herders with food. Every morning the oxen are divided into troops according to color, and sent off to graze.

After mentioning articles given to the king as presents, Mr. Venable remarks

When we presented the beads to the king, he thanked us, and remarked that he had not asked us for beads, and as of our own accord, he was highly pleaswe loved him so much as to give them ed.-While the king was in so fine a humor, we took occasion to introduce several subjects upon which we wished to speak with him. We remarked that we wished to know how much land he would permit us to occupy. He replied, that he and Kalipi would see when he went to the Basin. We then told him we were bringing our families a long distance, and could not bring a sufficient supply of corn with us, and asked what we should do for bread. He replied that food was with him, that his people received their food from him, and that he would furnish us.

Having closed their interview with Moselekatsi and returned to Mosika, and having bestowed what additional labor was necessary upon the buildings, preparatory to being occupied by their families, the breth

ren returned to Kuruman.

31

May 5. At three o'clock, P. M., we closed the house, leaving a number of articles in it, and set off on our return to Kuruman. During our stay we have felt no uneasiness about losing any thing by theft. People went and came every day, and many things were lying exposed, but nothing was stolen. Kalipi was present when we were starting. We requested him to take care of the house during our absence. He asked if he should appoint a man to remain by it; to which we replied it was unnecessary; and that during our stay the people of the king had stolen nothing from us. The police of this country is exceedingly strict. I have never seen a people kept in such complete subordination. We have no apprehension that any thing we have will be disturbed, unless by order of Moselekatsi. So far he has made no demands on us, but from what we have learned of his character from others, and by personal observation, there is nothing to encourage the hope that he will continue the same course of conduct. That our reception and his treatment of us thus far have been favorable is abundant cause of thankfulness to God, who only can dispose the hearts of men to what is right. Trusting in God, we may be encouraged to hope that we shall yet be sustained in what we are attempting in his name.

For a week past we have had sharp frosts, and from this time there will probably be little or no rain until summer. The frosty nights succeeded heavy rains, which fell since our return from Kapeng.

must have approached this settlement can be more easily imagined than described. In this case, as in all similar ones, I thought it expedient to interest the king and his people in our mission; and accordingly took what I knew would be the most favorable means of effecting it, by making him a present, and accompanying it with a promise that I would, as soon as health and other circumstances permitted, visit him in his own country. He received the present with undisguised pleasure, and appeared surprised and equally as much pleased at the prospect of having a white man visit his country. The gratitude he manifested was very different from any thing I had ever seen among the beach people. For, whatever obligation you may impose upon one of these men, he will seldom acknowledge it, lest he should be held responsible for its discharge; and should you make him a present, he will carefully conceal any gratitude he may feel with the hope of extracting something more. But this simple-hearted man had imbibed no such logic, and he did not leave my house until he had obtained repeated promises that I would visit Bolobo.

I left home on the twenty-fifth instant to fulfil my engagement. My company consisted of Bello, as interpreter, two native men, and two boys to carry my baggage. Bolobo is a section of country lying east of north from Cape Palmas. Kay, the residence of Teddah, and the chief settlement, is distant about thirty miles from the Cape. It embraces an extent of country about forty-five miles in circumference, and a population probably of about 2,500 or 3,000 souls. Between Bolobo and Cape Palmas there is a people known by the name of Karvahs, speaking the same dialect with those of Bolobo, but under a separate government, and much more numerous. THE excursion of which an account is given along the same road I traveled last June, The first five miles of our journey lay

West Africa.

JOURNAL OF MR. WILSON ON AN EX-
CURSION FROM CAPE PALMAS TO
BOLOBO.

below, was performed in the latter part of October, 1836.

on my way to Denah; after which our path (for it deserves no other name) led us nearly in a northerly direction. Teddah's Visit to Cape Palmas-Kar-|| About eight miles from the Cape we

vah's Country.

A short time since Teddah, king of the Bolobo country, visited Cape Palmas, to see and to shake hands with the American people. Neither he nor any one of his suite had ever seen the face of a white man, nor had they ever seen a specimen of the architecture of civilized nations. The feelings of interest and curiosity, therefore, with which they

crossed the territorial line of the colony and entered the country of Karvah. The country which in June presented so rich and verdant a harvest of rice is now over-run with grass and weeds, and in a few months more every vestige of former culture will be entirely obliterated, so rapid is the growth of vegetation. The soil in the southern section of Karvah's territories is decidedly the best I have yet seen in this part of Africa; and

Villages of Giddodo, Boobly, and Sau- vah, the individual by whose name the