A Popular Account of Dr. Livingstone's Expedition to the Zambesi and Its Tributaries: And of the Discovery of Lakes Shirwa and Nyassa, 1858-1864Livingstone, David
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A Popular Account of Dr. Livingstone's Expedition to the Zambesi and Its Tributaries: And of the Discovery of Lakes Shirwa and Nyassa, 1858-1864
Livingstone, David
Africa, Central -- Description and travel; Africa, Central -- Discovery and exploration
We encamped on the 20th of June at a spot where Dr. Livingstone, on his
journey from the West to the East Coast, was formerly menaced by a chief
named Mpende. No offence had been committed against him, but he had
firearms, and, with the express object of showing his power, he
threatened to attack the strangers. Mpende's counsellors having,
however, found out that Dr. Livingstone belonged to a tribe of whom they
had heard that "they loved the black man and did not make slaves," his
conduct at once changed from enmity to kindness, and, as the place was
one well selected for defence, it was perhaps quite as well for Mpende
that he decided as he did. Three of his counsellors now visited us, and
we gave them a handsome present for their chief, who came himself next
morning and made us a present of a goat, a basket of boiled maize, and
another of vetches. A few miles above this the headman, Chilondo of
Nyamasusa, apologized for not formerly lending us canoes. "He was
absent, and his children were to blame for not telling him when the
Doctor passed; he did not refuse the canoes." The sight of our men, now
armed with muskets, had a great effect. Without any bullying, firearms
command respect, and lead men to be reasonable who might otherwise feel
disposed to be troublesome. Nothing, however, our fracas with Mpende
excepted, could be more peaceful than our passage through this tract of
country in 1856. We then had nothing to excite the cupidity of the
people, and the men maintained themselves, either by selling elephant's
meat, or by exhibiting feats of foreign dancing. Most of the people were
very generous and friendly; but the Banyai, nearer to Tette than this,
stopped our march with a threatening war-dance. One of our party,
terrified at this, ran away, as we thought, insane, and could not, after
a painful search of three days, be found. The Banyai, evidently touched
by our distress, allowed us to proceed. Through a man we left on an
island a little below Mpende's, we subsequently learned that poor
Monaheng had fled thither, and had been murdered by the headman for no
reason except that he was defenceless. This headman had since become
odious to his countrymen, and had been put to death by them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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