“There has been some fighting going on here of late amongst the natives. It took place just before I arrived. You may be aware that Kama left here, and old Sekomi, his father, remained behind with Kamani, Kama’s younger brother. Kama, however, it is supposed, will return and rout Kamani. Sekomi is looked upon as nobody. Kamani is a gentlemanly well-dressed darkie enough, and the other day he and his men gave Matchin a warm reception. Matchin is his uncle, or something of the sort, and once for a short time supplanted Sekomi. He thought the dispute of the brothers a favourable opportunity for retaking Mungwato, but failed. His people had to climb the steep mountain which flanks the town, turning to fire as they fled, whilst Kamani’s men shot at them from the plain. A great deal of ammunition was expended, but comparatively few natives slain. There were a dozen or so lying about on the slope of the mountain when I arrived, but the hyænas and crows had had a ‘high old time,’ and little was left of them but the skulls. A lot of huts were destroyed during the fight; and one of the traders here seized the opportunity to burn down the empty huts all round the store where he lives, and it certainly improves his view.[42] “It seems next to impossible to convert the natives here to Christianity, though a good many of them profess it. The worst of it is that when they get so far converted as to wear ‘continuations,’ they become incorrigible thieves and drunkards. I always infinitely prefer the raw unconverted heathen for my own use, and every one else that I know does the same. I like extremely the three missionaries that I know, and believe them to be most excellent conscientious men. They believe the chief result of their labours is yet to come, and I hope they may be right.” By the 24th of April, as already mentioned, all was ready for a start, and, leaving Bamangwato after sundown, a trek of two hours was accomplished that night. The following morning a like distance had been traversed, when the waggon was suddenly brought to a stand by one of the wheels giving way. It was fortunate, as it happened, they had not got further from the reach of help, and the broken wheel was at once taken back to Bamangwato. It was a tedious business, however, getting it repaired,--so slow are people’s movements in this country,--but at last it was ready, and, some fresh oxen being purchased to strengthen the span, the journey was resumed early on the morning of May 5th. Before starting a couple of waggons arrived from Lake Ngami with two traders, both looking dreadfully ill from the effects of fever; indeed they seemed to have had a very narrow escape. They had buried one man, and reported the death of another at the Lake,--Henry Gray, the trader who, the year before, had accompanied Frank and William Oates a good part of the way up country when they first left Pietermaritzburg.