The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868Livingstone, David
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The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868
Livingstone, David
Africa, Central -- Description and travel
Bin Juma is a long, thin, lanky Suaheli, six feet two high, with a
hooked nose and large lips: I told Mohamad that if he were to go with
us to Manyuema, the whole party would be cut off. He came here, bought
a slave-boy, and allowed him to escape; then browbeat Chapi's man
about him (and he says, three others); and caught ten in lieu of him,
of which Mohamad restored six: this was the origin of the war. Now
that we are in the middle of it, I must do as Mohamad does in going
off either by day or by night. It is unreasonable to ask my advice
now, but it is felt that they have very unjustifiably placed me in a
false position, and they fear that Syed Majid will impute blame to
them, meanwhile Syde bin Habib sent a private message to me to come
with his men to him, and leave this party.
I perceive that the plan now is to try and clear our way of Chapi, and
then march, but I am so thoroughly disgusted with this slave-war, that
I think of running the risk of attack by the country people, and go
off to-morrow without Mohamad Bogharib, though I like him much more
than I do Mpamari or Syde bin Habib. It is too glaring hypocrisy to go
to the Koran for guidance while the stolen women, girls, and fish, are
in Bin Juma's hands.
_8th and 9th December, 1868._--I had to wait for the Banyamwezi
preparing food: Mohamad has no authority over them, or indeed over
anyone else. Two Babemba men came in and said that they had given up
fighting, and begged for their wives, who had been captured by Syde's
people on their way here: this reasonable request was refused at
first, but better counsels prevailed, and they were willing to give
something to appease the anger of the enemy, and sent back six
captives, two of whom were the wives prayed for.
[At last he makes a start on the 11th of December with the Arabs, who
are bound eastwards for Ujiji. It is a motley group, composed of
Mohamad and his friends, a gang of Unyamwezi hangers-on, and strings
of wretched slaves yoked together in their heavy slave-sticks. Some
carry ivory, others copper, or food for the march, whilst hope and
fear, misery and villainy, may be read off on the various faces that
pass in line out of this country, like a serpent dragging its accursed
folds away from the victim it has paralysed with its fangs.]
* * * * *
_11th December, 1868._--We marched four hours unmolested by the
natives, built a fence, and next day crossed the Lokinda River and its
feeder the Mookosi; here the people belonged to Chisabi, who had not
joined the other Babemba. We go between two ranges of tree-covered
mountains, which are continuations of those on each side of Moero.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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