The natives procure very fine gold-dust from the sand in some of the river-beds, and sell it. They preserve it in the quill of a feather from the wing of a vulture, where they deposit it for safety. Every kind of game is found in this region, but it is becoming more scarce every year. This part is known as the Makalakaland. Quartz intersects the country in several parts, and is rich in gold. There are many military posts on the slopes of the watershed down to Makobi's outpost, on the Mpakwe river, which is the frontier outpost, where all travellers and hunters have to stop, to obtain permission to enter the country before proceeding. On the arrival of any stranger, a messenger is sent to the king, and if he objects, he has to turn back, and if allowed to proceed, two Matabele warriors from the regiment stationed there take charge of the visitor, and conduct him to his majesty, who inquires his business, so that no one is allowed to enter his territory without his knowledge. Although the Matabele country comes down to the Shasha river, no one occupies that district, except a few wandering Bushmen, south of the military post at Makobi's. There are many ancient forts similar to those at and near the Tati, the ruins of which are still to be seen on commanding positions, but none of any great extent; a garrison of 100 men would be as many as could occupy them. Most of them are so concealed from view by trees and bush, that it is by mere accident they are discovered. I once outspanned in the centre of one without knowing it, thinking it an old Kaffir kraal, until my attention was called to the peculiar form of the stonework of hewn stone, and the square rooms. At the Mpakwe river near the south side of the drift, and twenty-nine miles north from the Tati river, is another very interesting ruin, built of cut granite with regular courses, each stone nearly the same size, and regularly jointed. The walls are ten feet high, and two feet thick. The interior was a smooth granite concrete floor, and contained burnt earth similar to bricks, in great quantities. That portion facing the river was divided into several rooms. At the main entrance within the building is a small kind of sentry-box commanding the opening, capable of holding only two persons. The situation is commanding, and must have been, when perfect, capable of holding out against an enemy. There is another very good specimen of these ancient forts a short distance from the Camarlo drift, on the river Umfulamokokgumala, which is a branch of the Mapui, that falls into the Gwaii, a tributary of the Zambese; this drift is on the topmost ridge of the watershed of the Mopolo, at an elevation of 4360 feet above sea-level.