456 A HUNTER'S WANDERINGS ch. 



cotton ; it seemed very slow work, and, judging 

 from the progress he made whilst we were there, 

 it must have taken him at least a month to finish ; 

 we also saw that they had planted a few cotton 

 bushes near the huts and enclosed them with a 

 hedge. 



Later on, when we were down the Umniati, I 

 noticed that at every Banyai kraal we visited the 

 people had planted and enclosed a few cotton bushes 

 near their villages. On being questioned, old Lo 

 Magondi gave us the following information : That 

 there were now no Portuguese at Zumbo, or 

 Mandombi as the natives call it ; that we should 

 get no game down Hanyane, as there were a great 

 many Kafirs living along its banks between his kraals 

 and the Zambesi ; and finally, that, if we would go 

 with him to the lower part of the Umfule, he would 

 show us lots of hippopotami, and consult his god to 

 find out where the elephants were. He also stated 

 positively that the Umfule ran into the Umniati, 

 not many days' journey below where we were to find 

 the sea-cows. This last statement decided us to 

 give up the Hanyane and follow down the Umfule 

 to its junction with the Umniati, so as to establish 

 the fact ; for in all maps of South Africa hitherto 

 published the Umfule is marked running into the 

 Zambesi, about half-way between the Umniati and 

 the Hanyane rivers. 



That evening Lo Magondi sent us a plate of 

 " pogo," porridge, and a strip of sea-cow fat about 

 two inches thick, which, he said, was to show how 

 fat his cattle were. It was, however, stinking, and 

 useless to us, though our boys ate it with great relish. 

 The next morning, although on the previous evening 

 the old fellow had promised to make an early start. 



