THIEVISH PROPENSITIES. 451 



I have suffered cruelly from their thievish propensities. 

 When at the Lake they deprived me of almost the whole of 

 my wardrobe, besides numerous other articles. Not liking 

 to make a disturbance, and knowing the uselessness of com- 

 plaining, I bore my misfortunes for a time with patience ; but 

 there is a limit to every thing. Finding, one morning, that 

 a bag containing no less than forty pounds of shot (a most 

 invaluable treasure to me) had disappeared in a mysterious 

 manner, I could no longer restrain my rage. We tracked 

 the thief to the water, but here, of course, all our efforts to 

 follow him farther were frustrated. I then proceeded direct 

 to the chief, and represented to him, in the strongest colors, 

 the abominable conduct of his people, who robbed me with 

 impunity under his very eyes, adding that their behavior 

 was the more flagitious, as I had loaded both him and his 

 men with presents, and treated them with undeviating kind- 

 ness. To my astonishment and disgust, he laughed outright 

 in my face, and told me that he could not control his men in 

 this respect. Indeed, his own relations would play him the 

 same trick. 



" So much the more disgraceful to you," I remarked, add- 

 ing that he might rest assured I would take good care to tell 

 my countrymen of the villainous conduct of the people at 

 Lake Ngami. 



"Well," he replied, "I really can not assist you in this 

 matter, but will give you wholesome advice, and my author- 

 ity for acting on it ; that is, to hang on the nearest tree the 

 first man you catch stealing." 



He said this with so much coolness, indifference, and good- 

 humor, that I could not, vexed as I was, refrain from smil- 

 ing; and, half reconciled, I turned away from him, exclaim- 

 ing, "Well, Lecholetebe, you are an incurable rogue!" 



That the people really did purloin articles from their own 

 chief I had an instance when at the Lake. Entering a trad- 

 er's hut one day, I observed some beautiful hippopotamus teeth, 



