THROUGH AFRICA FROM THE CAPE TO CAIRO. 433 



Chiperoni, which hud previously, 1 believe, only been visited by 

 Messrs. Harrison and Kirl)y, the well-known big game hunters, is 0,000 

 feet high, and a conspicuous landmark for many miles round. The 

 main peak, with a broad terrace 500 feet from the summit, is situjited 

 in the east side of a huge basin formed by surrounding peaks, the chief 

 of which is Makumbi on the northwest. The bottom of the basin is a 

 forest-clad plateau about 2.000 feet a))out the surrounding plains. The 

 mass is drained by the Ruo, Liadzi, Zitembi, Machinjiri, and Misongwe, 

 all of which flow into the Shire. The inhabitants, who have a supreme 

 contempt for the Portuguese, their nominal masters, are a branch of 

 the Wakunda, and are possessed of domestic swine and pigeons, and 

 the3' cultivate the pineapple and rice, besides the ordinary grains of 

 the country — millet and maize. They sufl'er much from goiter, and I 

 observed many albinos. The results of inbreeding, inevitable from the 

 isolation of families in mountainous countries, such as leprosy and other 

 diseases, are ver^- noticeable. 



On arrival at Karonga I found that Sharp had left for Ujiji to obtain 

 dhows on Tanganyika. After a fortnight's delay in obtaining porters 

 I followed along the Stevenson road. The march to Kituta. at the 

 south end of Tanganyika, is most uninteresting. However, I broke 

 the monotony by a short trip with Mr. Palmer, the assistant collector 

 at Maml)we, to the Cham])ezi, which is the real source of the Kongo. 

 This district has been recently thoroughly explored l)y Mr. Wallis, 

 who laid the results of his experience before this society. But there 

 was still a portion unknown — the vast swamp that lies at the junction 

 of the Chambezi and its main feeder, the Chosi, known to the natives 

 as Luwala. It is a triangular patch of territory of about 1,500 square 

 miles and quite uninhal)ited, a few natives only coming to flsh as the 

 waters recede after the rains. Unfortunately, the rains had ])roken 

 and we were prevented from penetrating far into the interior by the 

 depth of water. All the streams that flow southeast from the plateau 

 and fall into the Luwala mingle and lose themselves in the swamp and 

 eventually drain out by the Mwenda. 



From Kituta I went to Mtowa. the chief station of the Kongo Free 

 State on Tanganyika, by the small steamer belonging to the African 

 Lakes Corporation, while I sent my boys and the loads to Ujiji^on a 

 dhow that Sharp had sent down. On arrival at Mtowa I found Sharp 

 more dead than alive with fever, in the care of the late Dr. Castcllote, 

 the medical officer of Mr. Mohun's telegraph expedition, who had 

 rescued him from Ujiji, where he had been very ill. Two days later 

 we crossed to Ujiji and, after a few days of the lavish hospitality of 

 Hauptmann Bethe and his colleagues, we collected our safari of one 

 hundred and thirty Manyema carriers and started up the lake l)y land. 

 Sharp got a slight sunstroke and my fever became so bad that we 



