GEOGRAPHICAL PROGRESS AND DISCOVERY. 



403 



in t\vo days, and in two days more to arrive in 

 Ubena. Tho country which this route would 

 take him through was reported to bo well peo- 

 pled and well supplied with food. 



Tho traveler Otto Schatt, who was sent out 

 on an expedition to Central Atrica by the Ger- 

 man African Society, has made some very in- 

 teresting discoveries in the basin of the Congo. 

 Between the two known affluents of the Con- 

 go, the Quango and the Kasai, he discovered 

 four others, whose names are the Quengo, the 

 Maratn, the Cinlu, and the Kwanger. He re- 

 connoitred a portion of the Kasai River which 

 had not before been visited, that between the 

 eighth and ninth parallels. The lake which was 

 called Sankora by the English explorers, and 

 is named Mucaruba by the natives, is situated 

 on the fifth parallel of south latitude. South 

 of this lake there lives a tribe of dwarfs. The 

 tribes dwelling along the banks of the Quengo 

 and the Kasai are cannibals. The traveler, be- 

 ing forbidden by the Muata Janva to cross the 

 Loulona River, returned to Loanda. 



Interesting accounts of the political and 

 physical condition of the southeastern inte- 

 rior of Africa, the same countries which were 

 traversed by Serpa Pinto, and which have 

 been studied by one of the most deserving of 

 modern explorers, Dr. Emil Holub, are con- 

 tained in the papers of the late Captain Pat- 

 terson, who was sent by Sir Bartle Frere in 

 1878 to Lobengule, the King of the Matabeli, 

 as an envoy, and who died from drinking the 

 water of a spring which was probably poi- 

 soned for the purpose of killing game. There 

 was suspicion that he and his companions 

 were the victims of a murderous conspira- 

 cy. Matabeli-land is a large kingdom with a 

 strong and tyrannical political system, contain- 

 ing about 200,000 inhabitants, who are spread 

 over a fertile and well- watered territory of 

 about 150,000 square miles. The boundaries 

 are the Zambesi River on the north, the 

 Shasha on the south, the Sabia on the oast, and 

 the Zonga on the west. The population is di- 

 vided into three classes. The Abazunzi, de- 

 scended from the Zooloo conquerors of the 

 country, form the aristocracy, and are about 

 one fourth of the population, and the Abeutla, 

 the sons of Bechuana prisoners taken on the 

 march into these regions from the southeast, 

 form another fourth. The Araacholi, the ori- 

 ginal inhabitants conquered by the late King 

 Masilikatzo, composed of different tribes, are 

 now the servants of the conquerors. The peo- 

 ple are assigned to their settlements by the 

 Kin-r, who collects about him the young men 

 of the country, and, after putting them through 

 a course of military training, settles them over 

 the country, each regiment, after it has passed 

 through its four years' drill, being made the 

 nucleus of a new town. The principal occupa- 

 tion of the men is warfare with the neighboring 

 tribes. The women till the soil, which is very 

 productive. They possess a few cattle, goats, 

 and sheep. They are ruthless and cruel in their 



wars, slaying all but the children, whom they 

 carry off as slaves. Tho King rules with a 

 rod of iron, indicting the punishment of death 

 for the slightest offense. He visits the same 

 dread penalty upon all who threaten to become 

 too powerful by amassing property or advanc- 

 ing in any way. The governors of towns, 

 called indunat, report all offenses to the King, 

 who reserves to himself in all cases the power 

 of passing judgment. The capital, Gubulu- 

 wayo, situated near the center of the kingdom, 

 is only occasionally the residence of the King. 

 The greater portion of the year he wanders 

 about the kingdom, living in temporary towns 

 constructed at his pleasure. During the life 

 of Masilikatze, his father, and for some time 

 after he became King, Lobengule affected the 

 society of white people and wore the European 

 dress. Of late years he has adopted the ways 

 and habits of a savage, and does all that he 

 dares openly and secretly to exclude the whites 

 and restrict their influence. The whole country 

 of Bamangwato on the west, as far as Lake 

 Ngami, is claimed by the Matabeli by right of 

 conquest. They are constantly encroaching 

 also on the territory of their neighbors on the 

 east. The Banyaie, a southeastern tribe, who 

 occupy the Mashona Mountains, are able to suc- 

 cessfully withstand them. The Mashona can 

 offer no resistance. They are a peaceful and 

 industrious race, skilled in the working of 

 iron, in making excellent baskets, and in weav- 

 ing a good cloth from the cotton which they 

 grow. They occupy a fertile, well-watered 

 country, with large level plateaus like the 

 Orange Free State. In the Mashona and Tati 

 districts gold is found in quantities and iron is 

 abundant. The vegetation of Matabeli-land is 

 very luxuriant. Mapene, mimosa, and baobab 

 trees attain an enormous size. There are large 

 and fine forests. The breadfruit-tree, palms, 

 cotton, olive, and numerous wild fruits grow 

 prolifically. The people of Bamangwato, ruled 

 by a Christian chief, are rapidly taking on the 

 customs of civilization. The country is com- 

 paratively barren, the soil sandy, and covered 

 with stunted bush. The Limpopo, Zambesi, 

 and Zouga traverse the country, as well as the 

 Tati, Shasha, and Makalapogo, which are sand- 

 rivers in which water can only be obtained in 

 the dry season by digging. The inhabitants 

 outside the towns in Bamangwato are of two 

 classes, the Bakala and the Mnsawa, the latter 

 being slaves without the right to own prop- 

 erty. Shoshong, the capital, once contained 

 80,000 inhabitants; but, owing to the hostile 

 inroads of the Matabeli, its population is re- 

 duced to 10,000. The people often emigrate to 

 the other Bechuana nations. The women culti- 

 vate gardens near the town and the men follow 

 the chase. They are temperate in their habits. 

 The European dress is common. Khnme, the 

 chief, is a wise ruler, sincerely attached to 

 principles of humanity and justice. The coun- 

 try over which Khame claims jurisdiction is 

 an irregular triangle, with the Makarakari salt 



