THE PORTUGUESE AS TENANTS. 23 I 



position the Portuguese occupy in reference to this 

 rich and extensive tract of country. Heretofore 

 none of the natives I had encountered knew anything 

 of Europeans residing near them ; not so with the 

 intelligent strangers who were now my visitors, and 

 whose home, as far as I could judge, was several days 

 journey to the north of my present position. Sunday 

 acted as interpreter, and although far from efficiently 

 he performed this duty, still, my guests having a fair 

 smattering of Matabelu (Zulu), my faithful hench- 

 man was able to make himself intelligible, and to 

 understand. " Why not take your ivory to the 

 white men that live there (pointing to the north) and 

 there (pointing to the east) ? they would buy it," I 

 enquired. 



[By referring to a map of this section of the 

 country it will be observed that I indicated as far 

 as possible the direction of Tete and Sofala ; the 

 first, situated on the Zambesi River, the last, 

 upon the western seaboard of the Mozambique 

 Channel.] 



After a great deal of jabbering and the exercise 

 of much patience I learned the following. The 

 Matabele having gone up to Tete to collect the 

 annual subsidy paid by the Portuguese for temporary 

 residence there, would be certain to appropriate their 

 ivory, and not improbably take some of their lives 

 for presuming to leave their country to trade in a 

 commodity which was considered by their King as 



