INTRODUCTORY SKETCH OF THE AUTHOR. IX . 



20° S., and was the first European to enter that field in which 

 Dr. Livingstone has since achieved so much renown. In fact, 

 the Bamangwato country, which is about two hundred miles 

 to the north-west of the frontier missionary station of Kolo- 

 beug, is but a short distance from the great lake N'gami, 

 which Dr. Livingstone afterwards discovered. Mr.. Gumming 

 made five journeys into the interior, and by his tact and fear- 

 lessness no doubt smoothed the way of the explorers who 

 succeeded him. 



On these journeys he kept a journal of his exploits and 

 adventures, noting them down upon the spot, while the 

 impression was yet fresh in his mind. His work thus pos- 

 sesses an air of reality, which brings the scenes vividly before 

 our eyes, as we read, and fully atones for any lack of grace 

 \n his style. " The hand, wearied all day with grasping the 

 rifle," he says, " is not the best suited for wielding the pen." 

 But if the hand is weary, the hunter's heart is not ; and the 

 relish with which he relates his deeds of butchery fascinates, 

 while it often shocks the reader. We see the savage rather 

 than the sportsman, and this rude, unreserved, yet wonder- 

 fully graphic and picturesque language, is the best evidence 

 of the honesty of the narrator. Mr. Gumming has frequently 

 been accused of exaggeration, and many of his exploits are 

 truly of an astounding character ; but the life of every 

 Rocky Mountain trapper presents incidents as remarkable, 

 and we see no reason for doubting his veracity. Those who 

 know the man personally, have assured us that they place 

 implicit faith in his narrative. The museum of trophies, 

 which he has exhibited in London, for the last four or five 

 years, furnishes additional confirmation of his inarvellous 



