220 LIVINGSTONE'S LAST JOURNEY. 



Preparations were made for a further "land," or we would 

 rather say wading journey, for though all the canoes, except a few 

 reserved for the luggage, were left behind, the water was not. All 

 went fairly well, however, in spite of the gigantic difficulties encount- 

 ered, until the loth of April, when, about midway in the journey 

 along the western bank of the lake, Livingstone succumbed to a 

 severe attack of his complaint, which left him, to quote his own 

 words, "pale, bloodless, and weak from profuse bleeding." 



Surely now he would pause and turn back, that he might at 

 least reach home to die! But no! he allowed himself but two days' 

 rest, and then, staggering to his feet, though he owns he could 

 hardly walk, he "tottered along nearly two hours, and then lay 

 down, quite done. Cooked coffee," he adds — "our last — and went 

 on, but in an hour I was compelled to lie down." 



TENDERLY CARRIED IN A LITTER. 



Unwilling even then to be carried, he yielded at last to the 

 expostulations of his men, and, reclining in a kind of litter suspended 

 on a pole, he was gently borne along to the village of Chinama, and 

 there, "in a garden of durra," the camp was pitched for the night. 

 Beyond on the east stretched "interminable grassy prairies, with 

 lines of trees occupying quarters of miles in breadth." On the west 

 lay the lake connected with so many perils, but which Livingstone 

 even yet hoped to round completely. 



Our hero was ferried over the Lolotikila, was carried over land 

 for a short distance to the south-west, the Lombatwa river was 

 crossed, and, after a "tremendous rain, which burst all the now 

 rotten tents to shreds," three sponges were crossed in rapid succes- 

 sion. Two days later Livingstone rallied sufficiently to mount a 

 donkey, which, strange to say, had survived all the dangers of the 

 journey from Unyanyembe, and came in sight of the Lavusi hills — 

 a relief to the eye, he tells us, after all the flat upland traversed. 



Following the course of the Lulimala till they came to a reach 

 where the current was interrupted by numerous little islands, the 

 party found Kalunganjova awaiting them on a little knoll, and under 

 his superintendence the embarkation proceeded rapidly, whilst 



