THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 391 



this period some singular ideas entertained by the natives in regard 

 to the hereafter. One portion of primitive belief the continued 

 existence of departed spirits seems to have no connection what- 

 ever with dreams, or, as we should say, with "ghost-seeing;" 

 for great agony is felt in prospect of bodily mutilation or burning 

 of the body after death, as that is believed to render return to 

 one's native land impossible. They feel as if it would shut them 

 off from all intercourse with relatives after death. They would 

 lose the power of doing good to those once loved, and evil to 

 those who deserved their revenge. 



A DEADLY SERPENT KILLED BY A CAT. 



ONE morning a serpent of dark olive color was found dead at 

 Livingstone's door, killed by his pet cat. Puss approaches very 

 cautiously, and strikes her cjaws into the head with a blow 

 delivered as quick as lightning ; then holds the head down with 

 both paws, heedless of the wriggling mass of coils behind it ; she 

 then bites the neck and leaves it, looking with interest to the dis- 

 figured head, as if she knew that therein had lain the hidden 

 power of mischief. 



DOMESTIC LIFE IN AFRICA. 



IN many parts one is struck by the fact of the children having 

 so few games. Life is a serious business, and amusement is 

 derived from imitating the vocations of the parents hut-building, 

 making little gardens, bows and arrows, shields and spears. 

 Elsewhere boys are very ingenious little fellows, and have several 

 games ; they also shoot birds with bows, and teach captured lin- 

 nets to sing. They are expert in making guns and traps for 

 small birds, and in making and using bird-lime. They make 

 play-guns of reed, which go off with a trigger and spring, with a 

 cloud of ashes for smoke. Sometimes they make double-barreled 

 guns of clay, and have cotton-fluff as smoke. The boys shoot 

 locusts with small toy-guns very cleverly. 



HIS LAST EXPLORATION. 



ON the 23d of August the Doctor started on his last explor- 

 ation, pursuing a course south of west until he arrived on the 



