n8 ADVENTURES OF AN ELEPHANT HUNTER CH. 



that exists. In by-gone days, they used to regard 

 the thickly-populated and fertile country fringing 

 the lake shore, and that forming the basin of 

 the Shire River as their happy hunting grounds ; 

 for in these districts were to be obtained all 

 that their hearts coveted cattle and slaves and 

 concubines ! Hunting and slaving along the Shire 

 River, however, ceased to exist on the advent 

 of British rule, and now the operations of these 

 lawless chieftains are confined to the territory 

 running from the eastern shore of Lake Nyassa 

 westwards to the Lugenda River, and far northwards 

 to where the Rovuma divides Portuguese from 

 German East Africa. I know, for an absolute fact, 

 that Mataka's people still combine with Malinganiro's 

 and carry out pillaging expeditions against the 

 natives in Melanji's country, their forays extending 

 even to Unangu, where the University Mission has 

 a station in charge of one of its native missionaries. 

 And that the reader may thoroughly appreciate the 

 enormity of such a horror, I shall endeavour to 

 describe a typical raid, which actually came 

 under my own personal observation and that of my 

 friend, R. Battley, at Kisumba, some five or six 

 miles from the Portuguese Collectorate at Matengula 

 on Lake Nyassa. 



It is night, as dark as an African night can be, 

 and over all the hush of a wonderful peace, broken 



