Table Mou7itain — Mozambique Island. 241 



first view of the east coast of Africa, and proved to be Table 

 Mountain, a hill two thousand feet high, and situated some twelve 

 or fifteen miles inland. Being of such a height it was visible to 

 us from a distance of fifty miles, when nothing was to be seen 

 of the coast itself or of the intervening lowlands. Shortly before 

 dusk we steamed up to the north side of Mozambique Island, 

 and anchored for the night in an open roadstead, whence, on the 

 following morning, we moved into the inner anchorage. 



Mozambique Island has been in the possession of the Portuguese 

 since the middle of the fifteenth century. About the year 1505 

 they commenced to build a large fort on the northern extremity 

 of the island. It was designed on a scale of great magnitude, 

 and although constructed entirely of stone, and entailing an 

 immense amount of labour, was completed within a period of 

 about seven years. Having then by means of this stronghold 

 established themselves securely and made this island a base of 

 operations for further conquests, they began to anne.x nominally 

 a great extent of territory along the neighbouring coast of Eastern 

 Africa. For the next two hundred years, or thereabouts, most 

 of the trade of the coast passed through Mozambique, and the 

 position was therefore of great importance, both in a commercial 

 and political point of view. The produce consisted of ivory, 

 cocoa-nut oil, india-rubber, gold, amber, and calumba root. Of 

 late years Zanzibar has monopolized most of the East African 

 trade, and, consequently, Mozambique has been losing its impor- 

 tance, and has now almost ceased to be a centre of commercial 

 industry. Indeed, the only African export of any moment which 

 now passes through Mozambique is india-rubber, which is said to 

 be of good quality, and of which large supplies are forthcoming. 



The coast tribes have never properly fraternized with the 

 Portuguese, and although a large force of troops is maintained 

 at the fort, the few colonists who now reside on the mainland are 

 practically at the mercy of the natives. At present, a large tribe, 

 the Macolos, hostile to the Portuguese, and numbering about 



16 



