118 EXrEDITION INTO 



to sacrifice to circumstances our thirst for g-eogTaphical 

 discovery beyond the tropic of Capricorn. 



In order that there mig'ht be no excuse for dela^dng* 

 our departure^ we sent Baba in the afternoon to ask. 

 the king*'s permission to pitch the '^^ house" in his kraal. 

 He was taking- a siesta in Mr. Bain's wag'g-on^ but came 

 out immediately in hig-h spirits^ and pointed out the spot 

 upon which he had determined that it should be erected. 

 Whilst this was being* done^ I had an opportunity of lei- 

 surel}^ examining* the imperial kraal. The plan of the 

 enclosure was circular^ a thick and hig-h thorn fence sm*- 

 rounding" an area which was strewed with the skulls, paws, 

 and tails of lions, some of them quite fresh, others bleached 

 by long- exposure to the sun. Below the wag-gon I ob- 

 served a pile of old muskets, probably some that had been 

 taken on the defeat of Barend Barend's Griquas in 1831. 

 The royal lodg-e, and the apartments of the ladies, were 

 shut off by a roug-h irreg'ular palisade ; and a portion of 

 this enclosure was surrounded by a very closely woven 

 wattle fence, having- only one aperture of barely sufficient 

 dimensions to admit the king-'s portly person upon all fours. 

 The space was smeared with a mixture of mud and cow- 

 dung-, resembling- that used in all parts of India for similar 

 purposes. In the centre stood a circular, plum-pudding-- 

 shaped hut, about twelve feet in diameter, and perhaps 

 four feet in heig-ht, substantially thatched with rush matting-, 

 and exhibiting' in its economy the most philosophic in- 

 difference to cleanliness and comfort. A low step led up 

 to the entrance, which was very confined, and provided 

 with a shding- wicket. The floor was sunk to the depth 

 of three feet below the surface of the ground, and two 

 more steps led down to it. The furniture consisted exclu- 

 sively of calabashes of beer rang-ed round the wall. 



Thirty ladies only of the imperial serag-Iio were present 



