DISCOVEKY OF THE VICTORIA N'YANZA. 67 



the borders of the lake is perfectly marvellous ; the 

 grass, bushes, and everything growing there, are lit- 

 erally covered with them. As I walked along its 

 shores, disturbing the vegetation, they rose in clouds, 

 and kept tapping, in dozens at a time, against my 

 hands and face, in the most disagreeable manner. 

 Unlike the Indian mosquito, they are of a light dun- 

 brown colour. The Muanza dogs are the largest that 

 I have yet seen in Africa, and still are not more than 

 twenty inches high ; but Mahaya says the Ukerewe 

 dog is a fine animal, and quite different from any on 

 the mainland. There are but very few canoes about 

 here, and those are of miserable construction, and 

 only fitted for the purpose they turn them to catch- 

 ing fish close to the shore. The paddle the fisher- 

 men use is a sort of mongrel breed between a spade 

 and a shovel. The fact of there being no boats of 

 any size here, must be attributed to the want of mate- 

 rial for constructing them. On the route from Kaze 

 there are no trees of any girth, save the calabash, 

 whose wood is too soft for the purpose of boat-build- 

 ing. I hear that the island of Ukerewe has two sul- 

 tans besides Machunda, and that it is very fertile and 

 populous. Mahaya says, " All the tribes, from the 

 Wasukumas (or Northern Wanyamuezis, Sukuma 

 meaning the north), along the south and east of the 

 lake, are so savage and inhospitable to travellers, that 

 it would be impossible to go amongst them unless 

 accompanied by a large and expensive escort. 



