1 6 MATABELE LAND. 
extracts from letters, sent home about this time by 
Frank Oates and his brother from Bamangwato, 
give some further details of the journey up to this 
point, and of the future plans and arrangements 
of the party. W. E. Oates writes as follows on 
July 30th : — 
" We got here yesterday afternoon all right, 
though for the last four days there has been scarcely 
any water on the road. When we left the Crocodile 
River (on the 25th) we filled our water-casks, and 
the next night got to some brackish water, which 
the oxen drank. We trekked all the following 
day and half through the night, when we reached 
some water-pits made by the Kafirs, from which the 
water had to be ladled out in buckets for the oxen. 
We had then about 25 miles to go without water 
to get here, which took us two days, all through 
heavy sand, through which the oxen go about two 
miles an hour. This is a wretched place ; an im- 
mense number of Kafir huts, and a few stores be- 
longing to white men. The name of the place is 
Shoshong, and the king, Sekomi, lives here. He is 
a hideous old nigger, and this morning came down 
to our waggons, to beg coffee and sugar. He had 
about a dozen dirty old wretches with him, who car- 
ried jackals' tails, and attend him whenever he goes 
in state. He jumped up on Frank's waggon, and 
refused to depart until he had had some coffee 
given him, which Frank gave him to get rid of him. 
I offered him a bright green scarf I had, but after 
examining it carefully he returned it to rne. . . . 
