WAHUMA HERDSMEN. 37 



Dracaenas and aloes grew near the house, and colocasias 

 surrounded it. I noticed for the first time here, and often 

 subsequently, that on the under surface of the colocasia leaves 

 there is a blackish green lobe-shaped excrescence, chiefly along 

 the ribs of the leaves. Hardly a leaf was free from it, and 

 yet the plant did not seem to be affected by the parasite, but 

 was in a very flourishing condition, which was probably due 

 very much to the frequent trenching of the earth around it. 

 In my opinion the roots of the colocasias afford the most tasty 

 vegetable to be found in Central Africa. 



There was no change in the landscape during the following 

 march, which led through the wet, muddy bottom of the valley 

 between two parallel ranges of hills. Swamps with elegant date 

 palms, hills which transversely cross the path or run alongside 

 of it, banana groves, and houses, succeeded each other in motley 

 sequence. In the middle of one of the swamps the sound of a 

 big kettledrum, which signals the approach of a person of rank, 

 was heard, and shortly after, Matongali Nyakabua, chief of all 

 the Wahuma herdsmen in Mreko's district, passed us after a 

 short greeting. His people, with spears, and bows and arrows 

 (very seldom seen in Uganda), carried on their heads their 

 chief's baggage carefully wrapped up in bark mats and skins. 

 Soon aiterwards the village of Irkabwe was passed, and its in- 

 habitants did not run away, whereas hitherto all except Mreko's 

 people had fled before us. At last we reached Guru, where 

 we halted for the night, as it threatened to rain. I was to 

 enjoy the luxury of a house that night, but had first to receive 

 Mtesa's messengers, who brought me his greetings, and after 

 resting for a moment, took their departure. According to their 

 account, the rain was pouring down in torrents every day at 

 Mtesa's, and the whole country was flooded, which I could easily 

 believe, because it had only rained here four times that day, and 

 yet we had been wading half the way in water breast high. 

 The seams of my boots were splitting open, as the constant 

 wet had caused the thread to rot. 



In spite of repeated calls, the people only made their appear- 

 ance this morning after I had sent for them three or four times, 

 and even then they hesitated a long time before starting, because 

 the sun had not risen high enough to warm the water through 



