ZANDE VISITORS. 445 



to be found. The doleb palm appears to be also very rare in 

 Monbuttu, but it is said to be common in the plains of the 

 Meaje and Mabode tribes. 



Tingazi, July 8, 1883. 



If I were to describe to you the road which led me from 

 Bellima to this place, I should tire you just as much as it 

 tired me. Probably with the idea of preventing me seeing his 

 villages, Gambari chose a road which led through the virgin 

 forest, and which at last confused his own guides, so that I 

 was very glad when we hit upon a few Momvu huts in the 

 middle of the forest, and when some of their occupants led us 

 to our small station of Maigo. On our first day's march we 

 forded the Gadda, which flows not far from Bellima ; we then 

 met with a number of its tributaries, often larger than the 

 river itself; fortunately, the water in them was not very high, 

 and, here and there, we found bridges constructed with the 

 boldness of conception well known to you. So all went off 

 well, and my experience is the richer, for I had only seen true 

 virgin forests before in Uganda. 



When we were about an hour's march from Tingazi, we came 

 to the village of Nenja, which is situated on a high hill, and 

 is the residence of Yangara, who received us in a circle of his 

 wives and people. He expressed a wish for us to remain, but 

 we were obliged to decline the invitation, and to continue our 

 journey to the station, where we made, unfortunately, a very 

 short stay, as we had to start on our return journey the 

 very next day. To me the time passed like a dream ; almost 

 too much of it was taken up by visitors from all directions. 

 Let me call to mind the most interesting of them. From the 

 west came the Zande chiefs, Bori, son of Manji, and grandson 

 of Ntikkima-Kifa, who had never entered one of our stations 

 before ; Mbru, a very aged, jovial fellow, with long white hair 

 and a beard dyed red; Masonze, a special friend and host of 

 Dr. Junker ; Mbittima, Wando's eldest son, who has made 

 himself a home among the Abisanga, and in whose favour it 

 may be said that he is totally unlike his father. Bakangai 

 had died a natural death a few days before, and his son, who 

 is under Kanna's immediate protection, seems likely to succeed 



