li-i FROM OLENDA TO MATOLO. Chap. VIII. 



but. to my proposition that I should remain behind 

 and take cai-e of Macon dai they o^sposed a decided 

 neo-ative, on account of the risk of further robberies 

 if I sent the goods on without accompanying- them 

 myself. The poor lad himself prayed us to leave 

 him. " All your porters will desert you," said he, 

 "if 3'ou do not go on, and you will never reach 

 Mayolo." We finally decided to leave Igalo with 

 him at a plantation in the neighbourhood, and On- 

 donga promised, with every appearance of good will, 

 to send people to take care of him. 



We now continued our march. The country 

 became more and more picturesque at every step. 

 We were seven days on the road between the slave 

 village and Mayolo ; but this included considerable 

 stoppages, for the distance, in a straight line, is only 

 a little over thirty-five miles. The road is a narrow 

 track through a most varied and picturesque but 

 dense forest, clothing the hills and valleys of the 

 mountain range, which extends in a north and south 

 direction, between the Ashira and the Otando 

 territories. I call this the Otando range ; it is not a 

 continuous ridge, but is broken up into a great 

 number of hills, of greater or less elevation, Avith 

 steep slopes and narrow valleys ; the highest eleva- 

 tion at which I crossed the range Avas about .1,200 

 feet. The hills are of piimitive rock ; and nume- 

 rous blocks of quartz lay streAved along the path 

 nearly all the way. Quartz crystals also covered 

 the beds of the sparkling brooks that floAved at the 

 bottom of every valley, all running in a north- 

 erly direction. The forest did not contain many 



