The Eastern Congo 



and the way long and " fly " infested. One of our wild 

 Wahd porters accompanied her, to whom a bicycle was 

 a great novelty. This black gentleman amused us con- 

 siderably, for he would insist on holding her back wheel 

 whilst my wife mounted. Being unaware at first that the 

 wheel was so held, she was astonished to find that her bicycle 

 would not go when she got on, but when she got off to look 

 nothing appeared to be wrong. This sort of thing occurred 

 once or twice until, happening to look round sharply, she 

 discovered the native holding on like grim death to the back 

 tyre, while she attempted to start off in the usual way. 



Towards evening, very wearily, we mounted the steep 

 ascent to the Kasulu fortress. The first view one gains 

 of this astonishing structure from the ridge to the south 

 gives an impression of unreality, especidly when one sees 

 it at a distance with the sun behind it ; one expects it to 

 fade away into the mists of the valley from which it rises. 

 Built in white-washed cement and stone, like a mediaeval 

 castle, on a prominence which rises abruptly from the 

 surrounding country, it embodies the German military method 

 of colonisation. In direct contrast to these imposing structures 

 which may be found throughout late German East Africa, 

 are the unpretentious, often homely, " bomas " to be found 

 just across the boundary in Northern Rhodesia or Uganda, 

 telling of a more paternal and withal more fearless method 

 — in other words the British method — that scorns to build 

 even so much as a palisade against attack. 



Kasulu, which is in the Ujiji district, was at the time 

 of our visit one of the principal centres of supply for the 

 Belgian army of occupation stationed at Ujiji and Kigoma. 

 Mr. Pieters, who was the officer in charge, was in the habit 



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