ISLANDS — THE BANYETI. 117 



We proceeded rapidly up the river, and I felt the plea- 

 sure of looking on lands which had never been seen by a 

 European before. The river is, indeed, a magnificent one. 

 often more than a mile broad, and adorned with many 

 islands of from three to five miles in length. Both islands 

 and banks are covered with forests, and most of the trees 

 on the brink of the water send down roots from their 

 branches like the banian, or Ficvs Indica. The islands at 

 a little distance seem great rounded masses of sylvan vege- 

 tation reclining on the bosom of the glorious stream. The 

 beauty of the scenery of some of the islands is greatly in- 

 creased by the date-palm, with its gracefully-curved fronds 

 and refreshing light-green color, near the bottom of the 

 picture, and the lofty palmyra towering far above, and 

 casting its feathery foliage against a cloudless sky. It 

 being winter, we had the strange coloring on the banks 

 which many parts of African landscape assume. The 

 country adjacent to the river is rocky and undulating, 

 abounding in elephants and all other large game, except 

 leches and nakongs, which seem generally to avoid stony 

 ground. The soil is of a reddish color, and very fertile, as 

 is attested by the great quantity of grain raised annual^ 

 by the Banyeti. A great manv villages of this poor and 

 very industrious people are situated on both banks of the 

 river: they are expert hunters of the hippopotami and 

 other animals, and very proficient in the manufacture of 

 articles of wood and iron. The whole of this part of the 

 country being infested with the tsetse, they are unable to 

 rear domestic animals. This may have led to their skill 

 in handicraft works. Some make large wooden vessels 

 with very neat lids, and wooden bowls of all sizes; and, 

 since the idea of sitting on stools has entered the Makololo 

 mind, they have shown great taste in the different forms 

 given to the legs of these pieces of furniture. 



Other Banyeti, or Manyeti, as they are called, make neat 

 and strong baskets of the split roots of a certain tree, 

 while others excel in pottery and iron. I cannot find that 



