sekelenke's present 158 



gone with his villagers to hunt elephants on the right 

 bank of the Leeba, and was now on his way back to 

 Masiko. He sent me a dish of boiled zebra's flesh, and a 

 request that I should lend him a canoe to ferry his wives 

 and family across the river to the bank on which Ave were 

 encamped. Many of Sekelenke's people came to salute the 

 first white man they ever had an opportunity of seeing; 

 but Sekelenke himself did not come near. "We heard he 

 was offended with some of his people for letting me know 

 he was among the company. He said that I should be 

 displeased with him for not coming and making some pre- 

 sent. This was the only instance in which I was shunned 

 in this quarter. 



Sekelenke and his people, twent} T -four in number, defiled 

 past our camp, dairying large bundles of dried elephants' 

 meat. Most of them came to say good-bye, and Sekelenke 

 himself sent to say that he had gone to visit a wife living 

 in the village of Manenko. It was a mere African manoeuvre 

 to gain information, and not to commit himself to either 

 one line of action or another with respect to our visit. As 

 he was probably in the party before us, I replied that it 

 was all right, and when my people came up from Masiko 

 I would go to ruy wife too. 



To our first message offering a visit of explanation to 

 Manenko, we got an answer, with a basket of manioc-roots, 

 that we must remain where we were till she should visit 

 us. Having waited two days already for her, other mes- 

 sengers arrived with orders for me to come to her. After 

 four days of rains and negotiation, I declined going at all, 

 and proceeded up the river to the small stream Makondo, 

 (lat. 18° 23' 12" S.,) which enters the Leeba from the east, 

 and is between twenty and thirty yards broad. 



January 1, 1854. — We had heavy rains almost everyday: 

 indeed, the rainy season had fairly set in. Baskets of the 

 purple fruit called mawa were frequently brought to us by 

 the villagers; not for sale, but from a belief that their 



