230 THE QUANGO. 



fluence on my mind, and more especially as it was impos- 

 sible to make any allowance for the Bashinje such as 1 

 was willing to award to the Chiboque. They saw that we 

 had nothing to give, nor would they be benefited in the 

 least by enforcing the impudent order to return whence 

 we had come. They were adding insult to injury, and this 

 put us all into a fighting spirit, and, as nearly as we could 

 judge, we expected to be obliged to cut our way through 

 the Bashinje next morning. 



3d April. — As soon as day dawned we were astir, and, 

 setting off in a drizzling rain, passed close to the village. 

 This rain probably damped the ardor of the robbers. 

 We, however, expected to be fired upon from every clump 

 of trees, or from some of the rocky hillocks among which 

 we were passing ; and it was only after two hours' march 

 that we began to breathe freely, and my men remarked, 

 in thankfulness, "We are children of Jesus." We con- 

 tinued our course, notwithstanding the rain, across the 

 bottom of the Quango valley, which we found broken by 

 clay shale rocks jutting out, though lying nearly horizon- 

 tally. We passed many villages during this drenching, 

 one of which possessed a flock of sheep; and after six 

 hours we came to a stand near the river Quango, (lat. 9° 

 53' S., long. 18° 37' E.,) which may be called the boundary 

 of the Portuguese claims to territory on the west. As I 

 had now no change of clothing, I was glad to cower under 

 the shelter of my blanket, thankful to God for his good- 

 ness in bringing us so far without losing one of the 

 party. 



4th April. — We were now on the banks of the Quango, a 

 river one hundred and fifty yards wide, and very deep. The 

 water was discolored, — a circumstance which we had ob- 

 served in no other river in Londa or in the Makololo 

 country. This fine river flows among extensive meadows 

 clothed with gigantic grass and reeds, and in a direction 

 nearly north. 



We were advised not to sleep near it; but, as we were 



