SEKELETU OBTAINS CHIEFTAINSHIP. 197 



that dark yellow or coffee-and-milk color, of which the Mal*)lolo 

 are so proud, because it distinguishes them considerably from the 

 black tribes on the rivers. He is about five feet seven in height, 

 and neither so good looking nor of so much ability as his father 

 was, but is equally friendly to the English. Sebituane installed 

 his daughter Mamochisane into the chieftainship long before his 

 death, but, with all his acuteness, the idea of her having a hus- 

 band who should not be her lord did not seem to enter his mind. 

 He wished to make her his successor, probably in imitation of 

 some of the negro tribes with whom he had come into contact ; 

 but, being of the Bechuana race, he could not look upon the hus- 

 band except as the woman's lord ; so he told her all the men were 

 hers — she might take any one, but ought to keep none. In fact, 

 he thought she might do with the men what he could do with the 

 women ; but these men had other wives ; and, according to a 

 saying in the country, " the tongues of women can not be gov- 

 erned," they made her miserable by their remarks. One man 

 whom she chose was even called her wife, and her son the child 

 of Mamochisane's wife ; but the arrangement was so distasteful 

 to Mamochisane herself that, as soon as Sebituane died, she said 

 she never would consent to govern the Makololo so long as she 

 had a brother living. Sekeletu, being afraid of another mem- 

 ber of the family, Mpepe, who had pretensions to the chief- 

 tainship, urged his sister strongly to remain as she had always 

 been, and allow him to support her authority by leading the 

 Makololo when they went forth to war. Three days were spent 

 in public discussion on the point. Mpepe insinuated that Seke- 

 letu was not the lawful son of Sebituane, on account of his moth- 

 er having been the wife of another chief before her marriage with 

 Sebituane ; Mamochisane, however, upheld Sekeletu's claims, and 

 at last stood up in the assembly and addressed him with a wom- 

 anly gush of tears: "I have been a chief only because my fa- 

 ther wished it. I always would have preferred to be married and 

 have a family like other women. You, Sekeletu, must be chief, 

 and build up your father's house." This was a death-blow to the 

 hopes of Mpepe. 



As it will enable the reader to understand the social and polit- 

 ical relations of these people, I will add a few more particulars 

 respecting Mpepe. Sebituane, having no son to take the leader- 



