370 THE FIGHT AVERTED. 



God : we would not fight till they had struck the first blow. I 

 then sat silent for some time. It was rather trying for me, be- 

 cause I knew that the Chiboque would aim at the white man 

 first ; but I was careful not to appear flurried, and, having four 

 barrels ready for instant action, looked quietly at the savage scene 

 around. The Chiboque countenance, by no means handsome, is 

 not improved by the practice which they have adopted of filing 

 the teeth to a point. The chief and counselors, seeing that they 

 were in more danger than I, did not choose to follow our decision 

 that they should begin by striking the first blow, and then see 

 what we could do, and were perhaps influenced by seeing the air 

 of cool preparation which some of my men displayed at the pros- 

 pect of a work of blood. 



The Chiboque at last put the matter before us in this way: 

 "You come among us in a new way, and say you are quite 

 friendly : how can we know it unless you give us some of your 

 food, and you take some of ours ? If you give us an ox, we 

 will give you whatever you may wish, and then we shall be 

 friends." In accordance with the entreaties of my men, I gave 

 an ox ; and when asked what I should like in return, mentioned 

 food as the thing which we most needed. In the evening Njam- 

 bi sent us a very small basket of meal, and two or three pounds 

 of the flesh of our own ox! with the apology that he had no 

 fowls, and very little of any other food. It was impossible to 

 avoid a laugh at the coolness of the generous creatures. I was 

 truly thankful, nevertheless, that, though resolved to die rather 

 than deliver up one of our number to be a slave, we had so far 

 gained our point as to be allowed to pass on without having shed 

 human blood. 



In the midst of the commotion, several Chiboque stole pieces 

 of meat out of the sheds of my people, and Mohorisi, one of the 

 Makololo, went boldly into the crowd and took back a marrow- 

 bone from one of them. A few of my Batoka seemed afraid, 

 and would perhaps have fled had the affray actually begun, 

 but, upon the whole, I thought my men behaved admirably. 

 They lamented having left their shields at home by command 

 of Sekeletu, who feared that, if they carried these, they might 

 be more disposed to be overbearing in their demeanor to the 

 tribes we should meet. We had proceeded on the principles 



