MA MBUEUMA'S VILLAGE AND PEOPLE. 623 



like all others of the same nature, is called Mpata. There is a 

 narrow pathway by the side of the river, but we preferred a more 

 open one in a pass among the hills to the east, which is called Mo- 

 hango. The hills rise to a height of 800 or 1000 feet, and are all 

 covered with trees. The rocks were of various colored mica 

 schist ; and parallel with the Zambesi lay a broad band of gneiss 

 with garnets in it. It stood on edge, and several dikes of basalt, 

 with dolerite, had cut through it. 



Mburuma sent two men as guides to the Loangwa. These men 

 tried to bring us to a stand, at a distance of about six miles from 

 the village, by the notice, " Mburuma says you are to sleep under 

 that tree." On declining to do this, we were told that we must 

 wait at a certain village for a supply of corn. As none appeared 

 in an hour, I proceeded on the march. It is not quite certain 

 that their intentions were hostile, but this seemed to disarrange 

 their plans, and one of them was soon observed running back to 

 Mburuma. They had first of all tried to separate our party by 

 volunteering the loan of a canoe to convey Sekwebu and me, to- 

 gether with our luggage, by way of the river, and, as it was pressed 

 upon us, I thought that this was their design. The next attempt 

 was to detain us in the pass ; but, betraying no suspicion, we civil- 

 ly declined to place ourselves in their power in an unfavorable po- 

 sition. We afterward heard that a party of Babisa traders, who 

 came from the northeast, bringing English goods from Mozam- 

 bique, had been plundered by this same people. 



Elephants were still abundant, but more wild, as they fled with 

 great speed as soon as we made our appearance. The country 

 between Mburuma's and his mother's village was all hilly and 

 very difficult, and prevented us from traveling more than ten 

 miles a day. At the village of Ma Mburuma (mother of Mbu- 

 ruma), the guides, who had again joined us, gave a favorable 

 report, and the women and children did not flee. Here we found 

 that traders, called Bazunga, have been in the habit of coming in 

 canoes, and that I was named as one of them. These I supposed 

 to be half-caste Portuguese, for they said that the hair of their 

 heads and the skin beneath their clothing were different from 

 mine. Ma Mburuma promised us canoes to cross the Loangwa 

 in our front. It was pleasant to see great numbers of men, 

 women, and boys come, without suspicion, to look at the books, 



