272 SHEAKONDO AND HIS PEOPLE. Chap. XV. 



my little tent in the morning, they were sitting the pictures of 

 abject sorrow. I asked if we were to be guided by dreams, or by 

 the authority I derived from Sekeletu, and ordered them to load 

 the boats at once ; they seemed ashamed to confess their fears ; 

 the Makololo picked up courage and upbraided the others for 

 having such superstitious views, and said tins was always their 

 way ; if even a certain bird called to them, they would turn back 

 from an enterprise, saying it was unlucky. They entered the 

 canoes at last, and were the better of a little scolding for being 

 inclined to put dreams before authority. It rained all the morn- 

 ing, but about eleven we reached the village of Sheakondo, on a 

 small stream named Lonkonye. We sent a message to the 

 bead-man, who soon appeared with two wives, bearing handsome 

 presents of manioc : Sheakondo could speak the language of the 

 Barotse well, and seemed awe-struck when told some of the 

 " words of God." He manifested no fear, always spoke frankly, 

 and when he made an asseveration, did so by simply pointing up 

 to the sky above him. The Balonda cultivate the manioc, or 

 cassava, extensively ; also dura, ground-nuts, beans, maize, sweet 

 potatoes, and yams, here called " lekoto," but as yet we see only 

 the outlying villages. 



The people who came with Sheakondo to our bivouac, had 

 their teeth filed to a point by way of beautifying them, though 

 those wlrich were left untouched were always the whitest ; they 

 are generally tattooed in various parts, but chiefly on the ab- 

 domen : the skin is raised in small elevated cicatrices, each 

 nearly half an inch long and a quarter of an inch in diameter, so 

 that a number of them may constitute a star, or other device. 

 The dark colour of the skin prevents any colouring matter being 

 deposited in these figures, but they love much to have the whole 

 surface of their bodies anointed with a comfortable varnish of 

 oil. In their unassisted state they depend on supplies of oil 

 from the Palma-Christi, or castor-oil-plant, or from various other 

 oliferous seeds, but they are all excessively fond of clarified butter 

 or ox fat. Sheakondo's old wife presented some manioc-roots, 

 and then politely requested to be anointed with butter : as I had 

 been bountifully supplied by the Makololo, I gave her as much as 

 would suffice, and as they have little clotliing, I can readily 

 believe that she felt her comfort greatly enhanced thereby. 



