344 INSTINCT OF TREES. Chap. XVIII. 



moon ; but such was the confusion produced in my mind by 

 the state of my body, that I could scarcely manage, after some 

 hours' trial, to get a lunar observation in which I could repose 

 confidence. The Chihune flows into the Longe, and that into 

 the Chihombo, a feeder of the Kasai. Those who know the 

 difficulties of taking altitudes, times, and distances, and com- 

 mitting all of them to paper, will sympathise with me in this 

 and many similar instances. Whilst at Chihune, the men of a 

 village brought wax for sale, and, on finding that we wished 

 honey, went off and soon brought a hive. All the bees in the 

 country are in possession of the natives, for they place hives 

 sufficient for them all. After having ascertained this, we never 

 attended the call of the honey-guide, for we were sure it would 

 only lead us to a hive which we had no right to touch. The 

 bird continues its habit of inviting attention to the honey, 

 though its services in this district are never actually needed. 

 My Makololo lamented that they never knew before that wax 

 could be sold for anything of value. 



As we traverse a succession of open lawns and deep forests, 

 it is interesting to observe something like instinct developed 

 even in trees. One which, when cut, emits a milky juice, if 

 met with on the open lawns, grows as an ordinary umbrageous 

 tree, and shows no disposition to be a climber ; when planted 

 in a forest it still takes the same form, then sends out a 

 climbing branch, which twines round another tree until it rises 

 thirty or forty feet, or to the level of the other trees, and there 

 spreads out a second crown where it can enjoy a fair share of 

 the sun's rays. In parts of the forest still more dense than this, 

 it assumes the form of a climber only, and at once avails itself 

 of the assistance of a tall neighbour by winding vigorously 

 round it, without attempting to form a lower head. It does 

 not succeed so well as parasites proper, but where forced to 

 contend for space, it may be mistaken for one which is inva- 

 riably a climber. The paths here were very narrow and very 

 much encumbered with gigantic creepers, often as thick as a 

 man's leg. There must be some reason why they prefer, in 

 some districts, to go up trees in the common form of the thread 

 of a screw, rather than in any other. On the one bank of the 

 Chihune they appeared to a person standing opposite them to 



