Chap. XXXI. GOLD-WASHING. G37 



the Portuguese are a mere remnant of what they formerly 

 owned. 



When visiting the hot fountain, I examined what were formerly 

 the gold-washings in the rivulet Mokoroze, which is nearly on the 

 16th parallel of latitude. The banks are covered with large groves 

 of fine mango-trees, among which the Portuguese lived while super- 

 intending the washing for the precious metal. The process of 

 washing is very laborious and tedious. A quantity of sand is put 

 into a wooden bowl with water ; a half rotatory motion is given to 

 the dish, which causes the coarser particles of sand to collect on 

 one side of the bottom. These are carefully removed with the 

 hand, and the process of rotation renewed until the whole of the 

 sand is taken away, and the gold alone remains. It is found in 

 very minute scales, and, unless I had been assured to the contrary, 

 I should have taken it to be mica, for, knowing the gold to be of 

 greater specific gravity than the sand, I imagined that a stream of 

 water would remove the latter and leave the former ; but here 

 the practice is, to remove the whole of the sand by the hand. 

 This process was, no doubt, a profitable one to the Portuguese, and 

 it is probable that, with the improved plan by means of mercury, 

 the sands would be lucrative. I had an opportunity of examining 

 the gold-dust from different parts to the east and north-east of 

 Tete. There are six well-known washing-places. These are 

 called Mashinga, Shindundo, Missala, Kapata, Mano, and Jawa. 

 From the description of the rock I received, I suppose gold is 

 found both in clay-shale and quartz. At the range Musliinga to 

 the N.N.W. the rock is said to be so soft, that the women pound 

 it into powder in wooden mortars previous to washing. 



Bound towards the westward, the old Portuguese indicate a 

 station which was near to Zumbo on the river Panyame, and called 

 Dambarari, near which much gold was found. Further west, lay 

 the now unknown kingdom of Abutua, which was formerly famous 

 for the metal ; and then, coming round towards the east, we have 

 the gold- washings of the Mashona, or Baziziilu, and further east, that 

 of Manica, where gold is found much more abundantly than in any 

 other part, and which has been supposed by some to be the Ophir 

 of King Solomon. I saw the gold from this quarter as large as 

 grains of wheat; that found in the rivers which run into the 

 coalfield, being in very minute scales. If we place one leg of the 



