INTRODUCTION. 5 



yet practising that silliest of all hypocrisies, the endeavour 

 to appear worse than they are, accept and publish the mere 

 brandy-and-water twaddle of immoral traders, against a body 

 of men who, as a whole, are an honour to human kind. In 

 modern missionary literature, now widely spread, we have a 

 record which will probably outlive all misrepresentation ; 

 and it is much to be regretted that there is no available 

 Catholic literature of the same nature, and that none of the 

 translations which may have been made into the native 

 tongues can now be consulted. We cannot believe that 

 these good men would risk then- lives for the unholy gains 

 which, even were they lawful, by the rules of their order 

 they could not enjoy ; but it would be extremely interesting 

 to all their successors to know exactly what were the real 

 causes of their failure in perpetuating the faith. 



In order that the following narrative may be clearly under- 

 stood, it is necessary to call to mind some things which took 

 place previous to the Zambesi Expedition being sent out. 

 Most geographers are aware that, before the discovery of Lake 

 Kgami and the well watered country in which the Makololo 

 dwell, the idea prevailed that a large part of the interior of 

 Africa consisted of sandy deserts, into which rivers ran and 

 were lost. During my journey in 1852-6, from sea to sea, 

 across the south intertropical part of the continent, it was 

 found to be a well watered country, with large tracts of 

 fine fertile soil covered with forest, and beautiful grassy 

 valleys, occupied by a considerable population ; and one of 

 the most wonderful waterfalls in the world was brought 

 to light. The peculiar form of the continent was then 

 ascertained to be an elevated plateau, somewhat depressed 

 in the centre, and with fissures in the sides by which the 

 rivers escaped to the sea ; and this great fact in physical 



