INTRODUCTION. 3 



known on the Malabar Coast, — and there also peacocks and 

 sandal- wood are met with in abundance. The Portuguese, like 

 some others of more modern times, were led to believe that 

 Sofalla, because sometimes pronounced Zophar by the Arabs, 

 from being the lowest or most southerly port they visited, 

 was identical with the Ophir alluded to in Sacred History. 



Eastern Africa had been occupied from the most remote 

 times by traders from India and the Bed Sea. Vasco da 

 Gama, in 1497-8, found them firmly established at Mosam- 

 bique, and, after reaching India, he turned with longing 

 eyes from Calicut towards SofaEa, and actually visited it in 

 1502. As the Scriptural Ophir, it was expected to be the 

 most lucrative of all the Portuguese stations; and, under 

 the impression that an important settlement could be esta- 

 blished there, the Portuguese conquered, at great loss of 

 both men and money, the district in which the gold-washings 

 were situated ; but, in the absence of all proper machinery, 

 a vast amount of labour returned so small an amount of 

 gain, that they abandoned them in disgust. 



The next expedition, consisting of three ships and a 

 thousand men, mostly gentlemen volunteers, left Lisbon in 

 1569 for the conquest of the gold mines or washings of the 

 Chief of Monomotapa, west of Tette, and of those in Manica, 

 still further west, but in a more southerly direction ; and also 

 to find a route to the west coast. In this last object they 

 failed ; and to this day it has been accomplished by only 

 one European, and that an Englishman. The expedition 

 was commanded by Francisco Barreto, and abundantly sup- 

 plied with horses, asses, camels, and provisions. Ascend- 

 ing the Zambesi as far as Senna, they found many Arab 

 and other traders already settled there, who received the 

 strangers with great hospitality. The horses, however, 



b2 



