Chap. II. DIFFICULT TEAVELLING. 59 



potamus flesh. It is a coarse-grained meat, something be- 

 tween pork and beef, — pretty good food when one is hungry 

 and can get nothing better. When we reached the foot of 

 the moimtain named Chipereziwa, whose peq3endicular rocky 

 sides are clothed with many-coloured lichens, our Portuguese 

 companion informed us there were no more obstructions 

 to navigation, the river being all smooth above; he had 

 hunted there and knew it well. Supposing that the object 

 of our trip was accomplished we turned back ; but two 

 natives, who came to our camp at night, assured us that 

 a cataract, called Morumbwa, did still exist in front. Drs. 

 Livingstone and Kirk then decided to go forward with 

 three Makololo and settle the question for themselves. 

 It was as tough a bit of travel as they ever had in Africa, 

 and after some painful marching the Badema guides refused 

 to go further; "the Banyai," they said, "would be angry 

 if they showed white men the country; and there was 

 besides no practicable approach to the spot, neither ele- 

 phant, nor hippopotamus, nor even a crocodile could reach 

 the cataract." The slopes of the mountains on each side of 

 the river, now not 300 yards wide, and without the flattish 

 flood-channel and groove, were more than 3000 feet from 

 the sky-line down, and were covered either with dense 

 thornbush, or huge black boulders ; this deep trough-like 

 shape caused the sun's rays to converge as into a focus, 

 making the surface so hot that the soles of the feet of 

 the Makololo became blistered. Around, and up and down, 

 the party clambered among these heated blocks, at a 

 pace not exceeding a mile an horn ; the strain upon the 

 muscles in jumping from crag to boulder, and wriggling 

 round projections, took an enormous deal out of them, and 

 they were often glad to cower in the shadow formed by 



