Chap. III. LAKE SHIRWA DISCOVERED. 8 L 



in the open air, by dancing and singing at their feet the 

 whole night. These poor fellows sympathized with the ex- 

 plorers, probably in the belief that they belonged to their own 

 class ; and, uninfluenced by the general opinion of their 

 countrymen, they really pitied, and took kindly to the 

 strangers, and often guided them faithfully from place to 

 place, when no sane man could be hired for love or 

 money. 



The bearing of the Manganja at this time was very inde- 

 pendent ; a striking contrast to the cringing attitude they 

 afterwards assumed, when the cruel scourge of slave-hunting 

 passed over their country. Signals were given from the 

 different villages by means of drums, and notes of defiance 

 and intimidation were sounded in the travellers' ears by day ; 

 and occasionally they were kept awake the whole night, in 

 expectation of an instant attack. Drs. Livingstone and 

 Kirk were desirous that nothing should occur to make the 

 natives regard them as enemies; Masakasa, on the other 

 hand, was anxious to show what he could do in the way 

 of fighting them. 



The perseverance of the party was finally crowned with 

 success ; for on the 18th of April they discovered Lake 

 Shirwa, a considerable body of bitter water, containing 

 leeches, fish, crocodiles, and hippopotami. From' having 

 probably no outlet, the water is slightly brackish, and it 

 appears to be deep, with islands like hills rising out of it. 

 Their point of view was at the base of Mount Pirimiti or 

 Mopeu-peu, on its S.S.W. side. Thence the prospect north- 

 wards ended in a sea horizon with two small islands in the 

 distance — a larger one, resembling a hill-top and covered 

 with trees, rose more in the foreground. Ranges of hills 

 appeared on the east ; and on the west stood Mount Chikala, 



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