Chap. XIII. NOTHING- LIKE BEEF. 271 



rest under the old Kotla, or public meeting- place tree. A 

 young Makololo, with the large thighs which Zulus and 

 most of this tribe have, crossed over to receive orders from 

 the Chief, who had not shown himself to the people since he 

 was affected with leprosy. On returning he ran for Mokele, 

 the headman of the new town, who, after going over to Seke- 

 letu, came back and conducted us to a small but good hut, 

 and afterwards brought us a fine fat ox, as a present from 

 the Chief. "This is a time of hunger," he said, "and we 

 have no meat, but we expect some soon from the Barotse 

 Valley." We were entirely out of food when we reached 

 Sesheke. Never was better meat than that of the ox Seke- 

 letu sent, and infinitely above the flesh of all kinds of game 

 is classic beef! We have partaken of the flesh of all the 

 eatable animals in Africa, except the crocodile, and often 

 under circumstances when a keen appetite might be sup- 

 posed to give a bias to the judgment in favour of the 

 game ; yet all that could be said of the best was, it is 

 nearly as good as the flesh of oxen. Possibly some ani- 

 mals, still untamed, might be found to turn to good account 

 land covered with pasture such as heather or brackens, other- 

 wise useless for cattle ; but we say, Let the " Acclimatization 

 Society" increase and multiply the number of beeves, and 

 it will please the taste, and benefit humanity, more than it 

 possibly could by the introduction of every wild animal from 

 the elephant down to the crocodile. It must be confessed, 

 however, that to the uninitiated it is rather awkward to sit 

 down to a meal of nothing but beef, however excellent. On 

 taking a mouthful, hands and eyes turn instinctively in search 

 of something in the form of bread, potatoes, or vegetables to 

 accompany it, and there is an unpleasant sensation of 

 wanting what the Scotch know by the word ' kitchen ' (o-^rov). 

 We made the fat kitchen the lean. The Makololo usually 



