70 LIVINGSTONE'S LAST JOURNALS. [Chap. III. 



if lie committed any other wilful offence, but now he and 

 another skulked behind and gave their loads to a stranger 

 to carry, with a promise to him that I would pay. We 

 waited two hours for them; and as the havildar said 

 that they would not obey him, I gave Perim and the 

 other some smart cuts with a cane, but I felt that I was 

 degrading myself, and resolved not to do the punishment 

 myself again. 



8th July. — Hard travelling through a depopulated country. 

 The trees are about the size of hop-poles with abundance of 

 tall grass ; the soil is sometimes a little sandy, at other times 

 that reddish, clayey sort which yields native grain so well. 

 The rock seen uppermost is often a ferruginous conglomerate, 

 lying on granite rocks. The gum-copal tree is here a 

 mere bush, and no digging takes place for the gum : it 

 is called Mchenga, and yields gum when wounded, as also 

 bark, cloth, and cordage when stripped. Mountain masses 

 are all around us ; we sleep at Linata mountain. 



9th Juhj. — The Masuko fruit abounds : the name is the 

 same here as in the Batoka country ; there are also rhodo- 

 dendrons of two species, but the flowers white. We slept 

 in a wild spot, near Mount Leziro, with many lions roaring 

 about us ; one hoarse fellow serenaded us a long time, but 

 did nothing more. Game is said to be abundant, but we 

 saw none, save an occasional diver springing away from the 

 path. Some streams ran to the north-west to the Lismy- 

 ando, which flows N. for the Iiovuina ; others to the south- 

 east for the Loendi. 



10th and 11th July. — Nothing to interest but the same 

 weary trudge : our food so scarce that we can only give a 

 handful or half a pound of grain to each person per day. 

 The Masuko fruit is formed, but not ripe till rains begin ; 

 very few birds are seen or heard, though there is both food 

 and water in the many grain-bearing grasses and running 

 streams, which we cross at the junction of every two ridges. 



