38 LIVINGSTONE'S LAST JOURNALS. [Chap. II.. 



1st January, 1870. — May the Almighty help rue to finish 

 the work in hand, and retire through the Basango before the 

 year is out. Thanks for all last year's lovingkindness. 



Our course was due north, with the Luasse flowing in a 

 gently undulating green country on our right, and rounded 

 mountains in Mbongo's country on our left. 



2nd January. — Rested a day at Mbongo's, as the people 

 were honest. 



3rd January. — Eeached a village at the edge of a great 

 forest, where the people were excited and uproarious,, 

 but not ill-bred, they ran alongside the path with us 

 shouting and making energetic remarks to each other about 

 us. A newly-married couple stood in a village where we 

 stopped to inquire the way, with arms around each other 

 very lovingly, and no one joked or poked fun at them. 

 We marched five hours through forest and crossed three 

 rivulets and much stagnant water which the sun by the few 

 rays he darts in cannot evaporate. We passed several huge 

 traps for elephants : they are constructed thus — a log of 

 heavy wood, about 20 feet long, has a hole at one end for a 

 climbing plant to pass through and suspend it, at the lower 

 end a mortice is cut out of the side, and a wooden lance 

 about 2 inches broad by 1^ thick, and about 4 feet long, is 

 inserted firmly in the mortice ; a latch down on the ground,, 

 when touched by the animal's foot, lets the beam run down 

 on to his body, and the great weight of the wood drives in 

 the lance and kills the animal. I saw one lance which had 

 accidentally fallen, and it had gone into the stiff clay soil 

 two feet. 



4:th January. — The villagers we passed were civil, but like 

 noisy children, all talked and gazed. When surrounded 

 by 300 or 400, some who have not been accustomed to 

 the ways of wild men think that a fight is imminent ; 

 but, poor things, no attack is thought of, if it does not 

 begin on our side. Many of Mohamad's people were dread- 



