1870.] THE JOHANNA MEN". 75 



A gentleman of superior abilities* has devoted life and 

 fortune to elevate the Johanna men, but fears that they are 

 " an unimprovable race." 



The Sultan of Zanzibar, who knows his people better than 

 any stranger, cannot entrust any branch of his revenue 

 to even the better class of his subjects, but places all his 

 customs, income, and money affairs, in the hands of Banians 

 from India, and his father did before him. 



When the Mohamadan gentlemen of Zanzibar are asked 

 " why their sovereign places all his pecuniary affairs and 

 fortune in the hands of aliens?" they frankly avow that if 

 he allowed any Arab to farm his customs, he would receive 

 nothing but a crop of lies. 



Burton had to dismiss most of his people at Ujiji for dis- 

 honesty : Speke's followers deserted at the first approach of 

 danger. Musa fled in terror on hearing a false report from a 

 half-caste Arab about the Mazitu, 150 miles distant, though 

 I promised to go due west, and not turn to the north till 

 far past the beat of that tribe. The few liberated slaves 

 with whom I went on had the misfortune to be Mohamadan 

 slaves in boyhood, but did fairly till we came into close 

 contact with Moslems again. A black Arab was released 

 from a twelve years' bondage by Casembe, through my own 

 influence and that of the Sultan's letter : we travelled 

 together for a time, and he sold the favours of his female 

 slaves to my people for goods which he perfectly well knew 

 were stolen from me. He received my four deserters, and 

 Avhen I had gone off to Lake Bangweolo with only four 

 attendants, the rest wished to follow, but he dissuaded them 

 by saying that I had gone into a country where there was 

 war : he was the direct cause of all my difficulties with 

 these liberated slaves, but judged by the East African 

 Moslem standard, as he ought to be, and not bv ours, he is 



* Mr. John Sunley, of Pomone, Johanna, an island in the Comoro 

 ;roup. 



