140 THE CHIEFS GUARD. chap. XI. 



horridaj, and baobabs. In sandy spots there are palmyras 

 somewhat similar to the Indian, but with a smaller seed. The 

 soil on the plain is a rich, dark, tenacious loam, known as the 

 " cotton-ground " in India, and is covered with a dense matting 

 of coarse grass, common on all damp spots in this countiy. 

 The Chobe was on our right, and its scores of miles of reed 

 formed the horizon. It was pleasant to look back on the long- 

 extended line of our attendants, as it twisted and bent accord- 

 ing to the curves of the footpath, or in and out behind the 

 mounds. Some had caps made of lions' manes; others, the 

 white ends of ox- tails on their heads, or great bunches of black 

 ostrich-feathers, which waved in the wind. Many wore red 

 tunics, or various-coloured prints, which the chief had bought 

 from Fleming. The common men acted as porters; the 

 gentlemen walked with a small club of rhinoceros horn in their 

 hands, and had servants to bear their shields. The " Machaka," 

 or battle-axe men, carried their own, and were liable at any 

 time to be sent off a hundred miles on an errand, and were 

 expected to run all the way. 



Sekeletu is always accompanied by his own Mopato, a nun? • 

 ber of young men of his own age. Those who are nearest eat 

 out of the same dish, for the Makololo chiefs pride themselves 

 on eating with their people. He takes a little, and then 

 beckons to his neighbours to do the same. When they have 

 had their turn, he perhaps makes a sign to some one at a dis- 

 tance, who starts forward, seizes the pot, and removes it to his 

 own companions. The associates of Sekeletu, wishing to imi- 

 tate him as he rode on my old horse, leaped on the backs of 

 some half-broken oxen, but, having neither saddle nor bridle, 

 the number of tumbles which ensued was a source of much 

 amusement to the rest. 



Troops of leches, or, as they are here called, " lechwes," were 

 feeding heedlessly all over the flats. There are prodigious 

 herds of them, although the numbers that are killed annually, 

 as well as of the " nakong," another water antelope, must bo 

 enormous. When the lands we were treading are flooded, the 

 leches betake themselves to the mounds. The Makalaka, who 

 are most expert in the management of their small, light canoes, 

 come gently towards them. When they perceive the antelopes 

 beginning to move they increase their speed, making the 



