146 ISLANDS— THE BAN YETI. Chap. XII. 



place their masters' lives in danger. In the event of a 

 capsize many of the Makololo would sink like stones. On the 

 first day of our voyage an old doctor had his canoe filled by 

 one of those large waves which the east wind raises on the 

 Leeambye, and he went forthwith to the bottom. The 

 Barotse who were with him saved themselves by swimming, 

 and were afraid of being punished with death in the evening 

 for not rescuing the doctor. Had he been a man of more 

 influence, they would certainly have been executed. 



We skimmed rapidly along, and I felt the pleasure of 

 looking on lands which had never been seen by a European 

 before. The magnificent river is often more than a mile 

 broad, and adorned with many islands of from three to five 

 miles in length, which, at a little distance, seemed great 

 rounded masses of sylvan vegetation reclining on the bosom of 

 the glorious stream. The beauty of some of them was greatly 

 increased by the gracefully curved fronds and refreshing light- 

 green colour of the date-palm, while the lofty palmyra towered 

 fur above, and cast its featheiy foliage against a cloudless sky. 

 The banks of the river are equally covered with forest, and 

 most of the trees on the brink of the water send down roots 

 from their branches like the banian, or Ficus indica. The 

 adjacent country is rocky and undulating, abounding in 

 elephants and all the other large game, except leches and 

 nakongs, which appear to shun stony ground. The soil is of a 

 reddish colour, and very fertile, as is attested by the quantity 

 of grain raised annually by the Banyeti. This poor and in- 

 dustrious people are expert hunters, and proficients in the 

 manufacture of articles of wood and iron. The whole of this 

 part of the country being infested with the tsetse, they are 

 unable to rear domestic animals, which may have led to their 

 skill in handicraft works. Some make large wooden vessels 

 with neat lids ; and since the idea of sitting on stools has 

 entered the Makololo mind, they have shown considerable 

 taste in the forms they give to the legs. 



Other Banyeti, or Manyeti, as they are called, construct 

 neat and strong baskets of the split roots of some tree, whilst 

 others excel in manufacturing iron articles and pottery. I 

 cannot find that they have ever been warlike. Indeed, the 

 contests in the centre of the country, where no slave-trade 



