16 CONTACT WITH THE "REBELS." 



It was asserted that one of his favourite modes of 

 creating an impression in the country, and making his 

 name dreaded, was to spear his captives with his own 

 hands. On one occasion he is reported to have thus 

 killed forty poor wretches placed in a row before him. 

 We did not at first credit these statements, and thought 

 that they were merely exaggerations of the incensed 

 Portuguese, who naturally enough were exasperated 

 with him for stopping their trade, and harbouring their 

 runaway slaves; but we learned afterwards from the 

 natives, that the accounts given us by the Portuguese had 

 not exceeded the truth ; and that Mariano was quite as 

 great a ruffian as they had described him. One expects 

 slave-owners to treat their human chattels as well as men 

 do other animals of value, but the slave-trade seems 

 always to engender an unreasoning ferocity, if not blood- 

 thirstiness. 



War was declared against Mariano, and a force sent to 

 take him ; he resisted for a time ; but seeing that he was 

 likely to get the worst of it, and knowing that the Portu- 

 guese governors have small salaries, and are therefore 

 " disposed to be reasonable," he went down to Quillimane 

 to " arrange " with the Governor, as it is termed here ; but 

 Colonel da Silva put him in prison, and then sent him for 

 trial to Mozambique. When we came into the country, 

 his people were fighting under his brother Bonga. The 

 war had lasted six months and stopped all trade on the 

 river during that period. On the 15th June we first 

 came into contact with the " rebels." They appeared as a 

 crowd of well-armed and fantastically-dressed people under 

 the trees at Mazaro. On explaining that we were English, 

 some at once came on board and called to those on shore to 

 lay aside their arms. On landing among them we saw 

 that many had the branded marks of slaves on their 

 chests, but they warmly approved our objects, and knew 



