384 A THIEF. Chap. XIV. 



was lessened by a consciousness of having acted in a fair, 

 honest, above-board manner throughout. 



On the night of the 29th of September a thief came to 

 the sleeping-place of our men and stole a leg of a goat. 

 On complaining to the deputy headman, he said that the 

 thief had fled, but would be caught. He suggested a fine, 

 and offered a fowl and her eggs ; but wishing that the 

 thief alone should be punished, it was advised that he 

 should be found and fined. The Makololo thought it best 

 to take the fowl as a means of making the punishment 

 certain. After settling this matter on the last day of 

 September, we commenced our return journey. We had 

 just the same time to go back to the ship, that we had 

 spent in coming to this point, and there is not much to 

 interest one in marching over the same ground a second 

 time. 



While on our journey north-west, a cheery old woman, 

 who had once been % beautiful, but whose white hair now 

 contrasted strongly with her dark complexion, was working 

 briskly in her garden as we passed. She seemed to enjoy 

 a hale, hearty old age. She saluted us with what else- 

 where would be called a good address ; and, evidently 

 conscious that she deserved the epithet, "dark but 

 comely," answered each of us with a frank " Yes, my 

 child." Another motherly-looking woman, sitting by a 

 well, began the conversation by " You are going to visit 

 Muazi, and you have come from afar, have you not?" 

 But in general women never speak to strangers unless 

 spoken to, so anything said by them attracts attention. 

 Muazi once presented us with a basket of corn. On 

 hinting that we had no wife to grind our corn, his buxom 

 spouse struck in with roguish glee, and said, " I will grind 

 it for you ; and leave Muazi, to accompany and cook for 

 you in the land of the setting sun." As a rule the women 

 are modest and retiring in their demeanour, and, without 



