Chap. XIV. GUNS VERSUS BOWS. 393 



wrinkled leather. In passing mile after mile, marked 

 with these sad proofs that " man's inhumanity to man 

 makes countless thousands mourn," one experiences an 

 overpowering sense of helplessness to alleviate human 

 woe, and breathes a silent prayer to the Almighty to 

 hasten the good time coming when " man and man the 

 world o'er, shall brothers be for all that." One small 

 redeeming consideration in all this misery could not but 

 be felt ; these ills were inflicted by heathen Mazitu, and 

 not by, or for, those who say to Him who is higher than 

 the highest, " We believe that thou shalt come to be our 

 Judge." 



We crossed the Mokole, rested at Chitanda, and then 

 left the Lake, and struck away N.W. to Chinsamba's. 

 Our companions, who were so much oppressed by the 

 rarefied air of the plateau, still showed signs of exhaustion, 

 though now only 1300 feet above the sea, and did not 

 recover flesh and spirits till we again entered the Lower 

 Shire Yalley, which is of so small an altitude, that, with- 

 out simultaneous observations with the barometer there and 

 on the sea-coast, the difference would not be appreciable. 



On a large plain on which we spent one night, we had 

 the company of eighty tobacco traders on their way from 

 Kasungu to Chinsamba's. The Mazitu had attacked and 

 killed two of them, near the spot where the Zulus fled 

 from us without answering our questions. The traders 

 were now so frightened that, instead of making a straight 

 course with us, they set off by night to follow the shores 

 of the Lake to Tsenga, and then turn west. It is the 

 sight of shields, or guns that inspires terror. The bowmen 

 feel perfectly helpless when the enemy comes with even 

 the small protection the skin shield affords, or attacks them 

 in the open field with guns. They may shoot a few 

 arrows, but they are such poor shots that ten to one if 

 they hit. The only thing that makes the arrow formid- 



