336 LIFE OF DA VID LIVINGSTONE, LL.D. 



of the time in the water dragging their nets. Many men and boys are 

 employed in gathering the buaze, preparing the fibre, and making it into 

 long nets. When they come for the first time to gaze at suspicious-looking 

 strangers, they may, with true African caution, leave their working materials 

 at home. From the number of native cotton cloths worn in many villages at 

 the south end of the lake, it is evident that a goodly number of busy hands 

 must be constantly at work. An extensive manufacture of bark-cloth also is 

 ever going on from one end of the lake probably to the other, and much toil 

 and time are required before the bark becomes soft and fit to wear. A pro- 

 digious amount of this bark-cloth is worn, indicating the destruction of an 

 immense number of trees every year. 



" The lake people are by no means handsome. The women are fright- 

 fully ugly, and really make themselves hideous by the very means they adopt 

 with the laudable view of rendering their persons beautiful and attractive. 

 The pelele, or upper-lip ornament, is as fashionable as crinoline in other 

 countries. Some are made of tin in the shape of a small dish, and they some- 

 times actually carry things in them. Others are of white quartz, and give 

 the wearer the appearance of having an inch or two of one of Price's patent 

 candles thrust through the lip and projecting beyond the point of the nose. 

 A few are of a blood-red colour, and at a little distance the lady looks as if 

 she had come off only second best in a recent domestic squabble. All are 

 tattooed, the figures varying with the tribes. Some tattoo their faces, after a 

 fashion so execrable, that they seem to be covered all over with great ugly 

 warts or pimples. The young boys and girls, however, are reasonably good- 

 looking. In regard to their character they are pretty much like other people. 

 There are decent ones among them, and a good many are, as they say in 

 Scotland, ' nae better than they suld be.' If one of us happened to be at 

 hand when a net was hauled, a fish was usually offered. Sailing one day past 

 a number of men who had just dragged their net ashore, we were hailed, and 

 asked to come and get a fish, and received a generous present. The northerly 

 chief, Marenga, was remarkably generous, giving us large presents of food 

 and beer, both going and returning. Others also made us presents of food. 



" In some things the people of Nyassa are as far advanced as the most 

 highly civilised communities. They have expert thieves among them. On 

 our way up we had a disagreeable visit from some of this light-fingered class. 

 They called one morning when two of us were down with fever, between the 

 rather early hours of three and five, and, notwithstanding a formidable array 

 of revolvers and rifles, quietly relieved us of a considerable amount, while we 

 all slept ingloriously throughout the whole performance. We awoke, as 

 honest men do, at the usual hour, and the fact of our loss soon burst upon us. 

 ' My bag's gone P cried one of the victims, ' and all my clothes ! and my 

 boots, too ! ' ' Both of mine are off ! ' responded another. ' And so is mine I ' 



