272 RECEPTION BY SHINTE. 



covered with a leopard's skin. He had on a checked 

 jacket, and a kilt of scarlet baize edged with green ; many- 

 strings of large beads hung from his neck, and his limbs 

 were covered with iron and copper armlets and bracelets ; 

 on his head he wore a helmet made of beads woven 

 neatly together, and crowned with a great bunch of 

 goose-feathers. Close to him sat three lads with large 

 sheaves of arrows over their shoulders. 



When we entered the kotla, the whole of Manenko's 

 party saluted Shinte by clapping their hands ; and 

 Sambanza did obeisance by rubbing his chest and arms 

 with ashes. One of the trees being unoccupied, I retreated 

 to it for the sake of the shade, and my whole party did 

 the same. We were now about forty yards from the chief, 

 and could see the whole ceremony. The different sections 

 of the tribe came forward in the same way that we did, 

 the head man of each making obeisance with ashes which 

 he carried with him for the purpose ; then came the 

 soldiers, all armed to the teeth, running and shouting 

 towards us, with their swords drawn, and their faces 

 screwed up so as to appear as savage as possible, for the 

 purpose, I thought, 01 trying whether they could not 

 make us take to our heels. As we did not, they turned 

 round towards Shinte, and saluted him ; then retired. 

 When all had come, and were seated, then began the 

 curious capering usually seen in pichos. A man starts up, 

 and imitates the most approved attitudes observed in 

 actual fight, — as if throwing one javelin, receiving another 

 on the .shield, springing to one side to avoid a third, 

 running backwards or forwards, leaping, &c. This over, 

 Sambanza, and the spokesman of Nyamoana, stalked 

 backwards and forwards in front of Shinte, and gave forth, 

 in a loud voice, all they had been able to learn, either 

 from myself or people, of my past history and connection 

 with the Makololo ; the return of the captives ; the wish 

 to open the country to trade ; the Bible as a word from 

 heaven ; the white man's desire for the tribes to live in 

 peace : he ought to have taught the Makololo that first, 

 for the Balonda never attacked them, yet they had 

 assailed the Balonda : perhaps he is fibbing, perhaps not ; 

 they rather thought he was ; but as the Balonda had 

 good hearts, and Shinte had never done harm to any one, 

 he had better receive the white man well, and send him 

 on his way. Sambanza was gaily attired, and, besides a 



