472 PATH TO THE EAST COAST. 



to require three days in crossing, and may thus be forty 

 or fifty miles broad. Here they punt the canoes the whole 

 way, showing that it is shallow. There are many small 

 streams in the path, and three large rivers. This then 

 appeared to me to be the safest ; but my present object 

 being a path admitting of water rather than land carriage,. 

 this route did not promise so much as that by way of the 

 Zambesi or Leeambye. The Makololo knew all the 

 country eastwards as far as the Kafue, from having lived 

 in former times near the confluence of that river with 

 the Zambesi, and they all advised this path in preference 

 to that by the way of Zanzibar. The only difficulty 

 that they assured me of was that in the falls of Victoria^ 

 Some recommended my going to Sesheke, and crossing 

 over in a N.E. direction to the Kafue, which is only six 

 days distant, and descending that river to the Zambesi. 

 Others recommended me to go on the south bank of the 

 Zambesi until I had passed the falls, then get canoes 

 and proceed further down the river. All spoke strongly 

 of the difficulties of travelling on the north bank, on 

 account of the excessively broken and rocky nature of 

 the country near the river on that side. And when 

 Ponuane, who had lately headed a foray there, proposed 

 that I should carry canoes along that side, till we reached 

 the spot where the Leeambye becomes broad and placid 

 again, others declared that, from the difficulties he 

 himself had experienced in forcing the men of his expedi- 

 tion to do this, they believed that mine would be sure 

 to desert me, if I attempted to impose such a task upon 

 them. Another objection to travelling on either bank 

 of the river, was the prevalence of the tsetse, which is so 

 abundant, that the inhabitants can keep no domestic 

 animals except goats. 



While pondering over these different paths, I could 

 not help regretting my being alone. If I had enjoyed the 

 company of my former companion, Mr. Oswell, one of us 

 might have taken the Zambesi, and the other gone by 

 way of Zanzibar. The latter route was decidedly the 

 easiest, because all the inland tribes were friendly, while 

 the tribes in the direction of the Zambesi were inimical, 

 and I should now be obliged to lead a party, which the 

 Batoka of that country view as hostile invaders, through 

 an enemy's land ; but as the prospect of permanent 

 water conveyance was good, I decided on going down 



