NATIVE SUPERSTITION. 85 



all but a small crescent nearest the horizon, covered 

 with a dingy, smoky shadow. It was an eclipse. 

 I asked John what it was. He said, ' Smoke.' The 

 moment it was shown to Matlauli he uttered a cry 

 of conjuration, as it were, and rushing out with a 

 brand, threw it in the direction of the moon. His 

 explanation is that we shall hear something ; all the 

 hunters out in the veldt will now return home to 

 hear the news. People are looking at it in Gubulu- 

 wayo, England, everywhere. It is a custom, it seems, 

 at all the kraals, when an eclipse is seen, for the people 

 to rush out and throw brands, shouting at the same 

 time. When I suggested a shadow on the moon, he 

 dismissed the suggestion summarily, and when asked 

 to explain the appearance by any other cause, said 

 the moon was changing colour. As the eclipse pro- 

 gressed, I pointed out to him that the shadow kept 

 rising, and more and more of the moon becoming 

 visible, but he only said, ' It looks bad now.' I 

 looked through the telescope, as it was nearly 

 over, to note the exact time of the shadow passing 

 away. Ectli took a hasty glance through it, and 

 turned away quickly, saying he did not like to 

 see it." 



By the middle of November, when they left their 

 second camp, so much rain was already falling that 

 hunting became difficult, and a return to Gubulu- 

 wayo was decided on. Starting back, therefore, on 

 the return journey on November 16th, they reached 

 Inyati, travelling slowly, on the 23d. Here Frank 



