78 Wanderings in Eastern Africa, 
ruin. It had been forsaken by its people, who pre- 
fer in times of peace to live upon their plantations. 
We found only a very few individuals in the place, 
and received from them a very cold reception. They 
bitterly complained of poverty, and they really ap- 
peared to be very poor. The district of Jibana is the 
loftiest part of the range. All its heights are thickly 
wooded, bearing some of the finest trees I ever saw. 
After resting awhile at the kaya, we proceeded on our 
course to Chogni. Issuing from the forest, a glorious 
sight burst upon the view. The whole country, as far 
as the eye could reach, lay outspread before us. Moun- 
tain and plain, hill and dale, dark forests and golden 
fields, lent all their attractions to the scene, exciting 
admiration, but mocking description. A little farther 
on the way we passed the village of Mtendani, the 
round conical huts of which resemble those of the 
Wataita. 
We entered the Kaya Bomu of Chogni at sunset. 
This was a large township containing several hundreds 
of huts, and all in good repair. But it was empty. 
For some time not a soul was to be seen. After a 
while, however, a couple of young men made their 
appearance. They informed us that the people were 
all living in their plantations, and that they only 
visited the kaya on special occasions. Under these 
circumstances we were under the necessity of taking 
possession of the place in our own right. We selected 
an open shed for our lodging place, and gave orders 
to have a little supper cooked. We were chagrined, 
however, to find that no water was to be obtained, and 
had to go supperless to bed. In the morning, as we 
were about to leave, we found our progress cut short 
