Bura^ Ndara, and — the Journey' s End, 479 
for water for the purpose of performing the ceremony 
of ''ku hassa ndia " (clearing the road), which consists 
of sundry incantations and the squirting of water 
over you from the mouth of the operator, a ceremony 
which I asked the old man to dispense with. The 
chief then wished me a pleasant journey, a fair path 
without thorns, protection against wild animals and 
savage men, and bade me farewell. 
We took our w^ay across the hollow, towards the 
termination of the eastern ridge, which rose before us 
in a perpendicular wall of granite, presenting a lami- 
nated appearance as of distinct layers of the various 
constituents of this species of rock. Ascending the 
lower spur, we obtained a good view of the country 
east and west — the summits of Kilima Njaro appear- 
ing above the end of Bura's opposite ridge. A little 
beyond, our progress was stopped in an unexpected 
way. A party of Buras were returning from the 
Usambara wars with a large booty of cattle and 
women. They wound their way up from the south to 
the very path we were following, while their wives 
and sisters, observing their approach from the moun- 
tain heights, came down the steeps to meet them, and 
it so happened that the two parties rushed, with 
screams of delight on the part of the women, into 
each others arms, directly in our way. Then followed 
a scene of great excitement and tumult ; men and 
women joining in a mad dance of triumph. Pausing 
till they had grown a little calmer, we made towards 
them, when, confronting us, they demanded what 
right we had to pass through their country without 
permission. They were not Maina's people, and they 
would not allow us to pass without paying toll, the 
