S76 
ANCIENT BUKIAL-PLACE. 
be&r well at the lower station, but yield little or no fruit 
at the upper. The difference indicated by the thermo- 
motor was 7°. The general range near the rocks was 67° 
at 7 a.m., 74° at mid-day, and 72° in the evening. 
A slave-boy belonging to Colonol Pircs, having stolon 
and eaten some lemons in the evening, went to tho rivoi 
to wash his mouth, so as not to bo detectod by tho flavor. 
An alligator seized him and carried him to an island in the 
middle of tho stream : there tho boy grasped hold of tho 
reeds, and baffled all tho efforts of tho roptilo to dislodgo 
him, till his companions, attracted by his cries, came to his 
assistance. Tho alligator at once let go his hold; forwhon 
out of his own oloment ho is cowardly. Tho boy had many 
marks of the teeth in his abdomen and thigh, and those of 
the claws on his legs and arms. 
Tho slaves in Colonel Pires’ establishments appoarod 
more like free servants than any I had elsowhcro soon. 
Every thing was neat and clean, — whilo generally, where 
slaves are tho only domestics, there is an aspect of sloven- 
liness, as if they wont on the principle of always doing as 
little for their masters as possible. 
In tho country near to this station were a largo number 
of the ancient burial-places of tho Jinga. Thcso aro simply 
large mounds of stono, with drinking and cooking vossols 
of rudo pottory on them. Some aro arranged in a circular 
form, two or throo yards in diameter, and shaped liko a 
haycock. Thoro is not a single vestigo of any inscription. 
Tho natives of Angola generally have a strange predilec- 
tion for bringing their doad to tho sides of tho most fre- 
quented paths. They navo a particular anxiety to secure 
the point whore cross-roads meet On and around the 
graves aro planted troo-ouphorbias and other spocios of 
that family. On tho gravo itsolf they also placo water- 
bottles, broken pipos, cooking-vossols, and somotimos a 
little bow and arrow. 
Tho Portuguese Government, wishing to provont this 
custom affixed a penalty on any cuo burying in tho roads. 
