296 
CONVERSATION WITH SHINTE. 
Chap. XVL 
bed, another message was received, Shinte wished to say all he 
had to teU me at once.” This was too tempting an offer, so we 
went; and he had a fowl ready in his hand to present, also a basket 
of manioc-meal, and a calabash of mead. Keferring to the con¬ 
stantly recurring attacks of fever, he remarked that it was the 
only thing which would prevent a successful issue to my journey, 
for he had men to guide me who knew all the paths which led to 
the wliite men. He had himself travelled far when a young man. 
On asking what he would recommend for the feVer, “Drink 
plenty of the mead, and, as it gets in, it will drive the fever out.” 
It was rather strong, and I suspect he liked the remedy pretty 
well, even though he had no fever. He had always been a friend 
to Sebituane, and, now that his son Sekeletu was in his place, 
Shinte was not merely a friend but a father to him; and if a son 
asks a favour the father must give it. He was higlily pleased 
with the large calabashes of clarified butter and fat, which 
Sekeletu had sent him, and wished to detain Kolimbota, that he 
might send a present back to Sekeletu by his hands. This pro¬ 
position we afterwards discovered was Kolimbota’s own, as he 
had heard so much about the ferocity of the tribes through wliich 
we were to pass, that he wished to save his skin. It will be seen 
further on, that he was the only one of our party who returned 
with a wound. 
We were particularly struck, in passing through the village, 
with the punctiliousness of manners shown by the Balonda, The 
inferiors, on meeting them superiors in the street, at once drop on 
their knees and rub dust on their arms and chest; they contmue 
the salutation of clapping the hands until the great ones have 
passed. Sambanza knelt down in this manner, till the son of 
Shinte had passed him. 
We several times saw the woman who occupies the office of 
drawer of water for Sliinte ; she rings a bell as she passes along 
to give warning to all to keep out of her way; it would be a 
grave offence for any one to come near her, and exercise an evil 
influence by his presence on the diinli of the chief. I suspect 
that offences of the slightest character among the poor, are made 
the pretext for selling them or their children to the Mambari. 
A young man of Lobale had fled into the country of Shinte, and 
located himself without showing liimself to the cliief. This was 
