362 
THE CHIEF SANSAWE. 
Chap. XTX. 
was refused, said to my men, “ You may as well give it, for we 
shall take all after we have killed you to-morrow.” The more 
humbly we spoke, the more insolent the Bashinje became, till at 
last we were all feeling savage and sulky, but continued to speak 
as civilly as we could. They are fond of argument, and when I 
denied their right to demand tribute from a white man, who did 
not trade in slaves, an old white-headed negro put rather a posing 
question: “ You know that God has placed chiefs among us whom 
we ought to support. How is it that you, who have a book that 
tells you about him, do not come forward at once to pay this chief 
tribute, like every one else ? ” I rephed by asking, ‘‘ How could 
1 know that this was a chief, who had allowed me to remain a day 
and a half near him without giving me anything to eat ? ” This, 
which to the uninitiated may seem sophistry, was, to the central 
Africans, quite a rational question, for he at once admitted that 
food ought to have been sent, and added, that probably his chief 
was only making it ready for me, and that it would come soon. 
After being wearied by talking all day to different parties sent 
by Sansawe, we were honoured by a visit from himself: he is 
quite a young man, and of rather a pleasing countenance. There 
cannot have been much intercourse between real Portuguese and 
these people even here, so close to the Quango, for Sansawe asked 
me to show him my hair, on the ground that, though he had 
heard of it, and some white men had even passed through his 
country, he had never seen straight hair before. This is quite 
possible, as most of the slave-traders are not Portuguese, but half- 
castes. The difference between their wool and our hair, caused 
him to burst into a laugh, and the contrast between the exposed 
and unexposed parts of my skin, when exhibited in evidence of 
our all being made of one stock originally, and the children of 
one Maker, seemed to strike him with wonder. I then showed 
him my watch, and wished to win my way into liis confidence by 
conversation; but when about to exhibit my pocket compass 
he desired me to desist, as he was afraid of my wonderful tilings. 
I told him, if he knew my aims, as the tribes in the mterior 
did, and as I hoped he would yet know them and me, he 
would be glad to stay, and see also the pictures of the magic 
lantern; but as it was now getting dark he had evidently got 
enough of my witchery, and began to use some charms to dispel 
