Cnxvp. XXIX. 
BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY. 
591 
thunder-shower followed. I shall never forget the dry, hot east 
winds of that region; the yellowish, sultry, cloudless sky; the 
grass and all the plants drooping from drought, the cattle lean, 
the people dispirited, and our own hearts sick from hope deferred. 
There we often heard m the dead of the night the shriU wliistle 
of the rain-doctor calling for rain that would not come, while here 
we listened to the rolling thunder by night and beheld the 
swelling valleys adorned with plenty by day. We have rain 
almost daily, and everything is beautifully fresh and green. I 
felt somewhat as people do on coming ashore after a long voyage 
—mclined to look upon the landscape in the most favourable 
light. The hills are covered with forests, and there is often 
a long line of fleecy cloud lying on them about midway up; 
they are very beautiful. Finding no one willing to aid us in 
crossing the river, we proceeded to the village of the cliief 
Mpende. A flne, large, conical hill now appeared to the N.N.E.; 
it is the highest I have seen in these parts, and at some points it 
appears to be two cones joined together, the northern one being a 
little lower than the southern. Another liigh hill stands on the 
same side to the FT.E., and, from its similarity in shape to an axe 
on the top, is called Motemwa. Beyond it, eastward, lies the 
country of Kaimbwa, a chief who has been engaged in actual 
conflict with the Bazunga, and beat them too, according to the 
version of tilings here. The liills on the south bank are named 
Kamoenja. When we came to Mpende’s village, he immediately 
sent to inquire who we were, and then ordered the guides who had 
come with us from the last village to go back and call then’ masters. 
He sent no message to us whatever. We had travelled very 
slowly up to this point, the tsetse-stricken oxen being now unable 
to go two miles an hour. We were also delayed by being obliged 
to stop at every village, and send notice of our approach to the 
head-man, who came and received a little uiformation, and gave 
some food. If we had passed on without taking any notice of 
them, they would have considered it impolite, and we should 
have appeared more as enemies than friends. I consoled myself 
for the loss of time by the thought that these conversations 
tended to the opening of our future path. 
23rd—This morning, at sunrise, a party of Mpende’s people 
came close to our encampment, uttering strange cries and waving 
