Preparations for the March. 249 
bottle of gin ; after this, they departed with many 
low conges. 
It was a study to see Gidi Mavunga amidst the 
vassals and serfs of his own village. He had no 
moated castle, no “ Quinquengrogne but his habi¬ 
tation was grander far,—that glorious hill-side, 
with all its prospects of mountain and river, field 
and forest, valley and village. As he sat upon the 
mat under his little piazza, all the dependants 
gathered in an outer semicircle, the children, dogs, 
and cats forming an inner chord. A crowd of 
“ moleques ” placed before him three black pots, 
one containing a savoury stew, the others beans 
and vegetables, which he transferred to a deep 
platter, and proved himself no mean trencherman. 
The earthenware is of native make, by no means 
ornamental, but useful because it retains the heat; 
it resembles the produce of the Gold Coast, and 
the “pepper-pot” platter of the West Indies. His 
cup was filled as fast as he drained the palm wine, 
and, at times, he passed a huge mouthful to a small 
son or daughter, smiling at the serious and awk¬ 
ward attempts at deglutition. The washing of 
hands and mouth before and after feeding shows 
progress after Tuckey’s day (p. 360). We were 
not asked to join him : an African, when upon a 
journey, will beg for everything he sees you eat or 
drink, but there is no return in kind. I have read 
of negro hospitality, but it has never been my fate 
