crept
into a quiet corner of the hut to eat a banana--she could not find him,
and at once concluded that the Manyuema had kidnapped him to eat him,
and with a yell she ran through the camp and screamed at the top of her
shrill voice, "Oh, the Manyuema have stolen my child to make meat of
him! Oh, my child eaten--oh, oh!"

_26th-28th September, 1869._--A Lunda slave-girl was sent off to be sold
for a tusk, but the Manyuema don't want slaves, as we were told in
Lunda, for they are generally thieves, and otherwise bad characters. It
is now clouded over and preparing for rain, when sun comes overhead.
Small-pox comes every three or four years, and kills many of the people.
A soko alive was believed to be a good charm for rain; so one was
caught, and the captor had the ends of two fingers and toes bitten off.
The soko or gorillah always tries to bite off these parts, and has been
known to overpower a young man and leave him without the ends of fingers
and toes. I saw the nest of one: it is a poor contrivance; no more
architectural skill shown than in the nest of our Cushat dove.

_29th September, 1869._--I visited a hot fountain, an hour west of our
camp, which has five eyes, temperature 150 deg., slightly saline taste, and
steam issues constantly. It is called Kasugwe Colambu. Earthquakes are
well known, and to the Manyuema they seem to come from the east to west;
pots rattle and fowls cackle on these occasions.

_2nd October, 1869._--A rhinoceros was shot, and party sent off to the
River Luamo to buy ivory.

_5th October, 1869._--An elephant was killed, and the entire population
went off to get meat, which was given freely at first, but after it was
known how eagerly the Manyuema sought it, six or eight goats were
demanded for a carcase and given.

_9th October, 1869._--The rite of circumcision is general among all the
Manyuema; it is performed on the young. If a headman's son is to be
operated on, it is tried on a slave first; certain times of the year are
unpropitious, as during a drought for instance; but having by this
experiment ascertained the proper time, they go into the forest, beat
drums, and feast as elsewhere: contrary to all African custom they are
not ashamed to speak about the rite, even before women.

Two very fine young men came to visit me to-day. After putting several
preparatory inquiries as to where our country lay, &c., they asked
whether people died with us, and where they went to after death.