The _Penguin_ came a few days ago, and Lieutenant Garforth in command
agrees to take me down to the Rovuma River, and land me there. I have
a dhow to take my animals: six camels, three buffaloes, and a calf,
two mules, and four donkeys. I have thirteen Sepoys, ten Johanna men,
nine Nassick boys, two Shupanga men, and two Wayaus, Wekatani and
Chuma.[3]

[It may be well to point out that several of these men had previously
been employed by Dr. Livingstone on the Zambesi and Shire; thus Musa,
the Johanna man, was a sailor on the _Lady Nyassa_, whilst Susi and
Amoda were engaged at Shupanga to cut wood for the _Pioneer_. The two
Waiyau lads, Wakatani and Chuma, were liberated from the slavers by
the Doctor and Bishop Mackenzie in 1861, and lived for three years
with the Mission party at Chibisa's before they were engaged by
Livingstone. The Nassick lads were entire strangers, and were trained
in India.]

_19th March, 1866._--We start this morning at 10 A.M. I trust that the
Most High may prosper me in this work, granting me influence in the
eyes of the heathen, and helping me to make my intercourse beneficial
to them.

_22nd March, 1866._--We reached Rovuma Bay to-day, and anchored about
two miles from the mouth of the river, in five fathoms. I went up the
left bank to see if the gullies which formerly ran into the bay had
altered, so as to allow camels to cross them: they seemed to have
become shallower. There was no wind for the dhow, and as for the
man-of-war towing her, it was out of the question. On the 23rd the
cutter did try to tow the dhow, but without success, as a strong tide
runs constantly out of the river at this season. A squall came up from
the S.E., which would have taken the dhow in, but the master was on
board the _Penguin_, and said he had no large sail. I got him off to
his vessel, but the wind died away before we could reach the mouth of
the river.

_24th March, 1866._--I went to the dhow, and there being no wind I
left orders with the captain to go up the right bank should a breeze
arise. Mr. Fane, midshipman, accompanied me up the left bank above, to
see if we could lead the camels along in the water. Near the point
where the river first makes a little bend to the north, we landed and
found three formidable gullies, and jungle so thick with bush,
date-palms, twining bamboo, and hooked thorns, that one could scarcely
get along. Further inland it was sticky mud, thickly planted over with
mangrove