How I Found Livingstone by Henry M. Stanley (read after .txt) đź“–
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to his pilfering tricks, though the 3,500 doti were all spent;
though I had only obtained one hundred and thirty pagazis at 25
doti each, which in the aggregate amounted to 3,200 doti: Soor
Hadji Palloo’s bill was $1,400 cash extra. His plea was that he
had furnished Ulyah clothes for Muhongo 240 doti, equal in value to
960 of my doti, that the money was spent in ferry pice, in
presents to chiefs of caravans of tents, guns, red broad cloth, in
presents to people on the Mrima (coast) to induce them to hunt up
pagazis. Upon this exhibition of most ruthless cheating I waxed
indignant, and declared to him that if he did not run over his bill
and correct it, he should go without a pice.
But before the bill could be put into proper shape, my words,
threats, and promises falling heedlessly on a stony brain, a man,
Kanjee by name, from the store of Tarya Topan, of Zanzibar, had to
come over, when the bill was finally reduced to $738. Without any
disrespect to Tarya Topan, I am unable to decide which is the most
accomplished rascal, Kanjee, or young Soor Hadji Palloo; in the
words of a white man who knows them both, “there is not the
splitting of a straw between them.” Kanjee is deep and sly, Soor
Hadji Palloo is bold and incorrigible. But peace be to them both,
may their shaven heads never be covered with the troublous crown
I wore at Bagamoyo!
My dear friendly reader, do not think, if I speak out my mind in
this or in any other chapter upon matters seemingly trivial and
unimportant, that seeming such they should be left unmentioned.
Every tittle related is a fact, and to knew facts is to receive
knowledge.
How could I ever recite my experience to you if I did not enter
upon these miserable details, which sorely distract the stranger
upon his first arrival? Had I been a Government official, I had
but wagged my finger and my quota of pagazis had been furnished
me within a week; but as an individual arriving without the graces
of official recognition, armed with no Government influence, I had
to be patient, bide my time, and chew the cud of irritation
quietly, but the bread I ate was not all sour, as this was.
The white men, Farquhar and Shaw, were kept steadily at work upon
waterproof tents of hemp canvas, for I perceived, by the
premonitory showers of rain that marked the approach of the Masika
that an ordinary tent of light cloth would subject myself to damp
and my goods to mildew, and while there was time to rectify all
errors that had crept into my plans through ignorance or over
haste, I thought it was not wise to permit things to rectify
themselves. Now that I have returned uninjured in health, though
I have suffered the attacks of twenty-three fevers within the short
space of thirteen months; I must confess I owe my life, first, to
the mercy of God; secondly, to the enthusiasm for my work, which
animated me from the beginning to the end; thirdly, to having
never ruined my constitution by indulgence in vice and
intemperance; fourthly, to the energy of my nature; fifthly, to
a native hopefulness which never died; and, sixthly, to having
furnished myself with a capacious water and damp proof canvas
house. And here, if my experience may be of value, I would
suggest that travellers, instead of submitting their better
judgment to the caprices of a tent-maker, who will endeavour to
pass off a handsomely made fabric of his own, which is unsuited
to all climes, to use his own judgment, and get the best and
strongest that money will buy. In the end it will prove the
cheapest, and perhaps be the means of saving his life.
On one point I failed,, and lest new and young travellers fall into
the same error which marred much of my enjoyment, this paragraph
is written. One must be extremely careful in his choice of
weapons, whether for sport or defence. A traveller should have at
least three different kinds of guns. One should be a fowling-piece,
the second should be a double-barrelled rifle, No. 10 or 12, the
third should be a magazine-rifle, for defence. For the fowling-piece
I would suggest No. 12 bore, with barrels at least four feet in length.
For the rifle for larger game, I would point out, with due deference
to old sportsmen, of course, that the best guns for African game
are the English Lancaster and Reilly rifles; and for a fighting
weapon, I maintain that the best yet invented is the American
Winchester repeating rifle, or the “sixteen, shooter” as it is
called, supplied with the London Eley’s ammunition. If I suggest
as a fighting weapon the American Winchester, I do not mean that
the traveller need take it for the purpose of offence, but as
the beat means of efficient defence, to save his own life against
African banditti, when attacked, a thing likely to happen any time.
I met a young man soon after returning from the interior, who
declared his conviction that the “Express,” rifle was the most
perfect weapon ever invented to destroy African game. Very
possibly the young man may be right, and that the “Express “
rifle is all he declares it to be, but he had never practised with
it against African game, and as I had never tried it, I could not
combat his assertion: but I could relate my experiences with weapons,
having all the penetrating powers of the “Express,” and could
inform him that though the bullets penetrated through the animals,
they almost always failed to bring down the game at the first fire.
On the other hand, I could inform him, that during the time I
travelled with Dr. Livingstone the Doctor lent me his heavy Reilly
rifle with which I seldom failed to bring an animal or two home
to the camp, and that I found the Fraser shell answer all purposes
for which it was intended. The feats related by Capt. Speke and
Sir Samuel Baker are no longer matter of wonderment to the young
]sportsman, when he has a Lancaster or a Reilly in his hand.
After very few trials he can imitate them, if not excel their
Leeds, provided he has a steady hand. And it is to forward this
end that this paragraph is written. African game require
“bone-crushers;” for any ordinary carbine possesses sufficient
penetrative qualities, yet has not he disabling qualities which
a gun must possess to be useful in the hands of an African explorer.
I had not been long at Bagamoyo before I went over to Mussoudi’s
camp, to visit the “Livingstone caravan” which the British Consul
had despatched on the first day of November, 1870, to the relief of
Livingstone. The number of packages was thirty-five, which required
as many men to convey them to Unyanyembe. The men chosen to escort
this caravan were composed of Johannese and Wahiyow, seven in number.
Out of the seven, four were slaves. They lived in clover here—
thoughtless of the errand they had been sent upon, and careless of
the consequences. What these men were doing at Bagamoyo all this
time I never could conceive, except indulging their own vicious
propensities. It would be nonsense to say there were no pagazis;
because I know there were at least fifteen caravans which had
started for the interior since the Ramadan (December 15th, 1870).
Yet Livingstone’s caravan had arrived at this little town of Bagamoyo
November 2nd, and here it had been lying until the 10th February,
in all, 100 days, for lack of the limited number of thirty-five
pagazis, a number that might be procured within two days through
consular influence.
Bagamoyo has a most enjoyable climate. It is far preferable in
every sense to that of Zanzibar. We were able to sleep in the
open air, and rose refreshed and healthy each morning, to enjoy
our matutinal bath in the sea; and by the time the sun had risen
we were engaged in various preparations for our departure for the
interior. Our days were enlivened by visits from the Arabs who
were also bound for Unyanyembe; by comical scenes in the camp;
sometimes by court-martials held on the refractory; by a
boxing-match between Farquhar and Shaw, necessitating my prudent
interference when they waxed too wroth; by a hunting excursion
now and then to the Kingani plain and river; by social
conversation with the old Jemadar and his band of Baluches, who
were never tired of warning me that the Masika was at hand, and of
advising me that my best course was to hurry on before the season
for travelling expired.
Among the employees with the Expedition were two Hindi and two
Goanese. They had conceived the idea that the African interior
was an El Dorado, the ground of which was strewn over with ivory
tusks, and they had clubbed together; while their imaginations
were thus heated, to embark in a little enterprise of their own.
Their names were Jako, Abdul Kader, Bunder Salaam, and Aranselar;
Jako engaged in my service, as carpenter and general help; Abdul
Kader as a tailor, Bunder Salaam as cook, and Aranselar as chief
butler.
But Aranselar, with an intuitive eye, foresaw that I was likely to
prove a vigorous employer, and while there was yet time he devoted
most of it to conceive how it were possible to withdraw from the
engagement. He received permission upon asking for it to go to
Zanzibar to visit his friends. Two days afterwards I was informed
he had blown his right eye out, and received a medical confirmation
of the fact, and note of the extent of the injury, from Dr.
Christie, the physician to His Highness Seyd Burghash. His
compatriots I imagined were about planning the same thing, but a
peremptory command to abstain from such folly, issued after they
had received their advance-pay, sufficed to check any sinister
designs they may have formed.
A groom was caught stealing from the bales, one night, and the
chase after him into the country until he vanished out of sight
into the jungle, was one of the most agreeable diversions which
occurred to wear away the interval employed in preparing for the
march.
I had now despatched four caravans into the interior, and the
fifth, which was to carry the boats and boxes, personal luggage,
and a few cloth and bead loads, was ready to be led by myself.
The following is the order of departure of the caravans.
1871. Feb. 6.—Expedition arrived at Bagamoyo.
1871. Feb. 18.—First caravan departs with twenty-four pagazis and
three soldiers.
1871. Feb. 21.—Second caravan departs with twenty-eight pagazis,
two chiefs, and two soldiers.
1871. Feb. 25.—Third caravan departs with twenty-two pagazis,
ten donkeys, one white man, one cook, and three soldiers.
1871. March. 11.—Fourth caravan departs with fifty-five pagazis,
two chiefs, and three soldiers.
1871. March. 21.—Fifth caravan departs with twenty-eight pagazis,
twelve soldiers, two white men, one tailor, one cook, one interpreter,
one gunbearer, seventeen asses, two horses, and one dog.
Total number, inclusive of all souls, comprised in caravans
connected with the “New York Herald’ Expedition,” 192.
CHAPTER V. THROUGH UKWERE, UKAMI, AND UDOE TO USEGUHHA.
Leaving Bagamoyo for the interior.—Constructing a Bridge.—Our
first troubles.—Shooting Hippopotami.—A first view of the Game
Land.—Anticipating trouble with the Wagogo.—The dreadful poison-flies.—Unlucky adventures while hunting.—The cunning chief of
Kingaru.—Sudden death of my two horses.—A terrible experience.—
The city of the “Lion Lord.”
On the 21st of March, exactly seventy-three days after my arrival
at Zanzibar, the fifth caravan, led by myself, left the town of
Bagamoyo for our first journey westward, with “Forward!” for its
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