The Officers Ought To Receive
Higher Pay, If Integrity Is Expected From Them.
At present,
a captain's pay for a year will only keep him in good uniform.
The high pay our own officers receive has manifest advantages.
Before leaving Ambaca we received a present of ten head of cattle
from Mr. Schut of Loanda, and, as it shows the cheapness of provisions here,
I may mention that the cost was only about a guinea per head.
On crossing the Lucalla we made a detour to the south, in order to visit
the famous rocks of Pungo Andongo. As soon as we crossed the rivulet Lotete,
a change in the vegetation of the country was apparent. We found trees
identical with those to be seen south of the Chobe. The grass, too,
stands in tufts, and is of that kind which the natives consider
to be best adapted for cattle. Two species of grape-bearing vines
abound every where in this district, and the influence of the good pasturage
is seen in the plump condition of the cattle. In all my previous inquiries
respecting the vegetable products of Angola, I was invariably directed
to Pungo Andongo. Do you grow wheat? "Oh, yes, in Pungo Andongo."
- Grapes, figs, or peaches? "Oh, yes, in Pungo Andongo."
- Do you make butter, cheese, etc.? The uniform answer was,
"Oh, yes, there is abundance of all these in Pungo Andongo."
But when we arrived here, we found that the answers all referred
to the activity of one man, Colonel Manuel Antonio Pires.
The presence of the wild grape shows that vineyards might be cultivated
with success; the wheat grows well without irrigation;
and any one who tasted the butter and cheese at the table of Colonel Pires
would prefer them to the stale produce of the Irish dairy, in general use
throughout that province.
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