Those Usually Met With Far Inland Seem Here
To Approach The Coast.
African ebony, generally named mpingu, is
abundant within eight miles of the sea; it attains a larger size, and
has more of the interior black wood than usual.
A good timber tree
called mosoko is also found; and we saw half-caste Arabs near the
coast cutting up a large log of it into planks. Before reaching the
top of the rise we were in a forest of bamboos. On the plateau
above, large patches were cleared and cultivated. A man invited us
to take a cup of beer; on our complying with his request, the fear
previously shown by the bystanders vanished. Our Mazaro men could
hardly understand what they said. Some of them waded in the river
and caught a curious fish in holes in the claybank. Its ventral fin
is peculiar, being unusually large, and of a circular shape, like
boys' playthings called "suckers." We were told that this fish is
found also in the Zambesi, and is called Chirire. Though all its
fins are large, it is asserted that it rarely ventures out into the
stream, but remains near its hole, where it is readily caught by the
hand.
The Zambesi men thoroughly understood the characteristic marks of
deep or shallow water, and showed great skill in finding out the
proper channel. The Molimo is the steersman at the helm, the
Mokadamo is the head canoe-man, and he stands erect on the bows with
a long pole in his hands, and directs the steersman where to go,
aiding the rudder, if necessary, with his pole.
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