This March, Which Declines From The Kingani A Little, Leads
Through Rolling, Jungly Ground, Full Of Game, To The Tributary
Stream Mgeta.
It is fordable in the dry season, but has to be
bridged by throwing a tree across it in the wet one.
Rising in
the Usagara hills to the west of the hog-backed Mkambaku, this
branch intersects the province of Ukhutu in the centre, and
circles round until it unites with the Kingani about four miles
north of the ford. Where the Kingani itself rises, I never could
find out; though I have heard that its sources lies in a gurgling
spring on the eastern face of the Mkambaku, by which account the
Mgeta is made the longer branch of the two.
Chapter III
Usagara
Nature of the Country - Resumption of the March - A Hunt - Bombay
and Baraka - The Slave-Hunters - The Ivory-Merchants - Collection of
Natural-History Specimens - A Frightened Village - Tracking a Mule.
Under U-Sagara, or, as it might be interpreted, U-sa-Gara -
country of Gara - is included all the country lying between the
bifurcation of the Kingani and Mgeta rivers east, and Ugogo, the
first country on the interior plateau west, - a distance of a
hundred miles. On the north it is bounded by the Mukondokua, or
upper course of the Wami river and on the south by the Ruaha, or
northern great branch of the Lufiji river. It forms a link of
the great East Coast Range; but though it is generally
comprehended under the single name Usagara, many sub-tribes
occupy and apply their own names to portions of it; as, for
instance, the people on whose ground we now stood at the foot of
the hills, are Wa-Khutu, and their possessions consequently are
U-Khutu, which is by far the best producing land hitherto alluded
to since leaving the sea-coast line. Our ascent by the river,
though quite imperceptible to the eye, has been 500 feet. From
this level the range before us rises in some places to 5000 to
6000 feet, not as one grand mountain, but in two detached lines,
lying at an angle of 45 degrees from N.E. to S.W., and separated
one from the other by elevated valleys, tables, and crab-claw
spurs of hill which incline towards the flanking rivers. The
whole having been thrown up by volcanic action, is based on a
strong foundation of granite and other igneous rocks, which are
exposed in many places in the shape of massive blocks; otherwise
the hill-range is covered in the upper part with sandstone, and
in the bottoms with alluvial clay. This is the superficial
configuration of the land as it strikes the eye; but, knowing the
elevation of the interior plateau to be only 2500 feet above the
sea immediately on the western flank of these hills, whilst the
breath of the chain is 100 miles, the mean slope of incline of
the basal surface must be on a gradual rise of twenty feet per
mile. The hill tops and sides, where not cultivated, are well
covered with bush and small trees, amongst which the bamboo is
conspicuous; whilst the bottoms, having a soil deeper and richer,
produce fine large fig-trees of exceeding beauty, the huge
calabash, and a variety of other trees. Here, in certain places
where water is obtainable throughout the year, and wars, or
slave-hunts more properly speaking, do not disturb the industry
of the people, cultivation thrives surprisingly; but such a boon
is rarely granted them. It is in consequence of these
constantly- recurring troubles that the majority of the Wasagara
villages are built on hill-spurs, where the people can the better
resist attack, or, failing, disperse and hide effectually. The
normal habitation is the small conical hut of grass. These
compose villages, varying in number according to the influence of
their head men. There are, however, a few mud villages on the
table-lands, each built in a large irregular square of chambers
with a hollow yard in the centre, known as tembe.
As to the people of these uplands, poor, meagre-looking wretches,
they contrast unfavourably with the lowlanders on both sides of
them. Dingy in colour, spiritless, shy, and timid, they invite
attack in a country where every human being has a market value,
and are little seen by the passing caravan. In habits they are
semi-pastoral agriculturalists, and would be useful members of
society were they left alone to cultivate their own possessions,
rich and beautiful by nature, but poor and desolate by force of
circumstance. Some of the men can afford a cloth, but the
greater part wear an article which I can only describe as a grass
kilt. In one or two places throughout the passage of these hills
a caravan may be taxed, but if so, only to a small amount; the
villagers more frequently fly to the hill-tops as soon as the
noise of the advancing caravan is heard, and no persuasions will
bring them down again, so much ground have they, from previous
experience, to fear treachery. It is such sad sights, and the
obvious want of peace and prosperity, that weary the traveller,
and make him every think of pushing on to his journey's end from
the instant he enters Africa until he quits the country.
Knowing by old experience that the beautiful green park in the
fork of these rivers abounded in game of great variety and in
vast herds, where no men are ever seen except some savage hunters
sitting in the trees with poisoned arrows, or watching their
snares and pitfalls, I had all along determined on a hunt myself,
to feed and cheer the men, and also to collect some specimens for
the home museums. In the first object we succeeded well, as "the
bags" we made counted two brindled gnu, four water-boc, one
pallah-boc, and one pig, - enough to feed abundantly the whole
camp round.
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