,"
a large pale blue bead, is a favourite amongst the Wabisa; but by far
the most valuable of all is a small white oblong bead, which, when
strung, looks like the joints of the cane root, from which it takes
its name, "Salani" = cane. Susi says that 1 lb. weight of these beads
would buy a tusk of ivory, at the south end of Tanganyika, so big that
a strong man could not carry it more than two hours.]

* * * * *

_25th January, 1867._--Remain and get our maere ground into flour.
Moaba has cattle, sheep, and goats. The other side of the Chambeze has
everything in still greater abundance; so we may recover our lost
flesh. There are buffaloes in this quarter, but we have not got a
glimpse of any. If game was to be had, I should have hunted; but the
hopo way of hunting prevails, and we pass miles of hedges by which
many animals must have perished. In passing-through the forests it is
surprising to see none but old footsteps of the game; but the hopo
destruction accounts for its absence. When the hedges are burned, then
the manured space is planted with pumpkins and calabashes.

I observed at Chibanda's a few green mushrooms, which, on being
peeled, showed a pink, fleshy inside; they are called "chisimba;" and
only one or two are put into the mortar, in which the women pound the
other kinds, to give relish, it was said, to the mass: I could not
ascertain what properties chisimba had when taken alone; but mushroom
diet, in our experience, is good only for producing dreams of the
roast beef of bygone days. The saliva runs from the mouth in these
dreams, and the pillow is wet with it in the mornings.

These Babisa are full of suspicion; everything has to be paid for
accordingly in advance, and we found that giving a present to a chief
is only putting it in his power to cheat us out of a supper. They give
nothing to each other for nothing, and if this is enlargement of mind
produced by commerce, commend me to the untrading African!

Fish now appear in the rivulets. Higher altitudes have only small
things, not worth catching.

An owl makes the woods resound by night and early morning with his
cries, which consist of a loud, double-initial note, and then a
succession of lower descending notes. Another new bird, or at least
new to me, makes the forests ring.

When the vultures see us making our sheds, they conclude that we have
killed some animal; but after watching awhile, and seeing no meat,