that gigantic specimens are seen: they may be expected in shut-in
valleys among mountains, but on the whole the trees are scraggy, and
the varieties not great. The different sorts of birds which sing among
the branches seem to me to exceed those of the Zambesi region, but I
do not shoot them: the number of new notes I hear astonishes me.

The country in which we now are is called by the Arabs and natives
Ulungu, that farther north-west is named Marunga. Hamees is on
friendly terms with the Mazitu (Watuta) in the east, who do not
plunder. The chief sent a man to Kasonso lately, and he having
received a present went away highly pleased.

Hamees is certainly very anxious to secure my safety. Some men came
from the N.E. to inquire about the disturbance here and they recommend
that I should go with them, and then up the east side of the Lake to
Ujiji; but that would ruin my plan of discovering Moero and afterwards
following the watershed, so as to be certain that this is either the
watershed of the Congo or Kile. He was not well pleased when I
preferred to go south and then westwards, as it looks like rejecting
his counsel; but he said if I waited till his people came, then we
should be able to speak with more certainty.

On inquiring if any large mountains exist in this country, I was told
that Moufipa, or Fipa, opposite the lower end of the Lake, is
largest--one can see Tanganyika from it. It probably gives rise to the
Nkalambwe River and the Luaze.

There is nothing interesting in a heathen town. All are busy in
preparing food or clothing, mats or baskets, whilst the women are
cleaning or grinding their corn, which involves much hard labour. They
first dry this in the sun, then put it into a mortar, and afterwards
with a flat basket clean off the husks and the dust, and grind it
between two stones, the next thing is to bring wood and water to cook
it. The chief here was aroused the other day, and threatened to burn
his own house and all his property because the people stole from it,
but he did not proceed so far: it was probably a way of letting the
Arab dependants know that he was aroused.

Some of the people who went to fight attacked a large village, and
killed several men; but in shooting in a bushy place they killed one
of their own party and wounded another.

On inquiring of an Arab who had sailed on Tanganyika which way the
water flowed, he replied to the south!

The wagtails build in the thatch of the huts