how stanley obtained canoes.—the people of ukusu.—their hostility.—a fight and terms of peace.—separation from tippu-tib.—departure "towards the unknown."—a sad farewell.—among the vinya-nara.—the natives at stanley falls.—a fierce battle.—defending a stockade.—boats capsized in a tempest and men drowned.—beginning of the new year.—a battle on the water.—monster canoes.—among the mwana ntaba.—the natives are defeated.—first cataract of stanley falls.—camped in a fortification.
"mr. stanley's hope of obtaining canoes was soon realized," said fred, when the party assembled in the evening, "but he suffered greatly before he secured them. small-pox and other diseases carried off many of his people; the natives at first refused all offers of peace, and would sell no provisions. at the rapids of ukassa, near the mouth of the ruiki river, a fleet of canoes came to attack him, but the savages retreated when they found the strangers were ready to fight.
canoes in the mouth of the ruiki river.
"he found some old and abandoned canoes which his men repaired; and with these canoes and the lady alice he transported a part of his[pg 244] force, while the remainder went by land. the banks of the river were densely peopled, and the houses in the villages showed a considerable advance towards civilization. many of the villages were built in regular streets, and some of these streets were fully two miles long. from a native, who was made prisoner, mr. stanley learned that he was in the district called ukusu, and that the people would not permit strangers to pass along the river. the river was about seventeen hundred yards wide, and thickly studded in many places with islands densely covered with trees and undergrowth.
war-hatchet of ukusu.
"the houses were of various patterns, but all of a single story in height. most of them were mere double cages, made very elegantly of the panicum grass cane, seven feet long by five feet wide and six feet high, separated, as regards the main building, but connected by the roof, so that the central apartments were common to both cages, and in these the families meet and perform their household duties, or receive their friends for social chat. near each village was the burial-place or vault of its preceding kings, roofed over, with the leaves of the phrynium ramosissimum, which appears to be as useful a plant for many reasons as the banana to the waganda.
stool of ukusu.
"at one of the villages a large number of natives attacked the expedition, which had taken position and built a stockade close to the river's bank. thousands of poisoned arrows came whizzing into the stockade, and hundreds of spears were thrown, but the rifles of the expedition held the savages at bay. when the day ended, the negroes retired to the opposite side of the river, where they tied their canoes to the bank. during the night mr. stanley and frank pocock crossed the river with the lady alice and their large canoe; one by one the canoes of the natives were silently secured and taken away to the number of thirty-eight, and when the natives woke in the morning, they were probably never more astonished in their lives.
stew-pot of the wahika.
"a peace was negotiated, and terms of blood-brotherhood were made.[pg 245]
[pg 246] mr. stanley returned fifteen of the canoes, and retained twenty-three as an equivalent for the losses he had sustained in the attack. he had a sufficient number of boats now for his purpose.
encounter with a gorilla.
"tippu-tib announced that he would go no farther. mr. stanley released him from his engagement, on condition that he would use his influence with the members of the expedition to remain with it. a satisfactory settlement was made with tippu-tib and his people; farewell feasts were given, and everything seemed favorable for the future. provisions for twenty days were prepared, the men were assigned to the boats, and, to make the fleet as much like a civilized one as possible, each boat received a name. here is the list:
1. the exploring boat, lady alice. 13. london town.
2. ocean, commanded by frank. 14. america.
3. livingstone. 15. hart.
4. stanley. 16. daphne.
5. telegraph. 17. lynx.
6. herald. 18. nymph.
7. jason. 19. vulture.
8. argo. 20. shark.
9. penguin. 21. arab.
10. wolverine. 22. mirambo.
11. fawn. 23. mtesa.
12. glasgow (flag-ship, commanded by manwa sera).
a house of two rooms.
"and now," said fred, "we will hear mr. stanley's story of how they set out on their adventurous voyage:
[pg 247]
"the crisis drew nigh when the 28th of december dawned. a gray mist hung over the river, so dense that we could not see even the palmy banks on which vinya-njara was situated. it would have been suicidal to begin our journey on such a gloomy morning. the people appeared as cheerless and dismal as the foggy day. we cooked our breakfasts in order to see if, by the time we had fortified the soul by satisfying the cravings of the stomach, the river and its shores might not have resumed their usual beautiful outlines, and their striking contrasts of light and shadow.
canoe scoop.
"slowly the breeze wafted the dull and heavy mists away until the sun appeared, and bit by bit the luxuriantly wooded banks rose up solemn and sad. finally the gray river was seen, and at 9 a.m. its face gleamed with the brightness of a mirror.
scoops.
"'embark, my friends! let us at once away! and a happy voyage to us.'
"toward the unknown."
"the drum and trumpet proclaimed to tippu-tib's expectant ears that we were ascending the river. in half an hour we were pulling across to the left bank, and when we reached it, a mile above vinya-njara, we rested on our oars. the strong brown current soon bore us down within hearing of a deep and melodious diapason of musical voices chanting the farewell song. how beautiful it sounded to us as we approached them! the dense jungle and forest seemed to be penetrated with the vocal notes, and the river to bear them tenderly towards us. louder the sad notes swelled on our ears, full of a pathetic and mournful meaning. with bated breath we listened to the rich music which spoke to us unmistakably of parting, of sundered friendship, a long, perhaps an eternal, farewell. we came in view of them, as, ranged along the bank in picturesque costume, the sons of unyamwezi sang their last song. we waved our hands to them. our hearts were so full of grief that we could not speak. steadily the brown flood bore us by,[pg 248] and fainter and fainter came the notes down the water, till finally they died away, leaving us all alone on the great river.
coil of plaited rope, central africa.
"but, looking up, i saw the gleaming portal to the unknown: wide open to us and away down, for miles and miles, the river lay stretched with all the fascination of its mystery. i stood up and looked at the people. how few they appeared to dare the region of fable and darkness! they were nearly all sobbing. they were leaning forward, bowed, as it seemed, with grief and heavy hearts.
"'sons of zanzibar,' i shouted, 'the arabs and the wanyemwezi are looking at you. they are now telling one another what brave fellows you are. lift up your heads and be men. what is there to fear? all the world is smiling with joy. here we are all together like one family, with hearts united, all strong with the purpose to reach our homes. see this river; it is the road to zanzibar. when saw you a road so wide? when did you journey along a path like this? strike your paddles deep, cry out bismillah! and let us forward.'
"poor fellows! with what wan smiles they responded to my words! how feebly they paddled! but the strong flood was itself bearing us along, and the vinya-njara villages were fast receding into distance.
"then i urged my boat's crew, knowing that thus we should tempt the canoes to quicker pace. three or four times uledi, the coxswain, gallantly attempted to sing, in order to invite a cheery chorus, but his voice soon died into such piteous hoarseness that the very ludicrousness of the tones caused his young friends to smile even in the midst of their grief.
"we knew that the vinya-njara district was populous from the numbers of natives that fought with us by land and water, but we had no conception that it was so thickly populated as the long row of villages we now saw indicated. i counted fourteen separate villages, each with its respective growth of elais palm and banana, and each separated from the other by thick bush.
"every three or four miles there were small villages visible on either bank, but we met with no disturbance, fortunately. at 5 p.m. we made for a small village called kali-karero, and camped there, the natives having retired peacefully. in half an hour they returned, and the ceremony of brotherhood was entered upon, which insured a peaceful night. the inhabitants of rukura, opposite us, also approached us with confidence, and an interchange of small gifts served us as a healthy augury for the future.
"on the morning of the 29th, accompanied by a couple of natives in a small fishing-canoe, we descended the river along the left bank, and, after about four miles, arrived at the confluence of the kasuku, a dark-water stream of a hundred yards' width at the mouth. opposite the mouth, at the southern end of kaimba—a long wooded island on the right bank, and a little above the confluence—stands the important village of kisanga-sanga.
[pg 249]
"below kaimba island and its neighbor, the livingstone assumes a breadth of eighteen hundred yards. the banks are very populous: the villages of the left bank comprise the district of luavala. we thought for some time we should be permitted to pass by quietly, but soon the great wooden drums, hollowed out of huge trees, thundered the signal along the river that there were strangers. in order to lessen all chances of a rupture between us, we sheered off to the middle of the river, and quietly lay on our paddles. but from both banks at once, in fierce concert, the natives, with their heads gayly feathered, and armed with broad black wooden shields and long spears, dashed out towards us.
war-drums of the tribes of the upper livingstone.
"tippu-tib before our departure had hired to me two young men of ukusu—cannibals—as interpreters. these were now instructed to cry out the word 'sennenneh' ('peace!'), and to say that we were friends.
"but they would not reply to our greeting, and in a bold, peremptory manner told us to return.
"'but we are doing no harm, friends. it is the river that takes us down, and the river will not stop, or go back.'
"'this is our river.'
"'good. tell it to take us back, and we will go.'
"'if you do not go back, we will fight you.'
"'no, don't; we are friends.'
"'we don't want you for our friends; we will eat you.'
"but we persisted in talking to them, and, as their curiosity was so great, they persisted in listening, and the consequence was that the current conveyed us near to the right bank; and in such near neighborhood to another district that our discourteous escort had to think of themselves, and began to skurry hastily up river, leaving us unattacked.
"the villages on the right bank also maintained a tremendous drumming and blowing of war-horns, and their wild men hurried up with menace towards us, urging their sharp-prowed canoes so swiftly that they seemed to skim over the water like flying fish. unlike the luavala villagers, they did not wait to be addressed, but as soon as they came within fifty or sixty yards they shot out their spears, crying out, 'meat! meat! ah! ha! we shall have plenty of meat!'
"there was a fat-bodied wretch in a canoe, whom i allowed to crawl within spear-throw of me; who, while he swayed the spear with a vigor far from assuring to one who stood within reach of it, leered with such a clever hideousness of feature that i felt, if only within arm's-length of him, i could have bestowed upon[pg 250] him a hearty thump on the back, and cried out applaudingly, 'bravo, old boy! you do it capitally!'
village scene.
"yet not being able to reach him, i was rapidly being fascinated by him. the rapid movements of the swaying spear, the steady, wide-mouthed grin, the big square teeth, the head poised on one side with the confident pose of a practised spear-thrower, the short brow and square face, hair short and thick. shall i ever forget him? it appeared to me as if the spear partook of the same cruel, inexorable look as the grinning savage. finally, i saw him draw his right arm back, and his body incline backward, with still that same grin on his face, and i felt myself begin to count, one, two, three, four—and whiz! the spear flew over my back, and hissed as it pierced the water. the spell was broken.
"it was only five minutes' work clearing the river. we picked up several shields, and i gave orders that all shields should be henceforth religiously preserved, for the idea had entered my head that they would answer capitally as bulwarks for our canoes. an hour after this we passed close to the confluence of the urindi—a stream four hundred yards in width at the mouth, and deep with water of a light color, and tolerably clear.
"we continued down river along the right bank, and at 4 p.m. camped in a dense low jungle, the haunt of the hippopotamus and elephant during the dry season. when the river is in flood a much larger tract must be under water.
"the traveller's first duty in lands infested by lions and leopards is to build a safe corral, kraal, or boma, for himself, his oxen, horses, servants; and in lands[pg 251] infested like usongora meno and kasera—wherein we now were—by human lions and leopards, the duty became still more imperative. we drew our canoes, therefore, half-way upon the banks, and our camp was in the midst of an impenetrable jungle.
"at dawn we embarked, and descended about two miles, close to the right bank, when, lo! the broad mouth of the magnificent lowwa, or rowwa, river burst upon the view. it was over a thousand yards wide, and its course by compass was from the southeast, or east-southeast true. a sudden rain-storm compelled us to camp on the north bank, and here we found ourselves under the shadows of the primeval forest.
musical instruments and mode of playing.
"about ten o'clock, as we cowered in most miserable condition under the rude, leafy shelters we had hastily thrown up, the people of the wooded bluffs of iryamba, opposite the lowwa confluence, came over to see what strange beings were those who had preferred the secrecy of the uninhabited grove to their own loud, roystering society. stock-still we sat cowering in our leafy coverts, but the mild, reproachful voice of katembo, our cannibal interpreter, was heard laboring in the interests of peace, brotherhood, and good-will. the rain pattered so incessantly that i could from my position only faintly hear katembo's voice pleading, earnestly yet mildly, with his unsophisticated brothers of iryamba, but i felt convinced from the angelic tones that they would act as a sedative on any living creature except a rhinoceros or a crocodile. the long-drawn bleating sound of the[pg 252] word 'sen-nen-neh,' which i heard frequently uttered by katembo, i studied until i became quite as proficient in it as he himself.
"peace was finally made between katembo on the one hand and the canoe-men of iryamba on the other, and they drew near to gaze at their leisure at one of the sallow white men, who with great hollow eyes peered from under the visor of his cap, on the well-fed, bronze-skinned aborigines.
"at 2 p.m. we left our camp in the forest of luru, and pulled across to the iryamba side of the livingstone. but as soon as the rain had ceased a strong breeze had risen, which, when we were in mid-river, increased to a tempest from the north, and created great, heavy waves, which caused the foundering of two of our canoes, the drowning of two of our men, farjalla baraka, and nasib, and the loss of four muskets and one sack of beads. half a dozen other canoes were in great danger for a time, but no more fatal accidents occurred.
"i feared lest this disaster might cause the people to rebel and compel me to return, for it had shocked them greatly; but i was cheered; to hear them remark that the sudden loss of their comrades had been ordained by fate, and that no precautions would have availed to save them. but though omens and auguries were delivered by the pessimists among us, not one hazarded aloud the belief that we ought to relinquish our projects; yet they were all evidently cowed by our sudden misfortune.
"on the 31st, the last day of the year 1876, we resumed our voyage. the morning was beautiful, the sky blue and clear, the tall forest still and dark, the river flowed without a ripple, like a solid mass of polished silver. everything promised fair. but from the island below, the confluence of the lowwa and the livingstone, the warning drum sounded loudly over the river, and other drums soon echoed the dull boom.
"'keep together, my men,' i cried, 'there may be hot work for us below.'
"we resolved to keep in mid-stream, because both the island and the left bank appeared to be extremely populous, and to paddle slowly and steadily down river. the canoes of the natives darted from either shore, and there seemed to be every disposition made for a furious attack; but as we drew near we shouted out to them, 'friends, sennenneh! keep away from us. we shall not hurt you; but don't lift your spears, or we'll fight.'
"there was a moment's hesitation, wherein spears were clashed against shields, and some fierce words uttered, but finally the canoes drew back, and as we continued to paddle, the river with its stiff current soon bore us down rapidly past the populous district and island.
"at noon we came to the southern end of an uninhabited low and sandy island, where i ascertained the latitude to be south 1° 20' 3". the altitude, above sea level, of the river at this place is 1729 feet. after descending some five miles we formed our camp in the woods on the right bank.
"the beginning of the new year, 1877, commenced, the first three hours after sunrise, with a delicious journey past an uninhabited tract, when my mind, wearied with daily solicitude, found rejoice in dwelling musingly upon the deep slumber of nature. outwardly the forest was all beauty, solemn peace, and soft, dreamy rest, tempting one to sentiment and mild melancholy. though it was in vain to endeavor to penetrate with our eyes into the dense wall of forest—black and impervious[pg 253]
[pg 254] to the sunlight which almost seemed to burn up the river—what could restrain the imagination? these were my calm hours; periods when my heart, oblivious of the dark and evil days we had passed, resolutely closed itself against all dismal forebodings, and revelled in the exquisite stillness of the uninhabited wilderness.
gorillas and nest.
"but soon after nine o'clock we discovered we were approaching settlements, both on islands and on the banks, and again the hoarse war-drums awakened the echoes of the forest, boomed along the river, and quickened our pulses.
"we descend in close order as before, and steadily pursue our way. but, heading us off, about ten long canoes dart out from the shadow of palmy banks, and the wild crews begin to chant their war-songs, and now and then, in attitudes of bravado and defiance, raise spears and shields aloft and bring them downward with sounding clash.
"as we approached them we shouted out 'sen-nen-neh'—our sesame and shibboleth, our watchword and countersign. but they would not respond.
"hitherto they had called us wasambye; we were now called wajiwa (people of the sun?); our guns were called katadzi, while before they were styled kibongeh, or lightning. katembo was implored to be eloquent, mild of voice, pacific in gesture.
"they replied, 'we shall eat wajiwa meat to-day. oho, we shall eat wajiwa meat!' and then an old chief gave some word of command, and at once one hundred paddles beat the water into foam, and the canoes darted at us. but the contest was short, and we were permitted to pursue our voyage.
native pipe.
"farther down we met some friendly natives, who told us that we should soon come to the territory of the mwana ntaba, with whom we should have to fight; that the mwana ntaba people occupied the country as far as the falls; that below the falls were several islands inhabited by the baswa, who were friends of the mwana ntaba. it would be impossible, they said, to go over the falls, as the river swept against a hill, and rolled over it, and tumbled down, down, down, with whirl and uproar, and we should inevitably get lost. it would be far better, they said, for us to return.
"about two o'clock, in the afternoon of january 4th, as we were proceeding quietly, our vessels being only about thirty yards from the right bank, eight men with shields darted into view from behind a bush-clump, and, shouting their war-cries, launched their wooden spears. some of them struck and dinted the boat deeply, others flew over it. we shoved off instantly, and getting into mid-stream found that we had heedlessly exposed ourselves to the watchful tribe of mwana ntaba,[pg 255]
[pg 256] who immediately sounded their great drums, and prepared their numerous canoes for battle.
scene on a tributary of the great river—launching a canoe.
"up to this time we had met with no canoes over fifty feet long, but those which now issued from the banks and the shelter of bends in the banks were monstrous. the natives were in full war-paint, one half of their bodies being daubed white, the other half red, with broad black bars, the tout ensemble being unique and diabolical. there was a crocodilian aspect about these lengthy vessels which was far from assuring, while the fighting-men, standing up alternately with the paddlers, appeared to be animated with a most ferocious cat-o'-mountain spirit. horn-blasts, which reverberated from bank to bank, sonorous drums, and a chorus of loud yells, lent a fierce éclat to the fight in which we were now about to be engaged.
mwana ntaba canoe (the "crocodile").
"we formed line, and having arranged all our shields as bulwarks for the non-combatants, awaited the first onset with apparent calmness. one of the largest canoes, which we afterwards found to be eighty-five feet three inches in length, rashly made the mistake of singling out the lady alice for its victim; but we reserved our fire until it was within fifty feet of us, and after pouring a volley into the crew charged the canoe with the boat, and the crew, unable to turn her round sufficiently soon to escape, precipitated themselves into the river and swam to their friends, while we made ourselves masters of the great eastern of the livingstone. we soon exchanged two of our smaller canoes and manned the monster with thirty men, and resumed our journey in line, the boat in front acting as a guide. this early disaster to the mwana ntaba caused them to hurry down river, blowing their horns, and alarming with their drums both shores of the river, until about forty canoes were seen furiously dashing down stream, no doubt bent on mischief.
"at 4 p.m. we came opposite a river about two hundred yards wide, which i have called the leopold river, in honor of his majesty leopold ii., king of the belgians, and which the natives called either the kankora, mikonju, or munduku.
"soon after passing by the confluence, the livingstone, which above had been two thousand five hundred yards wide, perceptibly contracted, and turned sharply to the east-northeast, because of a hill which rose on the left bank about three hundred feet above the river. close to the elbow of the bend on the right bank we passed by some white granite rocks, from one to six feet above the water, and just below these we heard the roar of the first cataract of the stanley falls series.
village near the forest.
"but louder than the noise of the falls rose the piercing yells of the savage mwana ntaba from both sides of the great river. we now found ourselves confronted by the inevitable necessity of putting into practice the resolution which we had formed before setting out on the wild voyage—to conquer or die. what[pg 257]
[pg 258] shall we do? shall we turn and face the fierce cannibals, who with hideous noise drown the solemn roar of the cataract, or shall we cry out, 'mambu kwa mungu' 'our fate is in the hands of god'—and risk the cataract with its terrors?
"meanwhile we are sliding smoothly to our destruction, and a decision must therefore be arrived at instantly. god knows, i and my fellows would rather have it not to do, because possibly it is only a choice of deaths, by cruel knives or drowning. if we do not choose the knives, which are already sharpened for our throats, death by drowning is certain. so, finding ourselves face to face with the inevitable, we turn to the right bank upon the savages, who are in the woods and on the water. we drop our anchors and begin the fight, but after fifteen minutes of it find that we cannot force them away. we then pull up anchors and ascend stream again, until, arriving at the elbow above mentioned, we strike across the river and divide our forces. mwana sera is to take four canoes and to continue up stream a little distance, and, while we occupy the attention of the savages in front, is to lead his men through the woods and set upon them in rear. at 5.30 p.m. we make the attempt, and keep them in play for a few minutes, and on hearing a shot in the woods dash at the shore, and under a shower of spears and arrows effect a landing. from tree to tree the fight is continued until sunset, when, having finally driven the enemy off, we have earned peace for the night.
"until about 10 p.m. we are busy constructing an impenetrable stockade or boma of brushwood, and then at length we lay our sorely fatigued bodies down to rest, without comforts of any kind and without fires, but (i speak for myself only) with a feeling of gratitude to him who has watched over us in our trouble, and a humble prayer that his protection may be extended to us for the terrible days that may yet be to come."
[pg 259]
native corn-magazine.
