Although The Rains Were Not Quite Over, Great Numbers Of Pools Were Drying Up,
And The Ground Was In Many Parts Covered With Small Green Cryptogamous Plants,
Which Gave It A Mouldy Appearance And A Strong Smell.
As we sometimes
pushed aside the masses of rank vegetation which hung over our path,
we felt a sort of hot blast on our faces.
Every thing looked unwholesome,
but we had no fever. The Ue flows between high banks of a soft red sandstone
streaked with white, and pieces of tufa. The crumbling sandstone
is evidently alluvial, and is cut into 12 feet deep. In this region, too,
we met with pot-holes six feet deep and three or four in diameter.
In some cases they form convenient wells; in others they are full of earth;
and in others still the people have made them into graves for their chiefs.
On the 20th we came to Monina's village (close to the sand-river Tangwe,
latitude 16d 13' 38" south, longitude 32d 32' east). This man is very popular
among the tribes on account of his liberality. Boroma, Nyampungo,
Monina, Jira, Katolosa (Monomotapa), and Susa, all acknowledge
the supremacy of one called Nyatewe, who is reported to decide
all disputes respecting land. This confederation is exactly similar
to what we observed in Londa and other parts of Africa.
Katolosa is "the Emperor Monomotapa" of history, but he is a chief
of no great power, and acknowledges the supremacy of Nyatewe.
The Portuguese formerly honored Monomotapa with a guard,
to fire off numbers of guns on the occasion of any funeral,
and he was also partially subsidized. The only evidence of greatness
possessed by his successor is his having about a hundred wives.
When he dies a disputed succession and much fighting are expected.
In reference to the term Monomotapa, it is to be remembered
that Mono, Moene, Mona, Mana, or Morena, mean simply `chief',
and considerable confusion has arisen from naming different people
by making a plural of the chief's name. The names Monomoizes,
spelled also Monemuiges and Monomuizes, and Monomotapistas, when applied
to these tribes, are exactly the same as if we should call the Scotch
the Lord Douglases. Motape was the chief of the Bambiri,
a tribe of the Banyai, and is now represented in the person of Katolosa.
He was probably a man of greater energy than his successor,
yet only an insignificant chief. Monomoizes was formed from Moiza or Muiza,
the singular of the word Babisa or Aiza, the proper name of a large tribe
to the north. In the transformation of this name the same error
has been committed as in the others; and mistakes have occurred
in many other names by inattention to the meaning, and predilection for
the letter R. The River Loangwa, for instance, has been termed Arroangoa,
and the Luenya the Ruanha. The Bazizulu, or Mashona,
are spoken of as the Morururus.
The government of the Banyai is rather peculiar, being a sort
of feudal republicanism. The chief is elected, and they choose
the son of the deceased chief's sister in preference to his own offspring.
When dissatisfied with one candidate, they even go to a distant tribe
for a successor, who is usually of the family of the late chief,
a brother, or a sister's son, but never his own son or daughter.
When first spoken to on the subject, he answers as if he thought himself
unequal to the task and unworthy of the honor; but, having accepted it,
all the wives, goods, and children of his predecessor belong to him,
and he takes care to keep them in a dependent position. When any one of them
becomes tired of this state of vassalage and sets up his own village,
it is not unusual for the elected chief to send a number of the young men,
who congregate about himself, to visit him. If he does not receive them
with the usual amount of clapping of hands and humility,
they, in obedience to orders, at once burn his village.
The children of the chief have fewer privileges than common free men.
They may not be sold, but, rather than choose any one of them for a chief
at any future time, the free men would prefer to elect one of themselves,
who bore only a very distant relationship to the family.
These free men are a distinct class who can never be sold;
and under them there is a class of slaves whose appearance as well as position
is very degraded. Monina had a great number of young men about him
from twelve to fifteen years of age. These were all sons of free men,
and bands of young men like them in the different districts
leave their parents about the age of puberty, and live with such men as Monina
for the sake of instruction. When I asked the nature of the instruction,
I was told "Bonyai", which I suppose may be understood
as indicating manhood, for it sounds as if we should say,
"to teach an American Americanism," or "an Englishman to be English."
While here they are kept in subjection to rather stringent regulations.
They must salute carefully by clapping their hands on approaching a superior,
and when any cooked food is brought, the young men may not approach the dish,
but an elder divides a portion to each. They remain unmarried
until a fresh set of youths is ready to occupy their place
under the same instruction. The parents send servants with their sons
to cultivate gardens to supply them with food, and also tusks to Monina
to purchase clothing for them. When the lads return to the village
of their parents, a case is submitted to them for adjudication,
and if they speak well on the point, the parents are highly gratified.
When we told Monina that we had nothing to present but some hoes,
he replied that he was not in need of those articles,
and that he had absolute power over the country in front,
and if he prevented us from proceeding, no one would say any thing to him.
His little boy Boromo having come to the encampment to look at us,
I gave him a knife, and he went off and brought a pint of honey for me.
The father came soon afterward, and I offered him a shirt.
He remarked to his councilors, "It is evident that this man has nothing,
for, if he had, his people would be buying provisions, but we don't see them
going about for that purpose." His council did not agree in this.
They evidently believed that we had goods, but kept them hid,
and we felt it rather hard to be suspected of falsehood.
It was probably at their suggestion that in the evening
a wardance was got up about a hundred yards from our encampment,
as if to put us in fear and force us to bring forth presents.
Some of Monina's young men had guns, but most were armed
with large bows, arrows, and spears.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 256 of 295
Words from 264388 to 265568
of 306638
