The Shire Flows Through A Low, Flat,
Marshy Country, But Abounding In Population, And They Are Said To Be Brave.
The Portuguese are unable to navigate the Shire up to the Lake Nyanja,
because of the great abundance of a
Water-plant which requires no soil,
and which they name "alfacinya" (`Pistia stratiotes'), from its resemblance
to a lettuce. This completely obstructs the progress of canoes.
In confirmation of this I may state that, when I passed
the mouth of the Shire, great quantities of this same plant
were floating from it into the Zambesi, and many parts of the banks below
were covered with the dead plants.
Senhor Candido stated that slight earthquakes have happened several times
in the country of the Maravi, and at no great distance from Tete.
The motion seems to come from the eastward, and never to have lasted
more than a few seconds. They are named in the Maravi tongue "shiwo",
and in that of the people of Tete "shitakoteko", or "shivering".
This agrees exactly with what has taken place in the coast of Mozambique -
a few slight shocks of short duration, and all appearing to come
from the east. At Senna, too, a single shock has been felt several times,
which shook the doors and windows, and made the glasses jingle.
Both Tete and Senna have hot springs in their vicinity,
but the shocks seemed to come, not from them, but from the east,
and proceed to the west. They are probably connected with
the active volcanoes in the island of Bourbon.
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