The Others Preferred
To Stand And Punt Our Boat, Rather Than Row With Our Long Oars, Being
Able To Shove Her Ahead Faster Than They Could Pull Her.
They are
accustomed to short paddles.
Our Mokadamo was affected with moon-
blindness, and could not see at all at night. His comrades then led
him about, and handed him his food. They thought that it was only
because his eyes rested all night, that he could see the channel so
well by day. At difficult places the Mokadamo sometimes, however,
made mistakes, and ran us aground; and the others, evidently imbued
with the spirit of resistance to constituted authority, and led by
Joao an aspirant for the office, jeered him for his stupidity. "Was
he asleep? Why did he allow the boat to come there? Could he not
see the channel was somewhere else?" At last the Mokadamo threw down
the pole in disgust, and told Joao he might be a Mokadamo himself.
The office was accepted with alacrity; but in a few minutes he too
ran us into a worse difficulty than his predecessor ever did, and was
at once disrated amidst the derision of his comrades.
On the 16th September, we arrived at the inhabited island of
Kichokomane. The usual way of approaching an unknown people is to
call out in a cheerful tone "Malonda!" Things for sale, or do you
want to sell anything? If we can obtain a man from the last village,
he is employed, though only useful in explaining to the next that we
come in a friendly way.
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