How I Found Livingstone Travels, Adventures And Discoveries In Central Africa Including Four Months Residence With Dr. Livingstone By Sir Henry M. Stanley
- Page 22 of 595 - First - Home
It Is On This Question Of Quality And Quantity That
The Traveller Has First To Exercise His Judgment And Discretion.
My informants gave me to understand that for one hundred men,
10 doti, or 40 yards of cloth per
Diem, would suffice for food.
The proper course to pursue, I found, was to purchase 2,000 doti
of American sheeting, 1,000 doti of Kaniki, and 650 doti of the
coloured cloths, such as Barsati, a great favourite in Unyamwezi;
Sohari, taken in Ugogo; Ismahili, Taujiri, Joho, Shash, Rehani,
Jamdani or Kunguru-Cutch, blue and pink. These were deemed amply
sufficient for the subsistence of one hundred men for twelve
months. Two years at this rate would require 4,000 doti = 16,000
yards of American sheeting; 2,000 doti = 8,000 yards of Kaniki;
1,300 doti = 5,200 yards of mixed coloured cloths. This was
definite and valuable information to me, and excepting the lack
of some suggestions as to the quality of the sheeting, Kaniki,
and coloured cloths, I had obtained all I desired upon this point.
Second in importance to the amount of cloth required was the
quantity and quality of the beads necessary. Beads, I was told,
took the place of cloth currency among some tribes of the
interior. One tribe preferred white to black beads, brown to
yellow, red to green, green to white, and so on. Thus, in
Unyamwezi, red (sami-sami) beads would readily be taken, where
all other kinds would be refused; black (bubu) beads, though
currency in Ugogo, were positively worthless with all other
tribes; the egg (sungomazzi) beads, though valuable in Ujiji
and Uguhha, would be refused in all other countries; the white
(Merikani) beads though good in Ufipa, and some parts of Usagara
and Ugogo, would certainly be despised in Useguhha and Ukonongo.
Such being the case, I was obliged to study closely, and calculate
the probable stay of an expedition in the several countries, so as
to be sure to provide a sufficiency of each kind, and guard against
any great overplus.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 22 of 595
Words from 6047 to 6391
of 163520
