On the 17th December, 1917, Headquarters arrived at Chirumba (Mtarika). Lieutenant von Ruckteschell, with his company, had gone on ahead and had soon driven off the weak Portuguese outposts. This was a station of the Portuguese Nyassa company; this merchant company also administered the northern part of the colony. Further south, too, the administration is in the hands of other private companies. The Portuguese official in Chirumba, called Fernandez, seems to have been very capable. The massive buildings of his station, situated at the top of a bare eminence, were spotlessly clean. A trench ensured it against surprise. Beautiful gardens with fruit and vegetables stretched along the bank of the adjacent Ludjenda river. Avenues of mulberry and mango trees fringed the carefully laid-out roads. Many species of this mango fruit, known to the natives as Emben, were to be found in the station and the neighbouring native villages. It was already beginning to ripen and was so plentiful that it was found worth while to have the fruit systematically gathered. The waste to which the natives are generally prone was prevented as far as possible. The beautiful, sweet fruit was enjoyed by all the Europeans and a great part of the natives, and, in view of the shortage of sugar, for weeks provided a really valuable addition to the supplies. When, on my arrival at Chirumba, I stepped on to the veranda of the European house, Lieutenant Ruckteschell set before me some hog’s lard, which I had not seen for a long time. Here, as at many other Portuguese stations, there had been European pigs.

We remained here for several weeks. One detachment moved further upstream and took possession of the small station of Luambala. At the same time General Wahle marched to the prosperous station of Mwemba, already known to us. The richly-cultivated triangle Chirumba-Luambala-Mwemba and beyond the frontier was patrolled by our requisitioning and reconnaissance patrols. The natives of this district showed themselves for the most part intelligent and friendly; they already knew that they had nothing to fear from the German troops. In spite of that they had hidden their stores of food in the bush and would let us have little or nothing. Our men had, however, long since learned to examine closely, for example, a suspicious-looking tree stump, and often found that it had been put together by hand and was the hiding place for stocks of food. Others would drive their sticks into the hollow ground of a freshly laid-out garden and found stores of grain buried there. In short, many such hiding-places were found, and when, at Christmas, we sat down to dinner in a large grass-hut, we were relieved of the most pressing shortage of food. According to the descriptions of our men the Ludjenda river was, during several months of the year, so full of fish that they could be pulled out in basketfuls. Oddly enough, on this occasion only very few were caught. Most of them were sheat-fish, about eighteen inches long, and smaller fish which were best fried crisp. These, too, contributed their modest share towards the improvement of the rations.

Touch was kept with Koehl’s detachment in the neighbourhood of Medo by means of a system of relays. I thought it probable that the enemy, following his usual tactics, was preparing a great concentric movement against us which would not be ready for at least a month. We could thus rely on there being no considerable enemy activity until after the rains, which would end at the end of February. About this time I intended to concentrate my forces in the neighbourhood of Nanungu. Until then we must husband our supplies in this area and live as far as possible on what could be obtained in the outer fringe of our present locality. At first there was not much game shot at Chirumba, but the bag increased when we found considerable herds of antelopes on the east bank of the Ludjenda, and particularly further upstream. During the remainder of the dry season, while the river was low, caravans of bearers were continually crossing the river by several fords, carrying their loads to the dumps on the east bank. As well as the fords, canoes made from hollowed tree-trunks were used for crossing. Patrols were sent out for weeks at a time to collect supplies and reconnoitre. Lieutenant von Scherbening, with his patrol, made an expedition lasting months, marching from Chirumba via Mtenda, Mahua and finally south, via the Lurio river, then up the Malema, where they surprised the Portuguese Boma Malema. An Italian, who had been hunting elephants on the Ludjenda and had joined us in a ragged, starving condition, accompanied Lieutenant von Scherbening’s patrol. The man’s health was, however, so undermined by lingering malaria and his spleen so terribly swollen that he had to be carried from Mahua to a plantation near Malacotera.

At the beginning of January, 1918, the English began to move. From the south-east corner of Lake Nyassa two battalions—the 1st and 2nd King’s African Rifles—began to advance towards Captain Goering’s detachment, which had joined up with us and occupied the acute angle between the Luhambala and Ludjenda rivers. He was covering the supply stores further up the Ludjenda. On 9th January, in the forenoon, a detachment of the enemy, attacking unsupported, was defeated. When, in the afternoon, the enemy returned to the attack after the arrival of his reinforcements, and at the same time an enemy force pressed forward in a northerly direction toward the supply dumps on the east bank, Captain Goering crossed to the east bank with the main part of his force. Only a strong patrol was left in the old camp on the west bank, and they held the enemy in check. At the same time an enemy force—the 2nd Cape Corps of South African half-breeds was identified—was advancing on Mwembe.

Then began innumerable small skirmishes and patrol actions, which often put us in an awkward position, owing to our inability to protect the bearers bringing up supplies. The English cleverly took advantage of these difficulties to try to undermine the loyalty of our Askari. Many were very war-weary. Added to this, there was in many cases the feeling of uncertainty as to where the campaign was going to lead them. The great majority of black men cling to their homes and their relations. They said to themselves: “If we go further we shall come into country we don’t know. We can find our way back from where we are now, but soon we shan’t be able to.” The English propaganda, by word of mouth and pamphlets, fell in many cases on fruitful ground, and, as a result, a number of good Askari and even older non-commissioned officers deserted. Small annoyances, such as are bound to arise—the persuasion of the women and so on—all contributed to their decision to desert. One old sol (native sergeant-major) suddenly disappeared, who had led a brilliant independent patrol and had brought a strong detachment of bearers with their loads right through the enemy lines, and for his good service had been promoted to “Effendi.” He, too, had deserted. The impulsiveness of the black makes him very sensitive to insinuation. But even if the English Colonel can boast of having lowered the moral of certain elements, this was only a passing phase. The old lust of battle and the old loyalty returned, even among those who had begun to hang their heads. The example of the faithful Askari, who simply laughed at the mountains of gold the English promised them if they would desert, won the day. In so long and trying a campaign the moral was bound to be low from time to time. It was no use to be astonished and discouraged, the important thing was to fight against it firmly, and for this the loyal elements, of which there were many, both among Europeans, Askari and bearers, had firmly made up their minds.

CHAPTER II
EAST OF THE LUDJENDA

THE patrol of Captain Otto, who had been sent from Captain Tafel to me after the latter’s surrender, and gave me details about the events leading up to it, had arrived at Chirumba. Captain Otto, with two additional companies, now marched to Luambala and took over the command also of Goering’s detachment (three companies). As was expected, the main pressure of the enemy was felt at Luambala, as also on the east bank of the Ludjenda. It was clear that if the enemy advanced downstream my position at Chirumba on the west bank of the river, in a district where the supplies were being gradually exhausted, and with the river swollen by the rains in my rear, was extremely unfavourable.

It was necessary to evacuate this position and to move my force, while there was time, to the east bank of the Ludjenda. Unfortunately the fords were impassable, owing to the height of the river, so that the whole crossing had to be effected by means of the three canoes available.