"Yes," was the reply, "Kilimanjaro has an elevation of 18,880 feet, and is covered with snow throughout the year. The mountain has two peaks; Kibo, the higher of these peaks, has the elevation I mentioned, while the other—Kimawenzi—attains an altitude of 16,250 feet. These peaks are in the centre of a mass of surrounding mountains, but none of the others reach above the snow-line. Both Kibo and Kimawenzi are the craters of extinct volcanoes, and the whole region round about was evidently thrown up by volcanic or earthquake action, ages and ages ago. In a direct line the great mountain is about one hundred and seventy-five miles from the coast, but by the tortuous lines of African travel the distance is considerably more than two hundred miles.
"Mr. Johnston arrived in Zanzibar on his way to Kilimanjaro in April, 1884, and after some delay in outfitting his expedition took the route by way of Mombasa. His troubles with porters and natives were similar to those of Mr. Thomson, so that a repetition of his story is unnecessary. He relates that on several occasions his camp was surrounded with lions at night, and though the brutes did no damage, they kept up a tremendous roaring which effectually prevented all sleeping. One night the roar was continuous, and the voices of no less than ten of these animals were counted; on the next morning the tracks in the soft earth around the camp indicated that a whole troop of lions had been present. Mr. Johnston noticed that whenever a lion was approaching the camp, and before he had given warning of his presence by a roar, the birds in the trees set up a nervous twittering. The approach of other wild beasts at night was notified in the same way.
"The slopes of Kilimanjaro between the elevations of three thousand and seven thousand feet are occupied by an agricultural people; their chief is called Mandara and the name of the country is Chaga. Through his intimacy with the Arab slave-dealers Mandara had become avaricious, and exacted a heavy tribute from Mr. Johnston, as he had from previous visitors. The explorer described the monarch as about five feet eleven inches in height, of dignified bearing and fine figure. He looked more like a North American Indian than a native-born African, as his cheek-bones were high and his nose hooked, while his mouth was broad and thin-lipped and his chin rounded and resolute. The lobes of his ears had been bored and distended so that each contained a ring of wood three or four inches in diameter. The custom of boring the ears and subsequently distending them prevails in Chaga, and very often the distended lobe almost touches the shoulder of its owner.
"Mr. Johnston purchased a site for his plantation after some bargaining, and then settled down to work. Mandara presented the stranger with a cow and some goats and sheep, the Zanzibari porters built houses, a kitchen garden was started with a great variety of seeds of the tropical and temperate zones, and before a week had passed the explorer was eating a salad of his own growing. At first he was greatly annoyed by the attendants of Mandara's court, who came daily to him on begging excursions. He suspected that they were sent by the chief, but assumed in an interview with that dignitary that such was not the case. By a little diplomacy he managed to win the monarch's favor, at least for a time, and compel his annoyers to stay away.
MANDARA'S LEFT EAR.
"He found the nights cool at the elevation where his plantation was situated; at daylight the temperature was a little above fifty degrees, but it rose steadily with the sun as the day advanced. The air was pure and dry, and Mr. Johnston says that but for the occasional troubles with his neighbors the life on the mountain slope would have been delightful. On certain days the natives held markets, at which he bought various supplies for his people; he rarely did any purchasing himself, but left the business to his head men, as the natives invariably sought to cheat him in bargaining.
"Mr. Johnston had brought two men from Zanzibar to assist him in collecting birds and plants, but they proved of no use, and had to be discharged and sent back to the coast. Consequently all the labor of collecting fell upon himself, and he was very actively employed during every day of his stay in Chaga. He had a great deal of trouble with Mandara, who begged constantly for anything he wanted, and would have soon reduced his visitor to a condition of beggary. At one time he cut off all supplies of food, forbidding his people to sell anything to the strangers, and placing a cordon of fighting-men around Mr. Johnston's settlement to make sure that his orders were obeyed. He finally became so troublesome that the explorer moved his camp to another district, where the chief was more amiable, though not less inclined to beg."