GETTING READY FOR THE ROAD.
The ceremonies of introduction being over, they at once set about their preparations for the journey to the coast. They were aided materially in their work by the governor and the principal merchants. The smaller traders threw various obstacles in their way, by inducing the pagazi to desert after they had been employed and received their retaining fee, and the matter finally became so serious that the Doctor made complaint to the governor, who ordered a stoppage of the interference.
Fortunately for their plans several caravans had recently arrived from the coast, and there was a good supply of porters seeking engagements to return. One of the merchants was about sending a caravan to Zanzibar with a quantity of ivory. He proposed to unite with the Doctor's party in engaging pagazi, and thus prevent the competition that would inevitably arise if they were both in the market at the same time. Doctor Bronson accepted the proposal, and in two or three days the merchant announced that he had all the men needed for both expeditions.
The price of porters varies according to the supply, the demand being sometimes very high, and at others decidedly low. An important feature of the contract was, that the men were to be paid on their arrival at the coast, and not at starting; consequently it would not be necessary to carry the goods needed for their payment, as the merchant was well known to the porters, and they readily accepted his guarantee of responsibility.
HALTING-PLACE UNDER A SYCAMORE.
The ordinary porters received the equivalent of ten dollars each in cloth at Zanzibar prices, and were to be paid off at Bagamoya, the port from which the traders cross to Zanzibar. The ivory-porters received two dollars extra, in consideration of the peculiar shape of their burdens and the difficulty of handling them. The largest tusks were slung between two men, as they were too heavy for a single porter; and these double porters have a traditional right of refusing to march more than ten miles a day.
In addition to their wages the porters are to be fed on the road, and the master of the caravan must be prepared to purchase the necessary provisions. For this purpose he carries a supply of cloth and beads, and a great deal of bargaining is required in making purchases. Where the country is peaceable a trusty man is sent ahead of the caravan to make arrangements; but if the natives are hostile this cannot be done, as the messenger would be liable to be waylaid and killed. The road between Unyamyembe and Zanzibar is now so well known, and so frequently travelled, that the route is divided into marches, and the natives derive quite an income from supplying the wants of the caravans. The expense of feeding a caravan is set down at about five dollars for each porter, and perhaps twice as much for the askari, or Arab soldiers, who are almost invariably taken along as an escort. Goats and bullocks supply the meat for feeding the porters, and the vegetable part of their bill of fare includes sweet-potatoes, manioc, rice, bananas, meal from wheat and corn, and anything else that the region through which they pass happens to offer. Occasionally fish are caught from the rivers, and game is shot in the forest, but they cannot be relied upon as a regular supply.