Notwithstanding this he had no fears for himself, as that chief looked upon Mr Moffat, his father-in-law, as his especial friend. A considerable district, also, of the country was still inhabited by the Makololo, and by them he was sure to be kindly treated. The Makololo, it must be understood, are a mixed race, composed of tribes of Bechuanas who formerly inhabited the country bordering the Kalahara Desert. Their language, the Bechuana, is spoken by the upper classes of the Makololo, and into this tongue, by the persevering labours of Mr Moffat, nearly the whole of the scriptures have been translated. Thus means already existed of making known the Gospel among them. The bulk of the people are negroes, and are an especially fine, athletic, and skilful race.
As soon as Dr Livingstone announced his intention of proceeding to the east, numerous volunteers came forward to accompany him. From among them he selected a hundred and fourteen trustworthy men, and Sekeletu appointed two, Sekwebu and Kanyata, as leaders of the company. Sekwebu had been captured, when a child, from the Matabele, and his tribe now inhabited the country near Tete; he had frequently travelled along the banks of the Zambesi, and spoke the various dialects of the people residing on them, and was, moreover, a man of sound judgment and prudence, and rendered great service to the expedition.
On the 3rd of November Dr Livingstone, bidding farewell to his friends at Linyanti, set out, accompanied by Sekeletu and two hundred followers. On reaching a patch of country infested by the tsetse it became necessary to travel at night. A fearful storm broke forth, sometimes the lightning, spreading over the sky, forming eight or ten branches like those of a gigantic tree. At times the light was so great that the whole country could be distinctly seen, and in the intervals between the flashes it was as densely dark. The horses trembled, turning round to search for each other, while the thunder crashed with tremendous roars, louder than is heard in other regions, the rain pelting down, making the party feel miserably cold after the heat of the day. At length a fire, left by some previous travellers, appeared in the distance. The doctor’s baggage having gone on before, he had to lie down on the cold ground, when Sekeletu kindly covered him with his own blanket, remaining without shelter himself. Before parting at Sesheke, the generous chief supplied the doctor with twelve oxen, three accustomed to be ridden on, hoes and beads to purchase a canoe, an abundance of fresh butter and honey; and, indeed, he did everything in his power to assist him in his journey.
Bidding farewell to Sekeletu, the doctor and his attendants sailed down the river to its confluence with the Chobe. Having reached this spot, he prepared to strike across the country to the north-east, in order to reach the northern bank of the Zambesi. Before doing so, however, he determined to visit the Victoria or Mozioatunya Falls, of which he had often heard. The meaning of the word is: “Smoke does sound there,” in reference to the vapour and noise produced by the falls. After twenty minutes’ sail from Kalai they came in sight of five columns of vapour, appropriately called “smoke,” rising at a distance of five or six miles off, and bending as they ascended before the wind, the tops appearing to mingle with the clouds. The scene was extremely beautiful. The banks and the islands which appeared here and there amid the stream, were richly adorned with trees and shrubs of various colours, many being in full blossom. High above all rose an enormous baobab-tree surrounded by groups of graceful palms.
As the water was now low, they proceeded in the canoe to an island in the centre of the river, the further end of which extended to the edge of the falls. At the spot where they landed it was impossible to discover where the vast body of water disappeared. It seemed, indeed, suddenly to sink into the earth, for the opposite lip of the fissure into which it descends was only eighty feet distant. On peering over the precipice the doctor saw the stream, a thousand yards broad, leaping down a hundred feet and then becoming suddenly compressed into a space of fifteen or twenty yards, when, instead of flowing as before, it turned directly to the right, and went boiling and rushing amid the hills.
The vapour which rushes up from this cauldron to the height of two or three hundred feet, being condensed, changes its hue to that of dark smoke, and then comes down in a constant shower. The chief portion falls on the opposite side of the fissure, where grow a number of evergreen trees, their leaves always wet. The walls of this gigantic crack are perpendicular. Altogether, Dr Livingstone considered these falls the most wonderful sight he had beheld in Africa.
Returning to Kalai the doctor and his party met Sekeletu,
and, bidding him a final farewell, set off northwards to Lekone, through a beautiful country, on the 20th of November. The further they advanced the more the country swarmed with inhabitants, and great numbers came to see the white man, invariably bringing presents of maize.
The natives of this region have a curious way of saluting a stranger. Instead of bowing they throw themselves on their backs on the ground, rolling from side to side and slapping the outsides of their thighs, while they utter the words “Kina bomba! kina bomba!” In vain the doctor implored them to stop. They, imagining him pleased, only tumbled about more fiercely and slapped their thighs with greater vehemence.