As he approached the more civilised settlements, he found the habits of the people changed much for the worse: tricks of all sorts were played to detain him and obtain tribute; the guides also tried in every way to impose on him. Even his Makololo expressed their sorrow at seeing so beautiful a country ill cultivated and destitute of cattle.
He was compelled to slaughter one of his riding oxen for food, as none could be obtained.
The Chiboque coming round in great numbers, their chief demanded tribute, and one of their number made a charge at Dr Livingstone, but quickly retreated on having the muzzle of the traveller's gun pointed at his head. The chief and his councillors, however, consenting to sit down on the ground, the Makololo, well drilled, surrounded them and thus got them completely in their power. A mutiny, too, broke out among his own people, who complained of want of food; but it was suppressed by the appearance of the doctor with a double-barrelled pistol in his hand.
They never afterwards gave him any trouble.
Similar demands for payment to allow him to pass through the country were made by other chiefs, his faithful Makololo giving up their ornaments, as he had done nearly all the beads and shirts in his possession. The most extortionate of these chiefs was Ioaga Panza, whose sons, after receiving payment for acting as guides, deserted him.
All this time Dr Livingstone was suffering daily from the attacks of fever, which rendered him excessively weak, so that he could scarcely sit his ox.
The country appeared fertile and full of small villages, and the soil is so rich that little labour is required for its cultivation. It is, however, the chief district whence slaves are obtained, and a feeling of insecurity was evident amongst the inhabitants.
A demand was now made by each chief for a man, an ox, or a tusk as tribute. The first was of course refused, but nearly all the remainder of the traveller's property had to be thus paid away.
On the 4th of April they reached the banks of the Quango, here a hundred and fifty yards wide. The chief of the district--a young man, who wore his hair curiously formed into the shape of a cone, bound round with white thread--on their refusing to pay him an extortionate demand, ordered his people not to ferry them across, and opened fire on them.
At this juncture a half-caste Portuguese, a sergeant of militia, Cypriano Di Abreu arrived, and, obtaining ferrymen, they crossed over into the territory of the Bangala, who are subject to the Portuguese.
They had some time before rebelled, and troops were now stationed among them, Cypriano being in command of a party of men. Next morning he provided a delicious breakfast for his guest, and fed the Makololo with pumpkins and maize, while he supplied them with farina for their journey to Kasenge, without even hinting at payment.
The natives, though they long have had intercourse with the Portuguese, are ignorant and superstitious in the extreme. Many parts of the country are low and marshy, and they suffer greatly from fever. Of the use of medicine they have no notion, their only remedies being charms and cupping. The latter operation is performed with a small horn, which has a little hole in the upper end. The broad end is placed on the flesh, when the operator sucks through the hole; as the flesh rises, he gashes it with a knife, then replaces the horn and sucks again, till finally he introduces a piece of wax into his mouth, to stop up the hole, when the horn is left to allow the blood to gush into it.
It took the travellers four days to reach Kasenge, a town inhabited by about forty Portuguese traders and their servants. Though told by the doctor that he was a Protestant minister, they treated him with the greatest kindness and hospitality.
Here the Makololo sold Sekeletu's tusks, obtaining much better prices than they would have done from the Cape traders, forgetting, however, that their value was greatly increased by the distance they had been brought.
The Makololo here expressed their fears, from what they had heard, that they were about to be led down to the sea-coast to be sold, but when Livingstone asked them if he had ever deceived them, and that he would assure them of their safety, they agreed to accompany him.
The merchants of Kasenge treated the doctor with the most disinterested kindness, and furnished him with letters to their friends at Loanda.
He was escorted by a black corporal of militia, who was carried in a hammock by his slaves. He could both read and write, and was cleanly in all his ways; he was considerate also to his young slaves, and walked most of the way, only getting into his hammock on approaching a village, for the sake of keeping up his dignity. He, however, had the usual vices in a land of slaves, and did not fail to cheat those he was sent to protect.
Sleeping-places were erected on the road about ten miles apart, as there is a constant stream of people going to and coming from the coast.
Goods are either carried on the head or on one shoulder, in a sort of basket, supported by two poles five or six feet long. When the carrier feels tired and halts, he plants them on the ground, allowing his burden to rest against a tree, so that he has not to lift it up from the ground to the level of his head.
On arriving at a sleeping-place, the sheds were immediately taken possession of by the first comers, those arriving last having to make huts with long grass for themselves. Women might then be seen coming from their villages with baskets of manioc meal, yams, garlic, and other roots for sale.
As Dr Livingstone had supplied himself with calico at Kasenge, he was able to purchase what was necessary.
The district of Ambaca, through which he now passed, was excessively fertile. Large numbers of cattle exist on its pastures, which are well-watered by flowing streams, while lofty mountains rise in the distance. It is said to contain forty thousand souls.
The doctor was delighted with Golcongo Alto, a magnificent district--the hills bedecked with trees of various hues, the graceful oil-yielding palm towering above them.
Here the commandant, Lieutenant Castro, received him in a way which won the doctor's affectionate regard.
He calculated that this district has a population of a hundred and four thousand.
The lieutenant regretted, as does every person of intelligence, the neglect with which this magnificent country has been treated.
As they proceeded, they passed streams with cascades, on which mills might easily be formed; but here numbers of carpenters were converting the lofty trees which grew around into planks, by splitting them with wedges.
At Trombeta the commandant had his garden ornamented with rows of trees, with pineapples and flowers growing between them. A few years ago he had purchased an estate for 16 pounds, on which he had now a coffee plantation and all sorts of fruit-trees and grape-vines, besides grain and vegetables growing, as also a cotton plantation.
As they approached the sea the Makololo gazed at it, spreading out before them, with feelings of awe, having before believed that the whole world was one extended plain. They again showed their fears that they might be kidnapped, but Dr Livingstone reassured them, telling them that as they had stood by each other hitherto, so they would do to the last.
On the 31st of May they descended a declivity leading to the city of Loanda, where Dr Livingstone was warmly welcomed by Mr Gabriel, the British commissioner for the suppression of the slave trade. Seeing him so ill, he benevolently offered the doctor his bed. "Never shall I forget," says Dr Livingstone, "the luxurious pleasure I enjoyed in feeling myself again on a good English couch, after for six months sleeping on the ground."
It took many days, however, before the doctor recovered from the exposure and fatigue he had endured. All that time he was watched over with the most generous sympathy by his kind host. The Portuguese Bishop of Angola, and numerous other gentlemen, called on him and tendered their services.
Her Majesty's ship "Polyphemus" coming in, the surgeon, Mr Cockin, afforded him the medical assistance he so much required, and on the 14th of June he was sufficiently recovered to call on the bishop, attended by his Makololo followers. They had all been dressed in new robes of striped cotton cloth, and red caps, presented by Mr Gabriel.
The bishop, acting as head of the provisional government, received them in form, and gave them permission to come to Loanda and trade as often as they wished, with which they were greatly pleased.
The Makololo gazed with astonishment at all they witnessed, the large stone houses and churches especially, never before having seen a building larger than a hut. The commanders of the "Pluto" and "Philomel," which came into the harbour, invited them on board. Knowing their fears, Dr Livingstone told them that no one need go should they entertain the least suspicion of foul play. Nearly the whole party, however, went.
Pointing to the sailors, the doctor said: "Now, these are all my countrymen, sent by our queen for the purpose of putting down the trade of those that buy and sell black men."
They replied: "Truly they are just like you," and all their fears vanished.
Going forward amongst the men, they were received much the same as the Makololo would have received them, the jolly tars handing them a share of the bread and beef they had for dinner. They were allowed to fire off a cannon, at which they were greatly pleased, especially when the doctor observed: "That is what they put down the slave trade with."
This visit had a most beneficial effect, as it raised Dr Livingstone still more highly than ever in the opinion of the natives.
They were not so much struck at the high mass which they witnessed at the cathedral, observing that they had seen the white men charming their demons.
During August the doctor was again attacked by a severe fit of fever.
His men, while he was unable to attend to them, employed themselves in going into the country and cutting firewood, which they sold to the inhabitants of the town. Mr Gabriel also found them employment in unloading a collier, at sixpence a day. They continued at this work for upwards of a month, astonished at the vast amount of "stones that burn"
which were taken out of her. With the money thus obtained they purchased clothing, beads, and other articles to carry home with them.
In selecting calicoes they were well able to judge of the best, and chose such pieces as appeared the strongest, without reference to colour.
Saint Paul de Loanda, once a considerable city, has now fallen greatly into decay. There are, however, many large stone houses, and the palace of the governor, and the government offices, are substantial structures.
Trees are planted throughout the town for the sake of shade. Though the dwellings of the native inhabitants are composed merely of wattle and daub, from the sea they present an imposing appearance.
Though at first the government lost its chief revenue from the suppression of the slave trade, it has again gradually increased by the lawful commerce now carried on by its merchants. The officers are, however, so badly paid that they are compelled to engage in mercantile pursuits, and some attempt by bribes to assist the slave-dealers.
From the kind and generous treatment Dr Livingstone received from the Portuguese, they rose deservedly high in his estimation.
He now prepared for his departure. The merchants sent a present to Sekeletu, consisting of specimens of all their articles of trade and two donkeys, that the breed might be introduced into his country, as the _tsetse_ cannot kill those beasts of burden. The doctor was also furnished with letters of recommendation to the Portuguese authorities in Eastern Africa. The bishop likewise furnished him with twenty carriers, and sent forward orders to the commandants of the districts to the east to render him every assistance. He supplied himself with ammunition, and beads, and a stock of cloth, and he gave each of his men a musket. He had also purchased a horse for Sekeletu. His friends of the "Philomel" fitted him out also with a new tent, and, on the 20th of September, 1854, he and his party left Loanda, escorted by Mr Gabriel, who, from his unwearied attentions and liberality to his men, had become endeared to all their hearts.
Passing round by the sea, he ascended the River Bengo to Icollo-i-Bengo, once the residence of a native king. While Mr Gabriel returned to Loanda, Dr Livingstone and his party proceeded to Golcongo Alto, where he left some of his men to rest, while he took an excursion to Kasenge, celebrated for its coffee plantations. On his return he found several of them suffering from fever, while one of them had gone out of his mind, but in a short time recovered.
The doctor had the satisfaction of returning the kindness he received from Mr Canto, the commandant, by attending him during a severe attack of illness.
He had thus an opportunity of watching the workings of slavery. The moment their master was ill, the slaves ate up everything on which they could lay their hands, till the doctor himself could scarcely obtain even bread and butter. Here Sekeletu's horse was seized with inflammation, and the poor animal afterwards died on its journey.
On the 28th of February they reached the banks of the Quango, where they were again received by Cypriano.
The coloured population of Angola are sunk in the grossest superstition.
They fancy themselves completely in the power of spirits, and are constantly deprecating their wrath. A chief, named Gando, had lately been accused of witchcraft, and, being killed by the ordeal, his body was thrown into the river.