Rhodesia
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breeding season, when they are on guard over their harems of from ten to fifteen wives—the sunbirds, with their long curved beaks that search out the nectar of flowers, and the honey-guides, which, with their agitated “chuck, chuck,” lead the wayfarer to bees’ nests with expectation of joining in the plunder. The small birds of Rhodesia are usually very brilliantly coloured, the most distinguished being what is known as the blue jay, with its bright, iridescent, light blue plumage.
Flora.—The vegetation of the territory is luxurious and mainly subtropical, but in the lower valleys the flora assumes a tropical aspect. The country is well wooded and in this respect differs from the high tablelands farther south. The trees as a rule attain no greater height than about 20 ft., but in some districts, such as South Melsetter and Wankies, there are remains of forests of large timber. The small growth of the trees is said to be due to the annual veld fires, and it is noticeable that native trees that are protected attain a much greater height. As a rule the wood is either very hard or very soft, so that timber for building has still to be imported, although the existing timber is useful for mining purposes. One of the hardest woods is the so-called Rhodesian teak (native Ikusi), which is about 50% harder than real teak (Tectona grandis). The trees most commonly met with are mapane, used for poles; umkamba, resembling mahogany; m’lanji cedar, chiefly found along the eastern border; umsasa, used for firewood; impachla, the native wisteria. Among other trees are the baobab with enormous very soft trunk, the fruit being a large nut containing citrate of magnesia, which natives use to make a cooling drink; the umvagaz—or blood-wood—which issues a blood-coloured juice when cut, and the umkuna, or hissing tree, which hisses when an incision is made. The barks of the umsasa, the umhondo, and the umgosa are much used by natives for binding fibres in making huts and are also used for tanning. The bark of the baobab yields a fine fibre which natives use in making excellent game nets and fishing nets. The native fruit-bearing trees are the fig (many varieties), the mahobohobo or umjanje, resembling the loquat, the Kaffir plum, very sour and totally different from the Kaffir plum of Cape Colony, and the Kaffir orange. Among the shrubs the proteas, or sugar bushes, with their nectar-stored flowers, are the most frequent. The mimosa thorn, although more of the nature of a tree, grows in dense masses, chiefly in the western province.
The period of the year when flowers begin to bloom is rather remarkable. After the long spell of dry weather, lasting from five to seven months, and before any rain has fallen, blooms appear all over the veld. Most of such flowers are those of bulbous plants or plants with large roots that have been stored with nourishment during the previous growing wet season. The flowers are sustained by this stock of food until the rains appear again to replenish the roots. Even grass sprouts green over the earth before the rains appear, and the hard-baked veld is pierced by the shoots of the gladiolus, the orchid, the asparagus, the solanum, the convolvulus and many other flowers. When the rains are far advanced, the annuals shoot rapidly and make a second show of bloom. A peculiarity of the early spring shoots on trees and shrubs is that they have not the green tints of the colder regions, but are all shades of brown and orange and red and yellow.
One of the chief features of Rhodesia is the vast stretches of grass-covered veld, the grasses varying from a few inches to 15 ft. in height and numbering about 100 different varieties. Along the rivers are to be found palms, tree ferns, bananas, dracaenas and other hot climate plants. Rubber, indigo and cotton are indigenous and there are groves of lemon trees, but these were most probably introduced by early settlers. Tobacco, which grows luxuriantly, may also have been introduced.
Inhabitants.—In Southern Rhodesia about half the European population, which in 1909 was approximately 16,500, is British born or born of British parents, and about one-third is South African born. There are about 11,500 males and 5000 females, and the population is equally divided between the urban and rural areas. In rural areas the chief occupations are mining and agriculture. Industrial pursuits, including mining, engage about 25% of the population, 8% are employed in agriculture, and 15% in commerce. Mashonaland has 7500 white inhabitants, and Matabeleland 9000. There are about 2000 Asiatics in Southern Rhodesia.
The Natives of Rhodesia belong to the Bantu-Negro stock and are roughly divisible into two groups; those long settled in the country, and the Amazulu, who during the 19th century left Zululand and, passing through the more southern regions, overran Rhodesia and settled in Matabeleland. The Barotse (q.v.) are mainly settled in North-West Rhodesia. In Southern Rhodesia, in spite of incursions from Portuguese territory and from the north, the natives can be still clearly divided into Mashona and Matabele, living in the eastern and western provinces respectively. The name Mashona is not used by the natives but is useful as distinguishing the allied tribes of the eastern division from the Matabele in the west. The languages of the Mashona tribes are allied and are distinct from that of the Matabele (or Zulu), but it is uncertain whether these Mashona tongues should be regarded merely as different dialects, or languages as different as those of the various nations of Europe (but see Bantu Languages). The tribes round Salisbury and extending as far as Marondella in the east and about 100 m. north are clearly branches of the Vasezuru people, that is, the people from “higher up,” the “higher up” being a region in the south-east. Their history can be traced from about the beginning of the 18th century; but there is a great lack of tradition amongst this class of native, which is distinctly inferior in type to the Matabele in the west.
Farther north there are the Makorikori and the Mabudja or Mabushla. It would appear that the country in which these people now dwell was formerly in the possession of the Barotse, and some of the present chiefs obtained their positions by permission of the Barotse. Previously, according to Portuguese documents of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Makaranga or Makalanga now located in the south round about Victoria had possession of the country as far north as the Zambezi. Their language is allied to that of the present inhabitants, but in many respects is widely different and of late has become more so owing to intercourse with the Matabele. Along the eastern border two more tribes can be differentiated, namely, Umtasa’s people in the north and those speaking the Chindawo language in the south. Their languages are merely variants of the language spoken in the Salisbury and Mazoe districts.
All the tribes in the eastern province have very similar habits and customs. Their huts are circular with a wall a foot or two high, made of poles and daga (mud) surmounted by a conical thatched roof. They thus differ from the beehive huts of the Zulus. They are built indiscriminately together and are not surrounded by stockades. The whole family dwells in the same hut along with dogs, goats and fowls, and sometimes even with cattle, though there are usually separate kraals for their cattle. The kraals are as a rule filthy, but the inside of the hut is kept clean. There is a special place for a fire, and a raised portion of the mud floor on which to sleep, but no furniture. Their mealie fields are usually some distance from the place of abode, but their tobacco gardens are near their huts. Their main object in life seems to be to grow sufficient grain for food and beer. The grain they store in granaries, resembling small huts, placed on rocks or on stakes, out of the reach of white ants and secure from the depredations of animals. They amuse themselves occasionally by making earthenware pots which are very soft and easily broken, or by engaging in iron-work or brass-wire work for ornamentation. In the south they are quite clever in making watertight baskets from rushes grown by the Sabi river. In their religious beliefs spirits play a great part. Above all there is a wague idea of a Supreme Being whom they call Mwari. They have a fixed belief in the spirits of their ancestors, the spirits of the witch-doctors, the spirits of the Matabele, the spirits of old women, the spirits of the foolish, the spirits of baboons, &c. Every occurrence is attributed to the influence of a spirit, and if the occurrence is an evil one a feast and dance of propitiation are held. Feasts of thanksgiving are also held on such occasions as the gathering of the first-fruits, the harvest festival, or on the return from a long and dangerous journey. Of the tribes already mentioned the most advanced are Umtasa’s people and the Makaranga. The probable connexion of the tribes now inhabiting Mashonaland with the architects of the ancient stone buildings which are scattered over the country is discussed in the section Archaeology. Of these ruins the most extensive are situated near Victoria and are known as Zimbabwe (q.v.).
In the western province the Matabele, or rather Amandabele, are the descendants of the Zulus who trekked under the
