my room at all, but, with the help of my servants, I then made an effort to walk a little way on the grass outside our enclosure. A fresh inconvenience was now beginning to annoy us, for we were perpetually tormented by the mosquitoes, which at certain seasons are quite a plague on the Zambesi; every evening, and especially at night, these bloodthirsty little pests renew their attacks upon man and beast, and even woollen coverings form no protection from their sharp beaks. The only stratagem by which I could escape the irritation they caused was the unsavoury one of allowing my servants to burn a heap or two of cow-dung inside my hut.
In order to get something fresh for our larder, Westbeech and Walsh went out for a morning’s goose-hunting. It was vexatious that my state of health did not permit me to go even a little way with them. At this time of year the geese, and other birds of the duck breed, frequented the open parts of the marshes, and sportsmen, guided by their cackle, had to get at them in boats, pushing their way through the reeds. The best time for hunting them is when there is a moderate wind, as then the rustle of the reeds overpowers the noise made by the boats. When Sepopo heard of the success that had attended the expedition, he bought a lot of Westbeech’s shot, and sent some of his own people on a similar errand, and I should suppose with similar good luck, as when I breakfasted with the king a morning or two afterwards, I noticed several geese upon the table.
From the manner in which they were served, I could perceive that it was a dish to which the Marutse were by no means unaccustomed. The
