DEPARTURE FROM KOLOBENG. 61 CHAPTER III. Departure from Kolobeng, 1st June, 1849.-Companions.-Our Route.-Abundance of Grass.-Serotli, a Fountain in the Desert.-Mode of digging Wells.The Eland.-Animals of the Desert.-The Hyæna.-The Chief Sekomi.Dangers.-The wandering Guide.-Cross Purposes.-Slow Progress.-Want of Water.-Capture of a Bushwoman.-The Salt-pan at Nchokotsa.-The Mirage. -Reach the River Zouga.-The Quakers of Africa.-Discovery of Lake Ngami, 1st August, 1849.-Its Extent.-Small Depth of Water.-Position as the Reservoir of a great River System.-The Bamangwato and their Chief.-Desire to visit Sebituane, the Chief of the Makololo.-Refusal of Lechulatebe to furnish us with Guides.-Resolve to return to the Cape.-The Banks of the Zouga.Pitfalls.—Trees of the District.-Elephants.-New Species of Antelope.—Fish in the Zouga. SUCH was the desert which we were now preparing to crossa region formerly of terror to the Bechuanas from the numbers of serpents which infested it and fed on the different kinds of mice, and from the intense thirst which these people often endured when their water-vessels were insufficient for the distances to be traveled over before reaching the wells. Just before the arrival of my companions, a party of the people of the lake came to Kolobeng, stating that they were sent by Lechulatebe, the chief, to ask me to visit that country. They brought such flaming accounts of the quantities of ivory to be found there (cattle-pens made of elephants' tusks of enormous size, &c.), that the guides of the Bakwains were quite as eager to succeed in reaching the lake as any one of us could desire. This was fortunate, as we knew the way the strangers had come was impassable for wagons. Messrs. Oswell and Murray came at the end of May, and we all made a fair start for the unknown region on the 1st of June, 1849. Proceeding northward, and passing through a range of tree-covered hills to Shokuane, formerly the residence of the Bakwains, we soon after entered on the high road to the Bamangwato, which lies generally in the bed of an ancient river or wady that must formerly have flowed N. to S. The adjacent country is perfectly flat, but covered with open forest and bush, with abundance of grass; the trees generally are a kind of acacia called "Monáto," which appears a little to the south of this region, and is common as far as Angola. A large caterpillar, called "Nato," feeds by night on the leaves of these trees, and comes down by day to bury itself at the root in the sand, in order to escape the piercing rays of the sun. The people dig for it there, and are fond of it when roasted, on account of its pleasant vegetable taste. When about to pass into the chrysalis state, it buries itself in the soil, and is sometimes sought for as food even then. If left undisturbed, it comes forth as a beautiful butterfly: the transmutation was sometimes employed by me with good effect when speaking with the natives, as an illustration of our own great change and resurrection. The soil is sandy, and there are here and there indications that at spots which now afford no water whatever there were formerly wells and cattle stations. Boatlanáma, our next station, is a lovely spot in the otherwise dry region. The wells from which we had to lift out the water for our cattle are deep, but they were well filled. A few villages of Bakalahari were found near them, and great numbers of pallahs, springbucks, Guinea-fowl, and small monkeys. Lopépe came next. This place afforded another proof of the desiccation of the country. The first time I passed it, Lopepe was a large pool with a stream flowing out of it to the south; now it was with difficulty we could get our cattle watered by digging down in the bottom of a well. At Mashüe-where we found a never-failing supply of pure water in a sandstone rocky hollow-we left the road to the Bamangwato hills, and struck away to the north into the Desert. Having watered the cattle at a well called Lobotáni, about N.W. of Bamangwato, we next proceeded to a real Kalahari fountain, called Serotli. The country around is covered with bushes and trees of a kind of leguminosa, with lilac flowers. The soil is soft white sand, very trying to the strength of the wheels sink into it over the felloes and drag heavily. we found only a few hollows like those made by the buffalo and rhinoceros when they roll themselves in the mud. In a corner of one of these there appeared water, which would have been oxen, as the At Serotli MODE OF DIGGING WELLS. 63 quickly lapped up by our dogs, had we not driven them away. And yet this was all the apparent supply for some eighty oxen, twenty horses, and about a score of men. Our guide, Ramotóbi, who had spent his youth in the Desert, declared that, though appearances were against us, there was plenty of water at hand. We had our misgivings, for the spades were soon produced; but our guides, despising such new-fangled aid, began in good earnest to scrape out the sand with their hands. The only water we had any promise of for the next seventy miles—that is, for a journey of three days with the wagons-was to be got here. By the aid of both spades and fingers two of the holes were cleared out, so as to form pits six feet deep and about as many broad. Our guides were especially earnest in their injunctions to us not to break through the hard stratum of sand at the bottom, because they knew, if it were broken through, "the water would go away." They are quite correct, for the water seems to lie on this flooring of incipient sandstone. The value of the advice was proved in the case of an Englishman whose wits were none of the brightest, who, disregarding it, dug through the sandy stratum in the wells at Mohotluáni: the water immediately flowed away downward, and the well became useless. When we came to the stratum, we found that the water flowed in on all sides close to the line where the soft sand came in contact with it. Allowing it to collect, we had enough for the horses that evening; but as there was not sufficient for the oxen, we sent them back to Lobotani, where, after thirsting four full days (ninety-six hours), they got a good supply. The horses were kept by us as necessary to procure game for the sustenance of our numerous party. Next morning we found the water had flowed in faster than at first, as it invariably does in these reservoirs, owing to the passages widening by the flow. Large quantities of the sand come into the well with the water, and in the course of a few days the supply, which may be equal to the wants of a few men only, becomes sufficient for oxen as well. In these sucking-places the Bakalahari get their supplies; and as they are generally in the hollows of ancient river-beds, they are probably the deposits from rains gravitating thither; in some cases they may be the actual fountains, which, though formerly supplying the river's flow, now no longer rise to the surface. 64 ANIMALS OF THE DESERT. Here, though the water was perfectly inaccessible to elands, large numbers of these fine animals fed around us; and, when killed, they were not only in good condition, but their stomachs. actually contained considerable quantities of water. The I examined carefully the whole alimentary canal, in order to see if there were any peculiarity which might account for the fact that this animal can subsist for months together without drinking, but found nothing. Other animals, such as the düiker (Cephalopus mergens) or puti (of the Bechuanas), the steinbuck (Tragulus rupestris) or puruhuru, the gemsbuck (Oryx capensis) or kukama, and the porcupine (Hystrix cristata), are all able to subsist without water for many months at a time by living on bulbs and tubers containing moisture. They have sharp-pointed hoofs well adapted for digging, and there is little difficulty in comprehending their mode of subsistence. Some animals, on the other hand, are never seen but in the vicinity of water. presence of the rhinoceros, of the buffalo and gnu (Catoblepas gnu), of the giraffe, the zebra, and pallah (Antilope melampus), is always a certain indication of water being within a distance of seven or eight miles; but one may see hundreds of elands (Boselaphus oreas), gemsbuck, the tolo or koodoo (Strepsiceros capensis), also springbucks (Gazella euchore) and ostriches, without being warranted thereby in inferring the presence of water within thirty or forty miles. Indeed, the sleek, fat condition of the eland in such circumstances would not remove the apprehension of perishing by thirst from the mind of even a native. I believe, however, that these animals can subsist only where there is some moisture in the vegetation on which they feed; for in one year of unusual drought we saw herds of elands and flocks of ostriches crowding to the Zouga from the Desert, and very many of the latter were killed in pitfalls on the banks. As long as there is any sap in the pasturage they seldom need water. But should a traveler see the "spoor" of a rhinoceros, or buffalo, or zebra, he would at once follow it up, well assured that before he had gone many miles he would certainly reach water. In the evening of our second day at Serotli, a hyæna, appearing suddenly among the grass, succeeded in raising a panic among our caitle. This false mode of attack is the plan which this cowardly animal always adopts. His courage resembles |