that only members o f the white race were re-
markable for their powers o f observation, b y the
following question: —
“ Stamlee, how is it, will you tell me, that all
white men have long noses,* while almost 9
black men have short noses, but their dogs have
v e ry long noses?”
A youth o f Uganda, thought I, who can pro-!
pound such a proposition as that, deserves!
attention.
Speak, I said, “ all you know about Mutaj
Nzige and the Kagera.’* ‘
“ Good, you see the Kagera, it is broad and deep and
swift, and its water though dark is clear. Where can it come
from? There is an enormous quantity of water ih that river.
It is the mother of the river at Jinja, because were it not
for this river our Niyanza would dry up!
“ Tell me where it can come from? There is no country
large enough to feed it, because when you reach Rumanika’s
it is still a large river. If you go to Kishakka, farther south,
it is still large, and at Kibogora’s. it is still a large river.;
Urundi is not far, and beyond that is the Tanganika.
“ Tell me, where does the water of the Muta Nzige go to?
It goes into the Kagera, of course; the Kagera goes into our
Niyanza, and the river at Jinja (Victoria Nile) goes to Ka-
niessa (Gondokoro). I tell you truly that this must be the
way of it. You saw the Rusango and Mpanga, did you not,
go to Muta Nzige? Well, there must be many rivers like
* The young philosopher had observed the broad short
noses of my British bull-dog and bull-terrier “ Jack,” and he
had hastily arrived at the conclusion that all white men’s
dogs were pug-nosed.
[that going to Muta Nzige also. And what river drinks all
¡those rivers but the Kagera?” he asked triumphantly,
“ Usongora is a wonderful land! Its people are brave,
and when the Katekiro, who was accompanied by Mkwenda
and Sekebobo’s chiefs, and some of Kitunzi’s, met them, they
[were different people from Gambaragara. They are very
[tall, long-legged people, and are armed with spears and
|shields. They tried every dodge with us. When we stood
[on the banks of a river going north, through the Tinka-
tinka, like that in the Katonga, the Wasongora stood on the
opposite side and shouted out. to us that they were ready.
[Sambuzi came near being killed next day, and we lost many
men, but the Katekiro, he does not fight like other chiefs, he
is exceedingly brave, and he wanted to please Mtesa. We
fought six days.
“ The Wasongora had a number of large dogs also which
they set upon us; as we drove their cattle towards Gambaragara,
the earth shook, springs of mud leaped up, and the
water in the plain was very bitter, and killed many Waganda;
it left a white thing around its borders like salt.
“We first saw Muta Nzige as we followed Nyika to the
top of his big mountain in Gambaragara. We could not
quite get to the top, it was too high.” (This is Mount Gor-
don-Bennett.) ' “ But we could see Usongora, and a great
lake spreading all round it. When we came back with our
spoil to Mtesa, he sent us back a short time afterwards to
Ankori, and from the top of a high mountain near Kibanga
(Mount Lawson) we saw Muta Nzige again spreading west
of us. Oh, it is a grand lake, not so wide as our Niyanza,
but very long. We get all our salt from Usongora, as Nyika
pays tribute to us with so many bags, collected from the
plains, but it is unfit to eat, unless you wash it and clean it.”
This young lad accompanied me to Karagwe,
and b y his intelligence and his restless curiosity
extracted from the Wanyambu courtiers at King