stationed here by the Company, and having duly responded,
some of the slaves came out to meet me, shaking and kissing
my hand. Having sent for the head-men I pitched my camp
some little distance from the stockade near the river, where
the bank was 20 feet high, and I had a fine view down the
Sabaki, both sides of which, further away, were covered with
heavy jungle. Food was plentiful and cheap, there being rice,
bananas, and plantains in abundance; Indian corn at three
pice a kibaba, and beans at two pice a kibaba, could be
obtained in any quantity, and formed the principal food of
the Watoro.
Four of the principal slave head-men, accompanied by a
good many armed followers, arrived after breakfast and gave
me a regular fusillade of welcome, which my people returned.
I instructed Jubah bin Fukir to inform the runaways that I had
come to open up the Sabaki river district, and especially to
visit them. I first spoke about Suliman’s slaves, of whom I
believed there were a good number here, offering to take back
those who chose to return, and telling them of the Company’s
intention to give them their freedom if they would return to
the plantations, where they would work as free men and be
paid for their labour.
They all listened with great attention, and the principal
head-man— by name M’Soma—-replied that he would tell the
slaves what I had said, but at present they were scattered
all over the placé.
I next touched upon the more important object of my visit.
I informed them of my intention, subject to the approval of
the Company, to establish an experimental plantation at
Jelori, with a view to gradually opening up the district for
better cultivation, and that I proposed growing different
new products there in order to introduce them by degrees
amongst them. I pointed out that there would be work available,
for regularly-paid daily wages ; and I put it to the
head-men whether it would not be better for them to come
down to Jelori, within reach of markets and civilization, and
where land could be cultivated peacefully and money earned,
than to continue living their present vagabond life away in
the bush. The head-men replied that the same words had'
been spoken to them when Mr. Bell-Smith and the Liwali of
Melindi were there, but that they feared the Arabs that they
had first settled at Jelori, and then the Arabs drove them to
Merikano, and thence to this- place— but that now the Comr
pany had come and would protect them, they were willing to
come down to Jelori, and would abide by what I had told
them. Lastly, the head-men said that they would call a conference
of all the slaves next day, and let me know the result
in the evening.
The head-men informed me that there was a good deal of
sickness prevalent amongst them at present, three men having
died the day before. It appeared to be a very sudden kind
of fever and dysentery, and I gave M’Soma a supply of
chlorodyne with careful instructions how to use it. I understood
that there were fully 500 runaway slaves here, if not
more.
It was very hot all day, with a cold wind at night, that
made the Wanika crouch closely round my tent.
On the morning of September 27 I went off with the two
head-men and Ramazan, and a M’Toro as guide, to visit the
shambas- and’ villages on the other side of the Sabaki. I was
carried across the river below the stockade, where it was very
wide and shallow, and flowed over a sandy bed. The soil
near the river was a black loam ; further inland it was
very rich, generally a chocolate loam. The land was extensively
cultivated by the Watoro, chiefly with Indian corn
and beans, patches of rice, millet, and pumpkins, and some
bananas. I visited two large and substantial villages, the
inhabitants of which looked well-fed and contented, and
everywhere the people welcomed me most cordially. I obtained
a sample of tobacco from the head-man of the first
village. It was sun-dried and rolled up in twist, and coiled
round in a spiral strand like a rope; it looked coarse and
strong, and was used for chewing. I ascertained on inquiry
that the Watoro made no use of the “ N’konge ” aloes, of
i: which there was a very great deal between Jelori and
Makongeni.
I waded across the Sabaki on my return, and in the afternoon
had a second shauri with the Watoro head-men. The