New-York tribune., 1891-08-30
AN AFRICAN CAMPAIGN.
MARCHING THROUGH A WILDERNESS 10
THE LAND OF GOLD.

Mashonaland written last April. The correspondents
is British officer who, with the troop to which he
belonged was In December last. hurriedly ordered 10
proceed TO Mashonalsnd. 10 assist in quelling tbe
troubles precptatcd there by the nbusteEing POrl.
giese This, I've says, on December 8. sws
could ONLY manage to get together abou twenty days
rtions Of meal, coffee, tea, and little and salt
and few tins Of corned beef This. with about
twenty slaughtered and sixteen sheep, was all
the food we colld collect. There were lis nlen
thirtyfve horses, twenty eight donkeys, nine wagons
40 oxen. sixteen sheep. and about sixty natives also
the usual crowd Of dogs. which seemed b turn up
from no one knows where. Of all sizes and cotrs sad
one babooD, who rode the wster-car ali tae way
In most dgnifed and amusing manner. There were
also SIX wagons and 100 oxen belonging b oriysz
people who wcro going 10 Aashona prospecting ~
gold trading ETC., and also sundry smaller carts
drawn by mules and donkeys-altogethcr large boy
Our third days march brought 10 a beautiful place
with clumps OF fine large trees and all open space
filed with a bush about two feet high, with 'irye
frosted rcoing leaves and covered with Lea7u-
full flowers like large narcissus, with a very swset
SMELL
"That night the rain cleared on about o. and We
had a lovely moonlight night. We found We had not
brought enough tents with only SIX big round ones
and twenty small ones holding two men EACH so,
rs Il was as wet inside them as o1t, nearly oil
slept all the march in the open. II roll yourself
up in two blankets and do not found that
VIC kept quite dry. no matter how hard II rains, but
n Won move you are soaked through in a minnie.
Well we expected good nights rest OF ooarss
there was the usual bowling Of hyenas wolves snd
jackals-we quite accustomed to them. but about
l o'clock two lions came right into camp. and scs
up the most frghtful noise IL IS possible 10 imagine.
They did not growl rs they usually do. but rared
fearfuy first one starting. and then the other joining
In have often heard that Hons roar is very terrible
II is and II you want thoroughly to appreciate 10.
YOU must be lying in the open with two OF them at 70
less than twenty yards of, in the middle OF the night
The noise IS hard TO describe, but 1t is most like about
City cows believing all at once, and with tremendous
vibration in IT, which goes through and through you
Three times did these brtes make this row, each time
lasting about minute and a hail. but It seemed more
| like ten After they had stopped there a dead
silence for several minutes even the hyenas etc.
ouIe Presently the fires all round began TO blaze up,
and then the oxen began TO make a great noise. We
knew what was coming ten, and every one was up in
moment For the next hour there was the most In.
describabo confusion The oxen all broke loose from
the wagons and rushed all over the camp. upsettng
everything No more sleep that night. At daybreak
very few oxen were left about, and all the natives
were sent out to find them. Eventually all were got
| back but four and six sheep more food gomez
"we stayed here all the next day and night and
| had some splendid fishing, catching any quantity
fish, of three different kinds. but chiefly barbe IRON
l
a piece OF string reed and grasshopper or piecs
| of meat That night the lions again. They dd
not roar this time but walked about among the hres
making sort OF gruf purring noise Just before day.
break native awoke me and pointed most energeucalY
| to a bush about two yards of. aw0ke the man next
me- and we got rifles and crept up to the bush, ara
| there We saw huge lion. with his back toward Us,
looking Of the fellows rOuns the next fire. OF course
it was 10 se firing at him, we had very little chance
OF killing MIN on the spot, and II we had not done so
Ee would have to kill some one. Presently ne
gave q low gr0wl and walked away Judging from mo
| foOtmarks the next morning there must have been
! quito hye or six Of them. They had been TO every
fire. but did not 60 near the oxen or horses lhd ooA
| nothing.
"on December "a. in the evening. we arrived at
MTeebres kraal, aud spent Christmas Day there. II
very curious placca sort Of circle Of hills about
300 feet hgh the first haf OF which IS thcdy wooded.
and the upper half first Of loose rocks In all
sorts of positions, and then huge bare DOME Just nbe
| St. Paul's. The hills all exactly alike. The
natives call themselves oosutos, and believe thcr
! belong to the Banyai tribe. Iney nVe among tne
loose rocks on the hills and their hnis l2ok Just Ike
| cattle which also live among the lO0Sc rocks How
on earth the cattle ever get up there ana what l1y
lind 10 eat | cannot imagine. Tley arc very shall,
| but very sleek and fat, and give plenty oil milk. On
| Christmas morning five of us took Walk up he
Hsen and rocy and II was very hot When We came
| to the huts could sec no ole except very ids
| black baby sitting the grOuif IN 'front.' OF que VI
them. who made noise az us like frog sd tlea ,Sa,
| grlnned fearfuly. We picked up SINE feathers ihat
were lying about and stuck them straight & up ~ n br h,
wool, and left him staring strai[ht IN front OF nm
with expression f blank astoriShment on MS ticc.
AS there was no one about and feaidi smei, I'VE we
left the huts and sat down In the shade oL @ rocn
Presently we heard much whispering going On soose s
US and on looking up we saw row OF 9rE .ss ,'Tcs We
found belonged 10 party Of twenty three young ars,
varying in age shona say from .,l.S fo"leea o heS NJ
and they came back. We asked tnen to get rs some
milk, and, after much tabberng among themseys;
bowls Of beautiful milk for which We ate then ss,
| some cartridge cases. They then sat dowi IN TOM
us not and esan a'fnf Snt %st @ @o @
they never waited for an answer; nney and nJ
sSsnss seemed very very maen nfe a@nscd n@SY hair
which they said was was like dogs hair AZ After r
about half an hour Of this we & area t bes x FOR Sets
and became such a nuisance that had 70 70 DC G ru,' m
enough to threaten TO shoot them II tSS g' honas hon
to Us and c,appng their hands Iley had an e. vsr.
good figures and were very 1 warn auers I up
their siE knees Sraceets up to their elbows necIac,
SeaGs &st 2nS Mss a ahe and rsn very %s they @
One Of our men spent "a very pleasant so@ no o9, caprs
tb he ns wss na ns station rS ma hDd GG% two g' S
miles after he had left our camp two lions auoahe.
n 9s h9 3s mails e ssppd Ta' p1S On 0s Il u n sacSs % one
spnng the back of the horse ne was riding Tn Y,i
lions no LETT the horses, and came and walked aSOs;
under the tree where he and remained there % Iap
| cne of our wagons which had been left bemn1;
| broken down. came along the ROAD and nigh,eneo
them away. He was up the tree seven hour, our nOs; ";
horse he was riding went straight to the next p9s,
station dreadully torn, and the one with tne aa ns'
was brought in there BY some natives three daS aw.
| ward but still had the mails on It all right w
marched on next morning at SUNRISE and all the pops
aion~ the face OF the hills alongside the road on ps
that you would think goat could hardly tnd ~ !,
hold and with n perpendicular fall OF 200 feet ~ ~
more below them they ran Just as yon see chilfren
run down street at home The blg ones INST cOss -
and fye or sin fat little black things that could hsog
walk at the erd bowling se mad at beng eis oeSdd d
| piver n large river with very high and steep bs1ks,
covered with white jessamlne in blossom and hundred.
of beautiful tree ferns The greater part oi me n y,
| was dry but there strong stream at ne IA
side $50 yards wide and five feet deep The ~as9hAs
| we're unloaded and sent everything over on th1
raft which frequently upset. ard great number Q,
| things were lost IL slow business, and W. W.
not until the afternoon Of the 10th that everything