ZANDE VISITORS. 445 to be found. The doléb palm appears to be also very rare in Monbuttu, but it is said to be common in the plains of the Meaje and Mabode tribes.

Tineazi, July 8, 1883.

If I were to describe to you the road which led me from Bellima to this place, I should tire you just as much as it tired me. Probably with the idea of preventing me seeing his villages, Gambari chose a road which led through the virgin forest, and which at last confused his own guides, so that I was very glad when we hit upon a few Momvu huts in the middle of the forest, and when some of their occupants led us to our small station of Maigo. On our first day’s march we | forded the Gadda, which flows not far from Bellima; we then met with a number of its tributaries, often larger than the river itself; fortunately, the water in them was not very high, and, here and there, we found bridges constructed with the boldness of conception well known to you. So all went off well, and my experience is the richer, for I had only seen true virgin forests before in Uganda.

When we were about an hour’s march from Tingazi, we came to the village of Nenja, which is situated on a high hill, and is the residence of Yangara, who received us in a circle of his wives and people. He expressed a wish for us to remain, but we were obliged to decline the invitation, and to continue our journey to the station, where we made, unfortunately, a very short stay, as we had to start on our return journey the very next day. To me the time passed like a dream; almost too much of it was taken up by visitors from all directions. Let me call to mind the most interesting of them. From the west came the Zandé chiefs, Bori, son of Manji, and grandson of Ntikkima-Kifa, who had never entered one of our stations before ; Mbri, a very aged, jovial fellow, with long white hair and a beard dyed red; Masonze, a special friend and host of Dr. Junker; Mbittima, Wando’s eldest son, who has made himself a home among the Abisanga, and in whose favour it may be said that he is totally unlike his father. Bakangai had died a natural death a few days before, and his son, who is under Kanna’s immediate protection, seems likely to succeed