ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA. 227 circumstance being unprecedented, it was supposed they had merely wandered out to the common where they were accustomed to graze; but it was found, after much search, that some thousands of cattle had directed their course to the north. A few were recovered, but the majority escaped to the Damara country, after having been pursued hundreds of miles. This instinct directs the migrations of the antelope and the wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure. Jer. ii. 24. These winds, I have learned from inquiry, come from within the tropics, where rain has fallen, and the cool air thereby produced, rushes southward over the plains, filling up the space caused by the rarefaction of the air, owing to the approach of the sun to the tropic of Capricorn. The more boisterous these winds are, the more reason we have to expect rain. They cannot extend to any great height, as the thunder-storms which follow, and which often commence with a small cloud in the opposite direction, increasing into mountains of snow, with a tinge of yellow, pursue an opposite course. These are preceded by a dead stillness, which continues till the tornado bursts upon us with awful violence, and the clouds have discharged their watery treasures. In such a case there are almost always two strata of clouds, frequently moving in opposite directions. The higher mountain-like masses, with their edges exactly defined, going one way, while the feelers, or loose misty vapour beneath, convulsed, and rolling in fearful velocity, are going another; while the peals of thunder are such as to make the very earth tremble. The lightning is of three descriptions, one kind passing from cloud to cloud; this is seldom accompanied with any rain. Another kind is the forked, which may be seen passing through a cloud, and striking the earth; this is considered. the most dangerous. The most common, not always accompanied by rain, is what we are in the habit of calling stream or chain-lightning. This appears to rise from the earth, in figures of various shapes, crooked, zigzag, and oblique; and sometimes like a water-spout at sea; it continues several seconds, while the observer can distinctly see it dissolve in pieces like a broken chain. The perpetual roar of awful thunder on these occasions may be conceived, when twenty or more of these flashes may be counted in one minute. The lightning may also be seen passing upwards through the dense mass of vapour, and branching out like the limbs of a naked tree in the blue sky above. In such storms the rain frequently falls in torrents, and runs off very 228 DESCRIPTIONS OF THUNDER STORMS. rapidly, not moistening the earth, except in sandy plains, more than six inches deep. These storms are frequently very destructive, though not attended with that loss of life common in more populous countries. People are killed, especially such as take refuge under trees; houses are struck, when, in general, some, if not all, the inmates perish. Game are frequently killed by it, and I have known about fifty head of cattle levelled on the spot. Though persons do become so far accustomed to these fearful diplays of Almighty power as even to long for them, because they bring rain, yet they frequently produce great terror, especially among the lower orders of the animal creation. The antelopes flee in consternation; and I have had opportunities of observing the Balala (poor Bechuanas) start off early on the morning following such a storm, in quest of the young which have been cast through terror: thus illustrating the words of the psalmist, as rendered in our English translation, " The voice of the Lord causeth the hinds to calve," or somewhat clearer, as in the Dutch, "cast their young." While on the subject of thunder, it may be proper to observe, that we have in those latitudes what the natives call serumairi, (serumaeeree,) which is thunder without clouds. I have frequently heard it during my long abode in the country, and once in a position where no clouds could be seen for fifty or sixty miles round, even on the most distant horizon, for many weeks; indeed, it may be said to be heard only when there are no clouds whatever to be seen. When it does occur, which is not often, it is after the sun has passed the meridian, and when the day is hottest, with little or no wind. The explosion appears to be in the clear blue sky; and, though over our heads, the intonations are soft, and nothing like lightning is to be seen. Among the varieties of meteorological phenomena, it might be here noticed, that explosions of substances occasionally take place, which generally strike awe into the heathen, who are afraid of signs in the heavens. These occur after dry and sultry days. I never met, however, with a Mochuana who had seen or heard of the fall of aerolites. The natives never appeared to have formed any idea of the causes which produce the phenomena of the heavens, such as eclipses. The vague, though universal, notion prevails, when the moon is eclipsed, that a great chief has died, They are directed by the position of certain stars in the hea *Psalm xxix. 9 BECHUANA NOTIONS OF THUNDER. 229 vens, that the time has arrived, in the revolving year, when particular roots can be dug up for use, or when they may commence their labours of the field. This is their likhakologo, (turnings or revolvings,) or what we should call the spring time of the year. The Pleiades they call seleméla, which may be translated, cultivator, or the precursor of agriculture, from leméla, the relative verb to cultivate for ;* and se, a pronominal prefix, distinguishing them as the actors. Thus, when this constellation assumes a certain position in the heavens, it is the signal to commence cultivating their fields and gardens.† Thunder they supposed to be caused by a certain bird, which may be seen soaring very high during the storm, and which appeared to the natives as if it nestled among the forked lightnings. Some of these birds are not unfrequently killed, and their having been seen to descend to the earth may have given rise to this ludicrous notion. I have never had an opportunity of examining this bird, but presume it belongs to the vulture species. Leaving these subjects for the present, we turn again to the mission, which, while it suffered much from the presence of the rain-maker, his absence did not appear to have produced any change on the minds of the natives, except that of mortification. We could not help being sincerely thankful that there was no public prohibition made against attendance on divine worship; therefore, generally, a few came, though sometimes only such as were our dependents. A very large majority had never entered the chapel, being threatened by their superiors if they did; and others would not for their lives have set a foot within the threshold. At an early period, when the place of worship was built, a wooden Dutch clock had been fixed upon the wall, for the purpose of regulating the hours of worship. Immediately above the dial was a small box, in which were a couple of lilliputian soldiers, who strutted out when the clock struck. Conrad Buys, and others, had poisoned the minds of some of the * This peculiarity in the Sechuana language will be explained in the chapter on its character. + Dr. Thomas Winterbottom, in his account of the native Africans in the neighbourhood of Sierra Leone, observes, in remarkable unison with this statement, that "the proper time for preparing the plantations is shown by the particular situation in the heavens of the Pleiades, called by the Bulloms, awarrang." In fact this notion prevails in almost all the nations of the interior of Africa with which we are acquainted, and forcibly illustrates the import of the interrogation, "Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades (spring)?" leading men with the idea, that the missionaries were only the precursors of the Government, who would soon follow in their train, and make soldiers of every one of them. The little images in the clock were soon magnified into Goliaths, and the place of worship looked upon as an eintlu ea kholego, a house of bondage. It was necessary to take down the fairy-looking strangers, and cut a piece off their painted bodies, to convince the affrighted natives that the objects of their alarm were only bits of coloured wood. Many, however, thought themselves too wise to be thus easily deceived. Though perfectly convinced of the egregrious folly of believing that the little lisélo, "carved ones," would one day seize them by the throat in the sanctuary, they nevertheless continued to suspect, that the motives of the missionary were anything but disinterested. CHAPTER XXI. FOR more than a year numerous and strange reports had at intervals reached us, some indeed of such a character as induced us to treat them as the reveries of a madman. It was said that a mighty woman, of the name of Mantatee, was at the head of an invincible army, numerous as the locusts, marching onward among the interior nations, carrying devastation and ruin wherever she went; that she nourished the army with her own milk, sent out hornets before it, and, in one word, was laying the world desolate. Concluding that these might be only rumours of a destructive war carrying on by Chaka, the tyrant of the Zoolus, and that he was at too great a distance from us to affect our operations, I resolved on a journey which I had been contemplating for some months. This was to visit Makaba, the chief of the Bauangketsi, a powerful tribe, situated upwards of two hundred miles north-east of Lithako. I had various reasons for taking this step. The Batlapis, and the neighbouring tribes were living in constant dread of an attack from so powerful an enemy, of whom they could never speak without stigmatizing him with the most oppro OPPOSITION TO THE AUTHOR'S JOURNEY. 231 brious epithets. It was desirable to open up a friendly intercourse to prevent hostilities, and it seemned advisable for me to attend more exclusively to the acquirement of the language, by associating, for awhile, with the natives, when, at the same time, an opportunity was thus afforded of becoming better acquainted with the localities of the tribes, and, in addition to these objects, was the ultimate design of introducing the Gospel among that interesting people. About this time receiving an invitation from Makaba, the path of duty was plain; but Mothibi, and indeed all the people, were greatly opposed to my design. Every thing injurious to the character of the Bauangketsi was raked up and placed before me. All the imaginary and real murders Makaba had ever committed were set in array, and every one swore by their king and their fathers, that if I went my doom was fixed, for I should never return, and therefore Ma-Mary and the two children might leave and return to our friends in England, for she would never see me again. We, with Mr. Hamilton, had deliberated together, and prayed over the subject, and were not dismayed by their representations. When the day arrived for my departure, Mothibi, finding he could not prevail by arguments, positively forbade those under his control to accompany me. Feeling no inclination to give up my intention, I started with such men as I had. On reaching Old Lithako, on the third day, I found the reports about the Mantatees somewhat revived, and the natives strongly advised me to proceed no farther than Nokaneng, about twenty miles distant. The reports being such as we had heard before, and knowing that they wished, by every means, to intimidate me, I proceeded on the following day, after having preached to a great number of the natives. On arriving at Nokaneng, I found that rumours had reached that place that the Barolongs, at Kunuana, about one hundred miles off, had been also attacked, and the towns were in the hands of the marauders; but as spies had been sent out to ascertain the truth, I remained, employing every opportunity afforded to impart instruction. The spies returning without having heard anything of the reported invaders, I proceeded, with my small company, towards the Bauangketsi tribes. After travelling four days over a dry and trackless part of the country, occasionally meeting with a few of the poor Bechuanas, we came to a fine valley, Mosite, in which were some pools, and plenty of game, especially the rhinoceros. Having shot one of these ponderous animals, we halted a day to prepare the meat, by |