going to be said.  They were asked whether they knew of a hill on which four rivers took their rise.  The spokesman answered that they had no knowledge of it; they themselves, said he, were not travellers, and all those who used to go on trading expeditions were now dead.  In former years Malenga’s town, Kutchinyama, was the assembling place of the Wabisa traders, but these had been swept off by the Mazitu.  Such as survived had to exist as best they could amongst the swamps and inundated districts around the Lake.  Whenever an expedition was organised to go to the coast, or in any other direction, travellers met at Malenga’s town to talk over the route to be taken:  then would have been the time, said they, to get information about every part.  Dr. Livingstone was here obliged to dismiss them, and explained that he was too ill to continue talking, but he begged them to bring as much food as they could for sale to Kalunganjovu’s.]

26th April, 1873.—­(No entry except the date.)

[They proceeded as far as Kalunganjovu’s town, the chief himself coming to meet them on the way dressed in Arab costume and wearing a red fez.  Whilst waiting here Susi was instructed to count over the bags of beads, and, on reporting that twelve still remained in stock, Dr. Livingstone told him to buy two large tusks if an opportunity occurred, as he might run short of goods by the time they got to Ujiji, and could then exchange them with the Arabs there for cloth, to spend on their way to Zanzibar.]

To-day, the 27th April, 1873, he seems to have been almost dying.  No entry at all was made in his diary after that which follows, and it must have taxed him to the utmost to write:—­

“Knocked up quite, and remain—­recover—­sent to buy milch goats.  We are on the banks of the Molilamo.”

They are the last words that David Livingstone wrote.

From this point we have to trust entirely to the narrative of the men.  They explain the above sentence as follows:  Salimane, Amisi, Hamsani, and Laede, accompanied by a guide, were sent off to endeavour if possible to buy some milch goats on the upper part of the Molilamo.[34] They could not, however, succeed; it was always the same story—­the Mazitu had taken everything.  The chief, nevertheless, sent a substantial present of a kid and three baskets of ground-nuts, and the people were willing enough to exchange food for beads.  Thinking he could eat some Mapira corn pounded up with ground-nuts, the Doctor gave instructions to the two women M’sozi and M’toweka, to prepare it for him, but he was not able to take it when they brought it to him.

28th April, 1873.—­Men were now despatched in an opposite direction, that is to visit the villages on the right bank of the Molilamo as it flows to the Lake; unfortunately they met with no better result, and returned empty handed.

On the 29th April, Kalunganjovu and most of his people came early to the village.  The chief wished to assist his guest to the utmost, and stated that as he could not be sure that a sufficient number of canoes would be forthcoming unless he took charge of matters himself, he should accompany the caravan to the crossing place, which was about an hour’s march from the spot.  “Everything should be done for his friend,” he said.