Next forenoon we halted at the village of our old friend Mbame, to obtain new carriers, because Chibisa's men, never before having been hired, and not having yet learned to trust us, did not choose to go further.After resting a little, Mbame told us that a slave party on its way to Tette would presently pass through his village."Shall we interfere?" we inquired of each other.We remembered that all our valuable private baggage was in Tette, which, if we freed the slaves, might, together with some Government property, be destroyed in retaliation; but this system of slave-hunters dogging us where previously they durst not venture, and, on pretence of being "our children," setting one tribe against another, to furnish themselves with slaves, would so inevitably thwart all the efforts, for which we had the sanction of the Portuguese Government, that we resolved to run all risks, and put a stop, if possible, to the slave-trade, which had now followed on the footsteps of our discoveries.A few minutes after Mbame had spoken to us, the slave party, a long line of manacled men, women, and children, came wending their way round the hill and into the valley, on the side of which the village stood.
The black drivers, armed with muskets, and bedecked with various articles of finery, marched jauntily in the front, middle, and rear of the line; some of them blowing exultant notes out of long tin horns.They seemed to feel that they were doing a very noble thing, and might proudly march with an air of triumph.But the instant the fellows caught a glimpse of the English, they darted off like mad into the forest; so fast, indeed, that we caught but a glimpse of their red caps and the soles of their feet.The chief of the party alone remained; and he, from being in front, had his hand tightly grasped by a Makololo!He proved to be a well-known slave of the late Commandant at Tette, and for some time our own attendant while there.On asking him how he obtained these captives, he replied he had bought them; but on our inquiring of the people themselves, all, save four, said they had been captured in war.While this inquiry was going on, he bolted too.The captives knelt down, and, in their way of expressing thanks, clapped their hands with great energy.
They were thus left entirely on our hands, and knives were soon busy at work cutting the women and children loose.It was more difficult to cut the men adrift, as each had his neck in the fork of a stout stick, six or seven feet long, and was kept in by an iron rod which was riveted at both ends across the throat.With a saw, luckily in the Bishop's baggage, one by one the men were sawn out into freedom.
The women, on being told to take the meal they were carrying and cook breakfast for themselves and the children, seemed to consider the news too good to be true; but after a little coaxing went at it with alacrity, and made a capital fire by which to boil their pots with the slave sticks and bonds, their old acquaintances through many a sad night and weary day.Many were mere children about five years of age and under.One little boy, with the simplicity of childhood, said to our men, "The others tied and starved us, you cut the ropes and tell us to eat; what sort of people are you?--Where did you come from?"Two of the women had been shot the day before for attempting to untie the thongs.This, the rest were told, was to prevent them from attempting to escape.One woman had her infant's brains knocked out, because she could not carry her load and it.And a man was dispatched with an axe, because he had broken down with fatigue.
Self-interest would have set a watch over the whole rather than commit murder; but in this traffic we invariably find self-interest overcome by contempt of human life and by bloodthirstiness.
The Bishop was not present at this scene, having gone to bathe in a little stream below the village; but on his return he warmly approved of what had been done; he at first had doubts, but now felt that, had he been present, he would have joined us in the good work.Logic is out of place when the question with a true-hearted man is, whether his brother man is to be saved or not.Eighty-four, chiefly women and children, were liberated; and on being told that they were now free, and might go where they pleased, or remain with us, they all chose to stay; and the Bishop wisely attached them to his Mission, to be educated as members of a Christian family.In this way a great difficulty in the commencement of a Mission was overcome.Years are usually required before confidence is so far instilled into the natives' mind as to induce them, young or old, to submit to the guidance of strangers professing to be actuated by motives the reverse of worldly wisdom, and inculcating customs strange and unknown to them and their fathers.
We proceeded next morning to Soche's with our liberated party, the men cheerfully carrying the Bishop's goods.As we had begun, it was of no use to do things by halves, so eight others were freed in a hamlet on our path; but a party of traders, with nearly a hundred slaves, fled from Soche's on hearing of our proceedings.Dr. Kirk and four Makololo followed them with great energy, but they made clear off to Tette.Six more captives were liberated at Mongazi's, and two slave-traders detained for the night, to prevent them from carrying information to a large party still in front.Of their own accord they volunteered the information that the Governor's servants had charge of the next party; but we did not choose to be led by them, though they offered to guide us to his Excellency's own agents.
