Chapter II: Preface

As the Kilima-njaro Expedition was initiated and supported by two of the most important among our British Scientific Societies, it may perhaps seem excusable that I, who was its appointed leader, should venture to lay the general results of this enterprise before the public.

I do so only in the sincere desire to contribute, however feebly, to the mounting sum of our knowledge of Africa—that continent, which I look upon as the New World of the nineteenth century.

I cannot conclude these few prefatory lines without most heartily thanking every friend or chance acquaintance who by word or deed facilitated my task. It is pleasant to look back upon this expedition as having been provocative of nothing but kindness.

While the names of certain of my benefactors are mentioned elsewhere in the pages of this work in juxtaposition with their good deeds, I think this the most fitting place in which to record my special sense of obligation to Philip Lutley Sclater, Esq., Ph. D., Sec. Zoological Society; Edward L. Lawson, Esq.; Edwin Arnold, Esq., C.S.I.; Carmichael Thomas, Esq.; and, with all his faults, Mandara, Chief of Moši; who, though he once threatened to cut off my head, nevertheless in his brighter moods supplied me with much valuable information.

H. H. JOHNSTON.

LONDON, _November, 1885_.

NOTE TO THE READER.

In the orthography of most African words and proper names in this book, especially in those which are written for the first time, I have followed what seems to me the simplest and most satisfactory phonetic system—that of Dr. Lepsius’ standard alphabet.

As this may be new to some of my readers, I may mention here that the vowels are generally pronounced as in Italian, viz.:—

a = ah; e = eh; i = ee; o = oh; ô = aw; u = oo.

In diphthongs, the sound of each vowel may be distinctly heard, as ai = ah-ee; ou = oh-oo.

Those consonants which differ in look from the Roman character, are—

Č, pron. ch; ǰ, pron. as an English j; ṅ, pron. ng’; š, pron. sh; and
others, which are of less frequent occurrence, are explained fully in
Chapter XX.

As frequently recurring examples of this orthography, I may instance,—

“Čaga” —pronounced “Chaga;”
“Moši” „ “Moshy;” and
“ǰipé” „ “Jeepay.”

I have only diverged from this system where the proper names from long use have accustomed us to other spelling. Thus I write “Galla,” although properly it should be “Gala,” and I have even avoided disfiguring the “j” of “Kilima-njaro” with a ^v; although I fear the result of this lenity will be that half my readers will pronounce it wrongly. To avoid this I may, perhaps, for the benefit of the timid who always shirk African names, write its exact pronunciation in our clumsy English orthography.

This would be:

Killy-manjāhro.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.
PAGE
INTRODUCTORY 1

CHAPTER II.
SIR JOHN KIRK AT HOME 17

CHAPTER III.
THE START—MOMBASA TO TAITA 40

CHAPTER IV.
TAITA TO KILIMA-NJARO 64

CHAPTER V.
ARRIVAL AT MANDARA’S COURT 94

CHAPTER VI.
MY FIRST SETTLEMENT ON KILIMA-NJARO 114

CHAPTER VII.
“HALCYON DAYS” 142

CHAPTER VIII.
TROUBLOUS TIMES 164

CHAPTER IX.
AN ANXIOUS PERIOD 184

CHAPTER X.
A TRIP TO TAVEITA 204

CHAPTER XI.
A FIRST ASCENT 229

CHAPTER XII.
A MOVE TO MARAṄU 243

CHAPTER XIII.
A SECOND ASCENT 259

CHAPTER XIV.
THROUGH THE FORESTS OF KIMAWENZI AND THE COUNTRY OF ROMBO 281

CHAPTER XV.
LAKE J̌IPÉ AND THE ROAD TO GONJ̌A 296

CHAPTER XVI.
GONJ̌A TO LONDON 309

CHAPTER XVII.
CLIMATE, GEOLOGY, BOTANY, &C. 322

CHAPTER XVIII.
ZOOLOGY 350

CHAPTER XIX.
ANTHROPOLOGY 395

CHAPTER XX.
THE LANGUAGES OF THE KILIMA-NJARO DISTRICT 446
(_a_) Masai.
Appendix 1. Comparative vocabulary of the Masai
language.
(_b_) The Bantu languages of Kilima-njaro Appendix 2.
Vocabularies of Ki-čaga, Ki-taveita, Ki-gweno, &c.