Sekeletu receives tribute from a great number of tribes in corn or dura, ground-nuts, hoes, spears, honey, canoes, paddles, wooden vessels, tobacco, mutokuane (’Cannabis sativa’), various wild fruits (dried), prepared skins, and ivory.  When these articles are brought into the kotla, Sekeletu has the honor of dividing them among the loungers who usually congregate there.  A small portion only is reserved for himself.  The ivory belongs nominally to him too, but this is simply a way of making a fair distribution of the profits.  The chief sells it only with the approbation of his counselors, and the proceeds are distributed in open day among the people as before.  He has the choice of every thing; but if he is not more liberal to others than to himself, he loses in popularity.  I have known instances in this and other tribes in which individuals aggrieved, because they had been overlooked, fled to other chiefs.  One discontented person, having fled to Lechulatebe, was encouraged to go to a village of the Bapalleng, on the River Cho or Tso, and abstracted the tribute of ivory thence which ought to have come to Sekeletu.  This theft enraged the whole of the Makololo, because they all felt it to be a personal loss.  Some of Lechulatebe’s people having come on a visit to Linyanti, a demonstration was made, in which about five hundred Makololo, armed, went through a mimic fight; the principal warriors pointed their spears toward the lake where Lechulatebe lives, and every thrust in that direction was answered by all with the shout, “Ho-o!” while every stab on the ground drew out a simultaneous “Huzz!” On these occasions all capable of bearing arms, even the old, must turn out at the call.  In the time of Sebituane, any one remaining in his house was searched for and killed without mercy.

This offense of Lechulatebe was aggravated by repetition, and by a song sung in his town accompanying the dances, which manifested joy at the death of Sebituane.  He had enjoined his people to live in peace with those at the lake, and Sekeletu felt disposed to follow his advice; but Lechulatebe had now got possession of fire-arms, and considered himself more than a match for the Makololo.  His father had been dispossessed of many cattle by Sebituane, and, as forgiveness is not considered among the virtues by the heathen, Lechulatebe thought he had a right to recover what he could.  As I had a good deal of influence with the Makololo, I persuaded them that, before they could have peace, they must resolve to give the same blessing to others, and they never could do that without forgiving and forgetting ancient feuds.  It is hard to make them feel that shedding of human blood is a great crime; they must be conscious that it is wrong, but, having been accustomed to bloodshed from infancy, they are remarkably callous to the enormity of the crime of destroying human life.

I sent a message at the same time to Lechulatebe advising him to give up the course he had adopted, and especially the song; because, though Sebituane was dead, the arms with which he had fought were still alive and strong.