was made of the same materials, and 27 feet high.  This had been broken through by a flood, and solid blocks, many yards in length, were carried down the stream, affording an instructive example of the transporting power of water.  There was nothing in the appearance of the place to indicate unhealthiness; but eight Spanish and Swedish workmen, being brought hither for the purpose of instructing the natives in the art of smelting iron, soon fell victims to disease and “irregularities”.  The effort of the marquis to improve the mode of manufacturing iron was thus rendered abortive.  Labor and subsistence are, however, so very cheap that almost any amount of work can be executed, at a cost that renders expensive establishments unnecessary.

A party of native miners and smiths is still kept in the employment of the government, who, working the rich black magnetic iron ore, produce for the government from 480 to 500 bars of good malleable iron every month.  They are supported by the appropriation of a few thousands of a small fresh-water fish, called “Cacusu”, a portion of the tax levied upon the fishermen of the Coanza.  This fish is so much relished in the country that those who do not wish to eat them can easily convert them into money.  The commandant of the district of Massangano, for instance, has a right to a dish of three hundred every morning, as part of his salary.  Shell-fish are also found in the Coanza, and the “Peixemulher”, or woman-fish of the Portuguese, which is probably a Manatee.

The banks of the Lucalla are very pretty, well planted with orange-trees, bananas, and the palm (’Elaeis Guineensis’) which yields the oil of commerce.  Large plantations of maize, manioc, and tobacco are seen along both banks, which are enlivened by the frequent appearance of native houses imbosomed in dense shady groves, with little boys and girls playing about them.  The banks are steep, the water having cut out its bed in dark red alluvial soil.  Before every cottage a small stage is erected, to which the inhabitants may descend to draw water without danger from the alligators.  Some have a little palisade made in the water for safety from these reptiles, and others use the shell of the fruit of the baobab-tree attached to a pole about ten feet long, with which, while standing on the high bank, they may draw water without fear of accident.

Many climbing plants run up the lofty silk, cotton, and baobab trees, and hang their beautiful flowers in gay festoons on the branches.  As we approach Massangano, the land on both banks of the Lucalla becomes very level, and large portions are left marshy after the annual floods; but all is very fertile.  As an illustration of the strength of the soil, I may state that we saw tobacco-plants in gardens near the confluence eight feet high, and each plant had thirty-six leaves, which were eighteen inches long by six or eight inches broad.  But it is not a pastoral district.  In our descent we observed the tsetse, and consequently the people had no domestic animals save goats.