Indeed, the place seemed
impregnable to any force that was not armed with siege guns.
On the hither side of this natural fosse, which, doubtless, in ancient
times had been filled with water led from the Zambesi, stood the village
of the Bambatse Makalanga, a collection of seventy or eighty wretched
huts, round, like those of their forefathers, but built of mud and
thatch. About them lay the gardens, or square fields, that were well
cultivated, and at this season rich with ripening corn. Benita, however,
could see no cattle, and concluded, therefore, that these must be kept
on the hill for safety, and within its walls.
Down the rough road they lumbered, and through the village, where the
few women and children stared at them in a frightened way. Then they
came to the causeway, which, on its further side, was blocked with
thorns and rough stones taken from the ruins. While they waited for
these to be removed by some men who now appeared, Benita looked at the
massive, circular wall still thirty or forty feet in height, by perhaps
twenty through its base, built of granite blocks without mortar,
and ornamented with quaint patterns of other coloured stones. In
its thickness she could see grooves, where evidently had once been
portcullises, but these had disappeared long ago.
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