King Solomon's Mines INTRODUCTION NOW THAT this book is printed, and about to be given to the world, the sense of its shortcomings, both in style and contents, weighs very heavily upon me. As regards the latter, I can only say that it does not pretend to be a full account of everything we did and saw. There are many things connected with our journey into Kukuanaland which I should have liked to dwell upon at length, and which have, as it is, been scarcely alluded to. Among these are the curious legends which I collected about the chain armor that saved us from destruction in the great battle of Loo, and also about the “silent ones” or colossi at the mouth of the stalactite cave. Again, if I had given way to my own impulses I should have liked to go into the differences, some of which are to my mind very suggestive, between the Zulu and Kukuana dialects. Also, a few pages might profitably have been given up to the consideration of the indigenous flora and fauna of Kukuanaland. 1 Then there remains the most interesting subject- which, as it is, has been only incidentally alluded to- of the magnificent system of military organization in force in that country, which is, in my opinion, much superior to that 1 I discovered eight varieties of antelope with which I was previously totally unacquainted, and many new species of plants, for the most part of the bulbous tribe. inaugurated by Chaka in Zululand, inasmuch as it permits of even more rapid mobilization, and does not necessitate the employment of the pernicious system of forced celibacy. And, lastly, I have scarcely touched on the domestic and family customs of the Kukuanas, many of which are exceedingly quaint, or on their proficiency in the art of smelting and welding metals. This last they carry to considerable perfection, of which a good example is to be seen in their “tollas,” or heavy throwing knives, the backs of these knives being made of hammered iron, and the edges of beautiful steel welded with great skill onto the iron backs. The fact of the matter is that I thought (and so did Sir Henry Curtis and Captain Good) that the best plan would be to tell the story in a plain, straightforward manner, and leave these matters to be dealt with subsequently in whatever way may ultimately appear to be desirable. In the meanwhile I shall, of course, be delighted to give any information in my power to anybody interested in such things