Religion & morality > David Livingstone

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Dr. Livingstone.
frightened them, which caused a simultaneous squall;
this provoked a suppressed titter from those who had
not children, which burst into a hearty laugh, as soon
as the “ Amen ” was said, and in half an hour the
whole party would be dancing like mad, where so
shortly before they had been devoutly kneeling; so
that the associations of the place were sadly against
any religious impressions which the good missionary
laboured to make. Lest the native doctors, a power¬
ful class much given to enchantments, should look
upon him with suspicion, and thwart his ministrations,
Livingstone, as a rule, declined to attend the sick,
unless at their request, or when the cases were given
over by them. In the severe forms of disease they
were glad to avail themselves of his skill.
Feeling that the missionary ought to be above sus¬
picion of mercenary motives, he also declined to enter
into any trading transactions, or to receive valuable
gifts of ivory from the chiefs, to whom presents were
invariably made. He had too high a sense of his holy
mission for that. “ The religious instructor,” he said,
“ degrades himself by accepting gifts from those whose
spiritual welfare he professes to seek.” Out of his
modest salary of ^100 a year he contrived to support
his wife and family, before he sent them to England,
and to pay the extra expenses of his long journeys,
undertaken for the wider diffusion of the Gospel, in¬
cluding the presents to chiefs; of course, the produce
of the lands which he cultivated greatly assisted him.
It was only by barter that he could make his way at
all among the natives, as they were unacquainted with