the time of Mbegha's son Bughe, and which supports ... the notion that the royal rule was a glorification of traditional Shambaa culture" (p. 93). This can partly be explained by the fact that Mbegha came from a neighbouring society much similar to that of the Shambaa and from which some of the Shambaa themselves had migrated earlier. The effort of transforming Shambaa society can therefore be seen as an attempt to unite and preserve a culture which at that time was threatened not by the Kilindi, but by the alien cultures of the Nango and Mbughu (both non-Bantu-speaking groups) who had entered Shambaai and caused tensions within the unified culture. Thirdly, Professor Feierman has greatly illuminated the nature of the Shambaa Kingdom by focussing on its political economy. Although Kimweri ye Nyumbai achieved harmony throughout the greatly expanded Kingdom by using his own sons and grandsons as chiefs, the real strength of the Kingdom was the tribute collection system which permeated the entire population. Thus the changes which took place in the nineteenth century and destroyed the unity of the Kingdom were mainly in its political economy: "The political economy of the Shambaa Kingdom changes, in the nineteenth century, from one based primarily on tribute and territorial control to one based primarily on trade" (p. 120). Finally, Dr. Feierman has clarified remarkably well the question of regional action in the Pangani Valley. By the time Kimweri ye Nyumbai died in 1862, the Shambaa Kingdom had been virtually decentralised. The Bondei had become chiefless, a small Kingdom had been established in East Usambara and Shambaai was divided between the forces of Semboja (Kimweri's son who became master of the new power base-trade) and those of the heirs of the traditional power base. Unlike the traditional kinship alliance and tribute, Semboja's power was of regional nature. Because of the importance of trade in this period "the major war for power in Shambaai was fought by the Wali of Pangani, chiefs of Bondei and Zigula, and the most prominent family of Mombasa [Mbaruk el Mazrui], it is clear that the most important events were no longer local in scale, but regional. In this setting the traditional Shambaa concern with maintaining the culture of the ancestors was clearly out of step" (p. 197). The Shambaa Kingdom is undoubtedly a very valuable contribution to the history of East Africa. Its value as a scientifically well-produced and critically analysed work has already been stated. As a microhistory it is unique in that it discusses ideas of wide generaIisation. For example questions of interpretation of myth and relationship between African thought and African history. This is a book which is likely to be of interest to most readers of history, specialist and non-specialist alike. I. N. KIMAMBO Robert Chambers and Jon Moris (eds.), Mwea: An Irrigated Rice Settlement in Kenya, Afrika-Studien Nr 83, Weltforum Verlag, Munchen, 1973, pp. 539. 236 UTAFlTI In this volume of the Afrika-Studien series. the German-based institute has provided us with a mass of information about Mwea rice settlement scheme in Kenya. The book is a compilation of scholarly worked out papers on the scheme. The papers are the product of researches done between 1965 and February 1973. There are good pictures showing the life of the people at the end of the book. There is also a layout map at the end. The Mwea settlement scheme was established as a result of the emergency resettlement projects in Kenya after the outbreak of the proto-nationalistic movement of Mau Mau (Chambers. 1969. pp. 59-136). In 1953 the Kikuyu reserves were overcrowded with people who were repatriated from the Rift Valley where many of them had been working in European farms. To settle them in planned areas was thought to be a long term solution. The Mwea area which was allocated to Kikuyu. was established by the Carter Land Commission as compensation for the land they had lost to the Europeans. Initially. the scheme grew out of political necessity rather than economic need. As Chambers noted (pp. 65-67). the birth was premature when it started in November 1955. It had not been planned for. But since the landless peasants were to be rehabilitated. the programme was launched. The book is divided into four parts consisting of fifteen different articles dealing with some aspects of the scheme. The first part has two articles by the editors. These two articles deal with the environment and the history of the scheme. Part two deals with the production of the scheme. Engineering aspects of the water control and production systems are analysed. Furthermore. management is looked at in detail. In part three we have articles dealing with subjects like tenants' per- formance. women and the household economy. health and nutrition. This part covers the effect of the settlement on the settlers. It also sheds some light on which of the scheme's 'components has contributed the most to the agro- nomic success of the irrigation system'. Since part three deals with the settlement way of life. chapters in this section deal with the impact of the scheme on the wellbeing of the settlers. Here the articles narrow down their scope of analysis to the community ways of life and individual household. Part four concludes the collection of the articles and do assess the scheme itself. In order to have a fair evaluation. the contributors to this section has approached their analysis from a comparative point of view. Thus other similar projects carried out in other parts of Africa have been referred to. This enriches the section and the volume as a whole. The Mwea Irrigation Scheme offers us some experience to take into consideration when we start such kind of projects elsewhere. It shows how expensive it is to run such a kind of scheme. But. also it shows how an irrigation scheme can be of a great help economically. when. and if a workable 237 managerial system and innovation techniques are introduced properly. It furthermore illustrates how modem technology can be introduced to the UTAFITI planned community to complement labour intensive techniques within the production system. After reading through the fifteen scholarly written articles one wonders how the same type of scheme can become a model for other less favourable areas. Perhaps, areas like Kilombero and Ruvu basins in Tanzania could be ideal places for the kind of Mwea Scheme. However, the social structural and production systems of Mwea would hardly be acceptable to a country aspiring for a socialistic economic mode of production. To the academicians and policy-makers, the book has a lot of information related to the theory and practice in the areas of planning and managerial system for agricultural production. Thus the volume may be of a great help as a reference. C. K. OMARI Samora Machel-President of FRELIMO (and now the People's Republic of Mozambique), Mozambique: Sowing the Seeds of Revolution, Committee for Freedom in Mozambique, Angola and Guinea, London, 1975, p. 63. This is a booklet containing, if we exclude the two-page introduction by John Saul, 61 pages of revolutionary and highly educative material. It is a collection of six speeches and one interview article all done in the period 1970-73. Since the material composing the booklet was not originally intended for a book but rather as self-contained speeches on various contradictions facing the Mozambican anti-colonial armed struggle, the booklet in a formal sense is naturally not a homogeneous whole. One finds in all the articles what may appear to be repetitions. However, any serious reading of the booklet, parti- cularly by those who would wish to learn and are capable of learning some revolutionary lessons from the Mozambican revolutionary armed struggle as articulated in the seven articles, reveals both homogeneity and richness of explanation and elaboration of the fundamental and other contradictions in Mozambique which the revolutionary struggle was and is to resolve. Indeed, common themes run through the articles although the subjects covered appear to be different. This is clearly evidence of a clear and consistent ideological line of FRELIMO for which Comrade Samora, as its President, so effectively spoke. The articles are generally short, precise and artistically written and presented. Rather than attempting to summarise each one of the articles we shall point out the themes which run through all of them and their revolution- ary significance.The main areas covered by the articles include: international solidarity and mutual aid among "forces fighting for the same objectives"; correct leadership practice in a revolutionary movement and a revolutionary struggle that combines armed resistance and socio-economic transformation of the "liberated areas"; the true meaning of "liberation of women" in theory 238