CJiapina)is Travels in South Africa 



215 



of the passage. This descent must obviously have been rather a 

 nervous affair; in the event of a capsize nothing could have pre- 

 vented their all going over the Falls. The perilous course is con- 

 ducted by the steersman in the bow, who steers as much by the 

 pressure of his feet as by the action of his paddle ; the skiff obey- 

 ing their pressure something in the same way that a well-trained 

 horse does the pressure of the knee of his rider. Looking at the 

 sketch, and the description, we found ourselves soliloquizing 

 " Facilis decensus averni — how in all the world did they get back ? " 

 Mr Chapman, assuming that his subsequent career is sufficient 

 evidence that they did get back, omits to mention how ; but on 

 turning to Baines' book, we find that this, as we expected, was the 



worst part of the job. The boatman, Zarzela, had to send re- 

 peated messages to the enraptured sight-seers, warning them that 

 it was time to go, as the journey back was toilsome and dangerous. 

 We do not know whether the Canadian boat song has yet 

 penetrated into Central Africa, but " Row, row, brothers row, for 

 the stream runs past, the rapids are near, and the daylight's past," 

 would decidedly have been appropriate ; we learn, however, 

 from Chapman that " God save the Queen " has made its way 

 there, and that he was surprised by hearing it and " Lucy Neal," 

 and one or two others of our simpler melodies, sung in the kraals 

 of native tribes who had probably not seen a dozen white men in 

 the course of their lives. 



