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SEQTION III. 
Our Progress up the River as far as Cooloo, opposite the 
Cataract. 
We weighed anchor on the morning of the 6th, in the 
expectation of soon welcoming the land of promise, but 
were obliged to anchor again at seven o’clock under Shark 
Point, at a distance of a hundred yards from the shore. 
It is low, with a sandy strand terminating in a very steep 
bank. Along the beach and close to it is a thicket of 
shrubs ; above this another of palms extends along the 
whole shore (probably Corypha,), and higher up is a lofty 
wood. The vegetation has the appearance of being de- 
cayed by drought. To the right hand is Hippopotamus 
Cliff, with a low shore, running southward in a long 
straight line. The anchor broke at the heaving, and we 
were fora moment in a dangerous and critical situation, 
the Congo having run foul of us. For the first time in 
four months we now saw the sails taken in. A number 
of naked negroes immediately assembled on the shore, 
~The land to the north (Mona Mazea,) is perfectly similar 
to Maxwell’s representation of it. ‘The mouth of the river 
is very large, perhaps fifteen miles wide. The naked hills 
of the interior consist probably of sand. Fathomless 
Nn 
