412 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. Chap. XX. 



stream only came "upon our ears to break the dead- 

 ness of this awing silence, and disturb the grandest 

 solitude man can ever behold — a solitude which often 

 chilled me, but which was well adapted for the study 

 of Nature. 



I was surprised at the small number of new birds 

 I found. I did not find more than ten species dif- 

 ferent from those of my former collections. 



At a certain distance from the coast hills com- 

 mence, which gradually increase in elevation, and 

 form mountain ranges, running parallel to each other 

 in a south-east and north-west direction. They 

 range along the whole of the western coast, and 

 seem to bear themselves towards the southern part 

 of Africa. 



Between these mountains and the sea the country 

 I have explored is generally low and marshy. 

 Several rivers rising on the western slope of the 

 first range flow through these lands and discharge 

 themselves into the sea.* Consequently these rivers 

 are short, and being so near together, the quantity of 

 water they throw into the sea is not great. The 

 most important commercially being the Gaboon, on 

 account of its port. 



I mentioned, in 'Equatorial Africa,' that I had 

 been surprised by the enormous quantity of water 

 discharged into the sea by the rivers forming the 

 delta of the Ogobai. I further said that the Ogobai 

 was formed by two rivers, the Rembo (river) Okanda 

 and the Rembo Ngouyai ; the former I had not seen, 



* Xames of rivers — Benito, IMinii, Monda, tlie delta of the Ogobai, 

 Nazareth, Mexias, Fernand Vaz, and the Commi river. 



