Chap. XII. HIPPOPOTAMI AND CROCODILES. 241 



arrived at the river-side, reeling drunk, just as we 

 were shoving off with the last load, and I told the 

 men to pretend not to hear his shouts for the return 

 of the canoe to embark him, so he had to come over 

 alone when we had all landed on the other side. 



I was struck with the scarcity of animal life on and 

 near the river. But the rich and open valley through 

 which it flows must teem with Natural History wealth 

 in its varied woods ; we could not expect to see 

 much amid the noise of our crossing, and in the short 

 time we remained in the district. There were no 

 aquatic birds in sight, not even pelicans. The water 

 was too deep and there were too few sand and mud 

 banks for hippopotami ; for I have always noticed 

 that these animals are found only in rivers which 

 abound in shallows. If the rivers have shallows in 

 the dry season only, then hippopotami are to be seen 

 there only in the dry season. It is the same with 

 crocodiles. In the seasons of flood one may travel 

 for weeks without seeing a single individual of either 

 species in rivers and lakes which nevertheless swarm 

 with them in the dry season. Thus it is with the 

 lake Anengue of the Ogobai, which I described in 

 my former work as full of crocodiles, although when 

 Messrs. Serval and Grifion Du Bellay visited it, after 

 me, in 1862, they were unable to see any of these 

 reptiles. Indeed, I myself found none on my first 

 visit to the lake, as related in ' Adventures in Equa- 

 torial Africa ; ' on my second visit I was surprised to 

 find them so abundant. Even a month or a fort- 

 night makes a great difference, and one wonders 

 where all the crocodiles come from. It is well known 



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