SEA-COW TRAPS. - 165 



This formidable affair was suspended over tlie center of 

 a sea-cow path, at a height of about thirty feet from 

 the ground, by a baik cord which passed over a high 

 branch of a tree, and thence to a peg on one side of the 

 path beneath, leading across the path to a peg on the 

 other side, where it was fastened. To the suspending 

 cord were two triggers so constructed that, when the 

 sea-cow struck against the cord which led across the 

 path, the heavy block above was set at liberty, which 

 instantly dropped with immense force with its poison- 

 ous dart, inflicting a sure and mortal wound. The 

 bones and old teeth of sea-cows which lay rotting along 

 the bank of the river here evinced the success of this 

 dangerous invention. I remained in the neighborhood 

 of the pool for several days, during which time I bagged 

 no less than fifteen first-rate hippopotami, the greater 

 portion of them being bulls. 



At dawn of day on the 28th we inspanned and 

 marched up the river to the drift. All hands worked 

 hard in cutting down the bank on the opposite side, the 

 Bakalahari assisting us ; and in the afternoon we got 

 the cap-tent wagon, which was very lightly laden, 

 through the river with twelve oxen. The baggage- 

 wagon stuck fast in the mud, and remained there all 

 night, with the fore-wheels half way up the bank, and 

 the after-chest under the water ; and although we put 

 twenty oxen to it, we could not get it out. 



The next day our first work was to reduce the bank 

 on which the wagon stood, after which, with consid- 

 erable difficulty, we got it out with twenty of my best 

 oxen. The whole day we were busy drying the in- 

 numerable contents of the fore and after chests of each 

 wagon, almost every thing being thoroughly saturated, 

 and I sustained considerable loss in fine powder, per- 



