RIDING THROUGH THE WATER. 191 



day, and we used our endeavours to persuade one 

 of these fellows to shew us the way to get out of 

 our woeful scrape. After some parley, we found 

 them open to a bribe ; and a donation of a few 

 piastres induced one man to go with us, and we 

 set out, glad that any prospect opened to us of 

 escaping a night's sojourn in so uninviting a 

 watering-place. It must not be forgotten, that 

 during the whole of this time our horses were 

 standing up to their knees in water, the floor of 

 the extraordinary house I have mentioned being 

 raised by the piles about three feet above its sur- 

 face, so that if the country is ever dry the house 

 must be four feet above the level of the ground. 



After some difficulty in getting our baggage- 

 horse into the ferry-boat, who seemed to have 

 taken a most extraordinary fancy into his head to 

 prefer tumbling into the river, and being carried 

 away, baggage and all, by the current, we crossed 

 the river, mounted our horses, up to their knees, 

 at least, in the water, and then, after riding for 

 about an hour along banks on each side of which 

 the water was so deep that the horses would have 

 been probably swimming, we, under the guidance 

 of our friend, whom we took great care to be very 



