THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 307 



yawning state, and, though their eyes are open, they take little 

 notice of things at a distance. The males utter a loud succession 

 of snorting grunts, which may be heard a mile off. Livingstone 

 says that in passing over a wounded one in a canoe a distinct 

 grunting was elicited, though the animal lay entirely under water. 

 The young, when very little, take their stand on the neck of 

 the dam, and the small head, rising above the larger, comes soon- 

 est to the surface. The dam, knowing the more urgent need of 

 her calf, comes more frequently to the surface when it is in her 

 care. But in the rivers of Loanda, where they are much in danger 

 of being shot, even the hippopotamus gains wit by experience ; 

 for, while those in the Zambesi put up their heads openly to blow, 

 those referred to keep their noses among water-plants, and 

 breathe so quietly that one would not dream of their existence 

 in the river except by footprints on the banks. 



CHAPTER XVII. 



DANGERS FROM ALLIGATORS. 



PART of Livingstone's company marched along the banks with 

 the oxen, and part went in the canoes, but their pace was regu- 

 lated by the speed of the men on shore. Their course was rather 

 difficult, on account of the numbers of departing and re-entering 

 branches of the Leeambye, which they had to avoid or wait at 

 till ferried over. The number of alligators is prodigious, and 

 in this river they are more savage than in some others. Many 

 children are carried off annually at Sesheke and other towns ; 

 for, notwithstanding the danger, when they go down for water 

 they almost always must play a while. This reptile is said by 

 the natives to strike the victim with its tail, then drag him in and 

 drown him. When lying in the water watching for prey, the 

 body never appears. Many calves are lost also, and it is seldom 

 that a number of cows can swim over at Sesheke without some 



