THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 507 



and despondent. On the 20th of June thirty-one of them de- 

 serted in a body, hut returned a few days afterward, having met 

 with anything but a friendly reception from the natives. Stan- 

 ley's great leadership now manifested itself in keeping his people 

 together, quieting their complaints, and infusing enough energy 

 and determination into their wasted bodies to induce them to 

 push on to the ocean. Famine stared them in the face, and he 

 knew that nothing but a persevering, persistent, impetuous 

 advance toward the sea could save them. 



About the middle of July they reached the district of Ngoyo, 

 where they found a very amiable and friendly people, almost as 

 innocent of clothing as our first parents, and whose principal 

 decorations consisted in boring their ears and noses. These 

 people supplied the almost famished travelers with bananas, pine- 

 apples, guavas, limes, onions, fish, cassava bread, ground-nuts, 

 and palm butter in abundance. They were exceedingly well- 

 behaved and gentle, and many of them were handsome. The 

 fishing, as well as all other work, was done by the women. Their 

 nets were constructed of palm-fibres and bark, cone-shaped, and 

 open at the bottom, as shown in the engraving. When fishing 

 the women waded in the shallow water near the shore, and en- 

 trapped the fish by dropping the open mouth of the net down 

 over them. 



There were some dangerous falls near this village, and the 

 natives, to the number of more than four hundred, volunteered 

 to convey Stanley's boats below the poirt of danger, which they 

 did in admirable style, though unfortunate.y one small canoe was 

 wrecked. They expressed much concern about the accident, as 

 though they had been the authors of it ; but Stanley reassured 

 them and paid them liberally for their services. He declares 

 that they were the politest people he encountered in Africa 



On the 31st of July, 1877, having explored the river to Isan- 

 gila Falls, and proved that it was the Congo, Stanley decided to 

 leave the ^vater and proceed overland by a direct route to Em- 

 bomma, a Portuguese settlement on the coast, and only a few 

 day's march distant. The delight of the people at this announce- 



