THE PASSAGE OF LAKE CHAD 89 



for the mosquitoes then came in their battalions and drove 

 me to take refuge under my net. 



By May 5 all the sections of one boat had arrived safely 

 in camp and in a day Jose had put them together. With 

 one of the boats on the Lake things began to look hopeful 

 for a forward movement. The next two days were spent in 

 making voyages across the bay, which confirmed my fears 

 that we had to face a belt of reeds completely barring the 

 passage into the Lake. The water of the Kowa-Baga was 

 nothing more than a large bay with a depth of 4 ft. and 

 enclosed all round with reed-belts that grew from 10 to 

 20 ft. high. The days went by quickly now, and on the 

 15th all was ready for us to make a start. 



I cannot end the story of our labours to get the boats 

 from Kaddai to the Kowa-Baga without paying a tribute 

 to Jose and his little band of Hausas. Eight nobly they 

 worked against enormous difficulties. Through the hopeless- 

 ness born of many failures they had toiled up and down in 

 hunger and heat and want of sleep, carrying the boat-sections 

 over rough ground broken by bush and marsh. The work 

 took six weeks to accomplish though the distance was only 

 twenty-seven miles ! 



After the " boys " had enjoyed a brief rest that was never 

 better earned, we launched out on our last voyage over the 

 Lake. All were in high spirits and the " boys " shouted 

 and laughed, showing off as they bent to their poles. 

 For spectators we had the dye-pickers who, having made 

 up their minds to come with me, gathered round the 

 boats with their bundles packed all ready for a long journey. 

 Only one of them had been on the Lake before and none 



