FROM THE SHARI TO THE UBANGUI 217 



till the next day, when a sufficient number of carriers had 

 been collected to bring on the rest of the transport. The 

 French Government supplied us with the men ; there were 

 one hundred and thirty-two of them, the only ones that 

 could be obtained ; they were a weedy -looking lot, many of 

 them hardly more than boys. For two days they stuck to 

 the work and struggled on under most trying conditions, for 

 there was very little food to be got, and when their day's 

 march was done, hunger drove them to scour the bush for 

 fruit. On the third day many deserted, and the road was 

 littered with boxes and boat-sections at intervals as each 

 carrier, seizing his opportunity, dropped his load on the 

 path and dashed away into the long grass. There was 

 nothing for me to do but to leave the things where they fell 

 and push on to the next village, where I arrived dead tired 

 at eight o'clock. 



Early next morning Jose took back a fresh lot of men, 

 that we managed to raise through the chief, and brought in 

 the abandoned loads. After this, matters improved ; with 

 cooler days and better roads, and with the help of the stronger 

 carriers, we reached Krebeje on October 12, without further 

 mishap. 



Our journey over the low Shari-Ubangui watershed was 

 accomplished without much incident for we were travelling 

 along a well-trodden road ; but the time was interesting 

 owing to the opportunities we had for observing the subtle 

 changes that came over the features of the country as each 

 day brought us into more southern latitudes. The region is 

 well watered and undulating ; fifty miles from Fort Crampel 

 the watershed is passed, and so gradual is the rise that one 



