CHAPTER IV 



FROM COAST TO CAPITAL : AND6VORANTO TO MID-FOREST 



IT rained heavily during the night of Tuesday and nearly 

 until daybreak, so it was half -past six o'clock before we 

 were able to leave Andovoranto. Hitherto we had 

 followed the seashore southwards ; now we were to start west- 

 wards into the interior. After an immense deal of shouting 

 and some quarrelling on the part of our bearers, who seemed to 

 think it necessary for everyone to give his opinion at the same 

 moment, we pushed off in six large canoes and paddled away 

 up the river Iharoka. For several miles the stream is upwards 

 of a mile in width. It was a fine calm morning after a stormy 

 night, and as we glided rapidly over the broad smooth expanse 

 of water, and turned our canoe's prow towards the interior 

 mountains, I began really to feel that I was on my way to the 

 capital. 



After half-an-hour we came to a point where the river is a 

 junction of three streams, the one we took being about half the 

 width of the main current. We passed many canoes and over- 

 took others ; some of these were filled with rice and other pro- 

 duce, and had but a single rower ; he sat generally at the stern 

 and gave a few strokes with the paddle on each side of the 

 canoe alternately, so as to keep the craft in a fairly straight 

 course through the water. Other canoes were filled with what 

 was evidently a family party, going together to some market 

 held in one of the neighbouring villages. Our men seemed to 

 enjoy the exercise of paddling, which was a change from bearing 

 our palanquins and baggage on their shoulders, and they took 

 us up the stream at a great speed. More than once, indeed, I 

 wished they had been less vigorous, for they commenced racing 

 with the other crews, making me not a little apprehensive of 

 being upset. It would not have mattered much to them, as 

 they swam fearlessly and had nothing to lose; but it would 

 have been unpleasant and dangerous for us, even apart from 



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