The Eastern Congo 



by fourteen Wanandi paddlers. As I had promised our 

 Belgian friend Fourget the use of it to take him round to the 

 Ruchuru estuary, the following morning therefore saw us 

 saying hon voyage and honne chance to our companion just 

 as dawn was breaking. 



Although constantly on the watch for a sight of the 

 Ruwenzori Mountains which we knew lay only fifty miles 

 to the north, we had not up to this time caught more than 

 a fleeting ghmpse of them, through the piling banks and 

 lines of cloud behind which they seemed to be forever con- 

 cealed. On this morning, however, the mantle of clouds 

 had fallen away from the higher peaks, and the snow-clad 

 summits were unveiled for the first time, showing faintly 

 in the far distance as cones of gleaming amber light. 



The sight made us restless to be off, but as we did not 

 expect the boat back for three days, we had to possess our- 

 selves with what patience we could muster until its return. 

 In the interval we busied ourselves with repacking loads 

 and collecting specimens of the not very numerous species 

 of insects to be found in the locahty. 



On the third day we were more than a little pleased to 

 see our boat come leisurely paddling round the point again, 

 to the accompaniment of a cheery boating song from the 

 dusky crew. That night we paid off our remaining porters 

 and stowed away our kit in the roomy barge, ready for an 

 early start the following morning, both our followers and 

 ourselves being in great spirits at the thought of the new 

 scenes and new faces that lay before us. 



(I had almost forgotten to say that we received a letter 

 from Fourget by the boat, telling us that he had shot a 

 hippo en route to the Ruchuru estuary, and that on landing 



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