DOWN THE BARITO RIVER 97 



the Bulungan for my expedition to New Guinea, the 

 resident courteously offered to get eighty men from the 

 Mahakam River. This would take at least two months 

 and gave me opportunity to visit a lake called Sembulo, 

 a considerable distance west of Bandjermasin. It was 

 necessary first to go to Sampit, a small town, two days 

 distant, on a river of the same name, where there is a 

 controleur to whom the resident gave me an introduction, 

 and who would be able to assist in furthering my plans. 

 I could not afford to wait for the monthly steamer which 

 touches at Sampit on its way to Singapore, so I arranged 

 to make the trip on board an old wooden craft which was 

 under repairs in Bandjermasin, and in the afternoon of 

 June 5 we started. 



The steamer was small, slow, and heavily laden, so it 

 was not a very pleasant trip. As we sailed down the great 

 Barito River on a dark and cloudy evening, from the deck, 

 which was scarcely a metre above the muddy water, one 

 might observe now and then floating clumps of the plants 

 that thrive so well there. On approaching the mouth of 

 the river the water, with the outgoing tide, became more 

 shallow. The Malay sailor who ascertained the depth of 

 the water by throwing his line and sang out the measures 

 in a melodious air, announced a low figure, which made the 

 captain stop immediately. The anchor was thrown and 

 simultaneously a great noise of escaping steam was heard. 

 Before the engine-room the sailors were seen trying to 

 stop the steam which issued, holding sacks in front of 

 them as a protection against being scalded. Coupled 

 with my observation that there were no life preservers in 



