OUR FIRST VOYAGE ON LAKE CHAD 321 



to gain the eastern shore and, following it southwards, reach 

 the mouth of the Shari ; so we made our course for the south- 

 east. There was a head-wind blowing, which necessitated 

 pole-work all the way. Prepared for deep water we had taken 

 paddles and a plumb line, but nowhere could a depth of 

 more than 2 ft. be found. For the first twelve miles we were 

 skirting on our right the outside of the belt of reed and maria 

 that had hidden our view of the Lake as we rode from Kowa. 

 The further we followed, the thicker it became, throwing 

 out headlands of reed into the Lake that formed large bays, 

 across which we pressed to reach the promontory ahead, 

 ever hoping to find, on rounding the point, that the wall of 

 reeds had given way for an open passage to the south. 

 But though this reward was always denied, our ardour was 

 not damped, for every fresh obstacle meant detail in the 

 map, and the whole way Talbot was busy taking angles, 

 while I sketched the route. 



At three miles from the start an attempt to push south 

 ended in the boat grounding in thick mud. So we sent out 

 men to wade ahead and see if more water could be found, 

 but their efforts met with no success, and we were forced 

 to drag the boat back over the way we had come and, once 

 more afloat, make a passage in deeper water to the north- 

 east. Throughout the day the sun had been intensely hot 

 and beat upon us with doubled power, as its rays were thrown 

 up with a fierce glare from the water. The mirage hung 

 upon the Lake, blurring the outlines and magnifying the 

 masses of the headlands beyond. When a halt was called 

 the boys tried to cool themselves by jumping into the water, 

 but this only made them more hot with the efforts it entailed , 



I X 



