1 64 A SAIL UPON THE ALBEKT LAKE. 



trees. Fields planted with ground-nuts and maize, small herds 

 of cattle and goats quietly grazing, groups of people indus- 

 triously weeding and sowing, women washing at the river, 

 with little children playing around them — all this made up a 

 picture of peace and prosperity such as, unfortunately, is 

 seldom seen in this part of the world. 



On being signalled by the steamer, the people immediately 

 brought a quantity of dry wood, but to get it on board was a 

 labour attended with some difficulty ; for, in the first place, the 

 boat, owing to the shallow water, could not get close inshore, 

 and in the next, the people found great difficulty in wading 

 through the lake with the heavy beams on their heads, in con- 

 sequence of' the strong wind. The chief, Boki, an old ac- 

 quaintance, came to us in a boat propelled with oars of 

 bamboo, and begged us to take some bamboos from him to 

 Kibiro, as Kabrega wished for them. This was strange, because 

 bamboos grow plentifully in Kabrega's own country. The 

 chief's visit did not, however, last long, as the rolling of the 

 steamer did not seem to be quite to his taste. 



The wind was meanwhile beginning to blow more strongly, 

 and, seeing that it was almost impossible to get the wood on 

 board, we deemed it advisable to steam on to the wood-station, 

 a little farther to the south, and there take in, early on the 

 following morning, a sufficient supply to last us all the 

 way to Kibiro and back, for no wood is to be obtained at that 

 place. Accordingly we steamed first south, and then south- 

 west, parallel to the mountain range. The foreshore in this 

 part is well wooded, and the chain of hills runs up into some 

 peaks of considerable elevation, whilst beyond them we saw 

 now and again the summits of the more distant range. The 

 flanks of the hills were very scantily wooded. Owing to the 

 heavy rolling of the boat, the journey was not a pleasant one ; 

 my people have no idea of the utility of ballast. Twice on 

 the way we met enormous shoals of small fish, apparently 

 proceeding northwards. The water of the lake was for a 

 considerable distance coloured light bluish-green by them, 

 and their continual movements occasioned a kind of bubbling, 

 and at times much splashing. Here also large masses of 

 Pistia were observable, likewise floating northward. 



