132 A JOURNEY UP THE RIVER CONGO. 
sweet potatoes and manioc and turned out delicious: 
Whilst this was being done by Mafta, I endeavoured to 
make the tour of the island, but as more than half of it 
was marsh, this was hardly practicable. Everywhere the 
soft soil was imprinted by the hoof-marks of the hippo- 
potami who at present were occupied with their mid-day 
bath. Their loud grunting might be distinctly heard, and 
as we sat in the boat eating our breakfast, many an un- — 
couth head was raised with a snort and a. jet of spray to 
regard our proceedings. There was little of note to see in 
this particular island. The hippopotami and the circling 
kites had it pretty well to themselves. There were, how- 
ever, some fine groves of the large and handsome papilion- 
aceous tree, a species of Baphia, (which I have already 
mentioned and illustrated in Chapter V.,) and the strong 
fragrant scent from their white blossoms made the whole ~ 
island fragrant. In front of us, on a sand-bank, some 
natives were smoking their freshly caught fish over a wood 
fire, preparatory to disposing of them in the markets of 
the Ba-teke. In all probability these men were Ba-yansi, 
for this tribe does an immense trade in smoked fish 
between the Equator and Stanley Pool. As they descend 
the river with ivory and other articles of trade, they spend 
much time fishing on their way, and frequently stop at a 
sand-bank or island to smoke what they have captured. 
The fish thus treated last a long time in good condition, 
and are in some request amongst all the riverine natives 
as an article of food. 
I have sometimes found them excellent—I might aluiost 
say delicious—white of flesh and flaky, with few bones, 
and retaining from the smoking process a faint but very 
pleasant flavour. On the other hand, at times the natives 
have palmed off on me some that were evidently stale, for 
on breaking them open, they were a mass of wriggling 
worms within. 
Hitherto, throughout this morning, the day had been 
glorious, and all the time I sat at breakfast, watching the 
hippopotami and the fishermen, the sky was radiantly 
blue, blue as it only is during the rainy season in Africa, 
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