CLIMATE AND NATURAL HISTORY. 217 
had everywhere above Boma; not the water of the Congo 
—which, though wholesome, has a disagreeably sweet 
taste—but the water from the unnumbered rills and 
rivulets which are everywhere trickling, wet and dry 
season alike, all the year round. Consequently dysentery 
ZY 
~~ - ss 
is almost un- |b 
known above 
Vivi. -The 
most preva- 
lent form of 
sickness is 
the ordinary African fever from over-exposure to the 
sun and sudden chills. The most dangerous malady 
is bilious fever, the “febre perniciosa” of the Portu- 
suese, but this is rarely incurred without much previous 
neglect of one’s health. Beyond Stanley Pool, I can 
only call the temperature delightful, It ranges, at 
CAMOENSIA MAXIMA, 
