138 MODE OF SPENDING THE DAY. 



referred to keep their noses among water-plants, and 

 breathe so quietly that one would not dream of their exist- 

 ence in the river except by footprints on the banks. 



CHAPTEE XIT. 



VOYAGE ON THE LEEAMBYE, CONTINUED. 



30th of November, 1853. — At Gonye Falls. No rain has 

 fallen here; so it is excessively hot. The trees have put on 

 their gayest dress, and many flowers adorn the landscape 

 yet the heat makes all the leaves droop at mid-day and 

 look languid for want of rain.. If the country increases 

 as much in beauty in front as it has done within the last 

 four degrees of latitude, it will be indeed a lovely land. 



We all felt great lassitude in travelling. The atmo- 

 sphere is oppressive both in cloud and sunshine. The evapo- 

 ration from the river must be excessively great; and I feel 

 as if the fluids of the system joined in the general motion 

 of watery vapor upward, as enormous quantities of water 

 must be drunk to supply its place. 



When under way our usual procedure is this : — We get 

 up a little before five in the morning; it is then beginning 

 to dawn. While I am dressing, coffee is made ; and, having 

 filled my pannikin, the remainder is handed to my com- 

 panions, who eagerly partake of the refreshing beverage 

 The servants are busy loading the canoes, while the prin- 

 cipal men are sipping the coffee, and, that being soon over, 

 we embark. The next two hours are the most pleasant 

 part of the day's sail. The men paddle away most vigor- 

 ously : the Barotse, being a tribe of boatmen, have large, 

 deeply-developed chests and shoulders, with indifferent 

 lower extremities. They often engage in loud scolding of 

 each other, in order to relieve the tedium of their work. 

 About eleven we land, and eat any meat which may have 



