368 MOSQUITOES. Chap. XIX. 



Ajawa, on the left bank of the Shire, we continued on the 

 right, or western side, with our land party, along the shore of 

 the small lake Pamalombe. This lakelet is ten or twelve 

 miles in length, and five or six broad. It is nearly surrounded 

 by a broad belt of papyrus, so dense that we could scarcely 

 find an opening to the shore. The plants, ten or twelve feet 

 high, grew so closely together that air was excluded, and so 

 much sulphuretted hydrogen gas evolved that by one night's 

 exposure the bottom of the boat was blackened. Myriads of 

 mosquitoes showed, as probably they always do, the presence 

 of malaria. 



We hastened from this sickly spot, trying to take the 

 attentions of the mosquitoes as hints to seek more plea- 

 sant quarters on the healthy shores of Lake Nyassa ; and 

 when we sailed into it, on the 2nd September, Ave felt 

 refreshed by the greater coolness of the air off this large 

 body of water. The depth was the first point of interest. 

 This is indicated by the colour of the water, which, on 

 a belt along the shore, varying from a quarter to half a 

 mile in breadth, is light green, and this is met by the deep 

 blue or indigo tint of the Indian Ocean, which is the 

 colour of the great body of Nyassa. We found the Upper 

 Shire from nine to fifteen feet in depth ; but skirting the 

 western side of the lake about a mile from the shore the 

 water deepened from nine to fifteen fathoms ; then, as we 

 rounded the grand mountainous promontory, which we named 

 Cape Maclear, after our excellent friend the Astronomer 

 Koyal at the Cape of Good Hope, we could get no bottom 

 with our lead-line of thirty-five fathoms. We pulled along 

 the western shore, which was a succession of bays, and found 

 that where the bottom was sandy near the beach, and to 

 a mile out, the depth varied from six to fourteen fathoms. 

 In a rocky bay about latitude 11° 40' we had soundings at 



