JUMBE KIMEMETA IS SWUNG ACROSS A TOREENT 119 



constantly, fortunately generally at niglit ; but the path became 

 very slippery, the meadows grew swampy, the little streams 

 were converted into rushing waterfalls, and the grass and bushes 

 reeked with damp, so that our clothes were always wet. The 

 chief trees were baobabs, which gave a weird character to the 

 landscape. In many hollow trunks hung the beehives peculiar 

 to the country, and, taught by our previous experience, we gave 

 such trees as wide a berth as possible; but, for all that, our 

 rearguard made closer acquaintance with the bees, and fled in 

 every direction. It was several hours before we were all to- 

 gether again on the banks of the rapid Kirerema, which is from 

 eighteen to thirty-three feet wide, and flows through a very 

 deep channel, though the water itself is but from half to three- 

 quarters of a foot deep. On account of the bee episode we 

 camped here, but there was not a dry spot to be found, and we 

 were oiad enoueli to be off" asrain. A march of three hours and 

 a half brought us to another stream, some twenty-one and a half 

 yards wide and of little depth, but so rapid we could not have 

 crossed it without a rope. We had got rather too near the 

 densely wooded base of the mountain now, so we bore a little 

 south the next morning to get into a more open district. We 

 crossed two more small brooks, and then came to a mountain 

 torrent some sixteen and a half yards broad, which brought our 

 march to an end for the day. Huge masses of rock encum-* 

 bered the bed, making the water seethe and foam, so that we 

 could not hope to use our canvas boat. So w^e made a strong 

 rope taut well above the fall, and our bales being provided 

 with slip-nooses, w^e swung them across the water as quick as 

 lightning without a single mishap. Jumbe Kimemeta made the 

 transit in his hammock in a similar manner. The other side 

 of the torrent was so thickly overgrown that W'e had to 

 make a clearing before we could camp ; but we had better 

 shelter for the men, of wdiich we w^ere glad, as they were 



