250 TRAVELS IN 
been beyond the entrance of the second poort, yet they wil- 
lingly accepted tlie proposal of making a day's journey within 
it on horseback, following the course of the river as far as it 
might be practicable or adviseable to proceed. The kloof we 
found to be in general so very narrow, and the river serpent- 
ized so much from side to side, passing close under the steep 
rocky points, that we were obliged to cross the stream at 
least a hundred times ; and we had almost abandoned the 
hope of making much progress, when we fell into a large 
beaten track of the hippopotami or sea-cows. This carjied 
us, without further interruption, through reeds and thick 
shrubbery, and shallow parts of the river, to the very end of 
the kloof, which we computed to be about fifteen miles from 
the entrance, where we had left our waggons. Here also wc 
found the termination of the Sea-Cow river ; its tranquil wa- 
ters formed a confluence with another river of prodigious size, 
whose rapid stream rolled over the rocky bed a vast volume 
of muddy water. The current of this river flowed to the 
north-westward. Though there had not been a cloud in the 
sky since we left GraafF Reynet, it was obvious that very 
heavy rain must have fallen in some part of the country 
through which this river took its course. From the wreck of 
trees, and plants, and grass, yet green, Avhich were thrown 
up near the banks of the river, it appeared that the water had 
subsided twelve or thirteen feet. The stream was now, at 
this place, above four hundred yards in width, and appar- 
ently very deep. The boors had no name for it but that of 
the Groot, or Great, river ; but, from the magnitude and the 
direction of the current, there could be no doubt of its being 
the same which empties itself on the western coast between 
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