SOUTHERN AFRICA. 335 
The Zwart Kops River is a clear permanent ftream of water 
flowing down one of the moft beautiful and fertile valleys in the 
colony J and is among the very few of thofe that, by damming, 
may be turned upon the contiguous grounds. Mr. Rice, whom 
I have had occafion to mention, fucceeded by a great deal of 
perfeverance in getting a boat over the bar, and failed about 
eight miles up this valley, to which dlftance only the tide flows. 
The whole country in the vicinity of the river and the bay of 
the fame name, into which it falls, is among the moft fertile 
parts of the colony. 
The Sunday River, likewlfe, falls into Algoa or Zwart Kop's 
Bay, oppofite to the iflands of Saint Croix. It rifes in the 
midft of the Snowy Mountains, and continues a permanently 
flowing ftream, broad and fhallow in the middle part of its 
courfe, and narrow and deep towards the mouth, which, like 
the reft, is choaked with a bed of fand. 
The Great Fifh River takes its rife beyond the Snowy Moun- 
tains, and, in its long courfe, colle£ls a multitude of ftreamlets, 
moft of which are conftantly fupplied with water. On each 
fide of its mouth is a wild, rocky, and open fliore, but the 
projecting cheeks form a fmall cove or creek, which, it feems, 
was frequented by the Portugueze fhortly after their difcovery 
of the Cape ; though, from the boifterous appearance of the fea, 
upon the bar that evidently crofles the entrance of the river, it 
is difficult to conceive how they dared to truft their fliips ia 
fuch an expofed fjtuation, unlefs, indeed, they were fo fmall as 
to 
