SOUTHERN AFRICA. 367 
bay. The Berg river, though an immenfe mafs of water, is fo 
fancied up at the mouth, that boats can enter it only at high 
water. There ftill remain a few Hippopotami towards the 
lower part of this river, but they are very fhy, and come up at 
nights only, to the place where the water begins to be frefh. 
The Dutch government, in order to preferve this animal in the 
colony, impofed a fine of a thoufand guilders on any perfon that 
fhould put one of them to death. Game of every kind is very 
plentiful towards the mouth of the river. The two large ante- 
lopes, the hartebeeft, and the gemlbok, are occafional vifitors 
of this part of the country. 
At the diftance of fifteen miles from the mouth of the river, I 
crolTed it in a boat, and floated over the waggon with a cafk. 
The road on the oppofite fide was fo heavy, and fo great the ex- 
tent of country uninhabited, on account of the deep fandy fur- 
face, and fcarcity of water, that it was dark before the waggon 
could arrive at the place where it was propofed to halt for the 
night. The driver, though an inhabitant of the country, loft his 
way over the uniform furface of fand and bufhes, and we were 
three hours dragging backwards and forwards before the houfe 
could be difcovered, though clofe upon it the whole time. It 
was a wretched hovel of rufhes, ftanding in the midft of a fandy 
plain. The night was very cold, and there was neither food nor 
fhelter for the horfes, nor water for the cattle. The fhifting of 
the fand-drifts had choaked up the briny fpring, and the inhabit- 
ants had been obliged for fome time to fetch their water from 
the Berg river, a diftance at leaft of twelve miles. At the 
hazard, therefore, of iofing our way a fecond time, I deter- 
mined 
