17^ DISCOVERIES OF THE ENGLISH. 
ther influx of the trade. By winding, however, 
through narrow passages, they succeeded in mak- 
ing their way across this barrier. At Barraconda 
Jobson hired a Marbut and two negroes, so that 
the party were now " six white and four black." 
From this time the difficulties of the navigation 
daily multiplied. The stream was entirely against 
them ; they could not sail in the night for fear of 
rocks ; nor could they, in the heat of the day, 
undertake the labour of dragging forward the 
boat. Their navigation was therefore confined 
to two or three hours in the morning and even- 
ing. The shallows and sand banks became fre- 
quent. On the 14th, they were forced to enter 
the river naked, " very fearful of the crocodiles," 
and drag the boat, " heaving and shoving " over 
the sand, till they came into deeper water. On 
the 21st, passing over a high mountain, they sent 
a mission to the top, but nothing could be per- 
ceived except " deserts replenished with terrible 
wild beasts, whose roaring we heard every 
" night." Whenever a crocodile appeared, of 
which many were seen thirty feet long, the ne- 
groes were seized with the utmost trepidation. 
They avoided the present party, however, owing, 
as our author conjectures to their " noise and 
" multitude." On the 22d, as Jobson was walk- 
ing along the bank, he saw sixteen great ele- 
phants hard by him," and who had been con- 
