440 AFRICA AND ITS EXPLORATION. 
Yet not being able to reach him, I was rapidly being- 
fascinated by him. The rapid movements of the sway- 
ing spear, the steady wide-mouthed grin, the big square 
teeth, the head poised on one side with the confident 
pose of a practised spear-thrower, the short brow and 
square face, hair short and thick. Shall I ever forget 
him ? It appeared to me as if the spear partook of the 
same cruel inexorable look as the grinning savage. 
Finally, I saw him draw his right arm back, and his 
body incline backwards, with still that same grin on his 
face, and I felt myself begin to count, one, two, three, 
four — and whizz ! The spear Hew over my back, and 
hissed as it pierced the water. The spell was broken. 
It was only five minutes’ work clearing the river. 
We picked up several shields, and I gave orders that all 
shields should be henceforth religiously preserved, for 
the idea had entered my head that they would answer 
capitally as bulwarks for our canoes. An hour after 
this Ave passed close to the confluence of the Urindi — a 
stream 400 yards in width at the mouth, and deep with 
water of a light colour, and tolerably clear. 
We continued down river along the right bank, and 
at 4 p.m. camped in a dense low jungle, the haunt of 
the hippopotamus and elephant during the dry season. 
When the river is in Hood a much larger tract must be 
under Avater. 
The left bank Avas between seventy and eighty feet 
high ; and a point bearing from camp north-west was 
about one hundred and fifty feet high. 
The traveller’s first duty in lands infested by lions 
and leopards is to build a safe corral, kraal, or boma, 
for himself, his oxen, horses, servants ; and in lands 
infested like Usongora Meno and Kasera — wherein we 
uoav were — by human lions and leopards, the duty 
became still more imperative. We drew our canoes, 
therefore, half-way up on the banks, and our camp ay as. 
in the midst of an impenetrable jungle. 
On the high bluffs opposite Avas situated A ina-Kya. 
The inhabitants at once manned their drums and canoes, 
and advanced towards our camp. AVe could not help it. 
