62 
TRAVELS IN AFRICA, 
September. Eupliorbia,. wKich grows to the height' of fifteen feet, and 
—<—' fnpplies the Hottentots with an ingredient for poifoning their 
arrows. Their method of making this pernicious mixture, is 
by firft taking the juice extracted from the Euphorbia, and a 
kind of caterpillar peculiar to another plant, which has much 
the appearance of a fpecies of Rhus, though I could find none 
in flower. They mix the animal and vegetable matter, and 
after drying it, they point their arrows with this compofition, 
which is fuppofed to be the moft effe6lual poifon of the whole 
country. The Euphorbia itfelf is alfo ufed for this purpofe, 
by throwing the branches into fountains of water frequented 
by wild beafis, which after drinking the water thus poifoned, 
feldom get a thoufand yards from the brink of the fountain 
before they fail down and expire. This pradice of poifoning 
the water, proves an additional danger to travellers who are 
unacquainted with the circumftance ; though the natives ge¬ 
nerally ufe the precaution of leading off the water which is to 
be poifoned to a fmall drain, and covering up the principal 
fountain. 
We next dire8:ed our courfe eafterly, along the banks of 
the river, where I added much to my coliedlion. In our pro- 
grefs we faw a variety of the moil: beautiful Birds I ever be¬ 
held ; and numbers of wild Apes and Elephants, 
The day following, I propofed crofiing the river with feveral 
of the Hottentots who were fwimmers. AVe invented a fmall 
float, which confifted of three pieces of dry wood, on which 
we tranfported our guns and clothes. After fwimming about 
