A FORMIDABLE RUSH OF WATER 
columnar pillars of rock not unlike basalt. That was all 
very beautiful to look at, but we had endless trouble in 
extricating our canoe from among the numberless impedi¬ 
menta which obstructed navigation. 
Another most beautiful island, 520 metres long, 
Jessica Island, was passed just before getting to really 
formidable rapids, down which we had the greatest diffi¬ 
culty in letting the canoe, even by the judicious use of 
ropes. The navigable channel of the river — if navigable 
it could be called —- swerved from northwest to due north. 
In a basin of immense size were a number of islands from 
800 to 200 metres in length, and enormous boulders with 
cataracts of great height between. The roar made by the 
water falling over was so great that it resembled thunder. 
The difference of height between the top and the bottom 
of the rapid was not less than ten feet. The water in the 
channel we followed went over a great slope of lava above 
which numerous boulders had accumulated. 
My men became perplexed when they saw the formid¬ 
able rush of water, but before we had time to do anything 
we were swept away at such a speed that for one moment 
I really believed we were lost. My men laughed hys¬ 
terically, and in that laugh I joined when we came out 
at the other end still alive. We had shaved several rocks 
so closely that great patches of the stopping in the side 
of the canoe had been torn off altogether, and we were 
filling fast with water. 
Our merriment did not last long, for in a few moments 
we had drifted on to another and worse rapid, much more 
terrific than the one we had just gone over. We just 
managed to hold the canoe on the upper edge of the foam¬ 
ing stream, trying to get the ropes ready in order to let 
her down. We were in mid-stream, not less than 200 
metres away from the right bank. We unloaded a portion 
of the baggage on the rocks and proceeded to let the canoe 
down with ropes, a most dangerous job in that particular 
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