However, I Explained That I Merely Wished To See The Fall, And They
Rowed Immediately Up The Stream, Which Was Now Strong Against Us.
Upon
rounding the corner, a magnificent sight burst suddenly upon us.
On
either side the river were beautifully wooded cliffs rising abruptly to
a height of about 300 feet; rocks were jutting out from the intensely
green foliage; and rushing through a gap that cleft the rock exactly
before us, the river, contracted from a grand stream, was pent up in a
narrow gorge of scarcely fifty yards in width; roaring furiously through
the rock-bound pass, it plunged in one leap of about 120 feet
perpendicular into a dark abyss below.
The fall of water was snow white, which had a superb effect as it
contrasted with the dark cliffs that walled the river, while the
graceful palms of the tropics and wild plantains perfected the beauty of
the view. This was the greatest waterfall of the Nile, and, in honour of
the distinguished President of the Royal Geographical Society, I named
it the Murchison Falls, as the most important object throughout the
entire course of the river.
The boatmen, having been promised a present of beads to induce them to
approach the fall as close as possible, succeeded in bringing the canoe
within about 300 yards of the base, but the power of the current and the
whirlpools in the river rendered it impossible to proceed farther. There
was a sandbank on our left which was literally covered with crocodiles
lying parallel to each other like trunks of trees prepared for shipment;
they had no fear of the canoe until we approached within about twenty
yards of them, when they slowly crept into the water; all excepting one,
an immense fellow who lazily lagged behind, and immediately dropped dead
as a bullet from the little Fletcher No. 24 struck him in the brain. So
alarmed were the boatmen at the unexpected report of the rifle that they
immediately dropped into the body of the canoe, one of them losing his
paddle. Nothing would induce them to attend to the boat, as I had fired
a second shot at the crocodile as a "quietus," and the natives did not
know how often the alarming noise would be repeated. Accordingly we were
at the mercy of the powerful stream, and the canoe was whisked round by
the eddy and carried against a thick bank of high reeds; - hardly had
we touched this obstruction when a tremendous commotion took place in
the rushes, and in an instant a great bull hippopotamus charged the
canoe, and with a severe shock striking the bottom he lifted us half out
of the water. The natives who were in the bottom of the boat positively
yelled with terror, not knowing whether the shock was in any way
connected with the dreaded report of the rifle; the black women
screamed; and the boy Saat handing me a spare rifle, and Richarn being
ready likewise, we looked out for a shot should the angry hippo again
attack us.
A few kicks bestowed by my angry men upon the recumbent boatmen restored
them to the perpendicular. The first thing necessary was to hunt for the
lost paddle that was floating down the rapid current. The hippopotamus,
proud of having disturbed us, but doubtless thinking us rather hard of
texture, raised his head to take a last view of his enemy, but sank too
rapidly to permit a shot. Crocodile heads of enormous size were on all
sides, appearing and vanishing rapidly as they rose to survey us; at one
time we counted eighteen upon the surface. Fine fun it would have been
for these monsters had the bull hippo been successful in his attempt to
capsize us; the fat black woman, Karka, would have been a dainty morsel.
Having recovered the lost paddle, I prevailed upon the boatmen to keep
the canoe steady while I made a sketch of the Murchison Falls, which
being completed, we drifted rapidly down to the landing place at the
deserted fishing village, and bade adieu to the navigation of the lake
and river of Central Africa.
The few huts that existed in this spot were mere ruins. Clouds had
portended rain, and down it came, as it usually did once in every
twenty-four hours. However, that passed away by the next morning, and
the day broke discovering us about as wet and wretched as we were
accustomed to be. I now started off four of my men with the boatmen and
the interpreter Bacheeta to the nearest village, to inquire whether our
guide Rabonga had arrived with our riding oxen, as our future travelling
was to be on land, and the limit of our navigation must have been well
known to him. After some hours the people returned, minus the boatmen,
with a message from the headman of a village they had visited, that the
oxen were there, but not the guide Rabonga, who had remained at Magungo,
but that the animals should be brought to us that evening, together with
porters to convey the luggage. In the evening a number of people
arrived, bringing some plantain cider and plantains as a present from
the headman; and promising that, upon the following morning, we should
be conducted to his village.
The next day we started, but not until the afternoon, as we had to await
the arrival of the headman, who was to escort us. Our oxen were brought,
and if we looked wretched, the animals were a match. They had been
bitten by the fly, thousands of which were at this spot. Their coats
were staring, ears drooping, noses running, and heads hanging down; all
the symptoms of fly-bite, together with extreme looseness of the bowels.
I saw that it was all up with our animals. Weak as I was myself, I was
obliged to walk, as my ox could not carry me up the steep inclination,
and I toiled languidly to the summit of the cliff.
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