Everything Is Reeking Wet, And We Swish Through Thick Undergrowth
And Then Enter A Darker Forest Where The Earth Is Rocky And Richly
Decorated With Ferns And Moss.
For the first time in my life I see
tree-ferns growing wild in luxuriant profusion.
What glorious
creations they are! Then we get out into the middle of a koko
plantation. Next to sweet-potatoes, the premier abomination to walk
through, give me kokos for good all-round tryingness, particularly
when they are wet, as is very much the case now. Getting through
these we meet the war hedge again, and after a conscientious
struggle with various forms of vegetation in a muddled, tangled
state, Sasu says, "No good, path done got stopped up," so we turn
and retrace our steps all the way, cross the river, and horrify Herr
Liebert by invading his house again. We explain the situation.
Grave headshaking between him and Sasu about the practicability of
any other route, because there is no other path. I do not like to
say "so much the better," because it would have sounded ungrateful,
but I knew from my Ogowe experiences that a forest that looks from
afar a dense black mat is all right underneath, and there is a short
path recently cut by Herr Liebert that goes straight up towards the
forest above us. It had been made to go to a clearing, where
ambitious agricultural operations were being inaugurated, when Herr
Liebert hurt his foot. Up this we go, it is semi-vertical while it
lasts, and it ends in a scrubby patch that is to be a plantation;
this crossed we are in the Urwald, and it is more exquisite than
words can describe, but not good going, particularly at one spot
where a gigantic tree has fallen down across a little rocky ravine,
and has to be crawled under. It occurs to me that this is a highly
likely place for snakes and an absolutely sure find for scorpions,
and when we have passed it three of these latter interesting
creatures are observed on the load of blankets which is fastened on
to the back of Kefalla. We inform Kefalla of the fact on the spot.
A volcanic eruption of entreaty, advice, and admonition results, but
we still hesitate. However, the gallant cook tackles them in a sort
of tip-cat way with a stick, and we proceed into a patch of long
grass, beyond which there is a reach of amomums. The winged amomum
I see here in Africa for the first time. Horrid slippery things
amomum sticks to walk on, when they are lying on the ground; and
there is a lot of my old enemy the calamus about.
On each side are deep forested dells and ravines, and rocks show up
through the ground in every direction, and things in general are
slippery, and I wonder now and again, as I assume with unnecessary
violence a recumbent position, why I came to Africa; but patches of
satin-leaved begonias and clumps of lovely tree-ferns reconcile me
to my lot.
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