streams the waves rose as high as 2 feet, and
were a source of considerable danger. Indeed
from the regularity and increased force of the
winds, I half suspected at the time that the
Livingstone emptied into some vast lake such
as the Victoria Nyanza. The mean temperature
in the shade seldom exceeded 740 Fahr., and
the climate, though not dry, was far more agreeable
than the clammy humidity characteristic of
the east coast. The difference between the
heat in this elevated region and that of the east
coast was such that, while it was dangerous to
travel in the sun without a sun-umbrella near
the sea on the east coast, a light double-cotton
cloth cap saved me from feeling any inconvenience
when standing up in the boat under a
bright glaring sun and cloudless sky. While
sitting down in the boat, a few minutes was
sufficient to convince me it was dangerous without
an umbrella, even here. While at work at the
Stanley Falls, the umbrella was not used. The
nights were uncomfortable without a blanket,
and sometimes even two were desirable.
The winds which prevail at this season of
the year are from the south-west, or south,
which means from the temperate latitude of the
South Atlantic, and slightly chilled in their
passage over the western ranges. In the early
morning the thermometer was often as low as 64°.
From 1 0 A .M. to 4 p .m . it ranged from 7 5 0 to 8 5 °
r Feb. i7i ’ 877. 1 t h e M IR AG E ON TH E R IV ER . 2 7
[ o 0 i 8/ 4 i ' ,. N -L a t " 1
Fahr. in the shade; from 4 P-M. to sunset it ranged
from 72° to 8o°. From the 12th January until
the 5th March we experienced no rain.
One remarkable fact connected with our life
in this region is, that though we endured more
anxiety of mind and more strain on the body,
were subject to constant peril, and fared harder
(being compelled for weeks to subsist on green
bananas, cassava, and sugarless tea, and those
frequently in scanty quantities), we— Frank and
I enjoyed better health on the Livingstone than
at any other period of the journey; but whether
this unusual health might not be attributed to
having become more acclimatized is a question.
The mirage on the Livingstone was often
ludicrously deceptive, playing on our fears at.
a most trying period, in a manner which plunged
us from a temporary enjoyment of our immunity
from attack into a state of suspicion and alarm,
which probably, in nine cases out of ten, arose
out of the exaggerated proportions given to a
flock of pelicans or wild geese which to our
nerves, then in a high state of tension, appeared
to be a very host of tall warriors. A young
crocodile basking on a sandy spit appeared to
be as large as a canoe, and an ancient and
bleached tree a ship.
At noon of the 17th we had reached north
latitude o° 18' .41", our course during the 16th
and 17th having been south-west, but a little