a thousand people,
carrying earthen pots and cassava, grass cloth, fishes, and fowls; they
were alarmed at my coming among them and were ready to flee, many stood
afar off in suspicion; some came from the other side of the river with
their goods. To-morrow market is held up river.

_3rd April, 1871._--I tried to secure a longitude by fixing a weight on
the key of the watch, and so helping it on: I will try this in a quiet
place to-morrow. The people all fear us, and they have good reason for
it in the villainous conduct of many of the blackguard half-castes which
alarms them: I cannot get a canoe, so I wait to see what will turn up.
The river is said to overflow all its banks annually, as the Nile does
further down. I sounded across yesterday. Near the bank it is 9 feet,
the rest 15 feet, and one cast in the middle was 20 feet: between the
islands 12 feet, and 9 feet again in shore: it is a mighty river truly.
I took distances and altitudes alternately with a bullet for a weight on
the key of the chronometer, taking successive altitudes of the sun and
distances of the moon. Possibly the first and last altitudes may give
the rate of going, and the frequent distances between may give
approximate longitude.

_4th April, 1871._--Moon, the fourth of the Arabs, will appear in three
or four days. This will be a guide in ascertaining the day of observing
the lunars, with the weight.

The Arabs ask many questions about the Bible, and want to know how many
prophets have appeared, and probably say that they believe in them all;
while we believe all but reject Mohamad. It is easy to drive them into a
corner by questioning, as they don't know whither the inquiries lead,
and they are not offended when their knowledge is, as it were, admitted.
When asked how many false prophets are known, they appeal to my
knowledge, and evidently never heard of Balaam, the son of Beor, or of
the 250 false prophets of Jezebel and Ahab, or of the many lying
prophets referred to in the Bible.

_6th April, 1871._--Ill from drinking two cups of very sweet malofu, or
beer, made from bananas: I shall touch it no more.

_7th April, 1871._--Made this ink with the seeds of a plant, called by
the Arabs Zugifare; it is known in India, and is used here by the
Manyuema to dye virambos and ornament faces and heads.[14] I sent my
people over to the other side to cut wood to build a house for me; the
borrowed one has mud walls and floors, which are damp, foul,