d soon becomes louder. In a moment we are in
the midst of rapids, and it is too late to heave to. It is to be hoped
that we shall not turn broadside on or we shall capsize. "Let her go
down as she likes," I call out. All the poles are drawn up, and the boat
flies along, gliding easily and smoothly over the boiling water.

Below the rapids the river widened out, and became so shallow that we
stuck fast in blue clay. We pushed and pulled, but all to no purpose.
Then all the baggage was carried ashore, and with our united strength we
swung the boat round until the clay was loosened, and then the things
were brought on board again.

Farther down, the river draws together again. The banks are lined with
dense masses of fine old trees just beginning to turn yellow in the
latter days of September. The boat seems as though it were gliding along
a canal in a park. The woods are silent, not a leaf is moving, and the
water flows noiselessly. The polemen have nothing to do. They sit
cross-legged with one hand on the pole, which trails through the water;
and only now and then have they to make a thrust to keep the boat in the
middle of the stream.

Weeks passed, and the ferry-boat drifted still farther and farther down
the river. Autumn had come, and the woods turned yellow and russet, and
the leaves fell. We had no time to spare if we did not want to be caught
fast in the ice before reaching the place where we had arranged to meet
the caravan. Therefore we started earlier in the morning and did not
land until long after sunset each day. The solemn silence of a temple
reigned around, only the quacking of a duck being heard occasionally or
the noise of a fox stealing through the reeds. A herd of wild boars lay
wallowing in the mud on the bank. When the boat glided noiselessly by
they got up, looked at us a moment with the greatest astonishment, and
dashed like a roaring whirlwind through the beds of cracking reeds. Deer
grazed on the bank. They scented danger and turned round to make for
their hiding-places in the wood. A roebuck swam across the stream a
little in front of the boat. Islam lay with his gun in the bow ready to
shoot, but the roebuck swam splendidly and, with a spring, was up on the
bank and vanished like the wind. Sometimes we saw also fresh spoor of
tigers at our camping-grounds, but we never succeeded in surprising one
of them.

One morning, when we had not seen any natives for a long time, the smoke
of a fire wa