ut between the
wound, which was his mortal hurt, and the strangling of the water, he
died just before he reached the shore.

It is impossible to express the astonishment of these poor creatures at
the noise and fire of my gun: some of them were even ready to die for
fear, and fell down as dead with the very terror; but when they saw the
creature dead, and sunk in the water, and that I made signs to them to
come to the shore, they took heart and came, and began to search for the
creature. I found him by his blood staining the water; and by the help
of a rope, which I slung round him, and gave the negroes to haul, they
dragged him on shore, and found that it was a most curious leopard,
spotted, and fine to an admirable degree; and the negroes held up their
hands with admiration, to think what it was I had killed him with.

The other creature, frighted with the flash of fire and the noise of the
gun, swam on shore, and ran up directly to the mountains from whence they
came; nor could I, at that distance, know what it was. I found quickly
the negroes wished to eat the flesh of this creature, so I was willing to
have them take it as a favour from me; which, when I made signs to them
that they might take him, they were very thankful for. Immediately they
fell to work with him; and though they had no knife, yet, with a
sharpened piece of wood, they took off his skin as readily, and much more
readily, than we could have done with a knife. They offered me some of
the flesh, which I declined, pointing out that I would give it them; but
made signs for the skin, which they gave me very freely, and brought me a
great deal more of their provisions, which, though I did not understand,
yet I accepted. I then made signs to them for some water, and held out
one of my jars to them, turning it bottom upward, to show that it was
empty, and that I wanted to have it filled. They called immediately to
some of their friends, and there came two women, and brought a great
vessel made of earth, and burnt, as I supposed, in the sun, this they set
down to me, as before, and I sent Xury on shore with my jars, and filled
them all three. The women were as naked as the men.

I was now furnished with roots and corn, such as it was, and water; and
leaving my friendly negroes, I made forward for about eleven days more,
without offering to go near the shore, till I saw the land run out a
great length into the sea, at about the distance of four or fi