ur "Friends" at once paddled quickly, night and day,
down the Zouga, never daring to look behind them till they reached the
end of the river, at the point where we first saw it.

The canoes of these inland sailors are truly primitive craft: they are
hollowed out of the trunks of single trees by means of iron adzes; and
if the tree has a bend, so has the canoe. I liked the frank and manly
bearing of these men, and, instead of sitting in the wagon, preferred a
seat in one of the canoes. I found they regarded their rude vessels
as the Arab does his camel. They have always fires in them, and prefer
sleeping in them while on a journey to spending the night on shore. "On
land you have lions," say they, "serpents, hyaenas, and your enemies;
but in your canoe, behind a bank of reed, nothing can harm you." Their
submissive disposition leads to their villages being frequently visited
by hungry strangers. We had a pot on the fire in the canoe by the way,
and when we drew near the villages devoured the contents. When fully
satisfied ourselves, I found we could all look upon any intruders with
perfect complacency, and show the pot in proof of having devoured the
last morsel.

While ascending in this way the beautifully-wooded river, we came to a
large stream flowing into it. This was the River Tamunak'le. I inquired
whence it came. "Oh, from a country full of rivers--so many no one
can tell their number--and full of large trees." This was the first
confirmation of statements I had heard from the Bakwains who had
been with Sebituane, that the country beyond was not "the large sandy
plateau" of the philosophers. The prospect of a highway capable of being
traversed by boats to an entirely unexplored and very populous region,
grew from that time forward stronger and stronger in my mind; so much so
that, when we actually came to the lake, this idea occupied such a large
portion of my mental vision that the actual discovery seemed of but
little importance. I find I wrote, when the emotions caused by the
magnificent prospects of the new country were first awakened in my
breast, that they "might subject me to the charge of enthusiasm, a
charge which I wished I deserved, as nothing good or great had ever been
accomplished in the world without it."*

* Letters published by the Royal Geographical Society.
Read 11th February and 8th April, 1850.

Twelve days after our departure from the wagons at Ngabisane we came to
the northeast end