nd in the district in large quantities and in various
qualities and colours. The brick houses for the two officials face the
lake and gardens have been laid out which are very neat and tidy, the
whole place, although much smaller, rivalling even Irebu in beauty.

Next day I return to Irebu in the _Florida_ a small stern wheel steamer,
and find a welcome mail from home and also a permit to shoot game from
Boma. This latter is an imposing document of nine articles and gives
permission to shoot adult male animals but not female if accompanied by
their young, or, if possible to distinguish them, even if alone. The
animals named are, _hippopotames, baffles, antilopes, gazelles, ibex,
chevrotains, les divers sangliers, petits singes, outardes, francolains,
perdreaux, pintades_ and other game birds. Permission is also given to
kill _in a scientific manner_. one elephant in the close season. It will
thus be seen that the State is determined to protect the wild animals of
the forest from indiscriminate slaughter and stringent laws regulating
hunting are decreed from time to time.

[Illustration: THE UBANGI RIVER.]

CHAPTER V.

The Ubangi River.--Irebu to Banzyville.

We leave Irebu on August 29th in the _Florida_ and steam up the river
Ubangi. The colour of the water at once changes for whereas the Congo
carries much sand and is brown, the Ubangi carries much clay and is a
dirty yellow. The banks are densely wooded and in the stream are many
islands also covered with forest. Lying on patches of sand or on the
fallen trunks of trees are many crocodiles asleep. There is not much
sport in shooting them but one which was leisurely swimming up stream
about fifty yards from the ship, made a sporting shot and was killed
with a bullet in the heart. As the cabin is small and hot, we arrange to
sleep on the bridge of the steamer which is almost embedded in trees
when we tie up to the bank for the night. A tornado bursts about
midnight, but the dense foliage acts as a protection and very little
water finds its way into our improvised bedroom.

Next day we stop at Bobanghe, a native Wood-Post, and go ashore. The
huts here are thatched with grass, for palms seem scarce. Some of the
men have black beards which they plait into one or two tails, producing
a curious appearance and while they fish, the women do the work of the
village and the marketing. Several of them were sitting on logs,
contentedly puffing tobacco smoke from woo