"I hope we shall not be obliged to do that," he answered. "Paddle away,
lads; we shall soon, I hope, see the last of them."
On we went, the river now making its way through a thick forest, the
trees coming down to the very water's edge; now again it opened, and low
prairie land was seen on the eastern side. The level appearance of the
country made me fear that the river might make some bend such as I
supposed our enemies were attempting to reach. The banks were, however,
too high to enable us to see to a distance. At any moment they might
appear on the shore. At length the banks became somewhat lower, and,
standing up, I caught sight of a body of men hurrying across the
prairie. They were, however, at a considerable distance behind us; and
now it evidently depended on whether we should reach the supposed narrow
place before them or not. I had often read of heroines; but as I looked
at the calm countenance of Kate, showing that she was resolved to go
through all danger without flinching, I could not help thinking that she
deserved especially to be ranked as one.
I could see as I gazed over the plain, besides the negro army, numerous
animals scampering across it, put to flight by their appearance--herds
of quaggas, zebras, buffaloes, and various sorts of deer, the lofty
heads of a troop of giraffes appearing above them all. Innumerable
birds flew amid the boughs of the trees, and wild-fowl rose from the
sedgy shores, or gazed at us from the mud-banks as we shot by. Here and
there a huge hippopotamus raised his head, and gazed with his ferocious
eyes, wondering what new creatures had invaded his territory; while
scaly alligators lay basking in the sun, or swam about seeking some
creature to devour.
"If we get clear of the savages we shall have no fear of starving,"
observed Natty, as he saw the herds of wild animals I have described.
"You are right, Natty," said Jack; "and as to getting clear of them,
there is no doubt about that."
"I have been praying that we may escape them," said Natty; "and that
makes me think we shall."
"Right again, Massa Natty," observed Timbo. "It great t'ing to know dat
we have got One to take care of us when we can no take care of
ourselves. He hear de little boy prayer just as much as de big man."
Had Timbo joined us at an earlier hour, we might have escaped the
dangers to which we were exposed; but still I was thankful that we had
got him with us. As I looked ahead I saw that the river was making a
bend towards the east. It was what I had dreaded; but the danger--if
danger there was--must be run. Again I asked Stanley whether he thought
it would be wise to haul up the canoes, and try to escape overland,
should the river be too narrow to enable us to keep out of the range of
the poisoned arrows of our enemies.
"That must be our last resource," he answered. "We must first try the
effect of our firearms. Their blood be upon their own heads, if we kill
any. I have no wish to injure any of them, even though they may be
seeking our lives, if we can by any possibility avoid it."
I felt much as Stanley did. To desert the canoes would be to expose the
young ladies to fearful fatigue and danger, and was to be avoided by
every means.
We now entered into the reach I had expected to find. It was, however,
as broad as the part we had lately passed through. We took the centre
of the stream rather than cut off the angle, lest our enemies might be
concealed on the bank. And now, going along it for some distance, we
rounded another point projecting from the west, and found ourselves in a
still broader part. It was somewhat shallow, we judged by the numerous
little islands and banks which rose above its surface.
"Hark!" said Natty, suddenly; "don't you hear the roar of water?"
I listened, and felt convinced that some waterfall or rapid was near us.
I shouted to Stanley. We ceased paddling for an instant.
"It may be a cataract," he answered; "but I have hopes that it is simply
the sound of rapids. If so, we may pass through them."
"A dangerous experiment!" observed David.
"It depends upon their character," answered his brother, from the other
canoe.
"But, without a pilot, would it be possible?"
"We must land and survey them first," shouted Stanley, "We shall have no
difficulty in doing that; and if we cannot pass them, we must try and
drag the canoes over the land. That, at all events, can be done."
We found as we proceeded that the roar of waters increased; and there
could be no doubt, from the way the river ran, that a rapid was before
us. We went on till the water was already beginning to bubble and hiss.
The bank on our right afforded tolerably easy landing; so, running the
canoes to it, we secured them to some trees which grew close down to the
water. Stanley sprang out, and called to Timbo to accompany him.
"We shall be able to judge whether we can safely pass through them," he
said. "I will be back quickly. Yes, we will take our rifles; we may
find them necessary."
He said this as Senhor Silva handed them out of the canoe. They were
soon out of sight among the thick underwood which grew near the banks.
It is very different, I should say, from the underwood in England;
composed rather of huge leaves, reeds of enormous height, and other
plants of the Tropics. The opposite side was also covered with wood, so
that we were unable to ascertain whether the Pangwes were in the
neighbourhood or not. We were, however, so much concealed by the
foliage among which our canoes were moored, that an enemy might have
passed on the opposite bank without perceiving us. We waited anxiously
for the return of Stanley and Timbo. At length they appeared.
"We can do it," Stanley exclaimed. "The water is rapid but clear, and
we may easily steer our way clear of the huge boulders through which it
passes."
Once more we shoved off. Each man screwed up his nerves for the trial;
for no slight trial it would prove--of that I was certain.
"Stanley is so cool and calm," observed Kate, "I have no fear."
His canoe led. In a few minutes we were in the strength of the current.
On we glided, like arrows from a bow. We had little else to do than to
guide our canoes. Still we kept paddling, so that we might the more
easily, if it were possible, turn aside from any danger ahead. Now a
huge boulder rose up on one side; now we darted through a passage which
only afforded room for the canoes to pass. Now the water ran smoothly
without a bubble; now it hissed and foamed as it passed over a shallower
bed. There was an excitement in the scene which made our spirits rise.
I felt almost inclined to shout at times as we dashed on. Yet an
instant's carelessness might have proved our destruction. We appeared
to be descending a steep hill of water at times; now wavelets rose on
either side, and threatened to leap into the boat.
Our eyes were fixed on our leader's canoe, and his on the water ahead,
through which he was to guide us. For one moment I cast my eyes on the
eastern shore, and was sorry that I had done so, for there I saw a
number of dark forms collected just below the rapids. What they were
about I had not time to observe. I said nothing; it would be time
enough when we had shot the rapids. On, on we went. We were in a sea
of foam, the water roaring, bubbling, and hissing. I feared that
Stanley's skill could scarcely carry the canoe through; but he had noted
the point, and his experience told him that there was sufficient depth.
Now a wave washed aboard on one side, now on the other, now came hissing
over our bows; but we dashed through them, and I saw before us a calm
and lake-like expanse. In another instant we were free of the rapids,
and floating calmly on the lower portion of the river.
Once more I cast my eyes to the spot where I had seen the blacks. They
were our enemies; of that I had no doubt. I pointed them out to
Stanley.
"What can they be about?" he asked.
Timbo looked at them. "Building rafts," he answered. "Dey are shoving
off even now. Dey knew we must come dis way, and hoped to cut us off.
But hurrah! hurrah! we got down sooner dan dey!"
Several rafts of reeds, such as I before described, were shoved off from
the bank. We did not stop to examine them; but plying our paddles with
might and main, we continued our course towards the point where we
believed the river made its exit out of the lake.