disappeared before assistance reached him. My boat was about sixty yards behind Peter's boat coming up in the eddy behind a rock. When striking the current I noticed Louis' helmet and the Arab swimmer. We went ashore to prepare dinner and I really believe that Colonel Alleyne, the officer in charge of this convoy, felt so badly about this accident, that he did not take anything. He hired natives to search for the body and give it decent burial, if found. After dinner we proceeded with one man short. The water not being so bad we made the Semnah cataract that afternoon. This cataract was thought the worst in the whole route. Colonel Alleyne showed me up to the gate and said "now everything is yours." It must be understood that this gate does by no means reach across the river. The river is about 1000 feet wide here and the gate situated between the east shore and an island is about twenty feet wide. Not being sure of the water I tried a light boat first. I took boat No. 1 through without any trouble, but would not trust the full load on any boat. We all lightened somewhat and passed the six boats through with tow lines inside of an hour. The freight we had left was portaged by camels. We reloaded and started under sail four miles up in smooth water and camped. Colonel Alleyne held an inquest that night on Louis Capitaine's death and despatched a man to the nearest telegraph station with the news of his death. A few weeks after this despatch was sent, Colonel Kennedy showed me a copy of the Ottawa Free Press, in which the Free Press made free indeed reporting Captain Louis Jackson as drowned. All the captains appeared pleased with their boats, talking about who made the best run and each boasting to have the best boat. From this cataract to the next one above, at Ambigol, is counted seventeen miles, which stretch proved much the same as below Semnah cataract; plenty of dodging and crossing the stream to get the side of the river with the lesser current, the boats being such good travellers and answering their helms so well with a stiff breeze, we found ourselves in a genuine boatman's paradise. In spite of the free wind we had all day, we had to get lines out and track several times. We camped on an island about a mile below Ambigol cataract. In the evening the captains argued as to which of them had run the most on sandbanks. These sand shoals are formed behind large rocks in a manner never seen in our own waters, and it was strange to notice that like situated rocks would not alike accumulate sand, some had shoals behind them and some had none, still all showed the same eddy on the water surface, and the water being muddy we could not tell which to trust and so gave them all wider berths in future.

CATARACT OF AMBIGOL.

The following day, the 1st of November we reached the post of Ambigol about 8 a. m. We found this cataract different from Semnah cataract. This has no "gate" but a very crooked channel, swift current and very bad tracking. It required the combined force of thirty-five men to pull one boat with its full load. The cataract is one mile long and the roughest part is at the foot and at the head. It was in this mile of the route that afterwards three white men were lost. We got through this cataract about noon and cooked dinner just above it. It must be remembered that the route was entirely unknown to us all and that we had to find our channels and often did not take the best one. From this out I ordered my captains to take a different channel each, there being so many, so as to find the best one for future purposes. The boats being so equally matched, we could easily tell who had the wrong channel, for he was soon left astern. The officer in charge, Col. Alleyne, who is himself an experienced boatman, was so well pleased with our progress that he never interfered but left it all to us. It must also not be forgotten that the boys had been forty days travelling, doing no hard work, before we took the boats and by this time their hands were very sore. The rocky shores were so bold that poles could only be of use in keeping off and it was impossible to assist by shoving ahead.

To say a word about the boats now, we all had come to the conclusion that the boats and outfit were well devised for the service so far. We had tried them now in various ways; we had sailed against a swift current with a beam wind, where a flat bottom would have had to be towed with lines, and the more this towing could be avoided the better it was on account of the fearful track along the shore. The boats were sufficiently strong for all necessary handling and in case of accident, they were light enough to be brought ashore and turned over for repairs without extra help. More difficult it was to find a good place on the shore where to haul a boat out. The boats were provided with two sails each, a sample of which (sails) I have brought home with me.

We camped next on Tangur island and the following day the 2nd of November, we started to face the Tangur cataract. The wind being very strong in our favor we tried to dodge behind the many islands, but had to give up sailing in many places and get the lines out. We overcame this cataract without much difficulty. Above the cataract it was considered smooth water for about one mile when a very bad stretch was met with about half a mile long. The river here is about quarter of a mile wide, and full of large rocks between which the water came down very "wicked" in channels of about sixty feet wide and some wider. I again ordered each captain to pick his own channel, and having a strong breeze and all oars working we managed to get above. In this place I discovered by experience that what we had found to be the best channel on that day, was the worst a few days after. The water falling six inches to a foot every day, continually changed the rapids, making a bad place better and a good place bad. Above this cataract we had thirteen miles of what we called smooth water with a current of from three to five miles an hour. I had noticed in coming up that the country was inhabited, having seen a few Arabs now and then. We reached the foot of Akaska cataract that evening. On landing, the boat, which carried Lord Avonmore, got stove in when His Lordship took the tools and proved himself quite a carpenter. Here also were seen some useful stretches of beach under cultivation, but these were getting few and far between.

Next day, the 3rd November, we faced the Akaska cataract, we were getting used to the river and therefore this cataract proved to be the easiest so far. Between Akaska and the foot of Dal cataract there are nine miles of good navigation, and the greater part of the beach is useful, this stretch looking altogether better and less wild. We reached the foot of Dal about noon. Dal cataract is said to be five miles long. In this cataract I saw for the first time, small willow trees on the islands. We went about half a mile up with sails and oars, when we had to track for quite a distance. In this rapid it happened for the first time that we came to a halt, not knowing how to proceed. We had crossed on to an island not having water enough in the little channel between this island and the shore, but found at the head of the island the water rough and the current too strong to pull against and could not proceed without a line to the mainshore. It was here that the foresight of Colonel Alleyne, proved of value. Our Arab swimmer managed to carry the tow line to the shore, where he made fast and we pulled ourselves up, carrying the end of the tow line of the next boat, which