I Remained Some Time In The Lembarene District And Saw And Learnt
Many Things; I Owe Most Of What I Learnt To M. And Mme.
Jacot, who
knew a great deal about both the natives and the district, and I owe
much of what I saw to having acquired the art of managing by myself
a native canoe.
This "recklessness" of mine I am sure did not merit
the severe criticism it has been subjected to, for my performances
gave immense amusement to others (I can hear Lembarene's shrieks of
laughter now) and to myself they gave great pleasure.
My first attempt was made at Talagouga one very hot afternoon. M.
and Mme. Forget were, I thought, safe having their siestas, Oranie
was with Mme. Gacon. I knew where Mme. Gacon was for certain; she
was with M. Gacon; and I knew he was up in the sawmill shed, out of
sight of the river, because of the soft thump, thump, thump of the
big water-wheel. There was therefore no one to keep me out of
mischief, and I was too frightened to go into the forest that
afternoon, because on the previous afternoon I had been stalked as a
wild beast by a cannibal savage, and I am nervous. Besides, and
above all, it is quite impossible to see other people, even if they
are only black, naked savages, gliding about in canoes, without
wishing to go and glide about yourself. So I went down to where the
canoes were tied by their noses to the steep bank, and finding a
paddle, a broken one, I unloosed the smallest canoe. Unfortunately
this was fifteen feet or so long, but I did not know the
disadvantage of having, as it were, a long-tailed canoe then - I did
shortly afterwards.
The promontories running out into the river on each side of the
mission beach give a little stretch of slack water between the bank
and the mill-race-like current of the Ogowe, and I wisely decided to
keep in the slack water, until I had found out how to steer - most
important thing steering. I got into the bow of the canoe, and
shoved off from the bank all right; then I knelt down - learn how to
paddle standing up by and by - good so far. I rapidly learnt how to
steer from the bow, but I could not get up any pace. Intent on
acquiring pace, I got to the edge of the slack water; and then
displaying more wisdom, I turned round to avoid it, proud as a
peacock, you understand, at having found out how to turn round. At
this moment, the current of "the greatest equatorial river in the
world," grabbed my canoe by its tail. We spun round and round for a
few seconds, like a teetotum, I steering the whole time for all I
was worth, and then the current dragged the canoe ignominiously down
river, tail foremost.
Fortunately a big tree was at that time temporarily hanging against
the rock in the river, just below the sawmill beach. Into that tree
the canoe shot with a crash, and I hung on, and shipping my paddle,
pulled the canoe into the slack water again, by the aid of the
branches of the tree, which I was in mortal terror would come off
the rock, and insist on accompanying me and the canoe, via Kama
country, to the Atlantic Ocean; but it held, and when I had got safe
against the side of the pinnacle-rock I wiped a perspiring brow, and
searched in my mind for a piece of information regarding Navigation
that would be applicable to the management of long-tailed Adooma
canoes. I could not think of one for some minutes. Captain Murray
has imparted to me at one time and another an enormous mass of hints
as to the management of vessels, but those vessels were all pre-
supposed to have steam power. But he having been the first man to
take an ocean-going steamer up to Matadi on the Congo, through the
terrific currents that whirl and fly in Hell's Cauldron, knew about
currents, and I remembered he had said regarding taking vessels
through them, "Keep all the headway you can on her." Good! that
hint inverted will fit this situation like a glove, and I'll keep
all the tailway I can off her. Feeling now as safe as only a human
being can feel who is backed up by a sound principle, I was
cautiously crawling to the tail-end of the canoe, intent on kneeling
in it to look after it, when I heard a dreadful outcry on the bank.
Looking there I saw Mme. Forget, Mme. Gacon, M. Gacon, and their
attributive crowd of mission children all in a state of frenzy.
They said lots of things in chorus. "What?" said I. They said some
more and added gesticulations. Seeing I was wasting their time as I
could not hear, I drove the canoe from the rock and made my way,
mostly by steering, to the bank close by; and then tying the canoe
firmly up I walked over the mill stream and divers other things
towards my anxious friends. "You'll be drowned," they said.
"Gracious goodness!" said I, "I thought that half an hour ago, but
it's all right now; I can steer." After much conversation I lulled
their fears regarding me, and having received strict orders to keep
in the stern of the canoe, because that is the proper place when you
are managing a canoe single-handed, I returned to my studies. I had
not however lulled my friends' interest regarding me, and they
stayed on the bank watching.
I found first, that my education in steering from the bow was of no
avail; second, that it was all right if you reversed it. For
instance, when you are in the bow, and make an inward stroke with
the paddle on the right-hand side, the bow goes to the right;
whereas, if you make an inward stroke on the right-hand side, when
you are sitting in the stern, the bow then goes to the left.
Understand?
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