bank through an extensive forest, in every part of which were wild coffee, India rubber, and elephants. In all parts of the virgin Congo forest I have visited, wild coffee is so abundant, and so excellent, that we left our tins of imported coffee unopened. For five days south-eastwards to Mona Chellios we found practically no food on the road — the vacancy of this district, devoid alike of men and food, having been created by slave-raiders in Tippu Tib's employ.

Two or three hours beyond Mona Chellios, to the eastward, we came on two villages in clearings, freshly constructed, and inhabited by Baquas, or pygmies, from the surrounding forest. Immediately beyond the last dwarf village we came to the Lubefu, an extremely rapid stream 200 yards wide, which took the caravan two days to cross. The water was at this time