Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 1.djvu/174

70 of the water. And this they repeated, in perfect time, and with surprising regularity. Our Rais thought we wanted to buy fish; and letting go his main-sail, ordered them on board with a great tone of superiority.

were in a moment alongside of us; and one of them came on board, lashing his miserable raft to a rope at our stern. In recompence for their trouble, we gave them some large pieces of tobacco, and this transported them so much, that they brought us a basket, of several different kinds of fish, all small; excepting one laid on the top of the basket, which was a clear salmon-coloured fish, silvered upon its sides, with a shade of blue upon its back. It weighed about 10 lib. and was most excellent, being perfectly firm and white like a perch. There are some of this kind 70 lib. weight. I examined their nets, they were rather of a smaller circumference than our casting nets in England; the weight, as far as I could guess, rather heavier in proportion than ours, the thread that composed them being smaller. I could not sufficiently admire their success, in a violent stream of deep water, such as the Nile; for the river was at least twelve feet deep where they were fishing, and the current very strong.

fishers offered willingly to take me upon the raft to teach me; but I cannot say my curiosity went so far. They said their fishing was merely accidental, and in course of their trade, which was selling these potter earthen jars, which they got near Ashmounein; and after having carried