Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 1.djvu/313

Rh pearances of the marble mountains upon the coast. Our vessel had one sail, like a straw mattress, made of the leaves of a kind of palm-tree, which they call Doom. It was fixed above, and drew up like a curtain, but did not lower with a yard like a sail; so that upon stress of weather, if the sail was furled, it was so top-heavy, that the ship must founder, or the mast be carried away. But, by way of indemnification, the planks of the vessel were sewed together, and there was not a nail, nor a piece of iron, in the whole ship; so that, when you struck upon a rock, seldom any damage ensued. For my own part, from an absolute detestation of her whole construction, I insisted upon keeping close along shore, at an easy sail.

Continent, to the leeward of us, belonged to our friends the Ababdé. There was great plenty of shell-fish to be picked up on every shoal. I had loaded the vessel with four skins of fresh water, equal to four hogsheads, with cords, and buoys fixed to the end of each of them, so that, if we had been shipwrecked near land, as rubbing two sticks together made us fire, I was not afraid of receiving succour, before we were driven to the last extremity, provided we did not perish in the sea, of which I was not very apprehensive.

the 15th, about nine o'clock, I saw a large high rock, like a pillar, rising out of the sea. At first, I took it for a part of the Continent; but, as we advanced nearer it, the sun being very clear, and the sea calm, I took an observation, and as our situation was lat. 25° 6', and the island about a league distant, to the S. S. W. of us, I concluded its latitude to be pretty exactly 25 ° 3' North. This island is Rh