The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1883-12-08
Congo Scenery.

Ielt 1estlglld Ou OuludtJ ~ WIFI my
three Zanzibaris to go up the Congo in
the little steamer Royal, now removed
to the upper river and forming part Of
Mr.. Stanley's flotilla,
The sceflery at first was very pretty.
The banks were richly forested, and
masses Of creepers overspread the river
side trees. Sometimes they appeared
like green cloth thrown lightly over
the foliage, showing its masses and
forms distinctly marked underneath.
Sometimes they formed delicate etner-
aid cobwebbery, or upreared great walls
of vegetation, looking as if carefully
trimmed into uniformity of surface, but
often scarcely a foot in thickness.
can hardly give n just idea Of these
beautiful examples of vegetable archi-
teettre. Often these creepers would
stretch out, DIS 1t we're, fresh series of
constructions, their long straight llianas
acting as scaffold poles. Then would
come the horizontal interlaeing arms
which soon formed giant latticework,
and on this foundation the beautiful
and Uniform foliage breaks out, until,
soon, thin walls and enclosures are
made, generally round SOME giant tree.
How lovely these arbors seemed to rest
in Beautiful pink convolvuli with
crimson center, and pale yellow flowers
of the creeping eucurbits, varied the
monotony OF the. green, while the
orange-red gourds of the latter shone
like little lamps amid the diapered foil
age. The giant speckled king-fsher
and his little active black and white
brother haunted the fairy creeks that
these walls of vegetation enclosed, and
on the gaunt, bare branches which
forced their way through the tender
interlacing creepers like wild, protest
ing arms trying to rid themselves Of q
clinging and deceitful embrace-on the
gnarled and whitened boughs the fish
ing eagle perched, greeting our APP
proaeh with cheerful, boisterous
screams. A giant heron, too, sat on a
branch amid somber shade, where he
would have remained quite indistih-
guishable from the gray boughs and
boles around him, but, overcome with
spasm of tardy fear, he flounced out
from his retreat, nearly knocked against
the funflel of tho steamer, and tapped
his huge wings With frightful strivings
to get away
Here and there the Congo became
|
ed with trees, ana IN ana out OF these
the stream was wnlrling ana edaylng
ana paopllng over me hldoen ROCKS;
we stopped at one OF these islanas; anu
at TINS spot the llghter we had hltnert9
been towing haa TO be closely tled
alongslde the little steamer, 1or togetner
we we're tt, to Gross a formidable 70 whlrl-
pool When we turned the island, we we
saw the vortex, with great f0cks OF
foam like balls OF cotton wool dancing
madly in perpetual round. Full pres
sure was put on, and In we went-fz-
hing!-and out again at right angles,
80 That some OF the balls OF foam, IKE
bewlldered captiYes IN an efchanter' $
magic circle, are set free by our sudden
breaking through the meshes' ana go
gayly floating downthe stream. Some
tunes there are long stretches OF low
rocks I'D the river, looking BIKE rows OF
states stacked in a builders yardi and
on the shore Of the stream and along
the island beaches would show banks OF
SAND. AnnArenfiV