Up the slopes and then down again the road took its meandering way, and from each of the hill-tops a nearer view of the lake was obtained. The sky was clear, and the heat at times severe, but it was relieved in some measure by the foliage of the trees and by the breeze that blew from the lake. They were accompanied by a high officer of M'tesa's court, who was instructed to show everything they wished to see. As they desired to inspect some of the royal canoes, the officer sent an order to the place where they were kept, and in a little while half a dozen boats came dashing through the water. [Illustration: UGUNDA BOAT.] The boats were of a construction different from anything the youths had ever seen. They were built with high, projecting prows, rising up like the neck of a swan, and ornamented with a tuft of feathers and the horns of an antelope. Some of the boats were hollowed from the trunks of trees, while others were made of strips of planks fastened to frames. In either case the sides were braced by means of cross-pieces, and the largest of the boats had planks and canes laid upon the braces, so as to form a deck. Frank compared the Ugunda boat to the Japanese sampan; but Fred pointed out the difference in the height of the prows, and also the fact that the sampan had a sort of cabin at the stern, which was not so in the Ugunda craft. The men paddled instead of rowing, and Abdul said the use of oars as we employ them in America was almost unknown in Central Africa. The paddles were neatly cut from thin planks, and each paddle had a straight handle, terminating in a spoon-shaped point, hollowed a little, to give it a better hold on the water. Evidently the king's rowers knew their business, as they propelled their craft through the water at an astonishing speed. Time was kept by a steersman, who sung a monotonous chant, and the paddles rose and fell in perfect unison. The boats were brought to the side of a little wharf which extended to where the water was six or eight feet deep, and a landing stage, consisting of a raft of reeds, furnished convenient access to the craft. Doctor Bronson and the youths were invited to enter one of the boats for a ride down the bay. In a few minutes they were under way, at a speed of at least six miles an hour, propelled by the strong arms of the sailors of M'tesa's fleet. Where they entered the boat the bay was quite narrow. Doctor Bronson said it was the body of water to which Speke gave the name of Murchison Creek, while the water farther down was named Murchison Bay, in order to identify it with the creek. [Illustration: VIEW ON MURCHISON CREEK.]