"Above here," said the Doctor, "we cannot go with the steamer, on account of the rapids in the river, that render it impassable for any but the smallest boats. The Nile becomes narrower, and the hills close in upon it so that it does not at all resemble the Nile of Lower Egypt and Nubia. It has the characteristics of a river flowing among mountains, and in the places where the fall is insufficient to create a rapid or cataract the stream is anything but a sluggish one. [Illustration: THE NILE BELOW AFUDDO.] "The rapids occur at intervals for a distance of about a hundred and twenty miles above Gondokoro by land, and perhaps a hundred and fifty by the course of the stream. Then we come to a place known as Afuddo by the natives, and also by geographers, though the latter generally speak of it as 'Miani's Tree.'" "Why does it have the latter name?" one of the youths asked. "Because," was the reply, "it was the point reached by Miani, an Italian traveller, who explored this part of Central Africa, and was driven back by the natives through the intrigues of the slave-traders. He returned despondent to Khartoum, and subsequently undertook an exploration of the Bahr-el-Ghazal, where he died. It is a great misfortune that he perished before the history of his explorations had been given to the world, as he had visited regions hitherto unexplored by any traveller. [Illustration: A NYAM-NYAM GIRL.] "Miani penetrated the country of the Nyam-Nyam dwarfs, and brought away two specimens of that curious race. I happened to be in Cairo at the time of their arrival. They were sent there after Miani's death, and were subsequently forwarded by the Khedive, Ismail, to the King of Italy, the sovereign of the dead explorer. They were perfectly-formed and adult men, but little more than four feet in height. A Dinka negro who accompanied them said he had been in the country of the dwarfs, and very few of the inhabitants were taller than the ones we were examining.[4] [4] In the spring of 1874, through the courtesy of Ismail, Khedive, the author had the opportunity of seeing the two dwarfs mentioned above. "Above Afuddo, or Miani's Tree," said the Doctor, "the rapids come to an end, and the Nile is navigable to its exit from the Albert N'yanza. There is one place in the rapids where the river is narrowed to a hundred yards, and the water dashes along so furiously as to threaten destruction to any craft that ventures upon it. At certain stages of the river boats may pass with the current, but it is quite impossible to make headway against it. [Illustration: ENTRANCE OF THE LAKE.] "The point where the Nile becomes navigable again is in latitude 3° 32' north, near the mouth of the Asua River. It is less than a hundred miles from there to the lake, and the river flows through a beautiful and populous country.