Tul and Ni-Va travelled all day, without seeing much to interest them. The path led downward hour after hour, toward the lower country, and they soon left the marsh far behind them. Great flocks of water fowl flew overhead, going to and fro from the marsh; they threw stones at them, but did not hit any. There were few trees or bushes on the hillside, and the ground was stony and rough, with scarcely any animals about. Once some strange creatures like deer, without any horns, ran near them, and in the distance they saw some giant forms that looked like the mammoths they had heard the hunters speak about, but nothing that they could use for food came within their reach. When night fell they were both hungry, and cold, without any fire, and as they lay alone on the bare ground, trying to sleep, they felt a little afraid, for they knew that there were many animals in the country about the great marsh that would gladly eat them up. Morning came at last, and found them not only hungry, but very thirsty as well. Far off, at the foot of the hillside, they saw what looked like a line of trees. It was after midday when they reached it, and found themselves on the banks of a wide river, flowing through a forest of tall bushes and trees. It was much warmer here than it had been in the valley, for they had been travelling steadily downhill for nearly two days, and had reached the low country. There were many more living things about than there had been on the bare hillside, birds, and animals of various sorts that slipped noiselessly through the thick vines and bushes along the banks of the river. The two boys threw themselves down at the edge of the stream and drank until their thirst was quenched. Then Ni-Va, with his bone-pointed spear, waded about along the shore and soon brought up a fine big fish. They ate it for breakfast, although they would have liked it better, if they had had a fire, in which to cook it, for they had come to like cooked food better than raw, now. After breakfast, they talked about what they should do. [Illustration: THE FIRST VOYAGE The two boys sprang upon the log which floated slowly out into the stream.] [Illustration: A DUG-OUT CANOE OF EARLY MAN Made by hollowing out the trunk of an oak tree.] Ni-Va, the swimmer, wanted to swim across the river and see what the country was like on the other side, but Tul could not swim, and when they saw the dark backs of some great reptiles, like crocodiles, cutting the surface of the water, they soon gave up the idea. They were sitting on the bank, wondering whether they had not better go back, when Tul saw a log, the broken trunk of a tree, floating slowly down the stream, close to the shore. Climbing out on a low limb which hung over the water, he hooked the point of his spear into a broken branch on the log, and gently towed it up to the bank.