August 7: Having laid in a sufficient stock of green wood, we got under weigh about eight a.m., under green wood steam. The channel was very intricate:—after a long zigzag passage at the mouth of the Tshadda we got into four and five fathoms water, with very slow progress, and hardly made eight miles direct from the Confluence, because the steam could scarcely be kept up for an hour together, and the anchor had then to be dropped while it was got up again.

August 8: About eight a.m. we weighed anchor, but in about a quarter of an hour the steam failed, and we were obliged to drop it again. It was impossible to accomplish our object at this rate, two days having been wasted merely for want of proper fuel to keep up the steam; and if the Krumen were sent on shore to cut wood again, it would be as green as before. Dr. Baikie, therefore, myself, and Mr. Richards, landed at a small village called Atipo, a little way higher up, where we saw plenty of dry wood in the town; we told the natives to take it to the water-side, and returned to the ship to tell Captaia Taylor of our discovery, and to know if he would purchase it. One of the iron canoes was soon paddled thither, and in about three hours she returned deeply laden with dry and substantial firewood, which we hoped would enable us to move onward in our voyage. Several enquiries were made to-day of Dr. Barth, but no news was heard of him.