BOMA, February 15th.
Boma is more or less laid out and contains the official
residences of the Government. I walked all over it in an
hour, and here you walk very slow. There are
three or four big trading stores
and a tennis court. It
is,
however, a dreary place. We called on the missionary and his
wife, but she does not speak English and their point of view
of everything was not cheerful or instructive. Cecil plans to
remain on board while at
Matadi and return with this same
boat to Boma. I want her to go home in this boat or in some
other, as I believe Boma most unhealthy and I know it to be
most uncomfortable. She would have to go to a hotel which is
very hot and rough, although it is clean and well run. I am
undecided whether to go up the river for ten days, to where it
crosses the equator, or to leave the upper Congo and go up the
Kasai river. This is off the beaten track, and one may see
something of interest. I will know better what I will do in
an hour, when I get to Matadi.
