Sometimes at night they towed one of their nets behind them, and obtained an ample supply of fish for their wants.
Each night they made, as Stanley calculated, about forty miles and, after ten days' travel, they came to the point where the great river divided, one small arm running down to Rangoon; another descending to Bassein, and then falling into the sea at Cape Negrais; while a large proportion of the water found its way down by innumerable branches between the Rangoon and Bassein rivers.
For the last two or three days they had been obliged to observe great caution for, below Prome, there were numbers of boats all going down the river laden with men and stores.

These, however, only travelled by day; and the canoe was always, at that time, either floating in the shelter of bushes, or hauled up on the bank at spots where it could be concealed from view by thick growths of rushes.
"We shall never be able to get down to Rangoon by water," said Meinik.

"The river will be crowded with rowboats near the town; and there will be no chance, whatever, of making our way through them.
At the next village we come to, I will go in and learn the news.
Your countrymen may have been driven out by this time and, in that case, there will be nothing to do but to travel north on foot, until we reach Chittagong." "I have no fear that we shall be driven out, Meinik." This conversation had occurred on the night when they had passed the point of division of the two arms of the river.

They had caught a larger supply of fish than usual and, as soon as the boat was laid up, Meinik started along the bank, with a number of them, for the nearest village.

He returned in two hours.
"It is well I landed," he said, "for the point where the greater portion of our people are gathered is Henzawaddy, only some fifteen miles further on.
"You were right; your people have not been driven out.