En Avant (ahead) on the Congo. Eighty tons of stores were shipped out of the mouth of the Congo in June 1789. With them went the new Congo River Fleet, including the miniature side-wheeled paddleboat En Avant, 6 tons weight and 43 feet long. The vessels were expected to form a chain of communication stretching from the sea, deep into the interior highlands of Africa. From The African Adventure - A History of Africa's Explorers by Timothy Severin, page 257. *** Local Caption *** Image is upside down.