The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-07-12 00:00:00

THE GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY'S
AFRICAN EXPEDITION.

Sir John Kirk has sent from Zanzibar a long tele4
gram to the Geographical Society, which will appear
in the forthcoming number of the society's "Proceed-
ings." Meantime, the following details have been
published:
Mr. Thomson left Taveta last July in company
with a Pangani caravan, after his first unsuccessful
attempt to penetrate into the interior. Travelling in
a northerly direction and passing Rombo, he reached
the dreaded Masai country and crossed the head
waters of the Tzave ; thence his route was more
westerly, across the great sandy plain, the bed of a
dried-up lake, of which Ngirl is a remnant. He
reached Doenyo Erok on August 19, and there met
the Masai in numbers, but the caravan being so
large they gave no trouble. Here Mr. Thomson left
the sandy, sterile plain, and entered the Kaptei
district, a more broken country, rising in elevation
to a plateau; this is a volcanic region with extinct
cones lying along a fault. On September 5 he
reached Ngongoahaz and the head waters of the
altitude 5500, which forms the southern boundary of
Kikuyu. Here Mr. Thomson left the Kaptei plateau
and reached next the northern end of Lake Naivasha.
Lake Naivasha lies in a trough-like valley which
extends to one degree N. lat. and divides the plateau.
Lakes Nakolo, Rahringo, and numerous hot springs
lie in the trough. Mr. Thomson visited South
Naivasha, Doenyo Susiva (Sus), 8000 ft. high, a won-
derful volcanic crater, and Bun i (D. Mburo). The
Masai here were numerous and harassing, but there
was no fighting. Mr. Thomson sent Martin (his
assistant, the Maltese sailor) with the Pangani caravan
to Bahringo. He himself, with thirty men, started
for the Kenia plateau, 8000 ft., and there crossed the
Settima. The northern end of the range was 12,000 ft.
high; he reached the base of Mount Kenia. The
mountain appears to be a single cone, in height
equalling Kilimanjaro. It is a sharp peak, snow-
clad and volcanic. Hence Mr. Thomson proceeded to
Bahringo, where he found Martin well; the Pangani
caravan had gone north. Mr. Thomson then crossed
Kamasia (Likamasia) range, 8,000 ft., thence over the
Quasingishu plateau, and by a gentle descent over a
treeless plain to Kavircmdo. He proceeded west from
Kivasundu with a few men to Lake Victoria Nyanza.
Returning to Kivasundu, Mr. Thomson proceeded
further north by Elgonys (Ligonyi) mountain
14,,n00ft., where he found wonderful artificial in-
iited caves. On his return to Lake Bahringo, he
vs-,-s unfortunately tossed by a buffalo and severely
Ivot.mded; he was also .attacked by acute dysentery.
whie-.1 kept him two mouths at Naivasha on his return
12urngy. He again reached the coast at Minbassa, by
daiN grosyvafabteragd, Kaptei,spatebofUltbu and
e,
telegrallinkawmabas
to, and a few
oceedin
the Sultan's steamer to Bombay.
" Who wasees man, my the me k so. tue
bc ass in the State.
" Moses, sir." " Very my
superintendent of a boy's
the meekest womeu ?" .ey ; and who was
"Pleas sir, there never was
no meekest woman.'
gagistrate : "You will have three days' imprison-
ment on bread-and-water, for begging and vagrancy."
Beggar: "Couldn't your worship let me have better
fare. ? I wouldn't mind /min locked up a few days
longer," -

I

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...,.wn 6outh
.—,
,:.
v 'aptain airy;H an orange-
rom South ,
r a- yellow eonure from
" conure from St. Thoinas, W. .7 _. .
(7y the eight •
—beu amazon f u-
l' - erine parrots from British Guiana, .
so great that he was Guiana, two assal
vulture from India, two coscoroba
.._ .iiu expired a few hours later. deposited; a Bengal
....Yin come to the knowledge of the oli e at 1'
- imerica a St. Thomas's
Hanley that explosives were secreted at the village New South Wales, pill.
,four
ge of f Ireland,received in Qachange ; a hog
Bucknall, a search was mad from
...wen are reported as soo to eon Monday night which
Himalayan monauls, five Chilian pintails, five sin.
•n • resulted in the disc
_ ....) rashion. It is good thing to have ins in overy of a considerable quantity of bred in the zazdens.
f th
gelatine, one o e most dangerous compounds of nitro- ducks .
Ifashion once more. • glycerine. The owner had absconded.
-- •
swans from Chili, threhtasureqdloistiz grerkakguilleetsernfroota;
loomomm
_ _ _