The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-23 00:00:00

~~~

.ould not have believed
Like it in the heart of

pt. Grant and myself

King every possible con-

first heard of our inten—
however, much opposed,
,ade us by every argu-

ment in his power. The King was a most intelli-
gent and inquiring man. His Majesty asked ques-
tions about the geography of the world, and espe-
cially about the north, and was astonished to hear

of the land surrounded by water. He asked about

he stars and sun, and what became of the old suns

and moons. (Laughter.) His anxious desire was
to obtain knowledge upon every topic which came

under his notice. The King had heard of the ex-
traordinary power of the white people, and wished
to know from us whether it was not so great that,
if we chose, we could blow up Africa. (Laughter.)

Scarcely a day passed while in this kingdom
without going to pay a visit to the King ;
and many strange stories were told which he could
not now remember. This amiable King gave him
much valuable information, inc'uding all that

about the system of lakes and rivers draining
into the Nile, and others rising in the Mountains
of the Moon and in Uganda. Indeed, from
this information he was enabled to send home a map
very nearly as good as that which he had since been
able to prepare after his journey to the Nyanza.
We went out shooting together, and sometimes his

sons accompanied him, and they always acted in tho
most courteous, and, he would say, gentlemanly

. .
manner. If he shot a rhinoceros they would come

up and congratulate him on his success, shaking
him by the hand. When about to resume his jour-

ney the King sent an officer to the King of Uganda,

expressing his wish to visit the country, and pray-
ing his brother potentate to afford every facility in
his power. But he still did not wish him to pass
to the northward. His conduct in this respect

seemed very strange, and was the only thing, in
fact, that was not agreeable during his stay in this

part of the country. ,The gallant speaker referred

,o the illness which had overtaken his fellow-travel-

Ler, Capt. Grant, at this stage of the journey, and

proceeded to give some interesting accounts of his
visit to and reception by another sable monarch in
the territory adjoining. Here he was surprised at
the neatness and tidiness of the people, the manner
in which they deported themselves, and the style of
the native dress, which, he said, would not disgrace
a fashionable promenade in London. These people
of Uganda were a most superior set. The King had
prepared a grand reception for him. On arriving

at the place indicated he found the palace filled
with men and women ; cattle were being led about
the approaches to the palace; there were bands of
musicians, and a great display of public rejoicing.
When he reached the front of the palace the King
had not arrived, and he was requested to sit upon
the ground and wait the King's leisure, for his Ma-
jesty was dressing. This, however, he declined to
do, and walked back to his camp. The reason he did
not sit down upon the ground was that he was
anxious to assert a high position, and to obtain influ-
ence among the people which might be useful to him
in his future travels. When the King arrived and
found that the Englishman had gone, he sent an offi-
cer to summon him back, and when he returned he
explained to the King that he did not like to sit
upon the ground, and that it was little better than
au insult to ask him to do so. In Uganda no one had
ever sat upon a chair or stool in the presence of the
King, but he was allowed to sit upon a stool, so that
he was the first person who had ever enjoyed the
honour of thus sitting in the presence of the ruler
of that nation. (Cheers.) The King was seated on a
throne of brass, beautifully dressed, and carried his
shield and spear, and bis warriors round him were
also armed with spears. The officers squtted around
the King, and with these a general conversation
was kept up. Wearied with sitting so long in the
sun, he (Captain Speke) put up his umbrella, to the
intense wonder of the court and its sovereign. At
last the courtiers and warriors left, and while in full
stare at him, the King said, " Have you seen me P"
He replied that he had had that pleasure, and look-
ing at his watch, found that he had enjoyed that
gratification for exactly half an hour, and hoped his
Majesty was quite well. (Laughter.) The King then
went into the palace, to which he also had the
honour of being invited. When he arrived there he
found, to his great surprise, that the King was sit-
ting, not with men, as he had been just before, but
in the midst of his wives—at least 200 or 300 in
number. (Laughter.) Here again the same gazing
at each other ensued, and. at the end of about half
an hour the King again inquired if he (Capt Speke)
had seen him ? (Laughter.) In addition to this the
King asked him where he had come from, and said
he should like very much to see him again. He re-
plied that he should be happy to be favoured with
the opportunity of visiting his Majesty, and added
that, as was always the custom with him on ap-
proaching men of rank, he had brought with him,
and begged his Majesty's acceptance of, some small
presents. The King said, "Let me see them." The
first of the presents shown him was a revolver pistol.
This the King took up and played with in the most
ridiculous manner, for he had no idea of its use. At
the end of our interview he said, " It is now getting
dark ; would you like some liquor ? what will you
take?"—(alaugh)—and said that he would send some
thing to-morrow. He appointed the following day
for a second visit, but subsequently said, "Oh no,
that day won't do, because I am going to show all
these pretty things that you have given me to my
mother the Queen Dowager and all my officers."
The following day was accordingly fixed. He visited
the King not only upon that but upan almost every
other day during his stay. The King took a great
fancy to shooting, and several shooting parties were
arranged, the King having practised beforehand by
shooting the cows in his yard. The shooting parties
pleased the King amazingly ; they were accompa-
nied by bands of musicians—and very good bands
tco they were—by officers, and by many of his
wives. The arrangement of the procession was a
somewhat difficult affair, and it was arranged that
the Englishman should go before the King. To this,
however, he (Capt. Speke) objected, on the ground
that he never went before royalty. The King was
in some difficulty, because, by pacing him after
him, he would be between his Majesty and his
.wives. (A laugh.) The point, however, was con-
ceded, and he found that the beat place in the pro-
cession, for the women were as amiable as amiable
could be. (A laugh.) Whenever any vulture or
other bird flew up the King shouted out, "Now,
shoot that," and he was kept firing as fast as he
could, and each time that a bird was knocked over
the King and his officers and his ladies clapped their
hands, and shouted and danced in the most extraor-
dinary and ridiculous manner. The speaker next
referred to his visit to Murchison Creek, a beautiful
piece of water on the north side of the Lake Nyanza,
one of the most lovely spots which he had met with
in all Africa, and which he had named after the
man who had been the first to take him in hand in
the matter of the expedition. (Cheers.) At this
spot
he found as many as 60 boats, all well made
following
the and well manned. It was his wish to go northwards,
and make his
way thence for the Lake,
the whole course of the Nile. Everybody, was,
ever, opposed to this plan, and the Queen Mother,w
_
who was greatly attached to him, and was a very
good sort of creature in her way—(a laugh)—
sought to dissuade him on the ground of some
great festivities that were to come off on the coro-
nation of her son—for as yet he w
elect. Some very but the prince
my steriou.s thinagss take place at
the coronation of Kings.
so many wives, there is As each sovereign has
a largeknymbellrhois
fchildren,
and on the accession of a n
and sisters are killed off,ewwitihngthae exception of
reserved against any contin-
gency that may happen. (A laugh.) The king
was willing to allow him to
lie saidproceed northward, for
the "Englishmen live in the north, and it
is from the north that Africa must be op: cad up."
Starting on his journey, Captain Speke told the
meeting how he was opposed by the natives of
Usoca, how boats filled with armed men threatened
to impede their progress, and how a complete
victory was gained by the discharge of one or two
rifles, the effect of which spread the utmost conster-
nation among the native warriors. The lateness of
the hour prevented the gallant captain from detail-
• ing any more of the interesting incidents of his
Journey,
and he resumed his seat amid much cheer-

in Sir RODERICK Mulic lIISGN, with a few appro-
priate words, placed in the hands of Captains
speke and Grant a goh. medal which the King of
Italy had forwarded to the Geographical Society,
with a request that it should be presented to the
successful explorers of the source of the Nile.
The compliment was acknowledged in a few
words, and the thanks of the meeting, proposed by
Sir Roderick Murchison, brought the proceedings
to a close,

,
y
, SUM

LONDON, TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 1863.

Important telegrams from the American seat of
war have, only very late this afternoon, reached our
hands, brought to our snores this morniz:g per the
Jura. The accounts they convey, although dating
down no more than three days later than the last
received intelligence—tell strongly in favour of the
Southern forces both in the direction of the Rap-
pahannock and in that of the Mississippi. Every-
where the Federals appear to be suffering grievously.
In Indiana the enrollment could only be carried on
under the assistance of the cavalry. Oa the Rap-
pahannock the situation is becoming so seriously
threatening that while some of the New York papers
still affect to talk ebout General HOOKER assuming
the offensive, it is certain that on the 13th a battle
was then raging on the banks of that river, between
aportion at least of the opposing armies: and already
before that renewal of hostilities had commenced,
it was matter of notoriety that the Confederates
had latterly been gathering together there a very
formidable array of reinforcements. Insomuch that
it was generally understood, among the better in-
formed classes of the North, that General
LEE'S army now in and around Fredericksburg
was, upon a moderate computation, about
twice the numerical force he had assembled under his
banners when his headquarters were at Chancel-
lorsville. It was, in point of fact, about as little
likely that General HOOKER would venture upon
any movement of his army en masse across the
Rappahannock with a view to a serious onslaught
upon the accumulated forces of General LEE, as it
was (when our last advises last left America) in the
highest degree probable that General LEE would,
on the contrary, soon enough commence hos-
tilities in serious earnest against General
HOOKER ! The supposition in regard to
the designs of the Confederate Commander•in-Chief
appeared to be this—that he would probably direct
General STUART to advance in hot haste with his
cavalry across Maryland into Pennsylvania, until
Gen. HOOKER would be compelled to despatch a
portion of his forces in hurried pursuit, And that
then, upon those diminished forces of the Federal
army left in the vicinity of the Rappahannock,
General LEE would direct the whole fury of his
attack from the neighbourhood of Fredericksburg.
Supposing which course to be followed out, the
renting of HOOKER'S army and the advance of LEE
upon Washington—certainly do appear to be not
improbable consequences.

Turning our regard now from the Rappahannock
towards the Mississippi, the situation we shall find
there also more than ever ominous for the Federals.
If our telegrams—given elsewhere in this same
Page, and given there it will be seen very
fully--are examined wiih any ordinary care
--it will be perceived from them that
both Northern and Southern accounts agree
as to the really perilous position in which General
BANKS had been placed by the movements princi-
PailY of General RIR s
tioned enterprising B SMITH. The last men-
BriTgadier had not only drivan
General Barnes before him from Port Hudson, but
had contrived by the 6th
instant successfully to
effect the complete
occupation
of Milliken's Bend.
General BANKS himself, daring
progress of the
sharp fighting that bad ended thethus in his signal
discomfiture, had unhappily lost an arm,—his near°
regiments being fairly beaten back in a
sharp
3
band-to-hand contest do ,vn to the very river bank
And under shelter of the gunboats. By
ti.e mere fact of his occupation of
ken'a Bend, with

OCO vict^riona
_ c,n. !
federates, it is considered, even by the Peden,ls,
that Ginerel 1.".1R8Y I:2s succeeded
in cutting off GcneraiLGRANT 1:om his supplies.
An attack upon the rear of General GRANT was
looked to as a matter of exceeding probability both
in New York and in Washington, Tile resolute
delcnd2r of Vkkaburg, that same daunt.l,:;.:f; General

PEMBERTON whose soni-stirring address to the gar-
rison was given by us only the other day, is stated,
znoreov.r, to be sostrong and so well. provisioned there
in Vicksburg that he has apprized General YoUN-
STONE that Vicksburg will hold out coute qui coute so
long as JOHNSTONE may care to cceupy himself in
his preparations for its relief. G..,neral PEMBEE-
-I°lll in fact, has informed General JOTTNSTONE
th4l he is on On account to hurry oimsedf,

that he is to bide his time, to act and move with
all due deliberation—to take as his motto, in effect,
th:9 ancient device of the PLUNKETT'S, festinllente!
Things are beginning in fact to look about as
Wily for General HOOKER on the Rappahanock,
for General BANKS on the Mississippi, and for
General GRANT before Vicksburg, as they are now
looking propitiously for General LEE at Fredericks-
burg, for General KIRBY SMITH at Milliken's Bend,
for General PEMBERTON even in Vicksburg, and
for General JOHNSTONE—stiII vaguely, but for that
very reason the more formidably—somewhere!

It must be a matter of regret to all right judging
persons that the jury who were engaged to con-
sider the circumstances concerning the death of
MARY ANNE WALKLEY, should have decided in so
strange a manner. All the details that were eli-
cited tend to prove the correctness of the reports that
were at first circulated regarding this unhappy af-
fair. The words of the verdict prove either too
much or too little. They are that the "deceased
died of apoplexy, but there is too much reason to
fear that her death was greatly accelerated by work-
ing long hours in a crowded workroom, and sleep-
ing in a close badly ventilated bedroom." This is
too much for any jury to say, without calling in
question the conduct of those who authorise such
treatment of their employers. The hours of work
in themselves were shameful, they would have been
too much for occasional pressure, but for a continu-
ance were really scandalous. From half-past six
in the morning until eleven at night, and sometimes
a much longer period was this poor girl condemned
to toil. There is something monstrous in the idea
of young girls being condemned to endure such an
inffiction in the heart of a civilised city. There are
meetings constantly taking place to benefit the poor,
succour the distressed, and relieve the suffering,
but in the midst of these kind intentions and
earnest efforts the poor dressmaker's apprentice is
being slowly killed or rendered a hopeless invalid.
It seems that no one can or will help these sufferers.
It is no excuse for those whose life of fashion is the
cause of giving employment to the establishments
where they toil, to say that they know nothing of
it. They ought to know, and to institute inquiries
concerning the mode practised in these houses.
The laissez aller style of procedure is often the
cause of great injustice and injury, but in this case
it results in positive cruelty. The account given
of the sleeping apartmen's is, if possible, worse than
the description of the day's work. Each cell, as it
might be called, is "jest large enough to contain
two beds pieced end to end, and there were two
young women in each bed." In allusion to this sub-
ject the writer of a letter to the Times observes
with great truth that " the horrors of the middle
passage in a slave ship can hardly exceed this."
The same writer truly remarks that it is a wonder
that an infectuous disease should not have broken
out at this establishment, and recommends the
neighbours to call upon the officer of health of the
district to do his duty. If anything could have
been more absurd and uncalled for than
another in this painful affair, it was the
statement of the husband of Madame ELISE,
that " he did all he could for the comfort and health
of his young people." If all he and his wife can
do to promote these ends is to foster the system be-
fore commented on, they sooner they give up em-
ploying any one to work for them the better for
their own consciences and the welfare of all con-
nected with them. Yet the worst consideration of
all is that this state of things recorded is not a
solitary instance but a sample of many similar esta-
blishments. Madame ELISE now incurs the odium
through the chance of one girl being more delicate
than the others, or more unaccustomed, perhaps, to
work and close confinement. But there are many

other places where just the same practices Prevail,
and it is high time that such abuses should be pre-
vented by law. Too much has been left for too
long to the good feeling and consideration of all
concerned in the affair; it now remains to insist
that such tyranny comes under the penalty of the
law. Why should so much be done for all classes
of the community, and the most helpless among
them be left to the mercy of those who do not seem
to know the meaning of justice. The sums charged
by these Court milliners and dressmakers are enor-
mous, and it is scandalous that they cannot
afford to employ extra hands on an emer-
gency, instead of crushing the life out of
those committed to their care. MARY ANNE
WALKLEY will not have died in vain if her
wretched end calls attention to the fate of her
living fellow sufferers. There are many more
pining as she did for fresh air and liberty to whom
a brief respite from unremitting toil in the midst
of their close application, and a longer rest at night
in a well ventilated chamber, would seem like a
boon from Heaven. Surely something could be done
for this oppressed and persecuted class, and if not
it will be a mockery to call ourselves a humane
people, and it will be an outrage on commonsense
for any lady to attend a charitable institution in a
dress that has perhaps been the last touch to the
overwhelming toil that has sacrificed a life. This
is not the first time that these cases have been be-
fore the public, and no one has an excuse to plead
ignorance, but if they never heard of them before,
let them now take heed, and at once institute in-
quiries and exact reforms. Some obstacles are sure
to lie in the way, and much opposition will have to
be overcome, but if ever there was a cause which
required able advocates, it is that of the dress
maker'e apprentice. No trouble can be too great
that is undertaken to free them in some
measure from their thraldom, and few im-
provements in the social system can be
more satisfactory than that which brings a ray of
sunshine to lighten their benighted ways. It is to
be trusted that something 'will be done to check
thie growing evil, and remove this blot from the
reputation of all immediately or remotely concerned
in these transactions. Many wrongs are perpetrated
through carelessness or inattention, but to persist
willingly and knowingly in sanctioning injustice is
a positive crime, and ends in making the tacit
observer as guilty as the actual instigator of the
evil, and indeed more so if possessed of greater
power and more extended influence.

The members of the Royal Geographical Society
assembled in great force last night to welcome the
Purpose
at n :
ycigaints
oczroaavnLe
cra:kn
eog.f
fortunate travellers who have succeeded in solving
the mystery that has perplexed so many genera-
th.estdaeyons
tions. Ttie many famous adventurers who, from
continent
eIintERODOTUE, have wandered over the
vatr. . and given us details, more or less
\
hentic, of the African
have left us no hint of the existence
riddle• Even the
lake 'which has nowexplorersthee people and their ways,
exi of the mighty
phpraorevsead to be the key to the
of modern times, who
hive started with
the source of the Nile,
appron:evherhhad the sagacity
or the good fortune to
to be ap-
prehended difficulty of the route, the
prehended from the n4tives, and thgersi
the exact direction in which to search for the
source, all combined to keep successive explorers
on' of the right line of search. It was reserved
to Captain SPEEE. on his discovery of the Lake
Victoria Nyanza some five, years tince, at once to
gII,L,S the secret. He tells us that when he found
, this large sheet of sweet water, lyir g about 3,500

feet above the level of the sea, he at once felt cer-
tain that it could only be the source of some vast
river like the Nile. Tee traditions of the natives,
too, confirmed this conjecture, by their account
of the great extent of the lake, while the
Arab merchants, who had visited those districts in
search of ivory, asserted boldly that it was the
source of a great river. Captain SPEKE tells us
that he would have settled the question in 1859,
but the chief of the party he was accompanying
having fallen ill, he was compelled to return. Sir
RODERICK MURCHISON, however, was deeply im-
pressed with the necessity of further researches, and
accordingly Captains SPEKE end GRANT steated on
their last and conclusive expedition. On reaching
Unyanyembi, 5 deg. south of the lake, they fol-
lowed a near route, which they conjectured from the
accounts of the ivory merchants would lead to the
creek on the Western side of the lake, bat owing to
some confusion between the terms river and lake,
they found that the path led them to another lake,
the Luero-10-Urigi, which was once of great extent,
but is now drying up. The travellers thus made an
accidental discovery, which though not of ranch
profit familiarised them still more with the nature
of the country. The Luero-10-Urigi and other
neighbouring lakes are drained by the river
Kitaugule
, which Captain SPEKE describes as a
noble stream, 80 yards wide, and sunk low in the
earth like a huge canal. This river flows into
the Victoria Nyanza, bringing it its largest
supply of terrestrial water. All these lakes are
supplied from the Mountains of the Moon, where
more than two-thirds of the year are wet and
rainy. Among the many errors and misstatements
current respecting the African interior, there is
none greater than the commonly received notion of
the scarcity of water. The abundant means of irri-
gation end water works supplied to the settler
encourages the sanguine view now beginning to be
taken of the future rise and progress of these long
neglected wilds. The population, according to
Captain SPEKE, are for the most part courteous and
intelligent. Making due allowance for his grate-
ful feelings towards the people of Karaguve and
their King, his account or them is most promising.
They present, however, a singular anomaly in the
human rece, if the travellers' account be true, that
they have no religion, and do not believe in a soul.
We should incline to think that this can hardly be
entirely correct—that some dim superstition or lin-
gering tradition must prevent the natives of Kara-
guve from forming so remarkable an exception
to the belief in another life, which has
been the universal idea of all races and
generations. The difficulties and dangers,
the labours and disappointments which fell to the
lot of these enterprising travellers heightened the
triumph of their success, but did not serve to abate
their energies. The public will no doubt receive
before long a fuller account of their wanderings,
and of the gradual progress of their scientific dis-
Englishmen may well be proud of
adding such an achievement to the list of their
daring feats, and the boastful nineteenth century
has another cause for triumph. It may serve, how-
ever, to temper the self-conceit of modern science,
to learn that the great lake which has proved to be
the source of the graad old river, was clearly
marked in an Arabian map more than 1,000 years
old, while PTOLE3IY was the first to give an ac-
count of the sub-equatorial lakes of Africa.
Captains SPEKE and GRANT have not met the
usual reward of public benefactors, for kings and
philosophers have combined to do them honour,
while the enthusiastic reception they met with last
night at Burlington House must have served to
convince them of the honour and admiration which
their countrymen have bestowed on their lrabours.

coveries,