The Sun.
London, England, 1861-04-24 00:00:00

ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETP.

On Monday the members of this society and
their friends mustered in unusual number at Bur-
lington-house to hear papers read containing the
latest intelligence from. Dr. Livingstone and his
party in Central Africa. Sir R. Marchison, the
vice-president, acted as chairman, and among the
company were the Bishops of Oxford and St.
Asaph, Vice-Chancellor Sir John Stuart, Lord
Keane, Lord Strangford, General Portlock, Ad-
miral Sir George Back, the Dean of Winchester,
Mr. Layard, M.P., Mr. M. Milnes, M.P., Mr,
Childers, M.P., the Earl of Sheffield, Captains
Murray, Collinson, Sherard Osborn, and Nolloth,
R.N., and Sydney Webb and Burton, M. Du
Chaillu, Sir John Anson, and Sir Thos. Fremantle.

Mr. Galton, the honorary secretary, read the
subjoined communication from Dr. Livingstone :
" Sesheke, Sept. 10, 1860.
" My dear Sir Roderick,—Feeling in honour bound to
take the Makololo back to their own country, and disliking
the idea of coming to a standstill while waiting for news of
a real steamer, we started on the way from Tettee, and in
three months accomplished a distance of some 600 miles.
" Our route lay along the north bank of the Zambesi,
crossing the mountain mass in which .tiebrabasa lies, and
the Loangua and Nafue at their confluences. Then along
the fine fertile valley in which the Zambesi gently fl )ws
(being new ground) for about 100 miles. Then turning
westward, in lat. 17 18 S., up a sandy river (the Zougue)
till we saw the source of the fragments of coal strewed on
its bed. Ascended about 2,000 feet above the Zambesi, or
3,300 feet above the level of the sea, to the base of Taba-
cheu ; breathed for a short time the clear, cold, reviving air
on the highlands, and actually saw hoar frost and a little ice.
Then descended into the greatvalley of the Makololo. When
within 20 miles of Victoria Fall we could see the columns of
vapour with the naked eye, and there I could not resist the
temptation of acting the showman to my companions, Dr.
Kirk and Mr. C. Livingstone, though by diverging from
our straight course to Sesheke we added some 40 miles to
our tramp. The hippopotami had eaten all ray trees, so
henceforth we shall have war with them to the knife. They
are good food, half beef and half pork, and lots of fat, that
serves as butter. This is part of the casus belli.' By the
way, our good friend Professor Owen, and the gastronomic
committee will stand very much in their own light if the
she giraffes die a natural death. If they praised the eland
so, which we consider but so-so, a dinner off she giraffe will
leave them all lying on their backs.
" Our plan of returning is to pass Victoria Falls and buy
camels at Sinamenese, then drop down the stream so as to
be at the sea in November. This goes by an elephant
'hunter whom we met at the Falls to Mosilikatze, and thence
to Kuruman.

" We found Sekeletu labouring under a skin disease, be-
lieved to be leprosy, the effect, of course, of witchcraft, and
several headmen had been executed for the alleged crime.
Many influential men had died of fever, and the tribe is
altogether in a shaky condition. They are anxious to go to
the highlands, and were disappointed at me not bringing
Mrs. L--9 for all believe that she or any ralraber of
Mr. Moffat'sfamily would be a protection to them against
Mosilikatze. During our month's sojourn here we have
been treated to tea, American biscuits, and preserved fruits
daily. We have tried to cure Sekeletu's complaint, and he
is recovering; but time and patience are requisite for the
cure. It is probably an obstinate skin disease, and not
leprosy.
" But, I must tell you that we were saddened by the loss
of a party of London missionaries, as we suppose, by fever
at Linyanti ; six out of nine Europeans perished in three
months. By a remedy first tried on our own children at
Lake Ngami in 1850 we, at a lower and more unhealthy
part of the Zambesi, cured severe cases of the complaint in
Europeans so quickly that our march was rarely interrupted
more than a day or two ; a man stricken prostrate was
sometimes able to resume his march on foot a day after the
operation of the remedy, and this while those good people
were helplessly perishing. The proper medicines,
too, for its composition were found by me in the waggon,
which has been carefully guarded for seven years, within a
few hundred yards of their graves. 1 think it is mentioned
near the end of the Missionary Travels ' which you made
me write ; but I am now anxious that it become generally
known, and there is great difficulty in the matter. Medi •
tines so often deceive people : panaceas in one hand, and
nonentities in another. I have, however, never failed to
cure during 10 years.
"With very kind salutations to Lady Murchison --I
am, &c. "DAVID LIVINGSTONE."

" Tette, Nov. 26, 1860.
"My dear Sir Roderick,—We unfortunately missed the
opportunity of sending overland by the elephant hunters,
so I open the letter written at Sesheke to insert some fur-
ther particulars. The river was so low we could easily see the
bottom of one half of the fissure which forms Victoria Falls ;
and, indeed, people could wade from the north bank to
my Garden Island, to form a stockade for fresh seeds. The
depth is not 100 feet, but 310 feet—probable a few feet more,
as the weight attached to the line rested on a slope near the
bottom. The breadth from bank to bank is not 1,000 yards,
as I conjectured in 1855, but between one statute and one
geographical mile—we say 1,860 yards to assist the memory,
but it is a little more, yet not quite 2,000. The lips of the
crack at Garden Island may be more than 80 feet, as we could
not throw a stone across, hut the sextant gave that. Now
come to the other, or south-eastern side of the crack, and the
fisure, which from the upper bed looka like the letter L, is
prolonged in a remarkable zigzag manner. The water, after
leaping sheer down 310 feet, is collected from both ends
to the upright part of the letter as the escape,. and then
flows away on the zigzag part. The promontories formed
thereby are flat at the top, and of the same level as the bed of
the river above the Falls. The base,of the first on the right
is only 40 paces from the Fall fissure, and that on the left
about 150. Their sides are as perpendicular as the Fall,
' and you can walk along among the trees, and by a few steps
see the river some 300 or 400 feet below, jammed in a space
of some 20 or 30 yards, and of a deep green colour. As a
whole, the Victoria Falls are the most wonderful in the
world. Even now, at extreme low water, or when it is two
feet lower than we ever saw it, there are 800 feet of water
falling on the right of Garden Island. And the two columns
of vapour, with the glorious rainbows, are a sight worth
seeing. A fall called Momba or Moamba, below this, is
more interesting, chiefly because you look down it from a
height of some 500 feet. It is really nothing after Medea •
tunya.
" We v isited the river twice on our way down to Sine manes,
and found it in a very deep crack. The boiling point
gives 1,600 of descent from the Falls to Sinamanes. Mr.
Moffat informs me that all the rivers in Moselekatze
country run N.W. or N.N.W. They enter the Zainbesi
above Sinamanes, and above a remarkable mountain, which
possibly was the dam that shut in the waters of the ancient
lake, before Mosioatunya was made. They are therefore not
where, from oral information, they have been put in the
map. The whole country below and around the Falls has
been the scene of comparatively recent volcanic operations.
Some parts look as recent as Aden; some are of frothy
lava, and all present a burnt appearance like catacecaumene
in Greece. A conjecture that the calcareous tupa of
Sesheke valley was emitted from a volcano like that
which covered the cities of Pompeii and Hercu-
laneum does not account for the roots of reeds'
therein, nor the bidental saurians of the ancient
lakes; and I question if a volcano ever threw mud over
200 miles square as this lake has done. Wherever
we have had igneous action in this country, we have had
large quantities of tupa bearing water after it. I cannot
account for the enormous quantity of gravel and shingle
below the Falls. The bed of the river and country gene-
rally are covered with it to a considerable depth. There is
none above the Falls, and none below Chicova.

" We purchased canoes and dropped down stream in
order to examine all at low water. Kansalo is no difficulty.
Kariba, a few miles below it, is a basaltic dyke, stretched
across the stream, but it has a wide opening in it, danger-
ous for canoes, the gunwales of which were only six incnes
above the water. At Vurumas there is a rapid of about
100 yards in length, which runs at six knots an hour.
We measured the most rapid part below Chicova
on our way up, and found it to be under four knots,
bid a fall of about 15 feet before our return developed several
dangerous rapids and even cataracts which were quite
smooth when we passed Chicova. There seemed from the
shore to be a trap dyke across the stream, like Kariba,
but it had two openings. We passed through either the
one or the other without observing the dyke ; but we saw
a large seam of fine coal in the bank. There is another in
the bank at Manyerire Hill, and besides seeing fragments
of the minerals in many rivulets on both banks, we verified
the existence of the coalfield, not to Zumbo only, as I for-
merly pointed out, but to nearly Sinramanes, below
Victoria Falls. The only real difficulty in the river is Mo-
rumbua, and that could be passed in full flood, for a rise
of 80 feet must smooth it over.

" On arriving here two days ago we bad travelled from
Linyanti and back, some 1,400 miles—the greater part on
foot. We have thus kept faith with the Makololo, though
we have done nothing else. We wore swamped once, but
the men behaved admirably, leaping out and swimming
alongside until we got into smooth water. In another
place one canoe was upset and property lost. We then
abandoned the canoes and came home en foot, thankful to
say ' all well "

Sir R. MURCHISON, Vice-President of the Society,
said, in the absence of their distinguished associate,
Livingstone, and occuped as he was in exploring
the interior of South Africa, it was highly desirable
to lose no opportunity iu testifying their sense of
the importance of his labours. The approval of
his conduct by the society would act now, as it had
acted before, on his generous soul as the best en-
couragement of further researches, and now that he
was at length provided with the stout little vessel,
the Pioneer, there could be little doubt that he would
accomplish other discoveries equal in importance
to those which had recently made know n to us the
physical geography and natural products and
character of the people on the banks of the river
Shire, that great affluent of the Zambesi. In
speaking of his latest exploits Livingstone, with
his usual modesty, said he had done little more

than reconduct his faithful Makololo followers back
to their country. What they had just heard read,
however, must have convinced them that in carry-
ing out that object, so dear to his heart, his com•
panions, Dr. Kirk and Mr. C. Livingstone, must
have made very considerable additions to their ac-
quaintance with the interior of the country. Thus,
although he had in his former travels, in 1855,
passed through a portion of the Batoka country,
Livingstone had little intercourse with the people but
we were now presented with a graphic description of
them, and of many of their customs. If honesty
was the best policy, then he (Sir R. Murchison)
affirmed that Livingstone was the very best consu-
lar agent our Government could have sent to the
regions watered by the Zambesi and its affluents.
His conduct throughout had been marked by
straightforwardness and a stern adherence to truth
and honour; and as there could be no doubt that
he had already produced a deep moral impression
on many tribes of South Africa, and had obtained
their regard, so by his further travels among other
tribes living in tracts as yet unvisited by any Eu-
ropean, and far beyond any territory ever colonised'
by the Portuguese, he would greatly extend that
salutary influence which reflected so much credit
upon the British nation. It was thus that the wis-
dom of the Queen's Government in granting to
Livingstone an appointment of so broad a charac-
ter, and in vigorously supporting him, would be
demonstrated, for he (Sir R. Murchison) trusted he
should soon see his efforts crowned with success,
not merely by the ex'ension of our commerce with
the mouths of the Zambesi, but also by his sowing
the seed of civilisation and religion in the heart of
Africa, which would more effectually cheek the
debasing slave trade than all the numerous and
costly armaments which fringe the coasts of that
continent. (Cheers) Towards that good end he had
written to him (Sir R. Murchison) in glowing
terms of the good effects to be expected from the
efforts of the Oxford and Cambridge mission to
found a religious and commercial establishment in
the country of the Manganza. (Hear, hear.)
Dr. SHAW then read an interesting paper, to
which we can here but briefly advert, communicated
by Mr. Chas. Livingstone, brother of the doctor,
written from Kongone, mouth of the Zambesi, so
lately as Jan. 14 in the present year, relating to
the Batoka country in Central Africa, which lies
between the 25th and 29th degrees of east longi-
tude, and the 16th and 18th: of south latitude-
It is described as haviug the river Kafire on the
north, the Zambesi on the east and south, and ex-
tending west till it touches the low fever plains of
the river Majeela, near Sesheke. A mountain
range running north-east and south-west rises
abruptly about 15 miles north of the Zambesi, and
spreads north and west in a vast undulating table-
land 3,000 to 5,000 feet above the level of the sea,
with extensive grassy plains, through which several
perennial streams wind. Between this elevated
land and the Zambesi sandstone is the prevailing
rock, and beds of shale and seams of coal out from
the banks of some of the small streams which flog
into the Zambesi, while north and west, granite,
resembling the Aberdeen variety, abounds. The
broad elevated lands have a fine healthy climate,
well adapted to the European constitution. Fever
is unknown ; in winter the thermometer sinks
during the night as low as 30 deg. Fahrenheit,
when thin ice is formed, and during the day the
temperature rises to about 68 deg. But a few years
since these extensive, healthy highlands were well
peopled by the Batoka : numerous herds of cattle
furnished abundance of milk, and the rich soil
largely repaid the labour of the husbandman. Now
enormous herds of buffaloes, elephants, antelopes,
and zebras fatten on the excellent pasture which
formerly supported multitudes of cattle, and not a
human being is to be seen. The ruined sites of
villages were frequently met with. The Batoka
people were driven out of that, the choicest portion
of their noble country, by the invasion of Sebitane.
Many were killed, and the survivors, except those
around the Falls, plundered of their cattle, fled to
the banks of the Zambesi and the rugged hills. of
Mataba. Scarcely, however, had the conquerors
settled down to enjoy their ill-gotten riches, when
they themselves were attacked by smallpox, and
as soon as its ravages had ceased, by the fighting
Matibele compelled to abandon the country and
seek refuge amid the fever swamps of Linyanti.
The writer then gives an exceedingly interesting
account of the Batoka people and their manners and
customs, which was listened to throughout with
deep attention. It gave rise at its conclusion to
short frinndly discussion, in which Admiral Sir
George Back and Consul Hanson, a gentleman of
colour, took part, and the company, before separat-
ing, manifested their gratification by an unanimous
vote of thanks to Dr. Livingstone and his party.

COUNTRY DIABEETS.

LIVERPOOL-APRIL 23.

There was a small attendance of the town and country
trade at this morning's market, and we had but a limited
bdsiness doing in both wheat and flour at Friday's rates.
Barley lower. Oats and oatmeal were a limited sale, but
without change in value. Beans were scarce, and fully
as dear. Indian corn in slow request, and the turn lower.