The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-02-08 00:00:00

On Thursday the town of Woolwich presented a most
animated and interested appearance, as it was understood
that his Majesty the King of Prussia was to visit the trcops,
aid afterwards to embark for his own land.
At 20 minutes past 10 the carriage containing the King of
;fa, Prince Albert, and Duke Ferdinand of Saxe Coburg,
escorted by a troop of the 11th Hussars, was observed ap-
proaching, and the signal being given, the royal standard was
hoisted on the flag-staff, and a royal salute announced the
arrival of the royal party, who immediately alighted, and to
whom several of the officers were introduced. The band of
the Royal Artillery played " God save the Queen," and the
troops presented arms, on the near approach of the royal
visiters to the spot where they were stationed.
The exercises of the troops immediately commenced by
the Royal Horse Artillery and field batteries marching past
at slow and quick time, and firing ; but, owing to the soft-
ness of the ground, or more probably to an evident anxiety
in the countenance of the King of Prussia to embark, the
troops did not gallop past or fire so many rounds as on for-
mer occasions. The Royal Horse Artillery, however, un-
limbered their guns, and his Majesty went up to them while
they sat upon the wheels, and remained with apparent satis-
faction to witness the guns remounted, as they always are,
in an incredibly short space of time. The Royal Horse
Artillery were immediately afterwards ordered home, and the
field batteries proceeded to the marshes.
His Majesty the King of Prussia had been by this time
joined by Field Marshal the Duke of Wellington, K.G.,
G.C.8., and G.C.H., who walked on one side, and the
Duke of Cambridge on the other, with his Majesty across
the common, and through the south-west gate to the Repo-
sitory. Doting the progress of the royal and distinguished
visiters the immense concourse of spectators who had as-
sembled bad excellent opportunities of seeing the King of
Prussia and Prince Albert, and the grand and brilliant staff
present in honour of the occasion.
After remaining 'about half an hour in the Repository, the
royal party proceeded to the mortar battery, where a few
rounds were fired, and on entering the guard mounting
parade, were received with the usual honours by the Royal
Sappers and Miners, the 15th Regiment, and the Royal Ma-
rines, drawn up in, line. His Majesty and Prince Albert,
with the whole of the staff, then entered the mess-room,
where they remained about twenty minutes. On leaving the
mess-room, the King entered one of the barracks of the
gunners and drivers of the Royal Artillery, and examined
their accommodatioc. It was expected that his Majesty
would visit the depot adjacent to the hospital, but he entered
the royal carriage at the mess-room with Prince Albert and
the Duke Ferdinand of Saxe Coburg, and proceeded, escorted
by the Life Guards, along the Plumstead-road to the
marshes.
The crowd following in the direction of the marshes on
this occasion was most immense, and one so numerous has
seldom been witnessed in Woolwich. Indeed, the attempts
of the police to prevent the people from entering at the
Marsh-gate, only induced them to break through the hedges,
and many most ludicrous scenes were witnessed of torn coats
amongst the gentlemen, and the women caught in the hedges
by their veils and bonnets, or where their dresses were of
slight texture. None of these obstacles, however, deterred
the people from pushing forward, and they entered in masses,
in defiance of hedges, banks and ditches, and the police. At
the time of the firing of the rockets, the only practice carried
on, there could not have been less than 50,000 persons in
the marshes and adjoining fields. The field batteries were in
attendance, and a detachment stationed at General Millar's
gun, hut they were not called upon to fire, and the first
charges with which the guns had been loaded had to be

and fish, it is only known to the Lord Creator."
Among the more formidable difficulties-in this country to
travellers, there are none more alarming and insuperable
than those arising from climate. Imminent dangers arising
from the presence of savage men or animals are of a tran-
sient nature, and capable of being guarded against by vigi-
lance and strength ; but the secret and devastating operations
of a pestilential climate are too subtle and deadly to permit
in almost any shape of device for counteraction. The
treachery of the tribes of Africa has done little towards de-
stroying travellers and explorers, compared with the destruc-
tive and exterminating influences of her noxious clime ; and
it is almost solely to this that the slow progress of African
discovery is to be attributed. The banks of the Joliba,
Quarra, or Niger, seem invisibly sentinelled by an ever-re-
pelling power.
In the ensuing paper a brief recapitulation of all former
and modern attempts to discover the source of the Niger,
and the misfortunes, failures, and partial successes that have
attended upon the travels and investigations of inquirers,
will show the absolute fatality attending in some shape or
other all expeditions of a similar nature to what has just de-
spatched homeward its new addition to the catalogue of ca-
lamities which have already been its precursors.
The first notice in history on this point appears in Here-
dotus, who states, in his " Geograhy of Africa," that some
young Nassamonians, a people who dwelt on the borders of
the Mediterranean, travelled in a westerly direction from
Egypt until they came to a large river full of crocodiles, and
flowing towards the rising sun. and they were conducted by
the natives to a considerable city situated ou the banks. The
difficulty of determining the expression due west at this pe-
riod of time leaves the passage doubtful. Colonel Leake,
however, in a recent letter read by him in the Geological So-
ciety, considers that they travelled along the Niger, and the
city to which they were conducted was Timbuctoo.
Strabo speaks little of the Niger, but Pliny largely ; he
traces it through Mauritania, but falls into the error of He-
rodotns, who considers the Nile and Niger one river. Mela
was the most reasonable geographer, and coincides as to the
general opinion of the source of We Niger, but with proper
candour acknowledges that no one knew what became of it, at
the centre of the continent. Ptolemy, whose account of the
Niger is very vague, closes all that the ancients knew of it.
From the Arabians some fuller,accounts of the geography
of the country are to be gleaned. Abulfeda and Adrisi knew
it until it reached:the Atlantic Ocean, or " Sea of Darkness,"
and to distinguish it from the Nile, called it the" Nile of the
Negroes."
The maritime enterprise of the Portuguese led them early
into the interior ; but though they obtained a considerable
store of information respecting the Niger, they turned it to
but little account. In their maps a remarkable circumstance
is observable regarding the positiim of Timbuctoo. This city
is placed so near the sea as to excite suspicion of its being the
same as that on the Niger, and another place called Tambou-
cane, on the Senegal, is mentioned as answering their Tim-

SAILED.—Hope, Sault:, and Loochoo, Wippen, for New Orleans
—Hennes, Oliphant, for Buenos Ayres—Joseph Wheeler, Norton,
for Barbadoes—Sanders, Bulley, for Constantinople--Trinity
Yacht, Maxwell, for Gibraltar—Lord C. Spencer, Crouch, ditto—
and Charles, Picketers, for Bruges.

Patriot Queen, Hoodless, from Calcutta, at this port; sailed 6th
October, and from St. Helena 22nd Dec. On 26th Oct. in lat. 2N,
long. 85 8, spoke the Mary Somerville, from Calcutta for Mauritius
Navigator, , from Liverpool for Buenos Ayres, was spoken
27th Jan. in lat. 47, long. 8
Argentina, Tillson, and Isabella, -, hence at 13nenos Ayres
Alpha, John Scott, and Holywood, hence at Monte Video
Coeur de Lion, Kendall, and Penrith, -, hence at Rio
Winscales, and Resolution, hence at Maranham
Jane, hence at Charleston
Christina, Grant, and Jamaica, --, hence at Bahia
Lady Harvey, and Sultana, hence at Laguna
Doctor, Luke, hence at Zante
Eleonora, Carthnysen, hence at Ostend
Llewellyn, -, from Lisbon, at Monte Video
Delhi, from Rio Janeiro, at Santos _ .

St. Lucia, Raisbeck, from Lombock for Rotterdam, off Portland.
On '22nd Jan. spoke the China, from Liverpool for Charleston, with
loss of sails, quarter boat, &c.
Emerald, Schmidt, from Danzic for Liverpool, at Stornaway •
Statesman, sailed from Rio Janeiro Ist Dec. for Calcutta ; Ramb-
ler, 16th Dec. for Monte Video, and Gipsey, 25th Dec. for Maranham

SUNDAY, JANUARY 6 —Wind S.E. light

Artnivicu.—Ann, —, from St. Michael—Nicholas Biddle,
from Savannah—Jersey Lass,
Dog, from Malaga—and Fairfield, —, from Calcutta.
SA; LEn.—Herculean, Grindall, for Bombay—Ceres, Smith, for
Honduras—Balette Puggarves, Lund, for Havana—Cabinet, Lin.
nell ; Caledonia Brander, Malony, and Lochinvar, Wescott, for
New Orleans—Old Tom, Le Gros, for New York—Cantab. Kenny,
for Rio Grande—lndian, Mackie, for the Cape of Good Hope—
Lady itedesdale, Bayley, for Syra—Pauline, De Boer, for Rotter-
darn—Le Printemps, Touchett, for Marseilles—Nais, Easton, and
Dora, Quick, for Gibraltar—Diligentia, Mesquita ; Albacora, Oil-
Vera; Voluntario, Galhardo, and Amizade. Meaquita, for Lisbon—
Commerce, Grave, and Nyverheid. Lievens, for Ostend—Acastus,
Hayes, for Beirout, Uniao, Rocha, and Novo Born Fim,
Foie, for St. Übes—Bovaro, Scatto, for Naples—and Gerda, Ask-
lakion, from Arendahl.

Glenlyon, Crichton, hence at Ancona
Ann Falcon, Brown, hence at Messina
Redbreast, hence at Naples
Shakespeare, hence for BomLay, was spoken 26th Nov. in lat
3 N, long. 2:; W

. -
Pandora, -, hence for Ceylon, was spoken 11th Dec. in lat.
20 S, long. 28 W
Charles Jones, -, hence for Valparaiso, was spoken 16th
Dec in lat. 22 S, long. 37 W
Eliza Bell, hence for Monte Video, was spoken 22nd Jan. in lat.
29 N, long. 14 W