Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1857-03-21
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
BOWEN ON CENTRAL AFRICA.

Southern Baptist Publishing Society 1891.
The eagerly expected work of Mr.. Bowen forms one
of class in our day. DIR. KAsK's Expedition to the
Polar Regions not marked with the impress of
our age than this of Mr.. Bowen.
The triumphant confidence of inventors in applying
science useful is not striking feature OF
the last century than the triumphant confidence Of Chris
ian Missionaries in the uniform laws Of human nature,
the power by which approached and and the
essential truth Of the religion of Jesus Christ and its
tanty redeem any people of the earth One effect of
this spirit of the age has been that the hostile exclusive
ness which locked up Western any Eastern Asia and all
Africa from the knowledge of the European and Ameri-
werd has dsspted much have the terrors and
difficulties of distant travel land or ocean Fifty
years ego such adventure as that Of Burkhardt IN
travelling through SYRIA the desert of Sinai and Lower
Egypt wonderful piece Of hardihood as Mungo
Parks expedition into Africa But now journey across
the and the whole route of Burkhard IS an
every day affair much summer visit to neigh
boring watering place In ten years from now the centre
of africa will be inviting field for the Oriental
tourist and the country open Syria and Egypt
now This may seem strong statement but truth must
be strongly stated in order to be appreciated
1t takes men of peculiar make, however, to conceive
right views of the eternal laws Of human nature so
strongly and practically become pioneers in
was day and there is book where this principle is
recognised An Abraham is worthy of mention more
than Pharoahs Christian missionary explorer is the
hero of the world
Mr. Bowen in youth was bold and hardy soldier but
in his manhood and his Christian devotion the qualities
of hero born in him have found field which soldier
ever has chance To penetrate alone into an
entirely unknown and hostile region, to go straight
through the gates Of city peoped by hundreds of thou
sands who looked on him with the wonder as they
would on an angel fend dropping down from the
Clouds say before the Court and King of great ma
ton in whose presence he stood arraigned, Bowen
did % The God of Heaven is my King; am soldier,
and this book is my sword and thus conquer his way
from city city and through people after people, is an
achievement such as Alexander never would have
dreamed of undertaking. 1t is comparatively coTdrdec
to be conquerer shielded all sides by an nvincibe
army.
Peculiar intellectual well moral traits always be-
long such pioneer. When country is fairly open
plenty of 6ooteors work their way through and give
the world hsapy books and plenty of butterflies in iera
ture flip over to skim materials for light books but
book that is book upon country is written by
man of practical philosophy of mingled power
man of perception and Of reflection. Such work viii
always have the life Of romance and at the time
the clear analysis and classification which belongs
ture herself for both the bookworm and the fashionable
are always unnatural in their pictures Of other lands
They did not themselves naturally, and Of course
cannot paint naturally to the eye of another.
Pages might be filed with extracts from this rich
sAetchbook Of several years original research in the
rarest of the worlds fields for investigation. So
peculiar is that characteristic of true explorer just al
luded that the thorough student Of African colo
nzaton in Liberia is struck with the entirely yet
perfectly simple and truthful views of things there
and ~. llDI6 the colonization enterprise has been
heard to say this book is the best written on Afr
can colonization because it presents the subject indirect
IN Truth is appreciated until its connexions
seen and the colonization Of Western Africa seen in
out of its connexion with Central Africa is different
in ASPECT as American colonization has appeared to
man of the seventeenth and another Of the nineteenth
century African colonization in Bowen's narrative and
that by the simplest style Of statement grows from in
fancy to maturity, and looks Virginia would to
Capt John Smith if he could wake from the sleep of
generations.
And now that background Of Central Africa covered
so lately with cloud of mpenerable darkness, comes
up the distinct foreground the mist clearing away
as in broad sunlight and one of the enchanting
prospects the world presented peering into view.
Such immense cities densey populated Asia alone
that 81 900 sometimes paid for choice Arabian horse
such genial kindliness and urbany among the people,
such trade, such culture surely seems dream to
think that so to the of Africa, within but
hundred or two of miles from the barbarous and
horrible portion Of the slave coast such wonderful peo-
pie should be living.
If any of Dr. Kane's Mr. Bowens spirit wishes
field of promise for exploration such other
earth Affords he will at this day seek Central Africa.
any such has fears in such undertaking, he may
fling them to the Winds for human nature has and
resist the advances of truly noble and gene
rous spirit If selfish man, Of avarice and
ambition, attempted to penetrate the land, he would
probably meet the fate such spirit always has met But
the compliment Livingstone has received from the scien
t6c world is based necessary principle Friends of
science and Of human discovery who wish countries
Christ can satisfy exclusive and distrusu people
the isinteresedness Of his mission China and Japan
rers open such long they such men,
never can the world be opened by any others.
few extracts illustrating these principles eulled
almost at random from Mr. Bowens book. After rapid
sketch of what was ancenty known of Africa Mr. Bowen
gives summary of Christian efforts to penetrate it. He
infers that the Portuguese in the fifteenth century knew
far more of Central Africa than is known in day.
He speaks of the settlement of Sierra Leone by negroes
taken from Southern States during the Of the
American Revolution which negroes because their cap
tors did not know what to do with Them were planted
their native Shore forming now school of preparation
native Africans who viii exert an influence upon the