The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1862-07-26

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tablished here by Medical Director s;mnson.
II IS under the charge Of Surgeon E. D.rson
and contains about 800 convalescent nat;snts
hospital tents are being prepared for the a.
eommodation Of over one hundred msn-TN
Y. Tribune. iN
Letter from DR.. Llvlngssone,
RIVER SHIRE, Jan. 6, 1862
Having lately returned from the exploration
Of about 200 miles of Lake Nyassa, a few notes
respecting this part Of the Lake region of in
ter tropical Africa may not be unacceptable to
my fellow-members of the American Geograph-
ical and Statistical Society.
we carried boat past the Murchison* cat
aracts OF this river, in August last distance
of IS or 40 miles. In that space We have five
considerable cataracts of 100 to $50 feet each.
but the intermediate spaces are very rapid.
too, as may be inferred by the total descent
being l, 200 feet. When we launched the boat
on the Upper Shire we were virtually on the
lake, though 60 miles distant, for that part Of
the river partakes much Of the character Of .
lake. 1t spreads out in one spot to lakelet,
10 or IL miles long, and or broad,
On the I'd day of September we sailed into
Lake Nyassa, and found it very Deep Our
means of sounding were very imperfect, we
We had brought q lead line of thirty-fve faith
oms; failing to reach the bottom at mile
from shore We employed fishing line and
found bottom in bay at one hundred fathoms, or
six hundred feet, but mile outside the bay We
felt none with one hundred and sixteen faith
oms, or six hundred and ninety six feet The
water is cool in consequence of its large VOL
ume, and aligators (Which well fed on fish sci.
dom modest men) allowed us to battle in it's
waters whenever We chose. This great luxu-
ry can be enjoyed IN but few African
rivers, and palisades are often made by the
natives to protect women in drawing water
against these dangerous reptiles. The shape
Of the lake is with the help perhaps Of q little
imagination, somewhat like Italy on the map.
the ankle of the boot is in the nsrrowest part
about eighteen or twenty miles; that is if We
exclude the arms Of its southern end One Of
these, thirty miles long and ten or twelve
broad, is prolonged into the Shire. The other
about the same breadth, is eighteen miles long,
and if We reject the boot shape, We may say
that the southern end has forked appearance.
1t expands up toward the north to fifty or sixty
miles; the length is over two hundred miles,
probably two hundred and twenty five, but we
failed to reach above the two hundred. 1t be-
gins in latitude fourteen degrees twenty-five
minutes south, and extends into the Southern
borders of the tenth degree of south latitude,
1t lies between the 35th and 36th degrees east
longitude, and is very nearly straight. We
sailed along the western shore and found it to
be succession Of bays all open to the East
We were there during the prevalence Of equi-
noctial gales, and found that furious storms
came down with great suddenness from the
mountains and high lands with which Lake
Nyassa is surrounded. Heavy seas in which
no open boat could live often get up in fifteen
or twenty minutes. There are several small
rounded rocky islands covered with forests,
which are uninhabited. These would afford
no shelter to ship, for many rocks put out
from deep water near them; an anchorage is to
be found only near the shore. Five rivers of
fifteen to thirty yards flow into it from the
West; possibly another Of larger size flows in
from the North but We did not SEQ it. The
lake rises and falls about three feet between
the wet and dry seasons; the water is fresh
but somewhat earthly tasted and hard The
population on its shores is prodigiously large;
all engage in catching FISH by nets hooks,
creels, torches or poison. Slavery is the only
trade they know. An Arab vessel called .
dhow has lately been built on the lake to car
ry slaves across, and We daily expect steam.
or lin psrts) out from England to be carried
past the catsracts, and launched on its waters
for very different purpose. The natives had
bear to be stared at to any amount They
were upon the whole civil: no fines were levied
or dues demanded. We were however, rob-
he'd in the sphere OF the slaves operations; the
first time We have suffered loss BY thieves in
Africa. The people are much less honest
whore shaving goes on than elsewhere, they
place but little value on human life. We went
up to show . mission (sent ont by tho Oxford
and Cambrige Universities) healthy locality
on the islands south Of Mount Zonbs, and in
trying to induce . tribe called Ajaws to desist
from slave.hunting, were attacked With pois-
oned arrows and guns, and but for recourse to
FIRE arms in self defense would soon have been
made food for the vultures; they were the first
who have attacked Us in Africa, and seemed
maddened by continued success in clever forays
against their fellow-countrymen.
Africa il continent Of the Future. It 10
impossible to recite ito capabilities. It is pre-
eminently cotton country, for here the plast
10 perennial, and requires little Of that heart
breaking toll where it is an exotic; no frosts
endanger the crops, and the best qualities
yield largely. slave-hunting is the greatest
30 much that labor becomes dead in proper.
sionS on the Zambezi are vslusless, because
oil the labor is departed to Bourbon, the sub
jects Of his Most Frightfu, Majesty bf Lisbon
having performed the part Of the boy Of the
Goose with the Golden Egg.
In addition to the missions Of the English
Universities, two other missions in this region
are contemplated. Healthy localities can be
secured on the highlands, which arise ON our
east to . height Of some 1000 or 8, 900 feet
shove the sea. an, &C..
s eiaa DAVID LIVINGSTON.
$50 named after Sir Roderic Nurchison
President Of the Royal Geographical Society
Of London. .s-l..-
PAcuIc RAnRoAD MINUS sns RAua.-rhs
steamer Omaha, on her last trip, lsft At Nsbrss-
ks City, huge Steam Wagon, intended 20 run
on the plains between the Missouri River and
the Gold Mines. II was manufactured It Nev
New York and 10 owned BY gentleman named
NJ 80