The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-02-22
The Solution Of the Mile Pre-
hleum.


solution of the 6-eat problem OF the source
Of the Nile:--
The details respecting the waters OF the
Upper Nile Basin, received from DR.. Living
stone since the appearance OF my letter In the
dtAen0uaa, No. 2l91, of October % last, have
mooeeted TO me what may call a solution of
Ahe GREAT problem of geography. AS then
stated. my object since 1876 has been to
ascertain the position of the central point OF
division between the waters flowing to the
Mediterranean, to the Atlantic, and TO the
Indian Ocean, the determination of which
would discover not only the source of the
Nile. but likewise the sources of some other
great African rivers, probably the Fam
besi and the Congo. That point can now
define.
In the western portion of Southern Africa,
within 800 miles from the coast of the Por-
tuguese colony of Benguela, are the vast
primeval forests of Olo-Vihenda, extending
over Several degrees in length, from north
20 south, but in breadth not more than seven
or eight days journey towards the north, and
perhaps twice as much towards the south.
The land. everywhere hilly, rises eastward
towards the border of the country of Djiokoe,
MS it is named by its inhabitants, or Kibokoe
(Quiboque), as it is called by the people be-
tween it and the coast, and after them by the
Portuguese and other Europeans; and its
mountains, marked on the maps as the MOS
samba Range" of which Djiokoe or Kibokoe
forms the eastern flank, must be regarded as
the most important water-parting of the con-
tinent of Africa.
OF the countless streams that have here
their sources it will be sufficient to name
few of the principal ones. Flowing west
wards into the Atlantic Ocean are the KuaEgo,
Congo or Zaire, the Kuanza, and the Kunene.
Running south are the Kuitu and the
Kabango, which lose themselves in Ngami or
some other lake in the interior. Having its
course to the east is the Lungebungo an
afiuent, and apparently the head-stream, OF
the Liambaii, or Zambesi, explored in its
upper course by DIR. Livingtohe. And beyond
this to the north is the mighty river Kassavi,
Kassabi Kasai, or Loke, which first flows to
the east, and then, augmented by the Lulua
and numerous other at1luents, passes north
eastwards through the country of the Mo-
luva, under the rule of the powerful and
mysterious potentate, the Matiamoo or Mua-
tiyanoo, to whom the Muata Cazembe, re-
Gently visited by DIR. Livingstone, was for
merly tributary and still is SO nominally.
The central and most important portion of
these vasts forests, containing the actual
sources of the multitudnous streams issuing
from them in every direction, is entirely un-
known to Europeans. Their southern skirts
have, however, been frequently traversed by
traders and others from the coast, and espe-
cially by Ladislaus Magyar, an educated and
accomplished Hungarian, in the service of
the Government of Benguela who unfortu-
nately died in that colony on November 10,
1864, when on the eve of returning to Europe
with the manuscript of the second and third
volumes of his 'Travels," " the first volume of
which, containing description of Benguela
only, had been published in 1859 at Pesth, in
Hungarian and German. 1t is from q letter
from that traveller, dated November 16, 1858,
and published by Dr. Petermann, in his ''Geo-
graphische Mittheilungen" for 1860, PIP. 227-
235, that theforegoing particulars have been alb
Btracted. On the east and north these forests Of
Kibokoe were approached by DR.. Livingstone
on his former journey; and on February 27,
1854, he crossed the river Kasai or Kassavi
Gas prefer to call it) within about 16O or
17O miles of its source The following des-
cription of the river at that spot is given in
page 332 of his missionary Travels: :"-''This
is most beautiful river, and very much like
the Clyde in Scotland. The slope of the
valley down to the stream is about 500 yards,
and finely wooded 1t is, perhaps, about 100
yards broad, and was winding slowly from side
to side in the beautiful green glen, in course
to the north and northeast In both the
directions from which it came and to which
it went, it seemed to be alternately embow-
cred in sylvan vegetation or rich meadows
covered with tall grass The men pointed out
its course, and said, Though you sail along ii
for months, you will turn without seeing the
end of it.
The river thus crossed and described by
our countryman nearly sixteen years ago is,
as now purpose showing. the long-sought
for head of the Nile of Egypt. The following
are the particulars have collected respecting
its course.
m Afew miles above the spot visited by the
Scottish traveller, the Kassavi, having it,
course from west to east breaks through two
impending masses of rock, and forms tn,
cataract of Mueva; and it then winds gentl,
round to the north, in which direction it wa
followed down by L. Magyar beyond tn
seventh parallel of south latitude. Below thi
point, he says, the river resumes its easterl,
direction, and, according to native report, i
acquires width of several miles, and though
its waters are still fresh its wave
are at times SO high as to be dan
gerous to navigation. He had reasor
to believe that the Kassavi attains this grea
breadth where it reaches the extensive lake
of Mouva Cor Moura), otherwise Uhanja. Al
.g an earlier period the same traveller had re-
ported to the Government of Benguela tha
the Kassavi was reputed to fall into the
Indian Ocean at some place unknown. Mos
important and valuable as this information is
it has been universally disregarded by geogra
pliers and photographers, who, in direct con
tradiction of the express assertion of an in
telligent European, speaking from his owl
personal knowledge, that below seven de
erees of south latitude the Kassavi flows +
the east, have concurred in turning tn
rivers course round to the northwest an
west, and making it to be one of the head
streams of the Kuango or zaire river c