The New York herald., 1875-10-30
The Great Lake System OF Central
Africa.

The exploration of the equatorial regions
Of Africa proves the existence of grand sys-
tenn of lakes or inland seas, which form the
sources Of such rivers as the Nile, the Zam-
bezi and the Congo. The immediate sur
rounding Of these great bodies of water is
depressed plain, extending from the south
erly limits of Sahara to about the twentieth
degree Of southern latitude, and to within
from three hundred to five hundred miles of
the eastern and western coHst lines of the
continent. Being Immediately under the
Equator these lakes are mainly within the
limits of the neutral zone on either side of
which the atmospheric and oceanic equa-
toral currents diverge to the north and
south. Therefore, while a vast body of
vapor-laden air is carried over them from the
ocean on line with the Equator, and from
which they receive the water that supplies
the loss by their river drainage, they lose
nothing by evaporation. All the moisture
raised from their surfaces by the suns heat
returns again in the shape of heavy and
almost continuous rains, which are precipi-
tated within the zone Of evaporation. Our
explorer Henry NJ Stanley, describes his
journeys through vast regions Of swamp.
DR.. Livingstone died from the exhaustion in
duced by fatigue in passing through one
Of them, and thus, by his death as
well as by his writings, has corroborateg the
testimony Of Stanley and other explorers re-
garding these great shallow lakes. If they
were subjected to an evaporation that drew
off their water in vapor, which was in turn
transferred to other regions by atmospheric
currents, they would quickly dry up in such
o latitude, and Sahara itself would soon be
changed by their waters into wilderness Of
verdure instead Of being one of burning
desert sands In the equatorial zone,
within which these great lakes lie, there
must be almost condition of atmospheric
stagnation we do not mean on absolute i'm
mobility of the air, but the confinement of
its movement within fixed geographical linn
it's Storms are generated over the African
lakes, but they do not pass outside the neu-
trail zone referred to; they are local in origin
and action and accompany the phenomenon
of the heavy rains, having had the same ex-
citing gcause-evaporation. Such being the
case the gigantic forest growths Of these re-
gions and the generally fatal character to
human life of the atmosphere can be nc
counted for by the fact that the vast volumes
of carbonic acid gas evolved from the putre-
faction in water of the vegetation impregnate
the air and render it most favorable for the
vegetable but fatal to human life. The I'M
healthiness of the coast lines is mainly due
to their low levels, and in the case of the
Guinea coast to being on the line and paral-
lei to the themnal equator which traverses
the greatest width Of the continent about
four degrees northward of the geographical
Equator The theory of the source or the
sources of the Nile and other rivers in Equa-
torial Africa will, we are confident, be es-
tablished when Stanleys scientific explora-
ton and survey Of the great lakes is com
pleted and its results given to the world.
|
PooR VoN ARNIM had not met with all his
misfortunes when he was convicted and inn
prisoned on the Bismarck charges. He is
about to be cashered from the public SER
vice, and apparently the only thing open to
him is to cmgrate to America. A worse fate
than this might have bcfallen him, and there
is room hero not only for him, but we could
find a place even for Bismarck himself
CApT1rN NIrCruroru'q TpIAT, closed