The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-09-30
AFRICAN DISCOVERIES.

AFRICAN DISCOVERIES.
FROM LIvINGsroNE's ZAMBEzI TO sTANLEY's
coNGo-THE scIpIo AfRIcANUs OF TUE NEW
YORK HERALD AND THE LONDON TELEGRAPH.
GARRIsoN's, ON THE HUDSON, N. Y.,l
Sept. ~, 1871
To THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD
Completely ecpsng, and most gratifying diversion
from tho shocking butchcrics aud barbarites OF tho
war In Turkey, was, to The guests of this Highland
house the other morning, the surprising and
news In the HERALD OF the GROWING triumph OF Stan
ley's African explorations The general opinion
pressed from tho reading OF brief cable report OF
this hazardous and perous undertaking, and OF tho
complete Of Stanley In comprising It, was
that advances him In the roll OF African explorers 10
the head or next to the head Of the front
legion oil honor; and that in the imperishabls
honors no has thus achieved tho NEw YoRK HERALD
and the London Telegraph will henceforth DO
ciated as arc Ferdinand and Isabella with the
daring adventures and Now World discoveries OF
Columbus. And what flood of light has been
thrown upon tho previously unknown regions
OF Central Africa from Livingstone's nrs. ex.
plorations across the continent from west to east,
south OF tho Equator to stanley's splendid achieve
mcnts In crossing the continent from the tho
hrst important south African discoveries the chief
map as with It's auents, oil that there OF that
great river At that time Of all that great Interior
equatorial system of lakes and rivers only few years
ago discovered by Livingstone, nothing known.
The vast expanse OF country occupied by those rivers
and lakes, including tho numberless sources anu
equatorial lakes OF the Nile was blank on tho map
OF Africa Lvingstone's first important movement
IN connection with that great and bountfuy watercd
equatorial plateau, was his finding OF the imperial
Zambez River, and tho tracing OF It's from It's
sources to the Indian Ocean This was the first the
three great rivers draining SAID vast equatorial pa
whose course from its SOURCES to outlet was
definitely determined. But, still, even Livingstone
ignorant the important that that elevated
equatorial plateau tho roof Of continent and
that tho lottier mountains scattered around
II woro only It's domes and towers.
GRANT AND BAKER
Spoke ana Grant, in lS6l62, electrified the civilized
world with their discovery OF that great equatorial
reservoir OF the Nile, which In honor OF their sovereign
they named the Victoria Niyanza A year or more
later Baker ascending the Nile, discovered the twin
lake Of the Victoria, which, in honor of the
Prince Consort, he named tho Albert Nj
yanza, from which graceful compliment to tho
Prince, Mister became Sir Samuel Baker,
satisfactory settlement OF the Nile sources
a mystery when had puzzled the wiso men Of tho
East and OF thc West from Tho time oil Moses down to
our own day.
Meantime that learned traveller, Burton, from iour
to i've hundred miles the southwest OF the Victoria
Lake, having separated from Speke and Grant, was
luxuriating over The charms Of the beautiful Lake
Tangauy iKa the queen border OF Lvingst0ues
Interior system Of lakes anu rivers Burton Lett
beautiful Lake satisfied that, from its altitude and lat
tudes aud tnat us II lies icngthwsc, stretched along
hraQh rod mi Ial he "A IN. tl.a
southeast 1t must be discharged into the Indian Ocean,
TWO NILE PROBLEMS SOLVED DY BAKER.
In 186l-2-S Baker, from actual observation settled
Two oil the mysteries OF tue old Nile, which had been
to geographers conJcctures through period Of four
or Nv" thousand years These yterics were first the
annual aud iertiiizng nundaons OF raness Egypt by
river flowing through boundess and rainless DESERT
and second, tue otherwise heavy and unaling volume
OF the great river through all Tue year Whence this
annual f. yptan humiliation ana whencs this heavy
ana unialing stream through all the year, OF river
nowinx tor 800 miles through rainloss desert, and
without O tributary Baker, from actual OBJ
scrvation, discovered that tho annual flooding OF
Egypt comes IRON the spring Hoods descend hing into
the Nile chIcny through The Atbura River from the
dclu2ing vcinal rains on the LOFTY mountains OF
Abyssina lie next discovered that the heavy con-
slant stream oil the Nile through all the year
from the nbounding rains OF It's great equatorial basn
Tor he found tho volume OF the Cairo what
may call the dry season OF Egypt less than half Its
volume 900 miles further up Tie stream.
Next the question Was raised, Are tho Victoria
AMI Albert lakes the fountain heads vi Inc NeY
With the hndihg vi Livingstone by Stanley ian
event of the first Importance in connection with all
these subsequent African exploraons) and from tho
knowledge thus brought before the world of the brave
old missionary aud explorers discoveries west OF
the Tanganyika, OF his vast interior elevated basin OF
lakes aud rivers, covering AN area larger than
that OF halt the terrnory Of tho United States
east OF the Mississippi River, with the news
Oh those discoveries, wc say, drought from
dnusod that tho sources III the Nile were probably
this great basin, ana from SIX 10 seven nundrcd miles
south OF the Victoria aud Albert akce. Had Lv-
ngstone discovered that tho general drainage OF said
great Interior basin centred tho Luaiab;
imperial stream, the course Of which north
ward at tho point wnere no had the river plainly
heading for junction with the NileY Doubts
lectures followed; but from comparing the measures
the respective levels above the OF the
Albert and Tanganyika, II became evident that tho
uaaba could not be the Nc and That Il was PROBABLY
the Congo Possibly, however, II was an Independent
river flowing into tho Atlantic north OF the Congo
into some great interior salt lake which explorer
had yet seen heard OF. To settle this question
and 10 determine, far practcabie the urea the
actual length and breadth, boundaries bays drainage
tributaries, &C, OF the Lakes Victoria anu Albert ana
the general character and drainage OF the extensive
peu nsua between those lakes, and to Tx the 'divae"
between tho drainage OF those lakes and that OF the
basin OF the 1anganyika aud Livingstone's interior
plateau were, u now appears, the ncrculcan labors
undertaken and herocaliy accomplished by stanley in
TINS late marvellous expedition terminating at tho
mouth OF tho Congo.
SUMMING UP THESE DISCOVERIES
From Livlngstonc's ZamDez 10 stanlcy's Congo,
they substantially settle all the pro existing ystcres
doubts and c0nJecuros touching tho sources and the
drainage Of Tho Nile, and they MI with popuous tribes
aud with three different systems Of splendid rvcrs and
lakes region the heart OF Africa hereto
lore represented on the maps OF the continent a
blank. From Livingstone to Stanley, including the
discoveries vi Spoke and Grant, Burton, Baker,
Scnwcinfurtn, Gordon and his colleagues and Others,
these facts have been cstablIshod:-
That the OF the ME the heads Of
the chef tributaries OF tho Victoria NiyauZa and that
oi them, the Shneeyu, extends to the fourth de-
grec Of south latitude. stanley
That tho annual inundaton oi Egy pt from tho
heavy spring rains over all tho extensive mountain
system Of Abyssnia.-iSaker.
That tue uniailug stream Of the great through
rainlcss and burning desert of 800 miles supplied
from tho enormous rainfall OF the RAINY belt Of the
Equator.-Baker.
largest river Ia the world and that ts tributaries arc
as numerous AS those oil Inc Mississ ppi.--speke,
Grant, Baker, Schwenfurth and Stanley.
Tint the Lake fanganyka has really no fixed outlet
the only great fresh water lakc-iu the world from