The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-03-30
StnnicN in Anirn.


We are reluctantly compelled by tho
persistent efforts made by the H'raH to
invest MIR. SrASLEy's explorations with an
importance which docs not belong To- thcm
to revert to the so-callcd discoveries OF that
gentleman, moro especially as.thcy have to
some extent been endorsed 10y a paper
usually 50 we'll informed az the Times. 1t Is
true that the latter journal carefully ah-
stains from ctodting Mr.. STANLEY with the
discoveries 81 Capt SrrKE, which the
HrdN has not ehrunk from doing, and
shows itself far moro convcrsant with the
existing conditions Of African geography
than the Journal which seems intent upon
sacrificing Mr.. SrANLEY's reputation IL an
explorer to his immediate value Us news
paper advertisement.
While even Mr.. STANLEY himself makes
no claim to many Of the discoveries which
are invented for him by the Herdd we are
sorry to say that we cannot absolvc him
from the charge of gross cxaRgcraton as to
the bearing upon what he calls the prob
lens OF African geography, of the new facts
| which his Investigations have brought to
| light, and which we shall endcaVor to place
at their proper value. No doubt this is
| partly due to the cxigcnccs of his position
A. correspondent Of the Herdid, he Is
| bound to be sensational. Every letter which
he addresses ia his journalistic capacity
must contain something out Of which capt.
| tat can be- made. If his explorations have
not furnished him with the necessary mate
rial, his only chance is to presume on the
ignorance Of the public, and to construct
problems which don't exist, in order to give
himself the credit Of solving them.
II has now become an accepted fact by all
| geographci7 that the Nile has its source in
the lake known a. the Victoria Nyan2a
which was discovered 10y Capt. SpEKE in
ISIS; and that It flows into the Albert Ny
ANA discovelyl by BAKER in 1864, who owed
his success to Il tracing given him 10y Capt.
SrEKE as he has always very handsomely
acknowledged. This latter lake has boon
found 10y GEssI. who has since surveyed it.
not to be n source " the Nile but n back
water. adding nothing to its volume. There
has not existed any mystery connected with
the Nile system which required solution
since Mr. STANLEY has been in these regions
That he has verified Capt. SpEKEs dclinea-
tion OF the Victoria Nyanza, only proves the
excellent geographical results achieved by
that officer; and Mr.. STANLEY deserves
every credit for the minute survey he has
made Of the lake which confirmed the accu-
racy of Capt SPEKE's hypothesis. II is a
pity he should not have been content to rest
upon these laurels Instead OF this. he has
assumed that If he can find out which Of the
numerous tributaries flowing into the Nicto-
ria Nyanza is the largest and longest, he
VIII be entitled to claim that as the Nile.
| First, ne found the Shmeeyu, and called
that the source OF tho Nile. Uniortu-
nhteIy ne alterward came upon much
larger niiueht, called the kageera, which
entirely eXtlnguished the Shmeeyu, and
thon ne called that the Alexandra Nile.
but thl- river had been examined by SPEKE
ana GRANT ana 1t Is gross violation OF
all etiquette among explorers for Il new
name I" tie given 70 ~ 10y "a gentleman VINO
visits IL hite'n years at'r IL lir-t discovery.
ana calls II the Alexandra ME- IN order
mat should he ever discover It's source he
may clalih 10 nave discovered the source OF
,iie me- III III" Hrs' place. IL Is not inc
NHe' any more tlah stream running INTO
Lake superior can be e"lieu the 81 Law
trnce, anu III 'h' s'c"h' pl''''' II II Wa 'h'
w, no n"9 "'' 'iS'"Ne'e' IT, Inns ne
''nA'y ""'ii''S' a. i'Ho"s'
,.,6 kn,y.Gh S ,S.'Si ~, 5 , ng ca, 5'yl G,Nr
,e. Tor H. osts, Of ll' .'on11 Lase cro',, a',
aooutit Ido not know. Ihsyc not their hooA'a band
The Ignorance which Mr. STANLEY often
displays in discussing African geography is
no doubt largely to be accounted for 10y the
fact that he has not read the accounts Of
former discoveries or, at all events, has not
taken them with him. Had he read Capt
SPEKE's book he would have found that that
officer fully appreciates the Importance OF
the Kageera river as probably the largest
ailluent Of the Victoria Nyanza; but he
judged, and judged rightly, that where a
huge lake Is fed by hundreds Of anluent-
several Of which are nearly Of size, tn,
river that runs out II II Is not the same river
a. any one II those ailluonts. Nj STANLEY
may ~ around the lake calling every on,
Of its aflluelts the Nile with the name OF
a member of some royal family prcliXed,
but the true Nile only begins where it issues
from the lake.
Mr.. STANLEY would also have found. had
a.. Hal H.., D.,r,.,-s. ..f.t IT,.