The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1877-10-13
Stanley Africanus.
lLondon Cable to New York Herald. ]

| mas arrived on the west coast OF Africa
Stanley's dispatch is dated from En-
! bona, Congo river, west of Africa, Au-
! gust 10, and states that he arrived al
that point on August s, from Zanzibar
with only one hundred and fifteen souls
the entire party in an awful condition
after their long and terrible journey
through the heart of the African cont
nent. After completing the explora-
tions of Lake Tanganyika, and settling
definitely by actual survey the question
of the outflow of the lake by what was
believed to be the river Lakuga, but
which has proved to be only creek
draining into the lake except where the
waters of the great inland sea attain an
extraordinary level, Stanley and his fol
lowers pushed across the country to
Nyangwe, on the Lualaba.
Stanley left Nyangwe the 18th of No
vember, 1876, and travelled overland
through Uregga. The task of penetra.
ting the unexplored wilds that stretched
before him TO the westward was calcu-
lated to impress him with sense of dan-
ger that nothing but the stern call of
duty and the promptings of ambitious
about to plunge into region where he
would be as completely cut OF from
hope of succor, if fortune did not favor
him in his journey, as if he were wan
dering on the surface of another planet.
After an arduous march of many days
through country filled with difficult
ties, and being compelled to transport on
the shoulders of his men every pound
Uf provisions and other stores necessary
for the trans-continental journey, and
besides carrying in similar manner the
sections of the Lady Alice, exploring
boat, and the arms and ammunition of
his party. Stanley found himself
brought to stand by immense tracts
of dense forest, through which all at
tempts of progress were futile. Finding
that he could not advance along the line
he first intended to follow, Stanley
crossed the Lualaba, and continued his
journey along the left bank of the river,
passing through the district known as
Northeast Ukusu. On this route he en-
deavored to find an outlet westward, but
the jungle was so dense and the fatigues
of the march SO harassing that it seemed
impossible for him to succeed in passing
the tremendous barrier of the forest
To add TO the horrors of his position in
these Central-African wilds, Stanley
found himself opposed at every step by
the hostile cannibal natives. His march
through these cannibal regions soon be-
came almost hopeless. There was no
cessation to the fighting day or night.
| he advance was succession of charges
in rude skirmishing order by an advance
guard whose duty it was to clear the
road for the main body. Stanley's eff
forts to appease the savages were I'M
availing. The patient behavior of Stan
ley's men they regarded as cowardice, so
that no course remained open to the ex-
plorer but TO- fight his way onward with
as little loss as possible. TO render Stan
ley's position still more deplorable, his
escort of one hundred and forty natives,
whom he had engaged for the service at
Nyangwe, refused to proceed further on
the journey, and deserted him. Find
ing his ranks thinned by the desertion of
the Nyangwe men, the hostile natives
concentrated for grand attack on Stan
ley with the object of completely crush
ing him. There was only one way to
escape from the hapless position in
which Stanley now found himself I'M
less he accepted the alternative of re-
turning to Nyangwe and abandoning the
work which he had undertaken. This
was to make use OF canoes. With the
Lady Alice as last reliance, and good
canoes for the party, Stanley concluded
that he could advance with better pros
pect of success than in any other way.
Although he had decided advantage
over the savages on the water, Stanley
still found that each days advance was
but repetition of the struggle of the
day previous. 1t was desperate fighting
all the time while pushing down the
river with might and main. In the
midst of these struggles Stanley's jour
ney on the river was interrupted by a
series of great cataracts. To pass those
he had to cut his way through thirteen
miles of forest and drag his eighteen
canoes and his exploring boat, Lady
Alice, over land. After passing the
cataracts Stanley and his party had a
long breathing pause from the toll of
dragging their boats through the forest.
They were also comparatively secure
from attack, and took measures to re-
cruit their exhausted strength before
again encountering the dangers of the
journey westward. Stanley found OPP
portunity to note the interesting changes
and physical characteristics of the route.
At two degrees north latitude he found
that the course of the great Lualaba
swerved from its almost direct northerly
direction to the northwestward, to the
westward, and then to the southwest
ward, developing into a broad stream
varying in width from two to ten miles,
and choked with islands. To avoid
struggles with the tribes of desperate
cannibals that inhabited the main land
on each side of the river, SANKEY'S canoe
fleet padded between the islands, taking
advantage of the cover they afforded
as a protection from attack. In this
way many miles down the stream were
made by the expedition unmolested by
the natives. But this safety from at
tack was purchased by much suffering.
Cut off from supplies in the middle of
the great river, starvation threatened to
destroy the expedition.
The most extreme hunger was endured
by the party, which passed three entire
days absolutely without any food. This
terrible state of things could be no longer
endured, so Stanley resolved to meet his
| fate on the mainland rather than by hun
ger on the river. He turned his course
to the left bank of the Lualaba, and with
singular good fortune reached the vii
lage of tribe acquainted with trade.