The New York herald., 1877-11-14

He felt convinced 1t was the Nile, and he
half convinced me that he must be right,
and wished sincerely that the good old
man would prove right. Savans unbiased
by sentiment declared, upon the strength OF
Livingstones own letters, that such o great
volume of water could not be the Nile. Not
only was its enormous body against such q
theory, but the, altitude of the river at
Nyangwe proved the irreconcilability of the
theory with common sense. A great deal
was written and said by eminent men just
then about the Lualaba, and the belief gen.
orally prevailed at last that it must be the
Congo. 1900
HOW HE WAS LED AsTRAY.
While many may feel surprised that such
practical traveller was led astray the
causes that blinded him are very obvious.
He himself confessed to suspicion that it
was the Congo but he had been SO long
absent from Europe that he was unaware Of
the discoveries made by Schweinfurth he
relied on Arab, statements that the river
flowed north long distance and, to tell
the exact truth, fear that his religious sem
timents and his love Of the Nile for it's bibli-
cal and classical associations prejudiced
him. To such man what was the parvenu
river, with ever SO many future associations
of traffic? Yet he loved Africa dearly, but
unfortunately he was unaware of the vast
ness of his discovery, and of it's future util-
ity for the prosecution of his own views and
hopes for the civilization and redemption of
the continent for which he sacrificed dear
and noble life.
GuEsswonK AND ERRORS
But before Livingstone had described the
river ut Nyangwe no one, scientific or un-
scientific, imagined that the Congo had
such great length. Though Captain
Tuckey's explorations in the neighborhood
of Yellala Falls, in the year 1876 furnished
the elements for DR.. Behm's computation
respecting the volume of the Lower Congo
geographers waited for Livingstones arrival
at Nyangwe and DR.. Schweinfurth's arrival
OF Monbulbu before they came to the idea
that the Lualaba must be the Congo Pre-
vious to this it is in the memory
Of many how scientists were involved
in discussions and elaborate argu-
ments to prove that the great Congo
was simply tho united Kaseye and Quango,
or Congo, which was giving it length of
but 800 miles. All! had Speke become in
terested in this river and had obtained one
glance at the mouth even, and had cleaned
but one or two fncts from the natives, be-
lieye that his rare and wonderful geograph-
ical instinct would have pencilled out the
course of this stream somewhat nearer the
truth. When Lieutenant Cameron arrived
QL NyUnBWc Hc uAoo oApAenscu COuVlCJlOn
that the Lualaba must be the Congo but
with the exception Of o divergence Of opin-
ion, he threw no newer light on its real
course.
ARAB aEoonAPHERs.
Sixteen months after the Lieutenant's de-
parture for the South I appeared at Ny
angwe, and then learned definitely that he
had abandoned the project Of following the
Lualaba. As it seemed the most important
task of exploration resolved to attempt it.
Ignorant, foolish and heathenish as Euro
peans may deem Arab traders and African
savagcs to be the "Great River has been
the subject of rs many hot disputes under
the caves Of the mud houses of Nyangwo
and the cane huts Of the river fishermen as