The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1886-07-15

oaIeol No.. rs aaa y ToaEtosnth SIEGE.
rIIE NILE.
The Mystery o Its s%ourrcs. Not Yet Entirely
DIspelIed.

The Mystery of Its Sources. Not Yet Entirely
Dispelled.
The notion Is quite prevalent that the
explorations Of the past twenty-five years
have completely solved the problem o. the
sourCesoi the Nile, The fact is, however,
that the mystery OF the Niles hesdwaters
Is not yet entirely dispellsd. We have
fuller knowledge to-day Of that latter
problem, the sources Of the Congo, than
OF the interesting question that bailsd geo.
graphers for ages until Spoke partially
solved It. Lakes Victoria and and Albert
Nyanza were discovered respectively BY
Spoke and Sir Samuel Baker, and for years
these great sheets oil water appeared on
the maps as the twin sources Of the Nile,
In 1876 Gessi Pacha, one Of General Cor,
ton's assistants, ClrCumnayigated Albert
Nyanzain a steam launch. The dense ac-
quatic vegetation at the southern end pre-
vented him from reaching the shore, but
from his masthead he could see no
river, and during his journey he did not
discover a single important tributary.
From his voyage dated tie notion that
Albert Nyanzl Ia not a source, but only a
backwater OF the Nile, into which the
river pours merely to merge again a little
further north.
In the same year Stanley, travelling due
west from the north end OF Victoria
Nyanza, reached q large lake, which he
supposed to be Lake Albert, not knowing
that Gessi had axed the southern limit OF
that sheet Of water, This lake Ia believed
from information to be about l4O miles
long and 10 cover about 5000 square
miles, Its north and, a little north OF
the equatorm 10 supposed to be sixty 10
eighty miles south Of Albert Nyanss, It's
native name Is Muta Nzige, A year later
Albert Nyapzl was explored q second
time by Mason Bey, who, reaching the
south shore, made q very important dis
eoVery that had escaped Gessl Pacha, |
He found q river coming from the
south about 1900 feet in width, red.
dish in color, which poured its sluggish
streams into Albert Nyanza. Neither this
river nor Muta Ezige has yet been ex.
plOred, and %geogvaphers are divided In
opinion as to whether the large lake feeds
the Nile or the Congo. The question has
some political as well as geographical in
terest, for the reason that the Berlin Con.
ference last year agreed that the north.
east limit Of the Congo Free State should
be the water parting between the Congo
and the Nile systems. II Muta Nzige
feeds the Nile, q theory that ia supported
by the beet geographical authority on
several excellent grounds, a large region
tributary to the lake cannot, as at pres.
ent, figure much longer on the map OF the
Congo State. Stanley argues that Muta
NEige must empty into the Congo, be.
cause, In his opinion, the Ltra and Lulu,
tributaries Of that river, have not space
enough, without the help OF this lake, to
collect their large volume Of water.
1t can be said, however, that without
the lake they have as much drainage area
as some other important African rivers
possess. Without enhmeratiug here the
many reasons for believing that Muta
Nzige is one Of the sources Of the Nile, it
may he mentioned that 1t is very difficult
to explain how it is that the Nile energies
from Albert Nyanzl with nearly double
the volume Of water 1t pours into It, un,
less the small lake is connected with the
far more important source OF supply just a
little south Of 1t. There can hardly iail to
be al ample supply Of volunteers for AZ
rlcan exploration service as long as there
Is light still to be shed upon SO interesting
a problem Us the source Of the Nile.