The sun., 1888-06-17
enooRApnERs puo FonE1 OLD iAcrs
Instance. where They Predicted the Truth
Reiorc Esriorrrs were on the Ground

About eighteen years ago the explorer
SchwcrIurth discovered n great river In cen
trai Africa known as tho Welc- Makua. some
ablo gcograrhers have believed Tor years that
the Wele-M Makua was II tributary OF the Congo.
although this fact was not proven 10y actual on
ploraiion until onrly this year. They quite up
set the theory oi Schwcinurth aud others that
the river flowed into Lake Tchnl. and some OF
their arguments arc very Interesting because
tHcy show how nearly gcographcrs sometimes
come 10 tho truth long before explorers are on
III" ground.
fhcy ,opk. for instunc.. ;he best measure
ments they could obtain of tho Wellc- -Makna's
depth. width. aud velocity. aud thus formed an
idea Of ,hc volume Of water in its mid die
course Then, frOm the figures o! Nacht isal
aud other explorers showing the area VI Lake
T"haa, they computed tho possible amount Of
evauorntion on this sat sna Ihcy sh owed
conclusycly that Lake rchud could not cvap-
3ra'H ,Ti " ,hc Erta, N"iins %i "a'er supplied by
must b"I"hE TO tho Congo basin.
=, For nrnrlr four y"n"h 1t nns been believed
Er"nt Mobangi which Grcnicl asrouGrI tor
aub miles, IL here were 10 citaracts nor
II Yves though, II -pioVdid nayigaN le Highway
would be found Strrtchiug from IA" Congo al
most to thn Niic; but some E.ngraphrrs dis
n" rapids upon the Aruwim. itimbirl. aud
Mruka rivers Us Indicating u sudden md oN-
tcn-ivs dip in the surface pf pia;cau running
nhuui northwest and southeast iiud they In.
;cr"ud that between i' and % north tituIe
suuo rapids woulu he found in ths MohunLi.
Mau.u. SURF enough, Cant. Van Gele found
Last Winter se,ic~ O, six rapid ust where it
was hyievc they m ,ght occur and h. vas
Obliged TO drag his little steamer overland past
two of them.
Perhaps the most brilliant generalization
er"r maHc UDon a gcogrn nuhicdi topic was that
Of he grrat Gaoiogis. Nurchi-yn who in ls52
h"'orc CCntrai Nrica hal Teen reached hy any
moi"rn Traveller, described its physical ca
tuio- with approximate correctness. From
what WIS known % tie geological formation
known eNpansr, he inferred that inner Africa
was elevated far above tho sra level: that It
hh,' no extensive mountain system, hIt that
here and there oruptivo rocks had forced III nir
wav high above the level OF tn. rlNteAls and
that some rivers hHd found their way through
d"cp rents in high ridges hulricrlng the plateau
regions. while others, flowing inward. were
lost in interior sands and lakes 1t was to
Murchisln hat Dr. l."ngs,rnc dedicated his
hypothesis Respecting tho ply cal coniorma-
tiun OF Africa. which was verified three years
ailerward Ivy tho author ot these travels"
i Il" famous map maker EriGhHfu. r'prcsent-
cd TIE Niger River a. cnip' wing into the Gull Of
Guinea twenty.nine wears before tha Lander
bro,h"rs proved that hc. was right, md that OK
niorsrs nf the urpar Niger were mistaken in
t0'r wild notion that thcI had visited tie up-
r"r course Uf th" Cong. Many other ine;nnr vs.
hy careful study cf wh"t is known Of the
world car nov md thrn draw conclusions Of
much value with regard to regions that are
stl4l uupA piorru.