The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-07-31

Lake Baringo. ard the travellers set out in
a northeasterly direction to seek the two
great lakes said TO exist in Samburu. 1t
would be hard TO ~exaggerate the difficult
ties or dangers encountered during this
part of their adventurous journey. AT
times they traversed sandy, plains over
which the wind swept with the force or a
hurricane. w slept with our heads
wrapped up in clothes, hardly able to
breathe, and woke up completely buried in
sand and dust" Long stretches of water
less desert had TO be crossed, ex-
lowers. and at length scarcely a day passed
in which some one or more or their
number were not reported dead or missing.
But for the abundance OF large game, ele-
plants. rhinoceroses, buffalo, zebras, and
antelopes OF various kinds, which roamed
over this Wilderness, its passage would
the southern shore of the great lake was
reached, land although utterly exhausted,
after the seven hours march in the in
tense and parching heat, We felt our
spirits rise once more as we. stood upon
the beach at last, and saw the beautiful
water, clear as crystal, stretching away
before us. The men rushed down Shout
ing, to plunge into the lake; but soon re-
turned in bitter disappointment; the water
our expectations was like a revelation to
US; and like some threatening specter rose
OF the utterly barren, dreary nature of
the lake district. Into what a desert we
had been betrayed! A few scattered tufts
of fine, stiff grass rising up in melancholy
fashion near the shore, from the wide
stretches of sand, were the only bits of
green, the only signs of life of any kind.
Here and there, some partly in the wa
ter, some on the beach, rose up Isolated
skeleton trees. stretching up their bare,
No living creature shared the gloomy
solitude with us; and. far as our glass
could reach. there was nothing to be seen
but ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. To all this
was added the scorching heat, and the
ceaseless buffeting of the sand-laden wind,
against which we were powerless to pro-
fered not a scrap of shelter, while the
pitching of the tents in the loose sand was
Volcanic action was everywhere evident.
Sixteen craters were visible from the
point where the party stood, from one OF
chimney, issued clouds of smoke. In at
tempting to cross a lava stream they
| pitfalls with brittle walls of from some
thirteen TO sixteen feet in circumference
The upper covering of many of these
revealing the inside, bristling with stalag-
mite-like spikes and edges as sharp as
MEASURING THE LAKE.
The lake, which they named Rudolf.
after the late Crown Prince of Austria,
| proved to be not far from two hundred
miles long by some twenty-five broad. For
nearly a month they struggled along the
dreary eastern shore, in imminent risk of
perishing for want of food and water, until
the northern end was reached. Here they
found a habitable and w~ell-populated re-
gion. but they were unable to pass through
it, the opposition of the natives being too
formidable for the greatly weakened ex-
petition to overcome. A weeks journey
over a terrible country brought them to
the shore of the smaller lake, called by
them Stefanie, after the Crown Princess.
Little more was done, however, than TO
demonstrate its existence, the few poverty
stricken natives living near it having no
food to sell TO the caravan. Lieutenant
Won Hohnel climbed a hill on it's eastern
shore, from which the northern extremity
was dimly visible, and he conjectures its
size to be seventy-five miles long by fif-
teen broad: The water is very brackish
and is evidently rapidly receding. The
beach was strewn with fish (which lay
about In great quantities in various stages
end of Lake Rudolf was again reached,
an attempt was made to explore the west
ern coast, which proved to be far less
ragged among the inhabitants and they re-
fused to sell either cattle or grain. At
length the retreating expedition was re-
duced to such extremities that another
raid was ordered and successfully accom-
plished, though whether the natives lost
formed. No special incident marked the
return Journey to the sea, where the ex-
4 DiOrerS arrived on oct. "A, 1888, after an aD-
sence of nearly two years.
1t is impossible in reading this narrative,
characterized by much modesty and sim
plicity, not to be struck with the rare COM
bination of the qualities that go to make a
good traveller and explorer which both
Count Teleki and his companion possessed.
Their expedition will rank high in the an
nails of African travel, if not for the inn
portance of their discoveries, for the sue
cess with which obstacles to which most
men would have yielded were overcome.
OF their thoughtfulness for their men there
can be no question, and. with the two ex-
ceptions which We have noted, they were
apparently always considerate and tactful
in their dealings with the natives. An alb
stract of some of the scientific results OF
the expedition is given in an appendix
These consist of a partial list of the col
lection of specimens of the fauna and flora
of the regions visited, made by Lieut.. Won
Hohnel and containing, among many other
new species, four of reptiles, fifteen of but
terflies and sixty of beetles. He has also
drawn an admirable map of his route. and
given some excellent pictures of the natives
and their various implements and orna-
ments. The hunting scenes are not OF
equal merit, and do not add TO the value OF
the work. whose usefulness for reference Is
increased by q good index.