Year: 1874




The Death OF DIR. Livingstone.


Our special despatch from Suez presents the
last scene of wonderful life. From its simple
story of the death of DR.. Livingstone it
appears the old Doctor had suffered for sew
eral months from chronic dysentery but,
though apparently Respondent and disposed
to take gloomy view of his chances for
recovery, he had kept up bravely until the 1st
of May, 1873. He had told his people that he
intended to try to reach Zanzibar and
England, and in the last entry in his diary,
made April 27, he spoke sadly of home and
his family. His hopes were greater than his
when he told his followers to build him hut
to die in. They built him hut accordingly,
and he laid himself down in it never to rise
again alive. He suffered greatly for two or
three days and died at midnight On the 4th of
May


Few, perhaps, of those who have followed
the story Of Livingstone's endeavors will be
surprised that they have come to this end. It
seemed almost that the Doctor had sealed his
own death warrant-had voluntarily gone
away to die in the wilderness at the time
when he parted with Stanley and plunged
again into the little known country west Of
Tanganyika. Stanley had caught him up, as
it were, at the verge Of the grave-had brought
him word from the outer world which proved
less an inducement to return than o fresh in
spiration to 80 on but his starting out anew
in such circumstances seemed to all who
sympathized with his spirit q piece of wild
hardihood, for none could fully enter into his
own robust faith in himself nor altogether
understand the confidence that life of adven-
ture had given. But his faith and his con-
fdence were at fault, and the world which
deemed that he should have returned then
was right.


Letters from Livingstone for Stanley writ
ten at an uncertain period before his death,
were brought to the coast by those who came
down with the body; and geographical notes,
all sealed-the latest results of the Doctors
explorations-were brought by the same hands.
In due time these notes will be given to the
world, manipulated, perhaps, to suit the





Royal Geographical Society; and now also,
no doubt, the papers that Livingstone sent
down by Stanley will be published; and with
all this material together there will be some
positive data for constructing map of the
part of Africa to which Livingstone's later
labors have been given.


In the light of this last mournful event the
HERALD expedition to Central Africa and the
success Of Stanley are seen in their full impor-
tance. But for Stanleys assistance the labors
of Livingstones life would have been lost;
or if the world had been permitted to learn,
through the dilutions Of the Royal Geographi-
cal Society, which the Doctor SO much appre-
hended, any portion of the results of those
labors, Livingstone would scarcely have had
the credit As the first expedition of the Society
went to pieces, and the second only reached
him by his coming near to the coast with
Stanley, it is highly probable that but for our
correspondent the old traveller would have
died finally surrounded only by negroes and
Arabs, and thus all his valuable papers, all the
results of his years of investigation would
have perished absolutely. But if we suppose
even that he had not died at Ujji, if he had
survived until the comparatively late period of
the second English expedition, and this had
reached him at that remote post, all his
papers would then have fallen into the hands
of the theorists Of Saville row, who would
boldly have suppressed as ridiculous what did
not agree with their fancies, and printed, per-
haps, an unimportant remainder


Fortunately both these disappointing posi-
bilites have been avoided Thanks to STAN
ley the greater part Of the result of Living
stones labors is now in Scotland, in the
hands Of his family, and will be given to the
world with scrupulous fidelity.


Another important point in our news is the
evidence it gives of Livingstones remem-
brance of Stanley in his letters. Strange as it
may seem to intelligent persons-to people
capable of comprehending the evidence of
simple facts-there appear to be still some
persons who doubt that Stanley ever saw
Livingstone. This would be incredible if
creature Of this sort had not lately made him
self heard in this respect Although perhaps,
the failure Of men generally is that they are
too credulous, that half the so-called
knowledge is merely too readily accepted
mass Of imaginations, there are some people
who, in an assumption of superior wisdom,
seem to fall on the other side and to these
the fact that Livingstone wrote letters to
Stanley shortly before he died may prove that
he had seen and known Stanley. We are not
sure that any person really doubts that
Livingstone and Stanley met at Ujiji We
are inclined rather to regard the pretended
doubt as mere expression Of malicious hos
tility 4; but even that should now be hushed
with shame.