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AFRICA: 
 Past and Present. 
 
 A CONCISE ACCOUNT 
 
 OF THE COUNTRY, ITS HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, EXPLORA- 
 TIONS. CLIMATES, PRODUCTIONS, RESOURCES, POPULA- 
 TION, 'I'RIBES, MANNERS, CUSTOMS, LANGUAGES, 
 COLONIZATION, AND CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 
 
 BY AN OLD RESIDENT. 
 
 WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 
 
 150 NASSAU STREET, NEW YORK. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 HE interest which is now felt by all classes in 
 
 everything relating to Africa has suggested to 
 the Author the propriety of giving to the public the 
 results of his own observations and researches during 
 his residence and travels, both in the western and 
 southern sections of the great continent, together with 
 such information as he has been able to glean from 
 the various works that he has read upon the subject 
 during the half-century which has elapsed since his 
 attention was first drawn to the study of this interesting 
 quarter of the globe. 
 
 By careful analysis, arrangement, and condensation, 
 the writer has endeavoured to make the present volume, 
 not only a work of interest to the general reader, but 
 also a portable, cheap, and convenient handbook of 
 reference on the subjects of which it treats for mission- 
 aries, merchants, travellers, emigrants, and others who 
 wish for reliable information on the history, geography, 
 
iv Preface. 
 
 climate, resources, and productions of Africa ; and the 
 character, manners, customs, and social condition of its 
 inhabitants ; together with what has been done, and 
 what yet remains to be done, to promote their moral 
 and religious improvement. 
 
 How far the Author has succeeded in his aim must 
 be left for the reader to judge. It is hoped that the 
 index, map, and illustrations will add to the value of 
 the volume, and contribute to its general and permanent 
 usefulness. 
 
 W. MOISTER. 
 
 Sedbergh, Yorkshire, 
 
 November 15M, 1879. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Early Adventure and Discovery. 
 
 PAG 
 
 Herodotus and Strabo — Arab Travellers — Portuguese Discoveries — 
 French Discoveries — British African Association — Mungo Park — 
 Sundry Travellers — Tuckey and Peddie — Gray and Laing — Ritchie 
 and Lyon — Denham and Clapperton — Laing and Caillie . . i 
 
 CHAPTER n. 
 Recent Adventure and Discovery. 
 
 Richard and John Lander — Laird and Oldfield — Coulthurst and 
 Davidson — Niger Expedition — Barth, Krapf and Rebmann — 
 Burton and Speke — Grant and Baker — Dr. Livingstone, Stanley, 
 and Cameron .... . • • • S3 
 
 CHAPTER HI. 
 Slavery and the Slave Trade. 
 
 Prevalence of Slavery — Sources of Slavery — Uses of Slaves — Treatment 
 of Slaves — The Slave Trade — Methods of Procuring Slaves — The 
 Middle Passage — Slaves in Exile — Abolition of the Slave Trade — 
 Emancipation of Slaves — Work Still to be Done . . . loi 
 
vi 
 
 Conteyits. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Northern Africa. 
 
 r 
 
 Africa in General — Egypt — Nubia — Abyssinia — Tlie Barbary States — 
 Barca — Tripoli — Tunis — Algiers — Morocco 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Western Africa. 
 
 Geographical Boundaries — Topographical Aspect and Scenery — • 
 Mountains and Rivers — Climate and Seasons — Soil and Produc- 
 tions — Native Tribes — Manners and Customs — Superstitious 
 Notions and Practices — Colonization and Missions — Sierra Leone 
 — The Gambia — The Gold Coast— Lagos — Liberia — Senegal — 
 Fernando Po — Angola ........ 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Southern Africa. 
 
 General Description — Mountains, Rivers, and Lakes — Soil, Produc- 
 tions, and Climate— Native Tribes and Settlers — European Colo- 
 nization — The Cape Colony — Western Province — The Cape 
 Colony — Eastern Province — British Kaffraria — The Colony of 
 Natal — The Orange, Free ^tate — The Transvaal — Neighbouring 
 Territories ........... 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 General Outline — Rivers and Harbours — Native Tribes and Settlers — 
 Portuguese Colonization — DelagoaBay — Mozambique — Quillimane 
 — Zanzibar — Aden — Christian Missions— Makololo Mission — Lfni- 
 versities' Mission — Livingstonia Mission at Lake N'yassa — London 
 Society's Mission at Lake Tanganyika — Church Society's Mission 
 at Lake N'yanza — Conclusion ....... 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 I'ACE 
 
 I. Map of Africa ...... To face Title Page. 
 
 II. Hippopotami at the Falls of Barraconda, River Gambia . 13 
 
 III. Falls of Govinia, River Senegal, in the Rainy Season . . 22 
 
 IV. Canoe Travelling on the River Niger ..... 56 
 V. Lake Tanganyika, as seen from the South . . . .82 
 
 VI. Slaves on their March from the Interior to the Coast . .114 
 VII. Women Pounding Corn for Cus-cus at the Gambia . . 140 
 VIII. African Village and Palaver Tree ...... 170 
 
 IX. Fort and Town of Elmina ....... 200 
 
 X. Kumasi, the Capital of Ashanti . . _ . . . . 216 
 
 XI. The Island of Goree ........ 226 
 
 XII. Port and Shipping at the Mouth of the Gaboon . . . 240 
 
 XIII. Village of Slengelly, Delagoa Bay 270 
 
 XIV. Slave Market at Zanzibar ....... 300 
 
 XV. Steamer Point, Aden 337 
 
 XVI. Dining on the Banks of the Upper Shire .... 356 
 XVII. Camp at Kigoma on the Borders of Tanganyika . . . 365 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 EARLY ADVENTURE AND DISCCVERY. 
 
 Herodotus and Strabo — Arab Travellers — Portuguese Discoveries — Early 
 English Discoveries — French Discoveries — British African Association 
 — Mungo Park — Sundry Travellers — Tuckey and Peddie — Gray and 
 Laing — Ritchie and Lyon — Denham and Clapperton — Laing and 
 Caillie. 
 
 HROUGHOUT the entire range of modern geography 
 
 1 we find no country more interesting in its general 
 features, or presenting stronger claims upon the attention of the 
 Christian philanthropist than Africa. And yet it is a remark- 
 able fact that, until a comparatively recent period, the interior 
 regions of this vast continent remained almost entirely unknown 
 to the civilized nations of the earth. It is true, Egypt and 
 Nubia on the borders of the Red Sea, and Libya, Carthage 
 and other districts on the shores of the Mediterranean, were 
 well known to the ancients ; but all beyond appears to have 
 been a veritable terra hicognita. Hence it becomes an inter- 
 esting inquiry — At what periods, and by what means, were the 
 more distant shores of Africa explored, and the inner regions 
 of the great continent partially made known to the rest of the 
 world ? An answer to this question may appropriately form the 
 subject of the present and following chapters, as introductory 
 to the account we have to give of the country itself, the char- 
 acter of the people by whom it is inhabited, and the means 
 which have been at different times employed for their civil, 
 social, and moral elevation. 
 
 I 
 
Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Herodotus and Strabo. 
 
 The earliest instance we find on record of African explora- 
 tion inland is that of Herodotus, the celebrated Greek historian ; 
 who, when collecting information respecting the whole world 
 for his great historical work, was obliged, in the absence of 
 written documents, to have recourse to travelling. His published 
 narrative is almost entirely the record of what he saw and heard 
 during his various peregrinations ; and, even at this distant 
 period, it possesses an interest superior to that of most ancient 
 writings. By means of a long stay in Egypt, and an intimate 
 acquaintance with the native priests, he obtained much infor- 
 mation respecting the wide region which extends from the Nile 
 to the Atlantic. But not satisfied with this, he took an exten- 
 sive jpurney into the interior of the country. He justly de- 
 scribes it as much inferior in fertility to the cultivated parts of 
 Europe and Asia, and as suffering severely from drought. On 
 quitting the northern coast, which he terms the " forehead of 
 Africa," the country became more and more arid. He speaks 
 of hills of salt, out of which the natives constructed their houses 
 without any fear of their melting beneath a shower, in a region 
 where rain was almost unknown. As he proceeded, the land 
 became almost a desert, and was filled with such multitudes of 
 wild beasts as to make travelling extremely dangerous. Farther 
 to the south the sandy barren soil no longer afforded food even 
 for these fierce tenants of the wilderness : there was not a blade 
 of grass, a tree, or a fountain of water to be seen ; total silence 
 and widespread desolation reigned, so that he was obliged to 
 return. Such is the general picture which Herodotus draws of 
 this northern boundary of the great African desert, which subse- 
 quent examination has found to be on the whoJe fairly correct. 
 
 Strabo, who wrote at a subsequent period, and after the 
 Roman sway was fully established over the northern coast of 
 Africa, gives an interesting account of some of the interior 
 states. He does not, like Herodotus, profess to have visited 
 the countries which he describes, but simply records the infor- 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 
 
 3 
 
 mation which he had obtained from others. Extending his 
 view beyond the Atlas, he describes the Mauri as peopling a 
 rich country on the Atlantic coast, capable of yielding the most 
 abundant harvests ; but nothing could wean the nation from a 
 wandering life, in which they delighted, moving continually with 
 their tents from place to place, wrapped in skins of wild beasts, 
 and riding without saddle, and often without bridle, on small, 
 swift-footed, active horses. He represents them as fighting with 
 swords and spears, and not with poisoned arrows, as Horace 
 had described some warlike African tribes when engaged in 
 furious contests with each other. Further information has 
 proved that both these weapons, and many other dangerous 
 missiles, are used by different savage nations inhabiting the 
 continent of Africa. 
 
 Arab Travellers. 
 
 The first to penetrate the interior of Africa for the purposes 
 of trade and commerce, and to notice the character of the 
 country and the people, were the enterprising Arabs. At an 
 early period they introduced the camel, which, though a native 
 of the s^ndy wastes of Arabia, was equally adapted to the still 
 more extensive deserts which stretch so widely over many parts 
 of Africa. By means of these patient creatures, sometimes 
 called "the ships of the desert," the mercantile adventurers 
 alluded to, everywhere known as " Moors," pushed their way 
 through the narrowest parts of the great Sahara to the more 
 fertile and populous regions of the interior, where they propa- 
 gated the Moslem faith and carried on a lucrative trade with 
 the various negro tribes among whom they sojourned. We are 
 indebted to some of these semi-civilized adventurers for our 
 earliest knowledge of Inner Africa, their narratives having come 
 down to us in the Arabic language. Allowance being made 
 for the high colouring which frequently characterizes these nar- 
 ratives, much useful information may be gathered from them, 
 as some of the parties concerned were professed travellers as 
 well as traders. A specimen or two of the most interesting. 
 
4 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 and apparently the most reliable, of these early explorations is 
 all that our limited space will permit us to give, purposely 
 omitting accounts of African travels which are evidently 
 fabulous. 
 
 It is recorded of Ibn Batuta, a learned Mohammedan who 
 flourished in the fourteenth century, that he commenced his 
 great journey to the interior of Africa from Fez. He went first 
 to Segilmissa, which he describes as a handsome town situated 
 in a country abounding with date trees. Having joined a 
 caravan, he came, after a journey of twenty-five days, to Tha- 
 ghari, a place celebrated for its mine of salt, where the native 
 huts were built of slabs of that mineral, and roofed with camels' 
 hides. Thence he went in twenty days to Tashala, three days 
 beyond which commenced a desert of the most dreary aspect, 
 where there was neither water, bird, nor tree, — " nothing but 
 sand and hills of sand." In ten days more he reached Abu 
 Latin, a large trading town, crowded with native merchants 
 from various parts of the continent. From Abu Latin our 
 adventurer proceeded in twenty-four days to Mali, then the 
 most flourishing city in that part of the interior. Here the 
 traveller was astonished by the immense size of the trees, in 
 the hollow trunk of one of whigh he observed a weaver plying 
 his trade ! In this part of his journey Ibn Batuta saw an 
 immense river, probably the Niger ; and the view necessarily 
 led to a conclusion opposite to that hitherto entertained by his 
 countrymen, who considered it as flowing eastward to the ocean. 
 Having no opportunity of making a complete observation, he 
 fell into the opposite error, afterwards prevalent in Northern 
 Africa, and identified it with the Nile. From Mali he turned 
 northward to Timbuctu. This city was then governed by a 
 negro viceroy, and was far from possessing the celebrity and 
 importance which it afterwards attained. He next proceeded 
 eastward by Kawkaw, Bardama, and Nakda, where he seems 
 to have been near Nubia, but gives no further details till he 
 again arrived at Fez. 
 
 About two centuries after Ibn Batuta, a very full description 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 5 
 
 of Africa was furnished by a geographer named Leo, who was 
 even honoured with the surname of Africanus. He was a 
 native of Grenada, in Spain ; but having, after the capture of 
 that city by Ferdinand, repaired to Fez, he acquired a know- 
 ledge of Arabic learning and of the African continent. He 
 afterwards travelled through a great part of the interior ; and 
 having, on his return, made his way to Rome, he wrote a 
 narrative of his journey under the auspices of Pope Leo X. 
 It appears from this account that Timbuctu, at the time of 
 his visit, had risen to the position of a powerful and important 
 city, — the centre of commerce and wealth in that part of Africa. 
 Ghana, once possessed of imperial dignity, had changed its 
 name to Kano, and become tributary to Timbuctu. Bornou 
 appears under its present appellation ; and some native sove- 
 reigns, who afterwards held conspicuous rank, are mentioned 
 for the first time. The names of several prominent places are 
 also readily identified with those mentioned by subsequent 
 travellers. At Timbuctu several of the Moorish merchants 
 were exceedingly opulent, and two of them had obtained 
 princesses in marriage. Literature was cultivated with ardour, 
 and Arabic manuscripts bore a higher price than any other 
 commodity. Izchia, the king, who had subdued all the 
 neighbouring countries, maintained an army of three thousand 
 horse and a numerous infantry, partly armed with poisoned 
 arrows. Gold, for which its capital had now become the chief 
 mart, was lavishly employed in the embellishment of his court 
 and person ; some of his ornaments weighing as much as 
 1300 ounces ! The royal palace and several mosques were 
 built of stone ; but the ordinary habitations, as in all towns 
 and villages of Central Africa, were merely bell-shaped huts, 
 the materials of which were stakes, clay, and reeds. 
 
 Portuguese Discoveries. 
 
 Little more was done in the way of exploring the distant 
 coasts and interior regions of Africa till towards the end of the 
 fifteenth century, when the different nations of Europe began 
 
6 
 
 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 to awake from the slumber and apathy in which they had been 
 so long involved. The invention of the mariner's compass, 
 the skill of the Venetian and Genoese pilots, and the know- 
 ledge which had been transmitted from former times, inspired 
 all classes with the hope of being able to pass the ancient geo- 
 graphical barriers of the globe, and to throw light upon regions 
 hitherto unknown. Portugal, a nation of comparatively small 
 resources, but of remarkable energy, started first in this career 
 of maritime and geographical enterprise, and took the lead for 
 a considerable period of all the European states. During the 
 reign of its kings John and Emanuel, it stood pre-eminent in 
 this respect ; and Prince Henry in particular — a younger son 
 of John I. — devoted all his thoughts to the promotion of naval 
 undertakings. 
 
 No idea had been entertained at this early period of the 
 new world afterwards discovered by the daring and enterprising 
 Columbus. The local position of their country, its wars and 
 expeditions against Morocco, suggested the thought that the 
 western border of Africa was the best field for research. The 
 information respecting this coast was at that time very limited ; 
 so that the passage of Cape Bojador by GiHanez, in 1433, 
 caused a surprise and admiration almost equal to what were 
 afterwards excited by the discovery of America. On a second 
 attempt at exploration rapid progress was made along the shore 
 of the great Sahara, and the Portuguese navigators were not 
 long in reaching the fertile regions watered by the Senegal and 
 the Gambia. The early part of this voyage was dreary in the 
 extreme, for the mariners saw nothing but naked rocks and 
 burning sands stretching far away into the interior in every 
 direction. Beyond Cape Blanco, however, Nuno Tristan, in 
 1443, discovered the Island of Arguin ; and, notwithstanding 
 the disaster of Gonzalo de Cintra, who, in 1445, was killed by 
 a party of Moors at that place, the Portuguese made it for 
 some time their head-quarters, whilst they undertook further 
 explorations on the neighbouring continent. 
 
 The researches of the Portuguese on the western coast of 
 
Early Adveiiture and Discovery. 
 
 7 
 
 Africa, at this early period, were stimulated by the hope of 
 discovering and opening an intercourse with a distinguished 
 sable prince of whom they had heard much under the mys- 
 terious appellation of " Prester John." This singular name 
 seems to have been first introduced by travellers from Eastern 
 Asia, who represented the imaginary person to whom it was 
 applied as reigning in unexampled splendour in some part 
 of the interior of Africa. What were the precise expectations 
 from intercourse with this far-fame|i personage does not fully 
 appear ; but the idea was thoroughly rooted in the minds of 
 the navigators, that they would be raised to a matchless height 
 of glory and renown if they could by any means arrive at his 
 court. The same delusion seems to have prevailed at home, 
 for the principal instruction given to all officers employed in 
 African service was, that in every quarter and by every means 
 they should endeavour to effect this grand discovery. They 
 accordingly never failed to put the question to all the wanderers 
 of the Desert, and to every caravan that came from the interior, 
 if they knew anything of the dwelling-place of Prester John. But 
 all their inquiries were in vain : such a person had never been 
 heard of; and we need scarcely add that, being a mere myth, he 
 was never found. 
 
 In 1446 Diniz Fernandez discovered Cape Verd, and in the 
 following year Lancelot, another Portuguese navigator, entered 
 the mouth of the Senegal. In this neighbourhood the mariners 
 found fertile and populous regions, that promised to reward 
 their exertions much more effectually than the visionary name 
 after which they had so eagerly inquired. A circumstance 
 occurred also at this time which was regarded as peculiarly 
 auspicious. An African prince of the Jalloff nation, named 
 Bemoy, came to the Portuguese at Arguin, complaining that 
 he had been driven from the throne of his ancestors, and 
 entreating the aid of the strangers to enable him to recover his 
 crown, which he was willing, he said, to wear as their ally, and 
 even as their vassal. He was received with open arms, and 
 conveyed to Lisbon soon afterwards, where he met with a 
 
8 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 brilliant reception, being entertained with bull-fights, puppet- 
 shows, and other kindred amusements. After being instructed 
 in the Christian religion, according to the rites of the Romish 
 Church, he was baptized, and did homage to the King and to 
 the Pope for the crown which was to be placed on his head 
 through their influence on his return to his native land. At 
 length an expedition was fitted out, under the command of 
 Pero Vaz d'Acunha, to convey the young prince to his own 
 country on the banks of th^ Senegal. The conclusion of this 
 adventure was, however extremely tragical ; for, a quarrel having 
 arisen between Bemoy and the commander of the ship in which 
 he sailed, the latter stabbed the prince on board of his vessel, 
 and thus an end was put to this strange enterprise. 
 
 The Portuguese continued to prosecute their African dis- 
 coveries till 1 47 1, when they reached the Gold Coast, where, 
 dazzled by the importance and splendour of the commodity, 
 the commerce of which gave name to the region, they built 
 Elmina, with its fort and other appendages, and made it the 
 capital of their possessions on that part of the continent. 
 Pushing onward to Benin, they received a curious account of 
 a powerful African sovereign, whose kingdom was said to be 
 situated at a distance of seven or eight hundred miles from 
 the coast. From the statements made of the splendour which 
 surrounded this sable monarch, the strangers for a time in- 
 dulged the pleasing but delusive hope that he might prove 
 to be the far-famed Prester John, of whom they had been so 
 long in search ; but their most careful inquiries resulted in 
 disappointment, as before. 
 
 In 1484 Diego Cam sailed from Elmina in quest of new 
 shores, on which the cross might be planted as an emblem of 
 national dominion, according to the instructions which he had 
 received from the king of Portugal. After passing Cape St. 
 Catharine, he found himself involved in a very strong current 
 setting out from the land, which was still distant ; and the 
 water, when tasted, was ascertained to be fresh. It was con- 
 jectured, from these circumstances, that he was near the mouth 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 9 
 
 of a large river, which proved to be the case, and it is now well 
 known as the Zaire or Congo. On reaching the southern bank 
 of the magnificent stream, Diego landed and- erected his first 
 monument, indicative of his claim to the country. On ascending 
 the river for a short distance, he came in contact with some of 
 the inhabitants, and inquired after the residence of their sove- 
 reign. They pointed to a place at a considerable distance in 
 the interior, and undertook to guide thither a mission, which 
 they pledged themselves, within a given period, to lead back in 
 safety. As the natives in the meantime passed and repassed 
 between the shore and the vessel with the utmost freedom and 
 confidence, Diego basely took advantage of a moment when 
 several of the principal persons were on board, weighed anchor 
 and stood out to sea. 
 
 Great was the consternation of the simple-minded negroes 
 when they found themselves floating away from their native 
 shores in the white man's big ship. Diego tried to soothe 
 them as best he could, by endeavouring to make them under- 
 stand, by signs and otherwise, that this step was taken solely to 
 gratify the anxious desire of his sovereign to see and converse 
 with these African chiefs — assuring them that in fifteen moons 
 they should be brought back in safety to their native land. He 
 then sailed for Lisbon, where he exhibited with triumph these 
 living trophies of his wonderful discoveries. The king was 
 much pleased, and held many conversations with the sable 
 strangers, whom he loaded with honours, and caused to be 
 conveyed back to their own country within the appointed 
 time. 
 
 On arriving in the mouth of the river, Diego was highly 
 gratified to see waiting on the shore the portion of the crew 
 whom he had left behind as pledges of his return, and con- 
 cerning whom he had felt some anxiety. He found the natives 
 on shore disposed to be quite friendly, their confidence in the 
 pale-faced strangers being increased by the safe return of their 
 fellow-countrymen, after witnessing the strange sights of Europe. 
 Diego was now invited to the native court, where the sable 
 
lO Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 sovereign not only received him with kindness, but agreed to 
 embrace Christianity, and to send several of his nobles to 
 Portugal to be instructed in its principles. They soon after- 
 wards sailed accordingly, and their arrival at Lisbon gave fresh 
 satisfaction to the king and his people. They remained two 
 years in Europe, experiencing the best treatment ; and, on being 
 considered ripe for baptism, the king stood godfather to the 
 principal envoy, and his chief courtiers to others ; on which 
 occasion the African converts received the names of the dis- 
 tinguished persons by whom they had been thus honoured. 
 
 In 1490 a new armament was fitted out, under the command 
 of Ruy de Sousa, to convey this party of Africans back to their 
 native land, and to take more formal possession of the country. 
 The Portuguese, on their arrival once more at the mouth of the 
 Congo, were received by the sable monarch and his people 
 with great pomp, and the most extravagant manifestations of 
 barbaric joy. The native troops were drawn up to grace the 
 occasion, and advanced towards the shore in three lines, 
 making a prodigious noise with horns, kettledrums, and other 
 rude instruments. The king was seated on an ivory chair 
 raised on a platform, dressed in rich and glossy skins of wild 
 beasts, with a bracelet of brass hanging from his left arm, a 
 horse's tail pending from his shoulder, and a head dress of fine 
 cloth woven from the palm-tree of the country. He gave full 
 permission to the strangers to settle in his dominions, to build 
 a church, and to propagate the Christian religion. The king 
 himself and all his nobles were forthwith baptized ; and the 
 freest scope was allowed to the Roman Catholic missionaries 
 who accompanied the expedition to prosecute their appointed 
 work. 
 
 Here was a fine opportunity of introducing the pure light 
 of the Gospel into a benighted land ; but it is to be feared that 
 the Romish priests brought by the Portuguese did not duly 
 improve it, or proceed in a manner that was likely permanently 
 to benefit the people. They baptized the poor ignorant natives 
 by hundreds and thousands, it is true, and adapted the cere- 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 1 1 
 
 monies and gaudy processions of their Church in a great 
 measure to the heathen rites and superstitions of the people ; 
 but they were left in the grossest pagan ignorance, without any 
 adequate idea of the principles of Christianity which they were 
 made to profess. It is, moreover, admitted by Portuguese 
 historians that physical force was frequently employed to bring 
 the natives more completely under tire will of the priests. The 
 accounts given of some of the floggings which took place, of 
 both males and females, would be alternately shocking and 
 ludicrous if it were not for the fact that they were associated 
 with the propagation of religion. The ultimate result of such 
 a system might have been easily foreseen. After a long career 
 of superstition and folly, and of the so-called success of the 
 mission, the priests came into collision with the chiefs and 
 people on the subject of polygamy and other matters, and they 
 were summarily expelled from the country. At what period 
 this occurred does not appear ; but when subsequent travellers 
 explored the banks of the Congo in the following century, 
 they found no trace of Christianity or of the labours of the 
 Romish missionaries, nor any traditions among the natives of 
 their ever having been there. 
 
 Early English Discoveries. 
 
 In the early part of the seventeenth century a change had 
 passed over the relative positions of the mercantile and 
 maritime powers of Europe. Portugal had been eclipsed by 
 Spain, France, and Holland in succession. The last-named 
 power had wrested from the Portuguese their far-famed African 
 settlement Elmina, and usurped their position and influence 
 on that part of the coast. At the same time a spirit of enter- 
 prise was awakened in England such as had never been known 
 before. In 1618 a company was formed in London for the 
 purpose of exploring the Gambia, with the impression that that 
 noble river might prove a highway into the interior, and to 
 the wealthy neighbourhood of Timbuctu, if it were not in fact 
 
12 
 
 Afj'ii a : Past and Present. 
 
 an outlet of the mighty Joliba, or Niger, as some geographers 
 supposed. 
 
 The first person employed in this service was Richard 
 Thompson, a man of considerable spirit and enterprise, who 
 was sent out in the autumn of the same year, in charge ot 
 the brig Catharine, 120 tons burden, with a cargo worth 
 about p^2,ooo. In the month of December he entered the 
 river ; and proceeded as high as Kassan, where he left his 
 vessel and most of his crew, and pushed on in boats. The 
 Portuguese, who were still numerous in that district, and 
 retained all their lofty claims, were seized with bitter jealousy 
 of this expedition, made by a foreign and rival power. Led 
 on by Hector Nunez, they furiously attacked the party left 
 at Kassan and made a general massacre of our countrymen. 
 Thompson was greatly distressed on hearing the dreadful 
 tidings that several of his men had thus fallen by the hand 
 of violence ; but he was too weak to avenge the slaughter of 
 his people. He nevertheless prosecuted his discoveries with 
 vigour, and sent home the most encouraging accounts of the 
 general prospects of his undertaking. The company, influenced 
 by his statements, sent out another vessel, which unfortunately 
 arrived at the most unhealthy season of the year, and lost 
 most of tlie crew by death. Yet they were not dismayed ; but 
 forthwith fitted out a third and larger expedition, consisting of 
 the Sion, of 200 tons, and the St. John, of 50, and gave the 
 command to Richard Jobson, to whom we are indebted for 
 the first reliable and satisfactory account of the great river- 
 districts of Western Africa. 
 
 Jobson entered the Gambia in the month of November, 
 1620 ; and the first intelligence he received on reaching Fort 
 James was that of the death of Thompson, his predecessor, 
 who had perished by the hands of his own men. Mutiny was 
 not uncommon in those days ; but how it arose in this instance, 
 or who was to blame, never seems to have been fully investi- 
 gated. The crew of the Catharine are said to have been 
 unanimous in representing the conduct of their commander 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 13 
 
 as oppressive and tyrannical ; but in regard to a man of un- 
 doubted courage and enterprise, and who was the first English- 
 man who fell in the cause of African discovery of which we 
 have any record, we should, in the absence of direct evidence, 
 cherish a spirit of Christian charity. Notwithstanding the 
 shock caused by this sad disaster, Jobson took courage, and 
 pushing briskly up the river, soon arrived at Kassan, the 
 rendezvous of the former expedition. The Portuguese inhabit- 
 ants of that neighbourhood had most of them fled before his 
 arrival, whilst the few who remained professed, in respect to 
 the notorious Hector Nunez and the massacre committed by 
 him, both ignorance and horror; but there was reason to believe 
 that they were planning fresh schemes of mischief. 
 
 In consequence of these machinations Jobson could scarcely 
 prevail upon a native pilot to accompany him to the upper river. 
 He nevertheless pressed forward in the most commendable 
 manner, with such help as he could procure ; but after passing 
 the falls of Barraconda he found himself involved in great 
 difficulties. The ascent had to be made against a rapid current; 
 the frequency of hidden rocks, moreover, made it dangerous to 
 sail in the night ; and the boats often stuck upon sand-banks 
 and shallows, when it became necessary for the crews to strip 
 and go into the water to push them over these obstacles. On 
 one occasion they were obliged to drag the boats ashore, and 
 carry them a mile and a half on their shoulders, till they came 
 to deeper water, where the rocks and sand-banks were less 
 obstructive. 
 
 The discoverers now found themselves in an entirely new 
 world, and surrounded by novel aspects of nature. On every 
 side were immense forests of unknown trees, whilst both land 
 and water were inhabited by multitudes of savage animals, whose 
 roarings every night resounded through the air in the most 
 alarming manner. Sometimes as many as twenty crocodiles 
 were seen together in the stream, or basking in the sun on a 
 sand-bank. Hippopotami, or sea-horses as they were then called, 
 were observed tossing their huge heads and snorting in almost 
 
14 Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 every pool ; whilst elephants appeared in such numbers on the 
 shore, that at one place there were sixteen observed in a single 
 troop. Lions, ounces and leopards were also seen at a little 
 distance ; but amid the alarms occasioned by the appearance 
 and howlings of these ferocious creatures, the sailors were much 
 amused by observing the various evolutions of the monkey 
 tribe, some of which performed various kinds of antics in their 
 presence. 
 
 Amid these difficulties and adventures the party arrived at 
 Tenda on the 26th of January, 162 1, where they had appointed 
 to meet Buckar Sano, the chief native merchant on the Gambia. 
 This important personage rendered the expedition good service, 
 and volunteered some valuable information ; but the confi- 
 dence of Jobson in his veracity was somewhat shaken by the 
 glowing accounts which he gave of a city four months' journey 
 in the interior, the houses of which, he declared, were covered 
 with gold ! The report of a vessel having come up the river to 
 trade caused great excitement in the neighbourhood of Tenda, 
 and drew multitudes of natives together from the surrounding 
 districts. These built temporary huts, and soon formed a little 
 village on each side of the river. Unfortunately, the universal 
 cry was for salt, a commodity in great demand in this and other 
 parts of Africa. Not being aware of this fact, Jobson had not 
 laid in a sufficient supply ; but the articles he had were highly 
 prized, and in exchange for them he received gold and ivory. 
 
 Buckar Sano having offered to introduce the English at the 
 court of Tenda, they proceeded to the royal place of residence. 
 On reaching the king's presence they witnessed an example of 
 the debasing homage which is usually paid to African princes, 
 such as they had never seen before. The great and wealthy 
 merchant, on appearing before his sable majesty, first fell upon 
 his knees ; then, throwing off his shirt, extended himself naked 
 and prostrate upon the ground, whilst his attendants covered 
 him with dust and mud ! After grovelling for some time in 
 this position, he started up, shook off the dirt from his person ; 
 and, assisted by two of his wives, he was speedily equipped in 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 15 
 
 his best attire, with bow and quiver at his side. He and his 
 attendants, after having made a semblance of shooting at Jobson, 
 laid their bows and arrows at his feet; which was understood as 
 a token of submission and a high compliment. The king assured 
 tlic English captain that the country and everything in it were 
 thus placed at his disposal. In return for gifts so magnificent, 
 we are sorry to record that the gallant explorer presented the 
 king of Tenda with nothing better than a few bottles of brandy. 
 
 Whilst Jobson was thus amusing himself and his men with 
 the novel sights of the Upper Gambia, he found himself in the 
 middle of the dry season, when the water of the river sinks 
 lower and lower, and when navigation, even with canoes and 
 small boats, becomes exceedingly difficult. At length the 
 stream became so shallow, and the obstructions to navigation 
 so numerous, that he found it utterly vain to attempt ascending 
 higher. He therefore commenced his voyage downward on the 
 loth of February, proposing to return and renew his researches 
 during the following season, when the periodical rains filled the 
 channel. This purpose was never executed, however; for before 
 the time arrived for further operations, both he and his patrons 
 had become so involved in quarrels with the Gambia merchants 
 that the expedition was abairdoned. 
 
 The company in whose service Thompson and Jobson had 
 been engaged, amid the discord and divisions alluded to, do 
 not appear to have prosecuted any further their designs of 
 African discovery. The next attempt in this way, of which 
 we find any record, was made by a wealthy merchant at the 
 Gambia named Vermuyden, who fitted out a boat well stored 
 with provisions and merchandise, for the purpose of exploring 
 the upper river to search for gold, which was said to exist in 
 rich abundance. He first came to a wide expanse of water 
 which he compares to Windermere Lake, where the chief diffi- 
 culty was to find the main branch of the river, amid several 
 that opened from different quarters. " Up the buffing stream," 
 says he, "with sad labour we wTought ;" and when they ascended 
 higher, it often became necessary to drag the boat over the 
 
1 6 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 shallows, or to carry it for a short distance through the jungle, 
 after the manner of former voyagers, to avoid the rocks that 
 impeded the navigation. They were rather rudely received 
 by the only tenants of these watery regions — the crocodiles and 
 river-horses. One of the latter struck a hole in the bottom of 
 the boat with his teeth, — an accident which proved very incon- 
 venient, from the absence of any one skilled in carpentry. 
 Having effected the necessary repairs as best they could, the 
 voyagers endeavoured to avoid future accidents by hanging a 
 lantern at the stern of the boat, which caused these monsters 
 of the deep to keep at a respectful distance. 
 
 In the course of their voyage, Vermuyden and his party 
 landed at various places on the banks of the Gambia to search 
 for gold. At one place they found a large mass of glittering 
 matter, which at first they took to be the genuine article, but 
 which, on examination, proved to be mere spar or mica, At 
 another place, by twenty days' labour, they succeeded, with 
 patient washing of the sand, in extracting twelve ounces of the 
 precious metal. At length the traveller declares that he arrived 
 "at the mouth of the mine itself, and saw gold in such abundance 
 as surprised him with joy and admiration." He gives no par- 
 ticulars, however, of the position of this vein, the existence of 
 which has not been confirmed by any subsequent observer ; nor 
 does he seem to have continued his researches, as he no doubt 
 found more profit in mercantile pursuits than in prospecting for 
 the precious metal. 
 
 It was not till the year 1720 that the spirit of African discovery 
 revived in England. The Duke of Chandos, then director of 
 the African Company, concerned at the declining state of their 
 affairs, entertained the idea of reviving them by opening a path 
 into the golden regions still reported to exist in the interior of 
 Africa. At his suggestion the members, in 1723, furnished 
 Captain Bartholomew Sibbs with the usual means of sailing 
 up the Gambia. On the 7th of October he arrived at James's 
 Island, a small English settlement about thirty miles from the 
 mouth of the river, whence he immediately wrote to Mr. Willy, 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 
 
 17 
 
 the Governor, who happened to be then visiting the factory of 
 Joar, more than a hundred miles distant, asking him to engage 
 canoes from the natives for the use of the expedition. He 
 received for answer that none were to be had, and was greatly 
 distressed to find that this officer was giving himself no concern 
 about the affair. A few days afterwards, however, a boat 
 brought down the dead body of the Governor, who had fallen a 
 victim to the prevailing fever of the country, and he was left to 
 his own resources. 
 
 From various causes of delay it was not till the 26th of 
 December that Sibbs and his party proceeded on their voyage 
 up the Gambia. The expedition consisted of nineteen white 
 men and twenty-nine hired negroes, with three female cooks, 
 and a balafeu or native musician, to enliven the spirits of the 
 party by his performances. The season was somewhat ad- 
 vanced for the navigation of the river, but for some time everj'- 
 thing proceeded agreeably. The voyagers were everywhere 
 well received by the natives, and at one place a saphie or charm 
 was laid upon the bank of the river for the purpose of drawing 
 them on shore ! The captain had endeavoured to conceal the 
 prime object of his journey ; but his efforts were vain, for he 
 found himself pointed out by the natives as the person who was 
 " come to bring down the gold ! " The native crew, however, 
 were evidently unwilling to proceed to the upper river, and 
 predicted the most fearful disasters if any attempt was made to 
 go any farther. A long palaver ensued, and, according to the 
 adventurer's own account, it was not till he had produced a 
 bottle of his best brandy that he conquered the scruples of his 
 sable followers, and got them to proceed beyond what they 
 regarded as the limits of the universe. 
 
 The Falls of Barraconda were not found so formidable as 
 was expected. They were narrows rather than falls, the channel 
 being confined at this point by rocky ledges and fragments, 
 between which there was only one available passage, where the 
 canoes rubbed against the rocks on either side. The most 
 persevering exertion now became necessary in order to pass the 
 
1 8 Africa : Past and Present. v 
 
 shallows and quicksands, which multiplied in proportion as 
 they ascended the stream, and over which the boats had 
 frequently to be dragged by main force, as in former instances. 
 All now longed for the time when it would be necessary for 
 them to commence their voyage down the river. Before long 
 their ardent wishes were realized. At the end of two months, 
 on the 22nd of February, Sibbs found himself only fifty miles 
 above Barraconda, where it became necessary for him to 
 relinquish the enterprise, in consequence of the unfavourable 
 season having arrived ; so that he did not even reach Tenda, 
 the point to which Jobson had previously attained. 
 
 The commander of the expedition, on his return, could 
 not forbear expressing deep disappointment in regard to the 
 expectations with which he had ascended the Gambia. He 
 had met with no cities of gold, nor did he see any appearance 
 of the mighty channel which was to lead into the interior of 
 Africa, and through so many great kingdoms as had been 
 spoken of. He declared his conviction, in reference to the 
 river, that " its original or head is nothing near so far in the 
 country as by the geographers has been represented." The 
 natives reported that at twelve days' journey above Barraconda 
 it dwindled into a rivulet so small that " fowls walked over it." 
 Nor did he find any indications of the precious metal which he 
 had been led to believe was so abundant. These representations 
 produced a degree of discouragement which prevented any other 
 exploratory voyage from being undertaken by the English for a 
 considerable time into that part of the African continent. 
 
 French Discoveries. 
 France was behind some of the other nations of Europe in 
 maritime enterprise and African discovery ; but when she did 
 wake up to the importance of the subject, she displayed con- 
 siderable zeal and activity. Louis XIV., aided by his minister 
 Colbert, was the first prince of that nation who endeavoured to 
 raise his kingdom to a high rank as a commercial and maritime 
 power, and it was not long before Africa attracted his notice. 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 19 
 
 Whilst the English were engaged in exploring the Gambia, the 
 French turned their attention to the Senegal. In their esti- 
 mation this was one of the principal outlets of the Niger, and 
 the mighty stream by which they hoped to penetrate the 
 interior as far as Timbuctu and the regions of gold. About 
 the year 1626 a settlement was formed on an island near the 
 mouth of this river, to which was given the name of St. Louis, in 
 honour of their sovereign, and it has ever since been the capital 
 of their possessions in this part of Africa. It has also been 
 the starting-point of every French expedition which has been 
 organized for the exploration of the interior in this direction. 
 
 The first person who brought home any reliable account of 
 the French colony on the Senegal, and of the adjacent country, 
 was a young man named Jannequin. The manner in which he 
 became an African explorer is somewhat remarkable. Walking 
 along the quay at Dieppe one day, he saw a vessel bound for 
 the west coast ; and, being seized with a sudden fancy to do 
 so, he embarked and made the voyage. The ship sailed on 
 the 5th of November, 1637, and touched at the Canaries; 
 but the first spot on which young Jannequin landed on the 
 continent was a part of the Sahara, near Cape Blanco, where 
 nothing presented itself to view but a plain of moving sand, in 
 which the feet were buried at every step. Proceeding to St. 
 Louis, on the Senegal, he found the colony in a very rude and 
 imperfect state ; but on ascending the river soon afterwards he 
 was delighted with the brilliant verdure of the banks, the majes- 
 tic beauty of the trees, and the thick impenetrable underwood. 
 Wherever he landed the natives received him hospitably, and 
 he was much struck with their strength and courage, — decidedly 
 surpassing, as he thought, in these respects, the generality of 
 Europeans. He saw a Moorish chief, who, mounted on horse- 
 back, and brandishing three spears and a cutlass, engaged a 
 lion in single combat, and vanquished the mighty king of the 
 desert. He was surprised by the enormous number of gregrees, 
 or charms, in which the chief and head-men were enveloped. 
 Every peril — of water, of wild beasts, and of battle — had its 
 
20 
 
 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 appropriate antidote, by which the safety of the wearer of the 
 charms was supposed to be secured. These gregrees were 
 merely slips of paper, which the marabonts, or Mohammedan 
 priests, had inscribed with sentences from the Koran in Arabic 
 characters ; and, being enclosed in ornamented cases of cloth, 
 leather, or even gold and silver, were hung round the person in 
 such profusion that they actually formed a species of armour. 
 
 Several years after the return to France of young Jannequin, 
 the famous Sieur Brue was appointed director-general of the 
 Company's affairs, and exerted himself in the most laudable 
 manner to promote the interests of the Senegal settlements. 
 He also did exploring work which is worthy of a passing notice. 
 In 1697 he embarked at St. Louis on a voyage to the Saratik, 
 or king of the Foulahs, whose territory lay about 400 miles 
 up the river. In ascending the stream he was struck, like his 
 predecessor, with the magnificence of the scenery. He saw 
 elephants marching in bands of forty or fifty, and large herds 
 of wild cattle browsing in the meadows. These moved to the 
 highlands when the lower banks of the river were inundated in 
 the rainy season. At Kahayde the traveller was received by a 
 chief belonging to the Saratik, accompanied by numerous 
 attendants, among whom were his principal wife and daugh- 
 ters, and some female slaves, all mounted upon asses. He 
 was cordially welcomed to the country by this motley retinue ; 
 but he soon discovered their avaricious propensities, and he 
 complains that "when they could no longer secure what 
 they wanted by begging they began to borrow, with the firm 
 resolution of never repaying.'^ 
 
 Brue continued to ascend the Senegal till he reached 
 Ghiorel ; then, with a party of armed attendants, and accom- 
 panied by certain royal messengers, he set out for Gumel, about 
 thirty miles distant, where the king resided. He found the 
 palace to consist of a cluster of mud huts, enclosed by a fence 
 of reeds ; and in one of these he was introduced to his sable 
 majesty, as he reclined on a couch, surrounded by several of 
 his wives and daughters, seated on mats spread on the floor. 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 21 
 
 The reception was perfectly friendly, and the traveller obtained 
 permission to form settlements and erect forts wherever he 
 thought proper. In acknowledgment of these favours he 
 presented his offerings to the king, consisting of scarlet cloths, 
 coloured worsteds, copper kettles, pieces of coral and amber, 
 brandy, spices, and a few coins, which seemed to give general 
 satisfaction. Having satisfactorily accomplished the immediate 
 object of his journey, the traveller returned to St. Louis. 
 
 In 1698 the same gentleman undertook another journey, 
 with the intention of penetrating, if possible, still farther into 
 the interior. He ascended the Senegal as before as far as 
 Ghiorel, and had a friendly interview with the Saratik whose 
 acquaintance he had formed before, and four of whose negroes 
 he employed to destroy an enormous lion which had for some 
 time infested the neighbourhood. Farther on he observed 
 some peculiar forms of the animal creation ; the air for two 
 hours was darkened by the passage of a cloud of locusts, and the 
 boats on the river were covered with their filth. I>ions and 
 elephants roamed about in vast numbers ; but the latter were 
 quite tame and harmless, unless they were attacked. 
 
 On reaching Gallam, Brue found himself in a somewhat 
 delicate position. Two rival princes disputed the throne, each 
 holding at his place of residence a certain sway, but both 
 claiming the entire homage and all the presents brought by the 
 traveller. Guided by a principle of self-interest, Brue showed 
 most favour to the personage that seemed most likely to aid 
 him in the object of his journey, when his rival fell into a great 
 rage and threatened violence, from which he was only restrained 
 by being reminded of the big guns which were ready for action 
 on board the boats in the river. The traveller now proceeded 
 up the stream till he came to Dramanet, a thriving native town 
 inhabited by several wealthy merchants, who traded as far as 
 Timbuctu, which, according to their computation, was more 
 than a thousand miles farther in the interior. This advanced 
 position was therefore thought the most convenient for a settle- 
 ment and fort, which were accordingly established on a humble 
 
22 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 scale, and to which was given the name of St. Joseph. This 
 place has ever since been the head-quarters of the French on 
 the Upper Senegal. He then proceeded to a place called Felu, 
 where an immense rock, crossing the river, forms a cataract, 
 which it is almost impossible for vessels to pass. Quitting his 
 boats, he proposed to ascend to the falls of Govinea, about 
 eighty miles higher up ; but the water was getting so low that, 
 fearing the navigation downward would be interrupted, he 
 returned to St. Louis. 
 
 Whilst in the Upper Senegal, Brue collected much useful 
 information in reference to the countries and peoples beyond. 
 He received glowing accounts of the kingdom of Bambarra, of 
 Lake Maberia, of Timbuctu, and of caravans which came thither 
 from Barbary, and even of masted vessels which had been seen 
 on the mighty streams which water those regions. But the grand 
 object of his inquiry was the course of the Niger, concerning 
 which he heard two quite opposite descriptions. According 
 to one statement it flowed weshL>ai-d from Lake Maberia, till 
 it separated into two channels for the Gambia and Senegal ; 
 but according to the other it was quite distinct from both of 
 these rivers, and wended its way eastward beyond Timbuctu. 
 The latter representation was subsequently proved to be the 
 more correct. 
 
 The trade of Gallam and the adjacent countries on the 
 Upper Senegal, according to the statements of Compagnon 
 and Saugnier, both of whom visited these regions after Brue's 
 day, consists principally of gold, ivory, slaves, and gum- 
 arabic. The commodity last named soon became the most 
 important article of traffic by the French colonists, and the 
 manner in which it is obtained is thus described by Golberry : 
 — " To the north of the Senegal, where the fertile lands pass 
 into the boundless and arid plains of the great Sahara, grow 
 large forests of that species of the acacia from which the gum 
 distils. The plant is crooked and stunted in its growth, re- 
 sembling rather a bush than a tree. No incision is necessary 
 to extract the precious liquid ; for under the influence of the 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 23 
 
 hot winds which prevail in these parts, the bark dries and 
 cracks in various places, whence the gum exudes and forms 
 itself into drops as clear as crystal. At the proper season these 
 are collected in bags by the natives, and exposed for sale at 
 an annual fair held on the banks of the Senegal, the agents of 
 French merchants being almost the only purchasers." 
 
 British African Association. 
 
 It will be seen from the preceding brief sketches of African 
 explorations by the Portuguese, English, and French, that 
 hitherto comparatively little impression had been made upon 
 the vast continent. While the remotest extremities of land 
 and sea in other quarters of the globe had been reached by 
 British enterprise, Inner Africa remained an unseemly blank 
 in the map of the world. Such a circumstance was felt to be 
 discreditable to a great maritime and commercial nation like 
 England, as well as to the sciences upon which geographical 
 knowledge depends. With a view, if possible, to remove this 
 reproach, a number of spirited individuals formed themselves 
 into what was termed the " African Association." The object 
 of this Society was to raise the necessary funds by subscription, 
 and then to seek out and employ suitable persons to explore 
 the interior of Africa. Lord Rawdon, Sir Joseph Banks, the 
 Bishop of Llandaff, Mr. Beaufoy, and Mr. Stuart, were nomi- 
 nated managers, and they soon found themselves in a position 
 to proceed to business. 
 
 The first adventurer employed under the auspices of this 
 new organization was Mr. Ledyard, who, born a traveller, had 
 spent his life in passing from one extremity of the earth to 
 another. He had sailed round the world with Captain Cook, 
 had lived several years among the American Indians, and had 
 made a journey, with the most scanty means, from Stockholm 
 round the Gulf of Bothnia, and thence to the remotest parts 
 of Asiatic Russia. On his return to England he presented 
 himself to Sir Joseph Banks, to whom he had previously been 
 indebted for kind attentions, just as that gentleman was looking 
 
24 
 
 Africa : Pad and Present. 
 
 out for an African traveller. He was forthwith engaged for the 
 service ; and on being asked when he would be ready to set 
 out, he promptly replied, "To-morrow,"- — an answer worthy of 
 being noted by all who engage in important undertakings for 
 the benefit of mankind. He was soon afterwards provided 
 Avith a passage to Alexandria, in Egypt, with a view of first 
 proceeding southward from Cairo to Sennaar, and thence tra- 
 versing the entire breadth of the African continent. He arrived 
 at the Egyptian capital on the 19th of August, 1788, and, while 
 preparing for his journey into the interior, transmitted to the 
 Association and his friends at home an amusing description of 
 the country and people. By conversing with the Jeiabs, or 
 slave merchants, he learned a good deal respecting the caravan- 
 routes and the countries of the interior. Everything seemed 
 ready for his departure, and he announced to his friends that 
 his next communication would be from Sennaar. But, alas 1 
 this was not the case. The next tidings received were those 
 of his death. Disappointment, occasioned by the delay of the 
 departure of the caravan with which he had engaged to travel, 
 working upon his ardent and impatient spirit, brought on a 
 bilious fever which terminated fatally before he left Cairo. 
 
 Previous to the lamented death of Ledyard, the Society had 
 entered into terms with Mr. Lucas, with a view to his attempting 
 to explore the interior of Africa in another direction. This 
 gentleman had been captured in his youth by a Sallee roven 
 had served three years as a slave at the court of Morocco, 
 and after his deliverance had acted as a British vice-consul in 
 that empire. Having altogether spent sixteen years there, he 
 had not only become inured to the climate, but had also 
 acquired an intimate knowledge of Africa and its languages. 
 He was consequently regarded as peculiarly eligible for the 
 service on which he was entering. He was sent out by way of 
 Tripoli, with instructions to accompany a caravan which took 
 the most direct route for the interior ; and commenced his 
 journey well armed with passports and letters of introduction 
 to important personages. He proceeded with the caravan, 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 25 
 
 according to arrangement, to Mesurata ; but on reaching that 
 place he found the Arabs in a state of rebellion, and unwilling 
 to furnish camels and guides for the intended journey. Mr. 
 Lucas was therefore obliged to return to Tripoli, without 
 penetrating any farther into the continent, and the enterprise 
 was relinquished. 
 
 In the meantime Major Houghton, who had resided some 
 time as consul at Morocco, and afterwards in a military capa- 
 city at Goree, undertook to reach the Niger by the route of the 
 Gambia ; not, however, like Jobson and Sibbs, by ascending 
 its stream in boats, but by travelling singly on land. He com- 
 menced his journey early in 1791, and after a short time spent 
 at Pisina with Dr. Laidley, he pushed forward to Medina, the 
 capital of WooUi, on the Upper Gambia, where a venerable 
 native chief received him with great kindness, offered to furnish 
 him with guides, and assured him he might travel in safety to 
 Timbuctu "with his staff in his hand." The only evil that 
 befel the traveller there, arose from a fire which accidentally 
 took place, and in an hour reduced a town of a thousand 
 houses to a heap of ashes. The Major ran with the rest of the 
 people into the fields, as the conflagration spread, saving only 
 a few articles that he was able to carry with him. Quitting the 
 Gambia at Fattatenda, he took the path through Bambouk, and 
 arrived at Ferbanna, on the river Faleme, in safety. Here he 
 met with extraordinary kindness from the king, who furnished 
 him with a guide and money to defray his expenses. A note 
 was afterwards received from him, dated Simbing, and which 
 contained merely these words : " Major Houghton's compli- 
 ments to Dr. Laidley ; is in good health, on his way to 
 Timbuctu; robbed of all his goods by Fenda Bucar's son." 
 This was the last communication received from him ; for ere 
 long some negro traders brought down to Pisina the melancholy 
 tidings of his death. It was afterwards ascertained that he had 
 been stripped of all that he possessed by a party of Moors, 
 and left to wander about in a state of starvation, till, perfectly 
 exhausted, he sat down under a tree and expired. 
 
26 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 MuNGo Park. 
 
 The British African Association were no sooner informed of 
 the lamented death of Major Houghton than they accepted the 
 services of Mr. Mungo Park, a native of Scotland, who had 
 been regularly bred to the medical profession, and had just 
 returned from a voyage to India. The committee were satisfied 
 as to the general qualifications of this gentleman for the 
 important work on which he was about to enter, though they 
 could not be aware of the full extent of his courage and 
 perseverance, nor of the unrivalled eminence to which as an 
 African traveller he was destined to rise. 
 
 Park set sail from Portsmouth on the 22nd of May, 1795, 
 and on the 21st of June he arrived at Jillifree, on the river 
 Gambia. He then proceeded to Pisina, in the fertile kingdom 
 of Yani, where he was detained five months by illness under 
 the hospitable roof of Dr. Laidley. As soon as the fever 
 abated, and he became convalescent, he turned his attention 
 to the study of the Mandingo language, and at the same time 
 collected much valuable information from the native traders 
 respecting the interior. On the 2nd of December he again 
 took his departure, attended only by a few negro servants. 
 On the 5th he reached Medina, where the good old king 
 received him with the same kindness and hospitality that he 
 had shown to Major Houghton ; but earnestly exhorted him 
 to take warning by the fate of that adventurous traveller, and 
 to go no farther. Park was not to be thus discouraged ; but 
 immediately proceeded to enter the great forest which separates 
 this country from Bondou. In two days he passed through 
 this dreary wilderness, and reached the district just mentioned, 
 which he found to be a fine open country watered by the 
 Faleme. He had soon, however, to encounter some of the 
 difficulties which await the lonely and defenceless traveller 
 in a land of lawless savages. At Fatteconda, which he reached 
 on the 22nd of December, he was obliged to wait upon the 
 Almami, or king, who had already disgraced himself by being 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 27 
 
 a party to the plunder of poor Houghton. Park happily 
 escaped a similar fate by taking off a handsome blue coat, 
 with bright yellow buttons, which was greatly admired, and 
 presenting it to his sable majesty. 
 
 Another forest of smaller dimensions intervened between 
 Bondou and Kajaaga, which the traveller crossed by moon- 
 light, when the deep silence of the woods was interrupted only 
 by the howling of wolves and hyenas, which glided like shadows 
 through the thickets. Scarcely was he arrived at Joag, in 
 Kajaaga, when a party from Bacheri, the king, surrounded 
 him, and declared his goods forfeited because he had entered 
 the country without paying the duties. Under this pretext 
 he was stripped of all he had, with the exception of a few 
 trifling articles which he contrived to hide about his person. 
 Unable to procure a meal, he was sitting disconsolate under 
 the bcntang tree, when an aged female slave, aware of his 
 forlorn condition, gave him several handfuls of ground nuts, 
 and instantly \yent away, evidently pleased with what she had 
 done. Our adventurer next proceeded to Kooniakary, the 
 capital of Kasson, where he was well received by the king, and 
 forwarded to Kemmoo, the principal town of Kaarta. 
 
 The following few weeks in the eventful life of Mungo Park 
 were crowded with incidents of thrilling interest, even to 
 epitomise which would be impossible in the limited space 
 assigned to this portion of our work. It must suffice, therefore, 
 to glance at a few of the principal of them, and to indicate 
 the manner in which he fared during the remainder of this 
 adventurous journey. The country through which he passed 
 was largely peopled by negroes ; but the enterprising Moors, 
 who were invariably rigid Mohammedans, were also numerous. 
 From the simple-minded negroes the traveller received nothing 
 but kindness ; but where the Moors were in power, which was 
 frequently the case, he was bitterly persecuted and ill-treated. 
 At Benown he was detained a prisoner for more than a fortnight, 
 simply to gratify the curiosity of Fatima, the favourite wife of 
 Ali, the Moorish chief, who had never seen a white man or a 
 
28 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Christian of any kind before, and was anxious to see " what 
 kind of creatures they were." In the meantime, until her 
 ladyship arrived from a distance, his supply of food was very 
 limited, and he was treated with the utmost indignity. He was 
 made to button and unbutton his clothes almost perpetually, to 
 let the people see how white men performed this operation, as 
 well as to show the colour of his skin beneath ; whilst the boys 
 in the street hooted him and laughed him to scorn. He was 
 here also robbed and stripped of all that he possessed, with 
 the exception of his pocket-compass, of which his tormentors 
 seemed afraid, as he had told them that it always pointed to 
 the place where his mother lived ! 
 
 On the other hand, when he had escaped from the cruel 
 treatment of the Moors, on this and on subsequent occasions, 
 the poor negroes commiserated his sufferings and supplied his 
 wants according to their means. Many striking instances of 
 this kind are given in the interesting narrative which has been 
 published of Park's travels ; but perhaps the most touching 
 was the one which occurred in the neighbourhood of the 
 capital of Bambarra, when he was reduced to the lowest state 
 of destitution. Being without food or lodging, turning his 
 jaded horse loose to graze, he was preparing, as a security 
 from wild beasts, to climb a tree and sleep among the branches, 
 when an old woman, returning from the labours of the field, 
 cast on him a look of compassion, and desired him to follow 
 her. She led him to an apartment in her hut, procured a fine 
 fish, which she broiled for his supper, and spread a mat for him 
 to sleep upon ; ordering her maidens, who had been gazing in 
 fixed astonishment at their guest, to resume their tasks of 
 spinning cotton, which they continued to ply through a great 
 part of the night. Meanwhile they cheered their labours with 
 a song, which must have been composed extanpore, since Park, 
 with deep emotion, observed that he himself was the subject 
 of it. It said, in strains of affecting simplicity — " The winds 
 roared, and the rains fell. The poor white man, faint and 
 weary, came and sat under our tree. He has no mother to 
 
Early Adventure atid Discovery. 29 
 
 bring him milk, no wife to grind his corn. — Chorus: Let us 
 pity the white man, no mother has he," etc. The traveller was 
 singularly gratified by this little incident, and next morning he 
 could not depart without requesting his landlady's acceptance 
 of the only gift he had to bestow — namely, two of the bright 
 brass buttons that still remained on his waistcoat. 
 
 At length, on the 21st of July, 1796, after passing through 
 innumerable trials and hardships, Park was favoured to behold 
 the grand object of his search, the river Niger, or, as it was 
 there called, the Joliba or "Great Water." He had passed a 
 sleepless night in anticipation of this great event ; but, starting 
 before daybreak, he had the satisfaction at eight o'clock to see 
 the smoke arising from the town of Sego, on the banks of the 
 river. He soon afterwards overtook some other travellers, and, 
 in riding through a piece of marshy ground, one of them called 
 out, '■'Geo affilli" (see the water), and looking forward, "I saw," 
 says he, " with infinite pleasure, the great object of my mission, 
 the long- sough t-for majestic Niger, glittering to the morning sun, 
 as broad as the Thames at Westminster, and flowing slowly to the 
 eastward. I hastened to the brink, and having drunk of the 
 water, offered up my fervent thanks to the great Ruler of all 
 things, for having thus far crowned my endeavours with success." 
 
 Park found Sego, the capital of Bambarra, to be a town 
 containing about 30,000 inhabitants, and a place of consider- 
 able trade and commerce. It was divided into four parts, two 
 on each bank of the river, the whole being entirely under the 
 dominion of the Moors, who manifested considerable jealousy 
 concerning the movements of the pale-faced stranger. Indeed, 
 he was not permitted to enter the city, and only saw it, with its 
 whitewashed mud houses and numerous mosques, at a distance. 
 The decision of Mansong, the ruling chief or king, conveying 
 this prohibition, reached the traveller after he had been waiting 
 in the suburban villages for several days, hoping to be admitted 
 to the royal presence. But this was not to be. He therefore 
 turned his face westward, hoping to reach the coast by the 
 same route that he had come. 
 
30 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 The sufferings of our adventurer on his return journey, he 
 being in a state of perfect destitution, were appalling to con- 
 template ; but it is refreshing to find him turning his thoughts 
 to the special providence of God, and from this source taking 
 courage when almost all- hope was gone. On one occasion, 
 being completely exhausted, he threw himself on the ground 
 with the desponding feeling that after all he must perish in the 
 desert. At this moment a sprig of beautiful moss, in a state of 
 fructification, caught his eye, the delicate conformation of which 
 could not be contemplated without admiration. He then 
 bethought himself, " Can that Being who planted, watered, 
 and brought to perfection, in this obscure corner of the world, 
 a thing which appears of so small importance, look with uncon- 
 cern upon the situation and sufferings of creatures formed after 
 His own image?" Inspired by these just and pious reflections 
 he started up, went on, despite fatigue, and found deliverance 
 to be nearer than he had any reason to anticipate. 
 
 It is doubtful, however, whether Park would have succeeded 
 as he did on his journey westward, if it had not been for the 
 friendly aid afforded him by the conductor of a slave-koffel 
 which he had the good fortune to fall in with. Having the 
 advantage of this assistance when exposed to wild beasts and 
 savage men, he re-crossed the forest of Jallonka, in which he 
 and the caravan travelled five days without seeing a human 
 habitation, and reached Pisina on the Gambia in safety, on the 
 loth of June, 1797. He was received by his friends there as 
 one risen from the dead ; for all the traders from the interior 
 had believed and reported that he had met with a similar fate 
 to that of his predecessor. Major Houghton, and perished in 
 the desert. The traveller had some difficulty in reaching home 
 after all. No direct opportunity for England offering, he was 
 obhged to embark, on the 15th of June, in a vessel bound 
 for America, and was afterwards driven by stress of weather 
 to Antigua, in the West Indies; whence he sailed, on the 24th 
 of November, for England, and landed at Falmouth on the 
 22nd of December. He arrived in London before dawn on 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 3 i 
 
 Christmas day, and, taking a walk in the garden of the British 
 Museum, he accidentally met with his brother-in-law, Mr. 
 Dickson, who, in common with his other friends, rejoiced over 
 him with exceeding joy, having long since concluded he was 
 dead, two years having elapsed since any tidings of him had 
 reached England. 
 
 Soon after his return to England, Mr. Park published an 
 interesting narrative of his first journey, and of the discoveries 
 which he had made in the interior of Africa. This was read 
 with avidity by all classes ; but, so far from satisfying the public 
 curiosity, it only excited an earnest desire for more information 
 concerning a continent which had so long been involved in 
 mystery. The majestic Niger had been seen flowing eastward, 
 and an anxious wish was everywhere felt that its course might 
 be traced to the sea, and that Inner Africa might be more fully 
 laid open to the civilized world. With these objects in view, 
 Mr. Park was invited by Government to undertake an expedition 
 on a larger scale than his former one, and with more ample 
 resources at his command. Having in the meantime married 
 the daughter of Mr. Anderson, with whom he had served his 
 apprenticeship as a surgeon, and having entered with some 
 success on the practice of his profession in the town of Peebles, 
 it was thought by many that, content with laurels so dearly won, 
 he had renounced a life of peril and adventure. But none of 
 these ties could detain him when the spirit of adventure was 
 once more aroused in his breast ; and he responded to the call of 
 his country to renew his African explorations with characteristic 
 ardour and enthusiasm. His plan was to proceed direct to 
 Sego — not as a lonely defenceless traveller, as before, but with a 
 company of men armed and equipped in a manner calculated 
 to secure mutual defence, as well as to command respect, 
 wherever they travelled ; then to build a boat on the Niger and 
 navigate the stream throughout its entire course to the sea. 
 
 Park sailed from Portsmouth in the Crescent transport on 
 the 20th of January, 1805, accompanied by Mr. Anderson, his 
 brother-in-law. On the 8th of March they arrived at Cape Verd 
 
32 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Islands, and on the 28th they reached Goree. There they were 
 joined by a British officer and thirty-five soldiers, and they pro- 
 vided themselves, moreover, with a number of asses, of a breed 
 apparently well calculated for traversing the rugged hills of the 
 high country whence issued the infant streams which form the 
 source of the Gambia, Senegal, and Niger. They took with 
 them, also, two sailors and four artificers who had been sent 
 from England to join the expedition. But before all these 
 arrangements could be completed, a month had elapsed, and 
 it was then evident that the rainy season could not be far 
 distant, when travelling would be both difficult and trying to 
 European constitutions. The enterprising traveller hoped, 
 however, to reach the Niger by the middle of June, when the 
 season would be favourable for the navigation of the river. He 
 departed, therefore, with his heroic band, on the 4th of May, 
 and proceeded through Medina, along the banks of the Gambia, 
 on the same route he had traversed before. With so strong a 
 party, he was no longer dependent for protection upon the 
 petty kings of the countries through which he passed ; but the 
 natives seeing him so well provided with stores seemed to think 
 that he had now no claim upon their hospitality ; and they 
 consequently became somewhat exorbitant in their demand for 
 presents. Indeed, at one place the women, with considerable 
 labour, had emptied the wells, that they might sell the water to 
 the strangers to greater advantage. 
 
 Submitting quietly to these little annoyances. Park and his 
 party pushed on to the neighbourhood of Satadoo, on the 
 banks of the Faleme. It was there that they experienced the 
 first tornado which marked the commencement of the rainy 
 season. This proved the "beginning of sorrows," for the 
 country was soon inundated, and one after another of the party 
 was stricken with fever; in three days twelve men were on 
 the sick list. Seeing the strangers thus involved in difficulty, 
 the natives became more troublesome than before, and at 
 Gimba attempts were made to overpower the whole expedition 
 by main force, and seize all they possessed; but by merely 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 33 
 
 presenting their muskets the assault was repelled without blood- 
 shed. At Maniakorra the whole population hung on their rear 
 for a considerable time, headed by thirty of the king's sons, when 
 one man stole a fowling-piece and another an overcoat. Orders 
 were now given to fire upon all depredators, and it was not till 
 severe measures had been adopted that the thieveswere dispersed. 
 
 The expedition now began to melt away in the most appalling 
 manner beneath the deadly influence of the climate. Every 
 day added to the list of the sick or the dead, or of those who 
 declared themselves unable to proceed any farther. Near 
 Bangassi four men lay down at once ; and it was with difficulty 
 that Park dragged forward his brother-in-law, Mr. Anderson, 
 who was suffering from extreme weakness, whilst he himself 
 felt very sick and faint. His spirits were about to sink entirely, 
 when, coming to an eminence, he obtained a distant view of tiie 
 mountains, the southern base of which he knew to be washed 
 by the waters of the Niger. Then indeed he forgot his troubleFj 
 and thought only of climbing the blue hills, the sight of which 
 delighted his eyes. But before he could arrive at that distant 
 point three weeks had elapsed, during which he had experienced 
 the greatest difficulty and suffering. At length he reached the 
 summit of the ridge which divides the Senegal from the Joliba, 
 and, coming to the brow of the hill, saw again the majestic 
 river rolling its immense stream along the plain below. Yet 
 his situation and prospects were gloomy in the extreme, com- 
 pared with those with which he had left the banks of the 
 Gambia a few weeks before. Of thirty-eight men whom he 
 then had with him, there survived only seven, all of whom 
 were suffering from severe illness, and some nearly at the last 
 extremity. Still he was not discouraged; on the contrary, his 
 mind was full of the most sanguine hope, especially when, on 
 the 22nd of August, he reached the river, and, having hired 
 canoes, found himself, with the remnant of his party, floating 
 on his favourite stream towards Marraboo, preparatory to his 
 making permanent arrangements for the voyage down the river 
 to the Atlantic Ocean. 
 
 3 
 
34 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Alter tedious and protracted negotiations with King Mansong, 
 Park and his companions succeeded in converting two large 
 canoes, supplied by his sable majesty, into a small schooner, 
 forty feet long, six broad, and drawing only one foot of water, 
 which they named the Joliba. Whilst these operations were 
 going on at Sansanding, a large town a few miles to the north 
 of Sego, the traveller had the misfortune to lose his brother- 
 in-law, Mr. Anderson, which affected him much, and elicited 
 from him the following touching statement : " No event which 
 took place during the journey ever threw the smallest gloom 
 over my mind till I laid Mr. Anderson in his grave. I then 
 felt myself as if left a second time lonely and friendless, amid 
 the wilds of Africa." Although the party was now reduced 
 to five Europeans and a few negroes, the mind of Park was 
 remarkably firm and unshaken. He announced, in a letter to 
 Lord Camden, his fixed purpose to discover the termination 
 of the Niger, or to perish in the attempt ; adding, " Although 
 all the Europeans who are with me should die, and although I 
 myself were half dead, I would still persevere." To his wife he 
 expressed the same determination, combined with a declaration 
 of the utmost confidence of success ; and the commencement 
 of his voyage down the Niger, through the vast unexplored 
 regions of Central Africa, he called " turning his face towards 
 England " ! 
 
 It was on the 17th of November, 1805, that the intrepid 
 traveller began his last voyage. He passed Jenne, the port 
 of Timbuctu, Sackatoo, and other populous towns on the banks 
 of the Upper Niger, as quickly as possible, the current being in 
 his favour ; and the expedition was soon lost sight of by the 
 natives of those regions. After the departure of Park and his 
 party from Sansanding, nothing was heard of them in England 
 or in the settlements on the coast for more than a year, with 
 the exception of certain unpleasant rumours as to their fate 
 which came to hand at intervals. Alarmed by these, and 
 feeling a deep interest in the expedition, Governor Maxwell 
 of Sierra Leone employed a negro interpreter named Isaaco, 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 35 
 
 who had formerly belonged to Park's expedition, and who had 
 been sent to the Gambia with despatches from the Niger, to 
 undertake a journey of inquiry as to what had become of the 
 exploring party. 
 
 At Sansanding Isaaco was so fortunate as to meet with 
 Amidi Fatu, who had been engaged to succeed him as inter- 
 preter to the expedition, and who sailed with Park and his 
 party down the river. According to this man's statement, the 
 schooner Joliba proceeded all right till she came to the town 
 of Yaour, where he left her, his services having been only 
 engaged to that point ; that the king of that place was very 
 angry because the English had passed his place without making 
 him any presents, whilst they had thus honoured persons much 
 inferior to him in rank and position ; that to avenge the insult 
 the sable monarch had despatched a party of warriors to 
 intercept and massacre the travellers, and take possession of 
 their goods, before they should pass beyond his dominions 
 This wicked purpose Amidi declared they accomplished at a 
 place called Bousa, where the river is contracted to a narrow 
 pass, with overhanging rocks on either side, where the savages 
 stationed themselves, and hurled stones, spears, and other 
 missiles on the unfortunate voyagers below, till they al sank 
 in the waves to rise no more. The substantial correctness of 
 this account was verified by subsequent inquiries; and thus 
 ended an expedition which had excited the most sanguine 
 hopes in the interests of African discovery. 
 
 Sundry Travellers. 
 
 It has been thought best to trace, without interruption, the 
 eventful career of Mungo Park from its promising commence- 
 ment to its melancholy close. But between his first and second 
 journeys, another expedition was planned and sent out under 
 favourable auspices, which now demands our attention, as do 
 others also which followed soon afterwards. In 1797 Frederic 
 Horneman, a student of the University of Gottingen, offered 
 his services to the British African Association, proposing to 
 
36 
 
 Africa : 
 
 Post and Present. 
 
 penetrate the inferior of the vast continent in the guise of an 
 Arab, and as a professed Moslem — a species of deception not 
 to be commended. He reached London in the month of 
 May, and having been accepted, made the necessary prepara- 
 tions for his journey, embarked for Egypt, and arrived at 
 Alexandria in September. After spending ten days there 
 studying the language of the Mograbin Arabs, a tribe border- 
 ing on the Nile, he set out for Cairo, to await the departure 
 of the Kashan caravan, with which he proposed to travel. 
 Before his departure, however, tidings arrived of Buonaparte's 
 landing in the country, when the just indignation of the natives 
 vented itself upon all Europeans, and among others the German 
 traveller was thrown into prison. He was liberated, however, 
 on the victorious entry into the capital of the French com- 
 mander, who, besides restoring him to freedom, provided him 
 with money and everything necessary for the prosecution of his 
 mission. 
 
 It was the 5th September, 1798, before Horneman could find 
 a caravan proceeding westward ; when he joined the one destined 
 for Fezzan. The travellers soon passed the cultivated land of 
 Egypt, and entered upon a vast sandy desert. When the 
 caravan halted for the night, each person dug a hole in the 
 sand, gathered a few sticks, and prepared his victuals after 
 the African fashion of kouskous, soups, or puddings. Ten 
 days brought the travellers to Ummesogeir, a small oasis in 
 the desert, with a village built upon a rock, containing about 
 120 inhabitants. Another day's journey brought them to 
 Sivvah, a more extensive settlement ; after which they entered 
 upon a more dreary and desolate waste than they had seen 
 before, which took them sixteen days to traverse. At the 
 end of this period they were cheered by the appearance of 
 the great oasis which constitutes the small kingdom of Fezzan, 
 where the arrival of the caravan was hailed with demonstrations 
 of joy by all classes of the community, from the sultan to the 
 meanest slave. Horneman remained at Mourzouk, the capital 
 of Fezzan, for a long time before he met with a caravan for the 
 
Early Adventure and Dhcovery. 37 
 
 south, and in the interim he took a journey to Tripoli to 
 forward despatches to England. After his return to Mourzouk, 
 and his detention for several months longer by iUness, he took 
 his final departure for the interior on the 6th of April, 1800,, in 
 company with two shereefs who had given him assurances of 
 friendship and protection. His letters written previous to his 
 starting were expressive of the most sanguine hopes of success. 
 But the lapse of two years without any further tidings of him 
 threw a damp on the cheering expectations which had been 
 raised in the minds of the members of the Association and 
 the public generally. In 1803 various reports reached Fezzan 
 and Tripoli to the effect that Yusuph, as Horneman chose to 
 designate himself, had been seen alive at Kashan a short time 
 before; but from information collected by subsequent travellers, 
 it appeared that he succeeded in travelling into the interior of 
 Africa as far as Nyffe, on the Niger, where he fell a victim, not 
 to any hostility on the part of the natives, as was at first feared, 
 but to disease induced by the trying character of the climate. 
 
 The next person engaged as an African traveller by the 
 British Association was Mr. Nicholls, who, in 1804, repaired 
 to Calabar, in the Gulf of Benin, with the view of penetrating 
 into the interior of Africa by this route, which appeared shorter 
 than any other ; but without any idea of the Niger having its 
 principal outlets in that neighbourhood, which was afterwards 
 proved to be the case. He was well received by the chiefs on 
 the coast ; but he could not gain from them much informEition 
 about the neighbouring rivers, or the character of the country 
 inland. Unfortunately, of all the sickly climates of Africa, that 
 of the Gulf of Benin is about the worst, and before he had 
 fairly commenced his journey, poor Nicholls fell a victim to 
 the epidemic fever so prevalent on the coast in the rainy 
 season. He died before he had proceeded many miles on 
 his intended journey. 
 
 Shortly after this another German, named Roentgen, recom- 
 mended to the Association by Professor Blumenbach, undertook 
 to penetrate to the interior of Africa by way of Morocco. Like 
 
38 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Horneman, he made himself master of Arabic, and proposed 
 to pass through the country as a Mohammedan. He set out 
 in 1809 ; and, having arrived at Mogadore, he hired two guides 
 and proceeded to join the Soudan caravan ; but his career was 
 short indeed, for his body was soon afterwards found not far 
 from the place whence he started. No information could ever 
 be obtained with regard to the particulars of his death, though 
 it was conjectured, with too much probability, that he had been 
 murdered for the sake of his property. 
 
 The next account of African exploration was furnished by a 
 man named Adams, a sailor, who was said to have been wrecked 
 with several others on board an American vessel which struck 
 on the rocky coast of the great Sahara, on the nth of October, 
 1810. The men who swam on shore were soon after daylight 
 attacked by a band of Moors. The captain, who offered violent 
 resistance, was killed, but the crew were taken prisoners and 
 divided among the barbarians. Adams, one of the mariners, 
 according to his own statement, was carried to the border of 
 Bambarra, where the Mussulmen, his masters, who by their 
 practice of slave-stealing had roused the hostility of the negroes, 
 were surprised, made captive, and, after four days' confinement, 
 marched to Timbuctu. Adams says that his fierce companions, 
 on being presented to the king, were thrown into prison ; but 
 he himself being regarded as a curiosity, from the circumstance 
 of his being a white man, was retained in the palace, where he 
 became a favourite with the queen, who used to sit gazing at 
 him for hours together. He had been at Timbuctu about six 
 months, well treated and even caressed, when a party of Moorish 
 traders arrived, who ransomed their countrymen and Adams 
 along with them. 
 
 The caravan which Adams and his associates joined on leaving 
 Timbuctu travelled towards Morocco; and, after a weary journey 
 of forty-two days across the sandy desert, during which they 
 suffered much from extreme heat and want of water, they came 
 to Wedinoon, where the American met with some of his ship- 
 mates, who, together with himself, were ransomed from the 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 39 
 
 Moors and liberated by the kind and humane interposition of 
 M. Dupuis, the British consul at Mogadore. Adams proceeded 
 thence to London, with a view of obtaining a passage to America, 
 and was found in the streets of the metropolis by a gentleman 
 who took a deep interest in African affairs, and who commu- 
 nicated the circumstance to the secretary of the Association. 
 Adams was then strictly examined, and his statement taken 
 down in writing ; and M. Dupuis, the consul, who happened 
 to be in England, confirmed the general facts of his shipwreck 
 and captivity. Allowing for lapse of memory, and perhaps a 
 little exaggeration, the narrative of this adventure was admitted 
 to be substantially accurate in its main features, and to have 
 added something to the knowledge previously possessed of the 
 interior of Africa. 
 
 Another contribution of a similar kind was made some time 
 afterwards by Mr. James Riley, supercargo of the American 
 brig Covimerce, which was wrecked near C"ape Bojador, when 
 on a voyage from Gibraltar to Cape Verd Islands. The crew 
 escaped safe to shore when the vessel ran aground ; but, on 
 landing, they were assailed by a band of armed natives, whose 
 appearance indicated the utmost degree of poverty and ferocity. 
 They began forthwith an indiscriminate plunder of the week, 
 which was near to the shore — emptying trunks, boxes, and 
 casks, cutting up beds, and amusing themselves with seeing 
 the feathers flying before the wind. The sailors in the mean- 
 time were endeavouring to patch up the tCm^ boat as a means 
 of escape. In this they at length pushed out to sea, but were 
 soon obliged to land again, when they fell into the hands of 
 another band of savage Moors, who took them captives, divided 
 their living booty among them, and proceeded on their journey. 
 
 The sufferings of Riley were so great that he almost regretted 
 the life he had saved, till he met with Sidi Hamet, a respectable 
 caravan merchant, who offered to purchase him, and who, 
 in bargaining for his person, showed much sympathy for his 
 unhappy situation, and undertook to conduct him to Mogadore 
 provided he were made sure of a good ransom. The American 
 
40 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 encouraged him in the hope of this, and had soon the satisfaction 
 of seeing two blankets, a cotton robe, and a bundle of ostrich- 
 feathers, paid down as the stipulated price. He prevailed upon 
 the Mussulman to purchase his companions also ; after which 
 they set out together to cross the desert with their master and 
 deliverer. They had a very painful journey to perform, riding 
 with the utmost rapidity on the naked backs of camels over 
 hills of loose sand, whilst the air was filled with flying particles 
 of the same substance. Not trusting entirely to the professed 
 generosity of his Mussulman master, Riley, having an oppor- 
 tunity of communicating with Morocco, procured a reed for a 
 pen, and some black substance to serve as ink, wrote a pathetic 
 representation of himself and his companions, and addressed 
 it "to the consuls or to any Christians" who might happen to 
 be at Mogadore. After eight days of dreadful suspense a letter 
 arrived, which proved to be from Mr. Willshire, the English 
 consul, couched in the most sympathizing terms, and assuring 
 the sufferers that a ransom would be provided. This promise 
 was faithfully performed ; and the supercargo and his com- 
 panions, on reaching the capital of Morocco, met with a hearty 
 welcome at the British consulate, and were soon restored to 
 liberty and to their friends. 
 
 Although Riley saw little of the interior of Africa beyond 
 the dreary desert in which he travelled, he collected a good 
 deal of information from Sidi Hamet, who professed to have 
 been to Wassanah, Timbuctu, and other populous towns on the 
 banks of the Niger, which he described with great minuteness. 
 The information thus obtained was duly noted down, and com- 
 municated to the secretary of the African Association for future 
 guidance. 
 
 TUCKEY AND PeDDIE. 
 
 The melancholy fate of Mungo Park and the other adventu- 
 rous travellers, who fell in the cause of African discovery at an 
 early period of the enterprise, did not damp the ardent desire 
 of the British public for still further information concerning the 
 interior of the great continent. As a strong impression existed 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 41 
 
 in many minds that, on further examination, the rivers Congo 
 and Niger would prove identical, two large and important expe- 
 ditions were planned under the auspices of Government, which 
 were intended to decide this question. One was to ascend the 
 Congo, and the other was to descend the Niger, with the hope 
 of a triumphant meeting in the interior. The Congo expedition 
 was entrusted to Captain Tuckey, an officer of distinguished 
 merit and varied service. He was accompanied by a crew of 
 about fifty men, including marines and mechanics, together with 
 a botanist, a geologist, a zoologist, and a gardener. They sailed 
 from Deptford on the i6th of February, 181 6, and reached 
 Malemba, on the western coast of Africa, on the 30th of June. 
 A few days' further sailing brought the English into the channel 
 of the Congo, which, to their great disappointment, instead of 
 exhibiting the immense size they had been taught to expect, 
 scarcely appeared a river of the second class. The stream, it 
 is true, was then at the lowest, and the depth being still more 
 than 150 fathoms, it was impossible to estimate the mass of 
 water it might convey to the ocean. The banks were swampy 
 and overgrown with mangrove trees, and the deep silence and 
 solitude of these extensive forests made a profound impression 
 on the minds of the travellers. 
 
 After sailing between ridges of high rocky hills for several 
 miles, the expedition came to Yellala, or the Great Cataract, the 
 magnitude of which fell far below their expectations. Yet this 
 obstruction rendered it quite impossible for boats to pass 
 upwards, nor could they be carried across the deep ravines by 
 which the country was here intersected. The explorers were 
 therefore obliged to proceed by land through this difficult and 
 rugged region, which, without a guide, was a work attended 
 with overwhelming toil. At length the country improved and 
 became more level and open, whilst the river was wider, and 
 the obstacles to its navigation gradually disappeared. But just 
 as the enterprise began to assume a prosperous and promising 
 aspect, indications of its fatal termination manifested them- 
 selves. The health of the party began gradually to give way 
 
42 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 under the effects of fatigue from over-exertion, as well as from 
 the malignant influence of an atmosphere at once moist and 
 burning. Messrs. Tudor, Cranch, Galwey, and Smith were 
 successively obliged to return to the ship; and Captain Tuckey, 
 after struggling for some time against the increasing pressure 
 of disease and exhaustion, as well as the accumulating difficul- 
 ties of the expedition, saw the necessity of putting a stop to 
 its farther progress. On rejoining the vessel, the commander 
 witnessed a heartrending scene. The four scientific gentlemen 
 just mentioned were no more, having, one after another, 
 succumbed to the fever of the country ; and most of the crew 
 were so ill as to be quite unfit for service. On the 4th of 
 October Captain Tuckey himself added one more to the number 
 of the dead, and the enterprise was forthwith relinquished. 
 
 Meanwhile the other expedition, under Major Peddie, whose 
 instructions led him to strike across the country, and, if possible, 
 to descend the Niger, arrived at the mouth of the Senegal. 
 Instead of the beaten track along the banks of that river, or of 
 the Gambia, he preferred a new route through the country of 
 the Foulahs, which appeared shorter and in other respects more 
 eligible. On the 17th of November, 1816, he sailed from the 
 Senegal, and on the 14th of December the party, consisting of 
 100 m.en and 200 animals, landed at Kakundy, on the Rio 
 Nunez ; but before they could begin their march inland, the 
 Major was attacked with fever and died. Captain Campbell, 
 on whom the command now devolved, proceeded in the line 
 proposed till he arrived at a small river called the Panietta, on 
 the frontier of the Foulah territory. By this time many of the 
 beasts of burden had perished, and great difficulty was found 
 in obtaining a sufficient quantity of provisions for the men. 
 At length their circumstances became such as to place them 
 under the absolute necessity of returning; and, all their animals 
 being dead, they were obliged to hire natives to carry their 
 baggage, — an expedient which gave occasion to much pillage. 
 They reached Kakundy with the loss only of Mr. Kummer, 
 the naturalist, on the way; but Captain Campbell, overcome 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery, 43 
 
 by sickness and fatigue, died two days afterwards, on the 13th 
 of February, 1817. The superintendence of the enterprise was 
 then transferred to Lieutenant Stokoe, a spirited young naval 
 officer, who had joined the expedition as a volunteer. He 
 formed a new scheme for proceeding into the interior ; but 
 unhappily, before anything further could be done, he also sank 
 under tlie effects of the climate, and the undertaking was 
 abandoned. 
 
 Gray and Laing. 
 
 The sentence of death now seemed pronounced against all 
 who should attempt to penetrate the African continent ; and 
 yet there were some daring spirits who did not shrink from the 
 undertaking. Captain Gray, of the Royal African Corps, who 
 had accompanied the expedition the fate of which has just been 
 narrated, undertook, in the year 1818, to perform a journey to 
 the interior along the more frequented banks of the Gambia. 
 He arrived without any obstacle at Boolibani, the capital of 
 Bondou, on the 20th of June. There he remained for eleven 
 months ; and although anxious to go on, through the jealousy 
 of the sable monarch he was not permitted to proceed any 
 farther in that direction. With some difficulty he reached 
 Gallam, where he met Staff-surgeon Dockard, who had gone 
 forward to Sego, to ask permission to pass through Bam- 
 barra, — a request which had also been evaded. The whole 
 party then returned to the Senegal, and the undertaking was 
 relinquished. 
 
 In 1 82 1 Major Laing was sent on a mission from Sierra 
 Leone, through the Timannee, Kooranko, and Soolima coun- 
 tries, with the view of making commercial arrangements with 
 the native chiefs, in the interests of the colony. On this journey 
 he collected information which led him to believe that the 
 source of the Niger lay much farther to the south than Park 
 had supposed. At Falaba he was assured that it might have 
 been reached in three days, had not the Kissi nation, in Avhose 
 territory it was situated, been at war with the Soolimanas, with 
 
44 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 whom the Major then resided. He was inclined to fix the 
 source of the great river a very little above the ninth degree 
 of north latitude. 
 
 Ritchie and Lyon. 
 
 Through the judicious conduct of Mr. Warrington, the 
 British consul of Tripoli, the Bashaw was induced to cultivate 
 the friendship of the British Government ; and, as he held 
 constant communication with Bornou and other populous states 
 in the interior of Africa through his tributary kingdom of Fezzan, 
 it was thought a favourable opportunity to try once more an 
 exploratory expedition in that direction. Encouraged by the 
 British Government and the African Association, Mr. Ritchie, 
 a young man of scientific acquirements and zeal for discovery, 
 undertook the direction of a new adventure. He was accom- 
 panied by Lieutenant Lyon, who, as a naval officer, was expected 
 to be useful in navigating the Niger, if they should succeed in 
 reaching that river. These gentlemen were well received at 
 Tripoli, and set out on the 22nd of March, 181 9, for Fezzan, 
 with Mukni, the sultan, who gave them the most solemn 
 assurances of protection. This chief, however, was a ruffian 
 who had made his way to power by the massacre of the late 
 sovereign, and was at that time extensively engaged in the 
 accursed slave trade. Under a guardianship so inauspicious, 
 the travellers could hardly expect that support of which they 
 stood in need, and they soon found themselves involved in 
 trouble. 
 
 Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan, proved extremely unhealthy, 
 being intensely hot and surrounded by pools of stagnant water, 
 which rendered even the natives liable to fever and ague. The 
 members of the expedition soon felt its effects, Lieutenant Lyon 
 being seized with dysentery, and Mr. Ritchie with bilious fever, 
 under which they languished during the whole summer. At 
 the same time they suffered from other causes. The treacherous 
 Mukni not only withheld all aid, but he studiously prevented 
 others from giving them assistance. At length Mr. Ritchie, 
 
Early Adveyiivre and Discovery. 45 
 
 the chief of the mission, overwhehned with disease and anxiety> 
 died on the 20th of November, 181 9, after which Mr. Lyon 
 found himself without the means of penetrating farther than 
 to the southern frontier of Fezzan. With such information as 
 he was able to collect he returned to England, and the enter- 
 prise came to an end. 
 
 Denham and Clapperton. 
 
 The misfortunes which had befallen previous expeditions did 
 not deter the British Government and the friends of the negro 
 race from making further efforts to explore the interior of Africa. 
 The friendly feeling which existed between the English and 
 the court of Tripoli, through the continued kindly influence 
 of Mr. Warrington, the British consul there, suggested the idea 
 of another attempt in that direction ; and Major Denham, 
 Lieutenant Clapperton, and Dr. Oudney were engaged for the 
 service. Without delay they embarked for Tripoli, where they 
 arrived on the i8th of November, 1821. They were" imme- 
 diately introduced to the Bashaw or reigning monarch, who 
 received them very graciously ; and, fortified with recommen- 
 dations to the sultan of Fezzan, they entered upon their long 
 and dreary pilgrimage to Mourzouk, where they arrived on the 
 8th of April, 1822. This prince received them with affability, 
 but gave himself very little trouble in making provision for the 
 prosecution of their journey, as they had been led to expect 
 he would do. He even intimated his intention of visiting 
 Tripoli, and the necessity of their remaining stationary till his 
 return. This arrangement was most disheartening to the travel- 
 lers ; nor did they know what reliance to place in the sincerity 
 of Boo Khalloom, a great merchant who had invited them to 
 accompany him with an expedition which he was preparing for 
 Soudan. 
 
 After a visit of the parties just mentioned to Tripoli, on the 
 30th of October they returned to Mourzouk, when the Major 
 was much concerned to find both Lieutenant Clapperton and 
 Dr. Oudney prostrate with sickness ; one suffering from ague 
 
46 
 
 Africa : Fast and Preseni. 
 
 and fever which had confined him to his bed for fifteen days, 
 and the other from a severe attack in the chest. Invalids so 
 severely afflicted were not very fit to begin a long and laborious 
 journey across the desert ; but their ardour was extreme, and, 
 imagining that a change of air would be beneficial, they resolved 
 to proceed. On the 29th of November the caravan started off, 
 escorted by nearly every inhabitant of Mourzouk who could 
 hire or borrow a horse. The expedition, besides the English, 
 comprised 210 Arabs, ranged in tens and twenties under different 
 chiefs. The caravan arrived in due time at Traghan, a small 
 town containing a carpet manufactory. Leaving this station, 
 they were soon in the heart of the desert, where they passed 
 whole days without seeing a living thing, even a bird or an 
 insect, that did not belong to their own company. After a fort- 
 night thus spent in the desert, the expedition saw symptoms of 
 a return to the region of life. Scattered spots of thin herbage 
 appeared ; little valleys watered by springs were filled with the 
 shrub called suag^ on which grew delicate berries ; small herds 
 of gazelles fed in these retreats ; even the droves of hyenas 
 which were occasionally seen indicated the revival of animal 
 nature. As they advanced the dales became more gay and 
 verdant, and after passing through varied scenes, both pleasing 
 and painful, they entered Kanem, the most northern province 
 of Bornou, and soon afterwards arrived at Lari, a town of 2,000 
 inhabitants. 
 
 This place formed a remarkable stage in their progress ; for 
 from the rising ground in front of it was seen the boundless 
 expanse of the great interior sea of this part of Africa, Lake 
 Tchad, "glowing with the golden rays of the sun." The caravan 
 now marched along the shores of the lake, and arrived in 
 two days at Woodie, a large town, the first which was found 
 thoroughly negro. A halt was made here till messengers were 
 sent to the sheik of Bornou to obtain permission to proceed. 
 After five days an invitation arrived from the sheik to visit him 
 at Kouka, his capital ; and on entering that place the expedition 
 was escorted by some thousands of horsemen, whom they found 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 47 
 
 drawn up in line, as far as the eye could reach, awaiting their 
 approach. On being admitted into the royal presence, the 
 travellers found the sheik quietly seated on a carpet, plainly 
 dressed, in a small dark room, ornamented solely with guns 
 and pistols, which he had received as presents from crowned 
 heads, and which he esteemed the most rare and precious of 
 decorations. He appeared about forty-five years of age, and 
 his countenance was pleasing and expressive. After going 
 through the usual ceremonies which the etiquette of the country 
 required, the travellers withdrew; and the next day Major 
 Denham waited again on the sheik, and delivered his presents, 
 which consisted of a double-barrelled gun and two pistols, with 
 powder-flask and shot cases complete ; also several fine cloths, 
 spices, and porcelain. These articles seemed to give general 
 satisfaction. The arms were examined with much interest, 
 whilst the other things were carried off by the slaves, as a 
 matter of course. The Major frequently visited the sheik 
 afterwards, and one day he took with him a musical-box, with 
 which his royal highness was so pleased that his visitor made 
 him a present of it. 
 
 Denham and Clapperton spent two years in this part of the 
 interior ; the former traveUing chiefly in Bornou, and the latter 
 in Houssa. These eminent explorers visited Mandara, Loggun, 
 Katagum, Murmur, Sansan, Kano, Sackatoo, and other large 
 towns, cities, and centres of population ; and their descriptions 
 of the country, people, markets, amusements, and other scenes 
 which they witnessed, are both amusing and interesting. We 
 confess, however, that we should have followed them in their 
 journeyings with greater pleasure if they had not joined several 
 native warlike expeditions in their savage attacks on peaceful 
 villages to carry off the hapless inhabitants as slaves, in one of 
 which Boo Khalloom and many others were killed. Their plea, 
 of course, was that they wished to see more of the country and 
 the manners of the people ; but we venture to think that some 
 of their proceedings were scarcely justifiable on any ground. 
 Having viewed the Niger and several of its most important 
 
48 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 tributaries, and collected much valuable information, the travel- 
 lers would gladly have pushed their way through to the western 
 coast, with the hope of solving the great problem as to the 
 termination of the Niger ; but this they were not able to do, 
 in consequence of the unsettled state of the country in that 
 direction, and the decided objection of the sheik of Bornou 
 to aid them in their project. Denham and Clapperton there- 
 fore recrossed the desert and returned to England via Tripoli, 
 having buried poor Dr. Oudney, who died of consumption in 
 Houssa. They arrived at Tripoli in January, 1825, and thence 
 embarked for Leghorn ; but, being detained by contrary winds 
 and quarantine regulations, they did not reach London till the 
 month of June. 
 
 Difficulties having presented themselves in the way of reaching 
 the western coast of Africa from the interior, it was resolved to 
 make one more effort to penetrate the interior from the west 
 coast ; and Clapperton, having been applauded for the courage 
 and perseverance which he displayed in his first journey, and 
 promoted to the rank of captain, nobly offered to conduct a 
 new expedition on this route. Captain Clapperton had associated 
 with him in this mission, in addition to his attached servant 
 Richard Lander, Captain Pearce, an excellent draughtsman, and 
 Mr. Morrison, a surgeon of some experience, whose skill, it was 
 thought, might be of great service in contributing to the health 
 of the whole expedition. The party reached the coast towards 
 the end of 1825, and were advised by Mr. Houtson, an intelligent 
 and experienced resident there, not to follow the course of the 
 river — a circuitous track, covered with pestilential swamps and 
 jungle — but to take the route across the country from Badagry, 
 as the most direct and commodious, and that by which, in fact, 
 almost all the caravans from Houssa came down to the shores 
 of the Atlantic. They accordingly left that place on the 7th of 
 December; but they had not proceeded far before Morrison 
 and Pearce were attacked with bilious fever, and Clapperton 
 with fits of ague, induced by sleeping on the damp ground in 
 the open air. They pushed on, however, till the 22nd, when 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 
 
 49 
 
 the chief of the expedition, seeing the illness of his two com- 
 panions increase, urged them either to remain behind or return 
 t3 Badagry. They persisted in proceeding, however; but next 
 day Mr. Morrison, who could struggle on no longer, departed 
 for the coast, and died before he reached it. Captain Pearce 
 j persevered, till, sinking on the road, he also breathed his last, 
 j on the evening of the 27th. The survivor was th.us left to 
 : pursue his journey in sorrow and sadness, with his faithful 
 i servant Richard Lander, and Pascoe, an African whom he had 
 \ hired at Badagry, as his only companions. 
 
 After a journey of sixty miles the travellers entered the 
 j kingdom of Yoruba, the capital of which was Eyeo. This 
 i country had long been considered the most populous, powerful, 
 , and flourishing of any in Western Africa, holding even Dahomey 
 j in vassalage. Clapperton found it fully to answer this descrip- 
 \ tion ; and observed, moreover, that the fields were everywhere 
 cleared and extensively cultivated with Indian corn, millet, 
 I yams, and cotton. The travellers had now to cross a range of 
 hills about eighty miles broad, said to reach the whole way 
 from behind Ashanti to Benin. Having descended to the plain, 
 they passed through a number of other towns to Tshow, where 
 a caboceer arrived, with a numerous train, from the king of 
 Yoruba, to conduct them to his royal residence. Next morning 
 they set out with an imposing escort of bowmen on foot, and 
 of horsemen ill mounted but active, dressed in the most 
 grotesque manner, and covered with charms. From the brow 
 of a hill Eyeo, the great capital, fifteen miles in circumference, 
 opened to the view, on the opposite side of a vast plain bordered 
 by a ridge of granite hills and surrounded by a brilliant belt of 
 verdure. 
 
 The entry of Clapperton into Eyeo, and his introduction to 
 the king of Yoruba, were attended with the barbaric pomp and 
 splendour usual on such occasions in Africa. The English 
 were well treated by his sable majesty and his subjects ; and 
 here, as at other places, he observed the great difference 
 between the rule of the simple negroes and that of the despotic 
 
 4 
 
Africa : Pasi atid Present. 
 
 Moors. Having witnessed many exciting scenes in Eyeo, with 
 the consent of the king Clapperton proceeded onward through 
 various smaller places till he came to Kiama, the capital of a 
 district of the same name, and containing 30,000 inhabitants. 
 Kiama, Wawa, Niki, and Boussa are described by our traveller 
 as provinces of the kingdom of Borgoo ; but they each possess 
 a kind of local government .of their own. On his way to Comie 
 Clapperton visited Boussa, the scene of Park's melancholy 
 death ; and, from information which he collected on the spot 
 it appears that the report of Amidi Fatouma as given in another 
 ])lace was substantially correct. The party next passed through 
 Kotongkora and Guari to Zegzeg, a Fellata country, the capital 
 of which is Zaria. Setting out from Zaria, Clapperton soon 
 reached his old quarters at Kano ; but he unfortunately found 
 that city in a state of dreadful agitation in consequence of 
 war which raged on every side. At the sultan's suggestion he 
 therefore repaired to Sackatoo, which was the last place he 
 v/as permitted to visit. Here his health and constitution gave 
 way ; and having lingered for some time, during which he was 
 confined to his bed by dysentery, he peacefully passed away 
 in the presence of his faithful servant and companion Richard 
 Lander, who had nursed him during his illness with the most 
 filial tenderness. 
 
 On the death of Captain Clapperton Richard Lander had a 
 r.iind to push forward the object of the expedition single-handed 
 as he was ; but he met with obstacles at every turn, and the 
 country through which he wished to pass being involved in war, 
 he was obliged to retrace his steps to the coast. He reached 
 Badagry on the 21st of November, 1827; but being detained 
 for some time there and at Cape Coast, he did not reach 
 England with Clapperton's papers till the 30th of April, 1828. 
 
 Laing and Cailli£ 
 About the time that Clapperton proceeded on his second 
 journey. Major Laing, who had distinguished himself in the 
 Ashanti war, and in the short excursion already mentioned 
 
Early Adventure and Discovery. 5 1 
 
 towards the source of the Niger, undertook to penetrate to 
 Timbuctu by way of Tripoli. He set out under the protection 
 of Sheik Baboni, who professed to have resided twenty-two 
 years at Timbuctu, and was now governor of Ghadamis; but 
 in the midst of the desert, sixteen days after leaving Tuat, a 
 band of ferocious Tuaricks surprised the cafila while the Major 
 was in bed ; and having inflicted twenty-four wounds, eight of 
 tliem with a sabre, left him for dead. Through the care of 
 his companions, however, he made a surprising recovery, 
 numerous portions of bone having been extracted from his head 
 and temples. After some further delays he reached Timbuctu 
 on the i8th of August, 1826, and remained there more than a 
 month. Several letters were received from him dated from 
 that celebrated city, which he described as in the main answer- 
 ing his expectations. Laing was at length obliged to leave 
 Timbuctu rather hastily, having learned that certain bigoted 
 Mussulmen were plotting to take away his life ; and yet in 
 attempting to save his life he lost it. Having made an arrange- 
 ment with Barbooshi, a noted Moorish merchant, to accompany 
 and protect him in the route by Sego to the coast, his course 
 came to a melancholy end. Three days after leaving Timbuctu, 
 and when in the heart of the desert, that miscreant, instigated ■ 
 by avarice, murdered in the night-time the poor lonely white 
 man whom he had undertaken to protect, and took possession 
 of all his effects. Thus perished brave Major Laing, after having 
 devoted so many years of his life to African discovery. 
 
 Another journey was now announced as having been taken 
 by M. Caillie, an enterprising Frenchman. According to his 
 own statement — the accuracy of which, however, some affected 
 to doubt — he visited Senegal twice, and afterwards, taking his 
 departure from Sierra Leone, had set out with a small caravan 
 of Mandingoes and travelled through Kakundy, Foota Jallo, 
 Teembu, Laby, Kankan, and right away to Timbuctu. There 
 he spent two or three weeks; but his account of the great 
 city is very defective. He describes it as entirely supported by 
 commerce, and as having a population of about 12,000, chiefly 
 
52 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 negroes. He set out on his return journey in company ^vith a 
 caravan of 120 camels, laden with the productions of Soudan ; 
 and he had now the prospect of crossing a desert of ten days' 
 extent, in which there was scarcely a blade of grass or a drop 
 of water. In reference to this he says : " Before us appeared a 
 horizon without bounds, in which our eyes distinguished only 
 an immense plain of burning sand, enveloped by a sky on fire. 
 At this spectacle the camels raised long cries, and the poor 
 slaves mournfully lifted their eyes to heaven." 
 
 During many weary marches Caillie suffered much from the 
 scarcity of water and the insults of his companions. El Drah, 
 on the frontier of Morocco, was the first inhabited district 
 reached by the caravan ; but it was very poor and infested with 
 robbers. Turning somewhat to the eastward, they passed 
 through the fine country of Tafilet, covered with noble woods 
 of date-trees, and producing a valuable breed of sheep. After 
 undergoing the labour of crossing a rugged defile of Mount 
 Atlas, they proceeded to Fezzan, whence the adventurer found 
 his way, though in a somewhat poor plight, to Tangier. He 
 arrived there on the i8th of August, 1828, and M. Delaporte, 
 the vice-consul, received him kindly, and forwarded him to 
 France, where he published a narrative of his travels for the 
 edification of his countrymen. 
 
53 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 RECENT ADVENTURE AND DISCOVERY. 
 
 Richard and John Lander — Laird and Oldfield — Coulthurst and Davidson — 
 Niger Expedilion — Barth, Krapf and Rebmann — Burton and Speke — 
 Speke, Grant and Baker — Dr. Livingstone — Stanley and Cameron. 
 
 IT was generally admitted, at the time, that the published 
 narratives of the journeys of Park, Denham, Clapperton, 
 and other adventurers, had added much to the knowledge 
 previously possessed of the interior of Africa. These enter- 
 prising travellers had explored numerous kingdoms and terri- 
 tories lying between the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Benin, 
 scarcely known to exist before ; they had discovered and 
 described new mountains, lakes, and rivers ; yet the course 
 and termination of the Niger remained wrapped in mystery 
 nearly as deep as ever. Its stream had been traced very little 
 lower than Boussa, the point which Park had reached, and 
 where his career was brought to a fatal termination. All 
 below was involved in uncertainty, and geographers and 
 scientific, men generally were extremely anxious to have the 
 problem of the further course and termination of the majestic 
 river solved. Among those who had experience in such 
 matters, no one appeared so fitted to head another expedition 
 for the accomplishment of the desired object as Richard 
 Lander, who had acquitted himself so well as the faithful 
 servant and companion of the lamented Clapperton. Nor 
 was he himself reluctant to undertake the task. Having 
 offered his services, he was engaged accordingly, on very 
 economical terms ; and, together with his brother John, whom 
 he particularly wished to have associated with him in the 
 
54 
 
 Africa : Past aiid Present. 
 
 enterprise, he made preparations for the adventurous under- 
 taking. 
 
 Richard and John Lander. 
 
 The two brothers sailed from Portsmouth on the 9th of 
 January, 1830, and arrived at Cape Coast on the 22nd of 
 February, where they met with much kindness and hospitality 
 from all classes of the community, as they did also at Anamaboe, 
 where they called soon afterwards. Having engaged the 
 services of the faithful negro Pascoe, who accompanied the 
 former expedition, they proceeded on their journey, calling 
 at Accra on their voyage along the coast, and arriving at 
 Badagry on the 22nd of March. At the place last named 
 the travellers were much annoyed by the crowds of natives, 
 who made the most noisy pretensions of their regard, hoping 
 to obtain presents, or at least a glass or two of rum. The 
 situation of Badagry is described as in a fertile plain, watered 
 by a broad river, resembling a still and beautiful lake. The 
 soil, composed of loam or clay, covered with a fine whitish 
 sand, is exceedingly productive, especially in yams, Indian 
 corn, and fruits, while fish is abundantly supplied from the 
 neighbouring stream. 
 
 In proceeding to Eyeo, the capital of Yoruba, the party 
 followed the route formerly pursued by Clapperton, with a 
 few slight variations, which did not bring them into contact 
 with any new places of importance, except Bohoo, an extensive 
 city which is described as being situated in the midst of as 
 fine a country as the best parts of England. The travellers 
 were well received at Eyeo, the king expressing a readiness 
 to promote the success of their enterprise by every means in 
 his power. Lander had been directed to proceed by the 
 shortest route to the Niger, which is distant only about forty 
 miles from this town ; but, difficulties presenting themselves, 
 he decided to go by way of Youri, which involved a circuit 
 of more than 300 miles : this was a disadvantage in some 
 respects, although additional facilities were thus afforded for 
 seeing the country and the people. 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 55 
 
 Having left Eyeo, the expedition passed through the large 
 frontier town of Keeshee, after which they found themselves 
 in a region altogether different from the level and fertile plain 
 over which they had hitherto journeyed. The surface became 
 abrupt and rugged, and covered with vast forests, through which 
 ranged the lion, the leopard, and other fierce and destructive 
 animals. The country was moreover infested with robbers, 
 who made repeated attempts to plunder the travellers. In 
 the midst of this wild region the passage of the small rivulet 
 of Moussa brought them into Kiama, a territory which differs 
 completely from Yoruba, both in its aspect and population. 
 The king of this place gave them a good reception in his 
 palace, or rather hut, on the floor of which arms were piled ; 
 while the walls were adorned with portraits of George IV., 
 the Duke of York, the Duke of Wellington, and Lord Nelson. 
 Although the king managed to detain the travellers longer 
 than they desired, he made no actual opposition to their 
 journey ; but persuaded them not to proceed through Wawa, 
 with whose chief he was then at war. 
 
 Acting upon the counsel given by the king of Kiama, which 
 appeared to be judicious, the travellers proceeded over a hilly 
 country, and through the towns of Kakafungi, Coobly, and 
 Zalee; till, on the 17 th of June, they arrived at Boussa, the 
 scene of Park's sad disaster. They were immediately intro- 
 duced to the king, and to the niidiki or queen, from both of 
 whom they experienced the most cordial reception. Their 
 majesties even professed to have been weeping in the morning 
 over the death of Captain Clapperton, though their eyes bore 
 no symptoms of this sorrowful occupation. Next day the 
 illustrous pair were delighted beyond measure by being pre- 
 sented with a looking-glass. They afterwards waited upon 
 the travellers in very humble attire, and without the least 
 ceremony. Some regret was at first expressed that no coral 
 was included among their presents ; but a few plated buttons, 
 newly cleaned, soon engrossed their attention, and gave rise 
 to a long and eager struggle who should have the prettiest. 
 
56 
 
 Africa : Past and Presenl. 
 
 The king secured the largest and best, yet contrived to per- 
 suade the queen to be content with what fell to her lot. " The 
 royal couple were like two great children." 
 
 From Boussa the Landers proceeded up the river to Youri, 
 to make preparation for their downward voyage. Before finally 
 leaving Boussa the travellers made one more effort to recover 
 papers and effects belonging to the lamented Mungo Park, but 
 without much success. It was found, however, that the sultan 
 possessed a rich crimson damask tobe or cloak, embroidered 
 with gold lace, which he said was purchased by his predecessor 
 from a white man, at a period very nearly corresponding with 
 the date of Park's last journey, and there was reason to think 
 that it had actually belonged to him. Having expressed a 
 strong desire to possess it, the travellers were fortunate enough 
 to receive this beautiful tobe as a present ; but, as will be seen 
 in the course of our narrative, subsequent events prevented 
 their bringing it to England. They made searching inquiry 
 for papers and books, hoping to recover Park's journal, and at 
 one time their expectations were raised to a high pitch, as 
 they heard of a poor man who possessed a large volume ; but 
 when it was brought it proved to be an obsolete nautical 
 publication of the last century. Among the leaves, however, 
 was found an invitation card addressed to Mr. Park by a 
 friend in the Strand, which showed that the book had belonged 
 to him. Thus all hope of obtaining any more important relics 
 of the great explorer vanished. 
 
 On the 2oth of September the travellers took a friendly leave 
 of their majesties of Boussa, and resumed their voyage down 
 the mighty Niger. Their canoe arrangements were very defec- 
 tive at first, but they obtained more suitable vessels in exchange 
 for those they possessed as they had opportunity. The incidents 
 of the voyage, which occupied about two months, were of 
 varied interest. Being unprovided with the necessary instru- 
 ments, and possessing but very limited scientific knowledge, 
 the explorers were unable to fix the geographical position of 
 prominent places, but they give a very sensible and interesting 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 57 
 
 account of what they saw. They found the river to vary in 
 width from one to three miles, and in some places it overflowed 
 the low lands, assuming the appearance of vast lakes or inland 
 seas. It was, moreover, bestudded with a number of beautiful 
 verdant islands of varied sizes and shapes, some of which were 
 inhabited and apparently well cultivated. They observed, as 
 they sailed along, the entrance of numerous tributaries into the 
 main stream, the largest of which was the Tchadda. The shore 
 on each bank was in some places barren, mountainous, and 
 
 I rugged, and in others level and fertile. They noted the names 
 of numerous large towns and peoples with whom they came 
 in contact, — as Layaba, Bajiebo, Belee, Rabba, Zagoshi, Egga, 
 
 ! Kacunda, and others. When they heard of a town with a bad 
 name they contrived to pass it in the night, and so avoided, as 
 much as possible, intercourse with savage and warlike peoples, 
 only going on shore where they thought they could do so with 
 impunity. 
 
 On the whole, however, our adventurers found the natives 
 well disposed till they came near the coast, when they observed 
 a great difference in their manners and bearing. In the lower 
 regions, where they had been brought into contact with the 
 slavers, they became more insolent in their demands for 
 presents ; and at length the travellers were involved in difficulty 
 and trouble. One instance of a narrow escape from danger 
 and death may be given as a specimen. They had sailed from 
 Kacunda, their last halting-place, a distance of about seventy 
 or eighty miles, when feeling fatigued, and their apprehensions 
 of danger being lulled, they landed. On a cleared spot, seem- 
 ingly laid out for a market or fair, they began to erect an 
 awning, with the view of taking some repose. But news was 
 soon brought that some of their men, straggling in search of 
 firewood, had lighted upon a village, where they found only 
 females and children ; who, struck with alarm, ran into the 
 fields to warn the men of the arrival of strangers. Suddenly 
 one of the native sailors called aloud, "War is coming ! oh, war 
 is coming!" Starting up, they beheld a large party of men 
 
 I 
 
58 
 
 Afyica : Past and Present. 
 
 almost naked, running in a very irregular manner, and with 
 uncouth gestures, towards the little encampment. They were 
 all variously armed with muskets, bows and arrows, cutlasses, 
 knives, barbs, long spears, and other instruments of destruction. 
 Very uneasy sensations were produced by the sight of this band 
 of wild men, with their ferocious looks and hostile appearance. 
 They advanced rapidly in such numbers as to afford scarcely 
 any hope of a successful conflict. It was therefore determined 
 to approach and accost them in a pacific manner. 
 
 The sequel will be best given in the words of the narrator: — 
 " Throwing down our pistols, which we had snatched up in the 
 first moment of surprise," says Richard Lander, " my brother 
 and I walked very composedly, and unarmed, towards the chief. 
 As we approached him, we made all the signs and motions we 
 could with our arms, to deter him and his people from firing 
 upon us. His quiver was dangling at his side, his bow was 
 bent, and an arrow which was pointed at us already trembled 
 on the string, when we were within a few yards of his person. 
 This was a highly critical moment, — the next might be our last. 
 But the hand of Providence averted the blow ; for just as the 
 chief was about to pull the fatal cord, a man that was nearest 
 to him rushed forward and stayed his arm; all of them trembled 
 like aspen leaves ; the chief looked up full in our faces, kneel- 
 ing on the ground ; light seemed to flash from his dark rolling 
 eyes ; his body was convulsed all over, as though he were en- 
 during the utmost torture ; and with a tremulous yet undefinable 
 expression of countenance he dropped his head, eagerly grasped 
 our proffered hands, and burst into tears. This was a sign of 
 friendship ; harmony followed, and war and bloodshed were 
 thought of no more. Peace and friendship now reigned 
 among us." 
 
 Thankful for this merciful deliverance, the adventurous 
 voyagers pursued their way down the stream ; but it was not 
 long before they were involved in still greater trouble. In the 
 course of a few days they thought they perceived the influence 
 of the tide affecting their progress. The periodical rise and 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 59 
 
 fall of the water in the river, which became more and more 
 apparent, produced in their minds the conviction that they were 
 approaching the sea ; and they rejoiced to think that their toils 
 would soon be over and the grand problem of the termination 
 of the Niger solved. Whilst thus musing, about seven o'clock 
 in the evening, they came to the junction of two rivers, one 
 flowing from the east into the Niger, and the other westward 
 from it to Benin, near which stood the large market town of 
 Kirree. Numerous boats were lying on the shore ; and there 
 soon appeared, coming upwards, a fleet of fifty large canoes 
 ornamented with a variety of ensigns, among which was the 
 British union flag. The clothing of the men was entirely of 
 European manufacture, and the whole presented a spectacle 
 at once picturesque and grateful to an English eye. Richard 
 Lander, whose canoe was a little in advance, sailed gaily on to 
 meet them; but emotions of a different kind speedily succeeded, 
 when a huge negro in one of the canoes beckoned him to come 
 on board. As he did not instantly obey, the crew mounted a 
 platform, and levelled their muskets at him. He felt that, with 
 his small loaded bark, to engage a fleet of fifty war-canoes would 
 be merely to throw away his life. He therefore stood still whilst 
 the assailant pronounced him his prisoner and took possession 
 of all his goods. 
 
 Meantime John Lander and his party hove in sight ; and great 
 was their surprise when they beheld the fleet of war-canoes, and 
 the leader of the expedition on board one of them. John made 
 an effort to escape, but he was pursued and seized by main force, 
 and in the struggle which followed his canoe was upset, and 
 he had a narrow escape from a watery grave. On looking 
 round in despair, he saw Richard at a short distance steadily 
 looking upon him, and pointing his finger to the skies, as if 
 saying, " Trust in God." Hereupon his mind became more 
 composed ; and soon after, coming alongside, Richard threw 
 a shirt over the naked body of his brother, and spoke to him 
 words of comfort ; but on attempting to go on board the same 
 canoe he was dragged back with violence, and for the present 
 
6o 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 the brothers were kept separated. In this extremity, and while 
 the travellers scarcely hoped for life, affairs suddenly took a 
 favourable turn. Some of the natives of a neighbouring pro- 
 vince, who accompanied the expedition, had been plundered 
 also ; and when the whole of the party were landed at Kirree, 
 these called for justice. They were seconded by a number of 
 females richly dressed in silk, and others disposed to befriend 
 them. A council was forthwith held in the market-place, which 
 decided that the attack had been unwarrantable, that the stolen 
 goods should be restored, and the ringleader in the attack put 
 to death. Search was accordingly made for the goods ; and 
 there were produced in the midst of the assembly the medicine 
 chest of the expedition, a box with books, John Lander's diary, 
 and the cloths-bag nearly emptied of its contents. There had 
 disappeared the whole of the arms, nine valuable elephants' 
 tusks, ostrich-feathers, various small commodities, and (what 
 was most of all regretted) Richard Lander's journal. The 
 travellers were then cailled, and informed that, the king of 
 Kirree being absent, they must be sent to Obie, the ruler of 
 the Eboe country, and placed at his disposal. 
 
 This was considered a favourable arrangement by the 
 travellers, though they became virtually captives, and were 
 escorted down the river by two large war-canoes. The banks 
 now presented an alluvial aspect, resembling that of the coast ; 
 they were low, fiat, and swampy, and covered with forests of 
 mangrove and other trees. On the 8th of November, after 
 passing two large branches of the river, one flowing south-east 
 and the other west, an Eboe man called out, " There is my 
 country ! " and they soon came in front of the town, where 
 there were hundreds of canoes, some larger than any they had 
 seen before. The houses were uncommonly neat, plastered, 
 with wooden pillars in front, and surrounded by well-fenced 
 courtyards, in which grew bananas and plantains. 
 
 Having been brought before King Obie, the travellers were 
 informed that the price of their ransom would be " twenty 
 bars," or the value of twenty slaves, and that they must remain 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 6 i 
 
 at Eboe till that amount was sent up from the coast. This 
 announcement struck them with consternation, as it appeared 
 very doubtful whether any English captain would be disposed 
 to advance such a sum. However, a personage calling himself 
 King Boy determined to engage in the speculation, and offered 
 to pay Obie his demand, provided he obtained a " book " or 
 order on Captain Lake of the English brig Thomas, then at 
 anchor below, for thirty-five bars and a cask of rum. This 
 was to them gratifying intelligence, though the claim was 
 exorbitant ; but they resolved to promise anything in order to 
 effect their escape. The engagement was accordingly made, 
 and the brothers took their departure in the custody of King 
 Boy in a large canoe bound for Brass Town, the royal residence 
 of their sable lord and master. 
 
 On the 17th of November, Richard Lander, leaving his 
 brother and the rest of the party as hostages, was allowed to 
 embark in a canoe at Brass Town, accompanied by King Boy, 
 j to complete his discoveries. The branch of the Niger which 
 I here enters the sea is divided into two smaller sections, called 
 ; the First and Second Brass Rivers ; but Brass Town is not 
 built upon either, probably from their banks being too low 
 and swampy, and liable to inundation in the rainy season. It 
 stands upon a large creek, connected with the main stream by 
 i numerous branches which wind through this alluvial district. 
 In the evening they reached the Second, and next morning the 
 First Brass River, called by the Portuguese the Nun ; and in 
 a quarter of an hour afterwards Lander, with inexpressible 
 jileasure, beheld in the distance the long-wished-for Atlantic, 
 and heard the sea breaking over the sandy bar which stretches 
 across the mouth of the river, where two European vessels 
 were riding at anchor. The first was a Spanish slaver, and 
 the other the Thomas of Liverpool, of which he had previously 
 heard. The crews of both ships were nearly all down with 
 African fever. On going on board the English vessel to make 
 known his case, and to solicit the kind interposition of the 
 master, his fellow-countryman, the sorrow and dismay of the 
 
^4 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 civilization among the barbarous tribes of the interior of 
 Africa. 
 
 By means of steam navigation they proposed to ascend the 
 Niger, survey the country, and open friendly communications 
 with the natives everywhere. Two iron steamers were accord- 
 ingly constructed specially for this service — the Quorra of 
 forty, and the Albtirkah of sixteen horse power, with crews 
 of twenty-six and fourteen men respectively ; while the 
 Columbine^ a sailing vessel, of 200 tons, carried out goods 
 for trafific. Mr. Richard Lander readily accepted an invitation 
 to join the party, at the head of which was Mr. Laird himself, 
 Lieutenant Allen being sent out by Government to survey the 
 river, while Dr. Briggs and Mr. Oldfield went as medical men. 
 
 The expedition sailed from Liverpool on the 19th of July, 
 1832 ; and, after calling at the Cape Verd Islands, Sierra 
 Leone, Monrovia, Axim, and Cape Coast Castle, the vessels 
 anchored at the mouth of the river Nun on the i6th of October. 
 The effects of the climate, the great barrier to African explora- 
 tion, were soon manifest, so that within three days they lost 
 by death Captain Harris and two seamen of the Columbine. 
 Ten days were employed in preparations for ascending the 
 river, during which they received marked attention and assist- 
 ance from the native kings and others. 
 
 On the 26th, having got under way, they began to explore 
 a passage through the narrow channel of the Nun on their 
 way up the river. On arriving at Eboe, the party met with 
 a cordial reception from the king, notwithstanding a brush 
 which they had had with some of his subjects at a village 
 below. His sable majesty is described as tall in person, with 
 a pleasing countenance and agreeable manners. Six female 
 faces, visible through the doorway of an adjoining apartment, 
 were understood to be those of his favourite wives. Here also 
 was King Boy, who never spoke to the other sovereign without 
 first falling upon his knees as a sign of his inferiority in position 
 and power. Soon after leaving Eboe, on the i ith of November, 
 fever made its appearance on board both vessels in a most 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 65 
 
 virulent form. Mr. Laird was one of the first to suffer, but 
 his attack was comparatively mild, and he soon got over it ; 
 but this was not the case with many others. The disease daily 
 spread more widely, till, on the 24th, the Qiiorra had lost thirteen 
 men, and the Alburkah two. They were struck with the appre- 
 hension that all would perish together, and not one return 
 to relate the sad story of their fate ; but in a short time the 
 disease abated somewhat, and the expedition pushed along 
 up the river, hoping to find the climate improve as they 
 approached the high lands — which proved to be the case. A 
 month was occupied in reaching Attah, an important and 
 populous town, about 300 miles above Eboe, where they 
 attempted to traffic with the natives, but found serious diffi- 
 culties, owing to the prevalence of the slave trade. 
 
 The transactions of the party with the king of Attah were 
 very unsatisfactory ; and his brother, with whom they en- 
 deavoured to treat for ivory and other native produce, ended 
 every discussion with the angry query, " Why won't you take 
 men ? " So superstitious were these people, that the king was 
 seen with his priests performing certain fetish ceremonies, in 
 which persons fantastically dressed used expressive gestures, and 
 threw alligators' flesh into the river, hoping thereby to prevent 
 the strangers from ascending farther ; but, as he did not oppose 
 any human obstacle, they proceeded without further difficulty. 
 The river now assumed a delightful appearance, bordered 
 by gently undulating banks and hills of moderate elevation ; 
 beyond which appeared in the distance the bold range of the 
 Kong mountains. The sick began to recover, and the con- 
 valescents to gain strength. On approaching the confluence 
 of the Tchadda, the Niger presented itself to view as " an 
 immense river about 3000 yards wide, flowing majestically 
 between its banks, which rose gradually to a considerable 
 height, and were studded with clumps of trees and brushwood, 
 giving them the appearance of a gentleman's park ; while 
 the smoke rising from the towns and villages, which appeared 
 in various directions, and the number of canoes floating on 
 
 5 
 
66 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 its bosom, gave it an aspect of security and peace far beyond 
 any African scene hitherto witnessed." 
 
 The prospect of trade, however, did not meet the expectations 
 of the adventurers. Ivory was very scarce and dear, and the 
 indigo offered for sale was found to be dirty and not worth its 
 freight home. The stream, moreover, now became compara- 
 tively shallow, and on the 22nd of December the Quorra stuck 
 first on one sandbank and then on another ; and, after a 
 succession of such accidents, it was found necessary to " house 
 her," and await the rise of the water caused by the rainy season. 
 Lander endeavoured to penetrate upwards in the Alburkah to 
 Rabba and Boussa, but soon discovered that the depth of 
 water at this season was not sufficient for his purpose. 
 
 Condemned to a gloomy and monotonous life, Mr. Laird 
 again suffered from ague and fever, and was deeply affected 
 by the death of Dr. Briggs, whose society had been his chief 
 consolation. He therefore determined to ascend the Tchadda, 
 if possible, as far as Funda, long known as the chief city in this 
 part of Africa ; but the entrance of the river was so obstructed 
 by sandbanks that the boat could proceed only through a creek 
 which two miles above traversed its delta. The main stream 
 thus reached was found two fathoms deep, and flowing rapidly. 
 After a tedious navigation of seven days, during which he 
 passed a considerable number of villages, he arrived at Yim- 
 maha, the port of Funda, about thirty miles distant from the 
 city. He sent a message to the king, to which an answer was 
 returned by eighteen horsemen, who bowed in humble obeisance 
 to the illustrious stranger, and who informed him of his 
 majesty's wish to see him at his royal residence. After a 
 diligent search, a navigable creek was found, through which the 
 boat was able to ascend to a point within nine miles of Funda. 
 By this route Laird travelled, and reached the city at night, by 
 moonlight, and was directed to a miserable hovel for a lodging; 
 but next day he was provided with a better house in a broad 
 street. Both night and morning he was beset by immense 
 crowds, who showed the utmost curiosity to see a white man. 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 67 
 
 In the afternoon the king waited upon him in full state, arrayed 
 in splendid silk and velvet robes. He expressed great pleasure 
 at seeing a European, and promised abundance of ivory for 
 barter. In the meantime he seated himself on one of Mr. 
 Laird's tin cases, containing his wardrobe, which by this act 
 was instantly declared by his attendants to be his majesty's 
 property, according to the custom of the country, and they 
 proceeded to carry it off ! It was rescued, however, by two of 
 the boatmen, although not without a fierce struggle. 
 
 On examination, Funda was found to be a large city of 
 about 40,000 inhabitants, only a tenth part of whom were 
 Mohammedans. A magnificent, fruitful, and extensive plain 
 surrounds the city, bounded by a range of low distant hills. 
 The place is enclosed by a wall twelve feet high, six thick, and 
 for the most part by a ditch ten feet deep. Cotton is spun by 
 every individual, high and low, the king himself not excepted ; 
 the instrument being a species of bobbin which can be used by 
 the hand, even in walking. The native method of weaving 
 narrow webs of cloth, about six inches wide, is somewhat 
 remarkable, the loom and other machinery being of the most 
 rude and simple character. There are also extensive dye-works, 
 and iron and copper are fabricated into a variety of useful 
 articles. Mr. Laird, however, failed to transact any business 
 of consequence with the king and people of Funda. Indeed, 
 he seems, from his own account, to have been all the time at 
 cross purposes with them ; so that after a week or two spent in 
 useless contention, having satisfied his curiosity and amused 
 the natives by the discharge of fireworks, etc., he descended 
 the river, and joined the members of the expedition whom he 
 had left behind. Soon after this, Mr. Laird's personal explora- 
 tions in Africa came to an end. Being apparently disappointed 
 with the result of the experiment so far, he descended the 
 Niger, and, after visiting Bimba and Calabar, and spending 
 some time at Fernando Po, he returned to England. 
 
 The command of the expedition now devolved upon Mr. 
 Oldfield. Immediately after the departure of Mr. Laird, he 
 
68 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 and Lander determined to ascend the Tchadda, hoping to 
 reach by that channel the great lake Tchad. They found the 
 shores to vary much in their appearance, but in general neither 
 so fertile nor so populous as those of the Niger. In passing 
 near Funda, they received a visit from the king's daughter, 
 with whom they were greatly pleased. On ascending higher, 
 the natives seemed alarmed at the visit of the strangers, and at 
 two contiguous towns, Dagboh and Obohbe, the chiefs had fled, 
 and only one sent his daughter, ten or eleven years old, with 
 no attire except a girdle of beads, to represent him. They 
 landed at the former place, and found it a town of considerable 
 extent, and the streets well stocked with sheep, goats, and 
 poultry ; but all the inhabitants had disappeared except two, 
 who earnestly beckoned them to depart. Being thus cut off 
 from intercourse with the natives, their provisions became 
 scarce , and seeing no prospect of trade or further exploration 
 with advantage in this direction, after they had ascended the 
 Tchadda to a distance of 104 miles from its confluence with 
 the Niger, they returned to their former station. 
 
 The season having at length arrived for the periodical rise of 
 the waters of the Niger, our adventurers resolved upon another 
 attempt to ascend the mighty stream to a higher point than 
 they had yet reached. On this voyage, the river, with its banks, 
 presented to the view a magnificent appearance. Villages were 
 numerous, and the mountain slopes, as well as the valleys, were 
 highly cultivated. The people, moreover, were friendly and cour- 
 teous ; and, although they flocked in crowds on board the steamer 
 to gratify their curiosity, each visitor was no sooner required to 
 bring a bundle of firewood than they cheerfully complied with 
 the rule, and thus abundance of fuel was provided without 
 expense or loss of time. Great excitement was caused among 
 the natives by the appearance of the steamer as she pushed her 
 way up the river against wind and tide. On reaching Egga 
 Mr. Oldfield met with a kindly reception from Ederesa the 
 king ; and, on examining the city, found it much more exten- 
 sive and populous than he had supposed. Soon after leaving 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 69 
 
 this place they met a canoe sent by the king of Rabba to 
 inquire if they were the same Christians who were at Sackatoo 
 about two years before, and to ascertain the object of their 
 mission. On learning the friendly and pacific nature of their 
 journey, the messengers returned with joy to give their report 
 to their royal master. 
 
 The expedition soon afterwards came in sight of Rabba, 
 which appeared to be a city of immense extent, built on rising 
 ground, and resembling an amphitheatre. A vast crowd of 
 natives assembled to witness the arrival of the strangers. The 
 English fired a salute, this being the first time that the report 
 of a cannon had been heard on the Upper Niger ; and the next 
 morning they found horses waiting to convey them to the 
 palace. The streets were narrow and excessively dirty, but they 
 passed through a spacious market-place, fitted for the sale of 
 wood, cloth, indigo, slaves, and other articles, of which there 
 was an abundant supply. The royal residence consisted of 
 about thirty ordinary huts, each surmounted by an ostrich egg, 
 and enclosed by a high wall of mud. After passing through 
 several apartments, they came to the palaver-house, where about 
 a hundred chiefs were seated cross-legged, having the whole 
 head except the eyes enveloped in muslin robes. They could 
 not for some time discover who was the king, but found him 
 at length in the person of Osiman, who was sitting plainly 
 dressed among the others, This temporary concealment of the 
 monarch is the common policy in Africa, adopted from fear of 
 treasonable designs on the part of visitors. The king, who 
 proved to be a shrewd, intelligent man, received the presents 
 which were offered him with perfect complacency ; but, accord- 
 ing to African etiquette, had them removed without taking 
 much notice of them. During the interview several ladies 
 came and peeped at the strangers ; but, on being seen, scam- 
 pered away laughing. At first the king, like most African 
 potentates, seemed anxious for trade ; but, as usual, on a one- 
 sided system. He wished to have everything he saw in the 
 possession of the white men, and promised abundance of ivory 
 
70 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 in exchange ; but very little of it was produced, and no business 
 of consequence was transacted. Soon after leaving Rabba the 
 expedition descended the Niger and sailed for Fernando Po, 
 where it arrived on the 3rd of November, 1833. 
 
 In accordance with instructions from home, arrangements 
 were made soon afterwards for a fresh expedition up the Niger. 
 Mr. Oldfield, in the Alburkah, was to lead the way; whilst 
 Lander, in the Qnorra, went to Cape Coast and Akrah for a 
 supply of cowries and goods for barter. The former forthwith 
 sailed up to Iddah. Some time was spent there in the hope of 
 opening an advantageous trade with the king and people. This, 
 however, resulted in disappointment, as before. Mr. Oldfield 
 then ascended to the mouth of the Tchadda, and, having visited 
 the ivory market, where he carried on some small traffic, he 
 returned down the river to look after the other members of the 
 expedition. He had already received information that Lander 
 had been attacked and wounded by a large body of warlike 
 natives ; and on reaching the estuary of the Niger he learned 
 all the particulars of the sad tragedy. That gentleman, who 
 had come up with two boats and a stock of valuable articles, 
 was, at a town named Hyammah, assailed by the combined 
 inhabitants of that and two other places. Three of his men 
 were shot, several wounded, and he himself received a ball in 
 the thigh, which, though at first it appeared not dangerous, 
 proved ultimately fatal. A boat, a canoe, and most of the 
 goods fell into the hands of the brigands. A lady and her 
 child were also captured, but afterwards redeemed. Mr. Old- 
 field, in passing the place on his way downward, was careful to 
 keep the steam in full action, and the vessel in the middle of 
 the river ; yet 200 men rushed from behind a bank and com- 
 menced firing, which they continued as long as the bark was 
 in sight. He was afraid to retaliate, lest his vessel should run 
 aground and his people be overpowered by numbers. On the 
 9th of June, 1834, he reached Fernando Po, and on the 8th 
 of November his arrival at Falmouth closed this chequered and, 
 on the whole, unfortunate expedition. 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 71 
 
 COULTHURST AND DAVIDSON. 
 
 Whilst the expeditions for exploring the interior of Africa 
 which have just passed under review were pursuing their arduous 
 labours, efforts were made in the same direction by individual 
 travellers which are worthy of a passing notice. In the early 
 part of the year 1832 there arrived at St. Mary's, on the river 
 Gambia, where the present writer was then resident, two young 
 men who had left England with the intention of becoming 
 African travellers. One of them became disheartened on first 
 seeing the country, and returned home almost immediately ; 
 but the other, Mr. Coulthurst, possessed more courage, and 
 resolved to proceed alone. I had much conversation with this 
 gentleman, who was intelligent and courteous ; and having just 
 returned from a voyage up the Gambia, and seen some old 
 native chiefs who remembered Mungo Park's passing through 
 the country, I was able to give him several items of information 
 which he highly prized. From reading Herodotus, Mr. Coul- 
 thurst had conceived the idea that the one great river of Africa, 
 mentioned by that historian, meant the connection of the Niger 
 with the Nile, as one continued stream ; and that by ascending 
 the one he might continue his voyage and sail down the other, 
 and thus triumphantly prove their identity as " the father of 
 African waters." The fancied connection of these great rivers 
 he traced with his pen on a map of Africa now before me, and 
 set himself the task of proving its reality by personal observation. 
 
 The plan of Mr. Coulthurst was to purchase a canoe, ascend 
 the Niger, which the Landers had proved to have its numerous 
 mouths in the Bight of Benin, trace its mysterious connection 
 with the Nile, and sail down that river to the Mediterranean. 
 For this purpose he obtained a passage on board H. M.S. Plumper, 
 which was about to sail for the Gulf of Guinea. His last night 
 at the Gambia was spent at the Mission House at Bathurst, 
 where he slept upon a sofa. We conversed till a late hour, and 
 bowed together at the family altar. The next morning, after 
 breakfast, he took his departure, being again commended to 
 God in prayer. We heard no more of the lonely traveller for 
 
72 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 several months ; but at length the mournful tidings came that 
 his short career was terminated. From the account received 
 it appeared that he had scarcely commenced his adventurous 
 journey when he was seized with malignant fever, under which 
 he suffered for a few days and then expired, finding a grave 
 in African soil. Thus was another victim added to the number 
 of those who had fallen in their attempts to explore the interior. 
 
 The design of penetrating to Timbuctu from the north was 
 not yet relinquished ; and the task was undertaken by Mr. 
 Davidson, a respectable medical gentleman, who had already 
 travelled in different quarters of the world, and who possessed 
 courage, strength, and address which seemed peculiarly to 
 qualify him for its accomplishment. He embarked in Septem- 
 ber, 1835, for Gibraltar; but found a difficulty in penetrating 
 to Morocco, because of the jealousy which existed with reference 
 to strangers from Europe going there. This was at length 
 overcome, however, in virtue of the traveller's medical know- 
 ledge, physicians being greatly in demand at that time. The 
 emperor labouring under a severe illness, and hearing of 
 Mr. Davidson's skill, sent him a kind invitation to court, and 
 the Kaid of Tangier received instructions to assist him on his 
 journey. On arriving at the capital he found his services wanted 
 not only by the monarch, but by all the sable beauties who 
 adorned his court. Every morning, after waiting on his majesty, 
 he was presented with a list of the ladies' complaints, with the 
 expectation that next day he would bring a remedy for each ; 
 and thus he continued to prescribe for the royal household 
 with increasing popularity and success for some time. 
 
 Under these circumstances it is not surprising that the 
 traveller found considerable difficulty in getting away from the 
 court of Morocco when he wanted to leave. It was not till 
 the beginning of 1836 that he was permitted to depart. In 
 commencing his journey he attempted to take the most direct 
 route across the chain of the Atlas ; but after climbing to the 
 height of 5000 feet above the level of the sea, he was arrested 
 by snow, and obliged to return to take the circuitous way of 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 73 
 
 Mogadore. Here Mr. Willshire, the British consul, exerted 
 his influence in a negotiation with the sheik of Wadinoon for 
 his safe conveyance to Timbuctu. The chief professed the 
 most friendly disposition ; but alarming tidings came to hand 
 of murderous attacks by wandering marauders in the desert. 
 The caravan which the traveller proposed to join mustered 
 uncommon strength, being composed of a host of men with 
 400 horses and 2,000 camels. With this party he would pro- 
 bably have been safe, but he decided to push on with only 
 four companions ; and the first letters received from him were 
 written in high spirits, stating that he hoped to spend the new 
 year at Timbuctu. However, on the 7th of February, Mr. 
 Willshire received a letter from the sheik of Wadinoon, with the 
 mournful intelligence that Mr. Davidson had been murdered 
 in the desert. This melancholy incident was rendered more 
 painful by the circumstance that the Moslem chief who had 
 undertaken to aid and protect the lonely Englishman was 
 suspected of having been the principal means of his lamented 
 death. 
 
 Niger Expedition. 
 
 The next effort which was made on behalf of the African 
 race was one of great magnitude, and the sympathy and interest 
 which it evoked were so wide-spread that it assumed almost a 
 national importance. An expedition was organized under the 
 direction and at the expense of the British Government, the 
 object of which was not merely to explore the interior of the 
 vast continent, and promote the interests of art and science, 
 but especially to check, and if possible to annihilate, the slave 
 trade by the substitution of legitimate commerce, and the 
 advancement of civilization and social improvement ; and thus 
 to prepare the way for the propagation of Christianity. For 
 this purpose treaties were to be formed with native princes ; 
 encouragement was to be given to trade and agricultural pur- 
 suits; and schools and Christian missions were to be established 
 as openings presented themselves. The river Niger, which 
 
74 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 had been partially explored and made known to the British 
 public by previous expeditions, was to be the highway to the 
 interior, for it was still believed that it might be successfully 
 navigated by vessels of light draught, at the proper season of 
 the year ; and the native tribes of the interior, so far as known, 
 appeared to be on the whole peaceable and well-disposed. 
 
 The Niger Expedition consisted of three steamers — the Albert, 
 Wilberforce, and Soudan, with the Harriet transport and Amelia 
 tender — which were well adapted for river navigation, and care- 
 fully fitted up with every appliance likely to promote the health 
 and comfort of the officers and men in the trying climate to 
 which they were going. There were on board these ships about 
 300 souls, officers and men, all told, under the command of 
 Captain Bird Allen. They left England in the early part of 
 the year 1841, followed by the prayers of tens of thousands, 
 arrangements having been made by various churches to hold 
 special meetings for the purpose of commending the members 
 of the expedition to the care and protection of Almighty God, 
 and to implore His blessing upon the important objects which 
 it had in view. On their way down the coast the vessels called 
 at Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cape Coast Castle, and other places ; 
 and at every settlement an interest was excited such as had 
 never been seen before, as the expedition was known to be of 
 a more decidedly philanthropic and religious character than 
 any of its predecessors. 
 
 The little fleet arrived off the river Nun on the 9th and loth 
 of August. In unloading the transport they were detained some 
 time, owing to the rolling of the vessels in the heavy swell 
 outside the bar. A further detention arose when they had 
 crossed the bar, from the necessity of refitting the tails of the 
 rudders, which had been carried away on the passage from Cape 
 Coast, and without which the vessels were almost unmanageable. 
 These repairs, the badness of the weather, and the strength of 
 the tide, detained the expedition at the mouth of the river for 
 ten days, — a circumstance to be regretted on many grounds. 
 
 This unavoidable delay does not, however, appear to have 
 
Recent Advefiture and Discovery. 75 
 
 positively injured the health of the crews, as they enjoyed a 
 wholesome sea-breeze, and every precaution was taken to 
 preserve them from illness. Up to this period there had been 
 seven deaths since the expedition left England — not, however, 
 attributable to the climate : four of them were from casualties, 
 one of apoplexy, and two from fever (not African, but typhus). 
 Of these last, one only was a European. Under these com- 
 paratively favourable circumstances the steamers commenced 
 their ascent of the Niger on the 20th of August, with sanguine 
 hopes of success. Their progress was necessarily slow, as they 
 did not ordinarily make more than six miles an hour, and the 
 current ran at the rate of three against them. They were 
 delayed still further by looking for the Wilberforce, which had 
 gone up a different channel. Thus the 22nd (Sunday) was 
 spent, and at last it was found that she had gone ahead. The 
 vessels rejoined at Eboe on the 26th, and no inconvenience 
 was experienced beyond the loss of time. This deviation was, 
 however, the means of discovering a new branch of the river, 
 with numerous villages and a larger population than had yet 
 been seen. 
 
 Six days after leaving Eboe the expedition arrived at Iddah, 
 when the African fever broke out among the crews of all the 
 vessels with great virulence, and continued its ravages till they 
 reached the confluence, a distance of 270 miles from the mouth 
 of the river. On the 17th of September the sick list exhibited 
 a total of seventy cases, whilst eight had died. In consequence 
 of this alarming sickness, and their inability to examine the 
 higher grounds for a healthy station, it was deemed advisable 
 to send the sick to the sea-side. Forty-three of the worst cases 
 were, therefore, put on board the Soudan on the 19th, and 
 steaming down the stream as rapidly as possible, she reached 
 the sea on the 22nd. On the passage down the surgeon of the 
 Soudan and one seaman died. They had the good fortune 
 to fall in with H.M.S. Dolphin, on board of which the rest of 
 the patients were embarked, and she set sail at once for 
 the island of Ascension. On the passage thither eight more 
 
76 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 died, but the rest recovered in a most rapid and remarkable 
 manner. 
 
 It appears that up to this time about one-eighth of the entire 
 number of Europeans employed in the expedition had died ; 
 but they were chiefly sailors before the mast. The mortality 
 among the officers and upper classes was less ; the scientific 
 men having suffered but slightly, and the Rev, Messrs. Miiller 
 and Schon, the missionaries, not at all. The leaders of the 
 enterprise were not discouraged ; for great as had been their 
 sufferings, they saw that they were light compared with those 
 of previous exploring parties. They therefore proceeded as 
 best they could to carry out the objects of the undertaking 
 with the means which were still left at their disposal. They 
 formed treaties with several of the most powerful native kings 
 and chiefs, for the promotion of legitimate commerce, and the 
 entire abolition of the slave trade and human sacrifices ; they 
 purchased a tract of ground, sixteen miles in length and six in 
 width, dry and elevated, including a mountain adapted for a 
 settlement and sanatorium ; and they laid out a model farm 
 for the instruction of the natives in improved methods of agri- 
 culture. At the same time the missionaries and linguists were 
 busy with preparatory and elementary work, with a view to 
 promote the moral and religious welfare of the natives. 
 
 It is painful to have to record the comparative failure of an 
 expedition which had been so well planned and so vigorously 
 conducted as the one we have briefly described ; but it is a 
 mournful fact that, notwithstanding the enormous expense 
 which it involved, and the numerous advantages which it 
 possessed, it did not succeed as was expected, or accomplish 
 the amount of good which its warmest friends and patrons 
 desired. No blame is to be attributed to any one, for it 
 developed, in various classes of its members, a measure of 
 Christian courage, zeal, and endurance worthy of the highest 
 commendation. The great obstacle to success was the climate, 
 which in this instance, as in many others, proved seriously 
 injurious to the health and constitutions of Europeans, and 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 77 
 
 trying even to native Africans not accustomed to the swampy 
 and pestilential regions of the coast. After the number of men 
 had been reduced by the deaths and removal of invalids which 
 we have mentioned, fever broke out again on board the 
 exploring vessels, and many more were added to the list of the 
 dead, whilst the survivors were most of them unfit for active 
 duty. Consequently, after vainly struggling on for a few 
 months longer, the steamers descended the river, returned to 
 England, and the undertaking was relinquished. 
 
 Barth, Krapf, and Rebmann. 
 
 Few travellers have manifested greater zeal and earnestness 
 in the cause of African discovery, or done more for the benefit 
 of the negro race, than Dr. Barth, an intelligent and enter- 
 prising German, who headed an expedition, under the auspices 
 of the British Government, for the exploration of the interior 
 of the north-western portion of the great continent, in 1849, 
 and whose journals, in five large octavo volumes, are a noble 
 monument of his Hnguistic and scientific ability. He was first 
 associated with Richardson and Overweg in a journey under- 
 taken with a view to establish friendly relations with the 
 leading potentates and chiefs on the Niger and Lake Tchad, 
 and thus, if possible, to put an end to the slave trade by 
 promoting legitimate commerce and civilization. Richardson 
 died in March, 185 1, at a place within one hundred miles of 
 Kuka ; and Overweg, after exploring a portion of Lake Tchad, 
 and visiting the Biddumas, who dwell on its islands, also expired 
 on the 20th of September, 1852, near Kuka. Thenceforth the 
 main burden of the mission fell upon Dr. Barth, who, although 
 alone, unsupported, and frequently left without resources, 
 pursued his hazardous and laborious researches with the 
 plodding industry, pertinacity, and minute exactness charac- 
 teristic of his countrymen. 
 
 Following a route considerably to the west of the direct path 
 to Bornou, the Doctor passed through Ghat and Air, two 
 
78 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 important oases and centres of trade in the hands of the 
 Tarwick tribes, of whose history and habits he gives ample 
 information. In the course of his researches he found the 
 Fellatah states on the Niger nominally subject to the sultan of 
 Sackatoo, whilst Bornou was under the rule of an Arab sheik. 
 The unsettled state of the country increased the difficulties of 
 Dr. Earth's enterprise ; but he succeeded in exploring Lake 
 Tchad and its southern border-land. The lake was found to 
 be a mere lagoon of no great depth, about four hundred miles 
 in circumference, and contains numerous islands, inhabited by 
 a wild race of natives called Biddumas. The shores are low 
 and swampy for a considerable distance, and abound in croco- 
 diles and hippopotami ; elephants, also, are found in great 
 numbers in the neighbourhood. The river Shary enters the 
 lake from the south, and the Waube from the west. 
 
 On the 1 8th of June, 1854, Dr. Earth made his great dis- 
 covery of the Eenuwe river, which is identical with the eastern 
 branch of the Upper Niger. This river was found to be 800 
 yards broad, 11 feet deep, and liable to rise 30 or even 50 feet 
 higher after the rainy season in August and September. Here 
 were found "extensive fertile plains, about 1000 feet above the 
 level of the sea, and intersected by innumerable broad water- 
 courses favourable to inland navigation " ; and the traveller 
 expresses a confident belief that within fifty years European 
 boats would keep up a regular annual intercourse between the 
 Eay of Eiyafra in the Atlantic Ocean and these populous and 
 fertile regions. 
 
 We pass over the Doctor's account of his adventures in con- 
 nection with certain slave-hunting expeditions which he joined 
 — very unwisely as we think — that he might see more of the 
 country and the people ; and follow him in his course through 
 Gondo, Gurma, Masina and other places, to Saragamo, and 
 thence to Timbuctu, which he reached on the 7th of Sep- 
 tember, 1854. In this celebrated city of interior Africa he 
 spent seven months ; and, more fortunate than some of his pre- 
 decessors, he was permitted to leave it alive, in the month of 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 79 
 
 April, 1855. The description which he gives of Timbuctu, and 
 the narrative of his return journey along the north-eastern bank 
 of the Niger, are full of interest, and we regret that our limited 
 space forbids enlargement. It must suffice to say that, after all 
 the splendid accounts we have received of the Niger, we fear 
 that the fact of the rapids and rocks at Kerdaji, Akarambray, 
 and Tosaye, and probably in other places mentioned by this 
 traveller, will prove serious obstacles in the way of the con- 
 tinuous navigation of its upper section. 
 
 Dr. Barth arrived at Say on his return, on the 29th of July, 
 passed through Wurno, Kano, and Kukawa, where he met with 
 Dr. Vogel, who had been sent to reinforce the expedition, and 
 reached Tripoli in the month of August, 1856, having per- 
 formed the most extensive and important journey ever made 
 in North Central Africa by a European traveller. 
 
 The discoveries of Dr. Barth were followed up in after years 
 in a more easterly direction by his fellow-countryman, Dr. 
 Krapf, who had previously been employed as a missionary in 
 Abyssinia and Eastern Africa, under the auspices of the Church 
 Missionary Society. Failing health obliged him to return to 
 Europe in 1855 ; but, after he was settled in a position of ease 
 and comfort in his native land, the spirit of missionary enter- 
 prise and discovery came over him again with such power that, 
 casting a longing eye towards the scene of his former labours 
 and sufferings, he was induced once more to devote himself 
 to exploration and evangelistic work among the poor despised 
 Africans. The large and powerful tribe known as the Gallas, 
 with whom the Doctor had become acquainted in the course of 
 his former mission, was now the object of his chief solicitude. 
 These people he sought to reach first through Abyssinia, next 
 through Shoa, and lastly by preliminary labours among the 
 Wanika tribes on the east coast near Mombaz. In voyaging 
 along the eastern coast of the great continent, he visited in 
 succession Magadoxo, Kiloa, Barava, Milinda, Mombaz, and 
 Zanzibar, all of which he describes in a most interesting 
 manner. At length he fixed himself at Rabbi-Mpia, where 
 
8o 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 he was joined by his fellow-countryman Mr. Rebmann, and 
 their united labours were made a blessing to the native tribes, 
 who are here called Wamrima and Washinzi ; whilst at the 
 same time they made some interesting discoveries in different 
 directions. 
 
 Dr. Krapfs great object being to find access as soon as 
 possible to the Gallas, he and his colleague undertook several 
 journeys into the interior through regions until then unvisited 
 by Europeans. Mr. Rebmann's first journey, commenced in 
 October, 1847, was through the Teita country, over extensive 
 plains, to the mountain known as the Kadiaro, said to be 
 thirty-six leagues from Mombaz. In the early part of the 
 following year he visited the Jagga country, about a hundred 
 leagues from Mombaz. The great event of this journey was 
 a view of Mount Kilimanjaro, with its covering of perpetual 
 snow. This singular mountain was also seen by Dr. Krapf, on 
 the loth of November, 1849, when on his way to Ukambani, 
 and again on his second journey to the same place in 1851. 
 There is also in this region a second snow-capped mountain 
 called Kenia, and near it a volcano on a mountain, from which 
 smoke was seen to proceed. These were distinctly seen by 
 Dr. Krapf on the 3rd of December, 1849. The Doctor 
 afterwards visited Ukambani, a mountainous country to the 
 north of Jagga, and obtained much valuable intelligence 
 respecting the Wakuafi and Masi tribes inhabiting the regions 
 beyond. 
 
 The information collected in these journeys by Dr. Krapf 
 and Mr. Rebmann respecting the existence of a large inland 
 sea was incorporated in a map published in the Proceedings 
 of the Royal Geographical Society, in which the most striking 
 feature was a lake of a curious shape, extending through twelve 
 degrees of latitude. The devoted missionary explorers were 
 not permitted to verify the reports they had received of these 
 matters by personal inspection, their evangelical labours 
 demanding their immediate attention; and it was left to others 
 to make the real discovery. 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 8i 
 
 Burton and Speke. 
 
 The object of the expedition of Major Burton and Captain 
 Speke was to test the accuracy of the data furnished and the 
 general information given by Dr. Krapf and Mr. Rebmann 
 with reference to the alleged existence of certain great lakes 
 and mountains in the interior regions of Eastern Africau The 
 result of their explorations was complete success, with regard 
 to the main purpose of their enterprise. The journey inland 
 commenced on the 27th of January, 1857, at Karle, a small 
 town south of the Kingani river, opposite Zanzibar. The 
 personnel of the expedition was as choice as circumstances 
 would permit : " bad enough at best." In addition to two or 
 three domestic servants brought from Bombay, the travellers 
 were attended by an escort of thirteen Baloch men, twenty- two 
 negro slaves, and twenty-five asses, — " a mass of savagery 
 which proved a severe trial of temper." 
 
 The maritime region, extending from the coast to Zungomero, 
 about ninety-two miles in a direct line, was crossed in about 
 twelve days. The mountain region, comprising the Usagara 
 chain, consists of parallel ridges separated by plains ; it begins 
 at Zungomero, and ends at the edge of the flat table-land of 
 Ugogo, a distance of about eighty-five geographical miles. 
 The highest points of this part of the chain of mountains, 
 which extends from the neighbourhood of the Cape of Good 
 Hope to the Gulf of Aden, are from 5000 to 7000 feet above 
 the sea level, and the climate is said to be cold and damp. 
 The arid table-land of Ugogo, the general level of which is 
 4000 feet, reaches to the eastern districts of the Unyamwezi, 
 155 miles, and is the counterpart of the Kalahari and Karoo 
 deserts of South Africa. Excepting a few favoured spots, it 
 has no cultivation, no wood, no river, — a perfect wilderness. 
 
 Our travellers reached Kazeh, a principal town of the 
 Unyamwezi, and an Arab trading depot whence various trading 
 routes diverge, on the 7th of November, 1857, after journeying 
 134 days from the coast. From Kazeh the land falls by a 
 
 6 
 
82 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 gentle decline westward. It is highly cultivated, and produces 
 cotton, rice, sweet cane, etc. Cotton cloth is manufactured here, 
 and is in general use for the loose wrappers worn by the natives 
 when in full dress. On proceeding forward, Major Burton 
 was seized with paralysis of the lower extremities, accompanied 
 by partial loss of sight. With indomitable perseverance he 
 nevertheless pursued his journey, carried in a hammock ; and 
 on the 2nd of February, 1858, he was rewarded with the sight 
 of the long-sought lake Tanganyika, " as it lay in the lap of 
 the mountains, basking in the gorgeous tropical sunshine." A 
 large crescent-shaped mass of mountains to the north of the lake 
 was considered by Captain Speke to be the true Mountains of 
 the Moon ; but Major Burton denies the existence of anything 
 beyond " a thin range of hills fringing the Tanganyika." 
 
 The exploration of the lake occupied the travellers from the 
 loth of April to the 13th of May, and was accomplished with 
 great difficulty. It was estimated to be 250 miles long and 
 20 wide, with a circumference of 550 miles. Uruwwa, a 
 country west of the Tanganyika, is said to be the terminus of 
 the Arab trade in that direction. The journey from the sea- 
 coast to Ujiji, on the lake, travellers usually make in eighty-five 
 to a hundred stages, 540 miles direct, but 955 travelled miles. 
 
 Returning to Kazeh, Major Burton halted to recruit, while 
 Captain Speke went direct northward to the southern extremity 
 of the large lake Victoria N'yanza, of which information had 
 been received at Kazeh, on the journey from the coast. Of 
 this discovery Captain Speke gave a particular account in 
 Blackwood's Magazine for September, October, and November, 
 1859 ; and Major Burton published the result of his obser- 
 vations in a volume entitled " The Lake Regions of Central 
 Africa." These two narratives may be read with interest, and 
 compared with each other, as the eminent travellers vary in 
 their views on some important matters. In the opinion of 
 Captain Speke, founded on native information, a large river 
 flows from the northern end of the N'yanza, connecting it with 
 the Tubiri, one of the principal sources of the Nile ; but this 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 83 
 
 was doubted by some distingutehed geographers, and flatly 
 contradicted by Major Burton, till the problem was solved by 
 subsequent travellers. 
 
 Our limited space has not permitted us to introduce our 
 readers to the Wazaramo, the Wasagara, the Wagogo, the 
 Wanyamizi, the VVajiji, and other interior tribes, with whom the 
 travellers came in contact ; but we may observe, in passing, that 
 they share in common with other natives of South-eastern 
 Africa numerous features of a general family likeness. Some 
 interesting information, collected from Arab traders, respecting 
 the northern kingdoms of Karagwah, Uganda, and Unyoro, to 
 the west and north of N'yanza lake, leads to the inference that 
 Central Africa, when more fully explored, will be found to 
 contain numerous despotic kingdoms, similar to that of the 
 Balonda people, with whom Dr. Livingstone became acquainted 
 at an early period of his travels. 
 
 Major Burton and Captain Speke, with their companions in 
 travel, returned in safety to Zanzibar on the 3rd of February, 
 1859, and the expedition was regarded on all hands as having 
 been crowned with complete success. 
 
 Speke, Grant, and Baker. 
 
 The discovery of great lakes and of fertile and populous 
 regions in Central Africa, by the successive expeditions whose 
 adventures have passed under review, was hailed with delight 
 by scientific men in Europe. But instead of satisfying the 
 curiosity of the inquisitive, it only served to excite it to a 
 higher pitch of enterprise. Nor were the explorers them- 
 selves satisfied with what they had done. Captain Speke was 
 impressed with the conviction that the lake called Victoria 
 N'yanza, which he had discovered in 1859, would, on further 
 examination, prove the real source of the Nile. This idea 
 soon became so popular that the Royal Geographical Society 
 determined to send him out again, accompanied by Captain 
 Grant, that, by further investigation, they might, if possible, 
 solve this interesting problem. 
 
84 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 This new expedition left England in April, i860, and was 
 absent the greater part of three years. Entering the continent 
 as before from the east coast, the travellers passed through two- 
 thirds of the entire length of Africa, and descended the Nile 
 to Cairo. As the result of this remarkable journey, we have a 
 large tract of country carefully mapped out, hitherto unknown 
 to the civilized world, and a new route opened up for traders 
 and missionaries to the fertile regions of this portion of Central 
 Africa. The northern shores of the great lake were, moreover, 
 thoroughly explored, and evidence obtained that it poured its 
 waters into the White Nile. And although many points con- 
 nected with the important question of the long-sought source 
 of the Nile necessarily remained unsettled. Captain Speke was 
 confirmed in his conviction that the true source of the " father 
 of waters" was the Victoria N'yanza, which thus, in its magnifi- 
 cent course, rolls over " thirty-four degrees of latitude, or more 
 than 2,300 miles, being one-eleventh of the circumference of 
 the globe." 
 
 The incidents of this expedition of Speke and Grant are 
 equal in interest to any other which has undertaken to explore 
 the interior of Africa; and we regret that lack of space prevents 
 our tracing them in detail. It must suffice to say that in courage, 
 tact, and indomitable perseverance, in the face of uncommon 
 difficulties and dangers, the adventurous travellers have seldom 
 been equalled, and never surpassed ; whilst their graphic de- 
 scriptions of the native tribes with which they came in contact, 
 and the countries through which they journeyed, are not only 
 well calculated to interest the general reader, but also likely to 
 add to the knowledge of the geographer and naturalist. 
 
 Whilst Speke and Grant were pushing their way through 
 Central Africa, Mr. (afterwards Sir Samuel) Baker was sent out 
 to explore the upper regions of the Nile by way of Egypt, with 
 the hope of effecting a junction with the expedition from the 
 east coast. In this journey Baker spent twelve months, and 
 made some interesting and important discoveries in reference 
 to the head waters of the Nile, and the adjacent countries, 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 85 
 
 which he describes as generally low and swampy. On ap- 
 proaching Gondokoro the scenery improves, the marshes 
 disappear, the banks rise some four feet above the level of 
 the stream, the stunted mimosas give place to well-grown trees, 
 and the eye is gladdened by the sight of mountains. 
 
 At this point Baker and his party met the expedition of Speke 
 and Grant on the homeward journey, and great was the joy of 
 all concerned at this auspicious event. They were soon after- 
 wards joined by Consul Petherick and his wife, and Dr. Murie, 
 who were travelling in the same region. There were also on 
 the ground three priests connected with the Austrian mission ; 
 so that the number of Europeans so far up the country was 
 without a precedent. In about ten days the camp broke up, 
 the several portions of it taking different, and indeed contrary, 
 routes \ and, as so often happens, friends parted never to meet 
 again in this world. It is melancholy to think that poor Speke, 
 after passing through so many dangers in Africa, should, on 
 reaching home, have perished by a miserable gun accident, 
 while crossing a field on his father's estate in Somersetshire 
 when in pursuit of game. 
 
 Instead of travelling direct south, as he intended, Baker was 
 compelled by the mutiny of his men to leave the river altogether, 
 and take an easterly course, trusting to the chapter of accidents 
 for eventually getting southward. This part of the journey, 
 extending over eleven months, is full of strange interest. The 
 information which the daring adventurer collected in reference 
 to the civil, social, and moral condition of the native tribes 
 with which he came in contact, is less favourable than that 
 communicated by other travellers ; but some allowance must 
 be made for difference in men's temperaments, as well as for 
 difference of tribes and localities. 
 
 Sir Samuel Baker resumed his explorations in the upper 
 regions of the Nile in after years, under the auspices of the 
 Khedive of Egypt ; and, with his heroic lady, passed through 
 scenes of daring and endurance almost without a parallel in the 
 history of African discovery. Some of the journeys were under- 
 
86 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 taken in company with large armed escorts, avowedly for the 
 purpose of suppressing the slave trade ; and, although we may 
 not approve of all that was done, we can scarcely fail to admire 
 the courage and perseverance of Sir Samuel and Lady Baker. 
 
 Dr. Livingstone. 
 
 Among the host of travellers and explorers who have exerted 
 themselves so nobly to make us acquainted mth the previously 
 unknown regions and peoples of Central Africa, the very fore- 
 most place must be given to Dr. Livingstone. We now proceed 
 to give a brief outline of the remarkable career of this genuine 
 friend of the negro race, so far as our limited space will permit. 
 
 David Livingstone was born about the year 1817, at the 
 village of Blantyre, on the Clyde. He was the son of an 
 honest, hardy, industrious Scotchman, who put him to work as 
 a piecer in a cotton-mill at the early age of ten. In his boyhood 
 little David was fond of books, and as he grew up he deter- 
 aiined to be a scholar. By the labour of his own hands he 
 supported himself while attending the medical and Greek classes 
 in the University of Glasgow and the theological lectures of 
 Dr. Wardlaw. At length, having been admitted a licentiate 
 of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons, believing himself 
 to be called to preach the Gospel to the heathen, he offered 
 himself to the London Missionary Society, and was by them 
 accepted, and sent to South Africa in the year 1840. 
 
 During the following eight years Dr. Livingstone laboured 
 as a missionary at a station called Kolobeng, situated in latitude 
 25° south and longitude 25° east, about 200 miles north of 
 Kuruman, the station occupied by the Rev. Robert Moffat, who 
 in due time became his father-in-law. The humble missionary 
 was led to become an explorer by circumstances which appeared 
 truly providential. The vicinity of the emigrant Dutch Boers, 
 their hostility to missionary efforts, and their determination to 
 shut up the native tribes in the locality of Kolobeng from all 
 intercourse with the Cape Colony, led the thoughtful and ener- 
 getic pioneer evangelist to consider whether some other place 
 
Recent Adventure a7id Discovery. 87 
 
 might not be found more eligible for a mission station, and 
 one that would have the additional advantage of a navigable 
 river communicating with the sea. The first great difficulty to 
 be overcome in the pursuit of these advantages was to cross 
 the dreaded Kalahari desert, and reach the lake N'gami, which 
 the natives described as existing beyond. 
 
 With this object in view, Dr. Livingstone, accompanied by 
 Messrs. Oswell and Murray, and a few native attendants, com- 
 menced the first of his exploratory journeys on the ist of June, 
 1849, skirting the desert as far as possible, rather than passing 
 directly through it. It is described as " by no means destitute 
 of vegetation and inhabitants ; for it is covered with grass and 
 a great variety of creeping plants." It has, however, no running 
 water, and very little in wells. Travellers have to depend upon 
 the wild water melons, so providentially found there, for liquid 
 support for themselves and their cattle. A journey of two 
 months over this arid plain was followed by the discovery, first 
 of the Zouga river, which flows from Lake N'gami, and then, 
 on the I St of August, of the lake itself 
 
 In his second ]o\xvmy to this famous lake, which commenced 
 in the month of April, 1850, Dr. Livingstone was accompanied 
 by Mrs. Livingstone and family, and by the chief Sechele, 
 hoping to be able to pass beyond and visit Sebituane, the chief 
 of the Makololo ; but the country fever which afflicted the 
 children prevented the farther prosecution of the journey. The 
 adventurous missionary returned to his station at Kolobeng 
 with the satisfaction of knowing that he had a second time 
 accomplished the crossing of the Desert, which had hitherto 
 been deemed impracticable, and had found a noble river and 
 a fresh-water lake of considerable magnitude, being upwards of 
 seventy miles in circumference. 
 
 The third ]0VLxntY, in which Dr. Livingstone was accompanied 
 by Mr. Oswell and his own family, commenced in the spring 
 of 1 85 1. The route followed was directly north, leaving the 
 lake to the westward. Great sufferings were endured on this 
 occasion from the absence of water ; and when they reached 
 
88 Africa : Past avd Present, 
 
 the Mababe river other troubles awaited them. The oxen were 
 bitten by the tsetse, a poisonous fly, whose bite is mortal to 
 oxen and horses, while, strange to say, human beings, wild 
 animals, the ass, the mule, and the goat escape with impunity. 
 From Mababe Dr. Livingstone proceeded to the Chobe river, 
 and at Simyati met with the great chief Sebituane, a tall, wiry, 
 athletic man of about forty-five years of age, and the most 
 renowned warrior ever heard of in the interior of Africa. The 
 death of this important personage soon afterwards occasioned 
 some delay to the travellers ; but as soon as they had obtained 
 permission from his successor to visit any part of the country 
 they pleased, they proceeded 130 miles in a north-easterly 
 direction to Sesheke ; and there, in the end of June, 1851, " we 
 were rewarded," writes the Doctor, " by the discovery of the 
 Zambezi in the centre of the continent. We saw it at the end 
 of the dry season, at a time when the river is about at its lowest; 
 and yet there was a breadth of from 300 to 400 yards of deep 
 flowing water." The country between the Chobe and the 
 Zambezi is occasionally flooded, and abounds in swamps, and, 
 although preferred by the Makololo, it was considered an 
 unsuitable place for the residence of Europeans ; hence it was 
 thought desirable to look beyond for a healthy locality as a 
 mission station. 
 
 In the early part of the following year Dr. Livingstone visited 
 Cape Town, when the present writer first became personally 
 acquainted with him. He had prepared elaborate maps of the 
 countries which he had explored ; and, in common with many 
 others, I inspected them with great interest, as they exhibited 
 a clear view of the river system of the interior, with the course 
 for a considerable distance of the Chobe and the Zambezi. 
 We also listened with delight to the Doctor's graphic descrip- 
 tion of his wonderful adventures. 
 
 The fourth and the longest journey of Dr. Livingstone, from 
 Cape Town to the Zambezi, and thence right across the vast 
 continent to Loanda, in the Portuguese colony of Angola, 
 commenced on the 8th of June, 1852. Perhaps that journey 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 89 
 
 would never have been undertaken had not an unforeseen event 
 occurred just then to deprive him of his home. Whilst he was 
 travelling slowly through the Cape Colony the emigrant Boers 
 attacked the chief Sechele, and destroyed the mission station 
 at Kolobeng. The missionary was then free from any regular 
 pastoral charge, the door was closed against him in that quarter, 
 and he felt at liberty to pursue his grand scheme of opening a 
 path from the interior to the sea-coasts for Christianity and for 
 commerce. He reached Linyanti on the 23rd of May, 1853, 
 made an experimental journey up the river Leeambye (another 
 name for the upper part of the Zambezi), as far as its junction 
 with the Leeba, in latitude 14° 11' south, and then returned to 
 Linyanti. After some time spent in making arrangements for 
 his journey, he left Linyanti on the nth of November, with a 
 party of twenty-seven natives, intending, if possible, to reach 
 the western coast. 
 
 We cannot describe in detail the particulars of the canoe 
 voyage up the Leeambye, through the fertile valley of the 
 Barotse, which " is as capable of supporting millions of 
 inhabitants as it is of its thousands. The river abounds with 
 hippopotami and alligators." Not far from Makondo Dr. 
 Livingstone left his canoe, and journeyed on oxback through 
 a country like the preceding, a succession of park-like scenery 
 and open lawns. The territory of the Makololo was now left 
 behind, and the traveller entered the Balond country, which is 
 of great extent, and is governed by a powerful chief named 
 Matiamvo, whose vassals are said to border upon the Portu- 
 guese possessions on both sides of the African continent. The 
 Balonda are real negroes ; every village has its idols near to 
 it; in this, and in other respects, widely differing from the 
 Kaffir and Bechuana tribes. Human sacrifices are not un- 
 common, and superstition increases and is more bloody as 
 the traveller advances farther north. In this journey Dr. 
 Livingstone suffered much from the scarcity of food and from 
 incessant attacks of fever, which the rainy season rendered 
 more trying than it would otherwise have been. The forests 
 
90 
 
 Afyica : Past and Present. 
 
 became more dense as he advanced, but happily without thorns, 
 so that travelling was more easy than in some other parts. 
 
 Beyond the Leeba, a plain of twenty miles in extent had 
 to be crossed, covered with water ankle-deep, while to the left 
 were the plains of Lobale, still more extensive and more deeply- 
 flooded. A little farther to the north, in 1 1|° south latitude, 
 is the watershed between the rivers which flow south and those 
 which flow north. One stream, the Lotembroa, between Lake 
 Dilolo and the Kasye river, was found to send forth two small 
 branches which flow in opposite directions, — a novelty in 
 physical geography. On the 30th of March, 1854, the party 
 began to descend from the highlands towards the western 
 coast of the great continent, when they found the country 
 indented by deep and narrow valleys. On reaching the river 
 Quango, 150 yards wide, and very deep, they found some 
 difficulty in crossing. At length they got ferried over, and 
 the Doctor found himself in the territory of Bangala, among 
 the Cassanges, who are subjects of the Portuguese Government, 
 and happily all his difficulties with the border tribes were over. 
 On the 13th of May he arrived at Loanda, the capital of 
 Angola, where he was received with great kindness by the 
 Portuguese authorities, and the population generally, who 
 paid every needful attention to the great traveller and his 
 attendants. 
 
 Having rested for a while, and carefully examined the Portu- 
 guese colony of Angola, with a degree of courage and perse- 
 verance never surpassed in African exploration. Dr. Livingstone 
 and his faithful Makololos recrossed the vast continent, suffering 
 even greater dangers and privations than they had previously 
 experienced. The return journey commenced on the 20th of 
 September, 1854; and after twelve months of incessant exertion 
 they reached Linyanti in September, 1855. This being the 
 home of the Makololos, and a place where the Doctor was 
 well known and highly esteemed, the travellers were received 
 with joy, kindly treated, and well fed during their stay. On 
 the 3rd of November our courageous adventurer, accompanied 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery, 91 
 
 by the chief Sekeletu and 114 men, left Linyanti for the 
 eastern coast, and commenced what may be with propriety 
 called his fifth great journey of discovery. Following the 
 track of the Zambezi, he turned aside to view the Victoria 
 Falls, where the river is 1000 yards broad, and where, after 
 becoming narrower, the large body of water falls down into a 
 deep rent in the rock a distance of 100 yards, and sends up 
 a cloud of vapour which can be seen six miles off. Here 
 the chief Sekeletu returned to Linyanti, and the Doctor and 
 his men, leaving the river on the 20th, and cutting across the 
 country, on the 3rd of February, 1856, arrived at the Portuguese 
 settlement of Tete, on the lower section of the Zambezi, where 
 they were kindly received by the commandant. 
 
 Here Dr. Livingstone left mcst of his men, and on the 
 22nd of April proceeded down the Zambezi to Senna, which 
 he reached on the 27th. On approaching the delta, he was 
 attacked with fever ; but he pressed forward, and on the 20th 
 of May, within a few days of four years since he left Cape Town, 
 he reached Quilimane on the eastern coast. After waiting for 
 a vessel at the place last named, on the 12th of July he 
 embarked on board H.M. brig Frolic, which had been sent 
 from the Cape to meet him, and on the 12th of August reached 
 the Mauritius. Leaving that port, he proceeded home by way 
 of the Red Sea and Egypt, and arrived in England on the 12 th 
 of December, 1856, having accomplished some of the most 
 remarkable journeys that were ever performed by any African 
 travellers in ancient or modern times. 
 
 In the early part of the year 1858, Dr. Livingstone left his 
 native land once more, and entered upon his sixth great 
 journey of exploration, at the head of the Zambezi expedition. 
 He arrived at the Cape of Good Hope, where the present 
 writer was then residing, in the month of April; and on Monday, 
 the 26th, the renowned traveller was invited to a public meeting 
 in the Commercial Exchange, Cape Town, over which His 
 Excellency the Governor, Sir George Grey, presided, to receive 
 such honours as we as British colonists could bgstow. A bank 
 
92 Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 cheque for 800 guineas in a silver box, with an appropriate 
 inscription, was presented to the worthy Doctor by His Excel- 
 lency in the name of the Cape Colonists, who had generously 
 subscribed for the amount, as a testimonial of respect, and to 
 assist him in his further explorations. Some excellent speeches 
 were delivered by the Governor, Dr. Livingstone, Mr. Moffat 
 (who had come to the Cape to meet his son-in-law), and others ; 
 and in the evening we were honoured with an invitation from 
 the Governor to me, the Doctor and Mrs. Livingstone, Mr. and 
 Mrs. Moffat, and other friends at Government House, where 
 we spent two or three hours in pleasant conversation on the 
 ^ present condition and future prospects of Africa ; our distin- 
 guished host. Sir George Grey, adding much to our enjoy- 
 ment by his affable manner and generous hospitality, and by 
 exhibiting for our inspection some of his choice books and 
 curiosities. 
 
 On the following day the Zambezi expedition left the Cape, 
 followed by the prayers and best wishes of Christian people of 
 all denominations. On this occasion Dr. Livingstone appeared 
 amongst us, not in the garb of a humble missionary, as formerly ; 
 but as H.B.M. Consul for Central Africa, with cap and coat 
 ornamented with gold lace and bright buttons ; and we confess 
 to a feeling of regret that he should have thus lowered himself, 
 by changing his sacred for a secular position. Mrs. Livingstone 
 remained at the Cape for a long time whilst her husband was 
 exploring the interior, and during her residence at Mowbray 
 she frequently attended our chapel and shared in our sympathy 
 and prayers. 
 
 Dr. Livingstone hastened up the Zambezi to Tete, where 
 he had left his faithful Makololos, under the promise of re- 
 turning to lead them back to their own country in the interior. 
 The survivors (for, alas ! many of them had died) were delighted 
 to see him, and after performing various voyages up the Shire, 
 and exploring the lakes Shirwa and N'yassa, he fulfilled his 
 promise by proceeding with his followers to Linyanti, where he 
 arrived in safety in the month of August, 1862. Returning to 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 93 
 
 the east coast in November, the Doctor welcomed to the 
 country the ill-fated Universities' Mission, under the lamented 
 Bishop Mackenzie, and having escorted its members to Mago- 
 mero, their station on the highlands, returned to his work of 
 exploring the Zambezi and its tributaries. The heaviest trial 
 of the great traveller now occurred : the deadly fever which 
 first carried off the English bishop, when on an expedition 
 down the Shire, and in the same malarious district wrecked 
 his mission, fearfully tested the Doctor's own party, and finally 
 carried off his own dear wife, two short months after she had 
 joined him at the mouth of the Zambezi. 
 
 After two years of not very successful exploration the Zam- 
 bezi expedition was recalled by the Home Government ; and 
 Dr. Livingstone left Zanzibar towards the close of April, 1864, 
 for Bombay, on his way to England, where he arrived in safety 
 after an adventurous passage. Nothing daunted by previous 
 disappointment, suffering, and bereavement, the great traveller 
 soon embarked again for Zanzibar, on the east coast of Africa, 
 at his own expense and on his own responsibility; and in the 
 month of April, 1866, entered upon his seventh and last great 
 journey of exploration in the interior of Africa. On this occa- 
 sion he discovered other great lakes and rivers, which may prove 
 very important in the future ; but having been deserted by 
 most of his men, and left without a supply of necessary stores, 
 he was unable to advance, and became lost to the civilized 
 world for two or three years. At length different parties were 
 sent out to search for him ; and he was ultimately found and 
 relieved by the enterprising Stanley at Ujiji, on the shore of 
 the great lake Tanganyika, on the loth of November, 187 1. 
 The feelings of the lonely traveller may be better imagined 
 than described, on being once more favoured to look upon the 
 face of a white man, and to hear what had been passing in 
 Europe during the long period of his exile. 
 
 On the return of Stanley to the coast. Dr. Livingstone con- * 
 tinned his researches during the following year, being unwilling 
 to return to England till he had finished the explorations and 
 
« 
 
 94 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 solved the geographical problems on which he had set his 
 heart. In the order of Divine Providence, however, he was 
 called to rest from his labours before he had fully accomplished 
 his self-appointed task. Although relieved for a time by the 
 welcome visit of Stanley, his supply of stores and necessary 
 comforts again failed, and he was reduced to great straits. At 
 length he became fairly worn down with fatigue and sickness, 
 and after having been carried on a litter for several miles by 
 his faithful attendants, they built a temporary hut for his 
 accommodation on the banks of the Miliamo, in which he 
 peacefully expired on the ist of May, 1873. His remains 
 were brought to England by his faithful companions, Chouma, 
 Susi, and Jacob Wainwright ; and he was interred in West- 
 minster Abbey amongst the great and the good of past ages, — 
 an honour of which he was in every respect worthy. 
 
 Stanley and Cameron. 
 
 The name of Henry M. Stanley, the enterprising "Travelling 
 Correspondent of the New York Herald,^'' will ever rank next 
 to that of the lamented Dr. Livingstone as an African explorer, 
 not only because he found and relieved the Doctor under 
 peculiar circumstances, as already mentioned, but because of 
 his undaunted courage and indomitable perseverance, and the 
 real value of his subsequent discoveries. After Stanley's return 
 from finding Livingstone he appears to have been utterly 
 unable to check the African exploration fever which had seized 
 him. He manifested the restlessness of one who was evidently 
 born a traveller; and no sooner did the proprietors of the 
 Daily Telegraph and the New York Herald propose jointly to 
 commission him to head an expedition to prosecute further 
 exploration in the interior of Africa, with a view to solve the 
 geographical questions still involved in mystery, than he leaped 
 eagerly to the work. 
 
 Having gone out to the eastern coast and organized his 
 expedition, Stanley and his party started from the port of 
 Bagomoyo on the mainland, about twenty miles south of 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 95 
 
 Zanzibar. The baggage, including the sections of a portable 
 boat called the Lady Alice, weighed eight tons, and had to be 
 carried by porters. The members of the expedition, all told, 
 including men, women and children, porters, chiefs, and guards 
 (the latter being armed with Schneider rifles), were 356. 
 There were also three Englishmen in the company: Frederick 
 Baker, Edward Pocock and his brother Frank, who subse- 
 quently displayed a fine religious spirit in the dreadful trials 
 that awaited them. 
 
 After twenty-five days' march from Bagomoyo the expedition 
 reached Mpwapwa, 230 miles west of that port. Here it 
 was found that fifty of the number who had started had 
 deserted, carrying with them their advance of pay, and 
 many of them their guns also. Before leaving Mpwapwa 
 several others were discharged, as having proved physically 
 unfit for the heavy work required of them. By Christmas food 
 had run short, and Stanley had not tasted meat for ten days. 
 On the loth of January, 1875, the expedition was completely 
 starved out, and travelled forward very feebly, hoping to meet 
 with provisions. Turning north, they reached Chiwyu, 400 
 miles from the ocean, and 5400 feet above the level of the 
 sea. Here Edward Pocock died of typhus fever; and after 
 burying him under a tree, the weakened and dispirited expedition 
 moved on. They soon afterwards struck the river Shimeeyn, as 
 broad as the Thames at London Bridge. This noble stream 
 was found, on examination, to empty itself into Lake Victoria 
 N'yanza at its southern extremity. The Victoria N'yanza 
 empties itself, at its northern extremity, through the Victoria 
 Nile into the Albert N'yanza, which directly feeds the great 
 mysterious river itself. Thus at last was the grand discovery 
 made, which had perplexed the minds of men for ages, — 
 one of the sources of the Nile, in the head streams of the 
 Shimeeyn, 5400 feet above the level of the sea. 
 
 On the 20th of January the expedition entered the Ituru 
 territory, where they had much trouble with a notorious witch- 
 doctor and other turbulent natives, who stirred up the people 
 
g6 Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 to deeds of violence against the strangers. By this time 
 Stanley's party had become much weakened by deaths and 
 desertions. Twenty men had died, and eighty-nine had de- 
 serted since they left the coast, whilst many of those who 
 remained were enfeebled by sickness. In this unprepared state, 
 the expedition was attacked by a numerous and powerful band 
 of armed savages, and were obliged to fight for their lives. It 
 was not until a loss had been sustained of twenty-four killed, 
 and four wounded, that it was possible to get clear from the 
 murderous Wanyaturu. Proceeding northwards, they travelled 
 through a country the inhabitants of which were less inhos- 
 pitable, and on the 28th of February the great lake Victoria 
 N'yanza presented itself to their view, — a vast sheet of water, 
 or an inland sea, with an area of 21,500 square miles, at an 
 elevation of 4168 feet above the sea-level. "What a lake! 
 nearly three times the size of Wales, lifted 600 feet higher than 
 the summit of Snowdon, and environed with everlasting hills of 
 granite ! " 
 
 After a halt of nine days, to recruit and prepare for new 
 adventures, the Lady Alice was fitted out and launched on this 
 central inland sea, on which an English boat had never floated 
 before. The eastern side of the lake was first examined, and 
 evident signs of amazing fertility appeared on every hand. The 
 expedition then steered for the extreme northern point, and 
 examined the Napoleon Channel and Ripon Falls, through and 
 over which the waters of the lake pour into the bed of the 
 Victoria Nile, and thence into the Albert N'yanza, and thence 
 through the Nile proper, it is believed, into the Mediterranean 
 Sea. At this point of the voyage a squadron of six beautiful 
 canoes, crowded with natives, was seen rounding a neighbour- 
 ing headland, and fears were entertained of a piratical attack 
 upon the strangers ; but nothing could have been more pro- 
 pitious. They came from Metesa, the king of Uganda, the 
 most powerful monarch of Equatorial Africa, with words of 
 kindly greeting. The young chieftain in command sprang on 
 board the Lady Alice, and, kneeling before Stanley, said, " The 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 97 
 
 Kabaka sends me with many salaams to you. He is in great 
 hopes that you will visit him, and has encamped at Usavara, 
 that he may be near the lake when you come," etc. 
 
 The account which Stanley gives of King Metesa, and his 
 conversion from Mohammedanism to a semi-belief in the truth 
 of Christianity, has some points of great interest ; but, on the 
 whole, is somewhat mystified. The traveller had need of the 
 sable monarch's aid in the further exploration of the Victoria 
 N'yanza, and obtained it to some extent ; but eventually it 
 proved of little avail. When the Uganda people got beyond 
 the limits of their own kingdom and waters, they grew timid in 
 the face of outer barbarians, and left their illustrious visitor to 
 make his way alone. During his progress down the west side 
 of the lake to Kagehyi, where the major part of the expedition 
 had been left, when Metesa's canoes had forsaken them, the 
 crew of the Lady Alice, being hard pressed for want of food, 
 landed on an island called Bumbirch, where, instead of 
 obtaining relief, they were fiercely attacked by the natives, and 
 ' had a narrow escape from destruction. It was the subsequent 
 punishment by Stanley of the people of Bumbirch which 
 excited so much comment and criticism in Europe, on the 
 merits of which opinions will differ. 
 
 After an absence of fifty-seven days spent in exploring the 
 Victoria N'yanza, the Lady Alice returned to the camp on the 
 southern shore at Kagehyi, her appearance having been de- 
 spaired of by the bulk of the expedition left at that place. The 
 joy with which Stanley and his party were welcomed was soon 
 dashed with sorrow. One of the first sights to be seen was the 
 grave of Frederick Baker, near the margin of the lake, this 
 brave young man having sunk under the disease from which he 
 had been suffering, during the absence of the exploring party. 
 The circumnavigation of the Victoria N'yanza had, however, 
 been completed, and there was no longer any room for question 
 as to its extent, altitude, affluents, effluents, and configuration. 
 
 With the aid of a large escort, consisting of nearly 2,000 
 men, supplied by King Metesa, Stanley and his party next 
 
 7 
 
9 8 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 attempted to reach and explore the lake of Muta N'zig^, lying 
 about a hundred miles due west of Victoria N'yanza ; but 
 when near the end of their journey the escort mutinied and 
 returned to Uganda. Being thus foiled in his object, Stanley 
 now turned his attention to the fuller exploration and circum- 
 navigation of Lake Tanganyika, which he and Livingstone and 
 Cameron had, on former occasions, only partially surveyed. 
 On the 27th of May, 1876, Ujiji, on the shore of Tanganyika, 
 was safely reached. Here old friends were met with, who were 
 ready to aid the traveller to the utmost of their power ; but it 
 was nevertheless a place of sad memories. Livingstone was 
 gone, and the very house in which the two travellers had dwelt 
 together in 1871 had disappeared, and the place where it stood 
 was marked by a heap of ashes and ruins. 
 
 Stanley and his party succeeded in circumnavigating the 
 Tanganyika, and found it to be a lake little inferior to Victoria 
 N'yanza, studded with numerous lovely islands, and with shores 
 both fertile and populous. In some places, however, the 
 country had been desolated by war and commotion, — the 
 invariable accessories of the accursed slave trade. On landing 
 at the large village of Kiwesa, they came upon the decom- 
 posed body of a poor old negro with a broad spear-wound in 
 his back. A few yards farther on they saw other corpses, 
 decapitated and dismembered. When they reached the village 
 itself they found little beyond the charred ruins of it, with 
 domestic utensils and implements of war scattered on every 
 hand, just as they had been abandoned by the terrified natives 
 in their attempt at flight when the place was set on fire. 
 
 The expedition now crossed the lake preparatory to their 
 journey westward, with the intention of exploring the Lualaba, 
 and, if possible, pressing their way forward across the dark 
 continent to the Atlantic ocean. About six weeks after leaving 
 Ujiji, on ascending a low ridge, they came in sight of the great 
 river just mentioned, which had attracted the notice of Living- 
 stone and Cameron, and which proved, when traced by Stanley 
 through all its mysterious windings, to be identical with the 
 
Recent Adventure and Discovery. 99 
 
 Congo, which empties its mighty volume of water into the 
 Atlantic. The narrative of the journey of the intrepid traveller 
 who made this important discovery is one of the marvels of 
 modern times. The river, in its course of 1,150 miles, was 
 found to contain numerous rapids, which rendered its naviga- 
 tion in frail canoes both difficult and dangerous. In descending 
 one of these, on the 3rd of June, 1877, Frank Pocock, Stanley's 
 last surviving European, was drowned ; but the great explorer, 
 nothing daunted, pressed on through hostile tribes, and in 
 a few weeks afterwards reached Embomma, and ultimately 
 Kabinda, a Portuguese settlement on the western coast. When 
 Stanley and the remnant of his party thus reached the abodes 
 of civilized men, they had been wandering in the wilds of Africa- 
 for nearly three years, and were reduced by exposure and want 
 of food to a state of extreme destitution. They received great 
 kindness from the Portuguese settlers ; and, as soon as they 
 were recruited somewhat, they embarked for the Cape of Good 
 Hope. From thence they proceeded to Zanzibar ; and when 
 Stanley had, according to promise, conducted his surviving 
 companions to their homes, he embarked for England, where 
 he arrived in the early part of 1878, and was everywhere received 
 with the honours due to his merits as one of the most successful 
 explorers of modern times. 
 
 This brief sketch of recent adventure and discovery in Africa 
 would be incomplete without some account of Lieutenant 
 Cameron, a courageous and enterprising British naval officer, 
 who was despatched from England at the head of a small 
 expedition in 1 871, to search for Dr. Livingstone, about the same 
 time that Stanley and his party were sent out on the same errand, 
 Having heard that Stanley had found and relieved the Doctor, 
 Cameron felt unwilling to return to Europe without doing 
 something to promote the work of African exploration, which 
 was then occupying so many minds. He therefore resolved to 
 strike right across the continent, and push his way through, if 
 possible, to the western coast, as Livingstone had done before, 
 but taking a somewhat different route. This feat he accorr.- 
 
lOO Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 plished with slender resources, and in the face of many diffi- 
 culties, exhibiting a courage and perseverance worthy of the 
 highest commendation. In this journey he was unable, from 
 the hostility of the natives, to pursue the course of the Lualaba 
 and the Congo, so as to prove their identity ; but he gathered 
 useful information, which showed the high probability of this 
 being the case, and so prepared the way for the demonstration 
 of the fact by Stanley on a subsequent journey, as already 
 mentioned. On reaching the western coast Lieutenant Cameron 
 returned to England, where he was promoted to the rank of 
 captain, and received other honours to which he was fully 
 entitled by his heroic services in the cause of African dis- 
 covery. 
 
 The vast continent of Africa was no sooner laid open to 
 the view of the civilized world than a spirit of enterprise was 
 awakened in the interests of commerce and Christian missions, 
 which promises ere long to bear good fruit. Every true friend 
 of the African race must devoutly wish and pray that the time 
 may soon come when the light of Divine truth and of Christian 
 civilization may shine forth throughout the length and breadth 
 of the land. 
 
lOI 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 SLAVERY AND THE SLAVE TRADE. 
 
 Prevalence of Slavery — Sources of Slavery — Uses of Slaves — Treatment of 
 Slaves — The Slave Trade — Methods of procuring Slaves — The Middle 
 Passage-Slaves in Exile — Abolition of the Slave Trade— Emancipation 
 of Slaves — Work still to be done. 
 
 BEFORE we proceed to give a more minute and particular 
 account of Africa as a country, and the manners, habits, 
 and condition of the people by whom it is inhabited, there is 
 one subject which demands our separate and special attention, 
 inasmuch as it has made an impression upon everything which 
 relates to the history, character, and destiny of the African 
 race. We refer to the compound question of Slavery and the 
 Slave Trade, — a question which in years past excited the sym- 
 pathy of all classes of Christian people, and without the brief 
 discussion of which no work on Africa would be complete, 
 notwithstanding the changes which have happily taken place in 
 modern times, with reference to its various phases. 
 
 Prevalence of Slavery. 
 
 It may be truly said of Africa that it is " a land of slaves " ; 
 and no person acquainted with the state of society in that 
 unhappy country will doubt the truth of this startling declara- 
 tion. On this painful subject the present writer received his 
 own impressions from personal observations on the spot, during 
 a lengthened residence among the people ; but it appears 
 desirable on this occasion to cite the testimony of others also, 
 that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be 
 
I02 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 verified. Every traveller who has visited the western coast of 
 Africa, or passed through any part of the interior, testifies to 
 the general prevalence of slavery. When he appeared before 
 the West African Committee of the House of Commons to 
 give evidence on the subject. Colonel NichoUs said : " I know 
 no other characters in Africa than those .of master and slave." 
 And Mr. M'Queen, on a similar occasion, said : " Slavery and 
 the slave trade form the general law of Africa. These two evils 
 reign acknowledged, sanctioned, known, recognised, and sub- 
 mitted to, by her population of every rank and degree, through- 
 out all her extended borders." According to the computation 
 of Park, three-fourths of the entire population are in a state of 
 bondage. In his first journey to Kano, Captain Clapperton, 
 estimating its inhabitants at 40,000, records his opinion that at 
 least one-half of the population were slaves. At a subsequent 
 visit to the same place, however, he ascertained that his first 
 impression had been too favourable, for he was now informed 
 that there were thirty slaves for every fi-ee man ! The same 
 traveller incidentally mentions a village in the neighbourhood 
 of Sackatoo, where only one in seventy of the inhabitants were 
 free. As illustrative of the number of slaves owned by some of 
 the native chiefs, and the manner in which they were employed, 
 Major Denham states that the Sultan of Bornou had, at one 
 time, in his service "30,000 armed slaves as native soldiers." 
 
 The testimonies here given as to the prevalence of slavery 
 in the interior of Africa have reference chiefly, if not exclu- 
 sively, to Mohammedan states. Now, when we remember the 
 fact that, according to the laws of the Koran, a Moslem may 
 enslave a Kaffir or unbeliever, but cannot hold in bondage one 
 of his own faith, we are led to infer that in those districts which 
 are purely Pagan, slavery must be still more predominant. 
 This inference is fully borne out by a careful examination of 
 the facts of the case. According to the testimony of Clap- 
 perton, the whole lower-class population of Yoruba may be 
 considered in a state of slavery, either to the king or to his 
 caboceers. And it is said that in Ashanti, Fanti, and Dahomi, 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 103 
 
 in addition to the large numbers kept in bondage by the respec- 
 tive kings, each caboceer, or nobleman, possesses thousands of 
 slaves, whilst the inferior chiefs and captains, or head-men, own 
 proportionate numbers. It is therefore highly probable that 
 the estimate of Park is much too low if applied to Western 
 Africa as a whole ; and that there are considerably more than 
 three-fourths of the entire population in a state of bondage. 
 
 Sources of Slavery. 
 
 Let us now glance at the means by which this gigantic evil 
 is sustained, or the sources whence the slaves are supplied 
 As slavery is everywhere hereditary, all children born of slave 
 parents are, as a matter of course, doomed to a life of per- 
 petual bondage ; and even if the mother only is a slave, her 
 offspring have to share her hard lot. Consequently in Africa, 
 as in all slave countries, slavery, when once established, is 
 kept up and perpetuated in the ordinary course of nature 
 But there are other sources from which the supply of slaves is 
 maintained, which are deserving of notice. The principal of 
 these are war, famine, insolvency, and crime. 
 
 When the nations or native tribes of Africa go to war with 
 each other, even on political grounds, the victors invariably 
 reduce the vanquished to a state of slavery, even if they have 
 been free before. This practice has prevailed both in ancient 
 and modern times in other lands ; but in Africa we have the 
 appalling spectacle exhibited to our view of wars waged for the 
 avowed purpose of supplying the demand for slaves created by 
 a foreign slave trade, to the enormities of which we shall have 
 to refer hereafter. 
 
 In this land of darkness people previously in a state of 
 freedom are sometimes reduced to slavery by famine. In a 
 country where the soil is remarkably fertile, and the common 
 necessaries of life are generally abundant, being produced with 
 comparatively little labour, it may appear strange to some that 
 famine should ever be known. It must be remembered, how- 
 ever, that the seasons favourable for cultivation are sometimes 
 
I04 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 very irregular, and that the natives are proverbial for their 
 improvidence and recklessness as to the future ; consequently 
 when the crop fails, through drought or otherwise, the common 
 people are reduced to great straits, and are sometimes induced 
 to sell their children as slaves to procure food to eat. Park 
 gives an affecting instance of this kind, which occurred at a 
 native town where he sojourned for a short time, after he had 
 left the Gambia, on his way to the Niger. He says : " The 
 scarcity of provisions was felt at this time most severely by the 
 poor people, as the following circumstance most plainly con- 
 vinced me. Every evening during my stay, I observed five or 
 six women come to the mansa's house, and receive each of them 
 a quantity of corn. As I knew how valuable this article was at 
 that juncture, I inquired of the mansa whether he maintained 
 these poor women from pure bounty, or expected a return 
 when the harvest should be gathered in. ' Observe that boy,' 
 said he, pointing to a fine child about five years of age ; ' his 
 mother has sold him to me for forty days' provisions. I have 
 bought another boy in the same manner.' I could not get this 
 melancholy subject out my mind ; and the next night, when 
 the women returned for their allowance, I desired the boy to 
 point out to me his mother, which he did. She was much 
 emaciated ; and when she received her corn, she came and 
 talked to her son with as much cheerfulness as though he had 
 been still under her care." 
 
 Another common source of African slavery is insolvency. A 
 negro trader contracts debts on account of some mercantile 
 speculation, either by purchasing from his neighbours such 
 articles as are likely to sell in a distant market, or by obtaining 
 goods from the European merchants on the coast, with the 
 promise of making payment at a given time. If he succeeds 
 in his speculation, he gains a large profit ; but if he fails, all his 
 remaining property, and his person, his family, and services, 
 are forfeited and placed at the disposal of another ; for, in 
 some parts of Africa, not only the effects of the insolvent, but 
 even the insolvent himself, and his children, are sold to satisfy 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 105 
 
 the demands of his creditors. There is, moreover, a modified 
 kind of slavery which exists on the western coast under the 
 name of " pawns," which, we regret to say, has, to a consider- 
 able extent, been sanctioned by British merchants in their 
 transactions with the natives. This subject has at length 
 attracted the notice of the English Government, who have 
 decided that the system is totally at variance with the spirit 
 and intention of the Acts of Parliament abolishing slavery and 
 the slave trade throughout the British dominions. To show 
 the identity of the " pawn system " with the spirit of slavery, 
 we need only remark that, in the investigations which were 
 made on the subject before a Parliamentary Committee, one 
 witness said, " A pawn is a man who runs into debt, and who, 
 in order to discharge the debt, pawns himself until he redeems 
 himself." Another described pawns as persons who had "sold 
 themselves into bondage, from which they can only be emanci- 
 pated by pecuniary payments ; and if not so emancipated, they 
 must live and die in servitude." This witness acknowledged 
 that he had "known both slaves and pawns sold at public 
 auction." 
 
 In addition to the means already mentioned, the natives of 
 Africa who are born free are liable to lose their freedom by 
 the commission of crime. Almost every kind of offence, — as 
 theft, witchcraft, adultery, murder, etc., — when proved before 
 the chief in a grand palaver^ is punished by the sentence of 
 perpetual bondage. Sometimes, however, the criminal is 
 allowed to redeem himself by offering to the king or chief, 
 or the ofl'ended party, a certain amount of property, or a 
 number of other slaves. 
 
 Uses of Slaves. 
 
 The enormous extent to which man holds his brother man 
 in bondage in Africa, regarding him as bond-fide property, will 
 still more fully appear if we consider the various uses to which 
 slaves are applied in that degraded country. In many places 
 slaves are the principal articles of barter, and are regarded in 
 
io6 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 the light of "current money with the merchant." Many kinds 
 of merchandise can be purchased with slaves and with nothing 
 else, other articles of produce being positively refused. A poor 
 negro, who had passed through the hands of several masters on 
 his way to the coast, related in all simplicity how he was first 
 sold for a single hoe, then for some salt, and then again for 
 some cloth, when he finally passed into the hands of a Euro- 
 pean merchant. Major Denham states that " the Sultan of 
 Sackatoo received tribute from his dependent states chiefly in 
 slaves." 
 
 In times of war (which, alas ! are so frequent in Africa) slaves 
 are often employed as common soldiers ; and, when the country 
 remains in a comparatively quiet and settled state, slaves are 
 the artizans and agriculturists. Hired servants of free condition, 
 and persons voluntarily working for pay, are unknown in most 
 places, every free man possessing his establishment of domestic 
 slaves. Slaves are also employed in personal attendance on 
 their owners, and in the performance of various household 
 duties; but in every relation they are regarded as so much 
 property. It is quite common to hear an African of conse- 
 quence summing up his wealth as consisting in " gold, slaves, 
 herds and horses." Slaves are also the marriage bonus with 
 which an African gentleman purchases his wives ; and they are 
 frequently the only inheritance which he leaves his children. 
 
 Such are some of the uses to which African slavery is applied 
 by the few who are happily free in their own country. Whilst 
 the poor slaves are employed as domestic servants, their condi- 
 tion is comparatively favourable ; but when they are set apart 
 as offerings to demons, or to be sent to distant lands, their lot 
 is truly deplorable. In some parts of Africa tens of thousands 
 of poor slaves are collected to be offered up as human sacrifices 
 in the performance of their bloody superstitious rites on the 
 death of chiefs and otherwise; and millions more have been 
 dragged away from the land of their birth, and doomed to wear 
 out their lives in hopeless bondage for the benefit of others, as 
 we shall havg to relate more particularly further on. In the 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 107 
 
 meantime we may briefly glance at another phase of the subject 
 which is worthy of consideration. 
 
 Treatment of Slaves. 
 
 The apologists of negro slavery have frequently expatiated 
 on real or supposed instances of kind treatment on the part of 
 slave owners ; and we are free to admit that, in the course of 
 our travels in foreign lands where slavery is common, we have 
 met with such cases. Even in Africa itself there is a marked 
 difference between the condition of domestic slaves — i.e., those 
 who are born and brought up in the families of their masters — ■ 
 and those who are taken in war or purchased from strangers in 
 the ordinary way of business. It is a general rule or usage not 
 to sell or otherwise dispose of the former, unless it be as a 
 punishment for some fault committed ; but the latter are re 
 garded as so much stock on hand for the purpose of barter 
 Domestic slaves are, moreover, usually employed in light work 
 about the house ; and, when well conducted, they are often 
 treated with considerable kindness, and even with confidence ; 
 being sometimes advanced to positions of responsibility and 
 honour, as was Joseph in Egypt. 
 
 But in its mildest form slavery is slavery ; and wherever it 
 exists, and under whatever circumstances, it exhibits the same 
 moral deformity, and ought to be viewed with detestation and 
 condemned with boldness by every one who bears the Chris- 
 tian name. However mildly treated, it must be remembered 
 that the poor slave has no real property in himself, nor in 
 anything which he may be said to possess. His goods, his 
 wife, his children, his body, bones, flesh, blood and sinews, 
 are not his own. They belong to his master, and are entirely 
 at his disposal. He lives and breathes and works, not for 
 himself, but for the pleasure and profit of a fellow-mortal ; and 
 is liable to the most cruel and unkind treatment at the whim 
 and caprice of his owner. 
 
 But, whilst domestic slaves in Africa are generally exempt 
 from harsh and cruel treatment, it is otherwise with those who 
 
io8 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 are literally held as merchandise for the purpose of traffic. 
 These are not only torn away from everything which is dear to 
 them on earth — separated from home, parents, brothers, sisters, 
 and friends — but they are frequently confined in chains, flogged, 
 and driven from place to place as sheep for the market. Listen 
 to the sorrowful words of one who had himself tasted of the 
 bitter cup of bondage. Speaking of a certain stage in the 
 painful march down to the coast, he says : " When we came 
 to that place I was quite faint, for I had been without food some 
 time. I began to weep, and fell to the ground. My master 
 was angry, and lifted his hand and knocked me about the head, 
 saying he would kill me and eat me. I thought then all was 
 over. I expected that the dagger would be driven into my 
 bowels every moment." This is but a faint specimen of 
 what frequently occurs. In that land of darkness, cruelty, 
 and blood, a master may take away the life of his slave with 
 impunity ; and, what is still worse, in some places the female 
 portion of the population are commonly and systematically let 
 out on hire for the purpose of prostitution, and are liable to 
 the grossest abuses to which their savage and unfeeling masters 
 can subject them. We have witnessed instances of the cruel 
 treatment of slaves, both at their original home in Africa and 
 in the lands of their exile, the recital of which would harrow 
 up the feelings of the reader without any good result; but we 
 forbear. 
 
 The Slave Trade. 
 
 Such is slavery in Africa, its own home ; but we have a still 
 darker page to turn over in the history of this gigantic evil. 
 We have to consider the Slave Trade, properly so called — the 
 traffic in which Africa was induced to engage with foreign 
 countries for the flesh and blood, the bodies and souls of her 
 own sons and daughters. The story of this dark and wicked 
 business is one of mournful interest ; and, so far as it has been 
 written,- it appears to our view stained with tears and traced 
 in characters of blood. The evil which it records is, moreover, 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. log 
 
 one of long standing, and has involved several nations bearing 
 the Christian name in guilty complicity, shame, and dishonour. 
 
 As early as 1434, soon after the discovery of the country, 
 Antonio Gonzales, a Portuguese captain, landed on the Gold 
 Coast, and carried away with him some negro boys, whom he 
 sold to one or two Moorish families in the south of Spain. 
 This strange act seems to have excited some criticism at 
 the time, but the disgust with which it was regarded by some 
 soon subsided, and from that day it became customary 
 for captains of vessels visiting the coast to carry away a few 
 negroes of both sexes. The patient and cheerful labours of 
 these poor Africans on board the ships which took them away 
 from their native land, and in the families of the persons to 
 whom they were sold, being found valuable, the practice soon 
 grew into a regular traffic ; and negroes, instead of being carried 
 away in twos and threes as mere curiosities, soon came to form 
 a part of almost every cargo, in common with other native pro- 
 duce. Henceforth ships no longer visited Africa on voyages of 
 mere discovery, but for valuable cargoes ; and the inhabitants 
 of the negro villages along the coast being delighted with the 
 knives, tinder-boxes, beads, buttons, and other trinkets which 
 they got in exchange for gold, ivory, and slaves, took care to 
 have these articles in readiness for the vessels when they 
 arrived. Thus the slave trade, commenced by the Portuguese, 
 was soon taken up by the Spaniards and people of other nations, / 
 who entered with alacrity into the infamous traffic. 
 
 Perhaps this strange and iniquitous trade in human beings 
 would never have become very extensive, had not an impor- 
 tant event occurred, which gave it a great impetus. This 
 was the discovery of America and the West Indies by the 
 enterprising Columbus, in the year 1493. When the Spaniards 
 first took possession of the islands, they employed the natives, 
 or Indians as they were called, to do all their heavy work — 
 such as cultivating the ground, carrying burdens, and digging 
 for gold. In fact, ere long these Indians became the slaves 
 of the Spanish conquerors ; and it was customary, in assigning 
 
1 lo Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 lands to a person, to make over to him at the same time 
 all the natives residing upon them, whose labour he claimed 
 as a matter of course. 
 
 It soon became evident, however, that these poor, frail, 
 timid, listless aborigines of the West Indies, accustomed only 
 to hunting and fishing for their daily supply of food, were 
 not only indisposed, but totally unfit for continuous and 
 arduous toil. Under the united influence of hard labour, 
 cruel treatment, and contagious diseases, introduced among 
 them by the pale-faced strangers, they melted away in the 
 presence of their oppressors, with a rapidity truly alarming. 
 In a few years after the arrival of the Spaniards tens of 
 thousands had perished. When Albuquerque entered upon 
 his office as Governor of St. Domingo, in 15 15, he found 
 that, whereas in 1508 the natives in that island numbered 
 60,000 they did not, then amount to 14,000 ; and there 
 appeared nothing in prospect but the ultimate extinction of 
 the entire race of Indians, if the same system of cruelty and 
 oppression should be continued. 
 
 Under these circumstances the enterprising but avaricious 
 colonists were led to consider what could be done to meet 
 the emergency. Labourers must be had from some quarter 
 to till the ground, work the mines, and perform other 
 drudgery for the haughty settlers ; and the idea was suggested 
 that African negroes would be the best adapted for the 
 purpose. As early as 1503 a few negroes had been carried 
 across the Atlantic ; and it had been found not only that one 
 of these could do as much work as four Indians, but that, 
 whilst the aborigines were rapidly wasting away under the 
 enforced toil to which they were subjected, the Africans were 
 thriving wonderfully, and even increasing in number. It was 
 therefore resolved to import negro slaves into the Spanish 
 colonies of the West Indies as rapidly as possible; which 
 was accordingly done, although the process was gradual. 
 
 The African slave trade thus inaugurated by the Spaniards 
 was not long left entirely in their hands. At first the Spaniards 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 1 1 1 
 
 had all America and the West Indies to themselves ; and as it 
 was in these countries that African labourers were most in 
 demand, the Spaniards alone possessed large numbers of negro 
 slaves. But other nations soon came to have colonies in the New 
 World also ; and as negro labour was found to be of great im- 
 portance in the founding of new settlements, and in agricultural 
 work generally, other nations came to participate in the guilt of 
 the new traffic in human beings. The first recognition of the 
 slave trade by the English Government was in 1562, in the 
 reign of Queen Elizabeth, when an Act was passed legalizing 
 the purchase of negroes. This was to meet the demand antici- 
 pated by the planting of the first British colony on the continent 
 of America. But these early efforts at colonisation being un- 
 successful, it was not till 1616 that the first negro slaves were 
 imported into Virginia ; and these were brought over, not by 
 an English ship, but in a Dutch vessel which touched there 
 when on her way from Africa to the Spanish colonies in the 
 West Indies with a cargo of slaves. After this, however, the 
 English were no longer indebted to foreign ships for this kind 
 of service ; but, seeing the large profits which were to be 
 realized by the horrid trafiic, they entered into it with a zeal 
 and earnestness worthy of a better cause ; and thenceforth it 
 was conducted on a scale and in a manner appalling to 
 contemplate. 
 
 The French, Dutch, and other European nations soon be- 
 came involved in the African slave trade ; those who had 
 colonies to supply the demand there, and those who had none, 
 to make money by helping to supply the demands of planters 
 belonging to other countries. Before the middle of the seven- 
 teenth century the slave trade was in full vigour ; and almost all 
 Europe was implicated in buying and selling negroes. It is 
 stated by Macpherson, in his " History of Commerce," that " the 
 number of Africans shipped in 1768, by all nations, for America 
 and the West Indies, was estimated at 97,000; that of those 
 the British shipping took 60,000, the French 23,000 — the re- 
 mainder being divided in small portions among the ships of 
 
I 12 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 other nations, the Portuguese at that time only taking 1,700." 
 In succeeding years the slave trade became still more extensive, 
 and it has been estimated that in the course of a single century 
 no fewer than 2,130,000 negroes were dragged away from their 
 native land, and transported to the British West Indies alone, 
 independent of the vast numbers enslaved by other nations. As 
 far back as 1732, Liverpool, in one year, procured and carried 
 over 22,720 slaves; the net profits being estimated at_;^2i4,6i7; 
 and it is believed that Bristol was not a whit behind her sister 
 seaport in her interest in this infamous traffic. 
 
 Methods of Procuring Slaves. 
 
 The effects produced in Africa itself, by this wholesale traffic 
 in her own children, may be more readily imagined than de- 
 scribed. It stamped with a tenfold curse that system of slavery 
 which had previously existed for centuries in that benighted 
 land. The demand for slaves soon became so great, and the 
 prices offered by captains of slave ships in red cloth, knives, 
 looking-glasses, beads, rum, and tobacco, so tempting, that 
 all kinds of means were adopted by the petty kings, chiefs, 
 and caboceers to procure the required number of victims. 
 Domestic slaves, who had hitherto been a privileged class, were 
 now frequently sold and sent off for the most trifling offence, 
 or without any offence at all when the demand was unusually 
 pressing. Petty wars were waged for the express purpose of 
 seizing and dragging into hopeless bondage young negroes of 
 both sexes likely for the market, old people and infants being 
 frequently put to death as not available for the purpose. 
 Wicked men were constantly prowling about with a view to 
 kidnap and carry off all who came within their reach ; and it 
 was not an unusual circumstance for a friend or brother, a 
 sister, or a child, to fall into the hands of " the man-stealer," 
 who thus stood related to his hapless victims by the tenderest 
 ties of nature. The strife and enmity, and earnest desire to 
 enslave each other for the sake of paltry gain, which was 
 manifested by the sable sons and daughters of Ham, as the 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 1 1 3 
 
 result of the foreign slave trade, was not confined to the coast, 
 but extended far away into the interior of the vast continent. 
 In this way Central Africa came to be the "great mother" of 
 the slaves required for exportation ; and the negro villages on 
 the coast, under the control of petty interested chiefs, were 
 converted into so many " nurseries " or warehouses, where the 
 slaves were kept in the infamous barracoons till the ships of 
 the white men came to carry them across the Atlantic. 
 
 The accounts we have heard from the lips of poor captured 
 negroes of the sufferings they endured when seized by the 
 merciless man-stealer, and on their long and dreary march 
 down to the coast, were truly heartrending. The mode of pro- 
 ceeding adopted by a regular slave-hunting party, in anticipation 
 of the arrival of a slave ship, appears to have been generally 
 as follows : — The European, or half-caste agent (generally a 
 Portuguese), in charge of the depot, would muster his gang of 
 desperadoes, consisting of the wildest and most savage natives 
 to be found in the country. These being well armed, and 
 provisioned with an ample supply of rice and rum for several 
 days or weeks, would set out on a lengthened tour into the 
 interior. Having fixed upon a peaceful village to be attacked 
 during the night, they would skulk in the adjacent woods till 
 the appointed hour, and then, on a signal being given by the 
 captain of the expedition, they would pounce upon the place, 
 set fire to the huts, and capture the hapless natives when 
 attempting to escape. Helpless infants, old people unfit for 
 slaves, and those who offered violent resistance, were frequently 
 put to death at once ; whilst the young men and women and 
 boys and girls who fell into their hands were closely pinioned, 
 and with their heads made fast in forked sticks, or tied to the 
 slave-chain, they were driven to the coast as cattle to the 
 market. 
 
 The Middle Passage. 
 
 When the slave trade became fully organized, means were 
 adopted by European merchants £0 secure greater constancy 
 
 8 
 
114 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 and regularity in the supply of negroes for the West India 
 market, and to have them transported across the Atlantic as 
 quickly as possible. At first the slave vessels only visited the 
 coast of Africa in a casual way, and bargained with the native 
 chiefs and others, at the places where they called, for such 
 slaves or other produce as they happened to have on hand. 
 But this was found to be a dreary and inconvenient mode of 
 doing the business ; and the sickly season frequently came on 
 before the ships were ready to depart, and many of the sailors 
 were cut down by fever. As an improvement in the plan of 
 conducting the traffic, African trading companies were formed, 
 and small European settlements were planted at intervals along 
 the western coast, all the way from Cape Verd to the equator, 
 by English, Dutch, French, and Portuguese mercantile firms. 
 These were called slave factories, and agents were appointed in 
 connection with them, whose business it was to negotiate with 
 native traders, stimulate them to activity in their slave-hunting 
 expeditions, and to purchase slaves and other produce, that 
 they might be ready in the barracoons when the ships called to 
 take in their cargoes at the appointed season. Vessels were, 
 moreover, constructed specially for this trade, and fitted with 
 water casks, cooking apparatus, and everything complete ; not 
 forgetting chains, handcuffs and other irons for the refractory. 
 
 In many instances the toils and sufferings of the long and 
 weary march from the interior to the coast were scarcely ended, 
 when the word of command was given for the poor negroes to 
 go on board the slave ship riding at anchor in the roads. Then 
 the miseries of the middle passage commenced, the character 
 and extent of which could only be fully known by those who 
 endured or witnessed them. The first thing was the embarka- 
 tion, in large canoes prepared for the purpose. As a violent 
 surf generally breaks upon the sandy beach all along the coast, 
 the heavy swell of the sea is sometimes alarming, and this 
 operation is frequently attended with difficulty and danger. We 
 have known many instances of canoes being upset and slaves 
 being drowned in the course of embarkation. These casualties 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 1 1 5 
 
 were regarded as so many losses of valuable property, but very 
 little feeling was manifested for the poor sufferers. 
 
 The horrors of the middle passage may be best illustrated by 
 quoting a few sentences from the testimony of an eye-witness. 
 Mr. Falconbridge, a surgeon on board a slaver, writing of a 
 period anterior to the year 1790, makes the following state- 
 ment : — " The men negroes, on being brought on board ship, 
 are immediately fastened together, two and two, by handcuffs 
 on their wrists, and by irons riveted on their legs. They are 
 frequently stowed so close together as to admit of no other 
 posture than that of lying on their sides. Neither will the 
 height between decks, unless directly under the grating, permit 
 them the indulgence of an erect position, especially where 
 there are platforms, which is generally the case. These plat- 
 forms are a kind of shelves, about eight or nine feet in breadth, 
 extending from the side of the ship towards the centre. They 
 are placed nearly midway between the decks, at the distance 
 of two or three feet from each deck. Upon these the negroes 
 are stowed in -the same manner as they are on the deck 
 beneath. It often happens that those who are placed at a dis 
 tance from the buckets, in endeavouring to get to them, tumble 
 over their companions, in consequence of their being shackled., 
 These accidents, though unavoidable, are productive of con- 
 tinual quarrels, in which some of them are always bruised. 
 
 " In favourable weather the slaves are fed upon deck, but in 
 bad weather their food is given to them below. Numberless 
 quarrels take place among them during their meals, more espe- 
 cially when they are put upon short allowance, which frequently 
 happens. In that case, the weak are obhged to be contend 
 with a very scanty portion. Their allowance of water is about 
 half a pint at each meal. Upon the negroes refusing to take 
 their food, I have seen coals of fire, glowing hot, put on a 
 shovel, and placed so near their lips as to scorch and burn 
 them, and this has been accompanied by threats of forcing them 
 to swallow the coals if they any longer persisted in refusing to 
 eat. These means have generally the desired effect." 
 
1 1 6 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Falconbridge then tells us that the negroes are sometimes 
 compelled to dance and sing on board the slave ships, and that 
 if any reluctance is exhibited, the cat-o'-nine-tails is employed 
 to enforce obedience. He goes on to mention the unbounded 
 license given to the officers and crew of the slavers as regards 
 the women ; and speaking of the officers, he says, " they are 
 sometimes guilty of such brutal excesses as disgrace human 
 nature." " But," he continues,"the hardships and inconveniences 
 suffered by the negroes during the passage are scarcely to be 
 enumerated or conceived. They are far more violently affected 
 by sea-sickness than Europeans. It frequently terminates in 
 death, especially among the women." 
 
 The same witness, when speaking of other trials which the 
 poor slaves endure in the course of the middle passage, says : 
 " The exclusion of fresh air is another cause of suffering. Most 
 ships have air-ports ; but when the sea is rough and the rain 
 heavy, it becomes necessary to shut these, and every other 
 avenue by which air is admitted. The fresh air being thus 
 excluded, the hold of the vessel very soon becomes intolerably 
 hot. The confined air, rendered noxious by the effluvia exhaled 
 from their bodies, and by being repeatedly breathed, soon 
 produces fevers and fluxes, which generally carry off great 
 numbers of them. During the voyages that I made, I was 
 frequently a witness to the fatal effects of this exclusion of fresh 
 air." Then follow many affecting details, at the conclusion of 
 which the writer observes, in reference to a certain voyage : 
 " Circumstances of this kind often happen, and sometimes to a 
 greater degree than what has just been described, particularly 
 when slaves are much crowded — which was not the case at that 
 time, the ship having more than a hundred short of the 
 number she was to have taken in ; yet, out of 380, 185 died on 
 t-he passage, — a proportion seemingly very great, but by no 
 means uncommon. One-half, sometimes two-thirds, and even 
 beyond that, have been known to perish in the course of the 
 passage." 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 1 1 7 
 
 Slaves in Exile. 
 
 The sufferings of the poor slaves, thus torn away by tens of 
 thousands from their native land, and huddled together on 
 board small and inconvenient vessels, at the peril of both life and 
 limb, did not terminate with the middle passage, even if they 
 were able to bear up and endure its horrors to the end. The 
 few survivors who reached the scene of their exile were gene- 
 rally landed in a state of great weakness and emaciation. 
 Having been conducted to the yards and sheds prepared for 
 their reception, some attention was paid to their wants by 
 their avaricious owners — on the same principle that cattle 
 are prepared for the market by the thrifty farmer. When the 
 condition of the poor captives was improved somewhat, by 
 the dressing of their wounds, the administration of physic, and 
 a more ample supply of food, they were ready for the market or 
 the auction, and were frequently put up for sale and knocked 
 down to the highest bidder, like sheep or oxen. The lot of a 
 few who were drafted off as domestic servants, to wait upon 
 their masters and mistresses, and to do light work about the 
 " great house," was comparatively favourable ; but the fate of 
 the majority, who were doomed to toil beneath a burning 
 tropical sun in the swampy cane-fields of some of the West 
 India colonies, was hard indeed. 
 
 Many pages might be filled with shocking details of cruelty 
 and oppression which came under the personal observation of 
 the present writer during the years that he spent among the 
 poor negroes in the lands of their exile, striving to cheer them 
 under their sufferings and to prepare them for that happy place 
 where '* the wicked cease from troubling and the weary are at 
 rest." Suffice it to say that their labour was frequently very 
 severe, their food coarse and scanty, and their clothing barely 
 sufficient for common decency. As a rule, no regard whatever 
 was paid to their moral and religious welfare, for they appeared, 
 in most instances, to be looked upon as mere animals having 
 
1 1 8 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 no souls. For any deficiency in the performance of the daily task, 
 or for any other real or imaginary fault, the punishments inflicted 
 by flogging and otherwise were sometimes fearful to contemplate, 
 and still more so to witness, as we have sometimes been obliged 
 to do. In one word, the lives of the poor slaves in America 
 and the West Indies, under the treatment of most owners (for 
 we are free to admit that we met with a few noble exceptions) 
 were a continued scene of wretchedness and misery truly hard 
 to bear ; hence the occasional insurrections which broke out, 
 and which for the time involved them in still greater misery 
 and ruin. 
 
 Nor let it be supposed that these poor outcasts were void of 
 feeling, or indifferent to the privations and sufferings to which 
 they were exposed in being torn away from their native country, 
 shut up so long in the hold of a slave ship, and doomed to 
 live and labour in a land of strangers for the benefit of others. 
 We have witnessed among them instances of the keenest sensi- 
 bility, and heard from their lips, with feelings of deep emotion, 
 their own artless stories of what they felt when they first saw 
 the " great salt water," across which they knew full well they 
 were to be taken, and the anguish they experienced when 
 forcibly separated from parents, brothers, sisters, and friends. 
 And we have heard narrations of the most painful interest of 
 severe floggings and other punishments inflicted upon them in 
 the lands of their exile, making life almost unbearable ; whilst 
 the speakers would sometimes burst into tears, and thank God 
 that He had enabled them to bear it all, and especially that He 
 had overruled their misfortunes for good in bringing them to a 
 place where they were favoured to hear the good news of salva- 
 tion. The touching language of the prophet might be truly 
 applied to the African race in their bitter bondage : " This is 
 a people robbed and spoiled ; they are all of them snared in 
 holes, and they are hid in prison-houses ; they are for a prey, 
 and none delivereth ; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore " 
 (Isaiah xlii. 22). ^ 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 1 1 9 
 
 Abolition of the Slave Trade. 
 
 Having thus briefly traced the rise, progress, extent, and 
 character 0^ African slavery and the slave trade, we would now 
 direct the attention of the reader to the circumstances which 
 led to the nominal abolition of the accursed traffic by Great 
 Britain, and ultimately to the emancipation of the slaves 
 throughout the British empire, with a few observations on the 
 position of the question at the present time. 
 
 As early as the year 15 12, when the importation of negroes to 
 the West Indies began to assume the character of a regular 
 trade, Cardinal Ximenes protested earnestly against the thing 
 as a sin against God and man ; but such was the cupidity of 
 the parties interested, that his pious remonstrance was disre- 
 garded. In the middle of the seventeenth century, the Rev. 
 Morgan Godwyn, an English clergyman, who had himself 
 witnessed the horrors of slavery in the island of Barbadoes, 
 broached the subject of abolition in a volume which he pub- 
 lished under the title of " The Negro and Indian's Advocate " ; 
 and about a century later John Woolman and Anthony Benezet, 
 two members of the Society of Friends in America, exerted 
 themselves nobly in its interests. Woolman travelled far and 
 near among the people of his own persuasion, trying to induce 
 them to relinquish all connection with the traffic in negroes ; 
 and Benezet founded a negro school in Philadelphia, whilst at 
 the same time he denounced the slave trade in various publica- 
 tions which he prepared for circulation. So powerful was the 
 effect produced by the united labours of these two philanthropic 
 men, especially in the religious community to which they 
 belonged, that in the year 1754 the "Friends" in America 
 came to a resolution declaring " that, to live in ease and 
 plenty by the toil of those whom fraud and violence had put 
 under their power was consistent neither with Christianity nor 
 common justice." This declaration was followed up by the 
 abolition of slave labour among the "Friends," the penalty of 
 
1 20 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 keeping a slave being excommunication from the Society. 
 From this time the Society of Friends, as a religious commu- 
 nity, distinguished themselves, both in America and England, 
 by their unwearied efforts to ameliorate the condition of the 
 poor negro in every possible way ; and the first petition ever 
 presented to the British Parliament on the subject of slavery 
 emanated from them. 
 
 A committee of benevolent gentlemen was at length organised 
 in London, which had for its express object the abolition of the 
 African slave trade ; and public feeling was aroused to a state 
 of great excitement on the subject. Several talented and 
 powerful writers also appeared on the stage of action as the 
 friends and advocates of the negro race. Amongst these may 
 be mentioned Richard Baxter, Bishop Porteus, James Ramsay, 
 Joseph Wood, George Whitefield, and John Wesley. Some of 
 these honoured gentlemen and ministers were able to speak 
 and write from personal experience, having witnessed the 
 abominations of slavery and the slave trade in America and the 
 West Indies. Mr. Wesley especially took up the subject with 
 characteristic zeal and earnestness. In his masterly tractate 
 entitled " Thoughts on Slavery," he denounced the traffic in 
 human beings as " the sum of all villainies," and placed the 
 question in all its bearings in a most convincing light before 
 the British public. The interest of the venerable founder of 
 Methodism in the oppressed negro race continued unabated 
 to the end of his useful life ; and it is an interesting fact that 
 the last letter he ever wrote was addressed to Mr. Wilberforce 
 on the subject a few days before his death, urging the zealous 
 philanthropist to proceed in his " glorious enterprise " of seeking 
 the abolition of the accursed traffic. " Go on," he writes, "in 
 the name of God and in the power of His might, till even 
 American slavery (the vilest that ever saw the sun) shall vanish 
 away before it." 
 
 In 1785 the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge 
 proposed " the slave trade " as the subject of a prize essay. 
 This prize was gained by Mr. Clarkson, then a young man of 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. I2i 
 
 twenty-four. The study of the subject, in connection with the 
 preparation of his essay, made such a powerful impression upon 
 the mind of the young student that he was induced from that 
 time to devote all his powers of body and soul to the cause 
 of abolition. He visited every person he could find in and 
 around London who had been in Africa or the West Indies, 
 or in any situation that gave him an insight into the character 
 of the slave trade. He boarded vessels that had been engaged 
 in the traffic, and inspected the wretched holds in which the 
 poor slaves had been confined during their passage across the 
 Atlantic. In one word, he devoted his whole life to waging an 
 implacable war against slavery and the slave trade in all their 
 horrid forms. 
 
 The evidence collected by Mr. Clarkson on the subject of 
 the slave trade attracted the attention of Wilberforce, and 
 secured his valuable co-operation. On Sunday, October 21st, 
 1787, that eminent philanthropist made this striking entry in 
 his journal : " God Almighty has placed before me two great 
 objects, — the suppression of the slave trade, and the reforma- 
 tion of manners." The reformation of manners he did not see 
 fully accomplished, but the suppression of the slave trade he 
 did ; and just before he passed away from this world, he was 
 cheered with the delightful intelligence that the royal assent 
 had been given to a Bill entirely abolishing slavery from the 
 British dominions. This was the result of a long and arduous 
 struggle, however; and it required the united and constant 
 efforts of Wilberforce, Clarkson, and Sharp, together with those 
 of others who were associated with them in the powerful 
 confederacy which was organized to carry on the campaign. 
 
 For twenty years did this noble band of Christian philan- 
 thropists labour before the first great object which they aimed 
 at was fully accomplished. Their modes of operation were 
 various, and no means were neglected to secure the desired 
 result. Reliable information on the extent and abominations 
 of the slave trade was carefully collected and zealously circu- 
 lated ; Parliament was urged by petitions to interpose on behalf 
 
122 
 
 Africa : Past aiid Present. 
 
 of the poor downtrodden negro race ; and all other likely 
 means were employed to interest the public in the important 
 question. For a long time, however, but little impression 
 appeared to be made by these efforts ; for, although a few 
 minor measures were adopted, professedly to abate some of the 
 most glaring cruelties of the traffic, for seven years in succes- 
 sion was Mr. Wilberforce's annual motion for its abolition 
 thrown out. Such was the result of the opposition that was 
 organized against the movement, and of the influence exercised 
 by interested parties both in England and in the Colonies. 
 Still the friends of freedom persevered in their noble work, and 
 by the blessing of God their efforts were at length crowned with 
 complete success. The Bill for the total abolition of the 
 British slave trade, on and after the ist of January, 1808, 
 received the royal assent, and was left to take its course 
 accordingly. 
 
 Emancipation of Slaves. 
 
 Perhaps it may be necessary here to remind the reader of the 
 difference between the slave trade and slavery. By the first we 
 are to understand the traffic in human beings when they are 
 dragged away from their homes and bought and sold, like brute 
 beasts that have no understanding ; and by the second is 
 meant that state of bondage and servitude to which they are 
 thereby reduced. The slave trade, so far as England was con- 
 cerned, was now abolished by law ; and it was made criminal 
 for any one henceforth to take away slaves from Africa, or from 
 any other country. But notwithstanding the achievement of 
 this great object, slavery itself continued in the British colonies 
 in all its rigour ; and the accounts which were received from 
 time to time of the sufferings of the poor negroes were truly 
 appalling. 
 
 The friends of the oppressed negro race, encouraged by the 
 result of their past labours, now reorganized their forces, and 
 commenced a vigorous crusade against slavery itself, as they 
 had previously done against the slave trade. They openly 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 123 
 
 avowed their intention to agitate without ceasing till slavery 
 should be utterly abolished from the British empire. They 
 nobly kept their word ; but it was not till after another twenty- 
 six years of arduous toil that their object was fully gained. 
 This interval was crowded with the most interesting incidents 
 connected with this philanthropic movement ; but our limited 
 space will only admit of a very brief outline. 
 
 As years rolled on, several of the earlier labourers in the cause 
 of emancipation were removed by death ; but their places were 
 supplied by others who were raised up in the order of Divine 
 Providence. The venerable Wilberforce himself felt the influ- 
 ence of age and debility creeping upon him ; and, being less 
 able than formerly to plead the cause of the oppressed, both in 
 and out of parliament, he began to look round for some one 
 who would be able and willing to take his place as the acknow- 
 ledged leader of the movement. His eye fell upon the late Sir 
 Fowell Buxton, then in the prime of life ; and he solemnly 
 urged him to come to his aid, and to take his place when his 
 strength should fail. After mature deliberation the weighty 
 charge was accepted ; and henceforth the name of Buxton 
 became prominently identified with the struggle for the entire 
 abolition of slavery. 
 
 At length the nation rose en masse, and demanded of the 
 Government that the slaves should be emancipated. In the 
 year 1831, upwards of five thousand petitions were presented to 
 both Houses of Parliament pleading for this ; and two years 
 subsequently, a Bill was passed by an overwhelming majority, 
 securing the freedom of all the slaves in the British empire, on 
 the ist of August, 1834, and awarding ^20,000,000 sterling to 
 be divided among the proprietors as compensation for the loss 
 they were supposed to sustain by the arrangement. It was 
 stipulated, however, that only the children of six years of age 
 and under were to be fully free at once. Domestic slaves were 
 to serve an " apprenticeship " for four years, and field negroes 
 for six years ; professedly to prepare them for entire freedom. 
 This was a great mistake, as the so-called " apprenticeship " 
 
1 24 Africa : Pad and Present. 
 
 turned out to be nothing but a modified form of slavery, and 
 was attended with many peculiarly aggravating circumstances. 
 But time passed away, and at the end of four years the slaves 
 were found so well prepared for the boon of freedom, and the 
 apprenticeship system was working so badly for all pafties, that 
 the respective local legislatures in the British colonies resolved 
 to remit the remaining two years of servitude to the field 
 negroes, and all were fully emancipated on the ist of August, 
 1838. 
 
 Thus were 800,000 poor slaves delivered from the galling 
 yoke of bondage in the British colonies by the united efforts of 
 Christian philanthropists and missionaries, by means of whose 
 unwearied labours they had been raised to the position of men 
 and brethren. The day of freedom was everywhere observed 
 with solemn religious services and public thanksgiving to 
 Almighty God ; and the present writer will never forget with 
 what earnestness the assembled thousands of emancipated 
 slaves in the West Indies sang the praises of Jehovah in His 
 sanctuary, and with what attention they listened to the exhorta- 
 tions and counsels which were addressed to them with reference 
 to their future conduct on the memorable occasion. 
 
 Work Still to be Done. 
 
 After the above brief sketch of the character and early 
 history of the slave trade, its abolition by the British Govern- 
 ment, and the emancipation of all the slaves in the British 
 empire, the question may be appropriately asked, " Has the 
 African slave trade, then, ceased to exist ? Would to God that 
 we could answer in the affirmative ! But, alas ! this is not the 
 case. We grieve to say that, although England has washed her 
 hands of the foul stain of being connected with the accursed 
 traffic in human beings, it is still carried on by people of other 
 nations in a manner and to an extent truly appalling. 
 
 The efforts made by the British Government to put a final 
 termination to the African slave trade, and to slavery itself 
 
Slavery and the Slave Trade. 125 
 
 everywhere, are deserving of the highest commendation. By 
 mutual treaties, and diplomatic influence, other nations were 
 induced at an early period to join in a general protest against 
 the nefarious traffic, and even to promise to punish as pirates 
 all who might henceforth be found engaged in it. England 
 has, moreover, spent immense sums of money in well-meant 
 endeavours to prevent this crying evil, in addition to the 
 ;^20, 000,000 granted to the planters as compensation for their 
 alleged losses on the occasion of the glorious emancipation. A 
 large number of armed vessels have been kept for many years 
 past cruising on the coast of Africa at the expense of the British 
 Government, for the express purpose of capturing slavers, 
 liberating the poor victims of oppression, and bringing to 
 justice the incorrigible offenders. It is a grand sight to witness 
 a slave vessel towed into the harbour of Sierra Leone by a 
 British steamer, laden with captured negroes, and the crowds 
 of their fellow-countrymen standing on the shore to welcome 
 their arrival, hoping to meet a parent, brother, sister, or friend 
 — which frequently happens. But notwithstanding the severity 
 of the penalty and the vigilance of the British cruisers, such 
 are the inducements held out in the shape of large profits, that 
 scores of vessels are still employed in carrying on a smuggling 
 trade in slaves. Occasionally these daring adventurers are 
 overtaken and captured, when the slaves are liberated and the 
 vessel seized ; but such casualties are regarded with comparative 
 indifference, as the slave dealers consider themselves amply 
 remunerated if one-half of their voyages prove successful. 
 
 Of late years, by the united labours of the British Govern- 
 ment and Christian missionaries, the slave trade has been 
 driven from the western coast of Africa, its former stronghold ; 
 but it has reappeared with new vigour on the eastern side of 
 the great continent ; and according to the testimony of Dr. 
 Livingstone and others, it is evident that the populous regions 
 of Central Africa are still being drained of their most promising 
 youth to supply the demand for slaves, especially in Egypt and 
 other parts of the Turkish empire. Thus it appears that there 
 
126 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 is still work to be done by the friends of freedom and of the 
 degraded and enslaved African race. Let British Christians ot 
 every name address themselves afresh to the noble task of 
 proclaiming " liberty to the captive, and the opening of the 
 prison doors to them that are bound." This may, perhaps, 
 best be done by the propagation of " the glorious Gospel of 
 the blessed God " throughout the length and breadth of the 
 vast continent by the agency of missionary societies. Let no 
 means be neglected for the accomplishment of this grand 
 object. Then will " Ethiopia stretch out her hands unto 
 God," and the beautiful vision of the poet be more fully 
 realized : — 
 
 " High on a rock, in solitary state, 
 Sublimely musing, pale Britannia sate ; 
 Her awful forehead on her spear reclined, 
 Her robe and tresses streaming in the wind ; 
 Chill through her frame foreboding tremours crept I 
 The mother thought upon her sons, and wept ; 
 
 " Shame flushed her noble cheek, her bosom bum'd, 
 To helpless, hopeless Africa she turn'd ; 
 She saw her sister in the mourner's face, 
 And rush'd with tears into her dark embrace ; 
 ' All hail ! ' exclaimed the empress of the sea, 
 ' Thy chains are broken, — Africa, be freeP " 
 
 Montgomery, 
 
127 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 NORTHERN AFRICA. 
 
 Africa in general — Egypt — Nubia — Abyssinia — The Barbary States— 
 Barca — Tripoli — Fezzan — Tunis — Algiers — Morocco. 
 
 IF we spread before us the map of Africa, preparatory to a 
 brief geographical and historical survey of its various 
 sections, we can scarcely fail to be struck with the magnitude 
 and importance of the vast continent. Looking at it as a 
 whole, it presents to our view a peninsula about 4320 miles in 
 ength from north to south, and 4140 in breadth from east to 
 west. Its shape is that of an irregular pyramid, at its southern 
 extremity tapering off almost to a point ; so that it has, properly 
 speaking, only three sides. Its western coast, which is by far 
 the most extensive, faces the Atlantic, Avhich separates it from 
 the parallel or corresponding coast of America. To the east, 
 Africa looks out upon the Indian Ocean, with Hindustan 
 and the Eastern Archipelago in the remote distance. From 
 Europe, Africa is separated by the Mediterranean ; and from 
 Asia by the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. 
 
 In former times Africa was generally regarded as a country 
 which consisted chiefly of extensive sterile deserts, where the 
 vertical rays of a tropical sun burned up everything approaching 
 to vegetation ; and where a blade of grass, a drop of water, or 
 a living creature was not to be seen. Hence we read and 
 heard of moving sands, tossed by the winds and whirling in 
 ceaseless eddies through the air, frequently surrounding the 
 
1:8 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 traveller, and threatening him and sometimes overwhelming him 
 with instant destruction, when pursuing his weary way through 
 the trackless wilds. That this description will apply correctly 
 enough to some portions of the vast continent, especially 
 towards the north, there can be no doubt ; but at the same 
 time it must be remembered that on the coasts generally, and 
 in some parts of the interior, there are millions of square miles 
 of rich and fertile lands, some of which are open and park-like 
 in their appearance; and others covered with extensive forests 
 of valuable timber, where the sound of the woodman's axe has 
 never yet been heard, and which only require the culture of 
 the husbandman to make them produce an ample return for 
 his labour. It is, moreover, an important fact that recent dis- 
 coveries have brought to light, not only rich and fertile regions 
 in the interior, but also the existence of extensive lakes or 
 inland seas, with gigantic navigable rivers, which seem to point 
 to a bright and glorious future for that long-neglected country. 
 
 The superficial area of the African continent has been 
 estimated at 13,450,000 square miles, and the population at 
 70,000,000 ; but, of course, in the absence of topographical 
 surveys, and the taking of censuses, these figures can only be 
 regarded as an approximation to the facts of the case. On a 
 continent of such vast dimensions, the climate, soil, scenery, 
 and the character of the inhabitants, vary considerably, which 
 will appear from our observations on the various localities 
 which will pass under review. Most parts of Northern Africa, 
 to which the present chapter is devoted, were known to the 
 ancients, and figure largely in the history of former times. 
 This section of the vast continent comprises Egypt, Nubia, 
 Abyssinia, and the Barbary States, each of which will require a 
 brief notice. 
 
 Egypt. 
 
 The land of the Pharaohs, and the scene of so many thrilling 
 incidents of Scripture and general history, must be regarded 
 by every Christian student with feelings of profound interest. 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 Situated in the immediate vicinity of one of the vast sandy 
 deserts to which reference has already been made, and in a 
 region where rain seldom falls, Egypt is entirely dependent on 
 the majestic Nile for its existence and amazing fertility. By 
 the annual overflow of its banks, and the inundation of the 
 whole country, aided by numerous canals, lands are abundantly 
 watered and rendered productive, which would otherwise be 
 sterile and useless. The extent and resources of this portion 
 of Africa must therefore be measured by the course and 
 capacity of the mystic river. 
 
 The coast of Egypt runs from east to west, nearly in a 
 straight line, for a distance of about 150 miles, and embraces 
 the two mouths of the Nile, with the base of the delta, the 
 cities and ports of Alexandria, Aboukir, Rosetta, Damietta, 
 and the intervening territory. In ascending the river to Cairoj 
 a distance of ninety miles from the sea, the cultivated tract 
 gradually becomes narrower, and at length tapers almost to a 
 point, and through the whole of Upper Egypt seldom exceeds 
 the breadth of four or five miles. Beyond this space, on the 
 east, the country passes, by almost insensible gradations, into 
 wild wastes and sandy tracts, about a hundred miles in, breadth, 
 which stretch from the Nile to the Red Sea. On the west the 
 transition from fertility to barrenness is still more abrupt, as a 
 few miles from the river the sandy desert begins, which in one 
 direction separates Egypt from Barbary, and in the other 
 stretches right away into the distant interior of Northern 
 Africa. 
 
 The Delta of the Nile, which comprises the principal portion 
 of Lower Eg}'pt, is the most fertile and populous part of the 
 country. It is studded with towns and villages in every 
 direction, which appear as so many little islands peeping up 
 above the surface of the water at the time of the inundation ; 
 but afterwards, when the crops begin to spring up, the scenery 
 is verdant and charming beyond description. The country 
 cannot be called wooded, however, the foliage which embellishes 
 it being chiefly derived from fruit and garden trees of ordinary 
 
 9 
 
130 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 size, which are cultivated with great care. When the waters 
 retire, all the ground is covered with mud ; then the corn is 
 sown and harrowed in with comparatively little labour, and in 
 the folloAving March there is usually a plentiful harvest. Indeed, 
 some of the land is so fertile, and the climate so favourable to 
 vegetation, that the farmers raise three crops a year. There is 
 no place in the world better furnished with corn, flesh-meat, 
 fish, sugar, fruits, and all sorts of garden vegetables. 
 
 Egypt has a long, chequered, and interesting history, into 
 the particulars of which we cannot enter. It has always been 
 famous for its splendid buildings and architectural adorn- 
 ments. In some of the existing cities and towns — as Alexandria, 
 Rosetta, Damietta, Cairo, and others — although the streets are 
 narrow and crooked, m.any remarkable edifices present them- 
 selves to our view ; but these are poor and insignificant com- 
 pared with the erections of former times, as clearly appears 
 from the remains of gigantic pillars, obelisks, temples, and 
 other ruins, which are to be seen on every hand. As we 
 ascend the Nile, through Lower and Middle Egypt, to Cairo, 
 the present capital of the country, we are struck with the evi- 
 dences of its former splendour and greatness, which everywhere 
 attract our notice ; but when we proceed beyond that city, and 
 come in sight of the wonderful pyramids, sphinxes, and other 
 gigantic monuments of antiquity, we are lost in astonishment 
 and surprise, — and more so still when we reach the majestic 
 ruins of ancient Thebes, Karnac, Luxor, and other stupendous 
 ruins on the banks of the Nile in Upper Egypt, especially if 
 we examine them in the light of ancient history. 
 
 But, however interesting a country may be in regard to 
 its soil, scenery, and general aspect, the character and con- 
 dition of its inhabitants will ever be the most attractive to the 
 Christian philanthropist. The population of Egypt has been 
 estimated at 4,900,000, and is very mixed and diversified, — 
 comprising Copts, Arabs, Greeks, Jews, Syrians, Armenians, 
 Albanians, Ethiopians, and Europeans. The forms of religion 
 professed are almost as diversified as the nationalities of the 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 people, but the most prevalent is Mohammedanism. It is 
 true that a number of Copts, Greeks, and Armenians, as well 
 as the few European residents, call themselves Christians ; but 
 their Christianity, like that of the Roman Catholics, is of a 
 very spurious and adulterated character. Hence it is not sur- 
 prising that travellers should give the most appalling accounts 
 of the civil, social, and moral condition of the inhabitants of 
 Egypt of all classes, whether they profess to be Jews, Moham- 
 medans, or Christians. Living under a government truly 
 despotic, not to say cruel and arbitrary, the people are stran- 
 gers to civil and religious liberty ; and they are described as 
 ignorant, superstitious, and depraved in the extreme. Slavery 
 and the slave trade, moreover, prevail to an alarming extent, 
 although they have been somewhat checked of late years by 
 the intervention of British influence. 
 
 Comparatively little has been done as yet by the great mis- 
 sionary societies of Christendom for the elevation and evange- 
 lization of the degraded population of Egypt. In the early 
 part of the present century the 'Wesleyans had a missionary 
 stationed at Alexandria, but the results of his labours being 
 but slender, he was removed to a more promising sphere of 
 labour. The Church of England and the British and Foreign 
 Bible Society have done something for this country from time 
 to time, but with little encouragement. The American United 
 Presbyterians have been most successful in this comparatively 
 uninviting field. They employ seven missionaries and sixty-six 
 lay agents on twenty-two stations, and have gathered 431 
 members into church fellowship and 11 49 scholars into the 
 mission schools. The Khedive has been very liberal to the 
 Presbyterians, having granted them valuable buildings for their 
 schools and full toleration for their worship. The Church of 
 Scotland has also one missionary in Egypt ; and Miss Whately 
 has several prosperous Christian schools at Cairo and other 
 places, which have already proved very useful, and which 
 promise in time to become still more fruitful. 
 
132 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Nubia. 
 
 On proceeding southward from the Mediterranean, through 
 Lower, Middle, and Upper Egypt, we come to that part of the 
 great African continent known as Nubia, which next demands 
 a brief description. Nubia, like Egypt, owes its exemption 
 from the character of a complete desert, and its fertility, 
 limited as it is, entirely to the Nile, which winds its way through 
 the land for nearly a thousand miles, without reckoning the long 
 bend round Dongola. That great river, however, diffuses its 
 waters to Nubia in much more limited and scanty proportions. 
 Being everywhere hemmed in by high banks and rocks, it 
 cannot even, without artificial aid, be made to inundate, in 
 general, more than a mile in breadth on one side and scarcely 
 any on the other. The country, therefore, forms a narrow belt 
 of immense length, nearly parallel with the Red Sea in the 
 distance, and with extensive sandy deserts close at hand on 
 both sides, where perpetual sterility predominates. 
 
 Notwithstanding these and other disadvantages which might 
 be named, a considerable quantity of land is brought under 
 productive cultivation by means of wheels and other rude 
 machinery employed to raise the waters of the Nile, and to 
 distribute them along their appointed channels to the utmost 
 possible extent. Dhourra, a kind of pulse, is almost the only 
 grain produced in Nubia; though sometimes the people raise an 
 after-crop of barley or lentils. Tobacco, a luxury in universal 
 demand, is also cultivated with success. Sheep are fed on the 
 tracts of land unfit for the growth of grain, but they are by no 
 means numerous. Camels are generally employed as beasts 
 of burden ; and horses are kept only by the chiefs or head- 
 men, or for military purposes. The Nubians have scarcely 
 any manufactures which can be called national. The women 
 make coarse woollen and cotton cloth, mats from the leaves of 
 the date tree, and the necessary implements for cooking. Their 
 commerce is, nevertheless, considerable, as the country affords 
 
Northern Africa, 
 
 133 
 
 the only practicable line of communication for caravans between 
 Arabia and Egypt, and far away to Abyssinia and Central 
 Africa. Along these routes, at stated periods, cotton goods, toys, 
 arms, and various articles of European merchandise, are con- 
 veyed to distant regions, where they are highly prized by the 
 rude inhabitants, and in return for which gold, ivory, and slaves 
 are brought back in large quantities. 
 
 The inhabitants of this narrow but extensive line of territory 
 consist of two leading races. The first are Nubians properly 
 so called, although they are there styled Berbers, — a class of 
 natives of the same race with those who inhabit the moun- 
 tainous districts of Barbary ; and the second are negroes, who 
 inhabit the southern portion of the country. Between these, 
 however, there is a mixed community of Nubians and Arabs, 
 with a separate government of their own, if such it can be 
 called. Indeed, the whole region is divided into small inde- 
 pendent states, each town or village having a melek or governor 
 of its own, who exercises to the utmost whatever power he may 
 possess, which, according to circumstances or character, is almost 
 absolute sometimes, and at other times held in the utmost con- 
 tempt. Each individual is armed with a crooked knife, which 
 he is ever ready to employ in deeds of violence ; and the cha- 
 racter and condition of the population generally is reported by 
 travellers to be fearfully depraved. That Nubia was in former 
 times inhabited by a superior race of people is evident from 
 the magnificent ruins which everywhere abound. Those which 
 exist at Ibsambul, Mahass, El Belial, and other places, are 
 equal to most of the gigantic ruins of Egypt, and excite the 
 admiration and astonishment of all travellers by whom they 
 are visited. 
 
 The only forms of religion known in Nubia are Mohammed- 
 anism, and the spurious types of Christianity already noticed, 
 with a large amount of pagan superstition intermixed in both 
 cases. Little or nothing has been done for the spiritual 
 enlightenment of the people ; and, however unpromising it may 
 appear, it is undoubtedly a very needy field of missionary labour. 
 
134 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Abyssinia. 
 
 Tracing the course of the Nile upwards, through Egypt and 
 Nubia, we come to Azzel, where it separates into two main 
 branches which flow from different and widely distant regions. 
 The one which comes from the westward, known as the White 
 Nile, has been recently ascertained to take its rise amid the 
 lakes and mountains of Central Africa ; and the other, which 
 flows from the eastward, bears the name of the Blue Nile, and 
 is known to have its sources in the rugged regions of Abyssinia. 
 Ascending the majestic stream last mentioned, we come to the 
 country of which we may here give a brief description ; for, 
 although it extends far away to the eastward, it may be best 
 classified with the other nations of Northern Africa. 
 
 Abyssinia is described by geographers as an extensive king- 
 dom of Africa lying between the 7th and i6th degrees of north 
 latitude and the 30th and 40th of east longitude. It is bounded 
 on the east by the Red Sea, on the north by Senaar, and on 
 the west and south by Senaar and Kordofan, together with 
 some barbarous regions of Central Africa little known as yet to 
 Europeans. Its superficial area has been computed to be 770 
 miles in length by 550 in breadth ; but this estimate can only 
 be regarded as an approximation to its real dimensions, as the 
 boundaries of the kingdom have been subject to many changes. 
 Although this country is generally mountainous and rugged in 
 the extreme, extensive tracts of fertile land are to be found in 
 the numerous valleys, which are well watered ; and it is alto- 
 gether less desert and more fruitful than many other regions of 
 Northern Africa. Whilst the lowlands, when carefully cultivated, 
 produce good crops of grain and other provisions for domestic 
 use, the mountain slopes afford rich pasture ground for nume- 
 rous herds of horned cattle and other stock, so that there is no 
 danger of scarcity of food when ordinary effort and foresight 
 are used by the inhabitants. 
 
 The ancients appear to have known nothing of this extensive 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 135 
 
 region by the name of Abyssinia, or by any other distinctive term j 
 hence they included it, together with the adjacent territories, 
 under the comprehensive and general designation of Ethiopia. 
 That the country was inhabited at an early period by a people 
 who had made considerable advancement in civilization, arts, 
 and science, is evident from the sculptured monuments, temples, 
 tombs, and other ruins, which are found at Axum and in other 
 localities. The place just named appears to have been the 
 ancient capital of the kingdom ; but Gondar now enjoys that 
 honour, whilst Massuah, on the Red Sea, is the principal port 
 of entrance for Europeans and others. The towns and villages 
 of Abyssinia are described by travellers as consisting of rude 
 thatched dwellings of a conical shape, and their surroundings 
 as corresponding with everything else pertaining to a semi- 
 civilized and almost barbarous people. 
 
 The travellers who have given the most copious and minute 
 accounts of Abyssinia, and the manners and customs of its 
 inhabitants, are Mr. Bruce and Mr. Sale ; and, making allow- 
 ance for some evident exaggerations, the information which 
 they furnish is both interesting and instructive. The gentle- 
 man last named describes the country as being divided into 
 three separate and independent states — namely, Tigre, Amhara, 
 and Shoa, the province occupied by the Galla tribe. The 
 inhabitants of these and other petty states, whilst living under 
 their own chiefs and frequently claiming their independence, 
 have generally been tributary, and in some way subject to the 
 reigning monarch. Civil wars have not been infrequent, how- 
 ever, and the country has for generations past been in a very 
 unsettled state, Shoa having recently declared itself a separate 
 and independent kingdom. No satisfactory information has yet 
 been obtained as to the extent of the population of Abyssinia. 
 The account of Alvarez is that it is one of the most populous 
 regions of the globe, but this appears to be an exaggeration. 
 The most recent authorities estimate the number of inhabitants 
 at 4,000,000. 
 
 However travellers and historians may differ in their accounts 
 
136 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 and opinions of some things relating to the Abyssinians, all 
 agree in representing them to be in a very barbarous condition, 
 judging from their social habits and moral conduct. The slight 
 semblance of civilization which they possess has been derived 
 chiefly from their intercourse with Egypt and Arabia, and is very 
 superficial indeed. Their domestic life is marked by habits 
 more gross and revolting than any that have been witnessed 
 among the most savage tribes of Africa. Some of these are 
 such that the bare report of them shook the confidence and 
 credit of the British people in the statements of Bruce, their 
 countryman, on his return from his extensive travels ; and yet 
 subsequent inquiry has proved it to have been in the main 
 correct. 
 
 The Abyssinians are nevertheless proud of their ancestry. 
 Relying on vague tradition, they boast of their relationship to 
 Solomon, king of Israel, resulting from the visit of the Queen 
 of Sheba to Jerusalem, as recorded in Scripture history. They 
 also claim to have received their Christianity from its fountain- 
 head in Judtea, on the return of the Ethiopian eunuch to the 
 court of Queen Candace, after his conversion to the faith of 
 the Gospel by Philip the evangelist. Whether there be any 
 truth in these traditions or not, it is a fact that the only form 
 of religion found in the country by the first Europeans who 
 went there, was a spurious kind of Christianity resembling that 
 of the Copts in Egypt. Indeed, their church, if such it can 
 be called, owns the supremacy of the Patriarch of Cairo, and 
 from him their Abuna, or ecclesiastical head, receives his in- 
 vestiture. By a regulation supposed to have been made with 
 a view of securing a greater measure of learning than could be 
 expected to be found in an Abyssinian, this pontiff must be a 
 foreigner. As such, however, he is usually ignorant of the 
 language of the country ; and his influence and means of 
 holding communication with the people are consequently much 
 circumscribed. The Abyssinians combine with their Christian 
 profession many Judaical observances — such as circumcision, 
 abstinences from meats, and the observance of Saturday as well 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 as Sunday as a Sabbath. At the same time, they share largely 
 the superstitions which have infected the Romish Church. 
 Their calendar of saints is equally extensive, and scarcely a 
 day occurs which is not consecrated to one of them. They 
 maintain that no nation except themselves holds the Virgin 
 Mary in due reverence. They have numerous rude churches, 
 with paintings and adornments which are perfectly ridiculous 
 to look upon ; and all their religious observances are calculated 
 to excite pity, if not contempt, in the heart of the intelligent 
 beholder. 
 
 We must now briefly notice the efforts which have been 
 made from time to time, by the Christian people of Europe, for 
 the benefit of the ignorant and degraded natives of Abyssinia, 
 with the hope of reforming their morals and winning them over 
 to a purer faith. The Roman Catholics were the first in this 
 field of missionary enterprise, priests having been sent from 
 Portugal as early as 1620, to convert the Abyssinian Chris- 
 tians to the Catholic faith. One of these, named Paez, being 
 a man of considerable address, persuaded the king Susneos to 
 proclaim Roman Catholicism the religion of the state. This 
 bold step, however, occasioned violent civil wars, which ended 
 in the total expulsion of the Portuguese from the country. 
 Jesuit missionaries from France subsequently entered Abys- 
 sinia; but civil complications again occurring, they also were 
 banished. 
 
 In 1826, the Rev. Messrs. Gobat and Kugler were sent to 
 Egypt by the Church of England Missionary Society, with in- 
 structions to proceed to Abyssinia by the first favourable oppor- 
 tunity. After various delays, they reached Massuah on the 28th 
 of December, 1829. Their reception was friendly, and they 
 occupied themselves chiefly in distributing copies of the Scrip- 
 tures supplied by the British and Foreign Bible Society. On 
 the 29th of November, 1830, Mr. Kugler died by an accident 
 from the bursting of his gun when hunting a wild boar. Mr. 
 Gobat was much afflicted by this bereavement ; but he toiled 
 on for three years, after which he returned to England without 
 
138 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 having accomplished much, in consequence of continued oppo- 
 sition and the unsettled state of the country. Other mission- 
 aries followed in the service of the Church Society, chiefly 
 Germans, some of whom died, and others returned having 
 failed to accomplish the object for which they were sent. At 
 length an end was put to the mission, when in 1865 an English 
 expedition was sent to Abyssinia to liberate the missionaries 
 and other British subjects who had been imprisoned and cruelly 
 treated by the eccentric king Theodore. The history and 
 results of this expedition will be fresh in the memory of our 
 readers. 
 
 Since then nothing has been done, that we are aware of, for 
 the evangelization of Abyssinia, with the exception of some 
 desultory and feeble efforts which have been made by the 
 London Society for the Conversion of the Jews ; the 
 Swedish Missionary Society, who have a station at Massuah ; 
 and the Pilgrim Crischona missionaries — who are, however, 
 directing their chief attention to the independent kingdom 
 of Shoa. 
 
 The Barbarv States. 
 
 Barbary is the general name given to that long line of terri- 
 tory in Northern Africa, varying from one to two hundred miles 
 in depth, which extends from Egypt westward to the shores of 
 the Atlantic. It is bounded on the north by the Mediterranean, 
 and on the south by the Sahara or Great Desert, which separates 
 it from Central Africa. The name, though familiar to Euro- 
 peans, and derived probably from a tribe or native race called 
 Berbers, does not appear to be recognized in the country itself 
 Nor is this surprising, when we call to mind the fact that the 
 entire region is divided into a number of separate and inde- 
 pendent states, which, however resembling each other in 
 some respects, are, nevertheless, widely different in others. 
 The level plain which composes the greater part of Barbary 
 resembles somewhat, in surface and soil, some portions of that 
 
N'orthern Africa. 
 
 139 
 
 immense ocean of sand which extends over the great part of the 
 northern section of the African continent. Barbary, however, 
 derives a superior and distinctive character from the mountain 
 chains, which, under the celebrated name of Atlas, range 
 through nearly its whole extent from west to east, whence issue 
 several small rivers to fertilize the land. The loftiest pinnacle 
 is in the west, rising above the plain of Morocco, and facing 
 the Atlantic, where it lifts its towering head even above the 
 limit of perpetual snow. 
 
 Barbary appears to have occupied a more conspicuous place 
 in the ancient than it does in the modern world. It formed 
 part, and in some instances a prominent part, of the great 
 system of civilized nations which existed around the Mediter- 
 ranean, long before the discovery of America and the coloniza- 
 tion of Britain by the Romans. But a great change has passed 
 upon this part of the world since then, as will evidently appear 
 by a brief notice of the respective states into which this portion 
 of Northern Africa is divided. They are Barca, Tripoli, Fezzan, 
 Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco. 
 
 Barca. 
 
 Commencing our topographical survey of the Barbary States 
 in the east, and proceeding westward, the first to be noticed is 
 Barca, which is situated between Egypt and Tripoli, with Derna 
 for its capital and chief port, on the southern shore of the 
 Mediterranean. The south part of the country is said to be 
 sandy and barren in the extreme, and inhabited exclusively 
 by wandering Arabs, who are constantly roaming over these 
 regions and the neighbouring desert of Libia. The northern 
 districts, stretching along the coast, are comparatively fertile 
 and well peopled. The inhabitants cultivate the ground, and 
 raise different kinds of grain and other provisions for their own 
 use and for exportation. 
 
 In this territory, on a small oasis, surrounded by drifting 
 sands, stood the far-famed temple of Jupiter Ammon, of which 
 we read in ancient history. Against this temple it is said that 
 
1 40 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Cambyses, king of Persia, despatched an army of 50,000 men. 
 They set out from Thebes, in Upper Egypt, and after a weary 
 scorching march of seven days, reached the oasis in the desert 
 . on which the temple stood ; but what became of them is 
 uncertain, for it is stated that they never returned either to 
 Egypt or to their own country. Herodotus was informed that 
 the whole army was overwhelmed by a driving storm of wind 
 and sand, and perished in the wilderness. 
 
 For some time after, Barca, in common with the other 
 Barbary states, was peopled chiefly with Mohammedans, the 
 country was subject to the Turks, and received a governor 
 appointed by the Porte at Constantinople ; but for many years 
 past it has been ruled by the bashaw of Tripoli. In its general 
 aspect, soil, and climate, and in the manners, customs, and 
 social condition of the people, Barca resembles most of the 
 other Barbary states, so that an extended description is not 
 necessary. It is impossible, however, for an intelligent 
 traveller to land upon its shores without being struck with the 
 absence of the beneficial and humanizing influences which 
 generally exist in Christian countries. 
 
 Tripoli. 
 
 That part of Northern Africa known as Tripoli is bounded 
 on the north by the Mediterranean, on the east by Barca, on 
 the south by Fezzan, and on the west by Tunis. This portion 
 of the coast, which extends to a distance of nearly 900 miles, 
 was originally colonized by the Greeks, and called by them 
 Cyrene. Extensive ruins are still to be seen, which clearly 
 indicate the magnitude and importance of the cities and towns 
 which existed here in ancient times. The present capital of 
 the country bears the name of the state, and is conveniently 
 situated as its chief seaport on the shore of the Mediterranean. 
 The city presents an imposing appearance from the harbour, 
 and contains some good buildings, one of which is a splendid 
 palace occupied by the dey, or supreme ruler of the state, 
 although said to be in some way under the protection of the 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 141 
 
 Turks. The poi)ulation of Tripoli is of a motley character, 
 consisting of people of various nationalities ; but the majority 
 are Turks, Arabs, and Moors, all of whom are rigid Moham- 
 medans. There have always been a considerable number of 
 Jews, however, with a few Europeans, resident in this country, 
 some of whom have been at different times appointed to 
 important offices under Government. The inhabitants are said 
 to be vicious and depraved in the extreme, but not so bigoted 
 in their religious principles as the Moslems of some other parts 
 of Northern Africa. 
 
 It does not appear that anything has been done for the 
 spiritual enlightenment of the inhabitants of Tripoli by the great 
 missionary societies of Europe, with the exception of occasional 
 visits of the agents employed by associations which have been 
 organized for the propagation of the Gospel among the Jews. 
 An extensive field is here open to Christian philanthropists, 
 where it is believed more liberty would be allowed to missionary 
 effort than is found in most Mohammedan countries. 
 
 Fezzan. 
 
 Fezzan is described by geographers as an interior kingdom 
 of Northern Africa, lying between the great deserts of Sahara 
 and Libia, to the west and south-east, and bounded on the 
 north by Tripoli. It is an extensive plain encompassed by 
 mountains except on the western side ; and to the influence of 
 these heights it may be owing that, here, as in Upper Egypt, 
 rain is scarcely ever known to fall. Compensation is made in 
 some measure, however, for this great want by the heavy dews 
 that fall during the night, and by numerous springs of water 
 which are found in various parts of the country; so that, 
 notwithstanding the light and sandy character of the soil, no 
 part of Northern Africa appears more fresh and verdant than 
 Fezzan at certain seasons of the year. The greatest length of 
 the cultivated part is about 300 miles from north to south, 
 and it is 200 miles in breadth from east to west. By diligent 
 irrigation from wells from ten to fifteen feet deep, which are 
 
142 
 
 Africa . Past and Present. 
 
 dug in almost every garden and patch of provision ground, the 
 husbandman succeeds in raising various fruits and vegetables, 
 among which are dates, olives, limes, pomegranates, figs, maize, 
 barley, wheat, pumpkins, carrots, cucumbers, onions, and garlic. 
 Among the domestic animals are included sheep, goats, cows, 
 camels, asses, and fowls ; and the inhabitants live in tolerable 
 comfort notwithstanding the heat of summer, which is sometimes 
 intense. 
 
 Fezzan derives its chief importance from the circumstance of 
 its being the starting-point of most of the caravans which cross 
 the Great Desert to the distant interior of Africa. The departure 
 and arrival of these caravans, consisting sometimes of thousands 
 of camels, men, women, and children, with their merchandise 
 of European goods, or of gold dust, ivory, and slaves, are the 
 great events of the year at Mourzouk, the capital of the province ; 
 and on such occasions great excitement exists among the 
 inhabitants of all classes. These inhabitants are of the same 
 character as those of the other Barbary states. The bashaw 
 of Fezzan is tributary to Tripoli, to the government of which 
 he pays 4000 dollars a year. 
 
 Tunis. 
 
 From Tripoli the coast of Northern Africa takes a sudden 
 bend northward towards Sicily, for a space of about 200 
 miles, and it is on this part of the continent that Tunis is 
 situated. No province of Africa was more celebrated than this 
 in ancient times. In it was the site of Carthage, which for so 
 many years waged war with Rome, and disputed with her the 
 empire of the world, until she was at length utterly vanquished 
 and destroyed. The ruins of the far-famed city may still be 
 seen about ten miles from the present capital, which bears the 
 same name as the state. The situation of Tunis, projecting 
 into the Mediterranean, and at an easy distance from the finest 
 shores of Southern Europe, is highly favourable for trade and 
 commerce ; and it has in all ages, and under all the changes 
 through which it has passed, asserted its pre-eminence above 
 
Northcr7i Africa. 
 
 143 
 
 that of every other place on the coast of Barbary. In the 
 successive kingdoms which the Sa'racens founded, as they 
 advanced westward in their career of conquest, they fixed their 
 capital first at Kairwan, and then at Tunis ; and Carthage was 
 at length entirely deserted. In the sixteenth century Tunis 
 was occupied for a time by Corsair Barbarossa, but in 1574 
 it was completely subjected to the Ottoman power. On its 
 decline it was for a long time domineered over by the Turkish 
 soldiery ; but the beys have of late years succeeded in crushing 
 the influence of this body, and have made themselves hereditary 
 and almost absolute sovereigns. They have generally governed 
 the province with comparative mildness, and done much to 
 mitigate the former violent and bigoted system, and to introduce 
 European improvements. 
 
 The soil, scenery, and climate of Tunis differ little from those 
 of other parts of Barbary. In the eastern part of the province 
 the land is arid and comparatively unfruitful, from the scarcity 
 of water; but towards the middle it is better, and the mountains 
 and valleys abound with fruits and vegetables of various kinds. 
 But the west part is the most fertile, being watered by rivers, 
 which flow from the distant mountains. The environs of the 
 capital are very dry, and corn is generally scarce and dear ; but 
 there are plenty of citrons, lemons, oranges, dates, grapes, and 
 other fruits ; also olive trees, roses, and odoriferous plants. 
 
 The population of Tunis, which is estimated at 4,000,000, 
 are a mixture of Moors, Turks, Arabs, Jews, and Christians. 
 These carry on a thriving trade in linen and woollen cloth, 
 morocco leather, gold-dust, lead, soap, horses, cattle, and 
 ostriches' eggs and feathers. The established religion of the 
 state is Mohammedanism, and no toleration is accorded to 
 persons professing any other creed. Arabic is the learned 
 language of the country, and in this tongue all public instru- 
 ments are written, and instructions given in the few Moslem 
 colleges and schools which have been established. Trade and 
 commerce are conducted, however, in what is called the Lingua 
 Franca. In the capital of the province there are some good 
 
144 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 stone buildings, including several mosques and minarets, and 
 a citadel on an eminence on the west side of the city. There 
 is also an ancient palace, in which the bey resides and the 
 divan or council of state assembles for the transaction of public 
 business. The manufactures of Tunis are limited to a few 
 velvets, silks, linen, and red caps such as are worn by the 
 common people. 
 
 The exclusive character of the Moslem faith has hitherto 
 precluded all missionary effort for the evangelization of the 
 general population of Tunis. The London Society for the 
 Propagation of the Gospel among the Jews has, however, had 
 several agents at work among the descendants of Abraham 
 resident there, as well as among those who have located them- 
 selves in the other Barbary states. A few copies of the Scriptures, 
 supplied by the British and Foreign Bible Society, have also 
 been circulated from time to time ; and thus a few rays of 
 light have been shed upon a country which, on the whole, is 
 notoriously dark and barbarous. 
 
 Algiers. 
 
 The next place on the coast of Northern Africa which demands 
 our attention is the large and important province of Algiers. 
 It is said to be 600 miles in length from east to west, along 
 the seashore, and about 170 miles in breadth inland. It is 
 bounded on the east by Tunis, on the north by the Mediter- 
 ranean, on the south by Mount Atlas, and on the west by 
 Morocco. Mineral springs are met with in many places, and 
 lead and copper have been found in some of the mountainous 
 districts. Algiers is more favoured than some of the other 
 Barbary states with respect to water, as several fine rivers flow 
 from the mountains in the interior. The elevated land towards 
 the north is fertile in corn, and the valleys yield abundance of 
 fruit and vegetables. The melons are said to have an exquisite 
 flavour, and are of different kinds, some being ripe in summer 
 and others in winter. The stems of the vines are very large, 
 and bunches of grapes have been gathered a foot and a half 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 145 
 
 long. Accounts are given of other productions of the country 
 equally favourable. 
 
 The capital of the country is a strong city, and bears the 
 same name as the state. It is built on the side of a mountain 
 facing the Mediterranean, in the form of an amphitheatre. It 
 presents an imposing appearance when viewed from the sea, 
 the houses being fairly well built, and arranged in terraces 
 one above the other, and of resplendent whiteness. The roofs 
 of the houses are flat ; and, being in some instances covered 
 with earth, are formed into small garden plots. On landing 
 and entering the city, the visitor is less favourably impressed, 
 however, the streets being narrow, steep, and crooked, and far 
 from cleanly. There are five gates, but no public places or 
 squares of any considerable extent. The best buildings in the 
 place, whilst it continued in the hands of the Turks, were the 
 mosques, ten of which were of considerable magnitude. The 
 palace of the dey was far from being spacious or extensive, 
 and is now numbered with the things that were. The suburbs 
 of the capital present to the view some handsome villas and 
 fruitful gardens, watered by sparkling rivulets and bubbling 
 fountains, and thither the inhabitants resort in considerable 
 numbers in the hot season. Shocking stories are told of the 
 rapacity of the Turkish soldiers in former times. They would 
 frequently go to the farmhouses in the country, and live at free 
 quarters for days and weeks together, despite every remonstrance, 
 and commit all manner of depredations. The doings of the 
 pirates by sea were also of the most appalling character. But 
 all this is changed, now the country has passed into other hands. 
 
 The past history of Algiers is of a very chequered character, 
 of which we can here give but a brief outline. In i54r the 
 emperor Charles V. sent a fleet and army against Algiers, both 
 of which were almost annihilated, the expedition being entirely 
 unsuccessful. It was otherwise, however, with regard to the 
 English, who with a strong naval force attacked the city in 1635, 
 and again in 1670, and burnt the vessels of the merchants in 
 the harbour, to punish them for the cruel piracy which they 
 
146 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 had been carrying on in the Mediterranean for many years, in 
 the course of which they captured and reduced to abject slavery 
 hundreds, if not thousands, of British subjects. In 1775 the 
 Spaniards attacked Algiers, both by sea and land, but they were 
 repulsed with great loss. In 1783, and again in 1784, they 
 renewed their attacks by sea, when they were more successful, 
 and succeeded in reducing the city and galleys in the harbour 
 to a complete wreck, but failed to take possession of the place. 
 In 1 81 6 a British squadron, under the command of Lord 
 Exmouth, bombarded the town and fleet in the harbour, with 
 such destructive effect as induced the dey to release all the 
 Christian slaves then in the interior, and to subscribe to all the 
 terms of submission and restraint which the victors thought 
 proper to dictate. This, however, did not prevent them from 
 resuming their piratical practices soon afterwards; and in 1830 
 the French undertook an expedition against Algiers, which 
 reached the port on the 13th of June, and on the following 
 morning the troops landed. The preparations had been made 
 on a comprehensive scale, and the success of the expedition 
 was complete. On the 5th of July they took possession of the 
 city and adjacent territory, which have ever since remained in 
 their hands. 
 
 The history of French colonization in Northern Africa has 
 been somewhat chequered, but after all its successes and 
 reverses, and the frequent wars which have been waged with 
 native tribes of the interior, the settlement presents to the view 
 of philanthropists something to be thankful for, as compared 
 with the state of things under the former semi-civilized admini- 
 stration. Piracy has disappeared from the neighbouring seas, 
 and a new aspect has been given to the habits and manners 
 of the people on shore. Christian churches, Roman Catholic 
 though they be, are an improvement on Mohammedan mosques; 
 and the fact that a French colony had been established 
 at Algiers has drawn many Europeans and Americans to the 
 country who would not have otherwise taken up their abode 
 there, and the whole face of society is changed for the better. 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 147 
 
 The population is necessarily of a very mixed character, 
 consisting of persons representing various nations, of different 
 complexions and languages. Nor can we say much in favour 
 of the morals of the people, whether professedly Christians, 
 Moslems, or Jews. There is an ample field for Protestant 
 missionary effort, as we are not aware that anything has been 
 done for the evangelization of the inhabitants, beyond the em- 
 ployment of a few Lutheran ministers and the appointment of 
 two or three agents of the London Society for the Propagation 
 of the Gospel among the Jews. These have established a few 
 schools for the instruction of the rising generation of the 
 respective classes among whom they labour ; but from all 
 accounts their success has been very partial. 
 
 Morocco. 
 
 Although mentioned last, the empire of Morocco is not by 
 any means the least of the Barbary states. It is, in fact, the 
 largest, and in some respects the most important province in 
 Northern Africa, next to Egypt, which must always have the 
 pre-eminence. The geographical position and boundaries of 
 Morocco are as follows : — It is bounded on the west by the 
 Atlantic, on the north by the Mediterranean, on the east by 
 Algiers, and on the south by a portion of the Atlas range of 
 mountains, which separates it from the Sahara or Great Desert. 
 Morocco has thus the advantage of two coasts — one along the 
 Mediterranean facing the north, and the other along the 
 Atlantic looking to the west. On both of these there are 
 several ports, with their towns and villages, varying in import- 
 ance according to their magnitude and position. The capital, 
 which bears the name of the empire, is situated in the interior, 
 and, both in its dimensions and population, it surpasses any 
 other town or city in the land, with the exception of Fez. The 
 length of Morocco is about 600 miles, with an average breadth 
 of 260 ; and the population is estimated at 5,000,000. 
 
 The soil of Morocco differs little in quality from that of the 
 other Barbary states ; although comparatively sterile, sandy. 
 
148 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 and dry, in some places, it is fertile and productive in others. 
 Fruits and vegetables, such as are produced in other parts of 
 Northern Africa, are plentiful, and the pasture lands are 
 excellent. This is especially the case with those which are 
 situated along the slopes of the Atlas, the lofty range of moun- 
 tains which runs parallel with the empire in one direction and 
 with the Atlantic in another. In these grassy uplands, as well 
 as in the fertile pastures on the plain, multitudes of splendid 
 horses, horned cattie, sheep and goats are reared and fed, to 
 the great advantage of the farmers who own them, and of 
 the despotic emperor, who claims a considerable share in the 
 earnings of his subjects. In addition to farming, other profitable 
 industries are pursued in the country which are worthy of 
 a passing notice. The principal of these is the manufacture 
 of the beautiful leather known as " morocco." Some of the 
 tanneries are very extensive, one in the capital employing as 
 many as 1500 hands. The process of preparing and colouring 
 this leather is rude and simple in the extreme ; but European 
 skill has never yet succeeded in producing a perfect imitation. 
 Whether the superior quality of Morocco leather is owing to 
 the peculiar character of the skins of the sheep and goats fed 
 on the slopes of the Atlas, or to some mystery in the mode of 
 manufacture, still appears to be uncertain. Other articles for 
 exportation are cattle, almonds of very fine quality from 
 Suse, dates from Tafilet, ivory and gold-dust from Soudan, 
 together with honey, bees-wax, and ostrich feathers. For these 
 commodities Morocco receives various articles of European mer- 
 chandise and colonial produce. This traffic is carried on chiefly 
 through the ports of Mogadore on the Atlantic and Tangier on 
 the Mediterranean, the latter of which is only separated from 
 the continent of Europe by the narrow Straits of Gibraltar. 
 
 The city of Morocco is situated on an extensive plain in the 
 interior of the empire, ninety miles east of Mogadore on the 
 Atlantic, and four hundred miles south of Gibraltar. It is 
 said to have nothing particularly to recommend it but its great 
 extent, and the royal palace, where the emperor resides and 
 
Northern Africa. 
 
 149 
 
 rules with a despotism which has no parallel in Northern 
 Africa. The city is surrounded by a strong wall eight miles in 
 circumference. It has eleven gates, one of which is superbly 
 finished in the Moorish style of architecture.- The mosques 
 are very numerous, and some of them are magnificent. The 
 best of the dwelling-houses are elegant structures enclosed in 
 gardens, but the generality of them serve only to impress the 
 traveller with the idea of a miserable and half-deserted city, 
 where periodical famines are of frequent occurrence. Tangier 
 and Fez, on the Mediterranean, are in some respects more im- 
 portant places than the city of Morocco. Indeed, the town and 
 port last mentioned was once the capital of an independent 
 kingdom of the same name ; but it has for many years- past 
 been incorporated with the empire of Morocco. From this 
 place, as well as from Tangier, immediately opposite Gibraltar, 
 a considerable trade is carried on with the neighbouring ports 
 of Europe. 
 
 The population of Morocco is similar in its character to that 
 which we find in most of the other Barbary states, and consists 
 of a mixture of Moors, Arabs, Jews, and negroes, with a few 
 Europeans. Formerly a considerable number of Christian 
 slaves, captured by the pirates, were kept in various parts of 
 the empire, and treated with great rigour. But all this is now 
 done away ; and there is little fear of such a state of things 
 occurring again, with the French at Algiers and the English at 
 Gibraltar. The Mohammedan religion prevails here, as in 
 other parts of Northern Africa, and it is characterised by the 
 same fatalism, ignorance, bigotry, and superstition with which 
 it is distinguished in other places. Nor are we aware that any 
 systematic efforts have been made by the Protestant missionary 
 societies of Europe to evangelize the inhabitants of Morocco, 
 beyond occasional visits of converted Jews to their brethren, 
 who reside in considerable numbers in some of the towns, 
 especially at the capital, where they occupy a separate village 
 in the suburbs. 
 
150 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 WESTERN AFRICA. 
 
 Geographical Boundaries — Topographical Aspect and Scenery— Mountains 
 and Rivers — Climate and Seasons — Soil and Productions — Native 
 Tribes — Manners and Customs — Superstitious Notions and Practices — • 
 Colonization and Missions — Sierra Leone — The Gambia — The Gold 
 Coast — Lagos — Liberia — Senegal — Fernando Po — Angola. 
 
 ' I ^HE geographical boundaries of Western Africa cannot be 
 
 X defined with precision ; but a description of the extent 
 of the country sufficiently definite for our purpose may be easily 
 given. The name is generally applied to that portion of the 
 vast continent which lies between the Sahara or Great Desert 
 on the north, the equator on the south, the Atlantic on the west, 
 and the regions of the Upper Niger on the east ; embracing the 
 extensive countries bordering upon the Senegal, Gambia, Sierra 
 Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and the islands of Fernando Po and 
 Ascension. Some would also include Angola and neighbouring 
 territory among the countries which fairly belong to Western 
 Africa, although situated beyond the equator; and perhaps 
 they cannot be better classified. As thus employed, the term 
 serves to distinguish this portion of the great continent from 
 Abyssinia, Nubia, Egypt, and the Barbary States on the shores 
 of the Mediterranean in Northern Africa,, on the one hand ; 
 and the Cape of Good Hope, with its neighbouring territories 
 in Southern Africa, on the other ; whilst it leaves Mozambique, 
 Zanzibar, and other portions of Eastern Africa, with the lake 
 districts in the interior, and other countries of Central Africa, 
 recently discovered, to come under their appropriate designa- 
 tions. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 Topographical Aspects and Scenery. 
 
 When we consider the vast extent of that portion of the 
 globe now under review, embracing, as it does, not less than 
 1,000,000 square miles, we are not surprised to find that the 
 topographical aspect and general appearance of different 
 localities vary considerably. In some places we find extensive 
 arid sandy deserts, where nothing is to be seen but a barren 
 wilderness, and where the caravans of travelling merchants, in 
 the course of long journeys, suffer much from various causes, 
 but especially from want of water. Again we meet with extensive 
 tracts of fertile land, teeming with the most luxuriant vegetation, 
 and abounding with extensive forests of valuable timber. These 
 more favoured districts are generally situated on the banks of 
 the numerous rivers or tributary creeks, which intersect the 
 country in various directions. They sometimes present the 
 appearance of a gently undulating surface, reminding one of an 
 English nobleman's park, or verdant meadow, with here and 
 there a beautiful hill or rocky mountain of considerable altitude. 
 
 With the exception of Cape Verd, the neighbourhood of 
 Sierra Leone, the Cameroons, and a few other localities where 
 inconsiderable hills and promontories present themselves to 
 view, the western coast of Africa is generally level. It is not 
 till we proceed a considerable distance inland that we meet 
 with elevations worthy of the name of mountains. The districts 
 bordering on the rivers, creeks, and lagoons are, moreover) 
 generally low and swampy. At the close of the rainy season, 
 thousands of acres are laid under water, and present to the 
 traveller the appearance of interminable lakes or inland seas. 
 When the waters retire, on the termination of the rains, cultiva- 
 tion commences, and the country assumes a beautiful verdant 
 aspect, contrasting favourably with its dry and scorched appear- 
 ance during the dry season. 
 
 Travelling in Western Africa is frequently attended with 
 difficulties and dangers unknown in more highly favoured 
 lands. The country is not only destitute of railroads, those 
 
152 Africa: Past and Pjesent. 
 
 wonderful inventions of modern times, but also of common 
 carriage-roads ; for no wheel vehicles of any kind are used by 
 the natives in any place we have visited, or of which we have 
 heard. The best roads are mere footpaths across the deserts 
 or through the forests, on which the people walk in single file ; 
 each man carrying in his hand a gun or a cutlass, to defend 
 himself against the attacks of serpents or beasts of prey, to 
 which he is constantly exposed. In some of the more open 
 districts horses are occasionally used for the saddle ; but they 
 are not generally employed as beasts of burden or for long 
 journeys. Indeed, on some parts of the continent — as Cape 
 Coast, Ashanti, and other places — from some peculiarity in the 
 herbage or in the climate, horses cannot live. As often as they 
 are introduced from other localities they decline in their con- 
 dition, and ultimately dwindle and die. Camels even share 
 the same fate, although horned cattle, sheep, and goats, thrive 
 pretty well. When long journeys have to be performed over 
 land, Europeans and native gentlemen are in some places 
 carried by native bearers in hammocks or chairs suspended on 
 poles, according to the plan adopted in India, whilst a party of 
 porters follow with the baggage and provisions of the traveller 
 and his attendants poised on their heads. 
 
 The majestic rivers of Western Africa, which wind their way 
 in various directions from the mountains in the interior to the 
 Atlantic, supply to some extent the want of public roads ; and 
 appear designed by Divine Providence to answer the purpose 
 of highways for the introduction of commerce and Christianity 
 to the regions beyond. The native tribes living on the banks 
 of these rivers, and in the neighbourhood of the creeks, lakes, 
 and lagoons, employ various kinds of vessels to convey them- 
 selves and their merchandise from place to place; and it is 
 almost as common to meet with boats and canoes on some of 
 the streams as you sail along, as it is to meet carriages on 
 the public road in England. Some of the canoes used by the 
 natives are large and handsome vessels ; for, although the 
 hulk is made of the trunk of a single tree, hollowed out with 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 153 
 
 great skill, it is frequently fifty or sixty feet long, and six or 
 seven feet broad, being occasionally raised at the sides with 
 planks, and beautifully ornamented with carved work. A canoe 
 of the largest class is generally manned by twenty-four negroes^ 
 who sit twelve on each side, on the edge or gunwale of the 
 vessel, and propel it forward at a rapid rate w^ith paddles about 
 three feet long, which they ply with remarkable dexterity, 
 beating time to a tune which they sing with much spirit to some 
 extemporaneous song made to suit the occasion. Thus the 
 scene is quite lively and animated when a fleet of these native 
 craft are sailing in company, which is sometimes the case ; for 
 they make the surrounding forest ring with their merry songs as 
 they dash along through the placid water. 
 
 Mountains and Rivers. 
 
 Our knowledge of the mountains of Western Africa is of a 
 very general and partial character, owing chiefly to the difficulty 
 of exploring this portion of the continent, imposed by the 
 unhealthiness of the climate and other obstacles. It has been 
 ascertained, however, that all the great ranges of mountains are 
 situated some distance from the coast in the interior. One of 
 the most important of these is the extensive and lofty chain 
 which runs across the eastern portion of Senegambia, usually 
 called the Mountains of Kong. The direct course of this 
 range has never been correctly ascertained, but it appears to 
 stretch from east to west, almost across the entire continent, 
 till it connects itself with the Mountains of the Moon on the 
 opposite side of Africa. 
 
 The principal rivers of Western Africa are the Niger, Congo, 
 Senegal, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Volta, Mesurado, Bonny, 
 Calabar, Nunez, Pongas, and Rio Grande. Most of these 
 majestic streams are supposed to take their rise in the ranges 
 of mountains just mentioned, some of which run nearly parallel 
 with the coast ; and, after watering extensive and fertile regions, 
 empty themselves at various points into the Atlantic Ocean. 
 An exception must, however, be made in the case of the Congo, 
 
154 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 which has been proved by the recent explorations of Cameron 
 and Stanley to have its source in the distant lake regions of 
 Central Africa, and after winding its way through thousands 
 of miles of fertile land, occasionally interrupted by rocky 
 cataracts, to pour its mighty flood of water into the sea to 
 the south of Angola. This river, being to a great extent 
 navigable, will henceforth attract more attention than it has 
 hitherto received, and will probably play an important part 
 in the future history of the continent, as one of the grand 
 highways leading to the distant interior. 
 
 The majestic Niger was formerly regarded as identical with 
 the Senegal or the Gambia ; but it was proved by the explo- 
 rations of Mungo Park and the intrepid Landers to take 
 its rise amid the mountains already mentioned, and, after 
 flowing in a winding course about 2000 miles through the 
 northern portion of Central Africa, to discharge its mighty 
 volume of water by a number of large estuaries into the Eight 
 of Benin. These real mouths of the Niger were in former 
 limes believed to be so many separate rivers, and were known 
 as the Brass river, the Nun river, the Old Calabar, the New 
 Calabar, etc. But now it is evident that vessels may ascend 
 by any one of them to the very heart of Africa ; and, at the 
 proper season of the year, arrive at Egga, Rabba, Sego, or 
 Timbuctu, on the banks of the Niger. This majestic stream 
 has been already used to some extent for inland navigation in 
 the interests of commerce and civilization, and it will no doubt 
 be still more so in time to come, as the Christian people of 
 Europe and America become more thoroughly interested in the 
 welfare of Africa. 
 
 The Senegal is a large and important river, and is deserving 
 of more attention than it has yet received from European 
 adventurers. It takes its rise at the northern extremity of the 
 Kong mountains, and flows westward for several hundreds of 
 miles, till it comes within about two leagues of the Atlantic, 
 when it takes a sudden bend southwards, and, after running 
 for about seventy-five miles nearly parallel with the coast, 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 155 
 
 empties itself into the sea a few miles north-cast of Cape Verd. 
 It is navigable for vessels of light draught throughout most of 
 its course ; but the entrance is rendered somewhat difficult and 
 dangerous to vessels of large draught by a bar of sand which 
 runs directly across its mouth, — an impediment which might 
 probably be removed by skilful engineering. 
 
 The river Gambia has its source in the same range of moun- 
 tains which gives rise to the Niger and the Senegal ; and, both 
 from its magnitude and the facilities which it affords for inland 
 navigation, it may be fairly classed with these noble streams. 
 The course of the Gambia, from its source downward, is some- 
 what serpentine ; but it flows in the main westward for nearly 
 1000 miles, through a fertile country, and empties itself into 
 the Atlantic Ocean a few miles south of Cape Verd, in latitude 
 13° 30' north, and longitude 15° west. It is about twelve miles 
 wide at its mouth ; but on proceeding upwards we soon find 
 that it contracts to about three miles. Thence it continues to 
 vary from three miles to one mile in width for some distance, 
 occasionally expanding to greater dimensions— presenting to 
 the view of the traveller in some places, especially after the 
 rainy season, the appearance of a vast inland sea. The river 
 is navigable for vessels of fifty or sixty tons burden for upwards 
 of 400 miles, at which point further progress is interrupted by 
 a series of rapids, known as the Falls of Barraconda. In the 
 dry season the influence of the tide is felt to a distance of 300 
 miles from the sea ; and the larger vessels of the European 
 merchants avail themselves of this circumstance in navigating 
 the stream, as the breeze is frequently rather feeble, being 
 impeded by the surrounding forests. 
 
 Having sailed on the majestic Gambia and its tributaries 
 thousands of miles in various directions, we may here add a 
 few remarks as to the appearance of the country on its 
 banks. On ascending an eminence, in the upper parts of the 
 river, the prospect presented to the view is frequently of a 
 charming character. On the right hand and on the left exten- 
 sive forests of the richest foliage may be seen waving in the 
 
156 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 wind, and here and there a native to-vTO with its clearings of 
 cultivated ground ; whilst, on looking towards the sea, the 
 beautiful Gambia is seen like a silver thread of light, glittering 
 in the sun as it winds its course towards the mighty ocean. 
 When sailing on the river itself the scenery is also in many 
 places very interesting. The margin of the stream is for more 
 than a hundred miles lined with dense masses of the mangrove 
 tree — a beautiful evergreen, with shining leaves of deepest 
 verdure, not unlike the laurel of our own country. These man- 
 groves flourish only where the ground is low and swampy, and 
 saturated with salt water at the flow of each successive tide ; 
 but as every tree sends down a number of branches, each of 
 which in time becomes the stem of a tree, the whole region 
 soon becomes an impenetrable mass of jungle. On ascending 
 further into the interior, the banks of the river are found to be 
 more elevated, and the ground drier, and frequently covered 
 with forest trees of gigantic stature, and supplying valuable 
 timber. Throughout its entire length the Gambia is studded 
 with beautiful islands, some of which will be noticed in another 
 place. 
 
 The other rivers af Western Africa are of less magnitude and 
 importance than those we have briefly described. They never- 
 theless prove very useful, in the absence of public roads, in 
 facilitating communication between different and distant places 
 on their banks, by means of the native canoes, which may be 
 seen in great numbers skimming their placid waters in various 
 directions. Although differing in size and situation, they 
 possess so many features in common, that it appears unneces- 
 sary to occupy space by a minute description of each stream, 
 creek, and lagoon, to which we have alluded, and which we 
 have partially explored, when so many other topics claim our 
 attention. 
 
 Climate and Seasons. 
 
 The seasons of the year and the climate of Western Africa 
 possess many peculiarities, a brief notice of which may serve to 
 
Western Africa, 
 
 157 
 
 throw some light upon an interesting subject, and to explain in 
 part why a residence in the country is generally so detrimental 
 to the health of Europeans, and why the natives themselves 
 are so frequently prostrated with fever. The seasons are 
 divided, not into summer and winter, but into dry and rainy, 
 which are marked by a distinctness not known in other parts 
 of the world. With a slight variation on different parts of the 
 coast, the dry season commences in the month of September, 
 and continues till May following. During these nine months 
 not a shower of rain is seen to fall, and the ground becomes 
 parched and dry to an extent almost incredible to those who 
 have not resided within the tropics ; but during the remaining 
 three months of the year the rain descends in torrents, day and 
 night, with scarcely any intermission. The principal rivers 
 now overflow their banks, like the Nile in Egypt, and the low 
 lands are inundated for scores of miles. When the rains in the 
 interior cease, the waters gradually subside into their usual 
 channels ; but they leave large tracts of country, naturally low 
 and swampy, still submerged, and presenting to the view a 
 succession of shallow lakes. The sun now pours his fiery rays 
 on these extensive marshes, the waters of which soon become 
 stagnant and pestilential as evaporation takes place ; and, 
 charged as they are with vast accumulations of putrid animal 
 and vegetable matter, they emit effluvia almost unbearable. 
 The fatal march miasma, thus generated, is borne on the wings 
 of the wind over the country at large, and frequently carries 
 fever, desolation, and death to the habitations of thousands. 
 After many years' experience in other tropical countries, we 
 regard this peculiarity in the climate of Western Africa as the 
 real cause of its pre-eminent unhealthiness. 
 
 The rainy season is ushered in by the appearance of sheet 
 lightning, which is seen flickering on the horizon, at short 
 intervals, for several successive nights, and which sometimes 
 illuminates the whole heavens. Then follow a succession of 
 tornadoes. These are violent thunderstorms, accompanied by 
 circumstances of an alarming character. The sky, which has 
 
158 Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 so long been bright and cloudless, begins to assume a sombre, 
 leaden aspect. Dense masses of clouds are seen to gather in 
 the east, till the whole heavens are covered as with a sable 
 mantle. Now the lightning begins to flash with fearful 
 vividness, and the thunder roars in awful peals, resembling 
 the crashing noise produced by the simultaneous discharge of 
 numerous fields of artillery. These fearful manifestations are 
 followed by the sudden rushing forth of the wind, like a 
 prisoner bursting loose from his chains. Then the rain pours 
 down in torrents, as if the windows of heaven were opened ; 
 and the elements of nature, including earth, sky, and sea, 
 appear mingled in fearful conflict ! As the tornado is seen to 
 approach, it is necessary to secure windows and doors and 
 everything about the house likely to be affected by it ; but, 
 notwithstanding every precaution, considerable damage is fre- 
 quently done by the tempest, in the unroofing of houses, the 
 uprooting of trees, and the destruction of fences, etc. But the 
 vessels in the rivers and on the sea fare still worse on these 
 occasions, being sometimes capsized by the suddenness with 
 which the gale sets in, before the men on board have time to 
 shorten sail or prepare for the emergency. 
 
 The heat is frequently intense during the dry season, 
 the thermometer sometimes rising as high as 95° to 105° 
 in the shade. For several months in the year, however, the 
 heat on the coast is tempered by a gentle and refreshing sea- 
 breeze, which springs up every morning soon after sunrise, and 
 blows with tolerable regularity during most of the day. At the 
 opposite season, when the land-breeze prevails for a few weeks, 
 and the harmattan winds blow across the sandy deserts in the 
 interior, the heat is very oppressive, reminding one of the hot 
 air which proceeds from the mouth of a furnace. This we 
 have found so intense as to produce extreme dryness of the 
 skin, with parched lips and burning thirst. We have also known 
 it to damage sundry articles of furniture in the house, cracking 
 the glass and china ware on the sideboard, etc. On the other 
 hand, the rainy season is marked by a state of the atmosphere 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 the very reverse of what we have described. The ground 
 being everywhere completely saturated, and in some places 
 inundated, the fierce rays of the sun, which occasionally burst 
 through the clouds as the rains begin to subside, rapidly 
 accelerate the process of evaporation, and the exhalations which 
 arise are so dense that a thick mist is frequently seen to prevail, 
 and the air is rendered peculiarly humid. On such occasions 
 we have seen the walls of the interior of the house steaming 
 with water, from the condensation of the vapours which pre- 
 vailed ; and we have sometimes been obliged to light a fire 
 in our bedroom, even when the weather was hot and sultry, 
 simply to rarefy the air and dispel the damp, before we could 
 retire to rest with safety. 
 
 The year in Western Africa is further divided by the natives 
 into lunar months, or " moons," as they term them ; and the 
 time of the day is noted by the altitude of the sun in the 
 heavens, clocks and watches being out of the question. The 
 day varies only about an hour in length during the whole year, 
 tlie country being situated chiefly within the tropics. The 
 twilight is of short duration ; for no sooner does the sun 
 descend beneath the western horizon, than night begins to 
 spread her sable mantle over the earth. This is very pleasant 
 in the dry season, especially when it is moonlight ; for now the 
 air is comparatively cool, and all nature is tranquil. But in 
 the wet season the case is very different. At this period of 
 the year, no sooner have the last rays of light departed, than 
 the reptile and insect tribes begin their nightly song. The 
 discordant noise produced by the croaking of frogs, the chirping 
 of crickets, cockroaches and beetles, the flapping and screaming 
 of bats, and the buzzing of myriads of mosquitoes, is also 
 deafening. Multitudes of these noxious creatures are attracted 
 into the dwelling-houses by the lights, and sometimes cover the 
 walls of the room in which you are sitting, even extinguishing 
 the candles or lamps by crowding around them, regardless ot 
 the fatal consequences. It is at this season of the year that 
 the mosquitoes especially are so troublesome ; for notwith- 
 
i6o Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 standing the precaution of providing net curtains to the bedsj 
 they still penetrate, and by their perpetual buzzing and poisonous 
 stings they frequently deprive one of sleep for several nights in 
 succession. 
 
 It is towards the close of the annual rains, when the ex- 
 halations from the swampy ground are so sensibly felt, that 
 the sickly season is considered to commence. Now the natives 
 themselves are frequently attacked with sickness ; and among 
 the European residents the " old hands " expect the usual 
 attacks of ague and fever, whilst the " new comers " have to 
 pass through their " seasoning." This process is, undoubtedly, 
 more painful and hazardous than the ordinary attacks of fever 
 which may be expected to follow at intervals, and from which 
 none need hope to escape. The course of the disease is some- 
 what as follows : — At first the patient is attacked with severe 
 headache, followed by a fit of shivering, which frequently 
 continues for several hours, notwithstanding the additional 
 covering which may be applied to his person. Then comes the 
 hot stage, during which the skin is dry and burning, whilst the 
 action of the pulse is quick and violent. The actual heat of 
 the body, at this stage of the disease, is almost incredible — a 
 person in health hardly being able to bear his hand in contact 
 wiih the forehead of the sufferer. The time which this burning 
 fit continues varies in different persons, according to the 
 nature of the attack or the constitution of the patient. If every- 
 thing proceed favourably, it may be expected to terminate in 
 the course of two or three days ; but if it continue longer 
 danger may be apprehended, as few have survived the fifth 
 day without any intermission. When the fever breaks, the dry 
 burning stage is followed by copious perspiration, which marks 
 the passing of the dangerous crisis, and a speedy recovery is 
 anticipated. The fever, however, frequently assumes the inter- 
 mittent form, and returns every alternate day, with a regularity 
 which is surprising ; but these periodical attacks are of trifling 
 consequence, and of short duration compared with the " sea- 
 soning," the patient being frequently able to move about on the 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 i6i 
 
 day which intervenes between them, which he calls his "good 
 day." 
 
 As all West African fevers are more or less of the bilious 
 type, the mode of treatment has generally been simple and 
 nearly uniform. Calomel, in combination with rhubarb or 
 jalap, is freely administered immediately on a person being 
 attacked, and Dover's powder has been found useful in aiding 
 perspiration. During the intermission, the sulphate of quinine 
 has been resorted to as an efficacious remedy against the return 
 of fever, in preference to Peruvian bark, formerly employed ; 
 and it scarcely ever fails if a sufficient quantity, say twenty-five 
 grains, can only be received into the system in the interim by 
 taking it in small doses every two or three hours. As soon as 
 the patient becomes convalescent, careful nursing and constant 
 attention to diet are of the greatest possible importance. 
 
 There is nothing very alarming in the common country fever, 
 to a person of good sound constitution and of temperate habits ; 
 but we are occasionally visited on some parts of the coast with 
 an epidemic in the form of " yellow fever," which is a more 
 serious affair. From continued observation it has been found 
 that this fearful scourge visits the western coast of Africa about 
 every six or seven years. It is impossible to say through what 
 medium it comes : whether by ships from the West Indies, or 
 through the air like the mysterious cholera, none can tell. 
 When this extraordinary epidemical disease makes its appear- 
 ance considerable alarm is excited, inasmuch as it is infectious 
 and contagious in a manner quite different from the annual 
 remittent and intermittent fevers already described. It has, 
 moreover, proved much more fatal than any other disease 
 known on the coast — spreading with fearful rapidity, and 
 sometimes carrying off one-half of a whole community. The 
 "yellow fever" is easily distinguished from fevers of the 
 common bilious type, not only by the yellow or jaundice-like 
 complexion which it gives to the sufferer, but especially by 
 the aggravated form of the attack, and by the circumstance 
 that it is invariably attended with the " black vomit," which 
 
 II 
 
1 62 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 generally occurs just before the patient expires. It is worthy 
 of remark, however, that this awful pestilence is unknown in 
 the interior of the country ; and we believe it has never yet 
 made its appearance so far east as the coast of Guinea. 
 
 The writer is aware that very different and conflicting 
 accounts have been given from time to time by different 
 persons as to the real character of the climate of Western 
 Africa ; and he is anxious to present to the reader a correct 
 and impartial view of the subject, without going to either of 
 the extremes into which he conceives some writers have been 
 betrayed. It has sometimes occurred that a naval or military 
 officer has visited the coast in the middle of the dry season, 
 when everything wore the appearance of health and activity ; 
 and being charmed with the brilliancy of the atmosphere and 
 the beauty of the scenery, he has returned to England after a 
 brief sojourn, and published an account of his travels, eulogising 
 the country in most unqualified terms, and scouting the idea 
 of the unhealthiness of the climate, even for Europeans. Had 
 such a transient visitor remained on the coast all the year 
 round, his views would no doubt have been considerably 
 modified. On the other hand, a traveller visits the coast at 
 the most unhealthy season of the year, and is appalled at the 
 scenes of sickness and death which he beholds. He narrowly 
 escapes with his life, and brings an evil report of the land, 
 declaring that the country is not fit for Europeans to live in, 
 and that all the missions and the British settlements themselves 
 ought to be at once and for ever abandoned. Henceforth the 
 country is called "the white man's grave," and is regarded 
 with feelings of dread by all who are appointed to sojourn 
 there as missionaries, merchants, or government ofificers. After 
 many years of personal experience in this and other tropical 
 countries, and after having had the African fever more than a 
 hundred times, I am of opinion that, whilst the climate of 
 Western Africa is undoubtedly one of the worst in the world, 
 it is not so bad as to render hopeless our best efforts to 
 neutralize in some degree its baneful influence, and to grapple 
 
Wesiern Africa. 163 
 
 successfully with the difficulties with which we have to contend 
 in our endeavours to extend the blessings of Christian civilization 
 to this interesting but long neglected country. 
 
 The following facts and figures are respectfully submitted, as 
 illustrative of the true character of the climate of Western Africa 
 so far as European residents are concerned. In the course of 
 twenty years — from 1804 to 1824 — the Church Missionary 
 Society sent out to Sierra Leone eighty-five missionaries, and 
 during this period fifty-four died and fourteen returned to 
 England with shattered health. In 1835 there remained on the 
 station only three missionaries and two catechists, out of 109 
 labourers who had been sent out during the preceding thirty 
 years. The experience of the Wesleyan Missionary Society is 
 not very dissimilar. During twenty years — from 1824 to 1844 
 — this institution sent out to Sierra Leone, Cape Coast, and 
 the Gambia, eighty-six labourers, and during this period forty-two 
 were removed by death, whilst several were compelled to 
 return home on account of the failure of their health. Thus 
 it will be seen that the loss sustained by each of these great 
 societies in a course of years was over 50 per cent, of deaths, 
 or rather more than one-half of the whole of the agents sent 
 out. In 1823, from January to June, during a very sickly 
 season, seventy-seven Europeans died at Sierra Leone, very 
 few white men being left alive in the colony; and in the same 
 settlement four governors died in seven years, from 1825 to 
 1832. 
 
 If we were in a position to give complete statistics of the 
 army and navy connected with the western coast of Africa, we 
 have reason to fear that the result would be still more 
 appalling. In those which have come under our notice we 
 find the following items of intelligence : in 1824, 283 European 
 troops were sent to Western Africa, making the total number 
 on the coast 11 93; of these 621 died during the year. We 
 have known a large number of raw recruits carried off by fever 
 soon after their arrival on the coast; and in the most favourable 
 years the loss by death in the regimeois composed of British 
 
1 64 Africa : Pad and Present. 
 
 soldiers has seldom been less than one-half the whole number, 
 whilst in those composed of native troops the deaths have only 
 averaged about one in twenty-six. Observing this difference, 
 the military authorities have adopted the plan of late years of 
 training and employing native troops under the command of 
 European officers more generally than formerly, so that very 
 few white men as private soldiers are now found on the coast 
 of Africa. Sailors on board Her Majesty's ships of war 
 stationed on the coast are seldom allowed to go on shore, 
 and great attention is paid to their health and comfort, so 
 that they suffer comparatively little from the climate. It is 
 otherwise, however, with British seamen in the mercantile 
 service, on board vessels visiting the coast. They are frequently 
 employed in hard labour, loading or unloading the ship, during 
 the day ; and at night they are often unable to sleep, from the 
 intense heat and the attacks of the mosquitoes. Being thus 
 worn out for want of rest, they soon become a prey to fever, 
 and many have sunk under its influence to rise no more. We 
 have known a whole ship's crew carried off in the course of a 
 few days. When inquiry was made on one occasion when a 
 certain vessel would sail for England, that letters might be 
 sent by her, the answer was, " The Ann Grant has been laden 
 and ready for sea for some time, but she cannot come down 
 the river, all hands on board having died of fever ! " 
 
 But the question has sometimes been asked, " Has not the 
 climate of Western Africa improved of late years ? " After 
 attentive observation and much thought upon the subject, the 
 writer is of opinion that a decided improvement has taken place, 
 the mortality among European residents being much less in 
 ])roportion to the number than formerly. The cause of this 
 improvement is to be found, we think, not in any actual change 
 in the seasons, but to a considerable extent in a purer state of 
 the atmosphere, occasioned by the more thorough clearing and 
 training of the ground in the neighbourhood of some of the 
 settlements. It must also be noted that African fevers are 
 now better understood than formerly, and consequently treated 
 
Wesieni Africa. 
 
 with greater skill and more general success. As experience 
 and observation are further extended from time to time, we 
 may hope that still greater improvement will be realized, till 
 a sojourn in Western Africa will no longer be regarded with 
 serious apprehension as to the life or health of those who 
 may be called to reside there. Nor must it be forgotten that 
 this unfavourable account of the climate applies to the coast 
 almost exclusively, the interior having been proved to be much, 
 more healthy. 
 
 Soil and Productions. 
 
 With the exception of the sandy deserts and rocky moun- 
 tains already referred to, and which occupy a comparatively 
 small portion of this section of the vast continent, the soil of 
 Western Africa is generally rich and fertile. At the close of 
 the rainy season, vegetation of every description springs up 
 with amazing rapidity ; and with the application of ordinary 
 skill and industry, the land would be remarkably productive. 
 Perhaps we should not greatly err, if we were to assert that no 
 country in the world surpasses this in the abundance of its 
 natural resources. The vast alluvial plains on the banks of 
 the numerous rivers and creeks near the coast appear well 
 adapted for the cultivation of hemp, indigo, cotton, coffee, 
 ginger, arrowroot, sugar, rice, Indian corn, yams, and other 
 articles peculiar to the tropics ; whilst the uplands, in the 
 interior districts, produce the finest specimens of timber, from 
 mahogany to the celebrated camwood. There also may be 
 seen the cocoa-nut, the palm and the banana, with their lofty 
 plumes gracefully waving in the breeze. The palm tree is a 
 great favourite with the natives, inasmuch as it yields the 
 refreshing wine of which they are so passionately fond. They 
 also extract from the pulp of the nut the palm oil, which has 
 of late years become a prime article of export, upwards of 
 20,000 tons having been sent to England in one year. The 
 value of the palm oil now exported to England amounts to 
 upwards of 500,000 per annum. 
 
1 66 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Large quantities of gum-arabic are also collected annually in 
 the country which lies between the Senegal and the Gambia, 
 and on the borders of the Great Desert. This valuable article 
 is found exuding from the branches of a small shrub, not larger 
 than a gooseberry-bush, and is gathered at certain seasons of 
 the year for exportation to Europe. The natives are also in 
 the habit of ranging the forests in search of bees' nests, which 
 they take, not so much for the sake of the honey as for the 
 wax, which has become an important article of barter with the 
 merchants on the coast, who collect it for exportation. Another 
 valuable article of merchandise is ivory, which is brought down 
 from the interior in considerable quantities, and exchanged by 
 the natives for various articles of British manufacture. 
 
 In directing attention to the native productions and natural 
 resources of Western Africa, we must not omit to advert to the 
 probable mineral wealth of the country. Some districts appear 
 to be literally impregnated with the precious metal ; and we 
 have seen in the possession of one person several pounds weight 
 of pure gold, collected and prepared for the British market. 
 The hills on the banks of the upper Gambia, and in many 
 other localities, moreover, contain iron and copper ores, which 
 are smelted and worked by the natives into various useful and 
 ornamental articles. We are aware that, hitherto, these mineral 
 productions have been obtained only in small quantities, and 
 by a slow and laborious process ; the gold being generally 
 collected in single grains, after washing the sand in the beds 
 of periodical rivers ; but by the application of improved modes 
 of mining, crushing, and smelting the ore, it is probable that 
 important results would be realized. 
 
 Notwithstanding the fertility of the soil, and the numerous 
 advantages possessed by the country, very little has, as yet, 
 been done towards developing its vast resources. The land to 
 a considerable extent lies waste, only very small portions having 
 been brought under cultivation, and that of a very rude and 
 primitive character. The immediate wants of the natives, in 
 their present uncivilized state, are few and easily supplied, and 
 
Western Africa. 167 
 
 they literally "take no thought for the morrow." In the vicinity 
 of each town or village may be seen the gardens and fields 
 of the people, sometimes laid out with a degree of neatness, 
 regularity, and taste truly commendable, but always on a very 
 limited scale, considering the abundance of land available for 
 cultivation. The most common articles of produce, and those 
 on which the natives chiefly subsist, are yams, rice, manioc, 
 plantains, pumpkins, onions, cucumbers, ocroes, beans, and 
 ground-nuts, with Indian and Guinea corn, and a few other 
 vegetables of minor consequence. Fruit is also abundant and 
 of great variety in most places, — such as the orange, banana, 
 sour-sop, guava, pineapple, papwa, and mango-plums. Most 
 of these fruits, especially the guava and pineapple, grow wild in 
 the woods of Sierra Leone and on some other parts of the coast. 
 
 The native mode of cultivation is somewhat peculiar, and 
 deserves a passing notice in this connection. The low swampy 
 land on the banks of the Gambia and other similar rivers is 
 well adapted for the cultivation of rice, which is grown in large 
 quantities both for home consumption and for export. The 
 ground is prepared by the women and slaves, before the water 
 has retired into its usual channel after the annual rains. When 
 engaged in this branch of native agriculture, the sable workers 
 may be seen wading up to their knees in water and mud, 
 tramping the ground with their naked feet, and breaking the 
 clods with their hoes, till they have reduced the whole to a 
 proper consistency. The seed is then literally " cast upon the 
 waters"; and, as evaporation takes place, it settles in the mud, 
 germinates, springs up, and produces an abundant harvest, the 
 results being thus " seen after many days."^ The appearance 
 of a field of rice, as it advances to maturity, is not dissimilar to 
 one sown with wheat or barley in our own country ; and when 
 ripe the grain is gathered in and stored up in a similar manner. 
 
 The dryer land, in more elevated situations, is selected for 
 Indian and Guinea corn, both of which are largely used by the 
 natives and produced with very little labour. After the ground 
 has been cleared of weeds, and becomes moistened with the 
 
i68 Africa: Pad and Present. 
 
 first showers of rain that fall after the dry season, the labourer 
 passes along, merely grazing the ground with a hoe at intervals 
 of two or three feet, drops in the seed, covers it up with the 
 foot, and thus the work of sowing is accomplished. As the 
 green blade springs up, it only requires weeding occasionally, 
 and a plentiful crop is generally secured as the result of this 
 trifling labour. The Guinea corn is of two kinds. When freed 
 from the husk, one sort has the appearance of small peas ; and 
 the other, which is a kind of maize, has a striking resemblance 
 to the common canary seed. All kinds of corn in Western 
 Africa grow to a great height, varying from eight to twelve 
 feet ; and each stem being stout and strong, the process of 
 reaping resembles that of felling small trees. When the grain 
 is ripe, the husbandman strikes at the root of the tall stalk with 
 his billhook or cutlass, and it falls to the ground. The large 
 bushy ears are carefully collected into the granary, and the 
 stems are used for fuel, fencing, or other domestic purposes, 
 as occasion requires. 
 
 The mode of threshing adopted by the natives is also pecu- 
 liarly rude and simple. They carry the corn to an elevated 
 place in the field cleared for the purpose, and simply beat out 
 the grain with large sticks, and the work is done. The process 
 of winnowing is equally simple ; for, selecting a windy day for 
 the purpose, they merely throw up the corn into the air, the 
 breeze blows away the chaff, and the pure grain is collected 
 and stored up for mercantile purposes, or for home consumption. 
 The native granaries are circular buildings, formed of mud or 
 wattled canes, according to circumstances, and covered with 
 thatched roofs. They generally stand on posts eight or ten 
 feet high from the ground, and are reached by a movable 
 ladder. This arrangement is considered necessary to preserve 
 the grain from the depredations of the various kinds of vermin 
 with which the country abounds, as well as to make it less 
 accessible to the two-footed animals, who might be otherwise 
 tempted to help themselves to their neighbours' property without 
 permission. 
 
Western Africa. 169 
 
 But the yam is the edible most highly prized by the natives 
 of Western Africa. At this we are not surprised, when we call 
 to mind its nutritive qualities, and the ease with which it is 
 produced in a climate so well adapted to its growth. It is 
 cultivated by planting cuttings after the manner of potato setting 
 in England ; only the yam being so much larger than the 
 potato, it requires a deeper soil. One yam sometimes weighs 
 eighteen or twenty pounds, and would furriish a meal for a 
 considerable family. In substajnce this root is more like the 
 turnip than the potato, but in taste it resembles neither, 
 partaking more of the nature of bread. In shape it bears a 
 striking resemblance to the ginger root, frequently branching 
 off in finger-like projections and other fantastic forms. The 
 sweet potato is also a valuable edible, somewhat smaller 
 than the yam, but equally nutritious-; and, although totally 
 unlike any vegetable in domestic use in Europe,, it is eaten 
 with relish when the taste for it is once acquired. It is 
 cultivated by planting slips of the top, which take root 
 and run along the ground, or climb up a pole like a vine. 
 On this account it is an economical article of diet, being 
 produced with little labour and still less expense for seed, 
 and it is in high repute among the natives as well as with 
 Europeans. 
 
 The sea-coast and rivers of Western Africa abound with 
 excellent fish, such as the dolphin, pilchard, mullet, and others; 
 and the market of some of the settlements is occasionally 
 supplied with mussels, cockles, and oysters. The shell-fish last 
 named are produced in a curious manner. They grow upon 
 trees, and we have seen a fine crop of oysters brought to market 
 still adhering to the branches on which they had grown. This 
 statement, true as it is, may require some explanation. There 
 are no rocks to which the young oysters can adhere, as in most 
 other places ; but there are roots and branches of the mangrove 
 trees in abundance, which are submerged by the flow of the 
 tide ; to these the young oysters attach themselves, and on 
 these they live and grow till they are matured^ whea the natives 
 
1 70 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 come and chop off the branches, throw them into their canoes, 
 and take them to the market, as already stated. 
 
 It does not come within our province to dwell at any length 
 here on the natural history of Western Africa ; but we may 
 briefly observe that no part of the world affords greater variety 
 or richer specimens of the wonderful works of God in each 
 respective kingdom of nature. We have already adverted to 
 the indications of mineral wealth which appear in different 
 parts of the country, as well as to the luxuriant vegetation of 
 the coast, which presents such an extensive and interesting 
 field for the researches of the botanist. The lamented Bowdich 
 did much to elucidate these branches of science ; and had he 
 lived to complete his investigations in the interior, still clearer 
 light would no doubt have been shed upon the subject. 
 
 The wild animals which haunt the rivers and roam about 
 the forests are very numerous. The most prominent of these 
 are the lion, leopard, hyena, elephant, hippopotamus, crocodilCj 
 baboons and monkeys of various kinds, from the savage gorilla 
 to the smallest species so easily domesticated in dwelling-houses. 
 A great variety of serpents and other reptiles might be enume- 
 rated, from the gigantic boa-constrictor and crocodile already 
 mentioned to the smallest snake that glides among the grass, 
 and the beautiful harmless little lizard that intrudes itself into 
 the bedroom. The specimens of the feathered tribe are also 
 numerous, for we have seen in Western Africa the ostrich, 
 maraboo, crown bird, guinea-fowl, vulture, wild turkey, partridge, 
 dove, kingfisher, canary, mocking-bird, humming-bird, and 
 parrots and paroquets of various kinds, with an almost endless 
 variety of small birds of the most splendid plumage, exhibiting 
 every colour of the rainbow. It is remarkable, however, that 
 these exquisitely beautiful birds, with the exception of the 
 canary, are not generally birds of song. In travelling through 
 the woods a few pleasant chirping notes may be heard, but 
 nothing to be compared with the continuous cheerful warbling 
 of the nightingales, blackbirds, thrushes, larks, and linnets of 
 our own highly-favoured land. The most annoying creatures 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 in Western Africa are those that belong to the reptile and 
 insect tribes. With care one may manage to keep out of the 
 way of the larger animals ; or, if an encounter be inevitable, 
 the enemy may be vanquished, and there is an end of the 
 contest ; but it is utterly impossible to escape from, or to 
 vanquish, the endless hosts of centipedes, scorpions, flies, cock- 
 roaches, ants, and innumerable other foes, not to be mentioned, 
 by which one is constantly assailed. 
 
 Native Tribes. 
 
 It is pleasant to trace the history, scenery, and natural 
 resources of a foreign land ; but it is still more interesting 
 to the Christian philanthropist to inquire into the character, 
 condition, and manners of the people, with a view to promote 
 their social and moral elevation. To this branch of our subject 
 we now turn, with the hope of enlisting the kindly sympathies 
 of the reader on behalf of populations long neglected, and 
 sometimes despised by their fellow-men of fairer complexion. 
 
 Western Africa is inhabited by various tribes of the negro 
 race, resembling each other in many respects, and yet possessing 
 traits of character sufficiently distinctive to render a brief 
 description of a few of the most prominent ones desirable. In 
 the northern section of the country, sometimes called Sene- 
 gambia, we meet with the Jalloffs, a numerous people, generally 
 tall of stature, but not remarkably robust. They are a hardy, 
 daring, warlike race of men, however ; industrious in their 
 habits, sociable in their manners, and more intelligent than 
 most of the other negro tribes. The Jalloff language is some- 
 what harsh and guttural in its tones ; but when brought into 
 the service of the sanctuary by the converted natives on our 
 mission stations, as we have had the pleasure of hearing it, it 
 is remarkably pathetic and impressive. 
 
 The next tribe we come to, on proceeding southward, is that 
 of the Mandingoes, who are found in vast numbers on both 
 banks of the Gambia, as well as in the kingdoms of Manding 
 and Bambarra, through which the celebrated Mungo Park 
 
172 Africa r Past and Present. 
 
 travelled on his way to the Niger. These people are almost 
 invariably tall, muscular, and well-formed, with features some- 
 what sharper than those of their neighbours, the Jalloffs. Their 
 disposition is generally friendly and hospitable, although they 
 are brave and courageous. When travelling alone, and unpro- 
 tected among them, we have always been treated with marked 
 civility and respect, and never felt the slightest fear of moles- 
 tation. We regard the Mandingoes as the finest specimens of 
 negroes that we have met with, and we consider them capable 
 of a high degree of civilization. Their language is peculiarly 
 soft and mellow in its tones ; and on hearing it spoken we 
 have been reminded of the Italian. It is, however, somewhat 
 cramped and confined when applied to religious purposes. 
 Nor is this to be wondered at, when we remennber that, till the 
 arrival of missionaries in the country, it had never been reduced 
 to a written and grammatical form. 
 
 In immediate contact with the tribes just mentioned, and in 
 some instances mixed up with them, we have the Pastoral 
 Foolas. As they are found in the regions of Senegambia, these 
 are a simple, inoffensive people. They make no pretensions 
 to a right in- the soil, but live by mere sufferance among the 
 Jalloffs and Mandingoes, to whose kings or chiefs they pay 
 tribute for the privilege of pasturing their cattle. By these 
 petty despots they are often severely oppressed, and sometimes 
 robbed of all they possess; yet they seldom complain, but 
 travel from place to place with, their flocks and herds, as 
 occasion requires, subsisting entirely on the milk of their flocks. 
 The Pastoral Foolas have a tradition among themselves that 
 they originally sprang from a white man, who settled in their 
 country ;. and whether there be any truth in this or not, it is a 
 remarkable fact that they have a striking resemblance to Euro- 
 peans, not only in their complexion, which is comparatively 
 light, but also in their general aspect and features, being 
 destitute of the flat nose and thick lips and retiring forehead 
 which distinguish most of the African tribes. These people 
 never pray, neither are they addicted tO' pagan superstitious 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 173 
 
 rites so common among the negroes generally ; their highest 
 idea of virtue is to refrain from war, and to live in peace with 
 all men. 
 
 We may here mention the Teucolars and Loiibies, who are 
 generally regarded as petty tribes of Foolas, in consequence of 
 their speaking the same language, though differing in many 
 respects from them, The first-named people resemble the 
 Mandingoes in appearance, character, and prowess. They are 
 not a wandering tribe, like the Pastoral Foolas, but havfe 
 established themselves in several powerful states, the principal 
 of which are Foota-Toro, on the south of the Senegal, Foota- 
 Jallon, adjacent to Sierra Leone, and Foota-Doo, in the 
 neighbourhood of Wassela and Missina, in the interior. The 
 Teucolars are Mohammedans, and frequently designated 
 learned Foolas, to distinguish them from the Pastoral Foolas. 
 The Loubies are a degenerate race, stunted in growth, and 
 haggard in appearance ; and yet they speak the Foola tongue. 
 They possess neither towns nor cattle, but wander about from 
 place to place with wooden bowls and other utensils which 
 they manufacture, and sell to the Mandingoes and others, and 
 thus procure a precarious livelihood. From their appearance, 
 character, and habits, the Loubies may be regarded as the 
 Gipsies of Western Africa. The Foola language is somewhat 
 peculiar in its structure, and bears a striking resemblance to 
 that of the Kafifirs of Southern Africa. 
 
 We must now divert the attention of the reader to the Moors 
 of Western Africa ; for, although this is not their original home, 
 here they are in vast numbers, and in great power and force. 
 Amongst these people are to be found the principal merchants 
 of the country, who travel extensively in the prosecution of 
 their special vocation. They may be seen crossing the sandy 
 deserts in caravans, with their camels laden with merchandise, 
 and driving flocks of poor slaves to the market. Those who are 
 more settled in their habits have established themselves in the 
 far-famed city of Timbuctu, and other large towns on the banks 
 of the Niger ; and, in small parties, they find their way across 
 
1 74 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 the continent, where they carry on a lucrative trade with the 
 natives. The Moors are not of pure negro blood, but a mixture 
 of the Arab and African races. They are rigid Mohammedans, 
 and use the Arabic language in their ordinary intercourse with 
 each other, as well as in their religious exercises. In features 
 and complexion, the Moors have a strong Eastern cast, and 
 are generally more energetic and intelligent than their neigh- 
 bours. This superiority they make known in an unmistakable 
 manner, by their acts of cruelty and oppression, wherever they 
 have power to dominate. Not only have the feebler native 
 tribes of Western Africa suffered much from the tyrannical 
 conduct of the Moors ; but inoffensive travellers have been 
 subject to their treachery, as we have seen in the narratives of 
 Mungo Park, Major Houghton, and others. 
 
 On proceeding southward down the river Niger, we meet with 
 the Fellatas, a numerous and powerful tribe of people whose 
 locality cannot be accurately defined, as they are perpetually 
 on the move. Some travellers assert that the Fellatas are 
 identical with the Foolas, and that their warlike character and 
 general superiority to that soft and effeminate people is owing 
 entirely to circumstances. Be this as it may, it is evident that 
 the Fellatas on the banks of the Niger have pushed forward in 
 aggressive and successful warfare on the less powerful tribes, 
 till they now occupy an influential and commanding position in 
 many districts where their name was formerly unknown. They 
 have carried their conquests as far as Yoruba and Borgoo, and 
 established themselves in many important native towns and 
 cities, reducing the people everywhere to a state of abject slavery, 
 after the example of the despotic Moors in the northern regions 
 of the continent. When not actually engaged in war, the 
 Fellatas are described by the Landers as " active, intelligent, 
 mild, and humane " ; but fighting is evidently their favourite 
 occupation, and so high is their opinion of their own prowess, 
 that they boldly declare that " they could conquer the whole 
 world, if the salt water did not prevent them." 
 
 The next people that claim our attention are the Yorubans. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 175 
 
 This numerous and powerful tribe of native Africans inhabit 
 an extensive plain, the western border of which is within a 
 hundred miles of the coast, and it extends eastward nearly to 
 the river Niger. The capital of the country is Eyeo, which 
 Clapperton describes as a city fifteen miles in circumference, 
 with seven large markets ; but it must be remembered that 
 African towns and cities frequently include large tracts of 
 provision ground, to enable the inhabitants to endure a long 
 siege in time of war ; so that the population is not always in 
 proportion to the extent of the place. The king of Yoruba 
 inquired of the traveller how many wives the king of England 
 possessed, with a view to form a proper estimate of his power 
 and greatness ; and when informed that he had only one, his 
 sable majesty laughed heartily, declaring that his wives were so 
 many in number that, if linked hand in hand, they would 
 extend across his kingdom ! The Yorubans, like all the other 
 purely negro tribes we have met with, were totally unacquainted 
 with letters, or reading and writing in any form, till the mis- 
 sionaries appeared among them ; they were, nevertheless, 
 remarkably clever in the composition of extemporaneous songs, 
 which they recited and sang with great spirit on special occa- 
 sions. They pride themselves in not being addicted to the 
 horrid bloody customs of the neighbouring nations, in putting 
 to death a large number of people in connection with the 
 funeral ceremonies of departed kings and chiefs ; but they 
 admit that on these solemn occasions it is not unusual for 
 several councillors and wives of the deceased voluntarily to 
 take poison, that they may accompany the royal personage and 
 attend upon him in the invisible world. 
 
 The most numerous, powerful, and warlike people with 
 whom we are acquainted in Western Africa, are the Ashantis. 
 They may be called a nation rather than a tribe ; for, although 
 entirely unacquainted with European civilization when they 
 were first brought to our notice, they had attained, by dint of 
 their own energy, to a position as to arts, agriculture, com- 
 merce, and war, far above the most advanced native tribes on 
 
176 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 this part of the continent. The Ashantis, who, according to the 
 estimate of some travellers, amount to 4,000,000 in number, 
 occupy an extensive tract of country in the interior regions 
 bordering on the coast of Guinea, of not less than 60,000 
 square miles, commencing at the river Volta, and extending 
 over four degrees of longitude. Being separated from the 
 maritime districts of the coast of Guinea by Aguambo, Dinkira, 
 and other powerful states, the Ashantis did not come in contact 
 with the European settlements till the commencement of the 
 present century. About this period the tribes alluded to were 
 obliged to give way before the growing power of the Ashanti 
 empire, whose mighty host of savage warriors carried all before 
 them, till they reached the border of the country of the Fantis, 
 the principal tribe of natives on the Gold Coast. The whole 
 territory having been laid waste by the invaders, the timid 
 Fantis made a stand at Anamabu with 9,000 men ; but these 
 were completely vanquished by the king of Ashanti, who came 
 against them with an army of 15,000. The Fantis were utterly 
 routed, and put to death at the first onset, with the exception 
 of a few who sought protection in the British fortress on the 
 coast. 
 
 It is not our purpose to enter into details on the subject of 
 Ashanti wars in which England has figured, alas ! too promi- 
 nently. Suffice it to say that in one of these contests Sir 
 Charles Macarthy, the esteemed Governor of Cape Coast 
 Castle, lost his life, in 1824, having under-estimated the strength 
 of the enemy, and rushed into the heat of the battle, hoping 
 to bring it to a speedy conclusion. It was not till the arrival 
 of the British embassy at Kumasi, the capital of Ashanti, to 
 make pacific arrangements with the king, in 1827, that the real 
 character and power of this remarkable people were ascer- 
 tained. The narratives published by Bowdich, Dupuis, and 
 others, are of fearful interest. These gentlemen were struck 
 with the barbaric pomp and splendour of the sable monarch 
 and his surroundings. They found his numerous attendants 
 profusely laden with ornaments of gold, whilst the most common 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 177 
 
 articles in daily use were also made of the precious metal. 
 They saw the royal executioner with his hatchet on his breast, 
 and the fatal blood-stained stool before him, ready, at the sound 
 of the death-drum, to do his fearful work ; and they ascertained 
 that the king had recently immolated on the grave of his mother 
 three hundred victims ! The truth of the appalling statements 
 of the British ambassadors to the king of Ashanti has been 
 amply corroborated by subsequent witnesses of undoubted 
 veracity. Nor were the accounts brought home by Sir Garnet 
 Wolseley and his heroic band of British officers and men, who 
 captured Kumasi in 1873, during the last Ashanti war, more 
 favourable as to the character and habits of this warlike and 
 savage people. 
 
 The Fantis, although far inferior in courage and enterprise 
 to their neighbours the Ashantis, are nevertheless a numerous 
 and important tribe of natives, and are supposed to number 
 about 1,000,000. They owe their very existence as a people 
 to the influence and protection of the English at Cape Coast 
 Castle, which is situated within their territory ; for, had they 
 been left to themselves, they would have perished long ago, as 
 did many other tribes, who were vanquished by their powerful 
 enemies. The country occupied by the Fantis extends along 
 the Gold Coast for nearly 200 miles, and reaches inland to the 
 river Prah, on the southern frontier of the Ashanti country. 
 The land is generally fertile, and in many places well culti- 
 vated, the people being industrious and well-disposed. Populous 
 towns and thriving villages are to be seen in every direction, 
 and the condition of the people is rapidly improving under the 
 fostering care of the British Government and the instructions 
 of the missionaries. Those of the Fantis who have been partly 
 civilized are fine specimens of the African race, and make 
 useful servants and mechanics in the colony. 
 
 Immediately bordering on the countries already mentioned, 
 we find another powerful and important tribe of native Africans 
 — the Dahomans ; and for warlike aggression and ferocious 
 cruelty, they may be fairly classed with their still more powerful 
 
 12 
 
178 
 
 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 neighbours the Ashantis. The savage character of this people 
 was first brought to the notice of Europeans by Mr. Norris, 
 who took a journey through the country, and paid a visit to 
 Abomi, the capital, for the purpose of promoting the extension 
 of trade and commerce, in 1772. This gentleman, as well as 
 Mr. Dalzel and others who afterwards visited Abomi, describes 
 scenes of cruelty and blood similar to those which were wit- 
 nessed by the British ambassadors at Kumasi. Dalzel gives the 
 following account of the king's female body-guard: "Within 
 the walls of the different royal palaces of Dahomi are immured 
 not less than 3000 women ; several hundreds of these are 
 trained to the use of arms, under female generals and officers 
 appointed by the king. These female warriors are regularly 
 exercised, and go through their evolutions with as much 
 expertness as male soldiers." The king's palace at Abomi is 
 described as surrounded by a substantial clay wall about 
 twenty feet high, the top of which is ornamented with human 
 skulls, elevated on small wooden stakes at regular distances. 
 Access to the interior of the palace is generally denied to 
 Europeans; but Mr. Dalzel once visited the king during his 
 illness, and was admitted to the royal bed-chamber, a detached 
 room surrounded by a low wall, the top of which was orna- 
 mented with human jawbones, and the path Avhich led to it 
 was paved with human skulls ! Other appalling instances are 
 given by the traveller just mentioned, the particulars of which 
 are too shocking to be quoted. 
 
 Besides the large and powerful native tribes already men- 
 tioned, there are in Western Africa many other separate and 
 independent clans, as the Feloops, Egbas, Cromantees, Tim- 
 manees, Loossoos, Sarrawoollies, Sulimas, Kurankoes, Krumen, 
 and others, a description of which might be interesting if our 
 prescribed limits permitted the attempt ; but, so far as we have 
 ascertained, there is such a striking resemblance between one 
 and another, that we may venture to forego further details in 
 this direction, and proceed to the consideration of other matters 
 which demand our attention. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 179 
 
 Manners and Customs. 
 
 In offering a few remarks on the manners and customs which 
 generally prevail among the native inhabitants of Western 
 Africa, it may be proper in the first place to advert to the 
 question of Civil Govertwieiit. The people are in a barbarous 
 condition, it is true, but they are not entirely without rule and 
 law of some kind. The whole country being divided into a 
 number of petty independent states, the government is almost 
 invariably of the most despotic character. The will of the 
 king or chief is the law of the tribe ; and woe to those who dare 
 to thwart or oppose his sable majesty ! There are, nevertheless, 
 in most places forms of law which are sometimes resorted to. 
 Not only has each tribe its king or chief, but each town has 
 its head-man or alcaide, who is empowered to hear and settle 
 cases of minor consequence. Each town has also its bentang, 
 or " talking place." This is a large platform of wattled bamboo- 
 cane, raised about two feet from the ground, and is generally 
 erected under the shade of an umbrageous tree called "the 
 palaver tree." Here the men meet together and lounge, espe- 
 cially in the evening, to talk over the news of the day. Here 
 also the people assemble when cases of dispute or disagreement 
 have to be settled. This is the place of judgment, and answers 
 the purpose of a court-house in our day, or that of the "gate 
 of the city" in eastern countries, as it existed in ancient times. 
 The chief or alcaide having taken his seat, attended by his 
 councillors, the case is stated in all its particulars, witnesses are 
 cited, and evidence is taken in due form. Then the pleadings 
 commence, when displays of native eloquence are sometimes 
 made which one would hardly expect among such a rude people, 
 practised hands being employed on each side to conduct the 
 proceedings. 
 
 When all has been said that can be said upon the subject, 
 the president gives his dictum, and states in a few words what 
 is to be done. If the case at all affects the interests of the 
 chief, it may be foreseen how it will terminate 3 or he may 
 
1 80 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 prevent its coming to a trial in any form — for, with a word of 
 his mouth or a nod of his head, he can inflict the severest 
 punishment upon those who have incurred his displeasure, even 
 to the taking away of life itself. Indeed, human life is very 
 lightly esteemed by the barbarians. " If a black man had 
 brought me that message," said the king of Ashanti in a rage 
 to the British ambassadors, " I would have had his head cut off 
 before me ! " The people are taught to regard the king with 
 profound and superstitious reverence; and not only the common 
 people, but the subordinate chiefs and caboceers, prostrate 
 themselves in the most abject manner before his sable majesty; 
 and when permitted to approach him actually crawl into his 
 presence upon their hands and knees, throwing dust upon their 
 heads in token of their deep humiliation. 
 
 Although we have adverted to courts of law and judicial 
 process as practised in some parts of Western Africa, it must 
 not be supposed that there exists anything of this kind analogous 
 to what we have in England and other civilized countries. It 
 is but very rarely that we meet with anything like rational 
 investigation for the discovery of guilt, with a view to meet 
 the claims of justice. Recourse is more frequently had to 
 witchcraft, and to various superstitious rites and ceremonies, 
 when parties are suspected of crimes. The sickness of a chief 
 often causes the death of many persons. It is generally ascribed 
 to magic, and a professed sorcerer is summoned to find out 
 the culprit. This is professedly done by the sacrifice of a fowl, 
 and the inspection of its internal parts, accompanied by sundry 
 incantations. Confession of guilt is sometimes extorted by 
 physical torture, and instant death is the punishment awarded. 
 The methods of infliction are various. Men are speared, 
 beheaded, or have their heads crushed between two stones, 
 and women are generally impaled. If a chief is long in 
 recovering, or in dying, many victims are thus sacrificed, as 
 the " custom " is continued till the crisis arrives. Persons 
 suspected of adultery are required to drink poison-water, or 
 to walk with bare feet over plates of red-hot iron ; either of 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 i8i 
 
 which, it is alleged, will prove harmless to the innocent, whilst 
 if guilty the parties will be deservedly punished. Minor crimes, 
 as petty thefts and other misdemeanours, are generally punished 
 by heavy fines imposed on persons possessing property, or the 
 loss of personal liberty if the offender happen to be poor. To 
 drag a poor fellow into perpetual slavery is the common mode 
 of demanding satisfaction for transgression in Western Africa, 
 as it affords the most certain method of replenishing the coffers 
 of the despot. 
 
 On some occasions, however, the people are allowed to take 
 the law into their own hands, and to administer it in a some- 
 what ludicrous manner. This is especially the case with regard 
 to an institution which we found in existence in several native 
 towns on the banks of the Gambia, and which appears to be 
 known on various parts of the coast. It is termed Mumbo Jumbo, 
 and is called into operation for the purpose of curing domestic 
 squabbles and punishing rebellious wives. The negroes who 
 are in circumstances to do so, being in the habit of multiplying 
 their consorts, are not unacquainted with "family jars"; but 
 when a serious breach of the peace has taken place, and the 
 master of the house has failed, to put matters right by friendly 
 remonstrance, Mumbo Jumbo interposes his authority. This 
 is a person unknown, with a hideous mask on his face, a "staff 
 in his hand, and robed in a singular grotesque dress made of 
 the bark of a tree. When he is seen entering the town in the 
 dusk of the evening, and approaching the bentang, where the 
 people are assembled for their usual amusements, great is the 
 curiosity which is excited as to the parties who may have 
 occasioned the visit of the mysterious personage. There are 
 many palpitations and heart-searchings among the ladies, whose 
 consciences tell them that they have not been remarkably 
 amiable and pacific of late in their respective families. At 
 length Mumbo Jumbo, with unerring aim, pounces upon the 
 unfortunate vixen to be punished for her misconduct. He 
 strips her naked, ties her to a post, and severely beats her with 
 his rod, till she cries for mercy and promises not to offend 
 
1 82 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 again; whilst the bystanders, of both sexes, look on with derisive 
 bursts of laughter and shouts of savage joy, forgetting that 
 their turn to be punished may soon come. This Mumbo 
 Jumbo may be the husband of the lady thus chastised, or it 
 may be his friend, whose services have been engaged for the 
 occasion. Having executed his offices in perfect disguise, he 
 retires in the darkness of the night, takes off his dress, and 
 hangs it up in a tree near the town, where it remains suspended 
 in terrorein, as a standing warning to unruly wives. Some of 
 the African ladies think there ought to be instituted a Mumbo 
 Jumbo for naughty husbands, as well as for disobedient wives ! 
 
 The sacred ordinance of marriage, as instituted by the 
 Almighty, and as acknowledged in civilized and Christian 
 countries, is unknown among the barbarous tribes of Western 
 Africa. Both Mohammedans and Pagans are remarkably 
 licentious in their conduct, and indulge their sensual passions 
 without restraint. And when a so-called matrimonial engage- 
 ment is made, it is a curious transaction. The first thought 
 that occurs to a young man with such a project in view is— 
 Has he the means of paying the price that the parents will 
 expect or demand for the young damsel on whom he has fixed 
 his eye ? This matter having been settled, and a present of 
 the mystic kola nuts made in due form, a bargain is concluded 
 with the old people, irrespective of the views and feelings of 
 the young lady on the subject, the day of the wedding is fixed, 
 friends are invited, and a feast is prepared. When the appointed 
 day arrives, and the wedding guests are assembled, about sunset 
 the bride is introduced, dressed in a white robe ; and, having 
 taken her seat in the centre of the hut, a number of old matrons 
 surround her, and give her earnest and serious lectures as to 
 her future behaviour as a wife. In the meantime a number of 
 young girls, as bridesmaids, enter the hut, singing and dancing, 
 and finally conduct the timid bride to the hut appointed for 
 her future residence; and the night is spent in feasting, drinking, 
 drumming, and dancing, without any legal or religious ceremony 
 whatever. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 Polygamy is allowed both by Mohammedans and pagans, 
 and is generally practised by all the native tribes with which 
 we are acquainted. The Koran does indeed impose some 
 limitation to the number of a man's wives, and requires that they 
 should not exceed four. But in many professedly Mohammedan 
 countries the principles of the false prophet have such a slender 
 hold on the masses of the people, that this rule is totally dis- 
 regarded ; whilst among the pagan tribes no restraint whatever 
 is recognized, the only limit to the number of a man's wives 
 being his means to purchase them. We have met with instances 
 in which native Africans have had ten, twenty, or thirty wives ; 
 whilst kings, chiefs, and caboceers are known to number them 
 by hundreds and thousands. It is said that the king of Ashanti 
 rejoices in the mystic number of three thousand three hundred 
 and thirty-three wives ! 
 
 In the present barbarous state of African society, it is 
 unnecessary for a husband to calculate the means of supporting 
 his wife or wives, for when once procured they are the principal 
 means of supporting him and his children. It is the wives 
 who cultivate the ground, and do all the heavy work and 
 drudgery about the place, in common with the domestic 
 slaves, whilst their lazy lords are lounging about in their huts 
 at home or at the bentang. The result of this fearful system 
 may be readily imagined. According to Major Gray, " poly- 
 gamy is a fruitful source of jealousy and distrust ; it contracts 
 the parental and filial affections ; it weakens and disjoints the 
 ties of kindred, and totally unhinges the frame of society. The 
 fathers have many wives, the wives have many children ; 
 favouritism, in its most odious forms, sets in ; jealousy is soon 
 aroused, and revenge unsheaths the sword which deals forth 
 destruction." 
 
 The birth of a child in Western Africa is an event as joyous 
 as in most other countries, but it is attended by very different 
 circumstances. The little stranger no sooner makes its ap- 
 pearance in this cold and cruel world than the matron in 
 attendance takes it by the feet, and, hfting it up, gives it a 
 
184 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 tremendous shaking — as she says, " to make it stand straight " ! 
 Its treatment afterwards is in perfect harmony with this rough 
 beginning. As the mother is soon up and going about her 
 domestic duties, the Httle thing is placed on a mat or skin on 
 the floor of the hut, and left to sprawl about ad libitum, without 
 receiving much maternal attention during the day, unless it 
 demands it by the strength of its lungs. When the mother 
 goes out to work in the field from morning till night, she is 
 generally obliged to carry her infant with her ; and she may 
 be frequently seen digging the ground with her child tied on 
 her back or across her hip, subject to fearful jolting at every 
 stroke of the hoe. We have seen the legs of little negro 
 children sadly bent, evidently from this coarse method of 
 nursing. 
 
 Nor are the circumstances attending the death and funeral 
 of a child or other member of a negro family less repulsive. 
 We have seen touching manifestations of real or affected sorrow 
 on such occasions, so far as loud weeping and howling were 
 concerned ; but at the same time the dead has been carried 
 to the grave in a most indecent manner, without any kind of 
 coffin, at a running pace, amid the firing of muskets and the 
 noisy clamour of the people. And when the friends return 
 from the funeral they invariably spend the night in drumming, 
 dancing, drinking, feasting, and general dissipation. Feasts 
 are also held at stated periods afterwards in memory of the 
 dead ; and portions of food are taken to the grave and left 
 there, under the superstitious notion that the spirits of the 
 departed return to partake of it during the night 1 
 
 The houses or huts of the natives are generally of a very rude 
 and simple character. Where the bamboo flourishes, as on 
 the banks of the Gambia, the Senegal, and in other localities, 
 they are made of neat cane wattled work, as are also the fences 
 which enclose the yard or compound of each family. In other 
 places the dwellings of the people are built of mud, which 
 dries rapidly in the sun, and forms a substantial wall. When 
 the mud or clay is mixed with straw or dried grass it is called 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 185 
 
 "swish," and is still more durable. The usual form of the 
 African huts is circular, or beehive-shaped ; and being 
 thatched with long grass, they appear at a distance like so 
 many hayricks in a farmyard. It is not unusual, however, to 
 find in some towns, as in Abomi and Kumasi, the dwellings of 
 the most opulent natives built of a square shape ; and, whether 
 constructed of mud or woodwork, they are in these cases 
 substantially built, with neat verandahs or open sitting-rooms 
 in front, neatly finished, and sometimes highly ornamented. 
 The place for cooking the food is invariably apart from the 
 main dwelling, as are also the apartments of the wives and 
 slaves ; hence, when a man has a large family, his domestic 
 establishment presents the appearance of a small village within 
 an enclosure. 
 
 The domestic wants of the negroes, in a climate which 
 admits of their spending most of their time out of doors, are 
 few and simple; consequently we find their huts not encumbered 
 with much furniture. On entering the rude dwelling of an 
 African, you may observe on one side of the principal apartment 
 a narrow platform of wattled cane-work, raised about half a 
 yard from the ground, and covered with mats. This is the 
 sleeping place, and answers the purpose of a bedstead. One or 
 two iron or earthenware pots, in which they cook their food, 
 a few wooden bowls and calabashes, in which it is served up, 
 a wooden mortar and pestle, in which they pound the corn in 
 making their cus-cus, with a rude lamp, and sometimes a copper 
 kettle, complete the list of household utensils required by this 
 simple people. 
 
 The mode of living adopted by the negro race is equally 
 simple. They only take two meals a day — -the one about ten 
 o'clock in the morning, and the other about six in the evening. 
 These generally consist, with but little variation, of manioc, 
 yams, sweet potatoes, and other similar roots, pounded corn 
 (called cus-cus), and boiled rice served up with milk or with soup, 
 with the addition occasionally of a small quantity of fish, flesh, 
 or fowl, according to their means, taste, or fancy. The whole 
 
Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 mess, of whatever it may consist, when cooked is poured into 
 a large calabash or wooden bowl, which is placed in the centre 
 of the hut, and around which the family assemble to eat, — first 
 the lords, and then the ladies and the children, for an African 
 gentleman, in his heathen state, never eats with his wives or 
 little ones. It is a novel sight to a European, this negro meal 
 at his own house, especially when the family is large, as they 
 make use of their hands only, whether the contents of the bowl 
 be solid or liquid, — knives, forks, and spoons being out of the 
 question. In the course of our travels in Western Africa we 
 never saw bread of any kind baked or used by the natives. 
 
 In personal appeai-a7ice, the natives who have never been 
 reduced to a state of slavery are far superior to what many 
 would suppose. In some of the tribes we have seen men tall 
 and athletic, and women, whether of bronze or jet black com- 
 plexion, well formed and fairly handsome, their skins being at 
 the same time smooth and shining from their frequent anointing 
 with palm oil. The dress of those who do dress is very simple, 
 and differs little throughout the country, — fashions and modes, 
 as practised by civilized nations, being totally unknown. The 
 most common garb of females consists of two oblong cloths of 
 native manufacture, called "pangs," one of which is thrown 
 loosely round the lower, and the other over the upper part of 
 the person, with head-dress of Madras handkerchiefs. The 
 men, however, generally wear wide pantaloons, and a loose 
 robe reaching down to the feet over their under-garments, 
 and a turban or cotton cap on the head. Ladies of rank, 
 when in full dress, appear with splendid head-dresses of a 
 conical form, resembling the shape of a sugar-loaf ; and are 
 frequently laden with ornaments of gold and silver, in the form 
 of massive earrings, bracelets, manillas, or heavy metallic rings 
 round the wrists and ankles, with a profusion of beads of various 
 kinds and colours. Their favourite domestic slaves, who walk 
 behind them when they visit, however scanty their clothing, 
 are also frequently adorned with ornaments of gold, the whole 
 of which, as well as the wearers, belong to their owners. The 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 187 
 
 use of these ornaments is denied the slaves, as a punishment, 
 when they have given offence to their mistresses. All classes 
 of natives, except slaves, wear sandals of stained leather, 
 beautifully ornamented, instead of shoes. But although we 
 have thus described the dress of those who do dress, it must 
 not be forgotten that children of both sexes may be everywhere 
 seen running about entirely destitute of clothing, and that 
 adults, free persons as well as slaves, wear next to nothing 
 when pursuing their daily avocations. There has been an 
 improvement, however, in this respect of late years, as civiliza- 
 tion has advanced, especially in the neighbourhood of European 
 settlements and mission stations. 
 
 The people of Western Africa everywhere m.anifest a strong 
 passion for trade and conwierce ; and a native has no sooner the 
 means at his command, than he engages in some kind of traffic 
 with characteristic zeal and earnestness, according to his oppor- 
 tunity. This propensity is manifested by all classes, from the king 
 to the meanest slave ; and fairs and markets are held periodically 
 in various parts of the country, where thousands of people 
 attend to interchange property, their trade being generally con- 
 ducted on the principle of barter. Money coin is unknown 
 among the natives of the interior. That which approaches 
 nearest to it as a circulating medium is cowrie shells. These 
 are strung together in hundreds in some districts, and then 
 they are easily counted ; but in other places they are put into 
 bags containing 20,000 each, and have all to be reckoned off 
 separately, which is a very tedious process. Some idea of the 
 cumbrous and inconvenient character of this shell currency 
 may be formed, when it is stated that, so small is the nominal 
 value of the cowTie, fifty of them go to a penny, and 12,000 
 to a pound sterling. As 100,000 are reckoned a load for a 
 camel, twelve camels would be required to carry ;^ioo in 
 cowries ; whilst ;^2 in this cumbrous African currency form an 
 ample burden for a man to carry on his head. Although 
 cowries are the most common kind of currency in Western 
 Africa, and will generally serve the purpose of the traveller 
 
i88 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 when he can procure them, this is not always the case. In 
 some parts of the country, beads, brass-wire, bars of iron, and 
 bundles of native cloth are recognized as the smaller species 
 of currency, and muskets, slaves, and gold as the larger ; and 
 mthout some of these articles nothing that is required can be 
 obtained. 
 
 Rude and barbarous as the native Africans are in many 
 respects, they have nevertheless made a degree of progress in 
 some branches of art and manufacture which is quite surprising, 
 considering their slender resources. In almost every part of 
 the country the people are in the habit of weaving a coarse but 
 strong cotton cloth. It is made in very narrow webs of about 
 six or eight inches wide, which are sewn together so as to 
 form the oblong cloths or " pangs," already mentioned. The 
 cotton used in this fabrication is grown on the spot, and is spun 
 into threads for warp and weft with the fingers, without any 
 kind of machinery ; whilst the loom for weaving is of the 
 simplest construction. The art of dyeing is also generally 
 known. Different colours are used to ornament their garments ; 
 but the most common is a permanent blue obtained from 
 indigo, which is an indigenous plant on the banks of the 
 Gambia, and in other places. In earthenware they manufacture 
 coarse dishes, pots, and jars, some of which are ornamented 
 with curious devices, as are also the calabashes which they 
 prepare and use for various domestic purposes. Mats used 
 for sitting and sleeping on are also staple articles of native 
 manufacture almost everywhere ; whilst the art of tanning and 
 working in leather is generally practised : some of the articles 
 thus made — as sandals, greegrees, pouches, saddles and bridles, 
 etc.- — are sometimes beautifully ornamented. But the best 
 specimens of native art which we have seen are those which 
 exist in different kinds of metal. Iron, copper, and gold are 
 found in various parts of the country. These the natives 
 smelt and work up into a variety of articles with wonderful 
 ingenuity, with tools of the rudest description. The gold rings, 
 chains, and bracelets, which we have seen manufactured in 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 189 
 
 Western Africa, might, in some instances, have been taken for 
 the work of European goldsmiths, so delicate and beautiful 
 were both the design and the workmanship. 
 
 Superstitious Notions and Practices. 
 
 On turning our attention to the moral and religious condi- 
 tion of the numerous tribes inhabiting Western Africa, a dark 
 and gloomy picture presents itself to our view ; for what can 
 we expect in a land where the Christian's Bible, and Sabbath, 
 and Saviour, are unknown ? Truly " darkness covers the earth 
 and gross darkness the people." 
 
 The entire population of Western Africa was no doubt pagan 
 at no very remote period ; but in modern times the religion 
 of the false prophet has extensively prevailed, having been 
 zealously propagated with fire and sword by northern tribes of 
 Arab descent. But there is not so much difference between 
 the Mohammedanism and the paganism of the negroes as many 
 suppose. The distinction is rather nominal than real, so far as 
 the moral conduct of the people is concerned. All profess to 
 believe in the existence of God, if a confused notion of a higher 
 power may be so designated ; but all are entirely ignorant of 
 the character and claims of the Divine Being, and exceedingly 
 superstitious. This is evident from the eagerness with which 
 they resort to their greegrees, saphies, and fetishes, in times of 
 difficulty and danger, and the confidence which they place in 
 their ability to procure for them every good which they require 
 and to defend them against every kind of evil. 
 
 Greegree, or saphie, is the name given by Mohammedans to 
 the charms or amulets which they wear upon their persons, or 
 suspend in their dwellings, to avert a dreaded evil or to procure 
 a desired good. They generally consist of a few sentences 
 extracted from the Koran, and written upon slips of paper in 
 Arabic by the priest or maraboo, who carries on a profitable 
 trade in this branch of his profession — a high price being fre- 
 quently paid for one of them. When they are to be worn upon 
 
IQO Africa; Past and Present. 
 
 the person as ornaments, these scraps of writhig are enclosed 
 in small pieces of red cloth or leather, neatly stitched up, and 
 stained with various colours, with thongs attached with which 
 to suspend them from the neck or bind them to the arms, etc. 
 One of these greegrees will be worn to preserve the person from 
 being pierced with a spear or musket-ball in battle ; another to 
 prevent the wearer drowning by the upsetting of the canoe ; 
 whilst a third will be suspended open, as an inscription, in the 
 hut or store of the native merchant, to procure prosperity in 
 trade, etc. So numerous are the purposes for which these 
 foolish charms are used, that we have frequently seen the 
 superstitious natives almost covered with them from head to 
 foot ; and we have witnessed some affecting instances of the 
 implicit confidence which is placed in them on occasions of 
 emergency. To show that the Mohammedan negroes are not 
 very particular as to the construction of their charms or 
 amulets, and to illustrate the superstitious regard which they 
 pay to anything belonging to white men, it may be stated that 
 on one occasion, on a greegree being cut open, it was found to 
 contain nothing more than a square of white man's soap, with 
 the mark clear and legible, " Genuine Brown Windsor " ! 
 
 The little incident just mentioned may serve to show the 
 intimate relationship which exists between the greegree and the 
 fetish, in the confused and ignorant mind of the negro. Whilst 
 the greegree of the Mohammedan, when correctly made, con- 
 sists of a written charm, as already stated, the fetish of the 
 pagan is made of almost anything, consecrated by the priest 
 for the purpose ; the stranger the matter employed, the greater 
 is the confidence which appears to be placed in it. The most 
 common articles used in the construction of fetishes, to be worn 
 on the person or hung up in the house or garden, are the heads, 
 claws, bills and bones of various kinds of birds, animals, and 
 reptiles. These are enclosed in the horns of sheep, deer, or 
 other animals, or encased in leather or cloth, and suspended 
 by thongs, like the Mussulman's greegree. We have known 
 instances in which negroes have obtained a lock of a white 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 191 
 
 man's hair, or the paring of his finger nails, for the purpose of 
 fetish, having a high opinion of their power to preserve them 
 from evil. 
 
 In addition to the superstitious confidence which the degraded 
 Africans place in these foolish things, they are in the habit of 
 noting lucky and unlucky days, and of performing numerous 
 silly rites and ceremonies, on going to war or commencing a 
 journey, which partake of the nature of witchcraft. When 
 questioned on the subject, we have never known them give any 
 reason for their strange conduct beyond that which they have 
 always at hand, and which they make use of on almost every 
 occasion — namely, they do so " because their forefathers did 
 so, and they are quite satisfied to tread in their steps." 
 
 Some of the superstitious rites and ceremonies of the negro 
 race partake more of the nature of open idolatry than any of 
 those which have yet been mentioned. For instance, they pay 
 homage to certain lakes, rivers, and mountains, which they 
 regard as sacred, believing them to be the special dweUing- 
 l)laces of their gods. They also adore various animals and 
 reptiles, which they believe to be animated by the spirits of 
 their departed ancestors. In some places large serpents are 
 kept and fed, in houses set apart for the purpose, by the fetish 
 priests. To these ugly creatures sacrifices are presented and 
 divine homage is paid by the people at stated periods — a liberal 
 present being always brought for the officiating priest on all 
 such occasions. At Dix Cove a large crocodile, kept in a pond 
 near the fort, constantly received divine honours a few years 
 ago. Any person going on shore at that place might have a 
 sight of the hideous monster at the expense of a white fowl and 
 a bottle of rum. The fetish-man took the fowl and the spirits, 
 and proceeding to the pond, made a peculiar whistling noise 
 with his mouth, when the crocodile came forth and received 
 the white fowl as his share of the offering, whilst the priest 
 appropriated the liquor to himself On one occasion, Mr. 
 Hutchinson and Captain Levens were exposed to considerable 
 peril on paying a visit to this place to witness the novel scene ; 
 
192 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 for the fowl having escaped from the fetish-man into the bush 
 just as it was being presented, the crocodile made towards them, 
 and pressed them so closely that, had not a hapless dog crossed 
 their path, of which the monster made his repast, one of them 
 would most probably have fallen a victim to his rapacity. 
 
 In common with many other heathen nations, the Africans 
 are in the habit of offering sacrifices to their deities, as well as 
 of uttering before them foolish and unmeaning prayers. Fowls, 
 oxen, sheep, goats, and dogs are slain for this purpose, as the 
 deluded natives are strongly impressed with the idea that their 
 gods delight in blood. But the most awful circumstance that 
 has come under our notice, in connection with African super- 
 stitions, is that of the offering of human sacrifices, which prevails 
 to an alarming extent, especially in the kingdoms of Ashanti and 
 Dahomi. If a king or a nobleman wishes to convey a message 
 to a departed friend in the world of spirits, he whispers the 
 message in the ears of a slave, and immediately has his head 
 struck off ! And at the death of persons of distinction, hundreds 
 of hapless human beings are cruelly slaughtered by surviving 
 relatives, that their spirits may attend upon those whom they 
 wish to honour in the unseen world, and that their bloodthirsty 
 deities may be propitiated. On the death of the king of 
 Dahomi, a few years ago, 280 of his wives fell victims to the 
 sanguinary superstition alluded to; and still larger numbers 
 have fallen in Ashanti on similar occasions. 
 
 This dark account of African superstitions may be still further 
 confirmed and illustrated by a brief quotation from the testimony 
 of a modern missionary. Describing what he witnessed on the 
 coast of Guinea, the Rev. A. Bushnell says : " After visiting the 
 principal chiefs, I went to see several of their juju^ or 'devil 
 houses.' The principal one is a rude thatched edifice, upon 
 entering the door of which I saw grinning at me four or five 
 hundred human skulls, with which the pillars and walls were 
 lined ; and as I crossed the room I walked upon a pavement 
 of human skulls. The sight was the most ghastly and horrid I 
 have ever seen. As with trepidation I retreated from this habi- 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 193 
 
 tation of devils, my attention was called to a scaffold eight or 
 ten feet high, in the yard near the door, on which were a large 
 quantity of human bones, some of which seemed fresh and new. 
 Upon inquiry, I learned that these were the bones of enemies 
 taken or killed in war, or for witchcraft ; and some of the flesh 
 had been eaten, and the blood drunk, in horrid fetish orgies. 
 To this temple the sick are brought to sleep, and to have incan- 
 tations performed over them. From this charnel-house I went 
 to call upon Juju Jack, the 'arch-priest,' or 'chief devil-man.' 
 I found him sitting in the porch of his dwelling, with emblems 
 of his craft on either side. He conducted me through a room 
 in which were skulls and fetishes, and through a dark passage 
 into a back apartment, where I was furnished with a chair and 
 offered palm wine. He is a fiendish-looking elderly man, and 
 seems capable of any work of cruelty and blood." 
 
 To the dark and fearful catalogue of cruel and superstitious prac- 
 tices to which the natives of Western Africa are addicted, we must 
 add the appalling crime of cannibalism, and we have done. We 
 were long since aware that, in the furious triumphs of the battle- 
 field, Ashanti warriors and other native soldiers were in the habit 
 of drinking the blood and eating the hearts of their vanquished 
 enemies, from a superstitious notion that they would by doing 
 so imbibe the courage and the warlike spirit of those whom they 
 had slain ; but we were not till recently prepared to admit that 
 in any part of the vast continent men could be found who 
 would deliberately slay and devour each other. But from well- 
 authenticated accounts which have recently come to hand, it 
 appears to be even so. For fearful illustrations of African 
 cannibalism we might refer the reader to the " Travels of Du 
 Chaillu," and other publications ; but the most recent and direct 
 information on the subject is that lately brought from the Bonny 
 river by the mail steamer Arinenimi. A party landing there 
 from this vessel declare that, on walking through the town, they 
 were horrified to see no less than five human heads, arranged 
 in the most systematic order on the grass, with a fire close by 
 and a pot ready for cooking. At another spot not far distant 
 
 13 
 
1 94 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 lay arms, legs, and other parts of human bodies, an old black 
 woman being busily engaged in preparing the ghastly meal ! But 
 we must turn away from this sickening sight, acknowledging the 
 truth of the Divine declaration, that " the dark places of the 
 earth are full of the habitations of cruelty." 
 
 Colonization and Missions. 
 
 Although the soil of Western Africa is in many places very 
 fruitful, and the land on the whole abundantly productive, as 
 already stated, there is nothing in the climate or circumstances 
 of the country to make it a desirable place for European 
 colonization or emigration, as compared with Southern Africa, 
 Australia, America, and other lands where the climate is com- 
 paratively healthy. It is, nevertheless, a fact that at a very 
 early period a number of settlements or mercantile establish- 
 ments were formed on the coast, some of which have gradually 
 expanded into considerable dimensions. These were originally 
 called "factories," and were generally connected with the in- 
 famous slave-trade. When this appalling traffic in human 
 beings had become an extensive and recognized institution, 
 private mercantile firms and incorporated trading companies 
 built stores and established slave-barracoons at the mouths of 
 the principal rivers and other places, where they contrived to 
 have everything in readiness when vessels came to bring sup- 
 plies of merchandise and to carry off the slaves. At these 
 points they generally erected forts, and mounted them with 
 guns for the defence of their establishments, knowing that the 
 nature of their traffic constantly exposed them to the sudden 
 attacks of hostile natives. They also kept an ample supply of 
 small arms and ammunition, not merely to barter for slaves, 
 but also for the use of the slave-hunting parties which were sent 
 forth, from time to time, to capture and bring in the poor 
 hapless negroes, when the supply was not sufficient from other 
 sources to meet the demands of the market. 
 
 It was not till the slave trade was doomed, and a spirit of 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 195 
 
 Christian philanthropy was awakened in the breasts of a few 
 noble-minded Englishmen, that European and American settle- 
 ments were established in Western Africa, in the interests of 
 legitimate commerce, and with a view to promote the civiliza- 
 tion and moral elevation of the natives. Viewed from this 
 standpoint, and as connected with Christian missions, the 
 history of the respective settlements which have been formed 
 on the western coast of Africa becomes a very interesting 
 study, illustrating, as it does, the character of the country and 
 the condition of the people. To this branch of the subject we 
 now call the attention of the reader, so far as our limited space 
 will permit. 
 
 Sierra Leone, 
 
 The first British settlement formed on the western coast of 
 Africa, the avowed object of which was the suppression of the 
 slave trade, the encouragement of legitimate commerce, and 
 the civilization of the natives, was called Sierra Leone, from a 
 river of that name, on the southern bank of which the first 
 town was built. For hundreds of miles on either hand the 
 coast is generally low and swampy ; but here the land rises 
 into mountains of considerable altitude, and there is a bold 
 peninsula stretching out into the sea which forms an excellent 
 shelter for vessels at anchor in the spacious natural harbour 
 formed thereby, in the mouth of the river, which is several 
 miles wide, and navigable for vessels of moderate burden to a 
 considerable distance up the country. These natural advantages 
 soon attracted the notice of Europeans visiting the coast ; and as 
 early as 1463 the Portuguese established themselves for a time 
 at this place. The notorious Sir J. Hawkins, the first English- 
 man who embarked in the African slave trade, also landed 
 here, and made unsparing use of fire and sword in capturing 
 the poor natives to drag them into hopeless bondage. But the 
 time came when this locality was to be the scene of a very dif- 
 ferent enterprise, and when the long degraded negroes were to 
 
196 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 be taught to know that there were white men who felt for them 
 as men and brethren. 
 
 On the 2ist of July, 1783, Dr. Smeatham, who had spent 
 several years on the coast of Africa, addressed a letter to Dr. 
 Knowles, suggesting the idea of a free negro settlement at 
 Sierra Leone, for the purpose of checking and putting down 
 the slave trade, and of diffusing the principles of Christianity 
 among the natives. The same subject seems to have been 
 occupying the mind of the benevolent Mr. Sharp at the same 
 time ; for on the ist of August of the same year he sketched 
 the outline of a plan of such a settlement, which he observed 
 in the first paragraph, " will deserve all encouragement, if the 
 settlers are absolutely prohibited from holding any kind of 
 property in the persons of men as slaves, and selling either 
 man, woman, or child." The necessity for such a settlement 
 was rendered more urgent in consequence of a large number 
 of negro slaves having obtained their freedom by deserting 
 from their masters and joining the British in the American 
 war; and for whom, as well as for a number of Maroons brought 
 from Jamaica, it was necessary to provide a permanent home. 
 Some of these had been sent to Nova Scotia, others to the 
 Bahamas, and many more had come to England with the 
 British army at the close of the war. Those who crowded the 
 streets of London were in a most wretched condition of misery 
 and starvation. As many as four hundred applied to Mr. 
 Sharp and other benevolent gentlemen for relief at one time ; 
 and it was found necessary to appoint a committee to devise 
 some means of meeting the emergency. 
 
 The number of negro mendicants in and about the metro- 
 polis was now so large that they were regarded as a public 
 nuisance; and the Government was induced to interfere by 
 providing temporary relief for the poor sufferers, and by fur- 
 nishing transports to take out as many as were willing to go, 
 to form a new settlement on the western coast of Africa. 
 Everything being arranged, at length the little fleet sailed, 
 under convoy of the Nautilus sloop of war, on the 8th of April, 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 197 
 
 1787; having on board 400 negroes and 60 Europeans. On 
 the arrival of the vessels at Sierra Leone, Captain Thompson, 
 who had been placed at the head of the expedition, purchased 
 from the paramount native chief of the country a fine tract of 
 land about twenty miles square, well watered and in every 
 respect suitable for the purpose of a settlement, to which other 
 territory was afterwards added. He then fixed upon a beautiful 
 eminence on the southern bank of the river or estuary for the 
 site of a new township. Three hundred and sixty town lots of 
 one acre each were measured off, with regular streets intersect- 
 ing each other at right angles; and the lots were drawn for and 
 apportioned on the 12th of June. 
 
 But notwithstanding these favourable circumstances, the 
 actual commencement of the settlement was extremely in- 
 auspicious. The negroes had become thoroughly demoralized 
 during their residence in London ; and, if possible, still more so 
 on their passage out, — a large quantity of ardent spirits having 
 been consumed on board the ships. They, moreover, arrived 
 at Sierra Leone at the most sickly season of the year, in a 
 spirit of general murmuring and complaint, and the sickness 
 and mortality which speedily followed were fearful. When 
 the Nautilus left for England, about three months after the 
 arrival of the fleet, there remained in the colony only 276 
 persons : so that by desertions and deaths the settlers had 
 been reduced in this short space of time to little more than 
 one-half the original number. In March, 1788, the Rev. Mr. 
 Eraser, who had gone out as colonial chaplain, was obliged to 
 return home on account of illness, and at the time of his 
 departure the number of colonists had been further reduced 
 to 130. Apprehensive that the infant settlement might become 
 entirely extinct unless speedy help was afforded, Mr. Sharp 
 and the friends who acted with him hastened to its 
 relief, by sending out the brig Myro, laden with stores, and 
 conveying thirty-nine additional settlers, including two medical 
 men and other gentlemen of superior intelligence and in- 
 fluence. This timely relief encouraged the few surviving 
 
/ 
 
 1 98 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 colonists ; but they were soon afterwards doomed to experi- 
 ence another sad calamity. A neighbouring native chief, feeling 
 aggrieved by the conduct of some of the settlers towards 
 him and his people, first gave notice of his intention, and 
 then came down with his warriors and burnt the town to 
 ashes. 
 
 In the year 1791, another association was formed for the 
 management of the new settlement ; by whose efforts a few 
 of the dispersed colonists, to the number of sixty-four, were 
 again collected, and encouraged to make another attempt 
 to form a permanent establishm.ent at Sierra Leone. About 
 the same time 1200 of the free negroes, already alluded to, 
 were brought over in sixteen vessels from Nova Scotia, at their 
 own request, the climate of North America proving unsuitable 
 for them; and soon afterwards 100 Europeans arrived from 
 England, just in time to put down a party of rebellious 
 negroes who threatened the destruction of the settlement. 
 With this large reinforcement of settlers, a fresh commence- 
 ment was made at colonization, and a new town began rapidly 
 to rise on a better site than the former one, which by order 
 of the Directors was called Free Town, to indicate the avowed 
 object of the settlement as the home of freedom. During 
 the following two or three years the colony made rapid ad- 
 vancement ; but in 1794, when it had arrived at a pleasing 
 state of prosperity, the town was entirely destroyed by a French 
 squadron, which attacked it with an overwhelming force. By 
 this untoward event a large amount of property was sacrificed, 
 and the loss to the Company was estimated at ^,^50,000. 
 
 Disappointed and discouraged by the frequent reverses which 
 they had experienced, in 1808 the association which had 
 hitherto managed the affairs of Sierra Leone transferred the 
 entire settlement to the British Government. From that period 
 it has continued to prosper, notwithstanding the difficulties 
 with which it has had to contend, arising from the unhealthi- 
 ness of the climate and the political enemies by which it has 
 been frequently assailed. The slave trade having been pro- 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 199 
 
 claimed illegal, a number of British ships of war were now 
 appointed to cruise on the coast, with a view to intercept the 
 vessels employed in carrying off slaves in a clandestine manner, 
 and to set the poor captives free. The negroes thus liberated 
 were for several years taken to Sierra Leone and provided for 
 by Government, till they were able to cultivate the allotments 
 of land which were given to them for their own support. The 
 population of the colony, which has been constantly increasing, 
 now consists chiefly of liberated Africans and their descendants, 
 together with the descendants of the Nova Scotian and Maroon 
 settlers previously mentioned, and about a hundred Euro- 
 peans, most of whom are employed in various offices under 
 Government. 
 
 Free Town, the capital of the colony, is beautifully situated 
 on the south side of the river or estuary, on a gentle slope at 
 the foot of the mountain, about six miles from the point of the 
 peninsula, which juts out into the sea, in latitude 8° 30' north 
 and longitude 13° 30' west. It presents a charming aspect 
 when viewed from the shipping in the harbour ; many of the 
 buildings being of a substantial character, and interspersed 
 with cocoanut, banana, and other umbrageous trees of the 
 freshest green. The Government House, barracks, hospital, 
 the signal station with its flagstaff, and the Wesleyan mission- 
 house and chapel, are prominent objects in the landscape, in 
 consequence of their elevated position in the rear of the town. 
 There are also many other towns and villages in different parts 
 of the colony, some of which are situated among the mountains 
 inland, and others by the seashore, surrounded by the farms 
 and gardens of the inhabitants. The principal of these are 
 Wilberforce, Wellington, Waterloo, York, Regent, Kissey, Kent, 
 Charlotte, Leicester, Gloucester, Bathurst, Grassfield, Hastings, 
 and Allen Town. 
 
 In these places the liberated Africans are chiefly located, 
 and they may be seen engaged in agricultural, mechanical, 
 and other industrial pursuits. Having been dragged away from 
 their homes on various parts of the vast continent, they speak 
 
2O0 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 a variety of languages or dialects among themselves ; but they 
 soon learn a little English, and become, with proper instruction, 
 intelligent and useful members of society. The capability of 
 the African race of education and advancement in various 
 kinds of knowledge has been fully demonstrated at Sierra 
 Leone, for we have there clerks, merchants, civil and military 
 officers, magistrates, teachers and Christian ministers, who in 
 their youth and boyhood were rescued from slavery, and when 
 first put to school were as ignorant as can well be imagined. 
 Altogether the colony wears a pleasing aspect ; and, notwith- 
 standing the difficulties with which it has had to contend, it 
 bids fair to fulfil the most sanguine expectations of its friends 
 and patrons. The population of Free Town is estimated at 
 15,000, and that of the whole colony at 50,000. 
 
 The most pleasing feature in the colony of Sierra Leone is, 
 however, its rapid advancement in religion and morals ; and a 
 brief summary of the means employed to bring about the 
 wonderful change which has taken place in the condition of 
 the people in this respect, can scarcely fail to interest the 
 reader. The history of missionary enterprise, in this land of 
 sickness and death, has been as chequered as that of its civil 
 affairs at an early period. Colonial chaplains were appointed 
 at different times, from the beginning, to minister to the 
 Government functionaries and others ; but owing to frequent 
 deaths and absences from illness, the office was often vacant. 
 The first effort of a purely missionary character for the benefit 
 of Western Africa was made by the Baptist Missionary Society, 
 which sent out Messrs. Grigg and Rodway in 1795. On their 
 arrival at Sierra Leone it was agreed that Mr. Grigg should 
 settle at Porto Logo, a town about forty miles up the river, in the 
 Timmanee country ; and Mr. Rodway at Banana Islands, about 
 thirty miles to the south of Free Town. But the first-named 
 gentleman having misconducted himself, was dismissed from 
 the colony by the Governor, and embarked for America, whilst 
 the other was obliged to return to England on account of the 
 failure of his health ; and the mission was relinquished. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 201 
 
 In February, 1796, several mechanics belonging to the 
 Wesleyan-Methodist Connexion sailed from London for Sierra 
 Leone, with the view of establishing a colony in the Foolah 
 country, in order to instruct the natives in the arts of civilized 
 life, as well as to make known to them the truths of the Gospel. 
 In this undertaking they appear to have been encouraged by 
 Dr. Coke, although not authorized by him or the Conference, 
 but left to act entirely on their own responsibility. The conse- 
 quence was, on reaching Free Town, they disagreed among 
 themselves before proceeding to their destination, separated 
 from each other, some returning home and others settling in 
 the colony, and the enterprise was abandoned. The next 
 attempt was made by the Glasgow and London Missionary 
 Societies conjointly, who sent out, in September, 1797, Messrs. 
 Brunton, Greig, Ferguson, Graham, Russell, and Caffe. 
 Scarcely, however, had they met, when a disposition to differ 
 from each other was manifested. Before they had even left 
 England, violent disputes arose among them on a variety of 
 theological points, which resulted in a scene of wrangling, 
 bitterness, and malignity, which surpasses description. They 
 nevertheless proceeded to Sierra Leone, with the intention of 
 settling in the Foolah country ; but, from the unhappy circum- 
 stances alluded to, and other hindrances, they never reached 
 their destination. They soon became separated and scattered, 
 and the enterprise was abandoned. The Glasgow Missionary 
 Society afterwards sent out to Sierra Leone Messrs. Henderson 
 and Campbell. On their arrival at their destination they opened 
 a school, and at first promised well ; but ultimately they both 
 proved unfaithful. One of them remained in the country, and 
 engaged in the infamous slave trade, and the other returned 
 to Scotland and became an infidel ! 
 
 It was not till the commencement of the present century, 
 when the Church and Wesleyan Missionary Societies undertook 
 the work of evangelization in Western Africa, that the cause 
 took a permanent and progressive form. The following is an 
 epitome of the incidents connected with the commencement 
 
202 
 
 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 and course of the labours of these two honoured institutions in 
 Sierra Leone and adjacent places : — 
 
 The Church Missionary Society fixed upon Western Africa 
 as its first field of foreign labour. It was in 1804 that it sent 
 out to Sierra Leone Mr. Renner, a German, and Mr. Hartwig, 
 a Russian, to instruct the people in a knowledge of Divine 
 things. In 1806 Messrs. Nylander, But?cher, and Prasse- — all 
 of whom had been trained at the Berlin Missionary Seminary 
 and ordained according to the rites of the Lutheran Church — 
 embarked at Liverpool to strengthen the mission ; but several 
 months elapsed before they reached Sierra Leone, the vessel in 
 which they first sailed having been stranded on the coast of 
 Ireland, and the second on board of which they went having 
 been long detained both at Falmouth and Madeira. The colony 
 being at that time unprovided with a regular chaplain, some of 
 the brethren undertook to discharge his duties in Free Town, 
 whilst the rest went to the Rio Pongas, a river which lies about a 
 hundred miles to the north of the colony, to form a settlement 
 among the Susoos inhabiting its banks. Here they were joined 
 by other missionaries and teachers who were sent out from time 
 to time, several of whom soon fell victims to the climate. This 
 country was occupied by the agents of the Church Missionary 
 Society for twelve years, with very slender results, scarcely a 
 convert having been won to the faith of the Gospel. At length 
 the mission was considered to be working so unsatisfactorily 
 that the Rev. E. Bickersteth was sent out by the committee to 
 visit and inspect the stations, and to report on their condition * 
 and the prospects of the work. 
 
 Mr. Bickersteth landed at Sierra Leone on the 7th of March, 
 18 1 6, having called at Goree on his way ; and proceeded at 
 once to visit the respective stations on the Rio Pongas, Bashia, 
 Canoffee, Kapparoo, and other places, as well as the various 
 towns and villages of the colony. The devoted clergyman 
 spent four months on the coast, and was much pleased with 
 what he saw of the country and the people. He rejoiced over 
 the progress made in the instruction of the rising generation in 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 203 
 
 the mission schools, but lamented the neglect of preaching, the 
 lack of adult converts, the want of unity among the Society's 
 agents, and the scarcity of English missionaries. The following 
 sentences extracted from the report which he presented to the 
 committee on his return home will indicate his sentiments on 
 the subject last mentioned : — " Much as we are indebted to cur 
 German brethren, their labours are our disgrace, their Christian 
 courage and self-denial our reproach, and in an English colony 
 they cannot, from their almost necessary ignorance of our 
 language and habits, be so acceptable as Englishmen. O that 
 some self-denying and devoted clergymen, who love the Lord 
 Jesus Christ better than their own lives, would at once give up 
 all for Him, and come out to labour here !" 
 
 Notwithstanding this touching appeal, the stations of the 
 Church Missionary Society on the western coast of Africa 
 continued to be manned chiefly by German missionaries and 
 teachers, till, in the process of time, native agents were raised 
 up and trained in the mission schools and the Fourah Bay 
 College to take a part in the good work, into whose hands it 
 ultimately passed almost entirely. This desirable result was 
 largely aided by a blessed revival of religion which was expe- 
 rienced in Regent's Town, Gloucester, and other places ; the 
 missionaries having been withdrawn from the Rio Pongas, and 
 employed chiefly in the colony, among the liberated Africans, 
 after Mr. Bickersteth's visit. 
 
 From year to year the work in which the agents of the 
 Church Missionary Society were engaged in Sierra Leone pro- 
 gressed in a most delightful manner, till the Committee at home 
 felt warranted in placing the establishment on a new and inde- 
 pendent footing, that their funds might be relieved for other 
 pilrposes. A European bishop having been appointed, and 
 provision made for his maintenance, and an adequate number 
 of native clergymen having been trained up and ordained for 
 the respective stations, it was proposed to devolve the work 
 entirely on the native pastorate, with the bishop at their head, 
 and to solicit aid towards its support from the funds of the 
 
204 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 colony. This was accordingly done, and for a long time a 
 grant of ;;^5oo a year was made to the so-called Church of 
 England in Sierra Leone, whilst all other denominations were 
 left to support their own ministers as best they could. As 
 might have been expected, this arrangement worked very badly, 
 the majority of professing Christians in Sierra Leone feeling 
 aggrieved that they should be taxed for the support of a Church 
 to which they did not belong, and from which they derived no 
 benefit whatever. After much agitation and heart-burning on 
 the subject, the Governor and Council were obliged to discon- 
 tinue a grant from the colonial chest to a Church which had 
 never been established by law, and which had no grounds of 
 claim for such a favour above other churches of the colony ; 
 and henceforth religious equality was conceded to all denomi- 
 nations, without respect to creed or condition. At the present 
 time the Episcopal Church in Sierra Leone numbers one 
 bishop, twenty-five ministers (fourteen of whom are natives), 
 4225 communicants, 3515 scholars in the mission schools, and 
 10,000 attendants on public worship. 
 
 An outline of the proceedings of the Wesleyan Missionary 
 Society in this part of the wide field may be compressed into a 
 few sentences. Among the negroes who were conveyed from 
 Nova Scotia to Sierra Leone, in 1791, there were several who 
 had become partially enlightened and otherwise benefited by 
 attending the services of the Methodist ministers in America. 
 Some of these having made repeated applications to Dr. Coke 
 for preachers of their own denomination to be sent from 
 England, in the year 181 1 the Society responded to their 
 request by the appointment of the Rev. G. Warren as their 
 first missionary to Western Africa. Mr. Warren, accompanied 
 by three English schoolmasters, landed in Free Town on the 
 1 2th of November, and they entered upon their work in the true 
 missionary spirit. They found about a hundred of the Nova 
 Scotia settlers who called themselves " Methodists." These 
 simple-minded people had built a rude chapel, in which they 
 were in the habit of meeting together to worship God from 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 205 
 
 Sabbath to Sabbath, a few of the most intelligent men among 
 them conducting the services and instructing the rest according 
 to the best of their ability. They received the missionary from 
 England with the liveliest demonstrations of gratitude and joy ; 
 and to them, as well as to the poor afflicted liberated Africans, 
 who were from time to time rescued from bondage by British 
 cruisers and brought to Sierra Leone, his earnest ministrations 
 were greatly blessed. 
 
 The missionary career of Mr. Warren, so auspiciously com- 
 menced, was but of short duration, however. He was smitten 
 down with fever, and finished his course on the 1 2th of July, 
 181 2, about eight months after his arrival, — being the first of a 
 large number of Wesleyan missionaries who have fallen a sacri- 
 fice to the climate of Western Africa since the commencement 
 of the work. After the station had remained vacant for some 
 time, other devoted missionaries were sent out to Sierra Leone, 
 who counted not their lives dear unto them if they could only 
 be made instrumental in winning souls for Christ. No sooner 
 did the intelligence arrive in England that missionaries and 
 their wives had fallen in the holy strife, than others nobly volun- 
 teered their services, and went forth in the spirit of self sacrifice 
 — in many instances to share the same fate. This has been 
 going on for more than half a century ; and although the 
 mortality among the agents of the Society is appalling to 
 contemplate, the social, moral, and spiritual results of the 
 mission are grand and glorious beyond description. Congre- 
 gations have been gathered, places of worship erected, native 
 churches organised, and Christian schools established, not only 
 in Free Town, but in most of the towns and villages in the 
 colony. High schools have, moreover, been established for 
 the training of native teachers and preachers, and to give a 
 superior education to both males and females. The advance- 
 ment of the people, most of whom have been rescued from 
 slavery, in religious knowledge, general intelligence, moral 
 conduct, and, indeed, in everything which goes to constitute 
 genuine Christian civilization, is literally astonishing. And, 
 
2o6 Africa : Pad and Present. 
 
 what is better still, multitudes of sinners have been savingly 
 converted to God, some of whom have passed away safely to 
 the better country, and others are still exemplifying the beauty 
 of religion by a holy walk and conversation. In the Sierra 
 Leone district the Wesleyan Missionary Society numbers 35 
 chapels, 12 missionaries (9 of whom are native ministers), 
 5646 church members, 4340 scholars in the mission schools, 
 and 15,000 attendants on public worship. 
 
 In addition to the Church and Wesleyan Missionary Societies, 
 who have taken the lead in the work of religious instruction in 
 Sierra Leone, other agencies have been advantageously em- 
 ployed. Missionaries belonging to what are called the Metho- 
 dist Free Churches and the New Connexion have been at work 
 for several years in Free Town. There is also a congregation 
 of professing Christians who claim to belong to Lady Hunting- 
 don's connexion, and some other minor bodies of religionists, 
 who have, according to their respective modes of action, 
 displayed considerable zeal and earnestness for the promotion 
 of Christianity as they hold it. Whatever opinions may exist 
 as to the undesirableness of such a diversity of religious 
 denominations in a small community like that of Sierra Leone, 
 every true friend of missions will rejoice to see earnest efforts 
 made by anybody and everybody to stem the tide of ungodli- 
 ness, and to promulgate the Gospel in a place where Moham- 
 medanism and paganism still prevail to an alarming extent. 
 
 The Gambia. 
 
 Although the navigation of the river Gambia had been left 
 for many years almost entirely to the English, it was not till 
 after the restoration of Senegal and Goree to the French, in 
 1816, that a permanent British settlement was formed on this 
 part of the western coast of Africa, for the suppression of the 
 slave trade and the encouragement of legitimate commerce. 
 The place selected for this purpose was an island called St. 
 Mary, four miles long and one broad, situated about ten miles 
 from the mouth of the river, and separated from the mainland 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 207 
 
 towards the south by a narrow creek called the " Oyster Creek." 
 The island is generally low and swampy, but it was considered 
 the most eligible place for a settlement, from its commanding 
 position, and the excellent anchorage which the river affords at 
 this point for vessels of almost any burden. Its proximity to 
 the sea, and the facility which it afforded for inland navigation, 
 also recommended the locality as a suitable centre of commerce 
 and civilization on this portion of the great continent. 
 
 The foundation of the settlement was laid and the principal 
 buildings were erected by a few energetic merchants and others 
 who had previously resided on the island of Goree, but who 
 came to St. Mary's with their servants and merchandise when 
 the British took possession of the Gambia. The principal 
 town is Bathurst, which stands on the northern side of the 
 island, facing the main branch of the river, in latitude 13° north 
 and longitude 17° west. It contains a number of excellent 
 dwelling-houses, and a few public buildings of respectable 
 appearance, among which may be noted the Government 
 House, the Wesleyan chapel and mission-house, the barracks, 
 the hospital, the prison, and a few others. The town is laid 
 out with wide streets at right angles ; and the one which runs 
 parallel with the river contains a number of elegant and sub- 
 stantial stone buildings occupied by the principal merchants, 
 with verandahs in front, which not only afford a delightful 
 prospect and a grateful shade from the heat of the sun, but 
 which also give to the place a beautiful appearance when viewed 
 from the shipping in the harbour. The back part of the town 
 is occupied chiefly with native huts, formed of wattled bamboo 
 cane, thatched with long grass, and neatly plastered and white- 
 washed with lime made from shells gathered along the sea- 
 shore. Soldiers' Town, Melville Town, Goderich Town, Jollar 
 Town, and Moka Town, are mere villages in different parts of 
 the island, occupied by the classes of people indicated by some 
 of their names. 
 
 The river Gambia itself is a magnificent stream, navigable 
 for vessels of considerable burden to a distance of about 400 
 
2o8 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 miles, and possesses various features of interest, as stated in a 
 previous section. It is studded with numerous islands, on one 
 of which, called Macarthy in honour of an esteemed governor, 
 a small British settlement was formed at an early period ; and 
 several of the merchants of St. Mary's have branch establish- 
 ments there, at which they carry on a considerable trade. The 
 inhabitants of this part of Africa, on both sides of the river, are 
 chiefly Mandingoes and Jalloffs, most of whom are Moham- 
 medans, with a few pagans here and there. A large number 
 of Liberated Africans, as they are technically called, have, 
 however, been brought to the Gambia from time to time, 
 and located on St. Mary's and Macarthy's islands and in the 
 neighbouring districts, as thousands before had been taken to 
 Sierra Leone. These are poor negro slaves of different nations 
 and tribes who have been rescued from bondage, and landed 
 from slave ships taken by British cruisers while in the act of 
 pursuing their unlawful trafific. These poor outcasts have risen 
 to a pleasing state of civilization and general intelligence, since 
 they were taken under the fostering care of the British Govern- 
 ment and favoured with the religious tuition of the missionaries. 
 
 No provision had been made for the moral and religious 
 instruction of the colonists, or the native tribes of this part of 
 Africa, when the Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced its 
 labours, in the year 1821. The first missionary sent out was 
 the Rev. John Morgan, who arrived at St. Mary's on the 8th 
 of February. He was soon afterwards joined by the Rev. John 
 Baker from Sierra Leone, when these two devoted servants of 
 God began to look about for the most eligible site for a mission 
 station. Their object being chiefly to benefit the surrounding 
 native tribes, they were anxious, if possible, to establish them- 
 selves on the mainland ; and Tendabar, a few miles up the 
 river, having been recommended as a suitable place, Mr. 
 Morgan went there alone on a visit of inspection, as Mr. Baker 
 was suffering from indisposition. The king of that part of the 
 country readily granted permission for the missionaries to settle 
 on his land, but signified his inability to protect them in case 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 they should be molested by the people ; so, in consequence of 
 this and other difficulties, the idea of settling there was 
 relinquished. 
 
 On the partial recovery of Mr. Baker, the missionaries went 
 together to visit the king of Combo, on the southern bank of 
 the Gambia. Having offered their presents, they were gra- 
 ciously received by his sable majesty, who signified his consent 
 for the strangers to settle in any part of the country which 
 they might select as most suitable for their object. They 
 ultimately fixed upon a place called Mandanaree, about eight 
 miles from St. Mary's ; and they commenced, soon afterwards, 
 to fell the trees and to build a house to live in — which they 
 completed in the course of a few weeks, with the help of the 
 natives. During these operations, and subsequently, the mis- 
 sionaries visited St. Mary's alternatively, once a week, to preach 
 to the people, and sometimes they went together. On the 14th 
 of June their temporary dwelling-house was so far advanced as 
 to admit of their occupying it — which they found a great relief, 
 having hitherto lodged with a negro in his rude hut, amid many 
 discomforts. Although considerably elevated, the place selected 
 for a mission station at Mandanaree was far from healthy ; and 
 when the rainy season set in both the missionaries were pros- 
 trated with fever, and were obliged to remove to St. Mary's, where 
 they could have medical aid. Before the end of the year, 
 however, Mr. Baker proceeded to the West Indies by direction 
 of the Missionary Committee, his health having become so 
 impaired, by his long-continued labours in Western Africa, as 
 to render a change absolutely necessary. 
 
 Mr. Morgan had recovered from his first attack of fever, and 
 was pursuing his beloved work alone, when he had the pleasure 
 of receiving as his colleague the Rev. William Bell, who had 
 been sent from England by the Committee to reinforce the 
 mission. This devoted young missionary appeared well adapted 
 for the enterprise upon which he had entered ; but he was soon 
 called away to the " better country." He died of fever at St. 
 Mary's on the 15th of March, forty-sbc days after his arrival. 
 
 14 
 
2IO Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 The vacancy thus made was filled for a time by the Rev. 
 George Lane, from Sierra Leone, but his health also failing, he 
 was soon obliged to return, and he shortly afterwards finished 
 his course. On the 14th of April, 1824, Mr. Morgan was 
 relieved by the arrival from England of the Rev. Robert 
 and Mrs. Hawkins, who entered upon their work in the true 
 missionary spirit. 
 
 By this time it had become evident that the proper place 
 for the principal station was St. Mary's, and arrangements 
 were forthwith made for the erection of a mission-house and 
 place of worship in Bathurst. A considerable number of native 
 converts were soon afterwards united in Church fellowship, as 
 the result of the faithful preaching of the Gospel ; schools were 
 organized for boys and girls, and the machinery of a promising 
 mission station was fairly put in motion. Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins 
 suffered much from sickness during their period of service, but 
 they laboured well and successfully, and were spared to return 
 home in 1827, the Rev. Samuel and Mrs. Dawson being 
 appointed to take their place. Mrs. Dawson was smitten with 
 fever and died at Sierra Leone, on her way to the Gambia, 
 and her sorrowful and bereaved husband proceeded to his 
 station alone. On the i8th of November, 1828, the Rev. 
 Richard and Mrs. Marshall arrived at the Gambia from England, 
 to relieve Mr. Dawson ; and the school being once more 
 favoured with the supervision of a Christian lady, and the 
 station with an energetic missionary, the work prospered in a 
 very pleasing manner. Mr. Marshall had laboured with accept- 
 ance and success for nearly two years, when he fell a sacrifice 
 to the climate, and finished his course with joy at Bathurst on 
 the 19th of August, 1830. Two days after the funeral of her 
 lamented husband, Mrs. Marshall embarked with her infant son 
 for England. They arrived at Bristol on the ist of October ; 
 and, worn out with mental and bodily suffering, the lonely 
 widow sank into the arms of death about forty-eight hours 
 after she landed on the shores of her native country, and before 
 he had an opportunity of seeing any of her friends. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 211 
 
 It was when the Gambia station was thus left without a 
 missionary, and the whole country without a Christian teacher 
 of any kind, that the present writer and his devoted wife were 
 appointed as the successors of Mr. and Mrs. Marshall, who 
 had been so mysteriously called to rest from their labours. On 
 our arrival at St. Mary's, on the loth of March, 1831, we set 
 to work, as best as we could, to recommence the mission 
 schools and public services, which had been given up for more 
 than six months, and the Divine blessing attended our efforts. 
 During the years that we spent at the Gambia we were often 
 prostrated by the African fever ; but we were as often raised up 
 again, in answer to prayer, and permitted to pursue our beloved 
 work. Being the only Christian minister of any denomination 
 in the country, I was induced, at the request of the governor, 
 to undertake the duties of colonial and military chaplain, in 
 addition to those of a missionary to the heathen ; the perform- 
 ance of which I found somewhat arduous, but the Lord of the 
 harvest graciously sustained me. 
 
 A pleasing measure of success crowned our labours at St. 
 Mary's ; and, two or three native preachers having been raised 
 up to take a part in the good work, I felt that the time was 
 come when some effort should be made to carry the Gospel to 
 the regions beyond. With this object in view I made three 
 successive journeys into the interior ; and, with much toil 
 and exposure, I succeeded in establishing a new station at 
 Macarthy's Island, nearly 300 miles up the Gambia,^ — a 
 station which from that day to this, a period of nearly half a 
 century, has been a centre of light and influence to all around, 
 and the spiritual birthplace of many precious souls. 
 
 When the time of our appointed service at the Gambia was 
 completed, we were relieved by the arrival from England, in 
 1833, of a noble band of missionary labourers. The Rev. 
 William and Mrs. Fox were sent to succeed us at St Mary's, 
 and the Rev. Thomas and Mrs. Dove were appointed to take 
 charge of the new station at Macarthy's Island. These devoted 
 brethren and sisters laboured long and successfully in this 
 
2 12 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 trying portion of the mission field, and some of them, alas ! 
 fell a sacrifice to the deadly climate. They were succeeded 
 by others in subsequent years, many of whom shared the same 
 fate ; but whilst God buried His workmen, He carried on His 
 work. Although the Wesleyan missionaries have had the field 
 to themselves, a rich harvest has been already reaped, to the 
 honour and glory of God, and the good work is still going on. 
 A commodious new chapel and schoolrooms have been built 
 at Bathurst, and a high school established for the training of 
 native teachers and others ; whilst large congregations meet 
 together from time to time to worship God, with a measure of 
 attention and devotion truly pleasing. The following are the 
 statistics of the Wesleyan Missionary Society in the Gambia 
 district : Number of missionaries, 5 ; chapels, 9 ; full and 
 accredited church members, 675 ; on trial for membership, 31 ; 
 scholars in the mission schools, 475 ; attendants on public 
 worship, 2800. 
 
 The Gold Coast. 
 
 The significant name of " The Gold Coast" has been given 
 to a maritime country of Guinea, in Western Africa, in conse- 
 quence of the quantity of gold-dust brought down from the 
 interior by the natives for barter with the European merchants. 
 It is about 220 miles in length from west to east, between the 
 rivers Ancobar and Volta, and contains several districts with 
 the dignified names of kingdoms, inhabited by petty native 
 tribes with their respective chiefs or "kings" at their head. 
 At several points along the coast European forts have been 
 erected and small settlements formed at different periods. 
 Those at Dixcove, Annamaboe, Winnebah, and Accra belong 
 to the English ; Elmina belonged to the Dutch, but it has 
 recently been transferred to us. The Danes also have a small 
 fort at Accra. Formerly all these were connected with the 
 infamous slave trade, but more recently they have been the 
 centres of legitimate commerce, which consists of dye-woods, 
 palm oil, ground-nuts, gold-dust, beeswax, ivory, and other 
 
Weskrn Africa. 
 
 articles of native produce, which are given in exchange for 
 European merchandise. 
 
 The principal British fort and settlement on the Gold Coast 
 is Cape Coast Castle, which stands upon an elevated point of 
 land about twenty feet above the level of the sea, in latitude 
 5° 6' north, and longitude i° lo' west, and forms a striking 
 object as seen from ships at anchor in the roads. As a fortress 
 the castle is an erection of amazing strength and capacity. It 
 is not only of sufficient magnitude to afford accommodation to 
 the British troops, but it also includes within its massive walls 
 the residences of the governor and other public functionaries ; 
 and the whole population of the settlement have taken refuge 
 in it when the place has been attacked by an invading foe. 
 The town is situated behind the castle, and contains a few 
 good stone buildings, belonging to European residents and 
 respectable native merchants. The rest of the houses are built 
 of " swish," a compound of mud and grass, which is durable 
 so long as it is protected from the rain by a projecting roof. 
 The population is estimated at 5000, and is of that mixed 
 character which is so common in all West African settlements. 
 The majority of the inhabitants, however, are Fantis, the same 
 as those of the neighbouring territory. 
 
 The promontory on which Cape Coast Castle stands was 
 originally settled by the Portuguese, but in the course of a few 
 years they were dispossessed by the Dutch, who took care to 
 strengthen the fortifications as much as possible, to guard 
 against a surprise. Notwithstanding these precautions, in 1661 
 the place was captured by Admiral Holmes, and it has ever 
 since belonged to Great Britain, having been confirmed to us 
 by the treaty of Breda. In former times this settlement used 
 frequently to be at war with the neighbouring tribes, and it 
 was in a sanguinary contest with the Ashantis that Sir Charles 
 Macarthy, the governor, lost his life. A better understanding 
 had existed for many years, when, in 1873, another rupture 
 took place between the British authorities and the king of 
 Ashanti. This was speedily settled by the utter routing of the 
 
'2114 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 enemy, and the capture of Kumasi, the capital of Ashanti, by 
 the British troops under the command of Sir Garnet Wolseley. 
 Since that time the Cape Coast settlement has been placed 
 upon a better footing, and there is now a fair prospect of success 
 in the efforts which are being made to promote the moral and 
 social elevation of the people. 
 
 Although the English have been so long dominant on this 
 part of the coast, comparatively little was done till a few years 
 ago for the evangelization of the natives. As early as 1751 
 the Rev. Thomas Thompson, a clergyman of the Church of 
 England in connection with the Society for the Propagation 
 of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, was appointed to labour at 
 Cape Coast Castle. He continued in the capacity of colonial 
 chaplain for four years, but very little impression seems to have 
 been made upon the minds of the natives. His health failing, 
 he returned to England, and took with him two negro youths 
 for education. One of these, named Philip Quaque, was after- 
 wards sent to the university of Oxford ; and, being subsequently 
 ordained to the sacred office, he was appointed chaplain to 
 Cape Coast Castle. This post he continued to occupy for 
 more than fifty years ; but it does not appear that he was 
 instrumental in turning any of his fellow-countrymen to the 
 faith of the Gospel. Nor is this matter of surprise, when it is 
 known that on his deathbed he appeared to have quite as much 
 confidence in the influence of the Fetish as in the power of 
 Christianity. Several English chaplains, who were sent out 
 after the death of the Rev. Philip Quaque, successively died 
 soon after their arrival in the settlement, and the country was 
 left in a fearful state of moral destitution for many years. 
 
 It was not till the year 1834 that the Wesleyan Missionary 
 Society commenced its labours on the Gold Coast. The way 
 was opened for this enterprise by a particular providence. A 
 few native youths had learned to read the Bible in the govern- 
 ment school established at that place, and they had become so 
 deeply interested in the contents of the sacred volume, that 
 they formed themselves into a little society for the more careful 
 
Westem Africa. 
 
 215 
 
 reading and study of the Holy Scriptures. As their supply of 
 the precious book was very limited, they agreed to send to 
 England for a number of copies of the New Testament by the 
 first opportunity. They made their case known to Captain 
 Potter, the master of a merchant ship from Bristol then in port. 
 The heart of this noble-minded man was so impressed in their 
 favour that, on his return to England, he not only complied 
 with their request by procuring for them the necessary supply 
 of Testaments, but he also called at the Wesleyan Mission House, 
 in London, and generously offered to take out a missionary to 
 the Cape Coast free of expense to the Society, engaging at the 
 same time to bring him back to England on the same terms, 
 if the attempt to introduce the Gospel to the Gold Coast should 
 prove a failure. 
 
 The Society gladly availed themselves of this benevolent 
 offer, and the Rev. Joseph Dunwell was appointed to commence 
 the mission on the Gold Coast. He accordingly sailed with 
 Captain Potter towards the close of the year, and landed at 
 Cape Coast Castle on the ist of January, 1835. He was re- 
 ceived with every mark of kindness by his Excellency Governor 
 M'Lean, and with feelings of rapture by the native youths who 
 were so anxious to be instructed in the knowledge of the Sacred 
 Scriptures. The young missionary opened his commission to 
 preach the Gospel in Africa under circumstances peculiarly 
 encouraging, and he was soon favoured with a pleasing measure 
 of success, not only in Cape Coast Town, where he fixed his 
 head-quarters, but in other parts of the settlement which he 
 visited to make known to the people the good news of salva- 
 tion. His career, thus favourably commenced, was soon ter- 
 minated, however. He was cut down by fever on the 24th of 
 June, and called to rest from his labours in less than six months 
 after his arrival in the country, being the first of a large number 
 of devoted missionaries who have fallen a sacrifice to the climate 
 on this station. 
 
 Some time after the lamented death of Mr. Dunwell, two 
 other missionaries and their wives (the Rev. George O. and 
 
2i6 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Mrs. Wrigley, and the Rev. Peter and Mrs. Harrop) were sent 
 out to occupy the vacant station : the party first named arrived 
 at Cape Coast on the 15th of September, 1836, and the others 
 on the 15th of January, 1837. They laboured with commend- 
 able zeal, and with great success, during the short time they 
 were permitted to live; but within the short space of fifteen 
 months the whole party were numbered with the dead, having, 
 like many others, fallen a sacrifice to the climate. Indeed, both 
 Mr. and Mrs. Harrop died in three weeks after their arrival ! 
 They finished their course, and were called to their reward in 
 the following order : Mrs. Harrop on the 5th of February, Mr. 
 Harrop and Mrs. Wrigley on the 8th of February, and Mr. 
 Wrigley on the 16th of November, 1837. 
 
 Notwithstanding this mysterious and afflictive dispensation of 
 Divine Providence, the Society could not think of relinquishing 
 this important mission, so long as suitable volunteers presented 
 themselves for the arduous and hazardous enterprise ; and it is 
 a remarkable fact that, although others fell in rapid succession, 
 the station was never left without a missionary for any consider- 
 able time. As the good work advanced, under the blessing of 
 God, native labourers were raised up, and there was henceforth 
 less risk to the health and lives of European missionaries. In 
 succeeding years mission stations were established, places of 
 worship built, congregations gathered, and Christian churches 
 and schools organized, not only in Cape Coast Town, but also 
 at Elmina, Commenda, Dix Cove, Apollonia, Anamabu, Domo- 
 nasi, Accra, Winnibah, and other places along the coast, and 
 in the far distant interior. Indeed, for some time a missionary 
 was stationed at Kumasi, the blood-stained capital of Ashanti, 
 where a handsome place of worship was erected and divine 
 service regularly performed, till the unsettled state of the country 
 caused the withdrawal of the agent and the temporary giving up 
 of the mission. During the forty-five years that the agents of 
 the Wesleyan Missionary Society have been labouring in this 
 wide and interesting field, the work has prospered in a most 
 delightful manner, notwithstanding the unhealthiness of the 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 climate and other difificulties. The following are the statistics 
 of the Gold Coast district, according to the last report : Number 
 of missionaries (most of whom are native ministers), 1 3 ; chapels, 
 44; other preaching places, 201; local preachers, 186; church 
 members, 7126; scholars in the mission schools, 2862; atten- 
 dants on public worship, 31,580. 
 
 The Basle and North German missionary societies have also 
 several important stations on the Gold Coast, at Accra, Chris- 
 tiansburg, Akropong, and other places. These excellent German 
 institutions train and send out as missionaries not only preachers 
 of the Gospel and school teachers, but also pious and devoted 
 mechanics and agriculturists, to teach the natives the arts of 
 civilized life, and to endeavour to raise them to a higher social 
 position. In this they have succeeded, in some instances, in a 
 very pleasing manner ; and in the industrial schools which have 
 been established in connection with their respective stations 
 there may now be seen native shoemakers, tailors, carpenters, 
 and other craftsmen, busy at work plying their respective avoca- 
 tions, and preparing themselves for useful positions in life. 
 Some of the missionaries have, moreover, rendered good service 
 to literature, and to those who may succeed them in the field, 
 by the useful dictionaries, grammars, and vocabularies which 
 they have compiled of native languages, and the translations 
 which they have made of some portions of Scripture into the 
 dialects of the people among whom they labour. During the 
 Ashanti war in 1874, Captain Glover bore the following emphatic 
 testimony to the piety and general good conduct of the native 
 converts who joined the British army from some of the stations 
 mentioned above : " Two companies of Christians, one of 
 Akropong, and the other of Christiansburg, numbering about 
 a hundred each, under two captains, accompanied by Bible- 
 readers of the Basle Mission, attended a morning and evening 
 service daily, a bell ringing them regularly to prayers. In action 
 with the enemy at Adiume, on Christmas Day, they were in 
 the advance, and behaved admirably, since which they have 
 garrisoned Blappah. Their conduct has been orderly and 
 
2 1 8 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 soldier-like, and they have proved themselves the only reliable 
 men of the large native force lately assembled on the Volta." 
 
 According to the last reports, the Basle Missionary Society 
 have thirty-two missionaries and thirty-seven lay agents at work 
 on the Gold Coast, and 960 native converts are united in church 
 fellowship. The North German Missionary Society report ten 
 missionaries as employed in this part of the field, three of whom 
 are natives and nine lay agents, with loi native church members. 
 The number of scholars receiving instruction in the mission 
 .cchools is not reported ; but these excellent missionary labourers 
 no doubt pay due attention to the training of the rising genera- 
 tion in a knowledge of the Word of God. 
 
 Lagos. 
 
 One of the most notorious slave depots on the western coast 
 of Africa in former times was Lagos, a considerable island in 
 the Bight of Benin, in latitude 6° north and longitude 4° west. 
 It is situated at the mouth of a river, or, more properly speak- 
 ing, a large lagoon, which runs parallel with the sea for several 
 miles, and affords water communication with the interior in the 
 direction of Badagry, Dahomi, Abbeokuta, and other parts of 
 the Yoruba country. A great change has taken place in this 
 neighbourhood of late years : the slave trade has been driven 
 from this part of the continent; Lagos has become a flourishing 
 British settlement, with its resident lieutenant governor and 
 staff of officers ; and the amount of imports and exports, which 
 are already considerable, is constantly increasing. Since life 
 and property became more secure under British rule, the 
 natives of different tribes have flocked to the island for the 
 sake of legitimate trade and commerce ; a number of respect- 
 able houses have been erected by European and native mer- 
 chants, and the place now presents a lively and prosperous 
 appearance, nothwithstanding the fact that the climate is of the 
 same unhealthy character as that which distinguishes most of 
 the settlements in Western Africa. 
 
 The population of Lagos and the neighbouring native towns, 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 219 
 
 both in the Yoruba and Popo countries, is of a similar character 
 to that which is found on other parts of the coast. Perhaps it 
 became somewhat more mixed several years ago, by the emigra- 
 tion from Sierra Leone of a large number of liberated Africans, 
 who ventured thus to return to the countries from which they 
 had been dragged as poor slaves, when they heard that the 
 slave trade was abolished. Some of these emigrants had the 
 happiness to find parents, brothers, sisters, or other relatives 
 and friends still living, who received them as alive from the 
 dead ; whilst others sought in vain for any one who could 
 recognize them. There were many touching and affecting 
 meetings, and great was the surprise of the natives of Lagos, 
 Abbeokuta, and other places in the Yoruba and Popo countries, 
 to see the change which had passed upon their friends and 
 relatives by the residence of a few years in a free British colony. 
 They all appeared decently clothed in European apparel, many 
 of them had learned to read and write in the mission schools, 
 and a few of them had become the happy partakers of the 
 great salvation which they had heard proclaimed in all its 
 simplicity and power, in the land of their exile. , 
 
 It was the extensive emigration of civilized liberated Africans 
 from Sierra Leone to Lagos, and the neighbouring towns in the 
 Yoruba country, that led to the vigorous efforts which are 
 now being made by the Church and Wesleyan Missionary 
 Societies for the evangelization of the natives of this part of 
 Africa. The Christian emigrants who had been connected with 
 these organizations in Sierra Leone, on reaching their destina- 
 tion, reported to their respective ministers the state in which 
 they found the country, and earnestly requested that their 
 friends and countrymen might be favoured with the proclama- 
 tion of the Gospel which had made them so happy. These 
 appeals were cheerfully responded to by the parties concerned, 
 and a work was commenced which for prosperity and blessing 
 has had few parallels in the history of missions. 
 
 The Church Missionary Society was happy in the selection 
 of the Rev. Samuel Crowther, an educated and ordained native 
 
2 20 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 minister, as the leader of the enterprise. The history of Mr. 
 Crowther is equal in interest to any romance that was ever 
 written. Torn away from his native land an(T sold as a slave 
 when a mere boy, in 182 1, he was rescued from a slave ship 
 by a British cruiser, with many others, and taken to Sierra 
 Leone. There he was educated in the mission school ; and, 
 discovering superior abilities in connection with early piety, he 
 was trained for the Christian ministry, and in due time ordained 
 to the sacred office. In 1841 Mr. Crowther accompanied the 
 first Niger expedition in its exploration of the mysterious river, 
 when he saw what a grand field of missionary labour was open- 
 ing up in the interior, to which he resolved to devote his life. 
 He was afterwards appointed as a missionary to Abbeokuta, to 
 labour among the Sierra Leone emigrants and others; and on 
 arriving at the scene of his future labours, he had the gratifica- 
 tion of meeting with his aged mother and other relatives, after 
 a separation of five-and-twenty years ! 
 
 On the 29th of June, 1864, Mr. Crowther was further pro- 
 moted, by being consecrated bishop of the Niger territory and 
 superintendent of all the stations in the Yoruba and adjoining 
 countries. Making the island of Lagos his head-quarters, Bishop 
 Crowther, assisted by a noble band of native missionaries, has 
 succeeded in establishing stations, erecting churches, and organi- 
 zing Christian schools, not only in Lagos and Abbeokuta, where 
 the work was first commenced, but also in various towns and 
 villages in the Yoruba and Popo countries, and in several centres 
 of population on the banks of the Niger. Finding the difficulty 
 of navigating the Niger, and other rivers in his extensive diocese, 
 in canoes and similar small craft, he made an effort when on a 
 visit to England a few years ago, and succeeded in procuring a 
 small steamer, in which he now visits his principal stations with 
 the greatest facility. According to the last report, the Church 
 Missionary Society numbers in this diocese 14 stations, 24 
 missionaries (19 of whom are native ministers), 2081 church 
 members, 1494 scholars in the mission schools, and 4721 
 attendants on public worship. 
 
Wesfern Africa. 
 
 221 
 
 The agents of the VVesleyan Missionary Society have been as 
 zealous and successful, in a somewhat more limited sphere, as 
 those of the Church of England, with whom they have generally 
 lived and laboured in harmony and love. Among the emigrants 
 from Sierra Leone there were many Wesleyans who preferred 
 their own ministers, whilst the domain of heathendom, on every 
 hand, was sufficiently extensive and populous to occupy the 
 agents of both Societies. At an early period a commodious 
 Wesleyan mission-house and chapel were erected at Lagos, where 
 the work has progressed in a very satisfactory manner from the 
 beginning. A goodly number of native converts have been 
 from time to time gathered into the fold of Christ and united 
 in church fellowship, some of whom have been called to make 
 known the good news of salvation to their fellow-countrymen. 
 With a view to provide more effectually for the training of native 
 preachers and teachers, as well as to give a better education to 
 those who are in a position to need it, a Wesleyan high school 
 has recently been erected and opened at Lagos, which promises 
 to be a most useful institution. Common day-schools are also 
 taught in connection with all the out-stations of the Lagos 
 circuit, and the Gospel is preached to the people in two or 
 three different languages. At Badagry and Abbeokuta the 
 work has been somewhat fluctuating, owing to a want of har- 
 mony among the people, and the constant wars and rumours of 
 wars which have distracted the country. At Badagry a beau- 
 tiful church and mission premises were erected several years 
 ago, but the work has since languished for want of labourers. 
 At Ibadu and Porto Novo a good beginning has been made, 
 and the prospect is encouraging. Ahgwey, Grand Popo, and 
 other more distant places, are opening up for the reception of 
 the Gospel ; and although Whydah, the principal seaport of 
 the kingdom of Dahomi, has been for some time without a 
 missionary, in consequence of the warlike attitude of its san- 
 guinary monarch, we are not without hope that, ere long, the 
 whole country will be permeated with the leaven of Christianity. 
 The following are the statistics of the Wesleyan Missionary 
 
222 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Society for the Lagos and Yoruba district, as gleaned from the 
 last report : Number of chapels, 12 ; other preaching places, 20 ; 
 missionaries, European and native, 8 ; full and accredited 
 church members, 973; on trial for membership, 339; scholars 
 in the mission schools, 1558; attendants on public worship, 
 3203- 
 
 Liberia. 
 
 An extensive district on the western coast of Africa, between 
 Sierra Leone and Cape Coast Castle, received the name of 
 Liberia, from the circumstance of its being colonized by 
 liberated slaves and free persons of colour from America. 
 Under the auspices of a colonization society, organized in 
 Baltimore, for the avowed purpose of providing a home in a 
 foreign land for the class of persons just mentioned, the first 
 party of settlers proceeded to Africa in the year 1822. Cape 
 Mesurado, in latitude 6° 18' north, was first purchased from 
 the natives, and the plan of a town, afterwards called Monrovia, 
 was formed ; and as fresh emigrants arrived, additional tracts 
 of country were purchased for their accommodation. In 1836 
 a similar settlement was formed at Cape Palmas ; but in 1856 
 they were united, and at length the settlement extended along 
 the coast a distance of 600 miles — from Grand Cape Mount to 
 ♦he Gulf of Guinea. The majority of the early settlers were 
 men of steady, industrious habits, and decided piety, belonging 
 to different Christian denominations ; and they set about the 
 cultivation of the ground and the preparation of homes for 
 themselves and their families in their adopted country, in a 
 manner which augured well for the success of the enterprise. 
 Their just, humane, and benevolent policy was, moreover, said 
 to have given them astonishing influence over the native tribes, 
 and the settlement was commenced under favourable and 
 promising circumstances. 
 
 Although thus commenced by emigrants from America, 
 Liberia was not an American colony, properly speaking, but 
 a small republic or commonwealth, after the model of the 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 223 
 
 United States, and entirely independent of the parent country 
 politically, although receiving important moral and material 
 aid from it in different ways, when necessary. Accordingly, 
 a constitution and laws were framed for the government 
 of the settlement, provision being made for the election of a 
 president, members of the house of representatives, and other 
 public functionaries. Of course, the difficulties connected 
 with the founding of this infant nation were neither few nor 
 small, and some errors may have been made at an early period 
 of the undertaking ; but notwithstanding every drawback, in 
 all fairness it must be said that the enter|)rise succeeded better 
 than could have been expected, all things being considered. 
 As the number of settlers increased, townships were laid out, 
 farms cultivated, towns and villages planned, and buildings 
 erected in some of them which were very creditable to a rising 
 community. 
 
 The soil of Liberia is reported to be extremely fertile, and 
 well adapted to the growth of all kinds of tropical produce. 
 Cotton, coffee, indigo, and the sugar-cane thrive well ; and 
 rice, Indian corn, Guinea corn, millet, and various kinds of 
 fruits and vegetables are cultivated with ease and success. 
 Cattle, sheep, goats, swine, fowls and ducks, are said to thrive 
 well with little feeding, and to require no other care than to 
 keep them from straying. The climate, however, partakes of 
 the same sickly character as that of other parts of the coast, 
 and during some seasons many have fallen a sacrifice to its 
 fatal influence. The emigrants from America of African descent, 
 both black and coloured, have to undergo a regular "seasoning," 
 the same as the whites ; but they sooner become acclimatized, 
 and ere long seem quite at home in their adopted country. 
 
 The character of the population of Liberia has already been 
 indicated, so far as the American settlers are concerned, who 
 are said to number about 20,000 ; and when it is stated that a 
 considerable number of the aborigines from the neighbouring 
 friendly tribes have become incorporated with these within the 
 boundaries of the settlement, to the number of about 200,000^ 
 
2 24 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 a tolerable idea may be formed of the kind of material that the 
 Christian people and philanthropists of Europe and the United 
 States had to operate upon when they commenced their 
 evangelistic work in the new settlement. As already intimated, 
 in almost every party of emigrants that went out there were 
 some professing Christians, and among them were a few who 
 were preachers and teachers, who did their best, during the 
 passage and on their arrival at their destination, to instruct 
 and benefit others; and as the population increased, more 
 direct and systematic efforts were made in this direction 
 by the appointment of missionaries entirely devoted to the 
 work. 
 
 The first direct and systematic efforts made for the spiritual 
 benefit of the inhabitants of Liberia of which we have any 
 notice were those of the Basle German Missionary Society, 
 who in 1827 sent out three missionaries — namely, Messrs. 
 Handt, Sessing and Hegele — to commence the work. They 
 had all spent about three years in the missionary institution 
 at Basle, and were ordained at Auggen, in the Grand Duchy 
 of Baden. They were sent over to spend a few months in 
 England previous to their embarkation for Africa, in order to 
 improve their acquaintance with the English language. As 
 the ship in which they had taken their passage was preparing 
 to leave Plymouth, a block fell from the rigging and struck 
 Mr. Hegele's head, hurting him so much that he was obliged 
 to be taken on shore for surgical aid. In the meantime the 
 vessel sailed ; but on his recovery the wounded missionary 
 proceeded on his voyage by another ship, and joined his 
 brethren in Liberia a few months afterwards. This was the 
 first of a series of disasters which befel this mission, involving 
 the sickness and death of some of the missionaries. Other 
 agents were subsequently sent out by the same Society ; but 
 after years of severe affliction and almost fruitless labour, they 
 withdrew to the Gold Coast, and the work in Liberia was 
 henceforth left entirely to American missionaries of different 
 denominations, who were sent out in considerable numbers, and 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 225 
 
 who have laboured for many years with a pleasing measure of 
 success. 
 
 The American Protestant Episcopal Church reports 24 prin- 
 cipal stations, occupied by 1 1 clerical and 1 7 lay agents (all men 
 of colour), with 453 church members, and 658 scholars in the 
 mission schools. The missionaries of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church are 28 in number, with 15 lay agents, two only of whom 
 are white men. They occupy 31 principal stations, and report 
 2065 church members, with 450 scholars in the schools. The 
 American Presbyterians number 8 stations, 6 missionaries, 4 
 lay agents and 300 church members ; and the American 
 Baptists, according to the last report, employ 14 missionaries 
 and 16 lay agents — but the other statistics are not given. Much 
 zeal and perseverance have been displayed in connection with 
 all these Christian agencies, and the result is seen in the 
 parsonages, places of worship, colleges and school buildings 
 which have been erected in most of the towns and villages in 
 the settlement, and in the improved morals of the people, 
 which will compare favourably with those of many other 
 Christian countries, and which augur well for the future 
 prosperity of Liberia, 
 
 Senegal. 
 
 From an early period the French have had several settle- 
 ments on the western coast of Africa, the principal of which 
 is on the island of St. Louis in the river Senegal, about nine 
 miles from its mouth, in latitude 16° north and longitude 16° 
 west. It was taken by the English in 1758, and in the time of 
 the American war it was recovered by the French, and afterwards 
 confirmed to them by treaty. The island itself is small and 
 unattractive, and the buildings erected upon it, consisting of a 
 fort, government offices, Roman Catholic church, hospital, 
 barracks, and a few dwelling-houses and native huts, are not 
 remarkable for neatness or elegance. The place is, nevertheless, 
 of considerable importance as the centre of an extensive trade 
 with the interior, the staple articles of which are gum, ivory, 
 
 15 
 
2 26 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 gold, beeswax, ground-nuts and hides, which tlie merchants 
 receive for European goods instead of slaves as formerly. 
 The soil in the neighbourhood of the colony is light and 
 sandy; but in favourable seasons it is cultivated with advantage, 
 and various kinds of tropical fruits and vegetables are brought 
 to market by the natives and sold at moderate prices. 
 
 The next French settlement worthy of notice as a dependency 
 of Senegal is Goree, a romantic little island situated between 
 the mouths of the Senegal and the Gambia, in latitude 14° 30' 
 north and longitude 17° 20' west, only about a mile distant 
 from the mainland, near Cape Verd. It has been successively 
 possessed by the Dutch, English, and French ; but it has been 
 occupied by the last-named power since 181 6, when the 
 English removed to the Gambia. On a sandy point, at the 
 foot of a rocky eminence, stands the town, which contains some 
 good buildings, including government offices, hospital, and 
 Romish church. Towering above the whole may be seen the 
 fort of St. Michael, ready to frown upon any assailant who 
 may dare to approach. A considerable trade is carried on 
 with the natives on the mainland, who are chiefly Jalloffs. 
 The articles of native produce which are collected from different 
 places in the interior, for barter with the merchants at Goree, 
 are of the same kind as those which are brought to St. Louis 
 on the Senegal, and the settlements are in many respects similar 
 to each other. 
 
 The French also claim a small settlement or trading establish- 
 ment called Jelifree, on the northern bank of the river Gambia, 
 a few miles above the island of St. Mary ; but it has always 
 been a subject of dispute and misunderstanding, the English 
 merchants and government authorities at Bathurst maintaining 
 that the Gambia, with all its settlements, appendages, and 
 privileges, was ceded to the English by the French when 
 Goree was given up to the last-named power. A few years 
 ago, earnest efforts were made by the French to get the British 
 settlements at the Gambia entirely into their possession, in ex- 
 change for some other small unimportant setdements which they 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 227 
 
 claimed nearer Sierra Leone, and the British Government at 
 one time seemed disposed to regard the proposal with favour : 
 but the opposition on the part of the merchants at the Gambia 
 and their friends in England was so strong and persistent, that 
 the scheme was at length relinquished. The French have also 
 small settlements at Portendick and other places lower down 
 the coast, but they seem ambitious to have more. In 1879 
 they took summary possession of a trading-place at Matacong, 
 near Sierra Leone ; but the English, who had several years 
 previously purchased the place from the paramount chief of the 
 country, disputed their right, and they were obliged to retire. 
 
 At all the French settlements on the western coast of Africa, 
 Roman Catholicism is predominant ; and, led away with the 
 gaudy display of the ceremonials of that system of religion, a 
 considerable number of the simple-minded natives in some 
 places have been induced to embrace it, although they seem to 
 understand little or nothing of its dogmas. We are not aware 
 that any systematic effort has been made at any of the above- 
 named places for the propagation of Protestant Christianity, 
 with the exception of the settlement on the Senegal, to which 
 we believe two missionaries were sent some time ago by the 
 Paris Evangelical Missionary Society ; but with what results we 
 have not heard. 
 
 Fernando Po. 
 
 One of the largest and most important islands on the we'stern 
 coast of Africa is Fernando Po, and it enjoys many advantages 
 from its peculiar position. It is situated in the Gulf of Guinea, 
 about seventy miles from the coast of Benin, in latitude 3° 30' 
 north and longitude 8° 45' east. It is thirty miles long and 
 twenty broad ; and in its general aspect it is rugged and 
 mountainous in the extreme, some of the peaks rising to the 
 height of 3000 feet above the level of the sea. Fernando Po 
 nominally belongs to Spain ; but for a long time it remained 
 unoccupied by any European power, vessels of any nation 
 putting in there for supplies of wood and water as the masters 
 
2 28 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 felt disposed. From its elevation, and other favourable circum- 
 stances, it was thought at one time that it would prove a more 
 healthy situation than any place on the neighbouring coast, and 
 in 1827 a British settlement was formed upon it by an amicable 
 arrangement with the Spanish government. The experiment, 
 however, in the first instance, resulted in disappointment. Of 
 thirty European settlers sent out, nineteen died in the course 
 of a few months, and it was found necessary to fill government 
 situations as much as possible with intelligent natives from 
 Sierra Leone and other settlements on the continent. 
 
 Although there are some fertile valleys between the moun- 
 tains, and several promising tracts of land along the shore, the 
 ground at P'ernando Po has never yet been extensively cultivated, 
 nor its natural resources put to the test. The island has been 
 used chiefly as a place of rendezvous for British cruisers and 
 mercantile ships trading along the coast. In this way it was 
 very useful and convenient to the Niger Expedition in 1841, and 
 on various other occasions, when a considerable number of 
 English men-of-war were stationed on the coast. When the 
 slave trade was driven from this part of the continent, and tlie 
 number of British cruisers was reduced, the island of Fernando 
 Po became of less importance to England, and the Spanish 
 government wishing to occupy the place, it was handed over 
 to them according to agreement. It has ever since been a 
 Spanish settlement, although the port has been open to vessels 
 of all nations as before. 
 
 The principal town of Fernando Po, and the site of the 
 settlement, was called Clarence by the English ; but it is 
 designated Santa Isabel by the Spanish, and is situated on 
 the north side of the island. It is occupied by government 
 officials and a few troops from Europe, and by a considerable 
 number of natives of various tribes from different parts of the 
 neighbouring coast, who have come here to ply their respective 
 vocations, and to get a living as best they can. The aborigines 
 of the island, called Boobies, are represented as a wild, savage 
 race, who occupy villages composed of rude native huts in the 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 fastnesses of the mountains, and seldom venture into the 
 settlement, unless it be to beg rum and tobacco. The native 
 population is said to have been increased from time to time 
 by renegade slaves and criminals who have fled from the 
 mainland and taken refuge in the wild mountains of the island. 
 
 Among the settlers and aborigines of Fernando Po some 
 really useful missionary work has been done at different times, 
 which deserves a passing notice. The first in the field were 
 the agents of the Baptist Missionary Society, who commenced 
 a station at Clarence, and laboured for several years among the 
 settlers of all classes with very pleasing results, whilst the English 
 had possession of the island. But when Fernando Po was 
 given over to the Spaniards, Roman Catholicism was proclaimed 
 to be the established religion of the settlement ; and the harsh- 
 ness and persecution with which the Baptist missionaries were 
 treated by the government authorities issued in their removal 
 to the continent, and the mission was relinquished. In 1870— 
 some improvement having taken place in the policy of the 
 Spanish government — the Primitive Methodists were induced 
 to commence a mission in Fernando Po, the Rev. Messrs. 
 Burnett and Roe being the first missionaries sent out. They 
 and their successors laboured for several years very successfully, 
 both at the principal station at Santa Isabel and on the out- 
 stations which were formed in the interior of the island for the 
 benefit of the Boobies. Societies were formed of hopeful 
 converts, and of persons from the continent who had received 
 good at other mission stations, and all was going on well, 
 when in 1879, in consequence of some misunderstanding, the 
 missionaries were again banished from the island. An appeal 
 was at once made to the home authorities, both EngUsh and 
 Spanish, and in the course of a few months the missionaries 
 were allowed to return : the result remains to be seen. 
 
 Meanwhile it is pleasant to notice that a good work is being 
 carried on by various missionary ' societies on the mainland, 
 immediately opposite Fernando Po, in the Bight of Benin, 
 among native tribes where no regular European settlements 
 
2 so Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 exist. The Baptists had a prosperous mission on the banks 
 of the Cameroons before they were driven from Fernando Po, 
 and since then their work has been considerably extended. 
 They now employ eight missionaries, three of whom are native 
 Africans, besides two lay agents. They number 113 Church 
 members and 70 scholars in the mission schools. These 
 figures give but a faint idea of the results of this mission, as a 
 large amount of preparatory work has been done in the way of 
 translating the Scriptures into the language of the people, and 
 in instructing the natives in the arts of civilized life, which can 
 scarcely fail to be productive of much good in time to come. 
 A new mission has, moreover, been sent out from the Cameroons 
 to the distant interior on the banks of the Congo, which promises 
 much good to that country. 
 
 The United Presbyterians of Scotland have some important 
 stations a little higher up the coast, on the Old Calabar. On 
 these seven missionaries are usefully employed, besides forty-one 
 lay agents. The number of native converts reported as united 
 in church fellowship is 140, and 687 scholars are receiving 
 instruction in the mission schools. Amid many difficulties 
 this work has been carried on for several years ; and although 
 the results are not large, as seen by mortal eyes, the way has 
 been prepared, in many respects, for a still wider diffusion of 
 the Gospel in the near future. 
 
 The American Presbyterians have also prosperous missions 
 lower down the coast, at Corrico and Gaboon, on the equator. 
 They report seven missionaries and twenty-four lay agents as 
 busily at work on their respective stations. The number of 
 native converts united in Church fellowship is 133, and 125 
 children are receiving instruction in the mission schools. These 
 are but the small beginnings of a work which it is hoped will, 
 in time to come, spread itself all along the coast and far away 
 into the distant interior. Were men and means available, there 
 appears nothing to prevent the universal spread of the Gospel 
 in Western Africa, the people being everywhere willing to listen 
 to the simple proclamation of Divine truth. 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 231 
 
 Angola. 
 
 Angola is the name given to an extensive territory on the 
 coast of Africa, lying somewhat between the western and 
 southern portions of the great continent, but generally classed 
 with the former, and reaching from the equator to 15° 
 south latitude. This comprehensive term, in geographical 
 parlance, is generally understood to comprehend a number of 
 Portuguese settlements widely separated from each other, but 
 possessing many features in common, known as Angola Proper, 
 Congo, Loando, and Benguela. Portuguese writers relate that 
 this vast region was originally divided into seventeen provinces ; 
 eleven of which, in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, became 
 subject to the king of Portugal ; also that they found the 
 aborigines of the country a wretched cannibal race, preferring 
 for food the flesh of man to that of animals, and always sacri- 
 ficing human victims at their funerals, — practices to which some 
 of the southern tribes are said to be still addicted. 
 
 All the settlements of Angola were in their heyday of pros- 
 perity during the reign of the slave trade. Indeed, the life and 
 vigour of the Portuguese colonies were maintained by this 
 horrid traffic in human beings. Nor did it abate in any 
 considerable degree when the slave trade was abolished by 
 Great Britain. It was for some time rather increased, being 
 concentrated in these southern regions when it was prohibited 
 on the northern portions of the coast. It is said that for 
 several years no fewer than 40,000 negroes were annually 
 shipped from these Portuguese ports alone, chiefly to the Brazils 
 and the Spanish West Indies. When the slave trade was at 
 length declared to be piracy, and those engaged in it were 
 subject to severe punishment, by a solemn compact between 
 Great Britain and other European powers, the traffic declined 
 somewhat, as it could now only be conducted in a stealthy and 
 clandestine manner. As the British cruisers employed on the 
 coast for the express purpose of putting down the slave trade 
 succeeded in capturing Portuguese and Spanish slavers, and in 
 
232 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 liberating thousands of the poor captives, from time to time, 
 a still further check was given to the abominable traffic, till it 
 ultimately disappeared almost entirely from the western coast. 
 From that time the Portuguese settlements of Angola and 
 Benguela have declined very much, legitimate commerce with 
 the natives being somewhat limited, and agriculture being but 
 little practised. 
 
 The Portuguese settlements of Western Africa present to the 
 view of the traveller who happens to visit them the appearance 
 of decay and neglect. Lands naturally fertile and productive 
 are allowed to remain uncultivated ; buildings originally com- 
 modious and handsome are out of repair ; and the inhabitants, 
 both European and native, seem destitute of energy, life, and 
 spirits. The most respectable towns and settlements are those 
 of Loando and Benguela, where there are some good Roman 
 Catholic churches and other public buildings, and where there 
 is more trade carried on than at most of the other places. 
 From the accounts given by the travellers Livingstone, Stanley, 
 and Cameron, who passed through some parts of this territory, 
 the country is possessed of vast resources, which might be 
 turned to good account if the Portuguese colonists possessed 
 the requisite energy to promote their development. 
 
 We are not aware that any means are being employed for the 
 moral and social elevation of the native tribes of this part of the 
 African continent. When the Portuguese first arrived in the 
 country to commence their settlements, the Romish priests who 
 accompanied them were very zealous, in their way, for the 
 interests of their Church, and they not only ministered to their 
 fellow-countrymen, the colonists, but laboured also to bring 
 over the natives to the profession of Christianity. Having 
 gained their good-will by trifling presents, and by gaudy pro- 
 cessions, resembling their own heathen ceremonies, they got 
 them to consent to become Christians, and baptized them by 
 hundreds at a time. We read of as many as 20,000 native 
 converts obtained in this way, between the years 1580 and 
 1590. Misunderstandings afterwards occurred, which resulted 
 
Western Africa. 
 
 233 
 
 in the banishment of the priests from most of the stations which 
 they had formed in the interior ; and when Captain Tuckey 
 visited this country, in the early part of the present century, to 
 explore the river Congo, so completely had the effects of these 
 early Romish missionary labours been obliterated, that he did 
 not find the slightest vestige or recollection of Christianity 
 remaining among the natives. 
 
 From what we know of the native tribes inhabiting the 
 interior of this portion of the vast continent, we have reason 
 to believe there is a fine field for missionary labour among 
 them. Nor can we think that the pure Gospel seed of the 
 kingdom sown in faith would be allowed to perish, as did 
 the chaff in former days ; for Jehovah Himself hath said, 
 " As the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and 
 returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it 
 bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and 
 bread to the eater ; so shall My word be that goeth forth 
 out of My mouth : it shall not return unto Me void, but it 
 shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in 
 the thing whereto I sent it" (Isaiah Iv. 10, 11). 
 
234 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 SOUTHERN AFRICA. 
 
 General Description — Mountains, Rivers, and Lakes — Soil, Productions, 
 and Climate — Native Tribes and Settlers — European Colonization — 
 The Cape Colony : Western Province — The Cape Colony : Eastern 
 Province — British Kaffraria — The Colony of Natal — The Orange Free 
 State — The Transvaal — Zululand — Neighbouring Territories. 
 
 OUTHERN AFRICA may be said to comprise that por- 
 
 wJ/ tion of the great continental peninsula which lies to the 
 south of the Tropic of Capricorn. It is bounded on the east 
 by the Indian Ocean, on the west by the Atlantic, on the north 
 by the imperfectly explored regions of the interior, and on the 
 south by the stormy waters of the ocean which wash the 
 immediate shores of the Cape of Good Hope. 
 
 In a country of such vast extent, being about two thousand 
 miles in length and nearly the same in breadth, we are not 
 surprised to find great diversity in scenery, soil, and climate. 
 There are some striking features, however, which apply pretty 
 generally to the whole of this extensive and interesting portion 
 of the globe. Wherever we travel in Southern Africa we behold 
 everything on a grand and gigantic scale. There is nothing 
 little or insignificant in the topography of this country. Every 
 scene in nature corresponds with the magnitude of the con- 
 tinent on which it is found. The mountains generally rise to a 
 high altitude, and frequently stretch away in apparently intermi- 
 nable chains, as far as the eye can reach, till they are lost in the 
 dim distance, from which they again emerge to the view of the 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 235 
 
 admiring traveller as he pursues his journey. The valleys, the 
 rivers, the lakes, and the deserts are equally imposing in their 
 magnitude and general aspect. 
 
 Mountains, Rivers, and Lakes. 
 
 The principal mountains of Southern Africa, of which we 
 have any definite knowledge, are the Omatako, Khamisberg, 
 Sneewkop, Piketberg, Table Mountain, Langberg, Winter- 
 berg, Amatola, Stromberg, Cockscomb, Compassberg, and the 
 Kolobeng. Some of these elevated peaks belong to mountain 
 ranges which run nearly parallel with the coast on both sides 
 of the continent ; the principal of which are the Zwartbergen, 
 Nieuveld, Dragensberg, Roggeveld, and Quathlamba ranges. 
 These are backed by others of still greater altitude, concerning 
 which little is known, as they stretch far away into the unex- 
 plored interior, and unite to form what is technically called by 
 geologists the " backbone " of Africa, or the grand " water- 
 shed " from which most of the rivers wind their way to the 
 mighty ocean in different directions. 
 
 The chief of these rivers are the Swakop, Orange, Buffel's, 
 Olifant's, Berg, and the Zout, which run into the Atlantic ; and 
 the Breede, Knysna, Gauritz, Gamtoos, Sunday's, Buffalo, 
 Kowie, Great Fish, Keiskamma, Great Kei, Bashee, Umtata, 
 Umzimvooboo, Tugela, and the Zambezi, which flow into the 
 Indian Ocean. With the exception of the Zambezi and the 
 Breede, none of these rivers are available for inland navigation 
 to any extent. It is true that vessels may find a safe and com- 
 modious harbour in the mouth of the Knysna, in the district 
 of George ; but, so far as it is navigable, this may be regarded 
 as a lagoon rather than as a river. Important harbour works 
 have for several years been in progress at the mouths of the 
 Kowie and the Buffalo, on the east coast, which it is hoped 
 will enable vessels of moderate draught to proceed some 
 distance up the country, as well as to discharge their cargoes 
 at convenient wharves. Indeed, the works at the place first 
 
236 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 named have been finished for some time, and are found to 
 answer their intended purpose ; and those at East London are 
 progressing rapidly, under the direction of Sir John Coode. 
 The mouths of most of the other rivers of Southern Africa are 
 blocked up with immense sand-bars, which stretch from shore 
 to shore, and upon which the waves of the sea break with 
 fearful violence. Some of them, indeed, are only periodically 
 supplied with water of any considerable depth, their beds being 
 in many places completely dry during the summer months. But 
 after heavy rains in the winter season they frequently swell to 
 an alarming extent, and sweep away all before them. Then 
 travellers may be seen with their waggons and carts, waiting on 
 the banks, day after day, till the waters subside, before they can 
 ford the streams, bridges being almost unknown in the interior. 
 
 The only great lakes which have as yet been discovered in 
 this part of the world are Lake N'gami, partially explored by 
 Mr. Oswell and Dr. Livingstone in 1846; the Lake N'yassa, 
 first visited by the last-named enterprising traveller in 1861 ; 
 and the Lakes N'yanza and Tanganyika, more recently explored 
 and described by Livingstone, Stanley, Cameron, and others. 
 Some of these are, in fact, great inland seas, being several 
 hundreds of miles in circumference, and studded with numerous 
 beautiful islands. Most of these belong more properly to 
 Central Africa, and will be further noticed in due course. 
 There are many other extensive sheets of water to be seen in 
 different parts of the country, especially after heavy rains have 
 fallen ; but these generally dry up in the summer season ; and, 
 from the saline character of the soil, the ground is frequently 
 encrusted with a coat of salt, which the natives collect and 
 turn to good account as an article of commerce. 
 
 Soil, Productions, and Climate. 
 
 Extensive tracts of country in various parts of Southern 
 Africa frequently present the appearance of sterile wastes. 
 This is more especially the case after long periods of drought, 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 237 
 
 when everything is burnt brown with the fiery rays of the sun, and 
 scarcely a blade of green grass is to be seen for scores of miles. 
 The face of nature in the same localities wears a very different 
 aspect, however, when refreshing rains have fallen to fertilize 
 the earth. Then vegetation is remarkably rapid in its growth, 
 notwithstanding the thin and sandy nature of the soil ; and, in 
 the course of a few days, the whole landscape is delightful to 
 look upon. In the place of dreary wilds we now behold smiUng 
 green pastures, studded with beautiful flowers of almost every 
 hue, and all creation seems to rejoice in the delightful change. 
 This circumstance will account, in part at least, for the various 
 and conflicting accounts given by different travellers of the 
 soil and scenery of the same countries, who have passed 
 through them at opposite seasons of the year. 
 
 There are vast regions of this portion of the continent, 
 however, to which the name of desert will strictly apply — the 
 face of the whole country presenting the appearance of nothing 
 but rugged rocks and plains of shifting sands, and where 
 gloomy nature never smiles. In passing across these dreary 
 wastes, the way-worn traveller may proceed on his journey 
 from day to day without meeting with a drop of water to 
 refresh himself or his cattle, and many have perished in the 
 wilderness before relief could be obtained. To these barren 
 tracts of country the natives have given the name of karroos, 
 which signifies "dryness." The most extensive of these is 
 the Kalihari, or Great Desert, north of the Orange River, 
 extending nearly 1000 miles in length, and more than 300 
 in breadth, between Great Namaqualand and the Bechuana 
 country. Nearly the whole west coast of Namaqualand, 
 from Buffel's River to Walvich Bay, may also be called desert, 
 as it consists almost entirely of a succession of dreary sand- 
 hills and barren wastes, to a distance of from thirty to forty 
 miles from the sea-shore. There are, moreover, several smaller 
 tracts of country of a similar description within the boundaries 
 of the Cape Colony, which are very thinly inhabited, in con- 
 sequence of the sterile character of the ground and the great 
 
238 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 scarcity of water. One of these is crossed by tlie main road 
 leading from Cape Town to Beauford West, and is called by 
 way of distinction " the Karroo." 
 
 In one respect the topography of Southern Africa differs 
 materially from that of Western Africa. The latter country is 
 remarkable for its extensive and primeval forests, which are 
 found skirting the margins of the numerous rivers and crowning 
 the tops of the highest mountains ; but in the former we may 
 travel for days and weeks in succession without ever seeing a 
 tree larger than a gooseberry-bush, unless we meet with a few 
 straggling camel-thorns, or willows, scattered along the banks 
 of the periodical rivers. There are exceptions, however, to 
 this peculiar feature in the general aspect of the country. In 
 some parts of Kaffraria, Natal, the district of George, and in 
 other localities, forests of considerable extent are to be found, 
 which afford an ample supply of timber for building and other 
 purposes. 
 
 On viewing the wild, romantic, and generally sterile character 
 of the regions mentioned above, the reader must not conclude 
 that the whole country is a barren wilderness. With the excep- 
 tion of the actual deserts, to which special reference has been 
 made, the most unfavourable districts are well adapted for 
 grazing and rearing cattle, provided they have a wide range of 
 pasture ; and on the south-eastern coast there are many large 
 sheep-farms, where tens of thousands of sheep may be seen in a 
 thriving condition. In the broad valleys, and on the extensive 
 plains between the mountains, the soil is frequently rich and 
 fertile, and well adapted for the growth of various kinds of 
 grain and other produce. In the neighbourhood of many of 
 the colonial towns and villages may be seen fruitful vineyards 
 orchards, gardens, and smiling fields of corn, which would bear 
 comparison with those of any country in Europe. The greatest 
 drawback to the successful prosecution of agricultural labours in 
 Southern Africa is the scarcity of water, the irregularity of the 
 seasons, the long-continued droughts which freq.uently occur, 
 and the natural indolence of the native population, especially 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 239 
 
 in the more interior districts of the country. These difficulties, 
 it is to be hoped, will be in a measure overcome in the course 
 of time, by the adoption of improved methods of irrigation, 
 emigration, and other useful expedients which have been found 
 so advantageous in other countries. With such improvements 
 the capabilities of the soil might be more fully developed, and 
 the country at large be made to present stronger claims to the 
 attention of those who find it necessary to seek a home for 
 themselves and their families in foreign lands. 
 
 Already the natural and mercantile productions of Southern 
 Africa are very considerable. The Cape Colony produces corn, 
 wool, wine, aloes, dried fruit, hides, horns, skins, and tallow. 
 From Namaqualand and other parts of the interior are brought 
 large quantities of cattle, copper ore, ivory, ostrich feathers, and 
 the skins of various kinds of wild animals, tanned and prepared 
 for the market with considerable skill by the natives. And in 
 Natal a promising commencement has been made in the culti- 
 vation of sugar, coffee, arrowroot, indigo, and hemp. Whilst 
 these and other commodities have become staple articles of 
 export, butter, brandy, and tobacco are manufactured in large 
 (luantities for home consumption. Vegetables and fruit of 
 various kinds are found in great abundance at the Cape, where 
 ordinary attention is paid to their cultivation, and they might 
 be obtained at a cheaper rate everywhere if more care and 
 industry were given to them. We have potatoes, cabbages, 
 carrots, peas, beans, kanalkoes, and the squash ; also oranges, 
 apples, pears, peaches, loquats, pineapples, pomegranates, and 
 quinces, with other vegetables and fruits of minor consequence 
 in abundance. 
 
 The whole country offers a fine field for the researches of 
 the naturalist ; and, although the prescribed limits of this work 
 do not admit of a formal discussion of such matters, we may 
 briefly note a few particulars. In the department of geology, 
 the stupendous rocky mountains of granite and other formations 
 demand more attention than they have hitherto received, not- 
 withstanding the praiseworthy researches of Mr. Baynes and 
 
240 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 others, who have done something in this hne of study. And 
 the numerous indications of iron, copper, gold, and other valu- 
 able metals which appear in various parts of the country, are 
 deserving of fuller investigation. In 1873 extensive diamond 
 fields were discovered on the northern frontier of the Cape 
 Colony, which caused an immense rush of population to that 
 part of the country, and which have been the source of con- 
 siderable wealth to many. It has been stated, on good authority, 
 that diamonds to the value of at least ;^8, 000,000 have been 
 exported during the past seven years. The copper mines of 
 Namaqualand have also been steadily worked with advantage to 
 the companies engaged for several years past, large quantities of 
 rich ore having been shipped to England at different times. 
 
 The botany of the Cape was carefully studied by the late 
 Dr. Pappe, who embodied his researches in an interesting work 
 entitled " Sylva Capensis," in which the reader may find ample 
 information on this department of science. In zoology much 
 remains to be done, notwithstanding the explorations and exploits 
 of Mr. Gordon Gumming and other celebrated Nimrods of 
 modern times. Many of the wild animals, once so numerous in 
 the Cape Colony, have been exterminated or driven back before 
 the march of civilization. The lion, elephant, camelopard, 
 rhinoceros, eland, and other large animals, are found only in 
 the remote interior ; but the tiger, wolf, jackal, baboon, and 
 other troublesome creatures of smaller size are frequently found 
 sufficiently near the homesteads of the settlers to be exceedingly 
 annoying. Various kinds of deer, differing in size from the 
 gigantic quagga to the delicate little antelope, are frequently 
 met with. Ostriches are very common in the distant deserts, 
 and they have recently been domesticated and reared on 
 colonial farms for the sake of their feathers, which command 
 a good price in European markets. The number of domesti- 
 cated ostriches in the Gape Colony in 1875 was 22,257, 
 and the value of the feathers exported was ;^35o,ooo. Smaller 
 birds are to be seen almost everywhere in great variety, 
 from the majestic eagle to the beautiful little humming-bird ; 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 241 
 
 whilst reptiles and insects abound in varieties almost innu- 
 merable. 
 
 The climate of Southern Africa varies considerably in different 
 localities, but upon the whole it may be said to be generally 
 healthy. In confidently making this statement we would not 
 have the reader to conclude that it is a perfect paradise, but 
 merely that it is superior to many other semi-tropical countries. 
 There are numerous drawbacks to health and comfort even in 
 the Cape Colony. The heat of summer is frequently oppressive, 
 and the storms of winter are often violent and destructive. 
 We have seen half a dozen splendid vessels driven on shore in 
 Table Bay, in the course of a few hours, by the violence of the 
 gale from the north-west. The south-east winds, which prevail 
 in the summer season, have no doubt a beneficial effect, in a 
 sanitary point of view ; but they are, nevertheless, a source of 
 great inconvenience and discomfort to the inhabitants during 
 their continuance. Such is the violence with which they some- 
 times blow, that travelling becomes not only difficult but even 
 dangerous. Carriages are occasionally upset on the roads, 
 communication by boats with the shipping in the bay is inter- 
 rupted, and dense clouds of dust are whirled about in every 
 direction, the red particles of which find their way into every 
 house and into every crevice and corner, to the great annoyance 
 of the inmates. 
 
 The commencement of a violent " south-ea«ter "' in the 
 neighbourhood of the Cape is accompanied by a singular 
 phenomenon. A large white cloud gathers around the top 
 of Table Mountain. This is familiarly known by the people 
 as the " table-cloth " ; and when it spreads its ample folds 
 over the rocky height, every one looks out for the coming 
 gale, which never fails to set in from the south-east. This un- 
 pleasant wind sometimes continues to blow for a week or ten 
 days without intermission ; and during the whole time the white 
 cloud may be seen hovering around the summit of the mountain. 
 
 Frost and snow are never known in the immediate vicinity of 
 the Cape. It is only on the high lands of the interior that 
 
 16 
 
242 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 the ground occasionally becomes covered with a white carpet 
 in July or August, the coldest months of winter ; and even 
 then it soon disappears. On the tops of the highest moun- 
 tains the snow sometimes remains a little longer ; but there 
 also it is soon dissipated by the powerful rays of the sun, 
 and the cold is never intense or of long duration. There are, 
 however, frequent and sudden changes in the temperature 
 of the atmosphere, to which may be attributed the numerous 
 ailments of a rheumatic type, which are so prevalent among 
 all classes of the people. Cases of pulmonary consumption 
 are very rare, and the climate has been found favourable to 
 persons of weak chests, when they have availed themselves of 
 it before the fatal disease had become actually developed. 
 
 Native Tribes and Settlers. 
 
 Southern Africa is inhabited by people originally belonging 
 to various nations and tribes, of different shades of complexion, 
 and speaking different languages. Some of these may be re- 
 garded as aborigines, properly so called, whilst others have 
 come from distant regions, settled in the country, and adopted 
 it as their home. 
 
 The real aborigines of the Cape of Good Hope are undoubt- 
 edly the deeply degraded race called Hottoitots, whose origin 
 and early history are involved in much obscurity. Some 
 African travellers and ethnologists have expressed the opinion 
 that, from the resemblance of this singular section of the 
 human race, in complexion and features, to the Chinese and the 
 ancient Egyptians, they must all have had one common origin 
 and home; and that the progenitors of the Hottentot race 
 must, at a remote period, have come from the valley of the 
 Nile, and, by degrees, have travelled the whole length of the 
 continent. Be this as it may, there is no doubt but this tribe 
 of Africans, like many others, has undergone considerable 
 change since the country was first visited by Europeans. 
 
 The Hottentots of the Cape are generally short and slender 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 243 
 
 In their persons, of yellowish complexion, with high cheek- 
 bones, short foreheads, and woolly hair, thinly growing in short 
 knobs, and scarcely covering the head. In disposition they 
 are mild and timid ; and, although deeply degraded, they 
 are not by any means so stupid as some have represented 
 them to be. They possess a tolerable share of native talent, 
 but they lack energy to call it into action. They are pro- 
 verbially indolent ; and, in their natural state, eating and 
 sleeping appear to be the objects of their highest ambition. 
 They are, nevertheless, easily trained to any kind of light 
 labour and domestic duties. They make excellent shepherds 
 and house servants, and are very useful to the farmers, 
 amongst whom they chiefly reside. When brought under 
 the influence of religion, they are readily impressed with the 
 truth ; and we have known many of them who have not only 
 spoken the English or Dutch language with tolerable fluency, 
 but have learned to read the Scriptures for themselves, to 
 pray to God, and to worship in His sanctuary, Avith a 
 solemnity and decorum which might put to shame many 
 professing Christians of other lands who live in the habitual 
 neglect of these sacred duties. A few also from among these 
 poor outcasts have been raised to the higher work of teaching 
 and of preaching the Gospel to their fellow-countrymen. 
 
 There are now very few real Hottentots remaining in South 
 Africa. They have, to a considerable extent, become amalga- 
 mated with other native hordes, or with the descendants of the 
 original Dutch settlers, and form distinct classes of people yet 
 to be noticed. The few who still continue unmixed with other 
 tribes are to be found in small detached settlements, far from 
 the abodes of civilized men, at the respective mission stations, 
 or in the service of the Dutch Boers. Perhaps, properly speak- 
 ing, the wandering tribes of Bushmen, found in some parts of 
 the interior, are almost the only representatives of the original 
 unmixed Hottentot race. These are certainly the most abject 
 and miserable specimens of humanity that we ever beheld in 
 any country. They are extremely diminutive in stature — some 
 
244 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 of them standing not more than three or four feet high — and 
 remarkably thin and haggard in their appearance. They 
 wander about in the desert, destitute of clothing, save a piece 
 of sheepskin thrown round the waist, with their bows slung 
 behind them, and their poisoned arrows stuck in the hair of 
 their heads ; and obtain a miserable subsistence from the 
 uncertain produce of the chase, roots which they dig up from 
 the ground, and the larvae of ants, with an occasional treat of 
 locusts and wild honey. Bushmen never cultivate the ground, 
 nor do they possess cattle, unless we make an exception in 
 some cases where a few goats may be kept by them among 
 the rocks in the wilderness. 
 
 The Hottentot language is a strange gibberish, and very 
 difficult for a European to learn, unless ha is accustomed to 
 hear it spoken from his childhood. Almost all the mono- 
 syllables, and the leading syllables in compound words, are 
 thrown out of the mouth with a sudden retraction of the 
 tongue from the teeth to the palate, and sound not unlike 
 the clucking of a hen with her chickens. These strange clicks 
 are, nevertheless, arranged according to rule, and must occur at 
 the proper place, or the sense of the word is entirely spoiled. 
 Difficult as this language is, it has, notwithstanding, been re- 
 duced to grammatical form by the missionaries, and portions of 
 Scripture have been translated into it ; whilst at the same time 
 the Gospel has been preached to the people in their own tongue. 
 
 The Namaquas, who occupy a large tract of country on the 
 western coast of South Africa, are evidently a branch of the 
 Hottentot family. Having for generations past come in con- 
 tact, and to some extent mixed, with other tribes, they now 
 appear much superior to the parent race from which they have 
 descended. They possess the same complexion, cast of counte- 
 nance, and outline of feature ; but are taller, and more indepen- 
 dent in their bearing. The Little Namaquas resident within 
 the Cape Colony have generally become civilized by the 
 labours of the missionaries. They cultivate the ground, possess 
 herds of cattle, waggons, and horses ; and in the knowledge of 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 245 
 
 letters, and other branches of general information, they have in 
 some instances got in advance of their neig|ibours the Dutch 
 Boers, who have been sadly neglected in their education. In 
 Great Namaqualand, beyond the Orange river, the people are 
 less advanced, inasmuch as they have not been favoured with 
 the same privileges, and occupy a country so sterile that 
 agriculture is almost out of the question. They nevertheless 
 own extensive herds of cattle and waggons, with which they 
 move about from place to place, as the state of the pastures 
 and the seasons require. This interesting people are divided 
 into numerous petty tribes, under the leadership of separate 
 chiefs or captains, who formerly directed and controlled all 
 their movements for the grazing of their cattle, and in the 
 hunting expeditions in which they frequently engaged ; but of 
 late years their influence has been considerably diminished, 
 since they have been taken under British protection, and a 
 government official has been appointed to reside among them 
 for magisterial and other purposes. 
 
 The Korannas, another branch of the Hottentot family, re- 
 semble the Namaquas in the leading features of their character 
 and condition, and therefore do not call for a separate descrip- 
 tion to any great extent. They formerly lived in small detached 
 tribes, under separate petty chiefs, in the same manner as their 
 neighbours ; but have now, like them, been brought under 
 British control, having an appointed government agent resident 
 among them as magistrate, with a salary of ;!^8oo per annum. 
 They nevertheless wander about with their flocks and herds 
 over an extensive tract of country, lying between Griqualand 
 on the east and Namaqualand on the west. It is a very easy 
 matter for these people to remove a town or a village, for they 
 can take to pieces their spiral-shaped huts, made of sticks and 
 mats, in a few minutes, pack them on the backs of their oxen, 
 with their other goods and chattels, and march off to their next 
 encampment, when the pasturage for their cattle fails. Their 
 cultivation is limited almost entirely to the native tobacco plant, 
 with sometimes a little maize, or a few pumpkins and melons ; 
 
246 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 and they subsist chiefly upon the milk of their flocks, with an 
 occasional feast of animal food taken from the fold or procured 
 by the chase. My friend George Thompson, Esq., who travelled 
 among the Korannas several years ago, thus describes a party 
 with whom he met in the wilderness : " They were miserable- 
 looking beings, emaciated and lank, with the withered skin 
 hanging in folds on their sides ; while a belt bound tight round 
 their bodies indicated that they were suffering, like myself, from 
 long privation of food. I attempted to make them understand 
 by signs that I was in want of provisions, and would gladly 
 purchase some ; but they replied, in a language which could 
 not be misunderstood, by shaking their heads and pointing to 
 the girdle of famine tied round their stomachs." 
 
 The Griqiias are a mixed race, of Hottentot descent on the 
 mothers' side, whilst they claim paternal relationship originally 
 with the Dutch Boers. They are a numerous and respectable 
 semi-civilized tribe of natives, and occupied an extensive tract 
 of counti7 along the northern bank of the Orange river, under 
 their own independent chiefs, until their removal farther north, 
 by an arrangement with the British Government a few years ago, 
 to a region known by the strange appellation of " No-man's- 
 land." Under the instructions of the missionaries, the Griquas 
 have risen to a pleasing stale of intelligence and prosperity ; 
 and they cultivate the ground with considerable care and 
 success, many of the leading men among them owning good 
 farms and extensive herds and flocks. A similar class of 
 people are found in various parts of the colony, dispersed 
 among the farmers, and located in the neighbourhood of the 
 respective mission stations, known by the uncouth name of 
 " Bastards," a separate description of whom is unnecessary. 
 
 In addition to the different tribes of people already mentioned 
 as being in some measure of Hottentot descent, we have in the 
 colonial towns and villages a number of coloured persons, many 
 of whom are truly intelligent and respectable. In their dress 
 and manners they imitate to a considerable extent their em- 
 ployers, as do also the Griquas and Bastards. They follow 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 247 
 
 various branches of trade, and are useful members of society. 
 Those who are brought under the influence of rehgion are 
 generally very active in the cause of God, and prove useful 
 members of the respective branches of the Christian Church 
 with which they are identified. 
 
 But the most numerous and powerful race of natives in 
 Southern Africa are the Kaffirs, who are divided into various 
 tribes under paramount and subordinate chiefs, and who differ 
 in many respects from the Hottentots already described. The 
 name " Kaffir " is somewhat vague and indefinite in its signifi- 
 cation. In the abstract it simply means " infidel," or " unbe- 
 liever " ; and in Mohammedan countries it is applied exclusively 
 to all who are not Mussulmans, irrespective of complexion or 
 nationality. Tn relation to Africa, however, the term has become 
 applicable of late years to a race of people inhabiting the south- 
 eastern coast of the great continent. 
 
 Very little is known of the origin and early history of this 
 people. It is generally admitted, however, that the country 
 which they now occupy has not been their home for many 
 generations, and that they must have originally come from the 
 north. They are much superior, in their personal appearance 
 and in their mental qualities, to most of the other African tribes. 
 They are thus described by the traveller Barrow, who had much 
 intercourse with them : " There is perhaps not any nation under 
 heaven that can produce so fine a race of men as the Kaffirs. 
 They are tall, stout, muscular, well-made, elegant figures. Their 
 countenance is ever indicative of cheerfulness and contentment. 
 Their skin, which verges towards black, and their short curly 
 hair, are rubbed over with a solution of red ochre, which pro- 
 duces an appearance far from disagreeable." The persons of 
 the women are not so handsome. Accustomed to field labour 
 as well as to domestic drudgery, the females are masculine and 
 robust in their appearance, and generally of short stature as 
 compared with the men. The colour of their eyes is sparkling 
 jet, whilst their teeth are pearly white and remarkably regular. 
 Although the Kaffir is generally of similar complexion to the 
 
248 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 negro, he has neither the thick lips nor flat nose which distin- 
 guish the inhabitants of the higher regions of the continent. 
 
 A carosse, or mantle of tanned skins, is the chief article of 
 dress used by both sexes among the Kaffirs. That of the females 
 is distinguished by a thong of leather suspended from the 
 shoulder, and loaded with ornaments of various kinds. In 
 addition to the carosse, the females wear a kind of petticoat 
 made of leather, and a small apron fringed with beads. Indeed, 
 in common with their sisters of other lands, they are passionately 
 fond of ornaments of all kinds, and we have seen them literally 
 loaded with beads of various sizes and colours. They also use 
 buttons, buckles, iron and copper rings, and other trinkets, for 
 the same purpose. The Kaffir chief wears a carosse of tiger or 
 leopard skin, a kind of garb which no person of inferior rank 
 is allowed to assume. In addition to this mark of royalty he 
 carries, or has carried before him by a person appointed for 
 the purpose, an elephant's tail, which is equivalent to the royal 
 sceptre in more civilised countries. Like most of the other 
 natives of Southern Africa, the Kaffirs live in huts formed of 
 sticks bent into a spherical shape and covered with rush matting, 
 and resembling in appearance, when finislied, huge beehives. 
 These are easily taken down and removed when there is occa- 
 sion for a kraal to change its locality. 
 
 As they occupy a country with a soil capable of cultivation, 
 the Kaffirs pay more attention to agricultural pursuits than 
 many other African tribes. Whilst the men and boys are 
 engaged in attending to the cattle, the women and girls build 
 the huts, cultivate the ground, manufacture earthen pots, and 
 construct baskets of the Cyprus grass, in which they keep their 
 milk and other commodities. They plant a species of millet 
 known as Kaffir corn ; also maize, kidney beans, pumpkins, 
 Indian corn, water melons, and a few other simple esculents. 
 The native method of preparing the ground for seed by the use 
 of a wooden hoe was in former times extremely rude and simple, 
 but of late years many improvements have been introduced by 
 the missionaries. When they first beheld the plough in opera- 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 249 
 
 tion, they gazed at each other with blank astonishment. At length 
 an old chief, recovering from his amazement, broke the silence 
 by exclaiming with delight — " See how the thing tears up the 
 ground with its iron mouth: it is of more value than five wives !" 
 
 The food of the Kaffirs, and their mode of living, are very 
 simple. They only take two meals a day, one in the forenoon 
 and the other in the evening. These consist chiefly of boiled 
 corn and milk, with slight modifications according to circum- 
 stances. They seldom eat animal food, except on the occasion 
 of great festivals ; then they consume an enormous quantity, 
 and abandon themselves to a life of dissipation for several days 
 together. Kaffir beer is made with an infusion of millet which 
 has undergone a regular process of drying, grinding, boiling, 
 and fermentation, somewhat after the plan of preparing malt in 
 civilised countries, and is very intoxicating. This was their 
 ]jrincipal drink at their feasts till they became acquainted with 
 the white man's more potent " fire-water," but alas ! now brandy 
 is frequently resorted to. Tobacco and snuff are in high repute ; 
 the former they smoke out of highly-finished wooden pipes, and 
 the latter they convey to their distended nostrils, not with the 
 finger and thumb, which they would consider quite vulgar, but 
 with small iron or ivory spoons, which they carry stuck in their 
 hair for the purpose. 
 
 Those who have been most intimately acquainted with the 
 various Kaffir tribes have not discovered among them any traces 
 of a religious system, properly so called, either idolatrous or 
 otherwise, or any practices deserving of the name of religious 
 rites and ceremonies. The nearest approach to it is the habit 
 of each person throwing a stone to certain heaps which they 
 pass by the wayside when on a journey ; but this appears to be 
 done either in memory of the dead, whom they suppose to be 
 buried there, or with a superstitious notion of securing safety 
 while travelling. Circumcision is universally practised by the 
 Kaffirs, but no religious idea appears to be associated with the 
 ceremony. They have a vague notion of a Supreme Being, 
 whom they call Uhlanga or Utixo, and of a future state of 
 
250 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 existence ; but they seem to have no idea of rewards or punish- 
 ments. They believe in witchcraft, and the rain-makers and 
 witch-doctors drive a very profitable trade among their deluded 
 fellow-countrymen. Some of the cruelties practised in connec- 
 tion with " smelling out " and punishing the suspected witch are 
 awful to contemplate, often resulting in the innocent suffering. 
 
 This brief description of the appearance, manners and cus- 
 toms of the Kaffirs, will generally apply to the bold and warlike 
 people who bear that name. But it must be remembered that 
 they exist in a great variety of tribes, under their respective 
 chiefs, scattered over a vast extent of country, although they 
 speak the same language in dialects with shades of difference 
 one from the other. We have already some knowledge of the 
 following tribes — viz., the Amakosa Kaffirs, including the minor 
 tribes of Gaika, Slambie, Gonubi, and some others, living in 
 British Kaffraria ; Amagaleka, beyond the Great Kei ; Ama- 
 tembu, or Tambookies, in Kaffirland proper ; Amaponda, 
 between the Bashu and the Umzimculu ; Amabaxa, north and 
 east of the latter; Amalunga, in Natal, and on the northern 
 border ; Amazulu, or Zulus, east of Natal ; Amazwasi, near 
 Delagoa Bay ; Amatibile, south of the Zambesi, under Moseli- 
 katse ; Amafengu, or Fingoes, once living in a state of slavery 
 among other Kaffir tribes, but freed by the British, and now 
 settled on locations provided for them in the Cape Colony. (The 
 prefix Atna, in Kaffir, signifies " people " or "tribe.") 
 
 In addition to these, there are other tribes of natives in South 
 Africa of kindred character which might come under the general 
 head of Kaffirs, but which, nevertheless, have some shades of 
 difference, and consequently require a brief separate notice. 
 We allude to the tribes which speak the Sechuana language, 
 which differs considerably from the Kaffir proper, although it 
 may perhaps be traced to the same origin. This class includes 
 the Bastitus, north-west of the Maluti mountains ; the Bechuanas, 
 north of the Orange river ; and the Batelaps, Bamungwatas, 
 Bakweins, Makolola, etc., north and west of the Vaal and Orange 
 rivers. The most intelligent and powerful of these tribes in the 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 neighbourhood of the Cape Colony is that of the Easutus, who 
 prospered greatly under their late paramount chief Moshesh. 
 By means of the instructions and fostering care of the mission- 
 aries, these people have made considerable progress in the arts 
 of civilized life, as well as in religious knowledge ; and the old 
 chief himself was a remarkable instance of native talent, 
 shrewdness and sagacity, although he never formally embraced 
 Christianity. The Basutus have recently been taken under the 
 protection of the British Government, and bid fair to show to 
 the world what a tribe of Africans can do in the way of self- 
 government and progress, when they have proper inducements 
 to exert themselves. 
 
 The Damaras a.nd\Ova>npos, to the north of Great Namaqua- 
 land, form another branch of this extensive family of South 
 African tribes. These people speak a language somewhat 
 different to those already mentioned, and yet it is no doubt 
 traceable to the same source. 
 
 Many of the native tribes of Southern Africa already mentioned 
 are of jet black complexion ; and some of them, as the Damaras 
 for instance, whose home is in the far north, possess other 
 features which distinguish the negro character, who nevertheless, 
 by affinity of language and other peculiarities, seem to claim 
 kindred with the Kaffir race. A few individuals from these 
 remote regions find their way to the Cape Colony in the service 
 of African traders, and never return. But in addition to these 
 there are a considerable number of real negroes, the descendants 
 of those at the Cape who have been rescued from slavers by 
 British men-of-war, whilst cruising chiefly off the eastern coast 
 in the Mozambique Channel. These liberated Africans have 
 been brought to the colony at different times, and have found 
 employment as domestic servants, fishermen, and field labourers, 
 in which capacities they have proved very useful to the com- 
 munity. They are now found dispersed over various parts of 
 the country, and many of them have been brought under 
 religious influences, and have become sober and industrious 
 citizens. 
 
252 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 In several of the towns and villages in the neighbourhood 
 of the Cape there is also a numerous class of coloured people 
 called Alalays, which deserves a passing notice. Their origin 
 is to be traced to an early period of the possession of the 
 Cape Colony by the Dutch. The Cape being a convenient 
 place of call in voyages between Europe and India, a few 
 Dutch settlers arrived there from Batavia as early as 1652, 
 bringing their Malay servants with them. Slavery had existed 
 for some time previously in Java ; but it is said that most of 
 the natives of the east who were thus brought to South Africa 
 in the first instance came as free servants, and were treacherously 
 registered as slaves on their arrival at the Cape, to their great 
 consternation. Be this as it may, there is no doubt but the 
 number of Malays was subsequently increased by additional 
 importations, at different times and under various circumstances. 
 Government documents of the date of 17 10 record the intro- 
 duction of convicts from Java and Ceylon ; and a number of 
 names are given of persons under the sentence of banishment 
 for their offences, some of whom were afterwards pardoned, and 
 intermixed with this class of the inhabitants. Again, in 1737 
 and in 1749, a number of Malays of distinction were sentenced 
 to exile, and brought from Java to the Cape Colony as state 
 prisoners, who on being set at liberty mixed with their fellow- 
 countrymen as others had done before them. 
 
 From these sources, with the occasional arrival of Malay 
 slaves with their Dutch masters from the east, the present race 
 of Malays has sprung ; and being all rigid Mohammedans, 
 they have clung together, intermarried with each other, and 
 now form a distinct class of people, notwithstanding the shades 
 of difference in their complexion, social position and national 
 origin. A large portion of them were in a state of bondage, in 
 common with other black and coloured inhabitants of the Cape 
 Colony, till the general emancipation throughout the British 
 empire in 1838, when they were all made free. A very few of 
 the modern Malays are the children of Java-born parents, the 
 greater portion of them having descended from parents born 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 253 
 
 in the colony. There are a few families who pride themselves 
 on being Malay-Arabian in descent, whilst several more are 
 known to be the immediate offspring of female slaves and their 
 Dutch masters. 
 
 In personal appearance the Cape Malays differ from any 
 other class of the inhabitants. They are generally of middle 
 stature, and of slight but sinewy frame ; their eyes are small 
 and sparkling ; their hair black and silky ; their features are 
 somewhat compressed, but expressive ; whilst the face is 
 slightly elongated and oval-shaped. The complexion varies 
 from a yellow or light brown to a deep olive. The men cut 
 close the hair of the head, but allow the moustache and 
 beard to grow, trimming the latter into a peculiar peaked 
 form. The head-dress of the Malay man is a small closely- 
 tied turban of crimson cloth, sometimes surmounted with a 
 broad-brimmed, conical-shaped straw or palm-leaf hat ; his 
 other covering consists of a brilliant neck-scarf, a vest of gay 
 colours, a long jacket and wide trousers, with high-heeled 
 clogs or sandals. Some of the priests, and all who have 
 achieved a pilgrimage to Mecca, assume the title of haji, and 
 afTect a complete Oriental dress of Cashmere shawls, massy 
 turbans, and long flowing robes of printed cotton or silk. 
 
 The Malay women wear their hair in tresses, which are long, 
 black, and glossy, brushed back from the temples, and fastened 
 behind the head with a large gold or silver bodkin. Their 
 dress, which on gala days is of silk or other expensive material 
 (but ordinarily of cotton), differs from that of European females 
 in having a short body or spencer of a different colour from 
 the wide flowing skirt to which it is attached. The Malay 
 ladies never wear bonnets, hats, or other covering for the 
 head, nor does a vestige of the Eastern custom of veiling remain 
 with them. They generally dispense with stockings; but on 
 their feet they wear ornamental sandals. In the choice of 
 colours and arrangement they often display considerable taste 
 and appreciation of effect, their well-chosen and somewhat 
 showy attire adding a charm to their personal graces. Their 
 
254 Africa: Past and Prezent. 
 
 figures are generally good, and their features not devoid of 
 comeliness. 
 
 The food of the Malays consists chiefly of fish and rice, but 
 occasionally of flesh-meat and different kinds of vegetables. 
 Of pork, however, they dare not partake, nor yet of any animal 
 which has not been killed by a priest, who in slaughtering 
 performs a certain ceremony which is considered of great 
 importance by the people. Every butcher in Cape Town is 
 obliged to keep a Malay priest in his pay, who comes daily to 
 the shambles to attend to this duty, or he would not be able 
 to sell any meat to this class of the community. 
 
 As no distinction is made between this and other classes of 
 coloured persons when the census is taken, we cannot state the 
 exact number of Malays who are now resident in the Cape 
 Colony ; but from a careful calculation we estimate them at 
 10,000. About 7000 of them are found in Cape Town and 
 neighbourhood, and the remainder are scattered abroad in the 
 different towns and villages of the Western Province. The 
 Malays are industrious and thrifty in their habits ; and many 
 of them have acquired a considerable amount of property 
 by dint of persevering efforts. They make good mechanics, 
 coachmen, grooms, gardeners, and fishermen ; and we have 
 generally found them civil and respectful when in our employ. 
 
 Although strict Mohammedans, polygamy is not generally 
 practised among the Malays, as they conform to British law 
 without difficulty. They moreover abstain from the use of 
 wine and spirituous liquors; but are fond of trips of pleasure 
 into the country, and it is a pleasant sight on a Monday 
 morning to see waggon-loads of men, women and children 
 driving off for a holiday. In Cape Town, Clarmont, and some 
 other places, Mohammedan mosques have been erected, where 
 the people assemble for service at stated periods in considerable 
 numbers. The priests who officiate on these occasions are 
 generally more or less acquainted with Arabic, and they chant 
 their prayers and portions of the Koran in that language with 
 considerable fluency. They are very far from being united in 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 255 
 
 their views and efforts, however, being divided into no less than 
 five different sects, the members of which regard each other 
 with feelings of bitter jealousy. With a view to unite and 
 further instruct the Mohammedans of Southern Africa in the 
 doctrines of Islamism, the Ottoman Government sent out, a 
 few years ago, a distinguished Effendi from Constantinople, 
 named Abu Beker ; but his mission has hitherto been appa- 
 rently fruitless, several of the priests resisting his authority with 
 the utmost persistency, even to the extent of actions at law. 
 
 It has often been matter of regret to strangers visiting the 
 Cape, to see so little direct effort put forth by Christian minis- 
 ters and people for the conversion of the Malays to the faith of 
 the Gospel ; but the fact is that far more is being done in this 
 way than many are aware of. Distinct and special missions 
 have repeatedly been organized for their special benefit ; but 
 they have invariably been met with the most determined 
 opposition, both by priests and people, till they have been 
 ne;essarily relinquished. Several of the missionaries and 
 philanthropists of the Cape have come to the conclusion, after 
 many years' experience, that the best means of benefiting the 
 Malays, and of ultimately winning them over to the faith and 
 practice of Christianity, are those which are most private, 
 silent, and quiet in their operation, as mission schools, pastoral 
 visitation. Christian kindness, incidental conversation, tract 
 distribution, and holy living. These means we have known 
 to be very beneficial, and we have witnessed some interesting 
 conversions from the ranks of the false prophet to the service 
 of the Redeemer. 
 
 We now come to notice that portion of the population of 
 South Africa which is of fairer complexion, and which may be 
 classed under the general designation of European settlers. 
 The first class of " pale-faced strangers " who visited the 
 country for the purpose of colonization was the Dutch. The 
 Portuguese had been there before, but had soon taken their 
 departure. About the middle of the sixteenth century the 
 Dutch took formal possession of the country, from which period, 
 
256 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 notwithstanding the changes which have taken place in the 
 form of government, they have been the most numerous class 
 of European colonists. They are to be found in almost every 
 part of Southern Africa ; but more especially in the Transvaal, 
 the Orange Free State, and in the Western Province of the Cape 
 Colony, where their language prevails to a considerable extent 
 among all classes of the community. 
 
 The favourite occupation of the Dutch settlers is farming ; 
 and many of them having obtained grants of extensive tracts 
 of land at an early period and at a trifling cost, they have 
 become quite wealthy, and live in the midst of plenty after 
 their rude fashion. The Dutch " Boers," as the farmers are 
 invariably called, are remarkable for their hospitality to stran- 
 gers, if they are favourably impressed with their character and 
 appearance and the object of their first visit. In order to 
 arrive at a right conclusion on these points, they scan the 
 traveller with a keen eye as he approaches their dwellings ; 
 and, before he has time to alight from his horse or vehicle, 
 the patriarch of the family generally proposes to him three 
 important questions at one breath, which he is expected to 
 answer without equivocation : namely, " Wie ben u ? " " IVaar 
 kom u van daan ? " " Waar ga 7i ? " (That is, in plain English, 
 "Who are you?" "Where do you come from?" "Where 
 are you going?") If the answers to these inquiries are satis- 
 factory, the farmer says, ^'■Kom binnen," — that is, " Come in " — 
 and from henceforth the traveller is heartily welcome to the 
 hospitality of the house during his stay. Besides the Boers 
 who reside in the interior, and in the rural districts, there are 
 a number of Dutch gentlemen to be found in the towns and 
 villages of the Cape Colony, who occupy prominent positions 
 as ministers, physicians, lawyers, government officials, and 
 merchants; and our happy social intercourse with many of them 
 is remembered with pleasure. 
 
 Since the Cape Colony became a permanent appendage to 
 the British Crown, at an early period of the present century, 
 the number of English settlers has been every year increasing ; 
 
Soitthern Africa. 
 
 257 
 
 but the largest accession to this class of colonists was made in 
 1820, when several thousands arrived in the course of a few 
 months, and were located in Albany and other parts of the 
 Eastern Province. That large importation of the British 
 element, with subsequent emigration on a smaller and more 
 gradual scale, has rendered South-Eastern Africa more English 
 in its character than any other portion of the great continent. 
 In the stores of Port Elizabeth and Graham's Town, and on 
 many^of the farms in the rural districts of the eastern frontier, 
 the English traveller might almost imagine himself back again 
 in his own country ; and of late years the English element in 
 Cape Town and its vicinity has rapidly increased, so that every- 
 where the English language is now spoken, and our country- 
 men are found occupying every possible position in the social 
 scale, from the governor of the colony to the humblest artisan. 
 
 There are also at the Cape, as in most of the colonies of the 
 British empire, a considerable number of Scotch and Irish 
 settlers located in different parts of the country, who are 
 noted for their industrious and thrifty habits. The largest 
 number of either of these classes of colonists which has ever 
 arrived at one time was the Scottish party of British settlers, 
 who came out in 1820, under the leadership of Mr. Pringle, 
 the celebrated South African poet. These settled at a place 
 called Glen Lyden ; and although their descendants became 
 scattered in after years, they and their enterprising countrymen 
 who have emigrated at different times form an important element 
 in the European community in the Cape Colony. 
 
 In addition to the various classes already mentioned, we 
 have in South Africa a considerable number of French and 
 Germans, and other persons belonging to different continental 
 nations, a particular description of whom is not necessary. At 
 an early period of the history of the Cape Colony, on the 
 revocation of the Edict of Nantes, a number of French 
 Protestant refugees emigrated to South Africa, that they might 
 enjoy the blessing of religious liberty, of which they had been 
 deprived in their own country. These were located by the 
 
 1-7 
 
Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Dutch government in a fertile valley called Fj-ansche Hoek, or 
 " French Corner," a spot which we have visited with pleasure, 
 and which is rendered increasingly interesting by one of the 
 beautiful sonnets of the poet Pringle. These early French 
 settlers devoted themselves to the cultivation of the vine, 
 for which the soil and climate were found congenial. Their 
 descendants have to a considerable extent become amalgamated 
 with the Dutch portion of the population ; but the French 
 element of society has been replenished from time to time by 
 more recent arrivals from Europe. 
 
 At the close of the Crimean war, when the German legions 
 were disbanded, a large number of the soldiers accepted an 
 offer which was made to them of a free passage to South 
 Africa, and grants of land on the eastern frontier of the Cape 
 Colony, to be held on condition of certain military service to 
 be rendered, when necessary, for the defence of the country. 
 Although the settlement of these Germans does not appear to 
 have answered its intended purpose, the people soon becoming 
 scattered, it nevertheless added largely to this particular class 
 of the European population, and furnished a number of in- 
 dustrious artisans, at a time when they were much required. 
 
 The character, extent, and comparative progress of the 
 population in the British colonies in Southern Africa, with the 
 gradual increase in the quantity of stock and wheat produced, 
 may be seen at once from the following table, embodying the 
 returns of the last census : — 
 
 PROGRESS OF POPULATION, ETC., IN BRITISH SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 Date. 
 
 Whites. 
 
 Natives. 
 
 Sheep. 
 
 Cattle. 
 
 Bushels of 
 Wheat 
 
 1710 
 
 2,CX30 
 
 3,000 
 
 130,000 
 
 20,000 
 
 60,000 
 
 1769 
 
 10,000 
 
 10,000 
 
 245,000 
 
 38,000 
 
 525,000 
 
 1798 
 
 22,000 
 
 40,000 
 
 1,500,000 
 
 251,000 
 
 600,000 
 
 1820 
 
 47,000 
 
 63,000 
 
 2,300,000 
 
 320,000 
 
 620,000 
 
 1846 
 
 70,000 
 
 108,000 
 
 4,500,000 
 
 470,000 
 
 650,000 
 
 1865 
 
 197,000 
 
 470,000 
 
 9,800,000 
 
 670,000 
 
 1,400,000 
 
 1875 
 
 300,000 
 
 I,3DO,O0O 
 
 11,000,000 
 
 1,100.000 
 
 1,800,000 
 
Souihern Africa. 
 
 259 
 
 In studying these statistics, it must be remembered that, 
 from time to time, the colonial boundaries were extended, — 
 a circumstance which will account for the rapid increase in 
 number of the natives enumerated as compared with the white 
 population. 
 
 European Colonization. 
 
 The history of European colonization in various parts of the 
 world presents to our view many pages stained with crime, 
 treachery, and blood ; and over their mournful records the 
 genuine philanthropist may well shed tears of sorrow. When 
 a country is but sparsely populated, and tens of thousands 
 of acres of land are seen lying waste, which are never likely to 
 be occupied by the thinly-scattered inhabitants ; and when the 
 natives are known to be indolent in their habits, and averse to 
 agriculture, it is not surprising that more energetic and indus- 
 trious races of men, who are too much crowded in their own 
 country, should form schemes of emigration with a view to 
 subdue, possess, and bring the land under profitable cultiva- 
 tion. And if this were done in the spirit of justice, truth, and 
 Christian kindness to the aborigines, no one need complain ; 
 but, alas for our fellow-countrymen ! this has not always been 
 the case. 
 
 The colonization of South Africa forms no exception, in our 
 opinion, to the general lack of humane and charitable treatment 
 of the native tribes by European settlers, over which we have 
 so frequently had occasion to mourn. And yet we are free to 
 admit that we have no sympathy with those who would condemn 
 all the colonists as equally guilty of cruelty to the natives. We 
 have met with many noble exceptions, and can call to mind 
 with pleasure delightful instances of genuine Christian kindness 
 towards the dark aborigines. 
 
 A correct idea of the past and present state of Southern 
 Africa, and of the circumstances under which some portions of 
 it have been colonized by Europeans, together with what has 
 been done to civilize and evangelize the native races, \vill best 
 
26o Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 appear from a succinct account of the respective colonies, 
 l)rovinces, districts, settlements, and missions, into which the 
 country has been divided, and on which our countrymen have 
 operated for weal or for woe for many years past. 
 
 In taking a " bird's-eye view " of this interesting portion of 
 the British empire, we must look at the Cape Colony, British 
 Kaffraria, the Colony of Natal, the Orange Free State, the 
 Transvaal and neighbouring territories, including Basutuland, 
 Griqualand, Bechuanaland, Kaffirland, Zululand, Bushmanland, 
 Namaqualand, Damaraland, Ovampoland, and the regions be- 
 yond. After the sketches we have given of the people them- 
 selves, our account of the countries they occupy, and the means 
 which have been employed to promote their improvement, 
 must necessarily be brief and fragmentary. 
 
 The Cape Colony — Western Province. 
 
 The great promontory of Southern Africa was discovered by 
 the Portuguese navigator, Bartholomew Diaz, in the year 1493 ; 
 who, in consequence of the boisterous weather which he 
 experienced when approaching it, called it Cava Tormentoso, or 
 "The Cape of Storms but Emanuel, king of Portugal, on the 
 return of Diaz, changed its name to that of" The Cape of Good 
 Hope," from the hope he entertained of finding a passage beyond 
 it to India. In this he was not disappointed, for Vasco Gama, 
 having doubled this cape in 1497, proceeded to India, and 
 landed at Calicut in the month of May the following year. 
 The Cape of Good Hope was not colonized by the Portuguese, 
 however, but by the Dutch, who landed and formed a settle- 
 ment there in 1650. For many years the colony was very 
 circumscribed in its area, extending only to the foot of Table 
 Mountain and to Salt River, scarcely a mile from the fort or 
 castle which they built on the shores of Table Bay, when they 
 laid the foundation of Cape Town, the present capital of Cape 
 Colony. 
 
 The country beyond these narrow limits was inhabited by the 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 native Hottentots, who viewed with jealousy and distrust the 
 arrival of the " pale-faced strangers " ; and many touching 
 stories are told of the early adventures of both parties. It is 
 said that soon after the first Portuguese ship that visited the 
 Cape anchored in Table Bay, near Robin Island, a number of 
 sailors went on shore, when a disturbance with the natives was 
 occasioned by the following little incident : — One of the sailors 
 having a pair of bright buckles on his shoes, which attracted 
 the attention of the savages, and he being unwilling to part 
 with them, some misunderstanding arose, which ended in the 
 massacre of seventy-five persons. Some time afterwards a 
 party of Portuguese landed at the Cape again ; and knowing 
 that the natives were fond of bright and glittering articles of 
 metal, they took with them a bright cannon as a present, as 
 they said, to the paramount chief To the cannon, which was 
 loaded with musket balls, some long ropes were attached, that 
 the Hottentots might drag it away to their place of residence 
 behind Table Mountain. Not aware that this shining object was 
 an engine of destruction, they readily took hold of the ropes, 
 and when on a line with its open mouth, a person previously 
 appointed for the purpose put the match to the priming, when 
 an explosion instantly took place, and the bullets killed most 
 of the simple natives in front of the cannon. Those who 
 escaped death fled to the mountains to await an opportunity 
 for revenge. 
 
 In the year 1652, the Dutch East India Company took 
 formal possession of the Cape, the first governor being the 
 humane and pious Jan Van Riebeek, who appears to have 
 commenced every enterprise upon which he entered in the 
 name of God, and with the offering up of prayer for the Divine 
 blessing. After a successful career of ten years he died, and 
 was succeeded by others, who failed to tread in his steps. 
 Had every government official and every European colonist 
 arriving at the Cape of Good Hope been like Van Riebeek, 
 the history of the colony would have been more creditable 
 than it really is. During the century and a half that the 
 
262 
 
 Africa : Past and Pixsent. 
 
 Cape Colony remained in the hands of the Dutch it advanced 
 considerably in population and material prosperity, and divine 
 worship was regularly maintained for the benefit of the settlers, 
 but scarcely anything was done for the spiritual enlightenment 
 of the natives. 
 
 In the year 1795 the Cape of Good Hope was captured by 
 the English, under Sir James Craig ; and in the month of 
 May, 1797, Lord Macartney arrived there to take charge of the 
 government. In 1802 the colony was restored to the Dutch 
 by the peace of Amiens ; but on the breaking out of war again 
 it was retaken by the British in 1806, under Sir David Baird, 
 since which period it has remained in our possession. For 
 many years the Cape of Good Hope was what is technically 
 called a Crown Colony, the government being administered by 
 a governor appointed by Imperial authority, assisted by a 
 Council Board, the members of which were either government 
 officers or gentlemen selected by the governor himself for the 
 honourable position. But in 1856 the colony had so far 
 advanced in general intelligence, that it was considered ripe 
 for representative institutions and self-government ; and a con- 
 stitution was accordingly granted by the British Crown and 
 Parliament, providing for a Legislative Council and House of 
 Assembly somewhat after the plan of the Upper and Lower 
 Houses of Parliament in England ; only at the Cape the 
 members of both houses are elected by the colonists on the 
 principle of a moderate and liberal franchise. A few years 
 afterwards complete responsible government was established 
 in the Cape Colony, ministers of state for different departments 
 being appointed, and liable to be in or out of office in the usual 
 way, according to circumstances, the governor still holding his 
 office by imperial authority, as representative of the king or 
 queen of England. 
 
 Under British rule the Cape Colony has gradually but 
 rapidly advanced in every department, and its commercial and 
 mercantile interests have prospered in a very remarkable 
 manner. The population has greatly increased by means of 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 265 
 
 emigration and otherwise ; towns and villages have sprung up 
 in every direction ; railways have been built ; harbour improve- 
 ments have been promoted ; cultivation has been extended, 
 and every branch of trade, commerce, and industry has 
 progressed from year to year to a very encouraging extent, 
 notwithstanding the occasional drawbacks which have been 
 experienced from periodical droughts, native wars, and other 
 untoward events. The colony as a whole now assumes a very 
 prosperous and promising aspect, and will compare favourably 
 with any other appendage of the British Crown. This will 
 more fully appear by a brief description and a cursory topo- 
 graphical survey of its extensive area, including the Eastern and 
 Western Provinces, and the districts into which they are divided 
 for electoral, judicial, and fiscal purposes, with their respective 
 towns and villages. 
 
 On approaching the Cape of Good Hope from Europe, 
 the first thing that strikes the eye is the dim outline of Table 
 Mountain, which rears its lofty head to the height of 3,582 
 feet above the level of the sea ; with the minor elevations of 
 the Devil's Peak, the Lion's Head, the Lion's Rump, and 
 Green Point in the distance. On entering Table Bay, Cape 
 Town is distinctly seen, with its whitewashed houses glittering 
 in the sunlight, and stretching along the shore to the distance 
 of a mile or more, with vessels of various kinds anchored before 
 it, and the almost perpendicular granite front of the mountain 
 rising behind. This was formerly regarded as a very insecure 
 port for ships to visit, and during the winter months, when 
 heavy gales set in with fearful violence from the open sea, we 
 have known scores of vessels driven on shore and completely 
 wrecked ; but since the construction of splendid docks, and 
 the erection of an extensive breakwater of solid masonry, it is 
 found to be a desirable harbour of refuge, and a place where 
 repairs to shipping of all kinds can be speedily and efficiently 
 executed. In the centre of Table Bay, at a distance of eight 
 miles from the shore, is seen Robin Island, on which are 
 located hospitals and asylums for lepers, lunatics, and the 
 
264 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 chronic sick, with other institutions which are thought to be 
 best away from the mainland. 
 
 Cape Town, the capital of the Western Province, and the 
 metropolis of the colony, is a large and handsome city, with a 
 population of about 35,000. The streets are laid out at right 
 angles, and many of the houses are of a substantial and elegant 
 character. Some of the stores, or shops, and warehouses, with 
 their splendid plate-glass windows and highly-ornamented 
 fronts, would be no discredit to any city in Europe. The 
 principal public buildings are the Government House, the 
 Houses of Parliament, the Public Library, the Commercial 
 Exchange, the Custom House, Somerset Hospital, two Epis- 
 copal churches, two Wesleyan churches, two Dutch Reformed 
 churches, one Lutheran church, one Roman Catholic church, 
 one Congregational church, one Baptist church, two Moham- 
 medan mosques, and a Jewish synagogue. The city being 
 lighted with gas, and cabs and omnibuses plying in every 
 direction, with now and then the shrill sound of the railway 
 whistle and the loud snorting of the iron horse, as the trains 
 leave for the country, one might fancy one's self in a first-class 
 English town, if it were not for the flat-roofed houses, the 
 lumberly ox-waggons, and the variety of complexions and 
 costumes which meet the eye in every direction and tend to 
 give to the place a foreign aspect. 
 
 On leaving the city, and crossing the dreary sandy Cape 
 Flats, which terminate at False Bay and separate Table Moun- 
 tain with its surroundings from the interior districts, we come 
 to the more fertile regions of Tigerberg and Koeberg, cele- 
 brated for their corn farms, all included in the Cape division 
 of the colony, with the village of D'Urban for their centre. 
 But the towns and villages in the immediate neighbourhood of 
 the capital demand a brief description. 
 
 Mowbray is a pleasant village four miles from Cape Town. 
 It consists of a number of detached cottages and respectable 
 mansions, which are situated on each side of the public road, 
 at considerable and irregular intervals, and separated from each 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 265 
 
 other in some instances by fields, gardens, and vineyards. 
 Rondeboscli may be regarded as a continuation of Mowbray, 
 and consists of dwelling-houses of a similar description to those 
 already mentioned. They are occupied chiefly by Cape Town 
 merchants and government officials, who are glad to escape 
 from the heat and dust of the city to this agreeable locality 
 when they have finished the business of the day. They can now 
 go to and return from their respective offices by rail, which is 
 found to be a great convenience. These villages are favoured 
 with two Episcopal churches, one Dutch Reformed church, one 
 Roman Catholic church, and one Wesleyan church, with a small 
 native Wesleyan chapel and several schools. 
 
 Proceeding along a tolerably good road, each side of which 
 is lined with shady oak and fir trees, with here and there a 
 beautiful mansion embowered in verdant foliage, we come to 
 the rural but straggling village of Claremont, about six miles 
 from Cape Town, in which there are several pleasant dwelling- 
 houses and labourers' cottages, together with an Episcopal 
 church, a Wesleyan chapel, and a Mohammedan mosque. 
 
 Wynberg'va situated about eight miles from the capital, partly 
 behind the spur of Table Mountain, and beyond the scattered 
 hamlet of Newlands. It is a beautiful village, resembling in many 
 respects those already described, and celebrated as a healthy and 
 agreeable place of resort for Indian and other visitors, whose 
 constitutions have been impaired by a lengthened residence in 
 tropical climates. Many merchants and government officers 
 also reside here, the railway affording every facility of travelling 
 to and fro for those whose daily duties call them to the city. 
 
 After leaving Winberg, the road soon becomes more dreary. 
 On the right we have a range of rugged mountains, at the foot 
 of which are situated a few scattered farms, and on the left a 
 vast sandy plain, on which may be seen occasional patches of 
 cultivation, with here and there a poor labourer's cottage. To 
 the right we notice Constantia, a small district studded with 
 smiling vineyards and celebrated for the quality of its wine. 
 After travelling a distance of about fifteen miles from Cape 
 
266 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Town, we reach the seashore at the head of False Bay, on the 
 opposite side of the peninsula. Along this rugged shore, beyond 
 Muzenberg, with the waves dashing up against the rocks, the 
 road leads to Simon's Town, which may be seen in the distance, 
 through Kalk Bay, a straggling marine village which has of 
 late years become a fashionable little watering-place. 
 
 Simon's Toivn is a lively, bustling little place, situated in an 
 amphitheatre of rugged mountains, with very little land avail- 
 able for cultivation in its immediate vicinity, about twenty-two 
 miles from Cape Town. It contains some good buildings, 
 the principal of which are the admiral's mansion, the military 
 barracks, the Episcopal church, the Dutch Reformed church, 
 and the Wesleyan church, the last of which occupies a promi- 
 nent position on an elevated point of land in the upper part of 
 the town, and, with its neat little spire pointing to heaven, may 
 be seen from afar, being a useful landmark for vessels entering 
 the bay. Simon's Town derives its chief importance from its 
 military and naval establishments, including the government 
 dockyards, and from its sheltered bay, which affords a secure 
 harbour for shipping in all weathers. 
 
 Stellenbosch is an ancient and important agricultural town, 
 twenty-six miles from the capital, by road or rail, with a popu- 
 lation of 4000, chiefly Dutch. It is pleasantly situated on the 
 northern bank of Eerst river, at the head of a beautiful and fertile 
 valley. The streets are straight, and intersect each other at 
 right angles. Most of the houses are built after the old Dutch 
 style of architecture, with highly-ornamented gables and thatched 
 roofs ; they are, nevertheless, substantial and respectable in 
 their appearance. A stream of pure water runs along each side 
 of the principal streets, which are also lined with rows of oak 
 trees that afford a refreshing shade in the summer season and 
 add much to the beauty of the place. The principal public 
 buildings of Stellenbosch are the Dutch Reformed church and 
 college, the Episcopal church, the Wesleyan church, and the 
 chapel and schools of the Rhenish Mission. 
 
 Somersd{ West) is situated in the electoral division of Stellen- 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 267 
 
 bosch, at a distance of about thirty miles from Cape Town, on 
 the high road to the eastern frontier. It is an interesting rural 
 village, consisting of a few respectable dwelling-houses and a 
 large number of labourers' cottages connected with the Wesleyan 
 Missionary Institution. The Dutch Reformed church and the 
 Wesleyan church are the only public buildings of any note in 
 the neighbourhood. A number of labourers and fishermen 
 reside at the villages of Sir Lowrfs Pass and the Strand, and 
 the place last named is resorted to by the Dutch farmers and 
 their families, at certain seasons of the year, for the purpose of 
 sea-bathing. The population of these scattered villages and 
 the surrounding farms may amount to about 3000. 
 
 Swellendam is an ancient inland town, founded in 1745, on 
 the high road to the Eastern Province, and about 140 miles 
 from Cape Town. It gives its name to an electoral division, 
 and is a place of considerable importance, being central to a 
 large number of farms occupied chiefly by Dutch Boers. It 
 has a Dutch Reformed church for the masses of the people, a 
 small Episcopal church for the few English residents, and a 
 large public school for the youth of all classes. In this electoral 
 division are situated also the comparatively new village of 
 Robertson, so called in honour of an eminent Dutch Reformed 
 minister of that name, 100 miles from Cape Town ; and 
 Riversdale, a village or hamlet 202 miles from the capital. 
 These are important rural centres of population for a large tract 
 of country lying between the Breade and Gauritz rivers, in 
 which are situated numerous farms producing corn, wine, and 
 wool in large quantities. In the same region are found also 
 the smaller villages of Montague, Ifeidelberg, and Ladysniith, 
 and a mission station called Zoar. At most of these places 
 Dutch Reformed churches have been erected, and small Epis- 
 copal churches have been built also in localities where a few 
 English residents are found, whilst at Robertson a substantial 
 Wesleyan church has been provided for the coloured population 
 and others who have been brought under religious instruction 
 by the missionaries. 
 
268 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Caledon is an interesting and romantic village, noted for its 
 mineral springs, the waters of which are said to be beneficial 
 in cases of rheumatism and ofher ailments. It gives its name 
 to an electoral division of the Western Province of the Cape 
 Colony, and is situated at a distance of eighty miles from the 
 capital. Bredasdorp is a little village in the same neighbour- 
 hood behind the first range of mountains ; and in the same 
 division, in a beautiful valley north of the Zonder-Einde river, 
 at a place called Genadendal (" the vale of grace "), is situated a 
 large and prosperous mission station of the Moravian Society, 
 the first that was formed in South Africa. 
 
 Worcester is an inland town of considerable importance, about 
 eighty miles from the capital of the colony, from which it is 
 approached through a stupendous mountain pass called Bain's 
 Kloof, in honour of the enterprising engineer who constructed 
 the original road. This place is the centre of an extensive and 
 populous district comprised in the electoral division of Worcester, 
 including the rural villages of Tulbagh and Ceris, and the Rhenish 
 mission stations of Saran and Steiiithal. 
 
 The Paarl, at a distance from Cape Town of thirty-eight 
 miles, is a scattered district or hamlet, rather than a village, 
 and together with Wellington, an interesting village at the foot 
 of Bain's Kloof, about seven miles further on, comprises a rich 
 and fruitful district of the Western Province. The whole of 
 this region is exquisitely beautiful. The dwelling-houses stand 
 at a distance from each other, the intervals being occupied with 
 gardens and vineyards, which give to the neighbourhood a 
 charming appearance. The value and importance of this part 
 of the colony has been enhanced of late years by the extension 
 through its centre of the Cape Town and Stellenbosch Railway, 
 giving increased facilities of communication, and affording to 
 the farmers the means of sending their produce to the market 
 with comparatively little trouble or expense. The same privilege 
 will soon be afforded to several other places still more distant, 
 as the extension of the railroad is rapidly advancing towards the 
 Diamond Fields. 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 269 
 
 Mahnshury is a pleasant village, about forty miles from Cape 
 Town, on the direct road to Namaqualand, and gives its name 
 to an electoral division of the colony, comprising a large agri- 
 cultural district, including Zvvartland and Saldanha Bay, and 
 the villages of Picketberg, Hopefield, and Darling. 
 
 Clattwilltatn is the most extensive electoral division in the 
 Western Province of the Cape Colony, as it embraces the whole 
 region of Little Namaqualand as far as the Orange River, in- 
 cluding Calvinia and Spriiigbokfojitein, where important copper 
 mines are worked, together with the missionary institutions of 
 Ebenezer, Khainiesberg, Kojiitnagaas, Kokfontein, Richterfeld, and 
 Wupperthal. The village of Clanwilliam is situated in a romantic 
 valley in the Cedar mountains, at a distance of 150 miles from 
 Cape Town, and is the residence of the civil commissioner, 
 whose jurisdiction extends over the whole of this vast region, 
 comprising a scattered population of various nationalities, com- 
 plexions, and languages, — English, Dutch, Bastards, and Nama- 
 quas, including a small tribe or two of the original Hottentots 
 or Bushmen, recognising their own native chief or leader, and 
 wandering about with their scanty flock along the banks of the 
 Orange River. 
 
 George is also an extensive electoral division, including the 
 scattered village known by the same name, 290 miles from Cape 
 Town, together with Oudtshoorn, Aliwal [South), Blanes, Belvi- 
 dere, Melville, Newhaven, and the Knystia. This vast region 
 consists of a number of fertile valleys lying between the sea- 
 coast on the eastern side of the continent, and the mountain 
 range known as the Great Zwartebergen. In some places the 
 country is densely wooded with valuable timber, whilst in others 
 it abounds with excellent pasture lands and farms, on which are 
 cultivated corn, wine, and other produce on an extensive scale. 
 In this district there are some curious caves, at a place called 
 Congo, which many persons travel far to see. There is also a 
 remarkable long, narrow pass, known as Langekloof, through 
 which the hard road has been constructed which leads to the 
 eastern frontier. This part of the colony is more highly favoured 
 
270 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 than some others in having communication by sea through the 
 small but valuable ports of Mossel Bay, Plattinberg Bay, and 
 the Knysna. 
 
 Beaufort is a considerable village 330 miles from Cape Town, 
 which, together with Victoria ( West), Prince Albert, Fraserberg, 
 and some other scattered villages and hamlets, forms another 
 extensive electoral division, stretching far away towards the 
 Eastern Province, and separated from Clanwilliam and Worcester 
 by the Hartebeest and Dvvyka rivers. This vast region presents 
 several distinct zones or belts of country from south to north, 
 some of which are well adapted for agricultural purposes, and 
 others for sheep-farming and grazing cattle. There is a Dutch 
 Reformed church in the Nieuweld, and in some other places 
 the Dutch farmers are favoured with opportunities of receiving 
 religious instruction from their own ministers ; but the scattered 
 English settlers are only indifferently provided for. There are in 
 this district two Rhenish Mission stations, called Amandelbooin 
 sinA. Schietfontein, intended for the special benefit of the coloured 
 people ; but there is a loud call for much more to be done for 
 the spiritual welfare of all classes of the community. 
 
 Before we proceed in our general survey of the remaining 
 portion of the Cape Colony, it may be as well to glance at the 
 means which have been employed to promote the moral and 
 religious welfare of the inhabitants of the Western Province, the 
 two sections of the country being in many respects so dissimilar 
 from each other. There is no Established Church at the Cape 
 of Good Hope, religious equality being acknowledged and en- 
 joyed to a certain extent by all denominations of Christians. 
 A few years ago certain favoured churches were subsidised by 
 large annual grants from government funds ; but this is altered 
 now, and when the claims of a few reverend incumbents for life 
 have been met, all denominations will literally stand upon the 
 same level, and have to support their own religious institutions 
 by their own voluntary contributions. 
 
 The Dutch Reformed Church being that of the original 
 colonists, it is the strongest religious denomination in the 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 271 
 
 Western Province, and it is numerously represented in most 
 of the towns and villages throughout the country. We have 
 met with many able, earnest, and devoted Christians, both 
 among the ministers and laymen of this Church, with whom 
 we have enjoyed religious fellowship. At the same time the 
 fact must not be concealed, that formerly it was regarded as the 
 Church of the white settlers rather than as that of the coloured 
 people and of the community generally. It was not till the 
 advent of the agents of missionary societies that the Dutch 
 Church awoke to the necessity of doing something for the 
 religious instruction of the coloured classes. Of late years, 
 however, both Dutch ministers and members have nobly re- 
 deemed their character, and in connection with many of their 
 churches a large amount of real missionary work is done. 
 
 Similar remarks would apply to the English or Episcopal 
 Church, as it has existed at the Cape of Good Hope. As the 
 Church most patronized and favoured by government ofificials 
 after the colony passed into the hands of the English, it was in 
 former times the Church of the aristocracy, whilst the poor 
 slaves and free people of colour were totally neglected. But of 
 late years, especially since the appointment of the late devoted 
 Bishop Gray, and the introduction of the episcopal element, it 
 has been very different. A missionary spirit has recently per- 
 vaded every part of the work ; and whilst we mourn over the 
 exclusivism and the ritualistic tendencies which manifest them- 
 selves in many places, we cannot but admire the earnestness 
 and zeal with which Church work is almost ev-erywhere prose- 
 cuted in the Western Province of the Cape Colony. The 
 progress made in the erection of churches and school buildings 
 in the respective towns and villages, and the appointment of 
 ministers and teachers to labour among all classes, with the aid 
 of funds from home, has been truly praiseworthy, notwithstanding 
 the drawbacks to which we have alluded. 
 
 The Lutherans, the Presbyterians, and the Baptists, have 
 each a church and congregation in Cape Town, as have also 
 the " South African Missionary Society," a small organization 
 
2 72 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 formed in 1799 ; but we are not aware that these denominations 
 have established themselves as religious communities in any 
 other part of the province, or that they have made any attempts 
 to propagate the Gospel among the masses of the people. 
 
 It is to the missionary societies of Europe that the Western 
 Province of the Cape Colony is chiefly indebted, in common 
 with other parts of Southern Africa, for Evangelical labours 
 among all classes. The Moravians had the honour of being 
 first in the field, the Rev. George Schmidt, their first missionary, 
 having gone out to the Cape as early as 1737; and notwith- 
 standing many interruptions and hindrances, their earnest, 
 humble, and unassuming labours have been made a blessing 
 to the poor Hottentots and other native tribes among whom 
 their missions have been established. Their first station was 
 Genadendal, about 100 miles from Cape Town; and a large 
 pear tree is still shown, said to have been planted by the 
 honoured missionary just mentioned. Institutions were after- 
 wards established at Groenkloof, Hautkloof, Elim, and other 
 places, which continue in active operation to the present day. 
 A Moravian missionary has also been employed at Robin Island 
 for many years, under the auspices of Government, in ministering 
 to the lepers and other poor sufferers located there. 
 
 The Evangelical French Missionary Society has stations at 
 Wellington and Waggonmakers' Valley ; but the principal field 
 of labour occupied by this useful association is in the interior. 
 The Berlin Missionary Society has also a station at Zoar in 
 the Riversdale district ; but most of its agents are located in 
 Kaffraria and Natal. The Rhenish Missionary Society occupies 
 important stations at Stellenbosch, Worcester, Tulbagh, Sarepta, 
 Steinthal, Savon, Wupperthal, Amendelboom, Schietfontein, 
 and Ebenezer, in the vicinity of the Cape ; and also at Kamaggas, 
 Richerfield, Bethany, Nisbett Bath, Scheppansdorp, Reoboth, 
 Rode Valk, Wesley Vale, Barmen, and other places in Namaqua- 
 land. Some of these stations beyond the Orange river were 
 established and worked for several years by the Wesleyans, but 
 were eventually transferred to the German missionaries, who 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 273 
 
 appeared better able to attend to them, having fewer claims 
 upon their attention in other places. 
 
 The London Missionary Society commenced its labours in 
 South Africa in 1799, and has made its influence to be felt for 
 good in various parts of the country. In addition to the vast 
 fields of labour which it has so long and so usefully cultivated 
 in other parts of the colony and in the distant interior, the 
 following stations are occupied by its agents in the Western 
 Province — viz.. Cape Town, Paarl, Zuurbraak, George, Pacels- 
 dorp, Dysselsdorp, Oudtshoorn, Avontuur, and Matjes Drift. 
 In these and other places the coloured people, for whose benefit 
 the agents of this useful association chiefly labour, have derived 
 much good from their zealous efforts. 
 
 The Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced its labours at 
 the Cape of Good Hope in 1814 by the appointment to Cape 
 Town of the Rev. John M'Kenny. But, strange to say, such 
 was the jealousy of the government authorities at that early 
 period, that the missionary was not allowed to preach, although 
 he produced credentials of the most satisfactory character. 
 After teaching school, and trying to do good in a private way 
 to the utmost of his power for a few months, Mr. M'Kenny 
 was transferred to Ceylon, and the undertaking was relinquished. 
 In 1815 the Rev. Barnabas Shaw was appointed to the Cape, 
 the directors of the Society being unwilling to give up the idea 
 of taking their part in the evangelization of Southern Africa. 
 The same difficulties were at first placed in the way of Mr. 
 Shaw as those which had hindered the labours of his prede- 
 cessor, but he was not thus to be prevented from executing his 
 Divine commission. Having failed to obtain the Governor's 
 permission to exercise his ministry, he took the matter into his 
 own hands, and began to preach without it. This apparent 
 irregularity was overlooked, however, for the time, and perhaps 
 the devoted missionary might have continued his labours among 
 the British soldiers and settlers, to whom his attention was first 
 directed ; but he felt he was called to preach the Gospel to 
 the heathen, and the hindrances in the way of his gaining access 
 
 18 
 
274 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 to the slaves and coloured free people of Cape Town were so 
 numerous that he embraced an opportunity which presented 
 itself, and set out for Namaqualand. 
 
 After travelling for several days towards the distant interior, 
 Mr. Shaw providentially met the chief of the Little Namaquas 
 and a number of his people on their way to the Cape to seek 
 a missionary. Recognizing the hand of God in this striking 
 incident, he readily consented to accompany this party of 
 Africans to their mountain home at Khamiesberg, and proceeded 
 at once to plant the first Wesleyan mission station in South Africa, 
 which he called Lily Fountain. The history of that institution, 
 and of the efforts which were made to raise a tribe of natives 
 from the degradation in which they were sunk, as recorded by 
 the missionary himself in his own touching and simple language, 
 is equal in interest to any romance that was ever written. And 
 the results, as the present writer himself saw them more than 
 half a century after the commencement of the work, were of a 
 most gratifying character. 
 
 A few years later the way was opened for the establishment 
 of mission stations in Capo Town and neighbourhood, and the 
 foundation was laid, broad and deep, of that work which has 
 since assumed such gigantic proportions. In the course of 
 time commodious churches and mission premises were erected, 
 congregations collected, and schools organized, not only at 
 Khamiesberg, and in the capital of the colony, but also at 
 Mowbray, Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, Winberg, Diep 
 River, Simon's Town, Elsjie's River, Somerset West, Strand, 
 Terrington Grove, Robertson, Lady Gray, Stellenbosch, Raithby, 
 and other places. There are now in connection with the 
 respective Wesleyan mission stations in the Western Province 
 of the Cape Colony, ii missionaries, 35 places of worship, 
 1502 church members, 3661 scholars in the mission schools, 
 and 9708 attendants on public worship. 
 
 The Wesleyan Missionary Society differs from some other 
 similar institutions, in that it seeks to promote the spiritual 
 welfare of British colonists, soldiers, and sailors, as well as that 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 275 
 
 of the heathen ; and in South Africa the labours of its pious 
 and devoted agents have been made a blessing to all classes 
 of the community. Some of the jilaces of worship are noble 
 buildings, the new Wesleyan church in Cape Town being the 
 finest ecclesiastical structure in the colony. 
 
 The Cape Colony — Eastern Province; 
 
 The remarkable prosperity whic!i the Eastern Province of 
 the Cape Colony has experienced in modern times may be in 
 a great measure attributed to the predominance of the English 
 element in its population, resulting from the arrival there of 
 about 4000 British settlers in 1820, under the auspices of the 
 Imperial Government. In common with all those who seek 
 for themselves and their families a home in distant lands, the 
 emigrants alluded to had to endure many hardships and priva- 
 tions during the early years of their African experience ; but, 
 having by patient industry and indomitable perseverance over- 
 come every difficulty, they generally succeeded well, and their 
 descendants are in many instances now reaping the fruits of 
 their parents' toil. This large importation of British subjects 
 into a country which had been but sparsely colonized by the 
 Dutch, or left entirely to the scattered Hottentots and Kaffirs, 
 has given an English aspect to society in this section of Africa 
 which is not to be found in any other part of the continent. 
 This, together with other phases of colonial life, will more 
 clearly appear from a brief description of the principal divisions, 
 towns, and villages of the Province. 
 
 Port Elizabeth, in Algoa Bay, is the principal port of South- 
 Eastern Africa, and that through which most of the goods 
 imported pass, on their way to the respective colonial towns 
 and villages for which they are destined, as well as to the more 
 distant interior. Here also the wool and other produce of the 
 country is shipped for Europe. There are as yet no proper 
 harbour works to facilitate the landing and shipping of goods ; 
 but everything has to be conveyed to and from the vessels by 
 surf-boats, worked by the hardy Fingoes, a tribe of Kafirs well 
 
276 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 adapted for the purpose. This part of the coast being frequently 
 stormy, and the surf beating upon the shore often violent, 
 casualties to shipping are somewhat common, and we have 
 known many sad wrecks take place close to the port. There 
 is also a dangerous rocky point called Cape Recife, on which 
 a lighthouse has been erected, about eight miles south of the 
 harbour. 
 
 Nothing could present a more cheerless and desolate 
 appearance than Port Elizabeth, when the British settlers 
 landed there in 1820, the town being then a mere fishing 
 village, consisting of a few wretched huts scattered along a 
 bleak and sandy shore. Nor does the country in the neighbour- 
 iiood improve much when we climb the heights from the 
 narrow piece of level land along the beach, on which the best 
 of the houses stand, and proceed inland — the scene presented 
 to the view being little better than a series of sand-hills. The 
 town itself has improved very much of late years, and it now 
 presents a respectable ■ appearance from the shipping in the 
 harbour. It contains many good substantial buildings, as 
 dwelling-houses, stores, and warehouses; also a fort, hospital, 
 and commodious Episcopal, Congregational, and Wesleyan 
 churches. Port Elizabeth is 500 miles (rom Cape Town, and 
 eighty-five from Graham's Town, and contains a population of 
 13,000, including the European residents and the natives who 
 are drawn to the place in considerable numbers for the sake of 
 employment. This town gives its name to an electoral division 
 of the Eastern Province, including the villages of IValmer and 
 Korsten, the former of which is six miles west, and the latter 
 four miles east of the port. 
 
 Uitenhage, situated about twenty miles inland from Port 
 Elizabeth, on the Zwarkop river, is a beautiful town, containing 
 many pleasant residences, which generally stand in their own 
 grounds, surrounded with gardens, orchards, and vineyards. 
 The soil here is more fertile and the scenery more attractive 
 than in the coast districts. It is a place of considerable trade 
 and commerce ; and there is a large wool-washing establishment 
 
Southern Africa. • 
 
 277 
 
 in the neighbourhood, at which many hands are employed. 
 Alexandria, Hmnanedorp, Darlington, Colchester, and Jansen- 
 ville are pleasant and interesting villages situated in different 
 parts of the electoral division of Uitenhage, which is generally 
 of a rural, pastoral, and agricultural character. The town itself 
 is well supplied with places of worship belonging to the Dutch 
 Reformed Church, the Episcopalians, the Congregationalists, 
 and the Wesleyans. In this district there are also several 
 important mission stations, named respectively Enon, Hankey, 
 Clarkson, Bethelsdorp, and Krinsfontein — the first belonging to 
 the Moravians, and the rest to the London Missionary Society. 
 
 Graham's Town is regarded as the capital of the Eastern 
 Province ; and from a very small beginning it has become a 
 city of considerable magnitude and importance. The population 
 has decreased somewhat of late years, however, in consequence 
 of numerous removals having taken place to new and rising 
 towns in various parts of the country. According to the last 
 census it amounted to 6912. It is situated in a pleasant 
 valley, about 600 miles from Cape Town, thirty from the 
 nearest point of the sea-coast, where a small harbour has recently 
 been formed at the mouth of the Kowie river, and eighty-five 
 from Port Elizabeth. The journey from the principal port to 
 the city, as made formerly, over rough roads and high hills, 
 across rocky ravines and deep rivers, was a formidable affair ; 
 but a railway has already been opened a part of the distance, 
 and will soon be completed. Graham's Town is well laid out 
 with wide streets, and contains many good dwelling-houses, 
 stores, warehouses, and public buildings, including military 
 barracks, and churches belonging to the Episcopalians, the 
 Congregationalists, the Wesleyans, and the Baptists. It is the 
 centre of an extensive trade with various parts of the interior 
 and the ox-waggons and other conveyances which are constantly 
 coming in from the neighbouring colonial towns and villages 
 give it the appearance of considerable commercial activity. 
 
 Batlmrst is a pleasant little country town that gives its name 
 to a district which, together with Graham's Town, the villages 
 
278 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 of Salem, Farmer, Field, Riebuk, Port Frances, and other places, 
 is now included in the electoral division of Albany. The coast 
 region of this division, called Lower Albany, and formerly 
 known as the Zuurveld, is suitable for agricultural purposes ; 
 but the highland district, or Upper Albany, is better adapted 
 for sheep farming, which is the principal occupation of the 
 settlers in these parts. 
 
 Graaff-Reinett is an ancient and flourishing inland town, rather 
 more than 150 miles from Graham's Town, and about the same 
 distance from Port Elizabeth. From its position and importance 
 it may be regarded as the capital of the midland districts of the 
 Eastern Province. The streets are laid out at right angles, and 
 planted with rows of orange and other trees, and watered with 
 gently rippling streams led out from the Sunday's river — an 
 arrangement which is cooling and refreshing, especially in the 
 sultry months of summer. The town stands in an extensive 
 basin or hollow, surrounded by a distant range of mountains, 
 known as the Sneeuwbergen, and is indeed "beautiful for 
 situation." It contains some good buildings, and is well 
 supplied with banks, churches, and schools, Dutch, Episcopal, 
 and Wesleyan. Graaff-Reinett gives its name to an important 
 electoral division which includes the villages of Murraysburg, 
 Richmond, and Aberdeen. This is pre-eminently a pastoral 
 region, and is celebrated for its extensive and excellent sheep 
 farms. Compassberg, rising to the height of 9000 feet above 
 the level of the sea, and said to be the highest mountain in 
 the Cape Colony, is situated in this division, and the top of it 
 is frequently covered with snow. 
 
 Somerset {East) lies east of Graaff-Reinett and north of 
 Uitenhage, and is distant from Graham's Town about eighty 
 miles. The village consists of a number of detached and 
 scattered dwelling-houses, with a Dutch Reformed church and 
 a Wesleyan chapel, and the usual offices for the use of the 
 civil commissioner and the resident magistrate. It is situated 
 in a beautiful country at the foot of the Boshbergen, on the 
 Little Fish river. It gives its name to an extensive electoral 
 
Souihern Africa. 
 
 279 
 
 division, celebrated for its grazing farms and sheep-walks. In 
 the mountain valleys agriculture is also carried on to a 
 considerable extent. This division includes the thriving little 
 village of Bedford, on the opposite side of the Fish river, and 
 the settlements of Gknlyden, Glenpringle, and other pleasant 
 localities in the valleys on the south face of the Great 
 Winterberg range, where the Scotch emigrants, led by the 
 poet Pringle, established themselves in 1820. The division 
 of Somerset has an area of 8000 square miles, with a 
 population of about 5000 whites and 7000 coloured persons, 
 who appear to be fairly prosperous in their respective avoca- 
 tions. 
 
 Fort Beaufort is a town of considerable importance, forty-six 
 miles from Graham's Town, on the left bank of the Kat river, 
 where extensive military buildings and other works have been 
 erected, with a view to the defence of the eastern frontier of 
 the colony in the event of Kaffir wars, which, alas ! have been 
 so frequent since the white man entered the country. The 
 electoral division of the colony to which Fort Beaufort gives 
 its name is generally mountainous and well wooded. It 
 nevertheless contains several fertile and well-watered valleys. 
 The settlement of Stockenstrom, in the Kat river valley, is 
 specially favoured in this respect ; and the coloured people of 
 Hottentot descent, and others located there, have prospered 
 greatly under the fostering care of the British Government and 
 the instructions of the missionaries. The important Wesleyan 
 Training Institution of Heald Town is situated in this division, 
 and it has been made a great blessing to the surrounding 
 country. The population of the district is said to be about 
 3000 whites and 8000 persons of colour, scattered over an area 
 of 1200 square miles. 
 
 Cradock is a small but interesting town, which stands in the 
 centre of an elevated basin on a branch of the Great Fish 
 river, 3000 feet above the level of the sea, and surrounded 
 with lofty mountains, which in the winter season are frequently 
 covered with snow. The wild region which forms this electoral 
 
2 So Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 division of the Eastern Province is pre-eminently a pastoral 
 country, and over its extensive plains, dotted with isolated 
 hills, large herds of springboks, gnus, and other wild game are 
 frequently seen to roam. The Twutafel and Thubusbergen, in 
 this district, are remarkable isolated mountains, which when 
 once seen can never be forgotten. Cradock is 115 miles from 
 Graham's Town, and 550 from the Cape. 
 
 Colesberg is an advanced post on the far distant northern 
 frontier of the Cape Colony, the town which gives its name to 
 the division, being situated only twelve miles south of the 
 Orange River. The entire district is wild, dry, and barren in 
 the extreme ; but since the formation of dams to preserve the 
 water after the rains, sheep farming has been carried on with 
 considerable success, and the country has become famous for 
 the excellent quality of its wool. The other towns and vil- 
 lages included in this division are Hanove?; Hope Town, and 
 MiddUburg. The soil in the neighbourhood of the place last 
 named is more fertile than in the uplands, and admits of culti- 
 vation with favourable results. Colesberg is 245 miles from 
 Graham's Town and 540 from the Cape. The entire division 
 comprises an area of 20,000 square miles, with a population of 
 about 12,000, one-haif of whom are coloured persons. That 
 rare antelope the gemsbok is still occasionally seen on the 
 southern bank of the Orange river. 
 
 Albert is the name given to an extensive electoral division of 
 the Eastern Province, — in honour of the late highly esteemed 
 Prince Consort, — the chief towns and villages of which are 
 Burghersdorp, Dordrech, and Aliwal {North), on the Orange 
 river. The only other place of consequence in this district 
 is the large native reserve of Wittebergen, on which several 
 thousand Fingoes have been located by the Government, and 
 among whom the agents of the Wesleyan Missionary Society 
 labour with encouraging results. Albert comprises an area of 
 8000 square miles, with a population of about 16,000, one- 
 third of whom only are whites. The territory is drained by 
 several rivers of short and rapid course, locally called spruits, 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 281 
 
 which rise in the mountains and fall into the Orange river. 
 The land generally lies high, with a cold climate in winter, and 
 is better adapted for grazing purposes than for agricultural 
 pursuits. 
 
 Victoria is a remote and newly-formed electoral division, 
 lying between the Great Fish, the Keiskamma, and the Churnie 
 rivers, and is so called in honour of the Queen of England ; and 
 the capital of the country has received the name of Queen's 
 Towfi. It is a highly fertile and well-watered region, and since 
 its separation from Kaffraria by Sir George Cathcart in 1853, it 
 has rapidly filled up with European settlers, to whom special 
 advantages were offered, with a view to the defence of the 
 colony against the inroads of the warlike Kaffirs. The other 
 towns and villages in this division are Alice, Peddie, Hamburg, 
 Wooldridge, and WHtlesea. Some of these are important 
 military posts, at which strong fortifications have been erected ; 
 and they are all mission stations, at which earnest efforts are 
 being made to instruct the natives who have congregated 
 around them. A large number of Germans, to whom grants 
 of land were made after the Crimean war, were located in some 
 of the villages ; but they have since become much scattered. 
 The population of the entire district is estimated at 14,000, 
 three-fourths of whom are natives. 
 
 The last district to be noticed in our brief and hasty survey 
 of the respective divisions of the Eastern Province of the Cape 
 Colony, is that now known as the Diamotid Fields. It is 
 situated on the north-eastern frontier, along the southern bank 
 of the Orange river ; and the land being comparatively barren, 
 it was of little note till a few years ago, when diamonds were 
 accidentally found in the gravelly soil. This important event 
 soon caused a rush of people of various complexions and 
 nationalities to the spot, and diamond digging has been carried 
 on from that day to this, with various degrees of success ; one 
 man finding a diamond which he sold for ^20,000, and others 
 being perfectly destitute. Towns and villages have risen up as 
 if by magic, the principal of which are Kimberly and De Toifs 
 
282 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Fan, where ministers and magistrates reside and attend to their 
 respective vocations, whilst the busy multitudes around them 
 are anxiously engaged in search of the shining treasure. 
 
 We must now proceed to give a brief account of the means 
 which have been employed by different Christian communities 
 to provide religious instruction and the means of grace to the 
 various classes of colonists and natives in the Eastern Province, 
 residing at the places which have just passed under review. 
 And although the character of the population may vary some- 
 what, our story of evangelical effort for their benefit will neces- 
 sarily resemble in its main features that which we have given 
 in relation to the Western Province. 
 
 In the eastern districts of the Cape Colony, as already inti- 
 mated, the English element prevails to a considerable extent ; but 
 there are, notwithstanding, a vast number of Dutch farmers 
 and settlers resident in different parts of the country. For the 
 spiritual benefit of these the Dutch Reformed Church has 
 made arrangements for holding religious services in the respec- 
 tive towns and villages, where they are found in sufficient 
 numbers to form congregations, that they may worship God 
 according to their own forms and in their own language. 
 These services are sometimes held in court-houses, school- 
 buildings, and private dwellings ; but of late years commodious 
 churches have been erected in various places, and more 
 attention has been paid to the coloured people than formerly. 
 
 The Episcopal Church of England was almost unknown in 
 the Eastern Province in former times ; but of late years it has 
 been very different. Aided by large pecuniary grants from the 
 Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in England, and 
 from the colonial chest at the Cape, the Bishop of Graham's 
 Town has been able to build small churches and plant clergy- 
 men in most of the principal towns and villages in the respective 
 districts which we have mentioned ; and, although the congre- 
 gations are in many places small and feeble, the work has been 
 prosecuted with commendable zeal and diligence. Nor have the 
 heathen been forgotten by this section of the Christian Church. 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 283 
 
 Since the capital of the Eastern Province became a cathedral 
 city, missionaries have been appointed to labour among the 
 natives in the regions beyond. Our pleasure in calling to mind 
 this fact would have been greater had the agents of the Propa- 
 gation Society employed themselves in teaching and in preaching 
 to the heathen the simple Gospel of Christ ; but instead of this, 
 in too many instances, they manifested their adhesion to full- 
 blown ritualism, built little mimic churches of wattle-and-daub, 
 and marched to and from them, arrayed in gorgeous priestly 
 costume, to "show the people Christianity," as they said, rather 
 than to teach it to them. At this the natives at first stared with 
 blank astonishment ; but at length a few became fascinated, 
 and it is to be feared that the cause of Christ has been thus 
 hindered among the heathen in some places. 
 
 It is to the evangelical missionary societies that the Eastern 
 as well as the Western Province of the Cape Colony are mainly 
 indebted for the means of religious instruction, and their zealous 
 and devoted agents have laboured for many years in various 
 parts of the country with commendable diligence and most 
 pleasing results. Prosperous stations of the Moravian, Berlin, 
 Rhenish, French Evangelical, Presbyterian, London, and Wes- 
 leyan Missionary Societies have been established in various 
 places, both within and beyond the colonial boundary, and no 
 traveller can pass through the country, with his eyes open, 
 without being impressed with the utility and importance of the 
 labours of these noble institutions. The two societies last 
 mentioned have, however, been most extensively engaged in 
 evangelistic work in this part of the vast continent, and it is 
 matter of regret that our limited space will not admit of a more 
 minute account of their operations. 
 
 As early as 1799 the eccentric but zealous and devoted Dr. 
 Vanderkemp was in the field as a pioneer missionary in the 
 service of the London Society, and in after years he was followed 
 by a host of pious and laborious men, who laid the foundation 
 of a great and good work, the results of which will only be fully 
 known in the last great day. For many years the eminent and 
 
2 84 Africa : Pad and Presefit. 
 
 good Dr. Phillips was the general superintendent of the London 
 Society's missions in South Africa, and his name is still remem- 
 bered with love and gratitude by some of the aged converted 
 Hottentots and others, in whose interests he laboured so long 
 and so faithfully. He and his brethren, in their zeal for the 
 welfare of the aboriginal races, sometimes found themselves in 
 collision with the government authorities on social and political 
 questions; but whatever views might be formed by different 
 persons on the respective merits of the questions at issue, there 
 could be but one opinion as to the motives and sincerity of 
 the missionaries in their efforts to promote the temporal and 
 spiritual well-being of the people among whom they laboured. 
 
 The Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced its labours in 
 the Eastern Province of the Cape Colony in 1820, simulta- 
 neously with the arrival of the large body of British settlers 
 already mentioned. Indeed, the pioneer missionary, the Rev. 
 William Shaw, went out in the same ship with a party of 
 Wesleyan emigrants, to whom he ministered during the passage, 
 and for some time after their arrival in Africa, as their chaplain, 
 according to an arrangement with the government authorities. 
 The work was thus commenced among the settlers, whose 
 spiritual interests have ever been carefully attended to by the 
 agents of the Society, whilst at the same time they have embraced 
 every opportunity of proclaiming the good news of salvation to 
 the native Hottentots and Kaffirs, and others, both within and 
 beyond the colonial boundary, without respect to language, 
 condition, or colour. In the course of time, as the work 
 expanded, additional missionaries were sent out, new stations 
 formed, congregations gathered, churches organised, chapels 
 erected, and schools established in various parts of the country, 
 on a scale and with a rapidity truly astonishing, so that the 
 results of sixty years' labours may be contemplated with gratitude 
 and joy. Some of the educational establishments are of a 
 superior order. The Heald Town Wesleyan Training Institu- 
 tion, like that at Love Dale, belonging to the Free Church of 
 Scotland, is worthy of the highest commendation. 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 285 
 
 The temporal and spiritual benefits resulting from the labours 
 of the Wesleyan Missionary Society to the people of different 
 tribes and languages in the Eastern Province of the Cape 
 Colony cannot be tabulated ; but some idea may be formed of 
 their magnitude and importance from the following brief state- 
 ment. In the Graham's Town district alone, which consists 
 chiefly of colonial circuits with a few native stations, there are 
 39 missionaries, native and European ; 80 places of worship, 
 5709 church members, 5568 scholars in the mission schools, 
 and 23,011 adherents, or attendants on divine service. 
 
 British Kaffraria. 
 
 Although that portion of Southern Africa so long known as 
 British Kaffraria was, a few years ago, annexed to the Cape 
 Colony, and placed under the same form of government, it 
 possesses so many features peculiar to itself, that it seems to 
 call for a brief and separate notice. It comprehends the country 
 lying between the Keiskamma and Great Kei rivers, and com- 
 prises an area of about 4000 square miles. It is the region 
 from whence issued, until finally subjected to British rule, 
 those hordes of Kaffir marauders who devastated the frontier 
 of the Cape Colony in the various wars which occurred from 
 1806 to 1853, actuated by the love of plunder, or excited to 
 fanaticism by false prophets, acting as the tools of ambitious 
 and designing chiefs. In the interests of peace it was ultimately 
 found necessary to proclaim this region British territory, and 
 to place it under British martial law, to be administered under 
 the direction of the Governor of the Cape Colony, acting as 
 Her Majesty's High Commissioner. 
 
 This arrangement was first made after the war of 1835-6, by 
 Sir Benjamin D'Urban ; but, the measure being disapproved 
 of by the home government, the country was before long 
 restored to the Kaffirs under certain restrictions ; but, after the 
 war of 1846-7, it was again formed into a British province, by 
 Sir Harry Smith, who was then the governor and commander- 
 
286 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 in-chief of the Cape Colony. At the same time King WillianCs 
 Town, on the Buffalo river, became the capital or principal 
 town of the district, and the military head-quarters, a number 
 of public buildings being erected and fortifications established 
 for the defence of the province in the event of future outbreaks. 
 The principal of these are Forts Hare, Cox, Glamorgan, Pato, 
 Grey, Murray, Izeli, and Keiskamma Hoek, at points which 
 are rapidly becoming prosperous and populous villages. East 
 London, at the mouth of the Buffalo river, is the port of British 
 Kaffraria, and important harbour works have recently been 
 completed for the accommodation of the shipping. 
 
 The bulk of the inhabitants of this extensive territory are of 
 the Kaffir race called Amakosa, including the Gaika, 'Tslambi, 
 Amagonubie, and a few smaller tribes. The vacant portions 
 of the country have been rapidly filling up of late years, how- 
 ever, by the settlement of Europeans on lands granted to them 
 by the Government on favourable terms, with the understanding 
 that they will take their part in the military defence of the 
 colony. In the towns and villages are also found a number of 
 Germans. This class of settlers was originally located in a 
 chain of military villages along the left bank of the Buffalo 
 river, extending from East London to the east point of the 
 Amatola mountains, where they had lands allotted to them on 
 certain conditions in consideration of the services rendered by 
 the German Legion to which they belonged in the Crimean 
 war ; but they have become much scattered, not taking well to 
 agricultural pursuits. 
 
 The physical aspect of British Kaffraria is similar to that of 
 Lower Albany, having a coast region, intersected by deep- 
 wooded valleys, through which flow periodical rivers, bounded 
 at a distance of about forty miles from the sea-coast by a lofty 
 mountain range. It is generally a pastoral country, but in 
 many places well adapted for agricultural pursuits, and pre- 
 senting much attractive scenery, and well-wooded ranges of 
 hills. Water is more plentiful here than in many other parts 
 of the continent, springs and fountains in many places making 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 287 
 
 compensation for the uncertainty of the rivers, some of which 
 cease to flow in the dry season. 
 
 The towns and villages of British Kaffraria are well supplied 
 with churches and schools. Most of the religious denomina- 
 tions at work in the Eastern Province of the Cape Colony are 
 at work here also. The Church, London, Scottish, and Wesleyan 
 Missionary Societies have important and flourishing stations at 
 St. John's, Landillis Kraal, Keiskamma Hoek, Umhala's Kraal, 
 Peetton, Knapp's Hope, Lovedale, Mount Coke, and other 
 places. We have not the means of ascertaining the statistics of 
 the other institutions ; but the Wesleyan Missionary Society 
 reports as follows in connection with the Queen's Town district, 
 which consists chiefly of stations among the various tribes of 
 Kaffirs: missionaries, native and European, 17; chapels, 44; 
 other preaching places, 263 ; church members, 4065 ; scholars 
 in the mission schools, 4559 ; attendants on public worship, 
 20,950. 
 
 The Colony of Natal, 
 
 The region now forming the colony of Natal is situated on 
 the south-eastern coast of Africa, about 1000 miles from the 
 Cape of Good Hope. It derived its name from the circumstance 
 of its having been discovered by the Portuguese on Christmas- 
 day, 1498; but for a long time it seems to have remained 
 unnoticed by Europeans. At length, about the year 1822, it 
 was visited by several white traders, who found the country in 
 possession of the Zulus, under the sanguinary chief Tshaka. 
 This distinguished barbarian was killed and succeeded by his 
 brother Dingaan in 1838; but the latter having treacherously 
 massacred a large party of emigrants who had made their way 
 to his kraal over the mountains from the Cape Colony, he was 
 attacked and finally destroyed by the Dutch Boers, who entered 
 the country soon afterwards in strong force to avenge the death 
 of their fellow-colonists. The Dutch, after several sanguinary 
 conflicts, having for the time being gained the ascendency over 
 the savage natives, set up Panda, the brother of Dingaan, as 
 
288 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 the nominal paramount chief in his place, and proclaimed 
 themselves as lords and masters of the land. 
 
 In order that the reader may have a correct idea of the 
 circumstances which led the Dutch Boers thus to attempt a 
 settlement in Natal, and to justify in some measure the action 
 taken by the British Government afterwards, it is necessary 
 here to give a few words of explanation. The said Dutch 
 Boers had previously been British subjects in the Cape Colony; 
 and taking umbrage at the Act of the Imperial Parliament 
 providing for the emancipation of the slaves in 1834, and 
 being otherwise dissatisfied with British rule, they sold their 
 farms, and left the colony in large numbers, declaring their 
 intention to proceed to the distant interior and establish 
 themselves as a republic, independent of British control. 
 Some of them settled in different places to the westward, 
 beyond the boundary of the Cape Colony ; and others pressed 
 on to Natal, which they regarded as an eligible locality for a 
 permanent settlement. It was a party of the emigrants last 
 mentioned — at the head of whom was a Dutch Boer named 
 Retief — who fell a sacrifice to the treachery of the sanguinary 
 Dingaan, and whose massacre was so signally avenged by their 
 surviving friends. But previous to this event a considerable 
 number of English adventurers had settled at Port Natal, and 
 it was hoped that they would unite with the Dutch emigrants 
 in the formation of a colony, and the establishment of some 
 form of civil government ; but as they had formerly disagreed 
 amongst themselves, so they now differed with the Dutch 
 farmers, and the country was in a state of complete anarchy 
 and confusion, when the British Government resolved to put 
 an end to the strife, and prevent the still worse consequences 
 that were likely to follow, by interposing their authority. 
 
 The leaders of the Dutch emigrants to Natal were in the 
 first place informed by despatches from the Governor of the 
 Cape Colony that, being British subjects, they would not be 
 allowed to relinquish their allegiance, and set up an independent 
 government in the land of their adoption ; and that as British 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 289 
 
 authority would soon be proclaimed in Natal, they must be 
 prepared to submit to British rule. To this the Boers demurred; 
 and amicable means having failed to bring about a reconciliation, 
 Captain Smith was appointed military commander in Natal, and 
 directed to proceed thither overland with a detachment of 
 200 men of the 27th Regiment and two field pieces, and to 
 take possession of the country in the name of the Queen of 
 England. This small force was quite inadequate for the 
 purpose contemplated ; but both ofificers and men nobly 
 discharged their duty, by acting according to their instructions 
 to the utmost of their power. After a tedious and fatiguing 
 march, they reached Natal on the 12th May, 1842; and, 
 meeting with no resistance at first, they quietly hauled down 
 the republican flag which they found flying at the Point, and 
 hoisted the Union Jack in its place. They then fortified their 
 encampment as best they could, and called upon the Dutch 
 Boers, who were in considerable force at a short distance, to 
 submit peaceably to British authority. This they refused to 
 do; and seeing the contemptibly small force of English 
 soldiers sent to subdue them, they resolved upon resistance. 
 Several severe scrimmages followed, in which the British force, 
 being largely outnumbered and so poorly equipped, suffered 
 great loss. Consequently Captain Smith resolved to act on 
 the defensive till he could obtain reinforcements, and he 
 immediately despatched a messenger overland to the Cape 
 Colony to report the position of his small detachment. 
 
 After enduring a terrible siege in their laager, or temporary 
 fortification, for a month, most of the time having to live upon 
 a scanty supply of biscuit and horse-flesh, on the night of 
 the 4th of June Captain Smith and his heroic little band were 
 gladdened by hearing the discharge of heavy guns in the offing, 
 feeling assured that assistance was at hand. Soon afterwards 
 Her Majesty's ships Southampton and Conch entered the bay 
 with reinforcements, which were safely landed under the 
 protection of a powerful discharge of bomb-shells from the 
 larger vessel. This arrival completely overawed the rebellious 
 
 19 
 
2 go Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Dutch Boers, who offered no further resistance, but fled with 
 all possible speed at the approach of the British troops. Natal 
 was proclaimed a British colony on the 12th of May, 1843; 
 efficient officers were appointed to carry on the government ; 
 emigration began to flow to its shores; and from that time to 
 this the settlement has prospered, notwithstanding the numerous 
 difficulties with which it has had to contend. 
 
 The colony of Natal is bounded on the south by the 
 Umzimculu river, which separates it from Kafifirland ; on the 
 west by a range of high and almost impassable mountains 
 called the Quathlamba or Drakensbergen, which divide it from 
 Basutuland and the Orange Free State ; on the north by the 
 Tugela and the Umsungati or Buffel's rivers, which separate 
 it from Zululand ; and on the east by the Indian Ocean. It 
 has an area of about 25,000 square miles. The proximity of 
 the high mountain ranges just mentioned, and their various 
 ramifications, gives a general character of irregularity and 
 roughness to the surface of the whole country. The great 
 basin of the Tugela river includes nearly one-half of the whole 
 colony, and forms an elevated plateau, considerably higher 
 than the coast region. Besides the rivers already mentioned, 
 the Umgani and the Umvoti are considerable streams. They 
 are none of them navigable, however, being very irregular in 
 their flow, and having several majestic waterfalls, some of 
 which are 280 feet high. 
 
 The soil of Natal is generally fertile, and with careful 
 cultivation it produces sugar, coffee, indigo, arrowroot, pine- 
 apples, and many other tropical productions in the coast 
 region ; whilst in the uplands the diff'erent vegetables, fruits, 
 and cereals common in Europe are grown to a considerable 
 extent. There is also found almost everywhere good pasture 
 land, excellent timber, and a fair supply of water. The climate, 
 as may be inferred from the productions mentioned, is almost 
 tropical ; yet it is considered on the whole very healthy. 
 Fevers and other epidemics are almost unknown, except in a 
 few marshy spots near the coast. Thunderstoirris are frequent 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 291 
 
 in summer, and often extremely violent, causing at times serious 
 loss of life. In winter the peaks of the neighbouring mountains, 
 which rise to the height of 8000 feet, are frequently covered 
 with snow for three or four months; but on the coast the range 
 of the thermometer throughout the year is from 53° to 90'^. 
 The summer is the rainy season. 
 
 The only seaport of the colony is the spacious, and nearly 
 land-locked, basin of Port Natal; the entrance of which is, 
 however, impeded by a bar of shifting sand, on which the 
 depth of water varies from nine to fifteen feet. If this could 
 be effectually and permanently removed, the harbour would be 
 one of surpassing excellency ; but as it now is, vessels of light* 
 draught only can enter, large ships being obliged to anchor 
 outside and land their cargoes in boats, at considerable incon- 
 venience. As seen from the ocean, Port Natal presents to the 
 view nothing but bold headlands, till the narrow entrance to the 
 harbour is approached by the inward-bound vessel. The town 
 of D' Urban stands on the margin of the bay, and has gradually 
 risen to be a place of considerable magnitude and importance. 
 The capital of the colony and the seat of government is Pieter- 
 maritzburg, which is situated in a lovely valley about fifty-two 
 miles inland from the port. The other principal towns and 
 villages are Verulam, Richmond, Fine Town, York, Harrisniith, 
 Ladysmith, Weenen, Edendale, Indaleni, jManda, and Umhlali. 
 
 The general character of the population of Natal, originally, 
 has been already indicated ; and it only remains to say that it 
 has been gradually increasing from year to year by the arrival 
 of British emigrants, the influx of native refugees fleeing from 
 the tyranny of the savage Zulu king, and the importation of 
 thousands of Indian coolies as labourers on the sugar and 
 coffee estates. According to the most careful estimate, it may 
 now be stated to consist of 30,000 Europeans, 200,000 Zulus 
 and other Kaffirs, and 20,000 Indian coolies. 
 
 The large number of natives resident in Natal has been 
 represented by some writers as being exclusively Zulu refugees, 
 who have fled from the tyranny of their savage and despotic 
 
292 Africa: Past ana Present. 
 
 chieftains ; but the fact is, that whilst this is the case with 
 some, the majority of them originally belonged to tribes which 
 occupied lands now included in the colony of Natal, long 
 before the advent of the pale-faced strangers, who were con- 
 quered by the cruel Zulu king Tshaka, and driven as captives 
 into Zululand, whence they have escaped from time to time 
 and returned to the country of their fathers. This circumstance 
 gives them a claim to consideration and to land for their support 
 in the home of their ancestors, which they would scarcely have 
 had as mere refugees. Yet the colonial authorities have been 
 very tardy in rendering bare justice to the tens of thousands 
 of natives whom they recognise as British subjects under 
 their control ; and the plans adopted for their settlement and 
 government have been open to serious objection, as being alike 
 injurious to them and the colonists. They have been located 
 on the poorest lands, set apart for the purpose, at such distances 
 from the towns and villages of the settlers that the difficulty of 
 obtaining native labour has been considerably enhanced; whilst 
 they have been congregated in dense masses far too large to 
 be efficiently governed or instructed, as many as 30,000 being 
 settled in one location. In the opinion of many experienced 
 colonists it would have been much better to settle the natives 
 on a larger number of smaller locations, at convenient distances 
 from the principal centres of European population, that they 
 might gradually come under civilizing influences, and each 
 section of the community might have been thus made mutually 
 beneficial to each other. Nor can we omit to point out the 
 glaring inconsistency which we have witnessed of attempting to 
 govern the natives of Natal through the medium of their own 
 heathen chiefs, and sanguinary laws, which permit witchcraft, 
 polygamy, and numerous bloody and barbarous customs, instead 
 of governing them by British law as British subjects in an English 
 colony. But our limited space does not admit of our going 
 into further detail on this painful subject. 
 
 The population of Natal, of every grade, has been indebted 
 for religious instruction and Christian education chiefly to the 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 293 
 
 missionary societies of Europe and America, the same as the 
 other colonies and territories of Southern Africa. The Epis- 
 copal Church of England has been somewhat unfortunate in 
 the part which it has attempted to take in the work. As early 
 as 1838 a missionary, a catechist, and a medical man were sent 
 to Natal by the Church Missionary Society ; and an earnest 
 effort was also made soon afterwards to evangelise the natives, 
 under the same auspices, by the zealous but eccentric Captain 
 Allen Gardiner ; but war breaking out, and other untoward 
 events occurring, both undertakings failed, and the work was 
 entirely relinquished. In 1853 Natal was constituted a diocese, 
 and Dr. Colenso was consecrated the first bishop ; but, accord- 
 ing to his own confession, instead of converting the natives to 
 Christianity, the bishop was himself converted to a certain 
 species of infidelity by a Zulu Kaffir, and proceeded at once, 
 by his writings and teachings, to propagate his sceptical views, 
 encouraging polygamy and other heathenish practices among 
 the people of his charge, and striving to discredit the Divine 
 authority of the Sacred Scriptures which he had vowed to 
 uphold. The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel secured 
 the appointment of another bishop ; but Dr. Colenso was 
 determined not to be superseded, and the colony of Natal has 
 for several years exhibited the melancholy spectacle of two 
 rival bishops, and a scene of wrangling and litigation painful to 
 contemplate. There have, nevertheless, been some zealous and 
 devoted clergymen at work ; and, under the patronage of the 
 Government, and with the aid of large grants of money from 
 home, churches have been built and congregations gathered m 
 several of the towns and villages of the colony, for the benefit 
 of the settlers who profess to belong to the Church of England ; 
 and, in a few places, something has been done for the religious 
 instruction of the natives also. 
 
 The Dutch Reformed Church and the Scotch Presbyterians 
 have ministers and churches in Pietermaritzburg, and a few 
 small congregations in other places. The Free Church of 
 Scotland have also made a beginning, and the Independents 
 
2 94 Africa: Past a7id Present. 
 
 have a flourishing cause in D'Urban ; but the American, 
 German, and EngUsh missionaries have done most for the 
 spiritual benefit of both colonists and natives of Natal. The 
 American Board of Foreign Missions sent out missionaries to 
 this part of the wide field at an early period, some of whom were 
 men of superior learning and intelligence. They have laboured 
 chiefly among the natives on their respective locations, and 
 their labours have proved very beneficial, although the number 
 of actual converts is not large. The number of missionaries 
 now at work is thirteen, with twenty-eight native assistants. 
 They occupy seven principal stations and twenty-one other 
 preaching places. The number of church members is 524, 
 and 1090 scholars are taught in twenty-three mission schools. 
 The number of attendants on public worship is said to be 
 1469. The American missionaries in Natal have by their 
 literary ability and persevering efforts rendered good service to 
 the cause of God by the part they have taken in the translation 
 of the Scriptures, and by their earnest remonstrances with 
 Bishop Colenso in their published pamphlets on his pet theory 
 of polygamy and other foolish crotchets, which they regarded 
 as damaging to the cause of Christianity in the field of mis- 
 sionary labour which they occupy. 
 
 The missionaries of the Berlin Society labouring in Natal are 
 seven in number. They occupy six stations, and report 599 
 natives as attending public worship, 470 of whom are church 
 members, and 150 scholars in the mission schools. The Her- 
 mannsburg Missionary Society employ eighteen missionaries 
 on fourteen stations, in various parts of the country. . Some of 
 these, however, are farmers and artisans, sent out to teach the 
 natives the arts of civilized life as well as to instruct them in 
 religious and general knowledge. Three hundred and fifty 
 natives are reported as church members, and sixty-two as 
 scholars in the mission schools. The Swedish and the Nor- 
 wegian Missionary Societies have each made a beginning in 
 Natal, the former reporting one missionary and four lay agents, 
 and the latter two missionaries and thirty-seven church members- 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 295 
 
 The Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced its labours in 
 Natal simultaneously with the commencement of the settlement, 
 the Rev. Mr. Archbell, the first missionarj', marching overland 
 with the British troops in 1842, when they went to take posses- 
 sion of the country, and ministering to them as well as to the 
 natives at every opportunity. As emigration set in, additional 
 missionaries were sent out for the express purpose of ministering 
 to the spiritually destitute settlers, as well as of evangelizing the 
 degraded Kaffirs. To care for the spiritual interests of their 
 fellow-countrymen in foreign lands, as well as for those of the 
 aborigines, has ever been the policy of this Society, as already 
 mentioned. Hence places of worship have been erected, 
 churches organized, and schools established in most of the 
 towns and villages of Natal, as well as on many of the native 
 locations. Amid numerous difficulties, the important work of 
 diffusing a knowledge of Divine truth among all classes has 
 been prosecuted by the Wesleyan missionaries with commend- 
 able diligence and perseverance from year to year, and a pleasing 
 measure of success has been the result. A considerable number 
 of genuine converts to the faith and hope of the Gospel have been 
 gathered into the fold of Christ, both from among the European 
 settlers and the natives, some of whom have been called in their 
 turn to make known the good news of salvation to their fellow- 
 countrymen. The following are the statistics of the Wesleyan 
 Missionary Society in the Natal district, according to the last 
 report: — Number of missionaries, 22; chapels, 59; other 
 preaching places, 324; full and accredited church members, 
 2317; on trial for membership, 429; scholars in the mission 
 schools, 1488; attendants on public worship, 23,715. 
 
 The Orange Free State. 
 
 When such a large number of the Dutch Boers resident in 
 the Cape Colony became dissatisfied with the British Govern- 
 ment on the emancipation of their slaves in 1834. as already 
 mentioned, they treked or emigrated northward in different 
 
296 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 directions. Whilst some pressed forward and crossed the lofty 
 Drakensbergen into the Natal territory, as stated in the last 
 section, others settled down along the watercourses of the vast 
 plains lying between the Orange and Vaal rivers. This country 
 being beyond the colonial boundary, tolerably well watered, 
 with extensive pasturage for sheep and horned cattle, and with 
 here and there a tract of land capable of cultivation, it was 
 quite adapted to the tastes and requirements of the Dutch 
 farmers. Hence the number of settlers rapidly increased, and 
 they proceeded to frame laws for self-government, entirely 
 repudiating any control or interference on the part of the 
 authorities of the Cape Colony. At length the attitude of 
 these Boers, in thus proclaiming their independence of the 
 British crown, and their harsh treatment of the neighbouring 
 native tribes, attracted the notice of the government authorities; 
 and in 1848, after some opposition, and one or two conflicts with 
 our troops, the territory was annexed to the British empire by 
 his Excellency Sir H. Smith, under the title of the " Orange 
 River Sovereignty." For about six years it continued as an 
 appendage to the crown of England, under the government of 
 the Queen's representative at the Cape of Good Hope, as 
 " Special Commissioner" for the purpose. In 1854, however, 
 the clamours of the Dutch Boers for independence and self- 
 government became so loud and persistent, that the sovereignty 
 was very unwisely, as we think, given up to them, when Sir 
 G. Clark was sent out as Her Majesty's Special Commissioner 
 formally to hand over the country to the settlers. Earnest 
 protests were sent home by the Cape colonists against this 
 impolitic measure, but they were disregarded, and the arrange- 
 ment was left to take its course. 
 
 When left to themselves according to their wishes, the Dutch 
 residents in the territory formerly known as the Sovereignty 
 proceeded to frame a constitution for the government of their 
 little commonwealth, which they designated the " Orange Free 
 State." This embraced a president, freely elected by the land- 
 drost and heemraden in the several districts into which the 
 
Southern Afiica. 
 
 297 
 
 country was divided, whilst the volksraad exercised legislative 
 functions ; other arrangements were made after the style of 
 what they had seen in Holland. Although the authorities of 
 the Free State have kept in tolerable harmony with the Govern- 
 ment of the Cape Colony, and with the British settlers generally, 
 the new system can scarcely be said to have worked well ; and 
 many persons who feel deeply interested in the welfare of the 
 country are of opinion that a well-devised and comprehensive 
 system of federal government, embracing the whole of Southern 
 Africa under British rule, would be the best for all parties. 
 The Boers in the Free State have frequently come into unplea- 
 sant collision with the neighbouring native tribes, especially 
 the Basutus, when both parties have appealed to arms, and the 
 British Government has been called in to arbitrate between 
 them. Hitherto success has attended their efforts, but it might 
 any time be otherwise. Such imhappy incidents are always 
 liable to disturb the peace of the whole country, and jeopardize 
 the interests of all classes; hence the necessity of great prudence 
 and discretion on the part of the governing powers, and of a 
 wise, uniform, and strong government for the whole land. 
 
 Although the country is nominally Dutch, many Englishmen 
 and other Europeans have been led by various circumstances 
 to settle in the Free State as ministers, medical men, farmers, 
 merchants, tradesmen, or mechanics, and a stimulus has thus 
 been given to industry and enterprise, which might otherwise 
 have been wanting ; so that, on the whole, fair progress has 
 been made in agricultural, mercantile, and other pursuits. The 
 country has gradually filled up with thrifty farmers and other 
 adventurous settlers ; and towns and villages, of different degrees 
 of magnitude and importance, have arisen in various localities. 
 The principal of these are Bloemfontein, the capital, situated 
 150 miles north-west ofColesberg, on a tributary of the Modder 
 river ; Siniihfield, about 35 miles north of Aliwal (North), near 
 the Caledon river ; Fauresmiih, on the Griqua boundary ; and 
 Winburg and Harrismilh, on the high road from Natal to the 
 Cape Colony, which passes through the Free State. Crotistadt 
 
2q8 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 and BosJiof Tixt villages but recently formed ; they may, never- 
 theless, become important places in process of time. 
 
 ■According to recent returns, the population of the Orange 
 Free State consisted of about 14,000 whites, Dutch, English, 
 and other Europeans, and 7000 coloured persons, of different 
 tribes, but chiefly half-castes, exclusive of wild Bushmen, and 
 migratory Bechuanas, Korannas, and others, perpetually on the 
 move. The religious instruction of these people is fairly pro- 
 vided for by the different agencies now at work among them. 
 The Dutch Reformed Church of course take the lead, and 
 they have erected places of worship, appointed ministers, and 
 gathered congregations in all the towns and villages, and in 
 some of the rural districts. The Episcopalians, aided by the 
 Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, have, for several 
 years past, had three or four missionary clergymen at work in 
 the Free State, and a bishop has been recently appointed to 
 superintend their labours, although their congregations and 
 adherents are necessarily few and feeble, from the sparseness 
 of English-speaking inhabitants. The Berlin Missionary Society 
 have three stations and four missionaries, aided by three lay 
 assistants, at work in the Free State ; but their operations are 
 as yet in their infancy. 
 
 The Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced its labours 
 among the natives in that part of Southern Africa now embraced 
 in the Orange Free State, and in the neighbouring territories, 
 long before either Dutch or English settlers entered the country. 
 And when the changes took place to which we have referred, 
 and the " pale-faces " made their appearance, they were ready 
 to minister to them as well as to the natives, as they had oppor- 
 tunity, according to their wont. The Gospel is preached in 
 three or four 'different languages by the Wesleyan missionaries 
 stationed in the Free State and neighbouring territories. Con- 
 verts from among the English and Dutch settlers, as well as 
 from among the wandering tribes of Bechuanas, Baralongs, 
 and Korannas, have been gathered into the fold of Christ, and 
 united in church fellowship ; and chapels have been erected in 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 =99 
 
 several of the towns and villages, and in other centres of popu- 
 lation. The Society has been induced to appoint ministers to 
 some of these places by the liberal offers of the Free State 
 Government to make financial grants towards meeting the 
 additional expenses which would be incurred by such an ar- 
 rangement, and the results have been satisfactory to all parties. 
 The Bloemfontein Wesleyan district comprises all the stations 
 situated in the Free State, as well as several beyond its boundary, 
 both in the neighbouring Diamond Fields and in the regions 
 beyond. The statistics of this section of the work, according 
 to the last report, are as follows : Number of chapels, 34 ; 
 other preaching places, 115; full and accredited church 
 members, 3707 ; on trial for membership, 857 ; scholars in the 
 mission schools, 3189 ; attendants on public worship, 13,678. 
 
 The Transvaal. 
 
 The extensive territory in Southern Africa known of late 
 years as the Transvaal includes all the country north of the 
 Vaal river, and both slopes of the Magaliesberg or Cashan 
 mountains, which form the watershed line between the Orange 
 river and the Limpopo river systems. Although its limits are 
 not by any means well defined, they may be said to lie between 
 latitude 22° to 27° south, and longitude 27° to 31° east, and to 
 embrace an area of probably not less than 70,000 square miles. 
 The southern face of the lofty range of mountains alluded to, 
 presents to the view extensive undulating plains, generally well 
 watered, and abounding with game. To the north, descending 
 into the basin of the Limpopo, many high parallel chains of 
 hills are met with, having numerous narrow " ports " or openings, 
 through which flow many streams, which farther to the north- 
 west unite to form the Ouri or Limpopo rivers. These streams 
 are generally available for irrigation, and extensive forests cover 
 a considerable portion of the territory. 
 
 It was into this country that a large number of Dutch farmers 
 "treked" or emigrated in 1838, when the British Government 
 
300 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 took possession of the country between the Orange and Vaal 
 rivers, known as the Sovereignty, as well as of Port Natal. 
 Perhaps the Boers would not have found it more easy to shake 
 off their allegiance to the British Crown, and to estabUsh their 
 independence in this instance, than they had done in their 
 previous attempts, had not the English Government changed 
 their policy, and given up the Sovereignty to their fellow-country- 
 men, as mentioned in a previous section. The establishment 
 of the Orange Free State, with the permission of Great Britain, 
 prepared the way for the peaceable formation of the Transvaal 
 Republic in the territory just described. A form of government 
 was organised for the Transvaal similar to that which had been 
 adopted in the Free State, and after numerous difficulties had 
 been encountered, a very fair commencement was made with 
 the new enterprise. Tracts of land in the most favourable 
 localities were measured off and given out as farms, dwelling- 
 houses were erected, gardens laid out, and in process of time 
 towns and villages sprung up in various directions. The popu- 
 lation was at first very sparse and widely scattered, but it was 
 increased every year by the influx of emigrants. Among the 
 new comers were several English adventurers from Natal and 
 the Cape Colony, whose presence gave a tone to society that it 
 would not otherwise have had ; and there were other circum- 
 stances which seemed to augur well for the future of the infant 
 Republic, till events took an unfavourable turn, and seriously 
 militated against its prosperity. 
 
 Unhappily for them, as well as for others, the Dutch Boers, 
 in the land of their adoption, cherished the same antipathy 
 towards the native tribes that they had manifested before they 
 left the Cape Colony, when they took umbrage at the EngHsh 
 for emancipating the slaves. From the earliest period they had 
 been in the habit of regarding the sable sons and daughters of 
 Ham as under the curse of God, and as in fact a different race 
 of beings to themselves, and they treated them accordingly. 
 It has been said that over the doors of some of their places of 
 worship in the old colony, there was written the inscription, — 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 301 
 
 " No dogs or Hottentots allowed to enter this church ! " and in 
 the course of our travels we have witnessed some painful instances 
 of the degradation in which the natives were held by the stolid 
 and ignorant Dutch farmers. In "the Transvaal, far away from 
 the influence and notice of the civilized world, they indulged 
 the propensities alluded to without restraint ; and the hapless 
 aborigines whom they took as domestic servants and reduced 
 to abject slavery, and the wandering tribes of natives with whom 
 they came in contact, they treated with the utmost rigour. The 
 parties last named, however, were not disposed in their wild 
 freedom quietly to submit to the cruelty and insults of the 
 white savages who had entered their country, taken away their 
 lands, and commenced to shoot them down like wild beasts. 
 They consequently retaliated as best they could, and perpetual 
 wars between the natives and the Boers was the result for many 
 years. 
 
 At length the affairs of the Transvaal Republic, and their 
 relation to the neighbouring native tribes, arrived at such a 
 pass that they could be endured no longer. The colonial 
 authorities at the Cape, and in Natal, clearly saw that unless 
 something was done to prevent it, the whole of Southern Africa 
 would be involved in a war of races, as the result of the cease- 
 less conflicts between the Boers and the natives. The serious 
 complications of the situation were laid before the home govern- 
 ment, and Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the respected Secretary 
 for Native Affairs in Natal, visited England in 1878, when it was 
 resolved to take possession of the Transvaal, and proclaim the 
 whole countr)' to be henceforth under British rule. This bold 
 act of policy, in the interests of peace and humanity, was carried 
 out with a measure of courage, promptitude, and discretion truly 
 admirable. Sir Theophilus being appointed Her Majesty's 
 Special Commissioner for the annexation of the Transvaal to 
 the British Crown, proceeded to the scene of action, and with 
 a small detachment of English soldiers in his train, and his 
 printed proclamation and his commission in his pocket, stood 
 up in the market-square of Potcliejstroom, the capital of the 
 
302 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Transvaal Republic, and declared the whole territory to be 
 annexed to the British Empire, and subject henceforth to 
 English law ; and the country was thus taken possession of 
 without firing a shot, and without the occurrence of any act of 
 violence whatever. 
 
 Of course the leading Boers and officials of the defunct 
 Republic stormed, protested, and remonstrated ; but all this 
 went for nothing, as a large majority of the population, both 
 Dutch and English, were disgusted with the state of things as 
 they had seen them for several years past, and hailed with joy 
 the advent of British rule, and the prospect of permanent peace 
 which the happy change of government presented to their view. 
 Nor was this remarkable event less welcome to the neigh- 
 bouring native tribes who had been such severe sufferers under 
 the former administration, for the British name is everywhere 
 revered in Africa as that of a nation whose influence will always 
 be on the side of liberty, humanity, and peace. 
 
 Whatever view may be taken of the annexation of the Trans- 
 vaal to the British Empire by politicians of different creeds, 
 from a Christian standpoint it appears a measure fraught with 
 good to the teeming millions of Central Africa, if Christian 
 England does her duty by entering the openings thus presented 
 for the introduction of the Gospel to the regions beyond. When 
 we look at the character and extent of the country thus placed 
 under British rule, and the facilities which are thereby afforded 
 for the prosecution of evangelistic work, we cannot but recog- 
 nise the hand of Divine Providence in the events which have 
 recently transpired. 
 
 The principal towns and villages in the Transvaal are 
 Potchefsiroom, the seat of government, on the Mooi river, 
 about twenty miles north of the Vaal ; Rustenberg, a few miles 
 north of the Magliesbergen ; Zoutpansberg, the most remote 
 European village in South Africa, about sixty miles south of 
 the Limpopo, and 1260 miles north-east of Cape Town. Ley- 
 denberg, Origstadt, Pretorious, and a few other villages are places 
 of less importance, but they will soon develope themselves 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 303 
 
 under the new regime. Ministers of the Dutch Reformed 
 Church have been appointed to some of these places ; and the 
 Wesleyan, Berlin, and Hermannsberg Missionary Societies 
 have for several years past had agents stationed in the Trans- 
 vaal ; but there is now a loud call for much more to be 
 done. 
 
 ZULULAND. 
 
 The immense tract of country situated to the north of Natal 
 known as Zululand is separated from the colony by the Tugela 
 river, and stretches away along the eastern coast almost as far as 
 Delagoa Bay. It is bounded on the east by the Indian Ocean, 
 and on the west by a continuation of the Drakensbergen and 
 the extensive region of the Transvaal. In its physical features 
 and general aspect the country differs little from other parts of 
 south-eastern Africa. The surface of the land is in many 
 places extremely broken, wild and rugged, with here and there 
 mountainous districts and patches of forest interspersed. There 
 are, nevertlieless, in various directions extensive grassy uplands 
 well adapted for the grazing of cattle, with intervals of rich 
 valleys and plains, which yield good harvests of Indian and 
 Kaffir corn with comparatively little labour. The rivers are 
 not large or numerous, nor are they navigable to any con- 
 siderable distance. They are, in fact, most of them mere 
 periodical streams, rolling down their contents in torrents after 
 the rains, and nearly empty during the dry seasons. Wild and 
 rugged as the country may appear at first sight to the European 
 visitor, it is well adapted for the sustenance of the numerous 
 and powerful people by whom it is inhabited. 
 
 The history of this country and of its savage and warlike 
 people since they came under the notice of Europeans has 
 been romantic and tragic in the extreme, as may be readily 
 imagined by the incidental mention made of them in previous 
 pages ; and their true character has been more fully revealed 
 in the recent fearful war, which has desolated so many happy 
 homes. Apparently to serve the purpose of party politics, many 
 well-meaning persons in England have severely condemned the 
 
304 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 men and the measures by which they allege that hostilities were 
 precipitated. In their ignorance of the real facts of the case, 
 they would have had, by the adoption of mild and pacific 
 measures, the bloodthirsty heathen Zulu king kept in authority 
 and power, to the continued injury of his people, and the per- 
 petual danger of the neighbouring colonists. It only requires 
 a slight acquaintance with the real character and the ante- 
 cedents of the notorious Cetewayo to convince any one of the 
 impossibility of peace and security whilst he continued to 
 exercise his savage, cruel, and sanguinary rule in Zululand. 
 
 In taking a retrospective glancp at the career of this remark- 
 able personage, we may observe that it was not without a 
 struggle that he ascended the throne of his ancestors ; nor 
 would he ever have attained to that eminence if he had not 
 been aided by the English. Cetewayo was not the oldest son 
 of Panda, and on the death of the father there was a fearful 
 contest for the crown of the fallen monarch. War was at once 
 declared between the two sons and their respective adherents. 
 In the interests of peace and good government the neighbour- 
 ing colony of Natal declared in favour of Cetewayo, believing 
 him to be the most likely of the two to become the ruler of the 
 Zulu people. This brought the struggle to an end, and the 
 elected prince was formally crowned by Sir Theophilus Shep- 
 stone in the name of Queen Victoria, Cetewayo solemnly 
 promising to reform the government of Zululand by discoun- 
 tenancing witchcraft, war, and bloodshed, etc., and by admitting 
 traders and teachers into the country to promote the general 
 welfare of the people. 
 
 The imposing ceremony of the coronation was scarcely over, 
 however, and the government officers and English visitors 
 returned to Natal, when the wily Cetewayo laughed in his 
 sleeve, and commenced a course of conduct directly opposite 
 to that which he had promised. Under the plea of watching 
 and checking the Dutch Boers of the Transvaal, of whom he 
 was exceedingly jealous, and with whom he had some serious 
 misunderstandings on matters relating to lands and boundary 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 305 
 
 lines, he began at once to reorganize and strengthen his stand- 
 ing army. He told his subordinate chiefs and principal warriors 
 that they would soon have to fight with white men ; that they 
 must arm themselves with rifles, and practise the use of shorter 
 assagais, so as to use them in hand-to-hand fighting, instead of 
 throwing them as formerly ; and that they must improve their 
 drill after the manner of Europeans. At the same time orders 
 were issued for the enrolment in the army of all Zulu youths 
 of sixteen years of age and upwards, whilst messengers were 
 sent in every direction, both among the British colonists and 
 the Portuguese of Delagoa Bay, to purchase firearms and 
 ammunition. Hundreds of Zulus went off to work at the 
 diamond fields and on the railroads in the Cape Colony, for 
 the express purpose of purchasing rifles with their earnings ; 
 and they no sooner possessed the coveted weapon than they 
 returned home, to present themselves before the despotic 
 Cetewayo to receive his commendation for what they had 
 done. On a careful calculation, it is believed that upwards of 
 15,000 rifles, with a corresponding amount of ammunition, were 
 thus brought into Zululand in the course of a year or two, from 
 the time that Cetewayo commenced his rule. 
 
 Nor did the Zulu king discourage the practice of witchcraft, 
 polygamy, cold-blooded murder, and other heathen rites, as 
 he had promised to do. He rather encouraged them, and the 
 mere mention of some of his own acts of cruelty and blood- 
 shedding, by decapitating, spearing, and otherwise putting to 
 death his unoffending subjects, notwithstanding the remon- 
 strances of the British Government, might well horrify the 
 reader. On one occasion when Cetewayo had cruelly put to 
 death a whole regiment of young girls, numbering about 500, 
 because they refused, at his bidding, to accept as husbands a 
 regiment of old men, worn out in military service, Sir Henry 
 Bulwer, the Governor of Natal, sent an earnest but friendly 
 remonstrance. But how was it received ? His sable majesty 
 said to the messenger, " Tell the white man that he rules in 
 Natal, and I rule here. I do not tell him how he should 
 
 20 
 
3o6 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 govern, and he must not tell me how I am to govern. What 
 have I done ? I have not begun to kill yet ; I shall begin 
 soon ; but this is nothing." 
 
 Cetewayo was, moreover, so impulsive, passionate, capricious, 
 and unreliable, that no dependence could be placed upon his 
 word or professions of friendship. At one time he encouraged 
 missionaries to settle in Zululand, at another time he dismissed 
 them unceremoniously from the country. When a few Zulu 
 converts to the faith of the Gospel had been gathered into the 
 fold of Christ, and the king's permission was asked for their 
 baptism, he positively refused, declaring that none of his people 
 should become Christians, because the white man's religion 
 made men's hearts soft and tender like those of women, and 
 unfitted them for fighting, which was their proper business. 
 
 At length matters came to a crisis. For seven years Cetewayo 
 was believed to have been more or less concerned, in an under- 
 handed manner, with every disturbance which had taken place 
 among the surrounding native tribes ; and he was supposed to 
 have instigated by hostile messages the Galeka and other Kaffirs 
 to rebel against the British Government in 1877, whilst at the 
 same time he was in communication with the chief Sekukuni 
 and his people, encouraging them in their hostility to the Dutch 
 Boers in the Transvaal. In 1878 he had increased his standing 
 army to about 50,000, one-half of his warriors being armed 
 with rifles, and the other with assagais and shields. This grand 
 preparation was made ostensibly to attack the Dutch Boers, in 
 consequence of their having claimed land which he alleged 
 belonged to him, but in reality to be ready for any deed of 
 daring and of blood. Just at this time the news was brought 
 to Cetewayo of the proclamation of British rule in the Transvaal, 
 when he expressed his bitter disappointment, and roared like 
 a lion robbed of his prey. He immediately ordered the mes- 
 senger to be put to death ; but his principal chiefs interposed 
 to save the man's Hfe. "Tell Somtseu" (the Zulu name for 
 Sir T. Shepstone), exclaimed the enraged monarch, " that it is 
 well he sent when he did, for if he had been a week later I 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 307 
 
 should have made a clean sweep of the land from the Drakens- 
 berg to the Buffalo." 
 
 Shortly after this, in the month of October, Sir T. Shepstone 
 went to the border to meet, by appointment, the Indunas of 
 Cetewayo to discuss the question of the long-disputed boundary 
 line between Zululand and the Transvaal, which it was desirable 
 to have settled. To this meeting the Zulus, contrary to their 
 practice in such cases, came armed; and before the conference 
 fairly commenced a shot was fired which passed within a few 
 inches of Sir T. Shepstone's head ! This was said to have been 
 an accident ; but the spirit and bearing of the Zulu warriors 
 was. the very contrary of pacific. Sir Theophilus offered them 
 the boundary which has since been fixed by Sir Bartle Frere, 
 but they indignantly rejected it, and laid claim to the whole 
 country now included in the Utrecht division, and half of the 
 Wakerstroom and Lydenburg divisions, to which they had no 
 just claim whatever. 
 
 The meeting just mentioned broke up without any satisfactory 
 arrangement ; and Cetewayo and his host of savage warriors, 
 disappointed in their intended attack on the Dutch Boers, 
 seemed determined to fight. Both Natal and the Transvaal 
 were threatened ; and Sir Bartle Frere, Her Majesty's High 
 Commissioner, who was already in Natal, thought the time was 
 come when some understanding should be arrived at with the 
 Zulu king. He therefore sent to Cetewayo requiring the per- 
 formance of the promises which he made on the various points 
 already mentioned, when he was placed in power by the inter- 
 vention of the British Government. No proper attention being 
 paid to these demands, nor to the ultimatum by which they 
 were followed, war was declared, the appalling particulars of 
 which will be fresh in the reader's memory. 
 
 The first sad event, which occurred on the 22nd January, 
 1879, when a column of British troops was completely sur- 
 rounded and almost entirely annihilated at Insandula by a vastly 
 superior force of savage Zulu warriors, will never be forgotten 
 by those most immediately concerned. On that mournful 
 
3o8 
 
 Africa : Past and Present, 
 
 occasion 850 British and colonial troops, officers and men, fell 
 dead on the field of battle, besides a number of native auxiliaries, 
 making the total loss to our arms not less than 1000. Indeed, 
 very few escaped the general carnage to tell the sad story ; and 
 when the news reached Natal, the Cape Colony, and England, 
 many households were filled with lamentation, mourning, and 
 woe. Preparations were now made for the vigorous prosecution 
 of the war, for there was a deep and widespread conviction 
 that there would be no peace or security for the British posses- 
 sions in South Africa unless the notorious Cetewayo and his 
 savage host of Zulu warriors were thoroughly subdued. Troops 
 were accordingly sent from England, as well as from various 
 parts of Natal and the Cape Colony, and the British army was 
 soon in a position to advance. 
 
 The sad disaster just mentioned was followed by an engage- 
 ment on the 29th March, when a signal victory was obtained 
 over the Zulus by British troops under the command of General 
 Lord Chelmsford, at the Kambula camp, when on their way to 
 relieve Colonel Pearson, who, with his brave company of 1300 
 men, had been hemmed in by the enemy at Etshowe for more 
 than a month. A brief account of this engagement, as given 
 by the Rev. T. Woolmer, a Wesleyan chaplain, who nobly 
 accompanied the troops to minister to the sick and wounded, 
 may serve to throw some light on the character of this fearful 
 contest : — " On Saturday morning early, we could see dense 
 masses of Zulus in the distance steadily approaching. They 
 came nearer and nearer, and every man in the camp became 
 aware that it was their intention to attack. I was on the left 
 side of the waggon laager, where the hospital was, and watched 
 there for a long time expecting a rush. At twenty minutes to two, 
 the first shot was fired by horsemen sent out to skirmish ; the 
 Zulus rushed upon them with great determination, and they 
 returned to the laager. The guns then began to play upon the 
 enemy with terrible effect. The Zulus fought bravely, coming 
 on in skirmishing order, and taking advantage of any cover 
 they could get. There was a ledge of rocks not far from the 
 
Soiitheryi Africa. 
 
 309 
 
 fort, from which shelter they kept up a heavy fire upon the 
 laager. The bullets flew thick over us while we were attending 
 to the wounded, and at one corner of the fort, seven of our 
 men were shot dead. The leader of the Zulus here, who was 
 a hundred yards ahead of his men, was the handsomest native 
 I have ever seen, of a light yellow colour, — the aristocratic 
 colour, I believe, in Zululand. He must be a chief, I should 
 think, of high rank. At last, about 4.30 p.m., the Zulus 
 began to retire on all sides. Then our cavalry, both English 
 and native, commenced the pursuit. They were cheered as 
 they filed out of the fort. They chased the enemy for seven 
 or eight miles. I should think that altogether more than 3000 
 Zulus were killed. The soldiers have been busy to-day burying 
 them. I have been over the battle-field, and the sight is 
 dreadful. For miles along the road guns have been picked 
 up which had belonged to the ill-fated 24th who fell at Insan- 
 dula," etc. 
 
 Before the news of this important victory reached England, 
 Sir Garnet Wolseley had been appointed to the supreme civil 
 and military command in Zululand, Natal, and the Transvaal. 
 Some time elapsed before he reached South Africa to relieve 
 Sir Bartle Frere and Lord Chelmsford respectively, and when 
 he landed in Natal he found that the British army, which had 
 been largely increased by arrivals from England, was marching 
 upon Ulundi, Cetewayo's great war kraal or capital of his king- 
 dom. Just before Lord Chelmsford and his army reached that 
 place, whilst encamped in a favourable position, they were 
 surrounded by the combined host of Zulu warriors, led on by 
 the king himself. An action immediately took place, and after 
 a fierce fight of an hour or two the enemy was completely 
 routed and fled in every direction, hotly pursued by the British 
 and Colonial cavalry. About 800 Zulus were left dead on the 
 field, whilst the British loss was comparatively small. The 
 next day Ulundi, the king's great place, was reduced to ashes, 
 as were all the other kraals in the vicinity, and the victory was 
 complete. 
 
310 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Sir Garnet Wolseley hastened up the country to finish the 
 work so auspiciously begun, and Lord Chelmsford being re- 
 lieved of his command, returned to England, as did also 
 several other officers and a considerable portion of the British 
 army, the Zulu war being considered virtually at an end. 
 Cetewayo was still at large, however, having fled with a few 
 of his followers ; and as there appeared to be no prospect of 
 peace whilst this was the case, notwithstanding the submission 
 of many of his influential but subordinate chiefs and people, 
 detachments were sent in pursuit of the fugitive king. At 
 length, on the 28th of August, he was captured, to the joy of 
 all who knew his ferocious character and sanguinary career. 
 There was something rather romantic in the circumstances 
 attending this important event. Lord Gifford having received 
 information that Cetewayo was Ijnng utterly prostrate in a kraal 
 situated in the north-west of the Ngomo forest, with a follow- 
 ing too weak to offer any serious resistance, sent for Major 
 Martin, who came with his dragoons and surrounded the king's 
 hiding place. Cetewayo and his followers surrendered at once, 
 but on their march to the head-quarters at Ulundi they gave 
 their captors some trouble, eleven of the king's attendants 
 attempting to make their escape, six of whom succeeded in 
 getting away, the remainder being shot down, the king himself 
 frequently becoming restive and refused to go any further ; 
 but he was urged forward, and after resting for a short time, 
 first at Ulundi and then at Maritzburg, he was put on board 
 a ship bound for the Cape and safely lodged in the castle at 
 Cape Town on Monday, the 15th of September, 1879. 
 
 The Zulu war being now ended, several English regiments 
 returned home, and the survivors belonging to various volunteer 
 corps, who had gladly pressed forward to the front in defence 
 of their country, were relieved from further service. The parties 
 last named were generally received by their friends and fellow- 
 countrymen at their respective locations with the liveliest 
 demonstrations of gratitude and joy. This was especially the 
 case with regard to a detachment of native cavalry, about sixty 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 311 
 
 in number, who went forth from the Wesleyan Mission Station 
 at Edendale, at the commencement of the war, and who ser\-ed 
 faithfully and efficiently through the entire campaign, including 
 the great battles of Insandula, Zlobane, Kambula, and Ulundi, 
 and returned to their homes with the loss of only three or four 
 of their number. Their friends gave them a grand reception at 
 a public tea-meeting in the schoolroom, which was splendidly 
 decorated for the occasion. Several beautiful pieces were sung 
 by the native choir, and impressive speeches were delivered by 
 the volunteers themselves, giving their experience in the field 
 of battle, and stating how they trusted in God and kept up their 
 meetings for prayer and praise in all their encampments. 
 
 The testimony given by the Lieutenant-Governor of Natal, 
 who was present at the meeting alluded to, is worthy of per- 
 manent record. The following is a condensed report of his 
 Excellency's speech on the occasion : — " He said he had plea- 
 sure in taking part in the reception given to the gallant men 
 of Edendale who had just returned after many months' absence 
 in the field. He desired to say how sensible he was of the 
 manner in which Edendale had sent its sons to the war, and of 
 the good service they had done. They had had to leave their 
 homes and their families and their friends and their peaceful 
 occupations. They had had to do this in order to take part 
 in the war, and to exchange the pleasant ways of peace for 
 service in the field, with all its discomforts and dangers. They 
 had done their duty, and had done it well. Their conduct had 
 been without reproach, and had been marked by courage and 
 other good qualities, which had always distinguished the men 
 of Edendale, and made them a most useful auxiliary force. 
 He thanked them in the name of the Queen for their adrhirable 
 conduct, which had won the good opinion of all, and gained 
 for Edendale the credit attaching to noble acts and good 
 conduct. He thanked the men of Edendale for what they had 
 done, and he thanked their missionary, the Rev. Mr. Allsopp, 
 also. Their faithful services and good conduct reflected the 
 highest value of his labours, and were the very best testimony 
 
312 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 that could be had to the success of the Edendale Wesleyan 
 Mission." 
 
 At the close of the Zulu war Sir Garnet Wolseley addressed 
 himself to the duty of settling the country in the most praise- 
 worthy manner. He assembled the principal native chiefs at 
 Ulundi, and explained to them the manner in which Zululand 
 would be divided into thirteen districts, with a chief of equal 
 authority to govern each, and a British Resident stationed in 
 their midst to see that everything was done properly. The 
 plans of His Excellency appear to be conceived in wisdom and 
 kindly feelings towards the natives, and it remains to be seen 
 how they will work. Every friend of humanity and Christian 
 missions must pray for their success. 
 
 Previous to the war the Propagation Society of the Church 
 of England and the Hermannsburg and Norwegian Missionary 
 Societies had established stations in Zululand, and attempted 
 the evangelization of the natives, but with very slender results, 
 owing to the numerous difficulties with which they had to 
 contend. On the breaking out of hostilities all the missionaries 
 and teachers had to leave the country. They will now have 
 the opportunity of returning and recommencing their work 
 under more favourable auspices. It is to be hoped that the 
 number of labourers will be greatly increased, and that the 
 blessing of God will attend their efforts in a land which it is 
 hoped will now be fully thrown open to the benign influences 
 of the Gospel. 
 
 Neighbouring Territories. 
 
 Having passed under review the various colonies and 
 settlerhents in Southern Africa in which separate governments 
 have been established, including Zululand, now in a state of 
 transition, it may be well in conclusion to take a brief survey 
 of a few neighbouring territories, with their diversified popula- 
 tions, some of which have been already taken under the 
 protection of the British, and others of which may in time to 
 come be more intimately connected with our Government. 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 Let us now take a glance at Kaffirland. According to the 
 present arrangement of South African geography, a marked 
 distinction is made between British Kaffraria, recently incorpo- 
 rated with the Cape Colony, and Kaffirland proper. Formerly 
 the general name of Kaffirland was given to the whole south- 
 eastern coast of the great continent beyond the boundary of 
 the Cape Colony ; but since the assumption of British rule 
 over that part of the country just named, and the establishment 
 of the colony of Natal, which separates it from Zululand on 
 the north, the term is now generally applied to the territory 
 lying between the two, which is still occupied by independent 
 Kaffir tribes, with the Indian Ocean on the south-east, and the 
 Quathlamba mountains in the rear, which separate it from 
 Basutuland on the west. 
 
 Kaffirland in general presents to the view of the traveller an 
 undulating, and in some places broken, rugged, and mountainous 
 country. The principal rivers are the Umtata, Bashee, Tsomo, 
 and Umzimculu and its tributaries, none of which, however, 
 are navigable. A number of other periodical streams wind 
 their way from the mountains to the ocean after the rainy 
 season ; and as they work out for themselves deep ravines, 
 they are sometimes difficult to cross with a heavily-laden 
 ox-waggon, and give to the surface of the country a rugged, 
 broken aspect. There are between them, however, large tracts 
 of land well adapted for the pasturage of cattle and the growth 
 of Kaffir and Indian corn, on which the natives chiefly subsist. 
 
 The tribes of Kaffirs inhabiting this region are the Tambookus, 
 Amagalekas, Amapondas, Amabaxas, and a few others of minor 
 consequence, numbering in all about 100,000. They are all 
 deeply degraded pagans ; and the most important personage in 
 the community, next to the ruling chief, is the witch doctor 
 and rain-maker, and whenever he appears with his trappings 
 and medicines he produces quite a sensation. Among these 
 people the Episcopalians, the Presbyterians, and the Wesleyans, 
 have established a number of mission stations, and their agents 
 have laboured for many years with very encouraging results, 
 
314 Ajrua : Past and Preseyit. 
 
 thousands of native converts having been united in Church 
 fellowship, and learned to read the Word of God for them- 
 selves, whilst a few have been called to preach the Gospel to 
 their fellow-countrymen. 
 
 Basutuland is the name now given to a comparatively small 
 territory, bounded on the west and north by the Orange Free 
 State, and on the south-east by an immense double chain of 
 lofty mountains, here called the Maluti, which separates it from 
 Kaffirland and Natal. The country is generally of a pastoral 
 character, but contains many tracts of good land capable of 
 cultivation. It is densely populated by the remnants of various 
 Bechuana, Koranna, and other tribes, known under the general 
 name of Basutus. During the devastating wars of the sanguinary 
 and marauding chiefs Tshaka, Dingaan, and Moselekatze, these 
 broken remnants of scattered tribes took refuge in the mountain 
 fastnesses of the country now known as Basutuland ; and 
 about the year 1825 began to rally round Moshesh, a native 
 chief of great energy and force of character. The Basutus, as 
 governed by their able chief Moshesh, soon became respected, 
 and even feared, by the neighbouring tribes, as well as by the 
 settlers of the Orange Free State. In 1858 the Free State, 
 however, went to war with the Basutus on the subject of land 
 claims and boundary lines ; and old Moshesh having died, and 
 his sons being less able and influential in governing the tribe, 
 the British Government, after having been called in to mediate 
 between the contending parties, ultimately took the Basutus, 
 at their own request, under their protection, and the country 
 they inhabit may now be regarded as virtually a portion of the 
 British Empire. 
 
 No people in South Africa have benefited more by missionary 
 labour than the Basutus. The agents of the French Evangelical 
 Missionary Society have taken the lead in the work. For many 
 years past they have had flourishing stations at Beersheba, 
 Thaba Moriah, Hebron, Bethesda, and other places ; and their 
 efforts have been very successful in converting the heathen, 
 and in diffusing among the people general knowledge calculated 
 
Southeryi Africa. 
 
 315 
 
 to promote their civilization and social elevation. The Wesleyan 
 missionaries have also established important and prosperous 
 stations at Umpekani, Umperani, and Thaba Unchu, near the 
 boundary of the Free State. Thaba Bossi is a remarkable 
 fortified village, situated on the summit of a flat-topped 
 mountain height, near the sources of the Little Caledon river, 
 and it was long the favourite residence of the famous chief 
 Moshesh. Under the fostering care of the British Government 
 and the instruction of the missionaries, the Basutus bid fair to 
 do well both for this world and that which is to come. 
 
 The country long known as Gkiqualand is situated beyond 
 the Orange river, and around its junction with the Vaal; thus 
 interposing between the Cape Colony on the one side and the 
 Free State on the other. The Griquas are a mixed race, of 
 which there are several clans vulgarly called " Bastards," being 
 the descendants of Dutch Boers and their Hottentot slaves. 
 They are a tall, athletic, good-looking race, of light-olive 
 complexion, somewhat indolent and careless with regard to 
 the future, but generally good-natured and hospitable. They 
 are fond of hunting and exploring, and occasionally predatory 
 in their habits. They speak a debased patois of the Dutch 
 language, as do most of the coloured inhabitants of South 
 Africa. About the year 1833 the Griquas began to collect and 
 settle in the country which has since borne their name, and to 
 rally round a leader or chief named Adam Kok, who displayed 
 considerable tact and skill in governing the people who 
 acknowledged his chieftainship. Some time afterwards a part 
 of the clan separated themselves from the rest, and gathered 
 round a man named Waterboer, who became their captain or 
 chief. Both of these chiefs for many years received annual 
 gratuities or grants from the Colonial Government, on condition 
 of their loyalty and good conduct. They and their people 
 were ultimately removed by an arrangement with the govern- 
 ment authorities to a region known as " No-man's-land " ; and 
 of late years they have become somewhat scattered. In all 
 their location they are generally now regarded as British 
 
316 
 
 Africa : Past aiid Present. 
 
 subjects, and they have gradually advanced to a pleasing state 
 of civilization and general knowledge. 
 
 Like the Basutus, the Griquas are largely indebted to the 
 missionaries for the respectable position to which they have 
 attained among the native tribes of South Africa. The honoured 
 instruments in their moral and social elevation have chiefly 
 been the agents of the London Missionary Society, who have 
 laboured among them for many years with remarkable energy, 
 zeal, and success. The Wesleyan Missionary Society have also 
 some prosperous stations iij s 
 where no other agencies ar^ a' 
 labours have so far been encfiju 
 
 Bechuanaland is the na; 
 country lying^tw&MiGriqual 
 on the eastf and the gn 
 
 stretching/away as far as lylke N'gimi on the south 
 
 e of the Griqua settlements, 
 work, and the results of their 
 ■ging. 
 
 giveri to an extensive tract of 
 d oj^lthe south, the Transvaal 
 desert on the west, and 
 
 I 
 
 continued droughts, 
 is nevertheless occui 
 
 land is fer from fertile, liaj/le to. Ion 
 water iyconsequently oftenr scarce^ 
 
 by sevaral wandering tribes, with Isligfit difference of charidter 
 and diilect, but known to Europeans/ under the general na me 
 of Becliuanas, who subsist chiefly am tlieir flocks_a»<rH^i ds, 
 with wHu;h they trave/ extensively t«(|mi(J^^asnire. j The /fvi^' 
 and mosrvecent infopnation we hav^of mis Qountcy ancrpeop, 
 has been communicrated by Dr. l4olikb,iin inttllig/ent Bohemian 
 gentleman, vl^, ori returnmg^om his last journey of explora- 
 tion into the mreilur, <!IeTivered an interesting lecture on his 
 travels and di^overies at Graham's Town in the month of May, 
 1879. In this lecture he spoke of "six Bechuana empires" as 
 forming the eastern boundary of the Kalahari desert. These 
 tribes of Bechuanas, he said, were known as Batlapins, Bara- 
 longs, Banguaketse, Bakwenas, Bamangwatos, and the Bamang- 
 watos of Lake N'gami. The tribes of Bushmen inhabiting 
 these regions, — a more manly race of natives than the Bush- 
 men of the Cape Colony, — he described as subjugated by the 
 Bechuanas, and as employed by them as slaves and huntsmen. 
 Some of the above-named tribes of Bechuanas, especially the 
 
 [est J 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 317 
 
 Batlapins and the Baralongs, have for several years past been 
 favoured with the means of religious instruction by the agents 
 of the London and Wesleyan Missionary Societies. It was 
 among these people that the celebrated Dr. Moffat achieved 
 his greatest successes, and it was into their language that he 
 succeeded in translating the Sacred Scriptures. And it was 
 from a station among them that Dr. Livingstone started on his 
 first adventurous journey of discovery. Hundreds and perhaps 
 thousands of these people have been to a considerable extent 
 civilized, evangelized, united in church fellowship, and many 
 have been taught to read the Word of God for themselves. 
 
 BusHMANLAND is the general designation applied to an exten. 
 sive, wild, and uninhabited tract of country on the south of the 
 Orange river. This was no doubt at one time the principal 
 home of the Hottentots, or real aborigines of the country, when 
 they were driven back from the neighbourhood of the Cape by 
 the original settlers, and who are now known as wild Bush- 
 men. When travelling through this region, we have occasionally 
 met with an individual or a family of this degraded class of our 
 fellow-men ; but the main body of them have had to remove 
 still farther away from the colony of the settlers, by whom they 
 were in former times cruelly treated. They are now to be found 
 in the greatest numbers on the borders of the Kalahari desert, 
 where they are in little danger of being pursued and shot down 
 by white men as formerly. The Bushmanland of the Cape 
 Colony is now used chiefly as a place of pasturage by the 
 Dutch Boers, when the grazing land on their own farms fails 
 from drought, or from being overstocked. Hence we have 
 seen them encamped in some of the most favourable localities, 
 lazily watching their flocks and herds, as they quietly browsed 
 on the long grass, which is plentiful there at certain seasons of 
 the year. 
 
 Namaqualand is the next territory that calls for our notice. 
 Little Namaqualand lies south of the Orange river, and has for 
 many years past been part and parcel of the Cape Colony. The 
 most favourable portions of the country are occupied by Dutch 
 
3i8 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 farmers, and in less fertile districts are located a considerable 
 number of natives, among whom the Wesleyan and German 
 missionaries have established several important and promising 
 stations. There also are situated the richest copper mines of 
 South Africa, to which a considerable number of Cornish emi- 
 grants and others have been attracted, and for whose benefit 
 both Episcopalian and Wesleyan ministers have been sent to 
 labour. 
 
 The extensive region known as Great Namaqualand is situated 
 to the north of the Orange river, and stretches away for hundreds 
 of miles along the western coast of Southern Africa as far as 
 Walvisch Bay, and extends inland to the Bechuana country. 
 It cannot be less than 450 miles in length and 230 in breadth, 
 and it embraces an area of 100,000 square miles, with a thinly 
 scattered population of about 40,000 souls. The land is generally 
 sandy, dry, and barren in the extreme, cultivation being almost 
 unknown in many parts. The seacoast of this sterile region for 
 many miles inland consists of a succession of shifting sandhills, 
 and travelling is very difficult. And yet several petty tribes of 
 natives, known as Namaqua Hottentots, and approaching more 
 nearly in their character to the real aborigines of the country 
 than any others we have met with, manage to obtain a precarious 
 living under the direction of their respective chiefs. This they 
 do by means of their flocks and herds, with which they wander 
 about from place to place, as they find most convenient, erecting 
 their temporary mat huts, and remaining longest where water 
 and grass are most plentiful. 
 
 Under circumstances of peculiar trial and privation, the mis- 
 sionaries of the Wesleyan and Rhenish Societies have laboured 
 among these people with commendable zeal and diligence, and 
 with a pleasing measure of success, for many years. The present 
 writer, when visiting the stations, has held some of the most 
 delightful religious meetings he ever attended in any country 
 with the converted natives of this wild region, and has observed 
 with pleasure the arrangements made by the missionaries for 
 sending native teachers with each party to accompany them in 
 
Southern Africa. 
 
 319 
 
 their wanderings, and to carry on school operations in their 
 respective encampments, whilst they themselves itinerated 
 among them as opportunities would permit. A few years ago 
 the Wesleyan stations in Great Namaqualand were, by a mutual 
 arrangement, transferred to the German missionaries, who have 
 now the entire field to themselves. The stations they occupy 
 are Nisbett Bath, Bethany, Bethesda, and a few others. The 
 whole of Great Namaqualand has recently been taken under the 
 protection of the British Government, and a resident magistrate 
 appointed ; an arrangement which it is hoped will result in much 
 good. 
 
 Damaraland lies to the north of Great Namaqualand, and 
 extends along the coast of the Atlantic as far as the Cuanene 
 river, in latitude 1 7° south. So far as it has been explored, the 
 country appears to bear a striking resemblance to that which 
 has been already described, with this exception — that the land 
 is found to be somewhat less sterile and better supplied with 
 wood and water the farther we proceed northward. The 
 Damaras are of darker complexion than the Namaquas, with 
 broad features, woolly hair, and more of the negro character 
 than their neighbours, although their language is similar in its 
 principal elements. The Namaquas, under Jonker Africaner, 
 Amaral, and other petty chiefs, in pressing northward in quest 
 of better pasture lands for their herds and flocks, have trenched 
 somewhat on the rights of the Damaras, with whom they have 
 occasionally waged war on a small scale. The Wesleyan and 
 German missionaries have laboured earnestly for the benefit of 
 both peoples, but hitherto with slender results. The whole of 
 the stations, including Wesleyville, Concordiaville, Elephants' 
 Fountain, and some others, are now under the care of the 
 Germans, and it is hoped that greater success may ultimately 
 attend their labours. 
 
 The last country which we have to notice as belonging to 
 Southern Africa is Ovampoland, which is situated still farther 
 north, and appears to form a connecting hnk between the terri- 
 tories mentioned above and the regions of Loando and Benguela, 
 
320 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 occupied by the Portuguese, on the western coast of the great 
 continent. The natives of Ovampoland are almost entirely 
 negro in their features, complexion, and general characteristics, 
 although in their occupation, manners, customs, and language, 
 they resemble their neighbours the Damaras. The German 
 missionaries have recently extended their labours to this distant 
 region, although the country is as yet but very imperfectly 
 known. As geographical explorations, mercantile speculations, 
 and missionary enterprise progress in Southern Africa, the regions 
 beyond will no doubt be ultimately opened up to commerce 
 and Christianity, and wonderful changes will be witnessed during 
 the next half-century. 
 
321 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 EASTERN AND CENTRAL AFRICA. 
 
 General Outline— Rivers and Harbours — Native Tribes and Settlers — Arab 
 and Portuguese Colonization — Delagoa Bay — Quilimane — Mozam- 
 bique — Zanzibar — Aden — Christian Missions — Makololo Mission — 
 Universities' Mission — Livingstonia Mission at Lake N'yassa — London 
 Society's Mission at Lake Tanganyika — Church Society's Mission at 
 Lake N'yanza — Conclusion. 
 
 A LTHOUGH difficult to define with precision, that portion 
 
 jTjl of the great continent generally designated Eastern 
 Africa may be said to include the immense tract of territory 
 which lies between the colony of Natal and Zululand on the 
 south, Abyssinia and the Gulf of Aden on the north, the Indian 
 Ocean on the east, and the partially explored regions of Central 
 Africa on the west. A reference to the map will show that, 
 from Cape St. Lucia, near Delagoa Bay in the south, to the Straits 
 of Bab-el-Mandeb on the north, this vast country embraces a 
 length of coast measuring nearly 3000 miles, diversified by 
 numerous harbours, bays, and islands, many of which are but 
 imperfectly known to Europeans. It may be considered as 
 extending inland about 500 or 600 miles from the sea ; but on 
 the interior side its boundaries are undefined ; and throughout 
 its length and breadth its character and contents are but little 
 known to strangers at a distance, — the Portuguese and Arabs, 
 who have possessed themselves of the leading maritime stations, 
 sedulously preventing people of other nations from settling in 
 the country. 
 
 From the little we know of the geography and general aspect 
 of Eastern Africa, it appears to possess some grand and inter- 
 
 21 
 
322 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 esting natural features, and many large tracts of fertile land, 
 capable of yielding the most valuable productions when brought 
 under careful cultivation. Those parts nearest to the coast 
 consist in many places of spacious plains of alluvial soil, with 
 occasional forests of valuable timber. Behind these plains are 
 found large tracts of undulating country, affording splendid 
 pasture lands for countless herds of cattle and wild beasts, which 
 roam over them at pleasure. In the distance these rise into 
 mountain ranges of considerable altitude, some of which run 
 parallel with the coast for scores of miles, whilst others stretch 
 far away into the still unexplored regions of the interior, forming 
 the backbone and watershed of the mighty continent, and the 
 sources of the numerous rivers which wind their way to the 
 ocean in various directions. 
 
 Rivers and Harbours. 
 
 Eastern Africa is not destitute of rivers and harbours ; but, 
 so far as they have been explored or surveyed, they do not 
 generally appear to correspond with the magnitude of the vast 
 continent on which they are found. Perhaps an exception 
 should be made with regard to the Zambezi, which is undoubt- 
 edly the largest and most important river in Eastern Africa. 
 Little was known of the magnitude and course of this river 
 till a few years ago, when the enterprising Dr. Livingstone 
 struck its upper branches in travelling across the continent, and 
 discovered the famous falls, to which he gave the name of 
 ''Victoria," in honour of the Queen of England. The l0\ver 
 part of the Zambezi is navigable at certain seasons of the year 
 as far as the Portuguese settlement of Sena ; but its upper 
 portions have never yet been fully explored. 
 
 We are chiefly indebted to Captain Owen of the Royal Navy 
 for the little knowledge we possess of the harbours, bays, and 
 the lower portions of the principal rivers of Eastern Africa. In 
 1823 he was commissioned by the British Government to under- 
 take a regular and scientific survey of this distant portion of the 
 coast line of the vast continent. He accordingly sailed round 
 
Easfani and Central Africa. 323 
 
 the Cape of Good Hope in H.M.S. Leven, with every appliance 
 necessary for the purpose. At an early period of the voyage a 
 party connected with the expedition — consisting of Lieutenant 
 Brown, Mr. Forbes, and Mr. Kilpatrick, assistant-surgeon, with 
 two black servants — was sent to explore the lower regions of 
 the Zambezi. After proceeding eight miles they emerged from 
 the mangrove swamps, and sailed amid groves of cocoa-nut 
 and orange trees, with the most delightful scenery on every 
 side. They had only advanced to the distance of about forty 
 miles from the sea, however, when they became involved in 
 clusters of small islands, the channels between which were so 
 shallow that they were obliged to land, drag forward the boat 
 for some distance, and re-embark when the river became more 
 open. At Chapongo they found a Portuguese station, com- 
 manded by a lady named Donna Pascoa d'Almeyda, who had 
 no troops except a few negroes, who submitted implicitly to 
 her authority. She lived, however, in great pomp, and gave 
 the strangers a cordial welcome. In ascending the river a little 
 higher they saw a country tolerably well cultivated, but some- 
 what tame and uninteresting, till, on approaching Sena, they 
 beheld the bold and picturesque outline of the mountains of 
 Yemale. Before they reached the settlement, however, they 
 had the affliction to lose Mr. Forbes, a young man of great 
 promise, who fell a victim to the climate. 
 
 At Sena the voyagers met with a cold reception from the 
 commandant and other officials, and the priests sought only to 
 obtain money from them. This treatment aggravated their 
 exhaustion of body and mind, and gave them great anxiety, 
 under which Mr. Brown, after having nearly lost his faculties, 
 finally sunk. Kilpatrick then became reckless and desponding ; 
 and, seeking relief in the free use of spirituous liquors, soon 
 shared the fate of his two companions, and like them found a 
 grave in African soil. There remained of the unfortunate 
 exploring party only the two negro servants, from whom some 
 of the Portuguese settlers endeavoured to extract the little 
 money they had ; but they steadily resisted ; and, having with 
 
324 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 difficulty effected their escape, after many perils, they reached 
 Quilimane, where they found Captain Owen's ship at anchor, 
 and related to him and his surviving officers their mournful 
 story. 
 
 The Zambezi enters the Indian Ocean by several embouchures, 
 the principal of which are the Cuma, Kongoni, and Quilimane. 
 These present the appearance of separate rivers of considerable 
 magnitude ; but they have never yet been fully explored. The 
 unfortunate issue of Captain Owen's first attempt at river navi- 
 gation deterred him from further efforts of the same kind. It 
 was not till a comparatively recent period that anything more 
 was done in this direction, and then it was with very partial 
 success. Dr. Livingstone succeeded in navigating his little 
 steamer the Ma-Robert up the main branch of the Zambezi as 
 far as Sena ; but when he attempted to ascend the estuary 
 known as the Quilimane, he soon found his progress impeded 
 by immense masses of reeds, weeds, and other obstructions, 
 and was obliged to descend without penetrating any distance 
 into the interior or effecting a junction with the main stream 
 as he had anticipated. It has since been ascertained that a 
 canal about four miles in length might be cut, which would 
 obviate most of the difficulties hitherto experienced. 
 
 The other rivers of Eastern Africa are comparatively insig- 
 nificant, or entirely unknown to modern geography. Near 
 Quilo several large estuaries enter the sea, of the upper course 
 of which little or nothing is known. The same may be said of 
 the Rufigi, Kingani, Adi, Dana, Webi-juo, Rovuma, and other 
 inconsiderable streams ; the one last named, however, seems to 
 rank next in importance to the Zambezi, and was ascended by 
 Dr. Livingstone to a distance of 120 miles. And yet it is not 
 improbable that further exploration may bring to light rivers of 
 greater magnitude and importance than we are aware of, in this 
 little-known portion of the African continent. 
 
 The extensive coast line of Eastern Africa is indented with 
 numerous bays and harbours, some of which might be greatly 
 improved by the application of scientific engineering so as to 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 325 
 
 be made safe and commodious ports for shipping, if the advance- 
 ment of civilization and commerce were to call for such accom- 
 modation, which it is hoped some day will be the case. The 
 principal of these are Delagoa Bay, Sofala Bay, Pomba Bay, 
 Quilimane, Mozambique, Mombasa, Quiloa, Port Durnford, 
 and others in the vicinity of Aden. Some of these may be 
 further noticed in connection with the settlements to which 
 they respectively belong. 
 
 Native Tribes and Settlers. 
 
 Eastern and Central Africa are inhabited by a great variety 
 of peoples speaking different languages, and differing consider- 
 ably in their manners, customs, and general character. They 
 may, however, be divided into three classes or groups, a few 
 observations concerning each of which may help to throw some 
 light upon the kind of material that Christian philanthropists 
 will have to deal with in their efforts to benefit and elevate this 
 portion of the great continent. 
 
 The aborigines or native tribes, properly so called, belong to 
 various branches of the African race. Those who inhabit the 
 lowlands bordering on the sea-coast differ little in their appear- 
 ance and natural wildness from the Kaffir tribes already noticed, 
 although their languages vary considerably. But those who 
 dwell in the more distant interior, and in the mountainous 
 regions, partake more of the real negro type, as it is met with 
 in its full development still farther north. Scarcely anything 
 is known of these people, however, beyond what can be gathered 
 from the incidental observations of the few travellers who have 
 passed through their respective countries, and thus come in 
 occasional and temporary contact with them. So far as we 
 know, they are all pagans, and deeply involved in ignorance, 
 superstition, and sin ; little or nothing having as yet been done 
 to raise them from the moral degradation and wretchedness in 
 which they are sunk. The following tribes have been named 
 as prominent and important people ; but we have yet to learn 
 their probable extent and chief characteristics : the Bratucahs, 
 
326 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Tembians, Kingani, Wayyamizi, Wajiji, Wasagara, Wazaramo, 
 ^^"agogo, Balonda, Makololo, Dinkas, Bongos, Wanikas, and 
 the Gallas. The people last named are perhaps the best known 
 of any, from the interest taken in them by the missionary 
 travellers, Dr. Krapf and Mr. Rebmann. They seem to have 
 come originally from Abyssinia, and to have been gradually 
 pressing onward towards the eastern coast, where they are now 
 found in considerable numbers. 
 
 In various parts of Central and Eastern Africa there are also 
 to be found interspersed among the native population a vast 
 number of wandering Arabs and half-castes of Arab descent, 
 universally known as Moors. These are the principal travelling 
 merchants and slave-dealers of this part of the great continent. 
 In some places they have formed permanent settlements as 
 centres or head-quarters for their traffic ; but the majority of 
 them are constantly on the move, travelling immense distances 
 in large companies or caravans. The Moors are rigid Moham- 
 medans, and so zealous are they in the interests of their religion 
 that, by the usual weapons of fire and sword, they have propa- 
 gated the dogmas of the false prophet somewhat extensively 
 among the negro tribes which' have come under their influence. 
 
 To the above must be added, as forming part of the popula- 
 tion of this section of Africa, the Portuguese settlers, who are 
 found chiefly resident in the towns and villages of the coast 
 districts, and on the banks of the lower portions of the principal 
 rivers. Comparatively few of those who bear the name of 
 Portuguese are of purely European descent, however, the original 
 settlers having by degrees mixed, to a considerable extent, with 
 the more intelligent natives in the neighbourhood of their 
 respective locations, and the result is a progeny of half-castes of 
 a dark copper colour. These people profess to adhere to the 
 religion of their paternal ancestors, and are consequently bigoted 
 Roman Catholics. Their Catholicism is of a very degraded 
 type, however; and in their mental capacity and moral conduct 
 they stand little, if any, above the level of the degraded heathen 
 around them. 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 Arab and Portuguese Colonization. 
 
 We have no means of ascertaining when, or under what 
 circumstances, parties of Arabs first left their own arid shores, 
 crossed the Red Sea, and estabUshed themselves on the conti- 
 nent of Africa. But at a very early period they appear to have 
 formed settlements at several points nearest to Arabia, and 
 gradually to have spread themselves round the eastern coast, 
 as well as into the interior regions. Those who found their 
 way into Central Africa became more or less mixed with the 
 native tribes, and their descendants are the numerous class of 
 Moors already mentioned, who are now met with in almost 
 every part of the continent. To a considerable extent they 
 have continued from generation to generation to indulge their 
 wandering habits ; hence their widespread dispersion, and the 
 fact that, with the exception of a few places on the eastern 
 coast, but few permanent settlements have been formed by 
 them. They are the chief merchants of the country, and by 
 their example and influence they have diffused a taste for trade 
 and commerce among all classes of the native population. 
 They are fond of horses, on which they generally ride, whilst 
 they make use of camels and negro slaves as beasts of burden ; 
 for it is a mournful fact that whenever they become dominant 
 they reduce the poor negroes to a state of vassalage, and of late 
 years they have been the most active agents in the accursed 
 slave trade. It is this circumstance, in connection with their 
 inveterate Mohammedanism, which forbids our regarding the 
 history and proceedings of the Arabs in Eastern and Central 
 Africa with anything like feelings of complacency. 
 
 The Portuguese found their way to the eastern coast of Africa 
 at a later period ; and in the early part of the sixteenth cen- 
 tury they formed their first settlement, which they used as a 
 convenient place of call for their ships when sailing to and from 
 the East Indies. In their first attempts at colonization they 
 had only the rude and simple-minded natives to contend with ; 
 but, on extending their conquests northwards, they came in 
 
328 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 contact with the more intelligent and powerful Arabs, whom they 
 found firmly established at some places which they were anxious 
 to possess. Hence arose repeated wars on a small scale, and 
 perpetual contests, which resulted in the concentration of the 
 chief power of the Arabs at Zanzibar and other places in the 
 north, and the establishment by the Portuguese of the colonies 
 of Delagoa Bay and Mozambique, with their dependent settle- 
 ments in the south, as they are found at the present day. 
 
 Whilst the maritime power of the Portuguese continued in 
 its zenith, and a lucrative trade was carried on with India, their 
 settlements on the eastern coast of Africa continued to prosper. 
 And even for some time afterwards, in the heyday of the 
 negro slavery trade, into which the colonists rushed with 
 intense avidity, they carried on an extensive traffic. But when 
 both of these sources of wealth failed, their establishments 
 dwindled into the miserable poverty-stricken condition in which 
 they are now found ; for it is a notorious fact that the Portu- 
 guese, in their attempts at colonization, have never addressed 
 themselves to agricultural pursuits, and the elevation of the 
 aborigines, after the manner of some other European nations. 
 This observation on the gradual decline of the wealth and 
 power of the Portuguese will apply in some respects to the 
 Arabs also, for it is recorded that Captain Owen, in the 
 course of his survey of the eastern coast of Africa, " was every- 
 where struck with the remains of former wealth and civilization, 
 strongly contrasting with its present poverty and barbarism." 
 
 A brief account of the principal settlements on the eastern 
 coast of Africa may tend to confirm and illustrate the statement 
 just made, whilst at the same time it may throw some light 
 upon the present state of society, both colonial and native, in 
 this interesting part of the world. 
 
 Delagoa Bay. 
 
 About three hundred miles to the north of the British colony 
 of Natal, there is a considerable indenture in the Indian Ocean 
 known as Delagoa Bay, which forms a convenient harbour of 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 329 
 
 refuge for shipping on this stormy coast. Into this spacious 
 bay three rivers flow, one of which is known as the English 
 river, from the circumstance of the British Government having 
 several years ago secured a right to it and the adjacent terri- 
 tory by a treaty with the paramount native chief of that part 
 of the coast, although they never formed a settlement upon 
 it, the land in the neighbourhood being exceedingly low, 
 swampy, and unhealthy. Near the mouth of one of the other 
 rivers the Portuguese established themselves at an early period; 
 but, from the causes already mentioned, the settlement has 
 declined much of late years, and now presents a miserable and 
 abject appearance to strangers on board the ships which occa- 
 sionally put in there. The governor or commandant in charge 
 of the place, with his few military and other subordinate officials, 
 are sadly underpaid for their services, and supplement their 
 slender stipends by carrying on a little trade with the natives 
 and the ships which occasionally call for supplies as they have 
 opportunity. Whilst the slave trade was permitted, the Portu- 
 guese colonists of Delagoa Bay, in common with those of other 
 places, had abundant opportunities of making money ; but all 
 that is changed now, and it is difficult to understand what can 
 be their object in keeping up an establishment on this part of 
 the coast, seeing they make no attempt to civilize the neigh- 
 bouring native tribes, or to promote the interests of agriculture. 
 
 Adjacent to Delagoa Bay is the populous native kingdom of 
 Temby, the inhabitants of which attracted the notice of the 
 humane and philanthropic Captain Owen when he called there 
 occasionally during his survey of the neighbouring coast. 
 Feeling an anxious desire to benefit this people, he mentioned 
 their case to the Superintendent of Wesleyan Missions at 
 the Cape of Good Hope, and generously offered to convey a 
 missionary to Delagoa Bay free of cost, if one could be spared. 
 The Society felt disposed to try the experiment of attempting 
 to establish a mission there. The offer was gladly accepted, 
 and the duty devolved upon the Rev. William Threlfall, a 
 ■zealous young missionary recently arrived from England. Mr. 
 
330 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Threlfall embarked on board the Leven, in Simon's Bay, on 
 the 2istjune, 1823, and reached his destination on the 22nd 
 of the following month. Next day, the young missionary was 
 introduced to the king or paramount chief of the country, 
 named Mayette, who received him most cordially ; and it was 
 arranged that he should take up his residence at a village called 
 Slengelly, on the bank of the river, that being considered the 
 most healthy locality in the neighbourhood. 
 
 It is painful to be obliged to report that a mission com- 
 menced with such pure motives, and in a truly self-sacrificing 
 spirit, should have proved a failure ; but such was in truth the 
 case — not in consequence of any mismanagement on the part 
 of the young missionary, but entirely owing to the unhealthiness 
 of the climate, and the inadequacy of means available for the 
 successful prosecution of the enterprise. Mr. Threlfall spent 
 about six months at Delagoa Bay, endeavouring to learn the 
 native language, instructing the people as best he could, and 
 collecting information concerning the country and its inhabi- 
 tants. He penetrated to a considerable distance inland, and 
 everywhere met with the kindest treatment from the natives. 
 But his resources were quite inadequate for the undertaking ; 
 and, living in a native hut, without proper attendance, and 
 destitute of the most ordinary comforts, as the rainy season 
 approached he was seized with illness, and entirely laid aside 
 from his work. Being reduced to a helpless state of suffering, 
 in the absence of Captain Owen, who had left the bay some 
 time before, he received some assistance from other com- 
 manders who happened to call at the port ; and, when all other 
 help failed, he managed to reach the Portuguese settlement, 
 whei;e the governor and other officials showed him much kindness. 
 
 At length the ship Nereid, a South Sea whaler, put into Algoa 
 Bay for water, the captain of which offered Mr. Threlfall a 
 passage to the Cape, which he gladly accepted. But during 
 the voyage, which was long and stormy, a malignant fever 
 broke out in the ship, of which several of the seamen died. 
 Hence, on her arrival in Table Bay, she was put in quarantine, 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 331 
 
 and it was not till two or three weeks afterwards that the poor 
 stricken missionary was landed in Cape Town, reduced to a 
 mere skeleton, and scarcely able to walk. The sequel of Mr. 
 Threlfall's brief career is appalling to relate. On the recovery 
 of his health he went to labour in Namaqualand, on the western 
 coast of South Africa, and, on attempting to carry the good 
 news of salvation to the regions beyond, he and two native 
 teachers who accompanied him were cruelly murdered by a 
 band of marauding Bushmen for the sake of the few articles 
 which they had with them to barter for food as they travelled 
 along. 
 
 QUILIMANE. 
 
 Passing Sofala Bay in voyaging up the coast of south-eastern 
 Africa, the next place of consequence which we come to is 
 Quilimane, a Portuguese settlement about twelve miles from 
 the mouth of a river of that name, which has already been 
 mentioned as one of the debouchures of the Zambezi. This, 
 in common with other Portuguese settlements in Eastern Africa, 
 had declined in population, influence, and importance, when 
 a few years ago it received a fresh impetus from the visits and 
 explorations of Dr. Livingstone and others in the valley of the 
 Zambezi, as well as from the settlement there of two or three 
 European merchants. The most recent information we have 
 of the appearance and condition of this place is derived from a 
 communication from the Rev. Dr. Stewart of the Free Church 
 Mission. He landed there on the 8th August, 1876, on his 
 way to the interior, and the following is an extract from his 
 letter written soon afterwards : — 
 
 " Quilimane appeared to me greatly improved since my visit here in 1863. 
 The streets, which are sandy, are kept fairly free from grass. On the sides 
 of some of them an acacia, with very long heavy pods, fifteen or eighteen 
 inches long, has been planted in lines, and affords an agreeable though not 
 very dense shade. Cocoa-nut palms still abound, and give a marked ap- 
 pearance to the place. They are found growing in some of the streets.— in 
 groves in various parts of the town. The trees seem to take care o^ them- 
 selves, and yield their fruit, when healthy, three times a year. The produce 
 of each tree is worth rather more than four shillings., and a thousand trees 
 
332 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 are thus worth annually ^200. The fruit is surpri-iingly cheap. The 
 houses seem to me more numerous and in better order. A new 
 custom-house has been built ; the old one was blown out of existence 
 some three or four years ago by an explosion of gunpowder, caused by 
 lightning striking the house during a thunderstorm at night. This did 
 considerable damage, even though all the houses stand apart. There are 
 two French commercial houses in Quilimane, whose chief business is in 
 ground-nuts, sesamum, cocoa-nuts, wax^ and ivory. They represent 
 houses in Marseilles. There is even now, as one of the signs of marked 
 progress, a house which may be called the Quilimane Hotel — at least it is 
 an hotel when there are guests. There is no doubt but a great deal more 
 could be made of the place. For the present the single broken or missing 
 link between Quilimane and the world outside is the want of a small steam 
 launch to communicate with the mail steamer in all states of wind less than 
 a gale : either this, or pilots with more activity or courage. There is at 
 present only one, and the mail steamers have frequently passed without any 
 communication with the shore. The town contains about 200 Europeans, 
 and from 3000 to 4000 natives." 
 
 Although the Portuguese have thus established themselves 
 at Quilimane at the mouth of the Zambezi, they have not 
 utilized that majestic river for the purposes of trade and com- 
 merce to the extent which might have been expected. During 
 the two centuries which have elapsed since they first made 
 their appearance on this part of the African continent, they 
 have made little impression upon the country or the native 
 tribes for good. At an early period they formed the two small 
 settlements of Sena and Tete, a considerable distance up the 
 river ; but for many years the population of these places seem 
 to have been dependent for their subsistence chiefly on the 
 profits derived from the slave trade. Since that has been 
 interrupted, if not extinguished, these in common with other 
 Portuguese settlements in Eastern Africa have declined in 
 magnitude and importance, the colonists having everywhere 
 displayed a remarkable lack of energy and taste for agriculture 
 and commercial pursuits. 
 
 Mozambique. 
 
 The principal settlement of the Portuguese on the eastern 
 coast of Africa is called Mozambique. The town is situated 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 333 
 
 on a small island about three miles long and two broad, and 
 not more than two miles from the mainland ; but many of the 
 principal inhabitants have their houses on the continent, at the 
 extremity of the peninsula of Coboccira. The settlement gives 
 its name to the channel which separates this portion of Africa 
 from the large island of Madagascar, and it has been the scene 
 of many a contest between British cruisers and piratical slave 
 vessels. In former times, when the maritime power of Portugal 
 was at its zenith, this was a place of great importance, but of 
 late years it has greatly declined, in common with other settle- 
 ments which were dependent upon India, or which subsisted 
 chiefly upon the profits they derived from their connection with 
 the slave trade. 
 
 Mozambique is described by geographers of the last century 
 as a handsome city with a strong fort or castle, a good garrison, 
 and well-stored magazine. Its hospital, churches, and convents 
 are moreover spoken of as large and elegant buildings. But 
 travellers and mariners who occasionally visit the place now, 
 generally describe it as wearing a dilapidated and melancholy 
 appearance. It is still, however, the place where the Governor- 
 General of all the Portuguese possessions in Eastern Africa 
 resides, and if the colonists were to turn their attention to the 
 development of the resources of the country, it might again 
 rise to a state of prosperity and importance. It is possessed of 
 a splendid harbour, which in itself is a great advantage on a 
 coast where storms are frequent, and where ships often find the 
 want of a place of refuge. 
 
 Zanzibar. 
 
 The large and fertile island of Zanzibar, in latitude 6° south 
 and longitude 41° east, has for many years past been the 
 principal settlement of the Arabs in Eastern Africa. It is 
 situated between the islands of Pemba and Monffa, about 
 twenty miles from that part of the continent known as the 
 coast of Zanguebar. The town, which contains a number of 
 good houses, including several mosques and minarets, is built 
 
334 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 on the west side of the island ; and the population is estimated 
 at 30,000. The soil is generally rich and productive ; and 
 most of the vegetables, fruits, and plants common in the tropics 
 flourish with ordinary care and culture. The settlement is, 
 however, more dependent upon trade and commerce than 
 upon agriculture for its comparative prosperity. The inhabit- 
 ants, with the exception of a few foreigners, who have been 
 permitted to settle on the island, are rigid Mohammedans, 
 and are generally intolerant to persons of any other religious 
 profession. 
 
 When the slave trade was driven from the western coast of 
 Africa, by the influence of Christian missions and the vigilance 
 of British cruisers, it found its way to the eastern section of the 
 great continent, and flourished for some time in a manner never 
 known before. Zanzibar, which had previously been the general 
 slave depot or head-quarters of the horrid traffic in these parts, 
 rapidly rose to a position of great wealth and influence ; and 
 the slave market there was an institution which attracted the 
 notice and excited the disgust and indignation of strangers of 
 almost every creed and country. Nothing could be more 
 revolting than to see intending purchasers examining the teeth 
 of the poor creatures, and otherwise testing their physical 
 qualities, as they would those of horses or other brute beasts 
 offered for sale by auction. Tens of thousands of negro slaves 
 were known to pass through this depot annually on their way 
 to Egypt and various parts of Turkey ; and the British Govern- 
 ment, having previously taken a deep and lively interest in this 
 question, felt bound to adopt prompt and energetic measures 
 for the suppression of the horrid traffic. Ships of war were 
 accordingly sent to cruise on the eastern coast, with a view to 
 capture any slave-dhows they might meet with; and a British 
 consul was appointed to reside at Zanzibar, with instructions to 
 use his best influence with the sultan to secure, if possible, the 
 suppression of the slave trade, and to report to his Government 
 from time to time the course of events. 
 
 Before long several slave-dhows were taken and condemned, 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 335 
 
 and the slaves liberated ; and the sultan was induced to pro- 
 hibit the importation and sale of slaves at Zanzibar. Instead 
 of putting an end to the traffic, however, these measures only 
 diverted its course. It was soon found that the slaves brought 
 down to the coast from the neighbourhood of N'yassa, and the 
 other lake-districts in the interior, were taken along the shores 
 to Pemba that they might avoid Zanzibar, which was now 
 closed against them. The next step was to induce the sultan 
 to extend the prohibition of the trade in human beings to all 
 the places along the coast which were in any way under his 
 authority. Through the persistent and judicious influence of 
 Dr. Kirk, the consul, and the wise diplomacy of Sir Bartle 
 Frere, Her Majesty's Special Commissioner, who was sent out 
 for the purpose, this desirable object was accomplished, appro- 
 priate proclamations being issued in April 1876, setting forth 
 the commands of the sultan and the determination of the 
 British Government. These measures were greatly promoted 
 by the startling revelations of Dr. Livingstone, Mr. Stanley, and 
 others, with reference to what they had witnessed of the horrors 
 of the slave trade in the interior ; and the result has been the 
 ':;radual suppression of the infamous traffic to a considerable 
 xtent in the sultan's dominions, as it can only now be carried 
 on by a system of smuggling which incurs much risk, being 
 carefully watched by the authorities. 
 
 Whilst Zanzibar may have made some sacrifices by the loss 
 of the slave trade and the honourable manner in which the 
 sultan has carried out the provisions of the treaty he en- 
 tered into with the British Government for the suppression 
 of the infamous traffic, it has gained much more in the appre- 
 ciation and confidence which it has won from the civilized 
 nations of Europe and America, the result of which will no 
 doubt be a large increase of legitimate trade and commerce. 
 The place is already used to a considerable extent as a starting 
 point for travellers and missionaries setting out for the in- 
 terior; and as a depot for supplies of various kinds which are 
 required from time to time. As Central Africa becomes more 
 
336 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 and more opened up for the introduction of civilization, com- 
 merce, and Christianity, Zanzibar will increase in importance ; 
 and when its deluded Mussulman inhabitants are brought 
 under the benign influence of the Gospel, they may take an 
 honourable part, along with those of other settlers on the 
 eastern coast, in spreading the light of Divine truth into the 
 interior of the vast continent, with relation to which they 
 occupy such a commanding position. Already there are agencies 
 and influences at work on the island of Zanzibar of a very 
 hopeful and promising character, and, with the blessing of 
 God, the results may exceed our most sanguine expectations. 
 
 Aden, 
 
 The extensive coast-line between Zanzibar and the Gulf of 
 Aden is dotted with numerous small settlements or trading 
 stations occupied chiefly by Arabs, and more or less dependent 
 on Zanzibar. As these in time past have also been largely 
 dependent upon the slave trade, the inhabitants will no doubt 
 feel the consequences of the prohibition ; but it is hoped that 
 they will now be induced to turn their attention more to legiti- 
 mate commerce and agricultural pursuits, that the resources of 
 their splendid country may be more fully developed. 
 
 The town of Aden itself stands upon a rocky barren point of 
 land which was ceded to the East India Company in 1839, 
 as a station for British steamers to take in coals and other 
 supplies on their voyages to and from India and Australia. 
 Since the opening of the Suez Canal it has been extensively 
 used for this purpose. With the exception of a few steam- 
 packet company's officials and British merchants and other 
 settlers, the population of Aden, which is estimated at 40,000, 
 is similar in many respects to that which we find at Zanzibar. 
 A large number of the lower class of Arabs are employed about 
 the wharves and coaling depots, whilst a few of the more intelli- 
 gent members of the community are occupied in mercantile 
 pursuits and in the performance of various duties connected 
 with the shipping, which has largely increased of late years. 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 337 
 
 The land in the immediate vicinity of the town is rocky and 
 barren in the extreme, and nothing is done in the way of 
 agriculture beyond the cultivation of a few gardens in the 
 most favoured spots, for the production of vegetables, which are 
 greatly in demand on the arrival of ships in the port. 
 
 Some spacious and substantial buildings have been erected 
 of late years at Aden, for various purposes connected with the 
 shipping; and when a steam-packet arrives from England or 
 from India, a busy scene is presented to the view. The vessel 
 has no sooner rounded Steamer Point than a score of small 
 boats put off from the shore with their various commodities of 
 fruit, vegetables, and curiosities for sale ; and the ship is 
 scarcely at anchor before she is completely surrounded by the 
 noisy and clamorous Arabs in their frail barks, each of whom 
 holds up something to view to attract the notice of the sailors 
 and passengers. This goes on during the whole of the time 
 that ships are in the port ; but the most curious thing to be 
 seen at Aden is the diving of the little Arab boys. The little 
 copper- coloured urchins leave the boats and swim round the 
 ship begging for money ; and when a sixpenny or threepenny 
 piece is thrown overboard by one of the passengers it is quickly 
 followed in its descent in the water by the little divers, the 
 most expert of whom generally succeeds in seizing it before it 
 reaches the bottom of the sea, when he quickly emerges to the 
 surface and holds it up in triumph, amid the noisy tumult of 
 ' his companions, who clamour for a repetition of the experi- 
 ment, each hoping to gain a prize in his turn. 
 
 We have often thought that the native genius and shrewd- 
 ness here displayed might be turned to good account if these 
 Arab boys were properly instructed in Christian schools, and 
 trained for higher and nobler pursuits ; but, so far as we know, 
 little or nothing has been done as yet for the social and moral 
 benefit of these poor outcasts. It is earnestly to be hoped that 
 they will not be allowed to remain much longer in their present 
 neglected state. A mission might be easily established at a 
 place with which we have so much intercourse. 
 
 22 
 
338 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 Christian Missions. 
 
 Soon after his return from his successful mission to Zanzibar, 
 Sir Bartle Frere published a small volume entitled " Eastern 
 Africa as a Field of Missionary Labour." In this interesting 
 book we have a concise account of what has already been done 
 by the evangelical agencies at work in that part of the world, 
 a statement of the facilities which are afforded for Christian 
 effort, and a powerful appeal on behalf of those in whose welfare 
 the philanthropic author had become so deeply interested. 
 From this and other sources of information we glean a few 
 facts which may prove acceptable to the reader. 
 
 It is stated that, starting from a point on the Red Sea opposite 
 the town of Aden, Eastern Africa embraces the districts of the 
 Somalis and Galla tribes on the north, the Wanika and Zambezi 
 countries with the kingdom of Zanzibar in the centre, and the 
 Portuguese settlements and neighbouring territories in the south. 
 The population consists of four or five millions of negroes, 
 about the same number of Somalis, and eight or nine millions 
 of Gallas, together with a considerable number of Barrians, 
 and others of Indian origin, seventy or eighty thousand Arabs, 
 and a few Portuguese, Americans, and Europeans of different 
 nations. Various languages are spoken in this extensive region, 
 but there is less opposition to the entrance of the Gospel than 
 in some other parts of Africa. No dominant superstition stands 
 in the way of its reception. There is little idolatry or fetish 
 worship, such as is found on the western coast, and there are 
 few barbarous or unnatural rites practised by the natives. 
 Among the Mohammedan population the influence of their 
 own creed is on the decline. 
 
 Among these people the following missionary agencies are 
 employed : — The Roman Catholics have two stations, one at 
 Aden as the base of operations for Shoa and Abyssinia, where 
 a few children of liberated Africans are instructed ; and another 
 at Zanzibar, where they have extensive premises, large schools, 
 and a seminary for training native clergy. The Protestant 
 churches of Europe have three missions in the same region : 
 
Eastern a7td Central Africa. 339 
 
 one founded in 1844 by the Church Missionary Society at 
 Mombasa; a second commenced in i860 under Bishop Mac- 
 kenzie by the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and Durham, 
 commonly called the Universities' Mission, which has its centre 
 at Zanzibar ; and a third established by the United Methodist 
 Free Churches at Ribe, north of Mombasa. In addition to 
 these important missions have been organized for the benefit 
 of the native tribes in the far distant interior of Central Africa, 
 the history of which will demand a passing notice. 
 
 In the meantime we may offer a few observations on the 
 Protestant missions which have been planted on the islands 
 and coast-line of Eastern Africa. The first in the field was 
 Dr. Krapff, a zealous and devoted German who went there in 
 the service of the Church Missionary Society. The enterprising 
 Doctor had previously laboured for several years in the province 
 of Shoa, and when the Abyssinian government prohibited his 
 longer residence there he removed to Mombasa, where he laid 
 the foundation of a new station under promising circumstances. 
 The head-quarters of the mission were afterwards removed to 
 Kisulidini, a place some thirty miles higher up the estuary, as 
 being a more healthy locality. When the way appeared to open 
 up for usefulness among the Gallas and other important tribes, 
 Dr. Krapff was joined by four additional devoted labourers, 
 who were sent out by the Society to aid him in his work, and 
 the mission had every promise of success. But alas ! sickness 
 and death soon thinned the ranks and disappointed many 
 hopes. One only of the missionary band, Mr. Rebmann, had 
 strength to hold out against the climate. He remained at his 
 solitary post of duty several years after the Doctor had been 
 obliged to embark for Europe; but in 1856 he was driven by 
 the hostile incursions of savage native tribes to take refuge in 
 the island of Mombasa, and for two years the mission on the 
 mainland seemed to be at an end. Mr. Rebmann resolved not 
 to lose sight of its ruins, however, and employed his waiting 
 time in preparing a translation of the Holy Scriptures into the 
 language of the people among whom he laboured. 
 
340 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 At length the desire of the lonely missionary was gratified 
 by a cordial invitation to return to Kisulidini, and the hearty 
 welcome which he received on going there proved that God 
 had further work for His servant to do among a people who 
 had so long been deprived of the privilege of hearing the 
 Gospel. For years Mr. Rebmann laboured single-handed in 
 this dark and desolate spot, and managed to keep alive the 
 spark of light which Dr. Krapff and his associates had been 
 the means of kindling. After long and patient waiting, relief 
 came. The deep interest called forth by Dr. Livingstone's 
 last despatches and death stirred up the Church at home to 
 fresh efforts on behalf of the African race, and a much-needed 
 reinforcement was sent out to strengthen the mission on the 
 eastern coast, including Mr. Price and Jacob Wainwright, 
 Dr. Livingstone's faithful negro servant. When they arrived 
 at Kisulidini they found Mr. Rebmann aged, feeble, and almost 
 blind, but still the centre of a little band of native converts at 
 the old mission premises. The afflicted missionary soon after- 
 wards embarked for England, with the hope of obtaining some 
 relief in reference to his sight by a surgical operation on his 
 eyes, and the work was carried on by his successors. 
 
 Meanwhile, about the year 1863, when the Church of England 
 mission in Eastern Africa was in the neglected state already 
 mentioned, the Missionary Society of the United Methodist Free 
 Churches was induced to undertake a mission to that part of the 
 world. The ministers selected for this service were the Revs. 
 Messrs. New and Wakefield. On reaching their destination, they 
 fixed their head-quarters at a place called Ribe, about eighteen 
 miles north of Mombasa, and entered on their work in the true 
 missionary spirit. For several years these devoted servants of 
 God were engaged in preparatory work, erecting buildings, 
 cultivating garden grounds, exploring the country, learning the 
 native language, preparing translations, teaching school, and 
 preaching the Gospel as they had opportunity. The difficulties 
 with which they had to contend were numerous, and the pro- 
 gress of the work was necessarily slow. According to the last 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 341 
 
 report, about forty or fifty native converts had' been gathered 
 into the fold of Christ, and a few scholars were receiving 
 instruction in the mission school, and the mission was gradu- 
 ally winning the confidence of the neighbouring tribes. The 
 unhealthy charactej of the climate here, as on the western 
 coast, is the greatest hindrance to the progress of the work. 
 A few years ago the Rev. C. New fell a sacrifice to its fatal 
 influence, and more recently still Mrs. Wakefield sickened 
 and died, and the mission stands in great need of reinforce- 
 ment. 
 
 The mission work of the Church of England in Eastern 
 Africa received a large accession of strength in 1864, when 
 Bishop Tozer was sent forth at the head of a new organization 
 called the Central Africa or Universities' Mission, intended to 
 succeed in some way a previous enterprise with a similar name, 
 the melancholy history of which we shall have to notice farther 
 on. Instead of proceeding at once into the interior, as was at 
 first intended, the Bishop fixed his head-quarters at Zanzibar, 
 where commodious mission premises were erected or fitted up, 
 a printing-press established, schools opened, and grounds laid 
 out for the training of native youths in habits of industry. A 
 second station was subsequently formed at Magila on the 
 mainland, to which was given the name of Frere Town, in 
 honour of the philanthropic Governor of the Cape Colony. 
 At the place last named a number of liberated slaves have been 
 received for training, the more intelligent of whom have been 
 placed under special instructions with the hope of their being 
 ultimately employed as native teachers and preachers. Some 
 progress has also been made in the work of translating school 
 books into the Swahili language by Dr. Steer, the superintendent 
 of the mission ; but all that has yet been done is quite of a 
 preparatory character, 
 
 Makololo Mission. 
 
 We must now call the attention of the reader to the successive 
 efforts which have been made to promote the social and spiritual 
 
342 Africa: Past and Present, 
 
 welfare of the native tribes inhabiting the distant regions of 
 , Central Africa, since that portion of the great continent was 
 in a measure laid open. It will be remembered that Dr. 
 Livingstone, the eminent African traveller and explorer, was 
 originally a Christian missionary ; and although his published 
 narratives do not contain so much of the missionary element 
 as some of his friends anticipated, there can be no doubt but 
 wherever he went he felt a deep interest in the moral and 
 spiritual welfare of the people with whom he came in contact. 
 Hence his untiring efforts for the suppression of the slave trade, 
 and the encouragement he gave to the introduction of legitimate 
 commerce and Christianity into the heathen countries which 
 he explored. 
 
 On his return to England, after his great journey across the 
 continent of Africa in 1856, the good Doctor urged the London 
 Missionary Society, in whose service he had previously been 
 engaged, to establish a mission on the banks of the Zambezi, 
 with a tribe of natives known as the Makololo, with the view 
 of reaching other tribes in the interior through them. A mission 
 was organized accordingly, which was to start from the Cape 
 of Good Hope direct for the interior, whilst the Doctor himself 
 went round by the eastern coast, purposing to meet the 
 missionaries in the valley of the Zambezi, and to introduce 
 them to the chiefs with whom he was personally acquainted. 
 The missionaries selected for this service were the Revs. 
 Messrs. Helmore and Price, the first of whom was a middle- 
 aged minister, with a wife and family, and had laboured in 
 South Africa for several years previously, whilst Mr. Price 
 was a young man, recently married, and was entering upon 
 mission work for the first time. They both appeared eminently 
 fitted for the arduous and hazardous work to which they were 
 designated, and the present writer had much pleasant inter- 
 course with them and their families during their sojourn in 
 Cape Town, making preparations for their long and weary 
 journey. On the 29th of August, 1858, I had the pleasure of 
 hearing Mr. Helmore preach at Mowbray, near Cape Town, 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 343 
 
 soon after which he and his party left for the interior, and we 
 saw them no more. 
 
 The incidents of the journey, as well as the issue of this 
 mission, were the most afflictive and distressing. The season 
 was unusually dry; and the mission waggons had scarcely 
 passed the boundary of the Cape Colony when water and 
 grass for the oxen became exceedingly scarce, and their progress 
 was consequently slow and dreary. As they advanced farther 
 into the interior the difificulties alluded to increased, and several 
 of the oxen being fairly "knocked up," fell down one after 
 another and died. Their places were supplied with difficulty 
 by cattle purchased from the natives, and the missionaries 
 pushed on with a degree of courage and perseverance worthy 
 of the highest commendation. But when they came to cross 
 the outskirts of the Kalahari desert, as Dr. Livingstone and 
 Mr. Oswell had done a few years before, their sufferings 
 reached their climax, and they had a narrow escape from 
 perishing in the wilderness. Mrs. Helmore, the wife of the 
 senior missionary, who had previously had considerable 
 experience in mission work and African travelling, gives the 
 following touching account of their trying position at this 
 time, in a letter addressed to her sister in England : — 
 
 "We are expecting rain this month, and are longing for it as those only- 
 can long who have travelled through a dreary and parched wilderness where 
 no water is. Our poor oxen were at one time four and at another five days 
 without drinking. We also suffered much ourselves from thirst, being 
 obliged to economize the little water we had in our vessels, not knowing 
 when we should get more. Tuesday, the 6th inst., was one of the most 
 trying days I ever passed. About sunrise the poor oxen, which had been 
 dragging the heavy waggons through the sands during the night, stopping 
 now and then to draw breath, gave signs of giving up altogether. My 
 husband now resolved to remain behind with one waggon and a single 
 man, while I and the children and the rest of the people went forward with 
 all the oxen, thinking that we should certainly reach water before night. We 
 had had a very scanty supply the day before ; the men had not tasted drink 
 since breakfast till late in the evening. We divided a bottleful among four 
 of them. There now remained only five bottles of water. I gave my 
 husband three, and reserved two for the children, expecting that we should 
 
344 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 get water first. It was a sorrowful parting, for we were all faint from 
 thirst, and of course eating was out of the question. After dragging on for 
 four hours, the heat obliged us to stop. 
 
 "The poor children continually asked for water. I put them off as long 
 as I could, and when they could be denied no longer, doled the precious 
 fluid out a spoonful at once to each of them. Poor Selina and Harry cried 
 bitterly. Willie bore up manfully ; but his sunken eyes showed how much 
 he suffered. As for Lizzie, she did not utter a single word of complaint, 
 nor even ask for water, but lay all day upon the ground perfectly quiet, 
 her lips quite parched and blackened. At sunset we made another attempt, 
 and got on about five miles. The people proposed going on with the 
 oxen in search of water, promising to return with a supply to the waggon, 
 but I urged their resting a little, and then making another attempt, that 
 we might if possible get near enough to walk to it. They yielded, tied 
 up the oxen to prevent their wandering, and lay down to sleep, having 
 tasted neither food nor drink all day. None of us could eat. I gave the 
 children a little dried fruit, slightly acid, in the middle of the day, but 
 thirst took away all desire to eat. 
 
 "The water being long since gone, as a last resource just before dark I 
 divided among the children half a teaspoonful of wine and water, which I 
 had reserved in case I should feel faint. They were revived by it, and said, 
 ' How nice it was ! ' though it scarcely allayed their thirst. Harry at length 
 cried himself to sleep, and the rest were dozing feverishly. It was a 
 beautiful moonlight night, but the air was hot and sultry. I sat in front of 
 the waggon unable to sleep, hoping that water might arrive before the 
 children awoke on another day. About half-past ten I saw some persons 
 approaching. They proved to be two Bakalahari natives, bringing a tin 
 canteen half full of water, and a note from Mrs. Price, saying that, having 
 heard of the trouble we were in from the man we had sent forw-ard, and 
 being themselves not very far from water, they had sent us all they had. 
 The sound of water soon roused the children, who had tried in vain to 
 sleep ; and I shall not soon forget the rush they made to get a drink. I 
 gave each of the children and men a cupful, and then drank myself. It 
 was the first liquid that had passed my lips for twenty-four hours, and I 
 had eaten nothing. The Bakalahari passed on, saying that although they 
 had brought me water they had none themselves. They were merely passing 
 travellers ; I almost thought they were angels sent from heaven. All now 
 slept comfortably except myself; my mind had been too much excited 
 for sleep, and I could do nothing but praise the Lord for His merciful 
 interposition on our behalf." 
 
 In the course of the following day the sufferers were supplied 
 with a more ample stock of water by their friends Mr. and Mrs. 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 345 
 
 Price, the junior missionary and his wife, who were in advance 
 of them, and had providentially met with a small fountain. 
 The first supply was brought in a calabash on the head of a 
 native servant girl, who had walked with her precious burden 
 four hours. Then came a pack-ox with two kegs of water, 
 and at length the whole mission party reached the fountain, 
 Mr. Helmore, who had been left behind in the desert, having 
 joined them, and they all united in praising God for their 
 merciful deliverance when thus exposed to "perils in the 
 wilderness." 
 
 It is painful to have to record that a mission commenced 
 with the purest motives, and thus far prosecuted with the 
 noblest Christian courage under circumstances of extreme 
 difficulty, should have ended in disaster. But such, alas ! 
 was in fact the case. As the missionaries with their families 
 and waggons descended into the valley of the Zambezi, 
 they had an ample supply of grass and water ; but they soon 
 found themselves in a low swampy unhealthy country. And 
 when they reached their destination in the Makololo country, 
 they did not meet with the cordial reception from the chief 
 and his people which they expected. Dr. Livingstone, who 
 was engaged in exploring the lower branches of the majestic 
 river, was moreover unable to meet them, as he intended. 
 They naturally became discouraged \ and before they got any- 
 thing done of consequence in the way of teaching the people, 
 the chief still withholding his consent to their movements, the 
 country fever broke out among them with fearful violence. 
 Willie, Lizzie, Selina, and Harry, Mr. Helmore's four .lovely 
 children, who had suffered so much from thirst in the desert, 
 were smitten down one after another, and in each case the 
 fever proved fatal. Their remains were scarcely committed to 
 the ground when the bereaved parents were attacked with the 
 same fever, which in the course of a few days ran its fatal 
 round, and the remains of Mr. and Mrs. Helmore were laid 
 by the side of those of their dear children. " They were 
 lovely in life, and in death they were not divided." 
 
346 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 The Makololo mission having thus failed through circum- 
 stances beyond human control, Mr. and Mrs. Price began to 
 think of retracing their steps to the Cape Colony, and at 
 length, with heavy hearts, they yoked the oxen to the waggons 
 and turned their faces towards the abodes of civilized men. 
 But their troubles were not yet ended. They had not pro- 
 ceeded far before Mrs. Price also sickened and died, and the 
 bereaved missionary had to perform the mournful duty of com- 
 mitting the remains of his beloved wife to their lonely resting 
 place in the desert. What must have been the feelings of 
 the man of God, the only survivor of the ill-fated mission, as 
 he pursued his lonely and dreary journey, after committing 
 to the silent grave his beloved colleague together with his wife 
 and their four children, and last of all his own dear partner, 
 his most valued earthly treasure ! Verily the ways of God 
 are a great deep which we cannot fathom ; but " what we 
 know not now we shall know hereafter." 
 
 Universities' Mission. 
 
 The benevolent and large-hearted Dr. Livingstone, in his 
 anxiety to introduce the blessings of the Gospel and Christian 
 civilization into Central Africa, was not satisfied with en- 
 deavouring to interest the London Missionary Society in the 
 subject. Believing that the field was large enough for all, and 
 that the call for Christian effort was imperative, he made an 
 appeal to the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, urging 
 them to unite their contributions, talents, and energies in the 
 good work. In this he was successful, and meetings were held 
 at both places to consider the subject. These were afterwards 
 joined by the learned institutions of Durham and Dublin, 
 and the " Universities' Mission " was ere long organized. The 
 history of this Association, as traced by the pen of the Rev. H. 
 Rowley, one of the surviving members of the mission, in a 
 volume which consists chiefly of a journal of events reduced 
 to the narrative form, is truly affecting and admonitory. 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 347 
 
 The object of the mission was in the first place to establish a 
 Christian settlement on the highlands about 300 miles from the 
 south-eastern coast of Africa, as the most likely locality, in 
 Dr. Livingstone's opinion, to prove healthy and eligible, and then 
 to push forward by degrees to the heart of Central Africa. It 
 was proposed to reach this region by the navigation of the 
 Zambezi and the Shire, in the vicinity of which it was situated. 
 A staff of six clergymen, headed by a bishop, and accompanied 
 by a doctor, a carpenter, and other artificers, were selected for 
 the service ; public support was sought and secured in large 
 measure ; distinguished patronage was accorded to the enter- 
 prise, and Charles F. Mackenzie, then Archdeacon of Natal, 
 was appointed the first Bishop of Central Africa. 
 
 The necessary preparations having been made for the com- 
 mencement of the work, a farewell service was held in the 
 Canterbury Cathedral on the 20th October, i860, and a few 
 days later the Bishop-elect, with five others, sailed from 
 Plymouth, arrangements having been made for the rest of the 
 party to follow in another vessel. All the members of the 
 mission met in due course at Cape Town, and after the Bishop 
 had been duly consecrated, they embarked on board one of 
 Her Majesty's ships, and arrived in safety at Johannah and the 
 mouth of the Zambezi in the month of February, 1861, with an 
 ample supply of stores for twelve months. 
 
 Here they met with Dr. Livingstone, on the faith of whose 
 representations they had come. He in the meantime had 
 found unexpected difficulties in transporting goods up the 
 Zambezi. The country being in the hands of the slave- 
 dealing Portuguese and Arabs, who were jealous of the 
 presence of the English, every possible obstacle was thrown 
 in the way of their enterprise. With a view to obviate these. 
 Dr. Livingstone resolved to explore the Rovuma, a river about 
 450 miles to the north, which might, he hoped, prove a safer 
 and more desirable route to the highland region to which the 
 mission party was bound. The exploration was accordingly 
 attempted; but the result was entire disappointment. The 
 
348 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 river proved navigable only a short distance from its mouth, 
 and in vain efforts to ascend two months were lost, the vessel 
 constantly running aground on the banks of sand and mud 
 which everywhere impeded their progress. And worse than 
 this, both the explorers and their friends left behind at Johanna 
 became sadly invalided by the malaria fevers with which they 
 were attacked, and which are so common in the low and 
 swampy districts at the mouths of the rivers in this climate. 
 And when they did start to ascend the Zambezi and the Shire 
 they were obliged, from the want of transport accommodation, 
 to leave one-half of their stores behind. 
 
 After two months of difficult navigation of the Zambezi and 
 the Shire, the Bishop and his party reached the point whence 
 they were to commence their ascent to the highlands. Dr. 
 Livingstone accompanied them on their upward march, and 
 in the course of their journey they encountered a band of 
 slavers with forty-eight slaves. These the Doctor attacked, very 
 unwisely as we think, and forcibly released the captives and dis- 
 persed the captors. Again and again this was done at the expense 
 of a little battle, in which blood was sometimes shed. Whether 
 the subsequent conduct of the missionaries was influenced by 
 this example or not we cannot say ; but they should have remem- 
 bered that Dr. Livingstone was not a professed missionary 
 at this time, and that it might not be right for them to do in 
 every respect as he did. 
 
 At length a site was selected for a mission station. It was 
 named Magomero, and was a village of the Manganji tribe, 
 near the border of the neighbouring tribe of Ajawas. Both 
 had been guilty of enslaving their captives and selling them to 
 the Portuguese, two yards of calico being the ordinary price of 
 a man or woman. The missionaries were no sooner settled 
 among them and Dr. Livingstone gone, than the Manganji, 
 seeing that they had guns, began to entreat their aid in resisting 
 the warlike inroads of their neighbours. Strange to say, 
 though he felt that missionaries ought not to be warriors, the 
 Bishop consented to the use of rifle and gun on behalf of the 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 349 
 
 Manganji, provided they would promise that they would never 
 have anything more to do with slavery ; to release all the 
 captives they might take ; to punish any of their number who 
 in future should sell their fellow-creatures, and to give notice 
 of any Portuguese slaving expedition which might appear in the 
 country. 
 
 The Manganji agreed, of course, to all this, and the Bishop, 
 apparently forgetting for the moment the peaceful character of 
 his mission, actually led his little band of Europeans forth to 
 war against a tribe of Africans who had never done them any 
 harm ! The account of the battle, as given by Mr. Rowley, 
 one of their number, reads strangely as an episode in juissionary 
 life. ■ " A wild fear had seized the Ajawa ; they were in full 
 retreat .... the air was black with smoke, for the fire had 
 spread over the plain. Such a sight I had never seen before, 
 and trust I may never see the like again. It was only by 
 remembering the atrocious conduct of the Ajawa, which for the 
 time being had placed them almost beyond the pale of pity, 
 that I could keep myself from being soul-sick at the scene 
 before me." However, an attempt to fulfil, after a fashion, the 
 Master's great commission, was associated with this z^;nnissionary 
 expedition. A dying Manganji child was among the rescued 
 captives, concerning whom the narrator writes as follows : " Life 
 ■was evidently fast ebbing away. Seeing this the Bishop decided 
 upon baptizing him, and this poor child, under the name of 
 Charles Henry, was numbered among the children of God, and 
 in two hours afterwards his spirit fled to that dear Lord who 
 had redeemed it. This was a blessed conclusion to the work 
 of the day (!), and when at last I lay down to rest, my heart 
 was so full I could only find relief in tears. The burial service 
 was read over this poor babe next day, and then we left it in 
 sure and certain hope of a joyful resurrection to eternal life." 
 Later on two or three other children were similarly baptized, 
 but the Bishop did not think fit to baptize those who seemed 
 likely to live. " No one more than the Bishop realized the 
 necessity of baptismal grace, but his previous experience among 
 
o50 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 the Zulus led him to shrink from possibly exposing regenerate 
 children to the danger of being left among the heathen with 
 none to care for their souls ! " 
 
 A semi-civilized village rose by degrees at Magomero, and 
 a temporary church building was erected, in which the liturgy 
 was read with due solemnity for the members of the mission ; but 
 there seems to have been no preaching to the natives. " We felt 
 it better," says Mr. Rowley, " to wait till we could speak the 
 language freely ourselves than to give instructions through the 
 medium of an illiterate interpreter, who still clung to many of 
 his old heathen superstitions." The liberated slaves were fed 
 and clothed, and the children taught ; but no Gospel preaching 
 was attempted. Barter, building, warlike expeditions, and 
 journeys in search of fresh supplies of food, seem to have taken 
 up all the time of the Bishop and his missionaries. At length 
 three new men from England, — one of whom was a clergyman, 
 — joined the mission ; but the difficulties and privations of all 
 its members seemed to increase with the lapse of time. All 
 suffered more or less from fever in going up and down the 
 river. Dr. Livingstone, who was now on the coast, moreover 
 found he could not send up the supplies as regularly as he had 
 hoped, and food began to be very scarce. Two of the mission 
 party on a journey in search of a land route, if possible, for 
 the transport of supplies, were attacked by hostile natives and 
 their bearers made prisoners. The Bishop and some of his 
 clergy started for the rescue, and sacked the enemy's village 
 and burned it to ashes ! These repeated raids did not diminish, 
 but rather tended to increase, the difficulties which surrounded 
 the mission. At length matters came to a mournful crisis. 
 
 The supplies becoming continually shorter, the Bishop and 
 one of his clergy started down the river to a spot where they 
 hoped stores had been sent for them. But the exposure of a 
 most trying journey, disappointment at not finding the boats 
 and supplies they expected, detention on an unhealthy island, 
 and depression arising from the increasing difficulties of his 
 position, proved too much for the bright, genial, and kind- 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 351 
 
 hearted Bishop Mackenzie. He was attacked by malignant 
 fever, for which he had no remedies on the spot, and sank 
 under it, after five days' illness, during which he was generally 
 unconscious. He was a man possessed of great capacity and 
 many excellences, notwithstanding his acknowledged mistakes, 
 and his death was a great loss to the mission. Very touching 
 is the account given of the Bishop's lonely funeral. His only 
 European companion on this his last journey was the Rev. H. 
 De Wint Burrup, and he was himself down with fever at the 
 same time, and too ill to witness the closing scene. The Mako- 
 lolo cleared a spot in the bush and dug the grave, in which the 
 remains of the Bishop were laid late in the evening. " It was 
 too dark for the sorrowing Burrop to read the burial service, 
 but he said all he could remember ; and there on the banks of 
 the Shire, away from all but the heathen to whom he devoted 
 his life, in sure and certain hope of a joyful resurrection, rests 
 what was the soul's tabernacle of Charles Frederick Mackenzie, 
 the first bishop of the Central African Mission." 
 
 Mr. Burrop's strength just held out till he had returned to 
 tell the sorrowful tale to the fever and famine-stricken party at 
 Magomero. There he also sank into the grave. Miss Mackenzie 
 and Mrs. Burrop came shortly afterwards to join their relatives, 
 but hearing these sad tidings on their way up the river, they 
 returned, smitten with fever as well as with grief It was now 
 resolved by the survivors of the mission party, as the wars and 
 fighting still continued, and the difficulties of transport were so 
 great, to abandon Magomero and try to establish a settlement 
 lower down the river. They settled for a time at the village of 
 a chief called Chisiba ; but troubles followed here also, and no 
 direct mission work was done, and the subsequent history of 
 the mission was a history of wars, and treaties, and journeys, 
 and bargains, and fevers, and deaths. The Rev. C. H. Scuda- 
 more died in January 1863, and Dr. Dickenson and a young 
 man named Thornton soon afterwards. They were buried by 
 Dr. Livingstone, who happened to come up the river at the 
 time. Several of the survivors were now so completely inva- 
 
352 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 lided that they returned to England; the rest resolved on 
 resuming their former position on the hills ; but Bishop Tozer, 
 who had been appointed as Bishop Mackenzie's successor, 
 decided on removing much nearer to the coast ; and after a 
 trial of a few months longer, it was resolved to leave that part 
 of Africa altogether, and to attempt to reach the interior from 
 some other point. Zanzibar was the place ultimately selected ; 
 and, to use Dr. Livingstone's expression, " the mission dege- 
 nerated into a mere chaplaincy to the Zanzibar consulate." 
 
 LiviNGSTONiA Mission at Lake N'yassa. 
 
 The unhappy failure of the Makololo and Universities' Mis- 
 sions did not deter the friends of Africa from making further 
 attempts to introduce the blessings of civilization and Chris- 
 tianity to the interior regions of the dark continent. There 
 prevailed in many minds sanguine hopes that localities might 
 be found more healthy and better adapted for centres of mis- 
 sionary operations than any that had hitherto been tried ; and 
 that, with due care not to interfere unnecessarily with the secular 
 affairs of the people, and by abstaining entirely from taking part 
 in warlike contests, even for the suppression of the slave trade, 
 success might yet be realized. This was the case especially 
 with the friends of missions in Scotland, who were the next to 
 take action in the matter. The intelligence of the death of Dr. 
 Livingstone, their heroic and philanthropic fellow-countryman, 
 produced a powerful impression on the country at large, and a 
 few warm-hearted Christian ministers and gentlemen conceived 
 the noble idea of following up the conquests which he had won, 
 and of erecting to his memory a monument in the form of a 
 missionary settlement in Central Africa, which would be more 
 enduring and more beneficial in its results than either the tablet 
 in Westminster Abbey or the statue erected in his native land. 
 
 After mature deliberation it was resolved to make an effort 
 to raise the sum of ^10,000 as a fund with which to commence 
 the enterprise. For this purpose large and enthusiastic meet- 
 
Easiern and Central Africa. 
 
 353 
 
 ings were held in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and other places, in 
 the early part of the year 1875, at which some noble sentiments 
 were expressed, and resolutions passed, pledging the Presby- 
 terians of Scotland, both of the Established and Free Churches, 
 to do their utmost to promote the interests of the philanthropic 
 scheme just mentioned. Contributions flowed in apace, two 
 gentlemen each giving the noble sum of ^1000, another ^500, 
 and many more according to their ability ; so that the com- 
 mittee that was formed soon found itself in a position to proceed 
 to business. 
 
 The following extracts from the statement and appeal issued 
 by the committee will more fully explain the plan and object of 
 the enterprise : " The rivw Shire is a tributary of the Zambezi, 
 connecting it with Lake N'yassa. The proposed place for the 
 station contemplated is in the neighbourhood of Cape Maclear, 
 at the southern end of the lake. This lake from the Upper 
 Shire to its northern extremity reaches 200 miles, with a breadth 
 of from eighteen to fifteen miles. It abounds with fine harbours, 
 is stored with great varieties of delicious fish, and is surrounded 
 on all sides by fertile territory, rising towards mountainous 
 regions, all abundantly watered with numerous streams flowing 
 into the lake, and clothed with vegetation of the most splendid 
 luxuriance. The lake was discovered by Dr. Livingstone, who 
 explored it in 1861, and again went down its eastern side and 
 round the south end in 1866, on his way to the 'Fountains of 
 the Nile.' After the death of Bishop Mackenzie and the 
 breaking up of his mission in the unhealthy regions of the 
 Lower Shire, the great traveller, profiting by his experience, 
 and ever anxious that missions should be placed among the 
 inland tribes, often spoke of this country as the most healthy 
 and suitable for such a settlement, and lamented in no measured 
 terms the determination which kept the Bishop's successor on 
 the coast. Mr. Young, echoing Dr. Livingstone's eulogies of 
 the Lake N'yassa region, and his disappointment that no mission 
 had entered into it, says : ' Here, if anywhere, I believe a 
 healthy and flourishing settlement might be established.' " 
 
 23 
 
354 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Adverting to other questions, the circular says : " The com- 
 mittee are advised that the mission should be of an industrial 
 as well as of an evangelical nature. In forming a Christian 
 settlement it will be necessary to teach the natives some of our 
 industries, such as gardening, ploughing, and joiner-work. The 
 land is rich in all vegetable products ; and, in addition to the 
 exuberance of the tropics, is capable of producing, on the 
 higher grounds, the grain and the fruits of temperate regions ; 
 so that a mission once established would be able to live almost 
 entirely on the produce of the country. The whole region of 
 the Shire is fitted for the cultivation of cotton, which grows 
 wild, and is of fine quality. The abundant resources of the 
 country are at present totally neglected, in consequence of the 
 slave trade, the horrors of which it is impossible fully to set 
 forth, and which nothing but the Gospel and Christian civili- 
 zation can remedy. It is computed that 19,000 slaves are 
 annually carried across Lake N'yassa on their way to the coast. 
 But all this must come to an end. The memorial which 
 Dr. Livingstone implores at our hands is the gift of Christ's 
 messengers to the African people. ' He being dead, yet 
 speaketh.' Let us promptly respond to the call." 
 
 At length, the necessary preparations ha\ang been made, and 
 suitable agents engaged to commence the new mission, about the 
 middle of the year they embarked for the Cape of Good Hope. 
 The expedition consisted of Mr. E. D. Young, of the Royal Navy, 
 who had previously been with Dr. Livingstone in Africa ; Rev- 
 Dr. Robert Laws; Mr. Henry Henderson; Mr. George Johnson, 
 carpenter; Mr. John Macfadyen and Mr. Allan Simpson, 
 engineers and smiths ; Mr. Alexander Riddel, agriculturalist, 
 and Mr. William Baker, able seaman. They were furnished 
 with an ample supply of stores of every description, including 
 seeds, tools, articles for barter, and a small iron steamer in 
 sections, to be put together and launched on the river or lake 
 when they reached their destination. 
 
 Having called at Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, the expe- 
 dition arrived at the mouth of the Zambezi on the 23rd July, 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 355 
 
 1875, when they commenced at once to put together the Uttle 
 steamer, and to make other preparations for ascending the river. 
 Writing on the 8th August, among other things Dr. Laws says : 
 "Saturday and Monday were employed in putting up a shed 
 to keep off the sun's rays while working at the Ilala. On 
 Monday evening her keel was laid, and on Tuesday, the week 
 following, she was successfully launched on the Zambezi. Next 
 day she was brought alongside the Harah, and the boilers were 
 put in their places. On Saturday the masts were in, and steam 
 up; everything highly satisfactory. To-morrow we intend to 
 start up the river." 
 
 On ascending the Lower Shire to the rapids, the little steamer 
 Ilala had to be unscrewed, taken to pieces, and conveyed in 
 sections, in common with ordinary stores and baggage, on the 
 heads and shoulders of native carriers, a distance of about 
 sixty miles before it could be put together and launched again 
 on the Upper Shire, which is immediately connected with Lake 
 N'yassa. This herculean task was accomplished with amazing 
 despatch and success, without the occurrence of any serious 
 casualty ; and on the 24th October Mr. Young wrote as follows : 
 " I have the honour to report, for the information of the 
 committee, that the steamer Ilala was successfully launched 
 on the Upper Shire on the 6th instant, and started for N'yassa 
 on the 8th, which was reached on the 12th. The steamer is 
 quite a success — sails well, and steams seven knots an hour 
 with one boiler. Our party are all well and in good spirits. 
 Before entering Lake N'yassa, I called upon the powerful chief 
 Moponda, and informed him of the object of our mission. He 
 appeared very pleased, and at once gave us permission to settle 
 on any part of his land. He is the owner of the whole of the 
 Cape Maclear peninsula. We took a running survey of the 
 whole of the coast with very fine weather ; and although there 
 are many delightful spots fit for a settlement, none offer sufficient 
 protection to the steamer except a beautiful bay at Cape Maclear, 
 where we have decided to settle for the present." 
 
 About the same time Dr. Laws wrote as follows : " Another 
 
356 Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 stage of our journey has been reached, and, for the time being, 
 I suppose, I may say that Livingstonia is begun, though at 
 present a piece of canvas stretched between two trees, forming 
 a sort of tent, is all that stands for the future city of that name. 
 I am glad to say that only one more of our party has had fever 
 — Baker, our seaman. And since the recovery of the others, 
 good health has been the order of the day. On our way up we 
 passed through some of the grandest scenery I ever beheld on 
 the banks of the Upper Shire. Hills towering some of them two 
 or three thousand feet above the plain, while the river wound 
 its way through a level valley. There are no natives close here, 
 but soon we shall have as many as we like, as they will gather 
 around us. I suppose I shall have to learn two languages here, 
 as both Manganja and Ajawa are spoken within the range of 
 our steamer; but I should like to know more of the coast and 
 its people before I say which is the most important." 
 
 The next communication was from Mr. Young, who, writing 
 under date of "Livingstonia, Lake N'yassa, February i8th, 
 1876," says: "Since our arrival here, where we have settled 
 near Cape Maclear, nothing has happened to mar the progress 
 of the mission. We have made enemies of no one, and friends 
 of all. I am thankful to say that we succeeded in getting safely 
 housed before the rains began, and that the whole of the party 
 are in good health. Some have had slight attacks of fever, but 
 they soon got over it. After our goods were stored here, and 
 we were housed, and everything was in perfect safety, I took 
 four of our party in December, and went round the lake, to let 
 the people know of our arrival, and to see what the country and 
 the natives were like. We found that our arrival was known 
 far and wide, and that the Arabs were so terrified that no slaves 
 had been conveyed across for a whole month. We found the 
 lake much larger than Dr. Livingstone thought, having a coast- 
 line of not less than 800 miles, with many delightful, fertile, and 
 populous districts, etc." 
 
 In the course of the year Mr. Young was relieved of his 
 command by the arrival of the Rev. Dr. Stewart of the Love- 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 357 
 
 dale Free Church Institution, Kaffraria. The Doctor, who had 
 had large missionary experience in South Africa for many years. 
 Had taken a deep interest in Livingstonia from the beginning, 
 having attended the meetings that were held in Scotland, and 
 aided the enterprise with his counsel from time to time. On 
 the 20th October, 1876, he wrote from Lake N'yassa as 
 follows : " You will be glad to see from this that we have 
 safely reached the end of our long journey. We arrived here 
 on Saturday last in the small steamer Ilala, which brought us 
 up from the Cataracts. All our party, with two exceptions, are 
 very well, and the two are recovering rapidly from slight attacks 
 of fever. Livingstonia at present consists of a line of wattle 
 and daub houses, with strong inside posts, some twelve or 
 thirteen in number (exclusive of outhouses, workshops, and 
 other such erections), forming one side of a square 220 paces 
 long. The beauty of the position is beyond all question. 
 Before us we have all day a blue, sparkling sea, with a water 
 horizon to the north, and lofty hills on the mainland, in the 
 west, at a distance of about twenty miles. The vast superiority 
 of the climate here, as compared with that of the river valleys 
 below, is most striking. Missionary operations are as yet on 
 a small scale, but they are begun, and both preaching and 
 school teaching are in operation," etc. 
 
 Dr. Stewart was accompanied by Messrs. Cotterill and 
 Thelwall, and two or three native teachers from Lovedale to 
 reinforce the mission, all of whom entered heartily into the work. 
 In 1877 Mr. Young returned to England, bringing very favourable 
 accounts of the state and prospects of Livingstonia ; and sub- 
 sequent intelligence to hand has been equally encouraging. 
 Let the friends of missions everywhere aid this noble enter- 
 prise with their prayers, sympathy, and support ; and, with God's 
 blessing, it is sure to prosper. 
 
 London Society's Mission at Lake Tanganyika. 
 
 Almost simultaneously with the praiseworthy efforts made 
 by the Presbyterians in Scotland to found the Livingstonia 
 
358 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Mission at Lake N'yassa, the London Missionary Society was 
 making arrangements to establish a similar mission at Lake 
 Tanganyika, another great inland sea, discovered and partly 
 explored by Dr. Livingstone and other eminent travellers. 
 This noble project had its origin in the generous offer of Mr. 
 Robert Arthington, of Leeds, to contribute ;^5ooo towards 
 the expenses which it would involve. Ujiji, a large native 
 town and Arab settlement, formerly a noted centre of the slave 
 trade, where Dr. Livingstone remained for a long time when 
 he was bereft of the means of proceeding on his journey, is 
 situated about 540 geographical miles west of Zanzibar, but the 
 travelling distance is nearly 700 miles. The main difficulties 
 in the way of establishing a mission at this place consisted of 
 its distance from the coast, the absence of roads or navigable 
 rivers to facilitate travelling and transport of stores, and the 
 general ruggedness of the country that intervened, to say 
 nothing of the dangers incident to passing through extensive 
 regions inhabited by various warlike and savage native tribes. 
 But as these difficulties had been overcome by two or three 
 enterprising travellers, and were found to decrease in magni- 
 tude with every journey that was taken into the interior, the 
 directors of the Society entertain the hope that they may all 
 be successfully encountered. 
 
 In a statement drawn up, respecting the proposed mission, by 
 Dr. Mullens, the esteemed Foreign Secretary, we find, among 
 other important particulars, the following interesting items of 
 information : " Ujiji, the place proposed for the head-quarters 
 of the new mission, is situated on the east shore of the Lake 
 Tanganyika. It is a large town in the district of Ukaranga 
 (though no traveller gives the number of houses), is the centre 
 of a great trade, and has a daily market. Large canoes are 
 made in the neighbourhood, and thus the entire shores of 
 this vast sheet of water are rendered easily accessible. Lake 
 Tanganyika is 300 miles in length by twenty in width, and 
 its extensive shore-line affords opportunity of easy access 
 to a multitude of people. The importance of one or more 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 359 
 
 strong mission stations on such a noble inland sea cannot be 
 over-rated. " The important document from which these sen- 
 tences in reference to the site of the new mission are extracted, 
 gives a clear and business like statement of the whole case, and 
 dwells at length on the climate, the diseases most prevalent in 
 the country, the precautions which are necessary to be observed, 
 and the advantages to be derived from the powerful influence 
 of the sultan of Zanzibar, who was known to be friendly to such 
 undertakings for the benefit of Central Africa. 
 
 When the question had been carefully considered in all its 
 bearings by the directors of the Society, it was solemnly re- 
 solved in the name and strength of the Lord to enter upon the 
 great and important work to which they believed they were 
 called by the unmistakable leadings of Divine Providence. 
 The necessary outfit and stores having been provided, and 
 other preparations made for the important enterprise, the first 
 company of missionaries was sent forth in the early part of the 
 year 1877, followed by the fervent prayers and best wishes of 
 thousands of the friends of missions in this and other countries. 
 This party consisted of the Rev. Messrs. Price, Thompson, 
 Clarke, Dodgshun, Hore, and Huntley. The three brethren 
 first named had been successfully engaged in mission work 
 before, and had therefore the benefit of previous experience : 
 the rest were new hands \ but Mr. Hore had the advantage of 
 having studied medicine, which was regarded as a matter of 
 importance to the whole mission. They were all men of acknow- 
 ledged piety, energy, courage, and apparent good health, and 
 were considered in every respect well adapted for the arduous 
 undertaking. 
 
 Having arrived in safety at Zanzibar, Mr. Thompson, the 
 leader of the expedition, and the rest of the brethren set 
 themselves to work to make the necessary preparations for 
 the inland journey, by engaging experienced native attendants, 
 putting up their siores and luggage in convenient packages, 
 laying in a stock of provisions, and attending to other prelimi- 
 naries. The following sketch of the tract of country to be 
 
3 6o Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 traversed between the eastern coast of Africa and Lake Tan- 
 ganyika, as given in Dr. Mullens' statement already alluded to, 
 will throw some light upon the difficulties to be encountered: 
 " The district between Ujiji and the coast at Bagamoyo con- 
 tains nine degrees of longitude, 30° to 39"; and the journey 
 across it is divided very nearly into three stages of three degrees 
 each. The first stage brings the traveller to Ugogo; the second 
 to Unyanyembe ; and the third to the Tanganyika shore. The 
 first stage offers the greatest difficulties, the last two are com- 
 paratively easy. The first stage is divided into two nearly 
 equal sections. In the earlier the traveller crosses the level 
 tropical plain between the sea and the roots of the hills ; a few 
 streams, patches of forest, and swamps, are his only trouble. 
 At the little fortress of Simbamwemmi he has risen 1000 feet. 
 Then he begins to cross a line of ridges, each higher than the 
 last, until he reaches the upper plateau, which remains at a 
 height of 3500 feet. The hilly region is 100 miles wide; 
 and he has to cross three valleys, each with its swamps and 
 river, of which the Makata swamp is truly formidable. It 
 is impassable in the rainy season, and should be passed early 
 in May or June. Having ascended the Mukondokwa Pass, 
 and reached the upper plateau, the travelling becomes more 
 easy. The caravan traverses vast rolling plains, with quaint 
 knolls covered with wood ; with here and there forest, and 
 here and there long reaches of depopulated country; and at 
 the end of 200 miles from the summit it will reach Unyan- 
 yembe. With ordinary loads a caravan of limited size may 
 reach this station from the coast in seventy-five days. The 
 remainder of the route is of the same character." 
 
 In the course of his remarks on kindred subjects. Dr. 
 Mullens says : " The means of transit are extremely limited. 
 As the entire route is a mere track, wheel-carriages have never 
 yet been employed in the district. As the tsetse-fly is found in 
 the lower jungles, much risk is run in the employment of oxen, 
 horses, donkeys, or mules. Mr. Stanley, however, took both 
 horses and donkeys with him, and, though he lost two horses 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 361 
 
 on his first journey, he says he would take them again. Some 
 of his donkeys went with him through everything. The chief 
 means of carriage is the ordinary pagdzi, or porters of the 
 country. These men are hired singly or in gangs. They carry 
 from sixty to seventy pounds weight each. The bearers are 
 formed into companies under a responsible chief, and are 
 accompanied by soldiers, who guard the property both by day 
 and night. An interpreter is needed with the English traveller, 
 who can speak Arabic to the Arab traders, and Kisuahili 
 to the people generally. Oh for a broad road ! oh for the 
 African waggon of the Cape Colony, with its huge wheels, its 
 first-floor bedroom, its 4000 pounds weight of goods, and its 
 long team of oxen under Hottentot charge ! Shall we venture 
 to try it ? " 
 
 The question whether the ox-waggon should be tried for this 
 novel journey was answered in the afifirmative, and arrange- 
 ments were made accordingly. With what success the sequel 
 will show. Everything being ready for a start, the mission 
 party left Zanzibar for the interior in the month of August ; 
 and they had not proceeded far inland before they found that 
 waggon-travelling here was very different to that of the Cape 
 and Kafifirland. Even under the experienced guidance of Mr. 
 Price, the progress through the swamps, and thickly-matted 
 brushwood, and patches of forest, was slow and dreary in the 
 extreme, both hatchet and spade being in frequent requisition 
 to clear the way. The consequence was they were unable to 
 complete the journey in a single season ; and at the end 01 
 the first year they settled down for a temporary rest among the 
 hills of Usagara, 160 miles from the sea-coast. Their resting- 
 place was Kirasa, a village on the south side of the river 
 Wami ; and here they built a little settlement of five houses, 
 stored the greater part of their baggage and goods, and enjoyed 
 a pleasant and refreshing rest in the pure fresh air. 
 
 In planning their further advance at the commencement ot 
 1878, they found that, owing to the undoubted presence of the 
 fatal tsetse-fly in the districts they would have to traverse, it 
 
362 
 
 Africa : Past and Pyesent. 
 
 would be useless to attempt to take the waggons onward, and 
 arrangements were made for the conveyance of themselves and 
 their stores by the usual bands of native porters, already 
 described. Messrs. Price and Clarke having returned with 
 the waggons to the coast, Messrs. Thompson, Hore, and 
 Huntley, with 240 bearers, prepared to proceed farther in- 
 land towards Tanganyika, whilst Mr. Dodgshun returned to 
 Zanzibar with a native trader named Broyon, who had engaged 
 to transport the remainder of the goods — some 13,000 lbs. — 
 from the coast to Ujiji. On the 29th of May, the party for 
 the interior broke up their encampment at Kirasa, and pro- 
 ceeded westward as far as Mpwapwa, a place where the 
 Church Missionary Society had already planted a station. At 
 the outset of their new journey they were short-handed, and 
 found great trouble in adjusting the loads of goods they were 
 taking with them. The arrival of additional bearers from 
 Zanzibar solved their difficulties for the present; and on Wed- 
 nesday, June 1 2th, they started from Mpwapwa with 240 men. 
 
 Writing to the directors of the Society at home in reference 
 to the commencement of the new journey, Mr. Hore says : 
 " We have now actually entered upon Central Africa. We 
 have made our arrangements as follows : Mr. Thompson is to 
 manage all the hongo payments, or any other business with the 
 chiefs, and the never-ending medical duties. To myself has 
 been apportioned the charge of the caravan generally, the care 
 of the men both as to their food and work, and all the arrange- 
 ment of transport. Mr. Huntley has charge of our own com- 
 missariat, and assists in anything which would otherwise require 
 my presence in two places at once. I feel very glad that Mr. 
 Dodgshun will be with the large part of our stores left with 
 Broyon. The present start looks more like getting to the lake 
 than any we have yet had." 
 
 By the rupture of a blood-vessel soon after leaving Kirasa, 
 Mr. Thompson was greatly prostrated ; but through the kind 
 attention of Dr. Baxter, of the Church Missionary Society, he 
 gradually recovered his strength. Travelling, however, soon 
 
Easicrn and Central Africa. 363 
 
 fatigued him, and it was consequently necessary for a time that 
 he should be carried. This was, in fact, " the beginning of 
 the end," although no one thought so at the time. Without 
 encountering much difficulty, the party arrived early in July at 
 Mukondoku, the last town of Ugogo, and a few days later they 
 reached Koi Kirondah. On this place Mr. Hore makes the 
 following remarks : "This is the best-built town I have seen in 
 this country. All the houses are half as high again as any others 
 we have met with, and there is a great deal of good workmanship 
 displayed in their erection. Comfortable doors and verandahs, 
 plastered walls, and many other household comforts, are to be 
 seen on every hand. There are also other signs of the superiority 
 of these native Africans. Here we squat on little stools or clean 
 mats, and talk with these people, who are on the whole a very 
 respectable lot of men." 
 
 Leaving Koi Kirondah, the travellers had before them a week's 
 journey through a tract of country entirely without inhabitants. 
 Having, however, made due preparation, this was speedily and 
 prosperously accomplished, and on the 20th of July they reached 
 the capital of Uyui, where they met with kind attention from 
 the head man of the place. Seven days later they arrived at 
 Urambo, the town of the powerful chief Mirambo, concerning 
 whom Mr. Thompson says : " Mirambo received us most kindly, 
 and treated us very handsomely whilst we remained there. He 
 certainly did his best to show himself friendly to us. He wished 
 us to remain a month with him, but when I told him we must 
 push on, and get to the end of our journey so as to get our houses 
 built before the rains, he was willing to let us go, but expressed 
 a hope that I would come back soon and remain with him a 
 month. The chief promised us men to go with us to show us 
 the road. He said his men could go to Ujiji in five days, but 
 it will take our caravan much longer." 
 
 Being anxious to reach their destination, the mission party 
 left Urambo on the 5th of August, Mirambo accompanying them 
 to their first camping-place, and thence they made rapid progress 
 towards the lake. Before daybreak on the 23rd they were all 
 
364 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 ready to proceed, for Ujiji was near at hand. In the course of 
 the day they entered the town in regular marching order, with 
 the Union Jack and other flags floating in the breeze, of which 
 Mr. Hore gives a graphic description, but our limited space 
 prevents our quoting it. They encamped for the night in the 
 gardens of Bwana Musa, and all felt thankful that they had 
 reached their destination in safety after such a long and weary 
 journey. 
 
 On the 25th, two days after their arrival, Mr. Thompson wrote 
 as follows : " Through God's blessing we have performed one 
 of the quickest and most prosperous journeys which have ever 
 been made to Ujiji. We were just seventy-five days from 
 Mpwapwa. We have lost none of our goods, and we have had 
 few of those troubles which other travellers seem to have had. 
 I cannot tell you how pleased we are to get here. I came on 
 in front on Friday to look for a good camping-place, and we 
 found a most healthy-looking site for our station close on 
 Kigoma Bay. It is near the highest hill about here, but there 
 is no good running stream near it ; and if we wish to make a 
 garden to grow wheat, we shall have to make it at some distance 
 from the station. We intend to move to this place to-morrow, 
 and pitch our camp there, until we try further to get a place as 
 healthy with a running stream close to it. The place I speak 
 of is about three miles from Ujiji, and can be seen from it." 
 
 It is melancholy to have to record that this extract is taken 
 from the last letter received by the directors from Mr. Thompson. 
 On the 13th of September, about a month after it was written, 
 he was seized by what appeared to be an apoplexy, and remained 
 in a state of coma for more than forty-eight hours. Watched 
 over and nursed with much care and tenderness by the brethren 
 with him, he occasionally showed signs of returning conscious- 
 ness and clearness of intellect. The hopes that were thus raised 
 were soon to be disappointed, however ; for, according to Mr. 
 Hore's account of the sad event, " the poor sufferer gradually 
 relapsed, and quietly went home to Jesus on Sunday afternoon, 
 September 22nd. So has our Heavenly Father seen fit thus 
 
Easter7i and Central Africa. 365 
 
 early to take to Himself one of our number, and one that had 
 often been thought to be one of the strongest among us. His 
 will be done. We buried his mortal remains on the hill at 
 Kigoma, about three miles north-west of Ujiji — (on Monday 
 evening the 23rd of September) — a spot which I had previously 
 visited with Mr. Thompson, and the situation of which he was 
 pleased with. He was followed to the grave by all our men, 
 who also knelt reverently round the grave, while in simple 
 service we committed the body to the ground, ' in sure and 
 certain hope of a glorious resurrection to eternal life.' " 
 
 The leader of the mission being thus removed, the two 
 remaining brethren at Ujiji were left in painful solitude and 
 anxiety in a strange land ; Mr. Dodgshun, who had gone to 
 Zanzibar to bring up the remaining stores, having been detained 
 on the journey much longer than was expected. Indeed, this 
 brother did not arrive at Ujiji till the early part of the following 
 year, having met with dangers, difficulties, and detentions such 
 as are seldom experienced even in that country. For many 
 months the directors of the Society were kept in a state of the 
 most anxious suspense from receiving no intelligence of the 
 movements of Mr. Dodgshun, and but very vague and unsatis- 
 factory accounts from Tanganyika. 
 
 Under these circumstances the directors were led to consider 
 how they could best reinforce the mission, and save it from 
 collapsing altogether. They found some relief in the noble 
 offer of two students to give themselves to the work, and to 
 go out and join the Central African Mission without delay. 
 They were still at a loss, however, for an experienced missionary 
 to take the lead in the enterprise ; those already on the spot, 
 and those recently appointed, being all inexperienced and com- 
 paratively young men. They looked round in every direction, 
 and communicated with some that seemed most likely for 
 such service, but all in vain. 
 
 Whilst thus perplexed, the directors received an offer cf 
 service from a quarter they little expected. The Rev. Dr. 
 Mullens, the esteemed Foreign Secretary of the Society, who 
 
366 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 had served the cause so long and so ably in India, Madagascar, 
 and England, generously offered in the emergency to go out 
 to Zanzibar, and if necessary to Tanganyika, to accompany the 
 young missionaries just appointed, to regulate and superintend 
 the affairs of the mission till it should become thoroughly 
 established, and to render any service in his power to a cause 
 so dear to his heart. At first the directors felt very unwilling 
 to accept Dr. Mullens' noble offer, not knowing how to spare 
 him from head-quarters, and being apprehensive as to the 
 effect that such an undertaking might have upon his health 
 or life. But the Doctor being very firm and persistent in his 
 offer, the directors at length reluctantly acquiesced. 
 
 Arrangements were forthwith made for this new departure 
 in the history of the London Society's Mission to Central 
 Africa. The necessary preparations having been completed, 
 on Wednesday, April 9th, 1879, a valedictory service was held 
 at the Mission House in London, to take leave of Dr. Mullens, 
 and the Rev. W. Griffith, and Mr. Southon, a medical mis- 
 sionary. At this meeting, which was very well attended, the 
 venerable Dr. Moffat gave an address full of affection and 
 appropriate counsel to the young brethren. They sailed for 
 Zanzibar on the i8th April, and Dr. Mullens embarked at 
 Southampton on the 24th, with the object of joining Messrs. 
 Griffith and Southon at Aden, to proceed with them on to 
 Zanzibar. This important reinforcement of the Tanganyika 
 Mission went forth, and was followed by the prayers of thousands 
 of Christian people of different denominations, for all felt that 
 the most momentous questions were involved in it. 
 
 The directors of the London Missionary Society had par- 
 ticularly urged that Dr. Mullens should not go farther than 
 Zanzibar, unless the necessities of the case should absolutely 
 require him to do so, as the cause would be materially served 
 by his assisting the young missionaries in their preparations, 
 and seeing them fairly on their journey fqr the interior. But 
 for some reason not fully explained, the Doctor resolved to 
 go right through to Tanganyika, and he set out for Ujiji with 
 
Eastern and Cenlral Afiica. 
 
 367 
 
 his young brethren accordingly. It is indeed melancholy to 
 have to add that he did not live to reach the end of the 
 journey, his Heavenly Father, in His infinite wisdom, seeing 
 fit to call him to His eternal rest before he had travelled half 
 the distance. The sad story will be best related, as far as 
 possible, in the language of Mr. Southon, the medical missionary, 
 who was with him to the last. The following narrative is 
 condensed from Mr. Southon's letter to the directors, dated 
 Mpwapwa, July i6th, iSyg, as published in the Nonconformist : — 
 
 "From the time of arriving at Zanzibar, Dr. Mullens took an active part 
 in everything that was being done in the way of preparation for the journey. 
 After we were once started from Induni, we had no trouble with the men, 
 though the loads of some of them were above the standard weight, i.e., 
 sixty-five pounds. Dr. Mullens found a serious obstacle to his progress in 
 the long rank grass which grows in great abundance in all the valleys and 
 low-lying lands. He was carried in an iron chair. Eight men were 
 appointed as his personal bearers. The chair was slung between two bam- 
 boo poles, and four men then carried it on their shoulders. As the men 
 were two abreast, they had to walk on either side of the path instead of on 
 it, as all the paths are only wide enough for one person to walk in at a 
 time. Dr. Mullens' men were therefore obliged to walk in the thick grass ; 
 hence their slow progress. At Mkange we halted a day to readjust loads, 
 and to alter Dr. Mullens' chair. I contrived to insert a pole between the 
 other two, that the men might carry and still be able to keep the centre of 
 the path. 
 
 " Everything now worked smoothly and harmoniously ; the men did their 
 work willingly and cheerfully, and although the poor doctor was generally 
 tired out, and a little late in getting into camp, a cup of cocoa or tea and a 
 little rest sufficed to restore him to his wonted health and spirits. He 
 hardly ever complained of anything except the long grass. Generally 
 speaking, Dr. Mullens did not find the hardships of camp life so bad as he 
 anticipated. He was never weary of watching the men at their work, and 
 was ever expressing his thankfulness that we had such a good set of men. 
 He would even lend a hand to help them to place the loads upon their 
 heads, and many a time a man was heard saying, ' Bavana Kubwa, ujoo ' 
 (Great Master, come here), when his friendly aid was desired. His know- 
 ledge of Kisuahili was not great, but he made himself understood fairly 
 well, and when he made blunders which the men laughed at, he joined 
 heartily with them. 
 
 " It was at Kitange, on Saturday, July 5th, 150 miles fromSandani, that 
 Dr. Mullens caught a severe cold, after having ascended a high hill for 
 
368 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 the purpose of taking observations. Being much exhausted when he came 
 down, I was hoping that he would propose our staying there over the 
 Sabbath, instead of going forward on that day as we had intended ; but 
 the arrival of Dr. Baxter, of the Church Missionary Society, from 
 Mpwapwa, who was on his way to the coast, and a good breakfast, led 
 him to attempt the journey to Rubeho, six miles. Dr. Baxter also went 
 with us to spend the Sunday. On arriving there. Dr. Mullens was much 
 exhausted, and ate but little dinner, though he continued to converse as 
 usual. I feared malarious fever ; and as Dr. Baxter was invited by 
 Dr. Mullens to share his tent, I asked him kindly to watch over him, ami 
 if he noticed any untoward appearance to report it to me. All Sunday he 
 remained in bed ; and though he had fever he ' doctored ' himself, and said 
 he should be all right on the morrow. Next morning, at 5 a.m., he was 
 decidedly worse, but later he was better, and got up. Towards evening an 
 obstinate fit ,of vomiting set in, after which he called Dr. Baxter and myself, 
 and placed his case in our hands. We did our best for him, but decided 
 that it would be better to move the camp next day, as it was cold at 
 Rubeho. 
 
 " On the following morning, Tuesday, the 8th, he was better, and able to 
 walk a little ; he was, however, carried all the way to Chacombe, eight 
 miles further on our journey. He arrived very much exhausted, but rallied 
 after a cup of arrowroot had been given him. He. however, incautiously 
 drank largely of very cold water, which brought on the vomiting again. 
 Various remedies were tried, and at last he obtained relief and got some 
 sleep. During the night he sent for me, asking me to advise him respecting 
 a troublesome bowel complaint, from which he had suffered for many years. 
 After a time his trouble was met, and he dozed off to sleep. Next day, 
 Wednesday, the 9th, he was decidedly worse, and suffered a great deal of 
 pain. Dr. Baxter and I never left him for any appreciable time after this. 
 Inflammation of the bowels had set in, and he sank into a state of delirium, 
 and died quite from exhaustion at 5.20 a.m., on Thursday, July loth, 1879. 
 When we realized that no human aid could save him, we sank upon our 
 knees by the bedside, and with streaming eyes commended him to the care 
 of the all-wise Father who was about to receive him ; and even as we 
 prayed he departed for the ' better country.' After more prayer for Divine 
 guidance, we carefully wrapped the body in sheeting, and then in blankets, 
 and lifted it into a hammock. After packing up everything we started for 
 Mpwapwa, twenty-nine miles distant. This place we reached on the 
 following morning, having made two very quick marches. 
 
 " With true brotherly sympathy and regard. Dr. Baxter and Mr. Last made 
 all arrangements for the burial ; but there being no boards about the place 
 suitable for a coffin, we were in straits as to what to do. At last Dr. Baxter 
 suggested that we should take the sides of one of the London Missionary 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 369 
 
 Society's carts which were left here by Mr. Thom])son. This was quickly 
 done, and a very good coffin made from them Ijy Mr. Last himself. This, 
 covered with white calico and lined with the same material, received the 
 corpse, and then it lay all night in the tent awaiting burial on the morrow. 
 A pleasant spot on the side of a hill overlooking the plain beneath had been 
 selected for a burying- place. Here a grave was dug in the hard ground, 
 and, with a kind forethought which did him great credit, Mr. Last had cut 
 a path to the place from the main road. On the morning of Saturday, the 
 1 2th July, a very mournful procession started from Mr. Last's house for 
 the burial-ground of the Church Missionary Society's mission at Mpwapwa. 
 Slowly and silently the procession wended its way down into deep gorges 
 and up the sides of rugged ravines and then along a level road. Not a 
 sound was heard save an occasional whisper, and the steady tramp, tramp of 
 the men who carried the precious burden. Just before arriving at the grave 
 the solemn words of Holy Scripture sounded in the stillness, ' The days of 
 our years are threescore years and ten,' etc. After placing the coffin near 
 the grave, and anon lowering it into it, Mr. Griffith offered prayer, and 
 then read the ordinary service. I then closed the service with a short 
 prayer. Another look at the coffin, and the remains of the dear departed 
 one are left in peace. When we turned from the grave we fully realized 
 our loss ; but the Almighty's arms are around us, and we are comforted. 
 We intend to raise a stone structure over the grave to mark the place where 
 we have deposited the body of Dr. Joseph Mullens, to await the glorious 
 rising on the resurrection morn." 
 
 At the close of the funeral solemnities the survivors of 
 the expedition, Messrs. Southon and Griffith, with their native 
 attendants, pursued their sorrowful journey towards the newly- 
 formed mission station at Lake Tanganyika, and the friends of 
 the enterprise sincerely hope and pray that, notwithstanding 
 the bereavements which it has experienced, it will yet prove 
 successful. Those who are still spared to prosecute the im- 
 portant work are men of undoubted piety and courage ; but 
 what is now most required is some one of matured judgment 
 and experience in mission work to take the lead and manage- 
 ment of affairs, both temporal and spiritual. In these days of 
 general enlightenment, and professed missionary zeal, an enter- 
 prise like this will surely not lack suitable men or means to 
 push it forward ; and, with the blessing of God, it can scarcely 
 fail of success. 
 
 24 
 
370 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 Church Mission at Lake N'yanza. 
 
 The partial opening up of Central Africa by the explorations 
 of Livingstone, Grant, Burton, Speke, Baker, Stanley, Cameron, 
 and others, prepared the way, not only for the establishment of 
 missions at Lake N'yassa by the Scottish Societies, and at Lake 
 Tanganyika by the London Society, as already mentioned, but 
 also for the planting of a similar station at Lake N'yanza by 
 the Church Society, of which we now proceed to give a brief 
 account. 
 
 In the course of their travels, Mr. Stanley and some of 
 the other adventurers mentioned above, came in contact with 
 Mtesa, king of Uganda, and Rumanik, king of Karagud, two 
 powerful native potentates, whose extensive dominions were 
 situated in the neighbourhood of Lake Victoria N'yanza. Both 
 of these sable rulers were represented as being friendly to the 
 English, and willing to encourage the introduction of commerce 
 and Christianity into their respective countries. That part of 
 the interior being situated far away to the north, and sufficiently 
 distant from the places occupied by other religious commu- 
 nities, soon attracted the attention of the Church Missionary 
 Society, and in the spring of 1876 Mr. Hutchinson published a 
 book entitled " The Victoria N'yanza, a Field of Missionary 
 Enterprise." In this interesting little volume the author collects 
 and collates the testimonies of the respective travellers who 
 had passed through that part of the continent ; and, although 
 the impressions conveyed with respect to the far-famed monarchs 
 mentioned above are less favourable than those given by 
 Mr. Stanley, much valuable information is communicated ; and, 
 everything considered, the region of N'yanza was regarded as 
 the most eligible place for the commencement of operations. 
 
 The most suitable agents available for the enterprise having 
 been engaged, and the necessary preparations made, the 
 mission party, consisting of four Europeans and a number of 
 African porters and artizans, left Mpwapwa for N'yanza in 
 the month of October 1876. It will be remembered that the 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 371 
 
 place first named is a station of the Church Missionary Society, 
 situated about 230 miles inland from the coast, opposite 
 Zanzibar. After a weary and adventurous journey they arrived 
 at Kagei, on the southern shore of Victoria N'yanza, about the 
 beginning of April 1877. They first directed their attention 
 to the pitching of their tents, and the erection of temporary 
 buildings for their immediate accommodation ; and then they 
 set to work to put together the mission boat, which they called 
 the Daisy, the sections of which they had taken from the 
 coast. In these engagements they succeeded fairly well, not- 
 withstanding some damage which the materials for fitting out 
 the boat had sustained in the transit. On the 15th of June 
 the boat was finished, and made use of to remove the mission 
 party to Ukerewe, a large island on the lake, not far distant, the 
 king of which had sought their acquaintance, and had favourably 
 impressed them with his comparative intelligence and friendly 
 demeanour. Meanwhile the mission had suffered a serious 
 loss in the removal by death of Dr. John Smith, a medical 
 missionary of great promise, who was somewhat suddenly cut 
 down and called to rest from his labours at this early stage in 
 his career. 
 
 Two or three days after the mission party had settled at 
 Ukerewe, two letters were received from King Mtesa, written 
 in English by a negro boy, whom Mr. Stanley had left with 
 him, urging the missionaries to come to him with all possible 
 speed. Lieutenant Smith and Mr. Wilson at once set sail, and 
 reached Rubaga, the capital of Uganda, on Saturday evening, 
 the 30th of June. Resting on the Lord's Day, with Mtesa's 
 full consent, they had their public reception on the following 
 Monday. Mtesa proved himself to be a monarch of much 
 intelligence, and capable of graceful courtesy. When the name 
 of Jesus was read to him in the letter from the Society, a 
 salute was fired in testimony of joy, the whole assembly 
 repeatedly bowing their heads. He also called Lieutenant 
 Smith's attention to his flag, a many-coloured ensign, which he 
 said he had hoisted in token of his believing in Christ. At a 
 
372 
 
 Africa : Past and Present. 
 
 subsequent interview, when no Arabs and Mohammedans 
 were present, he asked whether the missionaries had brought 
 him the Book, meaning the Bible. On the 30th of July 
 Lieutenant Smith returned to Ukerewe, leaving Mr. Wilson in 
 Uganda. Up to that time Mtesa was most friendly, showing 
 an apparently earnest desire to know more of Christianity, and 
 being also anxious to learn English. 
 
 The fact must not be withheld, however, that a subsequent 
 letter from Mr. Wilson describes the sable monarch as being 
 somewhat disappointed at not receiving more secular advantages 
 from the Mission ; but the relations between the two were still 
 amiable, and hopes were entertained of ultimate success. In 
 a private letter to a friend, dated November 29th, 1877, Mr. 
 Wilson wrote as follows : " In the mission work there are both 
 discouragements and encouragements, as one might expect. 
 The services at the palace on Sunday mornings have been 
 regularly held, and are fairly well attended ; and it is a great 
 thing in so young a mission, and before one knows the language, 
 to be able to give some, at any rate, the opportunity of 
 hearing regularly the Word of God, and of receiving some 
 instruction in the truths of our holy religion. The people are, 
 as a rule, very attentive, and seem to take an interest in what 
 is read and spoken to them, especially on our Lord's parables. 
 I make the services more like classes in a Sunday-school than 
 a regular service, as I find it keeps their attention better, and 
 gives them more opportunities for asking questions, and so 
 letting me see how far they understand or not. I begin by 
 reading a chapter from the Old Testament. I read four or five 
 verses at a time, and explain and comment on them, answering 
 any questions that may be asked ; then a chapter from the New 
 Testament is read in the same manner ; a short address follows, 
 and I conclude with a few prayers from the Prayer-Book, the 
 people all kneeling and joining in the Amens. The questions 
 that are asked are often decidedly intelligent, and I must say 
 I have often had to teach far more inattentive and unappre- 
 ciative classes in England." 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 373 
 
 Speaking of the people generally, Mr. Wilson says: "The 
 Waganda are a promising people in an educational point of 
 view, if one can get them to come for instruction, which I do 
 not think will be very difficult. They are a sharp, quick-witted 
 race, much more so than any negroes I have yet come across. 
 They are very skilful in working in metals, iron, copper, and 
 brass ; and I have never seen anything to equal their basket- 
 making. They are also very clever in imitating things of 
 European manufacture, as far as their imperfect tools permit, 
 and in this respect they certainly deserve to be regarded as the 
 Chinese of Africa." 
 
 In the month of October following, Lieut. Smith, acting on 
 the instructions of the Missionary Committee in London, pro- 
 ceeded to make a regular survey of the rivers and creeks at the 
 southern end of the lake, of which he sent home a journal of 
 much value and interest. This accomplished, he proceeded 
 to Ukerewe, the head-quarters of the mission. 
 
 The sad events which followed are appalling to contemplate 
 or to record. From the most reliable information that we have 
 been able to glean, it would seem that a quarrel had arisen 
 between Lukongeh, the chief of the island, and Songoro, a 
 resident Arab merchant. When Lieut. Smith returned to 
 Ukerewe, the dispute had grown warm, and Songoro begged 
 that his wives and children might be sent away in the Daisy. 
 This was done, leaving Smith and O'Neill on the island with 
 only six men belonging to the mission. Almost immediately 
 afterwards, in the first week in December, Songoro and his men 
 being attacked by Lukongeh with a large force, the former fled 
 to the mission station for protection. Lieut. Smith refusing to 
 give up the refugee, the little mission party were immediately 
 attacked by Lukongeh, and were all killed, with the exception 
 of a native carpenter, who was taken prisoner, and after eight 
 days released. 
 
 On the return of the Daisy to Ukerewe, the native carpenter, 
 who was in charge of her at the time, finding what had happened, 
 took off two men of Songoro's party who had escaped, and 
 
374 Africa: Past ajid Present, 
 
 who swam out to him, and they returned at once to Kagei. 
 After making an unsuccessful attempt to recover the bodies of 
 the murdered missionaries, he sailed for Uganda, and took the 
 sad news to Mr. Wilson and Mtesa. At Mtesa's request, Mr. 
 Wilson accompanied some Uganda men in the Daisy to Kagei. 
 After seeing to the safety of the mission stores, he proceeded 
 towards Unyanyembe for the purpose of procuring cloth, which 
 in Central Africa is equivalent to money. Being thus bereaved 
 of his colleagues, Mr. Wilson intended to remain at this place 
 till the arrival of the reinforcement from the east coast, which 
 it was understood had been sent out some time before. 
 
 On New Year's Day, 1879, intelligence was received in 
 England that Mr. Mackay, a gentleman sent out with the 
 original party, 'but who had been detained on the coast by the 
 failure of his health, had reached his destination in safety, and 
 had joined Mr. Wilson at Kagei, at the southern end of the 
 lake, in the beginning of August, when they made arrangements 
 for proceeding to Uganda in the Daisy, with as little delay as 
 possible. In the meantime Mr. Mackay paid a visit to the 
 chief Lukongeh, by whose men Smith and O'Neill were mur- 
 dered at Ukerewe. Lukongeh assured Mr. Mackay that he 
 never intended to kill the white men, and that when he heard 
 they were dead (the attack by his men on the Arab trader 
 having taken place some miles from his palace) he was very 
 sorry, and said " his country was now ruined for ever." The 
 chief further expressed a desire that white men should still 
 come and teach his people ; but when Mr. Mackay asked him, 
 as a proof of his sincerity and good-will, to hand over Lieut. 
 Smith's pocket-book, and the guns and revolvers belonging to 
 both him and O'Neill, which were known to be in his possession, 
 he refused to do so. Mr. Mackay consequently left Ukerewe, 
 assuring Lukongeh that the delivery of these things was the 
 indispensable condition of future visits to the islands by the 
 missionaries. 
 
 Soon after his arrival at the scene of his future labours, Mr. 
 Mackay wrote a long and interesting account of his proceedings, 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 375 
 
 a few sentences from which will show the spirit of the man, and 
 the manner in which he prosecuted his varied duties : " The 
 people of Kagei are a large and important tribe. I like them 
 very much. They are all friendly with me, and I am a friend 
 to all. When they see the turning-lathe at work, or find me 
 melting the fat of an ox and turning out beautiful candles, 
 their wonder knows no bounds. Then I teach this and that 
 more intelligent fellow the use of various things, and try to 
 impress upon all a truth I find them very slow to believe — 
 that they themselves can easily learn to know everything that 
 white men know. I tell them that we were once naked savages 
 like themselves, and carried bows, arrows, and spears ; but 
 when God began to teach us we became civilized. Round 
 comes Sunday, when tools are dropped, and the reason asked, 
 ' Why ? ' I open my Bible and tell them it is God's book, and 
 that He commanded the day of rest. Many know a little of 
 Suahili, which is, in fact, closely allied to their own language ; 
 and in that tongue I find many an opportunity to teach them 
 the simplest truths of revealed religion, especially how God 
 has come down among men. This great mystery of godliness 
 is the astounding story to them ; and many I find eager to 
 learn to read, that they may know the book which I say God 
 wrote for men." 
 
 When, in the month of March 1879, the mournful intelligence 
 reached England of the violent death of Lieut. Smith and Mr. 
 O'Neill, leaving the Rev. C. T. Wilson alone in Central Africa, 
 the Committee of the Church Missionary Society immediately 
 made arrangements to send out two parties to reinforce the 
 mission, which had been so sorely bereaved. The first consisted 
 of the Rev. G. Hall, Mr. C. W. Pearson, Mr. R. W. Felkin, 
 surgeon, and Mr. J. W, Hall ; and the second consisted of 
 Messrs. Stokes and Copplestone. The first-named party were 
 to proceed to their destination by way of Egypt and the Nile ; 
 and they left England on the 8th February, and reached 
 Suakim, a port about half-way down the Red Sea, on the coast 
 of Nubia, on the 9th June. While there, an attack of heat- 
 
37^ Africa: Past and Present. 
 
 apoplexy compelled Mr. Hall to return home ; but the other 
 three brethren started on June 25th on camels, to cross the 
 desert, and strike the Nile at Berber, with the view of ascending 
 the upper portion of the great ri\-er to Uganda. The second 
 party proceeded to their appointed sphere of labour in Central 
 Africa by way of Zanzibar and the eastern coast, along the 
 usual route. It is a lamentable fact that Mr. Penrose, a zealous 
 industrial agent of the mission, who was following them at the 
 head of a smaller caravan, fell in with a band of robbers, by 
 whom he was murdered. 
 
 On the 19th August, 1879, after long suspense, the secretaries 
 of the Society received copious communications from the 
 brethren of the mission at Victoria N'yanza, conveying among 
 other things the pleasing intelligence that both parties sent out 
 to reinforce the mission had safely reached their destination, 
 after a long and weary journey in each case. The brethren at 
 the lake had received letters and papers from England through 
 Dr. Emin Effendi, one of Colonel Gordon's officers, and were 
 greatly cheered. There was also intelligence of the wreck of 
 the mission boat, Daisy, on the lake, with Messrs. Wilson and 
 Mackay on board ; but happily no lives were lost. The little 
 vessel was afterwards beached and repaired, and continued to 
 do good service for the mission. In the meantime King Mtesa 
 had sent canoes to convey Messrs. Stokes and Copplestone to 
 Uganda, and pleasing hopes were entertained of the ultimate 
 success of the mission. In concluding their most recent 
 announcement the Missionary Committee say : " If it has 
 pleased God to spare all their lives, there are now seven 
 missionaries at Uganda, the exact number first sent forth ; but 
 only two are of the original party. Let our prayer be, 'O 
 Lord, be gracious unto us; we have waited for Thee; be Thou 
 their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of 
 trouble' (Isa. xxxiii. 2)." Every true friend of Missions will 
 devoutly pray that the blessing of God may rest upon this noble 
 enterprise. 
 
Eastern and Central Africa. 
 
 377 
 
 Conclusion. 
 
 Whilst the preceding pages were passing through the press, 
 intelligence was received from Central Africa of a painfully 
 interesting character. The following extract from the Academy 
 will place the matter in the clearest light : — " We regret to hear 
 that the Church Missionary Society have received discouraging 
 news of the condition of affairs at their N'yanza mission. 
 Hostile influences are believed to have been at work, and the 
 attitude of King Mtesa has been for some time not over friendly. 
 In May last a rumour reached the king that the Egyptians 
 were advancing their posts further towards his country, and he 
 appears to have accused the missionaries of complicity in the 
 matter. While utterly denying the charge, they offered to send 
 two of their number with his messengers to Colonel Gordon ; 
 and accordingly Mr. Felkin started for Egypt, in advance, on 
 May 17th, to prepare the way for the party who were to follow 
 in company with the Rev. C. T. Wilson. Mr. Felkin has 
 written home from Fatiko, in Egyptian territory, forwarding a 
 letter from Mr. Wilson, dated June 26th, from which it appears 
 that he and four chiefs were on their way north, but still in 
 Uganda. Messrs. Stokes and Copplestone had been permitted 
 by Mtesa to go to the south side of the lake, on condition that 
 they sent up the mission stores left there. The position of the 
 three missionaries left at Mtesa's court is certainly not an 
 enviable one, and the whole affair shows the danger of placing 
 implicit confidence in the professions of a savage chief. T4^e 
 London Missionary Society are also experiencing considerable 
 anxiety at the continued absence of intelligence from their 
 Tanganyika expedition. They have accordingly asked Dr. Laws 
 of Livingstonia to despatch trustworthy messengers to Ujiji, to 
 inquire into the state of the mission and to bring letters back." 
 It is earnestly to be hoped that the next intelligence will be 
 more favourable. 
 
 Having thus passed under review the various matters relating 
 to Africa as a country, — its peoples, colonies, and missions, — it 
 
378 Africa: Past and Piesent. 
 
 only remains, in conclusion, briefly to express our opinion 
 as to what this interesting and important quarter of the globe 
 most urgently requires to promote its highest and best interests. 
 We regard with unqualified favour the efforts which have been 
 made to open up the interior to commerce and Christianity, 
 and we honour the men who have gone forth to explore the 
 inner regions of the "dark continent" with such indomitable 
 zeal and perseverance ; but unless these herculean labours be 
 followed up by the efforts of genuine Christian philanthropists 
 with still higher aims, they will prove of little avail. What 
 Africa wants above everything else is the " glorious Gospel of 
 the blessed God." This would carry in its train every other 
 needful blessing, and elevate the most degraded native tribes 
 to the condition of men and brethren. 
 
 Let the Christian Churches of Great Britain, Ireland, and 
 America rise to the importance of the occasion, and "come 
 up to the help of the Lord against the mighty." There is 
 room enough in this vast and populous continent for the 
 evangelistic efforts of all; and whether we regard the past 
 history of the down-trodden and suffering people, or their 
 present degraded state, we must admit that there is a loud 
 and imperative call. We mourn over the prevalence of tribal 
 wars, slavery, superstition, and crime in many places ; but let 
 us not forget that we have the remedy in our own hands. 
 The introduction of pure and unadulterated Christianity to 
 every region and to every tribe, the erection of places of 
 worship, the establishment of schools and institutions for the 
 training of native teachers and preachers, and the faithful 
 proclamation of the Gospel, would soon put an end to war, 
 slavery, and sin of every kind, if the truth were received in 
 meekness and in love, as we have seen in some highly-favoured 
 places. Nor shall we be innocent if we neglect the grand 
 opportunity which is presented to us of going up at once in 
 faith and prayer to possess the land for Him whose right it is 
 to reign. The Divine command is, " Go ye into all the 
 
 WORLD AND PREACH THE GoSPEL TO EVERY CREATURE." 
 
INDEX. 
 
 AbbEOKUTA, 220 
 
 Aberdeen, 278 
 
 Abolition of slavery, 1 19 
 
 Abomi, 178 
 
 Abyssinia, 134 
 
 Accra, 54 
 
 Adams, a sailor, 38 
 
 Aden, 336 
 
 Africa, Central, 326 
 
 ,, Eastern, 321 
 
 ,, Northern, 127 
 
 ,, Southern, 234 
 
 ,, Western, 150 
 African Company, 16 
 Air in the Desert, 77 
 Albany, 278 
 Albert, steamer, 74 
 Albert, village of, 280 
 Albuquerque. Governor, 110 
 Alburka, steamer, 74 
 Alcaide, 179 
 Alexandria, 277 
 Algiers, 144 
 Alice, village of, 281 
 Aliwal, North, 280 
 
 ,, South, 269 
 Allsopp, Rev. Mr., 311 
 Amelia, tender, 74 
 Amendelboom, 270 
 American missions, 294 
 Amidi Fatu, 35 
 Anamaboe, 212 
 Anderson, Mr., 31, 33, 34 
 Angola, 90, 231 
 
 Animals of Western Africa, 170 
 Antonio Gonzales, log 
 Arab colonization, 327 
 Arab travellers, 3 
 Arthington, Mr. Robert, 358 
 Arts and manufactures, 188 
 
 Ascension, island of, 75 
 Ashanti, 102 
 Ashantis, 175 
 Atlas mountain, 72 
 Attah, 65 
 
 Austrian mission, 85 
 
 Badagry, 54 
 Bagamoyo, 360 
 Baker, Admiral, 63 
 Baker, Frederick, 95 
 Baker, Mr. William, 354 
 Baker, Rev. John, 208 
 Baker, Sir Samuel, 84, 85 
 Bambarra, 29, 38 
 Bambouk, 25 
 Bangala, 90 
 Bangassi, 33 
 Banks, Sir Joseph, 23 
 Baptist Miss. Society, 200 
 Barbary States, 138 
 Barca, 139 
 Barotse, 89 
 
 Barraconda, falls of, 13, 17 
 Barrow, the traveller, 147 
 Barth, Dr., 77 
 
 Basle Miss. Society, 217, 224 
 
 Basutuland, 314 
 
 Bathurst, Gambia, 207, 227 
 
 Baxter, Dr., 368 
 
 Baxter, Richard, 120 
 
 Baynes, Mr., 239 
 
 Beaufort, 270 
 
 Beaufoy, Mr., 23 
 
 Bedford, 279 
 
 Beer, Kaffir, 249 
 
 Bell, Rev. William, 209 
 
 Belvidere, 269 
 
 Benezet, Anthony, 119 , 
 
 Benin, gulf of, 37 
 
Index. 
 
 Benown, 27 
 Bentang, 183 
 Benume, river, 78 
 Berber, 376 . 
 Berlin Miss. Society, 202, 294 
 Bickerstetli, Rev. E., 202 
 Biddumas, 77, 78 
 Bimba, 69 
 
 Birds of W. Africa, 170 
 
 Birtli of a child in W. Africa, 183 
 
 Bishop of Llandaff, 23 
 
 Blanes. 269 
 
 Bloemfontein, 297 
 
 Blumenbach, Professor, 37 
 
 Bohoo, 57 
 
 Boo-Kalloom, 45, 47 
 
 Boolibani, 43 
 
 Bornou, 46, 78 
 
 Botany of W. Africa, 240 
 
 Boshof, 298 
 
 Boussa, 35, 50, 55 
 
 Boy, King, 61 
 
 Brass River, 61 
 
 Brass Town, 61 
 
 Bredesdorp, 268 
 
 Briggs, Dr., 64, 66 
 
 British African Association, 23 
 
 Brown, Mr., 323 
 
 Bucker Sano, 14 
 
 Burnett, Rev. Messrs. Roe and, 229 
 
 Burrop, Rev. Mr., 351 
 
 Burton, Major, 81, 82 
 
 Bushmen, 243 
 
 Butscher, Mr., 202 
 
 Bu.xton, Sir Fowel, 123 
 
 Caillie, M., 51 
 Cairo, 84 
 
 Calabar, 37, 68, 230 
 Caledon, 268 
 Calvenia, 269 
 
 Cameron, Lieutenant, 94, 99 
 Cameroon, river, 230 
 Campbell, Captain, 42 
 Cannibalism, 193 
 Cape Bojador, 6, 39 
 Cape Coast, 210 
 Cape Coast Castle, 213 
 Cape Colony, 260, 275 
 Cape Town, 264. 354 
 Carnarvon, ship, 63 
 
 Carthage, 142 
 Cassanga, 90 
 Ceries, village, 268 
 Cetewayo, King, 304 
 Chachombe, 368 
 Chandos, Duke of, 16 
 Chelmsford, Lord, 308 
 Chiwyu, 95 
 Chobe, river, 88 
 Chouma, 94 
 
 Church Missionary Society, 370 
 
 Circumcision, 249 
 
 Civil government, 179 
 
 Clanwilliam, 269 
 
 Clapperton, Capt., 45, 48, 49 
 
 Clarmont, 265 
 
 Clarkson, Mr., 120 
 
 Climate, W. and S. Africa, 156, 241 
 
 Colbert, 18 
 
 Colesberg, 280 
 
 Colchester, 277 
 
 Columbine, ship, 64 
 
 Combo, king of, 209 
 
 Commerce, ship, 39 
 
 Conch, ship, 289 
 
 Congo, river, 9, 41, 99, 100, 230 
 
 Constantine, 265 
 
 Coode, Sir John, 236 
 
 Coolies in Natal, 291 
 
 Copplestone, Mr., 375 
 
 CotereL, Mr., 357 
 
 Cranch, Mr., 42 
 
 Crescent, transport, 31 
 
 Crocodiles worshipped, 191 
 
 Cronstadt, 298 
 
 Crowther, Bishop. 220 ^ 
 Cultivation, W. Africa, 167 
 Currency, 187 
 
 Dagboh, 68 
 Dahomi, I02 
 Dahomans, 177 
 Daisy, steamer, 371 
 Damaras, 251 
 Damaraland,3l9 
 Davison, Mr., 72 
 Dawson, Rev. S., 210 
 Delagoa Bay, 328 
 Delaporte, M., 52 
 Denham, Major, 45, 47 
 Deserts, 237 
 
Index. 
 
 381 
 
 Diamond fields, 240, 2S1 
 Dickenson, Dr., 351 
 Dickson, Mr., 31 
 Diego Cam, 8 
 Dingan, King, 287 
 Diniz Fernandez, 7 
 Dockard, surgeon, 43 
 Dodgshun, Rev. Mr., 359.362 
 Dolphin, steamer, 75 
 Dordrich, 280 
 
 Dove, Rev. T. and Mrs., 2ii 
 Dress in W. Africa, 186 
 Du Chaillu, travels of, 193 
 Dunwell, Rev. Joseph, 215 
 Dupuis, M., 39 
 D' Urban, 291 
 
 Dutch Reformed Church, 270, 282 
 Dutch settlers, 255 
 
 East London, 286 
 Ebenezer, 272 
 Eboe, 60, 64, 65, 75 
 Edendale, 291, 311 
 Ederesa, 68 
 
 Effendi, Dr. Emin, 376 
 Egga, 68 
 Egypt, 128, 375 
 Elmina, 8, 1 1 
 
 Emancipation of slaves, 122 
 
 Embomma, 99 
 
 English discoveries, 1 1 
 
 English settlers, 256 
 
 Episcopal Church, 271, 282, 293 
 
 European settlers, 255 
 
 Eyeo, 49, 54 
 
 Falaba, 43 
 
 Falconbridge, Dr., 1 15 
 
 Faleme. 25 
 
 Fantis, 177 
 
 Farmerfield, 278 
 
 Fattaconda, 26 
 
 Fattatenda, 25 
 
 Faursmith, 297 
 
 Felkin, Mr. R. W., 375, 377 
 
 Fellatas, 174 
 
 Female warriors, 178 
 
 Ferbanna, 25 
 
 Fernando Po, 67, 70. 227 
 
 Fezzan, 36, 141 
 
 Fever, progress of, 160 
 
 ,, treatment of, 161 
 
 ,, yellow, 161 
 Fingoes, 250, 280* 
 Fishes in \V. Africa, 169 
 Foolas, pastoral, 172 
 Forbes, Mr., 323 
 Forests in S. Africa, 238 
 Fort Beaufort, 279 
 Fox, Rev. W. and Mrs., 211 
 Frazer, Rev. Mr., 197 
 Frazerburg, 279 
 French discoveries, 169 
 French Missionary Society, 272, 314 
 French refugees, 257 
 Frere, Sir Bartle, 307, 335 
 Frere Town, 199 
 Funda, 66, 67 
 Funerals in W. Africa, 184 
 
 Gallam, 21, 22, 43 
 Gallas, 79 
 Gal way, Mr., 42 
 Gambia, 11, 71, 155, 206 
 
 Genadendal, 268 
 
 Geology of South Africa, 239 
 
 George, 269 
 
 German Missionary Society, 217 
 
 German settlers, 257 
 
 Ghat, 77 
 
 Ghiorel, 21, 28 
 
 Gibraltar, 72 
 
 Gifford, Lord, 310 
 
 Glasgow Missionary Society, 201 
 
 Glenlyden, 279 
 
 Glenpringle, 279 
 
 Glover, Captain, 217 
 
 Godwin, Rev. Morgan, 1 19 
 
 Gold of West Africa, 161 
 
 Gold Coast, 8, 212 
 
 Gondokoro, 85 
 
 Gordon, Colonel, 376, 377 
 
 Goree, island of, 32, 216 
 
 Govinia, falls of, 22 * 
 
 Graafif Reinett, 278 
 
 Graham's Town, 277 
 
 Granaries in West Africa, 168 
 
 Gray, Captain, 43 
 
 Gregrees and saphias, 19, 189 
 
 Griffith, Rev. W., 366, 369 
 
 Griqualand, 315 
 
382 
 
 hidex. 
 
 Griquas, 246 
 
 Gum arabic, 22, 166 
 
 Hall, Mr. J. W., 375 
 
 Hall, Rev. G., 375 
 
 Hamburgh, 281 
 
 Hanover, 280 
 
 Harriet, transport, 74 
 
 Harris, Captain, 64 
 
 Harrismith, 291, 292 
 
 Harrop, Rev. P. and Mrs., 216 
 
 Hartvvig, 202 
 
 Hawkins, Sir J., 195 
 
 Hawkins, Rev. R. and Mrs., 210 
 
 Heald Town, 279 
 
 Heat in West Africa, 158 
 
 Hector Nunez, 12 
 
 Ueidelbergh, 267 
 
 Helmore, Rev. Mr. and family, 242 
 Henderson, Mr. Henry, 354 
 Hermannberg Miss. Society, 294 
 Herodotus and Strabo, 2 
 Hippopotami, 13 
 Holub, Dr., 316 
 Houghton, Major, 25 
 Hopefield, 277 
 Hope Town, 280 
 Horace, 3 
 Hore, 359, 362 
 Horneman, Frederic, 35 
 Hottentots, 242, 261 
 Houses in West Africa, 184 
 Houssa, 47 
 Houtson, 48 
 Humandorp, 277 
 Huntley, Mr., 359 
 Hutchinson, Mr., 370 
 Hyammah, 70 
 
 Ibn Batuta, 4 
 Iddah, 70, 75 
 Ilala, steamer, 355 
 Indaline, 291 
 Induni, 367 
 Insandula, 307 
 Irish emigrants, 257 
 Isaaco, 34 
 Ituru, 95 
 Ivory, 166 
 
 Jagga country, 80 
 
 Jalloffs, 171 
 Jallonk, forest of, 30 
 Jannequin, 19 
 Jansenville, 277 
 Jelifree, 226 
 Jenne, 34 
 Joag, 27 
 
 Jobson, Captain, 13 
 
 John and Emanuel of Portugal, 6 
 
 Johnson, Mr., 354 
 
 Joliba, 29 
 
 Juju Jack, 193 
 
 Kaarta, 27 
 Kabinda, 99 
 Kadira mountain, 80 
 Kaffirs, 247 
 Kaiifirland, 313 
 Kafifraria, British, 285 
 Kagea, 371, 375 
 Kagehyi, 97 
 Kahayde, ao 
 Kakundy, 42 
 
 Kalahari desert, 81, 87, 243 
 
 Kalk bay, 266 
 
 Kanem, 46 
 
 Kano, 47, 50, 73, 102 
 
 Karagwah, 83 
 
 Karague, 370 
 
 Kazeah Town, 80 
 
 Kassan, 13 
 
 Kasson, 27 
 
 Kasye, river, 90 
 
 Kenia, Mount, 81 
 
 Khamesberg, 269 
 
 Khedive of Egypt, 85 
 
 Kiama, 50, 55 
 
 Kilimanjaro, Mount, 80 
 
 Kilpatrick, 323 
 
 Kimberley, 281 
 
 Kingani, river, 8 1 
 
 Kingoma, 364 
 
 King William's Town, 286 
 
 Kirasa. 361 
 
 Kirk, Dr., 335 
 
 Kisuahali, 367 
 
 Kitanga, 367 
 
 Knysna, 269 
 
 Koi Korondah, 363 
 
 Kokfontein, 269 
 
 Kolobeng, 86, 87, 89 
 
Index. 
 
 383 
 
 Kommaguas, 269 
 Kong mountains, 6$ 
 Koran, 20, 102 
 Korannas, 245 
 Kouka, 46 
 Krapf, Dr., 79, 339 
 Kuka, 77 
 Kummer, Mr.. 42 
 Kumman, 86 
 
 Lady Alice, steamer, 95, 96 
 
 Ladysmith, 267, 291 
 
 Laidley, Dr., 25, 26 
 
 Laing, Major, 43, 50 
 
 Lake, Captain, 62 
 
 Laird, Mr. McGregor, 63, 66 
 
 Lancelot, navigator, 7 
 
 Lane, Rev. George, 210 
 
 Lander, R. and J., 24,49,50,54, 70 
 
 Lari, 46 
 
 Last, Mr., 368 
 
 Laws, Rev. Dr. R., 354 
 
 Ledyard, Mr., 23 
 
 Leeambye, river, 89 
 
 Leeba, river, 89 
 
 Leo, the traveller, 5 
 
 Leven, ship, 323, 329 
 
 Leydenberg, 302 
 
 Liberated Africans, 199 
 
 Liberia, 222 
 
 Lily Fountain, 274 
 
 Linyanti, 89 
 
 Livingstone, Dr., 86, 242, 246 
 
 Livingstonia Mission, 352, 356 
 
 Loanda, 90 
 
 Lobale, plains of, 90 
 
 London Miss. Society, 283, 373 
 
 Lotombroa, river, 90 
 
 Loubies, 173 
 
 Louis XIV., 18 
 
 Lovedale institution, 284 
 
 Lualaba, river, 100 
 
 Lucas, Mr.. 24 
 
 Lukongeh, Chief, 373 
 
 Lutherns, 271 
 
 Lyon, Lieutenant, 44 
 
 Maberia, lake, 22 
 Mabia, river, 88 
 Mackay, Mr., 374 
 Mackenzie, Bishop, 347 
 
 Maclear, cape, 353 
 
 Macpherson s History, iii 
 
 Madagascar, 333 
 
 Madagore, 73 
 
 Magomero, 93, 348 
 
 Makata, swamp of, 360 
 
 Makololo mission, 341 
 
 Makololos, 87, 88, 90, 92 
 
 Makonda, 89 
 
 Malays. 252 
 
 Malemba, 41 
 
 Malmsbury, 269 
 
 Manda, 291 
 
 Mandanaree, 209 
 
 Mandingoes, 171, 208 
 
 Maniakora, 33 
 
 Manners and customs, 1 79 
 
 Mansong. 28 
 
 Marambo, 363 
 
 Ma-Robert, steamer, 324 
 
 Maroons, 196 
 
 Marraboo, 20, 33 
 
 Marriage in W. Africa, 182 
 
 Marshall, Rev. R. and Mrs,, 210 
 
 Martin, Major, 310 
 
 Mayetti, 330 
 
 McKenny, Rev. John, 279 
 Melons, water, 87 
 Melville, 269 
 MesuraJo, cape, 222 
 Middle passage, 113 
 Middlesburg, 278 
 Milimo, 94 
 
 Minerals in W. Africa, 166 
 Missions, Christian, 338 
 Mofifat, Dr., 86, 366 
 Mogadore, 38 
 Mombassa, 79 
 Monrovia, 222 
 Montague, 267 
 Moors, 29, 38, 173 
 Moponda, Chief, 355 
 Mpwapwa, 368, 369 
 Moravian missions, 272 
 Morgan, Rev. John, 208 
 Morocco, 37, 72, 147 
 Morrison, Dr., 48, 49 
 Mountains of S. Africa, 235 
 Mourzouk, 36, 44 
 Mowbray, 264 
 Mozambique, 332 
 
384 
 
 Index. 
 
 Mtesa, King, 96, 97, 370 
 Mukondokwa pass, 360, 362 
 Mullens, Dr., 358, 367 
 Muller, Rev. Mr., 76 
 Mumbo-Jumbo, 181 
 Munki, Sultan, 44 
 Murie, Dr., 87 
 Murray, Mr., 87 
 Murraysburg, 278 
 Muta N'zage, lake, 98 
 Myro, ship, 197 
 
 Namaqualand, 317 
 Namaquas, 244 
 Napoleon, channel, 96 
 Natal, 287 
 
 Native tribes, 171, 242 
 Nautilus, war sloop, 196 
 Negroes, 186, 251 
 Nereid, ship, 330 
 New, Rev. C., 340 
 Newhaven, 269 
 Nicholls, Mr., 37 
 Niger river, 4, 29, 41, 58, 154 
 Niger, exploration of the, 73, 228 
 Nile, 84, 375 
 N'gami, lake, 87 
 Noiwegian Miss. Society, 294 
 Nubia, 132 
 Nun, river, 61, 64 
 Nunez, Rio, 42 
 N'yanza, lake, 82, 83. 95, 370 
 N'yassa, lake, 92, 353 
 Nyffe, 37 
 
 Nylander, Mr., 202 
 
 Obie, King, 60 
 Obohbe, 68 
 
 Oldfield, Dr., 64, 67, 70 
 O'Neil, Mr., 373 
 Orange Free State, 295 
 Origistad, 302 
 Osiman, 69 
 Ostrich farming, 240 
 Oswell, Mr., 87, 343 
 Oudney, Dr., 45, 48 
 Oudtshoorn, 269 
 Ovampaland, 319 
 Ovampos, 251 
 Overweg, Mr., 77 
 Owen, Captain, 322, 329 
 
 Paarl, 26S 
 Palaver tree, 1 79 
 Palm oil, 165 
 Panda, chief, 287 
 Panietta, 42 
 
 Paris Missionary Society, 227 
 
 Park, Mungo. 26 
 
 Pascoe, the negro, 54 
 
 Pearce, Captain, 48, 49 
 
 Pearson, Mr. C. W., 375 
 
 Peddie, 281 
 
 Peddie, Major, 42 
 
 Penrose, Mr., 376 
 
 Petherick, consul, 85 
 
 Phillips, Rev. Dr., 284 
 
 Picketberg, 269 
 
 Pietermaritzburg, 291 
 
 Pisina, Gambia, 25, 30 
 
 Pocock, Edward and Frank, 95, 99 
 
 Polygamy, 183 
 
 Port Elizabeth, 275, 354 
 
 Port Francis, 278 
 
 Portendick, 227 
 
 Porteus, Bishop, 120 
 
 Portuguese colonisation, 327 
 
 Portuguese discoveries, 5 
 
 Potatoes, sweet, 196 
 
 Potchefstroom, 301 
 
 Potter, Captain, 215 
 
 Prasse, Mr., 202 
 
 Presbyterians, 271 
 
 Prester, John, a myth, 7 
 
 Pretorious, 302 
 
 Price, Rev. Mr., 342, 362, 359 
 Primitive Methodists, 229 
 Prince Albert, 270 
 
 Quango, river, 90 
 Quaque, Philip, 214 
 Queen's Town, 281 
 Quilimane, 331 
 Quorra, steamer, 64, 65 
 
 Rabba, 69 
 Rabbi-Mpia, 79 
 Ramsay, James, 120 
 Rawdon, Lord, 23 
 Rebbinan, Mr., 80, 339 
 Rebeek, Governor, 201 
 Renner, Mr., 102 
 Rhenish Miss. Society, 272 
 
Index. 
 
 385 
 
 Richardson, Mr., 77 
 Richmond, 278, 291 
 Richterfeld, 269 
 Riddle, Mr. A., 354 
 Riley, Mr. James, 39 
 Rio Janeiro, 63 
 Rio Pongob. 201 
 Ripon falls, 96 
 Ritchie, Mr., 44 
 Riversdale, 267 
 Rivers of S. Africa, 235 
 Robertson, 267 
 Roentgen, 37 
 Rondebosch, 265 
 Rovuma, river, 324, 347 
 Rowley, Rev. H., 346 
 Rubeho, 368 
 Rumanik, 369 
 Rustenberg, 302 
 Ruy de Sousa, 10 
 
 Sackatoo, 23 
 Sacrifices, human, 192 
 Salem. 278 
 Sanagoma, 78 
 Sandani, 367 
 Sangenier, 22 
 Sansan, 47 
 Sansanding, 34, 35 
 Santa Isabel, 228 
 Saron, 368 
 Satado, 32 
 Say, 79 
 
 Schietfontein, 270 
 Scotch emigrants, 257 
 Schon, Rev. Mr., 76 
 Scudamore, Rev. Mr.. 351 
 Sebituane, chief, 87, 88 
 Secheke, 88 
 Sechele, chief, 87, 89 
 Sego, 29 
 
 Sekkeletu, chief, 91 
 Senegal, river, 16 
 Senna, 91, 323 
 Sharp, Mr., 121, 196 
 Shary, river, 78 
 Shaw, Rev. B., 273 
 Shaw, Rev. W., 284 
 Shepston, Sir T., 301 
 Shimeyn, river, 94 
 Shire, river, 92, 355 
 
 Shirwa, lake, 92 
 Sibbs, Captain, 16 
 Side Hamet, 39 
 Sierra Leone, 195 
 Sieur Brue, 20 
 Simbanwemmi, 360 
 .Simbing, 25 
 Simon's 'I'own, 266 
 Simpson, 354 
 Sir Lowry's pass, 267 
 Siwah, 36 
 
 Slavery, prevalence of. loi 
 
 ,, sources of, 103 
 Slaves, method of procuring. 112 
 
 ,, treatment of, 107 
 
 ,, uses of, 105 
 
 ,, in exile, 1 16 
 
 ,, emancipation of, 122 
 Slave trade, loi, 108 
 Slengelly, village of, 330 
 Smith, Dr. John, 371 
 Smith, Lieutenant, 371 
 Smith, Captain, 289 
 Smith, Mr., 42 
 Smitham, Dr., 196 
 Smithfield, 289 
 Somerset (West), 266 
 Songora, 373 
 Soudan, steamer, 74, 75 
 Southampton, steamer, 281 
 South African Miss. Society, 272 
 Springbokfontein, 269 
 Stanley, Mr., 23, 34, 370 
 Stewart, Mr. , 23 
 Stewart, Rev. Dr., 356 
 Stockenstrom, 279 
 Stokkis, Mr., 375 
 Stokoe, Lieutenant, 43 
 St. Domingo, no 
 St. Mary's, Gambia, 71, 207 
 St. Joseph, island of, 22 
 St. Louis, island of, 19 
 Steinthal, 268 
 Stellenbosch, 266 
 Superstitions, 189 
 Susi, 94 
 Symyati, 88 
 
 Tanganyika, lake, 82, 93, 98^ 358 
 Tangier, 72 
 Tarwick tribes, 78 
 
 25 
 
386 
 
 Index. 
 
 Tchadda, river, 57, 6$. 66, 68 
 Tchad, lake, 46, 77, 78 
 Tenda, king of, 14 
 Tendabar, 208 
 Tete, 91 
 Teucolars, 173 
 Thesswall, Mr., 329 
 Thomas, ship, 62 
 Thompson, Captain, 12, 197 
 Thompson, George, Esq., 246 
 Thompson, Rev. T., 214 
 Thompson, Rev. Mr., 359, 364 
 Threlfall, Rev. W., 329 
 Timbuctu, 5, 21, 39, 51, 73, 78 
 Traghan, 46 
 Transvaal, 290 
 TripoH, 37, 140 
 Tshaka, king, 287 
 Tsetse fly, 88 
 Tubiri, 82 
 
 Tuckey, Captain, 41 
 Tudor, Mr., 42 
 Tulbagh, 268 
 Tunis, 142 
 
 Uganda, 83, 96, 98, 370, 376 
 
 Ugogo, 81, 360 
 
 Ujiji, 82, 93, 98, 258, 364 
 
 Ukambani, 80 
 
 Ukaranga, 358 
 
 Ukerewe, 371 
 
 Ulundi, 309 
 
 Ungoro, 83 
 
 Umhala, 291 
 
 Ummesogeir, 36 
 
 Universities' Mission, 346 
 
 Unyamweze, 81 
 
 Unyanyemba, 360, 374 
 
 Urambo, 363 
 
 Uruawva, 82 
 
 Usagora, 81, 361 
 
 Usavara, 97 
 
 Utenhage. 276 
 
 Uyni, 363 
 
 Vanderkemp, Dr., 283 
 Vermuyden, 15 
 Verulam, 291 
 Victoria. 281 
 Victoria, West. 270 
 Victoria falls, 91 
 
 Victoria Nile, 270 
 Vogel, Dr., 79 
 
 Waganda, 372 
 
 Wainwright, Jacob, 94 
 
 Wakefield, Rev. Mr., 340 
 
 Wamie, river, 360 
 
 Wamrima tribes, 80 
 
 Wanyeturu, 96 
 I Warren, Rev. G., 204 
 J Warrington, Mr., 40 
 I Wassanah, 40 
 
 Waube, 78 
 
 Wawa, 55 
 
 Wedinoon, 38, 73 
 
 Wellington, 268 
 
 Wesley, John, 120 
 
 Wesleyan Missionary Society, 201, 
 204, 273 
 
 Western Africa, 124 
 
 Whitefield, George, 120 
 
 IVilberforce, steamer, 74, 75 
 
 Wilberforce, Mr., 121 
 
 William Harris, ship, 63 
 
 Willshire, Mr., 40, 73 
 
 Wilson, Rev. Mr., 371, 374 
 
 Winberg, 297 
 
 Witchcraft, i8o 
 
 Wittebergen, 280 
 
 Wittlesea, 281 
 
 Woknan tribes, 80 
 
 Wood, Joseph, 120 
 
 Woodie, 46 
 
 Woolli, 25 
 
 Woolman, John, 139 
 Woolmer, Rev. T. , 306 
 Wolseley, Sir Garnet, 309 
 Worcester, 268 
 
 Wrigley, Rev. G. and Mrs., 216 
 Wupperthal, 269 
 Wynberg, 265 
 
 Ximenes, Cardinal, 119 
 
 Yarns, 169 
 Yani, 26 
 Yaour, 35 
 Yellala, 41 
 Yimmaha, 66 
 Yoruba, 49, 56 
 Yorubans, 174 
 
Index. 
 
 York, 291 
 Young, Mr., 357 
 Youni, 54, 56 
 
 Zaire, 9, 50 
 
 Zambezi, river, 88, 93, 324 
 Zambezi expedition, 91, 93 
 Zanzibar, 91, 333 
 
 Zegzeg, 50 
 Zoar. 267 
 
 Zoology of W. Africa, 240 
 Zouga, river, 87 
 Zoutpansberg, 302 
 Zululand, 303 
 Zungomero,8l 
 
 Finis. 
 
 Printed by Hazell, Watson, and Viney, London and Aylesbury.