mr. stanley takes the chair.—description of ujiji.—the arab and other inhabitants.—market scenes.—local currency.—the wajiji.—lake tanganika.—stanley's voyage on the lake.—rising of the waters.—the legend of the well.—how the lake was formed.—departure of the expedition.—scenery of the coast.—mountains where the spirits dwell.—seeking the outlet of the lake.—the lukuga river.—experiments to find a current.—curious head-dresses.—return to ujiji.—length and extent of lake tanganika.
when the party assembled in the evening, frank was not in the place where the others expected to find him; he was among the auditors, and his former seat was occupied by mr. stanley. the latter said he had been sleeping during most of the afternoon, and would atone for his indolence by telling the story of a portion of his work after the arrival of the expedition at ujiji.
head of uguhha woman.
"as you have assembled to hear the story of the dark continent," said mr. stanley, as soon as all were seated, "you shall not be disappointed. you can imagine that i am reading from the book, and i will keep it in my hands to assist your imaginations."
without further preliminary the distinguished explorer plunged at once into the midst of his subject and carried his audience, as on the enchanted carpet of the "arabian nights," straight to the shores of lake tanganika.
ujiji, looking north from the market-place, viewed from the roof of our tembé at ujiji.
(from a photograph by mr. stanley.)
"the best view of ujiji is to be obtained from the flat roof of one of the arab tembés or houses. here is a photograph presenting a view north from my tembé, which fronted the market-place. it embraces the square and conical[pg 153]
[pg 154] huts of the wangwana, wanyamwezi, and arab slaves, the guinea palms from the golden-colored nuts of which the wajiji obtain the palm-oil, the banana and plantain groves, with here and there a graceful papaw-tree rising among them, and, beyond, the dark-green woods which line the shore and are preserved for shade by the fishermen.
"south of the market-place are the tembés of the arabs, solid, spacious, flat-roofed structures, built of clay, with broad, cool verandas fronting the public roads. palms and papaws, pomegranates and plantains, raise graceful branch and frond above them, in pleasing contrast to the gray-brown walls, enclosures, and houses.
"the port of ujiji is divided into two districts—ugoy, occupied by the arabs, and kawelé, inhabited by the wangwana, slaves, and natives. the market-place is in ugoy, in an open space which has been lately contracted to about twelve hundred square yards. in 1871 it was nearly three thousand square yards. on the beach before the market-place are drawn up the huge arab canoes, which, purchased in goma on the western shore, have had their gunwales raised up with heavy teak planking. the largest canoe, belonging to sheik abdullah bin sulieman, is forty-eight feet long, nine feet in the beam, and five feet high, with a poop for the nakhuda (captain), and a small forecastle.
arab dhow at ujiji.
"sheik abdullah, by assuming the air of an opulent ship-owner, has offended the vanity of the governor, muini kheri, who owns nine canoes. abdullah christened his 'big ship' by some very proud name; the governor nicknamed it the lazy. the arabs and wajiji, by the way, all give names to their canoes.
"the hum and bustle of the market-place, filled with a miscellaneous concourse of representatives from many tribes, woke me up at early dawn. curious to see the first market-place we had come to since leaving kagehyi, i dressed myself and sauntered among the buyers and sellers and idlers.
"here we behold all the wealth of the tanganika shores. the wajiji, who are sharp, clever traders, having observed that the wangwana purchased their supplies of sweet potatoes, yams, sugar-cane, ground-nuts, oil-nuts, palm-oil and palm-wine, butter, and pombé, to retail them at enormous profits to their countrymen, have raised their prices on some things a hundred per cent. over what they were when[pg 155] i was in ujiji last. this has caused the wangwana and slaves to groan in spirit, for the arabs are unable to dole out to them rations in proportion to the prices now demanded. the governor, supplied by the mutwaré of the lake district of ujiji, will not interfere, though frequently implored to do so, and, consequently, there are frequent fights, when the wangwana rush on the natives with clubs, in much the same manner as the apprentices of london used to rush to the rescue or succor of one of their bands.
a native of rua, who was a visitor at ujiji.
"except the wajiji, who have become rich in cloths, the rural natives retain the primitive dress worn by the wazinja and other tribes, a dressed goat-skin covering the loins, and hanging down to within six inches above the knees, with long depending tags of the same material. all these tribes are related to each other, and their language shows only slight differences in dialect. moreover, many of those inhabiting the countries contiguous to unyamwezi and uganda have lost those special characteristics which distinguish the pure unmixed stock from the less favored and less refined types of africans.
"uhha daily sends to the market of ujiji its mtama, grain (millet), sesamum, beans, fowls, goats, and broad-tailed sheep, butter, and sometimes oxen; urundi, its goats, sheep, oxen, butter, palm-oil and palm-nuts, fowls, bananas, and plantains; uzigé—now and then only—its oxen and palm-oil; uvira, its iron, in wire of all sizes, bracelets, and anklets; ubwari, its cassava or manioc, dried, and enormous quantities of grain, dogara or whitebait, and dried fish; uvinza, its salt; uguha, its goats and sheep, and grain, especially indian corn; rural wajiji bring their buttermilk, ground-nuts, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, bananas and plantains, yams, beans, vetches, garden herbs, melons, cucumbers, sugar-cane, palm-wine, palm-nuts, palm-oil, goats, sheep, bullocks, eggs, fowls, and earthenware; the lake-coast wajiji[pg 156] bring their slaves, whitebait, fresh fish, ivory, baskets, nets, spears, bows and arrows; the wangwana and arab slaves bring fuel, ivory, wild fruit, eggs, rice, sugar-cane, and honey from the ukaranga forest.
dress and tattooing of a native of uguhha.
"the currency employed consists of cloths, blue 'kaniki,' white sheeting 'merikani' from massachusetts mills, striped or barred prints, or checks, blue or red, from manchester, muscat, or cutch, and beads, principally 'sofi,' which are like black-and-white clay-pipe stems broken into pieces half an inch long. one piece is called a masaro, and is the lowest piece of currency that will purchase anything. the sofi beads are strung in strings of twenty masaro, which is then called a kheté, and is sufficient to purchase rations for two days for a slave, but suffices the freeman or mgwana but one day. the red beads, called sami-sami, the mutanda, small blue, brown, and white, will also readily be bartered in the market for provisions, but a discount will be charged on them, as the established and universal currency with all classes of natives attending the market is the sofi.
"the prices at the market of ujiji in 1876 were as follows:
sheeting cloths
of four yards long.
ivory per lb. 1
1 goat 2
1 sheep 1?
12 fowls 1?
1 bullock 10
60 lbs. of grain—mtama 1
90 lbs. of grain—indian corn 1
?-gal. potful of honey in the comb 1
1 slave boy between 10 and 13 years old 16
1 slave girl between 10 and 13 years old 50 to 80
1 slave woman between 18 and 30 years old 80 to 130
1 slave boy between 13 and 18 years old 16 to 50
1 slave man between 18 and 50 years old 10 to 50
"the country of ujiji extends between the liuché river, along the tanganika, north to the mshala river, which gives it a length of forty-five miles. the former river separates it from ukaranga on the south, while the latter river acts as a boundary between it and urundi. as ujiji is said to border upon uguru, a district of uhha, it may be said to have a breadth of twenty miles. thus the area of ujiji is not above nine hundred square miles. the mtemi, or king, is called mgassa, who entertains a superstitious fear of the lake. his residence is in a valley among the mountains bordering upon uguru, and he believes that in the hour he looks upon the lake he dies.
"i should estimate the population of the country to be very fairly given at forty to the square mile, which will make it thirty-six thousand souls. the liuché[pg 157] valley is comparatively populous, and the port of ujiji—consisting of ugoy and kawelé districts—has alone a population of three thousand. kigoma and kasimbu are other districts patronized by arabs and wangwana.
"the wajiji are a brave tribe, and of very independent spirit, but not quarrelsome. when the moderate fee demanded by the mutwaré of ugoy, kawelé, and kasimbu is paid, the stranger has the liberty of settling in any part of the district; and, as an excellent understanding exists between the mutwaré and the arab governor, muini kheri, there is no fear of ill-usage. the mgwana or the mjiji applying to either of them is certain of receiving fair justice, and graver cases are submitted to an international commission of arabs and wajiji elders, because it is perfectly understood by both parties that many moneyed interests would be injured if open hostilities were commenced.
"the wajiji are the most expert canoe-men of all the tribes around the tanganika. they have visited every country, and seem to know each headland, creek, bay, and river. sometimes they meet with rough treatment, but they are as a rule so clever, wide-awake, prudent, commercially politic, and superior in tact, that only downright treachery can entrap them to death. they have so many friends also that they soon become informed of danger, and dangerous places are tabooed.
charms worn by the wajiji.
"the governor of the arab colony of ujiji, having been an old friend, was, as may be supposed, courteous and hospitable to me, and mohammed bin gharib, who was so good to livingstone between marungu and ujiji, as far as manyema, did his best to show me friendly attention. such luxuries as sweetmeats, wheaten bread, rice, and milk were supplied so freely by muini kheri and sheik mohammed that both frank and myself began to increase rapidly in weight.
"judging from their rotundity of body, it may fairly be said that both the friends enjoy life. the governor is of vast girth, and mohammed is nearly as[pg 158] large in the waist. the preceding governor, mohammed bin sali, was also of ample circumference, from which i conclude that the climate of ujiji agrees with the arab constitution. it certainly did not suit mine while i was with livingstone, for i was punished with remittent and intermittent fever of such severe type and virulence that in three months i was reduced in weight to ninety-eight pounds.
a river ferry-boat.
"muini kheri's whole wealth consists of about one hundred and twenty slaves, eighty guns, eighty frasilah of ivory, two tembés, or houses, a wheat and rice field, nine canoes with oars and sails, forty head of cattle, twenty goats, thirty bales of cloth, and twenty sacks of beads, three hundred and fifty pounds of brass wire, and two hundred pounds of iron wire, all of which, appraised in the ujiji market, might perhaps realize $18,000. his friend mohammed is probably worth $3000 only! sultan bin kassim may estimate the value of his property at $10,000; abdullah bin suliman, the owner of the great eastern of lake tanganika, at $15,000. other arabs of ujiji may be rated at from $100 to $3000.
"sheik mohammed bin gharib is the owner of the finest house. it is about one hundred feet long by twenty-five feet in width and fourteen feet in height. a broad veranda, ten feet wide and forty feet long, runs along a portion of the front, and affords ample space for the accommodation of his visitors on the luxurious carpets. the building is constructed of sun-dried brick plastered over neatly with clay. the great door is a credit to his carpenter, and his latticed windows are a marvel to the primitive native trader from uhha or uvinza. the courtyard behind the house contains the huts of the slaves, kitchens, and cow-house.
heads of natives.
"there is a good deal of jealousy between the arabs of ujiji, which sometimes breaks out into bloodshed. when sayid bin habib enters ujiji trouble is not far[pg 159] off. the son of habib has a large number of slaves, and there are some fiery souls among them, who resent the least disparagement of their master. a bitter reproach is soon followed by a vengeful blow, and then the retainers and the chiefs of the montagues and capulets issue forth with clubs, spears, and guns, and ujiji is all in an uproar, not to be quieted until the respective friends of the two rivals carry them bodily away to their houses. on arabs, wangwana, and slaves alike i saw the scars of feuds.
the wazaramo tribe.
"life in ujiji begins soon after dawn, and, except on moonlight nights, no one is abroad after sunset. with the arabs—to whom years are as days to europeans—it is a languid existence, mostly spent in gossip, the interchange of dignified visits, ceremonies of prayer, an hour or two of barter, and small household affairs.
"there were no letters for either frank or myself after our seventeen months' travels around and through the lake regions. from kagehyi, on lake victoria, i had despatched messages to sayid bin salim, governor of unyanyembé, praying him to send all letters addressed to me to muini kheri, governor of ujiji, promising him a noble reward. not that i was sure that i should pass by ujiji, but i knew that, if i arrived at nyangwé, i should be able to send a force of twenty[pg 160] men to muini kheri for my letters. though sayid bin salim had over twelve months' time to comply with my moderate request, not a scrap or word of news or greeting refreshed us after the long blank interval! both of us, having eagerly looked forward with certainty to receiving a bagful of letters, were therefore much disappointed.
"as i was about to circumnavigate the tanganika with my boat, and would probably be absent two or three months, i thought there might still be a chance of obtaining them before setting out westward, by despatching messengers to unyanyembé. announcing my intentions to the governor, i obtained a promise that he would collect other men, as he and several arabs at ujiji were also anxious to communicate with their friends. manwa sera therefore selected five of the most trustworthy men, the arabs also selected five of their confidential slaves, and the ten men started for unyanyembé on the 3d of june.
"my five trustworthy men arrived at unyanyembé within fifteen days, but from some cause they never returned to the expedition. we halted at ujiji for seventy days after their departure, and when we turned our faces towards nyangwé, we had given up all hopes of hearing from civilization.
"before departing on the voyage of circumnavigation of lake tanganika, many affairs had to be provided for, such as the well-being of the expedition during my absence, distribution of sufficient rations, provisioning for the cruise, the engagement of guides, etc.
"the two guides i obtained for the lake were para, who had accompanied cameron in march and april, 1874, and ruango, who accompanied livingstone and myself in december, 1871, to the north end of lake tanganika.
"the most interesting point connected with this lake was its outlet. before starting from zanzibar, i had heard that cameron had discovered the outlet to lake tanganika in the lukuga river, which ran through uguha to the west, and was therefore an affluent of livingstone's great river.
"i made many inquiries among the arabs and natives, but could learn nothing about an outlet of the lake. the guide who accompanied cameron declared that no such outlet had been found while he was with that officer, and, furthermore, all the streams he knew of flowed into and not from tanganika. all this testimony inspired me with the resolution to explore the phenomenon thoroughly, and to examine the entire coast minutely. at the same time, a suspicion that there was no present outlet to the tanganika had crept into my mind, when i observed that three palm-trees, which had stood in the market-place of ujiji in november, 1871, were now about one hundred feet in the lake, and that the sand beach over which livingstone and i took our morning walks was over two hundred feet in the lake.
"i asked of muini kheri and sheik mohammed if my impressions were not correct about the palm-trees, and they both replied readily in the affirmative. muini kheri said also, as corroborative of the increase of the tanganika, that thirty years ago the arabs were able to ford the channel between bangwé island and the mainland; that they then cultivated rice-fields three miles farther west than the present beach; that every year the tanganika encroaches upon their shores and fields; and that they are compelled to move every five years farther inland. in my photograph of ujiji, an inlet may be seen on a site which was dry land, occupied by fishing-nets and pasture-ground, in 1871.
[pg 161]
rawlinson mountains, lake tanganika.
[pg 162]
"the wajiji lake-traders and fishermen have an interesting legend respecting the origin of the tanganika. ruango, the veteran guide, who showed livingstone and myself the rusizi river in 1871, and whose version is confirmed by para, the other guide, related it as follows:
"'years and years ago, where you see this great lake, was a wide plain, inhabited by many tribes and nations, who owned large herds of cattle and flocks of goats, just as you see uhha to-day.
"'on this plain there was a very large town, fenced round with poles strong and high. as was the custom in those days, the people of the town surrounded their houses with tall hedges of cane, enclosing courts, where their cattle and goats were herded at night from the wild beasts and from thieves. in one of these enclosures lived a man and his wife, who possessed a deep well, from which water bubbled up and supplied a beautiful little stream, at which the cattle of their neighbors slaked their thirst.
"'strange to say, this well contained countless fish, which supplied both the man and his wife with an abundant supply for their wants; but as their possession of these treasures depended upon the secrecy which they preserved respecting them, no one outside their family circle knew anything of them. a tradition was handed down for ages, through the family, from father to son, that on the day they showed the well to strangers they would be ruined and destroyed.
"'one day, while the husband was absent, a stranger called at the house and talked so pleasantly that the wife forgot all about the tradition, and showed him the well. the man had never seen such things in his life, for there were no rivers in the neighborhood except that which was made by this fountain. his delight was very great, and he sat for some time watching the fish leaping and chasing each other, showing their white bellies and beautiful bright sides, and coming up to the surface and diving swiftly down to the bottom. he had never enjoyed such pleasure; but when one of the boldest of the fish came near to where he was sitting he suddenly put forth his hand to catch it. ah, that was the end of all!—for the muzimu, the spirit, was angry. and the world cracked asunder, the plain sank down and down and down—the bottom cannot now be reached by our longest lines—and the fountain overflowed and filled the great gap that was made by the earthquake, and now what do you see? the tanganika! all the people of that great plain perished, and all the houses and fields and gardens, the herds of cattle and flocks of goats and sheep, were swallowed in the waters.'
head-dress and hatchet.
"i made many attempts to discover whether the wajiji knew why the lake was called tanganika. a rational definition i could not obtain until one day, while translating some english words into their language, i came to the word 'plain,' for which i obtained nika as[pg 163] being the term in kijiji. as africans are accustomed to describe large bodies of water as being like plains, 'it spreads out like a plain,' i think that a satisfactory signification of the term has finally been obtained, in 'the plain-like lake.'
brother rocks.
"westward from ujiji the lake spreads to a distance of about thirty-five miles, where it is bounded by the lofty mountain range of goma, and it is when looking northwest that one comprehends, as he follows that vague and indistinct mountain line, ever paling as it recedes, the full magnificence of this inland sea. the low island of bangwé on the eastern side terminates the bay of ujiji, which rounds with a crescent curve from the market-place towards it.
"the saucy english-built boat which had made the acquaintance of all the bays and inlets of the victoria nyanza, and been borne on the shoulders of sturdy men across the plains and through the ravines of unyoro, is about to explore the mountain barriers which enfold lake tanganika, for the discovery of some gap which lets out, or is supposed to let out, the surplus water of rivers which, from a dim and remote period, have been pouring into it from all sides.
"she has a consort now, a lumbering, heavy, but stanch mate, a canoe cut out from an enormous teak-tree which once grew in some wooded gorge in the goma mountains. the canoe is called the meofu, and is the property of muini kheri, governor of ujiji, who has kindly lent it to me. as he is my friend, he says he will not charge me anything for the loan. but the governor and i know each other pretty well, and i know that when i return from the voyage i shall have to make him a present. in oriental and african lands, remuneration, hire, compensation, guerdon, and present are terms nearly related to one another.
"the boat and her consort are ready on the 11th of june, 1876. the boat's crew have been most carefully selected. they are all young, agile, faithful creatures. their names and ages are as follows: uledi, the coxswain, 25 years; saywa, his cousin, 17; shumari, his brother, 18; murabo, 20; mpwapwa, 22; marzouk, 23; akida, 20; mambu, 20; wadi baraka, 24; zaidi rufiji, 27; matiko, 19. two[pg 164] supernumeraries are the boy gun-bearers, billali and mabruki, 17 and 15 years respectively. after eighteen months' experience with them it has been decided by all that these are the elect of the expedition for boat-work, though they are by no means the champions of the march. but as they have only light loads, there has never been reason to complain of them.
"there is much handshaking, many cries of 'take care of yourselves,' and then both boat and canoe hoist sail, turning their heads along the coast to the south.
"we followed along this coast to the southern extremity of the lake, examining every river with the greatest care, in the full determination of finding the outlet if any existed. then we followed the western coast in the same way, examining the rivers and studying the picturesque shores, which were bounded in many places by lofty hills or mountains. many of these hills are supposed to be the dwelling-places of spirits who have control over the lake in various ways.
the extreme southern reach of lake tanganika.
"that part of the western coast which extends from mbeté or mombeté, to the south, as far as the rufuvu river, is sacred ground in the lore of the ancients of urungu. each crag and grove, each awful mountain brow and echoing gorge, has its solemn associations of spirits. vague and indescribable beings, engendered by fear and intense superstition, govern the scene. any accident that may befall, any untoward event or tragedy that may occur, before the sanctuaries of these unreal powers, is carefully treasured in the memories of the people with increased awe and dread of the spirits of the rocks.
"such associations cling to the strange tabular mounts or natural towers, called mtombwa, of which a sketch is annexed. the height of these is about twelve[pg 165] hundred feet above the lake. they once formed parts of the plateau of urungu, though now separated from it by the same agency which created the fathomless gulf of the tanganika.
mtombwa.
"within a distance of two miles are three separate mounts, which bear a resemblance to one another. the first is called mtombwa, the next kateye, the third kapembwa. their three spirits are also closely akin to one another, for they all rule the wave and the wind, and dwell on summits. kateye is, i believe, the son of kapembwa, the jupiter, and mtombwa, the juno, of tanganika tradition.
"as we row past, close to their base, we look up to admire the cliffy heights rising in terraces one above another; each terrace-ledge is marked by a thin line of scrubby bush. beyond kateye, the gray front of the paternal kapembwa looms up with an extraordinary height and massive grandeur.
"the peaks of kungwé are probably from two thousand five hundred to three thousand feet above the lake. they are not only interesting from their singular appearance, but also as being a refuge for the last remaining families of the aborigines of kawendi. on the topmost and most inaccessible heights dwells the remnant of the once powerful nation which in old times—so tradition relates—overran uhha and uvinza, and were a terror to the wakalaganza. they cultivate the slopes of their strongholds, which amply repay them for their labor. fuel is found in the gorges between the peaks, and means of defence are at hand in the huge rocks which they have piled up ready to repel the daring intruder. their elders retain the traditions of the race whence they sprang; and in their charge are the lares and penates of old kawendi—the muzimu. in the home of the eagles they find a precarious existence, as a seed to reproduce another nation, or as a short respite before complete extermination.
[pg 166]
kungwé peaks.
(from a sketch near the entrance to the luwulungu torrent bed.)
"the best view of this interesting clump of mountain heights is to be had off the mouth of the torrent luwulungu.
"everywhere we went we could see that the lake was rising. in places where i had camped with livingstone in 1871 there were now several feet of water, and the guides repeatedly called my attention to low islands and beaches that were now submerged. one of the most interesting points we visited was lukuga creek, where cameron thought he discovered the outlet of the lake. we reached it on july 16th, and made a careful survey.
"the mouth of the lukuga, which was about two thousand five hundred yards wide, narrowed after a mile to eight hundred yards, and after another mile to four or five hundred yards. upon rounding the point of land on which mkampemba stands, and where there is a considerable tract under tillage, i observed that the water changed its color to a reddish brown, owing to the ferruginous conglomerate of which the low bluffs on either side are composed. this was also a proof to me that there was no outflowing river here. clear water outflowing from the tanganika, only two miles from the lake, ought never to be so deeply discolored.
"wherever there were indentations in the bluffs that banked it in, or a dip in the low, grass-covered débris beneath, a growth of mateté, or water-cane, and papyrus filled up these bits of still water, but mid-channel was clear, and maintained a breadth of open white water ranging from ninety to four hundred and fifty yards.
the "high places" of the spirit mtombwa: view of mtombwa urungu.
"within an hour we arrived at the extremity of the open water, which had gradually been narrowed in width, by the increasing abundance of papyrus, from two hundred and fifty yards to forty yards. we ceased rowing, and gently glided up to the barrier of papyrus, which had now completely closed up the creek from[pg 167]
[pg 168] bank to bank, like a luxuriant field of tall indian corn. we sounded at the base of these reeds along a breadth of forty yards, and obtained from seven to eleven feet of water! with a portable level i attempted to ascertain a current; the level indicated none! into a little pool, completely sheltered by the broadside of the boat, we threw a chip or two, and some sticks. in five minutes the chips had moved towards the reeds about a foot! we then crushed our way through about twenty yards of the papyrus, and came to impassable mud-banks, black as pitch, and seething with animal life. returning to the boat, i asked four men to stand close together, and, mounting their shoulders with an oar for support, i endeavored, with a glass, to obtain a general view. i saw a broad belt, some two hundred and fifty or three hundred yards wide, of a papyrus-grown depression, lying east and west between gently-sloping banks, thinly covered with scrubby acacia. here and there were pools of open water, and beyond were a few trees growing, as it seemed to me, right in the bed. i caused some of my men to attempt to cross from one bank to the other, but the muddy ooze was not sufficiently firm to bear the weight of a man.
mount murumbi, near lukuga creek.
"i then cut a disk of wood a foot in diameter, drove a nail in, and folded cotton under its head. i then rove a cord five feet in length through this, suspending to one end an earthenware pot, with which i tried an experiment. along the hedge of papyrus i measured one thousand feet with a tape-line, both ends of the track marked by a broad ribbon of sheeting tied to a papyrus reed. then, proceeding to the eastern or lake end of the track, i dropped the earthenware pot, which, after filling, sank, and drew the wooden disk level with the water. i noted[pg 169] the chronometer instantly, while the boat was rowed away from the scene. the wind from the lake blew strong at the time.
"the board floated from lakeward towards the papyrus eight hundred and twenty-two feet in one hour and forty seconds.
"in the afternoon, wind calm and water tranquil, the disk floated in the opposite direction, or towards the lake, one hundred and fifty-nine feet in nineteen minutes and thirty seconds, which is at the rate of about six hundred feet in the hour.
"this was of itself conclusive proof that there was no current at this date (july 16, 1876). still i was curious to see the river flowing out. the next day, therefore, accompanied by the chief and fifteen men of the expedition, we started overland along the banks of this rush and mud choked depression for three or four miles. the trend of the several streams we passed was from northwest to southeast—that is, towards the lake. at elwani village we came to the road from monyi's, which is used by people proceeding to unguvwa, luwelezi, or marungu, on the other side of the lukuga. two men from the village accompanied us to the lukuga ford. when we reached the foot of the hill we first came to the dry bed of the kibamba. in the rainy season this stream drains the eastern slopes of the kiyanja ridge with a southeast trend. the grass-stalks, still lying down from the force of the water, lay with their tops pointing lakeward.
"from the dry mud-bed of the kibamba to the cane-grass-choked bed of lukuga was but a step. daring the wet season the kibamba evidently overflowed broadly, and made its way among the mateté of the lukuga.
"we tramped on along a path leading over prostrate reeds and cane, and came at length to where the ground began to be moist. the reeds on either side of it rose to the height of ten or twelve feet, their tops interlacing, and the stalks, therefore, forming the sides of a narrow tunnel. the path sank here and there into ditchlike hollows filled with cool water from nine inches to three feet deep, with transverse dykes of mud raised above it at intervals.
"finally, after proceeding some two hundred yards, we came to the centre of this reed-covered depression—called by the natives "mitwanzi"—and here the chief, trampling a wider space among the reeds, pointed out in triumph water indisputably flowing westward! the water felt cold, but it was only 68° fahr., or 7° cooler than the lukuga.
"i am of the opinion, after taking all things into consideration, that kahangwa cape was, at a remote period, connected with kungwé cape on the east coast—that the lukuga was the affluent of the lake as it stood then, that the lake was at that period at a much higher altitude than it is at present, that the northern half of the lake is of a later formation, and that, owing to the subsidence of that portion and the collapsing of the barrier or the kahangwa cape and kungwé cape ridge, the waters south emptied into that of the deep gulf north, and left the channel of the lukuga to be employed as the bed of the affluents kibamba and lumba, or the eastern slope of the kiyanja ridge, to feed the lake. but now that the extension of the profound bed—created by some great earthquake, which fractured and disparted the plateau of uhha, urundi, ubembé, goma, etc.—is on the eve of being filled up, the ancient affluent is about to resume its old duties of conveying the surplus waters of the tanganika down into the valley of the livingstone, and thence, along its majestic winding course, to the atlantic ocean.
[pg 170]
"at present there are only a few inches of mud-banks and a frail barrier of papyrus and reeds to interpose between the waters of the lake and its destiny, which it is now, year by year, steadily approaching. when the tanganika has risen three feet higher there will be no surf at the mouth of the lukuga, no sill of sand, no oozing mud-banks, no rush-covered old river-course, but the accumulated waters of over a hundred rivers will sweep through the ancient gap with the force of a cataclysm, bearing away on its flood all the deposits of organic débris at present in the lukuga creek down the steep incline to swell the tribute due to the mighty livingstone.
"on the 21st of july we sailed from the mouth of the future outlet lukuga to the arab crossing-place near kasengé island.
"the waguha, along whose country we had voyaged for some days, are an unusually ceremonious people. they are the first specimens of those nations among whom we are destined to travel in our exploration of the western regions.
ubujwé head dress. uguha head-dress.
"the art of the coiffeur is better known here than in any portion of africa east of lake tanganika. the 'waterfall' and 'back-hair' styles are superb, and the constructions are fastened with carved wooden or iron pins. full dress includes a semicircle of finely plaited hair over the forehead painted red, ears well ochred, the rest of the hair drawn up taut at the back of the head, overlaid and secured by a cross-shaped flat board, or with a skeleton-crown of iron; the head is then covered with a neatly tasselled and plaited grass-cloth, like a lady's breakfast-cap, to protect it from dust. in order to protect such an elaborate construction from being disordered, they carry a small head-rest of wood stuck in the girdle.
village scene—dwellings and grain-houses.
"their mode of salutation is as follows:
"a man appears before a party seated; he bends, takes up a handful of earth or sand with his right hand, and throws a little into his left—the left hand rubs the sand or earth over the right elbow and the right side of the stomach, while the right hand performs the same operation for the left parts of the body, the mouth meanwhile uttering rapidly words of salutation. to his inferiors, however, the[pg 171]
[pg 172] new-comer slaps his hand several times, and after each slap lightly taps the region of his heart.
a woman of uguha. uhyeya head-dress.
"on the 28th of july we skirted the low land which lies at the foot of the western mountains, and by noon had arrived at the little cove in masansi, near the rubumba, or the luvumba, river, at which livingstone and i terminated our exploration of the northern shores of lake tanganika in 1871. i had thus circumnavigated lake tanganika from ujiji up the eastern coast, along the northern head, and down the western coast as far as rubumba river in 1871; and in june-july, 1876, had sailed south from ujiji along the eastern coast to the extreme south end of the lake, round each inlet of the south, and up the western coast to panza[pg 173] point, in ubwari, round the shores of burton gulf, and to rubumba river. the north end of the lake was located by livingstone in south latitude 3° 18'; the extreme south end i discovered to be in south latitude 8° 47', which gives it a length of three hundred and twenty-nine geographical miles. its breadth varies from ten to forty-five miles, averaging about twenty-eight miles, and its superficial area covers a space of nine thousand two hundred and forty square miles.
spirit island, lake tanganika.
"in mid-lake, i sounded, using a three-and-a-half-pound sounding-lead with one thousand two hundred and eighty feet of cord, and found no bottom. i devoted an hour to this work, and tried a second time a mile nearer the urundi coast, with the same results—no bottom. the strain at such a great depth on the whip-cord was enormous, but we met with no accident.
"on the 31st we arrived at ujiji, after an absence of fifty-one days, during which time we had sailed without disaster or illness a distance of over eight hundred and ten miles. the entire coast-line of the tanganika is about nine hundred and thirty miles.
[pg 174]
sketch near ujiji.
