286 PREVIOUS GREAT CONTROVERSIES 



Speke was 30 years old, had seen service in India, as had Burton, and was a 

 genuine dare-devil adventurer. 



The two, organizing an expedition at Zanzibar, proceeded, first of all, to the 

 forbidden city of Fuga, in Somaliland. Already their heads were filled with 

 native tales of the mysterious great lakes in the interior ; already Burton and 

 Speke seemed to have entertained their contradictory opinions as to which of 

 these was the source of the Nile. When the expedition got to Fuga the auda- 

 cious officers gained admittance within its sacred limits by informing the 

 natives that they were wizards, skilled in the curing of disease. The local 

 Sultan, who was very ill, at once asked Burton for a remedy, but it was beyond 

 that resourceful man's powers. When the expedition left Fuga, Burton says 

 that he was haunted by the look in the eyes of the Sultan, hopeless of being 

 cured, as he said farewell to the "wizards." 



Returning to the coast, the expedition was attacked by hostile Somalis. A 

 desperate fight ensued. Lieut Stroyan, one of the subordinate leaders, was 

 killed. Both Burton and Speke fought like tigers. Eventually they reached 

 the coast. 



Burton at once organized another expedition, purposing this time to ad- 

 vance straight toward Lake Tanganyika. Speke was in rather an unfortunate 

 position, having sunk much money in the disastrous Somaliland venture. 

 Hence Burton's offer to him of the position of second in command on the 

 Tanganyika trip was distinctly welcome. Already bad blood seems to have 

 sprung up between the two adventurers. Speke thought that, instead of ad- 

 vancing through Somaliland, Burton should have taken another route toward 

 the great African lakes. He attributed much of the ill success of the prelim- 

 inary expedition to Burton's management, and seems even to have considered 

 that the latter showed evidences of timidity. 



However, on June 26, 1857, they departed from Zanzibar for Tanganyika, 

 in harmony. Burton, always eccentric, carried some horse chestnuts tied up in 

 canvas bags to ward off the evil eye and sickness. The expedition, in addition 

 to Burton and Speke, consisted of two boys from Goa, two negro gun carriers, 

 a man called Sudy Bombay, who had accompanied Burton in previous explora- 

 tions, and ten Zanzibar mercenaries. Burton's avowed object was to find Tan- 

 ganyika and gain for himself thereby the title of discoverer of the sources of 

 the Nile. 



At Dut'humi, in spite of his horse chestnuts, Burton got a bad attack of 

 marsh fever. Here hardships began in earnest for the rest of the expedition's 



