1896. SOME NEW BOOKS. 59 



earners were changed and fresh provisions and new porters were 

 obtained from the station of Mwansa on the Victoria Nyanza. 



Thus recruited, Count von Gotzen and his companions started 

 again on April 14, 1894, with a party of 362 attendants, on their 

 arduous journey through the furthest part of German East Africa, 

 and on May 2 arrived on the Kagera River, the largest feeder of the 

 Victoria Nyanza, and, in fact, the upper stream of the Nile. Two 

 days later the party were safely ferried over the Kagera, here about 

 250 metres in breadth, in canoes, and the hilly but treeless plateau of 

 Ruanda was entered. While the son of the ruler of Ruanda, who 

 rejoiced in the name of Schirangawe, was easily visible, there seemed 

 to be much difficulty in obtaining an interview with the great " Kigeri " 

 himself, as this native potentate is called. This, however, was effected 

 a few marches further on, and Luabugiri was found to be a veritable 

 giant, wonderfully well-proportioned, and of a light brown colour, like 

 most of the Wahumas, but very shy and not easy to deal with. 



After leaving Luabugiri's residence, of which a good illustration is 

 given, the travellers pushed on straight for Mount Kirunga, and, shortly 

 before arriving at its foot, met with a serious difficulty in the shape of a 

 bamboo forest of the densest description. It was not until June 12 that a 

 start was made for the ascent of the mountain, first on an elephant- 

 hunter's path over blocks of lava, and then through very dense forest. 

 Here grey parrots [Psittacus evithacus) were noticed for the first time, 

 showing that the limits of the western fauna were being entered upon. 

 Above the forest open ground at length appeared, and after several 

 days of arduous toil the party stood on the edge of the crater of 

 Kirunga, and gazed upon a sea of congealed lava with a large orifice of 

 active eruption in the middle of it. The larger diameter of the oval 

 crater of Kirunga was estimated at 200 metres, and the smaller at 150 

 metres, while the lava-bottom was calculated to lie from 200 to 300 

 metres below the rim on which the party stood. The height of the 

 summit of the mountain was estimated at 3,470 metres. To the east 

 of Kirunga were seen the summits of two other lofty mountains — 

 Navunge and Karissimbi, while, according to the map attached to 

 the volume. Mount Ufumbiro of Stanley lies further off behind these 

 mountains, just on the outside edge of the German territory. 



After descending from Kirunga the travellers encamped on the 

 shores of Lake Kivu. This hitherto unexplored lake lies at an altitude 

 of about 1,485 metres, immediately to the north of Lake Tanganyika, 

 into which it is believed to drain. A whole chapter is devoted to an 

 account of it and its lovely islands, which appear to be rich in animal 

 and vegetable life of every description. 



The main object of the journey having now been accomplished, 

 a grand consultation took place as to the best route of return to 

 Europe, and only after much discussion it was determined to proceed 

 westwards to the Congo. This was, as may be well believed, by far 

 the hardest and at the same time the least interesting portion of the 

 journey, and three whole months were taken in its accomplishment. 

 Starting on June 28 from Kirunga on Lake Kivu, the party crossed 

 into the water-basin of the Congo about five days later, and found 

 themselves on the sources of the Luwa, which runs into the Congo 

 at about i deg. S. lat. The great wood-district of the Upper Congo 

 thus entered on was crossed far to the south of Stanley's route. 

 Great difficulties from the dense nature of the forest and from the 

 failure of provisions were encountered, and Count von Gotzen and his 

 companions would hardly have got safely through had they not found 

 a party of Manyema encamped on the road, by whom they were 



