408 



GEOGRAPHICAL PROGRESS AND DISCOVERY. 



dry and empty basin, whose bottom is covered 

 with a glittering saline incrustation ; but at 

 other times it is filled with water, forming a 

 broad and deep lake. Other similar basins 

 present the same phenomenon ; but this one 

 differs from them all in that its changes seem 

 to have no connection with the seasons of rain 

 or drought in the surrounding regions. The 

 behavior of the Botletle is even more surpris- 

 ing and unusual. Livingstone reported it as 

 flowing westward, and Baines represented it 

 as flowing to the east. Serpa Pinto affirms 

 that both statements are true, and that its cur- 

 rent at certain seasons is toward Lake Ngami, 

 while at others it carries the waters of that 

 lake into the Macaricari, according as rainfall 

 occurs hi the country of the Matabeli or in 

 the valley of the Cubango. If the outlet of 

 the Cubango is into Lake Ngami, and there 

 is no regular connection with the Ouando 

 which can not yet be accepted as proved, not- 

 withstanding the positive convictions of Serpa 

 Pinto, since the identity of the Okavango, as 

 the middle course of the Cubango which An- 

 dersson explored was called, and the Tioghe, 

 which empties into the lake, is not yet estab- 

 lished, and neither the Cubango nor the Cuan- 

 do has been explored over its whole course 

 there may yet be a periodical overflow into 

 the Cuando from Lake Ngami ; as Baines as- 

 serts that the Tamalukun, which discharges 

 into the Botletle, and the Mababe, which flows 

 in an opposite direction into the Cuando, are 

 joined in especially wet seasons by a navigable 

 channel. 



Serpa Pinto next visited the cataracts to 

 which Livingstone gave the name of Victoria 

 Falls, and which the natives call Mosi-va-tonia. 

 Ha found the height of the fall to be 180 

 metres. He then took leave of the Coillard 

 family, and made his way to Shoshong, where 

 the people, among whom the missionaries Mac- 

 kenzie and Price long resided, are Christians, 

 and use gold currency, and even have a credit 

 system. Thence he was able to send dispatches 

 to Europe on the 2d of January, 1879. A few 

 more weeks brought him to Pretoria, the capi- 

 tal of the Transvaal ; and he arrived at Durban 

 on the 14th of April, sixteen months after he 

 had left the opposite coast. Of the four hun- 

 dred men who formed his escort when he left 

 Benguela, only eight remained faithful to him, 

 and accompanied him throughout the toilsome 

 and perilous journey. These he took with 

 him to Lisbon, to be returned from there to 

 their native country. 



Major Serpa Pinto made no extensive collec- 

 tions of the fauna and flora, nor any special 

 naturalistic studies. He observed in the up- 

 per Cuando two species of antelopes, whose 

 singular habits make them a curiosity in natu- 

 ral history : although true antelopes, they live 

 altogether in the water like the hippopotamus. 

 He made a particular study of the ethnology 

 of the countries traversed, besides his thorough 

 geographical and meteorological observations. 



The Italian naturalist, Signor D'Albertis, 

 who has spent a large portion of the last six 

 years, secluded from civilization and surround- 

 ed with dangers, studying in the wilds of New 

 Guinea the wonderful fauna of that island, 

 has contributed more perhaps than any other 

 man to our information of this land of marvels, 

 which has been reserved until the present to 

 be explored, although known to be one of the 

 most interesting regions of the earth. D'Al- 

 bertis arrived for the first time in New Guinea 

 in 1872, hi company with Dr. Beccari. Un- 

 able to make a landing at the mouth of the 

 Wamuka River, in longitude 136 15' E., lati- 

 tude 4 40' S., and to ascend that river and 

 reach the Charles Louis Mountains, according 

 to their intentions, they landed, after touching 

 at several points along the coast, at Serong, a 

 small island between Salwatti and the main- 

 land, latitude 52' S. Obliged to depart from 

 here on account of the unwholesomeness of 

 the climate, they proceeded to Dorei, a trad- 

 ing-post on the northwestern peninsula, and es- 

 tablished their quarters at the village of Andai, 

 a few miles distant, where there was a Dutch 

 mission. This is the country of which Wal- 

 lace wrote in his accounts of the birds-of-para- 

 dise. D'Albertis explored the regions around 

 in search of specimens of this bird, but only 

 found ordinary and uninteresting varieties. 

 The rare and richly feathered species, which 

 are only known to naturalists from mutilated 

 specimens that have been prepared for com- 

 merce by the native hunters, live farther inland, 

 in the Arfak Mountains, to the foot of which 

 the naturalist's earlier explorations extended. 

 He was the first European to ascend into the 

 highlands which are the habitat of this most 

 beautiful creature in the feathered race. Be- 

 cause of the dread in which the coast natives 

 hold the mountain tribes, who are reputed 

 to be cannibals, no attempt (if any had been 

 made) to penetrate this region had yet suc- 

 ceeded. D'Albertis was the first civilized being 

 who studied the bird-of-paradise in its native 

 woods. The Arfak range is of volcanic origin. 

 The highest peak, Mount Arfak, is not far from 

 9,000 feet in height. From this the range 

 runs in a southerly direction' until it joins 

 the central ridge of the interior. Numerous 

 streams roll down the side of the mountain- 

 chain into Port Geelvink and Geelvink Bay. 

 The whole range, even the highest summits, 

 are thickly clad with magnificent forests of 

 lofty trees. To his astonishment he discovered 

 among the vegetation a species of oak and a 

 conifer, identified by Dr. Beccari with the 

 Araucaria. In this spot, in 134 E. longitude, 

 and almost upon the equatorial line, the flora 

 of all climates, from that of the torrid to that 

 of the upper temperate zone, is found in a 

 variety nowhere else to be met with. The 

 climate here is humid, but, to judge from 

 the vigorous and well-proportioned frames of 

 the inhabitants, must be exceedingly healthy. 

 These people possess in the most marked de- 



