Chapter I. 



After a lapse oi' tweuty-tbiir centuries tlie verse of Aeschylus — 

 " Egypt nurtured l)v the snow " — once more receives its literal 

 signification. The " ^fountain of Silver" [apyvpow opos), the 

 source of the Nile, according to Aristotle, is at last revealed. 

 Stranire indeed are the vicissitudes of hmuan knowledg-e. 



This classical traditicni of the Nile issuing from vast lakes 

 fed by snowy mountains was tenaciously preserved through 

 subsequent history. We find it repeated in the description 

 of the " Mountains of the Moon " taken by Ptolemy, with 

 modifications of his own, from the writings of Maiinus of Tyre. 

 The same story recurs in the writings and maps of Arab 

 geogi'aphers in the Middle Ages ; and again in the works of 

 Western European compilators, such as the Prior of Neuville 

 les Dames and Alphonse de Saintorge. In fact, notwith- 

 standing the absolute lack of any confirmation of their 

 existence, these mountains and lakes, indicated with imcertain 

 forms and doubtfid and varying geographical situation, never 

 wholly disappeared from our maps of Africa up to the time 

 ot their actual discovery. 



The belief in snow-clad mountains at the sources of the Nile 

 had persisted with peculiar tenacity among the natives of the 

 East Coast. Possibly it received fresh confirmation from time 

 to time through news gathered from the caravans which brought 

 ivory and slaves from the interior. Burton, Speke and Baker 

 heard it again and again, and with positive affirmation, both 

 from the Arabs and from the natives of Zanzibar. 



The discovery of Mt. Kenya and Mt. Kilimandjaro by the 

 German missionaries Krapf and Rebmann in 1848-49 seemed 

 for the time to settle the question. These mountains, how- 

 ever, are connected neither with the lakes nor with the Nile. 

 In 18G1 Speke believed that he had discovered the " Momitains 



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