HEAD WATERS OF THE NILE. 203 



The discoveries of Livingstone, Burton, Speke, Grant, and Baker, 

 seem to confirm the theory put forward by Sir Roderick Murchison, 

 that the central portion of South Africa is a large and elevated basin, 

 abounding in immense plains, in fertile lands, besprinkled with 

 numerous lakes fed by a thousand currents descending from the lofty 

 mountains that surrounded it. The rains, says Morin, cause these 

 lakes to overflow, and their waters, prevailing over every obstacle, 

 break through the barrier of the high lands, and descend into the 

 lower levels in a series of cataracts, to make their way eventually 

 towards the ocean. Livingstone has proved the truth of this felici- 

 tous induction as far as the Zambesi is concerned. The Nile also 

 issues from the lofty table-lands through deep and rocky ravines. 

 The great reservoir of the mysterious Egyptian river, the N'yanza 

 Spekii, may be accepted as the final confirmation of Sir Roderick's 

 theory, and the conspicuous feature of the African people. The 

 southern extremity of this lake stretches as far as the watershed 

 between North and South Africa. Starting from the same view- 

 point, Speke concludes that another great lake will be found under 

 the Equator, to the west of the Tanganyika and the N'yanza Victoria. 

 This will be the reservoir of the Congo. To establish this fact will 

 be to solve the last problem of the hydrographic system of Africa.* 



The western region of the African equatorial zone has been but 

 superficially explored, and in this direction numerous hypotheses 

 remain to be verified. Lake Tchad, situated in Central Nigritia, 

 between Bornou on the west and the south-west, and the Kanem to 

 the north and east, was discovered in 1823 by Major Denham, and 

 explored by Dr. Earth in 1852. The latter traveller grows eloquent 

 in his description of the delicious perspective which he had supposed 

 it would offer to the gaze. He met with numerous slaves on their 

 way to cut grass for the horses. But instead of a lake, an immense 

 treeless plain stretched as far as the eye could reach. The herbage 

 became fresher and greener, thicker and taller; a marshy bottom, 

 describing a curve which projected here and receded there, embar- 



* Morin, " Sources du Nil," in Annuaire Scientifique for 1864. 



