2 REASONS FOR 



that that immense territory, comprising one 

 eighth part of the surface of the globe, had 

 been for ages excluded from all direct commu- 

 nication with the civilised world, seemed to 

 hold out the most flattering prospects of suc- 

 cess to those fortunate individuals who should 

 be the first to break into its secluded vales. 

 The increase in the consumption of palm-oil 

 in this country, the gradual decline in the sup- 

 ply of ivory, added to the inconvenience arising 

 from the caprice and extortion of the petty 

 chiefs at the mouths of the principal rivers of 

 the African coast, stimulated the merchant to 

 the discovery of new and unrestricted markets ; 

 while the knowledge that with the imperfect 

 means of transit possessed by the natives, they 

 already exported produce to the value of one mil- 

 lion sterling annually to this country, presented 

 to his mind the ready inference that a more 

 direct intercourse between the producer and 

 the consumer would tend to the benefit of both. 



It will excite no surprise, then, that the splen- 

 did discovery of Lander was hailed with, if pos- 

 sible, more enthusiasm by mercantile than by 

 scientific men. The long-sought-for highway 

 into Central Africa was at length found, as open 



