Nov. 12, 1874J 



NA TURE 



to convey the expedition up the Nile, but was coolly in- 

 formed by the Governor-General that " it was impossible 

 to procure the number of vessels required ; therefore he 

 had purchased a house for me, as he expected I should 

 remain that year at Khartoum, and start in the following 

 season." 



This was certainly disheartening ; it was evident that 

 the expedition was unpopular, and that although the 

 Khedive earnestly wished the suppression of the trade, 

 there was scarcely another man in the country but 

 thought it was his interest to support it ; thus the queller 

 of the evil had to fight against tremendous odds. After 

 inconceivable difficulty a small fleet was got together, a 

 force of 1,400 infantry and two batteries of artillery mus- 

 tered, and everything ready for a start by Feb. 8, 1870, 

 although the desert party under Mr. Higginbotham had 

 not yet come up. Out of the military force. Baker 

 selected forty-six men, who were known as the " Forty 

 Thieves," owing to their light-fingered propensity, of 

 which, however, they were soon cured, and became ulti- 

 mately a loyal band of well-disciplined braves, who con- 

 tributed greatly to the success of the expedition. 



On Feb. 16 the expedition reached the Sobat junction, 

 which river brings an immense body of yellowish water to 

 the Nile, colouring the latter for a great distance. The 

 Bahr Giraffe was reached next day, and here the expedi- 

 tion met with new difficulties which seemed likely enough 

 to compel it to turn back. Sir Samuel says — 



'•' The Bahr Giraffe was to be our new passage instead 

 of the original White Nile. That river, which had be- 

 come so curiously obstructed by masses of vegetation that 

 had formed a solid dam, already described by me in ' The 

 Albert N'yanza,' had been entirely neglected by the Egyp- 

 tian authorities. In consequence of this neglect an extra- 

 ordinary change had taken place. The iminense number 

 of floating islands which are constantly passing down the 

 stream of the White Nile had no exit ; thus they were 

 sucked under the original obstruction by the force of the 

 stream, which passed through some mysterious channel, 

 until the subterranean passage becanie choked with a 

 wondrous accumulation of vegetable matter. The entire 

 river became a marsh, beneath which, by the great pres- 

 sure of water, the stream oozed through innumerable 

 small channels. In fact, the White Nile had disappeared. 

 A vessel arriving from Khartoum in her passage to Gon- 

 doroko would find, after passing through a broad river of 

 clear water, that her bow would suddenly strike against a 

 bank of solid compressed vegetation — this was the natural 

 dam that had been formed to an unknown extent : the 

 river ceased to exist. 



" It may readily be imagined that a dense spongy mass 

 which completely closed the river would act as a filter : 

 thus, as the water charged with muddy particles arrived 

 at the dam where the stream was suddenly checked, it 

 would deposit all impurities as it oozed and percolated 

 slowly through the tangled but compressed mass of vege- 

 tation. This deposit quickly created mud-banks and 

 shoals, which effectually blocked the original bed of 

 the river. The reedy vegetation of the country imme- 

 diately took root upon these favourable conditions, and 

 the rapid effect in a tropical climate may be imagined. 

 That which had been the river bed was converted into a 

 solid marsh. 



" This terrible accumulation had been increasing for five 

 or six years, therefore it was impossible to ascertain or 

 even speculate upon the distance to which it might extend. 

 The slave-traders had been obliged to seek another route, 

 which they had found via the Bahr Girafle, which river 

 had proved to be merely a branch of the White Nile, as I 



had suggested in my former work, and not an indepen- 

 dent river." 



On Feb. 18 the fleet commenced to push its way against 

 the strong current of the Bahr Giraffe, but had not made 

 much progress when it was met by obstructions which had 

 shut up the original channel ; day after day was the river 

 found to be choked up with a mass of vegetation — " sudd," 

 Sir Samuel calls it— which with infinite labour had to be 

 cleared away by all hands working with cutlasses and 

 knives, to allow the vessel to pass through. The cutting 

 through of this was dreadfully trying to the men ; the 

 poisonous effluvia permanently disabled many ; it was, 

 besides, a sore hindrance to the progress of the expedi- 

 tion. The end of it was that Sir Samuel was compelled 

 to turn back and wait for a more favourable season when 

 the river would be in stronger volume. The retreat was 

 commenced on April 3. The distinguishing feature of the 

 country at this part of the Bahr Giraffe is the innumer- 

 able hills of the white ant, rising to heights of 8 and 10 ft., 

 and numerous herds of the antelope Damalis scnegalensis 

 are met with. 



- A very well-organised encampment was formed some 

 distance below the Sobat junction, which ultimately 

 developed into a pretty town and busy market-place, to 

 which Sir Samuel gave the name of " Tewfikeeyah." 



A start was again made on Dec. 11, and after scarcely 

 less labour, which disheartened and told on the health of 

 nearly everyone but Baker himself, who seems throughout 

 to have hal a charmed life, the broad bosom of the great 

 White Nile was reached on March 11, 1871, and the fleet 

 arrived at Gondokoro on April 15, having taken twenty 

 months to do what on Sir Samuel's return journey was 

 easily accomplished in three. The powers of Baker 

 Pacha were by his commission to expire in four years from 

 April 1S69, so that he had now only two years in which to 

 accomplish the great purpose of his mission. He had 

 not, however, been idle on his route from Khartoum to 

 Gondokoro, as by various means he had mana-gcd to 

 inspire the slavehunters with a wholesome fear of himself, 

 and had liberated several cargoes of slaves, to the great 

 astonishment of the poor wretches themselves. 



Sir Samuel found a great change in the river since his 

 previous visit. The old channel was choked with sand- 

 banks, new islands had been formed in many places, and 

 it was impossible for the vessels to approach the old 

 landing-place. The country around had, moreover, 

 been swept of villages and inhabitant?, who had been 

 driven for refuge on the numerous low islands of the river. 

 All that remained of the old mission station of the 

 Austi'ian missionaries was an avenue of large lemon- 

 trees. Sir Samuel landed a little below the site of Gondo- 

 koro, and lost no time in making himself and his com- 

 panions as comfortable as circumstances would permit, 

 forming a large encampment, and instituting an extensive 

 system of cultivation. Indeed, wherever he went he 

 attempted to instil a love of agriculture among the natives, 

 as he did among his own peopJe, giving away large quanti- 

 ties of seeds, accompanying the gifts with instruction as 

 to the enormous benefits to be derived from cultivation. 

 But his troub'es multiplied upon him. He found the Baris, 

 whose tribes occupy most of the district around his station^ 

 while professing the greatest friendliness, utterly hostile 

 to the objects of the expedition ; their minds had been 



