846 REPORT— 1896. 
line from the south end of Lake Tanganyika to the northern end of Lake Nyasa, 
and thence on to the coast; they would thus open up a vast extent of territory, 
and Baron von Schele tells us that a particularly easy route can be found from 
Kilva to the lake. Such a line of communication, especially if eventually con- 
nected with the Victoria Nyanza to the north, would be more valuable than any 
other line in Africa in putting an end to the slave trade, as it would make it pos- 
sible to erect a great barrier, as it were, running north and south across the roads 
traversed by the slave traders. 
A line through German territory connecting Lake Nyasa with the sea would, no 
doubt, come into competition with the route connecting the southern end of that 
lake with the Zambesi, and thus with the coast. The mouths of the Zambesi, 
though they are passable, will always present some impediment to commerce. But 
after entering the river navigation is not obstructed until the Murchison Rapids on 
the Shiré River arereached. Here there are at present sixty miles of portage to be 
traversed, and this transit must be facilitated by the construction of a railway, if this 
route is to be properly developed ; Mr. Scott Elliot tells us that 120 miles of railway, 
from Chiromo to Matope, would be necessary for this purpose. Beyond this latter 
point there isa good waterway to Lake Nyasa. Thus a comparatively short line of 
railway would open up this lake to European commerce, and this route is likely to 
be developed at a much earlier stage of the commercial evolution of Africa than the 
one through German territory above suggested. It will be seen that these routes 
connect fairly populous districts with the coast, and it must also be recollected 
that the high plateau between Lake Nyasa and the Kafue River is one of the very 
few regions in tropical Africa likely to attract white men as more or less perma- 
nent residents. 
Further south we come to the Zambesi River, which should, of course, be 
utilised as far as possible. But this line of communication to the interior has 
many faults. The difficulties to be met with at the mouths of the Zambesi have 
already been ailuded to. Then the whole valley is unhealthy, and white travellers 
would prefer any route which would bring them on to high land more quickly. 
Moreover the Kebrabasa rapids cause a serious break in the waterway, and, as the 
river above that point is only navigable for canoes, it is doubtful if it would ever 
be worth making a railway for the sole purpose of connecting these two portions 
of the river. 
As the population of the upper Zambesi valley is considerable, and as the 
country further from its banks is said to be likely to be attractive to white men, 
there can be no doubt of the advisability of connecting it with the coast. This 
naturally leads us to consider the Beira route, as a possible competitor with the 
Zambesi. A sixty centimetre railway is now open from Fontesvilla to Chimoio 
(190 kilometres), and it is probable that during the course of the next two years 
the construction of the railway will be completed from the port of Beira itself as 
far as the territory of the Chartered Company. This will form the first step in the 
construction of a much better line of communication to the Upper Zambesi regions 
than that afforded by the river itself. It is true that the gauge is very narrow, and 
that the first part of the line passes through very unhealthy districts; but this line 
will nevertheless be a most valuable addition to the existing means of. penetrating 
into the interior of the continent. It is needless to say that the object of this 
railway is to open up communications with Mashonaland, not for the purposes now 
suggested. 
South of the Zambesi the map shows us that there are no regions in tropical 
Africa where the density of the native population reaches the minimum of eight 
per square mile. Here, however, we come to the gold fields, where there is 
attractive force enough to draw white men in great numbers within the tropics, 
and where, no doubt, some of the most important problems connected with railway 
communications will have to be solved in the immediate future. But, for reasons of 
time and space, I have limited myself to the discussion of districts within the tropics, 
where trade with the existing native races is the object in view. The Beira 
railway does not in reality come within the limits I have imposed on myself, 
