Advances in Geographic Knowledge 149 



Niger by descending from Bussa to the 

 mouth of the stream. 



Freiicli energy has explored Senegal 

 and Gambia by the journeys of Rubault, 

 Mollien, De Beauford, and especially 

 CailHe. 



The great mystery of the Nile sources, 

 after twent}^ centuries of speculation, 

 has been solved by the labors of various 

 explorers, most largely by Baker, Speke, 

 and Stanley. Its largest lake source, 

 Victoria Nyanza, was discovered by 

 Speke, who missed Albert Nyanza. 

 Baker discovered the source of the Blue 

 (Abyssinian) Nile and the Albert Ny- 

 anza of the main or White Nile. To 

 Stanley belongs the honor of the dis- 

 covery of the remotest source, Albert 

 Edward Nyanza, which feeds the Albert 

 Nyanza through the Semliki River. 



The fabled Mountains of the Moon 

 have given place in Eastern Africa to a 

 most remarkable lacustrine system. The 

 vast equatorial lakes cover extensive re- 

 gions, feed some of the largest rivers of 

 the world, and b}^ their transportation 

 facilities favor commerce. Their cen- 

 tral situation between the Cape and 

 Cairo, convenient to the Indian Ocean 

 and on the confines of the Kongo Basin, 

 •caused them to be recognized as the cen- 

 tral key to African domination by Ger- 

 many and Great Britain, who now con- 

 trol the region. 



The largest lake, Tanganyika, was 

 discovered by Burton, while Livingstone 

 contributed Nyassa, Moero, Bangweolo, 

 and others. Joseph Thompson, explor- 

 ing south from Tanganyika, discovered 

 Lake Rukwa and also traversed un- 

 known Masailand. 



LIVINGSTONE'S GREAT WORK 



The discovery of the equatorial lakes 

 was of subordinate import to that of the 

 Kongo Basin, which grew out of mis- 

 sionary labors in South Africa. To the 

 genius and energy of two men, David 

 Xrivingstone and Henry M. Stanley, are 



primaril}' due the exploration and util- 

 ization of the vast unexplored regions 

 between the Sudan and the Orange 

 River. 



Unquestionably the missionai'y Liv- 

 ingstone, who settled in Bechuanaland 

 in 1841, was one of the greatest of Afri- 

 can explorers. First discovering Lake 

 Ngami, he turned his attention to the 

 Zambezi Valley, and practically covered 

 this basin in 1 851 -'56, and later, in 

 1 858-' 64, explored Lake Nyassa and 

 the adjacent countr}'. Most important 

 results flowed directly and indirecth' 

 from the last journeys of his life, in 

 i866-'73, when, crossing the watershed 

 to the very sources of the Kongo, he 

 discovered Lakes Moero and Bangweolo, 

 the Luapula and Lualaba Rivers, now 

 recognized branches of the Kongo. 



STANLEY 



Stanley, who found the long-lost Liv- 

 ingstone, completed the exploration of 

 the main Kongo Basin in a journey 

 ( 1 875-' 78) which in its discoveries and 

 results is unequaled in African explora- 

 tion. His circumnavigation of the great 

 lakes, Victoria Nyanza and Tanganyika, 

 was important, but the crossing to the 

 watershed of the Lualaba, which he 

 proved to be the Kongo by following it 

 to the Atlantic Ocean, was a journey of 

 unsurpassed courage, persistency, and 

 resourcefulness. His return to found 

 the Kongo State was followed by exten- 

 sive discoveries, such as Lakes Leopold 

 and Mantumba, the Ubangi, Kasai, and 

 other afiluents of the mighty river. Stan- 

 ley' s geographic laurels were increased 

 by his search for Emin Pasha, when he 

 crossed Africa from the junction of the 

 Kongo and the Aruwini over the Bantu 

 borderland. He discovered not only 

 an extensive and almost impassable for- 

 est, but also the uUiniate lake source of 

 the White Nile, Albert Edward Nyanza. 



Stanley's exploration of the Kongo 

 Basin was a potential force, second only 



