Z12 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XIV. No. 356 



" Ten days passed before we reached another plantation, during 

 which we lost more men than we had lost between Banalaya and 

 Ugarrowwas. Small-pox broke out among the Manyema, and the 

 mortality was terrible. Our Zanzibaris escaped the pest, however, 

 owing to the vaccination they had undergone on board the ' Ma- 

 dura.' We were now about four days' march above the confluence 

 of the Ihuru and the Ituri Rivers, and within about a mile from Ishuru. 

 As there was no possibility of crossing this violent tributary of the 

 Ituri or the Aruvimi, we had to follow its right bank till a crossing 

 could be discovered. Four days later we stumbled across the 

 principal village of the district, called Andikumu. It was sur- 

 rounded by the finest plantation of bananas and plantains we had 

 yet seen, which all the Manyemas' habit of spoliation and destruc- 

 tion had been unable to destroy. There our people, after severe 

 starvation during fourteen days, gorged themselves to such excess 

 that it contributed greatly to lessen our numbers. Every twentieth 

 individual suffered from some complaint which entirely incapaci- 

 tated him for duty. 



"The Ihuru River was about four miles south-south-east from 

 this place, flowing from east-north-east. It was about sixty yards 

 broad and deep, owing to heavy rains. From Andikumu six days' 

 march north-east brought us to another flourishing settlement, 

 called Indeman, situated about four hours' march from a river 

 supposed to be the Ihuru. Here I was considerably nonplussed by 

 a grievous discrepancy between native accounts and my own ob- 

 servations. The natives called it the Ihuru River, and my instru- 

 ments and chronometer made it very evident it could not be the 

 Ihuru. We knew finally. After capturing some Daris, we dis- 

 covered it was the right branch of the Ihuru, called the Dui River, 

 this agreeing with my own view. We searched, and found a place 

 where we could build a bridge across. Bonny and our Zanzibar! 

 chief threw themselves into the work, and in a few hours the Dui 

 River was safely bridged. We passed from Indeman into a dis- 

 trict entirely unvisited by Manyema." 



Here the writer describes daily conflicts with the Wambutti 

 dwarfs, which he found very numerous in this region. The Wam- 

 buttis clung to the north-east route, which Stanley wanted to take. 

 Accordingly, he went south-east, and followed elephant-tracks. 

 He says, " But on Dec. 9 we were compelled to halt for forage in 

 the middle of a vast forest, at a spot indicated by my chart to be 

 not more than two or three miles from Ituri River, which many of 

 our people had seen while we resided at Fort Bodo. I sent one 

 hundred and fifty rifles back to a settlement that was fifteen miles 

 back on the route we had come, while many Manyema followers 

 also undertook to follow them. I quote from my journal part of 

 what I wrote on Dec. 14, the sixth day of the absence of the fora- 

 gers : — 



" ' Six days have transpired since our foragers left us. For the 

 first four days the time passed rapidly, I might say almost pleas- 

 antly, being occupied in recalculating my observations from Ugar- 

 rowwas to Lake Albert down to date, owing to a few discrepancies 

 here and there, which my second and third visits and duplicate and 

 triplicate observations enabled me to correct. My occupation then 

 ended, I was left to wonder why the large band of foragers did not 

 return. On the fifth day, having distributed all the stock of flour 

 in camp, and having killed the only goat we possessed, I was com- 

 pelled to open the officers' provision-boxes and take a pound pot of 

 butter, with two cupfuls of my flour, to make an imitation gruel, 

 there being nothing else save tea, coffee, sugar, and a pot of sago, 

 in the boxes. 



" ' In the afternoon a boy died, and the condition of a majority 

 of the rest was most disheartening. Some could not stand, falling 

 down in the effort to do so. These constant sights acted on my 

 nerves, until I began to feel not only moral but physical sympathy, 

 as though the weakness was contagious. Before night a Mahdi 

 carrier died. The last of our Somalis gave signs of collapse, and 

 the few Sudanese with us were scarcely able to move. When the 

 morning of the sixth day dawned, we made broth with the usual 

 pot of butter, an abundance of water, a pot of condensed milk, and 

 a cupful of flour, for one hundred and thirty people. The chiefs 

 and Bonny were called to a council. At my suggesting a reverse 

 to the foragers of such a nature as to exclude our men from re- 

 turning with the news of the disaster, they were altogether unable 



to comprehend such a possibility. They believed it possible that 

 these one hundred and fifty men were searching for food, without 

 which they would not return. ' They were then asked to consider 

 the supposition that they were five days searching for food, and 

 then had lost the road perhaps, or, having no white leader, had 

 scattered to loot goats, and had entirely forgotten their starving 

 friends and brothers in the camp. What would be the state of the 

 one hundred and thirty people five days hence.'' 



" Bonny offered to stay with ten men in the camp if I provided 

 ten days' food for each person, while I would set out to search for 

 the men. Food to make a light cupful of gruel for ten men for ten 

 days was not difficult to procure, but the sick and feeble remaining 

 must starve unless I met with good fortune ; and accordingly a 

 store of buttermilk, flour, and biscuits was prepared and handed 

 over to the charge of Bonny. In the afternoon of the seventh day 

 we mustered everybody, besides the garrison of the camp, ten 

 men. 



" Sadi, a Manyema chief, surrendered fourteen of his men to 

 their doom ; Kibbobora, another chief, abandoned his brother ; 

 and Fundi, another Manyema chief, left one of his wives and her 

 little boy. We left twenty-six feeble and sick wretches, already 

 past all hope unless food could be brought them within twenty-four 

 hours. In a cheery tone, though my heart was never hea'vier, I 

 told the forty-three hunger-bitten people that I was going back to 

 hunt for the missing men. We travelled nine miles that afternoon, 

 having passed several dead people on the road ; and early on the 

 eighth day of their absence from camp we met them, marching in 

 an easy fashion, but when we were met the pace was altered, so 

 that in twenty-six hours from leaving Starvation Camp we were 

 back with a cheery abundance around us of gruel and porridge, 

 boiling bananas, boiling plantains, roasting meat, and simmering 

 soup. This had been my nearest approach to absolute starvation 

 in all my African experience. Altogether, twenty-one persons 

 succumbed in this dreadful camp. 



" On Dec. 17 the Ihuru River was reached in three hours, and, 

 having a presentiment that the garrison of Fort Bodo were still 

 where I left them, the Ihuru was crossed the next day, and for the 

 two following days we steered through the forest regardless of 

 paths. We had the good fortune to strike the western angle of 

 the Foit Bodo plantations on the 20th, and found that my presenti- 

 ment was true. Lieut. Stairs and the garrison were still at Fort 

 Bodo, fifty-one souls remaining out of fifty-nine. 



" Not a word had been heard of Emin or of Jephson during the 

 seven months of my absence. Knowing the latter to be an ener- 

 getic man, we were left to conjecture what detained Jephson, even 

 if the affairs of his province had detained Emin. On Dec. 23 the 

 united expedition continued the march eastward ; and as we had 

 now to work by relays, owing to the fifty extra loads, we did not 

 reach the Ituri Ferry, which was our last camp in the forest region 

 before emerging on grass- land, until Jan. 9. My anxiety about Mr. 

 Jephson and Emin would not permit me to dawdle on the road, 

 making double trips in this manner : so, selecting a rich plantation 

 and a good camping site east of the Ituri River, I left Stairs in 

 command with one hundred and twenty-four people, including 

 Parkes and Nelson, and on Jan. 11 continued my march eastward. 



" The people of the plains, fearing a repetition of the fighting of 

 December, 1887, flocked to the camp as we advanced, and formally 

 tendered their submission, agreeing to the contributions and sup- 

 plies. The blood of brotherhood was made, the exchange of gifts 

 was made, and a firm friendship established. The huts of our 

 camp were constructed by natives, and food, fuel, and water were 

 brought to the expedition as soon as a halting-place was decided 

 on. We heard no news of white men on Lake Albert from the 

 plain people until on the i6th, at a place called Gaviras. Messen- 

 gers from Kavalli came with a packet of letters, with one letter 

 written on three dates, with several days' interval between, from 

 Jephson, and two notes from Emin, confirming the news in Jeph- 

 son's letter. You can but imagine the intense surprise I felt while 

 reading the letters by giving you extracts from them in Jephson's 

 own words : — 



" ' I am writing to tell you the position of affairs in this country, 

 and I trust the letter will be delivered to you at Kavalli in time to 

 warn you to be careful. On Aug. 18 a rebellion broke out here. 



