484 CORRESPONDENCE RESPECTING 
from the merit of this bold and adventurous traveller, 
or to blame the just pride which he feels at having brought 
his enterprise to a happy termination ; but the justice 
which is due to the memory of another traveller, who has 
perished by the barbarous hand of an assassin, calls upon 
me to shew you, Sir, that M. Caillie is neither the only, 
nor the first European who has visited Timbuctoo. 
The late Major Laing was the first who reached Tim- 
buctoo, as I shall prove by the most indisputable autho- 
rity — namely his own hand- writing, and that of his ser- 
vant, who is now at Tripoli. In a letter, dated Timbuctoo, 
September 21, 1826, addressed to the Consul, Mr. War- 
rington, now lying before me, the Major says that he 
arrived in this city on the J 8th of the preceding month ; 
that he intended to quit it the day following the date of 
his letter, that is to say, on the 22nd September and to 
proceed on the road to Sego : he then enters into many 
details relative to this city, and gives a great number of 
curious documents which he had collected on the subject, 
and other materials, which will without doubt be one 
day published. 
He accordingly left Timbuctoo, on the 22nd September, 
with a small caravan, having only one Arab servant ; on 
the third evening he was joined by several Arabs belong- 
ing to the caravan, and afterwards basely massacred. It 
happened that the above-mentioned letter, written from 
Timbuctoo, was in the possession of his servant. His 
baggage was entirely pillaged, and his journal and nu- 
merous papers carried off ; but we have still hopes that 
