Jan. 11, 1858.] REPORTS FROM THE NIGER EXPEDITION. 
83 
well known both by bis travels in tropical Australia and in South Africa, and 
who has shown his competency in plan and chart drawing. Dr. Livingstone 
will farther take out his brother the Eev. Charles Livingstone, as his secre- 
tary. Mr. Livingstone is to take charge of the establishment, which it is 
proposed to fix. for a year upon the confluence of the river Kafue with the 
Zambesi. 
I need not tell you that the Council will afford Dr. Livingstone every pos- 
sible aid as to advice, instruments, and method of observation, so that every- 
thing may come before us eventually in a well-digested and graphic form. 
Lastly, I have to state that the Council has expressed a very decided wish 
upon one point which they hold to be of the greatest consequence. Con- 
sidering the well-known unhealthiness of the Zambesi below Tete, the Council 
urgently recommend to Her Majesty’s Government that Dr. Livingstone and 
his associates be forwarded from the mouth of the river to Tete in a decked 
steam-vessel of light draught with as much celerity as possible, and that the 
steam-launch now constructing for the exploration of the upper part of the 
river by our associate Mr. Macgregor Laird be employed to transport the party 
from that point upwards only. 
The Papers read were — 
1. Extracts of Reports from the Niger Expedition. By Dr. Wm. B. Bajkie, 
r.n., f.r.g.s., and Mr. D. T. May, r.n., f.r.g.s. 
Communicated by the Right Hon. the Earl of Clarendon, k.g., f.r.g.s., 
H.M. Secretary for Foreign Affairs. 
Dayspring, off Rabba, 28th Sept. 1857. 
My Lord, — As I expect in a very few days to be able to forward 
letters and despatches to England, through the Yoruba country and 
Lagos, I shall draw up for your Lordship’s information an account 
of the proceedings of the Niger Expedition up to the present time. 
At the date of my last despatch (No. 7, 7th July) we were 
just on the point of leaving the Brass River, and crossing to the 
Nun by a creek which I had the day previously caused to be 
examined. For a vessel of the size and draught of the Dayspring 
there is at all times sufficient water ; but the schooner we had in 
tow being larger and deeper, she grounded several times, and we 
had to wait for two successive flood-tides before we could get her 
off. We spent altogether 28 hours in this gloomy mangrove creek, 
which is in some places not more than 30 yards wide. During the 
night we passed there we were nearly literally devoured by the 
myriads of mosquitoes which swarmed around while we lay 
aground. I took advantage of the time to examine in our boats 
some other portions of the network of muddy creeks which, as far 
as we went, were laid on our chart, and I got a native, who was 
induced to come on board, to spend the forenoon in giving to the 
Rev. Mr. Taylor of the Church Missionary Society a few specimens 
