第16章

Ourlamentedtraveller，Livingstone，wascompletelyinerrorwhenheconjecturedthatthelargeriverLualabathathehaddiscoveredsouth-westoftheTanganyikalakewasanaffluentoftheBahrGazal。TheLualabaisfartothewestoftheNileBasin，andmaypossiblyflowtotheCongo。Ihaveshowninformerworks，indescribingthesystemoftheNile，thatthegreataffluentsofthatriverinvariablyflowfromthesouth-east——vide，theAtbara，BlueNile，Sobat；andtheAsua，whichisveryinferiorsothethreegreatriversnamed。

WehavelastlytheVictoriaNileoftheVictoriaN’yanza，followingthesameprinciple，andflowingfromthesouth-easttotheAlbertN’yanza。

ThisprovesthatthedirectdrainageoftheNileBasinisfromthesouth-easttothenorth-west；itisthereforeprobablethat，astheinclinationofthecountryistowardsthewest，theremaybesomeescapefromthelakemarshesoftheBahrGazalinthesamedirection。

On21stAugust，havingbeenabsenttendays，duringwhichwehadbeenveryhardatwork，exploringintheunhealthymarshesoftheBahrGaza]，wereturnedhopelesslytoTewfikeeyah。

ThegreatriverNilewasentirelylost，andhadbecomeaswamp，similartotheconditionoftheBahrGiraffe。Itwasimpossibletoguesstheextentoftheobstruction；butIwasconfidentthatitwouldbesimplyaquestionoftimeandlabourtocleartheoriginalchannelbyworkingfrombelowthestream。Thegreatpowerofthecurrentwouldassistthework，andwithpropermanagementthisformerlybeautifulrivermightberestoredtoitsoriginalcondition。ItwouldbeimpossibletocleartheBahrGiraffepermanently，astherewasnotsufficientbreadthofchanneltopermittheescapeofhugeraftsofvegetationoccupyingthesurfaceofperhapsanacre；butthegreatwidthoftheNile，ifonceopened，togetherwiththeimmensepowerofthestream，would，withalittleannualinspection，assurethepermanencyofthework。

IcametotheconclusionthataspecialexpeditionmustbesentfromKhartoumtotakethisimportantworkinhand，asitwouldbequiteuselesstoannexandattempttocivilizeCentralAfrica，unlessafreecommunicationexistedwiththeouterworldbywhichacommercialchannelcouldbeopened。Myexploration，inwhichIhadbeenablyassistedbyLieutenantBakerandMr。Higginbotham，hadprovedthatforthepresentitwasimpossibletopenetratesouthbythemainriver，thereforeImustmakeallpreparationsforanadvancebytheBahrGiraffe，whereIhopedthatourpastlabourmighthaveinsomedegreeimprovedthechannel。

ThecloseofAugustshowedameantemperatureof736/10degreesat6

a。m。，and85degreesFahrenheitatnoon，withsevendaysofheavyandsevenoflightrain。Althoughthestationwasadmirablydrained，theclimateactedunfavourablyuponthepeople。On9thSeptemberitwasnecessaryfortheunfortunateDr。Gedge，mychiefmedicalofficer，toreturntoKhartoum，ashisstateofhealthrequiredimmediatechange。

Justasthediahbeeahwasleavingthestation，avesselarrivedfromtheBahrGazal，bywhichIreceivedaletterfromtheGermantraveller，Dr。

Schweinfurth。Thisgentleman，towhomIwasquiteunknownpersonally，hadtheextremecourtesyandgenerositytointrustmewithallthedetailsofhisgeographicalobservations，collectedinhisjourneyintheWesternNileBasin。

ItwasnecessaryformetoreturnpersonallytoKhartoumtoassuremyselfthatmyarrangementsshouldbecarriedoutwithoutdelay。IhaddeterminedthattheexpeditionshouldstartforthesouthfromTewfikeeyahon1stDec。，atwhichtimetheNilewouldbefull，andthewindstrongfromthenorth。AsTewfikeeyahwasnearlyhalfwayinactualdistancefromKhartoumtoGondokoro，Itrustedthatweshouldhavetimetoaccomplishtheworkofcuttingthroughthemarshes，andbeenabledtopasstheshallowsbeforetherivershouldbegintofall。IthereforesentMr。HigginbothamtoKhartoumtoengagevessels；Ifollowedon15thSeptember，withtheNo。10steamertowingmydiahbeeah——andtenemptyvesselstobringupasupplyofcorn。

WereachedKhartoumonthe21stSept。at9。30a。m。，totheastonishmentofthegovernorandpopulation，whocouldnotunderstandwhyIhadreturned。InowmetforthefirsttimetheVicomtedeBizemont，whowastoaccompanytheexpedition。ThisgentlemanhadbeenintrustedbytheEmpressoftheFrenchwithaverygracioustokenofherinterestintheexpedition，whichhepresentedasagiftfromherMajestytomywife。I

nowheardforthefirsttimethestartlingnewsofthewarbetweenFranceandPrussia。IfoundDr。Gedgealive，butinadeplorablestateofhealth。Itwasimpossibleforhimtotravelnorth，thereforehewascarefullyattendedbytheGreekphysiciantotheforces，Dr。Georgis。I

atoncesawthattherewasnohopeofrecovery。Mr。Higginbothamhadbeenexceedinglykindandattentivetohiswants。

Iwasverywellreceivedbymyoldfriend，DjiafferPacha，thegovernor-general，butasusualtheworkwasallbehind-hand，andMr。

Higginbothamhadbeenindespairuntilmyarrival。Onlysevenvesselswereforthcoming。Ihadexpectedthirty！Thus，itwouldagainbeimpossibletotransportthecamelsthatwereindispensableforthetransportofthesteamersfromGondokoro。Thiswasveryheart-breaking。

Insteadofcompletingtheexpeditionbyageneraldirectmovesouthwithallmaterial，transportanimals，store，&c。，intravellingorder，theoperationwouldextendoversomeyears，forthesimplereasonthatthegovernmenthadnotthemeansoftransport。EvennowthesteamershadnotarrivedfromCairo。Thefifteenlargesloopshadfailedtopassthecataract；thus，IwasreducedtothemiserableopenvesselsofKhartoum，andeventhesewereofaninferiordescriptionandfewinnumber。

FortunatelyIhadbroughttenemptyvesselswithmefromTewfikeeyah，otherwiseweshouldnothavehadsufficienttransportforthenecessarysupplyofcorn。However，nowthatIhadarrived，thingsbegantomovealittlefaster。Ifindthisentryinmyjournal，dated”1stOctober，1870。Thermometer，6a。m。，80degrees；noon，94degrees。Wind，north。

ThefactofmyhavingcapturedtheboatsofKutchukAliandAgadwithslavesonboard，hasdeterminedapassive，butstubborn，resistanceinKhartoumtotheexpedition。Thisissharedbytheofficials。”AlthoughIwrotetoDjiafferPachamonthsagorequestinghimtosendmethirtyvessels，thereisnotoneactuallyready，neitheraretheremorethanseventobeobtained。Eventhesearenotpreparedforthejourney。

TheobjectappearstobetocausesuchdelayasshallthrowmebackuntiltherivershallbetoolowforthepassageoftheBahrGiraffe。”October2——IwroteanofficiallettertoDjiafferPacha，protestingagainstdelay，andremindinghimoftheKhedive’sinstructions。”

Theonlyauthoritywho，Ibelieve，takesarealinterestintheexpeditionisIsmailBey，whoisahighlyintellectualandcleverman。

ThisBeyisthePresidentoftheCouncil，andIhaveknownhimduringmanyyears。HespeaksexcellentFrench，andismoreEuropeaninhisideasthananyofmyacquaintances。[*]

[*Footnote：SincethiswaswrittenIsmailBeyhasbecomePacha，andisgovernoroftheKhartoumprovince。]

TheactionthatIhadtakenagainsttheproceedingsofthegovernorofFashodawasverydistastefultotheKhartoumpublic。Imuchregrettedthenecessity，butIcouldnothaveactedotherwise。Thiscomplicationplacedmyfriend，DjiafferPacha，inamostunpleasantposition，astheKoordiofFashodawashisemployee；itwouldthereforeappearthatnogreatvigilancehadbeenexercisedbythegovernor-generalatKhartoum，andsuspicionsmightbearousedthatthecharacterandactsoftheFashodagovernormusthavebeenpreviouslyknowntotheKhartoumauthorities。

Thecurtainbegantorise，anddisclosedcertainfactsofwhichIoughttohavebeeninformedmanymonthsago，whenIfirstarrivedatKhartoum。

IheardfromMr。HigginbothamthattheprincipaltraderoftheWhiteNile(Agad)hadacontractwiththegovernment，whichgavehimtheexclusiverightoftradingthroughoutcertaindistantcountries。ThisareacomprisedaboutNINETYTHOUSANDSQUAREMILES！Thus，atthesametimethatIwasemployedbytheKhedivetosuppresstheslavetrade，toestablishcommerce，andtoannextheNileBasin，theWhiteNilecountriesthatweretobeannexedhadalreadybeenleasedbythegovernor-generaloftheSoudanforseveralthousandpoundssterlingperannum，togetherwiththemonopolyoftheivorytrade。

AcountrythatwasinnowayconnectedwithEgypt，andoverwhichEgypthadnomoreauthoritythanEnglandhasoverChina，hadactuallybeenleased-outtoadventurersoftheclassknownasmerchantsatKhartoum，butthoroughlywellknowntotheauthoritiesasslave-hunters。

ItwashardlycrediblethatsuchdustshouldbethrownintheeyesoftheKhedive，afterthestringentordershehadgiven；butEgyptiscelebratedfordust；theSoudanislittleelsebutdust，thereforewemustmakesomeallowancefortheblindnessoftheauthorities。MyeyeshadevidentlybeenfilledwithKhartoumdust，foritwasonlynowuponmyreturnfromTewfikeeyahthatIdiscoveredthatwhichshouldhavebeenmadeknowntomeuponmyfirstarrivalfromCairotocommandtheexpedition。Itwasthetraderandlessee，AchmetSheikAgad，whohadappliedtoMr。Higginbothamasamediator，andhestatedclearlyacaseofgreathardship。Hehadpaidannuallyabout3000Lforthesolerightoftrading。Thus，ifhepaidrentforamonopolyoftheivory，andthegovernmentthenstartedastradersinivoryinthecountryleasedtohim，hewouldbeinthesamepositionasamanwhorentedacowatafixedsumperweek，buttheowner，nevertheless，insisteduponarighttohermilk。

Itwouldbeahardcaseuponthetradersatanyrate，evenshouldtheytradewithequalrightstothegovernment。

Therewasnoactualbarteringofmerchandiseforivory，neitherwasanymerchandiseshippedfromKhartoum，exceptthatrequiredasclothingforthepeoplewhobelongedtotheslave-hunters’companies。Ifanhonest，legitimatetradewerecommencedbythegovernment，andlawandorderthoroughlyestablished，itwouldbecomeimpossiblefortheslavehunterstoexistintheWhiteNiledistricts。Theirso-calledtradeconsistedinharryingonecountrytoprocurecattleandslaves，whichtheyexchangedforivoryinotherdistricts。Ifagovernmentwereestablished，suchrazziasmustceaseatonce——andtheKhartoumtraderswouldbewithoutanoccupation。

IhadoriginallyproposedthatthedistrictsoftheWhiteNilesouthoflatitude14degreesN。shouldbeplacedundermycommand；this，forsomeunexplainedreason，wasreducedtolatitude5degreesN。，thusleavingthewholenavigableriverfreefromGondokorotoKhartoum，unlessI

shouldassumetheresponsibilityofliberatingslavesandseizingtheslaverswhereverImightfindthem。ThispowerIatonceassumedandexercised，althoughIpurposelyavoidedlandingandvisitingtheslave-hunters’stationsthatwerenotwithinmyjurisdiction。Iregardedtheriverasweregardthehighseas。

Itwasclearlycontrarytoallideasofequitythatthegovernmentshouldpurchaseivoryincountriesthathadbeenleasedtothetraders。

IwasthereforecompelledtoinvestigatethematterwiththeassistanceofDjiafferPacha，whohadmadethecontractinthenameofthegovernment。ItwasthenexplainedthattheentireWhiteNilewasrentedbythetraders。Thegovernmenthadassumedtherightandmonopolyoftheriver，andinfactofanypartofAfricathatcouldbereached，southofKhartoum；thusnotraderwaspermittedtoestablishhimself，oreventostartfromKhartoumfortheinterior，untilheshouldhaveobtainedaleasefromthegovernment。IfCentralAfricahadbeenalreadyannexed，andtheEgyptiangovernmenthadbeenestablishedthroughoutthecountry，Ishouldnothavecomplained；butInowfoundthatmymissionfromtheKhediveplacedmewithin”ahousedividedagainstitself。”Iwastoannexacountrythatwasalreadyleasedoutbythegovernment。

Mytaskwastosuppresstheslavetrade，whentheKhartoumauthoritieswellknewthattheirtenantswereslave-hunters；toestablishlegitimatecommercewherethemonopolyoftradehadalreadybeenleasedtotraders；

andtobuildupagovernmentuponsoundandjustprinciples，thatmustofnecessityruintheslave-huntingandivory-collectingpartiesofKhartoum。

ItwaseasytoconceivethatmymissionwasregardedasfataltotheinterestsoftheSoudan。Althoughtheactualwordingofthecontractswaspure，andthelesseesboundthemselvestoabstainfromslave-hunting，andtobehaveinabecomingmanner，itwasthoroughlyunderstoodthattheyweresimplytopayagoodroundsumperannumpunctually，andthatnoquestionswouldbeasked。Therewerenoauthoritiesofthegovernmentinthosedistantcountries，neitherconsularagentstosendhomeunpleasantreports；thus，whenfairlyawayfromallrestraint，thetraderscouldactastheypleased。Itappearshardlycrediblethatalthoughthewordingofthecontractswasalmostholy，noexaminationofthevesselswasmadebeforetheirdeparturefromKhartoum。HadtheSoudangovernmentbeensincereinadeterminationtoleaseouttheWhiteNileforthepurposeofbenefitingthecountrybytheestablishmentoflegitimatecommerce，surelytheauthoritieswouldhaveconvincedthemselvesthatthetraders’vesselscontainedcargoesofsuitablemerchandise，insteadofbeingloadedwithammunition，andmannedbybandsofarmedpirates。

Iftheownerofapackofwolvesweretosendthemonacommissiontogatherwoolfromaflockofsheep，withthesimpleprotectionofsuchpartingadviceas”Begone，goodwolves，behaveyourselveslikelambs，anddonothurtthemutton！”theproprietorofthepackwouldbeheldresponsiblefortheactsofhiswolves。ThiswasthesituationintheSoudan。Theentirecountrywasleasedouttopiraticalslave-hunters，underthenameoftraders，bytheKhartoumgovernment；andalthoughtherent，intheshapeoflargesumsofmoney，hadbeenreceivedforyearsintothetreasuryoftheSoudan，myexpeditionwastoexplodelikeashellamongthetraders，andwouldatonceannihilatethetrade。Inowunderstoodthereasonforthealterationinmyproposedterritoriallimitfromthe14degreesN。lat。tothe5degrees。Khartoumisinlat。

15degrees35’N。GondokoroisN。lat。4degrees54’，thus，ifmyjurisdictionshouldbereducedtothesouthofGondokoro，theusualtrafficoftheWhiteNilemightcontinueinthenorthduringmyabsenceinthesouth，andtheoriginalcontractswouldbeundisturbed。