THE APPROACH TO LAKE ALBERT NYANZA.
The accounts brought back by Speke of the discovery of Victoria Nyanza and the existence of another lake, which might prove to be a feeder of the Nile, so influenced a friend of his, Sir Samuel Baker, that he and his wife, a mere girl in years, started out with an expedition to make still closer explorations of the lake region.
The natives had given Speke very graphic accounts of the Nile's westward course, after leaving Victoria Nyanza, till at length its waters fell into a large lake. They had further informed him that this lake came from the south, and that the Nile entered at the northern extremity, and almost immediately made an exit from it in continuing its course to the north.
At the time this information was received by Speke, the country through which he would have needed to pass was in the midst of a native war, and no strangers could penetrate it. He was convinced, however, that the lake described must, in all probability, be a second source of the Nile.
Sir Samuel Baker and his wife had most interesting and thrilling experiences in their search for this supposed second feeder of the Nile. Some sections of the country through which they traveled were most beautiful. Here were jungles and forests alternating with broad plains, and mountains rising to the height of three or four thousand feet.
Some of the people, too, were very interesting. Baker declared the Latookas to be the finest savages he ever met. They were nearly six feet in height, had fine foreheads, very good features, and finely formed bodies. Their manners were frank, good-humored, and polite. In this respect they were a strong contrast to the surrounding tribes. They seemed to him to be of Abyssinian or of Asiatic origin.
The description of the headdress of the men is interesting. It takes from eight to ten years to perfect the arrangement of this coiffure, and no doubt much pride is taken in this queer conceit of savage fashion.
"The hair is at first 'felted' with fine twine. As the fresh hair grows through this, the twine process is repeated, until at last a compact substance is formed, an inch and a half thick, trained into the form of a helmet, with a frontlet and crest of copper. Of course they never disturb this, and it lasts them their life time. They ornament it with beads, cowries, ostrich feathers, and other decorations."
As it is the custom of these savages to go without clothing of any description, these wonderful headdresses must indeed be the chief aim in the lives of those who are not called upon to follow the changes of fashion, like their more civilized brethren.
One of the towns that Baker visited in Latooka contained about three thousand houses. It was strongly fortified by palisades, with low entrances at short intervals. At night these entrances were closed by thorn bushes.
There was one main street, which was broad, but the other streets were mere lanes, so narrow that only one cow could pass at a time.
These lanes led to the kraals in different portions of the town. Here were housed the cattle, which comprised the chief wealth of the people. The narrowness of the approaches to the kraals was an advantage, for they were thus easily defended from cattle thieves,—a common nuisance in this country.
The houses were conical in shape and, following the custom almost universal in Africa, were without windows.
Baker had noticed, as he approached the several towns of this section of country, a vast heap of human bones, mingled with bits of pottery. These he found to originate from the peculiar funeral rites of the people. If a man dies a natural death he is buried in the vicinity of his own door, and funeral dances in his honor are held for several weeks; the remains are then dug up, the bones cleaned, placed in an earthen jar, and carried out of town to their final resting place. In course of time these jars become broken, and the fragments, together with the contents, are scattered, or added to an already existing mound.
Baker, in his journey to the southwest, crossed the valley of Latooka. After fording a river, he began the main ascent of the mountains. This he found to be an exceedingly difficult task. At the summit he found a plateau about four thousand feet above the level of the sea, and situated on it was the highland town of Obbo.
The country was very beautiful. Here were bold granite peaks, some of them five thousand feet high, towering on all sides, and looking down upon the wooded valleys below. These valleys were narrowed by the advancing spurs of the mountains, each with a village to crown its summit. These villages looked down fully eight hundred feet upon the traveler.
The air was pure and delicious. On every side was a profusion of beautiful and fragrant flowers. Wild plums and other fruit were to be found in abundance.
The flow of the streams in this section is toward the northwest. Their waters take their course directly to the Nile, some thirty miles away.
The people are different from those of Latooka, not only in their speech but in their appearance. Instead of dressing their hair in the form of a helmet, they adopt the form of a beaver's tail for a coiffure.
The noses of these people are higher than those of the Latookas. They pay some attention, too, to their clothing, though their covering is very scanty.
They are courteous in their manners, and never ask for presents.
They had for their ruler at the time of Baker's visit a peculiar old man, a sorcerer, and from him Baker gained much information about the country.
Whenever this ruler traveled, it was upon the shoulders of one of his slaves. Always in starting upon a journey he had a retinue of a dozen or more bearers to take turns in carrying him.
From an interpreter Baker learned of a place called Magungo, situated upon a lake so large that no one knew its limits.
Later, Baker gained further information of Magungo from a native woman. She described the lake as a white sheet of water, as far as the eye could reach, and added, "If you put a water jar on the shore, the water would run up, break it, and carry it away." In this simple fashion she intimated to Baker that there were waves of no little force on the lake shores.
Encouraged by the prospect of reaching the lake, Baker, with his expedition, continued on the march, passing a village surrounded by bold granite cliffs, towering above it. The natives of this village perched like ravens upon the summits of these cliffs to await the approach of the white men. They were very friendly and very ceremonious in their dealings with their visitors.
The journey was continued through a region of prairies and swamps, which finally was replaced by a section of magnificent forest. Coming to an elevated spot, Baker saw a cloud of fog. This hung over a distant valley, and indicated to him the presence of the noble stream which he believed must join the two lakes.
He reached the Nile about one hundred and fifty miles from Victoria Nyanza, and about sixty miles from the lake he was seeking. He was not, however, aware of it at the time.
The expedition under Baker headed upstream towards Karuma Falls, where it was the intention to cross to the south side. They had a picturesque march of about fifteen miles, through an open forest, with the river, which was about one hundred and fifty feet wide, close at hand. It was a beautiful sight, as it came roaring and foaming in many cascades. Here and there the course of the river was broken by rocky islands. On these islands villages and plantain groves were visible.
Baker found the people along this section superior to those of Latooka and Obbo. They were modest in their manners, and well clothed. They were good blacksmiths, and the pottery which they made was of a higher order than that of the other tribes mentioned.
Baker, with the thought of the lake still before him, pushed on, though often discouraged, and suffering from fatigue and fever. In the course of the journey the expedition had to cross a river. It could be done only in a very peculiar way. The whole stream was covered with a matting, or carpet, of tangled, floating weeds. This was so thick and strong as to bear the weight of a man, if he ran quickly across its surface. The width of the stream was about thirty yards.
Here Mrs. Baker almost lost her life; for, when about halfway across, she was overcome with a sunstroke, and began to sink rapidly through the weeds. Her husband and some of his men seized her and dragged her across the current, though they sank to their waists in the weeds before they succeeded in getting her to the bank.