THE CONGO RIVER.
The Congo River flows into the Gulf of Guinea and is a most magnificent river, more wonderful in some respects than the Nile. It is the only one of the large rivers of Africa which has anything approaching an estuary; all the others having delta mouths. So great is the volume of water which it discharges at its mouth, that forty miles out at sea its water is only partially mingled with that of the Atlantic, while nine miles from the coast the water is perfectly fresh.
The Congo River was for many years a veritable Will-o'-the-wisp to explorers. Its identity was lost so many times, that the geographers looked upon the course of this river as one of the greatest problems connected with the study of Africa they had ever been called upon to solve.
The Congo has a length of more than three thousand miles. The maritime region of the Congo River basin is restricted in its character. For a few miles inward the ground has an upward slope; then the traveler is confronted by ridge upon ridge of hills, which gradually assume the character of high mountains.
The Congo rushes on through this mountainous section, as though through one of our western cañons, till it reaches Stanley Pool. Here the channel becomes much broader, the stream attaining a width of five miles, with an extraordinary depth of water. As the river spreads itself to attain this breadth, it flows placidly on through fertile plains, rich in vegetation.
Geographers have, for convenience, divided the river into well-defined sections, the Upper and the Lower Congo.
The Lower Congo has a length of about three hundred and thirty miles. It is the part of the river between Leopoldville—situated on the banks of Stanley Pool—and the sea and has a navigable current for about one hundred miles, between Vivi and the sea. Above Vivi the river for about fifty miles is lined on either side by high slate cliffs. These tend, of course, to narrow the channel. It is in this section that the Lower Livingstone Falls occur, and prevent navigation.
For a distance of about ninety miles above these falls the course of the river is somewhat broken, but it becomes navigable as far as Manyanka. Here the Upper Livingstone Falls are situated, and the river again becomes unnavigable.
The Upper Congo starts at Stanley Pool, and as far as Stanley Falls—a distance of over one thousand miles—has a navigable current. It is, in fact, the grand highway for commerce right into the heart of Africa.
From Stanley Falls to Nyangwé, a distance of nearly four hundred miles, the river has a more or less broken current.
Between Nyangwé and Lake Moero there is still another stretch of four hundred miles.
More than two hundred miles from Lake Moero lies Lake Bangweolo, or Bemba. At a distance of nearly four hundred miles from Bemba the Congo, under the name of the Chambesi, takes its rise.
During Dr. Livingstone's explorations to discover the sources of the Nile and to penetrate the secrets of the lake region of Africa, he became much interested in the course of the Chambesi, which he thought, at first, might be one section of the Zambesi. The names seemed to him somewhat similar in sound, and he decided to make an exploration of the stream.
Later, he became convinced that it was not a part of the Zambesi, but he was firmly impressed that its identity with the Lualaba could be established.
Many years of his life were devoted to the study of the Lualaba and the great system of inland lakes of Africa.
Just as the whole of the civilized world looked eagerly for more definite information of Livingstone's success, all news of him ceased. Much anxiety for his safety and welfare was felt. Months of weary waiting brought at last only the most conflicting reports. Finally the news of his death was received.
This was sad news for the world to believe. Determined to know, if possible, more definitely the fate of this intrepid explorer, those who were most interested sent out relief parties in search of him.
As a final result of all this intense interest, Mr. Henry Stanley was appointed commander of the celebrated expedition which afterwards penetrated into the interior of Africa. The expedition had for its chief object the finding of Livingstone, if he were living. If his life had been sacrificed in the interests of science, the mission of the expedition was to discover his resting place, and the journals and letters that he must have left as a priceless legacy to the world.
The thrilling incidents of Stanley's labor of love, the accounts of the hardships, privations, and stirring adventures, as he relates them in his journals are intensely interesting.
Impressed by the results of Livingstone's work, Stanley followed the Lualaba River from the point where Livingstone's investigations had ceased, and named it the Livingstone, in honor of the great explorer.
Through Stanley's efforts, the identity of the Chambesi, the Lualaba, and the Congo was fully established.
It seems unfortunate that the name Lualaba—which translated means "mother of waters"—could not have been retained throughout the entire course of the stream. It was a name which, to Livingstone, seemed most appropriate for the wonderful river whose course he had delighted to trace.
Stanley's work was a magnificent proof of what intrepid courage and grand enthusiasm can accomplish. In one expedition after another he completed the discoveries of other explorers, penetrated the mysteries of the lake region and revealed its secrets, explored the very heart of Africa, and traced the course of that wonderful river, Livingstone's Lualaba, till it reached the sparkling waters of the South Atlantic.
The Congo has several large affluents. On the south we find the Kiva, into which a most noble river, the Kasai, flows; the Lulongo, which flows through a densely populated region; and the Ruki River, on the mouth of which Equatorville has been built.
On the north bank of the river we find such tributaries as the Mobangi, the most important of all the rivers flowing into the main stream; for it drains, by means of its multitude of head streams, the whole of the region that lies between the Congo and the equatorial provinces of Egypt. The Itimbiri is another river flowing into the Congo from the north. It enters the river just where the stream attains its greatest breadth. About one hundred and fifty miles below Stanley Falls, the waters of the Aruwimi enter the Congo to swell its current.