CHAPTER XV.
It is impossible not to view the unquenchable zeal and intrepidity, which Park evinced on his first journey, without feeling for the individual the highest sentiments of admiration and respect. In addition to those high qualifications, we witnessed an admirable prudence in his intercourse with the natives, and a temper not to be ruffled by the most trying provocations; a union of qualities often thought incompatible, and which in our days we fear we cannot expect to see again directed to the same pursuits. It may be further stated, that to our own feelings, scarcely an individual of the age can be named, who has sunk under circumstances of deeper interest than this lamented traveller; whether we consider the loss, which geographical science has suffered in his death, or whether we confine our views to the blasted hopes of the individual, snatched away from his hard-earned, but unfinished triumph, and leaving to others that splendid consummation, which he so ardently sought to achieve. True it is, that the future discoverer of the termination of the Niger, must erect the structure of his fame on the wide foundation, with which his great predecessor had already occupied the ground; but although the edifice will owe its very existence to the labours of Park, yet another name than his is now recorded on the finished pile;
Hos ego—feci, tulit alter honores.
The African Association, although enthusiastically attached to every subject connected with the interior of Africa, soon found that, unless the government would take up the subject as a national affair, no great hope existed of arriving at the great objects of their research; it was therefore proposed by Sir Joseph Banks, that a memorial should be presented to his majesty George III, praying him to institute those measures, by which the discoveries that Park had made in the interior of Africa could be prosecuted, and which might ultimately lead to the solution of those geographical problems, to which the attention of the scientific men of the country were then directed.
In the mean time Mr. Park had married the daughter of a Mr. Anderson, with whom he had served his apprenticeship as a surgeon, and having entered with some success in the practice of his profession, in the town of Peebles, it was supposed, that content with the laurels so dearly earned, he had renounced a life of peril and adventure. But none of these ties could detain him, when the invitation was given to renew and complete his splendid career. The invitation was formally sent to him by government, in October 1801, to undertake an expedition on a larger scale, into the interior of Africa. His mind had been brooding on the subject with enthusiastic ardour. He had held much intercourse with Mr. Maxwell, a gentleman who had long commanded a vessel in the African trade, by whom he was persuaded that the Congo, which since its discovery by the Portuguese, had been almost lost sight of by the Europeans, would prove to be the channel by which the Niger, after watering all the regions of interior Africa, enters the Atlantic. The scientific world were very much disposed to adopt Park's views on this subject, and accordingly the whole plan of the expedition was adjusted with an avowed reference to them. The agitation of the public mind, by the change of ministry, and the war with France, delayed further proceedings till 1804, when Mr. Park was desired by Lord Camden, the colonial secretary, to form his arrangements, with an assurance of being supplied with every means necessary for their accomplishment. The course which he now suggested, was, that he should no longer travel as a single and unprotected wanderer; his experience decided him against such a mode of proceeding. He proposed to take with him a small party, who being well armed and disciplined, might face almost any force which the natives could oppose to them. He determined with this force to proceed direct to Sego, to build there two boats forty feet long, and thence to sail downwards to the estuary of the Congo. Instructions were accordingly sent out to Goree, that he should be furnished liberally with men, and every thing else of which he might stand in need.
Mr. Park sailed from Portsmouth, in the Crescent transport, on the 30th January 1805. About the 9th of March, he arrived at the Cape Verd Islands, and on the 28th reached Goree. There he provided himself with an officer and thirty-five soldiers, and with a large stock of asses from the islands, where the breed of these animals is excellent, and which appeared well fitted for traversing the rugged hills of the high country, whence issue the sources of the Senegal and Niger. He took with him also two sailors and four artificers, who had been sent from England. A month however elapsed, before all these measures could be completed, and it was then evident that the rainy season could not be far distant, a period, in which travelling is very difficult and trying to European constitutions. It is clear, therefore, that it would have been prudent to remain at Goree or Pisania, till that season had passed; but in Mr. Park's enthusiastic state of mind, it would have been extremely painful to linger so long on the eve of his grand and favorite undertaking. He hoped, and it seemed possible, that before the middle of June, when the rains usually began, he might reach the Niger, which could then be navigated without any serious toil or exposure. He departed, therefore, with his little band from Pisania, on the 4th May, and proceeded through Medina, along the banks of the Gambia. With so strong a party, he was no longer dependent on the protection of the petty kings and mansas, but the Africans seeing him so well provided, thought he had now no claim on their hospitality; on the contrary, they seized every opportunity to obtain some of the valuable articles which they saw in his possession. Thefts were practised in the most audacious manner; the kings drove a hard bargain for presents; at one place, the women, with immense labour had emptied all the wells, that they might derive an advantage from selling the water. Submitting quietly to these little annoyances, Mr. Park proceeded along the Gambia till he saw it flowing from the south, between the hills of Foota Jalla and a high mountain called Mueianta. Turning his face almost due west, he passed the streams of the Ba Lee, the Ba Ting, and the Ba Woollima, the three principal tributaries of the Senegal. His change of direction led him through a tract much more pleasing, than that passed in his dreary return through the Jallonka wilderness. The villages, built in delightful mountain glens, and looking from their elevated precipices over a great extent of wooded plain, appeared romantic beyond any thing he had ever seen. The rocks near Sullo, assumed every possible diversity of form, towering like ruined castles, spires and pyramids. One mass of granite so strongly resembled the remains of a gothic abbey, with its niches: and ruined staircase, that it required some time to satisfy him of its being composed wholly of natural stone. The crossing of the river, now considerably swelled, was attended with many difficulties, and in one of them Isaaco, the guide, was nearly devoured by a crocodile.
It was near Satadoo, soon after passing the Faleme, that the party experienced the first tornado, which marking the commencement of the rainy season, proved for them the "beginning of sorrows." In these tornadoes, violent storms of thunder and lightning are followed by deluges of rain, which cover the ground three feet deep, and have a peculiarly malignant influence on European constitutions. In three days twelve men were on the sick-list; the natives, as they saw the strength of the expedition decline, became more bold and frequent in their predatory attacks. At Gambia attempts were made to overpower by main force the whole party, and seize all they possessed; but, by merely presenting their muskets, the assault was repelled without bloodshed. At Mania Korro the whole population hung on their rear for a considerable time, headed by thirty of the king's sons; and some degree of delicacy was felt as to the mode of dealing with these august thieves, so long as their proceedings were not quite intolerable. One of them came up and engaged Mr. Park in conversation, while another ran off with his fowling-piece, and on his attempting to pursue him, the first took the opportunity of seizing his great coat. Orders were now given to fire on all depredators, royal or plebeian; and after a few shots had been discharged without producing any fatal effects, the thieves hid themselves amongst the rocks, and were merely seen peeping through the crevices.
The expedition continued to melt away beneath the deadly influence of an African climate. Everyday added to the list of the sick or dead, or of those who declared themselves unable to proceed. Near Bangassi, four men lay down at once. It was even with difficulty that Mr. Park dragged forward his brother-in-law, Mr. Anderson, while he himself felt very sick and faint. His spirits were about to sink entirely, when, coming to an eminence, he obtained a distant view of the mountains, the southern base of which he knew to be watered by the Niger. Then indeed he forgot his fever, and thought only of climbing the blue hills, which delighted his eyes.
Before he could arrive at that desired point, three weeks elapsed, during which he experienced the greatest difficulty and suffering. At length, he reached the summit of the ridge, which divides the Senegal from the Niger, and coming to the brow of the hill, saw again this majestic river rolling its immense stream along the plain. His situation and prospects were, however, gloomy indeed, when compared with those, with which he had left the banks of the Gambia. Of thirty-eight men, whom he then had with him, there survived only seven, all suffering from severe sickness, and some nearly at the last extremity. Still his mind was full of the most sanguine hopes, especially when, on the 22nd August, he found himself floating on the waters of the Niger, and advancing towards the ultimate object of his ambition. He hired canoes to convey his party to Maraboo, and the river here, a mile in breadth, was so full and so deep, that its current carried him easily over the rapids, but with a velocity, which was even in a certain degree painful.
At Maraboo, he sent forward Isaaco, the interpreter, to Mansong, with part of the presents, and to treat with that monarch for protection, as well as for permission to build a boat. This envoy was absent several days, during which great anxiety was felt, heightened by several unfavourable rumours, amongst which was, that the king had killed the envoy with his own hand, and announced his purpose to do the same to every white man, who should come within his reach. These fears were, however, dispelled by the appearance of the royal singing-man, who brought a message of welcome, with an invitation to repair to Sego, and deliver in person the remaining presents intended for the monarch. At Samee, the party met Isaaco, who reported that there was something very odd in his reception by Mansong. That prince assured him, in general, that the expedition would be allowed to pass down the Niger; but whenever the latter came to particulars, and proposed an interview with Mr. Park, the king began to draw squares and triangles with his finger on the sand, and in this geometrical operation his mind seemed wholly absorbed. Isaaco suspected that he laboured under some superstitious dread of white men, and sought by these figures to defend himself against their magic influence. It was finally arranged, that the presents should be delivered, not to Mansong in person, but to Modibinne, his prime minister, who was to come to Samee for that purpose. He accordingly appeared, and began by inquiring, in the king's name, an explanation why Park had come to Bambarra, with so great a train, from so distant a country, allowing him a day to prepare his reply. Next morning, the traveller gave an answer in form, representing his mission as chiefly commercial, and holding forth the advantages, which Bambarra might reap by receiving European goods directly from the coast, instead of circuitously, as now, through Morocco, the desert, Timbuctoo, and Jenne, having a profit levied on them at every transfer. Modibinne expressed satisfaction both with the reasons and the presents, and on his return next day, offered, on the part of Mansong, the option of building a boat either at Samee, Sego, Sansanding, or Jenne. Park chose Sansanding, thus enabling the king to avoid an interview with the Europeans, of which he seemed to entertain so mysterious a dread.
The voyage down the river was distressing; for although the fatigue of travelling was avoided, the heat was so intense, that it was thought sufficient to have roasted a sirloin, and the sick had thus no chance of recovery. Sansanding was found a prosperous and flourishing town, with a crowded market well arranged. The principal articles, which were cloth of Houssa or Jenne, antimony, beads, and indigo, were each arranged in stalls, shaded by mats from the heat of the sun. There was a separate market for salt, the main staple of their trade. The whole presented a scene of commercial order and activity totally unlooked for in the interior of Africa.
Mansong had promised to furnish two boats, but they were late in arriving, and proved very defective. In order to raise money, it was necessary to sell a considerable quantity of goods; nor was it without much trouble, that the two skiffs were finally converted into the schooner Joliba, forty feet long, six broad, and drawing only one foot of water, being the fittest form for navigating the Niger downward to the ocean.
During Mr. Park's stay at Sansanding, he had the misfortune to lose his brother-in-law, Mr. Anderson, to whom his attachment was so strong as to make him say, "No event which took place during the journey ever threw the smallest gloom over my mind, till I laid Mr. Anderson in the grave. I then felt myself as if left a second time, lonely and friendless amidst the wilds of Africa." Although the party were now reduced to five Europeans, one of whom was deranged, and although the most gloomy anticipations could not fail to arise in the mind of Mr. Park, his firmness was in no degree shaken. He announced to Lord Camden his fixed purpose to discover the termination of the Niger, or to perish in the attempt, adding, "Though all the Europeans, who are with me should die, and though I were myself half dead, I would still persevere." To Mrs. Park he announced the same determination, combined with an undoubting confidence of success, and the commencement of his voyage down the Niger, through the vast unknown regions of interior Africa, he called, "turning his face towards England."
It was on the 7th November 1805, that Park set sail on his last and fatal voyage. A long interval elapsed without any tidings, which, considering the great distance, and the many causes of delay, did not at first excite alarm amongst his friends. As the following year, however, passed on, rumours of an unpleasant nature began to prevail. Alarmed by these, and feeling a deep interest in his fate, Governor Maxwell, of Sierra Leone, engaged Isaaco, the guide, who had been sent to the Gambia with despatches from the Niger, to undertake a fresh journey to inquire after him. At Sansanding he was so far fortunate as to meet Amadi Fatouma, who had been engaged to succeed himself as interpreter. From him he received a journal, purporting to contain the narrative of the voyage down the river, and of its final issue. The party, it would appear, had purchased three slaves, who, with the five Europeans and Fatouma, increased their number to nine. They passed Silla and Jenne in a friendly manner; but at Rakbara (Kabra) and Timbuctoo, they were attacked by several armed parties, who were repelled only by a smart and destructive fire. No particulars are given of any of these important places; nor of Kaffo Gotoijege and others, which the discoverers are represented as having afterwards passed. At length they came to the village, more properly the city of Yaour, where Amadi Fatouma left the party, his services having been engaged only to that point, He had, however, scarcely taken his leave, when he was summoned before the king, who bitterly complained that the white men, though they brought many valuable commodities with them, had passed without giving him any presents. He therefore ordered that Fatouma should be thrown into irons, and a body of troops sent in pursuit of the English. These men reached Boussa, and took possession of a pass, where rocks, hemming in the river, allowed only a narrow channel for vessels to descend. When Park arrived, he found the passage thus obstructed, but attempted nevertheless to push his way through. The people began to attack him, throwing lances, pikes, arrows, and stones. He defended himself for a long time, when two of his slaves at the stern of the canoe were killed. The crew threw every thing they had into the river, and kept firing; but being overpowered by numbers and fatigue, unable to keep up the canoe against the current, and seeing no probability of escaping, Mr. Park took hold of one of the white men, and jumped into the water. Martyn did the same, and they were all drowned in the stream in attempting to escape. The only slave that remained in the boat, seeing the natives persist in throwing weapons into it without ceasing, stood up and said to them, "Stop throwing now; you see nothing in the canoe, and nobody but myself; therefore cease. Take me and the canoe; but don't kill me." They took possession of both, and carried them to the king.
These sad tidings, conveyed in course to England, were not for a long time received with general belief. The statement, being sifted with care, was thought to contain inconsistencies, as well as such a degree of improbability as left some room for hope; but year after year elapsed, and this hope died away. Denham and Clapperton received accounts from various quarters, which very nearly coincided with those of Amadi Fatouma. Clapperton, in his last journey, even saw the spot where he perished, which, allowing for some exaggeration, did not ill correspond with the description just given; and further, he received notice that Park's manuscripts were in the possession of the king of Yaour, or Youri, who offered to deliver them up, on condition that the captain would pay him a visit, which he, unfortunately, was never able to perform.