27th.—We took our final departure from Kivira in the morning, and crossed the broad lake again in fourteen hours, two of them, as before, being spent in pipes and rest. I have now measured the lake's centre pretty satisfactorily by triangulation, by compass in connection with astronomical observation, and twice by dead reckoning. It is twenty-six miles broad at the place of crossing, which is its narrowest central part. But, alas! that I should have omitted to bring a sounding-line with me, and not have ascertained that highly interesting feature—its depth. There is very little doubt in my mind that its bed is very deep, owing to the trough-like formation of it, and also because I have seen my crew haul up fishing-baskets, sunk in the sea near to the shore, from very considerable depths, by long ropes with trimmers attached. For the benefit of science, and as a hint to future travellers, I may mention that, had I brought a lead, I might, as if by accident, have dropped it in the sea when they were resting—have tapped the bottom, and ascertained its depth—whilst the superstitious crew would have only wondered in vain as to what I was about.
28th.—We started up coast early, and at 10 A.M. put in amongst some reeds opposite the Luguvu river, as the wind, rain, and waves had very nearly swamped the boat, and drenched us all from head to foot. I pitched the tent in the canoe, to protect me from the storm, but it only served to keep the wind from blowing on my wet clothes and chilling me, for wave after wave washed over the gunwale, and kept me and all my kit constantly drenched through. Three lingering miserable hours were passed in this fashion; for there was no place to land in, and we could not venture forward. The sea abated in the afternoon, and we gained Mgiti Khambi. After a day's halt, the weather being stormy, and everything being wet and comfortless, we hailed with delight the succeeding sunny day, and, making good our time, reached the old tree on the right bank of the mouth of the Ruché by 9 P.M.
31st.—We arrived at Ujiji by breakfast-time, when I disclosed to Captain Burton, then happily a little restored, the mortifying intelligence of my failing to procure the dhow. This appeared doubly distressing to him, for he had been led to expect it by Khamis, whom I passed at Kabizia, and who had delivered Hamed's letter, stating that the dhow was at his service. Hamed's manoeuvring with the dhow bears much the appearance of one anxious to obtain the credit of generosity without incurring the attendant inconvenience of its reality. Otherwise I cannot divine what good his procrastinations and the means he took for keeping me near him so long could have been to him; for he made no overtures to me whatever. Bombay now thought, when it was too late, that if I had offered to give him 500 dollars' worth of cloth, landed at his house, he could not have resisted the offer. I give this notice for the advantage of any future explorers on the lake. I could not form a true estimate of the lake's average breadth, in consequence of the numberless bays and promontories that diversify the regularity of its coast-line; but I should say that from thirty to forty miles is probably near the truth.
We had now no other resource left us but to proceed with the investigation of the lake in common canoes; for we could not wait any longer, as our supplies were fast on the wane. I was sorry for it, as my companion was still suffering so severely, that anybody seeing him attempt to go would have despaired of his ever returning. Yet he could not endure being left behind. Travelling in canoes, as I could now testify from my late experiences, is, without joke, a very trying business to a sick man, even in the best weather; and here we were still in the height of the monsoon. Negotiations for the means of carrying out our object (of proceeding to the north of the lake, surveying it, and ascertaining whether Hamed's story about a large river running out of it was based upon a true foundation) were then commenced, and Kannina was applied to. He likewise, it appeared, had a plan in view of carrying on some ivory transactions with the Sultan of Uvira, governing a district at the northern end and western shore of the lake, and agreed to take us there, and also show us the river in question. It was settled that we should go in two canoes; Captain Burton, with Kannina, in a very large one, paddled by forty men at once, and I in another considerably smaller—our party to pay all expenses; and, in fact, to do Kannina's business in consideration of his protection. This we did do, and no more; for, after arriving at Uvira, nothing could induce him to take us to the river at the end of the lake, although the remaining distance could have been accomplished in about six hours' paddling. His reason, which he must have known before, was, that the savages resident there, the Warundi tribe, were inimical to his people, the Wajiji. This was a sore disappointment, though not so great as it would have been had we not ascertained that Hamed's story was a mere fabrication. He had never been to the north end of the lake, nor had he had the fight he described with the natives; and, moreover, Bombay assured both Captain Burton and myself that Hamed really meant that the river ran into the lake. Had I thought of it, I should then have changed the course of the Marungu river on my map, and made it run out of the lake, but I did not. Next the sultan's son, who visited us immediately on our arrival at Uvira, told us that the river, which is named Rusizi, drained the high mountains encircling our immediate north, and discharged its waters into the lake. I should not have been satisfied with this counter-statement alone, had I not ascended some neighbouring heights, and observed the mountains increasing in size as they extended away to the northward, and effectually closing in this low lake, which is not quite half the altitude of the surface-level of the general interior plateau. Although wrong in most respects, Hamed was right about the distance the lake's northern end lay from Ujiji; for, properly divided, it takes eight days, the time he specified, exactly. On coming up the lake, we travelled the first half up the east coast, then crossed over to the end of a long island called Ubuari, made for the western shore, and coasted up it to Uvira. It would have amused any one very much to have seen our two canoes racing together up the lake. The naked savages were never tired of testing their respective strengths. They would paddle away like so many black devils—dashing up the water whenever they succeeded in coming near each other, and delighting in drenching us with the spray. The greatest pleasure to them, it appeared, was torturing others with impunity to themselves. Because the Wazungu had clothes, and they had none, they cared not how the water flew about; and the more they were asked to desist, the more obstinately they persevered. For fear of misapprehension, I must state that though these negroes go stark naked when cruising or working during a shower of rain, they all possess a mantle or goat-skin, which they sling over their shoulders, and strut about in when on shore and the weather is fine.
It is a curious sight, when encamped on a showery day, to see every man take off his skin, wrap it carefully up, and place it in his mzigo or load, and stand, whilst his garment is thus comfortably disposed of, cowering and trembling like a dog which has just emerged from a cold pond.
Now we have done with the Tanganyika Lake, I must say for it, that in no part of Africa hitherto visited by us had we seen such splendid vegetation as covers its basin, from the mountain-tops to its shores. To the northward, rain falls all the year round in frequent showers, but on the southern half rain only falls during those six months when the sun is in its southern declination. Hence the northern half must be richer than the southern; and the lake must owe its existence to the constant inflows from the north.
Chapter III.
Leave Tanganyika—Determine to Visit the Ukéréwé Lake, alias Victoria N'yanza—Confusion about Rivers Running in and out—Idea that it is the Source of the Nile—Arrangements for the Journey—Difficulties—The March—Nature of the Country—Formalities at the Meeting of Caravans—A Pagazi Strike—A Sultana—Incidents—Pillars of Granite.
On returning to Ujiji after a rather protracted sojourn at Uvira, occasioned by Kannina's not completing his work so quickly as had been anticipated, we found our stock of beads and cloth, which had been left in charge of the Ras-cafila, Sheikh Said, and under the protection of the Beluches and our Wanyamuézi porters, reduced to so low an ebb that everybody felt anxious about our future movements. The Sheikh, however, I must add, on a prior occasion, very generously proposed, in case we felt disposed to carry on the survey of the lake, to return to the Arab depôt at Kazé, and fetch some more African money, to meet the necessary expenses. I wished to finish off the navigation of the lake; but Captain Burton declared he would not, as he had had enough of canoe-travelling, and thought our being short of cloth, and out of leave, would be sufficient excuse for him. Though admiring so magnanimous a sacrifice on the part of this energetic Sheikh, it was voted, in consequence of my companion's failing health, as well as from the delay it would occasion, that we should all return at once to Kazé, where we expected to meet our reserve supplies. This once agreed upon, I then proposed that, after reaching Kazé, we should travel northwards to the lake described by the Arabs to be both broader and longer than the Tanganyika, and which they call Ukéréwé, after the island where their caravans go for ivory—in short, the Victoria N'yanza—for I was all the while burning to see it. To this Captain Burton at first demurred. He said we had done enough, and he would do no more; but finally gave way when I said, If you are not well enough when we reach Kazé I will go by myself, and you can employ the time in taking notes from the travelled Arabs of all the countries round. This was agreed to at last by Captain Burton, as he said the journey hitherto had been so uninteresting, a month with Sheikh Snay would be very necessary to completing his book. Delighted at this announcement, I begged for leave to take Sheikh Said with me. Captain Burton, however, wanted to keep him, as he was a great friend of all the Arabs, and could procure him news better than any one else. I argued that the road was dangerous, and without him I thought I could not succeed, as there was no one else to argue with the native chiefs, and bring them to terms if they were headstrong. Captain Burton to this appeal finally gave way, but said I must ask the Sheikh myself, as he was not bound to go on any other line than the one we were now on. I did ask the Sheikh, some time after, at Usenyé, and he said he would see about it when we reached Kazé. Just as we were preparing to leave Ujiji, by great good fortune some supplies were brought to us by an Arab called Mohinna, an old friend whom we formerly left at Kazé, and who had now followed us here to trade in ivory. Had this timely supply not reached us, it is difficult to conceive what would have been our fate, left as we should have been with a large amount of non-marketable property, and having numbers of people to feed, whilst my companion was unable to move without the assistance of eight men to carry him in a hammock, we being totally without the means of purchase in the territory of one of the most inhospitable of all the tribes with whom we have had connection.
This timely supply was one of the many strokes of good fortune which befell us upon this journey, and for which we have so much reason to be grateful. Help had always reached us at the time when least we expected it, but when we most required it. My health had been improving ever since I first reached the lake, and enjoyed those invigorating swims upon its surface, and revelled in the good living afforded by the market at Ujiji. The facilities of the place giving us such a choice of food, our powers in the culinary art were tried to their fullest extent. It would be difficult to tell what dishes we did not make there. Fish of many sorts done up in all the fashions of the day—meat and fowl in every form—vegetable soups, and dishes of numberless varieties—fruit-preserves, custards, custard-puddings, and jellies—and last, but not least, buttered crumpets and cheese,—formed as fine a spread as was ever set before a king.