How I found Livingstone : $b Travels, adventures, and discoveres in Central Africa, including an account of four months' residence with Dr. LivingstoneStanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)
History
How I found Livingstone : $b Travels, adventures, and discoveres in Central Africa, including an account of four months' residence with Dr. Livingstone
Stanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)
Africa, Central -- Description and travel; Livingstone, David, 1813-1873
Conversation began. What about? I declare I have forgotten.
Oh! we mutually asked questions of one another, such as
"How did you come here?" and "Where have you been all this long
time?--the world has believed you to be dead." Yes, that was the
way it began: but whatever the Doctor informed me, and that which
I communicated to him, I cannot correctly report, for I found myself
gazing at him, conning the wonderful figure and face of the man at
whose side I now sat in Central Africa. Every hair of his head
and beard, every wrinkle of his face, the wanness of his features,
and the slightly wearied look he wore, were all imparting
intelligence to me--the knowledge I craved for so much ever since
I heard the words, "Take what you want, but find Livingstone."
What I saw was deeply interesting intelligence to me, and unvarnished
truth. I was listening and reading at the same time. What did these
dumb witnesses relate to me?
Oh, reader, had you been at my side on this day in Ujiji, how
eloquently could be told the nature of this man's work! Had you
been there but to see and hear! His lips gave me the details; lips
that never lie. I cannot repeat what he said; I was too much
engrossed to take my note-book out, and begin to stenograph his story.
He had so much to say that he began at the end, seemingly oblivious
of the fact that five or six years had to be accounted for. But his
account was oozing out; it was growing fast into grand proportions--
into a most marvellous history of deeds.
The Arabs rose up, with a delicacy I approved, as if they intuitively
knew that we ought to be left to ourselves. I sent Bombay with them
to give them the news they also wanted so much to know about the
affairs at Unyanyembe. Sayd bin Majid was the father of the gallant
young man whom I saw at Masangi, and who fought with me at Zimbizo,
and who soon afterwards was killed by Mirambo's Ruga-Ruga in the
forest of Wilyankuru; and, knowing that I had been there, he
earnestly desired to hear the tale of the fight; but they had all
friends at Unyanyembe, and it was but natural that they should be
anxious to hear of what concerned them.
After giving orders to Bombay and Asmani for the provisioning of
the men of the Expedition, I called "Kaif-Halek," or "How-do-ye-do,"
and introduced him to Dr. Livingstone as one of the soldiers in
charge of certain goods left at Unyanyembe, whom I had compelled
to accompany me to Ujiji, that he might deliver in person to his
master the letter-bag with which he had been entrusted. This was
that famous letter-bag marked "Nov. 1st, 1870," which was now
delivered into the Doctor's hands 365 days after it left Zanzibar!
How long, I wonder, had it remained at Unyanyembe had I not been
despatched into Central Africa in search of the great traveller?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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