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
Sayd bin Majid, previous to his departure, had left orders that we
should be permitted to use his canoe for our homeward trip, and Moeni
Kheri kindly lent his huge vessel for the same purpose. The Expedition,
now augmented by the Doctor and his five servants, and their luggage,
necessitated the employment of another canoe. We had our flocks of
milch-goats and provision of fat sheep for the jungle of Ukawendi, the
transit of which I was about to attempt. Good Halimah, Livingstone's
cook, had made ready a sackful of fine flour, such as she only could
prepare in her fond devotion for her master. Hamoydah, her husband, also
had freely given his assistance and attention to this important article
of food. I purchased a donkey for the Doctor, the only one available in
Ujiji, lest the Doctor might happen to suffer on the long march from his
ancient enemy. In short, we were luxuriously furnished with food, sheep,
goats, cheese, cloth, donkeys, and canoes, sufficient to convey us a
long distance; we needed nothing more.
The 27th of December has arrived; it is the day of our departure from
Ujiji. I was probably about to give an eternal farewell to the port
whose name will for ever be sacred in my memory. The canoes--great
lumbering hollow trees--are laden with good things; the rowers are
in their places; the flag of England is hoisted at the stern of the
Doctor's canoe; the flag of America waves and rustles joyously above
mine; and I cannot look at them without feeling a certain pride that the
two Anglo-Saxon nations are represented this day on this great inland
sea, in the face of wild nature and barbarism.
We are escorted to our boats by the great Arab merchants, by the
admiring children of Unyamwezi, by the freemen of Zanzibar, by wondering
Waguhha and Wajiji, by fierce Warundi, who are on this day quiet, even
sorrowful, that the white men are going-"Whither?" they all ask.
At 8 A.M. we start, freely distributing our farewells as the Arabs and
quidnuncs wave their hands. On the part of one or two of them there was
an attempt to say something sentimental and affecting, especially by the
convicted sinner Mohammed bin Sali; but though outwardly I manifested no
disapprobation of his words, or of the emphatic way in which he shook
my hand, I was not sorry to see the last of him, after his treachery to
Livingstone in 1869. I was earnestly requested to convey to Unyanyembe
"Mengi salaams" to everybody, but had I done so, as he evidently desired
me to do, I would not have been surprised at being regarded by all as
hopelessly imbecile.
We pushed off from the clayey bank at the foot of the market-place,
while the land party, unencumbered with luggage, under the leadership of
gigantic Asmani and Bombay, commenced their journey southward along the
shores of the lake. We had arranged to meet them at the mouth of every
river to transport them across from bank to bank.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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