In Darkest Africa, Vol. 2; or, The Quest, Rescue, and Retreat of Emin, Governor of EquatoriaStanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)
History
In Darkest Africa, Vol. 2; or, The Quest, Rescue, and Retreat of Emin, Governor of Equatoria
Stanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)
Africa, Central -- Description and travel; Emin Pasha, 1840-1892
_Feb. 25th._--Captain Nelson, who escorted the Pasha to the Lake the
other day, brought in sixty loads of baggage, mostly belonging to the
Pasha. I observe an immense number of articles that must necessarily be
thrown away. There is an old Saratoga trunk, which was borne by two men.
I tried to lift one end of it, and from its weight I should say it
contains stones or treasure. What a story that old trunk could tell
since it left Cairo. How many poor natives has it killed? How much
anguish has it caused? The Zanzibaris smile grimly at the preposterously
large size of the boxes they have to carry. They declare there are
thousands of such cumbrous articles yet, and that they will be kept here
for ten years. The square is littered with sea-chests and clumsy
coffin-like coffers, the ten-gallon jars increase in number, and the
baskets look bigger and ominously heavy.
[Sidenote: 1889.
Feb. 25.
Kavalli’s.]
One man, an Egyptian, named Achmet Effendi, who came up, is about
fifty-five years old, bent, thin, feeble, and sick. He is unable to ride
a donkey without assistance.
I foresee a terrible mortality, if only sick and feeble men and women
propose to undertake the 1,400 miles journey to the sea. Already a large
number of small children, from one to eight years old, have arrived.
These will have to be carried. By whom?
A Soudanese woman gave birth to a child on the road. Another child is so
ill that it cannot survive long.
Lieut. Stairs was despatched with Chief Mwité to stir up his refractory
people, who for the last four days have sent us no food.
We have formed a confederacy on the plateau, embracing all the region
from the Ituri River to the Nyanza. For protection granted them against
marauding Balegga of the mountains and the Warasura Kabba Rega, the
chiefs agree to supply us with contributions of grain and cattle, and to
surrender the government of the country into my hands, to raise fighting
men whenever ordered, and to assist me in invading Unyoro should
retaliation for invasion of their soil by the Warasura render it
necessary.
_Feb. 26th._--An ally of Kabba Rega was attacked this morning, and 125
head of cattle were captured. Much mischief has been done by this man,
and already he occupies the country between here and the Pasha’s
province, and Kabba Rega relied on him for assistance when the grand
struggle between him and the Pasha should begin. Communication is made
across the Lake in canoes, and Kabba Rega is well informed of our
movements. When we retire from here we shall have to reckon with Kabba
Rega. He possesses 1,500 guns; mostly rifles and double-barrelled shot
guns, Jocelyn and Starr, Sharp, Henry-Martini, and Snider rifles, and
carbines. Having undertaken the serious work of protecting these
hundreds of refugees to the sea, I shall enter on the affair with a
clear conscience. We will not seek a struggle; the opposing forces are
not matched, but there is only one road, and that runs through a portion
of Unyoro.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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