The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868Livingstone, David
History
The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868
Livingstone, David
Africa, Central -- Description and travel
It seems, however, that in the last three or four years of his life
this excellent rule had to give way to the toils of travel and the
exhaustion of most distressing illnesses. Whilst in the Manyuema
country he ran out of note-books, ink, and pencils, and had to resort
to shifts which at first made it a very debateable point whether the
most diligent attempt at deciphering would suceeed after all. Such
pocket-books as remained at this period of his travels were utilized
to the last inch of paper. In some of them we find lunar observations,
the names of rivers, and the heights of hills advancing towards the
middle from one end, whilst from the other the itinerary grows day by
day, interspersed with map routes of the march, botanical notes, and
carefully made drawings. But in the mean time the middle portion of
the book was filling up with calculations, private memoranda, words
intended for vocabularies, and extracts from books, whilst here and
there the stain of a pressed flower causes indistinctness; yet the
thread of the narrative runs throughout. Noting but his invariable
habit of constantly repeating the month and year obviates hopeless
confusion. Nor is this all; for pocket-books gave out at last, and old
newspapers, yellow with African damp, were sewn together, and his
notes were written across the type with a substitute for ink made from
the juice of a tree. To Miss Livingstone and to the Rev. C.A. Alington
I am very much indebted for help in the laborious task of deciphering
this portion of the Doctor's journals. Their knowledge of his
handwriting, their perseverance, coupled with good eyes and a strong
magnifying-glass, at last made their task a complete success.
In comparing this great mass of material with the journal brought
home by Mr. Stanley, one finds that a great deal of most interesting
matter can be added. It would seem that in the hurry of writing and
copying despatches previous to his companion's departure, the Doctor
rapidly entered up as much from his note-books as time and space
permitted.
Most fortunately, he still carried the greater part of these original
notes till the time of his death, so that they were forthcoming when
his effects were subsequently saved.
This brings us to the second instalment of the journals, for we have
thus acknowledged the first to have reached us on Mr. Stanley's
return.
When the battered tin travelling-case, which was with Livingstone to
the last, was opened at the Foreign Office in the spring of this year,
not only were these valuable papers disclosed which I have mentioned,
but it was found also that Livingstone had kept a copious journal
during his stay at Unyanyembe in some copy-books, and that when his
stock of note-books was replenished a daily record of his subsequent
travels had been made.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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