The next day we reached the village of Parkani. For several days past
our guides had told us that we were very near to the lake, and we were
now assured that we should reach it on the morrow. I had noticed a lofty
range of mountains at an immense distance west, and I had imagined that
the lake lay on the other side of this chain; but I was now informed
that those mountains formed the western frontier of the M'wootan N'zige,
and that the lake was actually within a day's march of Parkani. I could
not believe it possible that we were so near the object of our search.
The guide Rabonga now appeared, and declared that if we started early on
the following morning we should be able to wash in the lake by noon!
That night I hardly slept. For years I had striven to reach the "sources
of the Nile." In my nightly dreams during that arduous voyage I had
always failed, but after so much hard work and perseverance the cup was
at my very lips, and I was to DRINK at the mysterious fountain before
another sun should set - at that great reservoir of nature that ever
since creation had baffled all discovery.
I had hoped, and prayed, and striven through all kinds of difficulties,
in sickness, starvation, and fatigue, to reach that hidden source; and
when it had appeared impossible we had both determined to die upon the
road rather than return defeated. Was it possible that it was so near,
and that to-morrow we could say, "The work is accomplished"?
The sun had not risen when I was spurring my ox after the guide, who,
having been promised a double handful of beads on arrival at the lake,
had caught the enthusiasm of the moment. The day broke beautifully
clear, and having crossed a deep valley between the hills, we toiled up
the opposite slope. I hurried to the summit. The glory of our prize
burst suddenly upon me! There, like a sea of quicksilver, lay far
beneath the grand expanse of water - a boundless sea horizon on the south
and south-west, glittering in the noonday sun; and in the west, at fifty
or sixty miles' distance, blue mountains rose from the bosom of the lake
to a height of about 7000 feet above its level.
It is impossible to describe the triumph of that moment. Here was the
reward for all our labor - for the years of tenacity with which we had
toiled through Africa. England had won the sources of the Nile! Long
before I reached this spot I had arranged to give three cheers with all
our men in English style in honor of the discovery; but now that I
looked down upon the great inland sea lying nestled in the very heart of
Africa, and thought how vainly mankind had sought these sources
throughout so many ages, and reflected that I had been the humble
instrument permitted to unravel this portion of the great mystery when
so many greater than I had failed, I felt too serious to vent my
feelings in vain cheers for victory, and I sincerely thanked God for
having guided and supported us through all dangers to the good end. I
was about 1500 feet above the lake, and I looked down from the steep
granite cliff upon those welcome waters - upon that vast reservoir which
nourished Egypt and brought fertility where all was wilderness - upon
that great source so long hidden from mankind, that source of bounty and
of blessings to millions of human beings; and as one of the greatest
objects in nature, I determined to honor it with a great name. As an
imperishable memorial of one loved and mourned by our gracious Queen and
deplored by every Englishman, I called this great lake "the Albert
N'yanza." The Victoria and the Albert lakes are the two Sources of the
Nile.
The zigzag path to descend to the lake was so steep and dangerous that
we were forced to leave our oxen with a guide, who was to take them to
Magungo and wait for our arrival. We commenced the descent of the steep
pass on foot. I led the way, grasping a stout bamboo. My wife in extreme
weakness tottered down the pass, supporting herself upon my shoulder,
and stopping to rest every twenty paces. After a toilsome descent of
about two hours, weak with years of fever, but for the moment
strengthened by success, we gained the level plain below the cliff. A
walk of about a mile through flat sandy meadows of fine turf
interspersed with trees and bushes brought us to the water's edge. The
waves were rolling upon a white pebbly beach; I rushed into the lake,
and thirsty with heat and fatigue, with a heart full of gratitude, I
drank deeply from the Sources of the Nile.
CHAPTER XXI.
The cradle of the Nile - Arrival at Magungo - The blind leading the
blind - Murchison Falls.
The beach was perfectly clean sand, upon which the waves rolled like
those of the sea, throwing up weeds precisely as seaweed may be seen
upon the English shore. It was a grand sight to look upon this vast
reservoir of the mighty Nile and to watch the heavy swell tumbling upon
the beach, while far to the south-west the eye searched as vainly for a
bound as though upon the Atlantic. It was with extreme emotion that I
enjoyed this glorious scene. My wife, who had followed me so devotedly,
stood by my side pale and exhausted - a wreck upon the shores of the
great Albert Lake that we had so long striven to reach.
