If The Reader Has Accompanied Me Thus Far, He May, Perhaps,
Be Disposed To Take An Interest In The Objects
I propose to myself,
should God mercifully grant me the honor of doing something more for Africa.
As the highlands
On the borders of the central basin
are comparatively healthy, the first object seems to be
to secure a permanent path thither, in order that Europeans may pass
as quickly as possible through the unhealthy region near the coast.
The river has not been surveyed, but at the time I came down
there was abundance of water for a large vessel, and this continues
to be the case during four or five months of each year.
The months of low water still admit of navigation by launches,
and would permit small vessels equal to the Thames steamers
to ply with ease in the deep channel. If a steamer were sent
to examine the Zambesi, I would recommend one of the lightest draught,
and the months of May, June, and July for passing through the delta;
and this not so much for fear of want of water as the danger of being grounded
on a sand or mud bank, and the health of the crew being endangered
by the delay.
In the months referred to no obstruction would be incurred
in the channel below Tete. Twenty or thirty miles above that point
we have a small rapid, of which I regret my inability to speak,
as (mentioned already) I did not visit it.
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