They
traced the country from Zanzibar to the northern watershed of Africa,
commencing at about 3 degrees South latitude, at the southern extremity
of the Victoria N'yanza. They subsequently determined the river at the
Ripon Falls flowing from that lake to be the highest source of the Nile.
They had a perfect right to arrive at this conclusion from the data then
afforded. They traced the river for a considerable distance to Karuma
Falls, in lat. 2 degrees 15 minutes N.; and they subsequently met the
Nile in lat. 3 degrees 32 minutes N. They had heard that it flowed into
the Luta N'zige, and that it issued from it; thus they were correct in
all their investigations, which my discoveries have confirmed. Their
general description of the country was perfect, but not having visited
the lake heard of as the Luta N'zige, they could not possibly have been
aware of the vast importance of that great reservoir in the Nile system.
The task of exploring that extraordinary feature having been
accomplished, the geographical question of the sources of the Nile is
explained. Ptolemy had described the Nile sources as emanating from two
great lakes that received the snows of the mountains of Ethiopia. There
are many ancient maps existing upon which these lakes are marked as
positive: although there is a wide error in the latitude, the fact
remains, that two great lakes were reported to exist in Equatorial
Africa fed by the torrents from lofty mountains, and that from these
reservoirs two streams issued, the conjunction of which formed the Nile.
The general principle was correct, although the detail was wrong. There
can be little doubt that trade had been carried on between the Arabs
from the Red Sea and the coast opposite Zanzibar in ancient times, and
that the people engaged in such enterprise had penetrated so far into
the interior as to have obtained a knowledge of the existence of the two
reservoirs; thus may the geographical information originally have been
brought into Egypt.
The rainfall to within 3 degrees north of the Equator extends over ten
months, commencing in February and terminating in the end of November.
The heaviest rains fall from April till the end of August; during the
latter two months of this season the rivers are at their maximum: at
other times the climate is about as uncertain as that of England; but
the rain is of the heavy character usual in the tropics. Thus the rivers
are constant throughout the year, and the Albert lake continues at a
high level, affording a steady volume of water to the Nile. On the map
given to me by Captain Speke he has marked the Victoria Nile below the
Ripon Falls as the Somerset river. As I have made a point of adhering to
all native names as given by him upon that map, I also adhere to the
name Somerset river for that portion of the Nile between the Victoria
and the Albert Lakes; this must be understood as Speke's VICTORIA NILE
source; bearing the name of Somerset, no confusion will arise in
speaking of the Nile, which would otherwise be ambiguous, as the same
name would apply to two distinct rivers - the one emanating from the
Victoria and flowing into the Albert; the other the entire river Nile as
it leaves the Albert lake. The White Nile, fed as described by the great
reservoirs supplied by the rains of equatorial districts, receives the
following tributaries:
From the East bank - The Asua, important from 15th April till 15th
November: dry after that date.
From West bank - The Ye, third class; full from 15th April till 15th
November.
From West bank - Another small river, third class; full from 15th April
till 15th November.
Ditto - The Bahr el Gazal; little or no water supplied by this river.
From East bank - The Sobat, first class; full from June to December.
The Bahr Giraffe I omit, as it is admitted by the natives to be a branch
of the White Nile that leaves the main river at the Aliab country and
reunites in lat. 9 degrees 25 minutes between the Bahr el Gazal and the
Sobat. The latter river (Sobat) is the most powerful affluent of the
White Nile, and is probably fed by many tributaries from the Galla
country about Kaffa, in addition to receiving the rivers from the Bari
and Latooka countries. I consider that the Sobat must be supplied by
considerable streams from totally distinct countries east and south,
having a rainfall at different seasons, as it is bank-full at the end of
December, when the southern rivers (the Asua, &c.) are extremely low.
North from the Sobat, the White Nile has no other tributaries until it
is joined by the Blue Nile at Khartoum, and by its last affluent the
Atbara in lat. 17 degrees 37 minutes. These two great mountain streams
flooding suddenly in the end of June, fed by the rains of Abyssinia,
raise the volume of the Nile to an extent that causes the inundations of
Lower Egypt.
The basin of the Nile being thus understood, let us reflect upon the
natural resources of the vast surface of fertile soil that is comprised
in that portion of Central Africa. It is difficult to believe that so
magnificent a soil and so enormous an extent of country is destined to
remain for ever in savagedom, and yet it is hard to argue on the
possibility of improvement in a portion of the world inhabited by
savages whose happiness consists in idleness or warfare. The advantages
are few, the drawbacks many. The immense distance from the seacoast
would render impossible the transport of any merchandise unless of
extreme value, as the expenses would be insupportable. The natural
productions are nil, excepting ivory.
