- 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 southwest, glittering in the noonday sun;
and on the west, at fifty or sixty miles' distance, blue mountains rose
from the bosom of the lake to a height of about 7,000 feet above its
level.
It is impossible to describe the triumph of that moment; - here was the
reward for all our labour - 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 honour 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.
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