On arrival at the well a few days later, I delivered the weapons to their owners as promised, they having followed our party. Souakim is about 275 miles from the Nile at Berber. At Kokreb, about half-way, we entered the chain of mountains that extends from Suez parallel with the Red Sea to the south; many portions of this chain are four or five thousand feet above the sea-level. The mountains were exceedingly beautiful, their precipitous sides of barren rock exhibiting superb strata of red and grey granite, with vast masses of exquisite red and green porphyry. Many hills were of basalt, so black, that during an entire day's journey the face of the country appeared like a vast desert of coal, in broken hills and blocks strewed over the surface of the ground. Kokreb was a lovely oasis beneath the high mountains, with a forest of low mimosas in full leaf, and a stream running from the mountains, the produce of a recent storm. Throughout this country there are no rivers that should be noticed on a map, as the torrents are merely the effects of violent storms, which, falling upon the mountains several times during the rainy season from June to the end of August tear their boisterous way along their stony course and dry up in a few hours, becoming exhausted in the sand of the deserts. For some days our course lay along a deep ravine between stupendous cliffs; this was the bed of a torrent, that, after heavy storms, flowed through the mountains, inclining to the east; in this were pools of most beautifully clear water. In many places the nooks among the cliffs were fringed with lovely green trees. It was extraordinary to observe the activity of the camels in climbing the most difficult passes, and in picking their way among the rocks and stones that obstructed the route. In many places camels might be seen grazing upon the green mimosa bushes, that growing among the rocks high upon the mountains had tempted the animals into places that I should not have believed they could have reached.
After a journey of twenty-four days from the Nile at Berber, we emerged from the mountain-pass, and from the elevated embouchure we obtained a sudden and most welcome view of the Red Sea. We now quickly descended: the heat increased every hour; and after a long day's march, we slept within a few miles of Souakim. On the following morning we entered the town.
Souakim is a considerable town; the houses are all built of coral. The principal dwellings, and the custom house and Government offices are situated on an island in the harbour. We were received with much attention by the Governor, Moomtazze Bey, who very kindly offered us a house. The heat was frightful, the thermometer 115 degrees F and in some houses 120 degrees F.
There is no doubt that Souakim should be the port for all exports and imports for the Soudan provinces. Were a line of steamers established from Suez, to call regularly at Souakim, at a moderate freight, it would become a most prosperous town, as the geographical position marks it as the nucleus for all trade with the interior. At present there is no regularity: the only steamers that touch at Souakim are those belonging to the Abdul Azziz Company, who trade between Suez and Jedda. Although advertised for distinct periods, they only visit Souakim when they think proper, and their rates are most exorbitant.
There was no steamer upon our arrival. After waiting in intense heat for about a fortnight, the Egyptian thirty-two gun steam frigate, Ibralaimeya, arrived with a regiment of Egyptian troops, under Giaffer Pasha, to quell the mutiny of the black troops at Kassala, twenty days' march in the interior. The General Giaffer Pasha, and Mustapha Bey the captain of the frigate, gave us an entertainment on board in English style, in honour of the completion of the Nile discovery. Giaffer Pasha most kindly placed the frigate at our disposal to convey us to Suez, and both he and Mustapha Bey endeavoured in every way to accommodate us. For their extreme courtesy I take this opportunity of making my acknowledgment.
Orders for sailing had been received, but suddenly a steamer was signalled as arriving: this was a transport, with troops. As she was to return immediately to Suez, I preferred the dirty transport rather than incur a further delay. We started from Souakim, and after five days' voyage we arrived at Suez. Landing from the steamer, I once more found myself in an English hotel. The spacious inner court was arranged as an open conservatory; in this was a bar for refreshments, and "Allsopp's Pale Ale" on draught, with an ice accompaniment. What an Elysium! The beds had SHEETS and PILLOW-CASES! neither of which had I possessed for years.
The hotel was thronged with passengers to India, with rosy, blooming English ladies, and crowds of my own countrymen. I felt inclined to talk to everybody. Never was I so in love with my own countrymen and women; but they (I mean the ladies) all had large balls of hair at the backs of their heads! What an extraordinary change! I called Richarn, my pet savage from the heart of Africa, to admire them. "Now, Richarn, look at them!" I said. "What do you think of the English ladies? eh, Richarn? Are they not lovely?"
"Wah Illahi!" exclaimed the astonished Richarn, "they are beautiful! What hair! They are not like the negro savages, who work other people's hair into their own heads; theirs is all real—all their own—how beautiful!"
"Yes, Richarn," I replied, "ALL THEIR OWN!" This was my first introduction to the "chignon."
We arrived at Cairo, and I established Richarn and his wife in a comfortable situation, as private servants to Mr. Zech, the master of Sheppard's Hotel. The character I gave him was one that I trust has done him service: he had shown an extraordinary amount of moral courage in totally reforming from his original habit of drinking. I left my old servant with a heart too full to say good-bye; a warm squeeze of his rough, but honest black hand, and the whistle of the train sounded,—we were off!
I had left Richarn, and none remained of my people. The past appeared like a dream-the rushing sound of the train renewed ideas of civilization. Had I really come from the Nile Sources? It was no dream. A witness sat before me; a face still young, but bronzed like an Arab by years of exposure to a burning sun; haggard and worn with toil and sickness, and shaded with cares, happily now past; the devoted companion of my pilgrimage, to whom I owed success and life—my wife.
I had received letters from England, that had been waiting at the British Consulate;—the first I opened informed me, that the Royal Geographical Society had awarded me the Victoria Gold Medal, at a time when they were unaware whether I was alive or dead, and when the success of my expedition was unknown. This appreciation of my exertions was the warmest welcome that I could have received on my first entrance into civilization after so many years of savagedom: it rendered the completion of the Nile Sources doubly grateful, as I had fulfilled the expectations that the Geographical Society had so generously expressed by the presentation of their medal Before my task was done.
COMPUTATION OF MR. BAKER'S OBSERVATIONS.HEIGHTS OF STATIONS ABOVE THE MEAN LEVEL OF THE SEA DETERMINEDBY BOILING-WATER OBSERVATIONS BY S. W. BAKER, Esq.COMPUTED BY E. DUNKIN, Esq. OF GREENWICH OBSERVATORY. Feet.
Tarrangolle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2047Obbo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3480Shoggo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3770Asua River . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2619Shooa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3619Rionga's Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3685Karuma, below falls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3737Karuma, south of falls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3796South of Karuma, at river level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3794M'rooli, river level, junction of Kafoor . . . . . . . . . . . 3796West of M'rooli, on road to Albert lake . . . . . . . . . . . 4291Land above lake, east cliff . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 4117Albert N'yanza, lake level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2448Shooa Moru, island of Patooan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2918Gondokoro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 1636
The above heights will be found to differ considerably from those given by Mr. Baker in his letter written from Khartoum in May, 1865, and published in the TIMES newspaper in June. This arises from Mr. Baker having corrected his observations, whilst in the interior of Africa, from what have since proved erroneous data: the above are the correct computations of the same observations.
REMARKS ON THE THERMOMETER B. W. USED BY MR. S. W. BAKER INDETERMINING HEIGHTS. By Staff-Commander C. George,Curator of Maps, Royal Geographical Society.
This thermometer was one of the three supplied by the Royal GeographicalSociety to Consul Petherick, in 1861, and was made by Mr. Casella.
At Gondokoro, in March, 1862, it was lent to Mr. Baker, who made all his observations with it, and brought it back safe: it has, therefore, been in use about 4 and 3/4 years.
On November 9th, 1865, Mr. Baker returned it to the Royal Geographical Society, and it was immediately taken to Mr. Casella, who tested its accuracy by trying its boiling-point, in nearly the same manner as Mr. Baker had made his observations. The result by two independent observers was that the boiling-point had increased in its reading by 0 degree point 75 in 4 and 3/4 years, or 0 degree point 172 yearly.
On November 23d the thermometer was again tested by Mr. Baker at the Kew Observatory. The observation was made under the same conditions as those near the Albert N'yanza, as nearly as it was possible to make it. (By immersion in boiling water.) The result gave the thermometer 0 degree point 80 too much at the boiling-point.
The readings of the thermometer have, therefore, been TOO MUCH; and by REDUCING the readings, it ELEVATES all positions at which observations were made.
Table No. 1.—In this Table the error obtained at Kew Observatory has been treated like that of a chronometer, the error being assumed increasing and regular.
Table No. 2 is to correct the height, computed by Mr. Dunkin, using the quantity taken from Table No. 1.
Table No. 3 is the final result of the observations for height, corrected for instrumental error.
TABLE No. 1.
Table for Increased Reading of Thermometer, using 0 degrees 80 as theResult of Observations for its Error.
Month. 1861. 1862. 1863. 1864. 1865.January. . . — 0'143 0'314 0'487 0'659February . . — '157 '328 '501 '673March . . . 0'000 '172 '344 '516 '688April . . . '014 '186 '358 '530 '702May . . . . '028 '200 '372 '544 '716June . . . . '043 '214 '387 '559 '730July . . . . '057 '228 '401 '573 '744August . . . '071 '243 '415 '587 '758September . . '086 '257 '430 '602 '772October . , . '100 '271 '444 '616 '786November . . '114 '285 '458 '630 0'800December . . 0'129 0'300 0'473 0'645 —
TABLE No. 2.
At the elevation of 3,500 feet, 1 Degrees equals about 520 feet, from which the following—
Degrees Feet. Degrees Feet Degrees Feet.1'0 . . . 520 '7 . . . 364 '3 . . . 156'9 . . . 468 '6 . . . 312 '25 . . . 130'8 . . . 416 '5 . . . 260 '2 . . . 104'75. . . 390 '4 . . . 208 '1 . . . 52