A Little Boy Of His
Establishment Had Reported Our Arrival, And He In An Instant Came
Out To Welcome Us.
What joy this was I can hardly tell.
We
could not talk fast enough, so overwhelmed were we both to meet
again. Of course we were his guests in a moment, and learned
everything that could be told. I now first heard of the death of
H.R.H. the Prince-Consort, which made me reflect on the inspiring
words he made use of, in compliment to myself, when I was
introduced to him by Sir Roderick Murchison, a short while before
leaving England. Then there was the terrible war in America, and
other events of less startling nature, which came on us all by
surprise, as years had now passed since we had received news from
the civilised world.
Baker then said he had come up with three vessels - one dyabir and
two nuggers - fully equipped with armed men, camels, horses,
donkeys, beads, brass wire, and everything necessary for a long
journey, expressly to look after us, hoping, as he jokingly said,
to find us on the equator in some terrible fix, that he might
have the pleasure of helping us out of it. He had heard of
Mahamed's party, and was actually waiting for him to come in,
that he might have had the use of his return-men to start with
comfortably. Three Dutch ladies[FN#27], also, with a view to
assist us in the same way as Baker (God bless them), had come
here in a steamer, but were driven back to Khartum by sickness.
Nobody had even dreamt for a moment it was possible we could come
through. An Italian, named Miani, had gone farther up the Nile
than any one else; and he, it now transpired, was the man who had
cut his name on the tree by Apuddo. But what had become of
Petherick? He was actually trading at N'yambara, seventy miles
due west of this, though he had, since I left him in England,
raised a subscription of œ1000, from those of my friends to whom
this Journal is most respectfully dedicated as the smallest
return a grateful heart can give for their attempt to succour me,
when knowing the fate of the expedition was in great jeopardy.
Instead of coming up the Nile at once, as Petherick might have
done - so I was assured - he waited, whilst a vessel was building,
until the season had too far advanced to enable him to sail up
the river. In short, he lost the north winds at 7§ north, and
went overland to his trading depot at N'yambara. Previously,
however, he had sent some boats up to this, under a Vakil, who
had his orders to cross to his trading depot at N'yambara, and to
work from his trading station due south, ostensibly with a view
to look after me, though contrary to my advice before leaving him
in England, in opposition to his own proposed views of assisting
me when he applied for help to succour me, and against the
strongly-expressed opinions of every European in the same trade
as himself; for all alike said they knew he would have gone to
Faloro, and pushed south from that place, had his trade on the
west of the Nile not attracted him there.
Baker now offered me his boats to go down to Khartum, and asked
me if there was anything left undone which it might be of
importance for him to go on and complete, by survey or otherwise;
for, although he should like to go down the river with us, he did
not wish to return home without having done something to
recompense him for the trouble and expense he had incurred in
getting up his large expedition. Of course I told him how
disappointed I had been in not getting a sight of the Little Luta
Nzige. I described how we had seen the Nile bending west where
we crossed in Chopi, and then, after walking down the chord of an
arc described by the river, had found it again in Madi coming
from the west, whence to the south, and as far at least as Koshi,
it was said to be navigable, probably continuing to be so right
into the Little Luta Nzige. Should this be the case, then, by
building boats in Madi above the cataracts, a vast region might
be thrown open to the improving influences of navigation.
Further, I told Baker of my contract with Kamrasi, and of the
property I had left behind, with a view to stimulate any
enterprising man who might be found at this place to go there,
make good my promise, and, if found needful, claim my share of
the things, for the better prosecution of his own travels there.
This Baker at once undertook, though he said he did not want my
property; and I drew out suggestions for him how to proceed. He
then made friends with Mahamed, who promised to help him on to
Faloro, and I gave Mahamed and his men three carbines as an
honorarium.
I should now have gone down the Nile at once if the moon had been
in "distance" for fixing the longitude; but as it was not, I had
to remain until the 26th, living with Baker. Kurshid Agha became
very great friends with us, and, at once making a present of a
turkey, a case of wine, and cigars, said he was only sorry for
his own sake that we had found a fellow-countryman, else he would
have had the envied honour of claiming us as his guests, and had
the pleasure of transporting us in his vessels down to Khartum.
The Rev. Mr Moorlan, and two other priests of the Austrian
Mission, were here on a visit from their station at Kich, to see
the old place again before they left for Khartum; for the
Austrian Government, discouraged by the failure of so many years,
had ordered the recall of the whole of the establishment for
these regions.
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