. The story of Africa and its explorers. ospects were decidedly of the best. Inall, it consisted of 150 men. The first few daysled through Uzaramo, along those raised sea-beaches which form so characteristic a featureof East Africa. Now the way led throughdense shrubberies, anon among tall cocoanuts,mangoes (p. 276), jack fruits and bananas,which clothed the hollows and river happily, the route would for hourslie through swamps, or along paths cutinto deep ruts by the rains, which fell forweeks at a stretch, until the Rufiji or Kin-gani River was reached. But, as a river, this 276
. The story of Africa and its explorers. ospects were decidedly of the best. Inall, it consisted of 150 men. The first few daysled through Uzaramo, along those raised sea-beaches which form so characteristic a featureof East Africa. Now the way led throughdense shrubberies, anon among tall cocoanuts,mangoes (p. 276), jack fruits and bananas,which clothed the hollows and river happily, the route would for hourslie through swamps, or along paths cutinto deep ruts by the rains, which fell forweeks at a stretch, until the Rufiji or Kin-gani River was reached. But, as a river, this 276 THE STOEY OF AFRICA. stream turned out to contain about as muchsand as water. To add to their o-atherinsftroubles, Mr. Johnston caught the fever whichended his career on the 23rd of June. Hadhe been persuaded to take rest, he mightliave recovered; but his mind was set onreachinsr Behobeho, or Berobero, 120 milesinland from Dar-es-Salaam, so that, thoughhe daily gi-ew worse, he insisted on beingcarried for a fortnight through the swamps. MANGO FEUIT. (Frcm. a Photograph by Sir John Kirk.) and along the great scrubby desert acrosswhich the way to that goal took, in horriblepain from disease, the jolting of the porters,and the intense heat of the tropical last Behobeho was reached, on theother side of a great uninhabited desertcovered with acacia thorns, where sign oflife is seldom seen, and near the lower flanksof the mountains that border the great in-terior plateau. But it was too late, and poorKeith Johnston now lies in a lonely Death of grave, a martyr, five weeks after heJohnston. ° i a i- • -, ? ^ ? enterecL Africa, to his eager desire to ransack the continent with which, theoretic-ally at least, he was so well acquainted. Had Mr. Thomson now turned back, orat least halted until he could have communi-cated with London, his youth and inexperi-ence might well have justilied this , determined to carry out the taskassigned to his dead companion, he d
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookpublisherlondo, bookyear1892
