Great African Travellers | Page 2

hardships, dangers and difficulties of
every description, have contributed to fill up some of the numerous
blank places on the map. Although, by their showing, sand enough and
to spare and vast rocky deserts are to be found, there are wide districts
of the greatest fertility, possessed of many natural beauties--elevated
and cool regions, where even the European can retain his health and
strength and enjoy existence; lofty mountains, magnificent rivers and
broad lakes, and many curious and interesting objects, not more
wonderful, however, than those of other parts of the globe, while the
inhabitants in every direction, though often savage and debased, differ
in no material degree from the other descendants of Ham.
Although our fathers knew very little about Africa, their interest had
been excited by the wonders it was supposed to contain, and they were
anxious to obtain all possible information respecting it. This was,
however, no easy matter, as most of the travellers who endeavoured to
make their way into the interior had died in the attempt.
A society called the African Association, to which the Marquis of

Hastings and Sir John Banks belonged, was at length formed to open
up the mighty continent to British commerce and civilisation.
The first explorer they despatched was Ledyard, who as a sergeant of
marines had sailed round the world with Captain Cook, and after living
among the American Indians had pushed his way to the remotest parts
of Asiatic Russia. If any man could succeed, it was thought he would.
He proceeded to Egypt, intending to make his way to Sennaar, and
thence to traverse the entire breadth of the African continent; but,
seized with an illness at Cairo, he died just as he was about to start with
a caravan.
The next traveller engaged by the society was Mr Lucas, who, having
been captured by a Salee rover, had been several years a slave in
Morocco. He started from Tripoli, but was compelled by the disturbed
state of the country to the south of that place to put back.
It should have been said that it had been long known that two mighty
rivers flowed through the interior of Africa, one called the Gambia and
the other the Niger, or Quorra; but whereabouts they rose, or the
direction they took, or the nature of the country they traversed in their
course, no exact information was possessed.
From Arab traders, also, accounts had been received of a vast city,
situated near the banks of the Niger, far away across the desert, called
Timbuctoo, said to possess palaces, temples and numberless public
buildings, to be surrounded by lofty walls and glittering everywhere
with gold and precious stones, to rival the ancient cities of Mexico and
Peru in splendour and those of Asia in the amount of its population.
A century and a half before, two sea captains, Thompson and Jobson,
sent out by a company for the purpose, had made their way some
distance up the Gambia in boats, and early in the eighteenth century
Captain Stibbs had gallantly sailed up the same river to a considerable
distance, but, his native crew refusing to proceed, he was compelled to
return without having gained much information.

As a wide sandy desert intervened between the shores of the
Mediterranean and the centre of Africa, it was naturally supposed that
the unknown region could be more easily reached from the west coast
than over that barren district, and, soon after the return of Lucas, Major
Haughton, a high-spirited, gallant officer who had lived some time in
Morocco, volunteered to make his way along the bank of the Gambia
eastward, under the belief that a journey by land was more likely to
succeed than one by water. Some way up that river is the the town of
Pisania, where an English factory had been established, and a few
Europeans were settled, with a medical man, Dr Laidley. Leaving this
place, he proceeded to Tisheet, a place in the Great Desert, hoping from
thence to reach Timbuctoo; but, robbed by a Moorish chief, of
everything he possessed, he wandered alone through the desert, till,
exhausted by hunger and thirst, he sat down under a tree and died. The
news of his fate was brought to Dr Laidley soon afterwards by some
negroes.
These expeditions threw no light on the interior of the continent. A
fresh volunteer, however, Mungo Park, then unknown to fame, was
soon to commence those journeys which have immortalised his name,
and which contributed so greatly to solve one of the chief African
problems--the course of the Niger.
CHAPTER TWO.
TRAVELS OF MUNGO PARK.
PARENTAGE--RETURNS FROM INDIA--SENT OUT BY THE
AFRICAN ASSOCIATION-- SAILS FOR AFRICA--ARRIVES AT
PISANIA--STARTS WITH A COME EASTWARD--MUMBO
JUMBO--ARRIVES AT KOOJAR--REACHES CAPITAL OF
BONDOU--WELCOMED AT THE CAPITAL OF KAARTA BY