THE SOURCE OF THE NILE.*

wich.

inspecting the blood and bones of a fowl which he has flayed for that purpose, flays ANOTHER geographic puzzle of the ana young child, and having laid it length. cient and modern world has been un-wise on a path, directs all the warriors, ravelled by an Englishman. We now on proceeding to battle, to step over his know whence those mighty waters spring sacrifice, and insure themselves victory. which save Egypt from becoming a desert. Another of these extra barbarous devices The source of the Nile is Victoria takes place when a chief wishes to make N'yanza, a lake which lies about two war on his neighbour, by his calling in a degrees below the equator, and between magician to discover a propitious time for 31 and 34° east longitude from Green- commencing. The doctor places a large earthen vessel, half full of water, over a The handsome volume before us is fire, and over its mouth a grating of sticks, whereon he lays a small child and a fowl the journal of the discoverer, Captain side by side, and covers them over with a Speke. It is most profusely illustrated second large earthen vessel, just like the with woodcuts, descriptive of native first, only inverted, to keep the steam in, manners and customs; and accompanied when he sets fire below, cooks for a cerwith an admirable map of the journey. tain period of time, and then looks to see Captain Speke discovered Victoria if his victims are still living or deadN'yanza in 1858, and his last journey when, should they be dead, the war must was undertaken to verify his belief that be deferred, but, otherwise, commenced this was the true source of the Nile. at once." The English Government, at the instance of the Royal Geographical Society, furnished the means, and in May, 1859, Captain Speke left London for equatorial Africa. He started for his inland journey from Zanzibar, passed round Victoria N'yanza, and so came to the northern side of the lake. Here he discovered that Bahr el Abiad, or the White Nile, flowed out of Victoria N'yanza, and was the true source of that fertilizing and remarkable river. Our space will not allow us to follow the various stages of a journey which took eighteen months to accomplish. We shall simply give, as this is the book of the season, a few citations from its most interesting pages.

Captain Speke says that these naked men of equatorial Africa, who have never received the slightest impulse for good or evil from European civilization, by no means substantiate the once prevalent notions as to primitive races. The people are cunning, avaricious, inhuman. Their religion is very like in character that which made Plutarch think, heathen though he was, that without it men would be every way better.

"In times of tribulation, the magician, if he ascertains a war is projected by

Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile. By John Hanning Speke. London: Blackwood & Sons."

Captain Speke tells us that while in Karague, the country lying on the western side of the lake from whence the Nile springs, he heard that the king and princes fattened their wives-polygamy is common everywhere-to such an extent that they could not stand upright. He was therefore determined to seek an opportunity of judging whether this strange story were true, and sought an interview with Wazezeru, the king's eldest brother.

"There was no mistake about it. On entering the hut I found the old man and his chief wife sitting side by side on a bench of earth strewed over with grass, and partitioned like stalls for sleeping apartments, whilst in front of them milk, and, hanging from the poles that were placed numerous wooden pots of supported the bee-hived shaped hut, a large collection of bows, six feet in length, whilst below them were tied even a larger Inumber of spears, intermixed with a goodly assortment of heavy-head assages. I was struck with no small surprise at the way he received me, as well as with the extraordinary dimensions, yet pleasing beauty, of the immoderately fat fair one, his wife. She could not rise; and so large were her arms, that, between the joints, the flesh hung down like large loose-stuffed puddings. Then in came the children, all models of the Abyssinian type of beauty, and as polite in their manners as thoroughbred gentlemen. .. Upon my

וי

Longfellow's last Volume.

pots, Wazezeru, pointing to his wife, said,
This is all the product of those pots.
From early youth upwards we keep those
pots to their mouths, as it is the fashion
at the court to have very fat wives.""
Here is an account of certain strange
customs concerning twins.

21

inquiring what they did with so many milk- are yet unlike them in wanting plot and incident. with finished bits of description, the tales Smooth, musical, and terse, themselves are often poor; and the longest in the book-the Saga of Olaf-will only Norse literature their special study. be intelligible to those who have made Longfellow cannot write slovenly verse, but he has shown greatest aptitude in the composition of such pieces as are⠀ appended to the end of this volume.1 We wish he had cut down "Olaf" one" half, and then lengthened the space devoted to his occasional poems. "The Children's Hour," "A Day of Sunshine," "Something left undone," "Weariness," are characteristic. This is in a well-known vein :

“I was told that a Myoro woman, who bore twins that died, now keeps two small pots in her house, as effigies of the children, into which she empties her breasts every evening, and will continue to do so for five months, fulfilling the time appointed by nature for suckling children, lest the spirits of the dead should perseeute her. The twins were not buried, as

ordinary people are buried, under ground, but placed in an earthenware pot, such as the Wamyoro use for holding pombe (beer made from plantains). They were taken to a jungle and placed by a tree, with the pot turned mouth downwards. Manua, one of my men, who is a twin, said, in Nguru, one of the sister provinces to Unyanyembe, twins are ordered to be killed and thrown into water the moment they are born, lest droughts or famines or floods should oppress the land. Should any one attempt to conceal the twins, the whole family would be murdered by the chief; but, though a great traveller, this is the only instance of such brutality Manua had ever witnessed in any country. In the province of Unyanyembe, if a twin or twins die, they are thrown into the water for the same reason as in Nguru: but as their numbers increase the size of the family, their birth is hailed with delight. Still there is a source of fear there in connection with twins, as I have seen myself; for when one dies, the mother ties a little gourd to her neck as a proxy, and puts into it a trifle of everything which she gives the living child, lest the jealousy of the dead spirit should torment her. Further, on the death of the child, she smears herself with butter and ashes, and runs frantically about tearing her hair, and bewailing piteously; whilst the men of the place use towards her the foulest language, apparently as if in abuse of her person, but in reality to frighten away the demons which robbed her nest."

LONGFELLOW'S LAST VOLUME.*

Tales of a Wayside Inn will neither increase nor lessen Longfellow's reputation. Like the Decameron and Canterbury Tales in their construction, they

Tales of a Wayside Inn. By W. H. Longfellow. London: Warne, Routledge, & Warne, 1864.

Out of the cloud-fold's of her garments
Over the woodlands brown and bare,
shaken,
Over the harvest-field forsaken,

Silent and soft and slow,..
Descends the snow.

Even as our cloud-fancies take
Sudden shapes in some divine expres
sion,

10.

Even as the troubled heart doth make
In the white countenance confession,
The troubled sky reveals
This is the poem of the air,
The grief it feels.

This is the secret of despair,
Slowly in silent syllables recorded;
Long in its cloudy bosom hoarded,
Now whispered and revealed
To wood and field.

REV. J. H. HINTON is about to reissue his collected works. Goldwin Smith has in the press “A Professor History of England, for the use of Schools and Colleges;" and Rev. Prod fessor Kingsley, "A Boy's History of England."-A volume of miscellaneous remains from the "Common Place Book"! of the late Archbishop Whately is being prepared for publication; and: also a "Memoir of his Life," which will conranda of his own. sist mainly of letters and other memoquiet humour of which Dr. Whately Remembering the was so fond, it is not unlikely that the first volume will be read with eager

interest.

Our Churches.

CONFERENCES.

Intelligence.

dissemination of the principles and the advocacy of the institutions of our Connexion, this Conference approves of the design of the Editor to secure its further improvement in the coming year; and THE MIDLAND CONFERENCE was held respectfully requests the ministers and at Broad-street, Nottingham, on Tues- members of this district, and of the day, December 1, 1863. Neither of denomination generally, to co-operate in a the brethren requested to preach being vigorous and simultaneous effort to proable to attend, Rev. S. Cox, minister of mote its wider circulation. (2.) And in Mansfield-road chapel, very kindly con- order to relieve the Editor of the burdens sented, at a short notice, to supply their of which he complains as serious obstruclack of service. His texts were, Exodus tions to his work, this Conference recomii. 14, 15; Hebrews xi. 27. The attend-mends him to prepare a statement for the ance was small. consideration of the next Association.

At the afternoon sitting Rev. T. Ste- 4 Case from Swadlincote.-After convenson, of Leicester, prayed, and Rev. sidering this case, the following resoluW. R. Stevenson, M.A., presided. From tion was passed: That the friends at written or oral reports it appeared that Swadlincote be recommended to bring seventy-two had been baptized since the their case in another form before some last Conference, sixty-nine were now future Conference. candidates for that ordinance, and three had been restored to fellowship. After singing the doxology and reading the minutes of the previous meeting, the following business was transacted:

1. The Minister's Fund.-The treasurer of this fund, Mr. J. Earp, of Melbourne, reported that during the year £120 3s. 6d. had been received, and the same amount disbursed to twelve different ministers in the distressed districts. Agreed: That the hearty thanks of this Conference be given to those brethren who have so kindly and efficiently fulfilled this mission.

2. The Week of Prayer.-After some discussion on the proposal of the Evangelical Alliance, it was agreed: That this Conference recommends the churches in this district to set apart for prayer as much time as practicable in the first week in January, 1864.

The next Conference will be held at Measham on Easter Tuesday, March 29, 1864, Rev. J. C. Pike, of Leicester, to preach in the morning; and, in case of failure, Rev. R. Kenney, of Burton-onTrent.

Mr. Dez, the pastor of the Baptist church in Paris, who was present, was invited to speak immediately after tea, as the business of the Conference occupied the whole of the time allotted to the afternoon sitting.

A unanimous vote of thanks was given to Rev. S. Cox, for his sermon.

In the evening a meeting was held to discuss the best mode of supporting nonconformist churches in villages. Rev. Giles Hester read a paper on the subject, and Revds. J. F. Winks, W. Underwood, and Mr. J. Earp, addressed the meeting. It was agreed to postpone the further discussion of this important topic until the Whitsuntide Conference.

J. J. GOADBY, Secretary.

3. The General Baptist Magazine. The Editor, after having stated that the present circulation of the Magazine was far from satisfactory, and that in the attempt to compete with the numerous religious periodicals of the day, his ener- THE LINCOLNSHIRE CONFERENCE was gies were crippled by the present arrange- held at Wisbeach, on Thursday, Dec. 10, ment with the Association. After a 1863.

friendly debate, it was unanimously In the morning brother Allsop read agreed: (1.) That, regarding the Maga- the Scriptures and prayed, and brother zine as necessary for the defence and the Sharman preached from Psalm xc. 16, 17.

Baptisms.

Nov. 1, four persons were baptized at
On Lord's-day,
Peterborough by Mr. Barrass, and three

of them were received into the fellow-
ship of the church.

LOUTH, North Gate.-On Sunday evening, Nov. 29, after a sermon by the pastor from "I will follow thee," the youngest daughter of one of the deacons was baptized.

BIRMINGHAM.-On Nov. 29 our minister baptized six persons, and they were added to the church on the following Lord's-day. J. S. C. LENTON.-On Lord's-day, Dec. 6, three friends were baptized and added to the church.

VALE, near Todmorden.-On Dec. 5, seven persons were baptized in the river flowing in front of the chapel.

LEICESTER, Dover Street.-On Dec. 23rd, six young men were baptized.

LEAKE-On Sunday, Dec. 13, three post. The teachers and friends of the persons were baptized by the Rev. G. school thought this occasion suitable for Staples, and received the right hand of giving some expression to their respect fellowship at the Lord's table in the for his patient, punctual, and devoted afternoon. services. On Dec. 9, 1863, the schoolSMARDEN, Kent.-Dec. 6, three be- room, being profusely and tastefully lievers were baptized. Others are wait-decorated, a large company took tea. ing for baptism. At the meeting afterwards, the Mayor of Wisbech presided. Revds. T. Allsop, of Whittlesey, T. Barrass, of Peterborough, F. Chamberlain, of Fleet, and J. Smith (Independent), of Wisbech, and Mr. John Wherry, gave appropriate addresses. The testimonial, which consisted of a handsome time-piece, with a suitable inscription, was presented, in Rev. T. Watts, minister of the place. the name of the subscribers, by the Mr. Alderman Wherry expressed his unexpected pleasure and embarrassment at the gift. The meeting was enlivened by the services of an excellent and numerous choir, Mr. F. C. Southwell, junr., presiding at the harmonium.

CHAPELS.

WOLVEY. Our chapel having been closed for additions and improvements, was re-opened on Tuesday, Nov. 17. Rev. Dr. Burns preached in the afternoon and evening; and on the following Lord's-day, Rev. J. Redman, of Nunea ton, preached in the morning, and Rev. E. Stevenson in the afternoon and even

Other Congregational Churches.

ing. The services were well attended, and the collections amounted to £37; £100 has also been subscribed by the friends. The chapel has been lengthened fifteen feet by ten, new windows inserted, the baptistry raised in the new recess, the vestries improved, the seats stained and varnished, and a new pulpit though the state of the mission continues

erected.

STALYBRIDGE.-On Lord's-day, Nov. 8th, two sermons were preached in behalf of the Sabbath school by the Rev. J. Alcorn, of Burnley, and collections were made amounting to £21 5s. 8d. J. H.

MINISTERIAL.

Rev. J. B. LOCKWOOD has accepted a call to serve the General Baptist church at Nantwich, and will commence his labours on the first Lord's-day in 1864. REV. S. ALLSOP, of Whittlesea, has accepted the earnest call of the first General Baptist church at Longford, and will commence his labours there early in the new year.

THE MADAGASCAR MISSION. - Al

to demand thankfulness to the Great Head of the church, and to afford the most cheering prospects for the future, yet the intelligence received from Madapolitical, and social state under various gascar by the last mail represented its aspects which could not fail to awaken anxiety, not to say fear, on the part, not only of our missionary brethren, but of all concerned in the welfare of the coun

try. A second and still greater cause of excitement at the capital was the report that Radama II., the late king, was still alive. In connection with this report, it was affirmed that he was making his way to the coast to seek refuge on board a British man-of-war at Tamatave; but other and later statements were circulated to the effect that he was at the head of an armed force marching on the capital. This report is published in the TESTIMONIAL TO MR. ALDERMAN South African Advertiser and Mail of WHERRY, WISBECH. Mr. Alderman Sept. 30, in the following terms:-" We Wherry has been superintendent of the learn from private sources, to which we Sabbath-school at Ely-place, Wisbech, are disposed to give credence, that King for twenty-eight years. His recent Radama is still living in some secret removal to the outside of the town has place. What measure of truth there led to his resignation of this responsible may be in the different details, we must

MISCELLANEOUS.