island, for the most part, assumes a basin-like form. The climate is very healthy, the inhabitants showing a fine physical development, and many living to extreme old age. Salt is the most valuable production of Anguilla, but the heavy rainfall has lately prevented the formation. of the crystals by solar evaporation, and in 1879 the Salina was comparatively unproductive. Experiments have proved that phosphates, guano, and an inferior coal exist in Anguilla; the cultivation of indigo and cotton was at one time carried on, but has been abandoned; aloes and tobacco grow luxuriantly, but are not cultivated to profit. REPORT OF THE EVENING MEETINGS, SESSION 1880-81. Second Meeting, 22nd November, 1880.-The Right Hon. Lord ABERDARE, President, in the Chair. ELECTIONS.-Major J. Alleyne, R.A.; John Raynor Arthur, Esq.; Henry Spencer Ashbee, Esq.; Charles Perry Austin, Esq.; Captain Edwin Ball, R.N.R.; Lieut.General Sir Michael A. S. Biddulph, K.C.B.; Rev. Neville Arthur B. Borton; Sir Thomas Graham Briggs, Bart.; Septimus Brocklehurst, Esq.; Henry J. Buckwell, Esq.; Rev. John Lowry Carrick, M.A.; Oswald J. Cattley, Esq.; J. Parker Deane, Esq., Q.c.; Robert William Dillon, Esq.; Hon. Wilbraham Egerton, M.P.; William H. Heaton, Esq.; John H. Heaton, Esq.; William Haworth, Esq.; Harry Joseph Hopkins, Esq.; William Jackson, Esq.; Henry Keene, Esq.; Rev. Joseph Christopher Lambert; William Libbey, jun., Esq.; W. Emerson MacIvor, Esq.; Adolph Marno, Esq.; James Meldrum, Esq.; George Mercer, Esq.; Major Colin C. Scott Moncrieff, C.S.I., B.E.; Colonel John Morland; C. Rushbrooke Nunn, Esq.; Charles Pfoundes, Esq.; Fred. S. Pulling, Esq.; William Henry Richardson, Esq.; John Russell, Esq.; John Shearman, Esq.; S. Percy Smith, Esq.; Lieut. Frederick Thomas Nelson Spratt, R.E.; William Edward Springall, Esq.; James Stewart, Esq., c.E.; Henry George Thornton, Esq.; Thomas Walker, Esq., J.P.; Lieut. Henry Lake Wells, R.E. The paper of the evening was "Temperate South Africa." By The Right Hon. Sir Bartle Frere, Bart. The paper and the discussion which followed its reading are given ante, p. 1 et seq. Third Meeting, 13th December, 1880.-General Sir H. C. RAWLINSON, K.C.B., Vice-President, in the Chair. PRESENTATION,Adolph Marno, Esq. ELECTIONS. Giovanni Emilio Cerruti, Esq.; Frank Henry Cook, Esq.; John M. Cook, Esq.; Harry M. Hayward, Esq.; Edward Dowling Hodgson, Esq.; Henry J. Humphery, Esq.; Hubert Edward Henry Jerningham, Esq.; Colonel Sir William Owen Lanyon, K.C.M.G., C.B.; Hugh Leonard, Esq.; H. E. Perkins, Esq.; Rev. Charles E. B. Reed, M.A.; Alfred Oswald White, Esq.; Brigadier-General Sir H. Evelyn Wood, V.C., K.C.B. The following paper was read :— "Geographical Results of the Afghan Campaign." By Captain T. H. Holdich, B.E., lately in charge of surveys, Afghanistan. Will be published in the February number of the 'Proceedings.' * PROCEEDINGS OF FOREIGN SOCIETIES. Geographical Society of Paris.-November 19th, 1880: M. A. GRANDIDIER in the Chair.-At the request of the Chairman, Dr. Hamy, of the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, made some observations respecting the work on the ruins of Boro-Boudoor, published by the Dutch Government, and presented by the Geographical Society of Amsterdam, and a hope was expressed that the French Government might undertake the publication of a similar work on the ruins of ancient Cambodia.-M. Weyprecht forwarded to the Society the protocol of the International Polar Congress, held at Hamburg in October 1879, together with a statement of the resolutions of the second Congress held at Berne in August 1880, and he deeply regretted that the cooperation of France in this international enterprise in the Polar regions could not be counted upon. He insisted, however, on the necessity for instituting at different points numerous simultaneous observations, by which alone it would be possible to study the general laws which govern periodical phenomena, such as meteorological and magnetic phenomena, Polar auroras, &c. M. Weyprecht further suggested that Antarctic rather than Arctic investigations were the province of France, seeing that she was the first to institute systematic observations with regard to terrestrial magnetism and Polar auroras (in la Recherche expedition of 1838), and he pointed out that it would be very easy and cost comparatively little to establish a station for observation on Kerguelen Island, or on one of the islands further south, for a year.— The Minister for Foreign Affairs communicated M. Wiener's report on his journey across Equatorial America, to which reference was made at the meeting of November 5th.-The General Secretary read some extracts from a letter of Colonel Flatters, now engaged on a mission to the Sahara, in which he announced that a Tuareg deputation had come to meet him at Algiers, and expressed the opinion that the results achieved by his first expedition being thus confirmed, the country was opened for the passage of the mission, provided no new difficulties arose. Colonel Flatters had received very favourable letters from the chiefs of the Hoggar and Ozghar tribes, and he was convinced that as far as the tropic at least there would be no danger to surmount, but beyond that, among the Tuaregs of the south, all would depend upon circumstances.-The Chairman having presented to the Meeting M. C. A. Verminck and MM. Josué Zweifel and Marius Moustier, M. Henri Duveyrier spoke as follows on the question of the sources of the Joliba or Niger, discovered by the two latter-named gentlemen: "The determination of the true source of a great river which rises in a little-known region, is not an easy matter, and this is the case with the sources of the Joliba, Kworra, or Niger, with the basin of which we are far from being acquainted in a satisfactory manner. The case is, indeed, a special one. The basin of the Joliba is divided into two parts, which are subject to meteorological conditions of an opposite nature. On the north, about a third of this basin lies within the Sahara, and at the present time does not contribute in any way, as far as is known, to the main stream. The valleys which come down from the Ahaggar and Tassili plateaux, in the country of the Tuaregs of the north, to the north-east bank of the Joliba in the Haussa country, are now absolutely dry in their middle part. We can, therefore, leave out of the question this fossil portion of the Joliba basin, and consider only the living portion, viz. that which is comprised between Adamâwa on the east and the Kuranko *Cf. vol. i. p. 738. and Kong Mountains on the west. From this side we have the Joliba or Kworra, and from the other the Binue, which meet near Lukoja and flow down to the Atlantic. Of these two streams the Joliba is incontestably the longer, and it is consequently possible to know the source of the river without knowing that of the Binue. Such being the problem, let us consider how the solution of it now stands. Up to the recent publication by MM. Zweifel and Moustier of the results of their journey of exploration to the source of the Joliba, it was admitted that this source was situated in 9° 25′ N. lat., 9° 45′ W. long., on a mountain named Loma, and this knowledge was due to Major A. G. Laing. Whilst he was in Sulimania in 1822, he took two compass bearings of Mount Loma from the upper part of Mount Konkodugoré, south of the town of Falaba and of the source of the river Séli or Rokelle. The apex of this very acute triangle was on a sharp-pointed peak, very nearly 91 miles distant from Falaba; consequently, the details of his observation being known, the position assigned to Mount Loma by Major Laing could only be looked upon as provisional, because it is vague and uncertain. We must also remember that this mountain, which they called Loma, was pointed out to Major Laing as being the source of the great river of their country by the natives in reply to pressing questions on his part.... But is the river which rises in this pretended Mount Loma, really the first and most distant rivulet which, swollen by successive affluents, becomes the Joliba? Another rivulet to the south-west or the south-east, a small stream unknown to the people of Sulimania, might one day take its place as furnishing a longer course. This doubt, to which no one had given expression, but which had occurred to the minds of several geographers, is at length cleared up for the first time. 78 miles to the south-west of Major Laing's Mount Loma, and only 193 miles from Free Town, in the British colony of Sierra Leone, MM. Zweifel and Moustier saw the Tembi-Kundu, or mountain head of the (river) Tembi. This river, which is longer than the Faliko, takes the name of the Joliba after their junction. According to MM. Zweifel and Moustier, it rises in 8° 36′ N. lat., 10° 30′ W. long., in one of the summits of a mountain chain which bears the name of Loma, like that we have just spoken of. It is possible that the mountain chain of Loma is continued to the north-east with some interruptions as far as Major Laing's Mount Loma; and it is equally possible, as often happens in other parts of the world, that the name of the chain is a substantive signifying 'mountain,' 'summit,' or 'chain of mountains,' and that in this case it is applied par excellence to the chief orographical feature of a whole region. We must heartily congratulate MM. Zweifel and Moustier on their principal discovery, viz. the Tembi-Kundu, or the furthest known source of the Joliba. We do not hesitate to say that this discovery is a considerable fact in the history of geographical progress during the year, and, perhaps, it will always retain its importance. This we shall learn after the complete exploration of the countries of Môsi, Kong, Burré, and Kissi, in fact, of all the southern portion of the vast triangle, of which the course of the Joliba forms the two longest sides, between its source and its mouth, and into which Réné Caillié, Heinrich Barth, and Benjamin Anderson alone have penetrated to a small extent. Here flow the Bakhoy, the Sarano, &c., all tributaries of the Joliba, and which all appear to rise on a plateau, where, applying to a chain the name of a great market, our maps give a mountain chain called Kong. We must add that the existence of a long and continuous chain of mountains, given in all ancient maps and in many modern ones, has still to be proved; it is known where the chain begins on the west and that it stretches as far as 7° 40′ W. long., but from that point to where M. Bonnat saw mountains to the north of Salaga, the continuity of the range is a matter of mere supposition. In spite of the insufficiency of our information regarding the interior of the region under consideration, the deductions which can be made from Caillie's journal between Timbo and Timbuktu, Barth's between Sai and Timbuktu, and the examination of the native statements collected by the latter traveller, almost completely destroy the hypothesis of a great affluent south of the Joliba, which could rival the Tembi in length. It is probable, therefore, that nothing in the future will detract from the glory of MM. Zweifel and Moustier, who are the discoverers of the source which is furthest to the south-west, and according to all appearances, of the true source of the Joliba or Niger." M. Duveyrier having concluded his address, M. Zweifel explained to the Meeting under what circumstances he and M. Moustier had undertaken their explorations; and Dr. Harmand afterwards read some passages from their account of the journey, published in extenso in the last Bulletin of the Geographical Society of Marseilles. December 3rd, 1880: Dr. HAMY, of the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, in the Chair. The General Secretary read a despatch addressed to the Society by Dr. Oscar Lenz on his arrival at Medina, on the Senegal, from Timbuktu.-M. Daubrée, of the Institute, gave some information respecting volcanic phenomena in the Island of Dominica, and communicated the analysis of sundry specimens sent by M. L. Bert. -The Chairman announced to the Meeting the mournful intelligence of the decease of M. Sabin Berthelot, who died at St. Croix de Teneriffe at the age of eighty-six, after a laborious life entirely devoted to the study of the Canary Islands and their inhabitants in ancient and modern times. M. Berthelot had been for five years General Secretary of the Geographical Society.-Colonel Laussedat communicated to the Society two series of experiments which he made in 1868 and 1874 with aneroid barometers made for the use of travellers.-M. d'Arnaud-Bey communicated a paper on his expedition to the White Nile in 1839-42, to accompany his large map in ten sheets.-Captain de Lannoy, of the Engineers, presented to the Society a manuscript map, on a large scale, of Southern Africa from the regions discovered by Captain Speke on the east, and by M. Savorgnan de Brazza on the west, to the Cape of Good Hope. The object of the map is to admit of a precise comparison of the information brought by successive explorers, with the view of showing the value of their work, and of thus filling in correctly the map of Africa. Annual General Meeting, December 17th, 1880.-The Chair was taken by M. Alph. Milne-Edwards, in the absence of Admiral Baron de la Roncière le Noury, who was prevented by indisposition from delivering his usual Address, Taking advantage of the absence of the President, the Chairman acknowledged how much the Society owed to him for his services. He gave a sketch of the labours of the Society since the war, pointing out besides what still remained to be done, and called attention to the extension of the scope of geographical studies, and the greater precision now required of travellers. It is no longer sufficient to fix the course of a river, or to determine only the position of a town or a mountain; zoology, botany, geology, and the study of the depths of the sea now form an essential portion of geographical work, and-the speaker added—we find that the further we advance, the more there remains to be discovered.-M. Grandidier read the names of the new members admitted since the last general meeting, and remarked on the prosperous. condition of the Society, which now numbers 2096 members.-At this period M. Ferdinand de Lesseps entered in company with two members of the Government of the United States of Colombia, and was very warmly received. He informed the meeting that the subscription list of the company formed for the construction of the canal through the Isthmus of Panama had closed that day with 120,000 names.— The General Secretary, M. Ch. Maunoir, read his annual report on the progress of geography, which will be published in extenso in the Bulletin of the Society.M. C. Rabat afterwards read a paper on his journey in the north of Norway, Geographical Society of Marseilles.-November 6th, 1880: M. ALFRED RABAUD, President, in the Chair.--The meeting was held for the presentation of medals to M. C. A. Verminck and MM. Josué Zweifel and Marius Moustier, the promoter and leaders of the recent expedition to the sources of the Niger, and among others present were M. Aimé Ollivier, who has lately made a journey to the Futa Jallon highlands in West Africa, and Dr. Bayol, a member of Captain Galliéni's expedition.*-M. Rabaud delivered an address in which he referred to the various explorations of the Niger from the time of Mungo Park, and then spoke in eulogistic terms of the successful labours of MM. Zweifel and Moustier. M. Zweifel afterwards read an account of the origin, progress, and successful completion of the expedition, the full text of which is given in the last Bulletin of the Society. At the conclusion of the paper, the President, amidst loud applause, handed the medals and diplomas to MM. Verminck, Zweifel, and Moustier, as the highest honours which it was in the power of the Society to bestow upon them. - Geographical Society of Lyons.-November 6th, 1880. M. Coillard, a French Protestant missionary, read a paper on South Africa, in which he stated that he had lived for twenty years in Basuto-land, a fertile region, rich in pasturage and flocks, where an English mission had been established for fifty years, and had made great progress in civilising the inhabitants. In 1877 he was charged with the direction of a native missionary expedition, the object of which was to extend the Basuto Church to the north of the Transvaal and the Limpopo as far as the Zambesi. He was accompanied by Mme. Coillard and their daughter; four native missionaries, with their wives and families, and several Christians, the party consisting of twenty-four persons in all. M. Coillard gave the meeting an account of this journey, which lasted altogether two years and a half, and of various incidents connected with it, including the retention of the party for three months by the king of Matabele-land. He also described the regions he had traversed, and the manners and customs of the tribes he had visited. Several of them, he said, well deserved the name of savages, for they were in a state of abject degradation. Sometimes, however, vestiges of Christian traditions were found among them; and M. Coillard alluded to the discovery, in the auriferous mines of the region, of the remains of galleries, which proved that they had been worked in former times. M. Coillard, with his party, at length arrived at the Zambesi, where he visited the Victoria Falls, and in that region an event happened which has made his name well-known. One day, in ascending the river, he met in the hut of a hunter a European, in a state of destitution and exhausted by fever and fatigue, who proved to be the Portuguese traveller, Major Serpa Pinto.† In reference to some criticisms which had been passed on that officer on his return to Europe, M. Coillard availed himself of the opportunity now afforded him to bear testimony to his high character and the friendly relations between them. After labours extending over two years and a half, M. Coillard had the satisfaction of successfully accomplishing the object of his expedition.-In thanking M. Coillard for his address, the President announced that he had been elected a corresponding member of the Society. Congress of the Geographical Societies of France.-Sir R. W. Rawson sends us the following report of the last meeting of this Congress which met at Nancy from the 5th to the 10th August last, and held two sittings daily, discussing important geographical problems, relating more particularly to the subject of teaching geography.-M. Gauthiot read a paper of M. de Luze's on "Geographical Terminology." In this was shown the inconvenience of translating into the language * See vol. ii. pp. 185, 562. See Proceedings R. G. S., vol. i. p. 487. |