e boats, and four hundred men
from the garrison of Senaar, the whole commanded by an able officer,
CAPTAIN SELIM. They completed their undertaking, and returned to
Khartoum at the end of 135 days, during which time, in obedience to the
commands of their master, they explored the Bahr-el-Abiad to the
distance southwards of 1300 miles, (turnings and windings included,) to
three degrees thirty minutes north latitude, and thirty-one east
longitude, from Greenwich, where it divided into two streams; the
smaller, and it is very small, coming from the south-west, and the
larger, still even at the close of the dry season a very considerable
river, which came from the south-east, upwards from the east, and still
more upwards from the north-east. A subsequent voyage in 1841 gained the
information that the stream descended past Barry, and there can be no
doubt that another, if not the chief branch, comes from the south-east,
in the bearing which Ptolemy gave it, and, as he states, from amongst
mountains covered with perpetual snow, of which Bruce also heard, and
which we now learn from Major Harris really stand in that quarter of
Africa.

The longitude of the river at the bifurcation is exactly the same as
Ptolemy has given it, which is very remarkable. The sources of the
White River will therefore be found where Ptolemy and Bruce have placed
them. The latter, in his notes, states expressly that the Bahr-el-Abiad
rose to the south of Enarea, not far from the equator, and that it had
no great western branch, nor was any necessary to give the river its
magnitude. (Vol. vii. App. p. 92.)

The expedition in question found no very large affluents from the west
side; but they found two of very considerable magnitude on the east
side--one the Blue River, and the other the Red River, or Bahr-Seboth,
which latter they navigated upwards of 150 miles in a direct line, and
left it a considerable stream, nearly as large as the eastern branch of
the White River, where they had left it. The banks of the Bahr-Seboth
were precipitous and high, whereas those of the Bahr-el-Abiad were low,
and on both sides covered with lakes, the remains probably of the
preceding inundation. Scarcely a hill or mountain was in sight from the
river till approaching the bifurcation, when the country became
mountainous, the climate more cool, and the vegetation and trees around
those of the temperate zone. The country on both sides is a high
table-land, the scenery e