o
Lake Nyassa, but when he wished to pass over to the eastern shore in
native boats, he was stopped by the Arabs, who knew that he was the most
formidable opponent of the slave-trade. He had no choice but to go round
the lake on foot, and little by little he made contributions to human
knowledge, drew maps, and made notes and collections. He came to
districts he already knew, where black women were carried off by
crocodiles on the bank of the Shire River, where he had lost his wife,
and where all the missionaries sent out on his recommendation had died
of fever.

His staff of servants soon proved to be a worthless lot. The Indians
were dismissed, and few of the others could be depended on. The best
were Susi and Chuma, who by their faithfulness gained a great reputation
both in Africa and Europe. Musa, on the contrary, was a scoundrel. He
heard from an Arab slave-dealer that all the country through which
Livingstone was about to travel was inhabited by a war-like tribe, who
had lately fallen upon a party of forty-four Arabs and killed all but
the narrator himself. Musa and most of his comrades were so frightened
that they ran away. On his arrival at Zanzibar, Musa informed the
British Consul that Livingstone had been attacked and murdered and all
his goods plundered. The false account was so cleverly concocted and so
thoroughly rehearsed that Musa could not be convicted of deceit. Every
one believed him, and the English newspapers contained whole columns of
reminiscences of the deceased. Only one friend of Livingstone, who had
accompanied him on one of his journeys and knew Musa, had any doubts. He
went himself to Africa, followed Livingstone's trail, and learned from
the natives that the missionary had never been attacked as reported, but
that he was on his way to Lake Tanganyika.

The road thither was long and troublesome, and the great explorer
suffered severe losses. Provisions ran short, and a hired porter ran
away with the medicine chest. From this time Livingstone had no drugs to
allay fever, and his health broke down. But he came to the southern
extremity of Tanganyika, and the following year discovered Lake
Bangweolo. He rowed out to the islands in the lake, and very much
astonished the natives, who had never seen a white man before. Extensive
swamps lay round the lake, and Livingstone believed that the
southernmost sources of the Nile must be looked for in this region. This
problem of the watershed of the Ni