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The Graphic : The Graphic. An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper. Saturday, November 13, 1875. Vol. XII. No. 311

(London: The Graphic, 1875)

Folio (405 x 298 mm); contained within a film fronted bag; wrappers discarded; pp. [465-488]; several woodcuts and advertisements. Some spotting and occasional light soiling; corners a little curled; tear to inside margin of front page, with slight loss, not affecting printed area. There are several illustrations of the passage to India, including a two-page supplementary section. Scenes from the Arctic feature, with an accompanying description of events during the 'North Star' expedition twenty-five years before. African interest is provided by two pages of pictures on Stanley's Congo Expedition. The article 'African Geography' provides an update of current news on the exploration of Africa, noting "the combined violence and verbosity with which some of its obscurer problems have been disputed over." The significance of the African explorers' discoveries in the region of the Great Lakes is appreciated, and Speke's assertions regarding Lake Victoria are finally vindicated by Stanley's recent exploration of that huge body of water. "But, apart from the thrilling adventures of the explorers themselves, African geography has assumed an intelligible and interesting shape as lake after lake has been discovered in the interior of the continent, and the connection has been already established of that great lake region with such mighty rivers as the Nile and the Congo. The emergence (into public notice) of an immense, elevated, temperate, fertile region, thinly peopled by savages unknown to civilisation, and studded with enormous freshwater lakes, could not fail greatly to excite the public interest. ... Mr. Stanley's recent contribution to our knowledge on that subject has dissipated the doubts which existed as to the character, and almost the existence, of Lake Victoria Nyanza and as to its connection with the Nile. It may now be seen that Captain Speke was perfectly right in his assertions as to the existence of one enormous lake ... "

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