"The Amazing and Fascinating Story of the Great African Explorer".
Publisher's green cloth variant with gilt titles on the spine.
389pp with 59 illustrations (all present). Map endpapers.
Binding tight. Moderate foxing to prelims. Cloth split on rear hinge.
This copy belonged to Lionel Cripps - the first speaker of the Southern Rhodesian Legislative Assembly (1924-35) - and has his unassuming bookplate on the verso of the front endpaper "L. Cripps, Cloudlands (his homestead in the hills above Umtali), Umtali (Southern Rhodesia)".
Lionel Cripps served as a trooper in the Pioneer Column, and appears as number "133" in "A" Troop on the Nominal Roll of the Pioneer Corps who made the march to Mashonaland from 5 July to 13 September, 1890.
"Upon his retirement from politics in 1935, Cripps helped establish the National Archives and served as a member of the Historical Monuments Commission and developed a passion for rock art, making copies of all known rock art in Rhodesia. Many of his reproductions of rock paintings and drawings are archived at the University of Zimbabwe's Archaeological Unit and an academic study of his work, entitled Immortalizing the Past - Reproductions of Zimbabwean Rock Art by Lionel Cripps, was released in 2007." - Wikipedia
'Commander Verney Lovett-Cameron, C.B., D.C.L., R.N., was the first European to cross Africa from East to West and his remarkable achievements in hazardous adventure and exploration in the heart of that continent were suitably recognised by the award of the C.B., the conferment of D.C.L., and the Gold Medal of the R.G.S.
His journey occupied nearly three years. Two of his white companions died - Moffat and Dr. Dillon - before Lake Tanganyika was reached; and Murphy, the only other, returned to the coast from Tabora with Livingstone's body. Cameron, undaunted and alone, went on to the lake, recovered Livingstone's papers at Ujiji, spent two months voyaging round the southern extremity of the lake, discovered the outflow of the lake and many other geographical features. Primarily he went out to join and help Livingstone, but met the latter's body being borne to the coast while still held up at Tabora by acute fever.
After the exploration of Lake Tanganyika, Cameron advanced to Nyangwe with the object of travelling down the Congo from its source to the Atlantic Ocean, but the extreme hostility of the natives prevented him doing this. With the aid of Tippu Tib he explored two small and hitherto unknown lakes; crossed into Angola (Portuguese West Africa) and found the source of the Zambezi; and eventually reached Benguella on the coast nearly dead from severe scurvy, starvation, fever and constant hardships endured.
Cameron's achievement is remarkable in the history of Africa and its exploration, linking up with the work of Burton, Speke, Grant, Livingstone, Stanley, Tippu Tib, Sir Samuel Baker, and others of those times; also with Sir John Kirk and Sir Bartle Frere. He has never really been accorded his rightful place in that record of African exploration. His story is far too little known or even remembered.
Major Foran himself has a deep knowledge of Africa and is well acquainted with the parts of Africa over which Commander Cameron travelled. From old documents and records he has brought to life a fascinating and amazing story.'
- Binding Condition: Fair
- Overall Condition: Fair
- Sold By: Rare Paper
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- Country: South Africa
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