KILIMANJARO.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 15612, 9 June 1916, Page 4

KILIMANJARO.

"THE GRANDEST SPECTACLE IX AFRICA." (n:oii our. own* ioriiiosi-ondent.) ]'lETJC]}MAKITZBI'RG, April 28. Tho Kilimanjaro region, which General Smuts is ivrcnchiny from the Hun. is well named the jewel of the German colony in which it stands. It has a magnificent climate, and the abundant supply of moisture which is brought about by the trade winds account for the extreme fertility of tlio Kilimanjaro slopes. The murdered .Bishop rianninjztou, the first Bishop of Kaster.j Equatorial Africa, when journeying to .\losclii in 1885 to establish an' English Church mission there, compared the valleys to Devonshire; and. later on. Sir tlenry Johnston made exact!v the .same comparison. A yiohe-trotter. who is serving with the British forces in German LastAfrica, waxes warm over t-ho wonders of Kilimanjaro in a letter he has sent to the ''.Nairobi Leader.'' "Filled with the beauties and glories of the majestic Kilimanjaro," he says —In. my numerous rambles round tnc globe 1 have had a look at most of the great mountains. Everest —monarch of all—to the Rockies of North America, Cotopaxi of Soutli America, Kosciusko of Australia, and Egmont and Mount Cook of New Zealand, is a pre try long range. I'or solitary beauty Fujiyama (Japan) and Egmont (New Zealand) are supposed to be the finest. I have seen both, and the latter ccrtainly takes the palm for shape and pictur- ] esquoncss. Kilimanjaro stands in almost solitary grandeur, with scarcely a, peak of any significance to be seen in the vicinity. About 20,000 ft in height, it does not appear so high, owing to standing alone ou the j)lains; and the long easy slopes and veidant- foothills also detract from its height. Rising in a double cone— the highest being always snowclad and changing, ever changing in colour from dawn to sunset; now wreathed in clouds, next with a white fleecy cap on his head, and then standing clear in the brilliant tropical sun; Kilimanjaro, is i undoubtedly the grandest spectacle one can find in all Africa. It possesses a fascination chat, cannot be put into mere words. The finest time to see this mountain is at sunrise from the eastern or southern sides, and one can spend two hours of rapture gazing at the per T feet kaleidoscope of colours as lie emerges from the mist of clouds. The climate as one climbs up from the plains becomes perceptibly cooler, and it is only lor .a few hours in midday thn-. the sun is in any way oppresj sivo. Even then, there is always a ; slight forceKo blowing to temper the I heat. This is weather concerning tho 'foothills and lower slopes that we are , passing over, so that it, is east to calculate that the higher slopes must possess an iiiflll temperature at any time of the year. I may not he alive or in the country, hut I pronounce emphatically now that Kilimanjaro is going to be the great tourist resort of Africa, on account of its climate, it bwing superior, in my humble opinion, to that- of the slopes of tho Himalayas of India or the Blue Mountains of Australia. The Matoppos, Victoria Falls, etc., will not have a look in with this glorious tract of countn*. In imagination one can see in the future a teeming population of settlers fanning round the mountain with prosperous townships scattered about tho slopes, and the mountain the healthgiving spot for invalids suffering from heart and lung diseases. The world does not contain another centre to excel it for such a purpose. I would willingly give twelve months of my life to bo able to go thoroughly through these magnificent slopes and pampas, and size up the possibilities for future settlement. Silt-Ji Governments as those of_ New Zealand and Australia would positively go crazy with delight to have the chance of handling tho settlement of this lino countrv. They would, in a short time, have it covered with h:ird-working_. prosperous settler*, and, by lending them every assistance, by erecting dams, barrages, etc., providing stock, financial assistance, "or a few years' work, would see that this is one of the grandest fanning centres in the world. At a rough guess, judging from "what I saw in tho few patrols I rode out with, tho country has room for tens of thousands of settlers. This figure is n« exaggeration—in fact it is a inild tem. The grass is different to that of South Africa, growing in matlike formation, and not- in watches and seams. Tfc nossesses a- micr and stronger nature. It averages about three feet in height, and our horses are exceptionally fond of it. Though tliev have been getting through an exceptionally heavy lot of work, every day and night, on short rations of forage, the gra-s has kept them in wonderful condition. The condition of the oxen and mules is also evidence of the grand qualities of the grasses. At tho time of writing (March lOtlO no heavy rains have been met with. Yet nil the ground i s full of moisture, and the greenness and fertility of all grasses and plants arc a pleasure to witness. The liiKhe:- slouch should prove a paradise for fruit trees and vineries, and. judging frotn a few small mertlio patches ("second planting"! I havo seen at Native kraals, the Transvaal aud Fre« State are not in it with this district as agricultural or pastoral -propoiit'O!'!-. Personallv. if _I had the offer made me. I would sooner have a smal' farm hero than a largo one in tho South. The Afrikanders in the column are in raptures with what thei- have seen, aud score? havo alreadv definitely made up their tnituU_ to .sell out in the South and coine North, to settle as soon as the'opportunity lies open to them.