The Fate of a German African Expedition.

Evening Star, Issue 8526, 27 May 1891, Page 4

The Fate of a German African Expedition.

The British and African Company's steamer Roquelle, from the West Coast of Africa, brings news (says the ' Pall Mall Gazette') of the fate of a German exploration expedition which left Cameroons two years ago to investigate the inland districts of the Niger tributaries. The party consisted of about 250 men, under the command of Lieutenant Morgan. At first fair progress was made; but as they got further into the interior the difficulty was togetfood, and mvny hardships were suffered from this fact alone. The details of the lieutenant's march very much resemble those of Mr Stanley's expedition. AH, or nearly all, of the men were armed, and supplied with ammunition in oase of necessity, but the commander found his followers were selling the arms and ammunition to the Natives for food. This was not absolutely neoessary. The men were at times very short of provisions, but the selling of the arms and cartridges was simply strengthening the surrounding Natives and weakening the expedition. Lieutenant Morgan, after warning the men, had to flog them ; but even this did not entirely stop the sale of their weapons and other articles. After severe privations and many deaths from dysentery and other diseases, the expedition reached the important Benue River, which flows into the Niger. Here they were met by an agent of the Royal Niger Company, who took them down the latter river, and finally they were safely conducted to Akassa. Word was sent from Akassa to Lagos for the German steamer King Tofa to be sent to Akassa to take the expedition to the Cameroons River, the place from which they originally started. The King Tofa, however, when on her way to Akassa was wrecked on the bar of the Middleton River, not far from Akassa. The crew managed to escape, and in their own boats pulled through the creeks until they also got to Akassa. Here the Roquelle took them on board, as well as Lieutenant Morgan and all his followers, finally bringing them to Lagos. The men who formed the expedition were, for th;e most part, from the British colonies of Lagos and Accra, and also from the Kroo coast. It is understood that the lieutenant, in addition to acquiring geographical knowledge of the surrounding country, had power to enter, into-arrangements on behalf of the German Government with kings and ohiefs at the baok of the great oil rivers, and that he may have made treaties with some of the rulers in question. The loss of life in the expedition wut over 100 men.