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ter; they then very quickly got up steam, and at the same time epared an incendiary shell for the 7-pounder gun, which Captain aguire had placed on board. Just before leaving, the Indian inners carefully took aim at a large village where Makanjira's men ere holding an uproarious rejoicing, thinking that the steamer was heir sure prey, and that it was only a question of days before her ccupants were killed by famine* or starved into surrender. These opes of theirs were noisily shouted out to the people on the steamer, nd their fiendish rejoicings were at their height when suddenly an ncendiary shell was cleverly landed in their midst, setting fire to he town, and scattering the enemy in confusion; after which the Domira steamed away to Livingstonia, where she arrived on the morning of the 22nd.

Of the conduct of the Sepoys, who, I might remind your Lordship, are men chosen from the 32nd and 23rd Sikh Pioneers, and from the Haiderabad Lancers, both Mr. Keiller and Mr. Urquhart speak in the highest terms. They were brave, patient, uncomplaining, and, through all those horrors, undaunted; they laboured in the water to get the steamer off; the wounded dressed each other's wounds; they ate any food that was given to them, or none at all with equal cheerfulness; and throughout they bade the white men not despair. They said that if the worst came to the worst they would form a ring round the two remaining Englishmen, and die before they did. I really believe it was only their splendid behaviour which kept Messrs. Keiller and Urquhart from going cut of their senses with agony of mind, fatigue, and wounds. Since their return to Fort Johnston (which the Domira reached on the 22nd), they have sent me a message not to be too much cast down, that they will keep all safe at Fort Johnston until I come, and are ready for any further action."+

This account has been drawn up by me from statements made to me verbally and in writing by Mr. Wm. Keiller, captain of the Domira, A. Urquhart, second engineer of the Domira, and Pita and Saburi, two Zanzibari soldiers who formed part of the expedition, and who landed with Captain Maguire.

I received the first account of the disaster from the two Swahilis who arrived at Zomba on mid-day of the 24th December. My first action was to telegraph to your Lordship, to the Commander-in-chief in India (for some one to replace Maguire), and to the British South Africa Company. I then dispatched one of my two Indian clerks,

This was one of the most cruel features in their position; they had only about two days' food supply on board when the steamer got off.

This message was brought me by two Swahili soldiers, who carried the bad news to Zomba.

The written statements of these can be forwarded if required.

a very experienced man, named Abdul Halim, to Fort Johnston, with a small reinforcement of men and stores. The next morning, Christmas Day, I started for Blantyre, and reached it after twelve hours' travelling on foot and with a machilia (hammock). I was met on the way by Mr. Monteith Fotheringham, the manager of the African Lakes Company, and with this gentleman, on arrival at Blantyre, I arranged rapidly the sending of men to relieve Messrs Keiller and Urquhart on the Domira, that steamer having beer left at Fort Johnson to the care of Mr. Bainbridge, the store keeper.

I am returning to Zomba to-morrow (the 28th) to collect supplies and I then go to Fort Johnston to take over the charge of the Indian garrison until an officer comes out from India.

As will be shown in the Report accompanying my despatch of the 24th November, we have for the present crippled the Slave Trade in South Nyasaland; driven the slave-trading Yao Chief. Tsbikumbu, from the Milanji district; we have destroyed two of Makanjira's strongholds and his five dhows; we have brought Kazembe, Mponda, Makandanji, Zarafi, Mkata, Tshikusi, Kawinga, and many other Chiefs, to terms either by hard fighting or by persuasion; we have released nearly 300 slaves, and have broken up two large slave-caravans. Our position on the south end of Lake Nyasa, moreover, has been ably strengthened by Captain Maguire, who, in last October, built the fort with which he did me the honour to connect my name, and which, when sufficiently defended, is impregnable to an enemy not possessed of artillery. We have carried out these operations in three campaigns: the first conducted by Captain Maguire and myself during October and November against slave-trading Chiefs on the Upper Shiré and along the south coast of Lake Nyasa; the second by Captain Maguire and Mr. Buchanan against Kawinga; and the third by Captain Maguire on Lake Nyasa, in the African Lakes Company's steamer the Domira.*

We started in July last with a force of seventy-one Indians. One of these died from the severe fatigue consequent on the Tshikumbu expedition, and three have been killed in this lamentable affair at Kisugule (Makanjira's). One man lost his right arm at the attack on Kawinga's town (Mposa's), and is permanently disabled, and three others, though progressing favourably, wi be a long time recovering from severe wounds inflicted at the first attack on Makanjira.

This leaves me, then, at the present time, with an effective of only sixty-three men, of whom also ten are on the sick list with slight wounds, though fit for garrison duty. I have therefore

* A little vessel of 70 tons burthen.

graphed and written to the Commander-in-chief in India for mission to obtain at least ten more men from the Sikh or salman (Punjab) regiments to fill up the gaps in our little force. all confine my attention mainly to the maintenance of order and urity along the great trade-routes of Central Africa. This is the icy we have all along had in view. Neither Captain Maguire myself have gone out of our way to attack the Slave Trade. e have fought against it on land-routes, lake, and river, where the istant slave-raiding and trading threatened the security of our mmunications between one English settlement and another, and tween Nyasa and the Lower Shiré. Until Makanjira's power was ppled and his dhows destroyed there would be constant slaveding and fighting along the west shore of the lake among people 10 were our friends and who traded with us, and supplied us with oding stations for the steamer's fuel. This end, though it has st him his life, Captain Maguire has accomplished, and, until akanjira can build fresh dhows, he will be unable to continue profitable pursuit as a great slave transport agent on Lake yasa.

Coast caravans coming from Lindi and Kilwa to buy slaves in he devastated regions west of Nyasa will have no means of crossing he lake in safety with their merchandize. Makanjira can no longer erry them across, and Fort Johnston, of Maguire's building, stops heir journey overland round the south shore of the lake, and the Livingstonia Mountains and the British settlements arrest them the north end of Nyasa. Maguire has beyond all question dealt in five months a greater blow to the Central African Slave Trade than five years of our naval action on the coast could effect. The fact is, that the bulk of the slaves for which Central Africa is ravaged is needed for the plantations and coast towns along the East African littoral; the exportation of these slaves to Arabia, Persia, Asiatic Turkey, and Madagascar is only an occasional venture, lucky or unlucky, according to the vigilance of our cruisers and the astutemess of the slave-trader. I am able to state now with some precision that the regions along the middle course of the Loangwa River to the west of Lake Nyasa furnish annually over 2,000 slaves, which up to the present have been conveyed across the lake by Mankanjira's and Kazembe's dhows, or brought round the south end of Nyasa through Mponda's country.

The only effectual ways of absolutely stopping the Nyasa Slave Trade is by maintaining a strong garrison at Fort Johnston Mponda's), and by placing an armed steamer on the lake. The first means we owe to the generous philanthropy of the British South Africa Company.

For the second we must look to the

Imperial Government or to the nation at large for help.

[1892-93. LXXXV.]

2 P

The gift of money is the surest test of genuine philanthropy If the British public really cares to abolish the Slave Traffic acros Nyasa, it will promptly find the means for placing an armed steame on the lake, able to cope with the dhows and boats and lake-sid towns of the slave-trading Yao Chieftains. If it does not, then i a few months more dhows will be built, and the Slave Trade I reopened by Makanjira and others.

I cannot continue any longer the measures, which were on taken in an emergency, of diverting a commercial steamer like t Domira from her proper work in order to use her for fighting purpos. for which she is utterly unfitted. This action completely hinde our trade and communications with North Nyasa, Tanganyika, an Moero, besides courting disasters such as that which forms t subject of this despatch. I shall therefore confine my effor henceforth to checking the transit of slaves across the Shi Province; and later, across the Tanganyika plateau. The wate of Lake Nyasa must be left open to the energies and expedien of Makanjira, Kazembe, and other Yao slave-traders until an arm steamer is placed at the disposal of the Administration.

I cannot close this despatch without a tribute to the memory Captain Maguire, whose death has caused me more poignant sorro more bitter, unavailing regret, than I have ever yet known. He w of great ability, great bravery, amiable, bright and uncomplaining and of that rare type of soldier-administrator which is produced 4 its best by the training of British India. His age at the time his death was only 33, and he gave promise of becoming a great an notable man. I could say much more about him, but it can b more suitably told at a future time. My grief, however, woal be enhanced if I thought that, through my present reticence Maguire's great merits were unappreciated or unknown.

The Marquess of Salisbury.

H. H. JOHNSTON

No. 3.-Commissioner Johnston to the Marquess of Salisbury.—

MY LORD,

(Received April 6.)

Zomba, January 1, 1892. I HAVE the honour to forward herewith a statement made by Mr. A. A. Urquhart, the second engineer of the steam-ship Dom, relative to the recent sad catastrophe on Lake Nyasa, in whic Captain Maguire, Dr. Boyce, and Mr. MacEwan, and three Sepoy lost their lives. I have, &c.,

The Marquess of Salisbury.

H. H. JOHNSTON

(Inclosure.)-Mr. Urquhart to Commissioner Johnston.

Blantyre, December 28, 1891. THE following is an account of what I actually saw transpire at kanjira's :

The steam-ship Domira left Rifu on Thursday, the 15th December, h Captain Maguire and his party, bound for the opposite side Lake Nyasa, north of Makanjira's village, in order to capture ie dhows that Captain Maguire had got information about.

On arriving at the east side the steamer sailed along the coast ithward, when the dhows were seen on the beach at a very rocky rt of the coast. Captain Maguire landed in the barge with his diers. I noticed that they could not go in close to the beach, and it Captain Maguire and his men got into the water (which was ist-deep) and waded ashore. I also noticed that a brisk north nd was rising just before Captain Maguire landed, causing a good avy swell on the lake, which latterly filled the barge with water, id thus cut off the only safe means of retreat. I noticed that aptain Maguire set fire to, and completely burned, one of the hows. During the burning of the dhows I heard volley-firing in he bush on shore, but could see no one except those engaged at the how. Mr. Keiller managed with difficulty to anchor not very far rom the stones, and with a long rope and the small boat tried to fford a means of retreat to the now retreating soldiers. This means of retreat proved a failure, owing to the heavy seas swamping the boat, and also the new rope breaking several times. However, a few of the men were got on board, when I saw Makanjira's people on the top of the embankment (high beach) close to the shore. Captain Maguire now took the water, and tried to reach the steamer. I saw Mr. MacEwan helping a wounded soldier on board, and he was in the act of throwing a rope to the Captain when I had to go below to start the engines. After the engines were going all right I came up to the top of the ladder, and asked MacEwan if Captain Maguire was on board. Mr. MacEwan answered that he was drowned, and that he sank just before reaching the rope. At this point I just noticed the engine stop, and told MacEwan there must be something wrong with the propeller. He looked, and saw that the rope which he had thrown to Captain Maguire had got foul of the propeller. Two of the stokers got into the water and cut the rope. I again started the engines, but by this time the steamer had been driven on the sand. At the same time I got information that Mr. MacEwan was wounded. I remained in the stoke-hole driving the engines both ahead and astern, until I heard of Mr. Keiller being wounded. I then proceeded on deck, leaving the boiler and engine in charge of Tom (a native), and found the

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