e expedition which founded
the Congo Free State. Directly south-east of the town are seven distinct
cataracts which extend over fifty miles of seething whirlpools.

Stanleyville is the head of navigation on the Congo and like Paris, is
built on two sides of the river. On the right bank is the place of the
Vice-Governor General, scores of well stocked stores, and many desirable
residences. The streets are long avenues of palm trees. The left bank is
almost entirely given over to the railway terminals, yards, and repair
shops. My original plan was to live with the Vice-Governor General,
Monsieur de Meulemeester, but his establishment was so taxed by the
demands of the Ministerial party that I lodged with Monsieur Theews,
Chief Engineer of the Chemin de Fer des Grands Lacs, where I was most
comfortable in a large frame bungalow that commanded a superb view of
the river and the town.

At Stanleyville the Minister of the Colonies had a great reception. Five
hundred native troops looking very smart were drawn up in the plaza. On
the platform of the station stood the Vice-Governor General and staff in
spotless white uniforms, their breasts ablaze with decorations. On all
sides were thousands of natives in gay attire who cheered and chanted
while the band played the Belgian national anthem. Over it all waved the
flag of Belgium. It was a stirring spectacle not without its touch of
the barbaric, and a small-scale replica of what you might have seen at
Delhi or Cairo on a fete day.

I was only mildly interested in all this tumult and shouting. What
concerned me most was the swift, brown river that flowed almost at our
feet. At last I had reached the masterful Congo, which, with the sole
exception of the Amazon, is the mightiest stream in the world. As I
looked at it I thought of Stanley and his battles on its shores, and the
hardship and tragedy that these waters had witnessed.

Stanleyville is not only the heart of Equatorial Africa but it is also
an important administrative point. Hundreds of State officials report to
the Vice-Governor General there, and on national holidays and occasions
like the visit of the Colonial Minister, it can muster a gay assemblage.
Monsieur Franck's presence inspired a succession of festivities
including a garden party which was attended by the entire white
population numbering about seventy-five. There was also a formal dinner
where I wore evening clothes for the first and only time between
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