results, attained by shallow touching of the surface, or for hasty
conclusions. His was the close observation and careful and accurate
deductions of the mind trained by science to be patient and await
results. Rather than be inaccurate, he would wait until he knew he was
correct. A quarter of a century after Livingstone died a compatriot of
his, Robert Louis Stevenson, said that among the hardest tasks that life
sets for a man is "to await occasions, and hurry never." Livingstone
learned this thoroughly.

In keeping with the quietness, simplicity, and thoroughness of this
truly great man was the meeting between him and Stanley when that
redoubtable youth found him in the heart of the Dark Continent. Life is
essentially a dramatic thing, for as Carlyle says, "Is not every
deathbed the fifth act of a tragedy?" But I sometimes think that we miss
the drama and poetry of every-day life because it seems so commonplace.
We look abroad and afar for great moments, and great moments pass
unheeded each hour. So to those two--the toil-worn and weary explorer
and the youthful Stanley, full of enthusiasm, albeit dimmed by the
hardships and disappointments of his long search, that moment of first
meeting must have seemed essentially commonplace. There was a wonder in
the encounter, but like all great emotions and great occasions there was
a simplicity, so that the greetings were as commonplace as if occurring
in a crowded street. Thirty years had passed since the explorer had
dedicated himself to the task of making the world know Africa, and he
was an old man, worn-out, bent, frail, and sorrow-stricken. But courage
was unfaltering, faith undimmed, power unabated. Had Stanley been a few
months later, much of his work would have been lost, and his death even
more pitiful than it was--yet he could smile and be patient and
unhurried.

As Stanley phrases it, "Suppose Livingstone, following the custom of
other travellers, had hurried to the coast, after he had discovered Lake
Bangweolo, to tell the news to the geographical world; then had returned
to discover Moero, and run away again, then come back once more to
discover Kamolondo, and to race back again. But no, he not only
discovers the Chambezi, Lake Bangweolo, Luapula River, Lake Moero,
Lualaba River, and Lake Kamolondo, but he still tirelessly urges his
steps forward to put the final completion to the map of the grand
lacustrine river system. Had he followed the example of ordinary