In Darkest Africa. - 1890

London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, and Rivington Limited,, 1890. The account of Stanley's last adventure on the African continent First edition, with a manuscript letter from Stanley to Thomas Henry Ismay thanking him for supporting a member of Stanley's extended family. Ismay (1837-1899) was the president of the later infamous White Star Line and Stanley's friend. This attractively illustrated work includes Stanley's celebrated account of the tortuous 450-mile passage through the dense Ituri Rainforest. In January 1887, Stanley began travelling to Congo via Zanzibar. Later in the same year, an advance party set off from Yambuya on a 5-month journey through the Ituri Rainforest. After the loss of 180 men, and "ravaged by the effects of disease, hunger, and warfare, Stanley and his team reached Lake Albert in December 1887. Failing to find Emin, they retreated to Ibwiri, where a camp was constructed. On 29 April 1888 Stanley himself finally met Emin Pasha, drinking champagne with him on the shores of Lake Albert, as he had with Livingstone at Ujiji in 1871" (ODNB). During the journey, Stanley became the first European to discover the great snow-capped range of Ruwenzori, and the Mountains of the Moon. He also located a lake, which he named the Albert Edward Nyanza, in addition to a large southwestern extension of Lake Victoria. Pasted opposite the front free endpaper is a letter from Stanley, written on House of Commons paper and dated 23 February 1897, thanking Ismay for "the trouble you have taken in the case of the late Mr. John Owen's widow". Owen was one of Stanley's cousins and had died in October of the previous year. In the letter, Stanley goes on to say he is "sorry to know that the Great Railway cannot do what I am told the Great Western is in the practice of doing in such cases" - perhaps a reference to Owen's profession, as in 1884 he had written to his cousin to ask if Stanley's influence might help him gain the vacant position of Assistant Superintendent on the railway at Swansea. Translations of In Darkest Africa quickly appeared in French, German, Italian, Spanish, and Dutch, while sales of the English-language trade editions reached 150,000 copies. Two volumes, octavo. Original red pictorial cloth, spines and front covers lettered and illustrated in black and gilt, map endpapers in pale green. Frontispiece in each volume, 36 plates, 3 folding maps (2 colour), colour profile sketch, folding table of languages in vol. II, illustrations in the text. Gilt bright, lean to spine, old damp stains and wear to extremities, foxing throughout contents, maps variously with small closed tear and cockling, one with more significant tear repaired on verso. A good copy only. Howgego IV, S60.