Mr Edward Marston's Meeting with Stanley.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue III, 13 May 1890, Page 2

Mr Edward Marston's Meeting with Stanley.

AN INTERESTING LETTEE, .V The following is at letter from Mr Edward Marston to Mr Stuart J. R«id, under date Hotel Villa Victoria. Caifo, Egypt, February 17* describing bis me ting with Stanley :■— * He received me with mosfc- affec-* tionate warmrb, which did my heart good. We have livsd together ever since, I may tell you that hia hair, out quite short, is perfectly whiten aud adds much diy .ity to his- appearance. He is of cuurae thoroughly bronzed 1 have known inn for many years, but I can truly say, .as-. I told him, that I never before saw him looking ha fso well. He is the ■ picture of hea th and vigour. He is as merry as a boy, full of stories and anecdotes of his adventures*. Our after dinner chats are 1 delightful. I only wish I could remember* and record them ; for example, . he .has just been tilling me 4iow he and his offipers sat down in Starvation Camp to dine off two bananas, the only sc ap of 'ood they had in the whole camp. They were jovial even then ; the officers amused themaelve* by drawing up a menu, each one choosing his dish. It was headed-— Roast Be"f and Plum Pudding, and plenty of it. Ham and Eggs galore. • . More Roait Beet. ■ Rump Steaks, &c, &c, This was at a time v\h<*n as I have said there was not a scrap ©f food in the camp, and they did not know where to look for any, but they expected death for all if it did not arrive within twenty hours — a somewhat unique instance of being joUy under advent circuraances. Mr Stanley is devoting the whole of his time, from early in the morning sometimes as early as - six o'clock — till late at night, in writing his great book. You will be inter « osted in knowing that considerably more than one ha'i of it is already written oat, and I shall briug away a very large portion o; the whole. I have an artist with me, who is taking Mr Stan ey's instructions a''oiit the illustrations. The maps-~of wtrich there will be thie < large .ones and thitteeu most interesting small ones, hfiviog historical reference to the source? of the Nile and Mountains of the Moon, from documents specially supplied to him by the Khedive — are all ready for vie to put in-hand on my leturn. I have read a good part of the text, and I think I may say without being accug«d of puffing, that it is profoundly interesting,. >.. . I have just induced Mr Stanley-— for the first time since I have been here — to tke a walk for half an- hour. We waiked down to the Nile---n>y first sight of the mighty river. *' Ther* " suid " is the river of which I discovered the source, an«l now you have discovered the mou h. Eight months a«o I drank its water at the v*ry sourcev(at Isonga) mid now I may be drinking the very same water here, for it ; tukes about eight mouths to flow irom source to mouth." • r ; •