EXPEDITION UP THE CONGO.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXX, Issue 4587, 2 December 1875, Page 3

EXPEDITION UP THE CONGO.

News received via the Cape of Good Hope states,: —“An expedition, consisting of the Active, the Spiteful, the Encounter, the Foam, the Ariel, and the Merlin, under the command of Commodore Sir William Hewitt, sailed up the Congo Elver, above Bull Island, but was compelled to: anchor owing to the difficulties of navigation. The islands which form the delta'of the Congo are intersected by numerous narrow creeks, and the banka are covered with mangrove swamps aud thick bush, and it is upon these islands that the natives have their villages,: which they have all along believed impenetrable to. attack. These natives are known by tlie name of Mossonlongeca, which word means pirates of the river. One of their means of livelihood is levying black mail on the palm oil which the natives of the interior collect, blit are unable to take themselves to the traders, because between them aud the trading stations are these lawless tribes, who taking

the oil exchange it on behalf of themselves and the others for Manchester goods chiefly. On the 30th of August, an expedition consisting of twenty-seven boats, including seven steam launches, and a party of 280 seamen and marines, was despatched under the command of Captain Bradshaw, of the Encounter. Some of the creeks were of more than 50ft. wide in their narrower parts, and up these steam launches 42ft in length had to proceed. The mode of landing adopted was for tte gum boats to go up the creeks first, throwing in shot and shell- and rockets, commencing at a short range and continuing it up to such ranges as 1700 or 1800yds., so as to drive back the enemy for at least that distance. After this firing, the scouts would advance, followed, by the column. Day after day-the work of destruction was proceeded with. All the creeks were explored as far as Punta da Lenha, and every village was burnt, including some important ones belonging to the notorious pirates Anezanzd, Manuel Yecca, and Macalat. In all sixty-seven' villages were destroyed, yrhich afforded homes for thousands of inhabitants, and a large number of men must have been killed. Amongst the English forces there was only one man killed—he was a guide—and there, were only five men wounded, one of them being Mr. Dixon, the senior engineer of the Ariel, To get at the villages was a work of wondrous difficulty. The men had to struggle through loathsome black mud, sometimes almost up to them waists, through mangroves and apparently interminable. . Yet they sometimes marched as much as ten miles a day, the scouts performing exceptionally- good service, whilst the marines were remarkably steady and were ably commanded. Upon the first day the whole force was landed ; but afterwards it was difficult to move such a large, body through tte country, so tte seamen were, kept as a reserve force. In the way of. loot there was nothing got as there was in Ashantee, where the ornaments were of gold, but here of brass ; some few curios in the way of horrid fettishes were all that were brought back as prizes by an expedition which was splendidly organised and most ably conducted throughout. After three weeks' operations, the -squadron dispersed.”