In Darkest Africa, Or the Quest, Rescue, and Retreat of Emin Governor of Equatoria
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1891.
Hardcover. Very Good+. Early printing (first U.S. edition published in 1890). Two volumes: xiv, 547; xvi, 540 pp. 3 folding maps (all in very good or better condition) in 2 rear pockets, 2 steel engravings, 150 illustrations in the text. Original green cloth decorated with outline of Africa, gilt lettering and facsimile signature. Light rubbing and a few unobstrusive, pale stains to cloth. Bindings sound, hinges secure, pages bright and without foxing. Narrative of Stanley's expedition to rescue Emin Pasha, the embattled German governor of Equatoria (southern Sudan), via an unexplored and perilous route up the Congo. The expedition took two years, traversed 3000 miles (crossing the continent from west to east), and resulted in the death of more than 300 men from starvation, disease, or encounters with the natives. By the time they reached Emin Pasha, it was Stanley and his men who required rescue, rather than the other way around. After a period of recuperation, Stanley and Emin set out for Zanzibar by way of Uganda-in the process tracing the course of the Semliki River and establishing it as the principal connection between Lake Albert and Lake Edward. Despite controversy surrounding the motives and conduct of the expedition, his account became a bestseller, and remains one of the great classics of African exploration.
Item #13119
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