Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Measure or Die

A cheer agreed with Colonel Everett's words.Facing the Marco Lolo people, in the face of common difficulties, the Russians and the British forgot about the war and could only unite and defend themselves together.The situation prevailed, and the Anglo-Russian Committee was re-established stronger than ever before the enemy, and more tightly.After Amory and Zorn embraced and the other Europeans shook hands, a new alliance was formed. The first thing the British did was to quench their thirst, and the Russian barracks had no shortage of fresh water drawn from the lake.Then, in the shelter of an abandoned fortification atop Skolzew, the Europeans talked about what had happened since the Coloban secession.At this time, the sailors were monitoring the Marco Roro who temporarily suspended their attack.

First, why were the Russians on this mountain so far to the left of their meridian?This is the same reasoning that threw the British to the right.The Skolzew Mountains, almost between the two longitudes, are the only highlands that can be used to establish observation points on the Ngami Lake.Therefore, the two enemy expeditions that penetrated into the same plain naturally met on this only mountain that could be used for observation.It is true that the British and Russian meridians reach the lake at two widely separated points, requiring operators to connect the north and south shores of Lake Ngami by geodetic methods.

Then, Strux described in more detail the experiment they had just completed.From Coloban, their triangulation work went well, and the first line that fate allotted them passed through a fertile, rolling country that afforded every facility for establishing a triangular series.Russian astronomers suffered from the same heat as the British, but not from lack of water.The abundance of rivers kept the country salutarily moist, and cattle and horses, so to speak, roamed a wide meadow, passing patches of meadow here and there with woods and undergrowth; The charcoal fire kept them away from the camp. The aborigines encountered on the way were all settled tribes in villages and towns. Dr. Livingston had received warm reception.On such a journey, the Bushmans had no reason to complain.On February 20th the Russians reached Mount Skolzew, where they had been stationed for thirty-six hours, when three or four hundred Makororo appeared on the plain.The terrified Bushmen immediately abandoned their posts, leaving the Russians to the enemy.The Marco Lolos started looting the four-wheeled vehicles parked at the foot of the mountain. Fortunately, the instruments had been transported to the fortifications on the mountain.Besides, the steamboat is still intact, because the Russians assembled it before the robbers came, and it is now moored in a small inlet of Lake Ngami, where the hill slopes down steeply to the right bank of the lake, so that unreachable.But the hillside to the south of Skorzev is passable. In the attack just launched by the Makroro, if the British hadn't arrived in time, they might have gone straight to the fortifications.

Such is the brief account of Strux.Colonel Everett also made him aware of the events of their journey north, the pain and exhaustion of the exploration, the resistance of the Bushmen, the difficulties and obstacles they had to overcome.From this he concluded that the Russians had been luckier than the British since the departure of Coloban. On the nights of 21st and 22nd February nothing happened, Bushmen and sailors stood guard at the corners of the fortifications.The Makroro did not resume their attack, but the fire at the foot of the hill proved that the bandits had been camping here and had not given up their plans.

On the morning of February 22, when it was dawn, they came down from their shelter to observe the plain. The rising sun almost illuminated the vast land stretching to the horizon. Dry scene of dry grassland.At the foot of the mountain is a circular camp, where four or five hundred aborigines gather.Their fire was still burning, and a few pieces of game meat were roasting over the hot coals. It was obvious that the Makororo did not want to give up this place, even though the expedition and valuable items: supplies, wagons, horses, cattle, etc. , Food all fell into their hands.Perhaps this plunder was not enough for them, and after killing the Europeans, they wanted to seize such a terrible weapon used by the Colonel and others.

After inspecting the camp of the natives, the Russian and British scientists had a long conversation with the Bushmans and had to make a final decision.But this decision depends on the assistance of a certain situation. First of all, the correct situation in the Skolzew Mountains should be obtained. Astronomers already knew that the southern portion of the mountain overlooked the vast plains that stretched as far as the Karoo, and that the eastern and western parts were stretched by the desert at its smallest diameter.Looking to the west, the moonlight only illuminates on the horizon the looming outlines of some hills on the edge of the fertile territory of the Makororo people, where Makodo, one of their capitals, is located approximately northeast of Ngami Lake. One hundred miles.

On the contrary, the Skolzew Mountains overlook a completely different region in the north, in stark contrast to the drier regions in the south!Water, trees, grass, perpetual wetness maintain this thick hair of the land.For a radius of at least a hundred miles Lake Ngami spread out its beautiful waters animating in the rising sun.The length of the lake is parallel to the latitude of the earth, and the width is from north to south, not exceeding thirty or forty miles.The north bank of the lake presents a gentle slope, with forests, grasslands, rivers and the tributaries of the Zambezi River and the Liabi River, and the landscape is rich and colorful.At least eighty miles further north, a series of small mountains surrounded all this in their graceful outline.This beautiful place is truly an oasis in the desert!The land is well irrigated, a network of liquid veins keeps it alive forever, and the Zambezi, the great river, nourishes this marvelous vegetation with all its tributaries!It is the main artery of southern Africa, the Danube of Europe and the Amazon of South America!

This is the panorama unfolding before the eyes of Europeans.The Skolzew Mountains rise on the shore of the lake, and Strux says that its northern slopes go straight down to the lake, and are so steep that sailors cannot go up or down from here, descending by a narrow They reached the place where the steamboat was moored on the lake.The water supply was assured, and as long as food was available, the small garrison was able to hold out behind the fortifications. In this desert, on top of a mountain, why is there such a fortification?They consulted Morcum, who as David.Livingstone's guides had visited the site and were able to answer that question.

In the past, traders of ivory and ebony often came to the area around Lake Ngami.Ivory comes from elephants or rhinos; ebony is human flesh, the living beings bought and sold by slave traders.The whole Zambezi area is still poisoned by these vile foreigners who traded slaves.Internal wars, raids, and robberies captured large numbers of prisoners.These captives were sold as slaves.Yet precisely this shore of Lake Ngami was the passing point of the merchants from the west.The Skolzew Mountains were formerly the center of the expedition's camp, where they took a break before taking the Zambezi River to its mouth.Merchants therefore fortified this fortification to protect themselves and their slaves from being robbed, as it was not uncommon for native slaves to be re-robbed and resold even by those who had just sold them.

That's how the fortification came about, but it's now abandoned.The route of the expedition changed, they no longer came to Ngami Lake, and Skolzew Hill no longer had to defend them, and the wall on the top of the hill disappeared stone by stone.All that remains of the fortification is a wall cut into a fan, with the bow facing south and the string facing north.A defensive bastion was built in the middle of the wall, with gun holes drilled on it, and a cross tower was placed on the top, the outline of which was once used by Colonel Everett as a benchmark for theodolite lenses.Even though the fortifications were destroyed, it still provided a safe place for Europeans to hide.Hidden behind these thick sandstone walls and equipped with rapid-fire guns, as long as food and ammunition are not lacking, they can hold out against the Makororo to the end, and perhaps complete the geodetic experiment.

Colonel Everett and others had plenty of ammunition, for the box containing the ammunition was on the wagon carrying the steamer, and it was known that the wagon had not been taken by the Makroro. Food is another matter, and that's where the difficulty lies.The four-wheeled carts carrying food were also looted, and the eighteen people gathered here had had nothing to eat for two days.Namely three English astronomers, three Russian astronomers, ten sailors of the Queen and Tsar, the Bushmans and Forobel. This was formally confirmed by Colonel Everett and Strux by a careful inventory. The inventory was over, and a very simple breakfast was eaten. The astronomers and Bushmen gathered inside the defensive bastion, and the sailors stood guard around the walls of the fortification. They were discussing this very serious lack of food, and at a loss as to how to remedy this certain lack, the Bushmen suddenly suggested the following: Gentlemen, you are worried about the lack of food, but I really don't see anything to worry you about.We only have food for two days, don't we?Did someone force us to stay in this fortification for two days?Can't we leave tomorrow, or even today?Is there someone stopping us?Marco Lolo?As far as I know, they don't run on Ngami Lake?In that steamboat, I'll be in charge of transporting you to the north shore of the lake in a few hours! After hearing this suggestion, the scientists looked at me, I looked at you, and then they looked at the Bushmen.Really, this idea, which seemed so commonplace, did not cross their minds. Indeed, the idea did not occur to them.The idea, too, could have been conceived only by those intrepid men who, on such a memorable expedition, behaved like complete heroes of science. Lord John spoke first: But, my brave Morcumb, we have not yet completed the experiment. What experiment? Longitude measurement! Do you think the Makroro would care about your warp? They may not care, continued His Excellency John, but we do, and those of us we cannot leave this unfinished business behind.Don't you see it that way?My dear colleagues. We are.Colonel Everett, as the mouthpiece of everyone's common feelings, replied in everyone's name: We will not give up the longitude measurement!As long as one of us is alive, he's going to put his eye into the eyepiece, and triangulation is going to go on.We'll observe as long as we need to, gun in one hand and instrument in the other, but we're holding out until the last moment. Well done Britain!Well done Russia!These energetic scientists shouted that they put the interests of science above all dangers. The Bushmen looked at his friends, and without answering, he understood. So it was settled, and the geodesy continued.But this is somewhat difficult, and the obstacle of Lake Ngami, the choice of a suitable observation point, does not make the work impossible? The question was posed to Strux, the Russian astronomer who for two days occupied the summit of Mount Skolzew, who was able to answer it: Gentlemen, the work is difficult and delicate; it requires Patience and enthusiasm, but it's not impossible, what needs to be done?Geodetically link the Skolzew Mountains to an observation point on the north shore of the lake.But does this observation point exist?Yes, exist.I have chosen a pinnacle peak on the horizon.It stands on the northwest side of the lake, so that the side of this triangle cuts diagonally across Lake Ngami. Where, then, said Colonel Everett, was the difficulty, if this existed? The difficulty lies in the distance between the Skolzew peak and that peak.Strux replied. How long is this distance?Colonel Everett asked, At least one hundred and twenty miles. Our telescopes can travel that distance. But a marker light needs to be lit on that mountain. Let's go. Still need to go there? Let's go. Then during this period of time, we must resist the Marco Lolo people! We resist! Gentlemen, said the Bushmen, I am under your command and I will do what you ask me to do Thus ended the fateful conversation of scientific work with the words of the faithful hunter.Scientists are united around the same idea, determined to give their lives if necessary.They came out of the fortifications to observe the northern shore of the Great Lake. Strux pointed out the mountain he had chosen, which was the Volgirian Peak, a conical peak barely visible in the distance.Its height is enormous, and although it is far away, a strong electric light sign placed on it can be seen in the field of view of the theodolite lens equipped with a magnifying eyepiece, but it is necessary to bring this light sign a distance from the Skolzew Mountains. At more than a hundred miles, it has to be raised to the top of the mountain.It is a real, but not insurmountable difficulty, that the angle Skolzew makes with Volgilia, and with this previous observation point will probably end the meridian measurement, because Volgilia should Located near twenty degrees south latitude.People then understood the work, the full importance and enthusiasm with which astronomers worked hard to overcome all kinds of difficulties. Lighting signs should first be established.It would require crossing a hundred miles in an unfamiliar territory.Zon and Amory offered their offers and were accepted.Forobel agreed to accompany them, and they wished to set off immediately. Are they going to use steamboats?No, they're going to save it for their colleagues, who may need to leave as soon as possible after completing their observations to evade the Makroro more quickly.To cross Ngami Lake it is enough to build a birch boat which is both light and strong, which the natives can make in a few hours.Morcombe and Forobel went down to the shore where some dwarf birches grew, and they finished their work in no time. At ten o'clock in the evening, the boat was loaded with instruments, electrical appliances, some food, weapons and ammunition.The astronomers agreed to meet at a creek known to the Bushmen and Forobel on the northern shore of Lake Ngami.Also, once the beacon was seen and measured, Colonel Everett lit a beacon on top of Skolzew so that Zon and Amory would know where they were. After resigning from their colleagues, Zorn and Amory left the fortification and went down into the boat.Forobel, a Russian sailor, and an English sailor were already on board before them. The night was dark.The cables were undone and the flimsy boat, propelled by short oars, moved silently across the dark waters of Ngami Lake.