The Art of Travel Part 1

The Art of Travel.

by Francis Galton.

PREFACE TO THE FOURTH EDITION.

In publishing a fourth Edition of the 'Art of Travel,' it is well that I should preface it with a few words of explanation on the origin and intention of the Book and on the difference between this and former Editions.

The idea of the work occurred to me when exploring South-western Africa in 1850-51. I felt acutely at that time the impossibility of obtaining sufficient information on the subjects of which it treats; for though the natives of that country taught me a great deal, it was obvious that their acquaintance with bush lore was exceedingly partial and limited. Then remembering how the traditional maxims and methods of travelling in each country differ from those of others, and how every traveller discovers some useful contrivances for himself, it appeared to me, that I should do welcome service to all who have to rough it--whether explorers, emigrants, missionaries or soldiers,*--by collecting the scattered experiences of many such persons in various circ.u.mstances, collating them, examining into their principles, and deducing from them what might fairly be called an "Art of Travel." To this end, on my return home, I searched through a vast number of geographical works, I sought information from numerous travellers of distinction and I made a point of re-testing, in every needful case, what I had read or learned by hearsay.

[Footnote] * ". . . the soldier should be taught all such practical expedients and their philosophy, as are laid down in Mr. Galton's useful little book . . . "--'Minute by the late Sir James Outram on Army Management.' Parliamentary Return, of May 240, p. 159.

It should be understood that I do not profess to give exhaustive treatises on each of the numerous subjects comprised in this volume, but only such information as is not generally known among travellers. A striking instance of the limited geographical area over which the knowledge of many useful contrivances extends, is that described as a 'Dateram,' p. 164, by which tent ropes may be secured in sand of the loosest description. Though tents are used over an enormous extent of sandy country, in all of which this simple contrivance would be of the utmost value on every stormy night, and though the art of pitching tents is studied by the troops of all civilised and partly civilised nations, yet I believe that the use of the dateram never extended beyond the limits of a comparatively small district in the south of the Sahara, until I had described it in a former Edition; and further, my knowledge of that contrivance was wholly due to a single traveller, the late Dr.

Barth.

The first Edition of the 'Art of Travel' was published in 1854: it was far less comprehensive than the later ones; for my materials steadily acc.u.mulate, and each successive Edition has shown a marked improvement on its predecessor. Hitherto I have adhered to the original arrangement of the work, but am now obliged to deviate from it, for the contents have outgrown the system of cla.s.sification I first adopted. Before I could interpolate the new matter prepared for this Edition, I found it necessary to recast the last one, by cutting it into pieces, sorting it into fresh paragraphs and thoroughly revising the writing--disentangling here and consolidating there. The present Edition will consequently be found more conveniently arranged than those that preceded it, and, at the same time, I trust the copiousness of its Index will enable persons to find with readiness any pa.s.sage they had remarked in a former Edition, and to which they may desire again to refer.

I am still most thankful to strangers as well as to friends for contributions of hints or corrections, having been indebted to many a previously unknown correspondent for valuable information. I beg that such communications may be addressed to me, care of my publisher, Mr.

Murray, 50, Albermarle Street, London.

P.S.--A reviewer of my Third Edition accused me of copying largely from an American book, called 'The Prairie Traveller,' by, the then, Capt.

Randolph B. Marcy. I therefore think it well to remark that the first Edition of that work was published in 1859 (Harper and Brothers, New York;--by authority of the American War Department), and that the pa.s.sages in question are all taken from my second Edition published in 1856; part of them are copies of what I had myself written, the rest are reprints of my quotations, as though the Author of the 'Prairie Traveller' had himself originally selected them.

I take this opportunity of remarking that though I have been indebted for information to a very large number of authors and correspondents, yet I am sorry to be unable to make my acknowledgements except in comparatively few instances. The fact is that the pa.s.sages in this book are seldom traceable to distinctly definite sources: commonly more than one person giving me information that partially covers the same subject, and not unfrequently my own subsequent enquiries modifying or enlarging the hints I had received. Consequently I have given the names of authorities only when my information has been wholly due to them, or when their descriptions are so graphic that I have transferred them without alteration into my pages, or else when their statements require confirmation. It will be easy to see by the context to which of these categories each quotation belongs.

Francis Galton

ART OF TRAVEL.

PREPARATORY INQUIRIES.

To those who meditate Travel.--Qualifications for a Traveller.--If you have health, a great craving for adventure, at least a moderate fortune, and can set your heart on a definite object, which old travellers do not think impracticable, then--travel by all means. If, in addition to these qualifications, you have scientific taste and knowledge, I believe that no career, in time of peace, can offer to you more advantages than that of a traveller. If you have not independent means, you may still turn travelling to excellent account; for experience shows it often leads to promotion, nay, some men support themselves by travel. They explore pasture land in Australia, they hunt for ivory in Africa, they collect specimens of natural history for sale, or they wander as artists.

Reputed Dangers of Travel.--A young man of good const.i.tution, who is bound on an enterprise sanctioned by experienced travellers, does not run very great risks. Let those who doubt, refer to the history of the various expeditions encouraged by the Royal Geographical Society, and they will see how few deaths have occurred; and of those deaths how small a proportion among young travellers. Savages rarely murder new-comers; they fear their guns, and have a superst.i.tious awe of the white man's power: they require time to discover that he is not very different to themselves, and easily to be made away with. Ordinary fever are seldom fatal to the sound and elastic const.i.tution of youth, which usually has power to resist the adverse influences of two or three years of wild life.

Advantages of Travel.--It is no slight advantage to a young man, to have the opportunity for distinction which travel affords. If he plans his journey among scenes and places likely to interest the stay-at-home public, he will probably achieve a reputation that might well be envied by wiser men who have not had his opportunities.

The scientific advantages of travel are enormous to a man prepared to profit by them. He sees Nature working by herself, without the interference of human intelligence; and he sees her from new points of view; he has also undisturbed leisure for the problems which perpetually attract his attention by their novelty. The consequence is, that though scientific travellers are comparatively few, yet out of their ranks a large proportion of the leaders in all branches of science has been supplied. It is one of the most grateful results of a journey to the young traveller to find himself admitted, on the ground of his having so much of special interest to relate, into the society of men with whose names he had long been familiar, and whom he had reverenced as his heroes.

To obtain Information.--The centres of information respecting rude and savage countries are the Geographical, Ethnological, and Anthropological societies at home and abroad. Any one intending to travel should put himself into communication with the Secretary, and become a member of one or more of these Societies; he will not only have access to books and maps, but will be sure to meet with sympathy, encouragement, and intelligent appreciation. If he is about to attempt a really bold exploration under fair conditions of success, he will no doubt be introduced to the best living authorities on the country to which he is bound, and will be provided with letters of introduction to the officials at the port where he is to disembark, that will smooth away many small difficulties and give him a recognised position during his travels.

Information on Scientific Matters.--Owing to the unhappy system of education that has. .h.i.therto prevailed, by which boys acquire a very imperfect knowledge of the structure of two dead languages, and none at all of the structure of the living world, most persons preparing to travel are overwhelmed with the consciousness of their incapacity to observe, with intelligence, the country they are about to visit. I have been very frequently begged by such persons to put them in the way of obtaining a rudimentary knowledge of the various branches of science, and have constantly made inquiries; but I regret to say that I have been unable to discover any establishment where suitable instruction in natural science is to be obtained by persons of the age and station of most travellers. Nor do I know of any persons who advertise private tuition in any of its branches whose names I might therefore be at liberty to publish, except Professor Tennant, who gives private lessons in mineralogy at his shop in the Strand, where the learner might easily familiarise himself with the ordinary minerals and fossils, and where collections might be purchased for after reference. An intending traveller could readily find naturalists who would give lessons, in museums and botanical gardens, adapting their instruction to his probable wants, and he would thus obtain some familiarity with the character of the princ.i.p.al plants and animals amongst which he would afterwards be thrown. If he has no private means of learning the names of such persons, I should recommend him to write to some public Professor, stating all particulars, and begging the favour of his advice. The use of the s.e.xtant may be learnt at various establishments in the City and East End of London, where the junior officers of merchant vessels receive instruction at small cost. A traveller could learn their addresses from the maker of his s.e.xtant. He might also apply at the rooms of the Royal Geographical Society, 1, Savile Row, London, where he would probably receive advice suitable to his particular needs, and possibly some a.s.sistance of a superior order to that which the instructors of whom I spoke profess to afford. That well-known volume, 'The Admiralty Manual of Scientific Inquiry,' has been written to meet the wants of uninformed travellers; and a small pamphlet, 'Hints to Travellers,' has been published with the same object, by the Royal Geographical Society. It is procurable at their rooms. There is, perhaps, no branch of Natural History in which a traveller could do so much, without more information than is to be obtained from a few books, than that of the Science of Man. He should see the large collection of skulls in the College of Surgeons, and the flint and bone implements in the British Museum, the Christie Museum, and elsewhere, and he should buy the princ.i.p.al modern works on anthropology, to be carefully re-studied on his outward voyage.

Conditions of Success and Failure in Travel.--An exploring expedition is daily exposed to a succession of accidents, any one of which might be fatal to its further progress. The cattle may at any time stray, die, or be stolen; water may not be reached, and they may perish; one or more of the men may become seriously ill, or the party may be attacked by natives. Hence the success of the expedition depends on a chain of eventualities, each link of which must be a success; for if one link fails at that point, there must be an end of further advance. It is therefore well, especially at the outset of a long journey, not to go hurriedly to work, nor to push forward too thoughtlessly. Give the men and cattle time to become acclimatised, make the bush your home, and avoid unnecessary hardships. Interest yourself chiefly in the progress of your journey, and do not look forward to its end with eagerness. It is better to think of a return to civilisation, not as an end to hardship and a haven from ill, but as a close to an adventurous and pleasant life.

In this way, risking little, and insensibly creeping on, you will make connections, and learn the capabilities of the country, as you advance; all which will be found invaluable in the case of a hurried or disastrous return. And thus, when some months have pa.s.sed by, you will look back with surprise on the great distance travelled over; for, if you average only three miles a day, at the end of the year you will have advanced 1200, which is a very considerable exploration. The fable of the Tortoise and the Hare is peculiarly applicable to travellers over wide and unknown tracts. It is a very high merit to accomplish a long exploration without loss of health, of papers, or even of comfort.

Physical Strength of Leader.--Powerful men do not necessarily make the most eminent travellers; it is rather those who take the most interest in their work that succeed the best; as a huntsman says, "it is the nose that gives speed to the hound." Dr. Kane, who was one of the most adventurous of travellers, was by no means a strong man, either in health or muscle.

Good Temper.--Tedious journeys are apt to make companions irritable one to another; but under hard circ.u.mstances, a traveller does his duty best who doubles his kindliness of manner to those about him, and takes harsh words gently, and without retort. He should make it a point of duty to do so. It is at those times very superfluous to show too much punctiliousness about keeping up one's dignity, and so forth; since the difficulty lies not in taking up quarrels, but in avoiding them.

Reluctant Servants.--Great allowance should be made for the reluctant co-operation of servants; they have infinitely less interest in the success of the expedition than their leaders, for they derive but little credit from it. They argue thus:--"Why should we do more than we knowingly undertook, and strain our const.i.tutions and peril our lives in enterprises about which we are indifferent?" It will, perhaps, surprise a leader who, having ascertained to what frugal habits a bush servant is inured, learns on trial, how desperately he clings to those few luxuries which he has always had. Thus, speaking generally, a Cape servant is happy on meat, coffee, and biscuit; but, if the coffee or biscuit has to be stopped for a few days, he is ready for mutiny.

ORGANISING AN EXPEDITION.

Size of Party.--The best size for a party depends on many considerations.

It should admit of being divided into two parts, each strong enough to take care of itself, and in each of which is one person at least able to write a letter,--which bus servants, excellent in every other particular, are too often unable to do. In travel through a disorganised country, where there are small chiefs and bands of marauders, a large party is necessary; thus the great success of Livingstone's earlier expeditions was largely due to his being provided with an unusually strong escort of well-armed and warlike, but not too aggressive, Caffres. In other cases small parties succeed better than large ones; they excite less fear, do not eat up the country, and are less delayed by illness. The last fatal expedition of Mungo Park is full of warning to travellers who propose exploring with a large body of Europeans.

Solitary Travellers.--Neither sleepy nor deaf men are fit to travel quite alone. It is remarkable how often the qualities of wakefulness and watchfulness stand every party in good stead.

Servants.--Nature of Engagements.--The general duties that a servant should be bound to, independently of those for which he is specially engaged, are--under penalty of his pay being stopped, and, it may be, of dismissal--to maintain discipline, take share of camp-duties and night-watch, and do all in his power to promote the success of the expedition. His wages should not be payable to him in full, till the return of the party to the town from which it started, or to some other civilised place. It is best that all clothing, bedding, etc., that the men may require, should be issued out and given to them as a present, and that none of their own old clothes should be allowed to be taken. They are more careful of what is their own; and, by supplying the things yourself, you can be sure that they are good in quality, uniform in appearance, and equal in weight, while this last is ascertainable.

The following Form of Agreement is abridged from one that was used in Mr.

Austin's expedition in Australia. It seems short, explicit, and reasonable:--

"We the undersigned, forming an expedition about to explore the interior of ----, under Mr. A., consent to place ourselves (horses and equipments) entirely and unreservedly under his orders for the above purpose, from the date hereof until our return to----, or, on failure in this respect, to abide all consequences that may result. We fully recognise Mr. B. as the second, and Mr. C. as the third in command; and the right of succession to the command and entire charge of the party in the order thus stated.

"We severally undertake to use our best endeavours to promote the harmony of the party, and the success of the expedition.

"In witness whereof we sign our names. (Here follow the signatures.) Read over and signed by the respective parties, in my presence." (Here follows the signature of some person of importance in the place where the expedition is organised.)

By the words, "abide all consequences," the leader would be justified in leaving a man to shift for himself, and refusing his pay, if the case were a serious one.

Good Interpreters are very important: men who have been used by their chiefs, missionaries, etc., as interpreters, are much to be preferred; for so great is the poverty of thought and language among common people, that you will seldom find a man, taken at hazard, able to render your words with correctness. Recollect to take with you vocabularies of all the tribes whom you are at all likely to visit.

Engaging Natives.--On engaging natives, the people with whom they have lived, and to whom they have become attached and learnt to fear, should impress on them that, unless they bring you back in safety, they must never show their faces again, nor expect the balance of their pay, which will only be delivered to them on your return.

Women.--Natives' Wives.--If some of the natives take their wives, it gives great life to the party. They are of very great service, and cause no delay; for the body of a caravan must always travel at a foot's pace, and a woman will endure a long journey nearly as well as a man, and certainly better than a horse or a bullock. They are invaluable in picking up and retailing information and hearsay gossip, which will give clues to much of importance, that, una.s.sisted, you might miss. Mr. Hearne the American traveller of the last century, in his charming book, writes as follows, and I can fully corroborate the faithfulness with which he gives us a savage's view of the matter. After the account of his first attempt, which was unsuccessful, he goes on to say,--"The very plan which, by the desire of the Governor, we pursued, of not taking any women with us on the journey, was, as the chief said, the princ.i.p.al thing that occasioned all our want: 'for,' said he, 'when all the men are heavy laden, they can neither hunt nor travel to any considerable distance; and if they meet with any success in hunting, who is to carry the produce of the labour?' 'Women,' said he, 'were made for labour: one of them can carry or haul as much as two men can do. They also pitch our tents, make and mend our clothing, keep us warm at night; and in fact there is no such thing as travelling any considerable distance, or for any length of time, in this country without their a.s.sistance.' 'Women,' said he again, 'though they do everything are maintained at a trifling expense: for, as they always stand cook, the very licking of their fingers, in scarce times, is sufficient for their subsistence.'"

Strength of Women.--I believe there are few greater popular errors than the idea we have mainly derived from chivalrous times, that woman is a weakly creature. Julius C aesar, who judged for himself, took a very different view of the powers of certain women of the northern races, about whom he wrote. I suppose, that in the days of baronial castles, when crowds of people herded together like pigs within the narrow enclosures of a fortification and the ladies did nothing but needlework in their boudoirs, the mode of life wasvery prejudicial to their nervous system and muscular powers. The women suffered from the effects of ill ventilation and bad drainage, and had none of the counteracting advantages of the military life that was led by the males. Consequently women really became the helpless dolls that they were considered to be, and which it is still the fashion to consider them. It always seems to me that a hard-worked woman is better and happier for her work. It is in the nature of women to be fond of carrying weights; you may see them in omnibuses and carriages, always preferring to hold their baskets or their babies on their knees, to setting them down on the seats by their sides.

A woman, whose modern dress includes I know not how many cubic feet of s.p.a.ce, has hardly ever pockets of a sufficient size to carry small articles; for she prefers to load her hands with a bag or other weighty object. A nursery-maid, who is on the move all day, seems the happiest specimen of her s.e.x; and, after her, a maid-of-all work who is treated fairly by her mistress.

OUTFIT.

It is impossible to include lists of outfit, in any reasonable s.p.a.ce, that shall suit the various requirements of men engaged in expeditions of different magnitudes, who adopt different modes of locomotion, and who visit different countries and climates. I have therefore thought it best to describe only one outfit as a specimen, selecting for my example the desiderata for South Africa. In that country the traveller has, or had a few years ago, to take everything with him, for there were no civilised settlers, and the natural products of the country are of as little value in supplying his wants as those of any country can be. Again, South African wants are typical of those likely to be felt in every part of a large proportion of the region where rude travel is likely to be experienced, as in North Africa, in Australia, in Southern Siberia, and even in the prairies and pampas of North and South America. To make such an expedition effective all the articles included in the following lists may be considered as essential; I trust, on the other hand, that no article of real importance is omitted.