Captain J. K. Cochrane, who has been exploring with forty
followers towards Lake Chad, has related some of his dis- coveries to an agent of Reuter. He found a river which runs from the lake to Kano, and which is 900 ft. broad in winter, but in the hot weather dries up entirely, so that the people on its banks have to dig in the sand for their water. He found also on one bank two large and densely populated towns, whose inhabitants are " most anxious for British rule," as they are raided by the Tubus from the Sahara, who are enemies of the British. Captain Cochrane came across some of the far- famed Tuaregs, the Gauchos of the Sahara, who are dreaded by all the tribes, and found them well armed and rich in camels. " Expansion" in Nigeria will evidently bring us in contact with some formidable clans, but fortunately their raids greatly annoy the Arab traders. Some day, when "ex- pansion" has abated a little, we shall find in Arabia our best soldiers for the necessary garrisons, and our best agents in pacifying and governing the huge regions now passing, almost against our will, under King Edward's sceptre.
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