The first edition of this book is dated 1845. The edition used is dated 1872. The publisher was George Bell & Sons, London. The number of pages is 446.

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General information

Captain Frederick Marryat was born July 10 1792, and died August 8 1848. He retired from the British navy in 1828 in order to devote himself to writing. In the following 20 years he wrote 26 books, many of which are among the very best of English literature, and some of which are still in print.

Marryat had an extraordinary gift for the invention of episodes in his stories. He says somewhere that when he sat down for the day’s work, he never knew what he was going to write. He certainly was a literary genius.

“The Mission in Africa” was published in 1845, the twenty-second book to flow from Marryat’s pen.

This e-text was transcribed in 1998 by Nick Hodson, and was re- formatted in 2003, and again in 2005.

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Contents

Chapter I.
The Expedition.

Chapter II.
The conversation which he had had with his grand-uncle made a very forcible impression upon Alexander Wilmot; it occasioned him to pass a very sleepless night, and he remained till nearly four o’clock turning it over in his mind.

Chapter III.
A melancholy feeling clouded the features of Alexander Wilmot as, on the following morning, the vessel, under a heavy press of sail, was fast leaving the shores of his native country.

Chapter IV.
Alexander Wilmot was too much pleased with Mr. Swinton not to cultivate his acquaintance, and they soon became very intimate.

Chapter V.
The next day the ship was off Rio, and immediately sent her boats for provisions and supplies; the passengers did not land, as the captain stated that he would not stay an hour longer than was necessary, and on the second evening after their arrival they again made sail for the Cape.

Chapter VI.
The following morning the wind was very light, and before noon it fell calm.

Chapter VII.
The wind continued fair, and the vessel rapidly approached the Cape.

Chapter VIII.
The vessels which lay at anchor in Algoa Bay had just arrived from England, with a numerous collection of emigrants, who, to improve their fortunes, had left their native land to settle in this country.

Chapter IX.
The plans of our travellers had been well digested. They had decided that they would first prosecute the object of their journey by proceeding straight through the Caffre country to the borders of the Undata River, near or whereabout it was reported that the descendants of the whites would be found located; and as soon as Alexander had accomplished his mission, that they would cross the chain of mountains, and return through the Bushmen and the Koranna country.

Chapter X.
It was in the afternoon that they moved from Graham’s Town. They had intended to have started earlier, but they found it impossible to collect the Hottentots, who were taking their farewells of their wives and the liquor-shops.

Chapter XI.
The caravan proceeded on the following morning, and by noon they arrived at the Mission station of Butterworth, which was about one hundred and forty miles from the colonial boundaries.

Chapter XII.
On the following day, a little before noon, loud shouts and men dancing and calling out the titles of the king of the Caffres announced his approach.

Chapter XIII.
At daylight the following morning, there was a large concourse of Caffres in the camp, all waiting till our travellers were ready for the sport.

Chapter XIV.
They had scarcely gained the waggons before the thunder and lightning became incessant, and so loud as to be deafening.

Chapter XV.
It was not until the evening that the Caffres and Hottentots returned with the cattle, which they had great difficulty in collecting; two or three of the oxen were not brought back till late at night, so frightened had the animals been by the approach of the lion.

Chapter XVI.
The first step taken by Alexander was to send for the Hottentots, and, after again reproving them for their former behaviour, he asked who were ready to volunteer to proceed with him, as he had decided that he would leave the waggons with Major Henderson, and proceed on horseback the short distance of his journey which remained to be accomplished.

Chapter XVII.
The Return.

Chapter XVIII.
The oxen were yoked, and the caravan proceeded at a slow pace to gain the wished-for river.

Chapter XIX.
As soon as the horses were ready, our travellers set out in chase of the gnoos and quaggas, which were collected to the westward of the caravan.

Chapter XX.
Having filled their water-kegs, the next morning at daylight they yoked the oxen and left the banks of the Cradock or Black River, to proceed more to the northward, through the Bushmen’s country; but as they were aware that there was no water to be procured, if they quitted the stream altogether, till they arrived at the Vaal or Yellow River, they decided upon following the course of the Black River to the westward for some time, before they struck off for the Vaal or Yellow River, near to which they expected to fall in with plenty of game, and particularly the giraffe and rhinoceros.

Chapter XXI.
As they fully expected to fall in with a herd of buffaloes as they proceeded, they started very early on the following morning.

Chapter XXII.
As arranged, they did not travel on the Sunday. Early in the morning the oxen and horses and sheep were turned out to pasture: all except the horse which had been ridden by Alexander on the preceding day, and which was found to be suffering so much, that they took away a large quantity of blood from him, before he was relieved.

Chapter XXIII.
There was no alarm during the night, and the next morning they yoked the oxen and changed their course to the northward.

Chapter XXIV.
Our travellers remained very quiet that day and the next. The horses had suffered so much, that they required two days of rest, and they themselves were not sorry to be inactive after their fatiguing journey over the desert.

Chapter XXV.
“Well, what sport have you had?” was Swinton’s first question when he was joined by Alexander and the Major.

Chapter XXVI.
With the exception of three lions coming very near to the encampment and rousing up the Griquas, nothing occurred during the night.

Chapter XXVII.
As our travellers were sitting together, each occupied with his own melancholy thoughts, after the dispersion of the clouds and the anticipated relief, the Major said—

Chapter XXVIII.
As the cattle required some repose, after the sufferings they had gone through, our travellers resolved to remain a few days on the banks of the Modder River.

Chapter XXIX.
Alexander Wilmot again took possession of the apartments in Mr. Fairburn’s house, and was not sorry once more to find himself surrounded by all the comforts and luxuries of civilisation.

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