David Livingstone: Explorer

The Victorian public liked heroes. They needed them. Today we may have, you know, film stars and footballers. They had explorers. There was something exhilarating about seeing unknown parts of the world opened up. David Livingstone was about 27 years old when he set out for Africa. After this month and month of crossing dry desert, he finds this place that's just flowing. It's God's highway of water into Africa. He hired Tuba to pull him with this dugout across to what was now known as Livingstone Island, where this torrent of water was flushing past on either side. And as they were being pulled out, Tuba Makoro slipped. Livingstone says, cannot the love of Christ carry the missionary where the slave trade carries the trader? Livingstone fired and actually shot the lion. The lion turned around and grabbed hold of Livingstone and shook him, in Livingstone's word, as a terrier does a rat. No one had gone into Africa and come out alive. For more UN videos visit www.un.org