There has always been a mystery about the last few weeks of David Livingstone's life, when he made a change of plan which hastened his death; a decision which, judging from his own diary, was against his better judgement. On his last journey, when he had parted from Stanley, resisting the latter's appeal accompany him England recuperate his health, this strange, lonely man set out once more to make a complete work of the exploration of the sources of the Nile.,, With a party of people he approached the vast area of the Bangweolo Swamps (see map on page 2) from the north, purposing get its southern side by any practicable means. It was in the middle of the rainy season and the party was entangled and even lost in the maze of swamps several weeks before, on an island in the main swamps, they reached Chief Matipa with whom Livingstone had made an arrangement by messenger some days before let them have canoes in which carry the party the south side of the Lake itself, for five coils of brass wire. However, at his first interview with the chief, he was persuaded abandon the route across the lake and go through the swamps the east which we now know be a far longer and more difHcult journey. And so began that last weary march of nearly six weeks which ended in his death near the Lulimala River. Now why did he think it was a shorter journey and make the fatal decision go east rather than south-west from Matipa's island ? Recent research into Livingstone's own maps and his copious note-books of navigation figures seems provide the answer. The map reproduced facing page 4 is from the 'Last Journals/ and it was compiled in 1874 from these original documents. In it we see Matipa's island or Mosumba marked at at the eastern end of the over large Lake Bangweulu, not far from the entrance of the Chambeze into the lake, and certainly well on the way towards his goal, the mountains the south of the lake. This map or something like it must have been Livingstone's guide in making his decision, in it Matipa's island appears be about 80 miles the east of the island of Chiribe,