Africa.- Thomson (Joseph) To the Central African Lakes and Back: The Narrative of the Royal Geographical Society's East Central African Expedition, 1878-80, 2 vol., first edition, half-titles, mounted photographic portrait frontispieces of Keith Johnston and Thomson, 2 folding colour maps, 32pp. publishers' catalogue at end of vol.2 (partly unopened), original decorated brown cloth, uncut, very slightly rubbed with spines a little darkened but still an excellent copy, 8vo, 1881.

⁂ Thomson was a Scottish geologist and explorer who accompanied Alexander Keith Johnston on his expedition to establish a route from Dar es Salaam to Lake Nyasa and Lake Tanganyika. Johnston died during the trip and Thomson took over leadership of the expedition, travelling 3,000 miles in 14 months, collecting specimens and making observations. He became the first European to cross the 250 mile plateau between lakes Nyasa and Tanganyika.