SS Chauncy Maples
Encyclopedia
MV Chauncy Maples is a motor ship
and former steamship
that was launched in 1901 as SS Chauncy Maples. She has spent her entire career on Lake Malawi
(formerly more widely known by its Tanzanian name of Lake Nyasa) and is regarded as the oldest ship in Africa
. After more than one hundred years' service she will be restored for use as a floating medical clinic to support the several million lakeshore dwellers whose average life expectancy is 44 years. The Government of Malawi
offered support for this in 2009 but it will depend on the results of charity fundraising.
in Polmadie
, Lanarkshire
, might appear perverse, as the yard was a considerable distance from the River Clyde
, with the expansive final approach into Glasgow Central Station
posing just one of many barriers between it and the Clyde. However, the company specialised in supporting the far reaches of the British Empire
by building vessels that were dismantled into kit form once they had been completed.
The resulting set of parts was frequently enormous and a daunting logistical task to transport. Re-assembly also depended heavily upon the availability of skilled labour at the customer’s premises. However, as in the case of the Chauncy Maples, this was frequently the only viable option when the ultimate destination was very far inland, away from any semblance of modern communications.
Conceived and commissioned by the Universities' Mission to Central Africa
(UMCA), the 150 ton ship was one of the last designs produced by Henri Marc Brunel
, son of the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel
. Once dismantled, the complex kit of almost 3,481 parts was transported by cargo ship to Portuguese East Africa, then towed by barge up the dangerous waters of the Zambezi
.
The boiler was built by Abbott of Newark
. It weighed 11 tons and was transported in one piece on a special wagon fitted with Sentinel
wheels, to be hauled overland by 450 Ngoni tribesmen for 350 miles (563.3 km) through uncharted malarial land to the East African Rift
. The other parts of the ship were man-handled or carried on the heads of men and women over difficult terrain and across river beds: they averaged only 3 miles (5 km) a day.
David Livingstone
, the first European to reach the lake and an evangelist for steamboat missions, had made much quicker progress in 1859, claiming much of the area surrounding the lake as part of the British Empire, forming the colony of Nyasaland. Although Portugal took control of the eastern shores of the lake, the islands of Likoma
and Chizumulu were colonised by Scottish missionaries and, as a result, became part of Nyasaland rather than Portuguese East Africa
(now Mozambique
).
, an Anglican missionary, later Bishop of Nyasaland. Tragically while on the way to take up his duties, his boat capsized during a storm on Lake Nyasa and he drowned because of the weight of his cassock.
, Samuel Wilberforce
, had made clear, the prime task was "the work of civilising commerce, the extinction of the slave-trade and, if possible, the colonisation of Africa".
Lake Nyasa was remote even by African standards, and initial progress with medical provision at Likoma was erratic. The programme had been introduced in 1894, during the brief stay of a UMCA physician. His replacement was the Rev John Edward Hine
, who although also a medical doctor was ultimately little interested in this aspect of his duties. When Hine was appointed Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa in 1896 he chose to concentrate on spiritual rather than health-related matters.
It was the coincident arrival of both the Chauncy Maples and Dr. Robert Howard that produced a radical change in the level and quality of medical provision to the lakeside inhabitants. Howard quickly laid the foundation of a robust health system with the Chauncy Maples fulfilling a central role. By the 1930s many stations, including those on the periphery, had health clinics run by missionary nurses or by African assistants. With the advantage of details on local diseases gathered by other doctors in the area, mainly from the Scottish missions, Dr. Howard adopted an anti-malaria strategy, and in conjunction with colleagues at Blantyre
mission, embarked on an anti-smallpox vaccination program.
For a poorly-resourced mission, the cost of maintaining the steamer required a strong focus on local provisioning. With a draught
permitting access to all areas of the lake, the ship itself was largely self-sustaining, her steam engine powered by wood scavenged from the shore areas. But the matter of slave raiding was more problematic, requiring not only manpower for site security, but also an appreciation of the uneasy boundaries that lay between the worlds of evangelism, medicine and trade. Finding appropriately qualified crew prepared to accept low pay and the tribulations of life on the lake was one thing; the Mission’s unyielding insistence on celibacy among its European staff was an even greater recruitment challenge. Behind all this lay the tensions arising from the Mission’s intentional policy of overextension of its mission surrounding Lake Nyasa. The Chauncy Maples operated in the contradictory world of an evangelical mission which offered desperately needed medical support to the poor in an environment of political instability and unfettered imperial capitalism.
The ship has served much longer than her name-sake. Apart from a period of service during the First World War
as a troop carrier and gunboat
, she served the inhabitants of Nyasaland for half a century until 1953, when she was sold and converted into a trawler
. In 1967 the Malawian government bought her, refitted her as a passenger and cargo ship and replaced her steam engine with a Crossley
in-line diesel engine. Her steam engine is preserved in the Lake Malawi Museum at Mangochi
. The ship is currently laid up at Monkey Bay.
view of Africa and African peoples, that African thought and behaviour needed radical change if they were be converted to western values. Like missionary work in other parts of Africa, it was viewed as a key means to prove the power and mystery of the Christian message.
In retrospect there is evidence of a lack of missionary sensitivity to many aspects of African culture, the injustices of early colonial land policies, the low priority given to theological education, and the slowness to ordain African clergy. But much as missionaries must be viewed as principally propagators of basic religion, their work in introducing ideas of western medicine and technology undoubtedly had a profound impact on the foundations of modern public health in the region. By 1965, churches provided around 45 per cent of all hospital beds in Malawi.
Some of the missionaries who spent time on the ship recognised the ironic nature of elements of their work. The Rev. George Wilson recorded in his diary:
However, most commentators would have accepted that radical change was now an urgent requirement, as was made clear by the Rev. Robert Keable
a missionary in Zanzibar
:
The personal cost was high. In the gardens of St. Michael's church at Blantyre
, the city named after Livingstone's birthplace in Scotland, is a memorial plaque to fourteen members of the Nyasaland Mission who died in the service of the Church of Scotland
's African missions. The dates of death given on the plaque range from 1890 to 1919. A passage from the Gospel of Matthew
reads: "He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it".
The last formal inspection in 1992 revealed little damage to the riveted steel hull; although a single skin hull no longer complies with modern regulations, she has been granted an exemption on the grounds of historical importance. The higher quality of steel produced in 1899 no doubt also played a part—-after placing the vessel in a dry dock at Monkey Bay
in May 2009, inspecting marine engineer Pieter Volschenk concluded that more-recently constructed ships looked in worse condition after only twenty years at sea.
Landlocked Malawi is one of the World's most densely populated and least developed countries. Under a programme led by the Government of Malawi and supported by the independent Chauncy Maples Malawi Trust in Britain, the restored Scottish vessel will return to the task for which she was conceived when enough funds have been raised. An onboard medical team will provide support and treatment to one of the world's poorest nations; with an average life expectancy of only 44 years, millions of lake dwellers currently have no access to health services and face high rates of malaria, HIV-AIDS and tuberculosis. The Chauncy Maples has therefore outlived almost three lifetimes of the people she will continue to serve.
At present the only option for lake dwellers is to travel by dug-out canoe
, risking the dangerous lake currents, storms and crocodiles. Recommissioning the Chauncy Maples would offer the prospect of free treatment for common diseases, simple surgical operations and dentistry. A new diesel engine will be powered by biofuel
extracted from jatropha
, a non-edible indigenous tropical plant grown locally. The Government of Malawi has committed itself to match any personal donations from the UK to support the Chauncy Maples project.
Motor ship
A motor ship or motor vessel is a ship propelled by an internal combustion engine, usually a diesel engine. The name of motor ships are often prefixed with MS, M/S, MV or M/V.- See also :...
and former steamship
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
that was launched in 1901 as SS Chauncy Maples. She has spent her entire career on Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi , is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the Great Rift Valley system of East Africa. This lake, the third largest in Africa and the eighth largest lake in the world, is located between Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania...
(formerly more widely known by its Tanzanian name of Lake Nyasa) and is regarded as the oldest ship in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. After more than one hundred years' service she will be restored for use as a floating medical clinic to support the several million lakeshore dwellers whose average life expectancy is 44 years. The Government of Malawi
Politics of Malawi
Politics of Malawi takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Malawi is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the...
offered support for this in 2009 but it will depend on the results of charity fundraising.
Shipbuilders Alley & McLellan, Polmadie
The location of the Alley & McLellan shipyardShipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
in Polmadie
Polmadie
Polmadie is a district of Glasgow, a city in Scotland. Polmadie is situated south of the River Clyde, and adjacent to the Gorbals....
, Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire or the County of Lanark ) is a Lieutenancy area, registration county and former local government county in the central Lowlands of Scotland...
, might appear perverse, as the yard was a considerable distance from the River Clyde
Clyde
-Places named Clyde:In Scotland:* River Clyde* Firth of ClydeIn Australia:* Clyde, New South Wales* Clyde, Victoria* Clyde River, New South WalesIn Canada:* Clyde, Prince Edward Island* Clyde, Quebec* Clyde, Ontario* Clyde, Alberta...
, with the expansive final approach into Glasgow Central Station
Glasgow Central station
Glasgow Central is the larger of the two present main-line railway terminals in Glasgow, the largest city in Scotland. The station was opened by the Caledonian Railway on 31 July 1879 and is currently managed by Network Rail...
posing just one of many barriers between it and the Clyde. However, the company specialised in supporting the far reaches of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
by building vessels that were dismantled into kit form once they had been completed.
The resulting set of parts was frequently enormous and a daunting logistical task to transport. Re-assembly also depended heavily upon the availability of skilled labour at the customer’s premises. However, as in the case of the Chauncy Maples, this was frequently the only viable option when the ultimate destination was very far inland, away from any semblance of modern communications.
Purpose and delivery
The SS Chauncy Maples was destined to steam the extensive waters of Lake Nyasa, the most southerly lake in East Africa. At 350 miles (563.3 km) long and 50 miles (80.5 km) wide it is the eighth largest inland water in the World. It is also the second deepest lake in Africa and home to more fish species than any other lake on Earth, giving an easy source of food for those who live around its shores.Conceived and commissioned by the Universities' Mission to Central Africa
Universities' Mission to Central Africa
The Universities' Mission to Central Africa was a missionary society established by members of the Anglican Church within the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, and Dublin. It was firmly in the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the Church, and the first to devolve authority to a bishop in the...
(UMCA), the 150 ton ship was one of the last designs produced by Henri Marc Brunel
Henri Marc Brunel
Henry Marc Brunel was the second son of the celebrated English engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and followed his father's footsteps in becoming a civil engineer....
, son of the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
. Once dismantled, the complex kit of almost 3,481 parts was transported by cargo ship to Portuguese East Africa, then towed by barge up the dangerous waters of the Zambezi
Zambezi
The Zambezi is the fourth-longest river in Africa, and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. The area of its basin is , slightly less than half that of the Nile...
.
The boiler was built by Abbott of Newark
Newark-on-Trent
Newark-on-Trent is a market town in Nottinghamshire in the East Midlands region of England. It stands on the River Trent, the A1 , and the East Coast Main Line railway. The origins of the town are possibly Roman as it lies on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way...
. It weighed 11 tons and was transported in one piece on a special wagon fitted with Sentinel
Sentinel Waggon Works
Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries and locomotives.-Alley & MacLellan, Sentinel Works, Jessie Street Glasgow:...
wheels, to be hauled overland by 450 Ngoni tribesmen for 350 miles (563.3 km) through uncharted malarial land to the East African Rift
East African Rift
The East African Rift is an active continental rift zone in eastern Africa that appears to be a developing divergent tectonic plate boundary. It is part of the larger Great Rift Valley. The rift is a narrow zone in which the African Plate is in the process of splitting into two new tectonic plates...
. The other parts of the ship were man-handled or carried on the heads of men and women over difficult terrain and across river beds: they averaged only 3 miles (5 km) a day.
David Livingstone
David Livingstone
David Livingstone was a Scottish Congregationalist pioneer medical missionary with the London Missionary Society and an explorer in Africa. His meeting with H. M. Stanley gave rise to the popular quotation, "Dr...
, the first European to reach the lake and an evangelist for steamboat missions, had made much quicker progress in 1859, claiming much of the area surrounding the lake as part of the British Empire, forming the colony of Nyasaland. Although Portugal took control of the eastern shores of the lake, the islands of Likoma
Likoma
Likoma can mean:*Likoma Island – an island surrounded by Lake Malawi*Likoma District – an administrative district of Malawi*Likoma, Malawi – a town located on Likoma Island that serves as the administrative capital of Likoma District...
and Chizumulu were colonised by Scottish missionaries and, as a result, became part of Nyasaland rather than Portuguese East Africa
Portuguese East Africa
Mozambique or Portuguese East Africa was the common name by which the Portuguese Empire's territorial expansion in East Africa was known across different periods of time...
(now Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
).
Reassembly
Re-assembly of the Chauncy Maples proved to be even more arduous than the journey—in error, the part numbers had been stamped on each section prior to the galvanising process, making the task for the African engineers even more complex. It took two years to re-assemble; the vessel was finally launched on 6 June 1901 and named after Bishop Chauncy MaplesChauncy Maples
Chauncy Maples was a British clergyman and Anglican missionary who became Bishop of Likoma in East Africa.Born in 1852, Maples had sailed for Zanzibar in 1876 where he set up clinics and schools for released slaves. Ten years later he founded the Anglican Mission on Likoma Island...
, an Anglican missionary, later Bishop of Nyasaland. Tragically while on the way to take up his duties, his boat capsized during a storm on Lake Nyasa and he drowned because of the weight of his cassock.
Hospital ship, missionary school and the extinction of the slave trade
Missionaries brought to Africa far more than religion and the UMCA had a very clear vision for their £9,000 investment. The ship had three overt tasks – to give the lake a hospital ship, a missionary school and an emergency refuge from Arab slave traders. In reality, the goals were of more global importance; as one of the Mission’s founding supporters, the Bishop of OxfordBishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
, Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce was an English bishop in the Church of England, third son of William Wilberforce. Known as "Soapy Sam", Wilberforce was one of the greatest public speakers of his time and place...
, had made clear, the prime task was "the work of civilising commerce, the extinction of the slave-trade and, if possible, the colonisation of Africa".
Lake Nyasa was remote even by African standards, and initial progress with medical provision at Likoma was erratic. The programme had been introduced in 1894, during the brief stay of a UMCA physician. His replacement was the Rev John Edward Hine
John Edward Hine
John Edward Hine was an Anglican bishop in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.-Life:He was born in 1857 and educated at University College School and University College, London. A medical doctor, after ordination he was sent as a missionary to Likoma and was soon promoted to be Bishop of the area...
, who although also a medical doctor was ultimately little interested in this aspect of his duties. When Hine was appointed Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa in 1896 he chose to concentrate on spiritual rather than health-related matters.
Blantyre, Malawi
Blantyre or Mandala is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, the largest city with an estimated 732,518 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, Lilongwe...
mission, embarked on an anti-smallpox vaccination program.
For a poorly-resourced mission, the cost of maintaining the steamer required a strong focus on local provisioning. With a draught
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
permitting access to all areas of the lake, the ship itself was largely self-sustaining, her steam engine powered by wood scavenged from the shore areas. But the matter of slave raiding was more problematic, requiring not only manpower for site security, but also an appreciation of the uneasy boundaries that lay between the worlds of evangelism, medicine and trade. Finding appropriately qualified crew prepared to accept low pay and the tribulations of life on the lake was one thing; the Mission’s unyielding insistence on celibacy among its European staff was an even greater recruitment challenge. Behind all this lay the tensions arising from the Mission’s intentional policy of overextension of its mission surrounding Lake Nyasa. The Chauncy Maples operated in the contradictory world of an evangelical mission which offered desperately needed medical support to the poor in an environment of political instability and unfettered imperial capitalism.
The ship has served much longer than her name-sake. Apart from a period of service during the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
as a troop carrier and gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
, she served the inhabitants of Nyasaland for half a century until 1953, when she was sold and converted into a trawler
Trawler
A fishing trawler is a commercial fishing vessel designed to operate fishing trawls. Trawling is a method of fishing that involves actively dragging or pulling a trawl through the water behind one or more trawlers. Trawls are fishing nets that are pulled along the bottom of the sea or in midwater...
. In 1967 the Malawian government bought her, refitted her as a passenger and cargo ship and replaced her steam engine with a Crossley
Crossley
Crossley, based in Manchester, United Kingdom, was a pioneering company in the production of internal combustion engines. Since 1988 it has been part of the Rolls-Royce Power Engineering group.More than 100,000 Crossley oil and gas engines have been built....
in-line diesel engine. Her steam engine is preserved in the Lake Malawi Museum at Mangochi
Mangochi
Mangochi is a township in the Southern Region of Malawi. Located near the southern end of Lake Malawi, in colonial times it used to be called Fort Johnston. As of 2008 it has a population of 51,429.-History:...
. The ship is currently laid up at Monkey Bay.
Controversies of European Christian missions
Although work in the field of health was conducted out of the conviction that western medicine was good for Africans, it was not an entirely altruistic programme. The missionaries were to reflect the emerging VictorianVictorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
view of Africa and African peoples, that African thought and behaviour needed radical change if they were be converted to western values. Like missionary work in other parts of Africa, it was viewed as a key means to prove the power and mystery of the Christian message.
In retrospect there is evidence of a lack of missionary sensitivity to many aspects of African culture, the injustices of early colonial land policies, the low priority given to theological education, and the slowness to ordain African clergy. But much as missionaries must be viewed as principally propagators of basic religion, their work in introducing ideas of western medicine and technology undoubtedly had a profound impact on the foundations of modern public health in the region. By 1965, churches provided around 45 per cent of all hospital beds in Malawi.
Some of the missionaries who spent time on the ship recognised the ironic nature of elements of their work. The Rev. George Wilson recorded in his diary:
"Wherever a European goes he seems to carry some subtle power of change; whether it be the government official, the missionary, the planter or the trader, each is working for change, whether he knows it or not. This is a matter of great anxiety to all who love Africans, for I cannot feel at all certain that this change must necessarily be for the better."
However, most commentators would have accepted that radical change was now an urgent requirement, as was made clear by the Rev. Robert Keable
Robert Keable
Robert Keable was a British novelist, formerly a missionary and priest in the Church of England. He resigned his ministry following his experiences in the First World War and caused a scandal with his 1921 novel Simon Called Peter, the tale of a priest's wartime affair with a young nurse...
a missionary in Zanzibar
Zanzibar
Zanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...
:
"We walked into the partially walled compound or court representing the slave-market a bona fide affair, not like the caravanseraiCaravanseraiA caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
which used to be fitted up and furnished by the CaireneCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
DragomanDragomanA dragoman was an interpreter, translator and official guide between Turkish, Arabic, and Persian-speaking countries and polities of the Middle East and European embassies, consulates, vice-consulates and trading posts...
for the inspection of curious tourists. A wooden cage, about twenty feet square, often contained some one hundred and fifty men, women, and children, who every day were 'knocked down' to the highest bidder in the public place."
The personal cost was high. In the gardens of St. Michael's church at Blantyre
Blantyre, Malawi
Blantyre or Mandala is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, the largest city with an estimated 732,518 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, Lilongwe...
, the city named after Livingstone's birthplace in Scotland, is a memorial plaque to fourteen members of the Nyasaland Mission who died in the service of the Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
's African missions. The dates of death given on the plaque range from 1890 to 1919. A passage from the Gospel of Matthew
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
reads: "He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it".
Proposed restoration
Monkey Bay
Monkey Bay or Lusumbwe is a town in Mangochi whichi is in the Mangochi District in the Southern Region of Malawi. The town is on the shore of Lake Malawi and is one of the main ports on Lake Malawi. The population of Monkey Bay is estimated to be 14,591 as of 2008. Monkey Bay is from Lilongwe,...
in May 2009, inspecting marine engineer Pieter Volschenk concluded that more-recently constructed ships looked in worse condition after only twenty years at sea.
Landlocked Malawi is one of the World's most densely populated and least developed countries. Under a programme led by the Government of Malawi and supported by the independent Chauncy Maples Malawi Trust in Britain, the restored Scottish vessel will return to the task for which she was conceived when enough funds have been raised. An onboard medical team will provide support and treatment to one of the world's poorest nations; with an average life expectancy of only 44 years, millions of lake dwellers currently have no access to health services and face high rates of malaria, HIV-AIDS and tuberculosis. The Chauncy Maples has therefore outlived almost three lifetimes of the people she will continue to serve.
At present the only option for lake dwellers is to travel by dug-out canoe
Dugout (boat)
A dugout or dugout canoe is a boat made from a hollowed tree trunk. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. Monoxylon is Greek -- mono- + ξύλον xylon -- and is mostly used in classic Greek texts. In Germany they are called einbaum )...
, risking the dangerous lake currents, storms and crocodiles. Recommissioning the Chauncy Maples would offer the prospect of free treatment for common diseases, simple surgical operations and dentistry. A new diesel engine will be powered by biofuel
Biofuel
Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
extracted from jatropha
Jatropha
Jatropha is a genus of approximately 175 succulent plants, shrubs and trees , from the family Euphorbiaceae. The name is derived from the Greek words ἰατρός , meaning "physician," and τροφή , meaning "nutrition," hence the common name physic nut. Mature plants produce separate male and female...
, a non-edible indigenous tropical plant grown locally. The Government of Malawi has committed itself to match any personal donations from the UK to support the Chauncy Maples project.