144 
EUROPE AND AFRICA 
the whole of southern Algeria and the desert immediately 
south and penetrating as far into the central Sahara as 
Ghadames, Ghat, and Zouila. Then came a number of 
unsuccessful attempts, between 1873 and 1889, to establish a 
direct connection between southern Algeria and the Upper 
Niger country via the oases of the central Sahara. Of these 
the “Mission Choisy” penetrated twelve hundred kilo- 
meters south from Laghouat; and the ill-starred “Mission 
Flatters,” going by way of Biskra, in 1879 and 1880, passed 
beyond Ouargla, only to be massacred in the heart of the 
Sahara by the Touaregs. Two natives survived and, after 
incredible experiences, wandered into Biskra with the 
terrible news. In 1886, Lieutenant Palet lost his life in a 
similar expedition; and in 1889, the gifted explorer, Camille 
Douls, perished. 
The real work of southern expansion in the central 
Sahara was begun by Fernand Foureau, probably the great- 
est of the Sahara travelers, who explored carefully a number 
of routes across the desert between the years 1890 and 1894, 
acquired an intimate knowledge of the leading oases and 
their inhabitants, and extended his researches as far as In- 
Salah and Air. He was the first to recognize the strategic 
importance of the great oases of In-Salah and Tidikelt as a 
key to the control of the Sahara; and upon his advice the 
French decided to use force against the Touaregs, as the 
only method likely to give them control of the desert and to 
furnish security for life and property. “There is a constant 
succession of pillaging forays,” he wrote. “The consequence 
is, that the Sahara is in a constant state of turmoil and in- 
security; murders, theft, pillage, and ambushes are of 
everyday occurrence. It is quite certain that this state of 
things must stop all intercourse and commerce as well as all 
hope of exploring the country.” 
Accordingly the forward movement of the French forces