Congo River and "Congo" is the preferred English name in 19th-century literature, although references to "Zahir" or "Zaire" as the name used by the inhabitants remained common. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo are named after it, as was the previous Republic of the Congo which had gained independence in 1960 from the Belgian Congo. The Republic of Zaire during 1971–1997 was also named after the river, after its name in French and Portuguese. The Congo's drainage basin covers , an area larger than India. The Congo's discharge at its mouth ranges from , with an
What Lies Before Us What Lies Before Us What Lies Before Us is a comedic play by Morris Panych. It takes place in the Canadian Rocky Mountains in 1884, where a railway survey team, Keating and Ambrose, and their Chinese servant Wing, are stranded after being abandoned by their wilderness guide. Keating and Ambrose argue over what to do - winter approaches and their food supply is dwindling. Ambrose eventually decides to go for help, but an avalanche injures his leg and traps them. Ambrose learns that Keating has contracted rabies from a squirrel, and that he himself has gangrene on his injured leg.