sentences:  Belgium was short of people with tropical experience but Leopold was adept at recruiting other European nationalities for his schemes.Central Africa was a wild frontier attracting mercenaries for hire.At the recommendation of British-American explorer Henry Morton Stanley, who had already acted for Leopold in the Congo, the 27 years old Swahili speaking Captain William Stairs was appointed to lead the expedition, on the basis of his experience on the Emin Pasha Relief Expedition on which he had become Stanley's second in command.