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The diary records Bell's years as Commissioner (later Governor) of Uganda, notable for his efforts to combat a sleeping sickness epidemic, develop cotton cultivation among other economic initiatives, and to improve the protectorate's transportation network. Bell describes his official duties and colleagues, Uganda’s peoples and landscape, and his social life and personal affairs. The diary contains one photograph (circa 150 sheets).

154 x 204 mm. glossy print.

Prominent subjects include the extent of Bell's powers as Commissioner of Uganda; descriptions of officials, visitors, and African leaders; Bell's social life, recreation and health; attempts to encourage the development of the railways and water transportation; the cultivation of cotton and rubber; accounts of the sleeping sickness epidemic; and descriptions of Entebbe, Kampala and other places he visited (60 sheets).

Subjects include financial estimates, building plans and the opening of Government House; entertaining and visitors; the hurricane insurance scheme; development of railways, roads, and a new port for Kampala; support for the cotton industry; visits to a Sleeping Sickness camp and an appeal for relief funds in Britain; the outbreak of famine; a visit to the CMS King’s School at Budo; a tour of the eastern provinces of the Protectorate; and a visit to British East Africa (67 sheets).

Photographs are numbered from left to right in vertical columns.

The diary (circa 80 pages) describes Christy's journey from London to Uganda, and his first tours of inspection for the Sleeping Sickness Commission. It also includes some zoological observations.

Copies of letters (circa 120 leaves) written by Christy to the Uganda and East Africa Exploration Syndicate. It had despatched him on a prospecting mission to locate forests rich in the Funtumia elastica tree, which was used for the production of rubber. Some of the letters include summaries of their contents in the margins.