Part 9
The place was the more disagreeable, as we remained here the three following days, El Bakáy endeavouring all the time to persuade the chief Ákhbi to restore the property which he had taken from the subjects of his liege lord. I was in the mean time, anxious to keep up a friendly intercourse with the people with whom I was thus brought into contact, although most of the Igwádaren had already gone on in advance to their new retreat, and at that time were collected at Ernésse; while the straightforward and fearless chief Wóghdugu, and his friend Shamuwél, were still behind. I took a great interest in the name of the latter; for I thought that the names of Shamuwél, Sául, and Daniél—all being of frequent occurrence among this tribe, while, as far as I am aware, none of them is found among the Arabs,—tend to confirm the closer relation which these Berbers keep up with the Canaanitic tribes than with the Arabs. There was, in particular, a man of the name of Sáma, who was very friendly with me. On reading with him some writing in “Tefínaghen,” or the native Berber character, I became aware that this word signifies nothing more than tokens or alphabet. For as soon as the people beheld my books, and observed that they all consisted of letters, they exclaimed repeatedly, “Tefínaghen—ay—Tefínaghen!” and my little friend Kúngu, who had just learned the Arabic alphabet, was very anxious to know something about the value of the letters. I here also had proof of the great dislike which the Tawárek have to the name of their father being mentioned, for when the little Haibálla, the companion of the son of the Sheikh, mentioned the death of Kúngu’s father, the little fellow flew into a great rage, and was ready to kill him on the spot.
I received, besides, a great deal of information from a young man who had lately come from the north, in order to study under the Sheikh. He belonged to the Welád Yoʿaza, a section of the tribe of the Méshedúf, which originally appears to have been of pure Berber extraction, being identical with the celebrated tribe of the Masúfa, but who, at present, have become Arabicised. He was evidently a man of a good family; but being now rather scantily supplied with food, he took refuge with me, in order to enjoy my hospitality. On this occasion I learned from him a great deal with regard to some districts of the desert, with which I had been unacquainted.
In the same encampment, we received full confirmation of the news with regard to the progress of the French towards the south, and of their having taken possession of Wárgelá. The excitement produced in consequence was very great, and made my situation extremely difficult and dangerous. The Sheikh El Bakáy came twice in the same afternoon to me, expressing his intention of uniting the strength of the Tawátíye and the Awelímmiden in a common attack upon the French. But I endeavoured to show him the absurdity of such a proceeding, telling him that they themselves would gain nothing by such inconsiderate conduct, and would only furnish a fresh pretext to the French for penetrating farther into the interior. Moreover, I gave it as my opinion, that the latter, unless instigated, would not undertake such a thing as a military expedition to these distant regions, but would endeavour to open commercial intercourse with them in a peaceful manner. There the matter stopped for the moment.
[Sidenote: Thursday, May 4th.]
All the exertions of the Sheikh to persuade Ákhbi to return the property which he had taken by force from the tribes placed under the protection of the Awelímmiden being in vain, the latter broke up his encampment, in order to pursue his journey westward in search of new protectors and allies. To prevent the mischief which might result from this course, my friend followed, and I was obliged reluctantly to accompany him. The river had fallen considerably since I had last visited this district, and the scanty foliage of the lower part of the trees in the swampy tract which we traversed in the beginning of our march, bore evident testimony to the higher state of the water some time before.
Leaving then our former camping-ground in Tens-aróri on one side, we encamped after a march of a little more than six miles, on ground which was still so extremely damp that almost all my luggage was spoiled, while it likewise exercised a most unfavourable effect upon my health. We had previously had evident signs of the approach of the rainy season; but, to-day, we had the first regular shower accompanied by a thunderstorm, and rain fell round about us in a much more considerable quantity. The Tawárek were well aware that this was the real beginning of the rainy season, giving vent to their feelings in the words “ákase yúse”—“the rainy season has set in;” but my Arab companions, who repeatedly assured me that long before the setting in of the rainy season I should certainly reach Sókoto, would not acknowledge this as a regular rain, but qualified it as quite an exceptional phenomenon connected with the setting of the “Pleiads,” and calling it in sequence, “mághreb el thrayá.”
There was a great dread of lions in our encampment. I especially was warned to be on my guard, as my camping-ground, which I had surrounded with a fence, closely approached a jungle of rank grass; but we passed the night unmolested.
[Sidenote: Friday, May 5th.]
Although I had been promised that we should certainly not pass this place on our return westward, nevertheless, in the morning the order was suddenly given to decamp; and on we went, Ákhbi in the van and we in the rear, passing many small temporary encampments of the Igwádaren, who were exiling themselves from their own country. Having thus made a short march of about four miles, through a country now rising in sandy downs, covered with siwák and dúm-bush, at other times spreading out in low swampy meadow-grounds, and leaving Índikuway on our left, we encamped again in the midst of a swamp, at a short distance from the bank of the river. Fortunately, there was some rising ground, opening a fine view over the river, which here formed an arm of about 600 yards in breadth, while the opposite shore of Áribínda exhibited a very pleasant background. Cautiously I pitched my tent as high as possible, with the door looking towards the river, in order to console myself with the aspect of the stream. A beautiful jéja or caoutchouc tree, here called énderen, which I scarcely remember to have seen anywhere else in the whole of this district, gave life and animation to the encampment. A few miles towards the west, the high sandy downs of Úle Tehárge formed also an object of great interest.
It was extremely fortunate that the ground of this encampment did not present such a uniform level as in our last day’s ámazágh, for in the afternoon we were visited by a violent tempest, which threw back the fence that we had erected around our camping-ground, upon ourselves and our horses, and threatened to tear the tent to pieces: then, having made the round of the whole horizon, it returned once more from the north and discharged itself in a terrific shower, which lasted more than two hours, and changed the whole of the lower part of the plain into a large lake.
This thunderstorm afforded evident proofs of the full power of the rainy season; and as I had not yet even begun my long journey eastward, through districts so full of large rivers and of swampy valleys, my feelings may be more easily imagined than described. I felt very dissatisfied with the Sheikh El Bakáy, and he, on his part, was well aware of it. His own trustworthy and amiable character inspired me with the confidence that I should at length get safely out of all my trouble; but an immense amount of Job-like patience was required, for we staid in this encampment the five following days.
But we had a little intercourse with some remarkable persons which gave me some occupation. The most interesting of the passers by were three noble ladies of the tribe of the Kél-hekíkan, well mounted on camels in an open cage, or jakhfa, of rather simple structure, with the exception of the rich ornament on the head of the animal, as is represented in the accompanying woodcut. But the ladies themselves afforded an interesting sight, being well formed, of rather full proportions, though very plainly dressed. Then the whole of the Igwádaren, male and female, passed by close to my tent. There were, besides, the Kél-terárart and the Kél-tamuláit, or, as the Arabs call them, Áhel e’ Sául; and I had a long conversation with a troop of eight horsemen of the latter, who, in the evening, came to my tent in order to pay their respects to me. I reciprocated fully their protestations of friendship, and requested one of the two kinsmen of the chief Sául, who were among this troop, to accompany me on my journey eastward, promising to see him safe to Mekka. But, although he greatly valued my offer, he was afraid of the Aréwan or Kél-gerés, and of the inhabitants of Áír.
[Illustration]
There was a great congregation of different chiefs with the Sheikh El Bakáy, and he flattered himself that he had made peace between inveterate enemies, such as E’ Téni and Wóghdugu; but the sequel showed that he was greatly mistaken, for these petty tribes cannot remain quiet for a moment. Great numbers of the Shémman-Ámmas were hovering round us, all of them begging for food. But my spirits were too much embittered to exercise great hospitality from the small stock of my provisions, which were fast dwindling away. Indeed, the stores which I had laid in, in the hope that they would last me until I reached Say, were almost consumed, and I was very glad to obtain a small supply of milk, which I usually bought with looking-glasses, or rather rewarded the gifts of the people by the acknowledgment of such a present. But these people were really very miserably off, and almost in a starving condition, all their property having been taken from them. They informed me that the Igwádaren had plundered twelve villages along the Eghírrëu, among others, those of Bámba, Égedesh, Aslíman, and Zómgoy.
The river was enlivened the whole day long with boats going up and down, and some of the people asserted that these boats belonged to the Fúlbe, who were looking out for an opportunity of striking a blow. The whole world seemed to be in a state of revolution. The news from the north of the advance of the French, the particulars of which, of course, could not but become greatly exaggerated, as the report was carried from tribe to tribe, excited my friend greatly, and the several letters, written by the people of Tawát, who were resident in Timbúktu, having reference to the same event, with which the messenger whom he had sent to that place returned, did not fail to increase his anxiety.
All these people seemed to be inspired with the same fear, that the French might without any further delay march from el Goléa, which they were said to have occupied, upon Timbúktu, or at least upon Tawát. On the whole it was very fortunate indeed that I was not in the town at this conjuncture, as in the first excitement these very people from Tawát, who previously had taken me under their especial protection, and defended me repeatedly, would have contributed to my ruin, as, from their general prejudice against a Christian, they lost all distinction between English and French, and represented me as a spy whose proceedings were connected with that expedition from the north.
They now urgently requested the Sheikh to write a letter to the whole community of Tawát, and to stimulate them to make an attack upon Wárgelá conjointly with the Hogár and Ázgar; but I did all in my power to prevent him from acceding to such a proposal, although he thought that I was greatly underrating the military strength of the people of Tawát. However, although I succeeded in preventing such a bold stroke of policy, I could not prevent his writing a letter to the French, in which he interdicted them from penetrating further into the interior, or entering the desert, under any pretext whatever, except as single travellers. He also wanted me to write immediately to Tripoli, to request that an Englishman should go as consul to Tawát; but I told him that this was not so easily done, and that he must first be able to offer full guarantee that the agent should be respected.
In my opinion it would be better if the French would leave the inhabitants of Tawát to themselves, merely obliging them to respect Europeans, and keep open the road to the interior; but although at that time I was not fully aware of the intimate alliance which had been entered into between the French and the English, I was persuaded that the latter neither could nor would protect the people of Tawát against any aggressive policy of the French, except by peaceable means, as Tawát is pre-eminently situated within the range of their own commerce. If both the English and French could agree on a certain line of policy with regard to the tribes of the interior, those extensive regions might, I think, be easily opened to peaceful intercourse. Be this as it may, under the pressure of circumstances, I found myself obliged to affix my name to the letter written by the Sheikh, as having been present at the time, and candour imposed upon me the duty of not signing a wrong name.
All this excitement, which was disagreeable enough, had, however, one great advantage for me, as I was now informed that letters had reached my address, and that I should have them; but I was astonished to hear that these letters had arrived in Ázawád some months previously. I expostulated very strongly with my friend upon this circumstance, telling him that if they wanted friendship and “imána,” or security of intercourse with us, they ought to be far more strict in observing the conditions consequent upon such a relation. I then received the promise that I should have the letters in a few days.
[Sidenote: Wednesday, May 10th.]
Our hosts the Kél-gógi removed their encampment, and we followed them, although my protector had repeatedly assured me that in our retrograde movement we should certainly not have to pass the fine caoutchouc-tree that adorned our encampment. Leaving the high sandy downs of Úle- Tehárge, on the banks of the river, we kept around the extensive swampy meadow-ground which spreads out behind them, several small encampments of the wandering Tawárek enlivening the green border of the swamp. Crossing, then, some rising ground beyond the reach of the wide expanse of shallow backwaters connected with the river, we came to the well- known creek of Amalélle, and followed its northerly shore till we reached its source or head, where our friend Ákhbi had taken up his encampment in the midst of a swampy meadow-ground, which afforded rich pasture to his numerous herds of cattle; for, as I have had occasion repeatedly to state, the Tawárek think nothing of encamping in the midst of a swamp.
As for ourselves, we were obliged to look out for some better-protected and drier spot, and therefore ascended the sandy downs, which rise to a considerable elevation, and are well adorned with talha-trees and siwák, or _Capparis sodata_. Having pitched my tent in the midst of an old fence, or zeríba, I stretched myself out in the cool shade, and forgetting for a moment the unpleasant character of my situation, enjoyed the interesting scenery of the landscape, which was highly characteristic of the labyrinth of backwaters and creeks which are connected with this large river of Western Central Africa.
At the foot of the downs was the encampment of our friends the Tawárek, with its larger and smaller leathern tents, some of them open and presenting the interior of these simple movable dwellings; beyond, the swampy creek, enlivened by a numerous herd of cattle half-immersed in the water; then a dense border of vegetation, and beyond in the distance, the white sandy downs of Ernésse, with a small strip of the river. I made a sketch of this pleasant and animated locality, which is represented in the plate opposite. The scenery was particularly beautiful in the moonlight when I ascended the ridge of the downs, which rise to about 150 feet in height. In the evening I received a little milk from the wife of one of the chiefs of the Kél-gógi of the name of Lámmege, who was a good-looking woman, and to whom I made a present of a looking-glass and a few needles in return. The Tawárek, while they are fond of their wives, and almost entirely abstain from polygamy, are not at all jealous; and the degree of liberty which the women enjoy is astonishing; but, according to all that I have heard, instances of faithlessness are very rare among the nobler tribes. Among the degraded sections, however, and especially among the Kél e’ Súk, female chastity appears to be less highly esteemed, as we find to be the case also among many Berber tribes at the time when El Bekrí wrote his interesting account of Africa.[26]
[Illustration: Drawn by J. M. Bernatz, from a Sketch by Dr. Barth.
M. & N. Hanhart, lith. et impt.
AMMALÉLLE.
May 10th, 1854.]
Meanwhile my good and benevolent protector was in a most unpleasant dilemma, between his regard for his own interest and his respect for myself. He severely rebuked the Tárki chief for having disturbed the friendly relation which had formerly existed between himself and me; for since our retrograde movement, in order to incite my friend to a greater degree of energy, I never went to his tent, although he repeatedly paid me a visit. At length, after mature consideration, the Sheikh had decided that I, together with the greater part of his followers, should go to Ernésse, there to await his return, while he himself intended to approach still nearer to Timbúktu, although he affirmed that he would not enter the town under any condition.
Thus we separated the next morning, and I took leave of the friends whom I had made among the tribe of the Igwádaren. These people were leaving their former homes and their former allies, in order to seek new dwelling-places and new friends. There was especially, the little Kúngu, who, early in the morning, came on his white horse to bid me farewell. We had become very good friends, and he used to call daily to talk with me about distant countries, and the different varieties of nations as far as he had any idea of such things. He was an intelligent and chivalrous lad, and with his long black hair, his large expressive eyes, and his melancholy turn of mind, I liked him much. When I told him that he would yet become one of the great chiefs of the Tawárek, and a celebrated warrior, he expressed his fear that it would be his destiny to die young like his brothers, who had all fallen in battle at an early age; but I consoled him, and promised that if any friend of mine should visit these regions after me, I would not fail to send him a present for himself. He regretted having left the neighbourhood of Bámba, which he extolled very highly on account of its fine trees and rich pasture- grounds; but he spoke enthusiastically of the Ráfar-n-áman, or, as the Arabs call it, the Rás el má, with the rich grassy backwaters and creeks which surround it, especially the valley called Tisórmaten, the reminiscences of which filled his boyish mind with the highest delight.
Thus I took leave of this young Tárki lad, after having given him such little presents as I could spare. Swinging himself upon his horse by means of his iron spear, he rode off with a martial air, probably never to hear of me again. I took the opposite direction, along the shore of the creek Amalélle, accompanied by a guide whom Áhmed el Wadáwi had brought from Ernésse, and followed by Mohammed ben Khottár the Sheikh’s nephew, Sídi-Mohammed the Sheikh’s son, and almost the whole of his followers. However, the company of all these people did not inspire me with so much confidence that my friend and protector would not tarry long behind, as the fact of the presence of his favourite female cook Díko who accompanied us, and whose services my friend could scarcely dispense with; and I thus agreed in the opinion of his confidential pupil Mohammed el Ámín, who, knowing well the character of his teacher, disputed with energy with those amongst my companions who thought that the Sheikh would send us word to join him in the town.
I therefore cheerfully enjoyed once more the very peculiar character of this river district, with its many creeks, small necks of land, and extensive swamps. Since we had last visited this place the waters had retired considerably, and the extensive swampy lowlands between Temáharót and Ernésse had become quite dry, so that we had to cross only a narrow channel-like strip of water. Following then the sandy downs, we soon reached the well known encampment of the Kél-n-nokúnder, where I was hospitably entertained with a bowl of ghussub water. I was disposed to enjoy in privacy the view over the river, while lying in the shade of a siwák, but the number of Tawárek who were passing by did not allow me much leisure, for the tents of Sául, as well as those of El Wóghdugu, were at a short distance. But these people, conscious of their having deserved punishment at the hand of their liege lord, were frightened away by the rising of a simúm, as it is popularly believed in the country that this wind is the sign of the approach of the great army, or tábu, of the Awelímmiden, and they all started off the next morning.
The river, which is here very broad, forms a large low island called Banga-gúngu, the “hippopotamus island,” while a smaller one, distinguished by a fine tamarind tree, is called Búre. I endeavoured in the afternoon to reach the bank of the river itself; but it is beset with a peculiar kind of grass of great height, armed with such offensive bristles that it is almost impossible to penetrate through it. In the latter part of the cold and during the hot season, a path leads along this low grassy shore, but, during some months of the year, the water reaches the very downs. It is a fine spot for an encampment, the air being good. But the whole site consists only of a narrow sandy ridge, backed towards the north by an extensive swamp, the border of which is girt with the richest profusion of vegetation, interwoven with creeping plants, and interspersed with dúm-bush. This place is called “úggada,” and forms a haunt for numbers of wild beasts, especially lions, and the inhabitants gave an animated description of a nocturnal combat which, two days previously, had raged between two lions on account of a lioness.