Part 19
After a weary day’s march, the camping-ground, adorned as it was with some fine talha-trees, and surrounded with small ridges and detached masses of rock, on which now depended the beauty of the scene, cheered our minds, and fitted us for another long day’s work. Soon after we started, the ground became rugged and stony, and full of ridges of sand- stone, bristling with small points and peaks. In this wild and rugged ground, our people amused themselves and us with hunting down a lizard, which tried to escape from the hands of its pursuers in the crevices of the rocky buttresses. Then followed broad shallow valleys, at times overgrown with a little herbage, but generally very barren; winding along them we turned round a larger cluster of heights which seemed to obstruct our route. Bare and desolate as the country appears, it is covered, as well as the whole centre of the desert, with large herds of wild oxen (_Antilope bubalis_), which rove about at large, and, according as they are more or less hunted, linger in favoured districts or change their haunts. Our men tried to catch them, but were unsuccessful, the animal, clumsy and sluggish as it appears, climbing the rocks with much more ease than men unaccustomed to this sort of sport, and, owing to the ruggedness of the ground, being soon lost sight of.
At five o’clock in the afternoon the heights on our left rose to a greater elevation, as much as 1000 feet, bristling with cones, and formed more picturesque masses. Resting on the spurs of the mountain- range was a peculiar knot of cliffs, ridges of rocks, and isolated perpendicular pillars, through which our road led with a gradual ascent till we reached the highest ground, and then descended into a shallow valley furnished with a tolerable supply of herbage and a few talha- trees, some of which, with their young leaves, soon attracted the attention of the famished camels. The poor animals were left grazing all night, which recruited their strength a little. These long stretches were fatiguing both for man and beast; and they were the more trying for the traveller, as, instead of approaching by them in long strides the wished-for regions to the south, there was scarcely any advance at all in that direction, the whole route leading to the west.
[Sidenote: Thursday, August 8th.]
After a mile and a half’s march the country became more open and free, and those ridges of granite rock which had been characteristic of the region just passed over ceased; but ahead of us considerable mountain- masses were seen, the whole mountainous district, in which the long range called Isétteti is conspicuous, being named Ánahef. After a march of about ten miles, a path branched off from our road towards the west, leading to a more favoured place, called Tádent[87], where the moisture collected by the mountain-masses around seems to produce a richer vegetation, so that it is the constant residence of some Azkár families; it is distant from this place about sixteen miles. Here some advanced heights approach the path, and more talha-trees appear; and further on the bottom of the fiumara was richly overgrown with bú rékkebah (_Avena Forskalii_), grass very much liked by the camels, and which we had not observed before on our route. The country ahead of us formed a sort of defile, into which I thought we should soon enter, when suddenly, behind the spur of a ridge projecting into the plain on our left, we changed our direction, and entering a wide valley inclosed by two picturesque ranges of rocks, we there encamped.
The valley is called Nghákeli, and is remarkable as well on account of its picturesque appearance as because it indicates the approach to a more favoured region. Besides being richly overgrown with luxuriant herbage of different species, as sebót, bú rékkebah, shiʿa, and adorned with fine talha-trees, it exhibited the first specimens of the _Balanites Ægyptiaca_ (or “hajilíj,” as it is called by the Arabs, “áddwa” by the Háusa people), the rope-like roots of which, loosened by the torrent which at times sweeps along the valley, grew to an immense length over the ground. I walked up the valley to a distance of two miles. Compared with the arid country we had been travelling over latterly, it made upon me just the same impression which the finest spots of Italy would produce on a traveller visiting them from the north of Europe. The Kél-owí had chosen the most shady talha-tree for a few hours’ repose; and I sat down a moment in their company. They gave me a treat of their palatable fura, or ghussub-water, the favourite (and in a great many cases the only) dish of the Absenáwa.
In the evening Mr. Richardson bought from some sportsmen a quantity of the meat of the wadán, or (as the Tawárek call it) aúdád (_Ovis tragelaphos_), an animal very common in the mountainous districts of the desert, and very often found in company with the wild ox. As for myself, I kept my tent, filling up from my memorandum-book my last day’s journal, and then, full of the expectation that we were now about to enter more pleasant regions, lay down on my hard couch.
[Footnote 84: This word “éneli” occurs in the Travels of Ebn Batúta.]
[Footnote 85: See above, p. 229.]
[Footnote 86: The appellative Sídi appears to be an honourable distinction among the Hogár; and the messenger who brought us this news generally called the chieftain of whom he spoke only by this name, Sídi. This is also the name by which Sultan Shafo’s father is generally called. The whole tribe of the Urághen seems even to have the surname Síd-azkár. To what extent this name Sídi is abused in Timbúktu, I shall have occasion to observe in the further course of my travels.]
[Footnote 87: In Mr. Richardson’s Journal, vol. i. p. 194., this place has been confounded with Janet, the name having been probably written in the MS. “Tanet,” a form used also by Mr. Overweg, and which seems to be verified.]
CHAP. XII.
DANGEROUS APPROACH TO ASBEN.
[Sidenote: Friday, August 9th.]
There had been much talk about our starting at midnight; but, fortunately, we did not get off before daylight, so that I was able to continue my exact observations of the route, which was now to cross the defile observed yesterday afternoon, which already began to impart quite a characteristic aspect to the country. There were some beautifully-shaped cones rising around it, while beyond them an uneven tract stretched out, crowded with small elevations, which gradually rose to greater height; among them one peak, of very considerable elevation, was distinguished by its graceful form, and seemed worthy of a sketch. Attached to it was a lower rocky range, with a very marked horizontal crest, while running parallel to our path were small ledges of gneiss. After a march of seven miles and a half, we ascended a considerable range of rugged eminences, from the crest of which we followed a steep descent into an uneven rocky tract intersected by several shallow beds of torrents; and then, just as the heat began, we reached the valley of Arókam, where we encamped at about half an hour’s distance from the well, and opposite to a branch-wadi through which lay our next day’s route. In the afternoon I climbed the highest of the cones rising above the cliffs, but without obtaining any distant prospect.
[Illustration]
[Sidenote: Saturday, August 10th.]
The active buzu Amankay, who early in the morning went once more to the well in order to fill a few water-skins, brought the news that a considerable caravan, consisting chiefly of Aníslimen or Merabetín from Tintaghodé, had arrived at the well the evening before, on their road to Ghát, and that they protested against our visiting their country, and still more against our approaching their town. Notwithstanding the bad disposition of these people towards us, I managed to induce one of them, who visited our encampment, to take charge of letters addressed by me to Háj Ibrahim, in Ghát, which I am glad to say arrived safely in Europe. Amankay reported to us that on his way to the well he had observed a small palm-tree.
We started rather late in the morning, entering the branch-wadi, which proved to be far more considerable than it seemed, and rich in talha- trees. In this way we kept winding along several valleys, till, after a march of three miles, we ascended and crossed a very interesting defile, or a slip in the line of elevation, bordered on both sides by a terraced and indented slope, the highest peaks of the ridge rising to not less than a thousand feet, while their general elevation was about six hundred feet. Mr. Overweg recognized this as gneiss. Close beyond this defile, at the foot of mounds of disintegrated granite, we encamped, to our great astonishment, a little after eight o’clock in the morning; but the reason of this short march was, that our companions, on account of the arrival of the caravan above mentioned, did not choose to stop at our former encampment, else they would have rested there to-day. In the afternoon a high wind arose, which upset our tent.
[Illustration]
[Sidenote: Sunday, August 11th.]
After a march of little more than two miles over an irregular tract of granite, in a state of great disintegration, intersected by crests of gneiss, we obtained from a higher level an interesting view over the whole region, and saw that beyond the hilly ground of broken granite a large plain of firm gravelly soil spread out, surrounded by a circle of higher mounts. Then followed a succession of flat shallow valleys overgrown with sebót and talha-trees, till the ridges on the right and left (the latter rising to about 800 feet) approached each other, forming a sort of wider passage or defile. The spur of the range to the left with its strongly marked and indented crest, formed quite an interesting feature.
[Illustration]
Beyond this passage we entered a bare gravelly plain, from which rose a few detached mounts, followed by more continuous ranges forming more or less regular valleys. The most remarkable of these is the valley Aséttere, which in its upper course, where it is called Ákafa, is supplied by the famous well, Tajétterat[88]; but as we were sufficiently supplied with water from Arókam, and as the well Aïsalen was near, we left it on one side.
We encamped at length in a valley joined by several branch-vales, and therefore affording a good supply of herbage, which the Kél-owí were anxious to collect as a supply for the journey over the entirely bare tract to Asïu. As for ourselves, one of our servants being utterly unfit for work, we could not lay in a supply. We had been rather unfortunate with this fellow; for having hired him in Múrzuk, he was laid up with the guineaworm from the very day that we left Ghát, and was scarcely of any use at all. This disease is extremely frequent among people travelling along this route; Amankay also was suffering from it, and at times became quite a burden. It attacked James Bruce even after his return to Europe; and I always dreaded it more than any other disease, during my travels in Central Africa; but fortunately, by getting a less serious one, which I may call sore legs, I got rid of the causes which I am sure, when acting in a stronger degree, produce the vena.
About sunset I ascended the eastern cliffs, which are very considerable, and from the highest peak, which rose to an elevation of more than 1200 feet above the bottom of the valley, obtained an extensive view. The whole formation consists of granite, and its kindred forms of mica, quartz, and felspar. The bottom of the valley bore evident traces of a small torrent which seems to refresh the soil occasionally; and the same was the case with several small ravines which descend from the south- eastern cliffs.
[Sidenote: Monday, August 12th.]
Our route followed the windings of the valley, which, further on, exhibited more ethel- than talha-trees, besides detached specimens of the _Asclepias_. After a march of four miles and a half, we came to two wells about four feet deep, and took in a small supply of water. The granite formation at the foot of the cliffs on our left was most beautiful, looking very like syenite. While we were taking in the water, flocks of wildfowl (_Pterocles_) were flying over our heads, and expressed by repeated cries their dissatisfaction at our disturbing their solitary retreat. The ethel, the talha, and the áddwa, or abórak, enliven these secluded valleys.
Delighted by the report of Amankay, who came to meet us, that he had succeeded in detaining the caravan of the Tinýlkum at Aïsala, where they were waiting for us, we cheerfully continued our march; but before we reached the place the whole character of the country changed, the cliffs being craggy and split into huge blocks heaped upon each other in a truly Cyclopean style, such as only Nature can execute, while the entire hollow was covered with granite masses, scarcely allowing a passage. Descending these, we got sight of the encampment of the caravan, in a widening of the hollow; and after paying our compliments to all the members of this motley band, we encamped a little beyond, in a recess of the western cliffs.
The Tinýlkum[89] as well as Bóro Serki-n-turáwa were very scantily provided. They had lost so much time on the road on our account, that it was necessary, as well as just, to leave them part of the provisions which they were carrying for us. All our luggage we found in the best state. Very much against their will, our companions had been supplied on the road with the flesh of nine camels, which had succumbed to the fatigues of the march; and some of them, and especially our energetic friend Háj ʿOmar, had obtained a tolerable supply by hunting: besides wadáns they had killed also several gazelles, though we had scarcely seen any.
They had been lingering in this place four days, and were most anxious to go on. But we had a great deal to do; for all our luggage was to be repacked, all the water-skins to be filled, and herbage and wood to be collected for the road. Besides Ibrahim, who was lame and useless, Overweg and myself had only two servants, one of whom (Mohammed, the liberated Tunisian slave) was at times a most insolent rascal.
Besides we were pestered by the Kél-owí and by Utaeti, and I got into a violent dispute with Fárreji, the shameless freed-slave of Lusu; still I managed on the morning of the following day to rove about a little. Just above the well rises a confused mass of large granite blocks, the lowest range of which was covered with Tefínagh inscriptions, one of which I copied. It was written with uncommon accuracy and neatness, and if found near the coast would be generally taken for Punic.[90] I was obliged to be cautious, as there was a great deal of excitement and irritation in the caravan, and from what had previously taken place all the way from Múrzuk, everybody regarded us as the general purveyors, and cherished the ardent hope that at last it would be his good fortune, individually, to get possession of our property.
[Illustration]
In the afternoon the Tinýlkum started in advance, and we followed them, the hollow gradually widening and becoming clothed with large knots of low ethel-bushes. At the point where this valley joins another, and where a large quantity of herbage bedecked the ground, we found our friends encamped, and chose our ground a little beyond them, near a low cliff of granite rocks. All the people were busily employed cutting herbage for the journey, while Mr. Richardson at length succeeded in satisfying Utaeti, who was to return. He had been begging most importunately from me; and by way of acknowledging my obligations to him I presented him, on parting, with a piece of white muslin and a red sásh, together with something for Hatíta.
These parties were scarcely quieted when others took their place, urging their pretensions to our acknowledgments; and we had just started the next day when Bóro Serki-n-turáwa despatched, underhand, my smart friend the Tawáti ʿAbd el Káder, with full instructions to give me a lecture on his boundless power and influence in the country which we were fast approaching. I was aware of this before, and knew that, in our situation as unprotected travellers in a new country, we ought to have secured his friendly disposition from the beginning; but the means of the expedition being rather limited, Mr. Richardson had made it a principle never to give till compelled by the utmost necessity, when the friendly obligation connected with the present was, if not destroyed, at least greatly diminished.
The structure of the valley soon became irregular, and the character of the country more desolate, a circumstance which seems to be expressed by its name, Ikadémmelrang. All was granite in a state of the utmost disintegration, and partly reduced to gravel, while detached cones were rising in all directions. Marching along over this dreary and desolate country, we reached, at half past two in the afternoon, after a gradual and almost imperceptible ascent, the highest level of the desert plain, from whence the isolated rocky cones and ridges look like so many islands rising from the sea. A sketch which I made of one of these mounts will give an idea of their character.
[Illustration]
After a march of twelve hours and a half, which I would have gladly doubled, provided our steps had been directed in a straight line towards the longed-for regions of Negroland, we encamped on hard ground, so that we had great difficulty in fixing the pegs of our tents. The sky was overcast with thick clouds; but our hopes of a refreshing rain were disappointed.
[Sidenote: Thursday, August 15th.]
The character of the country continued the same, though the weather was so foggy that the heights at some distance were quite enveloped, and became entirely invisible. This was a sure indication of our approaching tropical climes. After a march of three miles and a half, the ground became more rugged for a short time, but was soon succeeded by a gravelly plain. The sky had become thickly clouded; and in the afternoon a high wind arose, succeeded, about two o’clock, by heavy rain, and by distant thunder, while the atmosphere was exceedingly heavy, and made us all feel drowsy.
It was three o’clock when we arrived at the Marárraba[91], the “half- way” between Ghát and Aïr, a place regarded with a kind of religious awe by the natives, who in passing place each a stone upon the mighty granite blocks which mark the spot. To our left we had irregular rocky ground, with a few elevations rising to greater height, and ahead a very remarkable granite crest, sometimes rising, at others descending, with its slopes enveloped in sand up to the very top. This ridge, which is called Giféngwetáng, and which looks very much like an artificial wall erected between the dry desert and the more favoured region of the tropics, we crossed further on through an opening like a saddle, and among sand-hills where the slaves of our companions ran about to pick up and collect the few tufts of herbage that were scattered over the surface, in order to furnish a fresh mouthful to the poor wearied animals. At four o’clock the sand-hills ceased, and were succeeded by a wide pebbly plain, on which, after six miles travelling, we encamped.
Our encampment was by no means a quiet one; and to any one who paid due attention to the character and disposition of the people, serious indications of a storm, which was gathering over us, became visible. Mohammed Bóro, who had so often given vent to his feelings of revenge for the neglect with which he had been treated, was all fire and fury; and stirring up the whole encampment, he summoned all the people to a council, having, as he said, received intelligence that a large party of Hogár was coming to Asïu. Not having paid much attention to the report about Sídi Jáfel’s expedition, I became anxious when made aware of the man’s fury; for I knew the motives which actuated him.
[Sidenote: Friday, August 16th.]
We started early. Gravelly and pebbly grounds succeeded each other, the principal formation being granite; but when, after a march of about thirteen miles, we passed the narrow sandy spur of a considerable ridge approaching our left, a fine species of white marble became visible. We then passed a rugged district, of peculiar and desolate appearance, called Ibéllakang, and crossed a ridge of gneiss covered with gravel. Here, while a thunder-storm was rising in the east, our caravan, to our great regret, divided, the Tinýlkum turning off towards the east, in order, as we were told, to look for a little herbage among the sand- hills. Meanwhile thick, heavy clouds, which had been discharging a great quantity of rain towards the east, broke over us at a quarter past four o’clock in the afternoon, when we were just in the act of crossing another rocky crest covered with gravel. A violent sand-storm, followed by heavy rain, which was driven along by a furious gale, soon threw the caravan into the utmost confusion, and made all observation impossible; but fortunately it did not last long.
It was on descending from this crest, while the weather cleared up, that the Háusa slaves, with a feeling of pride and joy, pointed out in the far distance “dútsi-n-Absen” (Mount Absen). Here the granite formation had been gradually succeeded by sandstone and slate. This district, indeed, seems to be the line of demarcation between two different zones.
At twenty minutes past six o’clock we at length encamped, but were again in the saddle at eleven o’clock at night, and in pale moonlight, sleepy and worn out as we were, began a dreadful night’s march. But altogether it proved to be a wise measure taken by the Kél-owí, who had reason to be afraid lest the Hogár, of whom they appeared to have trustworthy news, might overtake us before we reached the wells of Asïu, and then treat us as they pleased. Our companions, who were of course themselves not quite insensible to fatigue, as night advanced became very uncertain in their direction, and kept much too far to the south. When day dawned, our road lay over a flat, rocky, sand-stone surface, while we passed on our left a locality remarkable for nothing but its name, Efínagha.[92] We then descended from the rocky ground into the extremely shallow valley of Asïu, overgrown with scanty herbage of a kind not much liked by the camels. Here we encamped, near a group of four wells, which still belong to the Azkár, while a little further on there are others which the Kélowí regard as their own property. How it was that we did not encamp near the latter I cannot say. But the people were glad to have got so far. The wells, or at least two of them, afforded an abundant supply of water; but it was not of a good quality, and had a peculiar taste, I think on account of the iron ore with which it was impregnated.