Part 12

Here in Díggera, where we were only one good day’s march distant from the capital of Mándará, our friends were obliged to come to a decision upon the future destination of the expedition. After the news which had arrived some days previously, that the petty chief of Mándará, whose ancestor had once completely defeated a countless host of the Bórnu people, had decided upon making resistance, they had been very silent and dejected, and were therefore extremely delighted when at length, to- day, a servant of the obstinate vassal made his appearance with a present of ten beautiful female slaves, and the offer of complete submission. So at least we were told; but the affair seemed very doubtful, and a native of Mándará, or, as they say, Ár-Wándalá, afterwards assured me that his master, the powerful “Tuksé” of Khakhúndala, had been so far from making his submission to the insolent “Móthaké” (by this name they call the Bórnu people), that, on the contrary, he had treated them with contempt. Which of the two assertions was correct I do not know; but it is probable that the chief of Mándará thought it prudent to consent to some sort of compromise—perhaps through the intermediation of ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, the sheikh’s brother.

Whatever may have been the case, the vizier informed us in the evening, in a very cheerful manner, that the affair with Mándará had taken the most favourable turn, and that in consequence the sheikh, with a small part of the army, was to retrace his steps, while he himself, with the far larger portion, was to undertake an expedition into the Músgu country, and that we, of course, were to accompany him. Now we were well aware that the object of this expedition was partly to make slaves, and that, in our character as messengers of the British government, we ought to endeavour to keep aloof from anything connected with the infamous subject of slavery; but as we could not hinder it if we kept back, and as by accompanying the expedition we might prevent a deal of mischief, and might likewise have a fair opportunity of convincing ourselves whether what was related of the cruelty of the Mohammedans in these expeditions was true or exaggerated, we decided upon accompanying the vizier. At the same time it was of the utmost importance to visit that very region which was the object of the expedition, as it was the only way to decide upon the relation between the central basin of the Tsád and the great western river, with its eastern branch, while there was no possibility of visiting it by ourselves. We had already convinced ourselves that the country of the Músgu is not, as Major Denham has represented it, a mountainous, inaccessible tract; but we were puzzled at the number of watercourses of which our informants had spoken, and we could not have the least idea how fertile a country it was, and how far remote its inhabitants were from that state of barbarism which had been imputed to them. We therefore, although reluctantly, and not without scruple, at length determined upon accompanying the expedition; and I hope that every considerate person who takes into account all the circumstances in which we were placed, will approve of our resolution.

[Sidenote: Wednesday, December 17th.]

At length we proceeded onwards, entering new regions never trodden by European foot. Our departure having been delayed in the morning, owing to the separating of the army, we started rather late, leaving the sheikh, with the rest of the “kebú,” behind. The country at once presented a new and interesting feature. Already in Bórnu a considerable proportion of our diet had consisted of native rice, and we had been rather astonished at its black colour and bad quality. We had heard that it grew wild in the southern provinces of the country; but we had never yet seen it, and it was only this morning, after we had left Díggera and had traversed extensive stubble-fields of millet intermixed with beans, that we obtained a first view of a “shinkáfaram,” or wild rice-field, in the midst of the forest. We were then no longer surprised at the quality of the rice brought to the market in Kúkawa being so bad, as we felt justified in presuming that the elephant would have sense enough to take the best for himself, and leave the rest for the people. As we proceeded we found the whole wilderness, although not thickly wooded, full of pools of water and dense rice-fields.

The country to-day presented a truly tropical aspect; and our encampment, lying near an extensive pond, or small lagoon, surrounded with a luxuriant growth of rice and a dense border of spreading trees, was so full of the footprints of the elephant, that scarcely a level spot of two or three feet in diameter could be found. This was by no means pleasant, in our present mode of living, as we were without a camp-stool, or anything to sit or lie upon; for the argillaceous soil is so excessively hard, that the borders of these holes produced by the unwieldy foot of the elephant cause a great deal of pain to a person lying on the ground with nothing but a mat or carpet.

The most essential instrument on this whole journey was the “láteram,” the digging-instrument (from “langin,” “I dig”), consisting of a large piece of wood about three feet long, with a heavy iron point; for without the láteram it would have been impossible to fix the dáteram (from “dangin,” “I fasten, stop”), or the pole to which the horses are fastened during the night. In general, every horseman digs the hole in which the pole is fastened with his own spear; but this soil was so hard that it was scarcely possible to make the smallest hole in it. Of course during the rainy season it is just as soft and muddy as it is hard in the dry season, and scarcely passable in consequence.

A giraffe was caught to-day. I had been of opinion that this timorous animal was not found in the thickly inhabited regions near the equator; but I soon learned from experience that it is not at all rare in the wildernesses which alternate with the densely populated regions of these districts. The elephant, however, is the predominant animal of these quarters; and the large market-place, Fátawel, which I have mentioned on my journey to Ádamáwa, and the Logón town Jéna, or rather Jínna, seem to be of considerable importance for their ivory-trade.

In the evening I had the misfortune to be stung by a scorpion, which had got into my bernús. As I had not noticed the animal in the dark, and thinking that it was nothing but one of the formidable black ants, the bite of which is very painful, I neglected the wound at first, so that the poison penetrated to the shoulder, and rendered my right arm useless for two days.

[Sidenote: Thursday, December 18th.]

Seeing that we were now entirely in the hands of the vizier, my companion and I used to present ourselves at his tent every morning, and to ride for some time near him. I, however, soon found it pleasanter to keep more in the rear of the army, a little in advance of his female slaves; and in the narrow paths in the midst of the forest, where the crowding became very disagreeable, I used to keep behind his led-horses. Of female slaves on horseback and led-horses the vizier had with him the moderate number of eight of each kind, while the sheikh had twelve; but this appeared to me a small number when I afterwards saw the king of Bagírmi returning from the expedition with a string of forty-five mounted female partners. These black damsels were all clothed in white woollen bernúses, with their faces completely veiled, and were closely watched.

To-day we had a more complete specimen of that peculiar kind of shallow water which I have mentioned above; and the army, while they were winding around it, on the fresh green meadow-lands, closely hemmed in on their left by a grove of fine trees, presented a highly interesting scene. From thence, passing through a thick covert, we entered the beautiful open district of Wolóje, which comprises several hamlets. Here I was amused at seeing the head man of a village successfully putting to flight, with a large branch of a tree, a troop of pilfering horsemen. A little beyond these hamlets the encampment was chosen, at some little distance from a very extensive “ngáljam.”

Our conversation with the vizier in the evening again took a geographical turn, owing to the presence of his spy or scout, who had just returned from delivering his message to the Músgu prince Ádishén. The vizier was as yet undecided in which direction to turn his steps; and we heard a native chief, of the name of Puss, or Fuss, mentioned in a manner that assured us our friends were afraid to attack him. Ádishén, the chief just mentioned, was in a certain degree subject to the rulers of Bórnu; but it seemed rather an ironical assertion that this prince would be pleased with the arrival of the expedition. While describing his reception at the court of the chief, the scout indulged in a lively description of the customs prevalent among these people, whose chief had only outwardly adopted Islám. His Majesty, he said, used to indulge in amorous intercourse with his female slaves, of whom he had two hundred, before the eyes of his people; an account which was rather confirmed by Kashélla Belál, who had been his host several times. Belál, who was a very jovial old fellow, also stated that this little prince was not jealous of the favours bestowed by his female partners upon his guests; but, on the contrary, that he himself voluntarily gave them up to them. Such a degrading custom may indeed be followed by this petty chief, who has betrayed his country in order that, by the influence of his more powerful neighbours, he might rule over his countrymen; but we need not draw a conclusion from him as to the customs of the whole tribe, although, of course, they regard the relation of the sexes in a simpler point of view than we do.

[Sidenote: Friday, December 19th.]

The country through which we passed, on leaving our encampment in the morning, was most charming, and of a most expansive bound, and exactly suited for pastoral tribes like the Shúwa and Fúlbe; but traces of cultivation also, and even of cotton-fields, were not wanting; while further on, the dúm-bush appeared, and was after a while succeeded by the tall fan-shaped dúm-palm itself. The country being open, and without any obstruction whatever, the “kibú,” or army, marched in an extended line of battle, “báta,” separated into groups of the most varied description in attire and appearance: the heavy cavalry, clad in thick wadded clothing, others in their coats of mail, with their tin helmets glittering in the sun, and mounted on large heavy chargers, which appeared almost oppressed by the weight of their riders and their own warlike accoutrements; the light Shúwa horsemen, clad only in a loose shirt, and mounted upon their weak unseemly nags; the self-conceited slaves, decked out gaudily in red bernúses or silken dresses of various colours; the Kánembú spearmen, almost naked, with their large wooden shields, their half-torn aprons round their loins, their barbarous head- dresses, and their bundles of spears; then, in the distance behind, the continuous train of camels and pack-oxen: all the people full of spirits, and in the expectation of rich booty, pressing onward to the unknown regions towards the south-east.

It was an exalted feeling of unrestrained liberty which animated me while, mounted on my noble charger, I rode silently along at the side of this motley host, contemplating now the fine, beautiful country, now the rich scenes of human life, which were illumined by a bright morning sun. As yet no blood had been shed by this army, and neither misery, devastation, nor the horrors of people torn from their homes, cried out against it. Every one seemed to think only of sport and amusement. Now and then a stir would be raised in the whole army when a gazelle started forth from the thicket, endeavouring to escape from her pursuers, but soon found herself hemmed in on every side, while Shúwa horsemen and Kánembú spearmen, each endeavouring to possess himself of the prize, cried out to his rivals in the pursuit, “kólle, kólle!” “leave off, leave off!” as if the prey was already his own, while others animated their companions by shouting out, “góne, góne!” “chase, chase!” the sounds re-echoing from one troop to another; or when a fat guinea-fowl, “káji,” or a partridge, “kwíye,” roused from its secure covert, took to its wings, but, trying to fly over those widely-scattered troops of hostile men, and frightened by their cries, was soon obliged to look for a moment’s respite, and, after a vain struggle, fell a prey to its pursuers, who often, while they laid hold of it, tore it actually into pieces.

The wide open country seemed to invite the traveller into the far distance; but to-day our march was only of short duration, and before eight o’clock in the morning a new encampment, upon a fresh spot, was again springing up. This whole country is still included in the extensive district of Wolóje; but the water, which was close to the side of the encampment, has the peculiar name of Kodásalé. The whole of the inhabitants of the district belong to the Shúwa tribe of the Bénesé. To the east of Kodásalé lies the place Lawári, towards the west Súggemé, beyond Úlba, and south-west of the latter Memé, and north-west Momó. All these villages are inhabited by Shúwa and Kanúri in common; beyond is the wilderness or karága.

I, too, had my little daily “nógona,” or divan, in which Kashélla Bíllama, my friend from Ádamáwa, and Háj Edrís, formed my principal courtiers, or “kokanáwa,” though occasionally other people attended. All these people I kept attached to me by presents of a few needles, with which they supplied their wants in the neighbouring villages. Bíllama informed me to-day that for three needles he had bought sufficient provision for his horse for one day; for two he had bought a wooden bowl, or “búkuru;” and for six more a good supply of meat. Thus this insignificant production of European industry became of the highest value to me; and it obtained still more value and importance, in the course of my journey to Bagírmi, when it constituted my only wealth, and in consequence procured me the noble title of “needle-prince,” “malaríbra.”

We remained here the following day, as the army had to provide itself with corn, or rather Negro grain, as we were told that we should enter upon a wild uncultivated tract, the border-region between the seats of the Mohammedans and those of the pagan tribes, which, as is generally the case in these parts of the world, has been reduced to desolation.

Each of the surrounding villages had to send two ox-loads of grain, which, however, did not benefit the army in general, but fell entirely to the share of the friends and followers of Lamíno, the remainder of this immense host being thrown upon their own resources. All the grain was carried on asses. It was in this encampment that the vizier made a present to Mr. Overweg of a small lion. He had given him, on a former occasion, a “súmmoli.” This is a very ferocious cat, of rather rare occurrence, which is said not only to attack gazelles, but young cattle or calves. It was of a light brown colour, the hind part, however, being black, and had very pointed upright ears, “súmmo,” a circumstance from which the name has been derived. The ears, moreover, are ornamented with a black stripe. A great many curious stories are related by the people with regard to the ferocity of this animal, and from what we ourselves had an opportunity of observing, it seems to be a marvellous little creature: for, though still very young and small, it was nevertheless extremely fierce, and was quite master of the young lion. Both animals were fed with boiled milk, of which they were very fond; but the continual swinging motion which they had to endure on the back of the camels in the heat of the day, caused their death very soon.

[Sidenote: Sunday, December 21st.]

The crowding and thronging was excessive when we started in order to pursue our march. The wilderness at first was tolerably clear, being at times evidently a place of resort for numerous herds of elephants, as the quantity of dung, and the uninterrupted tracks of deep footprints, which gave to the soil the appearance of a colossal chessboard, amply testified. After a march of about six miles the wilderness became more thickly overgrown, and presented a fine forest scenery; but, as is generally the case on such warlike expeditions, there is no leisure to pay attention to special phenomena, especially as the Bórnu horses are in general very wild and vicious, and in the throng everybody was continually liable to come into collision with his neighbour’s horse, which, perchance, might be a furious kicker.

The general character of this jungle was this. The ground was covered with dúm-bush, which formed a thick brushwood, and here and there with rank grass, while the forest in general consisted of middle-sized trees, chiefly mimosas and kálgos, though there were other specimens, especially the kókia-tree, which I had first seen on my journey from Gezáwa to Kátsena, the trees of smaller size being separated into groups by large spreading specimens of the vegetable kingdom, mostly of the ficus kind; for monkey-bread trees seemed to be wanting entirely, and altogether I saw few specimens of this tree in the Músgu country. Very remarkable nests of birds, suspended from the branches, were observed, not unlike a purse, with a long narrow neck hanging down and forming the entrance; or rather like a chemist’s retort suspended from the head, the shank being several inches long, and the whole beautifully fabricated with the most surprising skill. Of the skilful manufacturers of these fine dwellings we did not obtain a sight; but probably it is a species of _loxia_. In this thick covert, several young elephants were hunted down, and even the giraffe seemed frequent.

The place which we chose for our encampment was adorned by numerous fan- palms, which, although in general identical with the species called _Chamærops humilis_, nevertheless by their height appeared to be a distinct variety, and gave to the encampment a very picturesque appearance. The forest was here so dense, that only the spot where the vizier himself encamped together with his own followers was free from brushwood, while all the other people were first obliged to clear the ground with much trouble. This was the first day, since our setting out, that we made a tolerable march. The whole manner in which the expedition was conducted was an unmistakable proof of an effeminate court, especially if we take into account the principle of carrying on war in these countries, where only sudden inroads can insure any great success. In the evening there arrived a small complimentary present from Ádishén, the tributary Músgu chief, consisting of five horses and twenty oxen. But while in this manner the more influential men in the army were well supplied with food, the greater part were very badly off, and most of them were reduced to the core of the dúm-bush or ngílle, which by the Bórnu people is facetiously called “kúmbu bíllabe,” “the food of the country town.” But a good sportsman might have obtained better food for himself, and we even got a small ostrich-egg from the vizier.

It was a great pity that we had purposely avoided the more frequented and general road, which passes by several settlements of the Fúlbe or Felláta, in order not to give any trouble to the latter; for no doubt that track would have been far more interesting, as well from a natural point of view, as with regard to the political state of the country, as it would have given us the clearest insight into the way in which that enterprising and restless people is pushing on every day more and more, and strangling, as it were, the little kingdom of Mándará.

[Sidenote: Monday, December 22nd.]

Dense forest continued to prevail during the first five miles of our march. It then cleared, and was succeeded by considerable fields of wild rice, most of which was burnt down; for, as I have repeatedly had occasion to mention, all these wildernesses of Central Africa are set on fire after the rainy season. The whole ground in this district was one uninterrupted succession of holes made by the foot of the elephant, which obstructed the march of the army very considerably, and was the reason of several horses being lamed. Sálah, a younger brother of the vizier, a very intelligent man, broke his arm. A herd of six elephants was in the neighbourhood, and after a great deal of confusion, one animal, which got between the horsemen, was killed. It is no wonder that these regions are so frequented by them, as they find here plenty of the choicest food. The jungles of wild rice were only interrupted for a short time by a tract covered with dúm-bush. Water was plentiful, every now and then a considerable pond appearing, girt by beautiful trees, and at present enlivened by groups of horsemen, who were watering their animals.

After a march of about fifteen miles we encamped close to a larger sheet of water, which was full of fish of the species called “bégeli,” and enabled us to give to our food that day more variety, the forest, as well as the water, contributing its share; for, besides the fish, we had roast hare and elephant’s flesh, which was very palatable, and much like pork.

[Sidenote: Tuesday, December 23rd.]

Three heavy strokes upon the drum, at the dawn of day, set our motley host once more in motion. It was an important day, and many of the principal people had exchanged their common dress for a more splendid attire. We entered the Músgu country, and at the same time came into contact with fragments of that nation, who, having spread from the far west over the one half of Africa, are restlessly pushing forward and overwhelming the pagan tribes in the interior. These are the Fúlbe or Felláta, the most interesting of all African tribes, who, having been driven from Bórnu, have here laid the foundation of a new empire.

Twice on our march we were obliged to make a halt: the first time owing to the arrival of Ádishén, the Músgu chief, with a troop of naked horsemen mounted on a breed of small, unseemly, but strong ponies, without saddles and bridles, and presenting altogether a most barbarous and savage spectacle. The second halt was caused by the appearance of a Púllo or Felláta chief, with two hundred horsemen of his nation, who, by their shirts and shawls, their saddles and bridles, certainly claimed a higher degree of civilization, but who, nevertheless, were far from exhibiting a grand appearance. This chief was an officer of Khúrsu, the ruler of the town or principality of Fétte or Pétte, which we had left at a short distance to the west. He came to join this expedition, the object of which was to weaken the Músgu tribes, who, behind their natural defences of rivers and swamps, had hitherto been able to maintain their independence.