Part 30

The state of the country where this pagan prince was to found the new kingdom, at the time when this happened (that is to say, about 300 years ago), was as follows. On the spot where the capital now stands, there is said to have been nothing but a straggling settlement of Fúlbe cattle- breeders; and the Bagírmaye themselves state that they named the place from a large ʿardéb or tamarind-tree (“más” in the Bágrimma language), under which a young Féllani girl of the name of Eñá was selling milk. These Fúlbe (or Felláta, as they are called in all the eastern parts of Sudán) are said to have been much oppressed by annual inroads of the Bulála; and it was Dokkénge who undertook to protect them against these invaders. With the exception of this Felláta settlement, a few Arab or Shúwa tribes[56], who at that time had already begun to spread over the country, principally the Bení Hassan, and the solitary settlement of a Felláta sheikh, or holy man, in Bídderí, a place about nine miles east from Más-eñá (who, however isolated he was, nevertheless exercised a very remarkable influence over the introduction of Islamism into these countries), all the rest of its inhabitants, as well as the chief Dokkénge himself, were pagans.

In the centre of the country there were four petty kingdoms, all situated on the small branch of the Shárí generally called Báchikám; viz. that of Mátiya, Mábberát, Máriñé, and finally that of Meré or Damré. Dokkénge, installing himself near the spot which was originally called Más-eñá, and forming a small settlement, is said to have subdued these four petty kings by stratagem, and, having driven back the Bulála, to have formed in a short time a considerable dominion. He is reported to have reigned a long time, and to have been succeeded by his brother, of the name of Lubétko, to whom succeeded Delubírni, under whose dominion the kingdom of Bagírmi spread considerably. The eldest son of Delubírni was Maló, who ascended the throne, but was soon after engaged in a desperate struggle with a younger brother of his, named ʿAbd-Allah, who, it is said, had been converted to Islamism, and thought himself in consequence better fitted to ascend the throne. After being defeated by Delubírni on one occasion, ʿAbd-Allah is said to have vanquished his brother with the assistance of the pagan tribes, and to have slain him after a most sanguinary conflict in the midst of the town, which lasted for several days.

Having thus ascended the throne, and consolidated his dominion by the blood of all his kinsfolk, ʿAbd-Allah, the first Moslim prince of Bagírmi, is said to have contributed largely to the prosperity of his country, into which he introduced Islamism; and he is stated also to have increased the capital to its present extent. The beginning of his reign falls about ten years after the foundation of the empire of Wádáy by ʿAbd el Kerím the son of Yáme. As to the order of his successors (all the Moslim kings of Bagírmi numbering fourteen), it seems to be as follows:—

To ʿAbd-Allah succeeded, as it seems, Wónja, who was succeeded by his son Láwení, after whom followed Bugománda. Of these princes very little, if anything, appears to be known. But then followed a glorious reign, which marked another epoch in the history of Bagírmi—I mean the reign of the king Mohammed el Amín, who, on account of his having performed a pilgrimage to Mekka, is also called el Háj; for this prince not only administered the government of his country with more justice than his predecessors had done, and made it respected by his neighbours, but he also considerably extended his dominion and sway, as he not only subdued the formerly independent kingdom of Babáliyá, which at a former period had belonged to Kánem, and whose king (of the name of Kábdu) he put to death, but he is stated also to have extended his conquests in the opposite direction as far as Gógomi, a strong and inaccessible settlement, situated seven or eight days’ march to the south-east of the capital, which the present sultan succeeded in subduing a second time during my residence in the country, and which was thought a very great achievement. It is even said that through the instrumentality of this king a great majority of his countrymen adopted Islamism.

To this praiseworthy prince succeeded his son ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, whose death can be fixed with approximative certainty, as it is connected with the history of the neighbouring countries; for it was he against whom the sheikh Mohammed el Kánemí solicited the assistance of ʿAbd el Kerím Sabún the sultan of Wádáy, who died in the year 1815 for his having thrown off the supremacy of Bórnu, which seems to have been established during the reign of Láwení. The easy victory which the energetic and unscrupulous ruler of Wádáy, who eagerly grasped at the offer made to him, is said to have gained over the people of Bagírmi, is attributed to the consequences of a severe plague, which had swept away the greater part of the full-grown inhabitants of the country, and to the circumstance of the fácha, or general of the army, not being on good terms with his sovereign, whom he is stated to have deserted in the battle, while he himself fled with his whole detachment. Sabún, after having put to death ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, together with his favourite wife, or ghúmsu, and having carried away a considerable portion of the population, and all the riches of Bagírmi collected during the period of their power, invested the younger son of ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, of the name of Mʿallem Ngarmába Béri, with the title of king. However, as soon as Sabún had retraced his steps, ʿOthmán, the eldest son of ʿAbd e’ Rahmán, with the surname or nickname of Búgomán, who, as long as the king of Wádáy was ravaging the country, had sought refuge behind the Shárí, in the town of Búgomán (the same place the governor of which refused to receive me), returned home, overcame his younger brother, and, having put out his eyes, ascended the throne.

But the king of Wádáy, having received this unfavourable news, once more returned to Bagírmi, vanquished ʿOthmán in a battle fought at Moító, drove him out of the country, and reinstated his brother upon the throne. But as soon as Sabún had turned his back, ʿOthmán appeared once more, drowned his brother in the river, and again usurped the sovereign power. However, he was not destined to enjoy his prize for a long time in tranquillity; for, a quarrel having broken out between him and the fácha (the same person who had been on bad terms with his father), this man, of the name of Ruwéli, who by his personal character greatly enhanced the power and influence originally united with his authority, and who was supported by a strong party, deprived the sultan of his dominion, and, having driven him out of the country, invested with supreme authority a younger brother of his, called el Háj, who, in order to distinguish him from the former sultan of that name, we may call Háj II. ʿOthmán, having fled from Búgomán, his usual place of refuge, to Gulfé the Kótokó town on the west side of the Shárí, where he was collecting a force, the fácha marched against him and vanquished him. ʿOthmán, however, having implored the assistance of the sheikh el Kánemí, and being assisted by the Shúwa of Bórnu, succeeded in collecting another army, with which he once more returned, but was again beaten in a battle fought at Sháwí. He, however, succeeded in crossing the river by a stratagem, and sought refuge with ʿAmanúk, that mighty chief of the Dághana Shúwa well known from Major Denham’s adventures; but being pursued by his adversary, he saw no other way of escape open to him than to throw himself into the arms of his former enemy, the king of Wádáy, and, in order to obtain his assistance, he found himself compelled to stipulate, and to confirm by an oath sworn on the Kurán, that he and his successors should pay a considerable tribute to the prince of Wádáy. This tribute, to be paid every third year, consists of a hundred ordinary male slaves, thirty handsome female slaves, one hundred horses, and a thousand shirts or kholgán, called by the Wádáy people “dérketú,” besides ten female slaves, four horses, and forty shirts to Zérma or Jérma, who is the inspector of this province.

Having obtained protection in consequence of this treaty, which rendered Bagírmi as much a tributary province of Wádáy as it had been, in more ancient times, of Bórnu, ʿOthmán returned to his country, and succeeded at length in crushing his powerful and hitherto successful rival, whom he defeated in two battles,—the one fought near Kókoché, on the Báchikám, the other near the village of Ásu, on the banks of the river Shárí. The fácha, having sought and found refuge in Logón birni, fought one more battle with ʿOthmán near a place called Díndor, where a great many of the people of Wádáy who were with him are said to have fallen. But the inhabitants of Logón, fearing that Ruwéli would not be able to fight his quarrel out, and that they themselves might afterwards suffer for having given him protection, thought it more prudent to deliver him into the hands of his enemy, and succeeded in doing so by stratagem. This ambitious man is stated to have died in Wádáy, ʿOthmán having delivered him to Sabún.

The restless prince of Bagírmi obtained a little tranquillity as long as Sabún lived; but Yúsuf, who succeeded the latter, dissatisfied with him, put forth another pretender, of the name of Jariñílme, and ʿOthmán had scarcely succeeded in overcoming this enemy, which he did without much trouble, when he had to fight in another quarter. For Mohammed el Kánemí, the sheikh of Bórnu (who had assisted him to reascend the throne with the sole object of regaining the ancient supremacy which Bórnu had exercised over Bagírmi), when he became aware that he had not attained his object, commenced open hostilities against him, which gave rise to a struggle carried on for a number of years with equal success on either side, but without any great result, except the ruin of the provinces near their respective frontiers. The sheikh of Bórnu, beset at the time by other difficulties, and seeing that he should be unable by himself to crush the power of Bagírmi, is then said to have called in the aid of Yúsuf Bashá, of Tripoli, who in the year 1818 sent Mústafá el Áhmar, at that time sultan of Fezzán, together with Mukní and the sheikh el Barúd, to his assistance, who, laying waste the whole north-western part of Bagírmi, and destroying its most considerable places, Babáliyá and Gáwi, carried away a great number of slaves, among whom was Agíd Músa, one of my principal informants in all that relates to Bagírmi.

This happened about the time of Captain Lyon’s expedition. At a later period Mukní returned once more with ʿAbd el Jelíl, the celebrated chief of the Welád Slimán, who had accompanied the former expedition in a rather subordinate character; but, having quarrelled with this distinguished chieftain, who discountenanced Mukní’s intention of overrunning the country of Bórnu, he himself returned home, sending in his stead Háj Íbrahím, who plundered and ransacked the town of Moító, and carried its inhabitants into slavery, while ʿAbd el Jelíl did the same with Kánem. Then followed, in the year 1824, the second battle of Ngála, of which Major Denham has given an account in his Narrative. However, notwithstanding his partial success, the sheikh of Bórnu was not able to reduce entirely the inhabitants of Bagírmi, who, although not so numerous, and much inferior to their neighbours in horsemanship, are certainly superior to them in courage.

There was still another quarter from whence Bagírmi was threatened during the restless reign of ʿOthmán, namely that of the Fúlbe or Felláta, who, following their instinctive principle of perpetually extending their dominion and sway, made an inroad also into Bagírmi about thirty years ago; but they were driven back, and revenge was taken by a successful expedition being made by the Bagírmaye against Bógo, one of the principal Fúlbe settlements to the east of Wándalá or Mándará, which I have mentioned on my journey to Ádamáwa and the expedition to Músgu. In the meantime, while the country suffered severely from this uninterrupted course of external and internal warfare, ʿOthmán seems to have made an attempt to enter into communication with Kánem, probably in order to open a road to the coast by the assistance of the Welád Slimán, or, as they are called here, Mínne-mínne, who, by a sudden change of circumstances, had been obliged to seek refuge in those very border- districts of Negroland with which their chief ʿAbd el Jelíl had become acquainted in the course of his former slave-hunting expeditions.

Altogether ʿOthmán Búgomán appears to have been a violent despot, who did not scruple to plunder either strangers or his own people; and he cared so little about any laws, human or divine, that it is credibly asserted that he married his own daughter.[57] But he appears to have been an energetic man, and at times even generous and liberal. He died in the last month of the year 1260, or about the end of the year 1844 of our era, and was succeeded by his eldest son ʿAbd el Káder, the present ruler of Bagírmi, who had been on bad terms with his father during his lifetime, and in consequence had spent several years in Gúrin, at that time the capital of Ádamáwa.

This prince had a narrow escape from a great danger in the first month of his reign, when Mohammed Sáleh, the ruler of Wádáy, advanced with his army towards the west, so that ʿAbd el Káder thought it best to leave his capital, carrying with him all his people and riches, and to withdraw towards Mánkhfa, where he is said to have prepared for battle, taking up his position behind the river, and placing all the boats on his wings. But the sultan of Wádáy, seeing that he occupied a strong position, sent him word that he would do him no harm as long as he preserved the allegiance confirmed by the oath of his father; and he really does not seem to have done any damage to the people of Bagírmi, with the exception of depriving them of their dress, the common black shirt, of which the people of Wádáy are very jealous, as they themselves are not acquainted with the art of dyeing.

This danger having passed by, ʿAbd el Káder, who is described to me, by all those who have had opportunities of closer intercourse with him, as being a person of sound judgment, and who likes to do justice, though it may be true he is not very liberal, thought it best to keep on good terms also with his western neighbours the Kanúri; and his friendly relations with the present ruler of that country were facilitated by the circumstance that his mother was an aunt of the sheikh ʿOmár. The Bagírmi people at least assert that it is more on account of this relationship, than from fear, or a feeling of weakness, that their ruler has consented to a sort of tribute to be paid to Bórnu, which consists of a hundred slaves annually.

Having thus obtained peace with both his neighbours, ʿAbd el Káder has employed his reign in strengthening himself on that side which alone remained open to him, viz. the south side, towards the pagan countries; and he has successfully extended his dominion, remaining in the field personally for several months every year. He has thus subdued a great many pagan chiefs, on whom he levies a fixed tribute,—a thing said to have been unknown before his time. Of course this tribute consists almost entirely in slaves, which the pagan chiefs in general can only procure by waging war with their neighbours, and slaves are therefore almost the only riches of the sultan; but by this means he is able to procure what he is most in need of, namely horses and muskets, besides articles of luxury.

It is only with a strong feeling of suppressed indignation that the people of Bagírmi bear the sort of dependence in which they are placed with regard to their neighbours on either side; and there is no doubt that, if they are allowed to recruit their strength (although the tribute which they have to pay to Wádáy bears heavily upon them), they will make use of the first opportunity that offers to throw off the yoke.

No doubt the central position of Bagírmi, as regards political independence, is not very favourable; but the country has the great advantage of being bordered on the west side by a mighty river, which, while it forms a natural barrier against the western neighbour, may serve at the same time as a safe retreat in case of an attack from the powerful kingdom on the east side: and it has proved so repeatedly, for Bagírmi in many places extends westward beyond that river. This is the only advantage which the country at present derives from the great bounty which nature has bestowed upon it[58], viz. a river navigable during every season of the year, surrounding half the extent of the country, and sending through the middle of it a branch, the Báchikám, which is navigable during the greater part of the year, and might easily be made so all the year round. This branch, which approaches to within nine or ten miles of the capital, forms part of the southern provinces into an island. The great disadvantage of Bagírmi is, that there is no direct caravan-road to the northern coast, and that it is therefore dependent, for its supply of European and Arab manufactures, upon the limited importation by the circuitous road through Wádáy or Bórnu; consequently the price of the merchandise is greatly enhanced, while the road, in case of hostilities with these latter kingdoms, is entirely interrupted.

If we now take a general view of the country, we find that in its present state it is inclosed within very narrow limits, extending in its greatest length, from north to south, to about 240 miles, while its breadth at the widest part scarcely exceeds 150 miles. Such a petty kingdom would be quite incapable of holding out against its two powerful neighbours if it were not for the resources drawn continually from the pagan countries towards the south.

This was the reason why the kingdom of the Bulála, or Leo’s Gaoga, rose to such immense power as soon as it had taken possession of Kánem. The people of Bagírmi themselves in former times, evidently after the zenith of the Bórnu kingdom had passed away, and when the weak dominion of devout but indolent kings succeeded to the dashing career of energetic and enterprising princes, provided themselves with what they wanted in this respect in a rather unceremonious manner, by making constant predatory expeditions upon the caravan-road from Fezzán to Bórnu, and carrying away a great amount of property, even a large supply of silver,—this being said to have been the source from whence the treasure which ʿAbd el Kerím Sabún king of Wádáy found in Más-eñá was derived. In another direction they formerly extended their excursions into the Bátta and Marghí country.

The whole country, as far as it constitutes Bagírmi Proper, forms a flat level, with a very slight inclination towards the north, the general elevation of the country being about 950 feet above the level of the sea; only in the northernmost part of the country, north from a line drawn through Moító, there are detached hills or mountains, which constitute the water-parting between the Fittrí and the Tsád, the two basins having no connection whatever with each other. But while Bagírmi Proper appears to be a rather flat country, the outlying provinces to the south-east seem to be rather mountainous, the mountains,

## particularly the group called Gére, being so high that the cold is felt

very severely, and hail or snow falls occasionally during the cold months. From the information of the natives, particularly when we take into consideration the description given of Belél Kolé, it would seem that in that direction there are some volcanic mountains. Towards the south also there must be considerable mountains which give rise to the three rivers the Bénuwé, the Shárí, and the river of Logón, and probably several more; but they must be at a great distance, and lie entirely beyond the range of my information. However, I am sure that there is no idea of perpetual snow, or even snow remaining for any length of time, in this part of the continent; and there seems to be no necessity whatever for supposing such a thing, as the fall of rain near the equator is fully sufficient to feed numbers of perennial sources, and to increase the volume of the rivers to such an extent as to annually overflow the country in so astonishing a manner. The time of the inundation of those three rivers seems to coincide exactly, while with regard to the currents, that of the river of Logón appears to be the most rapid.

The soil consists partly of lime (“añé”) and partly of sand (“síñaka”), and accordingly produces either Negro millet (_Pennisetum_, “chéngo”) or sorghum (“wá”), which two species of grain, with their different varieties, form the chief article of food not only of the people of Bagírmi, but almost all over Negroland. But besides this, a great deal of sesamum (“kárru”), is cultivated, which branch of cultivation imparts quite a different aspect to this country, as well as to many of the pagan countries, as numerous tribes seem to subsist chiefly upon this article. In many other districts of Bagírmi, beans (“móngo”) form one of the chief articles of food, but ground-nuts, or “búli,” seem to be cultivated only to a very small extent.