Part 32
Having rested awhile, I went to obtain a sight of the river. Its magnitude had already surprised me, when I first saw it on coming from Logón, and it had delighted me as often as I looked down upon it from the village of Mélé; but it was now greatly increased in size, forming a broad sheet of water not less than one thousand yards across, and dotted with several little islands, while the high and gradually-shelving shore on this side was clothed with rich crops of Egyptian corn or masr (_Zea Maïs_). Several small canoes, or rather boats, were lying on the shore; but I looked in vain for one large enough to carry my camel, as I was really afraid to trust it to the stream. However, I was glad to observe that the current was not very strong; and it did not seem to me to flow faster than from about two and a half to three English miles an hour. Unfortunately, to-day also the weather was very wet, so that strolling about was not so pleasant as it would otherwise have been.
Ásu was formerly a walled town; but the walls at present exhibit the same signs of decay which characterize the whole country. However, the inhabitants, to whom the ferry is a constant source of profit, seemed to be tolerably at their ease. It is this village (which formerly appears to have been of much greater importance) after which the river is sometimes called the river _of_ Ásu; but it ought never to be called the river Ásu. Here also there is an officer or inspector of the ferry, with the title of kashélla[62], the same as in the village of Mélé.
[Sidenote: Saturday, August 14th.]
We had first to follow the bank of the stream for a little more than a mile lower down, in order to reach the flat sandy beach which I have mentioned above. At length, after a good deal of delay, the boats were brought, and the passage began. Our horses went first, three or four swimming alongside each boat; but it was a difficult affair for the men who were sitting in the boats to manage them, and notwithstanding all their exertions, and all the cries of those who were standing on the bank, several of them were washed away from the boats, and carried a considerable distance down the river by the current: one, a fine black horse, was drowned. It was the very latest period when the river is passable for horses; for during the whole of the month of September, the people assured me that the passage was never attempted. I myself succeeded in crossing the river, with my horse and luggage, without any accident; and having fired a shot, in order to express my satisfaction at having safely escaped from the hands of the superstitious Bagírmi people, I pursued my march without delay, for I was afraid of exposing my horse to the pernicious stings of the “tsetse” fly, which, as I have observed before, proves extremely dangerous to the animal, but which fortunately infests only the very banks of this river, for I have observed it nowhere else. It is a large yellow species.
I had now entered again upon the territory of my friend Yúsuf the prince of Logón, and could, without any danger of molestation, freely move about. The weather was very wet; and I twice took refuge in small villages, which were situated in the midst of rich corn-fields, in order to escape a heavy shower. The whole district is called Mókoró, and comprises, besides several villages of lógodé Logón, or people of Logon, ten hamlets of Shúwa, in one of which we took up our quarters. These Shúwa, however, are not distinguished for hospitality; and it required a great deal of negotiation before I was allowed to make myself comfortable in one of these huts, which are very spacious indeed for these countries, being from 50 to 60 feet in diameter: they have besides a very remarkable peculiarity, being furnished with a large bed-room, if I may say so, which occupies the middle of the hut, and consists of a room raised about three feet from the ground, twenty feet long by six to eight feet wide, and the same in height, separated into several compartments, and encompassed all round with mattings of latticework made of fine reeds, in which branch of industry, as I have before observed, the people of Logón are very clever. The matting is of dark colour; but upon my inquiring how they dyed it, I was not a little surprised to hear that it is done by dipping it into the black argillaceous soil. In this secluded room, which is called “ghurára,” these people protect themselves against the innumerable swarms of mosquitoes which infest these low swampy regions during the night.
Of course, I could not have any pretensions to this distinguished place, which is reserved for the different members of the family; and I took my station upon a raised platform of clay at the side of the entrance, where I was a little annoyed by the mosquitoes, although, the door having been shut at an early hour, and some cattle inside the hut attracting the attention of this cruel insect in a stronger degree, the numbers were supportable. In other respects I was well treated, the landlord being a wealthy man, of the name of Ádim, and his wife being even a princess or méram of Logón; she was a talkative and cheerful person. They regaled me with a small pancake soon after my arrival, and a dish of rice and milk in the evening. It was extremely interesting to witness the singular kind of living of these people, and to hear them talk their peculiar style of Arabic, which has not yet lost that profusion of vowels which originally characterized this language; but its purity has been greatly impaired by other peculiarities. They have some remarkable customs which connect them with their brethren in the East,—especially the law of retaliation, or e’ dhíye[63] and the _infibulatio_ of the young girls. These Arabs belong to the large tribe of the Sálamát.
[Sidenote: Sunday, August 15th.]
After a march of about eight miles, through a country partly cultivated with Negro millet, partly forming an extensive swampy plain, we reached the river of Logón. On account of the great rising of the river, we had been obliged to follow, this time, an entirely different path from the one we had pursued on our outward journey. The scenery was greatly changed; and the little hollow which we had formerly crossed close behind our landing-place had now become a navigable branch of the river, on which several boats of considerable size were seen plying to and fro. The whole river now presented a very extensive sheet of water, unbroken by any sandbanks or islands, which, while it certainly was exceeded in breadth by the river Shárí, surpassed it in its turn in swiftness, the current being evidently more than three and a half miles an hour.
The town of Logón with its palm-trees, of three different varieties, towering over the clay walls, invited me to its hospitable quarters; and as I was extremely anxious to reach Kúkawa without any further delay, I immediately crossed over (after having made a small sketch, which is represented in the accompanying plate), in order that I might be able to pursue my journey the following day; but upon paying a visit to the keghámma, I had great difficulty in persuading him to allow me to proceed, and at first he peremptorily refused to comply with my wish, saying that it would be dishonourable for his master to allow me to leave him empty-handed. But I chose rather to forego the opportunity of taking final leave of the prince Yúsuf, although I could not but feel sorry at not being able to wait till my hospitable host had prepared a few tobes for me, as specimens of the native manufacture.
It rained during the night and the following morning, and we had a difficult march through the deep swampy grounds of Logón; but we proceeded onwards till three o’clock in the afternoon, when we made a halt about three quarters of a mile beyond Úlluf or Húlluf, the town before mentioned, the magic arts of whose people frightened my companions also this time, and prevented them from seeking shelter there. However, even in the village where we stopped we were badly received at first; and it was only by force that my companions could procure quarters, till I succeeded gradually in opening friendly relations with the man who had become my host so much against his will. I even, with the aid of a few of the large beads called nejúm, succeeded in buying fowls, milk, and corn, so that we were pretty much at our ease. The neighbourhood is said to be greatly infested with thieves; and we therefore took all necessary precautions.
The following day I made Áfadé, passing by Kala, where I was surprised to find the swamp at present of much smaller dimensions than on my former journey, although the season was so far advanced. This is a very remarkable phenomenon, which receives its explanation from the circumstance that these swamps are fed by the inundations of the river, which, notwithstanding the rainy season, continue to recede till the river is again full, and once more inundates the country, in the month of September. The latter part of the road to Áfadé was very swampy, almost the whole of that bleak kabé tract being under water. Here my companions endeavoured by all sorts of intrigues to detain me for a day or two, but, notwithstanding the hospitable treatment which I received from the governor of the place, I was too anxious to reach Kúkawa; and, ordering my servants to follow me as speedily as possible, I pursued my march the following morning without delay. But the roads were excessively bad, and we were obliged to take quite a different direction from the one by which we came, following a more northerly one in order to avoid the impassable swamps of the town of Rén, and the very difficult road of Ngála.
Having passed several larger or smaller villages, and innumerable swamps, we halted for the night, after a march of eleven hours, in a village inhabited by Shúwa and Felláta, and called Wángara, a name which is rather remarkable; but it required a long negotiation in order to obtain quarters, as these people, who rely upon the strongholds afforded them by the swampy neighbourhood of the lake, are of a very independent character. But having once made their acquaintance, we were hospitably treated. The bíllama of the village was a Tynjurawi, who had emigrated to this place from Móndo; but he did not understand the peculiar idiom of his tribe.
During my next day’s march, I led rather an amphibious life, being almost as much in the water as on the dry ground; for, besides being drenched by a heavy rain, which lasted the greater part of the day, I had to pass three considerable rivulets without the aid of a boat, and had twice to strip myself and swim my horse across, tying clothes and saddle on my head. The first rivulet we had to cross was the Múlu, about seven hundred yards beyond the small town called Legári, which belongs to Kashélla Belál; the second was probably the Mbulú, and identical with the river called Gumbalaram by Major Denham, beyond the village of Dágala, which lies on a small eminence. At the Múlu we had enjoyed the assistance of the inhabitants of Legári; but here I and my mʿallem, with whom I had vigorously pushed on in advance, were left to our own resources, and the strong current of the rivulet, which was encompassed by steep banks about eight feet high, frightened my companion not a little, till I stripped first, and, relying upon my experience as a swimmer, led the way. While endeavouring to cross over, we were fortunate enough to meet with a fisherman, who was floating about the river on a simple yoke of large gourds, such as I have described on a former occasion; and with his assistance we succeeded in getting our horses and clothes across without any accident. While engaged in this arduous business, we were joined by Gréma ʿAbdú, who, seeing that I was obstinate, and ashamed at not arriving in the capital together with us, had at length left his wife and slaves behind, and endeavoured to keep up with us. We then continued our march through this swampy country, the rain falling in torrents, and near the village Hokkum reached the third rivulet, which however, notwithstanding its rapidity, we were able to cross without dismounting, the water just reaching up to our saddles.
At length we left behind us the black argillaceous soil which constitutes the whole of this alluvial plain, and which at the present season was converted into one continuous swamp, fine sandy soil succeeding to it near the village of Gujári, so that from thence we pursued our march more cheerfully; and having taken a small luncheon in the village Débuwa, we did not halt until we reached the village of Bogheówa, situated about a mile N.E. from Yédi. Here we were well lodged and hospitably treated, and were busy till late at night drying our wet clothes.
[Sidenote: Friday, August 20th.]
We had now only one long day’s march to Kúkawa; and, reaching the town of Ngórnu after six hours’ ride, I had great trouble in dragging on my horsemen, who being quite exhausted, wanted to make themselves comfortable with their friends, for the Bórnu men of the present day are not accustomed to much fatigue. Indeed both my companions were so utterly prostrated, in mind and body, that, strange to say, they lost their road close to the capital, although certainly the high corn-fields gave the country a totally different appearance. The great pond of Kaine was now larger than I had ever seen it, and flooded the path to a great extent.
Having sent on a man in advance, in order to announce my arrival to the vizier and Mr. Overweg, I made a short halt near one of the many pools of stagnant water; and we were just about to remount when my friend came galloping up. We were both extremely glad to see each other again, having been separated from one another longer than on any former occasion; and they had received in Kúkawa very alarming news about my reception in Bagírmi. Mr. Overweg had made, meanwhile, a very interesting trip into the south-western mountainous districts of Bórnu; he had returned from thence about two months previously; and I was surprised to find that, notwithstanding the long repose which he had enjoyed, he looked more weak and exhausted than I had ever seen him. But he informed me that since his return he had been very ailing, and that even at present he did not feel quite recovered. He gave me a very lively and encouraging description of the means which had been placed at my disposal; and with the most spirited projects for the future we entered the town. Here I once more found myself in my old quarters, with luxuries at my command which during the last six months had become almost strange to me,—such as coffee with sugar, and tea with milk and sugar.
It was very fortunate that I had not arrived half a day later; for the caravan as well as the courier had gone, and not less than four days had passed since the departure of the latter, so that the people declared that it was not possible to send my letters after him. But the vizier, upon whom I called early the next morning, and who received me with great kindness, gave me three horsemen, who, he said, would overtake the courier; and as I had fortunately answered my letters and despatches in Bagírmi, I had only to make up my parcel: but the horsemen did not overtake the courier till he had got forty miles beyond Ngégimi, in the very heart of the desert. My servants did not arrive until the evening of the following day; and they were in rather a sorry plight, having had great difficulty with my camel and luggage.
[Sidenote: Monday, August 23rd.]
We had a very important private audience with the sheikh, when, after the usual compliments were passed, I endeavoured to give him a clear description of the present relations of the expedition; for, when he expressed his wish that I might be appointed by Her Majesty as a consul, I declared to him that that could not be, but that it was my business to explore unknown countries, to open intercourse with them, and afterwards to return to my native country; that it was the most ardent desire of Her Majesty’s government to enter into the most friendly relations with Bórnu, but that our scientific mission extended far beyond that country. And I further explained to him that Government, in their last despatches, had expressed their wish that if we should ascertain the impossibility of penetrating in a southerly or easterly direction, we might turn westward and endeavour to reach Timbúktu.
This statement seemed to gratify him extremely, as he was afraid of nothing more than that we might go to Wádáy, and enter into friendly relations with the sultan of that country. It is from this point of view that I am quite sure that the vizier at least had done nothing to ensure me a good reception in Bagírmi, if not the contrary. However, the sultan declared that, as he was greatly pleased at our desire to try our fortune in a westerly direction, he should not prevent us, even if we wanted to go to Wádáy, as it was stipulated expressly in the treaty that Her Britannic Majesty’s subjects might go wherever they pleased,—although it was not until a few days later that he actually signed the treaty, after numerous delays and evasions. I, however, expressed my wish that, before we left the country, circumstances might allow us to complete the survey and exploration of the Tsád, which was both our own wish and that of the British government. Our addresses and our presents having been received with equal affability, we took a hearty leave, and returned home. On the last day of August the sultan signed the treaty, expressing moreover the hope that, if merchants should actually visit the country in quest of other merchandise than slaves, the slave-trade might be gradually abolished.
I was now enabled to arrange all our money matters, which were in a very confused and desperate state; for, besides the large debt due to the merchant Mohammed e’ Sfáksi, we were indebted to the vizier alone for 500 Spanish dollars. Not being able to satisfy all our creditors with ready money, there having been sent only 1050 dollars in cash, I arranged with the merchant, giving him 200 dollars in cash, and a bill for 1500 dollars on Fezzán, while I paid all the smaller debts, as well as that of the vizier. Indeed we might now have been able to achieve a great deal, if it had been our destiny to remain together—for in the beginning almost all our efforts were paralyzed by the smallness of our means, which did not allow us to undertake anything on a large scale; but it was our destiny, that, when sufficient supplies had arrived, one of us should succumb.
I have already observed that, when on my return I met my companion before the gates of the capital, I was surprised at his exhausted appearance; and I was sorry to find that my first impression was confirmed by what I observed afterwards. As he himself was anxious for a little change of air, and as it was entirely in accordance with our object of exploring the lake, to observe the state of the komádugu at this season, while it was not possible at present to enter upon any great undertaking, we agreed that he should make a small trip to the lower part of the river; and he left accordingly for Ájiri on the 29th of August, in company with a small grandee or kókana, to whom the place belonged, a short distance westward from the district of Dúchi. I accompanied him about as far as the village of Dáwerghú; and we separated with a firm hope that the excursion would do him a great deal of good—and he really enjoyed extremely the rich vegetation of the komádugu, which at this time of the year, during the rising of the river, was in its full vigour. He learnt, by inquiry from the natives, the very interesting fact that the water in the komádugu, which during the dry season is limited to detached pools of stagnant water, begins to form a continuous stream of water eastward towards the Tsád on the 21st or 22nd July, and continues running for about seven months; that is to say, till about the middle of February. It begins to overflow its banks in the month of November. But, although my companion took great interest in the objects around him, he could not have felt very strong, as the notes which he wrote during this excursion are extremely short and unsatisfactory, while it would have been of importance if he had been able to lay down the course of the river with tolerable exactitude. Moreover, in his feeble condition, he committed the mistake of forcing his last day’s march in returning to Kúkawa, on the 13th September; and I was sorry to observe, when we supped together that evening, that his appetite greatly failed him.
Being fully aware of the unhealthiness of the climate during the month of September, we agreed by common consent to keep moving about as much as possible, and to take a ride every day to some distance. It was on this account that we arranged a visit to Dáwerghú on Sunday the 20th; but, unfortunately, some business which we had to transact prevented our setting out at an early hour in the morning, and, my friend’s head being that day rather affected, I proposed to him putting off our excursion till another day; but he thought that the fresh air might do him good. We therefore started in the heat of the day, although the sun was not very bright, while my companion did not neglect to protect his head as well as possible from the rays of the sun.
Having refreshed ourselves in the cool shade of a fine hájilíj, Mr. Overweg thought himself strong enough to go about shooting, and was so imprudent as to enter deep water in pursuit of some waterfowl, and to remain in his wet clothes all the day without saying a word; and I only became aware of this fact late in the evening, after we had returned to the town, when he dried his wet clothes at the fire.