Such was our situation on the 16th, when we went to Almamy’s residence, in order to endeavour, by any possible means, to gain permission to choose our own route. But in this, however, we were unfortunately not able to succeed, and consequently submitted with an apparent good grace, for any other line of conduct would have tended to no good purpose; telling him that we would be ready to move on the 18th, and as he seemed to think he could protect us more effectually in that road than any other, we requested that guides might be immediately appointed to conduct us. This was directly complied with; when we returned to our huts, and made the arrangements necessary in consequence of so long and unpleasant delays.
We left Goodeerie at half after five in theevening of the 18th June, and halted for the night at the village where Almamy had been. We were under the disagreeable necessity (now, for the first time,) of leaving one of the party behind (Private Pickard), who was reduced to such a state of debility and emaciation from dysentery, that he was not only unable to ride, but reported, by Mr. Dochard, as unlikely to recover. Two men were left with him, and directed, in case of his getting better in a few days, to bring him forward to Boolibany, where we intended halting, to procure provisions; and in case of his death to bury him, and follow us with as much expedition as possible. A supply of the means of procuring subsistence was given them, and I really felt much at abandoning to his fate one of the most active and useful men we had.
Messrs. Nelson and Pilkington were also in a very bad state of health, and many of the European soldiers, although not decidedly unwell, were occasionally complaining of headaches and pains in their limbs, indicating the approach of fever and dysentery.
Much rain had already fallen, and vegetation was going on most rapidly in consequence of the intense heat of the sun and humidity of the soil. To the north of Goodeerie, was a range of high hills, covered with wood, and running fromNE.toSW.About half way between where we leftand it, we crossed the partly dry bed of a torrent, which, at this time, comes from some hills lying south of east from our path, and running, with many windings, to the west of north, to empty itself into the Senegal.
We left Goodeerie (there are many towns of the same name in that district, named after a people who came from a town in Galam formerly so called,) at seven o’clock on the morning of the 19th; and after a march of five hours and a half to the north of east, over a well cultivated and thickly inhabited country, we arrived at a large town, or rather a large collection of small villages, called Baigh Baigh, beautifully situated on eminences rising gently on either side of a narrow valley, in which ran a considerable torrent of water, collected by the neighbouring hills, and contributing to the periodical overflowing of the Senegal. The corn grounds were beginning to look green, and the entire face of the country, which had for some months presented a most arid and fatiguing prospect, was now progressively assuming all the varied gaiety of spring. The natives, too, were busily employed in cultivation, which, in Africa, is indiscriminately carried on by men and women.
Many of our men did not come up before night. The march was a long one, and the day excessively hot and calm, with every appearanceof rain, of which we had a smart fall during the night.
On the following morning, we moved forward to the north of east, over a gently rising country, beautifully diversified by hill and dale, and thickly covered in every direction with small villages, in the vicinity of which, cultivation appeared to be carrying on to a considerable extent. We crossed, about five miles west of Boolibany, a range of small hills, running nearly north and south, covered with stunted underwood, and composed of a dark brown stone resembling volcanic eruption, and having a strong magnetic attraction. One piece, bearing a high metallic polish, drew to it small needles from the distance of three quarters of an inch. From those hills the natives procure a large supply of iron, which they esteem much for its goodness, and which is extracted from the ore, or stone containing it, in the manner mentioned by Mr. Park.
We reached Boolibany at noon, and were accommodated with huts in the town, a division of which was given up entirely for our use, and from which Almamy, who paid us a visit in the afternoon, desired us to keep off the mob, in the same way we should do were we in an English fort. This, however, we found much difficulty in accomplishing against a host of visitorsof all ages and descriptions, coming to see, for the first time in their lives, a white man. Shortly after our arrival some of the king’s wives sent us two or three large calabashes, full of fine milk and cous cous, which was not at all a despicable present.
Many of the great men of the town paid us visits of ceremony and curiosity; all which we would have most willingly dispensed with, but they were not to be sent off in a hurry, and we were often reduced to the necessity of walking out of our huts, in hopes of their doing so too. But even this did not always succeed, and we were necessitated to submit with an apparent good grace to their importunities for presents. I do believe they thought that asking alone was necessary to the filling of their pockets with amber, &c., and covering their backs with silks, bafts, &c.; for the procuring of all of which they seldom brought any more valuable articles than a little milk, or some rice, or corn. Indeed we wanted nothing else, but the miserable handfuls which they presented, were scarcely worth the trouble of receiving, much less giving more than the value in return.
FOOTNOTES:[10]Leather bags.
FOOTNOTES:
[10]Leather bags.
[10]Leather bags.
Description of Boolibany — Delays and Disappointments there — Scarcity of Provisions — Death of Private Pickard — My decision of passing the rains in the Country, and Departure for Samba Contaye to select a position for winter quarters — Arrival of the Expedition from Boolibany — Mr. Pilkington and men left there sick — Death of Lieutenant Burton, and Sickness of the Men — Preparations for Mr. Dochard’s Departure for Sego — Almamy’s Arrival near our Camp — Difficulties about the Guide — Mr. Dochard’s Departure — The Object of his Embassy — Mr. Partarrieau’s Departure for the Coast — Mr. Nelson’s weak state — A regular Market established — Mr. Pilkington’s Arrival from the Capital — Mr. Nelson’s Death — My own Indisposition — Deaths amongst the Men — Extraordinary Ceremony at the killing of a lioness — Lions’ Attack on the Horse — Accounts from Mr. Dochard — Return of the Messengers — Almamy’s unjust Conduct, and its Results.
Boolibany, the Capital of Bondoo, stands in an extensive plain at the foot of a range of rocky hills, which are distant from it about a quarter of a mile east: to the west, the dry bed of a considerable torrent winds along the plain, and, in the season of the rains, conducts the water, which descends in a thousand streams from the hills, to the Falune and Senegal.
Here is the residence of the king, or Almamy, but it is by no means so large a town as we expected to see in the capital of so thickly inhabited a country. The number of souls do not exceed fifteen or eighteen hundred; the greater number are either the relatives, slaves, tradesmen, or followers of Almamy, or those of the royal family.
W. Gray del.BOOLEBANY, CAPITAL OF BONDOO.Published Feb. 1825. by John Murray, London.
W. Gray del.BOOLEBANY, CAPITAL OF BONDOO.Published Feb. 1825. by John Murray, London.
W. Gray del.
BOOLEBANY, CAPITAL OF BONDOO.
Published Feb. 1825. by John Murray, London.
The town is surrounded by a strong clay wall, ten feet high and eighteen inches thick[11]; this is pierced with loop-holes, and is so constructed that, at short intervals, projecting angles are thrown out, which enable the besieged to defend the front of the wall by a flanking fire, and answers all the purposes of defence where nothing but small arms is made use of.
The gates, of which there are five, and some of the intermediate parts of the wall, are surmounted by small embattled turrets, nine or ten feet square; those are likewise pierced with loop-holes, and give to the place a better fortified appearance than any town we had before seen.
Within these outer walls, at the west end of the town, and surrounded by stronger and higher ones of the same materials and form, are thepalaces of Almamy, his son Saada, and his nephew Moosa Yoro Malick, all joining each other, but having no internal communication.
The mosque, by no means a good one, stands in an open space in the south-west end of the town. It was in very bad repair, being nearly destitute of thatch. It is a large oblong clay building, lying east and west, the walls about nine feet high, and the roof, which is composed of rough timber, is supported in the centre by three strong forked stakes, about eighteen feet high. The ends of this roof extend five or six feet over the walls, on which it rests, and is there supported by forked stakes five feet high, forming a sort of piazza. Public prayers are performed in it five times a day, with the greatest apparent devotion.
The town is divided by streets, or more properly lanes, which are very narrow, dirty, and irregular. The outside of the walls too, in consequence of the want of public places of convenience, is nothing but a continued heap of filth, which emits, particularly during the rains, an overpowering and unpleasant effluvia.
The huts or houses are of different forms: some entirely composed of clay and rough timber, are square and flat roofed; others are round, having the walls of the same material as the former, but are covered with a conical roof,formed of poles and thatched with long dry grass; the third and last are entirely composed of wood and dry grass, in the form of a half splaire. The doors of all are inconveniently low, particularly the latter, which is rendered the more unpleasant by its serving, at the same time, as door, window, and chimney.
Those of Almamy, his son, nephew, and some of the princes, display the same variety of form, and, with the exception of being larger, are equally inconvenient. The interior of each of these palaces may contain about an English acre, divided, by low clay walls, into several small courts, in some of which are the chambers of their wives and concubines, and in others the magazines of arms, ammunition, merchandize, and corn. The exterior walls are about thirteen feet high, and are lined, nearly all round inside, with a range of square clay hovels, serving as cooking places, stables, slave rooms, and other stores, all which have flat roofs, where, in case of attack, a number of armed men, the best marksmen, are placed, and being there defended by that part of the outside walls which rises above the roofs, in form of parapets, they can do much against an attacking enemy.
At a short distance to theSW.are situated the ruins of a town nearly as large as Boolibany, and of which it at one time formed a part: but wasdestroyed by the Kartan army in one of their attacks on Almamy—which must have been sanguinary, as the ground for a considerable distance round it is thickly strewed with the now whitened bones of the slain, whose bodies were allowed to putrify on the spot where they fell, or be devoured by the birds and beasts of prey.
The mother of the boy given to us by Almamy, came to our huts to see her son, whom we had by this time so convinced of his real situation, that he implored us on his knees and with tears in his eyes to work the same change in his unfortunate mother’s situation, who together with his brother, an infant, were in the most deplorable state of slavery, in the possession of Moosa Yeona Malick. The poor woman herself was too much pleased with the respectable appearance of her son, and with the account he gave her of the comparative happiness of his present situation, to prevent a gleam of satisfaction from making itself evident, through the otherwise truly miserable and desponding evidence of her feelings but too strongly depicted in her face and actions; the former being bathed in tears, and the latter more becoming of a person imploring assistance or protection from the divine, than a human being.
It is needless to say we promised her every exertion in her favour, and fulfilled the promise,but alas! without effect:—the answer we got from her inhuman master to an offer of three times the value of a prime slave, or indeed any price he might demand, was “that it was much fitter for us to make him a present of the son, who would thereby be enabled to enjoy the society of his mother and brother.”
The poor woman was a constant visitor at our huts, where she every day got one good meal, but it would have been useless to give her any thing else, as her master would not have left it (let it be of never so little value) with her.
Since our arrival at Boolibany we had been as badly supplied with provisions as at Goodeerie. Almamy made us a present of a bullock, but we found it impossible to purchase any, and as to rice or corn it was extremely scarce and dear. So small was the quantity of milk purchased that the officers were stinted to a few spoonfulls each, which, with as limited a quantity of rice, meal, or meat, constituted our daily bill of fare.
To add to the unpleasantness of our situation nearly all the European soldiers were affected with fever or dysentery, two of the officers, Messrs. Nelson and Pilkington, were likewise ill, and we found it impossible to obtain from Almamy the fulfilment of his promises. At one time he would say he was preparing for us some provisions; at another, that he was only waitingthe return of a messenger he had sent to ascertain the state of the path by which we were to travel, and with many such frivolous excuses he put us off from day to day until the 23rd of June, when he appointed a guide, and told us we might depart when we pleased. Preparations were made for moving on the following morning, and we had determined that not a moment should be lost in getting out of Almamy’s power. We were however again to suffer disappointment and delay, for the same night at a late hour Almamy sent his son Saada, to let us know that in consequence of his having received information of the destruction of several of the towns of Kasson by the Kartans, he could not allow us to proceed until he had sent a messenger to ascertain its truth. I endeavoured to shew Saada that I thought better of the report, and said that I would, if Almamy allowed me, go on even without a guide; but it would not do: he said his father (who now considered us his friends and strangers) dare not permit us to run into danger when he could prevent it. This was a very plausible excuse no doubt, but we were aware that the whole was a plan to keep us in his country as long as he could. We nevertheless told Saada that we would wait a day or two longer in order to give his father’s messenger time to return.
The men who had been left at Goodeerie totake care of Pickard returned on the 23rd, having committed his body to the earth at that place on the 21st, the day of his death.
On the 25th, not hearing any thing of the messenger’s return or any more reports about the circumstance, I and all the officers waited on Almamy, to endeavour, if possible, to obtain leave to proceed. We found him seated in a large straw hut, in one of the inner courts of his palace, surrounded by some of his ministers and chiefs. He evaded giving a direct answer to our request, by relating some of his youthful achievements in a very jocular strain, until the call to prayers obliged us to leave his royal presence, and return as we went, to submit to delay and disappointment for another day, which, however, only made things appear as less likely to be arranged to our satisfaction than they had hitherto been. He asked those about him many questions respecting the path through Kasson to Foolidoo, which he seemed to be well acquainted with, and made much objection when we had told him the disappointment we experienced in his conduct to us, and the seeming disinclination on his part to forward our views, notwithstanding his promise to do so in consequence of the very large and handsome presents we had given him and his people. His son Saada told us “there was no use in much words, butthat, if we would satisfy Almamy, he should satisfy us,” which was merely hinting, if we would give Almamy presents until he should say he had enough, we should be then allowed to proceed. We did not pretend to understand his meaning, and finding that nothing was to be obtained from them, we left the place, in order to consult with the officers, and decide on the step to be taken.
After taking into consideration the then advanced state of the season, the illness of almost the whole of the Europeans, and the reduced state of our means of subsistence, in consequence of the very great expenditure incurred to replace our animals (all those we had on leaving Kayaye having died), and the exorbitant presents to Almamy and his chiefs, ministers, &c., we came to the determination of remaining in Bondoo until after the rains, and sending forward an officer to Sego, to apprize the King of our being stopped by Almamy, and to ascertain beyond a doubt his intentions towards our intended entrance into his country. A train of incidents, as tedious to relate as uninteresting to peruse, occurred between our making known to Almamy this our intention, and our establishing ourselves at Samba Contaye[12], which we wereenabled to do, after much toil and trouble, by the 17th of July.
Our position was on an elevated plain, lying about half a quarter of a mile west of the village, between us and which ran a copious stream of water, occasionally swollen to a considerable size by the rains. Around a clear spot, of about two acres, we erected several huts. We soon found, however, they were neither sufficiently solid to withstand the violence of the tornados, nor well enough thatched to keep out the rain, in consequence of which the men were continually getting wet, and falling sick. Mr. Burton and Mr. Nelson, and nearly all the Europeans, were labouring under fever and dysentery. On the 18th, the former was reduced to the very last stage, and Mr. Pilkington, and three men, were so ill when we left Boolibany, that they could not be moved. Had we been able to continue our journey to the east, those officers and men must have been left behind; and to this, unpleasant as it might have been to our feelings, we must in that case have submitted. Mr. Burton’s sufferings, however, were of short duration; he died on the 19th, having been only a few days ill. This sudden and melancholy event appeared to cast a gloom over all, and, when his remains were committed to their last abode, every European present shewed evident symptoms of apprehensionthat such might be his own fate in a few days.
As it was necessary that the officer we intended sending to Sego should be accompanied by a guide and messenger from Almamy, I had, previous to leaving Boolibany on the 20th, obtained a promise from him that he would come to Samba Contaye in a few days, and bring with him a person fitted for that service. He did not, however, make his appearance until the 21st, when I was informed that he had arrived at Wooro Samba, a small village, or rather farm, belonging to one of his own relations, about a mile south of our camp. There I went to see him, when he immediately named a person to accompany Mr. Dochard[13]to Sego, and said that it would be my business to clothe and subsist him during the journey, which of course I made no difficulty in consenting to.
On the following day, the guide came to our camp, and having said much about the unpleasantness of such a long journey, the dangers and privations to be encountered, &c., told me that he wished some stated reward to be held out to him on his return, in default of which he would not go. Although I was much astonishedat this declaration, I thought it better to let him suppose it was my intention to give him something, and therefore said, that the nature and amount of his reward must altogether depend on his own conduct, and his exertions to forward our business, which, if he did to my satisfaction, he should be well rewarded. He, however, did not like this mode of payment “after his trouble was over”; insinuating that I might then give him little or much as I wished, and that, moreover, it was quite “optional with him whether he went or not, as he was no slave of Almamy’s”.
I went immediately to mention this affair to the King, and to request that another man might be appointed, as I neither liked the manner nor appearance of the first. He very good humouredly said that the fellow was a fool, and therefore not fit to accompany Mr. Dochard, and he would immediately send to Boolibany for one of his own people to replace him. But as it was likely that two or three days would elapse before he could be ready, I told the King that Mr. Dochard should move on towards the frontier, which, before he reached, the man might no doubt overtake him. This being arranged, I next informed Almamy, it was my wish to send a person to the coast, in order to procure, with as little delay as possible, thearticles I had promised to him, and some few things I was myself in want of; and as my messenger purposed going to Senegal through the Foota Toro country, I wished him to give letters of recommendation to the chiefs there, in order to ensure his safety while in it, and also requested him to appoint some person to accompany Mr. Partarrieau, and remain with him until his return. All this he very readily consented to, concluding upon this, as on all other occasions, by asking for something or other; a little tobacco was then the object of his wishes, and with them I complied.
On my return to the camp I found that Mr. Dochard had completed all his preparations, and was only waiting my presence to move forward. His party consisted of one sergeant, seven rank and file, one civilian, and his own servant, together with Lamina and two of his people. He took with him a very handsome present for Dhaa, the king of Sego, and some inferior, yet respectable ones, for his chiefs; these, together with a small tent, two trunks of his own, and some provisions, loaded five asses, at least sufficiently so to admit of their travelling with expedition. The most active, willing, and well conducted men were selected for this service; and, although the prospect of a journey of several hundred miles through a country offering manydifficulties, both from the disposition of the natives and the advanced state of the season, was sufficiently gloomy to make the bravest despond, and the most sanguine entertain doubts of success,—they nevertheless all appeared cheerful and happy in being selected to the service.
To Mr. Dochard’s own discretion and judgment I left altogether the means, as well as mode, of entering into arrangements with Dhaa for our passage through, and protection in his country; and from my knowledge of Mr. Dochard’s extreme anxiety and determination to bring (inasmuch as lay in his power) our enterprize to a happy conclusion, I felt satisfied that I could not have entrusted this service into more able or patient hands; the latter being an accomplishment most necessary, indeed indispensably so, in that country.
The party left the camp on the 23d, at four o’clock in the afternoon. I accompanied them some distance, and, when taking leave of them, I felt that I had myself more occasion to apprehend their never returning than they appeared to entertain; indeed I felt, when giving Mr. Dochard the parting shake of the hand, that I was bidding adieu for ever, as it were, to the nearest and dearest friend I had in the world. In order to induce Lamina to forward our views at Sego, and to conduct himself with kindnessand attention to Mr. Dochard, and the men with him, I made him a handsome present, and gave him an account of the reward which had been promised to him, in case of his fulfilling the terms of his engagement, an advance of merchandize to the amount of fifteen pounds sterling.
Although I had my doubts as to this man’s being a servant or officer of the king’s, I was nevertheless aware that much depended on his reports in the country respecting us, and therefore endeavoured, by all means within my power, and consistent with prudence, to keep the fellow in our interest. His wife, too, who travelled in his train, received many small presents from us, and on this occasion was dashingly equipped for the journey, in order, as Lamina said, not to reflect discredit on those white men belonging to a Great White King, with whom they had been so long associated.
My next object was to despatch Mr. Partarrieau (the only person holding the rank of an officer then in good health) to the coast, to procure the articles for Almamy, and a supply of merchandize for the use of the expedition, which so long a halt had rendered absolutely necessary. Almamy still remained at Wooro Samba, where I paid him another visit, and made him a small present. On the 25th, he informed methat he was going to a village about five milesNW.from our camp, to arrange some matters relative to the succession of a chief, where, as the place lay in Mr. Partarrieau’s road, he could meet him. The same day he visited the camp, and received from him a letter to the Almamy of Foota Toro, which would ensure Mr. Partarrieau a safe passage through that country.
Mr. Partarrieau having received my instructions how to act during his absence, and such letters and other papers as I was sending to England and the coast, left the camp the 27th July. His party consisted of two soldiers, four civilians, and two moors. I furnished him with some small presents for Almamy and the chiefs of Foola.
On the same day I sent a party of eight native soldiers, with a sergeant, to the capital, with directions that, if Mr. Pilkington should not be well enough to ride his horse, they were to construct a litter, and bring him forward.
Mr. Nelson was daily getting worse, and the soldiers, seven in number, left on the sick list by Mr. Dochard, had no appearance whatever of recovery. One died on the 22d, and some of the others appeared likely soon to follow him. All that could be done, situated as we were, was done for them. The disease, however, was stronger than the remedies, and they continued gettingworse every day. In prescribing for them, I was assisted by Private Kenyon, who, from having served seven years as orderly man in the hospital at Senegal, had become acquainted with the medicines usually administered; in some cases, I had recourse to the remedies made use of by the natives of Africa, and whenever those were resorted to in time, the disease soon gave way. The rains were then so frequent and heavy, that scarcely a dry day occurred once in the week, which had a very strikingly bad effect on the health and spirits of all. The plentiful supply of provisions, however, which we were enabled to procure since our arrival at Samba Contaye, in some measure alleviated our sufferings; and a little labour, with more solidity in the materials employed, provided us with huts, if not as comfortable as we might have wished, at least sufficiently so to afford us shelter from the inclemencies of the season.
A regular market for the purchase of corn, rice, milk, butter, eggs, fowls, and game, was established, and well attended by the inhabitants of all the surrounding villages, to the distance of seven or eight miles; and were it not that the prospect of remaining in a state of inactivity for so long a time as some months at least, added to the uncertainty of the result of Mr. Dochard’s mission to Sego, and the sicklystate of the Europeans, we might have been comparatively happy.
Mr. Pilkington arrived from Boolibany on the 29th, and although he was much better than when we left him, he was still in so weak a state as to be unable to take any exercise, and consequently was incapable of affording me society in my excursions through the country. Mr. Nelson, too, continued to decline, and on the 6th of August, he was reduced to a complete inanimate skeleton; in this state he remained until the 9th, when he breathed his last, without a struggle. His remains were buried close by the side of Mr. Burton’s, under the shade of two large tamarind trees, about four hundred yards west of the camp.
My feelings on this occasion (whether from a weak state of body in consequence of some attacks of fever which I had lately experienced, or from other motives, I cannot pretend to say) were so much affected, that I could with difficulty witness the last sad offices to the remains of one of my companions, who, without disparagement to the others, was by no means the least worthy or useful member of the expedition. The consequence of this was, I had a severe relapse, which confined me to my bed for three weeks; at the end of which time I could scarcely stand upright.
On my recovery, I employed myself in learning the Foolah language, and making frequent excursions to the adjacent towns, as the weather, which was then not quite so wet, permitted.
Our supply of provisions, such as they were, continued abundant; and having completed a strong fence round the camp, we were, in some degree, defended both from the encroachments of the wild beasts, which nightly serenaded us, and the not less troublesome daily visits of the inhabitants of the town; whom, previous to the fence being made, we found impossible to keep out of our huts, and from which, on their departure, some one thing or other was always missing.
The fever and dysentery still continued to do their work of destruction. Private Watzer died on the 19th; Fallen on the 22d; and Corporal Howell on the 25th of August, and many more were fast declining. To divert, as much as possible, the minds of the men from reflecting on the scenes of death around them, I had recourse to amusements and employments of all kinds. Hunting the game in which the country abounded, afforded an ample range for those, who were able to partake of it, to employ their time to advantage. Wild hogs, antelopes, guinea fowls, and partridges, were constantly brought in. During one of our excursions we met, and succeededin killing, a large lioness, which had, for some time, been disturbing the neighbourhood of the village. On this occasion, we were accompanied by some of the inhabitants of Samba Contaye, one of whom gave the first wound to the animal; in consequence of which he was disarmed by the rest of his companions, and led prisoner (his hands tied behind his back) to the town, at whose outer approach they were met by all the women, singing and clapping hands. The dead animal, covered with a white cloth, was carried by four men on a bier constructed for the purpose, accompanied by the others of their party, shouting, firing shots, and dancing, or rather playing all sorts of monkey tricks. As I was not a little surprised at seeing the man, whom I conceived ought to be rewarded for having first so disabled the animal as to prevent it from attacking us, thus treated, I requested an explanation; and was informed that being a subject only, he was guilty of a great crime in killing or shooting a sovereign, and must suffer this punishment until released by the chiefs of the village, who knowing the deceased to have been their enemy, would not only do so immediately, but commend the man for his good conduct. I endeavoured to no purpose to find out the origin of this extraordinary mock ceremony, but could only gain the answer, frequently given by anAfrican, “that his forefathers had always done so.”
This, with a hyena, shot by a sentinel when attempting to take away one of our asses, were the only animals of the kind killed by us. In a few nights after this, we were surprised by three lions, which, in despite of the strength of our fence, and of the centinels, who fired several shots at them, forced their way into the camp, and succeeded in mangling one of our horses, which was tied to a stake within fifteen yards of our huts, in such a dreadful manner, that I thought it best, by means of a pistol ball, to put an end to the poor animal’s sufferings.
Those animals are very troublesome, particularly at the time of year when the corn and grass, being nearly the height of a man, afford them means of concealing themselves near the towns, and of making nightly attacks on the herds of black cattle and goats belonging to the natives, who keep up large fires in the folds, and occasionally fire off their muskets, to deter them from approaching;—but in this they do not unhappily always succeed.
Not having heard any intelligence of Mr. Dochard since his departure, I began to be uneasy for his safety, and thought of despatching a person in the direction he went, in order to ascertain, if possible, how far he had got, whenI was agreeably surprised by the arrival of one of his men whom he had sent back from Kasson with letters, giving an account of his transactions since his departure, and requiring some supplies. He stated that on the 25th he reached Nayer, a town of Bondoo, on the banks of the Fa-lemme, distant from Samba Contaye thirty-four miles; there he had to await the arrival of Almamy’s guide, who joined him on the 27th, but having then refused to proceed unless provided with a horse and a fine dress, which articles Mr. Dochard neither could nor would give him, he returned. Mr. Dochard gave him a note to me, but the fellow did not deliver it, nor did I see him until I met him by accident at Boolibany some days after; when he told me that he had received a letter from Mr. Dochard, in which was contained an order on me for a new dress, but that he had lost it in crossing the Fa-lemme; this I knew to be false, and told him that I could not take his word. Almamy had then sent another man to join Mr. Dochard, who crossed the Fa-lemme on the 27th, and arrived at Mamier, the residence of Hawah Demba, a prince of Kasson, on the 1st of August, having found much difficulty in crossing some streams running to the Senegal, and being much disturbed by wild beasts. He stated this place to be upwards of eighty miles from the Fa-lemme, andto be a very small village, the occasional residence of that prince, who had then been there some weeks, and who detained Mr. Dochard under the pretence of not having received a sufficiently large present, until the 17th, on which day he again moved forward accompanied by one of Hawah Demba’s men, sent to escort him into Foolidoo, about four miles from Mamier. He ascended some steep and rugged hills, from the top of which he had a fine view of the Senegal, distant about a mile to the north. On descending into the valley, he travelled over a solid bed of rock for more than a mile, when he reached an extensive plain lying along the banks of the river, by the side of which he travelled through villages and large corn-grounds, until he arrived at Savusuru, another town of Kasson. Here he met a division of Hawah Demba’s army, going on a plundering excursion into some of the neighbouring states. It was his intention to leave Savusirie on the following day, but it rained so incessantly, and the innumerable brooks and rivers he had to cross were so swollen, that he could not move before the 21st, and even then he did so contrary to the advice of the natives, which proved to be well founded, as he had not travelled above four miles when he came to a stream called the Tangina, running into the Senegal, and so deep and rapid that to attemptcrossing it without canoes, of which there were none at the place, would have been madness; he was therefore, however reluctantly, obliged to return to a small town called Jamoonia, about a mile from the river.
Here he remained, in consequence of the continuance of rain and the still swollen state of the river, until the 25th, during which time he, together with some of his men, had a severe attack of fever, but on that day were sufficiently recovered to attempt crossing the stream, then reduced to nine feet water, and in which they succeeded, by felling a large tree which stood on the bank, and when down reached across, forming a passage sufficiently solid to admit of the baggage being carried over on the men’s heads: the animals swam across with much difficulty, owing to the rapidity of the stream. The remainder of that day’s journey was rendered extremely difficult and tedious, by the marshy nature of the ground over which their path lay. They halted for the night at a walled town called Dhiamu, having passed several small villages during the day. On leaving this place they had another considerable stream to cross; it was much wider than the former but not so deep, having only from three to five feet water, with a rough stony bottom. The path on the other side was good and solid: in the vicinity ofit were several extraordinary high rocks, bearing in their form more the appearance of art than nature. They halted for that night at Tenakie, a large walled town belonging to a prince named Sego Amadi, who calls himself king, and in which light he is treated by the people of his own town, and by them only. The town is situate in a fertile valley, surrounded by high rocky mountains. Here again a very great fall of rain, and the importunities of the chief for customs and presents, with the usual threat of not being allowed to pass without paying, obliged him to halt until the 29th, when he reached and crossed the Bangayko, a considerable stream running north; having been obliged for nearly a mile previous to reaching it to travel through a marsh, in which the animals and men sunk up to their knees, and over which the latter carried the loads with difficulty. Mr. Dochard’s own horse was obliged to be carried through on poles. The march of the 30th was not less fatiguing than that of the 29th; low swampy valleys, and high rocky hills, were in their turn to be waded through or scrambled over. They passed the night at a small village, situate in a valley between too high hills, on the highest of which, accessible by only one narrow and rugged path, the chief of the town had his residence, from whence he had an uninterrupted view of thesurrounding country to a considerable distance, and where he dwelt in perfect security from his enemies: this place is called Moosa Caré.
The huts in which Mr. Dochard and his men were accommodated, being badly thatched, let in the rain, which fell in torrents during the night, and put out their fires, the smoke of which, although exceedingly unpleasant in itself, had the good effect of keeping off the sand-flies and musquitoes, which at that time of the year are in swarms in all low situations, and render it impossible for any person not defended by smoke or close curtains to sleep. Indeed the former, although the most unpleasant, is by no means the least effectual remedy, particularly against the sand-flies, which are so small that it is next to an impossibility to keep them out with the closest curtains.
On the morning of the 31st of August, he moved forward at seven o’clock, and travelled without halting over ground similar to that of the two last days, until three in the afternoon, when they reached a river called the Goolookucko, which it was impossible to pass without the assistance of canoes, and that could not be procured nearer than a village six miles from the opposite bank; but all were so much fatigued that none would venture to swim the river that night in search of one: they were thereforeobliged to halt, and secure themselves as well as one small tent enabled them. They found it necessary to keep up large fires during the night to deter the wild beasts, which infest that country in vast numbers, from approaching too near. They were not a little disappointed, on the morning of the 1st of September, to find that the person who had gone to the village returned, accompanied by a number of men carrying large calabashes, intended to serve the purpose of canoes—even one of which useful articles those people were not provided with. With much difficulty, and not without considerable danger, particularly to those who could not swim, of whom Mr. Dochard was one, they effected the passage of this river, which was 150 yards wide, and very deep and rapid.
The manner in which this navigation is carried on is not at all calculated to inspire confidence. One of these large calabashes is placed in the water, and filled with whatever articles are to be transported, two men then go into the water and taking hold of it, one on each side, swim on, pushing it or rather dragging it between them. When a person who cannot swim is to be taken over, he lays hold of the calabash with both hands, one on each side; this supports him from sinking, while a man swims with him, and pushes the calabash forward. In this manner Mr. Dochard andtwo of his men, who could not swim, were ferried over the rivers, much to the amusement of the inhabitants of the country, who, in common with all the natives of the interior parts of Africa, think that we live in the water, and are therefore much astonished when they see any white man who cannot swim.
They reached a small scattered village, Diaperey, on the bank of the Bafing, at a late hour, and having passed that night and the following day there, in order to rest the animals, crossed the river, which being at that place 500 yards wide, and extremely rapid, they found much difficulty in doing, and at so late an hour, in consequence of heavy rain all the forenoon, that they could only reach a small town of the same name as the latter, distant about half a mile from the river, where they passed the night.
On the 4th they reached Sambula, a town of Kasson, having passed several small villages during the day, and travelled over a country more open and elevated than that of the three former days.
In crossing the last river, nearly all the baggage was wet, the canoe having been upset. This rendered it necessary to have the trunks opened, and the things in them dried; from which, on repacking, it was found that a parcel containing dollars was missing, and as they belonged toLamina, the guide, who had given them to Mr. Dochard to keep for him, and who would no doubt demand them at Sego, it became absolutely necessary that they should be replaced. To effect this, Mr. Dochard despatched one of his men, accompanied by one of Lamina’s, back to me, giving, as I before said, this account of all that had taken place since his leaving Samba Contaye up to the 7th of September.
In that short march he experienced all the difficulties which the state of the country at that time of the year, and the disposition of the natives, could possibly throw in his way to impede his progress. He appeared, however, thus far to have surmounted them all, and to have been going on as well as might be expected.
The men who came from him had taken more time to perform this journey than would have been necessary had they both been swimmers. This was not the case, his own man did not swim at all, and the other could do so but badly. To obviate, therefore, a similar delay in his receiving the articles he required, I selected a man to replace the former, and having made a small parcel of the dollars, together with some amber and beads, secured well with tarpaulin, and provided the men with means of subsistence till they could overtake Mr. Dochard, I despatched them on the 21st of September.
Affairs were going on very amicably between Almamy and myself, since the moment of Mr. Dochard’s departure, until the early part of October, previous to which I had purchased some horses and asses; a step, I told Almamy some time before, I should be obliged to take, in order to replace those I had lost by death, &c., to which he then made no objection.
The last purchased was a fine Arabian mare, brought to me by a man from Foota Toro, whom I had, early in the preceding month, commissioned to that effect. In a few days after the arrival of this animal at our camp, Almamy sent one of his vassals to let me know, that in consequence of my having purchased several horses without previously asking his permission, he expected I would pay him a custom or duty thereon, and until I might think fit to do so, he had given directions that none of the inhabitants of the country should dare, under any pretence whatever, to bring provisions to us. On this, as on all other occasions of messengers to me from Almamy, the chief of the town, Osman Comba, was present, but could not, in answer to a question of mine respecting the nature and amount of such custom, say more than it was the first time he had ever heard of any such custom being demanded by Almamy. Several of the oldest inhabitants of the town were appealedto as to the justice of the demand. Their answer was, that they were not aware of any such custom having been before paid in Bondoo, but that Almamy, as chief of the country, might, on all occasions, demand such tribute or duty as he thought proper.
Osman called me aside, and told me, that had I only bought the small horses and asses of the country, Almamy would never have asked a duty from me, and which, he said, was evident by his never having done so before I bought this mare; but she being so fine a creature, he was jealous of seeing her in my possession, and although he could not, in any justice, demand a duty, he took advantage of the circumstance to occasion a disagreement between us, to arrange which, he supposed I should either give him the mare in question, or find it necessary to make him a present likely to answer his purpose as well. The former I of course would not listen to; not that I fixed any particular value on that animal more than another, but I was aware that, had I yielded to his wishes on this occasion, I could not be safe on any future one of this kind. I therefore told his messenger, who was extremely haughty and impertinent (all which I bore with extreme sang froid), to return and let his master know I should send a person to speak with him on the subject in a few days. Thefellow, with much reluctance, left our camp, and appeared evidently disappointed at not going home loaded with presents.
Although I was satisfied that Almamy had sent this fellow with some message to me about the horses purchased, I doubted his having given orders to the people of the country not to bring provisions to us, and therefore delayed sending any one to see Almamy until I might be enabled to ascertain, by a few days’ experience, if the market would be attended as usual. No alteration appearing for three days, I sent Charles Jow to Boolibany, to inform Almamy of what his messenger had said, and, in case he had been instructed by him to bring that message, to say I felt very much annoyed at such treatment, particularly as it appeared to me he did it merely to get something from me which was not his due, and to prevent me from replacing those animals which had died and were stolen in his country.
On his return the following day, he brought for answer, that Almamy insisted on getting a duty, the amount or nature of which he would not specify, but if I did not give what pleased him, I might eat my merchandize, and he would eat his corn, meat, &c. I again waited a few days, to see whether his threats, with respect to the market, would be put in execution, when,finding a little milk was the only article offered for sale, and that after sunset, and at exorbitant prices, I was reduced to the necessity of endeavouring, by means of a considerable present, to make peace with him. This, however, took some time, and put me to much inconvenience in sending messengers to him.
Although I had a month’s corn in store, I conceived it much better to arrange matters thus, than remain at variance with a man who had so many opportunities of annoying me, and who, the longer I resisted him, would become the more difficult to be satisfied.
The present amounted to three hundred and fifty bars, being nearly double what I had paid for the mare. Thus is a man, when in the power of these chiefs, subject to every species of imposition and insult, both of which it would not only be improper, but unsafe, to resent on some occasions.