CHAPTER V.
Journey to Ambabboo, distance three miles, general direction south-west, along the sea-shore.—Halt for the night.—Journey to Dulhull, distance seven miles, general direction nearly south-west.—Staying at Dulhull.
Wefirst passed a small stream which a shower among the hills during the preceding night had produced, and which was now running directly into the sea: then the well, with the usual crowd of laughing water-bearers, who in groups were commenting upon the Feringee Kafilah, and as I passed saluted me with an abundance of salaams (peace). Cassim was the only one of the group of five natives that accompanied me who was mounted, and he was unarmed, except with the common dagger of his countrymen. The remainder, excepting Ibrahim Shaitan, who had made himself particularly disagreeable in Tajourah, were strangers to me. I was given to understand they formed a part of the escort of ten men who were engaged to accompany me on the journey. They were certainly the most cut-throat looking individuals I had ever seen; their suspicious glances, low whispers, and rumoured characters, for they were some Bedouinsof the interior, made me feel rather uncomfortable at first, and I almost felt inclined to get off my mule, and go to prayers with Cassim, when I saw him dismount as we rode along the beach and commence his ablutions for that purpose. As, however, he made no signal for me to halt, I proceeded quietly along with the rest of the party till we passed a broad current, some feet wide, of small hermit crabs, that were marching along, at a great pace, from the sea, towards the north, in which direction, it must be observed, Mecca lay. I pulled up my mule to observe what could possibly be the reason of such an array passing along, and my wild-looking friends coming up, Ibrahim, whose knowledge of Arabic rivalled mine, looked in my face inquiringly, and pointing to the crabs, remarked, “fennah rah?” (where go) to which I replied in equally good Arabic, “hadge” (pilgrimage), at which he raised a loud laugh, and telling his friends in their language, they seemed to enjoy the joke exceedingly. After this incident I got a little more confidence, and was just going to ask Ibrahim some question relative to the time we should be on the journey, when a sudden turn brought us to a little savannah, surrounded with date and mimosa trees, whilst beyond, rising high above the bright green foliage, was a pretty regular amphitheatre of high conical hills. As we had been scarcely an hour reaching this place, and I saw by the boxes being piled up that a halt was intended,I was rather astonished at finding our first day’s march so very short, and Cassim riding up, I put the question to him if it were intended to start again in the night, as is frequently the case with Kafilahs to avoid the heat of the day. Cassim, however, told me that we should not start again until the next morning very early, a number of camels and men not having joined who intended to accompany us to Abasha. My new servant Zaido, a slave of Ohmed Mahomed, was here introduced to me. He had been engaged to attend me on the road for twenty dollars, to be paid on our arrival in Shoa. He was a tall good-natured sort of a fellow, but the greatest coward I ever met among these brave people, and the very reverse in this respect to his much shorter fellow-slave, Allee Ohmed, who also had been ordered by his master to look after my mule, and who was ever ready to perform other services for me in the expectation of a few gilt buttons, and a boxeish, or present, at parting. Neither of them was much more than twenty years old, but Allee had proved himself a man of some courage in a battle with the Issah Soumaulee, in which he had killed his opponent.
Immediately on arriving at the halting-place, Allee took my mule, and Zaido brought me my carpet, with my Scotch plaid and Arab cloak, which were rolled up in it, and arranged my bed for the night in an open part of the savannah, placing my saddle under my head to serve for a pillow.Cassim took up his position on one side of me, and Ibrahim on the other side of Cassim, whilst during the night Alee and Zaido lay, one at my feet, and the other at my head, to guard against any attempt to assassinate me during the night, it being known that many of the Debenee tribe had declared that no white man should pass again through their country, owing to a dispute about the division of five or six thousand dollars they asserted the Sultaun had received from the English, in payment for the purchase of some small islands in the Bay of Tajourah. The murder of three of Capt. Harris’s European escort, eight or nine days’ journey inland, was a painful evidence of the vindictive spirit thus excited. From the Debenee I was afterwards told I had more to fear than from any other tribe I should have to pass through.
During the night, I received a note from Mr. Cruttenden, which I read and answered by the light of the moon. A slight shower of rain gave promise of an abundant supply of water during our journey, and was hailed by all as a very propitious omen.
March 28th.—Up and off two hours before sunrise. I would not wait for my mule, but walked on with Cassim and Ibrahim whilst the camels were being loaded. Our march lay along the sands, where, for a short time, I sat under the shade of some date-palms, whilst my companions bathed and performed their first prayers for the day. I saw an abundance of game, chiefly guinea-fowl, and the small antelopementioned by Salt, a graceful little thing, scarcely twelve inches high, of a greyish fawn-colour, with beautifully formed head and large prominent black eyes. My double-barrelled carabine being loaded with ball, I would not shoot at them, fearing that I might miss, and I could not well afford to lose my character as a marksman among the people I was now living with, who consider every white man to be naturally a good shot.
Prayers being over, we again started, and soon passed a small native village of about eight houses, called Ambabboo, where we met some Bedouins with two or three camels who had come with the intention of joining our Kafilah. A little girl here brought me some milk in one of their curiously constructed baskets, and her brother, dragging along a young kid, wanted me to accept it. Cassim, who suspected the real meaning of all this generosity, objected to the kid on the plea of inconvenience. I, however, made them both happy by giving them a few beads and a couple of needles.
Leaving the coast, we entered a wood of low mimosa-trees, the thorny boughs of which I was obliged to be continually throwing from before my face. We soon came to a fordable part of a small creek communicating with the sea, and which I then found had caused the detour. The water where we passed was about two feet deep, and after crossing we reached the sea-shore again in a short time, and travelled along the sands untilwe came to an open bare spot, over which I could see, by the drift wood and large rolled stones, that during the wet season a torrent must rush into the sea. Here we were to halt for the rest of the day. A large Kafilah of natives going to Tajourah had spent the night in the same place, and were just leaving as our small party of pedestrians arrived, the time being the dawn of day, and we having been two hours on the march.
The name of this halting-place was Dulhull. I sat down on a large stone, at a short turn in the otherwise nearly direct line of the sea-shore from east to west, which admitted of a fine view of the Bay of Tajourah and the distant sea. The sun, “from ocean rising,” quickly dissolved the last shades of night, and one of the most lovely scenes my eyes ever beheld extended before me. All the azure and golden tinting of that imaginative painter, Turner, was realized, and I silently acknowledged the injustice of my premature judgment, in considering his pictures very pleasing, but most unnatural. The gorgeous apparel of the cloud-robed sun, the silvery play of the nearly calm reflecting surface of the sea; the blue rocks of the opposite Soumaulee shore; the palm-tree fringe of the waving line of coast, along which I had just been travelling; the distant view of Tajourah, and the quiet of its little merchant fleet, aided in producing an effect of enjoyment in my mind, that perhaps owed some portion of its charm to thefeeling of having at last entered upon the long wished-for life of novel and wild adventure which, from a boy, I had so ardently desired. Behind me rose a succession of bare rugged hills, gradually increasing in height till at the peak of Jibel Goodee, about six miles off, they attained an elevation of 6,000 feet, all evidently of volcanic origin, save the little low heaps of recent sandstone close to the shores of the bay which had been upheaved, probably at the same period with the more imposing rocks beyond them.
One of these hills of stratified sandstone had been impregnated with the vapour of a cupras sublimation, until it had assumed a light green colour; and upon the strength of about five per cent. of copper, some travellers had represented that it was aJibel Narse, or hill of copper. Many of the natives were firmly impressed with an idea that it was for the promise thus held out of an abundant supply of this metal, that had induced the English to attempt the purchase of Tajourah and the neighbouring country from the Sultaun Mahomed. I may here observe, that a purchase had been effected between this chief and the Indian Government of the two islands; one at the entrance of the bay, and another much smaller, lying in the little channel leading into Goobatul Khhrab, and for which, I believe, the Sultan received some five or six thousand dollars.
I was now joined by some of our Kafilah, whichhad in the meantime come up and commenced unlading. Zaido placed two mats under the shade of some closely-growing mimosa-trees, and one or two of the escort, who seemed willing to patronize me for the sake of the few buttons or needles I could bestow upon them, brought their mats and laid them down all around me. A rude sense of politeness seemed to prevent their pressing inconveniently near me; but I suspected that it was merely the hollow affectation of courtesy by the most cold-blooded assassins I ever met or ever read of. By their own showing, not one of them that wore a small tuft of hair upon the boss of his shield but had killed and murdered ten or twelve individuals, which, if only understood as two or three, the men surrounding me must have caused the death of at least a score of their fellow-beings; and the delight and evident zest with which they spoke of or listened to the several struggles in which they had been engaged, told the fierce and cruel character of these demons in human shape. “Neither the hospitality nor the high sense of honour that characterizes the savage of America or of the Oceanic Islands, is to be found among the Dankalli tribes. Murder is equally productive of renown as is the most honourable fight; and the same triumphant badges are worn by the valiant soldier and the cowardly assassin. The companion of the day and the sharer of your food will, under cover of night, strike without remorse his knife into your throat;and of all the savage people that inhabit this benighted land of Africa, the Dankalli are allowed by all to be the most treacherous and cruel.” This was the character I had received of my present companions; and it was necessary therefore that I should be careful to give them no excuse for attempting my life, acting as courteously as possible, distributing needles and bits of paper, loading and firing my pistols repeatedly for their amusement during the day. Having smashed, on one occasion, an earthen coffee-pot that the owner had challenged me to fire at, they were quite satisfied that I could as easily demolish an elephant with one of the little insignificant looking things that they saw I always wore at my waist, and this feeling I did not endeavour to dissipate, as I saw it had a very good effect upon the bearing of these men towards me. An accident that happened also, by which one of them was nearly shot, made them not over anxious to trust themselves too near to me, or my pistols, and turned out to be a fortunate circumstance, by preventing them from closing and crowding around me.
As evening drew on, Zaido, who had prepared me a breakfast in the morning of boiled rice and dates, now cooked me some kid’s flesh, a portion of another present I had received in the course of the day from some Bedouin shepherds who were tending their flocks of sheep and goats in the neighbourhood, and who had sent it in by some of their children. The mendid not appear themselves, for among our Kafilah were some individuals of a tribe with whom this Bedouin family had a blood feud. During the whole day I observed several of them assembled on a spur of Jibel Goodee, awaiting the result of our arrival with spear and shield in hand, as if they expected an attack. After supper I directed Allee and Zaido to make a little fort of boxes, as I saw I had nothing to trust to but the greatest precaution on my part. I was only afraid of night attacks, for during the day I felt pretty well assured that I should be quite free from any molestation, but even this partial idea of security led me subsequently into considerable danger; and, as I hope my experience may be of service to future travellers, my errors shall be duly paraded with the same fairness as those incidents I shall no doubt speak of, from which I expect any credit may arise.
The roof of my box-fort or hut was made by placing the long camel saddle-sticks across from side to side, over which I threw my carpet, and on this piled camel saddles, mats, and everything calculated to awaken me by making a noise in case of any one attempting to uncover my retreat. A good palanquin with locks on the doors would not be a bad carriage for such a country as Adal. The dilemma would be to procure bearers, for I do not think the native Dankalli could by any means be induced to theexercise of such a long-continued labour as the patient dauk carriers upon the roads of India.
Neither Ohmed Mahomed nor Ebin Izaak was to be seen to-day, and I found that they had returned during the past night to Tajourah, to spend another last day with their families, leaving Cassim in charge of the Kafilah. He sometimes walked up to the trees under which I lay during the day, to see that everything was right with me. A Bedouin, who had kept close to me the entire day, had placed himself at the entrance of my hut when I retired; and Zaido told me he was one of the escort who had sworn to Izaak not to let me go out of his sight, upon the promise of receiving a cloth from his son in Abasha. As he was a very superior-looking man, at least forty years of age, very quiet, and less importunate for trifles than the rest of his countrymen, I thanked him, as well as I could, for his attention, and gave him a cotton handkerchief.
After looking suspiciously to the right and left, creeping a little way into my hut he secured the gift in a dirty rag to the handle of his shield, which he hung up in my hut to be taken care of, by signs intimating that it would rain, and also that he was my very good friend, insisting at the same time, that I should write his name, Garahmee, down in my note-book. He then turned away to get some boiled rice with Zaido and Allee, whilst Iturned in upon my mat, covered myself with my plaid and Arab cloak, and composed myself to sleep.
March 29.—I found we should not leave Dulhull to-day; neither Ohmed Mahomed, nor Ebin Izaak, having yet arrived, Garahmee and a new Bedouin friend, Moosa Gra, proposed to accompany me if I chose to bathe in the sea, but as it was in front of and in sight of the Kafilah, I told them I did not require their attendance. After bathing I took my yesterday morning’s position upon the stone on the sea-shore, and again looked with pleasure upon the lovely picture before me. While still enjoying the scene, a sudden flash from the beach in front of Tajourah followed in a few minutes by a booming report, told the departure of Mr. Cruttenden for Berberah, and scarcely had his little vessel returned the salute of the town, and raised her long lateen sail, than she flew as if impatient from the land, and at our distance seemed not unlike a large white bird scudding over the surface of the sea.
Mr. Cruttenden having left Tajourah, Cassim and Ibrahim, who had been, I could see, anxiously awaiting the report, thought they could go back to their homes without further trouble. Their protestations of anxiety for my safety, and desire to see me well started on my journey, having been sheer humbug, but by which of course they had secured proportionate rewards. I had scarcely recovered from the fit of musing, the circumstanceof my having witnessed the departure of Mr. Cruttenden had occasioned, when these worthies came up to announce their own intention of immediately returning to Tajourah. Ibrahim, who had a raw kidney in his hand, offered part of it to me with the most innocent politeness, but which I having with a graceful bow declined, he handed to Cassim, who made but two mouthfuls of it. They amused themselves with my evident surprise at their indulging in such a delicacy as they undoubtedly considered it; and having put me, as they thought, into a good humour with them, proposed their return. I made no observation in reply, for I was only too glad to get Ibrahim away, as he very evidently disliked me, and all that were of my colour. I had nearly quarrelled with him the evening before, through resisting his attempts to cut the leaves out of a copy of Mr. M‘Queen’s survey of Africa, in an Appendix of which was contained an extract of the route through this country, from the journals of Messrs. Isenberg and Krapf, and which I had been comparing with the accounts I was receiving of the road from the natives who surrounded me. Upon learning that the account was that of the missionaries, Ibrahim, for some reason or other, drew his knife, and stated his intention of cutting the book up, but upon my putting it immediately into my saddle-bag, with a very significant expression, the by-standers took Ibrahim away. To all appearance, the circumstance was soon forgotten,for he appeared in a short time afterwards, and asked me to give him some lucifer matches, with which request I immediately complied, and in this manner established peace again between us.
On the present occasion Cassim began the conversation by saying, how anxious he was for the Kafilah to proceed, which was false; as Zaido had told me but a short time before that we were waiting for some friends of Cassim himself, who were going to join our Kafilah with a few camels, which they intended to load with salt for the Shoan market at the Bahr Assal, and that they would not be ready till the next day. Cassim, however, went on to state, that he was exceedingly angry with his brother, Ohmed Mahomed, for detaining us, and that it was his intention to go back to Tajourah to hasten him on to rejoin the Kafilah; and added, that Ibrahim would also accompany him for mutual protection on the road. He concluded, by representing that the smallest offering would be gladly accepted, but hinted his expectation of a considerable boxeish for his attendance so far, and proportionate to the very important position he held among the Tajourah people, which, he said, would be considerably diminished, if what I should give him were not what his admirers might expect. As I was not in a humour to understand all this, my little knowledge of Arabic wonderfully diminished, and it was absurd to see the grave personage Cassim, in consequence,throwing his hands and arms about, strutting and looking pompous, and then most benign, to convey to my obtuse understanding the impression most favourable for his wishes. Ibrahim stood very quietly by, cleaning his extremely white teeth with the ever accompanying stick of a singular kind of tree called Woomen, growing in the neighbourhood of Dulhull. He, however, made no observation until Cassim had finished, and had seen him receive four dollars, then his turn came.
Ibrahim was a little spare man, but commenced with saying, that he was quite as good as Cassim, that he was my friend, and, besides, was going to introduce me to another friend of his who would accompany me all the way, and sooner die than see me injured. This friend’s name he made me write down in my book with a particular note, that I should not forget to give him also a boxeish on our arrival in Abasha. As for himself, he added, he was convinced I should do him justice. To my sense of what was due to his numerous excellences, therefore, and to the goodness of Allah, he left all consideration of what bounty I intended to bestow upon him.
I had made up my mind to divide ten dollars between them at Segallo, the halting-place where it was originally intended they should leave me, but as that was at some distance, I thought they should get nothing by the little deceit they had practised in keeping me at Dulhull until Mr. Cruttenden hadsailed, and then saving themselves any farther trouble, by returning immediately to Tajourah. As has been observed, I gave Cassim only four, and to Ibrahim I presented three dollars, observing to the latter, that I had given him more than the extra dollar Cassim had received, in beads, needles, buttons, and matches; for of all the natives, Bedouin, or townspeople, Ibrahim was the most bothering, and greedy in begging everything he could set his eyes upon. When he could obtain nothing else, he asked for medicine, and if I had taken him at his word, and done him full justice, I think I could not have done less than have seized this opportunity of poisoning him, and so have sent him to that place from whence he derived his very unamiable “nom de guerre,” among his own countrymen, of “Shaitan.”
Our grief at parting, not being of that excessive kind that would interfere with any opportunities I had of making observations on the people I was amongst, as soon as they were gone I had my mat spread again under the trees, and was soon surrounded by others, who were retreating from the hot sun to the same friendly shelter.
Some women also came down from among the hills with small skins of clotted milk, which they gladly exchanged for needles. The younger ones are very beautiful girls, but of exceedingly slender form, reminding me strongly of the appearance of the Indian girls in Calcutta, and strikinglydifferent in figure from the female slaves brought down from Abyssinia. These latter are particularly plump, with roundly formed and fleshy limbs, and of rather short stature, whilst the Adal women are thin, muscular, and tall. The latter, too, were considerably more vivacious and active, and the characters of their features were as decidedly different as the chief points of their figure. I have before observed, that the genuine Dankalli belongs to the Circassian variety; but I shall not stay here to form farther comparisons with the Abyssinians, but will wait till I arrive in that country, and can bring my subjects properly before the reader.
The older women were repulsive looking witches with dependent breasts, like old black butter skins, lying empty and flat upon the chest. This disgusting appearance is produced by the constant pressure of the band placed over the shoulders, and across the breast, and which secures whatever burden the woman is carrying behind her. They invariably have something stowed away in this manner, either a child, a bundle of split doom leaves for plaiting, an odd bundle of salt, or a large skin full of milk. It is generally suspended from the chest upon the loins, and the constant pressure, in the course of time has the effect of completely obliterating the glandular portion of the breasts, leaving only two long double flaps of black skin, to tell where once the fountains of life had been. They had a constant habit of tapping the mouthwith the tips of their fingers to express astonishment, and pressing both hands to the lower part of the face was the very modest manner in which they walked off their nearly naked bodies, when we came suddenly up to a party of them, for it was seldom they volunteered to stay in my neighbourhood unless called upon to do so. A white skin evidently had no charms for them, and I could only smile at their prejudice and bad taste. The same kind of feeling makes many a negro happy in London, who, if the truth were known, looks with an eye of pity or contempt upon the pale faces that turn in disgust from him.
Mothers, towards evening, came bringing their diseased children into camp, and when I could be of service, it was some pleasure to assist them with what little medicine I possessed; but to some who were irrecoverable, I only suggested such dietary treatment I considered might be palliative, for I would not risk the danger of having their death laid to my charge, as it would have been had I administered any drug, or held out any hopes of recovery. One or two blind people went away very much disappointed at my not being able to restore them their sight.
My usual evening meal of rice and kid-flesh being duly prepared, I returned into my hut, drew out in secret my pewter spoon, the only remaining one of three, and made a hearty supper. All illness having apparently left me, appetite and abuoyancy of spirit I had long been a stranger to, had returned, enabling me fully to enjoy all the pleasures, if there can be any imagined, of the life I was now leading.