CHAPTERII.
Detained at Farree.—No news from Ankobar.—Fear all is not right.—Escape from my confinement.—Reach Garcia Mulloo.—Followed by officers of Wallasmah.—Compromise matters.—Return to Farree.—Brutality of Wallasmah.—Planning escape to the coast with Hy Soumaulee.—Arrival of Mr. Scott from Ankobar.—Chief cause of my detention.
Detained at Farree.—No news from Ankobar.—Fear all is not right.—Escape from my confinement.—Reach Garcia Mulloo.—Followed by officers of Wallasmah.—Compromise matters.—Return to Farree.—Brutality of Wallasmah.—Planning escape to the coast with Hy Soumaulee.—Arrival of Mr. Scott from Ankobar.—Chief cause of my detention.
Istayedin Farree anxiously awaiting some news from the embassy, until the 25th; but neither note nor messenger came to relieve the suspense I was in. The night before, Ohmed Medina, however, had called upon me, and told me that all was right as regarded their personal safety, but informed me that my note from the Dinnomalee had been intercepted by the Wallasmah, and that none of the English in Shoa knew that I was in the country. I made up my mind, on hearing this, to attempt getting to Ankobar the next morning, if it were possible; and accordingly, before it was light, opened the little wicket that served for the door, passed unobserved the two sentinels who lay wrapped up in their body cloths fast asleep, and was soon some distance on the wrong road; that is to say, the most circuitous one to Ankobar. I thoughtthat I was not exactly right, and meeting some labourers going into the fields to work, I asked the way, by repeating the word, Ankobar. They were too much surprised to speak, but pointed in the direction of the road, and I left them staring after me with a wondering look, as if to ask what would come next. Having reached a village about five miles to the north-west of Farree, I found it impossible to go on, it having been one continual ascent along the roughest and most winding path that can well be imagined. Oppressed with difficulty of breathing, fatigued, and foot-sore, I turned toward the door of the first house, and sitting down on a stone, made signs that I wanted some water. Hereupon such a screaming was set up by the only inmates, two naked children, that it could not have been exceeded if I had intimated that they were about to be devoured. Their cries brought two other little girls, who came running round the house, but seeing me, promptly turned back, tumbling over each other to get out of the way, contributing as they lay not a little to the frantic roaring of the children inside.
The noise soon brought all the disposable people, men and women of all ages, who had not left the village for their labours in the fields, who soon recognised in their visitor a Gypt or Egyptian, as the Abyssinians call all white men. I was glad to find that the character seemed to be a very respected one, although the first evidence I had of it, was thenumerous beggars for articles, the names of which I did not understand. They invited me into the house out of the sun, and a large wooden mortar was laid on its side for me to sit upon, whilst several women employed themselves scorching some coffee beans, in a coarse earthenware saucer over a little wood fire in the centre of a circular hearth, that occupied the middle of the room. The whole house consisted of this one apartment, the surrounding wall being composed of sticks placed close together, and about four feet high, upon which rested a straw thatched roof frame of light bamboo, well blackened with the smoke.
I had not long arrived at Garcia Mulloo, the name of the village, before I was followed by a large body of men armed with spears and staves, and dragging along with them, most unwillingly, my old grey mule. The misselannee of Farree, whom I knew, was at the head of the party, and appeared very well pleased to see me, addressing me with great politeness, though I could not understand a word that he said. I took care, however, in Arabic, to charge him and the Wallasmah with incivility, and want of hospitality, for detaining me so long in Farree against my will, and also with having, like a thief, stolen the note I had sent to Ankobar. As we had been now joined by a man named Brekka, who understood what I said, he interpreted for us, and afforded the misselannee an opportunity in reply, of throwing the whole blameupon the Wallasmah, whose servant he was, at the same time begging me to return with him, for which purpose, and for my accommodation, he had brought my mule along with him. I positively refused, on the plea, that their King had promised mine, that Englishmen were to travel unmolested through the country, alluding to the treaty, and that, accordingly, if they now used force to take me back to Farree, it would bring the matter to an issue, and my people would then see the real value of the word of Sahale Selassee. Seeing I was determined not to return with them they agreed to compromise the matter, upon my promising to remain at Garcia Mulloo, and not attempt to proceed farther towards Ankobar, until the King’s pleasure respecting me should be known. This I was induced to do by the misselannee’s pacific appeal that I would not do anything which would occasion him to be imprisoned, and all his property confiscated.
Our interpreter, Brekka, was a scamp of a renegado, who had been a Christian, but was converted to the Islam faith, by the promise of a situation under the Wallasmah, whose district, the province of Efat, is inhabited chiefly by Mahomedans. The contiguity of the two faiths among a people of one origin, affords an interesting opportunity of examining the first effect of differences in religious belief, and which leads, in the course of time, to the division of one family of man into two distinct nations, differing incustoms, pursuits, and even, after a lapse of time, in physical features.
The same dispersing operation of opinion, but more advanced, is to be observed in the separation, at the present day, of the Dankalli and Soumaulee tribes, and to any zealous student of the science of all sciences, humanity, or the natural history of man, it is indispensably necessary that he should visit the countries of Abyssinia, of Sennaar, and Adal, where he will find collected, as at a centre, the originals of all the different varieties into which physiologists have divided the human race; and where, at this moment, the principal causes of the great moral change in the condition of man, consequent upon the flood, may be observed in full operation, and producing the same effects of dispersion. Christian civilization, which points to a future union, is the antagonizing principle to the opinion disturbing one, which, I believe, alone separates and divides mankind; and I could wish to see, here, in intertropical Africa, a Mission of enlightened ministers of the Gospel, whose object should be simply to spread the easily understood doctrine of one God, and that love and truth are the redeeming principles in the character of man, to restore him to that state of excellence from which he has fallen.
It being arranged I should stay at Garcia Mulloo, a supply of bread and beer was ordered by the misselanee, who had been sent for to see after this duty; the same officer of the town ofFarree, returning there with his party, taking my mule along with them, and leaving Brekka and another man to keep me company, as was said, but in fact, to keep guard over me. A disjointed conversation with the former served to amuse me during the rest of the day. He gave me some information respecting the Embassy, and of the dislike entertained by Sahale Selassee to the English; which surprised me considerably, nor would I at first believe it, but ascribed the statement to the ill feeling and jealousy with which the visit of our Political Mission to the Court of Shoa, was viewed by the Mahomedans of Efat.
In the afternoon, Brekka walked down to Farree, and when he returned, told me he had seen a letter for me, and a messenger from Ankobar, and that if I wished to see them I must go to that town. I did not hesitate a moment, but was now as anxious to be off, as I was before obstinately bent upon remaining. The news of Brekka being confirmed by the arrival of a messenger from the Wallasmah, with the same information, I started immediately. I conceived that the not sending the letter to Garcia Mulloo, was perhaps intended as a kind of punishment for my breaking prison in the morning.
In about an hour and a-half, we were again crossing the little stream which flows at the base of the hill on which Farree stands; and I was soon seated in my old quarters, whilst Brekka wentto obtain for me the expected note. When he returned, he brought me an order to go to the Wallasmah myself, as he wanted to see me; and who occupied a house upon one of the little eminences opposite to mine. I was not long in presenting myself in obedience to this summons, and found that gentleman sitting upon a large oxskin spread upon the ground, paring his toe nails with an old pocket knife. As I came round the low stone fence against which he leaned, he cast his eyes upon me, and growled a very sinister kind of salutation, asking me in broken Arabic how I did. I now requested him to give me the letter from Ankobar, but he only shook his head. I asked to see the messenger, and with a chuckle of triumphant cunning, he pointed with the open knife to the fastened door of an outhouse, an action which I readily interpreted to mean, “He is there, in prison.” I did not say a word more, but walked away in high dudgeon, overturning a rude Abyssinian who, with spear and shield pushed against me, as if to prevent my exit when I made my way out through a little wicket in the stick enclosure that surrounded the house.
The worst of my situation was, that I had no friends near, all the Hy Soumaulee and Tajourah people being according to custom, obliged to locate themselves during their stay in Shoa, in a little town called Channo, situated about two miles to the north-east of Farree, where they arecompelled to leave their shields and spears when they go farther into the interior of the country. I had to send for any of these to come to me, but either it was too late in the day, being after sunset, or orders had been issued to the contrary, for I could induce no one to take a message from me either to Ohmed Medina or Carmel Ibrahim. I was obliged, therefore, to remain quiet for the night, being determined, however, on the morrow to escape into the Adal country, and carry the news back, which otherwise might be a long time in reaching Aden, of the actual condition of things in Shoa; where, instead of the English being courted and caressed, as was believed to be the case when I was in Tajourah, they were, in fact, the objects of the most jealous suspicion, and subjected to the most tyrannical surveillance, if not actually in prison.
The early part of the morning of the 26th of May was occupied in projecting the plan of my escape with Carmel Ibrahim and Adam Burrah, the latter of whom having assisted Lieut. Barker in getting through the Adal country after that gentleman had left the Hurrah Kafilah, I could the more confidently rely upon, although I had not the least doubt of the fidelity or trustworthiness of the former. These two had come with Allee the First to laugh with me at my attempt of getting to Ankobar the day before, and endeavoured to soothe and interest me, as they thought, by showing how they would disembowel the old fat Wallasmahif they had him in their country. My proposal to go back was met with their decided approbation. It was accordingly arranged that Carmel and Adam should accompany me in the evening, whilst the rest of the escort were to remain, and during the night manage to steal my mule, and as many more as they could, and join us at the little Wahama town Dophan, beyond which they knew very well no attempt would be made to pursue us.
I was in the act of making a few cartridges for my anticipated return journey, when I heard a loud cry of “Commander, Commander,” an English word, by which the Abyssinians had been taught to designate the head of the Mission. Two or three of the inhabitants of Farree came also in a great hurry to call me out of the house, and tell me that some Gypt or other was approaching. I was equally eager, and even ran in a most undignified manner to meet this messenger of light, who, mounted on a mule, now appeared upon the summit or crest of the road before it descends into the little hollow where stands the market-place. There was a great air of civilization about him. He wore a broad-brimmed hat, somewhat like my own, covered with white cotton cloth, a sailor’s large pea-jacket belted round his waist, an old pair of grey check trowsers, and came with a sober steady pace along the narrow path.
I met him as he dismounted beneath the few mimosa-trees, and after a hearty shake of the hand,invited him to myhotel. He then introduced himself as Mr. R. Scott, the surveying draughtsman attached to the Mission.
His first explanation was the cause of his non-arrival sooner, which was owing to the utter ignorance of my arrival on the part of Captain Harris, the chief of the Embassy, until the night but one before, when the King had forwarded by one of his pages two notes, which I had endeavoured to send to him, the last one dated from Dinnomalee. The other was the one which had been sent by Esau Ibrahim, who, it will be remembered, was despatched from Mullu, on the other side of the Hawash, with a note to Ankobar, informing Captain Harris of my being on the road with stores. Both these letters had been intercepted and detained, until public rumour spreading, the King could not have kept the Embassy much longer ignorant of my being in the country; and he therefore made a virtue of necessity, and sent the letters before they were demanded.
An answer had been sent to me by Capt. Harris the day before by the messenger now in prison, confined by the Wallasmah for having brought a letter for me, after the King had issued orders that all correspondence between the English already in the country and those arriving should be prevented. Mr. Scott was not at all surprised when I informed him of the circumstance, though I certainly considered such a proceeding to be verymuch at variance with the conditions and stipulations I was given to understand were contained in the commercial treaty. I could not help remarking this, and Mr. Scott then candidly admitted the King did not know the character or purport of the paper he had signed; and had only been made aware of the new responsibilities he had incurred, by a sharply worded expostulatory letter, written by Mr. Krapf, in accordance to the dictation of Captain Harris, on an occasion subsequently to the signing of the treaty, when despatches and letters coming up from the coast were intercepted and detained for some time by the orders of the King. Singularly enough, this information was corroborated by Ohmed Medina, who told me that my letter from Dinnomalee had not been carried to Captain Harris, but to the King, who wanted to find out whether the English were his friends or not, and was trying my disposition and that of the Commander (Captain Harris) by this harsh treatment of me; a kind of experiment, in fact, to see what would be borne by us, and how far he had limited his authority by attaching his signature to the treaty. Any idea of granting public benefit, at the expense of his prerogative was never entertained for a moment, the intentions of the King being limited to shewing personal favour alone, which he is ever ready to concede even now to English travellers, much as he complains of the conduct of the Mission in Shoa as regards theirpolitical misdoings; more especially of the great insult offered to him by the unfortunate letter before alluded to, and which was worded so unguardedly, that the King, on receiving it, might well, considering his great regard for Mr. Krapf previously, turn to him and say, in a tone that implied more of sorrow than of anger, “Did you write that, my father?”