Rhamnus Lotus.M. Park delt.Mc.Kenzie sculpt.Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol Pall Mall, January 1.1799.
Rhamnus Lotus.M. Park delt.Mc.Kenzie sculpt.Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol Pall Mall, January 1.1799.
Rhamnus Lotus.
Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol Pall Mall, January 1.1799.
Feb. 16th. We were informed that a number of people would go from this town to Jarra on the day following; and as the road was much infested by the Moors, we resolved to stay and accompany the travellers. In the meantime we were told, that a few days before our arrival, most of the Bushreens and people of property in Funingkedy had gone to Jarra, to consult about removing their families and effects to that town, for fear of the approaching war; and that the Moors, in their absence, had stolen some of their cattle.
About two o’clock, as I was lying asleep upon a bullock’s hide behind the door of the hut, I was awakened by the screams of women, and a general clamour and confusion among the inhabitants. At first I suspected that the Bambarrans had actually entered the town; but observing my boy upon the top of one of the huts, I called to him to know what was the matter. He informed me that the Moors were come a second time to steal the cattle, and that they were now close to the town. I mounted the roof of the hut, and observed a large herd of bullocks coming towards the town, followed by five Moors on horseback, who drove the cattle forward with their muskets. When they had reached the wells, which are close to the town, the Moors selected from the herd sixteen of the finest beasts, and drove them off at full gallop. During this transaction, the townspeople, to the number of five hundred, stood collected close to the walls of the town; and when the Moors drove the cattle away, though they passed within pistol-shot of them, the inhabitants scarcely made a shew of resistance. I only saw four muskets fired, which, being loaded with gunpowder of theNegroes’ own manufacture, did no execution. Shortly after this I observed a number of people supporting a young man upon horseback, and conducting him slowly towards the town. This was one of the herdsmen, who, attempting to throw his spear, had been wounded by a shot from one of the Moors. His mother walked on before, quite frantic with grief, clapping her hands, and enumerating the good qualities of her son.Ee maffo fonio, (he never told a lie) said the disconsolate mother, as her wounded son was carried in at the gate—Ee maffo fonio abada(he never told a lie; no, never.) When they had conveyed him to his hut, and laid him upon a mat, all the spectators joined in lamenting his fate, by screaming and howling in the most piteous manner.
After their grief had subsided a little, I was desired to examine the wound. I found that the ball had passed quite through his leg, having fractured both bones a little below the knee: the poor boy was faint from the loss of blood, and his situation withal so very precarious, that I could not console his relations with any great hopes of his recovery. However, to give him a possible chance, I observed to them that it was necessary to cut off his leg above the knee; this proposal made every one start with horror: they had never heard of such a method of cure, and would by no means give their consent to it; indeed they evidently considered me as a sort of cannibal for proposing so cruel and unheard of an operation, which in their opinion would be attended with more pain and danger than the wound itself. The patient was therefore committed to the care of some old Bushreens, who endeavoured to secure him a passageinto Paradise, by whispering in his ear some Arabic sentences, and desiring him to repeat them. After many unsuccessful attempts, the poor Heathen at last pronounced,la illah el allah, Mahamet rasowl allahi,[10]and the disciples of the Prophet assured his mother that her son had given sufficient evidence of his faith, and would be happy in a future state. He died the same evening.
Feb. 17th. My guides informed me, that in order to avoid the Moorish banditti, it was necessary to travel in the night; we accordingly departed from Funingkedy in the afternoon, accompanied by about thirty people, carrying their effects with them into Ludamar, for fear of the war. We travelled with great silence and expedition until midnight, when we stopped in a sort of inclosure, near a small village; but the thermometer being so low as 68°, none of the Negroes could sleep on account of the cold.
At daybreak on the 18th, we resumed our journey, and at eight o’clock passedSimbing, the frontier village of Ludamar, situated in a narrow pass between two rocky hills, and surrounded with a high wall. From this village Major Houghton (being deserted by his Negro servants, who refused to follow him into the Moorish country) wrote his last letter with a pencil to Dr. Laidley. This brave but unfortunate man, having surmounted many difficulties, had taken a northerly direction, and endeavoured to pass through the kingdom of Ludamar, where I afterwards learned the following particulars concerning his melancholyfate. On his arrival at Jarra, he got acquainted with certain Moorish merchants who were travelling to Tisheet (a place near the salt pits in the great Desert, ten days’ journey to the northward) to purchase salt; and the Major, at the expence of a musket and some tobacco, engaged them to convey him thither. It is impossible to form any other opinion on this determination, than that the Moors intentionally deceived him, either with regard to the route that he wished to pursue, or the state of the intermediate country between Jarra and Tombuctoo. Their intention probably was to rob and leave him in the Desert. At the end of two days he suspected their treachery, and insisted on returning to Jarra. Finding him persist in this determination, the Moors robbed him of every thing he possessed, and went off with their camels; the poor Major being thus deserted, returned on foot to a watering place in possession of the Moors, called Tarra. He had been some days without food, and the unfeeling Moors refusing to give him any, he sunk at last under his distresses. Whether he actually perished of hunger, or was murdered outright by the savage Mahomedans, is not certainly known; his body was dragged into the woods, and I was shewn at a distance, the spot where his remains were left to perish.
About four miles to the north of Simbing, we came to a small stream of water, where we observed a number of wild horses: they were all of one colour, and galloped away from us at an easy rate, frequently stopping and looking back. The Negroes hunt them for food, and their flesh is much esteemed.
About noon we arrived at Jarra, a large town situated at thebottom of some rocky hills. But before I proceed to describe the place itself, and relate the various occurrences which befel me there, it will not be improper to give my readers a brief recital of the origin of the war which induced me to take this route; an unfortunate determination, the immediate cause of all the misfortunes and calamities which afterward befel me. The recital which I propose to give in this place, will prevent interruptions hereafter.
This war, which desolated Kaarta soon after I had left that kingdom, and spread terror into many of the neighbouring states, arose in the following manner. A few bullocks belonging to a frontier village of Bambarra having been stolen by a party of Moors, were sold to the Dooty, or chief man, of a town in Kaarta. The villagers claimed their cattle, and being refused satisfaction, complained of the Dooty to their sovereign, Mansong, King of Bambarra, who probably beheld with an eye of jealousy the growing prosperity of Kaarta, and availed himself of this incident to declare hostilities against that kingdom.
With this view he sent a messenger and a party of horsemen to Daisy King of Kaarta, to inform him that the King of Bambarra, with nine thousand men, would visit Kemmoo in the course of the dry season; and to desire that he (Daisy) would direct his slaves to sweep the houses, and have every thing ready for their accommodation. The messenger concluded this insulting notification by presenting the king with a pair ofiron sandals; at the same time adding, that “until such time as Daisy had worn out these sandals in his flight, he should never be secure from the arrows of Bambarra.”
Daisy, having consulted with his chief men about the best means of repelling so formidable an enemy, returned an answer of defiance, and made a Bushreen write in Arabic, upon a piece of thin board, a sort of proclamation, which was suspended to a tree in the public square; and a number of aged men were sent to different places to explain it to the common people. This proclamation called upon all the friends of Daisy to join him immediately; but to such as had no arms, or were afraid to enter into the war, permission was given to retire into any of the neighbouring kingdoms; and it was added, that provided they observed a strict neutrality, they should always be welcome to return to their former habitations; if, however, they took any active part against Kaarta, they had then “broken the key of their huts, and could never afterwards enter the door.” Such was the expression.
This proclamation was very generally applauded: but many of the Kaartans, and amongst others the powerful tribes of Jower and Kakaroo, availing themselves of the indulgent clause, retired from Daisy’s dominions, and took refuge in Ludamar and Kasson. By means of these desertions, Daisy’s army was not so numerous as might have been expected; and when I was at Kemmoo, the whole number of effective men, according to report, did not exceed four thousand; but they were men of spirit and enterprize, and could be depended on.
On the 22d of February (four days after my arrival at Jarra), Mansong, with his army, advanced towards Kemmoo; and Daisy, without hazarding a battle, retired to Joko, a town to the north-west of Kemmoo, where he remained three days, and then tookrefuge in a strong town called Gedingooma, situated in the hilly country, and surrounded with high walls of stone. When Daisy departed from Joko, his sons refused to follow him, alledging that “the singing-men would publish their disgrace, as soon as it should be known that Daisy and his family had fled from Joko without firing a gun.” They were therefore left behind with a number of horsemen to defend Joko; but, after many skirmishes, they were totally defeated, and one of Daisy’s sons taken prisoner; the remainder fled to Gedingooma, which Daisy had stored with provisions, and where he determined to make his final stand.
Mansong, finding that Daisy was determined to avoid a pitched battle, placed a strong force at Joko to watch his motions, and separating the remainder of his army into small detachments, ordered them to over-run the country, and seize upon the inhabitants, before they had time to escape. These orders were executed with such promptitude, that in a few days the whole kingdom of Kaarta became a scene of desolation. Most of the poor inhabitants of the different towns and villages, being surprised in the night, fell an easy prey; and their corn, and every thing which could be useful to Daisy, was burnt and destroyed. During these transactions, Daisy was employed in fortifying Gedingooma: this town is built in a narrow pass between two high hills, having only two gates, one towards Kaarta, and the other towards Jaffnoo; the gate towards Kaarta, was defended by Daisy in person; and that towards Jaffnoo was committed to the charge of his sons. When the army of Bambarra approached the town, they made someattempts to storm it; but were always driven back with great loss; and Mansong, finding Daisy more formidable than he expected, resolved to cut off his supplies, and starve him into submission. He accordingly sent all the prisoners he had taken, into Bambarra; and having collected a considerable quantity of provisions, remained with his army two whole months in the vicinity of Gedingooma, without doing any thing decisive. During this time he was much harassed by sallies from the besieged; and his stock of provisions being nearly exhausted, he sent to Ali, the Moorish King of Ludamar, for two hundred horsemen, to enable him to make an attack upon the north gate of the town, and give the Bambarrans an opportunity of storming the place. Ali, though he had made an agreement with Mansong at the commencement of the war, to afford him assistance, now refused to fulfil his engagement; which so enraged Mansong, that he marched part of his army to Funingkedy, with a view to surprise the camp of Benowm; but the Moors having received intelligence of his design, fled to the northward; and Mansong, without attempting any thing farther, returned to Sego. This happened while I was myself in captivity in Ali’s camp, as will hereafter be seen.
As the King of Kaarta had now got quit of his most formidable antagonist, it might have been hoped that peace would have been restored to his dominions; but an extraordinary incident involved him, immediately afterward, in hostilities with Kasson; the king of which country dying about that time, the succession was disputed by his two sons. The younger (Sambo Sego, my old acquaintance) prevailed; and drove his brotherfrom the country. He fled to Gedingooma; and being pursued thither, Daisy, who had lived in constant friendship with both the brothers, refused to deliver him up; at the same time declaring that he would not support his claim, nor any way interfere in the quarrel. Sambo Sego, elated with success, and proud of the homage that was paid him as sovereign of Kasson, was much displeased with Daisy’s conduct, and joined with some disaffected fugitive Kaartans in a plundering expedition against him. Daisy, who little expected such a visit, had sent a number of people to Joko, to plant corn, and collect together such cattle as they might find straying in the woods, in order to supply his army. All these people fell into the hands of Sambo Sego, who carried them to Kooniakary, and afterwards sent them in caravans, to be sold to the French at Fort Louis, on the river Senegal.
This attack was soon retaliated; for Daisy, who was now in distress for want of provisions, thought he was justified in supplying himself from the plunder of Kasson. He accordingly took with him eight hundred of his best men, and marching secretly through the woods, surprised, in the night, three large villages near Kooniakary, in which many of his traitorous subjects, who were in Sambo’s expedition, had taken up their residence; all these, and indeed all the able men that fell into Daisy’s hands, were immediately put to death.
After this expedition, Daisy began to indulge the hopes of peace; many of his discontented subjects had returned to their allegiance, and were repairing the towns which had been desolated by the war; the rainy season was approaching; and everything wore a favourable appearance, when he was suddenly attacked from a different quarter.
The Jowers, Kakaroos, and some other Kaartans, who had deserted from him at the commencement of the war, and had shewn a decided preference to Mansong and his army during the whole campaign, were now afraid or ashamed to ask forgiveness of Daisy, and being very powerful in themselves, joined together to make war upon him. They solicited the Moors to assist them in their rebellion (as will appear hereafter) and having collected a considerable army, they plundered a large village belonging to Daisy, and carried off a number of prisoners.
Daisy immediately prepared to revenge this insult; but the Jowers, and indeed almost all the Negro inhabitants of Ludamar, deserted their towns and fled to the eastward; and the rainy season put an end to the war of Kaarta, which had enriched a few individuals, but destroyed the happiness of thousands.
Such was the state of affairs among the nations in the neighbourhood of Jarra, soon after the period of my arrival there. I shall now proceed, after giving some description of that place, with the detail of events as they occurred.
[10]There is but one god, and Mahomet is his Prophet.
[10]There is but one god, and Mahomet is his Prophet.
[10]There is but one god, and Mahomet is his Prophet.
Some Account of Jarra, and the Moorish Inhabitants. — The Author applies for, and obtains Permission from Ali, the Moorish Chief or Sovereign, of Ludamar, to pass through his Territories. — Departs from Jarra, and arrives at Deena — ill treated by the Moors. — Proceeds to Sampaka — finds a Negro who makes Gunpowder. — Continues his Journey to Samee, where he is seized by some Moors who are sent for that Purpose by Ali — is conveyed a Prisoner to the Moorish Camp at Benowm, on the Borders of the Great Desert.
Thetown of Jarra is of considerable extent: the houses are built of clay and stone intermixed; the clay answering the purpose of mortar. It is situated in the Moorish kingdom of Ludamar; but the major part of the inhabitants are Negroes, from the borders of the southern states, who prefer a precarious protection under the Moors, which they purchase by a tribute, rather than continue exposed to their predatory hostilities. The tribute they pay is considerable; and they manifest towards their Moorish superiors the most unlimited obedience and submission, and are treated by them with the utmost indignity and contempt. The Moors of this, and the other states adjoining the country of the Negroes, resemble in their persons the Mulattoes of the West Indies to so great a degree, as not easily tobe distinguished from them; and in truth, the present generation seem to be a mixed race between the Moors (properly so called) of the North, and the Negroes of the South; possessing many of the worst qualities of both nations.
Of the origin of these Moorish tribes, as distinguished from the inhabitants of Barbary, from whom they are divided by the Great Desert, nothing farther seems to be known than what is related by John Leo, the African; whose account may be abridged as follows:
Before the Arabian Conquest, about the middle of the seventh century, all the inhabitants of Africa, whether they were descended from Numidians, Phœnicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, or Goths, were comprehended under the general name ofMauri, or Moors. All these nations were converted to the religion of Mahomet, during the Arabian empire under the Kaliphs. About this time many of the Numidian tribes, who led a wandering life in the Desert, and supported themselves upon the produce of their cattle, retired southward across the Great Desert, to avoid the fury of the Arabians; and by one of those tribes, says Leo, (that of Zanhaga) were discovered and conquered the Negro nations on the Niger. By the Niger, is here undoubtedly meant the river of Senegal, which in the Mandingo language is calledBafing, or the Black River.
To what extent these people are now spread over the African continent, it is difficult to ascertain. There is reason to believe, that their dominion stretches from West to East, in a narrow line or belt, from the mouth of the Senegal (on the northern side of that river) to the confines of Abyssinia. They are a subtleand treacherous race of people; and take every opportunity of cheating and plundering the credulous and unsuspecting Negroes. But their manners and general habits of life will be best explained, as incidents occur in the course of my narrative.
On my arrival at Jarra, I obtained a lodging at the house of Daman Jumma, a Gambia Slatee. This man had formerly borrowed goods from Dr. Laidley, who had given me an order for the money, to the amount of six slaves; and though the debt was of five years standing, he readily acknowledged it, and promised me what money he could raise. He was afraid, he said, in his present situation, he could not pay more than two slaves’ value. He gave me his assistance however in exchanging my beads and amber for gold, which was a more portable article, and more easily concealed from the Moors.
The difficulties we had already encountered, the unsettled state of the country, and, above all, the savage and overbearing deportment of the Moors, had so completely frightened my attendants, that they declared they would rather relinquish every claim to reward, than proceed one step farther to the eastward. Indeed the danger they incurred of being seized by the Moors, and sold into slavery, became every day more apparent; and I could not condemn their apprehensions. In this situation, deserted by my attendants, and reflecting that my retreat was cut off by the war behind me, and that a Moorish country of ten days’ journey lay before me, I applied to Daman to obtain permission from Ali, the chief or sovereign of Ludamar, that I might pass through his country unmolested, into Bambarra; and I hired one of Daman’s slaves to accompany me thither, assoon as such permission should be obtained. A messenger was dispatched to Ali, who at this time was encamped near Benowm; and as a present was necessary, in order to insure success, I sent him five garments of cotton cloth, which I purchased of Daman, for one of my fowling-pieces. Fourteen days elapsed in settling this affair; but, on the evening of the 26th of February, one of Ali’s slaves arrived with directions, as he pretended, to conduct me in safety, as far as Goomba; and told me I was to pay him one garment of blue cotton cloth for his attendance. My faithful boy observing that I was about to proceed without him, resolved to accompany me; and told me, that though he wished me to turn back, he never had entertained any serious thoughts of deserting me, but had been advised to it by Johnson, with a view to induce me to return immediately for Gambia.
Feb. 27th. I delivered most of my papers to Johnson, to convey them to Gambia as soon as possible, reserving a duplicate for myself, in case of accidents. I likewise left in Daman’s possession a bundle of clothes, and other things that were not absolutely necessary; for I wished to diminish my baggage as much as possible, that the Moors might have fewer inducements to plunder us.
Things being thus adjusted, we departed from Jarra in the forenoon, and slept at Troomgoomba, a small walled village, inhabited by a mixture of Negroes and Moors. On the day following (Feb. 28th) we reached Quira; and on the 29th, after a toilsome journey over a sandy country, we came to Compe, a watering place belonging to the Moors; from whence on the morning following, we proceeded to Deena, a large town,and, like Jarra, built of stone and clay. The Moors are here in greater proportion to the Negroes than at Jarra. They assembled round the hut of the Negro where I lodged, and treated me with the greatest insolence: they hissed, shouted, and abused me; they even spit in my face, with a view to irritate me, and afford them a pretext for seizing my baggage. But, finding such insults had not the desired effect, they had recourse to the final and decisive argument, that I was a Christian, and of course that my property was lawful plunder to the followers of Mahomet. They accordingly opened my bundles, and robbed me of every thing they fancied. My attendants finding that every body could rob me with impunity, insisted on returning to Jarra.
The day following (March 2d) I endeavoured, by all the means in my power, to prevail upon my people to go on; but they still continued obstinate; and having reason to fear some further insult from the fanatic Moors, I resolved to proceed alone. Accordingly the next morning, about two o’clock I departed from Deena. It was moonlight; but the roaring of the wild beasts made it necessary to proceed with caution.
When I had reached a piece of rising ground about half a mile from the town, I heard somebody halloo, and looking back, saw my faithful boy running after me. He informed me, that Ali’s man had gone back to Benowm, and that Daman’s Negro was about to depart for Jarra; but he said he had no doubt, if I would stop a little, that he could persuade the latter to accompany us. I waited accordingly, and in about an hour the boy returned with the Negro; and we continued travelling overa sandy country, covered withasclepias gigantica, until mid-day, when we came to a number of deserted huts; and seeing some appearances of water at a little distance, I sent the boy to fill a soofroo; but as he was examining the place for water, the roaring of a lion, that was probably on the same pursuit, induced the frightened boy to return in haste, and we submitted patiently to the disappointment. In the afternoon we reached a town inhabited chiefly by Foulahs, called Samaming-koos.
Next morning (March 4th) we set out for Sampaka; which place we reached about two o’clock. On the road we observed immense quantities of locusts: the trees were quite black with them. These insects devour every vegetable that comes in their way, and in a short time completely strip a tree of its leaves. The noise of their excrement falling upon the leaves and withered grass, very much resembles a shower of rain. When a tree is shaken or struck, it is astonishing to see what a cloud of them will fly off. In their flight they yield to the current of the wind, which at this season of the year is always from the N.E. Should the wind shift, it is difficult to conceive where they could collect food, as the whole of their course was marked with desolation.
Sampaka is a large town, and when the Moors and Bambarrans were at war, was thrice attacked by the former; but they were driven off with great loss, though the King of Bambarra was afterwards obliged to give up this, and all the other towns as far as Goomba, in order to obtain a peace. Here I lodged at the house of a Negro who practised the art of making gunpowder. He shewed me a bag of nitre, very white, but thecrystals were much smaller than common. They procure it in considerable quantities from the ponds which are filled in the rainy season, and to which the cattle resort for coolness during the heat of the day. When the water is evaporated, a white efflorescence is observed on the mud, which the natives collect and purify in such a manner as to answer their purpose. The Moors supply them with sulphur from the Mediterranean; and the process is completed by pounding the different articles together in a wooden mortar. The grains are very unequal, and the sound of its explosion is by no means so sharp as that produced by European gunpowder.
March 5th. We departed from Sampaka at daylight. About noon we stopped a little at a village called Dangali; and in the evening arrived at Dalli. We saw upon the road two large herds of camels feeding. When the Moors turn their camels to feed, they tie up one of their fore legs, to prevent their straying. This happened to be a feast day at Dalli, and the people were dancing before the Dooti’s house. But when they were informed that a white man was come into the town, they left off dancing, and came to the place where I lodged, walking in regular order, two and two, with the music before them. They play upon a sort of flute; but instead of blowing into a hole in the side, they blow obliquely over the end, which is half shut by a thin piece of wood: they govern the holes on the side with their fingers, and play some simple and very plaintive airs. They continued to dance and sing until midnight: during which time I was surrounded by so great a crowd, as made it necessary for me to satisfy their curiosity, by sitting still.
March 6th. We stopt here this morning, because some of the townspeople, who were going for Goomba on the day following, wished to accompany us; but in order to avoid the crowd of people which usually assembled in the evening, we went to a Negro village to the east of Dalli, called Samee, where we were kindly received by the hospitable Dooti, who on this occasion killed two fine sheep, and invited his friends to come and feast with him.
March 7th. Our landlord was so proud of the honour of entertaining a white man, that he insisted on my staying with him and his friends until the cool of the evening, when he said he would conduct me to the next village. As I was now within two days’ journey of Goomba, I had no apprehensions from the Moors, and readily accepted the invitation. I spent the forenoon very pleasantly with these poor Negroes: their company was the more acceptable, as the gentleness of their manners presented a striking contrast to the rudeness and barbarity of the Moors. They enlivened their conversation by drinking a fermented liquor made from corn; the same sort of beer that I have described in a former chapter; and better I never tasted in Great Britain.
In the midst of this harmless festivity, I flattered myself that all danger from the Moors was over. Fancy had already placed me on the banks of the Niger, and presented to my imagination a thousand delightful scenes in my future progress, when a party of Moors unexpectedly entered the hut, and dispelled the golden dream. They came, they said, by Ali’s orders, to convey me to his camp at Benowm. If I went peaceably, they toldme, I had nothing to fear; but if I refused, they had orders to bring me by force. I was struck dumb by surprise and terror, which the Moors observing, endeavoured to calm my apprehensions, by repeating the assurance that I had nothing to fear. Their visit, they added, was occasioned by the curiosity of Ali’s wife,Fatima, who had heard so much about Christians, that she was very anxious to see one: as soon as her curiosity should be satisfied, they had no doubt, they said, that Ali would give me a handsome present, and send a person to conduct me to Bambarra. Finding entreaty and resistance equally fruitless, I prepared to follow the messengers, and took leave of my landlord and his company with great reluctance. Accompanied by my faithful boy (for Daman’s slave made his escape on seeing the Moors), we reached Dalli in the evening; where we were strictly watched by the Moors during the night.
March 8th. We were conducted by a circuitous path through the woods to Dangali, where we slept.
March 9th. We continued our journey, and in the afternoon arrived at Sampaka. On the road we saw a party of Moors, well armed, who told us that they were hunting for a runaway slave; but the townspeople informed us, that a party of Moors had attempted to steal some cattle from the town in the morning, but were repulsed; and, on their describing the persons, we were satisfied that they were the same banditti that we had seen in the woods.
Next morning (March 10th) we set out for Samaning Koos. On the road we overtook a woman and two boys, with an ass: she informed us that she was going for Bambarra, but had beenstopped on the road by a party of Moors, who had taken most of her clothes, and some gold from her; and that she would be under the necessity of returning to Deena till the fast moon was over. The same evening the new moon was seen, which ushered in the month Rhamadan. Large fires were made in different parts of the town, and a greater quantity of victuals than usual dressed upon the occasion.
March 11th. By daylight the Moors were in readiness; but as I had suffered much from thirst on the road, I made my boy fill a soofroo of water for my own use; for the Moors assured me that they should not taste either meat or drink until sunset. However, I found that the excessive heat of the sun, and the dust we raised in travelling, overcame their scruples, and made my soofroo a very useful part of our baggage. On our arrival at Deena, I went to pay my respects to one of Ali’s sons. I found him sitting in a low hut, with five or six more of his companions, washing their hands and feet, and frequently taking water into their mouths, gargling, and spitting it out again. I was no sooner seated, than he handed me a double-barreled gun, and told me to dye the stock of a blue colour, and repair one of the locks. I found great difficulty in persuading him that I knew nothing about the matter. However, says he, if you cannot repair the gun, you shall give me some knives and scissars immediately; and when my boy, who acted as interpreter, assured him that I had no such articles, he hastily snatched up a musket that stood by him, cocked it, and putting the muzzle close to the boy’s ear, would certainly have shot him dead upon the spot, had not the Moorswrested the musket from him, and made signs for us to retreat. The boy, being terrified at this treatment, attempted to make his escape in the night; but was prevented by the vigilance of the Moors, who guarded us with strict attention; and at night always went to sleep by the door of the hut, in such a situation that it was almost impossible to pass, without stepping upon them.
March 12. We departed from Deena towards Benowm, and about nine o’clock came to a Korree, whence the Moors were preparing to depart to the southward, on account of the scarcity of water; here we filled our soofroo, and continued our journey over a hot sandy country, covered with small stunted shrubs, until about one o’clock, when the heat of the sun obliged us to stop. But our water being expended, we could not prudently remain longer than a few minutes to collect a little gum, which is an excellent succedaneum for water; as it keeps the mouth moist, and allays, for a time, the pain in the throat.
About five o’clock we came in sight of Benowm, the residence of Ali. It presented to the eye a great number of dirty looking tents, scattered, without order, over a large space of ground; and among the tents appeared large herds of camels, cattle, and goats. We reached the skirts of this camp, a little before sunset, and, with much entreaty, procured a little water. My arrival was no sooner observed, than the people who drew water at the wells threw down their buckets; those in the tents mounted their horses; and men, women, and children, came running or galloping towards me. I soon found myself surrounded by such a crowd, that I could scarcely move; one pulledmy clothes, another took off my hat, a third stopped me to examine my waistcoat buttons, and a fourth called out,la illa el allah Mahamet rasowl allahi,[11]and signified, in a threatening manner, that I must repeat those words. We reached at length the king’s tent, where we found a great number of people, men and women, assembled. Ali was sitting upon a black leather cushion, clipping a few hairs from his upper lip; a female attendant holding up a looking glass before him. He appeared to be an old man, of the Arab cast, with a long white beard; and he had a sullen and indignant aspect. He surveyed me with attention, and inquired of the Moors if I could speak Arabic: being answered in the negative, he appeared much surprised, and continued silent. The surrounding attendants, and especially the ladies, were abundantly more inquisitive: they asked a thousand questions; inspected every part of my apparel, searched my pockets, and obliged me to unbutton my waistcoat, and display the whiteness of my skin: they even counted my toes and fingers, as if they doubted whether I was in truth a human being. In a little time the priest announced evening prayers; but before the people departed, the Moor who had acted as interpreter, informed me that Ali was about to present me with something to eat; and looking round, I observed some boys bringing a wild hog, which they tied to one of the tent strings, and Ali made signs to me to kill and dress it for supper. Though I was very hungry, I did not think it prudent to eat any part of an animal so much detested by the Moors, and therefore told him that I never eat such food. They thenuntied the hog, in hopes that it would run immediately at me; for they believe that a great enmity subsists between hogs and Christians; but in this they were disappointed; for the animal no sooner regained his liberty, than he began to attack indiscriminately every person that came in his way, and at last took shelter under the couch upon which the King was sitting. The assembly being thus dissolved, I was conducted to the tent of Ali’s chief slave, but was not permitted to enter, nor allowed to touch any thing belonging to it. I requested something to eat, and a little boiled corn, with salt and water, was at length sent me in a wooden bowl; and a mat was spread upon the sand before the tent, on which I passed the night, surrounded by the curious multitude.
J. C. Barrow delt. from a Sketch from M. Park.J. Mills sculpt.A VIEW of ALI’S TENT at the CAMP of BENOWM.Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol, Pall Mall, January the 1st.1799.
J. C. Barrow delt. from a Sketch from M. Park.J. Mills sculpt.A VIEW of ALI’S TENT at the CAMP of BENOWM.Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol, Pall Mall, January the 1st.1799.
A VIEW of ALI’S TENT at the CAMP of BENOWM.
Published as the Act directs, by George Nicol, Pall Mall, January the 1st.1799.
At sunrise, Ali, with a few attendants, came on horseback to visit me, and signified that he had provided a hut for me, where I would be sheltered from the sun. I was accordingly conducted thither, and found the hut comparatively cool and pleasant. It was constructed of corn stalks set up on end, in the form of a square, with a flat roof of the same materials, supported by forked sticks; to one of which was tied the wild hog before mentioned. This animal had certainly been placed there by Ali’s order, out of derision to a Christian; and I found it a very disagreeable inmate, as it drew together a number of boys, who amused themselves by beating it with sticks, until they had so irritated the hog that it ran and bit at every person within its reach.
I was no sooner seated in this my new habitation, than the Moors assembled in crowds to behold me; but I found it rathera troublesome levee, for I was obliged to take off one of my stockings, and show them my foot, and even to take off my jacket and waistcoat, to show them how my clothes were put on and off; they were much delighted with the curious contrivance of buttons. All this was to be repeated to every succeeding visitor; for such as had already seen these wonders, insisted on their friends seeing the same; and in this manner I was employed, dressing and undressing, buttoning and unbuttoning, from noon to night. About eight o’clock, Ali sent me for supper, some kouskous and salt and water, which was very acceptable, being the only victuals I had tasted since morning.
I observed that, in the night, the Moors kept regular watch, and frequently looked into the hut, to see if I was asleep, and if it was quite dark, they would light a wisp of grass. About two o’clock in the morning, a Moor entered the hut, probably with a view to steal something, or perhaps to murder me; and groping about, he laid his hand upon my shoulder. As night visitors were at best but suspicious characters, I sprang up the moment he laid his hand upon me; and the Moor, in his haste to get off, stumbled over my boy, and fell with his face upon the wild hog, which returned the attack by biting the Moor’s arm. The screams of this man alarmed the people in the King’s tent, who immediately conjectured that I had made my escape, and a number of them mounted their horses, and prepared to pursue me. I observed upon this occasion that Ali did not sleep in his own tent, but came galloping upon a white horse from a small tent at a considerable distance; indeed, the tyrannical and cruel behaviour of this man made him so jealous of every person aroundhim, that even his own slaves and domestics knew not where he slept. When the Moors had explained to him the cause of this outcry, they all went away, and I was permitted to sleep quietly until morning.
March 13th. With the returning day commenced the same round of insult and irritation: the boys assembled to beat the hog, and the men and women to plague the Christian. It is impossible for me to describe the behaviour of a people who study mischief as a science, and exult in the miseries and misfortunes of their fellow-creatures. It is sufficient to observe, that the rudeness, ferocity, and fanaticism, which distinguish the Moors from the rest of mankind, found here a proper subject whereon to exercise their propensities. I was astranger, I wasunprotected, and I was aChristian; each of these circumstances is sufficient to drive every spark of humanity from the heart of a Moor; but when all of them, as in my case, were combined in the same person, and a suspicion prevailed withal, that I had come as aspyinto the country, the reader will easily imagine that, in such a situation, I had every thing to fear. Anxious, however, to conciliate favour, and, if possible, to afford the Moors no pretence for ill treating me, I readily complied with every command, and patiently bore every insult; but never did any period of my life pass away so heavily: from sunrise to sunset, was I obliged to suffer, with an unruffled countenance, the insults of the rudest savages on earth.
[11]Seepage 103.
[11]Seepage 103.
[11]Seepage 103.
Various Occurrences during the Author’s Confinement at Benowm — is visited by some Moorish Ladies. — A Funeral and Wedding. — The Author receives an extraordinary Present from the Bride. — Other Circumstances illustrative of the Moorish Character and Manners.
TheMoors, though very indolent themselves, are rigid taskmasters, and keep every person under them in full employment. My boy Demba was sent to the woods to collect withered grass for Ali’s horses; and after a variety of projects concerning myself, they at last found out an employment for me: this was no other than the respectable office ofbarber. I was to make my first exhibition in this capacity in the royal presence, and to be honoured with the task of shaving the head of the young prince of Ludamar. I accordingly seated myself upon the sand, and the boy, with some hesitation, sat down beside me. A small razor, about three inches long, was put into my hand, and I was ordered to proceed; but whether from my own want of skill, or the improper shape of the instrument, I unfortunately made a slight incision in the boy’s head, at the very commencement of the operation; and the King observing the awkward manner in which I held the razor, concluded that his son’shead was in very improper hands, and ordered me to resign the razor, and walk out of the tent. This I considered as a very fortunate circumstance; for I had laid it down as a rule, to make myself as useless and insignificant as possible, as the only means of recovering my liberty.
March 18. Four Moors arrived from Jarra with Johnson my interpreter, having seized him before he had received any intimation of my confinement; and bringing with them a bundle of clothes that I had left at Daman Jumma’s house, for my use in case I should return by the way of Jarra. Johnson was led into Ali’s tent and examined; the bundle was opened, and I was sent for, to explain the use of the different articles. I was happy, however, to find that Johnson had committed my papers to the charge of one of Daman’s wives. When I had satisfied Ali’s curiosity respecting the different articles of apparel, the bundle was again tied up, and put into a large cow-skin bag, that stood in a corner of the tent. The same evening Ali sent three of his people to inform me, that there were many thieves in the neighbourhood, and that to prevent the rest of my things from being stolen, it was necessary to convey them all into his tent. My clothes, instruments, and every thing that belonged to me, were accordingly carried away; and though the heat and dust made clean linen very necessary and refreshing, I could not procure a single shirt out of the small stock I had brought along with me. Ali was however disappointed, by not finding among my effects the quantity of gold and amber that he expected; but to make sure of every thing, he sent the same people, on the morning following, to examine whether I had any thing concealed about myperson. They, with their usual rudeness, searched every part of my apparel, and stripped me of all my gold, amber, my watch, and one of my pocket compasses; I had fortunately, in the night, buried the other compass in the sand; and this, with the clothes I had on, was all that the tyranny of Ali had now left me.
The gold and amber were highly gratifying to Moorish avarice, but the pocket compass soon became an object of superstitious curiosity. Ali was very desirous to be informed, why that small piece of iron, the needle, always pointed to the Great Desert; and I found myself somewhat puzzled to answer the question. To have pleaded my ignorance, would have created a suspicion that I wished to conceal the real truth from him; I therefore told him, that my mother resided far beyond the sands of Zaharra, and that whilst she was alive the piece of iron would always point that way, and serve as a guide to conduct me to her, and that if she was dead it would point to her grave. Ali now looked at the compass with redoubled amazement; turned it round and round repeatedly; but observing that it always pointed the same way, he took it up with great caution and returned it to me, manifesting that he thought there was something of magic in it, and that he was afraid of keeping so dangerous an instrument in his possession.
March 20th. This morning a council of chief men was held in Ali’s tent respecting me: their decisions, though they were all unfavourable to me, were differently related by different persons. Some said that they intended to put me to death; others that I was only to lose my right hand; but the most probable account was that which I received from Ali’s own son,a boy about nine years of age, who came to me in the evening, and, with much concern, informed me that his uncle had persuaded his father to put out my eyes, which they said resembled those of a cat, and that all the Bushreens had approved of this measure. His father however, he said, would not put the sentence into execution until Fatima the queen, who was at present in the north, had seen me.
March 21st. Anxious to know my destiny, I went to the king early in the morning; and as a number of Bushreens were assembled, I thought this a favourable opportunity of discovering their intentions. I therefore began by begging his permission to return to Jarra; which was flatly refused: his wife, he said, had not yet seen me, and I must stay until she came to Benowm, after which I should be at liberty to depart; and that my horse, which had been taken away from me the day after I arrived, should be again restored to me. Unsatisfactory as this answer was, I was forced to appear pleased; and as there was little hopes of making my escape, at this season of the year, on account of the excessive heat, and the total want of water in the woods, I resolved to wait patiently until the rains had set in, or until some more favourable opportunity should present itself;—buthope deferred maketh the heart sick. This tedious procrastination from day to day, and the thoughts of travelling through the Negro kingdoms in the rainy season, which was now fast approaching, made me very melancholy; and having passed a restless night, I found myself attacked, in the morning, by a smart fever. I had wrapped myself close up in my cloak, with a view to induce perspiration, and was asleep when a party of Moors enteredthe hut, and with their usual rudeness pulled the cloak from me. I made signs to them that I was sick, and wished much to sleep; but I solicited in vain: my distress was matter of sport to them, and they endeavoured to heighten it, by every means in their power. This studied and degrading insolence, to which I was constantly exposed, was one of the bitterest ingredients in the cup of captivity; and often made life itself a burthen to me. In those distressing moments I have frequently envied the situation of the slave; who, amidst all his calamities, could still possess the enjoyment of his own thoughts; a happiness to which I had, for some time, been a stranger. Wearied out with such continual insults, and perhaps a little peevish from the fever, I trembled lest my passion might unawares overleap the bounds of prudence, and spur me to some sudden act of resentment, when death must be the inevitable consequence. In this perplexity, I left my hut, and walked to some shady trees at a little distance from the camp, where I lay down. But even here, persecution followed me; and solitude was thought too great an indulgence for a distressed Christian. Ali’s son, with a number of horsemen, came galloping to the place, and ordered me to rise and follow them. I begged they would allow me to remain where I was, if it was only for a few hours; but they paid little attention to what I said; and after a few threatening words, one of them pulled out a pistol from a leather bag, that was fastened to the pummel of his saddle, and presenting it towards me, snapped it twice. He did this with so much indifference, that I really doubted whether the pistol was loaded; he cocked it a third time, and was striking the flint with a piece of steel, when I beggedthem to desist, and returned with them to the camp. When we entered Ali’s tent, we found him much out of humour. He called for the Moor’s pistol, and amused himself for some time with opening and shutting the pan; at length, taking up his powder horn, he fresh primed it; and turning round to me with a menacing look, said something in Arabic, which I did not understand. I desired my boy, who was sitting before the tent, to inquire what offence I had committed; when I was informed that having gone out of the camp without Ali’s permission, they suspected that I had some design of making my escape; and that, in future, if I was seen without the skirts of the camp, orders had been given that I should be shot by the first person that observed me.
In the afternoon the horizon, to the eastward, was thick and hazy, and the Moors prognosticated a sand wind; which accordingly commenced on the morning following, and lasted, with slight intermissions, for two days. The force of the wind was not in itself very great: it was what a seaman would have denominated astiff breeze; but the quantity of sand and dust carried before it, was such as to darken the whole atmosphere. It swept along from east to west, in a thick and constant stream, and the air was at times so dark and full of sand, that it was difficult to discern the neighbouring tents. As the Moors always dress their victuals in the open air, this sand fell in great plenty amongst the kouskous: it readily adhered to the skin, when moistened by perspiration, and formed a cheap and universal hair powder. The Moors wrap a cloth round their face, to prevent them from inhaling the sand, and always turn theirbacks to the wind when they look up, to prevent the sand falling into their eyes.
About this time, all the women of the camp had their feet, and the ends of their fingers, stained of a dark saffron colour. I could never ascertain whether this was done from motives of religion, or by way of ornament. The curiosity of the Moorish ladies had been very troublesome to me ever since my arrival at Benowm; and on the evening of the 25th (whether from the instigation of others, or impelled by their own ungovernable curiosity, or merely out of frolic, I cannot affirm) a party of them came into my hut, and gave me plainly to understand that the object of their visit was to ascertain, by actual inspection, whether the rite of circumcision extended to the Nazarenes, (Christians,) as well as to the followers of Mahomet. The reader will easily judge of my surprise at this unexpected declaration; and in order to avoid the proposed scrutiny, I thought it best to treat the business jocularly. I observed to them, that it was not customary in my country to give ocular demonstration in such cases, before so many beautiful women; but that if all of them would retire, except the young lady to whom I pointed, (selecting the youngest and handsomest), I would satisfy her curiosity. The ladies enjoyed the jest; and went away laughing heartily; and the young damsel herself to whom I had given the preference, (though she did not avail herself of the privilege of inspection), seemed no way displeased at the compliment; for she soon afterwards sent me some meal and milk for my supper.
March 28th. This morning a large herd of cattle arrivedfrom the eastward; and one of the drivers, to whom Ali had lent my horse, came into my hut with the leg of an antelope as a present, and told me that my horse was standing before Ali’s tent. In a little time Ali sent one of his slaves to inform me, that, in the afternoon, I must be in readiness to ride out with him, as he intended to shew me to some of his women.
About four o’clock, Ali, with six of his courtiers, came riding to my hut, and told me to follow them. I readily complied. But here a new difficulty occurred: the Moors, accustomed to a loose and easy dress, could not reconcile themselves to the appearance of mynankeen breeches, which they said were not only inelegant, but, on account of their tightness, very indecent; and as this was a visit to ladies, Ali ordered my boy to bring out the loose cloak which I had always worn since my arrival at Benowm, and told me to wrap it close round me. We visited the tents of four different ladies, at every one of which I was presented with a bowl of milk and water. All these ladies were remarkably corpulent, which is considered here as the highest mark of beauty. They were very inquisitive, and examined my hair and skin with great attention; but affected to consider me as a sort of inferior being to themselves, and would knit their brows, and seem to shudder, when they looked at the whiteness of my skin. In the course of this evening’s excursion, my dress and appearance afforded infinite mirth to the company, who galloped round me as if they were baiting a wild animal; twirling their muskets round theirheads, and exhibiting various feats of activity and horsemanship, seemingly to display their superior prowess over a miserable captive.
The Moors are certainly very good horsemen. They ride without fear; their saddles, being high before and behind, afford them a very secure seat; and if they chance to fall, the whole country is so soft and sandy, that they are very seldom hurt. Their greatest pride, and one of their principal amusements, is to put the horse to his full speed, and then stop him with a sudden jerk, so as frequently to bring him down upon his haunches. Ali always rode upon a milk-white horse, with its tail dyed red. He never walked, unless when he went to say his prayers; and even in the night, two or three horses were always kept ready saddled, at a little distance from his own tent. The Moors set a very high value upon their horses; for it is by their superior fleetness that they are enabled to make so many predatory excursions into the Negro countries. They feed them three or four times a day, and generally give them a large quantity of sweet milk in the evening, which the horses appear to relish very much.
April 3d. This forenoon a child, which had been some time sickly, died in the next tent; and the mother and relations immediately began the death howl. They were joined by a number of female visitors, who came on purpose to assist at this melancholy concert. I had no opportunity of seeing the burial, which is generally performed secretly, in the dusk of the evening, and frequently at only a few yards distance from thetent. Over the grave, they plant one particular shrub; and no stranger is allowed to pluck a leaf, or even to touch it; so great a veneration have they for the dead.
April 7th. About four o’clock in the afternoon, a whirlwind passed through the camp, with such violence that it overturned three tents, and blew down one side of my hut. These whirlwinds come from the Great Desert, and, at this season of the year, are so common, that I have seen five or six of them at one time. They carry up quantities of sand to an amazing height, which resemble, at a distance, so many moving pillars of smoke.
The scorching heat of the sun, upon a dry and sandy country, makes the air insufferably hot. Ali having robbed me of my thermometer, I had no means of forming a comparative judgment; but in the middle of the day, when the beams of the vertical sun are seconded by the scorching wind from the Desert, the ground is frequently heated to such a degree, as not to be borne by the naked foot; even the Negro slaves, will not run from one tent to another, without their sandals. At this time of the day, the Moors lie stretched at length in their tents, either asleep, or unwilling to move; and I have often felt the wind so hot, that I could not hold my hand in the current of air which came through the crevices of my hut, without feeling sensible pain.
April 8th. This day the wind blew from the south-west, and in the night there was a heavy shower of rain, accompanied with thunder and lightning.
April 10th. In the evening the Tabala, or large drum, wasbeat, to announce a wedding, which was held at one of the neighbouring tents. A great number of people of both sexes assembled, but without that mirth and hilarity which take place at a Negro wedding: here there was neither singing, nor dancing; nor any other amusement that I could perceive. A woman was beating the drum, and the other women joining at times, like a chorus, by setting up a shrill scream; and at the same time, moving their tongues from one side of the mouth to the other, with great celerity. I was soon tired, and had returned into my hut, where I was sitting almost asleep, when an old woman entered, with a wooden bowl in her hand, and signified that she had brought me a present from the bride. Before I could recover from the surprise which this message created, the woman discharged the contents of the bowl full in my face. Finding that it was the same sort of holy water, with which, among the Hottentots, a priest is said to sprinkle a new married couple, I began to suspect that the old lady was actuated by mischief, or malice; but she gave me seriously to understand, that it was a nuptial benediction from the bride’s own person; and which, on such occasions, is always received by the young unmarried Moors as a mark of distinguished favour. This being the case, I wiped my face, and sent my acknowledgments to the lady. The wedding drum continued to beat, and the women to sing, or rather whistle, all night. About nine in the morning, the bride was brought in state from her mother’s tent, attended by a number of women, who carried her tent, (a present from the husband) some bearing up the poles, others holding by the strings; and in this manner they marched, whistling as formerly,until they came to the place appointed for her residence, where they pitched the tent. The husband followed, with a number of men leading four bullocks, which they tied to the tent strings; and having killed another, and distributed the beef among the people, the ceremony was concluded.
Occurrences at the Camp continued. — Information collected by the Author, concerning Houssa and Tombuctoo; and the Situation of the latter. — The Route described from Morocco to Benowm. — The Author’s Distress from Hunger. — Ali removes his Camp to the Northward. — The Author is carried Prisoner to the new Encampment, and is presented to Queen Fatima. — Great Distress from the Want of Water.
Onewhole month had now elapsed since I was led into captivity; during which time, each returning day brought me fresh distresses. I watched the lingering course of the sun with anxiety, and blessed his evening beams as they shed a yellow lustre along the sandy floor of my hut; for it was then that my oppressors left me, and allowed me to pass the sultry night in solitude and reflection.
About midnight, a bowl of kouskous with some salt and water was brought for me and my two attendants; this was our common fare, and it was all that was allowed us, to allay the cravings of hunger, and support nature for the whole of the following day: for it is to be observed, that this was the Mahomedan Lent; and as the Moors keep the fast with a religious strictness, they thought it proper to compel me, though a Christian, to a similar observance. Time, however, somewhat reconciled me to mysituation: I found that I could bear hunger and thirst better than I expected; and at length, I endeavoured to beguile the tedious hours, by learning to write Arabic. The people who came to see me, soon made me acquainted with the characters; and I discovered, that by engaging their attention in this way, they were not so troublesome as otherwise they would have been: indeed, when I observed any person whose countenance I thought bore malice towards me, I made it a rule to ask him, either to write in the sand himself, or to decipher what I had already written; and the pride of shewing his superior attainments, generally induced him to comply with my request.
April 14th. As Queen Fatima had not yet arrived, Ali proposed to go to the north, and bring her back with him; but as the place was two days’ journey from Benowm, it was necessary to have some refreshment on the road; and Ali, suspicious of those about him, was so afraid of being poisoned, that he never eat any thing but what was dressed under his own immediate inspection. A fine bullock was therefore killed, and the flesh being cut up into thin slices, was dried in the sun; and this, with two bags of dry kouskous, formed his travelling provisions.
Previous to his departure, the black people of the town of Benowm came, according to their annual custom, to shew their arms, and bring their stipulated tribute of corn and cloth. They were but badly armed; twenty-two with muskets, forty or fifty with bows and arrows; and nearly the same number of men and boys, with spears only: they arranged themselves before the tent, where they waited until their arms were examined, and some little disputes settled.
About midnight on the 16th, Ali departed quietly from Benowm, accompanied by a few attendants. He was expected to return in the course of nine or ten days.
April 18th. Two days after the departure of Ali, a Shereef arrived with salt, and some other articles, from Walet, the capital of the kingdom of Biroo. As there was no tent appropriated for him, he took up his abode in the same hut with me. He seemed to be a well informed man, and his acquaintance both with the Arabic and Bambarra tongues, enabled him to travel, with ease and safety, through a number of kingdoms; for though his place of residence was Walet, he had visited Houssa, and had lived some years at Tombuctoo. Upon my inquiring so particularly about the distance, from Walet to Tombuctoo, he asked me if I intended to travel that way; and being answered in the affirmative, he shook his head, and said,it would not do; for that Christians were looked upon there as the devil’s children, and enemies to the Prophet. From him I learned the following particulars; that Houssa was the largest town he had ever seen: that Walet was larger than Tombuctoo; but being remote from the Niger, and its trade consisting chiefly of salt, it was not so much resorted to by strangers: that between Benowm and Walet was ten days’ journey; but the road did not lead through any remarkable towns, and travellers supported themselves by purchasing milk from the Arabs, who keep their herds by the watering-places: two of the days’ journies, was over a sandy country, without water. From Walet to Tombuctoo, was eleven days more; but water was more plentiful, and the journey was usually performed upon bullocks. Hesaid there were many Jews at Tombuctoo, but they all spoke Arabic, and used the same prayers as the Moors. He frequently pointed his hand to the south-east quarter, or rather the east by south; observing, that Tombuctoo was situated in that direction; and though I made him repeat this information, again and again, I never found him to vary more than half a point, which was to the southward.
April 24th. This morning Shereef Sidi Mahomed Moora Abdalla, a native of Morocco, arrived with five bullocks loaded with salt. He had formerly resided some months at Gibraltar, where he had picked up as much English, as enabled him to make himself understood. He informed me, that he had been five months in coming from Santa Cruz; but that great part of the time had been spent in trading. When I requested him to enumerate the days employed in travelling from Morocco to Benowm, he gave them as follows:—to Swera, three days; to Agadier, three; to Jiniken, ten; to Wadenoon, four; to Lakeneig, five; to Zeeriwin-zeriman, five; to Tisheet, ten; to Benowm, ten; in all fifty days: but travellers usually rest a long while at Jiniken and Tisheet; at the latter of which places they dig the rock salt, which is so great an article of commerce with the Negroes.
In conversing with these Shereefs, and the different strangers that resorted to the camp, I passed my time with rather less uneasiness than formerly. On the other hand, as the dressing of my victuals was now left entirely to the care of Ali’s slaves, over whom I had not the smallest control, I found myself but ill supplied, worse even than in the fast month: for two successivenights, they neglected to send us our accustomed meal, and though my boy went to a small Negro town near the camp, and begged with great diligence from hut to hut, he could only procure a few handfuls of ground nuts, which he readily shared with me. Hunger, at first, is certainly a very painful sensation; but when it has continued for some time, this pain is succeeded by languor and debility; in which case, a draught of water, by keeping the stomach distended, will greatly exhilarate the spirits, and remove for a short time every sort of uneasiness. Johnson and Demba were very much dejected. They lay stretched upon the sand, in a sort of torpid slumber; and even when the kouskous arrived, I found some difficulty in awakening them. I felt no inclination to sleep, but was affected with a deep convulsive respiration, like constant sighing; and, what alarmed me still more, a dimness of sight, and a tendency to faint when I attempted to sit up. These symptoms did not go off until some time after I had received nourishment.
We had been for some days in daily expectation of Ali’s return from Saheel (or the north country) with his wife Fatima. In the meanwhile Mansong, King of Bambarra, as I have related inChapter VIII,had sent to Ali for a party of horse to assist in storming Gedingooma. With this demand Ali had not only refused to comply, but had treated the messengers with great haughtiness and contempt; upon which Mansong gave up all thoughts of taking the town, and prepared to chastize Ali for his contumacy.
Things were in this situation when, on the 29th of April, a messenger arrived at Benowm with the disagreeable intelligencethat the Bambarra army was approaching the frontiers of Ludamar. This threw the whole country into confusion; and in the afternoon Ali’s son with about twenty horsemen arrived at Benowm. He ordered all the cattle to be driven away immediately, all the tents to be struck, and the people to hold themselves in readiness to depart at daylight the next morning.
April 30th. At daybreak the whole camp was in motion. The baggage was carried upon bullocks, the two tent poles being placed one on each side, and the different wooden articles of the tent distributed in like manner; the tent cloth was thrown over all, and upon this was commonly placed one or two women; for the Moorish women are very bad walkers. The king’s favourite concubines rode upon camels, with a saddle of a particular construction, and a canopy to shelter them from the sun. We proceeded to the northward until noon, when the king’s son ordered the whole company, except two tents, to enter a thick low wood, which was upon our right. I was sent along with the two tents, and arrived in the evening at a Negro town called Farani: here we pitched the tents in an open place, at no great distance from the town.
The hurry and confusion which attended this decampment, prevented the slaves from dressing the usual quantity of victuals; and lest their dry provisions should be exhausted before they reached their place of destination, (for as yet none but Ali and the chief men knew whither we were going,) they thought proper to make me observe this day as a day of fasting.
May 1st. As I had some reason to suspect that this day was also to be considered as a fast, I went in the morning to theNegro town of Farani, and begged some provisions from the Dooti, who readily supplied my wants, and desired me to come to his house every day during my stay in the neighbourhood. These hospitable people are looked upon by the Moors as an abject race of slaves, and are treated accordingly. Two of Ali’s household slaves, a man and a woman, who had come along with the two tents, went this morning to water the cattle from the town wells, at which there began to be a great scarcity. When the Negro women observed the cattle approaching, they took up their pitchers and ran with all possible haste towards the town, but before they could enter the gate, they were stopped by the slaves, who compelled them to bring back the water they had drawn for their own families, and empty it into the troughs for the cattle. When this was exhausted, they were ordered to draw water until such time as the cattle had all drank; and the woman slave actually broke two wooden bowls over the heads of the black girls, because they were somewhat dilatory in obeying her commands.
May 3d. We departed from the vicinity of Farani, and after a circuitous route through the woods, arrived at Ali’s camp in the afternoon. This encampment was larger than that of Benowm, and was situated in the middle of a thick wood about two miles distant from a Negro town, called Bubaker. I immediately waited upon Ali, in order to pay my respects to Queen Fatima, who had come with him from Saheel. He seemed much pleased with my coming; shook hands with me, and informed his wife that I was the Christian. She was a woman of the Arab cast, with long black hair, and remarkably corpulent. Sheappeared at first rather shocked at the thought of having a Christian so near her: but when I had (by means of a Negro boy, who spoke the Mandingo and Arabic tongues) answered a great many questions, which her curiosity suggested, respecting the country of the Christians, she seemed more at ease, and presented me with a bowl of milk; which I considered as a very favourable omen.
The heat was now almost insufferable; all nature seemed sinking under it. The distant country presented to the eye a dreary expanse of sand, with a few stunted trees and prickly bushes, in the shade of which the hungry cattle licked up the withered grass, while the camels and goats picked off the scanty foliage. The scarcity of water was greater here than at Benowm. Day and night the wells were crowded with cattle, lowing and fighting with each other to come at the trough: excessive thirst made many of them furious; others, being too weak to contend for the water, endeavoured to quench their thirst by devouring the black mud from the gutters near the wells; which they did with great avidity, though it was commonly fatal to them.
This great scarcity of water was felt severely by all the people of the camp, and by none more than myself; for though Ali allowed me a skin for containing water, and Fatima, once or twice, gave me a small supply, when I was in distress, yet such was the barbarous disposition of the Moors at the wells, that, when my boy attempted to fill the skin, he commonly received a sound drubbing for his presumption. Every one was astonished that the slave of a Christian should attempt to drawwater from wells which had been dug by the followers of the Prophet. This treatment, at length, so frightened the boy, that I believe he would sooner have perished with thirst, than attempted again to fill the skin; he therefore contented himself with begging water from the Negro slaves that attended the camp; and I followed his example; but with very indifferent success; for though I let no opportunity slip, and was very urgent in my solicitations, both to the Moors and Negroes, I was but ill supplied, and frequently passed the night in the situation ofTantalus. No sooner had I shut my eyes, than fancy would convey me to the streams and rivers of my native land: there, as I wandered along the verdant brink, I surveyed the clear stream with transport, and hastened to swallow the delightful draught;—but alas! disappointment awakened me; and I found myself a lonely captive, perishing of thirst amidst the wilds of Africa!