Meanwhile the good old aunt who had so strongly recommended secresy to me, gave her friends information of the happy talent which I possessed, and I soon had to write for the neighbouring camps. All the women of the environs made friends with me that, I might give them a charm which would procure husbands for their daughters; they even went so far as to offer me money in payment, which it will be easily imagined I was far from accepting; but I made no scruple of taking milk and sangleh for my support: profiting by this innocent stratagem, I had every day gruel or milk for breakfast. Before chance furnished me with this method of procuring food, I had given my host a little coussabe, entreating him to send me each morning, at least, a small quantity of sangleh: the old hypocrite kept my present, but gave me nothing in return. One day I reproached him for his conduct, and he returned me my coussabe: I changed it for a pair of morocco shoes, for I was barefoot; in the middle of the day, the sun was so scorching, and the gravel and dry herbage cut my feet so much, that I had been obliged to borrow shoes to walk in.
The sons of Sidi-Aly, from twenty-eight to thirty years of age, not wanting my assistance to find wives, did not treat me more kindly than before; they continued to insult me up to the time of my departure; they even carried their insolence so far as to present themselves uncovered before me using the most indecent gestures. Aly, their father, only laughed at this conduct, which he witnessed.
The Arabs of el-Harib are so harassed by the Beraberas, or Berbers, to whom they are tributary, that they are fearful of travelling even in their own country without an escort from among these people; for if these unfortunate Arabs were met by the Berbers, they would be beaten and pillaged: for this reason we could not proceed to Tafilet without an escort. We were therefore obliged to wait for one of the chiefs of this nation, who lived in a village of the Drah or Draha, and had been sent for.
On the 3rd of July, this chief arrived at the encampment Aly gave him a good reception. They agreed upon the price which each load should pay for transport from el-Harib to Tafilet—for this Berber was to furnish beasts of burden; they signed a written agreement in which they mutually bound themselves to fulfil their engagements, and the Berber promised to return in eight days with the camels. Tired of the monotonous life which I was leading in the camp, I resolved for amusement to make a tour among the tribe of Oulad-Gouassim to visit an eminent Mahometan priest, whose sanctity had been highly extolled; his encampment lay about three miles to the east of ours. I approached his tent at the moment when the holy personage was coming out: several old men accompanied him; they had heard me spoken of, and immediately informed him that I was unhappy, and that I had separated from the christians. He answered with an air of indifference and without appearing to take any notice of me: “Well then! he has to thank God for his return into the way of salvation.” I seated myself for a moment upon the ground with him and some of the Moors, who were vicing with each other in obsequiousness to him: he ordered one of them to fetch him a little water, to dissolve some salt which he intended to take as a remedy for an indisposition, pretending that this beverage would give him relief. As the vessel which was brought to him was too full, he was about to pour out some of the water, when one of the Moors in his company, being apparently thirsty, proposed to drink it, but the haughty priest, with a contemptuous air, asked who he was that he should drink out of his satala: the person who aspired to this favour was no doubt worthy of it, for no sooner had he mentioned his name than the priest presented the vase to him. During the short time that I remained in his presence I saw a number of Moors come to consult him on divers maladies; his only remedy for so many complaints was to lay his hand gravely upon the part affected, and, rubbing it gently, to pronounce a prayer. This important person was also the public writer and the instructor of the children.
The only wealth of this man consisted in his knowledge of the Koran; but in Africa this knowledge is worth an estate. From all parts they brought him cotton cloth for his dress, stuff for his tent, beasts to carry him on his journeys, and barley for the food of himself and his people: he received all this in exchange for the charms which he wrote. In his camp he was abundantly furnished with whatever could contribute to his support and that of his friends; in return, he gave talismans for the cure or prevention of all diseases, against thefts, or to obtain husbands for the young females.
As it was late and I did not intend returning to Aly’s camp, and as the priest had not given me an invitation to sleep in his tent, I sought elsewhere a lodging for the night; I addressed myself as is usual to the first man I met, and requested permission to sleep near his tent: this man received me kindly, installed me in the place which he usually occupied, and left me; he then sent me a supply of dates to serve till supper time. I did not touch them, being afraid of them. During the night I was visited by a Moor, who was a cripple, and obliged to be carried by another. I was lying upon the ground; on rising I was astonished to see this little man beside me; he gave me the idea of a mysterious dwarf; I knew not what to think of his nocturnal visit, and conceived that by the assistance of his companion he intended to steal something. Finding that their presence was not at all to my satisfaction, they desired me not to be afraid, but I assured them loud enough to be heard by the neighbours, that if they did not leave me, I should complain to my host. The deformed dwarf threw himself into the arms of his conductor and they disappeared like lightning. About ten o’clock at night, my supper was brought me: it was good couscous with meat, such as I had never eaten in Aly’s family. The chief of the tent brought me water to wash my hands, inquired if I had had a good supper, and took his seat beside me: he put several questions relative to the customs of christian countries, and then withdrew.
On the 4th of July, after taking leave of my generous host, I returned to Aly’s camp. On the road I met two women, whose conversation amused me a little. They begged me to write charms, one to make her husband who intended to quit her change his mind; another to procure a husband for a young woman who wished to marry: they offered me money in exchange, but warned me, laughing, that they should pay nothing till my charms had taken effect. This conversation made the walk pleasant, and beguiled the length of the way.
We arrived at the camp: the blacksmith, to whose tent I often went to sleep, was preparing to transport two cargoes of ivory to Tatta; I perceived that he paid dues to the Berbers to travel through the country in safety. On making inquiries concerning the place to which they were going, I learnt that Tatta is a large town situated five days’ journey to the N. W. of our camp: the route leads through the town of Brahihima, which is two days’ journey from the camp. The goods taken to Tatta are dispatched thence by the merchants of Soueyrah (Cape Mogador.)
On the 6th of July, the wife of Sidi-Aly, who till then, like the rest of the family had given me tokens of ill-will accosted me in a very affable tone, and requested a saphi for bad eyes; promising me that if I effected a cure, she would give me every thing I wished. To get quit of her I gave her one immediately, and she received it with gratitude. I refused her money, but accepted with pleasure a little milk which she offered me. After some days, the impatient Mariam (that was her name) seeing that my amulet did not operate, reproached me bitterly, saying that my skill was no greater than that of the priests. Knowing from her husband that I had some medicaments, she asked me for physic, which embarrassed me greatly, as I was fearful of increasing her complaint; it was necessary however to satisfy her, under penalty of being considered disobliging. Convinced that cleanliness was the best remedy I could prescribe, to force her to it, I diluted with a considerable quantity of water a small portion of sulphat of quinine, and desired her to wash her eyes with it; she insisted that I should perform this operation myself, unfortunately the water, penetrating to her eyes, made them smart a little: upon which she flew into a rage, loaded me with abuse, and in conclusion, cursed both the doctor and his medicines. From that time she gave me no more sangleh.
This incident did not destroy their confidence in my saphies, to the credit of which moreover old Aly had contributed by a falsehood; having asserted that when I left Timbuctoo my abdomen was much swelled, and that I wrote in a book, washed my writing in water, and drank this liquor, which cured me.
An old woman long tormented me to procure a husband for her daughter; she dragged me, at length, against my will into her tent, which belonged to a neighbouring camp, promising me a draught ofcheniin recompense. Here I saw the object of her maternal solicitude; a girl about twenty years of age, repulsively ugly, clothed in rags, the filthiness of which could only be equalled by that of her person. Her left cheek was covered by a scar, and she had sore eyes. Her whole figure presented the most revolting appearance imaginable; and I perceived at a glance the cause of her mother’s anxiety to get her married by means of a charm. I felt that it was quite beyond my art to accomplish such a prodigy. To induce me however to exert all my skill, the old woman offered me a piece of dried meat, which she took out of a large leathern sack, where, from its state of putrefaction, it might have been deposited on the day that her amiable daughter was born. Notwithstanding the repugnance which I manifested, the mother insisted upon my acceptance of the delectable morsel, which she assured me was excellent; but such was my disgust that I even refused thecheniwhich she offered. I was anxious to withdraw, but could not effect my escape till I had written the amulet required; this done, I fled with all expedition, invoking for the maiden a man courageous enough to take her to wife.
I have never, in any country, seen women so dirty as those of el-Harib. This total want of cleanliness is no doubt the cause of the chronic ophthalmia, and other disorders, with which they and their equally filthy offspring are afflicted. My medical reputation drew upon me most unpleasant avocations: the mothers brought to me in crowds children in so disgusting a state that I could not look at them without horror; in vain did I avert my eyes, they only became more importunate, compelling me to examine the miserable beings for whom they solicited my aid. I could do no better for them than recommend cleanliness; but this simple remedy they despised, and would not be content with any thing short of the marvellous.
On the evening of the 6th, a troop of Berbers arrived in our camp demanding hospitality. Aly ordered for their supper a couscous of wheat flour, to which were added some pieces of meat dried in the sun. The food for me and the slaves was separately dressed; but Aly’s sister, who, since I had given her amulets for her nieces, had become much more attentive to me, gave me some of their meat concealed under the bad couscous of barley intended for me.
On the 8th of July, another troop of Berbers carried off several camels which were grazing at a distance. The whole camp took the alarm, and arming themselves with guns the men set off in haste, some on foot and others on horseback; but the thieves were already distant, and their pursuers returned without having overtaken them. The evening was spent in lamentations on the part of the owners of the camels, their relations, and friends. They had recourse to fortune-tellers to know if they should recover them, and came to consult me on the subject, requesting a charm to bring them back; this I refused, under pretence that my writings did not possess that virtue.
On the 11th of July, the Berbers who were to escort us to Tafilet arrived, and great was my joy to think that on the morrow I should quit a place where I had experienced so many mortifications. Aly had a sheep killed for the Berbers’ supper and gave me a little bit, with an apology on account of the many persons who were to partake of it.
On the 12th, at five o’clock in the morning, our preparations were made for departure; but before quitting this country I shall give a description of it.
The territory of el-Harib, two days’ journey west of that of el-Drah, and one to the east of the tribe of the Trajacants, is situated between two chains of mountains, which extend from east to west, and separate it towards the north from the empire of Morocco, to which it is tributary. The inhabitants are divided into several roving tribes. Their principal wealth consists in the great quantity of camels which they breed, and which in the wet season produce abundance of milk for their sustenance. All the Moors of el-Harib travel in the Soudan; they go to Timbuctoo, el-Arawan, and Sansanding; the merchants of Tafilet, el-Drah, and Soueyrah, give them loads for their camels; on their own account they carry only wheat and dates, and these in small ventures. When in the Soudan they remain there several months, for the purpose of traffic; making little journeys to Toudeyni, where they purchase mineral salt, which they sell again to the principal merchants in the two chief entrepôts, receiving in exchange grain, the stuffs of the Soudan, and gold. Having spent nine or ten months in this traffic, they take a load for Tafilet or some other city, and afterwards return into their own country and to their family, bringing with them gold only and some slaves, whom they sell in Morocco.
On returning to their own country, they are obliged to pay a small tribute to a chief called the sheikh. The goods brought by the Moors from the Soudan to el-Harib are transported to Tafilet or other places by the Berbers alone, or under escorts which they furnish at a price agreed upon; without which precaution the merchants would certainly be robbed or murdered on the road.
The Moors of this miserable country are incessantly harassed by the Berbers, from whose habits of rapine they have every thing to fear, although they pay them a heavy tribute; and not one of them, whatever rank he may hold at home, dares travel without being thus accompanied. These roving people, not being themselves cultivators of the soil, are obliged frequently to go to el-Drah to purchase barley and dates for food, and not daring to attempt this without the convoy of the Berbers, they pay them an additional tribute by way of remuneration. These latter, well armed, are continually prowling about in the country of el-Harib, to obtain food from the Moors and even to carry off their cattle.
The inhabitants of this district are so poor that they can purchase only the cheapest provisions, principally such dates as, having fallen from the trees before they have become perfectly ripe, are carefully picked up by the owners, exposed to the sun to dry, and then put into leathern bags, where they become so extremely hard that very good teeth are requisite to eat them without pain. Upon these dates, which they pound in a wooden mortar, and a little cheni, the Moors of el-Harib subsist during the day; eating sangleh before evening only in very particular cases.
About eight or nine at night, they usually sup upon a couscous of barley generally steeped in warm water, in which they have boiled a handful of herbs gathered in the environ of their camp. They also breed some sheep, but when they kill one, which is very rarely done, they dry the meat and preserve it in leathern sacks, sometimes for six months. They have recourse to this reserve when they treat strangers, particularly the Berbers, to whom they are very attentive. As a mark of consideration, they spread before the tent for their repose a carpet as good as those which we use in Europe. The master, in honour of his guests, frequently eats with them from the same bowl, and, instead of offering them pure water, he adds to it camel’s milk, which in the rainy season is very abundant. On the arrival of the strangers, the dates and cheni are immediately set before them as a refreshment till the supper hour. Though the Moors of el-Harib receive the Berbers thus hospitably, yet in travelling through their country they are never treated even with a supper; in their journeys therefore, they are careful to carry their provision of dates and a little barley-meal, which they boil in water. The costume of the Berbers differs from that of the Moors only in a band of coloured stuff, which the former wrap round their heads in the form of a turban; they also wear ear-rings. They are all armed and mounted on fine horses, handsomely caparisoned, and they wear spurs, which are attached to a leather strap firmly fastened round the instep.
The Moors of el-Harib dress like those on the banks of the Senegal, except that over their coussabe they wear a linen wrapper manufactured in the country of el-Drah or Tafilet. They have only one wife, but like the Braknas change her frequently. They are all Musulmans, yet they do not addict themselves, like the marabouts, to the study of the Koran, being satisfied with knowing the first verse of it without learning to write; a marabout is, consequently, held in great consideration among them.
The Moors of el-Harib are generally detested by their neighbours; in el-Drah and Tafilet they are seldom called any thing but cafirs or infidels. In my life I never saw women so evil disposed and so dirty as those of this country: they do not veil themselves, like the women of Morocco, but expose a face disgustingly filthy; the smell that proceeds from them is most offensive. The inhabitants eat the camels which have died from fatigue, but not till they have drained off the blood; they keep some sheep and a few horses. El-Harib contains eleven tribes, the names of which, as I received them from an old inhabitant of the camp to which I belonged, are as follows: Oulad-Rossik, Oulad-Wébal, Oulad-Gouessim, Oulad-Foulh, Oulad-Ouraff, Oulad-Rouzinn, Oulad-Rahan, Oulad-Nasso, Oulad-Body, Oulad-Bonlaboi, Oulad-Sidi-Ayesha. One day’s journey west from our camp are situated the first tents of the Trajacants; at the distance of four in the same direction are the tribes of Oulad-Noun, who dwell near the village of Adrar, which must not be confounded with the country of el-Drah, a small district extending from east to West, and from north to south, between Morocco and el-Harib; five days’ journey west from the encampment of Sidi-Aly is the village of Sous; at fourteen days in the same direction that of Soueyrah; and at ten or eleven days from el-Harib, to the N. N. W. is Morocco, the capital of the empire of that name, which these rovers sometimes visit.
While the men of el-Harib are travelling in the Soudan, the women employ themselves in making ropes of grass, to fasten the baggage and to draw water from the wells in the deserts; they spin camel’s hair with which they make tent-covers; they prepare and tan leather, and make sandals for their husbands, and the remainder of their time is devoted to their domestic concerns. As in all other Mahometan countries, they eat apart from the men.
Sidi-Aly had frequently teased me to part with my two pieces of blue cotton cloth from the Soudan, that I might have, he said, the means of purchasing provisions for my journey to Tafilet, those which had been given me at Timbuctoo and el-Arawan, having been wholly consumed by himself and his family. Wishing to retain my cloths, which might probably prove serviceable to me in future, I resisted his importunities, and thus cheating his cupidity ran the risk of exposing myself to his resentment. My resolution, however, produced no ill consequences.
Country of el-Drah — Zawât — el-Hamid — Bounou — Town of Mimcina — Camp of Berbers — Tabelbât — The Tawâts — Wells of Yeneguedel, of Faratissa, of Bohayara — Customs of the Berbers — Wells of Goud-Zenaga, of Zenatyia — Town of el-Yabo — Wells of Chanerou, of Nyela.— Arrival at Tafilet — Town of Ghourland — Market — Ressaut, the residence of a Governor under the emperor of Morocco.
On the 12th of July, we set out at five in the morning, after having taken a little camel’s milk, which I bought with a glass bead from my chaplet. We proceeded slowly towards the east, over a hard soil, composed of grey sand, covered with vegetation, and intersected with deep ravines. Aly would not permit me to mount my camel all the morning; it was not till towards noon when he mounted himself that I could obtain this favour. About twoP. M.we halted on a very hard sand upon which grew some zizyphus lotus; throughout the day a strong easterly wind incommoded us much: at four in the evening it veered to the west. At nightfall we were visited by a Moorish priest whose camp was in the vicinity of our halting place. As he was proprietor of several flocks of sheep, we wished to purchase some mutton of him but he refused; and we gave him some barley-meal which he undertook that his wife should dress for our suppers. He sent it to us at ten o’clock, and had the civility to add some milk from his ewes. Out of reserve he declined supping with us, but seated himself apart and waited till the dish containing our mess was brought to him.
On the 13th of July, at two in the morning, we continued our route E. N. E., and crossed several sand-hills covered with dry shrubs. About eight o’clock we passed the ruins of some mud-huts, surrounded by a battlemented wall; opposite to these ruins is a small square mausoleum, the roof of which is a vaulted arch. Immediately within the little entrance door, is stretched a cord from which depend numerous shreds of cloth of various colours, which travellers had hung there from a sentiment of devotion. Several pyramids of flint heaped together without cement, and about eighteen inches in height, are another kind of offering made by passengers to the manes of the sherif whose ashes repose in this monument, and whose memory is held in veneration.
Here the Moors and Berbers of our little caravan went through their devotions; after a short ceremony they took a little sand from the place in which they had prostrated themselves and sprinkled it over their camels and slaves. I learned that these ruins belonged to an ancient village called Zawât, long since abandoned by its inhabitants, who had elsewhere founded another town of the same name.
The soil of the environs is barren, hard, and full of stones of various colours; a few bushes indeed are to be seen, but their foliage is parched up by the sun.
It was noon when we passed the new village of Zawât, which belongs to the country of el-Drah. This village is peopled by the former inhabitants of the deserted ruins we had seen in the morning: the houses are of stone, with terraced roofs, and consist only of a ground-floor; they are ill-built and resemble the huts of the Bambaras. We crossed some fields which had been cultivated, and about half past twelve halted in a wood of date-trees, near a neat village, called el-Hamit. Nothing was to be seen on all sides but forests of date-trees majestically rearing their summits to the clouds. Under these trees the inhabitants of el-Drah cultivate wheat, barley, and some garden vegetables. They divide their land, the soil of which is a fine sand but fertile, into little squares, round which they raise dikes to receive and retain the rain-water, and when they have collected more than they want they convey the surplus by channels to the foot of the date-trees. Each landholder has in the middle of his field a well of clear and good water, sunk to the depth of twenty or twenty-five feet, in a hard sand mixed with small black and yellow pebbles; I remarked several having strata from fourteen to eighteen inches thick of red sand a little veined with grey and of the consistence of clay. Two posts fifteen feet high are erected, one on each side of these wells supporting a cross-beam, to which is fastened a long pole, bearing a weight at its hinder extremity to counterbalance the bucket which is attached by a piece of cord to the other; the water is thus drawn-up without much effort and serves to water their plantations. At the depth of about twenty-five feet are found rocks which appear to be of granite. Wood is very scarce in this country; the fuel consists only of dry palm-leaves and the trunks of dead trees: the timber used in the construction of their houses is that of the date-tree.
The plough is used in this country, and it is drawn by mules or camels.
Near sunset the Berbers collected some small pebbles, which they arranged symmetrically upon the sand, then heated them with a fire of palm-leaves, and, after kneading a little barley-meal, baked a cake of it for our supper upon the stones; to improve it they mixed with the meal some small bits of mutton fat; when baked it was divided among us. Aly gave me a little bit of it which I thought delicious, although badly baked and very heavy, for I had tasted nothing the whole day; my guide, however, though he allowed me so little nourishment, upbraided me with living at his expense, since my own provisions had been long exhausted. Happily for me two Trajacant marabouts had joined our caravan; Aly supplied them with provisions, and allowed them sometimes to ride his camels, not out of humanity, but because he would have utterly forfeited his reputation as a pious Musulman had he acted otherwise. These two men were excellent company to me: they consoled me under the insults to which I was incessantly exposed, and greatly alleviated the hardships of my lot during this long and toilsome journey; for I should probably have encountered still worse usage but for their presence, which imposed some restraint on my guide and his family. The marabouts had even the kindness to give me drink, when, as it frequently happened, water was refused me.
On the 14th at three in the morning, we took our departure, slowly directing our course E. N. E., through numerous plantations of dates; the soil was broken by hills of loose sand.
About eight in the morning, we passed a large village called Bounou, surrounded by beautiful palm-trees. About ten we came to a hard soil covered with small black and yellow pebbles; here we met six Berber horsemen, all well mounted, and armed with sabres and muskets; they advanced at full speed to meet us with hostile intentions, pointing their loaded muskets: the six Berbers who formed our escort, with four well armed Moors, placed themselves at the head of the cavalcade, holding their weapons in readiness to receive the enemy. The two parties halted within a certain distance, when the Berbers parleyed together in their own language, still holding their muskets ready for firing. As soon as they recognised each other to be countrymen, they saluted; and we pursued our route without molestation. What a country is this, in which it is impossible to stir a step without danger of being robbed and even murdered by one’s neighbours! We continued our course in the same direction over a hard and stony soil, and passed an ancient village in ruins, where the minaret of a mosque is still to be seen; beside it is a well at which travellers quench their thirst; one of the Trajacant Moors gave me a little of this water, which I found tepid and bad. I also observed a mausoleum, like that which we had seen the day before, and where the Musulmans again performed their devotions. Proceeding in the same direction, we met some wretched Moors, leading asses laden with forage; these men were badly clothed and walked barefoot.
About noon we encamped in the fields under the shade of some date trees and not far from Mimcina, a large town of el-Drah, inhabited by Berber and Moorish husbandmen. This town, surrounded by walls twelve-feet high, is situated between two chains of hills stretching east and west, the soil of which every where presents a reddish hue, without any trace of vegetation.
As it was hot, and our people were not yet returned from watering the camels at the wells, my thirst became extreme, and I determined to visit the tents of the Berbers, pitched at a short distance from our own, to beg a little water.
No sooner did I approach the camp than three large dogs rushed upon me, tore my garments and bit me in several places. I cried aloud to the Berbers for assistance, but these unfeeling wretches carelessly looked on or turned away with the utmost indifference: assailed by so many enemies I found the combat very unequal; and, for fear of being torn in pieces, sounded a retreat, still sustaining some bites as I retired: the dogs carried off some pieces of my dress as trophies, and did not leave me till I was at a considerable distance from their tents. Heartily cursing the inhumanity of their masters, I returned sorrowfully to our own camp under the date-trees. The Berbers keep a great number of dogs to watch their flocks, and they are so accustomed not to suffer the approach of any stranger whatsoever to the habitations of which they are left in charge, that the fear of being devoured by them serves as a wholesome restraint upon the depredations of those robbers by whom the country is so much infested. The Berbers themselves dare not approach without caution the camps of their own tribe to which they are strangers; but, if business obliges them to repair thither, they take the following method to escape the fury of these pitiless guardians. The visiter advances slowly, and makes a circuit round the tents at a considerable distance; the dogs begin to bark, without advancing on account of the distance; as soon as the owners of the tents shew themselves, he acquaints them with the object of his coming, when they are anxious to satisfy him; if he applies for hospitality, supper is spread for him on a mat at a short distance from the tents, which no one is ever allowed to enter.
At five in the evening, when the heat was abated, I took a walk to the town of Mimcina, accompanied by a neighbouring Moor, who, being a friend of Sidi-Aly’s, had come to visit him and brought him a present of dates, which, by the invitation of the donor, we ate together. The chief of our Berbers strongly recommended me to this Moor, and charged him especially to guard me from insult and not to suffer me to be robbed of the pagne which I wore; a recommendation which gave me but an indifferent opinion of the people whom I was about to visit. The town is walled and surrounded by pleasant plantations of palm-trees. I observed under a shed near the gate a party of loungers, who, as soon as they saw me, crowded round me asking a thousand ridiculous questions, for they were already apprised that I was an Arab who had escaped from the christians. With some trouble I got quit of these impertinent fellows, and, penetrating into the town, I passed through a very narrow, winding, and dirty street; the walls of the houses are at least fifteen feet high and very badly plaistered. I was followed by a crowd of men, for the women were veiled and durst not look at me. I seated myself under a gallery, where many old men were collected together in conversation with one of our Trajacants, who had been in the town all day, and had already related part of my history to the assembly. Among the crowd was an aged Moor, who, having performed two journeys to Mecca, had acquired great preponderance over their counsels: this man talked to me a long time about the christians, and shewed me a fac-simile of the manner in which Christ is represented in Europe; he tried to chant in imitation of the priests whom he had heard at Tripoli in Barbary, and often repeated, striking his breast,amen, amen. He asked me if I was disposed to eat some dates, for which I thanked him. The Trajacant marabout told him that I was with a guide named Aly, who persecuted me in order to force me to sell my dress and purchase provisions for the journey; the old man appeared incensed at such perfidious conduct, and declared that such a person could not be a good Musulman. He inquired whether I would like a present of dates, which I accepted; and he immediately ordered those about him to provide me with a sufficient quantity to last till our arrival at Tafilet; and leading me to the mosque reiterated his orders. After the prayers, a great quantity of dates was brought to me, enough indeed to load an ass; but unfortunately they turned out to be spoilt and bad: these good people carried their complaisance so far as to carry them to our camp; bad as they were, Aly, the covetous Aly, received them with pleasure, and on that day behaved better to me than usual.
The houses of Mimcina consist of a ground-floor, only; like those of Timbuctoo, they have terraced roofs, and admit the air only from an inner court. I saw several dirty Jewesses, covered with rags, walking barefoot, and displaying the utmost extremity of wretchedness. The inhabitants of Mimcina have but few beasts of any kind, and scarcely any oxen or horned cattle: they breed a few sheep for the sake of their wool, some goats and poultry; they are excellent husbandmen, and have many date-trees, in which their wealth principally consists. Their breakfast is composed of bread with a little gruel made of barley-meal; and they sup upon couscous. About seven o’clock a plentiful couscous with mutton was sent to Sidi-Aly, who, after having made his own supper with two or three persons whom he looked upon as his equals, shared the remainder between me and six camel-drivers, who were not admitted to his table: the poor slaves also, to my great satisfaction, were not forgotten. We afterwards lay down under the palm-trees, the broad leaves of which formed a canopy over our heads, and I, contrary to my usual habit, slept tolerably well.
On the 15th, at three in the morning, we took leave of the town of Mimcina and its inhabitants; and, bending our course E. N. E., traversed a hard soil of white sand, with a surface of small pebbles of the same colour, mixed with gravel; the country is diversified with hills of an extremely arid appearance. The Moors of Mimcina informed me that Beneali, the residence of the chief of the Berbers, is situated N. N. W. of their town, at the distance of a day’s journey, on the road to Morocco. This nation, according to their account, pays no tribute to the emperor.
A day’s journey from Beneali in the same direction lies the village of Amsero; a days’ journey beyond that Ranguerute, a large town, and six days farther still Morocco, the capital of the empire.
Six days’ journey east of Mimcina is situated the town of Tabelbât, on the road to Tawât, which is eight days’ journey beyond. The Moors of Tawât are husbandmen; they have numerous palm-trees, trade with Timbuctoo, and occasionally visit Tafilet and el-Drah to purchase goats and sheep.
Pursuing our route, we arrived at the wells of Yeneguedel, where we halted: a quarter of mile to the south we saw a delightful grove of palms, offering a striking contrast with the barrenness of the neighbouring mountains; but our guides neglected this spot, where we might have enjoyed the shade, and left us exposed to the scorching sun, which on that day was more than usually powerful. I visited the wells, situated on a little hill, as bare as the neighbouring country, and there found a single droopingmimosa ferruginea, under which I stretched myself, and, resting my head on a stone, slept soundly. On awaking, I approached the wells to drink, and saw there some Berber women watering their sheep: the wells are three feet deep, and their water is good and abundant; they are sunk in grey sand, containing many calcareous stones of a flat shape. On our departure from Mimcina, we had been joined by a Moor from Tafilet: he and his train were mounted upon mules, the animals most commonly used for travelling this stony road, which is apt to wound the feet of camels; those of Sidi-Aly were however obliged to carry his goods.
The Berbers had a barley-cake baked upon the ashes for our supper; each of us after this light repast, drank a glass of cold water, and lay down for the night on the stony ground.
On the 16th, at three in the morning, we proceeded slowly N. N. E., till near eight, when our course was changed to the north. Our march lay over a very mountainous soil, covered with sharp stones, which were very troublesome. The mountains are not high, and composed of granite without any appearance of vegetation. The Moor Sidi-Boby, who still perpetually insulted me, threw a stone at me, which striking me on the right side, hurt me much, and I retained the mark of it a considerable time: this brute had no other cause for such savage treatment than my having mounted my camel without giving him notice. Old Aly, seated upon his, had preceded us; immediately on rejoining him, I complained of the outrageous treatment to which I had been exposed; but he paid little attention to me and answered laughing: “That is nothing, all will be well.” Exasperated by his conduct, I told him that if all was well with him, all was very ill with me: he was silent, and turned his head another way. I ought to repeat here that it was to the two Trajacant marabouts alone that I was indebted for not encountering still worse treatment from such men, in the journey between el-Drah and Tafilet: I thanked them for it; but for them I should have been obliged either to desert, or to seek another guide to conduct me to Ghourland. The Moors of my company were restrained from doing me greater mischief solely by the fear of passing for infidels.
About ten in the morning, we halted near the wells of Faratissa, agreeably shaded by beautiful palms: in the environs are some veins of sand, studded with patches of grass on which the camels are accustomed to browse; stunted mimosas are also scattered around. The wells are but two feet and a half deep; the water is very good.
From el-Drah, our little party had been increased by several Moors; they all assembled round the wells, and talked much about me; with the exception of my guide all appeared to take an interest in my fate: fears were expressed that on my arrival in Alexandria I might not meet with any parents. “Poor young man,” said they, “what will he do all alone?” I told them that I had full confidence in God, who had supported me through a thousand dangers and would not abandon me at the moment of reaching port. “In short,” said I, “if God has called to himself my father and mother, he will have left me a brother and a sister.”
On such occasions Aly spoke highly in my favour and even pitied me: this day he carried his kindness so far as to shave my head, a compliment which I would willingly have dispensed with; but, as it was a religious duty, I could not complain. In the very act he proved his hypocrisy by insulting me, and encouraging his slaves to follow his example. To escape these persecutions, I took refuge in the tents of the Moors, our fellow-travellers, where we passed the night under the palms, the coolness of whose foliage invited us to sleep. The camels and mules not having had water the whole day, we rested till three in the afternoon of the 17th.
The intense heat having then moderated, we proceeded northward, over a soil similar to that of the preceding day. About half past six we stopped, and each of us supped upon a piece of barley-cake and some dates. After this meagre repast, we again stretched ourselves upon the stony ground, where I slept soundly till about three in the morning of the 18th, when we started afresh.
As my guide was fearful of fatiguing his camel, he obliged me to walk the whole morning: I therefore followed on foot the little caravan, which slowly advanced towards the N. N. E. over a gravelly soil; the face of the country was covered with hills composed of rocks of granite. About nine in the morning, we halted at the wells of Bohayara, around which the vegetation is luxuriant; they are twelve feet deep, and sunk in grey sand, mingled with coarse gravel. They are very near to a camp of Berbers, who water their sheep and goats at them: these men inhabit the passes of the mountains, where they feed numerous flocks of sheep and herds of camels, and cultivate a little barley and wheat. They are rovers, but change their place of abode less frequently than the Moors, and whenever occasion calls them to a distance from their little fields, they always leave some one behind to take care of them.
I found the Berber women much cleaner and less curious than the Moorish. They dress like the latter in old rags, but take care to wash them. These women, whose good looks proclaim that they live in plenty, colour the tips of their noses and chins blue; they envelop their heads in ragged cloths of red or white worsted, and wear their hair in tufts behind their ears, and fastened in rolls at the back of their heads. Their principal ornaments consist of necklaces of amber, coral, and various kinds of glass-beads, and in silver bracelets and anclets; their skin however appeared to be as dirty as that of the Moorish females of el-Harib. They are industrious, and employ themselves in spinning the wool of their sheep, and weaving the yarn into blankets, which they sell at Tafilet. These Berbers have a peculiar idiom, which the Arabs do not speak; they also conform to the religion of Mahomet; they have several wives, who superintend all the household concerns, prepare the food, take care of the sheep, and have besides the laborious task of drawing water for them to drink. They pasture their flocks in the passes of the mountains wheresover they can find herbage, for the appearance of their own country is absolutely bare. Hills of granite, of moderate height, but totally destitute of vegetation, meet the eye on all sides. This wandering and pastoral tribe subsist like the Moors, upon dates and sangleh made of barley; they often make their supper upon couscous, or barley-cake, baked upon the ashes. In the rainy season, the milk of their flocks, being then more abundant, forms a portion of their nourishment. Such of them as live in the villages have houses in the Moorish style, built like those of the Arab inhabitants of the towns: the rovers have only tents, the coverings of which are made of the hair of their camels. They grow but little grain, the land which they occupy being scarcely fit for cultivation; but here and there may be traced veins of more fertile earth which they turn to good account.
Their cookery, like that of the Moors of el-Harib, is performed in large copper vessels, manufactured by native smiths. It is astonishing that they escape being poisoned by the verdigris, for the Moorish women are so excessively dirty that they never wash their utensils, merely rubbing off with the hand what adheres to the sides.
The Berbers encamped at Bohayara presented Sidi-Aly and our escort with a sheep, which had a particularly fine fleece, and was killed by the Berbers of our company for our supper. As we had no vessel to boil it in, our guides had recourse to the ingenious expedient of picking up a number of large smooth calcareous stones, with which they formed a small oven, and heated it with roots ofhedysarum alhagi, the only combustible that grows in this part. The entrails of the sheep were converted into chitterlings and the carcase was cut into many small parts.
The oven, when strongly heated, was carefully swept, and the pieces of mutton put in one upon another; it was then hermetically sealed with loose sand. When the meat was properly dressed, the chief of our Berbers, who was a lover of justice, secured its impartial distribution by giving each of us a bit of wood, which, being duly marked, was brought to one of the Moors appointed for the purpose. He was ordered to shake them together, and taking them up at random, to place each upon a piece of the meat: thus every one was entitled to his own lot. I had also my share, for which I was solely indebted to the chief of the Berbers, who had been often indignant at the conduct of the Moors towards me. The meat was pretty good, served with cleanliness, and perfectly well dressed.
On the 19th of July, at four in the morning, we quitted the delicious wells of Bohayara, slowly directing our course N. N. E. over a soil covered with small grey gravel; on either side of our route was a chain of low, bare hills, containing abundance of black granite, in huge detached blocks; and the country was still naked, presenting its usual appearance of frightful sterility.
About ten, after proceeding at the rate of three miles an hour, the wells of Goud-Zenaga afforded us a resting place; here we found some Berbers from an adjacent camp who were watering their flocks. The aspect of the country around led me into reflections upon the habits and character of these people; it seems inconceivable how they can contentedly take up their abode in such dreary regions, producing nothing but scanty herbage, and neither tree nor shrub of any kind.
On the 20th, at fourA. M.we again pursued our course to N. N. E., over a nearly similar soil, but somewhat stony; the chain of hills still continued equally bare.
At eleven, we halted at the wells of Zénatyia, twenty or twenty-four feet deep, yielding abundance of tolerably good water. The surrounding soil presents a pleasing appearance of vegetation; some mimosas andzizyphus lotusflourish there, together with a number of very tall tamarisks, which afforded us an agreeable shade. The level is broken by hills of loose white sand, the abode of numerous antelopes, one of which was killed by a Moor of our party, and divided amongst the whole caravan, allowing only a small share to each.
A day’s journey N. W. of the wells of Zénatyia, is a Berber town, called el-Yabo, and one of its inhabitants who belonged to our caravan parted from us here to return home. The husbandmen of el-Yabo extend their labours, during the rainy season, as far as Zénatyia, preparing the ground for wheat and barley, which they cultivate in small quantities.
On the 21st, we again proceeded towards N. N. E., at four in the morning, travelling three miles in about an hour, among the hills of loose sand. We then came to a plain of smooth sand firmer than that of the hills, covered with small gravel and pebbles. About ten, we halted at the wells of Chanérou, where we found some Berbers watering their sheep, the fleeces of which are remarkably white.
Near these wells I observed a small shed, constructed of the branches of thezizyphus lotus, and covered with straw and brambles: here I took shelter in company with some Moors, and three Berber women, who left the task of questioning me to the men, paid apparently but little attention to my adventures, when cursorily related to them; but my person seemed to attract much of their notice, and to please them greatly. Now and then I asked them for some water; which they good-humouredly gave me from the bucket, carefully holding it in a position that enabled me to drink with ease.
The plain, in which these wells are situated, is gravelly, interspersed with rocks, and inclosed by sterile hills, which seem to be about three hundred and fifty feet in height. A little grass grows in the clefts of these rocks, and serves the sheep for pasturage. We had been joined in the morning by a Moor from Tafilet, who came to meet his father. The old man, whose name was Sidi-Abdoul-Rahman, was about fifty-five or sixty years of age, and nearly bald: he was returning to his native village, Ghourland, after a long residence at Timbuctoo; where he had seen Major Laing, as he informed me by the way. His son brought him some black grapes for his refreshment; he gave me a bunch with a small bit of wheaten bread, which I accepted with pleasure. Little, indeed, had I expected to eat fresh bread and grapes in so sterile a country! In the evening, some troops of Berbers came to water their flocks. Sidi-Aly proposed to buy a sheep for our supper, the Berbers of another troop joined us, and twenty of them contributed towards this purchase; each gave for his share adragme, the coin of the country, worth about eight French sous. Sidi-Aly whom I had allowed to see that I possessed three or four shillings, consented to lend me this dragme, which I promised to repay on our arrival at Tafilet. I must here anticipate by observing, as a fact which greatly surprised me, that at parting he would not accept payment; desiring that I would keep this piece of money to assist me on my journey to Fez, and saying that he gave it me for the love of God. It was doubtless from remorse of conscience which he wished to silence at a cheap rate. The mutton thus procured, and which was dressed like the last, proved delicious, though it had not been so carefully cleaned.
On the 22nd, at two o’clock in the morning, we set off in a N. N. E. direction; the soil still the same, and the mountains extending on both sides of our route. About ten in the forenoon we halted at the wells of Nyéla, (or Ain-Yela) the water of which is abundant and good; they are situated in a very stony ravine, and so shallow that the water is taken up by hand. The heat was extreme, and our only shelter some of thezizyphus lotus.
At a short distance south of the wells is seen a high mountain of granite, in the crevices of which there are a few patches of verdure: I observed on its declevity a flock of sheep, which appeared no larger than young lambs. This mountain is nearly pointed, and rises to the height of one hundred and fifty or two hundred fathoms above the level of a very stony soil. When my fellow-travellers had retired to rest for the night I went to the wells with a satala, and washed myself in the cold water, which afforded me much comfort; returning afterwards to my companions and lying down on the ground, I slept soundly till three o’clock in the morning.
On the 23rd, I was still half asleep when we set out, proceeding for the first half hour in a N. N. E. direction; we afterwards turned to the N. E., till six in the morning, and, quitting the barren mountains, descended into a plain of very hard grey sand, susceptible of cultivation.
From this plain we beheld the beautiful and majestic palm-trees of the country of Tafilet, an enchanting prospect and one which raised my spirits by announcing the speedy alleviation of my sufferings. We passed through fields, separated, some by earth walls, and others by narrow ditches. The country was beautiful, but parched up by the scorching heat of the sun, which left no other verdure than the evergreen leaves of the palm. About nine in the morning we reached Ghourland, and were presently surrounded by a crowd of children, attracted by curiosity. We encamped under the shade of the palm-trees, at the gates of the town. When the arrival of our caravan from the Soudan was reported, numbers of dirty and ill-clad Moors and Jews came to meet us, and soon surrounded the baggage: many of my companions warned me to be careful of my leathern bag and of my pagnes, or they would be stolen, even off my back; they advised me not to go too far from the village, because there were thieves, who, in the supposition that I had brought much gold from the Soudan, might attack me. The Moorish merchants who came for their goods made a single mule carry the burden of a camel. I took mine upon my shoulder and followed my guide to the house of old Haggi-Le-Mekke, the chief of Ghourland. I passed in my way through several long and narrow streets, and arrived at the house of my new host. An inner court formed the entrance both to the chambers and magazines. Part of this court was covered by a shed, supported by trunks of palm-trees, in the middle of which was a sort of sky-light. A staircase of earth led to the terraced roof of the house. I deposited the bag containing my notes in a locked-up warehouse, and, the bag itself being padlocked, I was set at ease respecting the curiosity of the Moors. Our host gave us for breakfast some excellent dates, so ripe that they resembled preserves, and added a small piece of new wheaten bread: this would have been a sumptuous regale, had not the water which we drank with it been brackish. The young sons of Haggi received me kindly; they congratulated me more particularly upon the resolution I had taken to forsake the christians and unite myself with the Musulmans; telling me that I was under the special protection of God, and that all who should do me good would be favorites with the prophet. I need not, they added, feel any further uneasiness as to my return to my country; now that I was at Tafilet, I should find no difficulty in reaching the place of my birth, and they would themselves defray the expense of my journey to Fez, which should cost me nothing. In conclusion, they invited me to remain with them, assuring me that they would supply all my wants.
My new hosts seemed so well disposed towards me that I expected an apartment at their house, but was disappointed, for, after breakfast, they recommended me to go and engage a lodging at the mosque, an edifice destined at once for the service of God and the reception of travellers. In fact, I there met with several strangers, who surrounded me and overwhelmed me with questions.
About two in the afternoon, I returned to the house of my host, to relieve the weariness which this importunate curiosity occasioned me, and was greatly astonished to find the same young men, who in the morning had expressed so much affection for me, now refuse me admittance. After having explained that they treated me thus on account of their women, they asked me if I wanted food, and, giving me about two ounces of bread with some dates, left me seated upon the ground at the door. After having taken this slight repast I returned to the mosque. About ten o’clock, the negro slaves came to call Sidi-Aly and his people to supper: as he would not allow me to eat with him, I received no notice; however, finding the time elapse, and being by no means disposed to lose my supper, I determined to seat myself at the door of my host’s house. The slaves, as they passed, inquired what I wanted; I answered that I had had no supper, and begged they would inform their master: they executed my commission, and returned saying, that I ought to have shared the supper of Sidi-Aly and his suite. I then described their misconduct towards me, at which they were indignant, saying, that he and his were infidels; and, desiring me to wait a moment, they brought me an ample quantity of bad barley couscous, with a small bit of beef. I afterwards went to sleep under the roof of the mosque, among the Moors, who were necessitated like myself to take refuge there. As the sons of Haggi-Le-Mekke had represented to me, no stranger is here admitted into the interior of the houses, lest the women, who are not allowed to see any other men but those of their family, might be exposed to indiscreet observation: consequently travellers obtain an asylum for the night in the mosques, and the host at whose house they alight sends them their meals; they send for them at supper time, but receive them in a very dark corridor.
At eight o’clock in the morning, I went to my host’s for my breakfast, and seated myself, as on the preceding afternoon, at the door, waiting for an invitation. The youngest son of the family soon came, and inquired very kindly if I had breakfasted; on my answering in the negative, he ordered a slave to bring me some dates and gruel made of barley-meal: this gruel is very thin, and serves for a beverage in eating the fruit; with bread or couscous they drink nothing but water. With a stomach thus slightly supported the stranger is obliged to await the hour of supper, when a little couscous is given him; this is the nourishment they provide for those who ask hospitality of them, and for their slaves. The masters drink with their breakfast a very thin gruel made of wheat flour, and dine upon new bread and the fruits of the season; they have abundance of fine melons, of which they are very fond; and the richer inhabitants of Tafilet breakfast upon tea with bread and figs. At ten at night, the usual hour of supper, they eat couscous made of wheat flour, dressed with mutton or poultry, for they rear some domestic fowls.
While sitting at the corner of a street I made acquaintance with a Moor, named Sidi-Baubacar; who put some questions to me very prudently, and appeared to interest himself in my situation; he is a very mild and good man. He had travelled to Cape Mogador and to Morocco, and in the former town had had much intercourse with the christians, whom, in common with all other Moors, he detested. He shewed some taste for the sciences and was desirous of instruction, had learned arithmetic, and was well acquainted with its first three rules, in which he could prove his calculations. He was in the habit of writing upon a slate, which he brought to me, and we made some calculations together. This man was somewhat of an enthusiast, and conceived a friendship for me; he spoke much of the knowledge of the Europeans, which he considered as vastly superior to that of the Moors, and shewed me a watch to which he attached much value, because he was the only person in the country who had one. It was at his house that I saw the English pocket compass, which I formerly mentioned. He talked of Bonaparte and his campaigns in Egypt, asked if it was during his residence among the Musulmans that I was made prisoner, and said that he was at Tripoli about that time; finally he inquired my age; as I was covered with rags, was ill, and my complexion scorched almost to blackness by the heat of the sun, I appeared older than I really was; he had therefore no difficulty in believing that I was thirty-four years of age.
On the 26th, I proposed to a poor Jew named Jacob, to purchase of me a shilling by weight, because, as this coin was not current in the country, and he was a smith and a worker in gold and silver, he could turn it to account in his trade. He required me, for this purpose, to come to his house, to satisfy his curiosity no doubt; however the proposal also answered mine, for I knew not by what method to obtain admission to the interior of even one house. I entered then the humble dwelling of this Jew; who conducted me through two small low rooms, very dark and exceedingly dirty, into a third, somewhat larger, which received light and air only by a small opening in the roof: this opening is common to all the apartments in the interior of the house, the dwellings of the Jews being as simply constructed as those of the Moors.
Jacob, who did not possess a mat, was obliged to seat me upon the ground. He opened a closet, and fetched some nuts which he presented to me, adding a fine slice of melon and a large piece of wheaten bread, of the preceding day’s baking. His wife and aged mother, seated beside me, examined me with insatiable curiosity; they appeared mild and timid, but nevertheless, addressed several questions to me relative to the countries inhabited by the christians. I observed in this room two large sacks of corn for the family provision, some fowls, and a dog, the guard of the house: in one corner was collected the dirt of several days’ sweeping. After partaking of the Jew’s hospitable collation I took leave of these good people. A negro slave had accompanied me, fearing, he said, lest these infidels should insult me. Jacob desired me to return on the following day, when he would change my piece of money; for, my visit having been made on Saturday, no business could be transacted. The Moors, inquisitive and troublesome, were far less generous; they offered me nothing but their bad dates, and even of these they were liberal only because they could not themselves consume their superfluity.
On the 27th, I accompanied Sidi-Boubacar to a market, which is held three times a week near a village called Boheim about three miles N. of Ghourland: Boubacar mounted a fine mule, and myself an ass, destined to carry the provisions on our return.
This market is held in a beautiful spot surrounded by palm-trees; it contains many clay huts for the accommodation of the dealers in stuffs, mercery, and spices, and the butchers. The Berbers and Arabs from the adjacent villages come hither to sell their merchandise: they bring cattle, corn, fruit, and green vegetables, and in return purchase the stuffs of the merchants. As I expressed a desire to take a particular survey of the market, my companion ordered one of his people to attend me, assuring me, that if, as a stranger, I was found there alone, the very clothes I had on would be stolen. I was astonished at the variety of articles exhibited in this market. I saw there great abundance of fine herbs, cabbages, turnips, onions, peas, and dried beans, indigenous fruits, such as raisins, white and black currants, pears, nuts gourds, and melons of a fine sort; green lucern for the horses, and many productions of Europe; also fowls and boiled eggs; I bought half a dozen of the latter for the value of six farthings of our money. I observed sheep of an astonishing size, covered with very fine white wool.
Water sellers, with their full bottles, walked to and fro in the market, with a little bell to give notice to all who wished to drink, for the heat here is most oppressive. There is no scarcity of wells in the market, but they are very deep, and as strangers have not ropes to reach them, much water is sold, though it is rather brackish. I beheld asses and mules laden with the productions of nature and industry arriving from all quarters, and might easily have fancied myself transported into a well stocked European market. I bought some figs and raisins for my refreshment, together with a small wheaten loaf worth a sous. The Jews are the principal brokers: there are merchants established here who purchase from individuals the woollen goods manufactured at home, store them, and export them to other markets. No money is current here, except that of Morocco and Spain; the coin of other European countries is taken by weight. After traversing the great desert, almost deprived of the necessaries of life, the pleasure which I experienced in contemplating a market so richly furnished is indescribable, but I was obliged to return to the village with the slave to whose care Sidi-Boubacar had consigned me, and this man, when his purchases were completed, was unwilling to stay any longer.
On the 28th, Sidi-Boubacar, who was become much attached to me, sent me an invitation to his house, where he waited to receive me. He seated me on a fine carpet, spread in the court, under a little shed, and then requesting me to wait a moment, he went for a friend of his, a Moor of distinction. Soon afterwards a slave brought, upon a very clear copper waiter, a meat pasty fried in butter, and a fine slice of melon, bought on the preceding day at the market of Boheim: Sidi-Boubacar broke the pasty and his friend and I as well as himself did justice to it. In the evening Jacob the Jew changed my shilling, which enabled me on the succeeding days to buy a little bread. The same day, being at the mosque, a Moor, whose father was recently dead, accosted me, and, slipping an eightpenny piece into the pocket of my coussabe, begged me to accept it for the love of God and the Prophet.
On the 29th, Haggi-Le-Mekke gave me notice that I must hold myself in readiness to set out for Fez. Unable, from the state of my health, to undertake so long a journey on foot, I made inquiries concerning the means of riding; I was in fact swelled and weak. I was asked if I had dragmes sufficient to pay for a mule: I could have done so, but thinking it not prudent to confess it, I preferred pleading poverty, and hoped that the sale of my two blue pagnes of Soudan would produce enough. Three days previously I had confided them to a son of my host’s for the purpose of sale, but I was now advised to carry them to the market of Boheim, whence the caravan was to set out; I repaired thither with the intention of seeing the bacha or governor, to ask assistance from him.
On quitting Ghourland, I was accompanied by a muleteer mounted upon an ass; this man was charged by Haggi-Le-Mekke to conduct me to Sidi-Habib-Benani, who resided at Boheim and was chief of the caravan going to Fez, to whom he gave me particular recommendations. On the road I was stopped by the Berbers going to the market, who, perceiving that I was a stranger, surrounded me to the number of twenty or thirty, saying all together, “Who are you? Whither are you going?” They all pulled me by my dress and gave me no time to answer: at length they carried off my pagne and would have stolen my bag also, had I not on setting out intrusted it to my guide, who, mounted upon an ass, with a Berber behind him, had gone on before me, without troubling himself whether I was able to follow or not. The thieves, not content with my pagne, were about to take my coussabe also, when Haggi-Lemedan, (my guide,) to whom the Moors of his acquaintance had given notice of my situation, returned at full gallop with his Berber; and the latter made the plunderers restore all they had stolen from me. Soon after this vexatious accident, we reached the market, which I found as well supplied as the first time I visited it. On the road I had met two mounted Berbers pursuing at full speed, with loaded guns, two Arab horsemen, who were galloping off with the utmost precipitation. When the market was over, I went, accompanied by my guide, to Sidi-Habib-Benani’s, who sent me to take a lodging in the loft of the mosque; about ten in the evening he supplied me with a very good couscous.
On the morning of the 30th of July, I seated myself modestly on the ground at my host’s door, being well aware that he would not have the complaisance to send my breakfast to this public lodging; as soon as he perceived me at prayers with my chaplet in my hand, he sent me some wheaten gruel but without dates. At ten o’clock, I requested a Moor to conduct me to the residence of Sidi-Habib-Bacha, at the small town of Ressant, two gun-shots north of Boheim. This man obligingly complied, and we set out; but we learned on arrival that the Bacha, who was indisposed, would not come thither that day, and that he seemed to intend spending it at his private house at Sosso, a village situated about a mile and a half S. E. of Boheim. As I expressed a strong desire to repair thither, my honest Moor procured a man of the village, in the service of the Bacha, to accompany me to the latter. On my arrival I was conducted through a large court, tolerably clean, into another and smaller one, at the gate of which two sentinels were sitting upon the ground, with their muskets resting against a wall. My arrival was announced to the Bacha, who gave orders for my being shewn in I found this Arab grandee seated, without ostentation, on a mat, upon the ground, under a shed, near the wells, which diffused a pleasant coolness. There were two Moors in attendance, playing as it were, the part of courtiers. The Bacha gave me a favourable reception and inquired the cause which had brought me into his presence. I shortly recapitulated to him the various circumstances which had occasioned me to take so long and arduous a journey across the Soudan and the desert; informing him that I was from Alexandria, whither I was anxious to return, but that from poverty I had no means of conveyance thither; and being in ill-health in consequence of the fatigues, which I had undergone, I could not travel so great a distance on foot. Amongst the numerous questions which he put to me, he asked how I had defrayed the expenses of my route since I had quitted the negro countries: to which I replied, flattering Musulman generosity, that every one had contributed a small donation to the relief of my wants. He afterwards turned the conversation to the Europeans, ridiculing their faith. One of his Moors, a very corpulent man, hereupon sneeringly observed, “Why, as Jesus is the Son of God, did he suffer himself to be crucified by the Jews?” As this question was pointed at me, I replied, that I was in no way concerned to support a cause the merits of which I did not understand, and that the Christians must discuss his objection. The Bacha then sent for his steward and commanded him to give me some dates, which were brought in a small straw basket, but of which I declined eating though I was politely pressed. By order of this chief, I was reconducted by one of his sentinels to my host at Boheim, with an invitation to repeat my visit on the following day at his government residence; he also sent instructions to Sidi-Mohammed, the sherif who had accompanied me in the morning, to repair thither with me.
On the morning of the 31st, I did not fail to wait with the sherif for the Bacha, on his road to the town. We stood up immediately upon perceiving him. He rode a fine grey horse, and was escorted by two soldiers, each armed with a musket. He halted for a moment before us: the sherif, in accosting him, respectfully kissed his white tunic; the Bacha spoke a few words to him in a low tone, after which, raising his voice a little, he informed me that I must remain at Ghourland till further orders, I readily concluded that I had nothing to hope from his highness; and, returning to my village, Mohammed confirmed me in my opinion. Sidi-Habib-Benani had set out in the morning for Fez; having refused to give me a mule or any other conveyance for three mitkhals of silver, the produce of the sale of my two pagnes: thus I found myself at Boheim, without knowing how to leave it. I had a very good coussabe, which Abdallah-Chebir had given me at Timbuctoo; and I determined, at the risk of going away without clothing, to sell it in the market, and endeavour to hire an ass, so that I might be able to set out the day after the morrow with a caravan going to Fez: the eldest son of Benani, a merchant by profession, sold my coussabe for two mitkhals, which, with the three others, sufficed to hire an ass. At ten at night, I went as usual to present myself at the gate of my host’s son, from whom, during the day, I had received as a present some bread and a bunch of grapes: he also sent me a supper and I went to bed under the sacred roof of the mosque. The court of this structure was locked and the inmates could not open it during the night; a circumstance which had nearly drawn me into grievous trouble. This court enclosed the tomb of a holy sherif, long since deceased: the following morning, my fellow-lodgers were scandalized to perceive that this revered sepulchre had been soiled during the night; a universal cry of indignation arose, and all eyes were turned upon me. Amazed and confounded, I had not courage to assert my innocence; my only excuse was ignorance of the localities, and I protested, with perfect truth, that the profanation was not wilful but purely accidental. This sincere allegation was, however, far from calming the tumult, and I know not how serious the consequences might have been, had not some old men fortunately determined to intercede in my favour. They represented that my situation as a stranger should be taken into consideration; that I was undoubtedly ignorant of the existence of a tomb in this place; but that, supposing me even acquainted with the fact, it was impossible I could have learned amongst christians to respect that which is the object of homage to all good Musulmans; that some indulgence should, therefore, be shewn to my want of knowledge. This plea made an impression and the matter dropped.
On the 1st of August, I repaired in the morning to the gate of my host to seek my breakfast; but I waited till two in the afternoon without obtaining any thing. At this time several Moors were collected and beginning to question me; but I told them that I was suffering too much from hunger to be in a condition to answer them, having eaten nothing the whole day. A zealous Musulman offered to give me a loaf for the love of God, if I would accept it; and I was too much famished to refuse it, hard as it was.
On the 2nd; the caravan prepared to depart for Fez; the man whose ass I had hired had received my earnest, and I waited for him in the village where he had engaged to take me up. Before taking leave of this country I will give a succinct description of it.