Chapter XXXVI: Section III

_Of the Empire of Melli, and some curious particulars of the Salt Trade: Of the Trade in Gold: Of the, Azanhaji; and concerning swarms of Locusts_.

The empire of Melli, of which some mention has been made in the preceding Section, is situated in an extremely hot climate, and affords very bad nourishment for beasts; insomuch, that out of an hundred camels which go from the desert into that country, scarcely twenty-five return; several even of the Arabs and Azanhaji, belonging to the caravans, sicken and die likewise every year. There are no quadrupeds kept by the natives of the country, as indeed none can live there for any time. It is reckoned to be forty days journey on horseback from Tegazza to Tombuctu, and thirty from thence to Melli[1]. Having inquired what use the merchants of Melli made of this salt, the traders of the desert informed me, that a part of it was consumed in that country, which lying near the line, where the days and nights are of equal length, certain seasons of the year are so excessively hot that the blood of the inhabitants would putrify, if it were not for the salt, and they would all die. They have no art or mystery in its use; but every one dissolves a small piece every day in a porringer of water, and drinks it off, which in their opinion preserves their health.

The remainder of the salt is carried a long way in pieces on mens heads, every piece being as large as a man can well bear. As brought from Teggazza, the salt is in large pieces as taken out of the mine, each camel being loaded with two pieces, and the negroes break these down into smaller pieces, for the convenience of carrying them on their heads, and muster a large number of footmen for this yearly traffic. These porters have each a long forked stick in their hands; and, when tired, they rest their loads on these sticks. They proceed in this manner till they arrive on the banks of a certain water, but whether fresh or salt my informer could not say, yet I am of opinion that it must be a river, because, if it were the sea, the inhabitants could not be in want of salt in so hot a climate. The negroes are hired to carry it in this manner for want of camels or other beasts of burden, as already mentioned; and, from what has been said, it may easily be concluded that the number, both of the carriers and consumers must be very great. When arrived at the water side, the proprietors of the salt place their shares in heaps in a row, at small distances, setting each a particular mark on his own heap; and when this is done, the whole company retires half a days journey from the place. Then the other negroes, who are the purchasers of the salt, who seem to be the inhabitants of certain islands, but who will on no account be seen or spoken to, come in boats to the place where the heaps of salt are placed, and after laying a sum in gold on each heap as its price, retire in their turns. After they are gone, the owners of the salt return, and if the quantity of gold on their heaps is satisfactory to them, they take it away and leave the salt; if not, they leave both and withdraw again. In this manner they carry on their traffick, without seeing or speaking to each other, and this custom is very ancient among them, as has been affirmed to me for truth by several merchants of the desert, both Arabs and Azanhaji, and other creditable persons[2].

On inquiring how it came to pass that the emperor of Melli, whom they represented as a powerful sovereign, did not find means, by friendship or force, to discover who these people were who would not suffer themselves to be seen or talked to, I was informed that this emperor, not many years ago, resolved to procure some of these invisible people, and held a council on the occasion, in which the following plan was devised and carried into execution. Before the salt caravan returned the half days journey from their salt heaps, some of the emperors people made certain pits by the water side, and near the place where the salt was left, and when the negroes came to deposit their gold on the salt, those who were concealed in the pits attacked them suddenly and took four of them prisoners, all the rest making their escape. Three of those who were thus taken were immediately set free by the captors, who judged that one would be quite sufficient to satisfy the curiosity of their emperor, and that the negroes would be the less offended. But after all, the design proved abortive; for though spoken to in various languages, the prisoner would neither speak or take any victuals, and died at the end of four days. On this account, the Melli negroes concluded that these other negroes were dumb; but others were of opinion, that being endowed with the human form, they must necessarily have the power of speech; but, that finding himself treated in this manner, so contrary to ancient custom, he refused to speak from indignation. This untoward result was much regretted by the negroes of Melli, because it prevented them from gratifying the curiosity of their emperor; who, on being informed of this persons death, was much dissatisfied, yet asked what manner of men the prisoners were. He was accordingly informed that they were of a deep black colour, well shaped, and a span taller than the natives of Melli. That their under lip was thicker than a mans fist, of a very red colour, and hung down on their breasts, with something like blood dropping from it; but that their upper lips were small, like those of other men. That the form of the under lip exposed their gums and teeth, which were larger than their own, having great teeth in each corner of their mouth, with large black eyes, and altogether a terrible appearance, as the gums dropped blood continually, as well as the great hanging under lip.

This cross accident prevented all the succeeding emperors of Melli from making any farther attempt of the kind; because, from that time, these negroes forbore, for three years, from coming to buy salt as usual. It is believed that their lips began to putrify, through the excessive heat of the climate; and being no longer able to endure a distemper, of which some must have died for want of the effectual remedy which they had experienced from the use of salt, they returned of their own accord to traffic for that commodity in the old way. All this has established an opinion that they cannot live without salt; the negroes of Melli judging of the case of others by their own. As for the emperor of Melli, he cares not whether these blacks will speak, and be seen or not, so that that he has the profit of their gold[3]. This is all I could learn on this subject, which I think may be credited, as so many persons have vouched for its truth, of which I, who have both seen and heard of many wonderful things in this world, am perfectly satisfied.

The gold brought to Melli is divided into three parts. One part is sent by the caravan which goes annually from Melli to _Kokhia_[4], which lies on the road to Syria and Cairo. The other two parts go first to Tombuctu, whence one of them goes by _Toet_[5] to Tunis and other ports of the Barbary coast, and the other portion is carried to Hoden, and from thence to _Oran_ and _One_[6], towns in Barbary, which are within the Straits of Gibraltar, and to Fez, Morocco, Arzila, Azafi, and Messa, towns on the African coast of the Atlantic, where the Italians and other Christians procure it from the Moors, in return for various commodities. Gold is the best and principal commodity which comes through the country of the Azanhaji, and a part of it is brought every year from Hoden to Arguin, where it is bartered with the Portuguese[7].

No money is coined in the land of the _Tawny Moors_, or Azenhaji; nor is any money used by them, or in any of the neighbouring countries; but all their trade is carried on by bartering one commodity against another. In some of their inland towns, the Arabs and Azanbaji use small white porcelain shells, or cowries; which are brought from the Levant to Venice, and sent from thence into Africa. These are used for small purchases. The gold is sold by a weight named _mitigal_, which is nearly equal in value to a ducat. The inhabitants of the desert have neither religion nor sovereign; but those who are richest, and have the greatest number of retainers and dependents, are considered as chiefs or lords. The women are tawny, and wear cotton garments, which are manufactured in the country of the Negroes; but some of them wear a kind of cloaks, or upper garments, called Alkhezeli, and they have no smocks. She who has the largest and longest breasts, is reputed the greatest beauty; on which account, when they have attained to the age of seventeen or eighteen, and their breasts are somewhat grown, they tie a cord very tight around the middle of each breast, which presses very hard and breaks them, so that they hang down; and by pulling at these cords frequently, they grow longer and longer, till at length in some women they reach as low as the navel. The men of the desert ride on horseback after the fashion of the Moors; and the desert being everywhere very hot, and having very little water, and extremely barren, they can keep very few horses, and those they have are short lived. It only rains in the months of August, September and October. I was informed that vast swarms of locusts appear in this country some years, in such infinite numbers as to darken the air, and even to hide the sun from view, covering the horizon as far as the eye can reach, which is from twelve to sixteen miles in compass; and, wherever they settle they strip the ground entirely bare. These locusts are like grasshoppers, as long as ones finger, and of a red and yellow colour. They come every third or fourth year, and if they were to pay their visits every year, there would be no living in the country. While I was on the coast, I saw them in prodigious and incredible numbers.

[1] The distance between Tisheet and Tombuctu, according to our best maps,
is about 560 miles E. and by S. In the same proportion, supposing
Tisheet to be Teggazza, the distance between Tombuctu and Melli ought
to be about 420 miles. Of Melli we have no traces in our modern maps,
but it may possibly be referred to _Malel_, the apparent capital of
Lamlem; see Pinkert. Geogr. II. 917, as laid down from the Arabian
geographers, nearly 1200 miles E.S.E. from Tombuctu.--E.

[2] This story is probably a fiction, proceeding upon a trade of barter
between parties who did not understand the languages of each other.
The succeeding part of the story seems a mere fable, without the
smallest foundation whatever.--E.

[3] Few persons, perhaps, will be disposed to think the credit of the
Africans, however positive, or the belief of the author, however
strong, sufficient evidence of the truth of this story. Yet it
certainly is a common report of the country, and not the invention of
Cada Mosto. Jobson, who was at the Gambra or Gambia in 1620, repeats
the whole substance of this story; and Movette relates the
circumstances of the blacks trafficking for salt without being seen,
which he had from the Moors of Morocco. He leaves out, however, the
story of the frightful lips. Every fiction has its day; and that part
is now out of date.--Astl.

[4] Melli being itself unknown, we can hardly look to discover the
situation of Kokhia or Cochia; but it may possibly be Kuku, a town and
district to the N.E. of Bornou, which lies in the direction of the
text; or it may be Dar Kulla, greatly more to the S.W. but still in
the same track.--E.

[5] In Grynaeus this place is called Ato. As in the direction of the
caravan from Tombuto towards Tunis, it may possibly be Taudeny, an
ouasis or island of the great desert, in lat. 21° 30' N.--E.

[6] Called Hona in Grynaeus. What part of Barbary this name may refer to
does not appear. But the passage ought perhaps to run thus, "_to Oran
by the Mountain of Wan_," as there is a range mountains of that name
to the S. E. of Oran, which joins the chain of Atlas, or the Ammer
Mountains.--E.

[7] This is the earliest account of the places from whence gold is brought,
and of the course of its trade through Africa, and thence into Europe;
and is even more particular and exact than any that has been given by
later authors.--Astl.