Chapter XLV: Letter XII (2)

[Footnote 251: Vide Major Kennel's Map in the Proceedings of
the African Association, 8vo. edition, vol. i. page 209.]

[Footnote 252: Vide Jackson's Marocco, second or third edition,
page 312.]

Mr. Park's annotator, in the spirit of controversy with which he
appears to be endued, may say, the fact of this stream running to
445 the west towards Wangara, cannot be admitted, because Mr. Browne
saw a ridge of mountains extending in that direction; but Mr.
Browne did not ascertain that this was an uninterrupted ridge; the
river might therefore pass through some chasm similar to that which
I have seen in crossing the Atlas Mountains, or through some
intermediate plain.

The annotator further says[253], "It is needless to comment upon
such hearsay statements, received from an African traveller." This
assertion being calculated to impress on the public mind, that I
founded my hypothesis respecting the junction of the Niles of
Africa on the simple and single statement of one individual African
traveller; I feel it incumbent on me thus publicly to declare, that
_the junction alluded to is founded on the universal and concurrent
testimony of all the most intelligent and well informed native
African travellers_ (for the most part natives of Sudan), not one
of whom differed in this opinion, but unanimously declared it to be
an uncontroverted fact, that the waters of the Nile of Egypt joined
the waters of the Nile el Abeed, which passes near Timbuctoo to the
east; and that there exists, without a doubt, a water communication
between Cairo in Egypt, and Timbuctoo in Sudan. Now, if, as M. de
Bailly observes, "_la vérité se fait connaître par le concours des
446 témoignages_," it must be admitted, by men of liberal sentiments,
that it is somewhat more than a hearsay statement; and what better
foundation can there possibly be for the truth of any geological
fact, than the concurrent testimony of the best-informed natives of
the country described?

[Footnote 253: Vide Appendix, No. IV. to Park's Second Journey
page 115.]

With respect to precision being unfavourable to authenticity[254],
I consider this a new dogma; and if I were disposed to confute it,
(but it carries with it its own confutation,) I should point out
many hearsay evidences, precisely recorded in my Account of
Marocco, which have been confirmed already by Ali Bey (El Abassy)
and many others; but "_non est hic locus_."

J.G. JACKSON.

[Footnote 254: Vide Appendix, No. II. to Park's Second Journey
page 103.]

_Strictures respecting the Interior of Africa, and Confirmation of
Jackson's Account of Sudan, annexed to his Account of the Empire of
Marocco, &c._

London, 16th Jan, 1818.

It is a satisfaction to perceive (after a lapse of eight or nine
years since the publication of my account of Marocco and the
interior of Africa), that in proportion as we are becoming better
acquainted with the interior of that continent, my account becomes
more authenticated, notwithstanding the attempts that have been so
447 insidiously made to invalidate it.

The various hypotheses, for the most part founded in theory, that
have within the last seven years, been adopted respecting the
course of the _Nile el Abeed_ (Niger), are beginning now to fall to
the ground, and the learned and judicious editor of the Supplement
to the New Encyclopedia Britannica, founding his opinions, as it
should seem, upon the facts that have been corroborated respecting
the interior of Africa, has actually adopted my opinion;[255] viz.

That there is an union of waters between the Nile of Egypt, and
that of Sudan[256]; where the common receptacle is, I have not
ventured to declare, but it is probable that it may be in the Bahar
Kulla[257], in Wangara, or in the [258]Sea of Sudan; the opinion
that the junction is formed in the Sea of Sudan is supported by the
Shereef Imhammed, who saw the Nile at Cashna, and declared that it
was so rapid there from east to west, that vessels could not stem
it.

[Footnote 255: See my letter to the Editor of the Monthly
Magazine, vol. xliii. March, 1817, page 125.]

[Footnote 256: It is incorrect to say, that the word _Nile_ is
applied, in Africa, to any great river: the name, I can with
confidence declare, is never applied to any river in North
Africa, except the Nile of Egypt, and that of Sudan; whoever
has propagated this opinion has mistaken the matter altogether.
See Proceedings of the African Association, vol. i. page 540.]

[Footnote 257: See Major Rennell's Map of North Africa, lat.
north 6°, long, west 18°, &c.]

[Footnote 258: See Jackson's enlarged Account of Marocco,
Timbuctoo, &c. page 310.]

448 Again: Parke's intelligence, in his second journey, demonstrates an
union of waters in the (Baseafeena[259]) Sea of Sudan; for he says,
the current was said to be sometimes one way, and sometimes
another; which I will take the liberty to interpret thus:--

That the current from the Eastern Nile, was westward into the Sea
of Sudan, and the current of the Western Nile was eastward into the
same sea of Sudan: thus the current would be sometimes one way, and
sometimes another, making the Sea of Sudan the common receptacle
for the Eastern as well as for the Western Nile.

Ptolemy's Sea of Nigritia is undoubtedly the same with my Sea of
Sudan; _Lybia Palus_[260] being the Latin denomination, as _Bahar
Sudan_ is the Arabic for the interior lake called the Sea of Sudan;
but whether this sea of Sudan will ultimately prove to be
situated[261] as I have described it, fifteen journies[262] east of
Timbuctoo, or 450 English miles, or as Ptolemy has described it, or
in the intermediate distance between the two extremes, must be left
for future travellers to ascertain.

[Footnote 259: Another name for the Sea of Sudan, as will
hereafter appear.]

[Footnote 260: See Ptolemy's Map of North Africa.]

[Footnote 261: See Jackson's enlarged Account of Marocco, page
310.]

[Footnote 262: Fifteen journies horse travelling, which are the
journies here alluded to, at thirty miles a-day, is 450 British
miles.]

The enterprising and indefatigable, the patient and persevering
genius of Burkhardt, deriving incalculable advantages from a long
449 residence in the eastern regions of Africa, may probably decree him
to be the person to clear up this long-contested geographical
point, unless the fascination of Arabian manners, or some Utopia in
the interior regions of that continent, should wean him from the
desire to re-visit his native country.

This intelligence of Park may be considered some corroboration of
what I have maintained respecting the union of waters between the
Eastern and Western Niles.[263]

The following testimonies are some confirmation of my report
respecting decked vessels, &c. in the interior of Africa.[264]

Dr. Stetzen, a German physician residing at Alexandria[265], says,
that he has received intelligence from a pilgrim, on his way to
Mecca, a native of _Ber Noh,_ or _Bernou_[266], that the river
within a mile of the city is as large as the Egyptian Nile, and
overflows its banks; _it is navigated by vessels of considerable
dimensions, carrying sails and oars._

[Footnote 263: See Monthly Magazine, March, 1817, page 125.]

[Footnote 264: See Jackson's enlarged Account of Marocco, &c.
page 309.]

[Footnote 265: For full particulars, see New Supp. to Ency.
Brit. article "Africa."]

[Footnote 266: This Bernou, or according to the Arabic
orthography, _Ber Noh_, is asserted by the Arabs to be the
birth-place of the Patriarch Noah.]

Mr. Barnes states, that the Niger discharges itself into a large
lake; that he has heard from the Black traders that there are white
450 inhabitants upon the borders of this lake; and has been told, by
people who have seen them, that they dress in the style of Barbary
Moors, and wear turbans, but do not speak Arabic. See Report of
Committee of Council.[267]

[Footnote 267: See Jackson's enlarged Account of Marocco, &c.
p, 309.]

Park, in his second journey, was informed, that "one month's travel
south of Baedo, through the kingdom of Grotto, will bring the
traveller to the country of the Christians, who have their houses
on the banks of the _Ba Seafeena_[268], which they describe as
incomparably larger than the lake Dehebby (Dibbie)."--This is
another corroboration of the accuracy of my account of the interior
of Africa; but before I dismiss this subject, I should observe,
that from the general ignorance of the African Arabic, an important
circumstance respecting this _Ba Seafeena_, is not yet (it appears)
discovered. It is this:--the words _Ba Seafeena_, or, according to
the correct Arabic orthography, _Bahar Sefeena_, literally
translated into English, signifies the Sea of Ships, and is
evidently only another name for the Sea of Sudan, declaring it to
be a sea wherein ships are found!

[Footnote 268: See New Supp. to Ency. Brit. article "Africa."]

Here then are two topographical facts first asserted by me, among
the moderns, to exist in the heart of Africa, and since confirmed
by Ali Bey, Park, and Dr. Sietzen, or, as the enlightened editor of
the Supplement to the New Encyclopedia Britt. observes,

451 "We have thus three independent testimonies[269] from opposite
quarters, meeting exactly in the same point; nor does there, as far
as we know, exist any evidence _at all respectable_ to the
contrary."

[Footnote 269: The testimonies here alluded to are Hornman,
Park, and Jackson.]

It now remains for me to declare (that as opinions have been
industriously propagated tending to discredit my account of
Marocco, and the interior of Africa,) that nothing has been set
down therein, until I had previously investigated the
qualifications of the narrators, their means of knowledge, and
whether the respective vocations of the several narrators made it
their interest to disguise or misrepresent the truth of their
communications; and, after ascertaining these important points, I
have generally had recourse to other testimonies, and have seldom
recorded any thing until confirmed by three or four _concurrent_
evidences: on this _pyramidical basis_ is founded the intelligence
in my account of Marocco, and of the interior of Africa, annexed to
that account.

This assertion is to be understood in respect to intelligence that
I could not ascertain by ocular demonstration.

Finally, my description of the black heartheaded serpent, called
452 Bouska[270], has been doubted; but a late traveller[271] has
confirmed the accuracy of my account; even of this extraordinary
animal.--In Riley's Narrative of his Shipwreck on the
453 Coast of Sahara is given an account of an exhibition by two
_Isawie_[272], who do not appear to have been adepts in the art of
454 fascinating these serpents; for I have frequently seen them manage
455 and charm the _Bouska_ much more adroitly than those who exhibited
at Rabat before Riley, although its bite is more deadly, and its
strength considerably greater, than that of the _El Effah!_

[Footnote 270: See Jackson's enlarged Account of Marocco, &c.
p. 109.]

[Footnote 271: "I paid two dollars for a station, and I looked
into the room without interruption. It was about twenty feet
long, and fifteen broad, paved with tiles and plastered within.
The windows had also been secured by an additional grating made
of wire, in such a manner as to render it impossible for the
serpents to escape from the room: it had but one door, and that
had a hole cut through it six or eight inches square: this hole
was also secured by a grating. In the room stood two men, who
appeared to be Arabs, with long bushy hair and beards; and I
was told they were a particular race of men, that could charm
serpents.

"A wooden box, about four feet long and two wide, was placed
near the door, with a string fastened to a slide at one end of
it; this string went through a hole in the door. The two
serpent-eaters were dressed in haiks only, and those very small
ones. After they had gone through their religious ceremonies
most devoutly, they appeared to take an eternal farewell of
each other: this done, one of them retired from the room, and
shut the door tight after him. The Arab within seemed to be in
dreadful distress. I could observe his heart throb, and his
bosom heave most violently: and he cried out very loudly,
"_Allah houakiber_", three times; which is, as I understood it,
_God have mercy on me_.[273]

"The Arab was at the farthest end of the room: at that instant
the cage was opened, and a serpent crept out slowly; he was:
about four feet long, and eight inches in circumference; his
colours were the most beautiful in nature, being bright, and
variegated with a deep yellow, a purple, a cream colour, black
and brown, spotted, &c. As soon as he saw the Arab in the room,
his eyes, which were small and green, kindled as with fire; he
erected himself in a second, his head two feet high; and
darting on the defenseless Arab, seized him between the folds
of his haik, just above his right hipbone, hissing most
horribly; the Arab gave a horrid shriek, when another serpent
came out of the cage. This last was black, very shining, and
appeared to be seven or eight feet long, but not more than two
inches in diameter: as soon as he had cleared the cage, he cast
his _red fiery eyes_ on his intended victim, thrust out his
forked tongue, _threw himself into a coil, erected his head,
which was in the centre of the coil_, three feet from the
floor, and flattening out the skin above his head and eyes, in
the form, and nearly of the size of a human heart, and
springing like lightning on the Arab, struck its fangs into his
neck near the jugular vein, while his tail and body flew round
his neck and arms in two or three folds. The Arab set up the
most hideous and piteous yelling, foamed and frothed at the
mouth, grasping the folds of the serpent, which were round his
arms with his right hand, and seemed to be in the greatest
agony, striving to tear the reptile from around his neck, while
with his left he seized hold of it near its head, but could not
break its hold: by this time the other had turned itself around
his legs, and kept biting all around the other parts of his
body, making apparently deep incisions: the blood, issuing from
every wound (both in his neck and body,) streamed all over his
haik and skin. My blood was chilled in my veins with horror at
this sight, and it was with difficulty my legs would support my
frame.

"Notwithstanding the Arab's greatest exertions to tear away the
serpents with his hands, they turned themselves still tighter,
stopped his breath, and he fell to the floor, where he
continued for a moment, as if in the most inconceivable agony,
rolling over, and covering every part of his body with his own
blood and froth, until he ceased to move, and appeared to have
expired. In his last struggle, he had wounded the black serpent
with his teeth, as it was striving, as it were, to force its
head into his mouth, which wound Footnote: seemed to increase
its rage. At this instant I heard the shrill sound of a
whistle, and looking towards the door saw the other Arab
applying a call to his mouth: the serpents listened to the
music, their fury seemed to forsake them by degrees, they
disengaged themselves leisurely from the apparently lifeless
carcase, and creeping towards the cage, they soon entered it,
and were immediately fastened in.

"The door of the apartment was now opened, and he without ran
to assist his companion: he had a phial of blackish liquor in
one hand, and an iron chissel in the other: finding the teeth
of his companion set, he thrust in the chissel, forced them
open, and then poured a little of the liquor into his mouth;
and holding the lips together, applied his mouth to the dead
man's nose, and filled his lungs with air: he next anointed his
numerous wounds with a little of the same liquid, and yet no
sign of life, appeared. I thought he was dead in earnest; his
neck and veins were exceedingly swollen; when his comrade
taking up the lifeless trunk in his arms, brought it out into
the open air, and continued the operation of blowing for
several minutes before a sign of life appeared; at length he
gasped, and after a time recovered so far as to be able to
speak. The swellings in his neck, body, and legs gradually
subsided, as they continued washing the wounds with clear cold
water and a sponge, and applying the black liquor occasionally;
a clean haik was wrapped about him, but his strength seemed so
far exhausted that he could not support himself standing, so
his comrade laid him on the ground by a wall, where he sunk
into a sleep. This exhibition lasted for about a quarter of an
hour from the time the serpents were let loose until they were
called off, and it was more than an hour from that time before
he could speak. I thought I could discover that the poisonous
fangs had been pulled out of these formidable serpents' jaws,
and mentioned that circumstance to the showman, who said, that
they had indeed been extracted; and when I wished to know how
swellings on his neck and other parts could be assumed, he
assured me, that though their deadly fangs were out, yet that
the poisonous quality of their breath and spittle would cause
the death of those they attack; that after a bite from either
of these serpents, no man could exist longer than fifteen
minutes: and that there was no remedy for any but those _who
were endowed by the Almighty with power to charm, and to manage
them_; and that he and his associates were of that favoured
number! The Moors and Arabs call the thick and beautiful
serpent _El Effah_, and the long black and heartheaded one _El
Bouskah_.

"I afterwards saw engravings of these two serpents in
_Jackson's Marocco_; which are very correct resemblances. They
are said to be very numerous on and about the south foot of the
Atlas mountains and border of the Desert, where these were
caught when young, and where they often attack both men and
beasts."--Vide _Riley's Shipwreck and Captivity in the Great
Desert_, p. 550.]

[Footnote 272: Disciples of Seedy ben Isa, whose sanctuary is
at Fas, and who possess the art of fascinating serpents.]

[Footnote 273: N.B. This is a misinterpretation of the Arabic
words here used, which, literally translated, signify, _God
alone, is great!_--J.G.J.]

_Animadversions on the Orthography of African Names_.

(TO THE EDITOR OF THE MONTHLY MAGAZINE, INSERTED MAY, 1818.)

Sir,

Bennet's-hill, Feb. 1818.

I should be much surprised to find that Jackson's account of what
he has heard is doubted, if I did not remember that Bruce's account
456 of what he had seen was disbelieved. Nothing human can appear to me
more deserving of implicit credit than the intelligence the former
of these writers gives respecting Timbuctoo. He has not seen it, it
is true. I have not seen Lisbon; but, if I had, and were to sit
down to write an account of it, some things would be necessary to
be described, with regard to which I should feel a degree of
uncertainty; and, having given an account of Lisbon, if I were to
visit it again, I should find others on which I had been mistaken.
But let me arrange in my own mind the information I want respecting
Lisbon; let me make enquiries of twenty intelligent persons who
have resided there; let me carefully compare their different
accounts, and who shall doubt the accuracy of the result?

Mr. Jackson has had an opportunity of acquiring information
respecting Timbuctoo that no other European ever had, by having the
direction of commerce in a city frequented by Timbuctan merchants;
a city, the port of which is called, in Arabic, _Bab Sudan_, the
Gate of Sudan. Mr. Jackson was qualified to make use of this
advantage to an extent that no other European ever was, by a
practical, and even critical knowledge of the general language of
the country,--the African Arabic. To these Mr. Jackson added an
ardent spirit of research, an industry which neglected no
opportunity, a caution to compare, a judgment to discriminate, and
457 a firmness to decide. Who, that weighs these things, can doubt the
accuracy of his intelligence respecting Sudan? I even regard his
orthography as the standard of correctness, and am surprised that
any person should continue to write Timbuctoo instead of Timbuctoo,
or Fez instead of Fas.

I am inclined to believe that Adams has been at Timbuctoo, though I
do not consider it as proved; but, supposing that he has, and that
I wished to become acquainted with that city, would I apply for
information to an illiterate slave, who was confined within narrow
precincts? Or would I rely upon the united testimony of twenty
persons of education, who had each a wider field of observation?

I have read "Jackson's Account of Marocco" twice through, at
different periods, with great attention; and I do most heartily
join in the confidence expressed by the enlightened and judicious
author, that, in proportion as the interior of Africa shall be more
known, the truth of his account of it will be made evident.

CATHERINE HUTTON.

_Hints for the Civilisation of Barbary, and Diffusion of Commerce_.

March 16, 1818.

Algiers, and the territory belonging to it, is governed by despotic
Turks, the refuse of the Ottoman troops; who maintain their power
458 over the Moors and Arabs of the plains (who are the cultivators of
the country), and over the Berebbers (who are the aborigines of the
country), or inhabitants of the mountains of Atlas, which terminate
this sovereignty on the south, and divide Algiers from
Bled-al-Jereed. The first principle of this barbarous and
sanguinary government, according io an African adage, is to
"_Maintain the arm of power, by making streams qf blood flow,
without intermission, around the throne!_" This country,--the
government of which reflects disgrace on Christendom, which has
been, during many ages the scourge of Christian mariners, and of
all who navigate the Mediterranean Sea,--has often been conquered.
The Romans reduced Numidia and Mauritania into Roman provinces.
This beautiful garden of the world was afterwards conquered by the
Vandals; then by the Greeks, during the reign of Justinian, under
Belisarius; and, finally, three times by the Arabs, viz. in the
647th year of Christ, by Abdallah and Zobeer; in the year 667, by
Ak'bah for the Kalif Moawiah; and in the year 692, by Hassan, the
governor of Egypt, for the Kalif Abd Elmelik. Not one of the armies
of these warriors ever exceeded 50,000 men.

After these general conquests, the partial conquests of the
Portuguese and Spaniards, about the end of the fifteenth and
beginning of the sixteenth century, were effected by a mere handful
of men; and, in 1509, the latter rendered the kingdom of Algiers
tributary to them: but, afterwards, they lost it by the ferocity of
459 their chiefs, and by the fanaticism of their soldiers and priests;
and, finally, by their perfidy and intolerance, they made
themselves enemies to the various (_Kabyles_) tribes of Mauritania,
and thereby lost their conquest.

The repeated insults, offered by these ruffians to civilised
Europe, cannot be efficiently punished by a bombardment; a measure
which punishes many innocent subjects for the insults offered by
their government. No one acquainted with the character of the
natives of Barbary will maintain, that the destruction of a few
thousands of the peaceable inhabitants, or the burning of many
houses, is a national calamity in the eyes of a Muselman chief; who
would himself commit the same ravage and destruction that was so
gallantly effected by the British fleet, under Lord Exmouth, for
half the money it cost to accomplish it.

When Lord St. Vincent was off Cadiz with the British fleet, and
could not obtain the object which he sought of the Emperor of
Marocco; his Lordship, after refusing to comply with the Emperor's
request, communicated to his Lordship by the Emperor's envoy, or
agent, Rais Ben Embark, told the Rais to inform his Emperor, that,
if he did not change his conduct very soon, he would begin a war
with him, and such a war as he had neither seen nor read of before.
When the Rais reported this to the Emperor Soliman, he enquired
what kind of war an admiral could wage against him; some one of the
460 divan observed, that he would destroy the ports on the coast;
adding, that it would cost a certain large sum of money to effect
that destruction. Upon which the Emperor exclaimed, that, for half
that amount, he would himself destroy all these ports.--This affair
happened in September, 1798.

There is a prophecy in Barbary, that, from time immemorial, has
been generally credited by the inhabitants. It has been transmitted
to them by some fakeer, that the land of the Muselmen will be
wrested from them by the Christians; and there is an impression,
that the period when this event will take place is not far distant.
They also believe that this event will happen on a Friday (the
Muselman Sabbath), whilst they are occupied at their devotions at
the _Dohor_, service of prayer. Accordingly, at this period,--viz.
from twelve till half-past one o'clock,--the gates of all the
town's on the coast are shut and bolted every Friday. This attack,
forsooth, is to happen whilst they are occupied at prayer, because
they are so infatuated with an opinion of their own valour, that
they will not believe that Christians would presume to attack them
openly, when armed and prepared for the combat. It should seem that
these people begin now seriously to anticipate the near approach of
this predestined conquest, and have accordingly entered into a kind
of holy alliance, offensive and defensive: to which, it is said,
the Emperor of Marocco, and the Deys of Tunis and Tripoli, have
acceded; and that this holy alliance is crowned by the Ottoman
Emperor.
461
It is more than probable, that the Dey of Algiers, goaded by the
blow inflicted by Lord Exmouth,--which has increased his hatred to
Christians, and has inflamed his desire of revenge,--will not fail
to seek every opportunity (according to the known principles of
Muhamedanism), of retaliating and insulting the Europeans, whenever
a favourable opportunity may offer, even at the risk of another
bombardment. This opinion has been confirmed by his late conduct;
and by the activity that has been manifested in the fortifications,
in increasing their military force, in building and equipping new
vessels, to infest the Mediterranean with their abominable
piracies; all which proceedings demonstrate the hostile intentions
of the Dey beyond all doubt.

* * * * *

_Plan for the Conquest of Algiers._

The inhabitants of the plains are bigoted to the Muhamedan tenets;
but they would readily exchange the iron rod that rules them for a
more mild and beneficial form of government. A well-disciplined
European army of 50,000 men, would assuredly effect their complete
conquest without much difficulty: such an army, directed by a
Wellington, would perform wonders, and astound the Africans. After
the conquest, an energetic, decisive, but beneficent form of
government, would be necessary, to retain the country, and to
462 conquer and annihilate the repugnancy which these people entertain
to our religious tenets. A system of rule formed on the principles
of the English constitution,--directed by good policy, benevolence,
and religious toleration,--would not fail to reconcile these
hostile tribes, and attach them to rational government. The
Berebbers would readily assimilate to such a government; and,
although by nature a treacherous race, they would rejoice to see
the country in possession of a government which, they would
perceive, strove to promote the welfare and prosperity of the
mountaineers, as well as the inhabitants of the plains; and their
own interest would thus gradually subdue the antipathy resulting
from religious prejudices.

A general knowledge of the African Arabic would be essentially
necessary; and I think a school might be established in England, on
the Madras system, for initiating youths (going out to Africa) in
the rudiments of that language. This would be attended with most
important advantages; and might be accomplished in a very short
time. The conquest of Algiers being thus effected, that of the
neighbouring states would follow, without difficulty, by a
disciplined army of European troops; keeping the principle ever in
view, of conciliating the natives, without swerving from an
energetic and decisive mode of government.

The advantages that would necessarily result from a successful
attack upon Africa, would be--
463
1. An incalculable demand for spices, and East India manufactures
of silk and cotton.

2. A similar demand for coffees, and for sugars, manufactured and
unmanufactured; as well as for other articles of West India
produce.

3. An incalculable demand for all our various articles of
manufacture.

On the other hand, we should obtain from this fine country,--

1. An immense supply of the finest wheat, and other grain, that the
world produces.

2. We should be able to open a direct communication with the
interior regions of Africa,--which have baffled the enterprise of
ancient and modern Europe: the fertile and populous districts which
lie contiguous to the Nile of Sudan, throughout the whole of the
interior of Africa, would become, in a few years, as closely
connected to us, by a mutual exchange of benefits, as our own
colonies; and such a stimulus would be imparted to British
enterprise and industry, as would secure to us such stores of gold
as would equal the riches of Solomon, and immortalize the prince
who should cherish this great commerce to its maturity.

VASCO DE GAMA.
464

(TO THE EDITOR OF THE EUROPEAN MAGAZINE.)

Liverpool,
Dec. 17. 1818.
Sir,

In "_The Portfolio_," a Monthly Miscellany for May, 1817, published
at Philadelphia, there is rather an interesting review of Ali Bey's
travels. The writer says, "Ali Bey has rectified various errors in
the common maps of Marocco. The river Luccos, for instance, flows
to the South, and not to the North of Alcasser; and the city of
Fas, according to Ali Bey, is situated in 34° 6' north latitude,
and not as laid down in the Maps of Arrowsmith, Rennell, Delille,
Golberri, &c."--If, however, he had given himself the trouble to
consult the map of West Barbary, in Jackson's Account of Marocco,
&c. &c. (which is by far the most accurate extant, and whose
geographical orthography has been adopted in all the best modern
English maps,) he would have seen that Fas is in 34° north
latitude; that the river Elkos, or Luccos, is described in that
map, (which was published several years before Ali Bey's travels,)
as running south of Alcasser.

In describing the funeral cry at Marocco, the editor, or reviewer,
impresses his reader with an idea that this funeral cry is that of
the Moors, whereas it is no such thing: it is the practice of the
Jews only in West Barbary to cry "Ah! Ah!" and lacerate their faces
465 with their finger nails; after which they wash, drink brandy, and
enjoy themselves.

The large sea in the interior of Africa, described by Ali Bey to be
without any communication with the Ocean, had been described
(_years before Ali Bey's travels were published_) by Jackson, in
his Account of Marocco, &c. &c. third edition, p. 309, and called
first by him _Bahar Sudan_, and represented as a sea having decked
vessels on it. Mr. Park, in his Second Journey, calls this sea the
Bahar Seafina, without, however, informing the public, or knowing,
that the Bahar Sefeena is an Arabic expression implying a sea of
ships, or a sea where ships are found; and the situation he places
it in coincides exactly with Jackson's prior description. There are
thus three concurrent testimonies of the situation of the Bahar
Sudan, or Sea of Sudan, _first noticed by Jackson_, and since
confirmed by Ali Bey and Park.[274]

EL HAGE HAMED EL WANGARY.

[Footnote 274: There is an able discussion of this subject in
the New Supplement to the Encyclopedia Britannica, article
"Africa," p. 104, and 105.]

_On the Negroes_.

(TO THE EDITOR OF THE EUROPEAN MAGAZINE.)

Sir,

Eton, 5th Dec. 1818.

Many maintain that the Negroes are a docile and tractable race, and
more easily to be governed than Europeans; others maintain, that
466 they are liars, thieves, vindictive, and a demoralised race. That
they are vindictive, no one who is acquainted with their character
will deny; but are not most barbarous and uncivilised nations the
same? What are the Muhamedans and Pagans? The latter, who form
nearly two-thirds of the population of the earth, are generally of
the same character, and the vindictive character of the former is
notorious.

Propagate among the Negroes the benign principles of the Christian
doctrine, and they will gradually (as those principles are
inculcated) become good subjects, and useful members of society. It
is that religion which will bring forth their latent and social
virtues--a religion, the moral principles of which are the
admiration even of its enemies, the Muhamedans themselves: a
religion which exalts the human character above the brutes, and
brings forth its beauties as the brilliancy of the diamond is
brought forth by the hand of the polisher.

Destroy their witchcraft and idolatry, and on their ruins inculcate
the divine doctrines of Christ, and we shall soon see that they
will possess sentiments that exalt the human character, and that
nothing has contributed more to their mental degradation than the
cruel treatment of their masters in the European colonies of the
West.

VASCO DE GAMA.
467

_Cursory Observations on Lieutenant-Colonel Fitzclarence's Journal
of a Route across India, through Egypt, to England_.

Eton, 7th May, 1819.

It is remarkable, that in proportion as our mass of information
respecting the interior of Africa increases, the truth of Mr. James
Grey Jackson's account of that country, in the appendix to his
account of Marocco, &c. receives additional confirmation. Some
literary sceptics have been so far prejudiced against this author's
report as to doubt its veracity altogether; but let us see how far
the interesting report of Lieut.-Colonel Fitzclarence, in his
journal of a route across India, through Egypt, to England, lately
published, corroborates Mr. Jackson's description of Timbuctoo,
published so long since as 1809.

It is to be lamented, that Jackson's African orthography is not
altogether adopted: with the superior and practical knowledge which
he evidently possesses of the African Arabic language, it cannot, I
presume, be doubted by the learned and impartial, that his
orthography is correct; and, judging from what has already
transpired, I do not hesitate to predict, that his African
orthography, from an evidence of its accuracy, will, in a few
years, be adopted throughout; although the learned world have been
ten years in correcting _Tombuctoo_ into _Timbuctoo_; the latter
468 being Mr. Jackson's orthography in his account of Marocco,
Timbuctoo, &c. published in 1809.

The late account of Mr. Bowdich's mission to Ashantee has been the
first to corroborate this author in this respect; and
Lieut.-Colonel Fitzclarence has confirmed it with this additional
observation, in his Journal of a Route, &c. page 493: "Upon
enquiring about _Timbuctoo_ the Hage laughed at our pronunciation,
the name of the city being _Timbuctoo_." The next improvement in
African geographical orthography, will probably be the conversion
of Fez into _Fas_ (for there is absolutely no more reason for
calling it Fez than there has been for calling Timbuctoo,
Timbuctoo), this word being spelled in Arabic with the letters _Fa,
Alif_, and _Sin_, which cannot be converted into any other
orthography but _Fas_; the same argument would hold with various
other words spelled correctly by this author, an accurate
elucidation of which might encroach too much upon your valuable
pages. I shall therefore briefly state, that in page 480 of Colonel
Fitzclarence's Journal, the name of the Moorish gentleman to whose
care the sons of the Emperor of Marocco, Muley Soliman, were
confided, is stated to be El Hadge Talib ben Jelow: this is
incorrect orthography, there is no such name in the Arabic language
as _Jelow_, it is a barbarism; ben Jelow signifies ben Jelule, and
the proper name is _El Hage Taleb ben Jelule_.

469 Behur Soldan is evidently another barbarism or corruption of the
Arabic words _Bahar Sudan: vide_ Jackson's Account of Marocco,
Timbuctoo, &c. page 309, published by Cadell and Davies.

It has been observed by an intelligent French writer, that "_Le
pluspart des hommes mesurant leur foi par leur connoissance acquise
croyent à fort peu de choses_." In confirmation of this opinion,
many intelligent men, at the time of the publication of Jackson's
Account of Marocco, Timbuctoo, &c. doubted the existence of the
_Heirie_, as described by him; but in proportion as our knowledge
of Africa improves, we see that the truth of these wonders is
confirmed: and Colonel Fitzclarence mentions one that travelled
four days in one; but we should not be surprised to hear, before
this century shall terminate, that an Englishman had travelled from
Fas to Timbuctoo on a Heirie, accompanied by an accredited agent of
the Emperor of Marocco, in ten or fifteen days!

It appears by this ingenious traveller's Journal of a Route, &c.
page 493, that all religions are tolerated at Timbuctoo. This is a
confirmation of what is reported by Jackson, in the Appendix
annexed to his Account of Marocco, &c. page 300.

The fish in the river of Timbuctoo, the Neel El Abeed or Neel of
Sudan, is described by Colonel Fitzclarence as resembling salmon:
470 this is a corroboration of Jackson, who says, the _shebbel_ abound
in the Neel of Sudan, and the shebbel is the African salmon. See
appendix to Jackson's Account of Marocco, &c. page 306.

In page 494, Colonel Fitzclarence says, the Nile at Kabra is a
quarter of a mile wide; Jackson says it is as wide as the Thames at
London. See Appendix to Jackson's Marocco, &c. page 305.

In page 496 of the Colonel's narrative, an account is given of the
rate of travelling through the Desert; which, allowing for an
arbitrary difference, in the resting days, corroborates Jackson's
Account, page 286.

In page 497, El hage Taleb ben Jelule's report to the Colonel, of
an account of two white men, (undoubtedly Mungo Park and another,)
who were at Timbuctoo in 1806, is a remarkable confirmation of the
account brought by Mr. Jackson from Mogodor in January, 1807, and
reported by him to the Marquis of Hastings, to Sir Joseph Banks,
and to Sir Charles Morgan, which is inserted in the Morning Post
and other papers, about the middle of August, 1814.

I am, Sir,

Your most obedient servant,

VASCO DE GAMA.
471

_On the Arabic Language, as now spoken in Turkey in Europe, in
Asia, and in Africa_.

London, May 10, 1819.

In this enlightened age, when our intercourse is increasing with
nations remote from our own, and possessing different religions,
languages, laws, and customs; when the ambassadors of the Muhamedan
potentates of Europe, Asia, and Africa, are resident in our
metropolis, all understanding _the Arabic language_; when, with a
knowledge of this language, a person may travel and hold colloquial
intercourse with the inhabitants of Turkey, with the greater part
of Asia, and with Africa; and, lastly, when we consider the
valuable and immense stores of Arabian literature, of the best
periods which still remain unexplored, is it not remarkable under
all the exciting circumstances above enumerated, that in this
powerful and opulent country, there should not be found, with all
our boasted learning and eagerness of research, three or four
Englishmen capable of writing and conversing intelligibly in that
beautiful and useful language? The extent of this disgraceful
ignorance would be scarcely credible, were there not proofs beyond
doubt, that our principal seats of learning are as deficient in
472 this knowledge as the public in general[275], and that letters or
public documents written in that language, have been in vain sent
to them for translation. What I have long considered as chiefly
tending to diminish the desire of acquiring this language, is an
opinion dogmatically asserted, and diligently propagated, that the
Arabic of the East and West are so different from each other, as
almost to form distinct languages, and to be unintelligible to the
inhabitants of either of those regions respectively; but, having
always doubted the truth of this assertion, I have endeavoured,
from time to time, _during the last ten years_, to ascertain
whether the Arabic language spoken in Asia be the same with that
which is spoken in Africa, (westward to the shores of the Atlantic
ocean,) but without success, and even without the smallest
473 satisfactory elucidation, until the arrival in London last winter,
of the most _Reverend Doctor Giarve, Bishop of Jerusalem_, who has
given such incontestible proofs of his proficiency in the Arabic
language, that his opinion on this important point cannot but be
decisive; accordingly, on presenting to the reverend Doctor some
letters from the Emperor of Marocco to me, desiring that he would
oblige me with his opinion, whether the Arabic in those letters was
the same with that spoken in Syria, the Rev. Doctor replied in the
following perspicuous manner, which, I think, decides the question:
_"I can assure you, that the language and the idiom of the Arabic
in these letters from the Emperor of Marocco to you, is precisely
the same with that which is spoken in the East."_

[Footnote 275: See page 408. respecting a letter sent to our
late revered Sovereign, by the Emperor of Marocco. In
consequence of the inattention to that letter, the Emperor
determined never to write again to a Christian king in the
Arabic language; and, with regard to Great Britain, I believe
he has faithfully ever since kept his word! Some time before
this letter was written, I being then in Marocco, the Emperor's
minister asked me if the Emperor his master were to write an
Arabic letter to the _Sultan George Sultan El Ingleez_, (these
were his expressions,) whether there were persons capable of
translating it into English: I replied, that there were men at
the Universities capable of translating every learned language
in the known world; and accordingly the letter above alluded to
was written in Arabic, and addressed to His Majesty. This
letter was written by the Emperor himself, which I am competent
to declare, having letters from him in my possession, and being
acquainted with his hand-writing and style.]

It is, therefore, thus ascertained, that the Arabic language spoken
in the kingdom of Tafilelt, of Fas, of Marocco, and in Suse or
South Barbary, is precisely the same language with that which is
now spoken in Syria, and Palestine in Asia; countries distant from
each other nearly 3000 miles, and from information since obtained,
there appears to be no doubt that the Arabic language spoken by the
Arabs in Arabia, by the Moors and Arabs in India and Madagascar, by
the Moorish nations on the African shores of the Mediterranean, are
one and the same language with that spoken in Marocco, subject only
to certain provincial peculiarities, which by no means form
474 impediments to the general understanding of the language, no more,
or not so much so, as the provincial peculiarities of one county of
England differ from another!!

Unwilling to encroach too much on your valuable pages, I will
leave, for the subject of my next letter, the inconceivable
misconstructions and errors into which the ignorance of this
language has led European travellers in Africa, of which I shall
state some examples in a recent publication respecting Africa.

I am, Sir,

Your most obedient Servant,

JAMES G. JACKSON.

_Cursory Observations on the Geography of Africa, inserted in an
Account of a Mission to Ashantee, by T. Edward Bowdich, Esq.
showing the Errors that have been committed by European Travellers
on that Continent, from their Ignorance of the Arabic Language, the
learned and the general travelling Language of that interesting
part of the World_.

June 17, 1819.

The Niger, after leaving the lake Dibber, was invariably described
as dividing in two large streams.--_Vide_ "Bowdich's Account of a
Mission to Ashantee," p. 187.

The Lake Dibber is called in the proceedings of the African
Association Dibbie, but the proper appellation is _El Bahar Tibber,
_or_ El Bahar Dehebbie_. The Bahar Tibber signifies the sea of gold
475 dust; the _Bahar Dehebbie_ signifies the sea or water abounding in
gold. Jinnee, which is on or near the shore of this lake, (I call
it a lake because it is fresh water,) abounds in gold, and is
renowned throughout Africa for the ingenuity of its artificers in
that metal, insomuch that they acknowledge the superiority of
Europeans in all arts except that of gold work. There are some
specimens of Jinnee gold trinkets, very correctly delineated in the
recent interesting work of "Lieutenant-Colonel Fitzclarence's
Journal of a Route across India, through Egypt to England," p. 496.

Page 187, "Yahoodie, a place of great trade."

This place is reported to be inhabited by one of the lost tribes of
Israel, possibly an emigration from the tribe of Judah. Yahooda, in
African Arabic, signifies Judah. Yahoodee signifies Jew. It is not
impossible, that many of the lost tribes of Israel may be found
dispersed in the interior regions of Africa, when we shall become
better acquainted with that Continent; it is certain, that some of
the nations that possessed the country eastward of Palestine when
the Israelites were a favoured nation, have emigrated to Africa.

An emigration of the Amorites[276] are now in possession of the
declivity of the Atlas Mountains, westward of the sanctuary[277] of
Muley Driss, and in the neighbourhood of the ruins of Pharaoh; they
476 live in encampments, consisting of two, three, or four tents each:
they resemble the Arabs of the Desert in their predatory
excursions. I speak from practical knowledge, having twice
travelled through their country, and visited their encampments.

[Footnote 276: They are called _Ite-amor_, Amorite.]

[Footnote 277: _Vide_ Jackson's Account of Marocco, chap. viii.
enlarged edition.]

Page 189. "Mr. Beaufoy's Moor says, that below Ghinea is the sea
into which the river of Timbuctoo discharges itself."

This might have been understood to signify the Sea of Sudan, if the
Moor had not said below Ghinea, (by which is meant Genowa, or as we
call it Guinea,) which implies, that the _Neel El Abeed_ (Niger)
discharges itself in the sea that washes the coast of Guinea; this,
therefore, corroborates Seedi Hamed's, or rather Richard's
hypothesis.

Page 190. "This branch of the Niger passing Timbuctoo, is not
crossed until the third day going from Timbuctoo to Houssa."

This quotation from "Dapper's Description of Africa," is
corroborated by L'Hage Abdsalam, Shabeeni, whose narrative says,
"Shabeeni, after staying three years at Timbuctoo, departed for
Houssa, and crossing the small river close to the walls, reached
the Neel in three days, travelling through a fine, populous, and
cultivated country."

The confusion of rivers, made mere equivocal by every new
hypothesis, receives here additional ambiguity. If there were (as
Mr. Bowdich affirms) three distinct rivers near Timbuctoo; viz. the
477 Joliba, the Gambarro, and the Niger, (_i. e_. the _Neel El Abeed_)
how comes it that they have not been noticed by Leo Africanus, who
resided at Timbuctoo; by Edrissi, who is the most correct of the
Arabian geographers; or whence is it, that these rivers have not
been noticed by the many Moorish travelling merchants who have
resided at Timbuctoo, and whom I have repeatedly questioned
respecting this matter[278], or whence is it that Alkaid L'Hassen
Ramy, a renowned chief of the Emperor of Marocco's army, with whom
I was well acquainted, and who was a native of Houssa, knew of no
such variously inclined streams. This being premised, I am
certainly not disposed to relinquish the opinion I brought with me
from Africa in the year 1807, viz. that the _Neel El Abeed_ is the
only mighty river that runs through Africa from west to east; but I
admit that its adjuncts, as well as itself, have different names;
thus, in the manuscript of Mr. Park's death, a copy of which is
inserted in "Mr. Bowdich's Account of Ashantee," it is called Kude;
many hundred miles eastward it is called Kulla, from the country
478 through which it passes; but Kude and Kulla are different names,
and ought not to be confounded one with the other; neither ought
Quolla (_i. e._, the Negro pronunciation of Kulla) to be confounded
with Kude, the former being the Negro term for the same river, in
the same manner as Niger is the Roman name for the _Neel Elabeed_,
which is the Arabic name for the same river. There is a stream
which proceeds from the Sahara, the water of which is _brackish_;
this stream hardly can be called a river, except in the rainy
season. It passes in a south-westerly direction near Timbuctoo, but
does not join the _Neel Elabeed_. I could mention several
intelligent and credible authorities, the report of respectable
merchants, who have resided, and, who have had establishments at
Timbuctoo, in confirmation of this fact; but as the authorities
which I should adduce would be unknown, even by name, to men of
science in Europe, I would refer the reader to the interesting
narrative of an intelligent Moorish merchant, who resided three
years at Timbuctoo, and who was known to the committee of the
African Association; this travelling merchant's name is L'Hage
Abdsalam Shabeeny, and his narrative, a manuscript of which (with
critical and explanatory notes by myself) I have in my possession,
has the following observation:[279]--"Close to the town of
Timbuctoo, on the south, is a small rivulet in which the
479 inhabitants wash their clothes, and which is about two feet deep;
it runs into the great forest on the east, and does not communicate
with the Nile, but is lost in the sands west of the town: its water
is brackish; that of the Nile is good and pleasant."

[Footnote 278: The Arabs who conduct the _cafelahs_ or caravans
across the Sahara, are often seen at Agadeer or Santa Cruz, and
sometimes even at Mogodor; and if there was a river penetrating
to the north through the Sahara, would it not have been noticed
by them? Is it possible that such a prominent feature of
African geography, as a river of sweet water passing through a
desert, could fail of being noticed by these people, who are,
in their passage through the Desert, continually in search of
water?]

[Footnote 279: See page 8.]

Page 199. Mr. Murray recently observes, "Joliba seems readily
convertible into Joli-ba, the latter syllable being merely an
adjunct, signifying river; this I was also given to understand."

This is an etymological error. The Joliba is not a compound word,
if it were it would be Bahar Joli, not Bajoli, or Joliba; thus do
learned men, through a rage for criticism, and for want of a due
knowledge of African languages, render confused, by fancied
etymologies, that which is sufficiently clear and perspicuous.

Page 191. "The river of Darkulla mentioned by Mr. Brown."

This is evidently an error: there is probably no such place or
country as Darkulla. There is, however, an alluvial country
denominated _Bahar Kulla_, (for which see the map of Africa in the
Supplement of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, p. 88. lat. N. 8°,
long. E. 20°). I apprehend this Darkulla, when the nations of
Europe shall be better acquainted with Africa and its languages,
will be discovered to be a corruption of _Bahar Kulla_, or an
unintelligible and ungrammatical term: _Dëaar Kulla_ is
grammatical, and implies a country covered with houses! _Dar Kulla_
480 is an ungrammatical and an incorrect term, which being literally
translated into English, signifies _many house_. This being
premised, we may reasonably suppose, that _Bahar Kulla_ is the
proper term which, as I have always understood, forms the junction
of the Nile of the west with the Nile of the east, and hence
forming a continuity[280] of waters from Timbuctoo to Cairo.

[Footnote 280: See my letter in the Monthly Magazine for March,
1817, page 128.]

191. In this geographical dissertation the word Niger is still
used, which is a name altogether unknown in Africa, and calculated
to contuse the geographical enquirer. As this word is
unintelligible to the natives of Africa, whether they be Arabs,
Moors, Berebbers, Shelluhs, or Negroes, ought it not to be expunged
from the maps?

P. 192. In the note in this page, "Jackson's Report of the source
of the _Neel el Abeed_, and the Source of the Senegal," is
confirmed by the Jinnee Moor.--See Jackson's Appendix to his
Account of Marocco, enlarged edition, p. 311.

"It is said, that thirty days from Timbuctoo they eat their
prisoners!" Does not this allude to Banbugr[281], and has not this
491 word been corrupted by Europeans into Bambarra. See Mr. Bowdich's
MS. No. 3, p. 486; Banbugr, who eat the flesh of men. Jackson's
translation.

[Footnote 281: The Gr in Banbugr, is the Arabic letter, grain.
Richardson, in his Arabic Grammar, renders this letter gh;
which demonstrates, that his knowledge of the Arabic was only
scholastic, not practical. It has no resemblance or affinity to
gh, and would be unintelligible if so pronounced to an Arab.]