Chapter LIII (15)

Having passed a rather anxious night, with my pistols in my girdle, and ready for any emergency, I was glad when, in the morning, I saw my boy return accompanied by Mohammed el ʿAísh. But I learned that the people of the town were in a state of great excitement, and that there was no doubt but an attack would be made upon my house the next morning. Thus much I made out myself; but, having no idea of the imminence of the danger, in the course of the day I sent away my only servant with my two horses, for the purpose of being watered. But my Tawáti friend seemed to be better informed, and taking his post on the rising ground of the sandy downs, on the slope of which we were encamped, kept an anxious look out towards the town. About dhohor, or two o’clock in the afternoon, he gave notice of the approach of horsemen in the distance, and while I went into my tent to look after my effects, Mohammed el Khalíl rushed in suddenly, crying out to me to arm myself. Upon this I seized all the arms I had, consisting of a double-barrelled gun, three pistols, and a sword; and I had scarcely come out when I met the Sheikh himself with the small six-barrelled pistol which I had given him in his hand. Handing one of my large pistols to Mohammed ben Mukhtár, a young man of considerable energy, and one of the chief followers of the Sheikh, I knelt down and pointed my gun at the foremost of the horsemen who, to the number of thirteen, were approaching. Having been brought to a stand by our threatening to fire if they came nearer, their officer stepped forward crying out that he had a letter to deliver to the Sheikh; but the latter forbade him to come near, saying that he would only receive the letter in the town, and not in the desert. The horsemen, finding that I was ready to shoot down the first two or three who should approach me, consulted with each other and then slowly fell back, relieving us from our anxious situation. But, though reassured of my own safety, I had my fears as to my servant and my two horses, and was greatly delighted when I saw them safely return from the water. However, our position soon became more secure in consequence of the arrival of Sídi Álawáte, accompanied by a troop of armed men, amongst whom there were some musketeers. It now remained to be decided what course we should pursue, and there was great indecision, Álawáte wanting to remain himself with me at the tents, while the Sheikh returned to the town.

But besides my dislike to stay any longer at the encampment, I had too little confidence in the younger brother of the Sheikh to trust my life in his hands, and I was therefore extremely delighted to find that El Bakáy himself, and Mohammed el ʿAísh, thought it best for me to return into the town. At the moment when we mounted our horses, a troop of Kél- hekíkan, although not always desirable companions, mounted on mehára, became visible in the distance, so that in their company we re-entered Timbúktu, not only with full security, but with great _éclat_, and without a single person daring to oppose our entrance; though Hammádi, the Sheikh’s rival, was just about to collect his followers in order to come himself and fight us at the tents. Frustrated in this plan, he came to my protector in his “msíd,” or place of prayer in front of his house, and had a serious conversation with him, while the followers of the latter armed themselves in order to anticipate any treachery or evil design, of which they were greatly afraid. But the interview passed off quietly, and, keeping strict watch on the terrace of our house, we passed the ensuing night without further disturbance.

This happened on the 1st of December; and the following morning, in conformity with the Sheikh’s protest, that he would receive the emír of Hamda-Alláhi’s letter only in Timbúktu, the messenger arrived; but the latter being a man of ignoble birth called Mohammed ben Sʿaíd, the character of the messenger irritated my host almost more even than the tenor of the letter, which ordered him to give me and my property up into the hands of his (the emír’s) people. After having given vent to his anger, he sent for me, and handed me the letter, together with another which had been addressed to the emír Kaúri, and the whole community of the town, Whites as well as Blacks (el bedhán ú e’ sudán), threatening them with condign punishment, if they should not capture me, or watch me in such a manner that I could not escape.

The serious character which affairs had assumed, and the entire revolution which my own personal business caused in the daily life of the community, were naturally very distressing to me, and nothing could be more against my wish than to irritate the fanatical and not powerless ruler of Hamda-Alláhi. It had been my most anxious desire from the beginning, to obtain the goodwill of this chief by sending him a present, but my friends here had frustrated my design; and even if in the beginning it had been possible, a supposition which is more than doubtful, considering the whole character of the Fúlbe of Hamda-Alláhi, it was now too late, as Séko Áhmedu had become my inveterate enemy, and I could only cling with the greater tenacity to the only trustworthy protector whom I had here, the Sheikh El Bakáy. In acknowledgment therefore of his straightforward conduct, I sent him, as soon as I had again taken quiet possession of my quarters, some presents to distribute among the Tawárek, besides giving the head man of the latter a small extra gift, and some powder and Háusa cloth to distribute among our friends. However, my situation remained very precarious. As if a serious combat was about to ensue, all the inhabitants tried their firearms, and there was a great deal of firing in the whole town, while the Morocco merchants, with ʿAbd e’ Salám at their head, endeavoured to lessen the Sheikh’s regard for me, by informing him that not even in their country (Morocco) were the Christians treated with so much regard, not only their luggage but even their dress being there searched on entering the country. But the Sheikh was not to be talked over in this manner, and adhered to me without wavering for a moment. He then sat down and wrote a spirited and circumstantial letter to Séko Áhmedu, wherein he reproached him with attempting to take out of his hands by force a man better versed in subjects of religion than he, the emír himself, who had come from a far distant country to pay him his respects, and who was his guest.

The following day, while I was in the company of the Sheikh, the emír Kaúri and the kádhi San-shírfu, together with several other principal personages, called upon him, when I paid my compliments to them all, and found that the latter especially was a very respectable man. My friend had provided for any emergency, having sent to the Tademékket, requesting them urgently to come to his assistance; and, in the evening of the 6th of December, Áwáb, the chief of the Tin-ger-égedesh, arrived with fifty horse, and was lodged by El Bakáy in the neighbourhood of our quarters.

The next morning the Sheikh sent for me to pay my compliments to this chief. I found him a very stately person of a proud commanding bearing, clad in a jellába tobe, striped red and white, and ornamented with green silk, his head adorned with a high red cap, an article of dress which is very rarely seen here, either among the Tawárek or even the Arabs. Having saluted him, I explained to him the reason of my coming, and for what purpose I sought imána; and when he raised an objection on account of my creed, because I did not acknowledge Mohammed as a prophet, I succeeded in warding off his attack, by telling him that they themselves did not acknowledge Mohammed as the only prophet, but likewise acknowledged Músa, ʿAísa, and many others; and that, in reality, they seemed to acknowledge in a certain degree the superiority of ʿAísa, by supposing that he was to return at the end of the world; and that thus, while we had a different prophet, but adored and worshipped one and the same God, and, leaving out of the question a few divergencies in point of diet and morals, followed the same religious principles as they themselves did, it seemed to me that we were nearer to each other than he thought, and might well be friends, offering to each other those advantages which each of us commanded.

We then came to speak about their history. I told him that I had visited their old dwelling-places in Aír, Tíggeda, and Tádmekka; but he was totally unaware of the fanciful derivation which the Arab authors have given to the latter name, viz. “likeness of Mekka,”[140] which probably never belonged to one town in particular, but has always been the name of a tribe. He felt, however, very much flattered by this piece of information, and seemed extremely delighted, when I told him how old the Islám was in his tribe. My little knowledge of these historical and religious matters was of invaluable service to me, and particularly in this instance, for obtaining the esteem of the natives and for overcoming their prejudices; for while this chief himself scarcely understood a single word of Arabic, so that I could only speak with him in very broken Temáshight or Tárkíye, his brother, El Khattáf, was well versed in that language, and spoke it fluently.

Having left the people to converse among themselves, I returned to the Sheikh in the afternoon, taking with me a present for Áwáb, consisting of a chequered tobe (such as I have described on a former occasion[141], and which are great favourites with these people), two túrkedí, and two black tesílgemíst, or shawls, besides another shawl and a handkerchief for his messenger, or mʿallem, who is the confidential factotum of every Tárki chief. He was as thankful as these barbarians can be, but wished to see something marvellous, as characteristic of the industry of our country; but I begged him to have patience, till, on some future occasion, some other person belonging to our nation should come to pay him a visit.

While I was staying there, a Púllo chief arrived from Gúndam with two companions, and reproached the Sheikh in my presence for having shown so much regard for an unbeliever, whose effects at least ought to have been delivered up to the chief of Hamda-Alláhi: but I imposed silence upon him, by showing him how little he himself knew of religious matters in calling me an unbeliever; and telling him, that if he had really any knowledge of, and faith in, his creed, his first duty was to try to convert those of his own countrymen who were still idolaters. At the same time I told the Tárki chief Áwáb, that it seemed to me as if they were afraid of the Fúlbe, or else they would certainly not allow them to molest travellers who visited this place with friendly intentions, while they could not even protect the natives. In reply he alleged that they were by no means afraid of them, having vanquished them on a former occasion, but that they only awaited the arrival of their kinsfolk to show them that they were the real masters of Timbúktu.

To add to the conflict of these opposing interests, a great number of strangers were at this time collected in the town, most of whom were of a far more fanatical disposition than the inhabitants themselves, who, on the whole, are very good-natured. The Berabísh alone, who had come into the town with about one thousand camels carrying their salt, mustered one hundred and twenty horse, prepared, no doubt, to fight the Fullán, if the latter should attempt to levy the “ʿashúr,” or the tithe, but still more hostilely disposed towards the Christian stranger who had intruded upon this remote corner, one of the most respected seats of the Mohammedan faith, and against whom they had a personal reason of hostility, as they were commanded by ʿAlí, the son of Hámed Weled ʿAbéda, the acknowledged murderer of Major Laing; and, of course, the news of my residence in the town, and of the hostile disposition of the Fúlbe, who had now been two months attempting in vain to drive me out of it, had spread far and wide.

This great influx of strangers into the town raised the price of all sorts of provisions, particularly that of Negro corn and rice, in a remarkable degree, the latter rising from 6000 to 7500 shells the “suníye,” while the former, which a few days before had been sold for 3750, equal at that time to one and a half “rás” of salt, rose to the exorbitant price of 6000 shells.

In the evening of the 7th, a slave suddenly arrived with the news that a letter had reached my address from the north. He was followed a short time afterwards by Mohammed el ʿAísh, who brought me the parcel, in question, which, however, had been opened. The letter was from Mr. Charles Dickson, Her Majesty’s Vice-Consul in Ghadámes, dated June 18th, and enclosing, besides some recommendations to native merchants, a number of “Galignani,” which informed me of the first movements of the Russians on the Danube. The Ghadámsíye people, who were the bearers of the letter, had already spread the news of a dreadful battle having been fought between the Turks and the Russians, in which 30,000 of the latter had been slain, and 40,000 made prisoners.

The following day Áwáb, who himself had arrived with fifty horsemen, was joined by his cousin Fandaghúmme with fifty more. This was very fortunate, for, about dhohor, the Fúlbe held a conference, or “kéndegáy,” in the Géngeré-bér, or Jámʿa el Kebíra, where Hámed Weled Fʿaamme, the malignant and hostile kádhi, made a violent speech before the assembly, exhorting the people to go immediately and carry out the order of their liege lord the Sheikho Áhmedu, even if they were to fight conjointly against El Bakáy, Áwáb, and the emír Kaúri, whom he represented as disobedient, and almost rebellious to his liege lord. A friend of the latter, who knew the cowardly disposition of the speaker, then rose in the assembly, and exhorted the kádhi to lead the van, and proceed to the attack, when every one would follow him. But the kádhi not choosing to expose his own person to danger nothing was done, and the assembly separated, every one going quietly to his home.

Meanwhile the two Tawárek chiefs, with their principal men, were assembled in the house of the Sheikh, where I went to meet them, but found them not quite satisfied with the part which they were acting. They entered into a warm dispute with me upon the subject of religion, but soon found themselves so perplexed, that they left it to the Sheikh to answer all my objections. A Protestant Christian may easily defend his creed against these children of the desert, as long as they have not recourse to arms.

Next morning we left the narrow lanes of Timbúktu, and entered upon the open sandy desert, accompanied by the two Tawárek chiefs, each of whom had fifteen companions. The tents being now further removed from the town, near the border of the inundations of the river, the camping ground was pleasant, and well adorned with trees; and having taken my own tent with me, where I could stretch myself out without being infested by the vermin which swarm in the native carpets, I enjoyed the open encampment extremely. Leathern tents had been pitched for the Tawárek, who in a short time made themselves quite at home, and were in high spirits. They became very much interested in a map of Africa which I showed to them, with the adjoining shores of Arabia, and they paid a compliment to their prophet by kissing the site of Mekka.

Being thus on good terms with my barbaric veiled friends the Molathemún, I enjoyed extremely, the following morning, the half-desert scenery, enlivened as it was by horses, camels, cattle, and interesting groups of men; but about noon a serious alarm arose, a great many horses being seen in the distance, and the number being exaggerated by some people to as many as two hundred. In consequence, we saddled our horses with great speed, and I mounted with my servants, while the Tawárek also kept their animals in readiness; but the advancing host appeared rather of a peaceable character, consisting of about twenty-five of the most respectable inhabitants of the town, with Muláy ʿAbd e’ Salám and Fasídi, the latter a very noble old man, at their head. They came, however, on a very important errand, based on the direct order as promulgated by the emír of Hamda-Alláhi, and addressed to the whole community, being in hopes that, through their personal authority, they might obtain from my host, in a friendly manner, what he had denied to the display of force. They had two requests, both aimed against myself: first, that El Bakáy should give them a copy of the letter which I was said to have brought with me from Stambúl; and the second, which was more explicit, that I should not return into the town. Now my firmán from Stambúl was my greatest trouble, for having anxiously requested Her British Majesty’s Government to send such a document after me, I always expected to receive it by some means or other; but I was not less disappointed in this respect, than in my expectation of receiving a letter of recommendation from Morocco; nevertheless, as I had some other letters from Mohammedans, the Sheikh promised to comply with the first demand of these people, while he refused to pay any attention to the second. After some unsuccessful negotiation, the messengers retraced their steps rather disheartened.

In order to attach more sincerely to my interest the Tawárek chiefs, who were my only supporters, I gave to Fandaghúmme a present equal to the one I had given to Áwáb. Next morning there arrived a troop of fugitives who were anxious to put themselves under the protection of the Sheikh. They belonged to the tribe of the Surk, who, from being the indigenous tribe on that part of the Niger which extends on both sides of the lake Debu, had been degraded, in the course of time, to the condition of serfs, and were threatened by the fanatical Sheikho Áhmedu with being sold into slavery. Of course it is the Sheikh El Bakáy’s policy to extend his protection to whatever quarter is threatened by the Fúlbe; but, in this case, sympathy with the miserable fate of these poor people led him to interfere.

It was near sunset when we mounted in order to return into the town; and on the way I kept up a conversation with Áwáb, till the time of the mughreb prayer arrived, when the whole of my friends went to pray on the desert ground, while I myself, remaining on horseback, went a little on one side of the track. My companions afterwards contended that it was from motives of pride and arrogance that I did not humble myself in the dust before the Almighty. I should certainly have liked to kneel down and thank Providence for the remarkable manner in which my life had hitherto been preserved; but I did not deem it politic to give way to their mode of thinking and worship in any respect; for I should have soon been taken for a Mohammedan, and once in such a false position, there would have been no getting out of it.

We then entered the town amidst the shouts of the people, who, by the appearance of the moon, had just discovered, as is very often the case in these regions, that they had been a day out in their reckoning, and that the following day was the festival of the Mulúd, or the birthday of Mohammed; and I was allowed to take quiet possession of my quarters.

The same evening I had an interesting conversation with the chief Áwáb, who paid me a long visit, in company with his mʿallem, and gave me the first account of the proceedings of that Christian traveller Mungo Park (to use his own words), who, about fifty years ago, came down the river in a large boat; describing the manner in which he had been first attacked by the Tawárek below Kábara, where he had lost some time in endeavouring to open a communication with the natives, while the Tin- ger-égedesh forwarded the news of his arrival, without delay, to the Igwádaren, who, having collected their canoes, attacked him, first near Bamba, and then again at the narrow passage of Tósaye[142], though all in vain; till at length, the boat of that intrepid traveller having stuck fast at Ensýmmo (probably identical with Ansóngo), the Tawárek of that neighbourhood made another fierce and more successful attack, causing him an immense deal of trouble, and killing, as Áwáb asserted, two of his Christian companions. He also gave me a full account of the iron hook with which the boat was provided against hippopotami and hostile canoes; and his statement altogether proved what an immense excitement the mysterious appearance of this European traveller, in his solitary boat, had caused among all the surrounding tribes.

This chief being very anxious to obtain some silver, I thought it best, in order to convince all the people that I had no dollars left (although I had saved about twenty for my journey to Háusa), to give him my silver knife and fork, besides some large silver rings which I had by me; and he was very glad to have obtained a sufficient quantity of this much- esteemed metal for adorning his beloved wife.

These Tawárek chiefs who had thus become well disposed towards me, through the interference of the Sheikh, wrote an excellent letter of franchise for any Englishman visiting this country, thus holding out the first glimmer of hope of a peaceable intercourse. But my own experience leaves no room for doubt that these chiefs are not strong enough of themselves to defend a Christian against the attacks of the Fúlbe in the upper course of the river above Timbúktu, besides the fact that Áwáb is too nearly connected with the latter to be entirely trusted. It was on this account that my host esteemed his cousin Fandaghúmme much higher, and placed greater reliance on him, although the actual chieftainship rested with Áwáb. All this business, however, together with the writing of the letter to the chief of Hamda-Alláhi, which was rejected in several forms, and caused a great many representations from the chief men of the town, proved extremely tedious to me. My health, too, at that time was in a very indifferent condition, and I suffered repeatedly from attacks of fever. In a sanitary point of view, Timbúktu can in no wise be reckoned among the more favoured places of these regions. Both Sansándi and Ségo are considered more healthy. But, notwithstanding my sickly state, I had sufficient strength left to finish several letters, which, together with a map of the western part of the desert, I intended sending home by the first opportunity.

As the waters increased more and more, and began to cover all the lowlands, I should have liked very much to rove about along those many backwaters which are formed by the river, in order to witness the interesting period of the rice harvest, which was going on just at this time. It was collected in small canoes, only the spikes of the upper part of the stalks emerging from the water. But new rice was not brought into the town till the beginning of January, and then only in small quantities, the sʿaa being sold for 100 shells.

[Sidenote: December 19th.]

This was an important day: important to the Mohammedans as the ʿAíd e’ subúwa, and celebrated by them with prayers and séddega, or alms; and not unimportant for myself, for my relation to the town’s-people had meanwhile assumed a more serious character. Sheikho (Séko) Áhmedu had threatened, that if the inhabitants of Timbúktu did not assist in driving me out of the town, he would cut off the supply of corn. This induced the emír Kaúri to undertake a journey to the capital, in order to prevent the malicious intrigues of the kádhi Weled Fʿaamme, who was about to embark for that place, from making matters worse.

I have stated before, that, together with the caravan of the Berabísh (the plural of Berbúshi), which had arrived on the 12th with a considerable armed host, ʿAlí, the son of the old sheikh Áhmed, or Hámed, Weled ʿAbéda, had come to Timbúktu; and, seeing that I was a great friend of the Sheikh El Bakáy, he had not come to pay his compliments to the latter, but had pitched his camp outside the town, and his people manifested their hostility towards me on several occasions. But, by a most providential dispensation, on the seventeenth the chief fell suddenly sick, and in the morning of the nineteenth he died. His death made an extraordinary impression upon the people, as it was a well-known fact that it was his father who had killed the former Christian who had visited this place; and the more so, as it was generally believed that I was Major Laing’s son.

It was the more important, as the report had been generally spread that, as I have observed before, the Welád Slímán, the principal and most noble section of the Berabísh, had sworn to kill me; and the people could not but think that there was some supernatural connection between the death of this man, at this place and at this period, and the murderous deed perpetrated by his father: and, on the whole, I cannot but think that this event exercised a salutary influence upon my final safety. The followers of the chief of the Berabísh were so frightened by this tragical event that they came in great procession to the Sheikh El Bakáy, to beg his pardon for their neglect, and to obtain his blessing; nay, the old man himself, a short time afterwards, sent word, that he would in no way interfere with my departure, but wished nothing better than that I might reach home in safety. The excitement of the people on account of my stay here thus settled down a little, and the party of the Fúlbe seemed quietly to await the result produced by the answer which the Sheikh had forwarded to Hamda-Alláhi.

On the 21st December we again went in the afternoon to the tents. For the first time since my arrival in this town, I rode my own stately charger, which, having remained so many months in the stable, feeding upon the nutritive grass of the býrgu, had so completely recruited his strength that in my desperately weak state I was scarcely able to manage him. The desert presented a highly interesting spectacle. A considerable stream, formed by the river, poured its waters with great force into the valleys and depressions of this sandy region, and gave an appearance of truth to the fabulous statement[143] of thirty-six rivers flowing through this tract. After a few hours’ repose, I was able to keep up a long conversation with the Sheikh in the evening, about Paradise and the divine character of the Kurán. This time our stay at the tents afforded more opportunity than usual for interesting conversation, and bore altogether a more religious character, my protector being anxious to convince his friends and followers of the depth of the faith of the Christians; and I really lamented that circumstances did not allow me to enter so freely into the details of the creed of these people, and to make myself acquainted with all its characteristics, as I should have liked.

Part of the day the Sheikh read and recited to his pupils chapters from the hadíth of Bokhári, while his young son repeated his lesson aloud from the Kurán, and in the evening several surát, or chapters, of the holy book were beautifully chanted by the pupils, till a late hour of the night. There was nothing more charming to me than to hear these beautiful verses chanted by sonorous voices in this open desert country, round the evening fire, with nothing to disturb the sound, which softly reverberated from the slope of the sandy downs opposite. A Christian must have been a witness to such scenes in order to treat with justice the Mohammedans and their creed. Let us not forget that, but for the worship of images and the quarrels about the most absurdly superstitious notions which distracted the Christian Church during the seventh century, there would have been no possibility of the establishment of a new creed based on the principles of Monotheism, and opposed in open hostility to Christianity. Let us also take into account that the most disgusting feature attaching to the morals of Mohammedans has been introduced by the Mongolish tribes from Central Asia, and excited the most unqualified horror in the founder of the religion.

Peace and security seemed to prevail in this little encampment. In general the whole of this region to the north of the river is entirely free from beasts of prey, with the exception of jackals; but at present, together with the rising water, which had entirely changed the character of these districts, a lion had entered this desert tract, and one day killed three goats, and the following one two asses, one of which was remarkable for its great strength.

Remaining here a couple of days, on the evening of the 25th we had again a long conversation, which was very characteristic of the different state of mind of the Christian in comparison with that of the Mohammedan. While speaking of European institutions, I informed my host of the manner in which we were accustomed to insure property by sea as well as on land, including even harvests, nay, even the lives of the people. He appeared greatly astonished, and was scarcely able to believe it; and while he could not deny that it was a good “debbára,” or device, for this world, he could not but think, as a pious Moslim, that such proceedings might endanger the safety of the soul in the next. However, he was delighted to see that Christians took such care for the welfare of the family which they might leave behind; and it was an easy task to prove to him that, as to making profits in any way whatever, his co- religionists, who think any kind of usury unlawful, were in no way better than the Christians; for, although the former do not openly take usury, they manage affairs so cleverly that they demand a much higher per centage than any honest Christian would accept. I had a fair opportunity of citing, as an instance, one of those merchants resident in Timbúktu, to whom I had been recommended by Mr. Dickson, and who had consented to advance me a small loan, under such conditions that he was to receive almost triple the sum which he was to lend.

[Sidenote: December 25th.]

This day was also an important epoch for the inhabitants of the place, the water having entered the wells, which are situated round the southern and south-western part of the town; and this period, which is said to occur only about every third year, obtains the same importance here as the “lélet e’ nuktah” possesses with the inhabitants of Cairo[144]; viz. the day or night on which the dyke which separates the canal from the river is cut. The whole road from Kábara was now so inundated that it was no longer passable for asses, and small boats very nearly approached the town.

When my host made his appearance on the morning of the 26th, he was not as usual clad in a black tobe, but in a red kaftán, with a white cloth bernús over it. He began speaking most cheerfully about my approaching departure, and had the camels brought before me, which now looked infinitely better than when they were last conveyed from the other bank of the river; but as I had become fully aware of his dilatory character, I did not place much reliance upon the hope which he held out to me of soon entering upon my home journey. We had heard of the messenger whom he had sent to the Awelímmiden, in order to induce the chief of that tribe to come to Timbúktu and to take me under his protection, having reached the settlements of that tribe; but I was aware that the opposite party would do all in their power to prevent the chief from approaching the town, as they were fully conscious that the Sheikh wanted to employ him and his host of warlike people, in order to subdue the Fullán and the faction opposed to his own authority.

[Sidenote: December 27th.]

Feeling my head much better, and having recruited my strength with a diet of meat and milk, I began to enjoy the rehála life, and, it being a beautiful morning, I took a good walk to an eminence situated at some distance north of my tent, from whence I had a distant view of the landscape. The country presented an intermediate character between the desert and a sort of less favoured pasture ground, stretching out in an undulating surface, with a sandy soil tolerably well clad with middle- sized acacias and with thorny bushes, where the goat finds sufficient material for browsing. The streams of running water which, with their silvery threads, enlivened these bare desert tracts, now extended a considerable distance farther inland than had been the case a few days before; and the whole presented a marvellous and delightful spectacle, which, no doubt, must fill travellers from the north who reach Timbúktu at such a season with astonishment. Hence, on their return home, they spread the report of those numerous streams which are said to join the river at that remarkable place, while, on the contrary, these streams issue _from_ the river, and after running inland for a short time, return to join the main trunk, though of course with decreased volume, owing to absorption and evaporation.

All the people of the town who did not belong to any trade or profession, together with the inhabitants of the neighbouring districts, were still busily employed with the rice harvest; and this was a serious affair for my horses, a much smaller quantity of býrgu, that is to say, of that excellent nutritious grass of the Niger, which I have had repeatedly occasion to mention, being brought into the town. Meanwhile the price of the merchandise from the north went on increasing. A piece of khám, or malti (unbleached calico), now sold for 5700 shells (at least on the 26th of January), but in the beginning of February it rose to 7200; this fluctuation in the prices constitutes the profit of the merchants, who buy their supplies on the arrival of a caravan and store it up.

The commercial activity of the town had received some further increase, owing to the arrival of another caravan from Tawát, with black Háusa manufactures, tobacco, and dates, so that I was able to lay in a good store of this latter luxury, which is not always to be got here, but which, in the cold season, is not at all to be despised. Besides receiving a handsome present of dates from my noble Tawáti friend Mohammed el ʿAísh, I bought two measures (neffek) and a half of the kind called tin-áser for 4000 shells; for the “tin-akór,” the most celebrated species of dates from Tawát, were not to be procured at this time.[145] As for tobacco, I did not care a straw about it, and in this respect I might have been on the very best terms with my fanatical friends, the Fúlbe of Hamda-Alláhi, who offer such a determined opposition to smoking upon religious principles. In a commercial respect, however, tobacco forms a more important article in the trade of Timbúktu than dates, although refined smokers here prefer the tobacco of Wádí-Nún to that of Tawát. But even these had an opportunity of gratifying their inclination at this season, for only two days after the arrival of the Tawáti caravan, a small troop of Tájakánt traders, with eighty camels, entered the town. The feud which raged between the different sections of this tribe, which, as I stated before, chiefly keeps up the commercial relations of Timbúktu with the north, on the one hand, and the war raging between the whole of this tribe and the Érgebát on the other, interrupted at this time almost entirely the peaceable intercourse between Timbúktu and the southern region of Morocco.

The arrival of these people enabled me to purchase half a weight of sugar, equal to six pounds and a quarter, with a corresponding quantity of tea (viz. half a pound), for three dollars; for, as I have said before, there had been no sugar previously in the market. Even when there is plenty, neither tea nor sugar can be bought separately. These articles must be bought together. It is remarkable that a similar custom is still prevalent in many parts of Europe, and even in this country.

The arrival of these Tájakánt procured me also the luxury of a couple of pomegranates, which had been brought by them from the Gharb, and which gave me an opportunity of expostulating with the Sheikh on the disgraceful circumstance, that such fruits as these are now only procurable from the north, while this country itself might produce them quite as well, and had in reality done so in former times. Even limes are not at present grown hereabouts, and it was only from Jenni that I had obtained some days previously a few specimens of this delicious kind of fruit, which grows in such plenty in Kanó, and which might be raised in almost any part of this region. Thus closed the year 1853, leaving me in a most unsettled position in this desert place.

[Footnote 138: That is the singular form of the name Tájakánt.]

[Footnote 139: Of the amount of the zekʿa, I shall speak in another chapter.]

[Footnote 140: El Bekrí, ed. de Slane, p. 181. ومعنى تادمكة هية مكة. See Cooley, “Negroland of the Arabs,” p. 30, n. 52.]

[Footnote 141: See Vol. II. p. 129.]

[Footnote 142: The Tawárek must have attacked Park either far above or below this narrow passage, where, as I afterwards found, the current is very strong; and, as I shall relate further on, he seems to have passed quietly by Tin-sherífen.]

[Footnote 143: See one of these native reports in Duncan’s account of his exploration in Dahome. Journal Geog. Soc. vol. xvi. p. 157.]

[Footnote 144: Lane’s Modern Egyptians, ed. 1836, vol. ii. p. 255.]

[Footnote 145: The other kinds of dates of Tawát are: Áhartán, Tigáze, Tazarzay, Tin-waríggelí, Tedemámet, Bú-Makhlúf, Tin-kásseri, Tin-dokán, Tin-nijdel, Tilímsu, Timbozéri, Adíkkeli, Gófagús, Dággelet-núr. The district of Aúléf is the most famous for its dates.]

APPENDIX.