Chapter XIII: Part 13

At length on the 4th of May, I left the town and encamped outside, close in front of the gate. The Sheikh had also given me another camel, and a young and rather weak horse, which did not seem very fit for such a journey, and which in the sequel proved rather a burden than otherwise to me. In this spot I remained some days, waiting for my fellow- traveller Kólo, who was still detained in the town, so that I did not take leave of the Sheikh until the 9th of the month, when he received me with great kindness, but was by no means backward in begging for several articles to be sent to him, especially a small cannon, which was rather out of comparison with the poor present which he had bestowed upon myself. However, he promised me that I should still receive another camel from him, of which I stood greatly in need, although I had made up for one which was lost during my stay before the gate of the town, through the carelessness of Ábbega, by buying a fresh camel at the last moment of my departure. It was for this purpose that I took the sum of thirty dollars from the 1000 dollars brought by the caravan, and which I was anxious to leave behind for the use of Mr. Vogel. Altogether I was extremely unfortunate with my camels, and lost a third one before I had proceeded many miles from the town, so that I was obliged to throw away several things with which my people had overladen my animals.

Our move from Dáwerghú in the afternoon of the 10th was very inauspicious; and while a heavy thunder-storm was raging, enveloping everything in impenetrable darkness, only occasionally illumined by the flashes of lightning, I lost my people, and had great difficulty in joining them again. Having then moved on by very short marches as far as Nghurútuwa, through a finely wooded valley called Hénderi Gálliram, we pitched our tents on the 14th of May near the town of Yó, where, to my utmost disappointment, we had to stay the five following days, during which the interesting character of the komádugu, which at present did not contain a drop of water, with its border of vegetation, afforded me but insufficient entertainment. It would, however, have been curious for any European, who had adhered to the theory of the great eastern branch of the Niger flowing along this bed from the Tsád, to see us encamped in the dry bottom of this valley. At all events, oppressed as I had been all the time by the apprehension that something might still occur to frustrate my departure, I deemed it one of the happiest moments of my life, when in the afternoon of Saturday the 19th, we at length left our station at this northern frontier of Bórnu, in the present reduced state of that kingdom; and I turned my back with great satisfaction upon these countries where I had spent full five years in incessant toil and exertion. On retracing my steps northwards, I was filled with the hope that a Merciful Providence would allow me to reach home in safety, in order to give a full account of my labours and discoveries; and, if possible, to follow up the connections which I had established with the interior, for opening regular intercourse with that continent.

Our first day’s march from here, however, was far from being auspicious; for, having met with frequent delays and stoppages, such as are common at the commencement of a journey, and darkness having set in, the three monkeys which I wished to take with me, by their noise and cries, frightened the camels so much that they started off at a gallop, breaking several things, and amongst others a strong musket. I saw, therefore, that nothing was to be done but to let loose these malicious little creatures, which, instead of remaining quiet, continually amused themselves with loosening all the ropes with which the luggage was tied on the backs of the animals. Having encamped this night at a late hour, we reached, the following morning, the town of Bárruwa, and remained here the whole day, in order to provide ourselves with the dried fish which is here prepared in large quantities, and which constitutes the most useful article for procuring the necessary supplies in the Tebu country. The Dáza, or Búlgudá, who were to join us on the march, had been encamped in this spot since the previous day. From here we pursued our road to Ngégimi; but the aspect of the country had greatly changed since I last traversed it on my return from Kánem, the whole of the road which I had at that time followed being now covered with water, the great inundation of the Tsád not having yet retired within its ordinary boundaries. The whole shore seemed to have given way and sunk a few feet. Besides this changed aspect of the country, several hamlets of Kánembú cattle-breeders, such as represented in the accompanying woodcut, caused great relief and animation.

It was also interesting to observe the Búdduma, the pirate inhabitants of the islands of the lagune, busily employed in their peculiar occupation of obtaining salt from the ashes of the “siwák,” or the _Capparis sodata_. Having rested during the hot hours of the day, we took up our quarters in the evening just beyond a temporary hamlet of these islanders; for although watchfulness, even here, was very necessary in order to guard against any thievish attempt, yet, in general, the Búdduma seem to be on good terms with the Tebu, with whom they appear to have stood in intimate political connection from ancient times.

[Sidenote: Tuesday, May 22nd.]

At the distance of only a mile from our encampment we passed, close on our left, the site of Wúdi, enlivened by a few date-palms, the whole open grassy plain to the right, over which our former road to Kánem had lain, being enveloped in a wider or narrower strip of water. Having halted again, at the beginning of the hot hours, in a well-wooded tract, we observed in the afternoon a herd of elephants, which passed the heat of the day comfortably in the midst of the water, and among the number a female with her young. Further on, we were met by a troop of five buffaloes, an animal which, during my former journey, I had not observed near the lake.

Thus we reached the new village of Ngégimi, which was built on the slope of the hills, the former town having been entirely swept away by the inundation. Here we remained the forenoon of the following day; the encampment being enlivened by a great number of women from the village, offering for sale fish, in a fresh and dried state, besides a few fowls, milk, and “témmari,” the seeds of the cotton plant. But with the exception of a few beads for adorning their own sable persons, they were scarcely willing to receive anything besides corn. I was glad to see, instead of the ugly Bórnu females, these more symmetrical figures of the Kánembú ladies, the glossy blackness of whose skin was agreeably relieved by their white teeth as well as by their beads of the same colour. Our friends, the Dáza, who, five weeks previously had been driven back by the Tawárek, had recovered here their luggage, which on that occasion they had hastily deposited with the villagers, when making an attempt to cross the desert. They were here to separate from us for a time, as, for some reason or other, they wanted to pursue a more westerly track, leading by the Bír el Hammám, or Metémmi, which is mentioned by the former expedition, while our friend Kólo was bent upon keeping nearer the shores of the lagune, by way of Kíbbo.

After a short conversation with the chief of the place, the May- Ngégimibe, we set out in the afternoon, and proceeding at a slow rate, as the camels were very heavily laden, we passed, after a march of about eight miles, along a large open creek of the lagune; and, having met some solitary travellers coming from Kánem, encamped, about eight in the evening, on rather uneven ground, and kept alternate watch during the night.

[Sidenote: Thursday, May 24th.]

Starting at a very early hour, we soon ascended hilly ground; but, after we had proceeded some miles, were greatly frightened by the sight of people on our right, when we three horsemen pursued them till we had driven them to the border of the lake. For this whole tract is so very unsafe, that a traveller may feel certain that the few people whom he meets on the road, unless they bear distinctly the character of travellers like himself, will betray him to some predatory band. Having proceeded about nine miles, we halted near an outlying creek of the lake, the water of which was fresh, although most of these creeks contain brackish water. When we continued our march in the afternoon, we passed another creek, or rather a separate lake, and, winding along a narrow path made by the elephants, which are here very numerous, reached, after a march of a little more than ten miles, the leafy vale, or “hénderi,” of Kíbbo, and encamped on the opposite margin. This locality is interesting, as constituting, apparently, the northern limit of the white ant. We, however, were prevented by the darkness from making use of the well, as these vales are full of wild beasts, and we were therefore obliged to remain here the forenoon of the following day,—a circumstance which was not displeasing to me, as I did not feel at all well, and was obliged to have recourse to my favourite remedy of tamarind-water. We pursued our march before the sun had attained its greatest power; but met with frequent stoppages, the slaves of our Tebu companions, who were heavily laden and suffering from the effects of the water, being scarcely able to keep up; a big fellow even laid down never to rise again. Indeed it would seem as if the Tebu treated their slaves more cruelly than even the Arabs, making them carry all sorts of articles, especially their favourite dried fish.

After a march of not more than twelve miles, we halted some distance to the east of the well of Kufé, and were greatly excited in consequence of the approach of our fellow-travellers the Dáza, whom, at the moment, we did not at first recognise. This locality was also regarded so unsafe for a small caravan, that we started again soon after midnight, and halted after a march of about fifteen miles, when we met a courier coming from Kawár with the important news that Hassan Bashá, the governor of Fezzán, who had been suffering from severe illness for several years, had at length succumbed; and that the Éfedé, that turbulent tribe on the northern frontier of Ásben, which had caused us such an immense deal of trouble in the first part of our expedition, had undertaken a foray to Tibésti,—a piece of news which influenced our own proceedings very considerably, as we were thus exposed to the especial danger of falling in with this predatory band, besides the danger which in general attaches to the passage through this extensive desert tract, which extends from Negroland to the cultivated zone of North Africa. It was this circumstance, together with the great heat of the mid-day hours at this hottest part of the year, which obliged us, without the least regard to our own comfort, to travel the greater part of the night; so that I was unable to rectify and complete, in general, the observations of the former expedition, the route of which, being entirely changed by the new astronomical data obtained by Mr. Vogel, would be liable to some little rectification throughout.

Having rested during the hot hours of the day, we pursued our march about two o’clock in the afternoon, when, after a stretch of about two miles, we entered a fine hilly district, well adapted for pasture- grounds for camels and sheep, but untenanted in the present deserted state of the country. A mile and a half further on, we passed the well of Mul, which was at present dry, and then winding along the fine valley, were detained a long time by the loss of another camel. Having then encamped, after a march altogether of about ten miles, we started again, an hour after midnight, and after travelling nearly thirteen miles, reached the well of Únghurutín, situated in a hollow surrounded with fine vegetation, and affording that most excellent fodder for camels, the “hád;” besides which there was a great deal of “retem,” or broom.

[Sidenote: Monday, May 28th.]

Having spent the Sunday in Únghurutín quietly, and indulging in some little repose, we started a little after midnight, and did not encamp till after a march of about fifteen miles. It was interesting to observe, when the day began to dawn, that all along this region a considerable quantity of rain had fallen, in consequence of which “hád” and “sebód” covered the ground, although we were extremely glad to escape from that great annoyance to travellers, the feathery bristle, or “ngíbbi.” Another twelve miles in the afternoon, through a more open country, broken in the earlier part by a few specimens of the tree “símsim,” brought us to the well Bedwáram, or Bélkashi-fárri, where we encamped at the foot of the eastern eminence, choosing our ground with great care, as we were to recruit here our strength by a longer stay, the well being at present frequented by a number of that section of the Gunda tribe of Tebu, which is called “Wándalá,” or “Aussa.” For in general the well is by no means a safe retreat, and it seems to have been at this well, or in the neighbourhood, that Corporal Macguire was slain last year, when returning home, after the report of the death of his chief, Mr. Vogel.

We had great trouble in opening the wells; for we needed a large provision of water, as, besides filling our skins, we had here to water all our camels. Only one of the wells was open at the time, and contained very little water. It is easily to be understood in what a perilous position a small caravan would be, if attacked under such circumstances by a gang of highway robbers, and I felt particularly obliged to Sheikh ʿOmár for having afforded me the protection of the salt merchants, the Dáza, who were busy the whole day long in digging out the wells. I was glad to find that the temporary inhabitants of the place behaved quietly and decently, and even brought us some camels’ milk, which they bartered for small looking-glasses.

Having remained here also the 30th, we started in the afternoon of the last of May, and, after a good stretch of nearly twenty miles, encamped. We set out again after about four hours’ rest, when having proceeded some six miles, we entered the open sandy waste, just beyond a fine group of símsim trees, and halted again, during the heat of the day, after a march of about six miles more. I here enjoyed again the wide expanse of the open desert, which, notwithstanding its monotony, has something very grand about it, and is well adapted to impress the human mind with the consciousness of its own littleness, although, at the present season, it presented itself in its most awful character, owing to the intense heat which prevailed.

Having a tedious march before us through the dreary desert of Tintúmma, we started for a long wearisome night’s march, some time before the heat had attained its highest degree, only one hour after noon, but probably we should have acted wiser to have waited till the heat was past, as the poor slaves of my fellow-travellers were knocked up before the heat came on. Only a short rest of forty minutes was granted, at eight o’clock in the evening, for a cold supper of guinea-corn, when the caravan started again to continue its night-march over this unbounded sandy waste; but I, as well as my chief servant, being on horseback, I found myself at liberty to remain some time behind, indulging in the luxury of a cup of coffee. I remained however almost too long; and if it had not been that, contrary to my orders, which were to the effect to spare the powder as much as possible, my servants kept firing their pistols off at random, in order to cheer themselves and the poor slaves, I should have had some difficulty in following the caravan. Cheered by the firing, and perhaps impressed with the awful character of the country which we were traversing at such an hour, the slaves, forgetful of their over-fatigue, kept up an uninterrupted song, the sounds of which fell occasionally upon my ears, as I followed them at a great distance. But under the effects of this excitement, and in the cool of the evening, they marched at such a rate, that I did not overtake them till long after midnight, when freemen and slaves began to feel exhausted, and would gladly have lagged behind; and I had to urge on several of these unfortunates, and prevent them from staying behind, and falling a sacrifice to thirst and fatigue. One of my servants was not to be seen. In fact this desert is famous for people well accustomed to it losing their way, and the white sand, extending to a boundless distance, is so confounding, that people often miss their direction entirely. But the fatigue of this night’s march was very great indeed, and when the day dawned, I gladly availed myself of the opportunity afforded by a little herbage of giving a slight feed to my exhausted horse to obtain a few minutes’ repose.

Pursuing then our dreary march, while a heavy wind rose, which by raising the dust made the desert look still more gloomy, we gradually discovered the rocky mountains of Ágadem ahead of us, but did not enter the peculiar valley formation till a quarter past seven o’clock. Here we chose our camping-ground in a corner surrounded by the “siwák,” which form quite a little plantation, and occasionally attract temporary settlers, especially of the tribe called Bolodúwa, or Ám-wadébe. However, the sand wind made our stay here very cheerless, which was increased by the circumstance of the ground being full of camel lice, this being the usual camping-ground. The water of the well was clean and excellent, but not very plentiful, so that we had to take our supply for the road before us from a more northerly well. The servant who was missing not having been found, we waited anxiously for the arrival of the Dáza in the afternoon, when he made his appearance in their company. They had fortunately seen him at a great distance, when he had completely lost his way, and was wandering southward. I made a present to the man who had brought him back. We remained here the following day, and besides the small luxury of the wild fruit of the siwák, I was glad to be able to buy a vessel of butter from our friends the salt-traders, as my store of this article was nearly consumed.

[Sidenote: Monday, June 4th.]

The poor slaves of our companions were so totally exhausted by the fatigue of the journey, that they would have preferred anything to a continuance of such suffering, and when we started at a very early hour, a poor female slave tried to make her escape, by hiding herself in the bushes, but, she was soon found out, and received a severe flogging for her pains.

Proceeding along a very peculiar basin of natron, at the foot of the rocky slope, we reached after a march of about four miles the northern well, situated in an open pleasant landscape, the mountains on the east side receding in the distance. We remained here this day and the following forenoon, keeping back the Dáza, who were anxious to pursue their journey, for animals as well as men stood in need of some repose, in order to enable them to traverse the long desert tract which separated us from the Tebu country.

[Sidenote: June 5th.]

Just about noon, as we were packing ready to start, a thunder-storm gathered on the chain towards the east, and a few drops of rain fell while we were setting out. Having then kept along the valley for about three miles, we ascended the higher ground with an easterly direction, and obtained a sight of the eastern slope of the chain which borders the valley, which, although not so high on this side as towards the west, seemed yet to have an elevation of about 300 feet. About three o’clock we had again a slight shower of rain. The whole of Ágadem, as I here became aware, forms a sort of wide extensive hollow, bordered on the eastern side by this rocky chain, and towards the west at the distance of about three miles, as well as towards the north by sandy downs. The higher level itself, over which our track lay, was broken by considerable depressions, running east and west, and forming such steep slopes, that Clapperton’s expression of high sand hills, which he had here to cross seems well justified; and we ourselves took up our encampment after a march of a little more than eleven miles in a hollow of this description, bordered by high sand hills towards the west. However, our halt was very short, and soon after midnight we pursued our march, the desert now becoming more level, and therefore allowing a steady progress by night. Pursuing our march with alacrity, we encamped after a stretch of about sixteen miles in a spot which was full of those remarkable crystallized tubes which are called “bargom-chídibe,” by the Kanúri, and “kauchin-kassa,” by the Háusa people; and the character of which has been explained in such various ways, some supposing them to be the effect of lightning, while others fancy them to be the covered walks with which the white ant had surrounded stalks of negro corn. Pursuing from here our march, a little before two in the afternoon we entered a sandy waste, which well deserved to be compared to the wide expanse of the ocean, although even here small rocky ridges protruded in some places; and after a march of about ten miles, we ourselves encamped under the protection of such a ridge.

[Sidenote: Thursday, June 7th.]

Starting again from here at a very early hour in the night, we reached after a march of about six miles the well of Díbbela, the romantic character of which, with its high sand hills, from which black rocky masses towered forth, together with its dúm-palms, struck me not a little. But the water is abominable, being impregnated with an immense quantity of natron; and it was here that Mr. Henry Warrington, who had accompanied Mr. Vogel to Kúkawa, succumbed to the dysentery with which he had been seized on the road, the bad quality of the water having probably brought the disorder to a crisis. It was, moreover, a very hot day, although not hotter than usual, the thermometer at two o’clock indicating 109° in the best shade I could find; and the masses of sand all around were quite bewitching and bewildering. Starting again in the afternoon as soon as the heat had reached its greatest intensity, we ascended the sandy downs with a considerable westerly deviation, leaving just beyond this hollow another one, with some talha trees, and then keeping over the sandy level with a ridge of the same character, and passing after a march of about five miles a great quantity of kajíji, till after a good stretch of altogether seventeen miles, we encamped on hard sandy ground. On this tedious journey, I always felt greatly delighted on our arrival at the camping-ground, to stretch myself at full length on the clean sand, the softness of which makes one feel in no want of a couch.

[Sidenote: June 8th.]

Having encamped at a rather late hour, we did not start so early as usual, and halted after a march of about eight miles on a ground almost entirely destitute of herbage, but what seemed very remarkable, soaked by the rain of the previous day, and affording another and still stronger proof of the incorrectness of the opinion which had hitherto been entertained of this whole tract never being fertilized by the rains. The soil also was full of the footprints of the “bagr-el-wáhesh,” _Antelope bubalis_, which being pursued by the sportsmen of Ágadem and Díbbela, had evidently sought a refuge in this region.

Having from hence made a stretch of about ten miles in the afternoon, and halted for nearly four hours at sunset, we started again for a wearisome night’s march, deviating very considerably from our former track; and after a march of a little more than eighteen miles, the latter part over a difficult range of sand hills, we reached in the morning the well of Zaw-kurá in a dreadfully fatigued state, and with the loss of four camels; but it was cheering to find that the locality—a vale richly adorned with siwák, or _Capparis sodata_, afforded some relief not only to the body but even to the mind. We here met with a small caravan of Tebu, natives of the very ancient village of Ágherim or Ághram, the place of which I have spoken on a former occasion[54], and which lies three days north-west from here by way of Yawi. Being on their road to Bórnu, they were anxious to exchange their camels for mine, the latter being accustomed to the climate of Bórnu whither they were going. Such an exchange is certainly advisable to travellers proceeding in either direction, in the event of the animals of each party being equally good; but, on the one hand, I wanted too badly the few camels which had withstood the fatigue, and, on the other, those of these people were too poor to allow me to accept their offer; and in consequence, they had to load the five horses which they had with them with water-skins. These people gave us the important information that the ghazzia of the Tawárek had returned from Tibésti, having made only a small booty of forty camels and thirty slaves, on account of the Tebu having been on their guard, although they threatened to return at some future period. We remained here the following day, enjoying the repose of which we stood so much in need. A strong wind had been blowing all night; but the heat, at two o’clock in the afternoon, reached its usual elevation of 108° in the best shade.

[Sidenote: Monday, June 11th.]

We started again in the afternoon, winding round the south-eastern edge of the considerable mountain group to which the vale is indebted for its existence, and having on our right sandy downs. Just at the spot where we left the small oasis, known to the traders of the desert as Zaw- kanwa, on our left, we fell in with the footsteps of a small party, when, supposing them to be marauders, we followed them up for awhile, till we had convinced ourselves that they were people in search of a runaway slave. Pursuing then our march altogether about sixteen miles, we halted at nine o’clock in the evening; but started again at midnight, and after a march of fourteen miles, reached Muskátenu, the southernmost limit of the oasis of Kawár, although nothing but an inconsiderable shallow depression, full of marl and alum.

Although the heat was greater than usual, the thermometer indicating as much as 110°, we started with great alacrity in the afternoon, as we were now approaching the seats of Tebu power and civilization in the heart of the desert, where nature has provided this little fertile spot, in order to facilitate intercourse between distant nations. However, several sandy ridges opposed themselves to our progress before we reached the real beginning of the valley, at the western foot of a large and broad-topped rocky mound; but the sand was not so deep as I had been led by the description of other people to expect. Here the scenery became highly interesting, the verdant ground—where small patches of the grass called “ghedeb” and vegetables were sown, surrounded by slight fences of palm-bushes—being overtopped by handsome groups of palm-trees; and cheered as I felt by this spectacle, after the dreary march which we had made, I could not grudge my people a few shots of powder. But while our friends the Dáza salt-traders encamped at the very thickest grove, where the dilapidated town of Bilma is situated, we ourselves entered a dreary salt-pan, and encamped about a mile further on, near a miserable little village called Kalála, without the ornament or shade of a single tree. Moreover, the ground was so hard, that it was only with the greatest difficulty that we were able to pitch the tent; and having no wood wherewith to cook a supper, a small hospitable gift from our friend Kólo, consisting first in a dish of fresh dates, and afterwards in a mess of cooked pudding, proved very acceptable. The miserable hamlet, besides a few hovels, scarcely to be distinguished from the ground, contained only the ruins of a mosque, which had been turned into a magazine for salt.

Our stay here became the more disagreeable, as towards the morning of the following day, a heavy gale arose, against which this open tract offered not the slightest protection; but I amused myself by paying a visit to the salt-pits, in the high mounds of rubbish, a few hundred yards to the east of our encampment. I was highly interested in the very peculiar character which they presented, the pits forming small quadrangular basins, of about four or five yards in diameter, deeply cut into the rock, where all the saltish substance contained in the ground collects, and is thence obtained, by pouring this water, impregnated with salt, into moulds of clay of the shape which I have described in my notice of the salt trade[55], in that part of my journey where I was myself travelling in the company of the salt traders of Ásben. The salt, filtering through the sides of the mound, had all the appearance of long icicles. But at present only a small quantity of prepared salt was lying here, the season for the Kél-owí to carry it away being some months later, when this tract must present a very different aspect, and exhibit a considerable degree of activity; and it would have been highly interesting if Mr. Overweg had been able to visit the place at such a season, as he had intended.

It was also a circumstance of considerable interest, that about two o’clock in the afternoon, while the thermometer indicated 107° 3′ in the best shade I could find, we had a slight shower, although this whole region has been set down as an entirely rainless zone. My camels being greatly reduced, and several of them of little value, I exchanged the two worst among them for one belonging to the Dáza, our former fellow- travellers, who being bent upon staying here a few days, before they undertook their home journey to Bórnu, were thus enabled to wait until the animals had recruited their strength.

[Sidenote: June 14th.]

At an early hour in the morning, long before the dawn of day, we continued our journey northward along the Wádi Kawár, as it is called by the Arabs, or the Héneri-tegé, valley of the Tegé or Tedá, as it is called by the natives, having the steep rocky cliffs, which at times formed picturesque platforms, at about three miles distance on our right. Meanwhile the country became beautifully wooded at the dawn of the day, and numerous travellers attested a certain degree of industry in this curious abode of men in the heart of the desert. After a march of about twelve miles, where the valley became contracted by a lower rocky ridge crossing it, we encamped at the side of a palm-grove, with a number of draw-wells, or “kháttatír,” where every kind of vegetable might be easily raised. The ground produced “aghúl,” and “molukhía,” or _Corchorus olitorius_, and was surrounded by high sandy downs, while at some distance eastward a village is situated, of the name of Éggir. Having halted here for about five hours, we pursued our journey, the strip of trees closely approaching the rocky cliff, and after a march of three miles, left on our right the village Ém-i-máddama, and further on, that called Shemídderu, lying partly at the foot, partly on the slope of the rocky cliffs on our right. Having then left a small isolated grove of date trees on the same side, we reached the beginning of the plantation of Dírki; and traversing the grove where the fruit was just ripening, we approached the dilapidated wall of the town, which presented a very poor spectacle, and then kept between it and the offensive salt-pool on our right, and encamped on the north side. This town, which, notwithstanding its insignificance, has a name all over the desert, was of some importance to me, from the fact of its containing the only blacksmith in the whole of this oasis, whom I wanted to prepare for me a double set of strong shoes for each of my horses, as we had a very stony tract to traverse beyond this oasis. He promised to make them and to bring them up to us at Áshenúmma, but he did not keep his word, and thus was the cause of my losing one of my horses in that difficult tract. Having passed the villages of Tegimámi and Elíji, we reached the town of Áshenúmma, the residence of the chief of these Tebu, situated on a lower terrace formed by a gentle slope at the foot of the steep cliffs, and encamped in the bottom of the valley near an isolated group of sandstone rock, round which the moisture collects in large hollows, scarcely a foot below the surface of the gravel. All around, a rather thin grove of date trees spreads out; further westward, there are the two salt lakes mentioned by the members of the former expedition.

In the afternoon, I went into the town, to pay my respects to the chief whose name is Mai-Bákr. The place, which seems to have attracted the notice of Arab geographers from an early date, consists of about 120 cottages, built with rough stones, and scattered about on the slope, besides a few yards erected with palm branches. The cottages are very low, and covered in with the stems and leaves of the palm tree. A solitary conical hut, like those of Sudan, was likewise to be seen. One of the stone houses exhibited a greater degree of industry by its whitewashing, but the residence of the chief was not distinguished in any way. The latter, who bears the title of Maina, was a man of advanced age and of respectable behaviour. At the time of our entrance he was squatted on fresh white sand in front of his “diggel,” placed in the ante-chamber or segífa. He received my present (which consisted of a black tobe, two túrkedís, and a harám, worth altogether about four Spanish dollars) kindly, and expressed his hope that I might get safely over the tract before me, if I did not lose any time by a longer delay. Meanwhile a Tebu merchant who was present gave me the very doubtful information that the people of Tawát paid to the French an annual tribute of 60,000 dollars. The inhabitants of Áshenúmma and of the neighbouring places, are very differently situated from those of Dírki and Bilma, for the latter on account of their being the medium of communication in the salt trade, are respected by the Tawárek, for whom they prepare that article, and who, in consequence, do not plunder them even when they meet them in the desert. Nay, they even protect them, as I have described in the former part of my journey, so that merchants from Dírki and Bilma were proceeding to Háusa by way of Ásben. The inhabitants of the other places, on the contrary, such as Áshenúmma, are exposed to all sorts of oppression from the former, and even run the risk of being slain by them when met alone. With regard to the Tebu in general, I have already spoken repeatedly about their intimate connection with the Kanúri race, and have enumerated the names of the sections of their tribe, so far as I have become acquainted with them, and I shall say more on the subject of their language in a preface to my vocabularies. It was a remarkable fact, but easily to be explained, that the greatest heat which I experienced in the desert was in this valley, the thermometer at two o’clock in the afternoon rising daily to between 110° and 112°.

We remained here the following day, when I enjoyed the scenery of the locality extremely, and made a sketch of it, which is represented in the plate opposite. I also desired Corporal Church, who, as I have stated above, was in my company, and who felt assured that Captain Clapperton had indicated the mountain chain on the west by mistake, to ascend the slope of the chain above Áshenúmma, in order to convince himself that that meritorious traveller had not been misled in such a strange manner. With the aid of my small telescope, he discovered in the far distance to the west, a chain bordering the valley in that direction. This breadth of the valley is even indicated by the distance intervening between Ágherim and Fáshi on the one side, and Bilma and Dírki on the other.

M. & N. Hanhart, lith. et impt.

ASHENÚMMA.

June 15th. 1855.]

It was the holiday of the ʿAíd el fotr, and the inhabitants of the little town celebrated the day by a religious procession, in which there figured even as many as ten horses, and a few rounds of powder were fired. The petty chief also sent me a holiday dish, consisting of a sort of maccaroni made of millet, with a porridge of beans. It is a very remarkable circumstance, and one that must not be forgotten by any traveller who pursues this road, that the inhabitants of the Tebu country esteem nothing more highly, nay, scarcely value anything at all, except dried fish, the stinking “búni,” and that he may starve with all sorts of treasures in his bags, unless he be possessed of this article. I myself was even obliged to buy the grass or ghedeb (of which I stood in need for my camels) with dried fish, and I felt sorry that I had not laid in a greater supply of this article in Bárruwa.

[Sidenote: Monday, June 17th.]

Before setting out, I thought it prudent to pay another visit and bid farewell formally to May-Bákr, as I was anxious, unprotected as I was, to secure my rear. I then followed my camels, and having crossed two defiles, formed by projecting cliffs, which interrupt the valley, reached after a march of seven miles the town of Anikímma, situated at the side of an isolated promontory projecting from the cliffs, which form here a sort of wide recess, and encamped at the border of the palm grove, when I immediately received some hospitable treatment from my friend Kólo, who was a native of this place. This is the modern road which is taken at the present time, the town of Kisbi or rather Gézibi, which lies on the western side of the valley, and along which the former mission passed, being at present deserted. This road led in former times by Kisbi to Azanéres. But although we were treated in a friendly manner in this place, I did not like to lose any time, but was anxious to proceed at once to Ánay, the northernmost town in the valley of Kawár, in order to prepare myself there, without the least delay, for that second great station of my desert journey which I had to traverse quite by myself, as my friend Kólo was to stay behind, and was not going to undertake the journey for a month or so. I recommended to him my freed slave ʿOthmán, who had remained behind, as he was suffering from the effects of the guinea-worm. Kólo, however, accompanied me in the afternoon for a few hundred yards, together with a Tebu from Tibésti, of the name of Maina Dadakóre, who had recently been plundered of all his property by the Tawárek. The distance from Anikímma to Ánay is not very great, about two miles and a half. The site of Ánay is very peculiar, as may be seen from the description given by the former expedition[56], who were greatly struck by its singular appearance, although the view which they have given of the locality is far from being correct. The first thing which I had to do here was, to endeavour by means of dollars, cloves, and the remnant of dried fish which I still had left, to procure as large a supply of ghedeb as possible, in order to carry my camels through this trying journey, as my only safety with my small band of people consisted in the greatest speed. It was very unlucky for me that the blacksmith of Dirki broke his word in not bringing up the shoes for my horses, a circumstance which would have been productive of the most serious consequences, if I had been attacked on the road, as both my horses became lame.

[Sidenote: Tuesday, June 18th.]

Having prepared everything in the forenoon, we set out on our lonely and dangerous journey with a fervent prayer, and after a march of a little less than two miles emerged from the valley, or hénderi, through a rocky defile. We then gradually ascended the higher level of the desert plain, and having made a stretch of about sixteen miles, we encamped. Having kept strict watch, as it was not improbable that some people might have followed us, we started again at an early hour, long before the dawn of day, and after a march of about thirteen miles reached Íggeba (Denham’s Ikbar), a shallow depression at the western foot of a mountain, clothed with some herbage and adorned with a rich profusion of dúm-palms. The well here afforded a supply of the most delicious water. However, the locality was too unsafe for our small troop to make here a long stay, it being frequently visited by predatory expeditions. We therefore thought it prudent to start again in the afternoon along the western road, by way of Síggedim, which has been laid down very erroneously by the former expedition, they probably not having taken the accurate distances and directions of this route, as they relied upon the direct track, which they had traced with accuracy. This road is called “Nefása seghíra,” from a defile, or “thníye,” which we crossed about two miles and a half from our starting-point. About ten miles beyond we encamped, and reached the next morning, after a march of ten miles more, over a beautiful gravelly flat, and crossing the track of a small caravan of asses coming from Brábu, the beginning of the oasis of Síggedim, stretching out at the western foot of a considerable mountain group, the direction of which is from east to west, and well wooded with dúm-palms, date trees, and with gerredh, or _Mimosa Nilotica_. The ground, which is richly overgrown with sebót, in several places shows an incrustation of salt. We halted, for the mid-day hours, a little more than a mile further on, near the well, as we could not afford to make any long stay here. The place was at present quite deserted, but I was told that about a month later in the season people occasionally take up their temporary residence here, and a few isolated stone dwellings on a projecting cliff, testified to the occasional presence of settlers.

From hence we reached, in an afternoon’s and a long morning’s march, of altogether nearly thirty-four miles, the shallow vale of Jeháya (Denham’s Izhya) or Yát. We were in a sad state, as, besides being exhausted by fatigue, we were almost totally blinded by the glare of the sand in the heat of the day. A smaller strip of vegetation on the west side of the rocky eminences which dotted this country, had already some time previously led us to hope that we had reached the end of our march; but when at length we had gained the spot, we found the vale, with its rich growth of herbage, very refreshing, and men as well as animals had an opportunity of recruiting their strength a little.

[Sidenote: June 22nd.]

The horse which the Sheikh had given me being quite lame, I wanted to mount the only one of the camels which seemed strong enough to carry such a burden in addition to its load, but it refused to rise with me, and I was thus obliged to mount the donkey-like nag which the sultan of Sókoto had given me, my servant going on foot. It is certainly very difficult to carry horses through this frightful desert with limited means, but it is of the utmost importance for a small party to have a horse or two with them, in order to scour the country to see whether all be right, and to make a spirited attack or to pursue the robbers in case of a theft having been committed.

Having advanced in the course of the evening a little more than eighteen miles, we traversed early the next morning a narrow defile enclosed between rocky heights on both sides, in a very stony tract of country, and halted, after a march of about twelve miles, at a little distance from the mountain group Tíggera-n-dúmma, where the boundary is formed between Fezzán and the independent Tebu country, by a valley clothed with a good profusion of herbage and a few talha trees just in flower. From here we reached, after a march of sixteen miles more, the well of Máfaras, the southernmost well of Fezzán, in such a state of exhaustion, that we felt induced, notwithstanding the danger from the Éfadaye, to allow ourselves and the animals a day and a half’s repose; I myself being particularly in want of a little rest, as I had been suffering a great deal from rheumatism for the last few days. In addition to this the well contained so little water that it required an enormous time to water the animals and to fill our skins. The vale was pleasantly adorned with a good number of fine talha trees, and there was even one isolated dúm-palm, while of another one nothing but the trunk was remaining. Although we had advanced so much towards the north, we did not yet feel the slightest decrease in the temperature, and the thermometer all this time, at two o’clock in the afternoon, constantly indicated 109°.

This is the southern well of the name of Máfaras, while the northern spot of the same name, where Mr. Vogel made his astronomical observation, is about nineteen miles further to the north. We did not pass the latter till early in the morning of the 26th, when, stretching over an open desert flat, a real mirror or “meraye,” the exhaustion of our animals became fully apparent, so that just in the very place where a small Tebu caravan, which had preceded us a few days, had left behind one of their camels, we also were obliged to abandon the camel upon whose strength we had hitherto placed our chief reliance.

About eleven miles beyond the northern well Máfaras, we halted during the heat of the day in a spot entirely destitute of herbage, and made another stretch of fifteen miles in the afternoon, leaving the well- known mound of Fája, along which the road leads to Tibésti, at some distance on our right. In order to recruit the strength of the camels, we gave them a good supper of dates, ground nuts, and millet, so that each of the poor animals, according to his habits and national taste, could pick out what was most palatable to him.

[Sidenote: June 27th.]

A march of about thirteen miles brought us to the well “El Áhmar,” or “Máddema,” in an open desert country, bounded on the west by a large imposing mountain group, and distinguished by a great profusion of kháreb, or kaye, the whole ground being overgrown with “handal,” or colocynth, and strewed with bones. Here we passed an excessively hot day, the thermometer indicating 114° at two o’clock in the afternoon in the best shade I could find, and 105° at sunset, it remaining extremely hot the whole night, till after midnight, when a heavy gale arose. Nature here showed some animation, and beetles were in extraordinary numbers; we also beheld here a herd of gazelles, but no beast of prey.

At a very early hour the following morning, we started with a good supply of water, and after proceeding for about ten miles, reached a valley tolerably well provided with talha-trees, and overgrown with dry herbage. We were obliged to stay here the whole day, in order to give the camels a feed, as they were reduced to the greatest extremity: we had also to provide ourselves with wood and water. But although we stayed here till the forenoon of the following day we had only proceeded a few miles when we lost another of our camels, and thus were obliged to halt earlier than we intended. In order to retrieve this loss, we started before midnight, and marching the whole night, a distance of about twenty-four miles, and making only a short halt during the hottest part of the day, we encamped in the evening of the 30th, close to the well “El Wár,” or “Temmi,” having entered the narrow-winding glen leading into the heart of the mountain-mass itself, although caravans in general encamp at its opening. We remained here the following morning, when I found shelter from the sun in the cave where the water collects, which is of a cool and pleasant character, a heavy gale which had sprung up the previous evening continuing all the while. But we had no time to tarry here, this being the worst and most fatiguing part of our journey. Taking all things into consideration there is no reason to wonder how Mr. Vogel made no observation during the whole of this journey, comprising a tract of three degrees and a half.

Having filled our water-skins, and watered the animals, we pursued our journey before noon, and made a stretch of about fifteen miles. Starting, then, again at midnight, and marching twenty miles, only halting about four hours at noon, we encamped at night, but halted only for a couple of hours, after which we marched about fifteen miles, and again halted for the heat of the day. On this march we passed a very rugged passage, called “Thníye e’ seghíra,” where the rocks were rippled in a very remarkable manner, like the water. Having been accustomed to an intense degree of heat for some time, we felt it very cold this morning at sunrise, the thermometer indicating 68°, which was certainly a great difference, it having been 81° the preceding morning.

[Sidenote: July 3rd.]

Again we started, a little after midnight, and having passed, early in the morning, with considerable difficulty and long delay, the rugged sandy passage called “Thníye el kebíra,” we halted, after a march of eight hours and a half, having accomplished only a distance of about fifteen miles. I felt greatly exhausted, and I was the more sensible of fatigue, as I had a long march before me, the well being still distant; and after a most toilsome and wearisome stretch of more than eighteen miles, with numerous delays, and several difficult passages over the sandhills, we reached the well “Mésheru,” which is notorious on account of the number of bones of the unfortunate slaves by which it is surrounded. The water of this well, which is five fathoms in depth, is generally considered of good quality, notwithstanding the remnant of human bones which are constantly driven into it by the gale; but at present it was rather dirty. The whole country around presents a very remarkable spectacle, especially the tract closely bordering on the well to the north, and which, in a rather maliciously witty manner, has been called by the Arabs “Dendal Ghaladíma” (“the Promenade of the Minister”). It would form a good study for a painter experienced in water colours, although it would be impossible to express the features in a pencil sketch.