DONGOLAH TALE.
“Amnah was the most lovely of the daughters of the Nile: fair as the sand of the desert, the gazelle was not more elegant in form, or more graceful in its movements. Her bust was beautiful, and her skin soft and pliant to the touch. Her face was as the light of day; her eyes were bright as the stars; her teeth whiter than the polished ivory; and a lovely and ever-constant smile illumined her countenance. Nature had done her utmost; Fortune equalled her rival in loading her with its favours. Her necklaces were numerous, and of the finest gold; and great was the weight of gold on her wrists and ankles. Her hair was beautifully plaited, and decorated with the largest and rarest pearls, and broad plates of gold above her forehead; and two large and most precious ornaments set with diamonds hung gracefully from her ears. Her rat (cincture) presented every variety of colour; the skin of the hippopotamus was never cut so fine: it was ornamented with the most curious shells and pieces of gold and silver attached coquettishly in the most becoming manner; and the border of the rat around her waist consisted of coral and pearls. From her waist to her knees, only, this graceful ornament skreened her form; and there was not one of the youths of the village and of the neighbourhood, who had ever seen Amnah, who did not sigh and regret bitterly his being unworthy that her rat should be broken for him. ‘The houries of the paradise of the prophet cannot,’ said they, ‘be more enchanting, endowed with such ravishing beauty, or such extraordinary talents.’
Pl. 37.
| On stone by J. Hamerton from a Drawing by L. Bandoni. | Printed by C. Hullmandel. |
INTERIOR OF A DONGOLAH COTTAGE.
Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835.
“She was, at the same time, the gayest of the gay, and also acquainted with all the learning of her tribe. Her father and other travellers had related to her the history and customs of other countries, and from them she had learnt the traditions and wars of her native land. Every passage of the Koran was familiar to her; and it was whispered she had devoted herself secretly to the study of astrology (el ahlem el felek), and the more hidden sciences of the Arabians. At midnight she was often seen alone, gazing at the heavens; and for this reason the nomage she received for her beauty and understanding was blended with a certain feeling almost approaching to fear. Too beautiful, pure, and learned to be of this world, she was considered by the ignorant peasants more as an angel of light (melik e’ nour), than a frail inhabitant of earth.
“At the death of her father, after she had accompanied his remains to the grave, and for some time had lamented his loss, Amnah, weary of the constraint to which her sex subjected her, and anxious to visit those scenes which she had so often heard described, left her native village. The morning after her departure, at the entrance of a small town, she observed an old man covered with vermin. ‘My father,’ said she, ‘let me free you from those tormentors;’ and she began killing the animals, until suddenly the man fell dead at her feet. ‘It is the will of God!’ she exclaimed, and immediately dressed herself in his clothes, and pursued her journey.
“Thus disguised, and safe by the power of magic from detection, she procured a dromedary swift as the wind, and visited the different regions she had heard described; sometimes joining one caravan, and sometimes another. The immense treasures on her person were little diminished by this expense; when, one day, the people of the caravan with which she travelled perceived a cloud of sand approaching them, and shortly afterwards distinguished a troop of horsemen at full gallop. Amnah and her companions urged on their camels, but, finally, finding flight useless, they endeavoured to hide themselves in a large well, which the heat of the summer had dried up. But the horsemen had seen them enter, and, delighted to have their prey secured, they offered to the young leader of their band his choice, whether he would have for his portion the first or the last of the persons whom they should find in the well.
“Their chief, named Mustapha, was only twenty-one years of age, but renowned for his skill in the use of the matchlock, the sabre, and the lance. His shield, of the hide of the hippopotamus, was almost useless; for with his sabre he parried the blows of his enemies; with a slanting cut of his Damascus blade, which his father, who had travelled far towards the north, had brought him, he separated the limbs of his foes, and even severed the iron chain. At the shake of his lance all fled before him; and never was a matchlock in more skilful hands. In form, he was the perfection of manly beauty and vigour, and his mind was richly endowed, displaying a judgment beyond his years, and greater presence of mind in danger than the oldest warrior. The Koran he knew by heart, and his chief delight was in listening to the traditions of his country. Young and generous, he could never repress his indignation at the recital of the evil deeds of the tyrants who had reigned over the land: his eyes kindled with enthusiasm, and his cheeks glowed with pleasure and emulation when they told him of the valorous exploits of his ancestors, their generosity and hospitality. Like the rest of his race, much of his time was spent in excursions against the tribes with whom they were at war.
“Perceiving where the caravan had taken refuge, Mustapha, having the first choice allowed to him, said, ‘I will take for my share the captive at the extremity of the well: he who has most to lose will have fled the farthest.’ His companions cast lots for their portions. Some had young women, others young active male slaves; all with some treasure. None were apparently so unfortunate as Mustapha, who found at the extremity of the well Amnah disguised as an old man, miserably clad, the picture of poverty. His companions, with the freedom of friends, rallied him on the wisdom of his choice, in the following lines, which one of them sang, and the others joined in chorus[41]:—
‘Our chief, what wisdom he has shown!
God has blessed him with great judgment.
O, what a prize he has gained!
So young and so active a slave;
So splendid and costly his dress;
So sweet the scent of his body!
Our chief,’ &c.
‘He will lead your horse to the field;
Give you your lances in battle,
And ward off the treacherous blow.
Our chief, what wisdom he has shown!
God has blessed him with great judgment.
O, what a prize he has gained!’
“Mustapha bore good-naturedly the jests of his companions, and, not wishing to appear to despise the gift of Providence, although apparently useless, he led to his castle, as prisoner, the disguised Amnah. On his arrival, he asked her what she could do: ‘Can you cut wood?’ said he. ‘No,’ replied Amnah, ‘I have no strength: see you not that my arm is shrivelled up with age?’ ‘Can you carry it?’ said the chief. ‘No,’ she said, ‘my back is already double; I should sink under the lightest weight.’ ‘Can you guard the cows, or sheep?’ ‘Alas, no!’ replied Amnah, ‘they walk too fast and far for me.’ ‘Can you clean the horses?’ ‘I know not how.’ ‘Can you wash the sand for gold-dust?’ ‘My eyes are not good enough.’ ‘You are too dirty to make bread. Can you attend the geese?’ ‘I think I can,’ said Amnah; ‘at all events, I will try.’
“Mustapha gave her for her companion a dumb youth, called Yabebe. After some days, when Yabebe was bathing in the river, Amnah took off her disguise, and showed herself, to the astonished peasant, as the perfection of beauty, covered with gold and precious stones, her hair ornamented with fine pearls and plates of gold, and her earrings studded with diamonds: laughing, she sang to him the following lines[42]:—
‘Open your eyes, Yabebe:
See! I am young and lovely,
Covered with gold all over;
My necklace of gold,
My earrings of gold,
My bracelets of gold,
And gold round my arms,
And gold round my legs,
Gold on my forehead,
And gold on my rat;
Pearls and silver also.
Open your eyes, Yabebe;
See, I am young and lovely,
Covered with gold all over!’
“The astonished peasant left the river, and Amnah, laughing, resumed her disguise. On his return to the castle, the dumb youth made signs to his chief that Amnah was a woman, beautiful, and covered with gold. They surveyed her, and, not finding out her disguise, beat the boy for his improbable falsehood.
“The day afterwards they were at the same river: Amnah threw aside her disguise, put her ornaments together, and bathed herself, with the lad, in the shaded stream. The peasant went first out of the water, and unobservedly stole one of her rings. Amnah, having counted them, found one missing. Yabebe denied having taken it. Amnah beat him, but still he denied, and, escaping from her, fled to his master, and gave him the ring, describing, by signs, that she had similar ones on all her fingers, and was covered with gold and precious stones; that she was a woman, and that her beauty was, as the mid-day sun (jemeel mittel e’ shamps fel dohr), too powerful to gaze at. Mustapha sent for Amnah, and, flying suddenly upon her, tore open the rags that covered her, but fell senseless at the sight of such exquisite beauty.
“Great was the fête of the marriage, countless the camels and sheep that were killed. The music was incessant for seven days and seven nights, and they danced until they could dance no more. None, for many years, saw the brilliancy of her face, being ever in her harem, or closely veiled, when, occasionally, she appeared in public. The fame of her beauty, knowledge, and goodness was spread through all lands; the learned were anxious to converse with her; but none, except her husband, had seen her face.
“One day her dearest son fell from a tree that he was climbing. His cries reached the ears of his anxious mother. Without a veil, without a garment, she rushed forth. The crowd, on seeing her, fell as dead. They knew not if the effect was produced by magic, or by the power of her exquisite beauty. At her touch her son was restored; and, having clothed herself with a gourbab, and thrown a veil over her head, the crowd recovered; but the tree withered from that day: the branches decayed fast; the leaves fell on the ground, and it no longer afforded shade.”