Through Timbuctu and across the great Sahara /

by A. H. W. Haywood

The train left at eight o’clock the following morning, so I was up betimes to secure a seat in the very small compartment which was all that was now allotted to travellers. Our train was to take us to Daru, a distance of eighty miles.

I was met at Daru by two officers of the West African Frontier Force, who have their head-quarters here. I was kindly invited to stay at the barracks during my sojourn at Daru, an invitation of which I gladly availed myself.

The barracks are picturesquely situated on the banks of the Moa River. The officers have a very nice mess and comfortable quarters. They have an English-built four-oared boat on the river, where fishing and bathing are also to be had; in addition there is a tennis-court in the mess-grounds, so that for West Africa they are extremely well provided for.

The Frontier Force Battalion in Sierra Leone is recruited from West African natives, and is a colonial corps, the officers being seconded from their regiments for short periods of duty under the colonial office. The officers are keen soldiers, and the men, under their able instruction, form excellent fighting material. They have done a lot of good service for the Empire in West Africa ever since they were first raised, a good many years ago. I spent that night at Daru, and next morning despatched my servant and baggage to Pendembu by road. In the afternoon, by the courtesy of the railway officials, I was provided with a trolly, on which I had a ride to the end of the railway, where I found my baggage already installed in the rest-house by the faithful Suri, my servant.

That night was passed in parading my carriers and allotting to each man his particular load. These men were to accompany me as far as the French frontier, where I had arranged to be met by a fresh gang. The next morning, the 9th of January, at daybreak, all was ready for a start. My escort, consisting of a non-commissioned officer and three men, kindly supplied by the officer commanding the Frontier Force, were well accustomed to their work, and had all the loads with their respective carriers ready. It was a curious sight to see these strange figures, each man squatting behind his load waiting for the order to raise it upon his woolly head. Their attire was of the scantiest and raggedest description. One man proudly displayed a threadbare frock-coat, so tattered as scarcely to hang together on him, while another had a red and yellow tam-o’-shanter jauntily placed on the side of his head. These carriers are a very merry, cheerful lot; however long the day’s march, however hot the sun may be as they trudge along with a heavy load on their heads, they seldom grumble, but chatter away to each other and crack jokes with their neighbours. Of course, carriers vary a great deal, both in their value as porters and in their disposition. The best carriers in Sierra Leone are the Mendi tribe; these people have been accustomed for centuries to carry heavy loads from the interior down to the big native markets near the coast, and are hard to beat as porters. Our road now lay nearly due north, keeping just on the British side of the Anglo-Liberian frontier.

Very soon after leaving Pendembu we came into the mountainous region which extends almost uninterruptedly along the border. The bush path here was very rough, and led us for the most part up and down steep hill-sides. This country did not appear to be much populated; occasionally a small village was seen half hidden in the bush. At rare intervals we passed a man carrying a load of palm kernels on his back, probably on his way to the nearest station of the railway, where he would dispose of his burden at a good price to the local trader. These people were Kissis. They have a peculiar way of carrying their loads. A kind of basket is first made of twisted palm leaves, in shape rather semi-cylindrical; this basket is packed with the kernels, and is then slung in the following manner over the back. Two braces are made, one to pass under each armpit and over the corresponding shoulder, while a third brace leads from the top of the basket and passes around the forehead. It is very noticeable that men who carry loads in this fashion are not half so well set-up as the Mendis, who always carry their loads on the top of their heads.

We reached the small village of Mafindo about three o’clock that afternoon, and here I decided to halt for the night. The chief was summoned and told to provide myself and my party with accommodation for that evening. I did not much relish the idea of sleeping here, as it was a very dirty cattle town; the houses looked like pigsties, and were evidently the habitation of cows as well as human beings. However, it was not feasible to push on any further that night as the next village was a long way off, so I had to make the best of Mafindo. The village itself is half in British and half in Liberian territory. The centre street, or alley-way, divides one country from the other. Each portion has its own chief with its own set of laws. A little cotton is grown in this part of Sierra Leone, each village producing sufficient for its own needs. Cotton is grown in small clearings close to the villages. It is picked by the women, who also clean it and spin it. The process is as follows. The cotton pod is rolled between two smooth stones in order to crush out the cotton seeds; it is then spun on to wooden spindles, and at the same time rubbed with bone dust to harden it. Cloth is usually woven by the men. West African cotton is very short in the staple, so that cloth is made in narrow strips about nine inches wide. To make a garment it is necessary to sew a dozen or more of these strips together. The cloth is coarse but of good quality. In some parts of the country exceedingly pretty-coloured cloths are made; some of these are quite handsome as tablecloths and similar ornaments.

The people themselves have few wants in the way of clothing. The men wear a scanty loin-cloth, and the women have a somewhat larger one, which is thrown round the body, enveloping it from the breasts to the feet. The children of both sexes run about naked until they are thirteen or fourteen years of age. Most of the wealth of the peasants of this region is in their cattle. The animals are small and the cows give little milk; but the cattle are sturdy, hardy little beasts, and seem seldom to suffer from sickness.

At last the chief came to tell me that all was ready for my inspection, with many humble wishes that I should find my abode comfortable. My friend was not a very imposing-looking individual. Although a chief, he was no better clothed than his dirty, scantily dressed fellow-citizens. He appeared to be very old as he hobbled up, leaning heavily on a stick. His chief pleasure in life was to take snuff, and his delight when I gave him a small present of tobacco is not easily described. Tobacco is a most useful article of commerce in these countries. Travellers should be careful to be amply supplied with the fragrant leaf. It will buy most things in the bush, as natives are fond of it, both for smoking and snuff-taking.

The country here is the northern limit of Mendiland. The Mendis are pagans, and are to a great extent governed by the secret society called “Poro.” The chiefs frame the laws of the country with the help of this society, and all land under cultivation is subject to the Poro laws with regard to the gathering of crops. When Poro is put on a crop the owner is not allowed to gather it until the Poro is taken off. For a civilized person it is hard to understand the signification of Poro, or to realize the tremendous influence it has on the Mendi people.