About twenty miles below Tosaye is the post of Bourem. The chief interest of Bourem lies in the fact that it is at the mouth of the “Wad Telemsi,” or “Oued Telemsi.” This is a dried-up watercourse, descending from the heart of the Sahara to the River Niger. In olden times it must have been an important tributary of the river, but now water does not flow in it above the surface; below the surface, however, there is water, and for this reason there is a well-defined line of wells along the watercourse, and it forms a trade route for caravans travelling from the Sahara to the Niger. It follows that Bourem is a place frequented by caravans, although it is not of much importance in itself, and these caravans merely use it as a halting-place en route to the bigger markets of Gao or Timbuctu.
At Bourem there is found a curious coloured clay, which is used for houses. There are three colours of this clay, pink, violet, and white. The town itself lies up a small branch of the Niger, about five miles from the main stream. When the river is at its fullest the main stream covers all the intervening land, making one wide expanse of water with its small branch, and, at this period, Bourem has the Niger flowing at its very walls. The town is built on a high rise of ground, so is at all times clearly visible from the Niger.
Soon after leaving Tosaye and before arriving at Bourem, the river takes a decided turn south-east, as it enters on its course down the big “Bend.” Between this point and a prominent spur on the left bank, called Mount Tondibi, the width again increases to over four miles. As Gao is approached the width decreases to about two miles, and the channel is interrupted by several islands and large masses of “borgou.” On the right bank a ridge of sand-hills makes its appearance, running close to the water’s edge. This part of the country is the centre of a large rice-growing population, the quality of whose rice, if not the quantity, compares favourably with that grown in Macina.
At the landing-stage at Gao I was met by a French officer, who conducted me to the Commandant. As it was late that evening the Commandant would not hear of business being discussed till the following day. I was given a comfortable dwelling in the officers’ mess quarters, who, with their usual hospitality, insisted on my remaining their guest during my stay at Gao. On landing at Gao the first sight which strikes the visitor is a number of huge skulls of elephant, set up on high pedestals, adorning the front of the fort. These animals have been shot at various times by the officers stationed at Gao, and their skulls have been put to this rather singular use. Gao is quite the best planned station on the Upper and Middle Niger. A fine avenue of trees has been planted along the river bank; behind this lie the Commandant’s house, the fort, and the native quarter respectively. The native quarter has been built some distance away from the Europeans’ houses, so that there is a fine open space between them. The houses are substantially built, with big rooms and lofty flat roofs. The desert is behind the town, so that its well-to-do appearance is all the more striking.
I came across a class of people here whom I had not previously met. These were the Armas. They are a fusion of the Moorish and Sonrhay races, and are found in small groups between Bamba and Gao. Apparently they are a lazy, good-for-nothing people, who consider themselves superior to the Sonrhais and refuse to work. Now that slavery and serfdom are rapidly dying out, this tribe will find existence somewhat difficult unless they change their habits. The officer administering Gao told me he had given them notice that if they did not shortly show some intention of working he would turn them out of the town. In appearance they are more like the Moors than the Sonrhais, but are darker than the former. They have their own quarter in the place, and also have a mosque to themselves.
There are two fine mosques at Gao, one of which is three centuries old.
At Gao I used to stroll in the evening on the flat roof of my abode and gaze over the vast desert stretched out in front of me, wondering what adventures that solemn, forbidding expanse held in store for me.
The Commandant had arranged for camels for me and a guide, but they would not be ready for a few days, so I had a little time to complete my preparations. In the meantime the Commandant did his best to dissuade me from attempting to cross the desert, wishing me to return to Europe through Dahomey, which was the quickest way from Gao. His reasons were that my journey would be difficult and dangerous, and my chances of arriving at the other end of the Sahara in safety were remote. He said that quite recently they had had reports of the movement of a marauding party of Arabs who were within easy reach of the line of wells I should probably follow. Further, there was a bad stretch of desert to be crossed, called the Tanezrouft, in which there were no wells for seven days, and, at this hot season of the year, the passage of this waterless tract would be particularly arduous. I dare say he felt that it was his duty to try to dissuade me from my enterprise, and probably thought besides that he might be held responsible should any mishap befall me.
With some difficulty I explained that before leaving Sierra Leone I was aware of the hardships and dangers likely to be encountered, and that I should be extremely foolish to turn back at this point of my travels. Moreover, having obtained permission for the journey, I had no intention of abandoning it now. I think he was finally convinced that I was firm in my resolves, and he then gave up further attempts to shake them. To avoid any possibility of blame being attached to him in the event of any accident to me, I signed a paper stating that he had tried to make me abandon my desert journey, but in spite of his warnings I had decided to carry it out. He was particularly distressed because he could not send an escort with me, for in the hot season most of the camels of his troops were out at pasturage, and many had not recovered from their hard work of the previous cold season. However, I told him I had never expected to have an escort, and he must not be anxious on that account. As it happened, he was sending some stores and ammunition to a French detachment at a place called Kidal, about 170 miles north in the Sahara, and so it was arranged that this escort should accompany me, as Kidal lay on my route.
In the meantime we arranged a small hunting expedition to occupy the time till my camels should be ready. One of the French officers and I planned to go out to a place about one day’s march distant to hunt giraffe.