Travelling in Barbary.
It is extremely difficult, whilst travelling in this country, to ascertain from the natives the distance of any (douar) encampment of Arabs: the general answer to such a question is (wahud saa), "an hour," but this is a very indefinite term, being used for a distance from two to twelve miles, or more; therefore, as these people have no definite notions of time or distance, the only way of ascertaining distances, is by knowing the rate at which the caravan goes, which is a regular pace, and consulting your watch; by this means, the distance of any journey, however long, may be accurately ascertained.
Anecdote displaying the African Character, and
showing them to be now what they were anciently,
under Jugurtha.
A Muhamedan was sent to prison, for having killed a man; and after remaining there some time, it was expected that the Emperor's order would come to have him shot, or to have his right hand cut off, with which it was presumed he killed his enemy. A friend of the prisoner, willing to liberate him, that he might escape the punishment that awaited him, engaged a person well acquainted with the prison to procure his enlargement; accordingly he promised him a sum of money, if he would effect this purpose. It was agreed that the money should be paid. The liberator was then to prove to the man advancing the money, that he had accomplished his purpose. The night in which his liberation was to be attempted was fixed on; ropes were ready to enable the prisoner to escape over the prison-wall. In the mean time the next of kin of the man who had been murdered, sought the blood of the prisoner, and was persuaded by the man that had engaged to liberate the prisoner, that the latter was not in prison, that he had made his escape, but that the former would undertake to put him in his power, so as to enable him to accomplish his revenge. This was agreed to, and accordingly a sum of money was paid as a remuneration for the service. All matters were arranged, and the person who paid the money was desired to be on the rock, near the prison, outside of the town wall, at two o'clock in the morning, and there he would find his enemy. The person who made the first engagement was directed to be at the same spot at three o'clock. In the mean time the liberation was effected at two o'clock, and the prisoner was informed that his friend would meet him under the rock at three o'clock, to conduct him to a place secure from discovery. Soon after two o'clock, the next of kin to the person whom the prisoner had killed came and plunged a dagger into his heart; afterwards came the other man, and saw the body of his friend, whom he recognized. On expostulating with the liberator, the latter replied, "I have executed my engagement to liberate your friend; I am entitled to my reward: what has happened to him since his liberation is no concern of mine; see you to that. But I should inform you, that soon after his liberation, I saw a man approach, and fearing that I was discovered, I ran and hid myself under a rock. In a short time I returned and found your friend weltering in his blood. When I approached him, he had just time before he expired to name to me his murderer, who, he said, was the next of kin to the man he had himself killed."--Note, The Shelluhs consider it a duty incumbent on them, each, individually to revenge the blood of their family; that they are bound to seek the murderer, if possibly he can be found. Such is their invariable attention to this principle of revenging blood for blood, that I have known instances of men who have relinquished eligible appointments, to go into distant countries, several years after a murder has been committed, to revenge the death of a relation, after becoming, by intervening death, the next of kin of the murdered person.
The lamentable effects of this fatal retaliation is such, that one death often produces twenty murders, and afterwards involves whole kabyls in intestine wars.
It is remarkable, that the more duplicity they use in these horrid transactions, the more merit is ascribed to the agent; who is praised in proportion to the extent of his ingenuity, or duplicity, as was the case with the liberator above mentioned.
Every Nation is required to use its own Costume.
The Jews in West and South Barbary, have a predilection for the European costume, in preference to their own, the former being respected, the latter not: moreover the character of a merchant is highly respected by the Moors, and the European dress is a kind of passport to a man as such. One day, the Emperor seeing in the place of audience, at a great distance, a gentleman, apparently an European ambassador, ordered the master of the audience to go and see who he was, and what nation he represented; but it being discovered that he was a Marocco Jew, his scarlet and gold dress was torn from him, and a burnose, (a large black cloak, the costume of the Jews of the lower order,) was put over him, when he was buffetted and kicked out of the place of audience. The Emperor was exasperated at this circumstance, which he considered a vain deception: he ordered his secretary to write to all the ports in his dominions, to desire that Jews should wear the burnose, that Christians only should wear the European costume, and Moors and Arabs theirs; so that thus every individual might be known by their respective dress. On this occasion, an opulent Hebrew merchant at Mogodor felt so much the insults he was exposed to, from wearing the Jewish costume, that he actually paid several thousand dollars to obtain the privilege he had formerly enjoyed, which, in consequence of his being an opulent man, and a foreign merchant, was granted to him.