IN AGUELLAL MOUNTAINS AT 3,100 FEET.
WE FIND A PRECIOUS POOL OF WATER S.E. OF AGUELLAL, AÏR.
Beyond Marasset we found a pool of fresh rainwater, which brought forth a general exclamation of pleasure, while halt was made to slack our immediate thirst and fill all our water-skins. Throughout this journey in northern Aïr it has been, excepting on one other occasion, our lot to subsist on the stagnant, foul-tasted waters obtained from old decayed village wells which have not been in use for some years.
We camped about 4 p.m. at a small village named Ebazouera, near to the edge of the expansive Agoras valley; a tiny village containing a few ruins and three standing stone huts. There was no well. Altitude, 2,300 ft.
18th June.—About two hours after setting out in the early morning we passed out of rocky land and intersected the Agoras river, which was then followed upstream until Assodé was reached about 2 p.m. The river-bed of sand is very wide, with shallow banks almost barren of trees. It was necessary for me to act as guide, as on the previous days; moreover, the natives now had implicit faith in my magic Takarda (map). One might think that doubt should not arise travelling in a wide river-bed, nevertheless it does; broad channels open up in the shores, outlets of other streams join into the Agoras, and more than once the question arises: which shall be followed of two broad ways?—which seem, at their junction, to both lead much in the same direction. However, when nearing Assodé, one or two of the goumiers, and the guide Homa, began to find landmarks with which they were familiar, and I soon learned that I need have no further concern as to our whereabouts, as the way back to Timia was henceforth known to the natives.
I may say that the French map of Aïr, resultant from the Cortier Geographical Mission, which had been kindly given to me at Agades, proved of the utmost service to me throughout my travels in Aïr, and is an excellent and accurate map if one follows it on broadly conceived lines. But one must form conception of proportion very expansively, for the scale (and, perhaps, the extent of geographical data) does not permit the inclusion of the abundant detail which this rugged mountain-land possesses. For instance, the chief mountain ranges and a great many hills and rivers are indicated, but there are hundreds, yea, perhaps, thousands, of individual hills and many streams which are not included on the map.
The village or town of Assodé (altitude, 2,475 ft.) is the largest I came across in Aïr north of Agades. It is strangely situated in a small stony plateau-basin, behind high rocky banks on the north side of the Agoras river, in country more hilly than that which borders the river further west. The basin, wherein lies the village, is completely surrounded with natural ramparts of small hills, and therefore presents the appearance of a place capable of strong defence in time of war. The space within the hills is in places crowded with stone huts, while, where huts do not now stand, the area is a rubbish heap of ruins where dwellings have fallen, and undoubtedly Assodé at one time was a place of considerable importance.
Among the ruins I found the ancient mosque of Assodé, the existence of which is known to every Tuareg in Aïr, and no doubt it holds a prominent place in Mohammedan religious history. The mosque stands, without any notable prominence, except in ground area, on the crown of a rising knoll in the eastern quarter of the village, with the front and tower ruins facing the north-west; possibly so that the main body of the prayer court and devotion cells face eastward toward the rising sun. The mosque is altogether in a sad state of ruin: roofs in places collapsed, lintels and door jambs fallen, and the tower (apparently never built to any great height) but a pile of fallen stones. Roughly, the mosque has a ground area of 135 ft. length and 55 ft. breadth, which longitudinally is divided into two equal sections: an indoor place of prayer and an outdoor place of prayer. The indoor section, which is the eastern half, is made up of five long dark passage-like aisles, varying from 5 ft. to 6 ft. wide, with stone walls, about 2 ft. thick, which are honeycombed with low door openings 4 ft. high, while the ceilings are only 7 ft. to 8 ft. high, constructed with timbers carrying an earth and gravel roof. The outdoor section is simply an open courtyard, surrounded by a stone wall and levelled off a few steps above the ground level outside. On the west of this there is a wing, 21 ft. by 78 ft., on a lower level containing a double row of aisles: possibly a special department for the devotions of priests. I found in the aisles great piles of Mohammedan literature, most beautifully penned, and regretted I could not bear it away with me so that it might be searched for ancient records relating to the history of the land. (Later I informed the French authorities of this literature, and it is possible that an effort will be made to have it brought back and preserved and thoroughly examined.)