Besides the Gobard and Hawash, no other river enters the Abhibhad Lake, although the extensive plain to the south, as far as the hills of Hurrah that form the water-shed of the river Whabbee, is drained by a stream, the waters of which flow close to the western side of this lake, through Killaloo to the Hawash. This is only during the rains, when this part of Adal is, I should think, one extensive morass, in which a chain of shallow lakes, communicating at times with each other, in a direction bearing to the north and east, forms a river called Waha-ambillee, which Ohmed Medina said terminated at Killaloo, but Ohmedu contended that it proceeded into the Hawash, just before that river entered its final lake, Abhibhad.
The course of the river of Gobard from the east, marks the descent of the water-shed in that direction, to the lower level of the country around these lakes. This small river, in length, not more I should think than thirty miles, flows directly from the east, and its wide bed constitutes a convenient road to the port of Zeila. In the time of Abyssinian supremacy over all this part of Africa, the communication with Gondah and the sea-coast, was through the populous and fertile oasis of Owssa, along the valley of the Gobard to Zeilah; and tradition still preserves, the memory of the once lucrative commerce, that was carried on with the then rich provinces through which the road lay. I was frequently told by Ohmed Medina, that gold and silks were the burdens of camels in years gone by, instead of the salt and blue calico, which is the only merchandise, excepting slaves, of Kafilahs at the present day.
The Hawash, in its course into Lake Abhibhad, bounds the country of Owssa on the west, the north, and the east, and the circuit is completed, by the ascending and descending portions of the river, being connected on the south, by an artificial canal called Garandurah; thus completely surrounding Owssa, and contributing considerably to the proverbial fertility of this Ethiopic oasis. The existence of this canal, and several subordinate ones for the purposes of irrigation, also accounts for the representation made in early Portuguese maps, that the Hawash does not reach the sea, but is diverted from its course, by numerous canals made by the natives.
Having obtained some idea of the geographical bearings of the watersheds of the Hawash, by learning the directions of the various streams which flow towards the centre of its peculiar system, the lakes in sight of the encampment, I endeavoured to decide our relative position with regard to the halting-places of previous travellers, as it was only by subsequent comparison with their observations, more particularly with those of Lieut. Barker and Dr. Kirk, who surveyed the road taken by the British Political Mission on its way to Shoa the preceding year, that I could determine the exact situation of the lake, for from circumstances, I was unable to make any meridional observations myself. From what I could then learn, the enterprising and zealous agents of the Church Missionary Society, the Rev. Messrs. Isenberg and Krapf; the French traveller M. Rochet de Hericourt, Dr. Beke, and the British Mission, had all taken a route, one short day’s journey farther to the east than mine. On the return from Shoa, of Mr. Isenberg, in 1840, that gentleman may have been brought to my halting-place in the Gobard; for in his notes I believe is contained the observation, that on that occasion he took a road much nearer to the lakes than on his previous journey. The reverse of this occurred to me when I returned from Shoa last year, and again visited this neighbourhood; for the British Mission, whom I then accompanied, retraced its former route, and we halted on the very same spot they had done two years before. This afforded me the opportunity of fixing my comparisons of situation upon positive data, but I shall not anticipate the result, as I return to the subject again in relating the particulars of my second visit to this interesting locality.
A long morning having been occupied in writing, discussing, and viewing, everything possible relative to the situation of Lake Abhibhad, towards evening I strolled about in the immediate precincts of the camp, attended by Lohitu and Ohmed Medina, the former having good sense enough to think a crumbling bank of the embedded shells would interest me, led me to a spot where I found in great numbers, the spiral univalve I have before alluded to. On our return to the camp, I shot one of those small antelopes to which I believe the Abyssinian traveller, Salt, has given his name. It was not so large as a hare, but very elegantly formed; the head light and delicate, with prominent black eyes, and little annulated straight horns. Its colour was a dunnish or iron grey, the hair rather coarse, I thought, for so small an animal. I had not quite killed it, and Lohitu ran up, but afraid of injuring his spear by missing his aim, and striking only the ground, he kept shaking it in mid-air, as if going to dart it at the poor thing, every time, that with a broken leap, it attempted to escape. Moosa and Adam Burrah, followed by a crowd of others, came running up on hearing Ohmed Medina shout for the latter, who being a very zealous sportsman, I had constituted my head forrester on occasions of the chase. The trivial cause for so much stir excited a loud laugh, and two or three of the boys rushing in soon secured the dying animal, over which a timely “Ul Allah” was said, and so sanctified it for food.
CHAPTER XIII.
Leave Gobard for Arabderah.—View of Lake Abhibhad from the ridge of San-karl.—General direction of march south, time occupied two and a-half hours.—March to Saggagahdah, general direction S.W., time marching an hour and a-half.—Meet Kafilah of Mahomed Allee.—Halt for the night.
April 18th.—We were on our march again by sunrise, Lohitu accompanying the party of the non-interested in the care of the camels, and who generally preceded them half an hour. Of this party, Ohmed Medina had assumed the leadership from the first day of his having joined, and I took care always to accompany him. We made a short bend towards the south, along a narrow water-cut channel, dark from the trees on every side closing their tops over our heads, and then ascended diagonally the steep, loose, stony face of the ridge of San-karl, forming the southern bank of the valley of Gobard. Having reached the top, Lohitu stopped suddenly to inform me that this height was the general place of assembly for all the tribes of the Dankalli, when combined in some military operation, against the Issah Soumaulee to the east, or the Assa-hemerah Muditu to the west. We were continuing our journey along the plain on the summit of this ridge, when the loud voice of Ohmed Mahomed calling after us, caused us to stop until he came up. On his near approach, he turned round, and with his hand directed my attention to a division very visible in the flat country to the north-west, which marked the course of the stream of the Hawash, and the valley of which, seemed to be not more extensive than that formed by the stream of the Gobard. I was, however, informed, that it was really much more extensive, and that an immense number of Bedouins inhabited the fertile district on each side of the river, for nearly two days’ journey before it bends round to the north of Owssa.
The precipitous termination of the flat country to the west of the Lake Abhibhad, was also very plainly seen over the tree-covered expanse, that marked the entrance of the Gobard, into that general recipient of the waters of Adal. A prominent feature of the scene also, on the opposite bank, of this stream, and to the immediate north-east of the lake, was the ridge of yellow gravelly soil, divided into numerous small denuded hills, that I passed along the morning before. On the south and west, the surrounding country was one wide stony plain, through which protruded numerous low dykes of lava, and at the distance of about twenty miles could be observed the summit of a single cone, called Jibel Obinoe, whilst in the opposite direction, towards Zeila and Tajourah, were a range of peaked hills, that formed the barrier between the Hawash and the sea, and the western face of which formed the water-shed of the Gobard river, flowing into Lake Abhibhad.