Wednesday, June 12. Moved up the valley for about four miles, and halted at a small town, Kharaik, having passed two in our course. Valley, fine groves of palm trees, with cultivated patches; water good, depth of the wells as about Mourzuk; hills bound the valley on the south side, and sand hills on the north. The number of date trees in the eastern and western division of the valley is said to be 340,000. The first division, or Wadey Shirgi, extends from near Seba to within a few miles of Thirtiba; the other, from the termination of Shirgi to Aubari.
In the evening saw some of the preparatory steps for a marriage. The woman belonged to this, and the man to the next town. A band of musicians, accompanied by all the women of the village, dancing and singing, with every now and then a volley of musketry. One woman carried a basket on her head, for the purpose of collecting gomah, to form a feast and pay the musicians. They came from the village of the bridegroom, which was about a mile distant. The marriage was not to take place till the feast after Rhamadan.
There are very few plants here. A species of asclepias, with milky juice; the agoul, apparently a species of ulex, has a fine red papilionaceous flower; species, with small obovate leaves, pod small and obtuse at the apex. A species of sweet-smelling rue, and two other plants in fruit, one like a veronica, and the other I have not seen a similar one before.
Friday, June 14. Rain sometimes falls in the valley, sufficient to overflow the surface, and form mountain torrents. But it has no regular periods; five, eight, and nine years frequently intervening between each time. Thus no trust can be placed in the occurrence of rain, and no application made in agricultural concerns. The sheikh of this town is Ali, a good natured Tiboo, exceedingly poor, but very attentive, and always in good humour. The place is so poor, that we had sometimes to wait half a day before we could get a couple of fowls, or a feed of dates or barley for our horses. We are in hourly expectation of camels from friends of Hateeta, for the purpose of conveying us to Ghraat.
There are a number of ants, of a species different from any I have seen in North Africa. Colour, a light shining brown, speckled with a silvery white, a strong pair of nippers, like the large claws of a crab. They run with great swiftness.
Saturday, June 15. No camels have arrived, and we are obliged to remain; much against our inclination. Hateeta was conversing yesterday on the difficulty we experienced in getting away from Mourzuk, from obstacles thrown in our way by the people. He said that the dread they had of the Tuaricks was unfounded, and we would soon be convinced of it. He further added, that he could, by his influence alone, conduct us in perfect safety to Timbuctoo, and would answer with his head. He was indignant at the feelings the people of Mourzuk had against the Tuaricks, who, he said, pride themselves in having but one word, and performing what they promise.
Sunday, June 16. Our camels have not yet arrived; but we were able to hire two from one Mahomet El Buin, and with these we proceeded on to Germa. Our course lay along the wadey, which grew finer and finer as we advanced, the number of gummah and gussub fields and date groves increasing. The hills formed some small recesses; the tops of most were level, and all of the same height. Passed several villages built all in the same manner. Notwithstanding the nearness and fitness of the stone, the salt mould is preferred; perhaps from the want of lime, and the ease with which the house is erected. Another thing: so very little rain falls, that there is no danger of the fabric falling. Near Break passed some imperfect inscriptions, apparently Arabic.
About eleven arrived at Germa, a larger town than any in the wadey, but both walls and houses have the marks of time. We waited in the house of the kaid till our camels came up. The sheikh, Mustapha ben Ussuf, soon visited us. He is an old man, a Fezzaneer, dark complexion, arch of nose small, tip depressed, and alæ expanded, lips a little thick, but mouth not large, hair black, and from the appearance of the beard, woolly. His ancestors are natives of this place; and his features may be considered as characteristic of the natives of Fezzan.
Monday, June 17. We had many accounts of inscriptions being here, which the people could not read. We were conducted to-day by Sheikh Mustapha to examine a building, different, as he stated, from any in the country. When we arrived, we found, to our satisfaction, it was a structure which had been erected by the Romans.
There were no inscriptions to be found, although we carefully turned up a number of the stones strewed about, but a few figures and letters rudely hewn out, and evidently of recent date. We imagined we could trace some resemblance to the letters of Europe, and conjectured that they had been hewn out by some European traveller at no very distant period. Our thoughts naturally went back to Hornemann; but again we had no intelligence of his having been here. In short, to confess the truth, we did not know what to make of them, till we afterwards made the discovery of the Targee writing. This building is about twelve feet high, and eight broad. It is built of sandstone, well finished, and dug from the neighbouring hills. Its interior is solid, and of small stones, cemented by mortar. It stands about three miles from Germa, and a quarter of a mile from the foot of the mountain. It is either a tomb or an altar: those well acquainted with Roman architecture, will easily determine which. The finding a structure of these people proves, without doubt, their intercourse here. It is probable they had no extensive establishment; otherwise we should see more remains. As we went along we passed by, and saw to the westward, the remains of ancient Germa. It appeared to occupy a space more extensive than the present town. We were not able to learn from the old sheikh whether any old coins were ever found, or any building similar to this, in the vicinity. Was this the track merely of the Romans into the interior, or did they come to the valley for dates?