Sept. 24.—In consequence of the number of camels to be watered, and the large flocks of the Tibboo, it was not until the evening that our animals could drink; and even then we were almost obliged to take possession of the well by force. Our old Maraboot was struck by a spear, as well as our servants; and it was not until after I had mounted a horse and repaired to the well myself, accompanied by the Tahr, that we could complete this most important business of the day.
In the evening Tahr came for his present. I gave him a tobe from Soudan, a red cap, and a turkodie: the tobes and cap he looked at, and said, “Ah! this is very well for me; I am one, but my wives are three:—what shall I do with one turkodie?” Tahr now began a speech: he was greatly distressed that he had nothing to send sultan George. “By the head of Mustapha!” said he, “I consider him as much my master as the bashaw;—ay and more—for you say he sent you to see me, which is more than the bashaw ever did. I can send him a tiger-skin, and I will write him a letter—for Tahr’s enemies are never quiet, and he has no time to kill ostriches now. The well Beere Kashifery, whose waters are here like gold, and better than gold, and all that Kashella Tahr and the Gunda Tibboos have to give, shall always be, as long as he or his children govern, at the service of sultan George Inglesi.” He now asked for water, and began washing the ink from a paper which had previously been ornamented with a charm, drinking the dirty water, and rubbing it over his head and neck: when this was finished, he laid the paper in the sun; and I was a little amused when I found, that it was on this dirty scrap that he intended writing to king George.
Sept. 25.—In the afternoon of this day we left Beere Kashifery, taking a very hearty leave of Tahr. In order to save my camels, who had seventeen skins of water to carry in addition to their loads, as we were to be four days on our road to Aghadem, I hired a maherhy to carry two heavy boxes to Bilma, for seven dollars. The moon, which was in its first quarter, assisted us after sunset, but we were obliged to move on for at least two hours after she had sunk quietly to rest. We halted for a few hours, at a spot called Geogo Balwy (honey spot), and a little after midnight proceeded on our dreary way. There was great difference of opinion as to our route, which, probably, by following our own back bearings, we might have found better ourselves: but we were not yet quite so bold in the desert as on the main; and I insisted on the Mina Hamedee, the guide whom the sheikh had given us, being allowed his own way, and my confidence was not misplaced. By daylight on Sunday we discovered the foot-marks of the camels and slaves of Hadge-Boo-Said, a Fezzan merchant, who had absolutely been in the right track, but had turned back, and gone southerly. Numbers now exclaimed that we were wrong: there appeared, however, no sort of timidity about our guide; he looked confident, and bore the abuse that was levelled at him on all sides, with great coolness: and there was a sort of conscious ability about him that determined me to rely completely on his judgment alone. No man is ever afraid of doing what he knows he can do well; and in most cases a sense of power gives confidence: so it proved with my Tibboo. We continued travelling another night and day in these most dreary wastes, with nothing but the wide expanse of sand and sky to gaze upon.
On Monday the 27th of September, a little before noon, we observed something in the distance, which had the appearance of a body of men moving towards us; but from the effect of the mirage assuming different shapes, and sometimes appearing twelve or fifteen feet above the surface of the desert, the Arabs declared it to be a Tuarick party on the forage, and all our followers loaded and prepared for action. On their approach, however, we found to our great joy that it was a kafila from Fezzan: they had been as much alarmed at us as we at them, and were all formed, in front of their camels several hundred yards, in extended order, as the Arabs always fight: they gave us some Fezzan dates, which were a great luxury; and some of the traders who were short of water exchanged a jar of butter, worth at least two dollars, for every full skin they could so purchase. They told us the road was perfectly safe, although their fears of falling in with the Tuaricks had detained them seventy-two days on the journey from Mourzuk.
It is scarcely possible to convey an idea of the sensations of all parties on a meeting of this nature on the desert. The Arabs were equally alive to these feelings as ourselves; and, in their usual wild expressive manner, sang, for days after such a rencontre, ballads descriptive of the event[59].
We halted at noon, at a place called Gassooma-foma. In the afternoon we moved again; and the guides told me that the road was so difficult that, until the moon fell, we should make the best of our way, and then rest. On these occasions we pitched no tents, but laid the boxes together; and, either with a little boiled kouskosou, or still oftener without, soon forgot our fatigues in sleep. When we saw the black ridge that extends along the wadey of Aghadem, the negroes, female slaves, and followers, set up screams of joy, and began dancing and singing with all their might. It was almost noon when we got to the well, and several slaves, belonging to an old Shouaa who was going to Hage, were speechless from want of water; yet they ran several miles to reach the well, like things distracted, with their mouths open, and eyes starting from their heads.
On the 2d of October we left Aghadem, and by the help of a blessed moon we were enabled to travel until near midnight, without losing our way. A very sharp storm of wind from the east obliged us to halt; and we had scarcely time to shelter ourselves with the skins and boxes, before it came on with most disagreeable force: this detained us until daylight, when we rose from between the hillocks of sand that had formed on each side of us in the night.
We had the satisfaction throughout our journey to find, that, young as we were at desert travelling, yet we got on as well, if not better, than our companions; and though children of the soil, they always looked to us, instead of us to them, both for safety and protection, as well as for the direction of the route. It was noon on Thursday the 7th, when we made Zow, an oasis situated under some high black sandstone hills, where there is good water and ahgul in abundance for the camels, who had scarcely broken their fast since leaving Dibla. Zow is most appropriately named “difficult,” from the road which leads to it—a frightful sandy waste of moveable sand hills, exceeding fifty miles. Some little girls, and children of the kafila, panting with thirst, augmented by fever and illness, were scarcely able to creep along the deep sand: the whip shaken over the head urged them on—for in justice it must be said, the Arabs use it but rarely in any other way—and not to urge them on would be still more cruel, for the resolution and courage of these poor things would never carry them through; they would lie down, and if sleep once overcame them, so as to be left behind, death would be inevitable.
Oct. 11.—We arrived at Bilma. Without the supply of dates, which are procured here, kafilas would often suffer extreme hunger, so scarce are provisions, and so difficult is the transport: all followers from hence agree to have one meal per day of dates, and one of flour and fat; while, previous to arriving at Bilma, they are obliged to have two of flour and fat. Slaves of poor merchants will for twenty days together be fed by a handful of dates, night and morning, and they generally thrive well on this nourishing food.
Oct. 15.—We laid in a stock of dates for the next fourteen days, and man and beast were nearly subsisted upon them: a camel-load is worth from four to five dollars; they will, however, take camels’ flesh eagerly instead of money, or Soudan goods at one hundred per cent. profit. Our tents were surrounded by daylight with women and men; the former to sell us their commodities, and the latter to look on.