CHAPTER IV.
MONOTONOUS SCENERY. — CULTIVATION OF DATE-PALMS. — EL AES. — BOUNDARY OF THE TURKISH DOMINIONS. — REPUBLIC OF APES. — HUSSEÏN AGU’S FAVOURITE MONKEY. — CRUELTY OF EMIR BEY. — ADVENTURE WITH A CROCODILE. — BELIEF OF THE TURKS IN THE TRANSMIGRATION OF SOULS. — LIEUT. ABD. ELLIAB, THE DEVOTEE. — THE TAILORING PROPENSITIES OF FEÏZULLA CAPITAN. — A “FANTASIE”. — FEÏZULLA’S INTEMPERANCE. — GUINEA-FOWLS. — ABU SEID. — DESCRIPTION OF WATER PLANTS, AND GRAPES PECULIAR TO THE WHITE NILE. — THE AMBUK-TREE. — GEBL DINKU. — ABDURIECKMAN, CHIEF OF THE SHILLUKS, AND SULIMAN KASHEF’S BARBARITY. — HIPPOPOTAMIA, AND CURIOUS SUPERSTITION OF THE SAILORS. — THE DINKAS AND THE SHILLUKS. — THE LOTUS. — MOUNT DEFAFAUNGH. — TAMARIND TREES. — THE TAILOR-CAPTAIN, AND INSUBORDINATION OF HIS CREW. — FIRST APPEARANCE OF GNATS.
Nov. 29th.—The fires were still blazing on the shore when the drum was beat for decampment, and the sleepers lying around them were partly obliged to be awaked with good blows in the ribs. To-day, for the first time, we set out before sun-rise. Whether the expression I uttered in a conversation with the two Turkish commandants,—“We must make haste and gain honor from the Viceroy and Basha; for if another expedition should appear necessary, he will certainly place it under the supreme command of a ‘Frank,”—had any thing to do with these unusual exertions, I venture not to decide. It is certain, however, that they dreaded my Journal, for Ahmed Basha declared that he would have it translated into Turkish. A brisk north wind got up with the sun, and we sailed E.S.E., making five sea-miles and a half in the hour, according to the log, which gives, however, one mile for the current or rapidity of the river.
The channel to-day swarms with islands, so that we sailed by at least eight before nine o’clock; when we had one on our left side three hours’ long; others were probably concealed from us. It is really fortunate that trees always indicate the presence of an island, else we might have many times splendidly run a-ground, for the shallows are only slightly covered with water; and the grass, shooting above the surface, proves the frequent fluctuation of different channels. The voyage is very monotonous; though the numerous shallow islands are often grouped very picturesquely, and appear sometimes to bar the river, and to dam it up into a lake. Added to that, we have always the sight of a majestic stream, bordered by green osiers; but the verdure itself offers no variety in the foliage and form of the trees, no blending of colours, since it presents to the sight only mimosas, which are here merely sunt-trees. There is no rock, house, hill, or mountain here whereon the eye, wearied of monotony, can rest, and which might serve as the halting point of imagination; moreover, there is not a sound to be heard in nature. The gigantic American streams can alone produce a similar impression. Although the river in some places intrudes deeper than usual into the right shore, yet the limits of the inundation are always sharply cut off, whereas on the left side the water is seen continually between the dark shaded trunks of the trees, where even the lowest branches do not prevent it from running on in parallel gohrs, or deserted beds of the stream, into other tracks of the river, glittering especially at noon, when it is usually calm. Many of these, which now appear to us to be islands, will, perhaps, when all the water returns, join on uninterruptedly to the mainland. Two shots, the signal of danger to one of the ships, fall behind us, and are repeated by us and the other vessels. Thibaut’s vessel draws water; but the Turks laugh at his anxiety, sail on, and say that he is drunk (sakràn).
Towards eleven o’clock the wood on the right shore opened, and some tokuls were visible on the shore, at a little distance from the river, on a line of hills running parallel with it, and standing near those dome-palms we had hitherto missed, with the exception of the young copse on the water’s edge. The cultivation of dates, which might really be a blessing to the country, in Sennaar, as well as in the extraordinarily fertile Taka, is entirely neglected, although the gardens near the city of Sennaar, like those numerous gardens in Khartùm, afford examples of a very advantageous transplanting in these southern regions. They will doubtless give a refreshing appearance to the latter melancholy-looking city by their rich crowns of fruit, when they once rise over the clay walls and houses surrounding it. But the people, that they may escape the taxes imposed on every date-tree bearing fruit, will not plant and take care of them; neither will they cultivate cotton, because they are obliged to deliver the produce into the Shune at an arbitrary price. Ahmed Basha had 6000 young date-palms brought up by water from Sokkot and Mahass. The ground he chose in his caprice to form a close plantation in, with these trees, lay too low (for he wanted to save the expense of irrigation), and the Nile overflowing it, uprooted and choked with its slime the fine young stems. No Turk thought of washing the slime off and planting them again. The Basha did not grieve at this abortive work, and was even of opinion that the Nile had done well, for the lazy people of the island (Sennaar) would never work again if they once had dates, as is the case in the country of the Baràbras, who could never be good soldiers (askari).
We approached the place, and found only three people there standing by their watched boats; and saw, far on the naked plain, men engaged in driving their cows into the interior to secure them from us. The miserable village, which may number some fifty decayed tokuls, was called El Aes, although it is only a summer village for herdsmen and fishermen belonging to the larger city of El Aes, lying up the country. This city once gave the name of land of El Aes, or Dar el Aes to the whole region up to Khartùm, now known under the name of Wollet Medine, lying above Khartùm, on the Blue Nile. The city of El Aes is one of the principal colonies of the Hassaniës, and was at the time of the Funghs one of the three capitals of the kingdom; the others were Sennaar and the now almost deserted Arbagi on the Blue river. It is also a kind of emporium between the Shilluks and Sennaar, wherein the traders of El Aes, by their slaves, barter Kurbàshes (the whips commonly used here, made from the skin of the hippopotamus), tamarinds, dried bamies, and Uèka, in exchange for horned cattle, durra, and woollen stuffs. The Sheikh el Belled had prudently departed for Khartùm, and could not therefore wait upon us here with a contribution, to become our guide and interpreter through the islands, as he did the preceding year, when Suliman Kashef, without any ceremony, retained him on board ship with his son. On this account we did not land; besides, we feared that our men would desert.
Immediately above the village commences again the forest, and we see by the many dry leaves scattered about that the consumption of firewood, and consequently the accumulation of human beings, cannot be very considerable. As there was nothing to be got we did not remain long. Close to the left shore is an island nearly three hours’ long, one of those fertile plains so numerous here, six more of which we passed, though indeed of less size, up to three o’clock in the afternoon. At this time we landed some two hours’ above the so-called El Aes, near the old and partly withered trees, for the purpose of taking in wood for fuel. The ancient elevated river’s edge, up to which the water can no longer rise, being retained by the downs which are themselves washed up, is plainly visible on the right shore, through the light places.
Now we are beyond the boundaries of the Turkish dominions; that is, properly speaking, beyond the intricate and organized Turco-Egyptian system of plunder. Henceforth, tribute (tulba) is no longer collected. At my question, what people dwelt here, the Turks answered regularly, like the Arabs, “Kulo Abit” (all slaves.) I could not help laughing, and made them understand, to their vexation, that these people are free, and not so much bondsmen and slaves as they are themselves: that they must first take them prisoners to make them slaves, for which they had no particular inclination, and answered me very naïvely, “the slaves here are very numerous and brave!” (shatter.) This contemptuous expression, “kulo abit,” is used by the Ottomans, almost like the classical barbari—that same classical word which the modern Greek has learnt by heart from foreign schoolbooks with a good-natured orthodoxy.
The vessels not being able to reach the dry land, owing to the shrubs and trees, I had myself carried through the water to the shore, in order to take a survey of the country and to make a shooting excursion. I could not, however, make up my mind to use my gun, the only animals in the neighbourhood I could shoot being white-grey long-tailed apes, called Abelènk, similar to the Cercopithecus Sabæus, but more silver-grey and far larger. I had shot such an one on a former occasion, and the mortally wounded animal had, by his similarity to a human being and his piteous gestures, excited my compassion so much, that I determined never to kill another. Mr. Arnaud, on the contrary, took a peculiar pleasure in watching the wounded monkeys which fell by his shot, because, in the agonies of death, the roof of their mouths became white like that of a dying man. It was affecting to see how the mother apes precipitated themselves down from the old sunt trees and secured their young, playing before our feet, behind the high branches, and darted round the corner until another malignant ball reached them from behind, whereupon they let their young fall from their arms, but the little creatures clung firmly to the old one by running, climbing, and springing under her belly. They live together in families of several hundreds, and their territory is very limited even in the forest, as I myself subsequently ascertained. Although they fear the water very much, and do not swim voluntarily, yet they always fled for security to the high branches hanging over the stream, and often fell in, whereupon they, in spite of imminent danger, carefully wiped their faces, and tried to get the water out of their ears before they climbed up into the trees. Such a republic of apes is really a droll sight,—coaxing, caressing, and combing each other, plundering, fighting, and tugging one another by the ears, and, during all these important concerns, hastening every moment down to the river, where, however, they satisfy themselves with a hurried draught, in order that they may not be devoured by the crocodiles constantly keeping watch there. The monkeys on board our vessels not being fastened, turned restless at the sight of the jolly free life, and at the clamour of their brethren in the trees.
The Milàsim Auel (First Lieutenant), Hüsseïn Aga of Kurdistan, lay alongside us, and had endless pleasure in his little monkey. He shouted over to me, “Shuf! el naùti taïb!” (Look! the clever sailor!) meaning his little favourite, who jumped about the mast and the yard as though he were mad, ran down the ropes, looked into the water from the side of the ship, and then strayed from his master, till all of a sudden, he clung to the back of a sailor who was carrying through the water a package of dirty linen to the wash, and before the latter could lay hold of him made a bold spring ashore, to greet his relations, for he also bears the name of Abelènk, although of a much smaller species. He has been frequently carried from Sennaar to Kàhira, where he is called Nishnash and Capuchin. The long Kurd, just as he was, jumped overboard with his gun to shoot the deserter, in favour of whom, I quickly called out, “Amahn.” The little climbing sailor must however, from being a Turkish slave, and on account of his diminutive figure, have met with an unwelcome reception, for no sooner had Hüsseïn Aga stepped under the trees, than the monkey again jumped on his head. He came to visit me afterwards, and brought his “Naùti taïb” with him, who ought to thank himself that I interceded for him. Hüsseïn told me then, what I had often heard, that monkeys were formerly men, who were cursed by God. It really is said in the Koran, that God and the prophet David transformed into monkeys the Jews who did not keep holy the sabbath-day. On this account a good Moslem will seldom injure or kill a monkey. Our Turks, however, were an exception to that rule, when they could, by infringing it, gain a few base piastres; so likewise was Emir Bey in Fàzogl, on another occasion.