18th January.—Another bad night. Even now, at Asser, I have not recovered. The Frenchmen, indeed, have paid me a visit, consoled me with empty words, but cast looks at one another, the meaning of which I so well understood that I assured them there was no danger; I should see my brother again, whom I just at this moment missed very much. We sail, on the whole, S.W., see six to seven islands, and approach nearer to the high mountain. This afternoon I saw, on the left, a little gohr, which discharges itself with a strong fall into the river: they tell me, from the mast, that a second one is lost again beyond the right shore. It appears, therefore, to be fed by our water-course, whilst the other is a subordinate arm of the Nile from above, or a tributary stream. Four o’clock. From N.N.W. to E. A large city at some distance from the left shore. An incredible number of people, who go here also quite naked, are dancing and singing on both shores: our course is really a constant triumphant march. The bears on the vessels will half kill themselves with laughing. We have likewise here that sharp piercing cry which we are so frequently compelled to hear in Lower Egypt, at marriages and other festivals of the kind. This “Kullelullullulu” is therefore, perhaps, of Ethiopian origin, and recalls involuntarily to our mind the descent of tribes from the Highlands. To the right of the city a small island follows, and a pretty wood extends over the margin of the river.
Half-past four o’clock. On the right and left an island; and notwithstanding the breadth of the river, we have still a good water-course, which has increased here in rapidity, a sure sign that we shall come at least to higher regions. The poison-tree is still abundant, and does not seem to be considered dangerous even by these people of free nature; we see it even standing close to their huts. It is not yet sun-set. There is singing, with dancing, and clapping of hands, even far into the water itself,—a truly black joy: the women with their sharp “kulle,” the men with their bass voices, the boys with their treble, and the barking of dogs between whiles, so that I can scarcely hold my pen, and know not where to fly to for peace. They drag calves behind them, and swim towards us, whereby the greatest part of the glass beads thrown to them fall into the water, and there is a monstrous noise and splashing in picking them up. I was sorry for the beautifully-formed young girls, who went away empty-handed in this crowding and wrestling of thousands. With the most amiable countenance they pointed to their necks, shewing that they had no beads there. They were all laughing and in good spirits, and shouted to us “Màdam!” said to be a title of honour.
19th January.—We navigate this morning with a gentle north-east wind to the south, and shortly afterwards have those grass-islands at our side that lay yesterday evening before us. Here the natives offer us every thing: weapons, certainly the dearest thing to them; arrows and bows, long spears, light javelins, and their ornaments, consisting mostly of iron rings! And all this for miserable Venetian conterie, which perhaps may serve for a long time as an article of commerce with the inhabitants of the interior of Africa. The sky lowers, and was yesterday also somewhat clouded. The river is here universally four hundred paces broad.
When I look on the soil, I find that it is either percolated with sand, and forms a perforated black mass, like the humus in Nubia, or that the layers, being still unchequered or unworked, are disposed in strata one over the other, sand over humus, and this over mixed earth, &c., but in thicker deposits than we are accustomed to see in other parts of the Nile. The undulating direction of these layers shews a stronger water-way, and a more vigorous forcing on and off of liquid soil. I am now not at all doubtful of a high land. Another shallow island joins on to the above-named green river meadow, over which the neighbouring wood peeps forth refreshingly, with a large village. The natives accompanying us are brought, by the partition of the shore, to a place from whence they cannot advance; they stand and stamp and dance, always upon one spot, some holding a spear, or bow and arrow, in their hands, some a long stick, and others without anything. They sing in alternate song, and raise at the same time one or both hands in the air, or stretch themselves towards us, and draw the arm back again.
Eight o’clock. From S., a short tract to S.E., and then E. and N.E. Isolated, strong, ricinus plants, are distinguished by their dark foliage from the other vegetation, which is beginning here also to wither. On the whole it is wonderfully verdant on all sides, to which perhaps the heavy dew may mostly contribute. The people here have better teeth, but the four lower incisors are wanting, according to the custom of the country.
Nine o’clock, S.S.E. On the right shore stands one of those beautifully foliated, large trees, which I have not yet seen close, but which appears to be a species of Robinia. A large company of blacks, smoking long pipes, have collected under this tree. The little boys are excessively merry, blowing in concert their fifes, jumping and greeting, the latter meant for our boys, whose look pleases them more than our bearded faces. The green Haba of the right shore accompanies us cheerfully; the long procession coming out of the wood, to look at the strangers, indicates a very numerous population. Who could believe that there was in Africa this aquatic abundance, this fresh verdure, and this moderate heat, the thermometer having been for some days not above twenty-five degrees? At noon from S.E. to S.W. The river winds, however, immediately again to S., in which direction we generally return in the afternoon. The stream is about six hundred paces broad, and has a depth of three to three fathoms and a half. Here must we journey on, as far as our old planks will allow us, in order to reach its sources with the wind, which is mostly slack. The shallow island we already saw this morning does not end till about two o’clock, and the arm embracing it is broad, and so deep that the negroes accompanying us on shore are obliged to swim. An island deposit lies at its head, and will soon perhaps be united to it. Immediately afterwards, on the left shore, a large summer or pastoral village; on the right and left, singing and jumping of men, women, and children. Our mountain, of a dark-blue colour, on the right, suddenly looked into my window, and surprised me not a little. We sail S.S.E., with two miles rapidity. On the left is a gohr to S.S.E., into which the people plunge with loud huzzaing, so that they may accompany us a little longer. No beads are given gratis; the poor people must run, make the Turks laugh first, and give them entertainment, before it is determined to throw on shore these glass bits of paste, though Selim Capitan possesses an enormous stock of them, and then this generosity is only for the sake of seeing the bustle and noise of the great children.
Three o’clock. On the left an island, and the other arm embracing it, divides immediately a whole troop of people, with their bullocks, from our road; but there are huts and blacks enough on the island itself. We go W., and the mountain lies S.W. of us, as it appears, in its entire longitudinal profile, although we could not distinguish clefts or precipices. The scarpe, on the southern side, ascends to a height nearly equal to one of the ridges, makes a concave vibration towards this, and falls gently to the west on a break, rising precipitously only a little above the horizon. We see even from here that it is a mountain of moderate size.
Four o’clock. The high mountain lies W.S.W. of us, and, to my joy, I hear from the mast that another mountain, far higher, rises behind it to S.W., with three peaks (Tshokka, fork, spike). It must therefore belong to a high land, as I have already hoped.
The women sing their “kulle,” and throw the upper part of their bodies from one side to the other. I saw also the men here shake their chests with such agility and force, as I had never witnessed in the dances of the Arabs. How inferior all our gymnastics are to the natural nimbleness, and lion and tiger-like flexibility of these freely developed limbs! I see one negro jump up from the ground against another, with a piercing cry; he turns himself round whilst flying in the air, and stands with a raised spear—I might say upon his toe, bent forward for the combat—but he is immediately again appeased by the other. This was a pirouette, worthy of the plastic skill and hand of an artist. In the space of an hour, two other mountains in the south, we ourselves going southerly, are announced to me. On the right and left villages continue, but we see only here and there the top of a tokul, because they do not stand on the extreme higher margin of the shore. Large herds of cows glisten forth from the Haba close at hand, and others are scrambling down to the river to drink. This wooded region, directly on the stream, the proximity of the mountains,—we shall see what beautiful and wonderful things yet the interior of Africa may contain; and I will endure every thing, because I feel strengthened and excited by the mountain air blowing down upon me.
There are some trees as green as beeches in May, and having the wide-spread branches of oaks. Immediately afterwards, a large village with flat tokuls: the right shore presents here, in truth, a charming sight. One tree, I remark, having some similarity to the linden in its foliage, spreading out its boughs like fans, in fantastical forms, and standing there oddly. On the right and left are several villages, and also an island on the right side of the river. On the left shore, a large tokul city, with a large and small island in the river before it. The tokuls have nearly a pointed roof, but appear to be carefully built. A number of people have accumulated there, and I hear the “kullelu” quite plainly, trilling, in the sharpest treble, the accent “Ih, ih, ih.”