The village pleased me so much that I took a long walk through it before I sat down to rest; and after being treated most sumptuously with fowls and a roasted sheep, I passed the evening very agreeably in conversation with my black friends. The inhabitants of all these villages are Kánembú,[48] belonging to the tribe of the Sugúrti, who in former times were settled in Kánem, till by the wholesale devastation of that country they were compelled to leave their homes and seek a retreat in these regions. Here they have adopted the general dress of the Kanúri; and only very few of them may at present be seen exhibiting their original native costume, the greatest ornament of which is the headdress, while the body itself, with the exception of a tight leathern apron, or “fúno,” is left naked. This is a remarkable peculiarity of costume, which seems to prevail among almost all barbarous tribes. The original headdress of the Sugúrti, that is to say, of the head men of the tribe, consists of four different articles: first, the “jóka,” or cap, rather stiff, and widening at the top, where the second article, the “ariyábu” (aliyáfu), is tied round it; from the midst of the folds of the ariyábu, just over the front of the head, the “múllefu” stands forth, a piece of red cloth, stiffened, as it seems, by a piece of leather from behind; and all round the crown of the head a bristling crown of reeds rises with barbaric majesty to a height of about eight inches. Round his neck he wears a tight string of white beads or “kulúlu,” and hanging down upon the breast, several small leather pockets, containing written charms or láya, while his right arm is ornamented with three rings, one on the upper arm, called “wíwi or bíbi,” one made of ivory, and called “chíla,” above the elbow, and another, called “kúllo,” just above the wrist. The shields of the Sugurti, at least most of them, are broad at the top as well as at the base, and besides his large spear or kasákka, he is always armed with three or four javelins, “bállem.” But besides the Sugúrti there happened to be just then present in the village some Búdduma, handsome, slender, and intelligent people, their whole attire consisting in a leathern apron and a string of white beads round the neck, which, together with their white teeth, produces a beautiful contrast with the jet-black skin. They gave me the first account of the islands of the lake, stating that the open water, which in their language is called “Kalilémma,” or rather Kálu kemé, begins one day’s voyage from Káya, the small harbour of Maduwári, stretching in the direction of Sháwi, and that the water is thenceforth from one to two fathoms deep. I invariably understood from all the people with whom I spoke about this interesting lake, that the open water, with its islands of elevated sandy downs, stretches from the mouth of the Sháry towards the western shore, and that all the rest of the lake consists of swampy meadow-lands, occasionally inundated. Indeed Tsád, or Tsáde, is nothing else but another form for Sháry, Shárí, or sárí. I shall have occasion to speak again about this point when briefly reporting my unfortunate companion’s voyage on the lake.[49]
Having closed my day’s labour usefully and pleasantly, I lay down under a sort of shed, but had much to suffer from mosquitoes, which, together with fleas, are a great nuisance near the banks of the lagoon.
Sunday, April 27.—Before sunrise we were again in the saddle, accompanied by Fúgo or Púfo ʿAli, who had his double pair of small drums with him, and looked well on his stately horse. It was a beautiful morning, and I was delighted with the scene around. Clear and unbroken were the lines of the horizon, the swampy plain extending on our right towards the lake, and blending with it, so as to allow the mind that delights in wandering over distant regions a boundless expanse to rove in—an enjoyment not to be found in mountainous regions, be the mountains ever so distant. For
“’Tis distance lends enchantment to the view.”
Thus we went on slowly northwards, while the sun rose over the patches of water, which spread over the grassy plain; and on our left the village displayed its snug yards and huts, neatly fenced and shaded by spreading trees. We now left Maduwári, and after a little while passed another village called Dógoji, when we came to a large hamlet or “berí” of Kánembú cattle-breeders, who had the care of almost all the cattle of the villages along the shores of the lake, which is very credibly reported to amount together to eleven thousand head. The herd here collected—numbering at least a thousand head, most of them of that peculiar kind, called kúri, mentioned before—was placed in the midst, while the men were encamped all around, armed with long spears and light shields; at equal distances long poles were fixed in the ground, on which the butter was hung up in skins or in “kórió,” vessels made of grass. Here we had some delay, as Fúgo ʿAli, who was the inspector of all these villages, had to make inquiries respecting three head of cattle belonging to the vizier, which had been stolen during the night. On our left the considerable village of Bínder, which is at least as large as Maduwári, exhibited an interesting picture; and I had leisure to make a sketch.
Having here indulged in a copious draught of fresh milk, we resumed our march, turning to the eastward; and having passed through deep water we reached the creek “Kógorám,” surrounded by a dense belt of tall rushes of various kinds. We were just about to leave this gulf, when we were joined by Zíntelma, another Kánemma chief, who ever afterwards remained attached to me and Mr. Overweg, with five horsemen. Our troop having thus increased, we went on cheerfully to another creek called Tábirám, whence we galloped towards Bolé, trying in vain to overtake a troop of kelára (the antelope before mentioned), which rushed headlong into the water and disappeared in the jungle. Before, however, we could get to this latter place, we had to pass very deep water, which covered my saddle, though I was mounted on a tall horse, and swamped altogether my poor Bú-Sʿad on his pony; nothing but his head and his gun were to be seen for a time. But it was worth while to reach the spot which we thus attained at the widest creek of the lake as yet seen by me,—a fine open sheet of water, the surface of which, agitated by a light east wind, threw its waves upon the shore. All around was one forest of reeds of every description, while the water itself was covered with water-plants, chiefly the water-lily or Nymphæa lotus. Numberless flocks of waterfowl of every description played about. The creek has an angular form; and its recess, which makes a deep indentation from E. 30 N. to W. 30 S., is named Nghélle.
Having made our way through the water and rushes, and at length got again on firm ground, we made a momentary halt to consider what next to do. Háj Beshír had taught me to hope that it would be possible to reach on horseback the island Sóyurum, which extends a long way into the lake, and whence I might have an extensive view over the Kálu kemé and many of the islands; but my companions were unanimously of opinion that the depth of the water to be crossed for many miles exceeded the height of my horse; and although I was quite ready to expose myself to more wetting, in order to see a greater portion of this most interesting feature of Central Africa, I nevertheless did not think it worth while to ride a whole day through deep water, particularly as in so doing I should not be able to keep my chronometer and my compass dry; for these were now the most precious things which I had on earth, and could not be replaced and repaired so easily as gun and pistols. But moreover my horse, which had never been accustomed to fatigue, and had not been well fed, had become quite lame, and seemed scarcely able to carry me back to Kúkawa. I therefore gave up the idea of visiting the island, which in some years, when the lake does not rise to a great height, may be reached with little inconvenience,[50] and followed my companions towards the large village of Káwa.
Passing over fields planted with cotton and beans, but without native corn, which is not raised here at all, we reached Káwa after an hour’s ride, while we passed on our left a small swamp. Káwa is a large straggling village, which seems to enjoy some political pre-eminence above the other places hereabouts, and on this account is placed in a somewhat hostile position to the independent inhabitants of the islands, with which the Kánembú in general keep up a sort of peaceful intercourse. What to me seemed the most interesting objects were the splendid trees adorning the place. The sycamore under which our party was desired to rest in the house of Fúgo ʿAli’s sister was most magnificent, and afforded the most agreeable resting-place possible, the space overshadowed by the crown of the tree being enclosed with a separate fence, as the “fágé,” or place of meeting. Here we were feasted with a kind of “boló-boló,” or water mixed with pounded argúm or dukhn, sour milk, and meat, and then continued our march to Kúkawa, where we arrived just as the vizier was mounting on horseback to go to the sheikh. Galloping up to him, we paid him our respects; and he expressed himself well pleased with me. My companions told him that we had been swimming about in the lake for the last two days, and that I had written down everything. The whole cavalcade, consisting of eight horsemen, then accompanied me to my house, where I gave them a treat.
I returned just in time from my excursion; for the next day the caravan for Fezzán encamped outside the town, and I had to send off two of my men with it. One of them was the carpenter Ibrahím, a handsome young man, but utterly unfit for work, of whom I was extremely glad to get rid; the other was Mohammed el Gatróni, my faithful servant from Múrzuk, whom I dismissed with heartfelt sorrow. He had had a very small salary; and I therefore promised to give him four Spanish dollars a month, and to mount him on horseback; but it was all in vain; he was anxious to see his wife and children again, after which he promised to come back. I, therefore, like the generals of ancient Rome, gave him leave of absence—“pueris procreandis daret operam.”
On the other side, it was well worth a sacrifice to send a trustworthy man to Fezzán. The expedition had lost its director, who alone was authorized to act in the name of the Government which had sent us out; we had no means whatever, but considerable debts, and without immediate aid by fresh supplies, the surviving members could do no better than to return home as soon as possible. Moreover, there were Mr. Richardson’s private things to be forwarded, and particularly his journal, which, from the beginning of the journey down to the very last days of his life, he had kept with great care,—more fortunate he, and more provident in this respect than my other companion, who laughed at me when, during moments of leisure, I finished the notes which I had briefly written down during the march, and who contended that nothing could be done in this respect till after a happy return home. I therefore provided Mohammed, upon whose discretion and fidelity I could entirely rely, with a camel, and entrusted to him all Mr. Richardson’s things and my parcel of letters, which he was to forward by the courier, who is generally sent on by the caravan after its arrival in the Tébu country.