These people are very candid and confiding, when they are acquainted with a person; they then seldom or never make a secret of their actions,—never, indeed, unless they believe their personal or the public interest to be endangered by the communication. The people of a similar race in the neighbouring countries are of the same character: an observation, the slaves brought from these parts afford ample opportunity of making. These slaves are for the most part heathens, and this is the chief reason why they, and the tribes allied to them, are rather harshly treated. If, in the course of time, they adopt the faith of Islam, they are at least treated more like one of the family, although not liberated. The fate of these unfortunate beings is, on the whole, dreadful; for deprived of the greatest blessing, their liberty, they are forced to perform hard labour, and indeed in fetters, in which they are bound to prevent them from running away to their native hills, frequently in sight of their place of captivity. These fetters, unlike the irons with which convicts are laden in Europe, consist of rings round both ankles, kept asunder by an iron bar, attached to the rings round the ankles by two smaller rings. Thus the slave can make but one pace at a time, and never approximate his two feet. The large rings open on one side sufficiently to admit the ankle, and in adjusting them they are welded together with a large stone, in lieu of a hammer. The slave, on these occasions, is laid upon the ground, and a stone is pushed under his foot to serve the purpose of an anvil. Every precaution is, indeed, taken in putting on the irons, but the unfortunate being feels severe pain with every blow. Some few fetters may be met with furnished with locks, which, however, are very rare luxuries. To prevent the rings from excoriating the ankles, rags are interposed between the iron and the skin. If the operation of putting on the irons be attended with pain, the slaves suffer infinitely more when they are taken off. On the latter occasion one side of the ring is firmly attached to a tree, the slave lays himself down on his back, and about eight people pull in the direction opposite to the tree, at a cord attached to the ring, until it is sufficiently opened to allow the ankle to be disengaged. A quarter of an hour is sometimes spent in efforts to remove the trammels.
The negroes are, generally, at the commencement of their slavery, morose, and speak very little, unless spoken to. Their thoughts are continually directed to their homes, or at work inventing all manner of means of escape, for the prevention of which they are bound in irons. They are all powerful men, and are put to agricultural labour, very few of this race being sent to Egypt. Many of them are aware that urine will, in time, corrode iron, and this knowledge enables them, occasionally, to succeed in gradually ridding themselves of their fetters, when they, of course, immediately decamp. A negro who had liberated himself in this manner told me he had resorted to this process himself. His flight, however, unfortunately failed, for he was soon caught and brought back again. Fourteen whole months were required to soften the iron, before he could complete his work of breaking it through with a stone. There are many slaves who do not wear irons, especially such as have lived many years with one master, who has become thoroughly acquainted with their character; but even these men are frequently, after many years, attacked with nostalgia, and then take to flight. During my residence in the country, a slave, who had lived seven years in one house, where he had walked about unfettered, suddenly ran away, without any appreciable cause. Another captive, who wore irons, volunteered to bring the deserter back, if his master would allow him, henceforth, to lay aside his fetters, assuring him, at the same time, that he would remain his slave for life, and did not wish for liberty. The master was, certainly, at first, rather undecided, but ultimately ventured to allow him to sally forth on this expedition, and furnished him, moreover, with a camel. He returned, in a short time, bringing the fugitive back with him. The master kept his word, took the fetters off, and bought him a female slave as a wife, whereas the deserter was put in chains,—probably for life. The girls walk about at liberty, because there is not so much fear of their running away. They would soon be brought back, are, moreover, very timid, and would be readily recognised in the next village; but they sometimes also effect their escape, as I had myself once the opportunity of observing.
A slave merchant at Lobeid kept eight girls, destined for Grand Cairo, together in one house, and locked them up carefully in a room without windows; to be yet more secure, he placed his angareb at night before the door and slept there. How great was his astonishment, however, in the morning, to find that all the girls had disappeared out of the room! He ran about, as if mad, to all his neighbours, begging them to assist him in his search; but all endeavours to find the fugitives were in vain, and the man firmly believed the Shitan[41] had spirited them away. In making a closer investigation of the wall of the room, however, a light was soon thrown upon the subject, for an immense hole was found through which the girls had crept and covered it carefully with a straw mat. It appeared that they had thrown water against the wall of clay, a few days before they had effected their escape, and were thus enabled to make the breach with facility, for these houses melt like sugar when water is poured upon them. Not one of these girls ever again made her appearance.
The natives of Kordofan treat their slaves with much humanity; the Turks, on the other hand, (and I am sorry to say, within the last few years, two Europeans also,) are guilty of the greatest cruelty, and are not deterred by qualms of conscience from staining their hands with the blood of these unfortunate beings. Thus, an Italian doctor bound a rope round the neck of his slave and strangled him with his own hands; another medical man, a renegade, castrated his slave with his own razor, for some trifling offence he had been guilty of. The man died of the effects of the operation. Mohammed Bey also, the governor of Kordofan, whom Mehemed Ali deposed towards the close of the year 1838, and not without good cause, treated his slaves most barbarously, as the following fact will illustrate. A female slave belonging to his haárem was guilty of some slight offence, which, however, enraged him to such an extent that he ordered her to be thrown into a distant well and drowned. One of the servants, happening to pass the well on the following day, found the girl still living, reported the circumstance to the governor, and asked whether he should liberate her, as the water only reached her arms; the tyrant, however, felt no pity for the poor wretch, and ordered the well to be filled up with sand, thus burying his victim alive.
The Arabs, or free people, to which the Bakkara and other nomadic tribes belong, differ totally from the aborigines; they breed camels and other cattle, and engage but little in agricultural pursuits. The largest tribes of Bakkara are, el Giomme Hababin under Sheikh Abdel Machmud, Elhawasma under Sheikh Moosa, el Messeria under Sheikh Labaeid, el Nassarie, Hababin, el Hommer, etc.; beside these, the Kubbabeesh under Sheikh Salé must be mentioned. These Arabs, as they call themselves, are, like the negroes, black; one tribe of Bakkara, (Hababin,) however, is copper-coloured, although they live under the same zone and lead the same kind of life. I very much doubt the tradition, that all these tribes wandered out of Arabia into Africa, during the great migration of nations in the seventh century. I know of no tribe in all Araby of black colour, and the climate of Africa could not have made them as dark as they are at present, even in a thousand years. If this discoloration be the effect of climate, why have not the red Bakkara, as they are here called, become black? for the copper-coloured nations more readily change to black than those of white complexion. Their features, moreover, bear no resemblance to those of the Arabs; they are, also, unlike the negroes; they have not the prominent cheek-bones and the thick everted lips; their hair is rather smooth than curling, and they wear a number of plaits. This race is, in part, of pure blood, and yet they speak very bad Arabic, whereas other Arab tribes, who live at a much greater distance from the parent country, as several tribes of Bedouins, have preserved the native purity of their language. It is far more probable, then, that these Arabs have been inhabitants of Africa, on the borders of the Red Sea and in the neighbouring deserts, since thousands of years, and that the red Bakkara, as they are termed, formerly inhabited a country under the tropics, for in their profiles, and in the manner in which they wear their hair, they correspond exactly with those figures observed on monuments in Upper Egypt and Nubia. In disposition they differ entirely from the negroes, for they are stupid, proud, and very suspicious, despise every one who is not of their caste, and endeavour, moreover, to overreach every person with whom they may have dealings. The traveller cannot be too well on his guard against them. In concluding a bargain with them it is necessary that some one be present who does not belong to their tribe, or the stranger may make sure of being imposed upon. The chastity of their wives and daughters is very praiseworthy.
The Dongolavi, a race of people distributed, under different denominations, over a great part of Africa, are men of athletic build, on whom little fat is seen, but the more muscle and sinew. They have well formed features, but deeply set and very sparkling eyes; their beards are weak, and they mostly only wear a moustache, less frequently an additional tuft on the under lip. They do not show age, except they are very old and the beard has become grey. They vary in colour from bronze to jet black; this difference is owing to the circumstance of their having mixed much with other nations, and intermarried. Their language resembles that of the Nuba in its etymology. The Dongolavi are the most opulent inhabitants of Kordofan, and nearly the whole of the export trade by caravan is in their hands. They, also, carry on the less important home trade with the negroes in the hills, with whom they barter for slaves, ivory, etc. They have immigrated from Dongola into Kordofan, and are to be met with in other negro states, where they have become residents chiefly for the sake of the trade. The Dongolavi have frequently, also, been obliged to fly and settle in different places, on account of debt or other offences; they are of very cheerful disposition, but shun all manner of work. They are the greatest liars on the face of the earth, for truth never proceeds from their mouths; they will, indeed, rather allow themselves to be murdered than speak the truth, especially if their interests be concerned. In trading with them, they should never be trusted with cash, which would be irrecoverably lost, for they will part with their wives and children rather than with money. They know no gratitude, and understand merely how to flatter. If a person accept anything of them, he may rest assured that they will demand, at least, twice as much as it is worth, on the following day. Their women are very frivolous. Servants of this tribe should be carefully avoided; and I advise, indeed, every European about to travel in Kordofan to hire his servant at Cairo.
CHAPTER VI.
THE BAKKARA. (NOMADIC TRIBES.)
There are several large and small tribes of this nomadic people in the country who have no fixed places of residence, but change them frequently in the same year. They inhabit the districts situated towards the south, south-east, and south-west of Lobeid. Each tribe, whether large or small, is governed by its sheikh, who may be regarded almost as an absolute monarch; as all the rest of the tribe, with the exception of a few under-sheikhs, are totally dependent upon him, and may, indeed, be considered as his serfs. They pay tribute to Kordofan, consisting of about twelve thousand oxen, a little gold, and a few slaves; but the contribution must generally be collected by force. They are not reckoned among the other inhabitants of the five districts; but when the time for levying the tribute arrives, they are hunted out, tribe by tribe, and—plundered. They do not cultivate agriculture, excepting on the lake of Arrat, where a little rice, of an inferior quality, is grown. Their occupation consists otherwise in breeding horned cattle, and, besides herds of kine, they possess a few horses and camels. The sheikhs are all wealthy, and carry on a considerable trade in cattle, butter, and slaves, the latter of which they steal from the bordering countries. They are a very warlike and depredatory race, and live in a continual state of warfare, not only with their neighbours, but even among themselves; for if two Bakkara tribes meet, or are merely encamped near each other, there is sure to be bloodshed; nor does the conflict terminate until the weaker tribe succumbs, or is driven away. With the commencement of the hot season, they wander into distant regions, unknown to the governor of Kordofan, into which he dare not venture to penetrate to levy the taxes, as this measure would be attended with great danger to his troops. It is, indeed, impossible for the government to send a large force, as it would meet with many obstacles, and a small detachment would not answer the purpose, for it might be easily intercepted, and totally cut up. Thus this people enjoy exemption from all contributions during the dry season. The government, however, suffers no loss thereby, for it knows full well that they will, in a short time, be forced to leave the safe districts beyond the boundaries of Kordofan, and thus return spontaneously into the hands of their oppressors. There is, perhaps, no people who have so many and such dangerous enemies. All the negro tribes, without exception, persecute the Bakkara from one region to the other, on account of the slaves they have kidnapped, and endeavour, by all possible means, to revenge themselves on them. The government does all in its power to torment this people in the most piteous manner; and, lastly, add the quarrels of the tribes among themselves. Annoyances of this description would be sufficient in themselves to force the Bakkari to change their residences continually.
But their greatest plague is a little animal, called Yohara[42]—a fly which makes its appearance in great numbers, in many regions in central Africa, in the rainy season, and proves very destructive. Its bite is harmless to man, but the more dangerous to cattle, and instances are on record, in several regions, of whole herds having been destroyed by these vermin in a very short time. The camels, who cannot defend themselves with their short tails against their encroachments, and must, therefore, of course perish, suffer chiefly. In Shilluk, Shabun, Runga, Kulla, etc., no camels are, consequently, to be met with; these countries, therefore, can only be visited in the dry season. The Djelabi are frequently prevented from entering on their march home from these countries betimes, and have, on these occasions, lost all their camels by the sting of this fly. This insect is also the chief cause of the Bakkari leaving these parts of the country, which are otherwise so safe for them, and so advantageous for their cattle; it forces them, in fact, to deliver themselves into the hands of the Turks. Their habits are very simple, and they occupy themselves with attending to the cattle, and occasionally with warlike exercises.