Next day (21st) it rained hard; but we went on a little to overtake Drs. Barth and Overweg, whom we found in company with Mr. F. Warrington, Mr. Vice-consul Reade, and Mr. Gaines the American consul. One of Mr. Interpreter Moknee's wives had also come out here, to have some settlement with her husband about support before she let him go. The gentleman has two wives, both negresses; and had already made an arrangement for the other, who has several children, of six mahboubs per month. First come, first served. The second wife, who has two children, only got three mahboubs a month. However, when matters were arranged, the pair became rather more loving. These settlements are always hard matters to manage, all the world over, and it is pleasant to get rid of them. By the way, a son of the worthy Moknee, by a white woman now dead—a lad of about twelve years of age—accompanies us, at least as far as Mourzuk.
The most remarkable persons, however, whom I found at the encampment were a couple of insane fellows, determined to follow us—perhaps to show "by one satiric touch" what kind of madcap enterprise was ours. The first was a Neapolitan, who had dogged me all the while I was at Tripoli, pestering me to make a contract with him as servant. To humour his madness, I never said I would not; and the poor fellow, taking my silence for consent, had come out asking for his master. They tried to send him away, but he would take orders from none but me. I gave him two loaves of bread and a Tunisian piastre, and also made him a profound bow, politely requesting him to go about his business. He did so in a very dejected manner. During the time he was with the caravan he worked as hard as any one else in his tattered clothes, and, perhaps, he would have been of more use than many a sane person.
The other was a madman indeed, a Muslim, with an unpleasant habit of threatening to cut everybody's throat. Hearing that we were going to Soudan, he followed us, bringing with him a quantity of old metal, principally copper, with which he proposed to trade. He gave himself out as a shereef, or descendant of the Prophet. No sooner had he arrived than he begun to quarrel on all sides, and, of course, talked very freely of cutting throats, stabbing, shooting, and other humorous things. Every one was afraid of him. He fawned, however, on us Europeans, whilst he had a large knife concealed under his clothes ready to strike. They were obliged at length to disarm him, and send him back under a guard to Tripoli. We here took leave of Mr. Reade, who gave me some last explanations about letters to the interior. It rained furiously in the afternoon.
We were kept idle a whole day by the rain; but starting on the second, turned off sharp in the afternoon towards the mountains, and encamped at length in a pretty place fronting the great ascent of Gharian. The appearance of the chain here differs in no important particular from that of any other part of the Tripoline Atlas. The formation is calcareous, but the colours vary to the eye by the admixture of minerals. Groups of sandstone are not uncommon. Rounded, rugged heads, vary the outline of the plateau; and here and there are deep, abrupt valleys, cut down through the range, with groves of fig-trees, almonds, aloes, pomegranates, and even grapes, nestling in their laps. Bright water-courses, springing up in the depths of these ravines, sustain the streaks of half-buried verdure.
We rose early to commence the ascent. It is not difficult unless the camels are very heavily laden; but we did not reach the Castle of Gharian until three in the afternoon. Our caravan dotted with groups of various outline and colour the slopes of the spur, up the side of which the track wound, in a very picturesque manner. Sometimes the foremost camels stood still and complained; and then there was a half-halt throughout the whole long line. The drivers plied the stick pretty freely on the gaunt flanks of their beasts; the cry of "Isa! Isa!" resounded in irregular chorus; pebbles and stones came leaping down at the steep parts. As we rose over the brown slopes, the thin forests of olive-trees partly covering the undulating plateau beyond, with fields of barley and wheat here and there, gladdened our eyes, and contrasted well with the hungry country we had left in the rear.
The castle, sufficiently picturesque in structure, is placed over a deep ravine, but is commanded by the mountain behind. We turned back on nearing it, and beheld the plain we had traversed appearing like the sea enveloped in mist and cloud. In fine weather the minarets of Tripoli can be seen, but now the northern horizon faded off in haze. On either hand the steep declivities of the hills presented a wall-like surface, here and there battered into breaches, from out of which burst little tufts of green, revealing the presence of springs.
There are 200 troops stationed at the castle under Colonel Saleh, to whom we paid an official visit; as also to the Kaïd of Gharian. In both cases we were hospitably treated to pipes, coffee, and lemonade. In this canton are said to be the fanciful number of "one hundred and one" Arab districts, inhabited by the Troglodytes. All the villages, indeed, hereabouts, are underground: not a building is to be seen above, except at wide intervals an old miserable, crumbling, Arab fort. The people are easily kept in order by the summary Turkish method of proceeding; for they are entirely disarmed, and matchlocks, powder and ball, are contraband articles. The first word of an Oriental tax-gatherer is "Pay!" and the second is "Kill!"
The outset of a journey in the East is usually employed in finding out the vices of one's servants. Their virtues, I suppose, become manifest afterwards. We were on the point of sending our chaouch back from Gharian for dishonesty; but as we reflected that any substitute might be still worse, we passed over the robbery of our barley, and merely determined to keep a good look-out. This worthy, though useful in his sphere, often, as I had anticipated, proved a sad annoyance to us. When he seemed to refrain from cheating and stealing, he rendered our lives troublesome by constant quarrellings and rows—he and his fellow attached to my German companions—Arcades ambo!
Mr. Frederick Warrington and the American Consul took leave of us on the morning of the 5th. Starting afterwards about nine, we soon left the Castle of Gharian behind, and continued our course in a direction about south-west, amongst olive-woods and groves of fig-trees. The country was varied enough in appearance as we proceeded. Great masses of rock and cultivated slopes alternated. The vegetation seemed all fresh, and sometimes vigorous. Few birds, except wild pigeons, appeared. Many of the heights which we passed were crowned with ruined castles, mementoes of the past dominion of the Arabs. We saw some of the Troglodytes coming from underground now and then, and pausing to look at us. Their dress is a simple barracan, or blanket-mantle, thrown around them; few indulge in the luxury of a shirt; and they go armed with a great thick stick terminating in a hook. They look cleanly and healthy in spite of their burrowing life, but are fox-like in character as in manners, and bear a reputation for dishonesty.
A little after mid-day we descried afar off the village of Kaleebah, which is built above-ground, and occupies a most commanding position on a bold mountain-top. It remained in sight ahead a long time, cheating us with an appearance of nearness. The inhabitants resemble, in all respects, their mole-brethren, and occupy themselves chiefly in cultivating olives and barley. Government exacts from them two imposts—one special, of a hundred and fifty mahboubs on the olive-crops; and one general, of five hundred mahboubs. We passed the village at length, and encamped an hour beyond. Here were the last olive-groves which were to cheer our eyes for many a long month—many a long year, maybe. Their dark masses covered the swells right and left, and near at hand isolated trees formed pleasant patches of shadow.