31st.—At length the rear traps arrived, but one camel, having been taken ill on the march this morning whilst coming from Abi, was slaughtered to "save" his flesh, and devoured by my hungry men. As soon as everything had arrived, and the men were made aware of my intention to push forward, they requested their discharge, affecting fear to enter on a strange land, but in reality seeing I had no cloths left to pay them, as afterwards transpired. This deficiency I visited on the Abban, who, in trying to excuse himself for inefficiency in his protectorship, meekly said he had been grieved to see the very rapid decline of my property, but he could not help it, as I had so many thieves in my employment!!! Mrs Awado now came over from Birhamir, bringing a sheep and some ghee as a present for me; but I refused taking anything from the relative of the Abban, and this appeared to grieve her much. She said she had heard of all my disputes with Sumunter, her son, and had remonstrated with him about them; he was a proud man, and easily led away by vanity. She could see his being at variance with me would not end to his advantage on his return to Aden, and tried coaxing him to journey with me; but at the same time told me he would have to be well upon his guard, as in former years he had married clandestinely with a damsel of the Rheer Hamaturwa, a sub-tribe of the Habr Gerhajis, who occupy the hill-range overlooking Bunder Héis; and her loss to those people would be avenged at once, if he ever came within their power. The Rheer Hamaturwa had heard of my intention to journey westwards, and would be in readiness to descend upon and intercept our march, kill Sumunter, and destroy the whole of us; indeed, they had sent messages to that effect.
Chapter IV.
Meditations among the Tombs—A Fracas—The Return March—The
North-east Monsoon—Relief from Persecution—Interesting Animals—Gori
Again—Shooting a Woman—Arrival at Aden—Fresh Projects—Arrangements.
3d January 1855.—During these three days I visited a ruined musjid and a cemetery, which, though much resembling the one at Rhut in every respect, was said to be of more recent origin, and built by Mohammedans. On my walking amongst the tombs, and inspecting the crosses[20] at their heads, the interpreter rebuked me for sacrilegious motives, and desired me to come away, lest the Dulbahantas should find it out, and be angry with me. Besides this, I daily tried to draw Sumunter, like a badger, from his hut, which was four miles distant from my tent, but without effect. He and his wife, two dwarf sisters (little bits of things, who, the interpreter said, were too small to be of any use), and some children, all lived together in a small beehive hut, so low that they had to crawl in on all-fours, and so small that it was marvellous how they could turn round in it. At length to-day he arrived in a sullen angry mood, and said, haughtily, he was displeased at my trying to force him into compliance, as if I had the power to make him move unless he chose. It was impossible to keep one's temper under such constant provocation; so I abused him vehemently, and warned him off the camp, again repeating he had abused his commission, as well as the Government authorities who engaged him,—and entreated he would "get away," and let me take my chance of proceeding how I could, for his presence simply made my position one of purgatory. He laughed in scorn, wishing to know if I thought I could do anything without him,—and said he had only to turn his back an instant, and the Dulbahantas were ready to devour me. I still persisted; and then he said, "If you say go once more, I take you at your word; and see you to the consequences."
My resolution was fixed; for I plainly saw I could not by any possibility be worse off. He now tried frightening me by assembling the Dulbahantas to confirm his words, making them say they only permitted my residence there out of the love they bore to their brother Sumunter, and that they certainly would kill me if he once left the place. They did not fear guns. The English could not reach them; besides, their fathers had driven Christians from these lands; and if an army was to attack them, they would assemble so many cavalry, and ride in such rapidity around them, that their gunners could not take aim in consequence of the clouds of dust which this feat would occasion. In addition to this, they thought the English only efficacious behind walls; else, why did they not take revenge upon the Arabs at Lahej, two years ago, for the murder of an officer? They had often heard of the English threatening and preparing to do it, but somehow they never carried their intention into execution. I treated these vain bombastic words with the contempt which they deserved,—but said, I only wanted Sumunter to take me on, or otherwise to leave me to my fate. They then tried weakening my party by bribing Farhan to side with them and leave; but the noble-hearted Seedi disclosed their treachery, and gallantly said he would share misfortunes with me, and fight, if necessary, to the last extremity.
Imam, tame-hearted Indian, got in a dreadful fright, and implored I would compromise the matter; for by this time all the camels had been driven away; and the Warsingali moved off with Sumunter, saying I brought the rupture by my obstinacy on my own head, and that as soon as they were out of sight, the Dulbahantas would walk in and kill us all in a heap. I then loaded all the guns, and, giving one to each of the servants, sat on the boxes waiting to see the up-shot. I was clearly outmanoeuvred—unable to move or get anything—but still was, to use their own expression, "obstinate." After proceeding a certain distance, the retiring band, with Sumunter at their head, sitting fully equipped with spear and shield on his war-steed, came to a halt, and invited the interpreter to meet them, presuming, they said, there might be some mistake, and therefore they wished to open negotiations afresh. Sumunter then gave me back my own words, saying, "If the Sahib would only say he wished me to take him to Berbera, I will give some small presents to the Akils of the Dulbahantas as a passport for him, and proceed at once;" for they were only endeavouring to feel my disposition towards them, and did not intend desertion, if I was not irredeemably incensed against them. They then came back, and work began afresh, by the distribution of presents, which, as is usual when no man can bear to see the smallest trifle slip from his grasp to be given to another, was a matter of no small difficulty in adjusting. If the Dulbahantas did not succeed in skinning me of all my effects, they naturally thought the next tribe would; and a whole day was consumed in wrangling and disputing how much they should get. This ended by my giving one musket, thirteen tobes, and my reserve silk turban; and now I was at liberty to quit Jid Ali.
11th.—At 10 A.M. we were loaded, and commenced the journey westward; whilst the Abban said he would bid his friends adieu at home, and bring five horses with him to Biyn Hablé, where he would meet us on the following day. The track led us across a flat alluvial plain, still in the valley, which was well covered with a thick growth of acacias, and dry short grass, nipped short by cattle. After walking five miles, we arrived at our destination, not far from a well, and made a ring-fence of prickly boughs.
Here for the last time I boiled the thermometer, to ascertain the altitude of the plateau along my line of march, and found its average height was 3913 feet: the minimum, at Rhut Tug, being 3077 feet—and the maximum, at Yubbé Tug, 4498 feet.
The following day two Dulbahantas paid us a visit, and demanded to know by whose authority we had come upon their grounds; we were trespassers, and must pay our footing. The ground was theirs, and they recognised no authority over them. What I had given at the last place was no concern of theirs, but I must give them also a quantity of cloth equivalent to it. This being refused as a preposterous imposition, they turned hastily away, and, tossing their heads, said, I might soon expect to see them again in larger numbers, when they would help themselves. Moreover, for my satisfaction, they could assure me that a number of men, who had learned which road I was bent on travelling, were fast gathering on ahead, to oppose my advance. In the evening the Abban arrived, bringing only two ponies with him.
17th.—It would be needless to recount all the varied incidents of the next five days which were wasted here, by the thousand and one stories which the Abban produced to fritter away my time near his home, and swindle me out of my property. The time had now arrived when by appointment I should have been at Berbera; and as I was not then aware at what time the fair usually broke up, I felt much afraid of being too late to join my companions. Sometimes Sumunter raised my hopes by saying he would certainly proceed on a certain date; and when that day arrived, the journey was deferred again, but not without severe rows, so exactly like the past ones as to be unworthy of description. One day we were ready, and I was to pass through any people that might fall in the way by giving large credits on Aden under his security, when the tide was turned again in another moment by the arrival of some accomplices, who dropped in like unexpected evils, to say the southern Dulbahantas had gained a great victory, slaughtering men and cattle, and the road to Berbera would be thronged with people, so that advance would be impossible for the present. This was a settler to my westward march; and now I thought of escaping from this land of robbers by turning northwards, and marching over the hills to Bunder Héis, where I could either ship off, or march along the coast to Berbera.