The Jiggua,[[151]] four days, and the Moozumbarree,[[152]] three days, &c. The interior is represented as a most fertile country, abounding in cattle and elephants.
I have not been able to gather any satisfactory information regarding the River Zambesie, its course, the town of Sofala, character of its natives, or description of the surrounding country. The Christian States of Yufat and Shoa on the confines of Abyssinia, with the large towns of Tombuctoo, Cashna, and Hoossayee, said to be in the interior of Africa or Ethiopia, under the government of Mussulman princes, together with the circumstances relative to the triennial voyages of Solomon’s fleet, from the Eslantic[[153]] Gulf to Ophir, are unknown to the inhabitants of this place; nor have I yet met with one who could afford me any satisfactory accounts of the River Niger, or Joliba, or the Nile of Soudan, or South Africa.
I have made lists of the Souallie, Soomallie, and Galla dialects, and shall add such others as I may be able to collect.
The coast from Cape Guardafui to Magadosho is arid and sterile; not a hut or a boat was to be seen, although the sea-shore abounds with fish. From the latter place the land improves, and on the line it becomes completely woody, and so continues far to the southward.
The trade of this coast is chiefly in the hands of the Arabs from Muscat, Maculla, &c., and a few adventurers from Cutch and the coast of Scinde. The principal imports at Zanzibar are Surat cloths, to the amount of about 12 lacs of rupees annually, besides beads, cotton, sugar, ghee, fish, dates, and grain, and about 200 candies of iron bar, which is partly distributed for use along the coast. English woollens are in no demand, consequently not imported. The exports are slaves, elephants’ teeth, raw dammer,[[154]] rhinoceros’ hides and horns, cowries, wax, turtle shells, coir, cocoa-nuts, &c. The duties collected here on merchandise are said to amount to about one and a half lacs of dollars annually; but as imposition and extortion are occasionally resorted to, they may be considerably more. The Imaum of Muscat receives from hence a clear sum of 60,000 dollars, and yearly makes an additional levy on various pretexts. The following is a list of trading vessels at Zanzibar at the end of March, 1811. Two ships, two snows, three ketches, 21 dows, 15 buglas, four dingeys, 10 small boats of sizes, besides a variety of country boats constantly arriving and departing, and two large boats building. Some seasons upwards of 100 large dows, &c., have been known to arrive at this port from Arabia and India, but its trade appears on the decline, while that of the ports of Mombas and Lamoo belonging to independent Arab chiefs is annually improving, although as harbours they do not possess near the advantages that Zanzibar does.
The dress of the people in general is a coloured wrapper round their loins. The better sort have, in addition, a loose white cloth over their shoulders, and round their body. The Arabs wear turbans, while the Souallies, Soomallies, and negroes go bareheaded.
The port of Patta, in lat. 2° 8′ S., has little or no trade on account of the intricacy of its harbours and the nefarious conduct of its inhabitants. It would appear the Surat traders are subject to much imposition and extortion at Zanzibar, as the Hakim, over and above the usual duties of 5 per cent., seizes such part of their cargoes as he fancies; and the maquedahs[[155]] of the three vessels now here have declared to me that, in collecting the duties on Surat goods imported, he is not guided by any invoice prices, but fixes a valuation on them far below the prime cost from the hands of the manufacturer; and as he (the Hakim) pays himself in kind, takes good care to detain for his own use such articles as are most saleable at the time, by which means the merchant pays on an average 15 per cent., and sometimes more, beyond the established rates fixed by the Imaum of Muscat.
(Signed) Thomas Smee, Commander.
On Board the H. C.’s ship Ternate,
Zanzibar Harbour, 6th April, 1811.