Though they had embraced Islam, the natives wore no other clothing than a strip of leather passed between the legs, and even this seemed by some of them to be considered a superfluity. The observer could not fail to remark their harmonious proportions, their regular features, undisfigured by tattooing, and, in not a few cases, presenting no resemblance to the negro type. The difference of complexion noticeable in individuals presumably of the same race, was remarkable. With some it was a brilliant black; with others a rhubarb colour, and there was no example of an intermediate tint; the black, however, predominated. A young woman and her son, aged eight years, formed a group “quite antique,” and worthy of the chisel of a great artist. The child, especially, in no respect yielded to the ancient Discophorus; his hair was short and curled, but not woolly; his complexion, like that of his mother and the whole family, was of a pale or yellowish red.
Re-entering the forest, Dr. Barth observed that the clearings bore the imprints of the feet of elephants of all ages. A wealth of flowers loaded the atmosphere with fragrant incense. But the soil soon deteriorated; the trees were nearly all mimosas, and nearly all of indifferent growth, with here and there a large leafless Adansonia flinging abroad, as if in despair, its gaunt gigantic arms; while the herbage consisted only of single tufts of coarse grass, four or five feet high. When things are at their worst they begin to mend; and for the traveller there is no motto more applicable than the old proverb, that it is a long lane which has no turning. With intense delight Dr. Barth and his companions saw the monotonously gloomy forest giving way to scattered clusters of large and graceful trees, such as generally indicate the neighbourhood of human labour. And they soon emerged upon bright green meadow-lands extending to the base of the Wandala mountain-range, which rose like a barrier of cloud upon the horizon, from north to south. The highest elevation of this range is about 3000 feet; its average elevation does not exceed 2500 feet. Behind it, to a point of 5000 feet above the sea, rises the conical mass of Mount Mendefi, first seen by gallant Major Denham. The country now gradually assumed a wilder aspect; rocks of sandstone and granite projected on all sides, while, in front, a little rocky ridge, densely crowded with bush and tree, seemed to form a ne plus ultra. Suddenly, however, a deep recess opened in it, and a village was seen, lying most picturesquely in the heart of the rocks and woods. This was Laháula, where the travellers rested for the night. Next day they reached Uba, on the border of A’damáwa; A’damáwa, described by Dr. Barth as “a Mohammedan kingdom engrafted upon a mixed stock of pagan tribes—the conquest of the valorous and fanatic Pállo chieftain, A’dáma, over the great pagan kingdom of Fúmbiná.”
Here the camels greatly excited the curiosity of the population; for they are rarely seen in A’damáwa, the climate of which these animals are unable to endure for any length of time. Still more vivid was the curiosity of the governor and his courtiers, when they saw Dr. Barth’s compass, chronometer, telescope, and the small print of his Prayer-Book. The Fulbi, he says, are intelligent and civilized, but prone to malice; they lack the good nature of the real blacks, from whom they differ more in their character than their colour.
At Bagma our travellers were struck by the size and shape of the huts, some of them being from forty to sixty feet long, about fifteen broad, and from ten to twelve feet high. They narrowed above to a ridge, and were thatched all over, no distinction being made between roof and wall. They are so spaciously constructed, in order to provide a shelter for the cattle against the inclemency of the weather. The river separates the village, which is inhabited entirely by Mohammedans, into two quarters. “The news of a marvellous novelty soon stirred up the whole place, and young and old, male and female, all gathered round our motley troop, and thronged about us in innocent mirth, and as we proceeded the people came running from the distant fields to see the wonder; but the wonder was not myself, but the camel, an animal which many of them had never seen, fifteen years having elapsed since one had passed along this road. The chorus of shrill voices, ‘Gelóba, gelóba!’ was led by two young wanton Púllo girls, slender as antelopes, and wearing nothing but a light apron of striped cotton round their loins, who, jumping about and laughing at the stupidity of these enormous animals, accompanied us for about two miles along the fertile plain. We passed a herd of about three hundred cattle. Gradually the country became covered with forest, with the exception of patches of cultivated ground.” Through scenery of this interesting character, the travellers pushed on to Mbtudi.
Next day their route laid through well-wooded and well-watered pastures, and immense fields of millet and ground-nuts, which here form as large a proportion of the food of the people as potatoes do in Europe. Dr. Barth liked them very much, especially if roasted, for nibbling after supper, or even as a substitute for breakfast on the road. From Segero the travellers proceeded to Sara’wu, and thence to Béhur. Forest and cultivated land alternated with one another to the margin of a little lake, lying in a belt of tall thick grass, where the unwieldy river-horse snorted loud. The sky was dark with clouds, and a storm was gathering, when the caravan entered the narrow streets of Salléri. That night it obtained but scanty accommodation, and everybody was glad to find the next morning bright and cheerful, so that the march could be resumed. Their course was directed towards the river Bénuwé. The neighbourhood of the water was first indicated by numerous high ant-hills, which, arranged in almost parallel lines, presented a sufficiently curious spectacle. To the north-west towered the insulated colossal mass of Mount Atlantika, forming a conspicuous and majestic object in the landscape. The savannas were now overgrown with tall rank grass, and broken by many considerable pools, lying in deep hollows; every year, in the rainy season, they are under water. Crossing these low levels with some difficulty, Dr. Barth arrived on the banks of the Bénuwé. A broad and noble stream, it flowed from east to west through an entirely open country. The banks were twenty to thirty feet high; while, immediately opposite to the traveller’s station, behind a pointed headland of sand, the river Fáro, which has its source on the eastern side of Mount Atlantika, came in with a bold sweep from the south-east, and poured its tributary waters into the Bénuwé. The Bénuwé, below the point of junction, bends slightly to the north, runs along the northern foot of Mount Bágelé, thence traverses the mountainous region of the Báchama and Zina to Hamárruwa and the industrious country of Korórofa, until it joins the great western river of the Kwára, or Niger.
The passage of the Bénuwé, which is here about eight hundred yards wide, was safely accomplished in the native canoes, nor did any mishap occur in the transit of the Fáro, which measures about six hundred yards. The current of the Fáro has a velocity of about five miles an hour; that of the Bénuwé does not exceed three miles and a half. By way of Mount Bágelé, and through the rich low lands of Ribágo, the travellers repaired to Yola, the capital of A’damáwa.
II.
Yola, the capital of A’damáwa, lies four degrees to the south of Kuka, on the Fáro, in a marshy plain, which presents nothing attractive to the eye of an artist. Dr. Barth describes it as a large open place, consisting mainly of conical huts, surrounded by spacious court-yards, and even by corn-fields; only the houses of the governor and his brothers being built of clay. When he entered it, Lowel, the governor, was in his fields, and could not be seen; but on his return the travellers proceeded to his “palace” to pay their respects. They were not allowed an interview, however, until the following day, and then it was anything but satisfactory. The officer who had accompanied them from Kuka took the opportunity of delivering certain despatches; and as they proved displeasing to the governor, he immediately vented his wrath upon Dr. Barth, accusing him of treacherous intentions. The audience terminated in confusion, and next day but one, Dr. Barth was ordered to leave Yola, on the pretence that his sojourn there could not be allowed unless he obtained the authorization of the Sultan of Sokoto. He was suffering from fever, and the heat of the day was excessive, but at once made preparations for departure. Sitting firmly in his large Arab stirrups, and clinging to the pommel of his saddle, he turned his horse’s head towards Bornú, and, though he fainted twice, was soon invigorated by a refreshing breeze, which opportunely rose with healing on its wings.
But he was really ill when he arrived at Kúkáwa, and, unhappily, the rainy season had begun. During the night of the 3rd of August, the storm converted his sleeping apartment into a small lake, and his fever was seriously aggravated. The pools which formed in every nook and corner of the town were rendered pestiferous by the filth of all kinds which stagnated in them. He ought to have withdrawn to some healthier country, but, in order to pay the debts of the expedition and prepare for new explorations, was compelled to remain and sell the merchandise which had arrived in his absence. He made all haste, however, to discharge this duty; and when, early in September, the Government despatched a body of the Welád Shinán—Arab mercenaries whom they had enlisted—to reconquer the eastern districts of the province of Kánem, he attached himself to the expedition, accompanied by his fellow-traveller, Overweg.
In the course of this new journey they obtained another view of Lake Tchad, under peculiar circumstances. It was about seven o’clock in the morning. Far to their right, a whole herd of elephants, arranged in almost military array, like an army of rational beings, slowly proceeded to the water. In front appeared the males, as was evident from their size, in regular order; at a little distance followed the young ones; in a third line were the females; and the whole were brought up by five males of immense size. The latter, though the travellers were riding along quietly, and at a considerable distance, took notice of them, and some were seen throwing dust into the air; but no attempt was made to disturb them. There were altogether about ninety-six.