Chapter LIII (6)

Altogether my visit to Sókoto formed a most interesting intermezzo to my involuntary stay in the capital, although it could not fail to give me a further insight into the frail character of the dominion of the Fúlbe over these regions; and during my stay here I certainly had no cause to complain of inhospitable treatment, as my friend Módibo ʿAlí sent me, every day, a large basin of furá, the favourite drink of ghussub water, two dishes of hasty pudding, and two bowls of milk. Having given, by this excursion to the former capital, fresh energy to my spirits, I returned to my quarters in Wurnó on the 24th, accomplishing the distance in little more than four hours; and it was time that I returned, for in the evening of that same day the joyful news arrived that the sultan had reached Gándi. However, he did not enter Wurnó till the 23rd, having forwarded a message to me the preceding evening from Yan-serkí, in the territory of Rába, requesting me to meet him the following morning outside the town. In consequence of this I mounted on horseback with the first dawn of day, but found the sultan already close to the gate, descending the rocky path which leads from the above-mentioned place. He then made a halt, with his whole suite, and saluted me in the kindest manner, calling me by my name, ʿAbd el Kerím. The sultan was followed by the ghaladíma; and I here first made the acquaintance of the learned ʿAbd el Káder dan Taffa (Mustapha), whom I was most anxious to see, in order to obtain from him some historical information. As soon as the people had dispersed quietly, returning to their various quarters, I sent him a present, when he paid me a visit in the evening, and furnished me immediately with some positive data with regard to the history of the dynasty of the Asáki, or Áskia, the rulers of Songhay, which he had perfectly in his head, and which were of the greatest importance in giving me an insight into the historical relation of the western countries of these regions with that of Central Negroland.

[Sidenote: April 29th.]

In the forenoon I went to ʿAlíyu, in order to pay my compliments to him upon his safe return from this expedition, which, although not very glorious, had yet proved not quite unprofitable, he having reduced to subjection the poor little hamlets of the rocky district of Kotórkoshé, the inhabitants of which had previously placed themselves under the protection of the enemy; but even this insignificant victory he had only achieved through the bravery of the horsemen from Kátsena, while his own men had, as usual, exhibited the greatest cowardice. As long as the Fúlbe do not defeat the host of the Góberáwa, who take the field every year and offer them battle, the state of this empire will become daily worse and worse, while at present each of the two parties, the indigenous inhabitants as well as the conquerors, do nothing but accelerate the ruin of the country, without dealing a decided blow.

Although I had made the chief a very respectable present on my first arrival, I thought it well to give greater impulse to his friendly disposition towards me, by adding something also this time, presenting him with a cloth waistcoat and several smaller articles, besides a musical box, with the performance of which he was extremely pleased; but unfortunately, when, anxious to impart his delight to his greatest friend and principal minister, ʿAbdú the son of Gedádo, he had called the latter to witness this wonder, the mysterious box, affected by the change of climate and the jolting of the long journey, was silent for a moment, and would not play. I may observe here, that I think it better for travellers not to make such presents as musical boxes, which so easily get out of order. The sultan fully granted my request for a speedy departure, promising also to assist me in my dangerous undertaking with a small “rékkia” or escort; and it was very essential to me to hasten my proceedings, as the following day brought the first evident proof of the approach of the rainy season.

Having made a present to the ghaladíma also, I thought it better, in order to make up for the deficiency of the musical box, to satisfy the musical taste of the sultan by making him a present of one of the harmonica which the Chevalier Bunsen, in consideration of the great effect which the Rev. Mr. Knoblecher had produced, with the aid of such an instrument, upon the inhabitants of the shores of the Nile, had procured for me; but I succeeded afterwards in repairing, in some measure, the musical box, which caused the good-natured chief inexpressible delight, so that he lost no time in writing for me a commendatory letter to his nephew Khalílu the chief of Gando. But I was extremely anxious to get away from this place, as I was sorely pestered by begging parties, the inhabitants of Wurnó and Sókoto being the most troublesome beggars in the world, and besides them there being also many strangers in the town, especially the Kélgeres, who had brought the salt.

I was sitting, one day, in the entrance-hall of my house, in the company of some of these sons of the desert, when Góme, the brother of the sultan ʿAbd el Káder, from Ágades, who had lately been dethroned in order to make way for a new chief, Áhmed e’ Rufáy, called upon me, and, with a very important and mysterious air, requested me to give him a private audience. After I had dismissed my other visitors, he began by reminding me of the kind manner in which his brother had received me, and finished by urgently begging me to use my influence in order to restore ʿAbd el Káder to his former dignity. I had great difficulty in convincing him that I had very little influence with the emír el Múmenín, and that I was afraid my intercession would have little or no effect, although, as well by way of private acknowledgment for the kindness of my host in that place, where I began to acquire more confidence in the success of my proceedings, as from a persuasion of the influence which a great service rendered by me to this man would have upon my future prospects, I should have desired nothing better than to be the means of reinstating him in his former position.

Among the people who sought my acquaintance there was also Khalílu dan Hassan, one of the presumptive heirs to the royal power—Hassan being a younger brother of Bello—a young man of gentlemanly manners, but not of a very generous disposition, as he plainly evinced on my home journey the following year, when he wanted to oblige me to send him, after my safe return home, a pair of pistols in exchange for a black shirt scarcely worth 5000 shells, or two dollars.

All this time, I had employed my leisure hours in reading a manuscript work which had given me the first insight into the history of the western portion of these Féllani dominions. It had been composed by ʿAbd Alláhi, the brother of ʿOthmán the Reformer, to whom the western portion of the conquered region was awarded as his share. But although this work, the title of which is “Tezén el aúrekát,” contained, besides a great deal of theological matter, some important historical data, it did not satisfy my curiosity; and I had been endeavouring in vain to obtain the work of Bello, entitled “Infák el misúrí fi fat-há el Tekrúri,” which had been earnestly recommended to me by my friend the fáki ʿAbd el Káder in Kátsena; but I did not succeed in getting it into my hands till a few days before I left this place, when I found that the greater part of its contents, which had any geographical or historical importance, were identical with those documents brought back by Captain Clapperton, on his first journey, and which have been partly translated by Mr. Salame, in the appendix to the account of those travels.

Meanwhile the country became more unsafe; and on the 5th of May the cattle of the village of Saláme were driven off by the people of Chéberi, to the great loss of my friend ʿAbd el Káder dan Taffa, who had considerable property there; but strongly reminded of the effects of the rainy season, by a heavy shower which fell on the 6th, driving me out of my cool shed, I urged my departure, and in the afternoon of the 8th took leave of ʿAlíyu with a cheerful spirit, it being evident to me, not only that he entertained not the slightest mistrust of my future proceedings, but on the contrary even took considerable interest in me, as he found that it was my earnest desire to become well acquainted with the country and the people, and that I was anxious to establish friendly relations with the most distinguished and learned among them. But he gave me repeatedly to understand that he wished me not to go to Hamdalláhi, to present my compliments to their countrymen and coreligionists there and their chief or his successor, we having just received a few days previously the news of the death of Shékho Áhmedu, while he had not the slightest objection to my going to Timbúktu, and paying a visit to the sheikh el Bakáy, who had spent some time in Sókoto and was on friendly terms with the family of Fódiye.

[Footnote 41: It is, however, remarkable that, according to Sultan Bello’s account, in a passage not translated by Silame, the original idiom of the Toróde was the Wákoro or Wakoré, which, if it be true, would render the Toróde the near kinsfolk of the Sissílbe.]

[Footnote 42: He says of the Jolof that their character is distinguished greatly from that of _the other_ Fullán or Fúlbe:—

وطبايعهم تباين طبايع ساير الفلانيون

See Journal of the Leipsic Oriental Soc. ix. p. 536.]

[Footnote 43: Áhmed Bábá in J. L. O. S. pp. 550, 555, and elsewhere.]

[Footnote 44: M. Eichwaldt, from the account given of them by various French travellers, makes, as to this tribe, the following interesting statement, regarding them as gipsies:—“En effet, les ethnographes considèrent habituellement les Laobés comme une branche des Foulahs: mais ce fait n’est nullement démontré, et nous avons nous-mêmes connu des voyageurs qui affirmaient que les Laobés possédaient une langue nationale différente du Foulah.” (Journal de la Société Ethnologique, 1841, vol. i. p. 62.)]

[Footnote 45: The Fúlbe in general divide all the tribes belonging to their stock into four groups or families; but they by no means agree as to the particulars of the division. I will here give one which is commonly assumed:—

1. The Jel, comprising the following sections:—the Torobe; Ulérbe; Fíttobe; Jébtobe; Súdube; Úrube; Tarábe; Jéllube; Báʿabe; Símbirankóbe, also called Ndójiga, from their dwelling-place; Feroibe; Núkkobe; Síllube; Sosóbe; Tóngabe; Waijóbe. Of these the Úrube are again subdivided into five sections,—the U. Búbe, U. Feroibe (distinct from the Feroibe before mentioned), U. Dúde, U. Síkam, U. Waijóbe. The Jéllube, again, are subdivided into three sections,—the J. Yorónga, J. Haire, and J. Másina.

2. The Bʿaá, comprising the sections of the Gnara or Ghara, the Síndega, and the Danéji.

3. The Só, comprising the Jawámbe, the Mábube or Mábe, Gergasábe, Waílube, Laúbe, Wambaibe, and Waúlube.

4. The Berí, comprising the Siwálbe, Jaléji, Kombangkóbe, and Kíngirankóbe.

But besides these there are a great many other divisions of this wide- spread tribe, called from localities some of which I shall mention as opportunity occurs. See especially Appendix II.]

[Footnote 46: Eichwaldt in Journal de la Société Ethnologique, 1841, vol. i. p. 2, _et seq._ Among all the arguments brought forward by this gentleman in order to show a relation of the Fúlbe with the Malays, there is none of any consequence; and all his specimens of words brought forward with this object are either taken from bad sources or prove nothing, the only striking similarities in the language of these two nations being the words for fish and spear. I speak here of a special and direct relationship of the Fúlbe with the Malays, without taking into consideration the vestiges of the general relationship of the whole human race, which have lately been pursued and demonstrated with such industry by Mr. Logan.]

[Footnote 47: There may be some remote affinity between the Fúlbe and the South African tribes, but this refers to an age probably not later than the rule of the Pharaohs; and the idea that the Fúlbe proceeded from South Africa is certainly entirely erroneous. The identity of a few numerals in the Fulfúlde and Kaffir languages is curious, but may be explained on historical grounds.]

[Footnote 48: Vol. II. p. 638, under Bíri (Ibrahím).]

[Footnote 49: Áhmed Bábá, J. L. O. S. vol. vi. p. 550.]

[Footnote 50: See Vol. III. p. 433.]

[Footnote 51: I shall communicate his principal song, in Appendix III.]

[Footnote 52: Clapperton’s Second Journey, p. 203, _et seq._]

[Footnote 53: This is the term which Clapperton uses with regard to him.]

[Footnote 54: There are inspectors of the provinces residing in Sókoto, who are responsible for the tribute being duly delivered. ʿAbdú, the son of Gedádo, has all the following provinces under his inspection: Kanó, Zégzeg, Ádamáwa, Hamárruwa, Sámbo Degímsa, Katágum, Sámbo-Lé, governed by Yeríma Áhmedu. The ghaladíma Áhmedu has only Kátsena under his inspection; the mágaji inspects Zánfara; Modéggel, Baúchi; Yéron Sambo, Kazáure, the province of Démbo; Dennil Jódi, Dáura.]

[Footnote 55: See Appendix IV.]

[Footnote 56: The national name Kábáwa is taken from the ancient form of the name, Kábi, which was formerly in use (exactly like the form Máli, Maláwa), but has given place to the form Kebbi, which is thus distinctly written, even in Arabic, by authors of the seventeenth century.]

[Footnote 57: I shall say more in another place about this interesting tribe, who, originally belonging to the Negro stock of the Wákoré, have been swallowed up in the remarkable migration and conquest of the Fúlbe eastward; here I will only mention the various sections into which they are divided, at least as far as these eastern quarters are concerned. These are the Lobárbe, Lómbe, Seníngbe, Yiróbe, Wárbe, Jakkóbe, Walárbe, Jagálbe, and Jatíbe.]

CHAP. LVIII.

STATE OF INSECURITY ALONG THE MOST FREQUENTED HIGHROAD. — GANDO.

[Sidenote: Sunday, May 8th.]

At length I was able to pursue my journey, which now, as soon as I had passed Sókoto, was to lead me into almost unknown regions, never trodden by European foot.

I was escorted out of the town, in grand style, by the ghaladíma with six horsemen, and then pursued my former track to Sókoto, the character of which was but little changed, on account of the vegetation having only just begun to be vivified and restored by the first showers of the rainy season. The little stream which skirts the foot of the hill on which the town of Sókoto is situated, and where we had watered our horses on our former excursion, now began gradually to increase, although as yet it exhibited but few signs of that considerable volume which I found here on my home journey the next year.

I was lodged in my old quarters, in the house of the ghaladíma, and was treated by my old friends Módibo ʿAlí and Sʿaíd with great hospitality. Although most anxious, on account of the season, to continue my journey with the shortest possible delay, I remained here the four following days, in order to procure what was still wanted in my outfit for the long journey before me, but principally from regard to the interests of my companion ʿAlí el Ágeren, who had here to arrange some business; hence we did not set out until the 14th of May.

There had been so heavy a shower the preceding afternoon, that a large stream broke through the roof of my dwelling and placed my whole room several inches under water. I passed, therefore, a most uncomfortable night, and when I got up in the morning I had a very bad headache. Every thing, also, was extremely wet, so that it took us a long time to get ready our camels, and it was eight o’clock when we left the kófa-n- Tarámnia, which, though the widest of the gates of the town, did not allow my two largest boxes to pass without damage.

A grandson of Módibo ʿAlí, together with Shékho the chief of the Zoromáwa, escorted me outside the town. The first was certainly sincere: but as for the second, I could not expect that he was in earnest in wishing me success in my undertaking; for the Zoromáwa, who are the chief traders of the country, viewed my enterprise with a great deal of mistrust, as they were told that I wanted to open an intercourse along the river.

Thus we entered the large open plain, which is only bounded, at the distance of about three miles to the north, by a low chain of hills, and scarcely dotted with a single tree. But the monotonous country at present was not quite wanting in signs of life, the plentiful fall of rain having inspired the inhabitants of the several villages which were scattered about with sufficient confidence to trust their seed to the ground. Having then passed a larger village, called Kaffaráwa, we crossed a considerable depression or hollow, stretching from S.W. to N.E., with plenty of water, and with extensive grounds of yams, a branch of cultivation which, in these swampy valleys of Kebbi, is carried on to some extent; and this depression was soon succeeded by others of a like nature. Numerous herds of cattle were here grazing on the intervening pasture-grounds, which were adorned with sycamores and monkey-bread trees; and this continued till we reached Bodínga, and took up our quarters in a small cluster of huts lying on the outside, close to the wall. This time I did not enter the town, but I did so on my return journey, when I satisfied myself of the considerable size of the town, and the state of decay and desolation into which it has at present relapsed.

[Sidenote: Sunday, May 15th.]

While we were loading our camels, the governor of the town, who is a son of Módibo ʿAlí, of the name of Mohámmedu, came out to pay me his compliments. He was of a cheerful disposition, and had treated us hospitably the preceding evening. He even accompanied me to a considerable distance, till we left, on our right, the town of Sifáwa or Shifáwa, an important place in the history of the Púllo reformer ʿOthmán dan Fódiye, but at present almost desolate and reduced to great misery, presenting a fair specimen of the state of the province of Gando, which we here entered.

The country here, as well as near Bodínga, is almost exclusively adorned with monkey-bread trees, and the soil seemed to be very parched; but a little further on we descended into a depression which, having been already fertilised by the rain, was just being sown. Further on, the ground continuing undulating, we watered our horses at a rich source of living water which rushed out from the rocks at the side of a small hamlet. We then passed a large and comfortable-looking place called Dendi (perhaps after a portion of that tribe, which settled here) and adorned with a profusion of trees, among which the dorówa or _Parkia_, the góreba or dúm palm, and the gigíña or deléb palm were most conspicuous. Towards the south-east side it was bordered by a depression full of yams and fresh herbage, and fringed by numbers of monkey-bread trees. Even a little market-place was to be seen; and the place seemed so attractive to my people, that they would fain have spent here the rest of the day, and they were not at all pleased when I insisted on continuing our march. A little after noon we passed a pretty village with a small dyeing-place. Besides corn-fields, where the crops were already two inches out of the ground, indigo was cultivated to a great extent. We then entered upon rocky ground, and, five miles further on, reached the place Shagáli, separated into two groups along the northern slope of an eminence, and surrounded on three sides by a deep and wide ravine, which made the access to it very difficult. Here we were rather inhospitably received,—the former mayor having been deposed, and a new one not yet installed in his place.

[Sidenote: Monday, May 16th.]

Early in the morning we pursued our journey, through a rather hilly country broken by several small watercourses, full of cultivated ground and fine timber, principally monkey-bread trees, which now exhibited a more cheerful appearance, as they were clad in fresh foliage. We passed several villages, where we again observed some signs of industry in the shape of dyeing, and, about six miles and a half from Shagáli, left the considerable place Señína (the same town which a few days before had been attacked by the enemy) on our left, situated on a small hilly chain. Here we entered a tract of country at present desolate, and thickly covered with underwood, and greatly infested by the independent inhabitants of Kebbi; but it was only of small extent, and, about four miles beyond Señína, we entered, by a steep rocky descent, the fine valley of Sála, which is intersected by a considerable sheet of water.

We took up our quarters in the walled town of Sála, the dwellings of which were almost lost in the most splendid vegetation, among which one of the finest tamarind trees I have ever seen was greatly distinguished, attracting to its dense foliage countless flights of birds, which were gathering from all sides to pass the night here in cheerful communion. The wider-spreading foliage of the tamarind and monkey-bread trees was very picturesquely diversified by a large number of gónda trees, or _Carica Papaya_, while in front of the principal gate a most splendid rími or bentang tree, was starting forth as a proud landmark, pointing out to the traveller the site of the gate. The camels, who suffered greatly from thirst, immediately on our arrival were sent off to the brook of living water, which is formed at the foot of the rocky cliff a little to the north of the place where we had descended from the higher ground.

[Sidenote: Tuesday, May 17th.]

We reached Gando, the residence of another powerful Púllo prince (as powerful as that of Sókoto), after a march of six hours, through a country richly provided by nature, and partly, at least, well inhabited. Hill and dale alternated, the depressions and cavities offering suitable grounds for the cultivation of yams. The vegetable kingdom also displayed its larger members in great variety. In the village Babanídi, which we passed about two miles from Sála, we observed the three species of palms which are common to Negroland, in the same locality—viz., the dúm, the date, and the deléb palm, while, near a swampy sheet of water before we came to Masáma, I caught sight of the first banána or áyaba tree that I had seen since I had left Ádamáwa, with the exception of those young offshoots which I had observed in Bamúrna. Near this latter place, which was situated at the border of a deep valley, a large swamp spread out covered with rank reed-grass; and beyond the town of Masáma we had to cross another large and irregular valley or fáddama, where, even at this season of the year, a large sheet of water was formed, which, according to the statement of the natives, was full of alligators.

The towns also exhibited a considerable degree of industry in their dyeing-places; and a short distance from our halting-place we even passed large hollows about two fathoms in depth, and one in particular where iron had been dug out. Small marketing stalls in some places lined the road, and the town of Masáma, with its straggling suburbs, presented an animated spectacle; but cattle were greatly wanting, nothing but sheep being seen, as all the horned cattle had been carried away by the predatory bands of Argúngo.

As we approached the town of Gando, I could not help wondering how the people had been led to choose this locality as the seat of a large empire, commanded as it was by hilly chains all around, in the manner shown in the accompanying woodcut, while the rising ground would have offered a far more suitable locality. But the situation of the town is on a par with the character of its dominion—without commanding strength, and quite incapable of keeping together that large agglomeration of provinces which have gathered around it. However, for a provincial town, the interior is very pleasant and animated, being adorned with a variety of trees, among which the banana is prominent.

Having sent a messenger in advance, I soon obtained quarters in the house of El Khassa, the chief eunuch of the court; but they were extremely narrow and unpleasant, although I had a very good clay house for myself.

Thus I had entered the residence of another very important Púllo chief, whose dominion extended several hundred miles over the country which I had to traverse, and whose friendship it was of the utmost importance for me to secure, as his provinces inclose both banks of the Niger, while the dominion of the sultan of Sókoto does not reach the principal branch at all. It was the more unfavourable that the present ruler of this very extensive kingdom should be a man without energy, and most inaccessible to a European and a Christian. His name is Khalílu, and he is the son of ʿAbd Alláhi[58], the brother of the great Reformer ʿOthmán, to whom that remarkable man, at his death, gave the western part of his vast domains, while he installed the celebrated Sultan Bello over the eastern portion. Khalílu succeeded to his brother Mohammed Wáni about seventeen years ago, and has since lived in a state of the greatest seclusion, well fitted for a monk, but by no means suited to the ruler of a vast empire, employing one of his brothers in order to keep up a certain show of imperial dignity where it was absolutely necessary. Thus, during the first few years of his reign, he had employed ʿAbd el Kádiri, and was now employing Halíru, or, as the name is written, Hadhíru. Even by Mohammedans he is scarcely ever to be seen except on Fridays. It appeared, from my first arrival, extremely doubtful whether he would allow me to see his holy face; and after a vain struggle, merely in order that, by an untimely obstinacy in matters of form, I might not frustrate all my schemes of discovery, I agreed at length to deliver my present to the messengers of the sultan, in his palace, without seeing him. This present consisted of almost the same number of articles as I had given to the emír of Sókoto, with the exception of the silver-mounted pistols. I gave him three bernúses—one of yellow, one of red cloth, and the third of the kind called heláli; a háík or jeríd of the finest quality, a Stambúli carpet, two entire pieces of muslin, a red cap, four loaves of sugar, three phials of rose oil, a pair of razors, five looking-glasses, a pound of cloves, and another of benzoin.

It was very unfortunate that a foreigner and an adventurer, who had no other interest than his own selfishness, became the go-between with me and the sultan, and found ample opportunities, owing to the monkish character of the latter, for advancing his own interests, in the thousand embarrassments which he caused me. This was El Bakáy, a person who made me hate his very name, though it afterwards became so dear to me on account of my protector in Timbúktu being called by the same. However, he also was an Arab from the west, and from the tribe of the Kunta, but not connected in any way with the family of the sheikh. After having tried his fortune in several other places along the Niger, especially in Zágha and Yélu, he had at length settled down here, constituting himself a sort of consul of the Arabs, and, in the miserable state into which affairs were plunged in this court, soon exercising a great influence over the principal and the secondary rulers; for, besides Khalílu, his several brothers enjoyed a large share of authority, to all of whom I had, in consequence, to make suitable presents besides. The most remarkable amongst them were the above- mentioned Halíru and Bú-Bakr Maiguña, the latter an aspiring and restless man, who occasionally distinguished himself by acts of great violence, and to whom, in consequence, I had to make a more respectable present, in order to ensure myself against any predatory proceedings on his part.

My present to the sultan himself seemed at first to have given great satisfaction; but after a few days, matters assumed a different aspect, and I was told that the pistols which I had given to ʿAlíyu were of more value than the whole of the presents which Khalílu had received from me, while the empire of the latter extended over a larger tract of country than that of the former; and I was clearly given to understand that it was not in my power either to proceed or even to retrace my steps, unless I gave much larger presents. After a protracted and serious dispute with El Bakáy and my broker ʿAlí el Ágeren, I came at length to the determination of sacrificing the second handsome pair of silver- mounted pistols which I possessed, and then at length I had some prospect of being allowed to proceed on my journey, although the state of the country before me was really such as to make progress appear very difficult, and it was certainly very doubtful whether I should be able to reach the river. After much trouble and a great number of presents, however, which I had to give to the crafty Arab, I managed even to obtain a letter of franchise from Khalílu written with his own hand, but in so general a style that it had not much the character externally of an official document, although its contents were altogether very satisfactory, guaranteeing full security to any Englishmen visiting his territories, and commanding the officers of the various provinces to respect their property and to facilitate their proceedings.

Besides the presents to be given to all these people, I had also to make a fresh sacrifice to my Arab ʿAlí el Ágeren; for, notwithstanding the arrangement which I had previously made with him, when he saw the difficulties I was in, and being aware that the easy part of my journey was now over, he threatened to leave me if I did not accept the conditions which he prescribed to me. I had also the misfortune to lose, during my stay here, my best camel, which I had bought from the governor of Kátsena for 60,000 shells; so that I was obliged to purchase another animal from Bú Bakr Maiguña at the price he demanded, camels here being very scarce.

Notwithstanding all this disagreeable business, which occasionally cost me much bitter reflection, greatly enhanced by the advance of the season, the month of May being at an end, and that of June having set in with violent rains, I passed the time during my residence in this place not quite uselessly, especially as I was so fortunate as to obtain here from a learned man of the name of Bokhári, a son of the late Mohammed Wáni, a copy of that most valuable historical work of Áhmed Bábá, to which my friend ʿAbd el Káder, in Sókoto, had first called my attention, but without being able to satisfy my curiosity; and I spent three or four days most pleasantly in extracting the more important historical data of this work, which opened to me quite a new insight into the history of the regions on the middle course of the Niger, whither I was bending my steps, exciting in me a far more lively interest than I had previously felt in a kingdom the great power of which, in former times, I here found set forth in very clear and distinct outlines, and I only lamented that I had not time enough to copy the whole.

As for the town of Gando itself, there was not much to be seen; and the situation of the place, hemmed in as it is in a narrow valley, did not admit of long excursions; moreover, the insecurity of the neighbourhood was so great that it was not possible, at least in a northerly direction, to proceed many yards from the wall. Several times during my stay the alarm was given that the enemy was approaching; and the whole political state of the place was plunged into the most terrible disorder, the enemy being established in several strong places at scarcely half a day’s journey distance, Argúngo being the residence of Dáúd the rebellious chief of the independent Kábáwa. A numerous foray (“yáki,” or, as the Fúlbe say, “konno”) left early in the morning of the 29th of May, but returned the same evening amid the noisy manifestations of the inhabitants. They had however only given an additional proof of their cowardly disposition, inasmuch as they had not even dared to attack the enemy, who had just succeeded in ransacking the town of Yára, and were carrying all the unfortunate inhabitants into slavery.

The interior of the place was not quite without its charms, the whole of the town being intersected, from north to south, by the broad and shallow bed of a torrent, which exhibited fine pasture-grounds of fresh succulent herbage, while it was skirted on both sides by a dense border of exuberant vegetation, which altogether is much richer in this place than either in Sókoto or Wurno, being surpassed only by the fine vegetable ornament of Kanó. The rains are extremely plentiful in Gando, causing here quite an exceptional state in the productive power of the soil; and to this circumstance we have partly to ascribe the fact that very fine bananas are grown here in considerable quantity: and the fruit being just ripe at the time, formed a very pleasant variation to my usual food. The onion of Gando is remarkable for its size and quality, compared with that of all the neighbouring districts; and it is well for the traveller, in whatever direction he may intend to go, to lay in a supply of this wholesome article. But the place is extremely dull, and the market very insignificant—a fact easily to be explained by the desperate state of the provinces around, although the situation of the capital, as a central place for commerce, is rather favourable. But the town of Jéga has not yet lost, in this respect, the whole of its former importance, and is still the great entrepôt for that coarse kind of coloured silk which is imported from the north, and which, notwithstanding its very inferior character, is nevertheless so greatly sought after by the natives for adorning their leatherwork. It is, perhaps, in consequence of the little trade which is carried on, that the people of Gando have applied themselves with more industry to supplying their own want of cotton cloth—and no one can deny that their cotton strips are of first-rate quality: their dyeing, on the contrary, is very coarse, and they seem quite unable to give to the dyed cloth that lustre which so eminently distinguishes the manufactures of Núpe and Kanó; but nevertheless this cloth of Gando is in great demand as far as Libtáko.

The kingdom or empire of Gando, according to its titles, comprises a number of wealthy provinces, all lying along that great West-African river which opens such an easy access into this continent, or on its branches; although nobody who stays in the capital for any length of time would suppose that it holds such a preeminent rank. I shall give some further details respecting these provinces in the Appendix[59]; here I will only enumerate them by name. They are, the western half of Kebbi, Maúri or Árewá, Zabérma, Déndina (comprising Kénga-koy and Zágha), a great part of Gurma (comprising the provinces of Galaijo, Toróde, Yágha, and Libtáko), with a small portion of Borgu or Barba, a large portion of Yóruba with the capital Alóri or Ilórin, and, on the east side of the river, the provinces of Yaúri and Núpe or Nyffi. But at that time most of these provinces were plunged into an abyss of anarchy, which could not fail to impart to the capital a more sombre aspect than it may possess in general.

[Footnote 58: ʿAbd Alláhi died 20th of Moharrem 1245; and Mohammed died 4th of Ramadhán 1250. The children of ʿAbd Alláhi were the following: Mohammed Wáni, Khalílu, ʿAbd el Kádiri Inneháwa, Halíru or Hadhíru and ʿAlíyu (masuyáki)[a], ʿAbd el Kádiri Ay, Hassan, ʿAbd e’ Rahmáni, Ábú Bakr Maiguña, Is-háko, Mamman Sambo (maiyáki).[a]]

[Footnote a: Maiyáki (_pl._ masuyáki) means commander-in-chief.]

[Footnote 59: See Appendix VI.]

CHAP. LIX.

THE PROVINCE OF KEBBI AND ITS RIVER. — THE SALT VALLEY OF FÓGHA. — REACH
THE NIGER.

[Sidenote: Saturday, June 4th.]

At length I was allowed to proceed on my journey, which now soon promised to become of overwhelming interest, as I was approaching that great African river which has been the object of so much discussion and individual ambition for so long a period. There had been a very heavy thunderstorm during the night, accompanied by a great abundance of rain, which lasted till late in the morning, and delayed my setting out for a considerable time. It was almost eleven o’clock when we at length left the western gate of the town, or the kófa-n-Jéga, and entered the open fields, where the crop was already shooting forth. Keeping along the rocky ground bordering the valley on the north side, we soon had a specimen of the swamps which during the rainy season are formed in these deep valleys of Kebbi, while we beheld here also extensive rice-grounds, the first which I saw under actual cultivation. But the guide, who was to accompany me to the very western extremity of the territory of Khalílu, having not yet arrived, we made only a short march of about six miles, and took up our quarters in a comfortable hut lying outside the walls of Kámbasa, which, by a separate wall, is divided into two distinct quarters.

This town lies on the north side of a large swamp, which fills the bottom of the fáddama, and affords excellent grounds for the cultivation of rice. The governor treated me hospitably, sending me everything that was wanted for a good African dinner, from a sheep down to a bit of salt and a few cakes of dodówa; and I made him a suitable present in return. During the night we suffered greatly from mosquitoes, giving us a fair idea of what we were to expect on our journey through these swampy valleys.

[Sidenote: Sunday, June 5th.]

Another storm again delayed our departure this morning; and being now in the middle of the rainy season, I had a fair sample of what I should have to endure on my long journey to Timbúktu. In consequence of the rain, it was again eleven o’clock before we could start. The principal road leads along the northern bank of the fáddama, by way of Zóro, the residence of Cháfo a son of Khalílu; but it was deemed too unsafe in the present unsettled state of the country,—that very town of Zóro, although situated on the north side of the fáddama, at present being only accessible from the south; and it was decided, therefore, to cross the swamp close to Kámbasa, in order that it might afford us protection, in our further progress through this unsafe region, against any sudden attack from the rebels in the northern part of the province. Thus proceeding along the south side of the sheet of water, here about 200 yards broad and thickly overgrown with tall reeds of different species, including a large proportion of papyrus, we reached, after a little less than two miles, another walled town, likewise called Kámbasa,—a civil war having broken out among the inhabitants of the former town, and a portion of them having separated from the original tribe, and settled in this place. We then continued along the southern side of the valley, till, after a march of about four miles, we had to cross a small branch which joins the chief trunk of the valley from the south, and opened a view of Mount Bóbye, over the saddle of which the road leads from Támbawel to Jéga, the great marketplace of this quarter of the country, while the fáddama, here spreading out in a large sheet of water, receded behind a walled town called Badda-badda. A track frequented by the elephant, of which for a long time I had seen no traces, led through the rich pasture-ground, to the edge of the water. Almost the whole cultivation along this fertile but swampy valley consisted of rice. It was about 1200 yards broad, and even at the present season, before the rains had set in, was full of water. A couple of months later it inundates its low borders, and almost precludes any passage, so that, on my home journey from the west, I was obliged to pursue another path. The crops of Negro corn were here already three inches high, numbers of people being busily employed in the labours of the fields, while an isolated deléb palm gave a peculiar character to the landscape. The prevailing representatives of the vegetable kingdom were the dorówa and the useful kadeña tree. The pasture-grounds were full of cattle; and everything testified to the rich nature of the district, which is still very populous. After passing another walled town perched on the high border of the swampy valley, three miles and a half beyond Badda-badda, we reached Gaúmaché, at present reduced to a small hamlet, or rather “rúmde,” inhabited exclusively by slaves, and adorned by a few specimens of the butter tree and the dorówa. It was once a large walled town; but in the sanguinary war between the native Kábáwa and the conquering tribe of the Fúlbe, it was destroyed by the former.

Having crossed here a considerable stream of running water, which testified to the quantity of rain which had fallen in this district, we passed, on our left, the large walled town of Talba, where the beating of drums gave proof of warlike preparation. The fields around were adorned with numbers of deléb palms.

At a short distance from Talba lies Dáube. The whole of this district had attained a high degree of power and prosperity under the dominion of the Kanta, and had only recently begun, in consequence of the war of independence, to lose many of its former centres of human industry.

An obvious illustration of this desolation was afforded by the little town of Yára, which we reached after another three miles. We had left the fáddama at some distance on our right, and kept along rocky ground occasionally broken by patches of fine sandy soil. But we were urgently warned, by people whom we met on our road, of the danger of an approaching ghazzia.

This place, which a short time ago was the seat of human wellbeing, had been destroyed by the enemy on the 29th of the preceding month, and all the inhabitants carried into slavery, notwithstanding the presence of the expedition which, as I have mentioned above, marched out from Gando to the succour of their countrymen. The aspect of the place was doleful and melancholy in the extreme, corresponding well with the dangerous situation in which we found ourselves; and while traversing the half- ruined village, which from a bustling little place had become the abode of death, I almost involuntarily snatched my gun, and held it steadily in my hand. But life and death in these regions are closely allied; and we had scarcely left the ruined village behind us, when, in a widening of the fáddama, which again opened on our right, we were greeted by a most luxuriant rice-field, where the crops were already almost three feet high, and girt by the finest border of a rich variety of shady trees, such as the dorówa, kadé, and kágim, overtopped by a number of tall deléb palms, the golden fruit of which, half ripe, was starting forth from under the feathery foliage. But our attention was soon diverted from the enjoyment of this scenery, to a point of greater interest to ourselves. We here observed a solitary individual, in spite of the unsafe state of the country, sitting quietly at the foot of one of the palm trees, and seemingly enjoying its fruit. Now, coupling the present state of the country with the news we had just received, we could not help greatly suspecting this man to be a spy, posted here by the enemy in order to give them information of the passers by; and I had the greatest difficulty in preventing my Méjebrí Arab, who, when there was no danger for himself, always mustered a great amount of courage, from shooting this suspicious-looking character.

Proceeding then through a very rich country, we reached, after a march of about two miles, the town of Gúlumbé, situated close to the southern border of the valley, and exhibiting extensive fields cultivated with yams and cotton. The banana constituted the chief ornament of the narrow border inclosed between the fáddama on one side, and the wall of the town on the other, and the gónda or _Erica Papaya_, raising its feathery foliage on its slender, virginlike stem, towered proudly over the wall, as shown in the woodcut on the next page. The town was walled, of considerable size, and densely inhabited; but nevertheless the people were in such dread of the enemy, that they kept up a continual beating of drums; and although, on account of the smallness of the gate, we encamped outside, in a courtyard situated between the wall and the border of the fáddama, we thought it prudent to fire a few shots, in order to apprize the people around that we were well prepared to receive them, to the great relief of the inhabitants of the town, who, delighted at the unexpected addition to their strength, treated us in a very hospitable manner. The only disturbance to our night’s rest was caused by the mosquitoes, which harassed us greatly and drove most of my people into the rúdu, that kind of raised hut which I have described on a former occasion, and which forms the most essential part of even the poorest dwelling in the province of Kebbi.

[Sidenote: Monday, June 6th.]

After a thunder-storm accompanied by a few drops of rain, the night was succeeded by a beautiful morning; and I felt great pleasure in surveying the interesting landscape, only regretting that the insecure state of the country did not allow the natives to enjoy it in tranquillity, the war having driven thousands of people from their homes, and as many more into captivity. The fields on this side of the town, as well as on the other, where we had approached it the day before, were fenced with great care, while horses and asses were grazing on the rich pasture-grounds. After a little more than a mile and a half, we passed, on our left, a farming-village called Ígené, after its master, a cheerful Púllo of advanced age, who was just inspecting the labour of his slaves in the fields. The crops hereabouts were already more than a foot above the ground; and a little further on they reached a height of two feet. Besides sorghum, yams were cultivated to a great extent; but nevertheless, on account of the insecurity of the country, dearth and famine everywhere prevailed.

A little further on we passed, on our left, a considerable sheet of water, with plenty of dorówa, large kadé, and sycamores. The deléb palms had ceased just beyond Ígené. A broad flat-topped mountain, called Hamári, at the eastern foot of which lies the town of Zóro, broke the uniform surface of the country.

Proceeding through this rich but distracted and unsafe district, I was greatly delighted when, near the walled town of Kardi, I fell in with a solitary and courageous pilgrim, a Jolof, from the shores of the Atlantic, carrying his little luggage on his head, and seemingly well prepared to defend it with his double-barrelled gun which he carried on his shoulder, and a short sword hanging at his side, while his shirt was tossed gallantly up, and tied over the shoulder, behind the neck. In my joy at the sight of this enterprising native traveller, I could not forbear making him a small present, in order to assist him in his arduous undertaking.

The walls of the town of Kardi, which is chiefly inhabited by the slaves of Khalílu, and which is of great importance for the supply of corn in this province, were strengthened by a thick fence of thorny bushes, which, in these regions, afford an immense advantage in the defence of any town, by furnishing a secure place of retreat to the archers.

The green bottom of the wide fáddama had receded to a greater distance on our right; but we joined it again seven miles from Gúlumbé, and had here to cross it beyond a couple of hamlets which, lying close together and called, the one Háusáwa, and the other Kábáwa, gave us a slight indication as to the history of this country, where the Háusa element, as the more civilized, gradually gained the upper hand and drove the native element as well as the Songhay, which advanced from the west, into the background. Perhaps, if we knew more of the history of this country, the annals of these two villages might open to us a view of an interesting national struggle. The fáddama was here at present dry; and besides yams a great deal of tobacco was cultivated. We then traversed a wooded tract adorned with a violet _liliacea_ and with the bush tsáda or bidér, the delicious cherrylike fruit of which I have mentioned repeatedly, and, slightly ascending, reached, a little before eleven o’clock, the beautiful site of the former more extensive wall of the large town of Bírni-n-Kebbi. It was founded in this commanding position by the dynasty of the Kanta, at the time when the rival Songhay empire was dashed to pieces and became the prey of foreigners and of a number of small tribes, who had once been kept in a state of insignificance and subjection.

Under such circumstances Kebbi, besides being the seat of a powerful kingdom, became also the centre of a considerable trade even in gold, till it was destroyed by the Fúlbe under ʿAbd Alláhi, in the year of the Hejra 1221, when a great deal of gold and silver is said to have been found among the ruins. The royal palace, however (the ruins of which I visited), does not seem to have been very extensive; but this in part may be attributed to the fact that a great portion of the residence consisted of straw huts for the female department and the followers.[60] The walls of the present town are almost a mile distant from those of the old one, lying close to the steep slope which, with a descent of about 250 feet, goes down here into the large green valley or fáddama which intersects the whole of Kebbi from E.N.E. to W.S.W., and is at this part almost three miles in breadth, affording the richest ground for cultivation, but at present plunged in a state of the utmost insecurity. Even then it was full of cattle, at least its southerly part; but they had to be carefully watched by the natives from above the slope, for the whole of the country on the other side, the hilly chains and cones of which are clearly seen, is in the hands of the Ázena, that is to say, those native inhabitants of Kebbi who, since the death of the more energetic ʿAtíku, are successfully struggling for their religious and political independence. On the very brink of the slope a market was held, where we bought some necessaries before entering the town; and I willingly lingered a few moments, as the whole presented a very novel sight, increased by a picturesque spur or promontory which juts out into the valley a few miles to the west, and is a remarkable feature in the landscape. We then entered the town, which is rather thickly inhabited, but is far from presenting that cheerful aspect which is peculiar to most of the towns in these regions, as it is almost bare of trees. I myself was quartered in an excellent hut, belonging to a newly-married couple, and possessing all the comforts of which these simple dwellings are capable,—the floor and walls of the hut being neatly polished, and the background or “nanne” being newly sprinkled with snow-white sand; but the whole of the courtyard was extremely narrow, and scarcely afforded space for my horses and camels.