In former days, the name Zanzibar, or Black Country, was applied
indiscriminately to the coast, the island, and its capital; now the
term is used on the spot for the capital only. The island is called
Kisikuja, and the coast rejoices in a variety of appellations, the
most common being Zanguebar, M'rima, and Sohouahil.
The population on the coast, composed of a mixture between the
Mussulman, the negro and the Arab, is nominally subject to the Sultan
of Zanzibar, but is really independent. The men, as a rule, are
yellowish brown; they wear round their loins a cloth reaching half-way
down the thigh, and, when they appear in public, are invariably
armed with a sword, a lance, or, at all events, a stick. To possess
an umbrella is the height of their ambition, and, under the shade of
this highly prized luxury, they may be seen rolling barrels on the
shore.
The women wear a kind of frock, covering them from the shoulder to
the ancles, necklaces of sharks teeth, and ornaments of the leaves of
the cocoa-nut, wooden discs, or betel nuts in their ears, the lobes
of which are abnormally large. The left nostril is pierced by a
silver or copper pin, and the hair, covered with sesame oil, is
coiled up on each side of the head, like a bear's ears, or in some
cases, appears in the guise of "heart-breakers," small and very round
twists.
Savage customs are still in vogue amongst this community, more Arab
than negro. For example, an uncle has an indisputable right to sell
his nephews and nieces; and, if a European ventures to express his
astonishment at such a custom, he is met at once with the remark—
"You would not have a man suffer from want so long as his brothers
and sisters have children?"
The vast territory through which we are about to travel in the
society of MM. de Pommerelle and Desrioux, obtaining our information,
however, from their predecessors, especially from Burton, may be
divided into several zones. The first of these extends over about a
hundred miles, from the shore of the Indian Ocean, to the mountains
of Usagara. Deep streams, lofty forests, and masses of foliage
covering the gigantic trees lend to this region, in certain places,
the appearance of a park; the cultivated fields are numerous, and
every village is hidden in the grass or brushwood. Vegetation, under
the influence of the damp but warm atmosphere, is more than usually
luxuriant; the grass grows to the height of twelve feet, with stalks
as thick as a man's finger, and there is no straying from the paths
worn through these jungles.
The second zone, a region of hills and forests, commences at the
mountains of Usagara, and extends to the province of Ugogo, the
native caravans, when not too heavily laden, traversing it in about
three weeks. The shades of colour amongst the inhabitants vary
considerably, ranging from almost black to chocolate. The men envelop
themselves in a large piece of dark blue cotton stuff, or drab
calico; the women, if wealthy, wear the _tobé_, a garment four yards
long, which passes under the arms, crosses the chest, and is brought
round the body to be fastened at the hip. The poor women wear a
petticoat made of some skin and a species of breast-piece, tied round
the neck and reaching to the waist. Both men and women are usually
very ugly, but tall and vigorous, and, in spite of their frank and
open countenances, they are nothing better than a set of freebooters,
ever ready to spoil the smaller and weaker caravans.
The third zone extends as far as Kazé, and comprises the vast
territory, a hundred miles square, known under the name of Ugogo. Its
general aspect is arid and monotonous in the extreme. In several
parts the soil is condemned to everlasting drought, water being found
only in the large pits dug by the natives. Wild beasts, such as the
hyæna, leopard, zebra, elephant, and giraffe, as well as ostriches,
abound here, and caravans enter this region in fear and trembling.
On the frontier of Ugogo is a desert, several miles broad, commonly
called the Wilderness. Burton suffered terribly there, but Cameron
says that the country has improved, the inhabitants having made and
cultivated extensive clearings, and having also succeeded in finding
water.
MM. de Pommerelle and Desrioux, who crossed this district at the same
time with the English naval officer, reaped the advantage of this
improvement. In fact, it was just as they were emerging from the
Wilderness, at the beginning of July, that our two travellers
overtook Cameron, who, although he had left Zanzibar six weeks before
they did, had not been travelling nearly so fast. The famous
explorer, then on the eve of his three years' journey, was still in
good health, and had not yet been attacked by the wasting fever and
inflammation in the eyes which caused him so much suffering a few
months later on.
MM. de Pommerelle and Desrioux questioned Cameron, just as they had
done two months previously the Consuls at Zanzibar, on the subject of
the de Guéran expedition, but he could not give them any information.
It became very evident that their friends had not yet reached these
parts, either from want of time, or because they were detained
farther northward, or—they might no longer be alive. The Count and
the doctor hurried on.
Next to the territory of Ugogo comes the country of the Moon, of
which Kazé is the most important point. Kazé is in the south what
Khartoum is on the Nile and in the north, the depôt or rendezvous for
caravans either going to or coming from the interior. The inhabitants
of this town, mostly Arabs, live in great comfort, almost
magnificence; their houses, though of only one storey, are large and
solidly built; their gardens are extensive and tastefully laid out,
and they receive regularly from Zanzibar, not only what is necessary
for life, but also a quantity of luxuries. They are surrounded by a
host of slaves, in proper liveries, and use the Zanzibar donkeys as
steeds.
When they reached Kazé, MM. de Pommerelle and Desrioux had already
traversed more than six hundred miles in less than three months. They
would have dearly liked to have gone on without stopping, but they
were compelled to give way to the laziness of their bearers, and the
prevailing custom which prescribes for all caravans a halt of at
least six weeks. In the country of the Moon several letters, written
by Dr. Desrioux to Europe from Kazé, record, however, that this
period, owing to a display of great firmness, several presents and a
formal promise of more, was curtailed more than one-half.
Towards the middle of August, the European caravan set out from Kazé
in the direction of Lake Victoria. Just as Madame de Guéran and her
companions, after having met, on the banks of the Nile and as far as
the Bahr-al-Gazal, with almost presentable people and manners, found
themselves face to face with barbarians, so MM. de Pommerelle and
Desrioux, when they left the sea coast and bent their steps
northwards, had to say adieu to everything savouring of European
customs.