RESIDENCE IN KANÓ.—VIEW OF ITS INTERIOR.—ITS HISTORY AND PRESENT
STATE.—COMMERCE.
Kanó for us was a station of importance not only from a scientific,
but also from an economical point of view. Instead of being provided
with ready cash, we had received in Múrzuk, on account of the British
Government, merchandise which, we had been assured, would not only
be safer than money, but would also prove more advantageous for us.
In consequence of the heavy extortions to which we were subjected on
the road to Aír, and of our long delay in that country, we had been
deprived of the small articles which we carried for barter, so that we
were entirely thrown upon the merchandise which we had forwarded in
advance from Tintéggana; and I for my part, on my arrival in Kanó, had
to liquidate a debt of not less than 112,300 kurdí: viz. 55,000 for the
carriage of this very merchandise from Tintéggana to Kanó; 8,300 as my
share of the presents or passage-money given on the road; 18,000 to
Gajére, as hire for the mare and bullock; and 31,000 to a man of the name
of Háj el Dáwaki, on account of Abú-Bakr el Wákhshi, for the articles
bought from him in Kátsena, in order to satisfy the governor of that
place. Besides, I was aware that I had to make a considerable present to
the governor of Kanó; and I was most desirous to discharge Mohammed eʾ
Túnsi, whom I had discovered to be utterly useless in these countries,
and who, besides his insupportable insolence, might bring me into trouble
by his inconsiderate and frivolous conduct.
These were material calls upon my encumbered property. On my mind, too,
there were claims of a not less serious character; for from my very
outset from Europe, I had steadily fixed my eyes upon that eastern branch
of the Kwára, or so-called Niger, which Laird, Allen, and Oldfield had
navigated for the distance of some eighty miles, and which the former
(although he himself did not penetrate further than Fánda) had, with
reasons decisive in my eyes, and which could not be overthrown in my
opinion by Captain William Allen’s ingenious but fanciful hypothesis,
concluded to have no communication whatever with Lake Tsád, but to
proceed from another and very different quarter.[26]
I had therefore cherished the hope, that I should be capable of
penetrating from Kanó in the direction of Ádamáwa, a country wherein
I was sure that the question respecting the course of the river would
be decided; but obviously such an undertaking could not be engaged in
without pecuniary means, and all therefore depended on my success in
selling advantageously the merchandise with which I was provided.
For all these reasons, nothing could be more disagreeable and
disheartening to me, though I was not quite unprepared for it, than the
information which I received the very evening of my arrival in Kanó,
that the price of merchandise such as I had was very low. In the next
place, I soon found that Báwu, Mr. Gagliuffi’s agent, whom in compliance
with his recommendation we had made also our commissioner, was not to
be implicitly relied on. He was the second son of Háj Hát Sáleh, the
man so well known from the narrative of Captain Clapperton, towards whom
he seems to have behaved with honesty and fairness, and by this means
perhaps he had recommended himself to Mr. Gagliuffi; but Báwu was not
the right man to be entrusted with discretionary power over the property
of a foreign merchant residing at a great distance, and belonging even
to another religion, or to be the commissioner for European travellers.
Young and ambitious as he was, he had no other object but to insinuate
himself into the good graces of the governor at the expense of those who
had been foolish enough to trust themselves into his hands. Besides, he
had upon his hand a host of younger brothers, who all wanted to “eat.”
Though Háj Hát Sáleh seems to have been a respectable man, he must have
paid very little attention to the education of his children.
It will scarcely be believed that this man, although he had two
camel-loads of goods of mine in his hands, yet left me without a single
shell, “ko urí gudá,” for a whole fortnight, so that I was glad to borrow
two thousand kurdí—less than an Austrian dollar, from Mohammed eʾ Sfáksi,
in order to defray the most necessary expenses of my household.
Besides, this agent urged the absolute necessity of making a considerable
present not only to the governor, which I was quite prepared to do, but
another of nearly the same value to the ghaladíma or first minister,
who happened to be the governor’s brother, and enjoyed quite as much
authority and influence. The consequence was that I was obliged to
give away the few articles of value in my possession merely for being
tolerated and protected. The second day after my arrival, the governor
received a message from Mr. Richardson, forwarded from Zínder, intimating
that, after he should have received new supplies from the coast, he would
not fail to come to Kanó; whereupon he sent me word that I had done very
wrong to enter his town without giving him previous information, whereas
my countryman had already forwarded a notice that at some future period
he was likely to pay him a visit. Besides concluding, from the fact that
I was not mentioned at all in that letter, that I was travelling on my
own account, he made also greater pretensions with regard to a present.
Being lodged in dark, uncomfortable, and cheerless quarters, which I
was forbidden to leave before the governor had seen me, destitute of a
single farthing in cash, while I was daily called upon and pestered by
my numerous creditors, and laughed at on account of my poverty by an
insolent servant, my readers may fancy that my situation in the great
far-famed _entrepôt_ of Central Africa, the name of which had excited
my imagination for so long a time, was far from agreeable. Partly from
anxiety, partly from want of exercise, in the course of a few days I
had a very severe attack of fever, which reduced me to a state of great
weakness. Fortunately, however, I mustered sufficient strength to avail
myself of a summons which called me at length into the presence of the
governor, on the 18th of February; and by sacrificing what few things
remained to me, I paved the road for my further proceedings, while the
degree of exertion which was necessary to undergo the fatigue of the
visit carried me over my weakness, and restored me gradually to health.
The distances in Kanó, though less than those of London, are very great;
and the ceremonies to be gone through are scarcely less tedious than
those at any European court.
[Illustration: KANÓ, FROM MOUNT DALÁ.]
Clothing myself as warmly as possible in my Tunisian dress, and wearing
over it a white tobe and a white bernús, I mounted my poor black nag,
and followed my three mediators and advocates. These were Báwu, Elaíji,
and Sídi ʿAlí. Elaíji had arrived three days after me from his estate,
and had continued to show me the same disinterested friendship which I
had experienced from him before. Sídi ʿAlí was the son of Mohammed, the
former Sultan of Fezzán, and last of the Welád Mohammed, who was killed
by Mukni, the father of Yusuf, Mr. Richardson’s interpreter.
This man, whom it would have been far better for us to have employed as
our agent from the beginning, had testified his interest in my welfare by
sending me a fat ram as a present, and now accompanied me most kindly, in
order to exert his influence in my behalf with the governor. On my second
visit to Kanó, on my return from Timbúktu in the latter part of 1854,
when I was still more destitute than in 1851, I placed myself directly
under his protection, and made him my agent at the moment when the state
of my affairs rendered considerable credit desirable.
It was a very fine morning; and the whole scenery of the town in its
great variety of clay houses, huts, sheds, green open places affording
pasture for oxen, horses, camels, donkeys, and goats, in motley
confusion, deep hollows containing ponds overgrown with the water-plant
the _Pistia stratiotes_, or pits freshly dug up in order to form the
material for some new buildings, various and most beautiful specimens of
the vegetable kingdom, particularly the fine symmetric gónda or papaya,
the slender date-palm, the spreading alléluba, and the majestic rími or
silk cotton-tree (_Bombax_)—the people in all varieties of costume, from
the naked slave up to the most gaudily dressed Arab,—all formed a most
animated and exciting scene. As far as the market-place I had already
proceeded on foot; but Báwu, as soon as he saw me, had hurried me back to
my lodgings, as having not yet been formally received by the governor.
But no one on foot can get a correct idea of an African town, confined
as he is on every side by the fences and walls, while on horseback he
obtains an insight into all the courtyards, becomes an eye-witness of
scenes of private life, and often with one glance surveys a whole town.
Passing through the market-place, which had only begun to collect
its crowds, and crossing the narrow neck of land which divides the
characteristic pool “Jákara,” we entered the quarters of the ruling
race, the Fúlbe or Féllani, where conical huts of thatchwork, and the
gónda-tree, are prevalent, and where most beautiful and lively pictures
of nature meet the eye on all sides. Thus we proceeded, first to the
house of the gadó (the Lord of the Treasury), who had already called
several times at my house, and acted as the mediator between me and the
governor.
His house was a most interesting specimen of the domestic arrangements
of the Fúlbe, who, however civilized they may have become, do not disown
their original character as “berroróji,” or nomadic cattle-breeders. His
courtyard, though in the middle of the town, looked like a farmyard, and
could not be conscientiously commended for its cleanliness. Having with
difficulty found a small spot to sit down upon without much danger of
soiling our clothes, we had to wait patiently till his Excellency had
examined and approved of the presents. Having manifested his satisfaction
with them by appropriating to himself a very handsome large gilt cup,
which with great risk I had carried safely through the desert, he
accompanied us on horseback to the “fáda,” “lamórde,” or palace, which
forms a real labyrinth of courtyards, provided with spacious round huts
of audience, built of clay, with a door on each side, and connected
together by narrow intricate passages. Hundreds of lazy, arrogant
courtiers, freemen and slaves, were lounging and idling here, killing
time with trivial and saucy jokes.
We were first conducted to the audience-hall of the ghaladíma, who, while
living in a separate palace, visits the “fáda” almost every day, in order
to act in his important and influential office as vizier; for he is far
more intelligent, and also somewhat more energetic, than his lazy and
indolent brother ʿOthmán, who allows this excessively wealthy and most
beautiful province, “the garden of Central Africa,” to be ransacked with
impunity by the predatory incursions of the serkí Ibrám of Zínder, and
other petty chiefs. Both are sons of Dábo and Shékara—the latter one of
the celebrated ladies of Háusa, a native of Dáura, who is still living,
and has three other children, viz. a son (Makhmúd) and two daughters,
one of them named Fátima Záhar, and the other Sáretu. The governor was
then eight and thirty, the ghaladíma seven and thirty years of age. They
were both stout and handsome men, the governor rather too stout and
clumsy. Their apartments were so excessively dark that, coming from a
sunny place, it was some time before I could distinguish anybody. The
governor’s hall was very handsome, and even stately for this country,
and was the more imposing as the rafters supporting the very elevated
ceiling were concealed, two lofty arches of clay, very neatly polished
and ornamented, appearing to support the whole. At the bottom of the
apartment were two spacious and highly decorated niches, in one of which
the governor was reposing on a “gadó,” spread with a carpet. His dress
was not that of a simple Púllo, but consisted of all the mixed finery
of Háusa and Barbary; he allowed his face to be seen, the white shawl
hanging down far below his mouth over his breast.
In both audiences (as well that with the ghaladíma as with the governor)
old Elaíji was the speaker, beginning his speech with a _captatio
benevolentiæ_, founded on the heavy and numerous losses sustained on
the road by me and my companions. Altogether he performed his office
very well, with the exception that he dwelt longer than was necessary
on Overweg’s journey to Marádi, which certainly could not be a very
agreeable topic to a ba-Féllanchi. Sídi ʿAlí also displayed his
eloquence in a very fair way. The ghaladíma made some intelligent
observations, while the governor only observed that, though I had
suffered so severely from extortion, yet I seemed to have still ample
presents for him. Nor was he far wrong; for the black “kabá” (a sort of
bernús, with silk and gold lace, which I gave him) was a very handsome
garment, and here worth sixty thousand kurdí: besides, he got a red cap,
a white shawl with red border, a piece of white muslin, rose oil, one
pound of cloves, and another of jáwi or benzoin, razor, scissors, an
English clasp-knife, and a large mirror of German silver. The ghaladíma
got the same presents, except that, instead of the kabá, I gave him a
piece of French striped silk worth fifty thousand kurdí.
However, our audience did not go off so fast as I relate it, for, after
being dismissed by the ghaladíma, we were obliged to wait full two
hours before we could see the governor; yet although we returned to our
quarters during the very hottest hour of the day, I felt much better, and
in the evening was able to finish a whole chicken, and to enjoy a cup of
Cyprian wine, for which I felt very grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Crowe, who
had supplied me with this cheering luxury.
Having now at length made my peace with the governor, and seeing that
exercise of body and recreation of mind were the best medicines I could
resort to, I mounted on horseback the next day again, and, guided by a
lad well acquainted with the topography of the town, rode for several
hours round all the inhabited quarters, enjoying at my leisure, from the
saddle, the manifold scenes of public and private life, of comfort and
happiness, of luxury and misery, of activity and laziness, of industry
and indolence, which were exhibited in the streets, the market-places,
and in the interior of the courtyards. It was the most animated picture
of a little world in itself, so different in external form from all that
is seen in European towns, yet so similar in its internal principles.
Here a row of shops filled with articles of native and foreign produce,
with buyers and sellers in every variety of figure, complexion, and
dress, yet all intent upon their little gain, endeavouring to cheat
each other; there a large shed, like a hurdle, full of half-naked,
half-starved slaves torn from their native homes, from their wives or
husbands, from their children or parents, arranged in rows like cattle,
and staring desperately upon the buyers, anxiously watching into whose
hands it should be their destiny to fall. In another part were to be
seen all the necessaries of life, the wealthy buying the most palatable
things for his table, the poor stopping and looking greedily upon a
handful of grain; here a rich governor dressed in silk and gaudy clothes,
mounted upon a spirited and richly caparisoned horse, and followed by a
host of idle, insolent slaves; there a poor blind man groping his way
through the multitude, and fearing at every step to be trodden down;
here a yard neatly fenced with mats of reed, and provided with all the
comforts which the country affords—a clean, snug-looking cottage, the
clay walls nicely polished, a shutter of reeds placed against the low,
well-rounded door, and forbidding intrusion on the privacy of life, a
cool shed for the daily household work,—a fine spreading alléluba-tree,
affording a pleasant shade during the hottest hours of the day, or a
beautiful gónda or papaya unfolding its large feather-like leaves above a
slender, smooth, and undivided stem, or the tall date-tree, waving over
the whole scene; the matron in a clean black cotton gown wound round her
waist, her hair neatly dressed in “chókoli” or bejáji, busy preparing
the meal for her absent husband, or spinning cotton, and at the same time
urging the female slaves to pound the corn; the children naked and merry,
playing about in the sand at the “urgi-n-dáwaki” or the “da-n-chácha,” or
chasing a straggling stubborn goat; earthenware pots and wooden bowls,
all cleanly washed, standing in order. Further on a dashing Cyprian,
homeless, comfortless, and childless, but affecting merriment or forcing
a wanton laugh, gaudily ornamented with numerous strings of beads around
her neck, her hair fancifully dressed and bound with a diadem, her gown
of various colours loosely fastened under her luxuriant breast, and
trailing behind in the sand; near her a diseased wretch covered with
ulcers, or with elephantiasis.
[Illustration: 1, My own quarters in Dalá. During my second stay in
Kanó, I also resided in Dalá, at a short distance from my old quarters;
2, Great market-place; 3, Small market-place; 4, Palace of Governor; 5,
Palace of Ghaladíma; 6, Kofa Mazúger; 7, Kofa-n-Adama; 8, Kofa-n-Gúdan;
9, Kofa-n-Kansákkali; 10, Kofa-n-Limún, or Káboga: 11, Kofa-n-Dakanye,
or Dukánie; 12, Kofa-n-Dakaina; 13, Kofa-n-Naísa; 14, Kofa-n-Kúra; 15,
Kofa-n-Nasaráwa; 16, Kofa-n-Máta; 17, Kofa-n-Wambay; 18, Kofa-n-Magardi;
19, Kofa-n-Rúa (at present shut); 20, Mount Dalá; 21, Mount Kógo-n-dútsi.]
Now a busy “máriná,” an open terrace of clay, with a number of
dyeing-pots, and people busily employed in various processes of their
handicraft; here a man stirring the juice, and mixing with the indigo
some colouring wood in order to give it the desired tint; there another,
drawing a shirt from the dye-pot, or hanging it upon a rope fastened
to the trees; there two men beating a well-dyed shirt, singing the
while, and keeping good time; further on, a blacksmith busy with his
rude tools in making a dagger which will surprise, by the sharpness
of its blade, those who feel disposed to laugh at the workman’s
instruments, a formidable barbed spear, or the more estimable and useful
instruments of husbandry; in another place, men and women making use of
an ill-frequented thoroughfare, as a “kaudi tseggenábe,” to hang up,
along the fences, their cotton thread for weaving; close by, a group of
indolent loiterers lying in the sun and idling away their hours.
[Illustration]
Here a caravan from Gónja arriving with the desired kola-nut, chewed
by all who have “ten kurdí” to spare from their necessary wants, or a
caravan laden with natron, starting for Núpe, or a troop of Asbenáwa
going off with their salt for the neighbouring towns, or some Arabs
leading their camels, heavily laden with the luxuries of the north and
east (the “káya-n-ghábbes”) to the quarter of the Ghadamsíye; there, a
troop of gaudy, warlike-looking horsemen galloping towards the palace
of the governor to bring him the news of a new inroad of serkí Ibrám.
Everywhere human life in its varied forms, the most cheerful and the
most gloomy, seem closely mixed together; every variety of national
form and complexion—the olive-coloured Arab, the dark Kanúri, with his
wide nostrils, the small-featured, light, and slender ba-Féllanchi,
the broad-faced ba-Wángara (Mandingo), the stout, large-boned, and
masculine-looking Núpe female, the well-proportioned and comely ba-Háushe
woman.
Delighted with my trip, and deeply impressed by the many curious and
interesting scenes which had presented themselves to my eyes, I returned
by way of the “úngwa-n-makáfi,” or “belád el amiyán” (the village of the
blind), to my quarters, the gloominess and cheerlessness of which made
the more painful impression upon me from its contrast with the brightly
animated picture which I had just before enjoyed. The next day I made
another long ride through the town; and being tolerably well acquainted
with the topography of the place and its different quarters, I enjoyed
still more the charming view obtained from the top of the Dalá.
I had just descended from the eminence beneath which spread this glorious
panorama, when I heard a well-known voice calling me by my name; it
was ʿAbdallah the Tawáti, my friend and teacher in Ágades, who, after
residing some time in Tasáwa, had come to try his fortune in this larger
sphere of action. I had besides him some other acquaintances, who gave
me much interesting information, particularly a young ba-Háushe lad
of the name of Íbrahíma, who gave me the first tolerably correct idea
of the road to Yóla, the capital of Adamáwa, although he was puzzled
about the direction of the Great River, which he had crossed, supposing
that it flowed eastward instead of westward. I derived also a great
deal of information from a less agreeable man named Mohammed, with the
surname “el Merábet” (reclaimed), rather antithetically, as “_lucus à
non lucendo_,” for he was the most profligate drunkard imaginable, and
eventually remained indebted to me for several thousand cowries.
I was much worried during my stay in Kanó by a son of the governor
of Zária, who, suffering dreadfully from stricture or some other
obstruction, had come expressly to Kanó in the hope of being relieved by
me; and it was impossible for me to convince him that I had neither the
knowledge nor the instruments necessary for effecting the cure of his
disease. It would, no doubt, have been of great service if I had been
able to cure him, as he was the son of one of the most powerful princes
of Negroland; but as it was, I could only afford him a little temporary
relief. My intercourse with this man was indeed most painful to me, as
I felt conscious of entire inability to help him, while he conjured me,
by all that was dear to me, not to give him up and abandon him. He died
shortly afterwards. More agreeable to me was a visit from the eldest
son of the governor of Kanó, who, accompanied by two horsemen, came to
call upon me one day, and not finding me at home, traced me whither I
had gone, and having met me, followed silently till I had re-entered
my quarters. He was a handsome, modest, and intelligent youth of about
eighteen years of age, and was delighted with the performance of my
musical-box. I gave him an English clasp-knife, and we parted the best of
friends, greatly pleased with each other.
I had considerable difficulty in arranging my pecuniary affairs, and
felt really ashamed at being unable to pay my debt to the Háj el Dáwaki
till after el Wákhshi himself had arrived from Kátsena. After having
sold, with difficulty, all that I possessed, having suffered a very
heavy loss by Báwu’s dishonesty, paid my debts, and arranged my business
with Mohammed el Túnsi, who, suffering under a very severe attack of
fever, wanted most eagerly to return home, I should scarcely have been
able to make the necessary preparations for my journey to Bórnu if the
governor had not assisted me a little. He had hitherto behaved very
shabbily towards me, not a single dish, not a sheep or other token of
his hospitality having been sent me during my stay in the town. I was
therefore most agreeably surprised when, on the morning of the 2nd of
March, old Elaíji came and announced to me that, in consequence of
his urgent remonstrances, the governor had sent me a present of sixty
thousand kurdí. He told me, with a sort of pride, that he had severely
reprimanded him, assuring him that he was the only prince who had not
honoured me. I should have been better pleased if the governor had sent
me a pair of camels or a horse; but I was thankful for this unexpected
supply, and giving six thousand to the officer who had brought the money,
and as much to Elaíji, and dividing eight thousand between Báwu and Sídi
ʿAlí, I kept forty thousand for myself.
With this present I was fortunately enabled to buy two camels instead of
sumpter-oxen, which give great trouble on the road during the dry season,
especially if not properly attended to, and prepared everything for my
journey; but the people in these countries are all cowards, and as I was
to go alone without a caravan, I was unable to find a good servant. Thus
I had only my faithful Tébu lad Mohammed whom I could rely upon, having
besides him none but a debauched young Fezzáni, Makhmúd, who had long
lived in this town, and a youth named ʿAbdallah. Nevertheless I felt not
a moment’s hesitation, but, on the contrary, impatiently awaited the
moment when I should leave my dingy and melancholy quarters, full of mice
and vermin.
I had hoped to get off on the 6th; but nothing was heard from the
governor, and it would have been imprudent to start without his
permission. With envious feelings I witnessed the departure of the natron
caravan for Núpe or Nýffi, consisting of from two to three hundred
asses. With it went Mohammed Ánnur, a very intelligent man, whom I had
endeavoured by all possible means to hire as a servant, but could not
muster shells enough. However, the exploration of all those more distant
regions I was obliged in my present circumstances to give up, and to
concentrate my whole energies on the effort to reach Kúkawa, where I had
concerted with Mr. Richardson to arrive in the beginning of April. I had
had the satisfaction of sending off a long report and several letters to
Europe on the 1st of March (when the Ghadamsíye merchants despatched a
courier to their native town), and felt therefore much easier with regard
to my communication with Europe. My delay also had given me the great
advantage of making the acquaintance of a man named Mohammed el ʿAnáya,
from the Dʿara el Takhtaníye, to the south of Morocco, who first gave me
some general information about the route from Timbúktu to Sókoto, which
in the sequel was to become a new field for my researches and adventures.
I became so seriously ill on the 8th, that I looked forward with
apprehension to my departure, which was fixed for the following day.
But before leaving this important place, I will make a few general
observations with regard to its history and its present state.
The town of Kanó, considered as the capital of a province, must be of
somewhat older date than Kátsena, if we are to rely on Leo’s accuracy,
though from other more reliable sources (which I shall bring to light
in the chapter on the history of Bórnu) it is evident that even in the
second half of the sixteenth century there could have been here only the
fortress of Dalá, which, at that period, withstood the attacks of the
Bórnu king. I think we are justified in supposing that, in this respect,
Leo (when, after an interval of many years, he wrote the account of
the countries of Negroland which he had visited) confounded Kanó with
Kátsena. The strength of the Kanáwa, that is to say, the inhabitants of
the province of Kanó, at the time of the Bórnu king Edrís Alawóma, is
quite apparent from the report of his imám; but from that time forth the
country seems to have been tributary to Bórnu; and the population of
the town of Kanó is said, with good reason, to have consisted from the
beginning mostly of Kanúri or Bórnu elements. However, the established
allegiance or subjection of this province to Bórnu was evidently rather
precarious, and could be maintained only with a strong hand; for there
was a powerful neighbour, the King of Korórofa or Júku, ready to avail
himself of every opportunity of extending his own power and dominion
over that territory. We know also that one king of that country, whose
name, however, I could not obtain, on the entry of a new governor into
office in Kanó, made an expedition into that country, and installed
his own representative in the place of that of Bórnu, and though the
eastern provinces of Korórofa itself (I mean the district inhabited
by the Koána or Kwána) became afterwards tributary to Bórnu, yet the
main province (or Júku proper) with the capital Wukári, seems to have
always remained strong and independent, till now, at length, it seems
destined to be gradually swallowed up by the Fúlbe, if the English do not
interfere. But to return to our subject. As long as Kátsena continued
independent and flourishing, the town of Kanó appears never to have been
an important commercial place; and it was not till after Kátsena had been
occupied by the Fúlbe, and, owing to its exposed position on the northern
frontier of Háusa, had become a very unsafe central point for commercial
transactions, that Kanó became the great commercial _entrepôt_ of Central
Negroland. Before this time, that is to say, before the year 1807, I
have strong reason to suppose that scarcely any great Arab merchant ever
visited Kanó, a place which nevertheless continues till this very day to
be identified with Ghána or Ghánata, a state or town expressly stated
by Arab writers of the eleventh century to have been the rendezvous for
Arab merchants from the very first rise of commercial connections with
Negroland. And all regard to historical or geographical facts is put
aside merely from an absurd identification of two entirely distinct names
such as Kanó and Ghána or Ghánata.
As to the period when the Kánawa in general became Mohammedans, we may
fairly assume it to have been several years later than the time when
Máji, the prince of Kátsena, embraced Islám, or about the seventeenth
century, though it is evident that the larger portion of the population
all over Háusa, especially that of the country towns and villages,
remained addicted to paganism till the fanatic zeal of their conquerors
the Fúlbe forced them to profess Islám, at least publicly. Nevertheless
even at the present day there is a great deal of paganism cherished, and
rites really pagan performed, in the province of Kanó as well as in that
of Kátsena,—a subject on which I shall say something more on another
occasion.
With regard to the growth of the town, we have express testimony that
Dalá was the most ancient quarter. The steep rocky hill, about 120 feet
high, naturally afforded a secure retreat to the ancient inhabitants in
case of sudden attack; but it is most probable that there was another or
several separate villages within the wide expanse now encompassed by the
wall, which rather exceeds than falls short of fifteen English miles,
and it seems inconceivable why the other hill, “Kógo-n-dútsi” (which is
enclosed within the circumference of the walls), though it is not quite
so well fortified by nature, should not have afforded a strong site for
another hamlet. We have, indeed, no means of describing the way in which
the town gradually increased to its present size; this much, however, is
evident, that the inhabited quarters never filled up the immense space
comprised within the walls, though it is curious to observe that there
are evident traces of a more ancient wall on the south side, which, as
will be seen from the plan, did not describe so wide a circumference,
particularly towards the south-west, where the great projecting angle
seems to have been added in later times, for merely strategical purposes.
The reason why the fortifications were carried to so much greater extent
than the population of the town rendered necessary, was evidently to
make the place capable of sustaining a long siege (sufficient ground
being enclosed within the walls to produce the necessary supply of corn
for the inhabitants), and also to receive the population of the open and
unprotected villages in the neighbourhood. The inhabited quarter occupies
at present only the south-eastern part of the town between Mount Dalá and
the wall, which on this side is closely approached by the dwellings.
On the northern margin of the Jákara is the market-place, forming a
large quadrangle, mostly consisting of sheds built in regular rows like
streets; but the westernmost part of it forms the slaughtering-place,
where numbers of cattle are daily butchered, causing an immense quantity
of offal and filth to accumulate, for which there is no other outlet than
the all-swallowing Jákara. It is the accumulation of this filth in the
most frequented parts of the town which makes it so unhealthy. On the
north-east side of the sheds is the camel-market, where also pack-oxen
are sold. The shed where the slaves are sold is at the north-west
corner; and thence, along the principal street, which traverses the
market, is the station of the people who sell firewood. The market is
generally immensely crowded during the heat of the day, and offers a most
interesting scene.
The wall, just as it has been described by Captain Clapperton, is still
kept in the best repair, and is an imposing piece of workmanship in this
quarter of the world. This wall, with its gates, I have not been able
to lay down with much exactness; but, from my observations on my later
visit in 1854, being aware of the great inaccuracy of the little sketch
of the town given by Clapperton, who himself pretends only to give an
eye-sketch, I thought it worth while, with regard to a place like Kanó
(which certainly will at some future period become important even for
the commercial world of Europe), to survey and sketch it more minutely;
and I hope my plan, together with the view taken from Mount Dalá of the
southern and really inhabited quarter of the town, will give a tolerably
correct idea of its character.
The market-place is necessarily much less frequented during the rainy
season, when most of the people are busy with the labours of the field. A
great part of the market-place during that time is even inundated by the
waters of the pond Jákara.
I now proceed to enumerate the quarters, the names of which are not
without their interest. I must first observe, that the quarters to the
north of the great and characteristic pond Jákara, which intersects the
town from east to west, are chiefly inhabited by Háusa people, or, as
they are called by their conquerors, “Hábe,” from the singular “Kádo,”
while the southern quarters are chiefly, but not at all exclusively,
inhabited by the Fúlbe (_sing._ Púllo), called Féllani (_sing._
ba-Féllanchi) by the conquered race.
Beginning with Dalá, the oldest quarter of the town, and which in
commercial respects is the most important one, as it is the residence
of almost all the wealthy Arab and Berber (principally Ghadamsíye)
merchants, I shall first proceed eastwards, then return by south to
west, and so on. East-south-east, the quarter called Déndalin (the
esplanade) borders on Dalá, then Kutumbáwa, Gérke, Mádabó, Ya-n-tándu,
Adakáwa, Kóki, Zéta, Límanchí (or the quarter of the people of Tóto, a
considerable town not far from Fánda); south from the latter, Yandówea,
and thence, returning westward, Jibdji-n-Yél-labu, another Límanchí
(with a large mosque), Masu-kiyáni (the quarter near the “kaswa” or
market-place), Túddu-n-mákera (the quarter of the blacksmiths) on
the west side of the market, Yámroché, “Marárraba bókoy” (the seven
crossways), “Báki-n-rúa” (the waterside—that is, the quay along the
Jákara, not very neat nor fragrant, and in this respect deserving to be
compared, with the quays of the Thames, which may be called, just with
the same reason, the great sink of London, as the Jákara is that of Kanó,
the difference being only that the Thames is a running stream, while the
Jákara is stagnant), “Runfáwa” (the quarter of the sheds), Yéllwá. Here,
turning again eastwards, we come first to the quarter Ríma-n-jirájiré,
then enter Mággoga, then Maggógi, Ungwa-n-kári, Déndali-n-Wáre, Límanchí
(a third quarter of this name), Dukkuráwa, Rúffogí, Dérma. All these are
quarters of the Hábe, where no Púllo, as far as I am aware, would deign
to live. Beyond the Jákara we now come to the quarters of the ruling
race, proceeding from west to east.
Yaálewa, Mármara, Ágadesáwa (a quarter belonging originally to the
natives of Ágades), Yóla—the princely quarter of the town, and called
on this account “mádaki-n-Kanó.” It is interesting also as having given
its name to the new capital of Ádamáwa (the natives of Negroland being
not less anxious than Europeans to familiarize the new regions which
they colonize by names taken from their ancient homes); el Kántara (so
called from a rough kind of bridge, or kadárko, thrown over one of those
numerous pools which intersect the town), Wuaitákka, Go-shérifé-dodó (a
quarter, the name of which is taken from the ancient pagan worship of
the “dodó),” Tókobá, Dukkáwa, Zaghidámse, Sháfushí. Returning from east
to west we have the quarters Shérbalé, Mádaté, Kúrna, Sheshé, “Dirmí
(or dírremi)-kay okú” (called from a tree of the dírremi species, with
three separate crowns), Lelóki-n-lemú, Kóllwá al héndeki, Sóra-n-dínki,
Rími-n-kóro, Tojí, Yárkasá, Mándáwari, Mármara (different from the
quarter mentioned above), Dantúrku, Sabansára, Kudedefáwa, Jingo, Doséyi,
Warúre, Gʿao (an interesting name, identical with that of the capital
of the Sónghay empire), Kurmáwa, Háusáwa, Ungwa Mákama, Ghaladánchi
(the quarter wherein resides the ghaladíma), Shúramchí (the quarter
where lives the eldest son of the governor, whose title chiróma—a
Kanúri name—in the corrupted form of “shúromo” has furnished the name
of the quarter), Ye-serkí, Kurmáwa (not identical with the above),
“Kusseráwa” (the corner), Udeláwa. South from the palace of the governor,
Rími-n-kerá, Káraká, Dugeráwa, Yákase, Naseráwa (most probably destined
to be hereafter the quarter of the Nasára or Christians), and ʿAbdeláwa.
All over the town, clay houses and huts, with thatched conical roofs, are
mixed together; but generally in the southern quarter the latter prevail.
The clay houses, as far as I have seen them in Dalá, where of course Arab
influence predominates, are built in a most uncomfortable style, with no
other purpose than that of obtaining the greatest possible privacy for
domestic life, without any attempt to provide for the influx of fresh air
and light, although I must admit that a few houses are built in somewhat
better taste; but invariably the courtyard is extremely small, and in
this respect the houses of Kanó are very inferior to those of Ágades and
Timbúktu, which are built almost on the same principle as the dwellings
of the ancient Greeks and Romans. I here give the ground plan of the
house in which I lodged in 1851.
Almost all these houses have also a very irregular upper story on a
different level, and very badly aired. Many of the Arabs sleep on their
terraces.
[Illustration: 1, Large public yard common to the two houses with two
huts; 2, Irregular apartment, where I was to reside, as it was least
wanting in light and air; 3, Dark room without any current of air, but to
which I was obliged to withdraw when suffering from fever; 4, Storeroom;
5, Inner private yard; 6, Closet.]
In estimating the population of the town at 30,000, I am certainly
not above the truth. Captain Clapperton estimated it at from 30,000
to 40,000. The population, as might be expected in a place of great
commercial resort, is of a rather mixed nature; but the chief elements
in it are Kanúri or Bórnu people, Háusáwa, Fúlbe or Féllani, and Nyffáwa
or Núpe; a good many Arabs also reside there, who by their commerce and
their handicraft contribute a great deal to the importance of the place.
The influx of foreigners and temporary residents is occasionally very
great, so that the whole number of residents during the most busy time
of the year (that is to say from January to April) may often amount to
60,000. The number of domestic slaves, of course, is very considerable;
but I think it hardly equals, certainly does not exceed, that of the free
men, for while the wealthy have many slaves, the poorer class, which is
far more numerous, have few or none. It would be very interesting to
arrive at an exact estimate of the numbers of the conquering nation, in
order to see the proportion in which they stand to the conquered. As for
the town itself, their whole number, of every sex and age, does not, in
my opinion, exceed 4,000; but with regard to the whole country I can give
no opinion.
The principal commerce of Kanó consists in native produce, namely, the
cotton cloth woven and dyed here or in the neighbouring towns, in the
form of tobes or rígona (_sing._ ríga); túrkedí, or the oblong pieces of
dress of dark-blue colour worn by the women; the zénne[27] or plaid of
various colours; and the ráwani bakí, or black lithám.
The great advantage of Kanó is, that commerce and manufactures go hand
in hand, and that almost every family has its share in them. There is
really something grand in this kind of industry, which spreads to the
north as far as Múrzuk, Ghát, and even Tripoli; to the west, not only to
Timbúktu, but in some degree even as far as the shores of the Atlantic,
the very inhabitants of Arguin dressing in the cloth woven and dyed in
Kanó; to the east, all over Bórnu, although there it comes in contact
with the native industry of the country; and to the south it maintains a
rivalry with the native industry of the Ígbira and Ígbo, while towards
the south-east it invades the whole of Ádamáwa, and is only limited by
the nakedness of the pagan _sans-culottes_, who do not wear clothing.
As for the supply sent to Timbúktu, this is a fact entirely overlooked in
Europe, where people speak continually of the fine cotton cloth produced
in that town, while in truth all the apparel of a decent character in
Timbúktu is brought either from Kanó or from Sansándi; and how urgently
this article is there demanded is amply shown by the immense circuit
which the merchandise makes to avoid the great dangers of the direct road
from Kanó to Timbúktu travelled by me, the merchandise of Kanó being
first carried up to Ghát and even Ghadámes, and thence taking its way to
Timbúktu by Tawát.
[Illustration]
I make the lowest estimate in rating this export to Timbúktu alone at
three hundred camel-loads annually, worth sixty million kurdí in Kanó—an
amount which entirely remains in the country, and redounds to the benefit
of the whole population, both cotton and indigo being produced and
prepared in the country. In taking a general view of the subject, I think
myself justified in estimating the whole produce of this manufacture,
as far as it is sold abroad, at the very least at about three hundred
millions; and how great this national wealth is, will be understood by my
readers when they know that, with from fifty to sixty thousand kurdí, or
from four to five pounds sterling a year, a whole family may live in that
country with ease, including every expense, even that of their clothing:
and we must remember that the province is one of the most fertile
spots on the earth, and is able to produce not only the supply of corn
necessary for its population, but can also export, and that it possesses,
besides, the finest pasture-grounds. In fact, if we consider that this
industry is not carried on here, as in Europe, in immense establishments,
degrading man to the meanest condition of life, but that it gives
employment and support to families without compelling them to sacrifice
their domestic habits, we must presume that Kanó ought to be one of the
happiest countries in the world; and so it is as long as its governor,
too often lazy and indolent, is able to defend its inhabitants from the
cupidity of their neighbours, which of course is constantly stimulated
by the very wealth of this country.
Besides the cloth produced and dyed in Kanó and in the neighbouring
villages, there is a considerable commerce carried on here with the cloth
manufactured in Nýffi or Núpe, which, however, extends only to the first
and the third of the articles above mentioned, viz. the “ríga,” or shirt
worn by men, and the “zénne,” or plaid; for the Nyffáwa are unable to
produce either túrkedí or ráwaní—at least for export, while they seem,
with the exception of the wealthier classes, to supply their own wants
themselves. The tobes brought from Nýffi are either large black ones, or
of mixed silk and cotton.
With regard to the former, which are called “gíwa” (the elephant’s
shirt), I am unable to say why the Kanáwa are not capable of
manufacturing them themselves; but it seems that, while they thoroughly
understand how to impart the most beautiful dye to the túrkedí, they are
unable to apply the same to the ríga—I do not know why.
Of the latter kind there are several varieties: the ríga sáki, the small
squares blue and white, as if speckled, and therefore called by the Arabs
“fílfil” (pepper), and by the Tuarek, who, as I have mentioned, esteem it
more than any other kind, the “Guinea-fowl shirt” (tekátkat taílelt), as
shown in the woodcut on page 301, is very becoming, and was my ordinary
dress from the moment I was rich enough to purchase it, as a good one
fetches as much as from eighteen to twenty thousand kurdí; then the
tob-harír, with stripes of speckled cast like the taílelt, but intermixed
with red; the jellába, red and white, with embroidery of green silk, and
several others. Specimens of all these I have brought home and delivered
to the Foreign Office.[28]
The chief articles of native industry, besides cloth, which have a
wide market, are principally sandals. The sandals are made with great
neatness, and, like the cloth, are exported to an immense distance; but
being a cheap article (the very best, which are called “táka-sárakí,”
fetching only two hundred kurdí), they bear of course no comparison in
importance with the former. I estimate this branch at ten millions. It
is very curious that the shoes made here by Arab shoemakers, of Sudán
leather, and called “bélghʿa,” are exported in great quantities to North
Africa. The “nesísa,” or twisted leather strap, is a celebrated article
of Kanó manufacture, and “jebíras,” richly ornamented, as the woodcut on
page 303 shows, are made by Arab workmen.
[Illustration]
The other leather-work I will not mention here, as it does not form
a great article of commerce; but tanned hides (“kulábu”) and red
sheepskins, dyed with a juice extracted from the stalks of the holcus,
are not unimportant, being sent in great quantities even as far as
Tripoli. I value the amount of export at about five millions.[29]
Besides these manufactures, the chief article of African produce in
the Kanó market is the “gúro,” or kola-nut: but while on the one hand
it forms an important article of transit, and brings considerable
profit, on the other large sums are expended by the natives upon this
luxury, which has become to them as necessary as tea or coffee to us.
On another occasion I shall enumerate the different kinds of this nut,
and the seasons when it is collected. The import of this nut into Kanó,
comprising certainly more than five hundred ass-loads every year, the
load of each, if safely brought to the market—for it is a very delicate
article, and very liable to spoil—being sold for about two hundred
thousand kurdí, will amount to an average of from eighty to one hundred
millions. Of this sum, I think we shall be correct in asserting about
half to be paid for by the natives of the province, while the other half
will be profit.
[Illustration]
But we must bear in mind that the greater part of the persons employed in
this trade are Kanáwa, and that therefore they and their families subsist
upon this branch of trade.
A very important branch of the native commerce in Kanó is certainly the
slave-trade; but it is extremely difficult to say how many of these
unfortunate creatures are exported, as a greater number are carried away
by small caravans to Bórnu and Núpe than on the direct road to Ghát and
Fezzán. Altogether, I do not think that the number of slaves annually
exported from Kanó exceeds five thousand; but of course a considerable
number are sold into domestic slavery either to the inhabitants of the
province itself, or to those of the adjoining districts. The value of
this trade, of which only a small percentage falls to the profit of the
Kanáwa, besides the tax which is levied in the market, may altogether
amount to from a hundred and fifty to two hundred millions of kurdí per
annum.
Another important branch of the commerce of Kanó is the transit of
natron from Bórnu to Núpe or Nýffi, which here always passes into other
hands, and in so doing leaves a considerable profit in the place. The
merchandise is very cheap; but the quantity is great, and it employs
a great many persons, as I shall have ample occasion to illustrate in
the course of my proceedings. Twenty thousand loads, at the very least,
between pack-oxen, sumpter-horses, and asses, of natron must annually
pass through the market of Kanó; which, at five hundred kurdí per load,
merely for passage-money, would give ten millions of kurdí.
I here also mention the salt-trade, which is entirely an import one, the
salt being almost all consumed in the province. Of the three thousand
camel-loads of salt which I have above computed as comprising the aïri
with which I reached Kátsena, we may suppose one-third to be sold in the
province of Kanó; and therefore that hereby a value of from fifty to
eighty millions annually is drained from the country. But we must not
forget that the money which is paid for this requisite (and not only for
that consumed in Kanó, but also in other provinces) is entirely laid out
by the sellers in buying the produce of Kanó; viz. cloth and corn. Here,
therefore, is an absolute balance—a real exchange of necessaries and
wants.
As for ivory, at present it does not form a very important branch of
the commerce of Kanó; and I scarcely believe that more than one hundred
kantárs pass through this place. The lowest price of the kantár is in
general thirty dollars, or seventy-five thousand kurdí; but it often
rises to forty dollars, or one hundred thousand kurdí, and even more,
though I have seen it bought with ready money for twenty-five dollars.
Of European goods the greatest proportion is still imported by the
northern road, while the natural road, by way of the great eastern branch
of the so-called Niger, will and must, in the course of events, be soon
opened.
But I must here speak about a point of very great importance for the
English, both as regards their honour and their commercial activity.
The final opening of the lower course of the Kwára has been one of the
most glorious achievements of English discovery, bought with the lives
of so many enterprising men. But it seems that the English are more apt
to perform a great deed than to follow up its consequences. After they
have opened this noble river to the knowledge of Europe, frightened by
the sacrifice of a few lives, instead of using it themselves for the
benefit of the nations of the interior, they have allowed it to fall
into the hands of the American slave-dealers, who have opened a regular
annual slave-trade with those very regions, while the English seem not to
have even the slightest idea of such a traffic going on. Thus American
produce, brought in large quantities to the market of Núpe, has begun
to inundate Central Africa, to the great damage of the commerce and
the most unqualified scandal of the Arabs, who think that the English,
if they would, could easily prevent it. For this is not a legitimate
commerce; it is nothing but slave-traffic on a large scale, the Americans
taking nothing in return for their merchandise and their dollars but
slaves, besides a small quantity of natron. On this painful subject I
have written repeatedly to H.M.’s consul in Tripoli, and to H.M.’s
Government, and I have spoken energetically about it to Lord Palmerston
since my return. I principally regret in this respect the death of Mr.
Richardson, who, in his eloquent language, would have dealt worthily with
this question. But even from his unfinished journals as they have been
published, it is clear that during his short stay in the country before
he was doomed to succumb, he became well aware of what was going on.[30]
The principal European goods brought to the market of Kanó are bleached
and unbleached calicoes, and cotton prints from Manchester; French silks
and sugar; red cloth from Saxony and other parts of Europe; beads from
Venice and Trieste; a very coarse kind of silk from Trieste; common
paper with the sign of three moons, looking-glasses, needles, and small
ware, from Nuremberg; sword blades from Solingen; razors from Styria. It
is very remarkable that so little English merchandise is seen in this
great emporium of Negroland, which lies so near to the two branches of
“the Great River” of Western Africa, calico and muslins (or tanjips,
as they are called by the merchants) being almost the only English
articles. Calico certainly is not the thing most wanted in a country
where home-made cloth is produced at so cheap a rate, and of so excellent
a quality; indeed the unbleached calico has a very poor chance in Kanó,
while the bleached calico and the cambric attract the wealthier people on
account of their nobler appearance. In Timbúktu on the contrary, where
the native cloth is dearer, unbleached calico is in request; and it would
be so in an extraordinary degree, if it were dyed dark blue. It is very
interesting to observe that a small proportion of the calico imported
into Kanó is again exported, after having been dyed, returning even the
long way to Ghadámes. I estimate the whole amount of Manchester goods
imported into Kanó at about forty millions; but it may be somewhat more.
The sale of tanjips is very considerable; and the import of this article
into Kanó certainly equals in value that of the former.
The very coarse silk, or rather refuse, which is dyed in Tripoli, is
imported to a very considerable amount, this forming the principal
merchandise of most of the caravans of the Ghadamsíye merchants, and
about one-third of their whole commerce, amounting certainly to not less
than from three to four hundred camel-loads annually, worth in Kanó
each about two hundred thousand kurdí; this would give a value of about
seventy millions imported. But according to some well-informed people,
even as many as one thousand loads of this article pass annually through
Ghadámes; so that, if we take into consideration that the supply of the
northerly markets (as Tasáwa, Zínder) may well be compensated by what is
brought by way of Múrzuk, the value of the import of this article into
Kanó may be much more. A great deal of this silk, I have no doubt by far
the greatest part, remains in the country, being used for ornamenting the
tobes, sandals, shoes, and other things.
Woollen cloth of the most ordinary quality, chiefly red, but about
one-third of the whole amount of green colour, was formerly imported to
a great extent; but it has gone out of fashion, and I think a better
quality, like that with which the market of Timbúktu is supplied by way
of Mogador or Swaira, would succeed. I estimate this branch at present at
only fifteen millions.
Beads, in very great variety,[31] form an important article of import;
but the price has become so low of late years that there has been very
little profit, and the supply has been kept back to raise the prices. The
import of this article certainly amounts to more than fifty millions of
kurdí, of which sum the value of twenty may remain in the country.
Of sugar, I think about one hundred camel-loads are imported every year,
each containing eighty small loaves, of two and a half pounds each, which
are sold in general at fifteen hundred kurdí; so that the import of this
article would amount to about twelve millions. It is very remarkable that
in all Central Negroland the large English sugar-loaf is scarcely ever
seen, while it is the only one seen in Timbúktu. However, I was greatly
surprised when, on my return from that place in 1854, ʿAlíyu, the Emír
el Mumenín of Sókoto, presented to me an English loaf of sugar; and I
heard that he had received several of them as presents from a merchant of
Tawát. The small loaf has certainly a great advantage in such a country,
where money is scarce; and I found in 1854 that its weight had even been
reduced to two pounds.
Common paper, called on the coast “tre lune,” from the mark of three
moons which it bears, is imported in great quantity, being used for
wrapping up the country cloth; but it is a bulky, heavy article, and in
larger quantities is sold at a very cheap rate. The whole amount of this
import may be about five millions of kurdí.
Needles, with the emblem of the pig,[32] and small looking-glasses called
“lemmʿa” in boxes, form important but very cheap articles, and I think
their amount together will not much exceed the value of eight millions.
Generally, the needles in large quantities are sold for one “urí” or
shell each, but often even cheaper; and I was obliged to sell a thousand
for six hundred kurdí. Also, fine needles for silk-work are in request,
but only in small quantity, while large darning-needles are not at all
wanted here, where the cotton cloth is fine, but are the most profitable
thing in Eastern Negroland, from Bagírmi inclusive to Abyssinia.
Sword-blades, which are set here, are imported in considerable quantity;
as not only the Kél-owí and the neighbouring Tárki tribes, but also
the Háusáwa, Fúlbe, Nyffáwa, and Kanúri or Bórnu people, are supplied
from this market. Fifty thousand may be the general annual amount of
this article, which produces (the blade being reckoned at one thousand
kurdí) fifty millions. Almost all of them that I saw, not only here, but
even among the Tuarek near Timbúktu, were from Solingen. Only a small
proportion of the import remains in the country; but the setting of the
blades, which are again exported, secures a great profit to the natives.
Very few firearms, as far as I became aware, are imported into this
market, although common muskets have begun to be imported by way of
Nýffi at extraordinarily cheap prices by the Americans. Pistols and
blunderbusses are privately sold by the merchants to princes or great men.
The common razors made in Styria, with black, wooden handles, bad as they
are, are very much liked by the inhabitants, who know how to sharpen
them most beautifully, and strengthen the wretched handle with a guard
of copper. I had a tolerable supply of English razors, and found that
those bought for sixpence at home would sell profitably, but that nobody
would give, for a good razor, though ever so excellent, more than one
thousand kurdí; however, the better sort are very fit for presents to men
of importance, who know well their value. In any case the handles ought
to be strong, and not likely to break. This commodity does certainly not
much exceed two or three millions.
French silks, called “hattáya,” were formerly in great request, but at
present seem to be a little out of vogue; and most of what is imported
here is exported again by second-hand buyers to Yóruba and Gónja. The
amount of this import into the Kanó market, I think, does not exceed
twenty millions.
An important branch of import is formed by articles of Arab dress,
chiefly bernúses, caftans, sedríyas, trousers, red caps, red sashes,
shawls. It is difficult to state, even approximately, the value of these
articles; but it cannot certainly be much less than fifty millions
altogether. The sort of dress most in request comes from Tunis, but a
good deal also from Egypt; and from the latter country come all the white
shawls with red borders, called “subéta” in Arabic, “aliyáfu” in Háusa,
and very much liked by the negroes as well as by the Tuarek. The import
of this article alone exceeds the value of ten millions. The common
articles of dress, of coarser workmanship, are made in Tripoli. Red caps
of very coarse description are now imported from Leghorn, and find a
sale, but are not liked by the free people.
Frankincense and spices—principally jáwi, benzoin, the resin obtained
from a species of styrax, “símbil” or _Valeriana Celtica_, and
cloves—form a not inconsiderable article of import, perhaps amounting to
fifteen millions. However, I exclude from this sum the value of the rose
oil which is annually imported in considerable quantity, and being a dear
article, forms also an important one; but very little of it comes into
the general trade, almost all of it being disposed of privately to the
princes and great men, or given to them in presents. I am inclined to
estimate the value of this article imported at about forty millions. Tin
and many other smaller articles may together be estimated at ten millions.
In the trade of Kanó there is another very interesting article,
which tends to unite very distant regions of Africa; this is
copper—“ja-n-kárfi.” A good deal of old copper—say fifty loads, together
with about twenty loads of zinc—is imported from Tripoli; but a
considerable supply of this useful and handsome metal is also imported
every year by the Jellába of Nímro in Wadáy, who bring it from the
celebrated copper-mine, “el hófra,” situate to the south of Dar-Fúr, of
which I shall have occasion to speak later.[33] I estimate the whole
import of this metal at about from fifteen to twenty millions; but it is
to be remarked that, so far from being to the disadvantage of the Kanáwa,
it proves a new material of industry, while only the smaller part remains
in the country.
With regard to the precious metals, a small supply of silver is imported
by the merchants, but rather exceptionally, most of the latter being but
agents or commissioners engaged to effect the sale of the merchandise
forwarded from Tripoli and Fezzán. The silver likewise supplies a branch
of industry, the silversmiths, who are generally identical with the
blacksmiths, being very clever in making rings and anklets. In Kanó
scarcely any tradesman will object to receive a dollar in payment. With
regard to iron, which forms a very considerable branch of industry in
the place, I will only say that it is far inferior to that of Wándala
or Mándara and Bubanjídda, which I shall mention in the course of my
proceedings. Spears, daggers, hoes, and stirrups are the articles most
extensively produced in iron.
As for gold, though a general standard, of the mithkál at four thousand
kurdí, is usually maintained, in Timbúktu its price greatly varies, from
three thousand five hundred up to four thousand five hundred kurdí; but
this unreasonable fluctuation is but nominal, gold being scarcely ever
bought in Timbúktu for ready money, but for túrkedís, when a túrkedí
bought in Kanó for eighteen hundred, or at the utmost two thousand,
fetches there a mithkál. One hundred mithkáls of gold may easily be
bought in Kanó at any time. Even the common currency of the Kanó market,
the “urí” (_pl._ kurdí) or shell (_Cypræa moneta_), two thousand five
hundred of which are equal to the Spanish or Austrian dollar,[34] forms
an important article of import and commerce, though I have not been
able to ascertain that a large quantity is ever introduced at a time.
Nevertheless that must sometimes happen, as a great amount of shells
has been exported to Bórnu, where they have been recently introduced as
currency; and this obviously explains why since the year 1848 the demand
for these shells has so greatly increased on the coast.
These merely approximative figures cannot be reduced to the form of
a balance-sheet; but they will give a general idea of the commercial
activity of the place. I will conclude these few remarks by observing
that the market of Kanó is better supplied with articles of food than
any other market in Negroland; but meat as well as corn is dearer here
than in Kúkawa, particularly the latter. Besides the great market-place,
there are several smaller ones dispersed through the town, the most
noted of which are the káswa-n-kurmí, Mandáweli, Hanga, káswa-n-máta,
káswa-n-áyagi, káswa-n-Jírba, káswa-n-Yákase, káswa-n-kófan Wámbay, and
the káswa-n-kófan Náyisa.
The province of Kanó, which comprises a very fertile district of
considerable extent, contains, according to my computation, more than two
hundred thousand free people, besides at least an equal number of slaves;
so that the whole population of the province amounts to more than half a
million; though it may greatly exceed this number. The governor is able
to raise an army of seven thousand horse, and more than twenty thousand
men on foot. In the most flourishing state of the country, the governor
of Kanó is said to have been able to bring into the field as many as ten
thousand horse.
The tribute which he levies is very large, considering the state of the
country, amounting altogether to about one hundred millions of kurdí,
besides the presents received from merchants. The most considerable item
of his revenue consists in, the “kurdí-n-kása” (what is called in Kanúri
“lárderám”), or the ground-rent. It is said to amount to ninety millions,
and is levied, both here and in the province of Kátsena, not from the
ground under cultivation, but every head of a family has to pay two
thousand five hundred kurdí, or just a Spanish dollar; in the province of
Zégzeg, on the contrary, the kurdí-n-kása is a tax of five hundred kurdí
levied on every fertáña or hoe, and a single hoe will cultivate a piece
of ground capable of producing from one hundred to two hundred “démmi”
or sheaves of grain (sorghum and pennisetum), each of which contains
two kél, while fifty kél are reckoned sufficient for a man’s sustenance
during a whole year. Besides the kurdí-n-kása, the governor levies an
annual tax called “kurdí-n-korófi,” of seven hundred kurdí[35] on every
dyeing-pot or korófi, of which there are more than two thousand in the
town alone; a “fítto” of five hundred kurdí on every slave sold in the
market; an annual tax, “kurdí-n-debíno,” of six hundred kurdí on every
palm-tree, and a small tax called “kurdí-n-ráfi” on the vegetables sold
in the market, such as dánkali or sweet potatoes, gwáza or yams, rísga,
rógo, etc. This latter is very singular, as the meat, or the cattle
brought into the town, as far as I know, does not pay any tax at all.
Clapperton was mistaken in stating that all the date-trees in the town
belong to the governor, which is not more true than that all the sheds in
the market belong to him.
The authority of the governor is not absolute, even without considering
the appeal which lies to his liege lord in Sókoto or Wúrno, if the
subjects’ complaints can be made to reach so far; a sort of ministerial
council is formed, to act in conjunction with the governor, which
in important cases he cannot well avoid consulting. At the head of
this council stands the ghaladíma, whose office originated, as we
shall see, in the empire of Bórnu, and who very often exercises, as
is the case in Kanó, the highest influence, surpassing that of the
governor himself; then follows the “serkí-n-dáwakay” (the master of
the horse), an important charge in barbarous countries, where victory
depends almost always on the cavalry; then the “bánda-n-Kanó” (a
sort of commander-in-chief); then the “alkáli” or chief justice,
the “chiróma-n-Kanó” (the eldest son of the governor, or some one
assuming this title), who exercises the chief power in the southern
part of the province; the “serkí-n-báy” (properly, the chief of the
slaves), who has the inspection of the northern districts of the
province as far as Kazáure; then the “gadó” or lord of the treasury,
and finally the “serkí-n-sháno” (the master of the oxen, or rather the
quartermaster-general), who has all the military stores under his care;
for the ox, or rather the bull, is the ordinary beast of burden in
Negroland. It is characteristic that, when the governor is absent paying
his homage to his liege lord, it is not the ghaladíma, but the gadó and
the serkí-n-sháno who are his lieutenants or substitutes.
With regard to the government in general, I think, in this province,
where there is so much lively intercourse, and where publicity is given
very soon to every incident, it is not oppressive, though the behaviour
of the ruling class is certainly haughty, and there is, no doubt, a
great deal of injustice inflicted in small matters. The etiquette of the
court, which is far more strict than in Sókoto, must prevent any poor man
from entering the presence of the governor. The Fúlbe marry the handsome
daughters of the subjugated tribe, but would not condescend to give
their own daughters to the men of that tribe as wives. As far as I saw,
their original type has been well preserved as yet, though, by obtaining
possession of wealth and comfort, their warlike character has been
greatly impaired, and the Féllani-n-Kanó have become notorious for their
cowardice throughout the whole of Negroland.