The reception that we experienced at the hands of the virago who owned
this comfortless hovel, had been neither hospitable nor flattering. In
the temporary absence of her husband, the wrinkled beldame considered
herself to be vested with charge of the hamlet, and for a full hour
after our arrival, standing in the dark porch of her adjacent house, she
had exerted her cracked voice in a tissue of shrill comments levelled
against the impropriety of entering private demesnes unannounced. The
first crowing of the cock invited a renewal of her far from melodious
clamour, and it was not silenced without much difficulty, even by the
jingle of silver crowns.
The road now descended to the Umptoo, a rapid stream, with a broad stony
bed, which rises in the lofty mountain Assagud. Cotton, in its most
perfect state of cultivation, clothed all the level terraces. The
papyrus, here, as in Egypt, designated _pheela_, fringed the banks of
the stream in close thick patches; the honey-sucker, arrayed in green
and gold, flashed in the morning sun, as it darted among the flowering
acacias; birds of rare plumage filled the tangled brushwood; and the
fantastic forms of the circumjacent mountains enhanced the beauty of the
wild scene. But every man's hand was armed for strife. The peasant
carried spear and shield, and wore the sword girded to his loins; and
the site of his habitation had been carefully selected with a long
look-out on all sides as a precaution against attack and invasion.
Leaving the bed of the river, which measured some eighty yards across,
the path ascended a ridge running east and west, and deriving its
appellation from the conspicuous peaks of Golultee and Demsee. To the
eastward, through a wide gap in the mountains, could be seen a long
reach of the Airara, now expanded into a noble river, by the junction of
the Umptoo, and glittering under its numberless channels, which bear in
the rains a vast volume of water to the Casam, to be poured eventually
into the Hawash. From the summit of the pass in the direction of
Ankober, a strange view extended for a distance of thirty or forty
miles--a broken abyss of hill tops seeming as though the waves of the
troubled ocean had been suddenly petrified in their progress--Mamrat,
the monster billow, shewing above all in the far horizon, as the last
barrier arrested in fall career.
The belt of rugged hills of limestone slate, through which the course
lay, is an almost uninhabited waste of neutral ground, forming the
boundary betwixt the Christian and Moslem subjects of Shoa. A few goats
alone found a sufficiency of food among the scanty leaves of the now
withered acacias; and the human denizens of the soil were wild as their
rocky mountains. Fleeing at the approach of the white men, they took up
a secure position on the very summit of the loftiest peaks, and looked
down with evident mistrust upon the cavalcade, which was sufficiently
well armed, and formidable in point of number, to instil terror into the
bosom of all conscious of the wrath of princes, and of tribute rashly
withheld. The termination of this sultry range forms an abutment upon
the country of the Adaiel, whence is derived all the sulphur employed in
the manufacture of gunpowder in the royal arsenals; and specimens which
were picked up by the way would lead to the inference that the vein
continued even beyond the point at which we crossed.
Like that of the Umptoo, the bed of the Korie, another tributary of the
Casam, to which the road next descended, is bordered with luxuriant
cotton cultivation, and in many parts overgrown with tangled papyrus.
Shut in by a deep valley, it threads the mountainous district of
Dingai-terri, and many wild bananas were seen luxuriating on its moist
banks. The dusty path led on through a jungle composed chiefly of a
bastard description of the Balm of Gilead, which being crushed under the
foot, scented the whole atmosphere. On our arrival near the Moslem
cemetery, below Kittel Yellish, the civility of the governor of the
district was evinced in the display, on skins beneath the trees, of
every article considered necessary for Christian sustenance during this
most holy season of Lent--bread, beer, and water proving truly
acceptable to the Abyssinian followers, already much distressed by the
intense heat of a nearly vertical sun, to which they were so little
inured. A wild roguish-looking Moslem dervish, decked in a rosary of
large brown berries, and carrying a staff of truly portentous
dimensions, here introduced himself as an acquaintance made many months
previously at Dathara, upon which grounds he considered himself entitled
to share in the repast. Leading a roving and an idle life, and armed
with scrip and water-flagon, he had for years subsisted upon the alms of
the superstitious followers of the Prophet; and if judgment might be
formed from his sleek exterior, they had not been niggard of their
contributions.
Grey, water-worn precipices, with deep semicircular basins at their
base, now flanked the road, a formation of limestone occasionally
out-cropping beneath a thick stratum of basalt. After crossing the bed
of the Meynso, we gained a more level tract, over which a gallop of five
miles led to Dummakoo, one of the royal granaries, where, by His
Majesty's commands, our head-quarters were to be established. This
village, constructed on a knoll three thousand feet below the level of
Ankober, is situated in a fine, open, undulating country, well
populated, and intersected by numerous milk-bush hedges.
Richly-cultivated, and fanned by a cool breeze, it afforded a most
agreeable contrast to the barren sultry hills through which the greater
part of our course had lain. The lofty range of Mentshar and Bulga,
rising to an extinguisher-like cone called Megasus, was the principal
feature in the landscape; and at the foot of these mountains, which
abound in coal, sinks the valley of the Casam, which was to form the
scene of coming operations.
One of the king's numerous magazines for grain and farm produce extends
its long barn-like front in the centre of the hamlet, every house of
which is screened by a tall green hedge; and that the safety of the
royal stores has been alone consulted in the selection of the site, is
sufficiently proved by the fact of the inhabitants being compelled to
drive their cattle many miles on either side for their daily draught of
water, whilst the long-tressed Mohammadan damsels are fain to trudge
with a heavy jar at their back to a remote pool, carefully fenced and
barricadoed.
All agricultural operations connected with the royal farm at Berhut, are
annually performed by the surrounding population _en masse_. Several
heavy showers which had recently fallen having fully prepared the ground
for the reception of the seed, a vast concourse of rustics had collected
from the entire district--the inhabitants of each hamlet bringing their
own oxen and implements of husbandry; so that in the course of a very
few hours many hundred acres, already ploughed, were sown and harrowed
by their united efforts, the praises of the despot being loudly sung
throughout the continuance of the tributary labour, which is similarly
exacted in all parts of the kingdom.
On the crop arriving at maturity, a sheaf is cut and presented in token
of joy to the governor of the district. The reaping and threshing again
call for the assembly of the agricultural population; and the
harvest-home having been celebrated with suitable festivity, the
accessions to the royal granaries are duly registered by scribes
delegated on the part of the crown.
Upon a rising ground about a mile from Dummakoo, is held the monthly
market of the district. Tradition asserts that one of the inhabitants
of a neighbouring hamlet saw in a dream that the Imam Abdool Kadur,
appearing upon this hill, picked up a stone, and in a loud voice
proclaimed that the spot belonged henceforth to himself; and no sooner
had the pious disciple of the Prophet declared his vision, than the site
was adopted by the unanimous voice of the assembled multitude for the
celebration of the bazaar, which, in the lapse of a few generations, has
become one of considerable importance.
Almost immediately upon our arrival I received a visit from Habti
Mariam, [i.e. "The property of the Virgin"] the vice-governor, whose
residence is at Wurdoo, the principal village of the Berhut district.
He explained that his non-appearance to escort the party from Ankober
had arisen from severe ophthalmia, contracted during a recent visit to
the hot low country. Some very potent amulets had been now attached to
various parts of his body in order to remove the disorder; and the good
man was moreover provided with a large raw onion, with which he rubbed
his eyes alternately during the interview.
It has already been mentioned that the influence of Wulasma Mohammad
extends along the whole of the Moslem districts of the eastern frontier;
and it had now been advantageously exerted in the despatch of a body of
his immediate retainers, commanded first to announce to the Adaiel on
the border our intention of visiting their country, and afterwards to
escort us thither. In order to counteract any offensive demonstration
to which this unusual excursion might give rise, Habti Mariam had issued
orders to assemble his levy, in accordance with strict injunctions
received from his royal master to secure the safety of his "European
children," upon penalty of loss of liberty and government. The greatest
difficulty was, however, experienced in persuading his followers to
undertake the much-dreaded journey to the lower regions, as well from
their unanimous detestation of the intense heat, as their innate dread
of the lawless population; and he was finally compelled to put them to
the blush by a declaration of his resolve to perform the king's behest
at all risks in his own person; when a handful of the boldest setting
the example, the lists were speedily filled to the number of two hundred
and fifty, which force had been considered by the Negoos as sufficient
for the excursion.
Volume 3, Chapter XXVI.
ADEN ON THE CASAM RIVER, THE TERRITORY OF THE ADEL SUB-TRIBE GAREEMRA
DAMOOSA.
A canopy of thick clouds clinging to the high hills of Ankober had
indicated that rain still continued to deluge the more elevated regions;
but on the wide undulating plains of Berhut, the thermometer in the
tents stood at 105 degrees; and although the sky was occasionally
overcast in the morning, the sun shone with due tropical fervour up to
the day fixed for departure to the low country. It was still dark when
the cavalcade filed past the church of Saint George, which, ornamented
with a triangle of ostrich eggs as a spire, stands at the extremity of
the village; and as every Abyssinian lip in succession saluted with a
pious kiss the rough bark of the kolqual trees by which it is fenced
round, many an offering was vowed for individual safe return from the
dangerous expedition.
Dawn of day found the party at the termination of the tract of
table-land claimed by the crown; and the sun, as he rose behind the
lofty peak of Assibote, lighted our descent by the Dodoti pass, a
winding path overhanging the valleys, which still lay in darkness.
Commanding a boundless prospect across the burning plains below, it
leads by a very judiciously selected line, with a gradual descent of
eighteen hundred feet, over barren mountain ridges rapidly diminishing
in height, to the foot of the Abyssinian range, where, watered by the
Casam, stretches the Adel district of Aden; and beyond, wild, desolate,
and hot, and surrounded by extensive white desert tracts, rise the
isolated craters of Saboo and Fantali.
The entire mountain-side is well-peopled by Mohammadan subjects of Shoa,
whose progenitors arriving from the country of the sun with the great
invader Graan, selected this as the location most congenial to their
habits, and with it bequeathed to their descendants all the ancestral
aversion to a cold climate. A stronger and more athletic race than the
Amhara, the dark-eyed females present features far more feminine and
agreeable than their coarse highland sisters, with forms more becomingly
attired. The hot dusty hamlets and scattered farm houses, which crown
many of the peaks, are surrounded by extensive cultivation. The square
domiciles, constructed of loose stones with mud terraces, afford
sufficient accommodation both for owner and cattle, and the rich stores
of grain proclaim a life of industry and abundance.
The retinue of the governor increased rapidly with his advance. Every
hamlet now poured forth its quota; and before reaching the Fotah river,
he mustered in horse and foot full four hundred retainers. For some
miles the road wound along the dry channel of the mountain torrent, the
banks rising on either side steep and perpendicular, so as to form a
deep chasm, partially obstructed by huge masses that had been
precipitated from above. Here and there a solitary Karaiyo hamlet met
the eye--the flocks and herds assembled in the neighbourhood of the only
well, around which the heathen maidens, in rude leathern petticoats,
fearlessly drew water, proclaiming a district dependent upon Shoa.
Debouching at length upon the plain of the Casam, the increase of
temperature was at once perceptible; and the feeble breeze could not be
felt through the mass of acacias and wild aloe which in full blossom
covered the entire face of the country.
We were here joined by a weather-beaten old warrior, covered with silver
decorations for valour, who had lost an eye by the spear of the Galla.
He was to act in capacity of guide; and an hour through the low jungle
brought us to the river at a point where the width is from seventy to
eighty yards, a strong stream of turbid water running through a rocky
channel, in parts choked with groves of tamarisk. Skirting the northern
bank for a considerable distance across hot loose boulders and hard
volcanic terraces, we gained a prominent height, whence the view
extended over the lowest valley threaded by the well-wooded Casam, the
whole reach of which was covered with great herds of homed cattle.
Here the cavalcade halted, and was presently joined, from a group of
Adel wigwams, by Godana, one of the braves of the Gareemra Damoosa,
carrying a broad-headed spear, and wearing his lank hair twisted into
thin cords. A long and animated conference ensued, through the medium
of an interpreter; in the course of which it was set forth, on the part
of the puissant warrior, that the appearance of so large a body of the
Amhara had led his tribe to apprehend meditated hostilities; that their
flocks and herds were grazing in the vale below, peaceably tended by
their young men and maidens; and that as the unwonted descent of such a
host of Christians could not fail to create great alarm, he was
desirous, before authorising further advance, to be more distinctly
apprised of the nature and object of the visit. It was explained by the
governor, "that the sole intention was to hunt buffaloes--that the white
men were the special guests of the king; and having already slain
elephants at Giddem, His Majesty sought to honour his friends the
Adaiel, by the performance of equally extraordinary feats in their
country:--concluding with the assurance, that the fear of the Ittoo
Galla having alone dictated the presence of so many followers, both
Godana and his people might rest satisfied that the visit was in good
faith, and perfectly pacific."
The cattle having first been driven to a distance, the Christian
chivalry were finally, after much demur, permitted to descend into the
bed of the Casam, and there to enjoy the shelter afforded by groves of
spreading tamarinds which grace its shady banks, the elders of the tribe
being meanwhile summoned to debate the subject more fully. Parties of
the Adel population of the adjoining district of Desse now sauntered up
by threes and fours, and tall, gaunt, meagre savages they were--their
loins girded by a scant and filthy rag, but each equipped with a
serviceable creese, a battered shield, and a spear decked with some
trophy of the chase. The scowling downcast eye, habitually half closed
against the glare of their parched plains--the dissatisfaction so
legibly written on every face--the sun-burnt bushy wig--the pinched
features--the loose shambling gait--the air of insolent independence--
and not least, the rank disagreeable odour--all combined to proclaim
them members of the great family peopling this sultry desert for
hundreds of miles, and differing but slightly in manners or in
appearance throughout the entire of the wide extended tract.
In the course of another fierce palaver, it was intimated that many
expected to die before the affair should be terminated; but the promise
of handsome remuneration to the survivors worked successfully upon Adel
cupidity. After devouring the greater portion of our own supply of
bread, which to those who till not the ground forms an unheard of
luxury, they unanimously expressed their resolution of acceding to the
royal wishes, and of leading the way to their choicest preserves.
Greatly to the horror of Moslem antipathy, the river had meanwhile been
dragged of many of its finny inhabitants by the Amhara, who are
permitted to eat fish _ad libitum_, although prohibited from touching
either flesh or fowl during the tedious fast of Lent.
Under the guidance of a party selected by the tribe, we now continued
our route along the bank of the river; and after passing a volcanic
fissure, which winds for miles between high walls of black lava to the
very foot of the Fantali crater, a halt was called upon a spot lower
down the Casam, where grass was abundant. Here we bivouacked among huge
loose boulders; and between the bold headlands which bound the stream,
numerous glimpses were obtained of its distant course. Thermal springs
were stated to exist in the vicinity of Fantali, now about six miles
distant to the south. Although said to have emitted no smoke within the
memory of the present generation, this hill was pictured as a fiery
furnace, and a desert waste, inhabited only by gins and demons--
doubtless a less formidable race than the Ittoo and Aroosi Galla, who
continually prowl over the intervening plain. The presence of these
predatory neighbours, added to our former experience of Adel treachery,
and the habitual apathy and timidity of every Amhara escort, enforced
the necessity of precaution in so wild a spot; and in spite of the
fatigue entailed by the sultry march, we accordingly maintained
throughout the night a disciplined vigilance by a revival of the
long-neglected rules of "watch and ward."
Volume 3, Chapter XXVII.