Arms in Soudan — Tactics — Emulation on the Field — Materials
of Weapons — Archers — War-Song — Breeds of Horses —
Education — Food — Price of Horses — Story of a Tamahan —
Winged and Speaking Horses — Metempsychosis — Poets — Kings in
War — Slave-hunts, manner of — The Firman — Collecting Capital
— Recruits — Sultan of the Hunt — Sharing the Spoil — Other
Regulations — Grain-Nests — Treatment of Slaves — Mortality
— Justification of Slavery — Savage love of Country — Manners.
The people of Soudan do not, in general, possess muskets, or cannons,
or fortresses. In battle, their horsemen are armed with the javelin
and the sabre, and the footmen with the spear or the arrow. The
latter has a buckler to protect himself, and the former a helmet
or coat of mail, or a padded tunic. Horses are covered with thick
housing to protect them against injury.
Each people has a certain traditional system of tactics, which
it clings to, and will not alter or improve in any way. The
Forians divide their army into five divisions,—the vanguard,
the rear-guard, the main body, and the right and left wings. The
vedettes and scouts are spread all around during the march. Every
great functionary has a military character. The flags or standards
are always placed in front of the Sultan, under the command of the
king and a body of chosen men. The Forian flags are either red
or white, and so are those of Wadaï, except that in the latter
country the red are more common. The Forian Sultan is preceded
by ten banners, and the Wadaïan by at least thirty, which are
never lowered unless the prince is killed or taken prisoner. No
Sultan must fly after a battle, so that in case of defeat he must
be killed or taken prisoner. As long as the fight lasts, the drums
do not cease a moment to beat.
On the eve of a battle, each party chooses some sign by which the
soldiers are to be distinguished; as, for example, a band of bark
round the right wrist. In the absence of this precaution, as soon
as the _mêlée_ begins, it would be impossible to know friends from
enemies, for there are no uniforms and no distinctions of colour.
When the Forian troops charge an enemy they display great
animation. The horsemen brandish their swords, and each chief of a
Kardous, or squadron, sets up a song, to which his men reply. At the
time of the revolt of Mohammed Kourra I heard an Emin sing these
words:—“O-nas dio-ba-in,” which means, “The word which
you have in you;” and the soldiers replied, Kel-boa—“Come,
say it.” Then the chief went on, “O-nas dio-Keih,” and the
soldiers answered, Kel-boa ye kel-boa—“Come, say it: ha! ha! say
it.” In this way they worked up their courage, and each seemed
to become an inexpugnable tower.
The armour of the Forians is of various kinds, consisting of casques
with falls of mail, that cover the shoulders and protect the neck,
or of mere head-pieces. Some horsemen have cuirasses covered with
crocodiles’ skin; and, in the infantry, I have seen bucklers made
of the same material. When a cavalier is fully armed and equipped,
mounted upon a horse completely clothed with red, he does in reality
present a terrible appearance, even alone; but a thousand men,
thus arranged, form a really terrific spectacle. When a high-placed
functionary has been removed, and another by intrigue substituted,
the two generally consider themselves as enemies. When, therefore,
a battle begins, the man who has been disgraced seeks out his
rival, and cries:—Ya wendai Bism Illah,—“Come, comrade, on,
in the name of God.” If the person thus challenged complies,
and behaves with courage, no more is said; but, if not, the affair
is reported to the Sultan, and the former occupant is restored to
his place. Similar challenges take place between subjects who have
never occupied any position. If one of them plays the poltroon,
his wife generally asks for a divorce, and no one seeks his daughter
or his sister in marriage.
Foot soldiers, when they go into battle, collect their drapery
like a shawl round their waist, and tuck up their sleeves. Each
man has a buckler and three, four, or five lances, one of which is
a long pike, whilst the others are javelins for throwing. It was
Zou-Yezen, a Hamyaritic prince, who first armed the tops of lances
with iron. Before his time sharp horns were used. There are various
kinds of spears used in Darfur, the shafts of which are sometimes
made of ebony wood, and sometimes of hard roots of trees straightened
by fire. The iron heads now used are of various forms, some of them
being smooth, others serrated, others with heavy balls of iron,
to increase the force of the blow. Formerly the people of Soudan
used to have large bucklers as high as themselves; but these were
found to be inconvenient, and small shields used with dexterity
supply their place. The best are made of the skin of an aquatic
animal called issins. Others are manufactured, as I have said,
of the skin of the crocodile, or of the rhinoceros. The worst are
those made of elephant-skin, which, though thick, are easily pierced
by a lance. Bows and arrows are not used by the Muslim blacks of
Soudan, but they have companies of archers composed of Pagan slaves,
who form a redoubtable element in their armies. In the time of the
revolt of Sheikh Kourra, it was these slave-archers who prevented,
one evening after dark, the insurgents from penetrating into the
dwelling of the Sultan. I was a witness of this scene. The archers,
to the number of a thousand, overwhelmed the partisans of Kourra with
a shower of arrows, and forced them to retreat with great loss. The
archers do not aim straight at the enemy, but cause their arrows
to describe a curve in the air. The heads are of the same form as
those of the lances, and are often so slightly fixed to the reed
that they are left in the wound. They are often poisoned. The bows
are wonderfully small, scarcely more than a span in length, and the
arrows are still shorter. The wood used is very hard, and the strings
are made of the tendons of buffaloes. The quivers consist in a little
sack, in which are carried sometimes as many as two hundred arrows.
When the infantry is ranged in order of battle, it sings various
kinds of songs; for example, this one:—“Lellee Lellee, let
us go. The dust of the battle rises in the east. Ask the buffalo
if his helmet be brilliant. The buffalo is in the midst of our
horsemen. Fear shame, soldiers; fear shame. The buffalo shall meet
with his like.” This song, chanted in unison by a vast body of
soldiers, appeared to me in the original very exciting, but, like all
other songs, it loses by translation. The captains begin the first
line, and the men take up the burthen. The corps of Fertyt, specially
attached to the person of the prince, sing a song of which I could
never obtain any translation. These slaves are in great number in
Darfur, but spread throughout the country at separate stations.
Horses form, for the Soudan populations, one of the most precious
articles of property. The Prophet said,—“To the manes of
coursers shall be attached victory to the end of the world.” The
Dongola and Egyptian breeds are much sought after in Darfur. The
former have long legs, brilliant coats, and are generally black;
but the Egyptian horses are better proportioned and more graceful,
and are easily trained for war. They are generally bay. Those which
are preferred are of middle height, with moderately long legs, slim
and short barrels, broad buttocks, and well-developed chest. The
grooms train them to singular habits, teaching them cleanliness
during great ceremonies, and compelling them, when necessary,
to remain for hours perfectly tranquil, like statues. If any
horse ridden by the Sultan commits any act of impropriety, he is
immediately dismounted and sent home to be beaten.
When I was in Darfur I often admired the elegance and grace of the
steeds of the Sultan. On asking the grooms how they succeeded in
producing these qualities, I was told that the animals were fed on
green food from the neighbourhood of Mount Koussa, and on a kind
of paste made of millet mixed with honey. Every morning also they
drink warm milk.
The horses of Forian breed are abominable hacks, with round bellies
and savage characters. I never saw such indocile brutes. It is almost
impossible to keep them to any particular course. They are, however,
very hard and sturdy, and capable of supporting immense fatigue.
But the best horses in Darfur are those of the Bedawin Arabs, which
are directly derived from Arabia. They are carefully fed in the
pasturages, given warm milk to drink, and constantly rubbed down with
melted butter. The Bedawin, in his solitary plains, fasten for the
night, to the leg of his horse, an iron shackle with a long chain,
fixed to his bed. The horse, accustomed to attacks, to flights,
to forays, and incursions of every kind, hears the slightest noise
in the dark, and, if it be at all suspicious, neighs and stamps
on the ground to wake its master. By day it is always piquetted
near the tent. At whatever hour it may be, as soon as any cry of
alarm is heard, the women of the tribe instantly saddle the horses,
whilst the Bedawin gets ready his arms, so that, in the twinkling of
an eye, there is a body of cavalry ready to ride out of the camp.[55]
The Arabs value their horses at extravagant prices, especially if
they have acquired any reputation. Sometimes a four-year-old mare
with its foal sells for the price of a hundred cows. The dearest
horses are the runners of three kamins, or relays; for there are
steeds which run races of one, two, or three kamins. Sometimes a
horse is pitted to run three relays, and starts with ten competitors
for the distance of an hour. Then there are ten other competitors
ready to take up the race, and so on for another time. It often
happens that a horse wins these three races successively. In Darfur
and Wadaï there are sometimes found horses worthy of emulating the
Arabs for their swiftness and vigour. The following narrative is
curious, in reference to this subject:—An inhabitant of Dar-Tamah
once bought a very young foal of noble blood, and trained it with
most careful attention. When it was old enough he exercised it
constantly, and found that it had no rival in speed. It happens that,
between Tamah and Wadaï, there is a ravine or chasm in the earth,
about two kosabah broad, that is to say, about six fathoms. The
Tamahan resolved to peril his life, and see if he could leap
this ravine. He succeeded several times, and, being now sure of
his safety, began riding him to the border provinces of Wadaï,
and hanging about the wells where the young girls used to come and
fetch water. Whenever he perceived any one that pleased him by her
beauty, he used to snatch her up and ride away with her. Her friends
would pursue, thinking that the ravine would be an insurmountable
obstacle to his flight. But the bold Tamahan always leaped the
chasm and escaped in safety.[56]
In some countries of Soudan there exist very singular ideas relative
to horses. Among others, it is said that a man had a magnificent
courser, of whom he was passionately fond, and visited night and
day. One night, however, he went softly, at an unaccustomed hour,
to see him, and beheld great wings spreading out from his side. The
man was petrified with fear, and the horse, suddenly closing up and
concealing his wings, said,—“The first time that thou comest,
without warning me of thy approach, thou shalt repent.” The people
of Darfur, in fact, are persuaded that the swiftness of horses arises
from their having real, but invisible, wings. They also believe that
these animals have a language of their own, and possess certain
human sentiments, as, for example, modesty. On certain occasions
they throw great veils over their stallions and their mares.
A Forian possessed a horse which had often saved his life by
his speed, and which he carefully tended. His wife died and he
married again. The new wife sometimes gave the horse its ration
mixed with dust, and left the litter untidy. The man, too, since
his new marriage, no longer attended on his beast with the same
care. One day he was in great danger and could not escape. He
was made prisoner with his horse and reduced to groom it. He now
carefully cleaned and attended on the animal, who one day said
to him,—“This is the recompense of the man who neglects his
horse.” The man was frightened and remained still, and the horse
went on,—“Fear nothing, there is no harm. Wilt thou promise me,
if I restore thee to liberty, always to have the same care of me
that thou hast now?” “I promise it.” “Well, then, unloose
me, mount, and fear not.” The Forian did as he was required,
and succeeded, in spite of a pursuit, in escaping.
The Temourkeh have fancies of a different kind. They believe that,
when one of them dies, after remaining three days in his tomb,
he is transported to another country, and marries a new wife. The
Massalit imagine that every one of them, after death, passes into
the body of some animal—of a hyæna, for example, or a cat.
To return to the subject of horses. Bays, with white feet and a
white star on the forehead, are often celebrated by poets, who
improvise verses for the sake of reward, in the presence of the
Sultan. They are generally nomadic Arabs; the blacks having little
poetical taste. Sometimes, under learned princes, there have been
Ulemas distinguished as poets. The Forians derive auguries from
certain motions of their horses. If they stretch the fore legs
abroad, victory is expected; but if the hind legs, defeat.
All these customs and ideas, which I have described as Forian,
may be applied almost exactly to Wadaï, especially those which
have reference to war. The Wadaïans, however, are less particular
in their military adornments, and do not sing in battle.
The Fertyt do not possess horses—oxen are the only domestic animals
they know. In most tribes the women act as beasts of burthen. When
in war, they place their king on a kind of ebony stool, borne by
relays of four men.
If they are defeated, they set his majesty down and leave him,
for no Sultan must fly. However, according to ancient custom,
no prince is killed in a _mêlée_, except by accident. If he be
taken prisoner, he is generally treated with respect. Kadis, Ulemas,
and musicians, are also spared, if taken, and set free. It is not
customary, however, if free women and children are taken, to sell
them as slaves, although Saboun did so, as an exemplary punishment,
when he took Bagirmeh.
The Ghazwah, or slave-hunts, in Dar-Fertyt, and amongst the
Jenakherah, are carried on in a different manner in Darfur and
Wadaï. In the latter country, the Sultan sends one of his governors
with a troop, chosen beforehand, to which no strangers attach
themselves; but in Darfur things are managed differently. There,
even a private individual, if he thinks himself capable of conducting
a Ghazwah, demands a salatieh, and, if he obtains it, sets out with
as many people as he can collect.
This is the way in which a complete Ghazia, or Ghazwah, is
managed. He who can make a present to the Sultan, and who has some
friend at court, goes to the Fasher in the first day of summer,
some time before the beginning of the rains. The best offering to
make to a Sultan is a horse ready bridled and saddled, with a slave
to lead him. If the prince accepts the present, and permits the
expedition, he gives to the solicitor a salatieh, that is to say,
a tall lance, and delivers a permission of excursion, conceived,
for example, in the following terms:—
“In the name of the Great Sultan, the refuge and the support of
all, the glory of the Arab kings and of the non-Arab kings, master
of the neck of all nations, sovereign of the two lands and the two
seas, servant of the two holy cities, putting his hope in the God of
justice and longanimity, the Sultan Mohammed Fadhl, the victorious,
to all those who these presents may see, emins, warriors, shartai,
damleg, and chiefs of our armies,
“We, Sultan favoured of God, sustained by his special grace,
victorious Sultan, have gratified with our favours and our
benevolence _such an one_, son of _such an one_, and have given to
him a salatieh to conduct an expedition into Dar-Fertyt, and make
a Ghazwah, in the direction of _such a tribe_. All those who may
accompany him in his enterprise shall be free from blame on our
part—in testimony of which the present firman has emanated from
our sublime generosity and our noble bounties. Far, far, may all
opposition be, all acts of malevolence, against this mandate. We
have recommended to the bearer of this permission to act with
justice towards those who may follow this expedition, and to conduct
himself with the equity and the moderation which the fear of God
inspires, as regards the portion of slaves that is to fall to his
share. Salutations.”
Supplied with the firman of this kind, and with the salatieh, which
confers the authority of chief of a Ghazwah, the solicitor leaves
the dwelling of the Sultan, and, accompanied by one or two servants,
places himself on the great square of the Fasher. There he crouches
on a carpet which is spread upon the ground, and the salatieh is
stuck up before him. Meanwhile a domestic beats a tambourine. People
begin to collect from all sides and crowd around him, and learn
that he has been named chief of a Ghazwah, and has obtained a
firman. Merchants soon come forward with stuffs for garments. The
chief buys as much as he pleases, according to the presumed profit
of his expedition, and always on credit. The price varies according
to circumstances. For example, when a merchant wishes himself to
accompany the expedition, and the quantity of goods he has sold is
worth only one slave at the Fasher, the chief of the Ghazwah agrees
to deliver five or six slaves in the Dar-Fertyt itself; but if, on
the contrary, the merchant does not choose to follow the expedition,
and prefers waiting till it returns, he agrees to receive only two
or three slaves. When the bargain is concluded, the master of the
salatieh gives to the merchant a written acknowledgment. In this
way he collects, not only garments, but horses, camels, asses,
&c. Some chiefs, who inspire confidence, contract in this way for
more than five or six hundred slaves.
While these preliminaries are going on, many people come and
offer to associate themselves with the leader of the expedition;
and he then causes to be transcribed several copies of his firman,
and gives one to each, with a horse or camel for the journey.
He also points out to these, his first hunting companions, the road
they are to take, and divides them into ten squads, each of which
has a chief. The rendezvous is always beyond the southern limits
of Darfur.
Each chief of a squad now takes a different route, and passes
through the towns and villages beating a tambourine, collecting the
inhabitants, communicating the contents of the firman, pointing
out the conditions offered by the undertaker of the hunt, and
promising, for example, that the owner of the salatieh will only
take, at the first jebayeh, or division of spoil, the third of the
slaves which each hunter has taken, and at the second division
a quarter. Generally a certain number of young Forians, of poor
families, join the expedition.
The master of the salatieh also stops in the places which he
traverses to collect companions, and having rested awhile in his own
village, proceeds to the general rendezvous. Once there, he takes the
title of Sultan, and composes a kind of court out of those to whom
he has delivered copies of the firman. There have been sultans of
Ghazwah who have found themselves at the head of nine or ten thousand
people or more. His court is a perfect imitation of the court of the
real Sultan. He delivers clothes to his body-guard, and distributes
to them his camels, his asses, and his horses. Sometimes a great
many people come flocking in without having been recruited; but all
are obliged to admit the absolute authority of this temporary sultan.
The rules of distribution of the products of the hunt are fixed and
known. All slaves taken without resistance fall to the lot of the
sultan, amongst whose perquisites, likewise, are the presents given
by the kings of the adjoining provinces. The expedition pushes
on as far as it can, and then one evening it is announced that
the division of profit is to be made the next day. This division
takes place as follows:—The sultan causes a circular enclosure,
or zeribeh, with two openings, to be made. The people of the Ghazwah
come early in the morning with the slaves they have caught. If the
sultan is reasonable, he takes only a third, but he sometimes exacts
one-half. The zeribeh is made of prickly branches. The sultan sits in
the middle, and his servants station themselves at the issues. Then
all the slave-catchers, one by one, bring in their lots, the number
of which is immediately written down. If there are only two, the
sultan takes the better, and the other is left to his owner, who
receives a paper, certifying that he has submitted to the law of
partition. He who has only taken one slave is put aside until another
in the same predicament comes, when the sultan takes one and leaves
the other to be divided. All those kept by the sultan remain in
the zeribeh. This ceremony lasts sometimes ten days, or even a month.
When the division has been made, the master of the salatieh
pays his debts, and then continues the hunt, returning, however,
towards Darfur. When within a few days’ march there is a second
division made.
The sultan is entitled to every disputed slave, and to the property
of all who die, without direct heirs, on the road. He, however,
is obliged to take from his share the presents to be made to the
Sultan and to the great people who have assisted him in obtaining
his privilege.
The master of a salatieh, when the excursion has been fortunate,
easily acquits all expenses, pays his debts, makes the necessary
presents, and has a hundred slaves left for himself. Besides this,
the horses, the camels, the asses, and all the harness and baggage
brought back, remain as his property. He resumes possession of
everything he has distributed, except the garments. In fine, each
individual returns to his country with the booty which, by the
grace of God, he has been able to take.
The leader of a hunt always treats with consideration the people
who compose his court, and sometimes does not take from them any of
their share. On the other hand, it is they who watch over his safety,
and attend to him. At each halt they get ready a shelter for him,
and send people forward to prepare each station. For this purpose,
they bring with them from Darfur skins of animals, millet-stalks,
and poles sufficient to make every day an enclosure or dwelling for
the sultan. These materials are carried from camp to camp. In fine,
the whole ceremonial of this expedition resembles the march of a
real Sultan.
When the troops surround one of the stations of the Fertyt, and
the inhabitants yield without resistance, the sultan takes the
chief as a prisoner, treats him honourably, gives him a dress,
and afterwards liberates him; but he seizes on all the grown men,
the youths, the women, and girls, leaving only the old people and
those who do not seem to be in a state to undergo the fatigues of
a journey. The leader of a hunt may form or break alliances with
tribes who agree to become tributary to Darfur; but he is obliged
to act according to the rules of justice and equity. At any rate,
he is induced to behave well towards his subordinates, by the hope
of taking them along with him another year.
One of the duties of the officers of the sultan is to search out the
nests in which the Fertyt hide their grain; for, finding themselves
constantly attacked by their neighbours, these people conceal
their provisions in the trees so carefully, that an unaccustomed
traveller would never suspect their existence. They choose for this
purpose trees which are very leafy and tufty. They cut a certain
number of branches, with which they make a kind of large hurdle;
on this they spread, first, a bed of leaves, and then a bed of
millet-husks; then they build thereon a little conical hut, in
which they pile their grain, and, closing up the opening, leave it
until they require it for their use. The thickness of the leaves,
and the intricacy of the branches, entirely conceal these aërial
barns. The whole country is covered with monstrous trees growing
in forests, so that it is not easy to discover these stores.
The Fertyt who inhabit the highlands bury their grain in matmourah,
or deep pits, lined with millet leaves. The Forians also keep
their corn in matmourah, though the rich deposit their harvests in
vast sheds.
The men who obtain permission to go upon slave-hunts have their
itinerary marked down beforehand, and it is forbidden to overpass the
limits set. This is done to prevent different Ghazwah from meeting
and fighting one with the other. The Sultan sometimes delivers
sixty or seventy salatieh in the course of a year; but many of these
expeditions are not important in number. They sometimes consist of as
few as fifteen men. These hunts bring into the hands of the Forians
a considerable number of slaves. If they all arrived in Darfur, the
country would be overstocked; but many of them die of ill-treatment
during the journey, or are killed. If a slave, from fatigue or
other reasons, determines not to proceed, he sits down and says,
“Kongorongo,” that is to say, “Kill me.” He is instantly
killed with clubs in presence of his companions, in order to frighten
them, and deter them from imitating his example. Women are treated
in the same manner. Many of the prisoners die of fatigue by the way,
and others of diarrhœa, caused by change of food. Sometimes epidemic
diseases, such as dysentery, seize the whole flock, and nearly all
perish. Two or three out of twenty are often all that survive. On
arriving in Darfur many also perish from the effects of the climate,
though such as are treated with gentleness, and are submitted to
a proper regimen, generally survive. Acclimated slaves sell for a
much higher price than those who have been recently brought.
But, in any case, this sudden change of condition exposes the
slaves to dangerous diseases. Moreover, melancholy seizes them,
especially if they fear to be sold to stranger Arabs. They are
persuaded that these Arabs are in want of meat, and come and buy
them for food, and to use their brains for soap, and their blood for
dyeing garments red. This belief is deeply implanted in the minds
of all the slaves, and the Forians take advantage of it to reduce
the indocile by fear. It is sufficient to threaten to sell them to
the Jellabs to bring them to a sense of duty. The slaves do not get
quit of their fear until they have been some time in the hands of
the Arabs; but, during the whole length of the journey, they remain
in continual terror. If we add to this cause the excessive fatigue
of the march, the extremes of heat and cold in the deserts, it will
not appear surprising that they die by thousands on the way. Only
the very strong or the very fortunate reach as far as Egypt. I have
seen Jellabs leave Wadaï with a hundred slaves, and lose them all
by cold; and others have been deprived of still greater numbers
by heat and thirst; whilst others, again, out of a single flock,
find not one wanting. All this depends on the will of the Most High.
Our holy law permits the sale and exportation of slaves, but on the
express condition that we should act with the fear of God before
our eyes; which sentiment, indeed, should be the guide of all our
actions. The reasons by which slavery is justified are these:—
God has commanded his Prophet, the Prophet of Islam, to announce
the Divine law to men, to call them to believe in the true God,
and to employ the force of arms to constrain unbelievers to embrace
the true faith. According to the Divine word itself, war is the
legitimate and holy means to bring men under the yoke of religion;
for as soon as the infidels feel the arms of Islam, and see their
power humiliated, and their families led away into slavery, they
will desire to enter into the right way, in order to preserve their
persons and their goods. If they resist, and are obstinate in their
unbelief, it is necessary to march in arms against them. However,
before resorting to this extreme means, we must invite them to submit
to the law of Islam, and warn them many times on the misfortunes
they will bring upon themselves by their incredulity.
But the Prophet has also authorised the ransom of prisoners. “After
the fight,” he says, “you may give liberty to prisoners or
accept a ransom for them, in order to put a stop to the calamities
of war. As for those who obstinately repel my law, and reject
the religion of Islam, offer them the choice between war and the
obligation of an annual tribute, by which they may buy security
and life. If they take up arms against you, whoever is made captive
shall be sold.” Nevertheless, all men, as children of Adam, are
equal; the only difference being, that some have adopted the faith
of Islam, and others a different, that is, an erroneous faith.
The inhabitants of Muslim Soudan, in their excursions against the
idolaters, do not observe what is prescribed by the word of God, and
never call upon them before the attack to embrace Islamism. They rush
suddenly on the tribes of the Fertyt and Jenakherah, and, without
preliminaries, without appeal to faith, without pacific attempts
at proselytism, they assail, combat, take them as slaves, and sell
them. But the fact of capture once accomplished, these people,
being idolaters, it becomes lawful for Muslims to sell them. He
who has acquired possession of a slave, man or woman, is bound to
conduct himself towards him or her according to the principles of
justice and religion. He must not exact from his slaves too great an
amount of work. He must feed them with the food which he prepares
for himself and his family, and he must clothe them with care;
for a slave is likewise the creature of God.
Captives are treated in exactly the same manner in Darfur and Wadaï,
but there is a difference in the way in which slave-hunts are carried
on. In the former country, although the authority comes direct from
the Sultan, he has nothing to do with the details. But in Wadaï,
where there is greater respect for the sovereign power, a general is
chosen to perform a Ghazwah, and nearly the whole product goes into
the hands of the Sultan. The slaves taken on these occasions are
all equally without belief in God, without knowledge of a Prophet
or revelation, without religion or civil law. They adore blocks of
stone, and build chapels for these divinities, and make offerings to
them of lances and rods of iron. I had once a slave from Dar-Binah,
who, hearing mention of God, observed that his God was much greater
than ours. I asked him what he meant, and he said his God was so
large, holding his hands at a certain distance the one from the
other. I told him that there was only one God for all the world,
for all countries, and all climates; that he was great, powerful,
and invisible; and I repeated these words until my slave understood
them. The ignorance of these people, and their want of authoritative
traditions, render it easy to instil a new religion into them. I
have seen a young girl learn the Muslim profession of faith the
very day of her capture, and repeat it without emotion or surprise.
These people are wonderfully ignorant, and only learn that there
are other men on the face of the earth besides themselves by the
periodical appearance of the Ghazwah. They have many singular
customs; among others, they are very particular in preventing
marriage within certain degrees of consanguinity. This is more
remarkable, because both sexes constantly mix together nearly
entirely naked. Women and men wear only a little apron, or cover
themselves with leaves. By what inspiration have they been able to
establish and preserve more rigid restrictions than Muslims?
All these people lead a poor and miserable life; yet they
passionately love their country, and cling to the place which has
given them birth. If they leave their villages and their huts, or
are taken away into slavery, their thoughts and their desires carry
them constantly back to their country. In their childlike simplicity
they often fly away from their masters, to endeavour to return
to their miserable dwelling-places; and, when they are pursued,
they are always found toiling back on the direct road. They are so
simple-minded, that although every year their country is ravaged
by slave-hunts, those that escape always return to the old spot and
reconstruct their villages, and wait until they are again disturbed.
I have already said that they take one precaution, namely, to
hide their store of grain in the trees. Some also build their
dwelling-places there, cutting out a space amidst the branches,
and constructing a conical hut, well secured against the rain. To
this nest the Fertyt and his wife climb up by means of the nobs
and projections of the trunk. Sometimes a single tree bears the
grain-store and the hut; but they are generally separate.
These savages have wonderful skill in certain arts. The shafts of
their javelins and lances are admirably polished; and the ebony
stools they make would do credit to the workshops of the most
civilised nations. But, when we consider their miserable existence,
and how they are deprived of all that contributes to the enjoyment
of life, such as agreeable food and proper garments, we must class
them among the lowest savages. Glory be to the Eternal, who has
distributed societies in various forms, according to his pleasure!