KEROUAN TO DJEBEL TROZZA, DJILMA AND SBEITLA.
On the afternoon of April 11 we left Kerouan, by no means sorry to
regain our liberty; for although we had greatly enjoyed the society
of our hosts, it was impossible not to feel ill at ease in so sacred
an atmosphere. I must add, however, that this was the only place
in the Bey’s dominions where we saw anything like intolerance of
Christianity, and here, considering the venerable traditions attached
to the place, its existence was almost excusable. The heat was most
intense, but one of our hanbas, out of consideration for my comfort,
had provided for my use one of the immense straw hats used by the
Arabs of the South, very similar in form to what we are accustomed
to associate with the rites of a witch’s Sabbath. Its crown was
a truncated cone as big as a sugar-loaf, and the diameter across
the brim was little short of a yard. This is worn over the turban
or head-dress, whatever it may be, and fastened under the chin with
leather straps, when it is desirable to protect the head from the
sun’s rays; at other times it hangs down the back by those straps
which then pass over the neck. In perfectly still weather it is a
great luxury, but when there is the slightest breeze it is extremely
difficult to manage. Our route to-day was in a south-westerly
direction, and after a short ride of 13 miles we encamped at a douar
a little to the north-east of the Koubba of Sidi Ali bin Salem.
Our hosts at Kerouan had sent a spahi in advance to prepare everything
for our reception, so we found grain for the horses, and, what we
always prized more than anything that could be offered, abundance
of fresh milk for our own use.
At half-past five on the morning of April 12 we continued our route
westwards. At seventeen miles from Kerouan we crossed the Oued
Shershera, an affluent of the Merg-el-leil, both of which are dry
at this place; here we passed to the right bank of the latter river,
and at about twenty-two miles from Kerouan we came to an end of the
weary plain in which we had been travelling ever since leaving Susa,
and entered slightly undulating ground surrounded by low hills. To
us they appeared magnificent mountains, so ready were we to hail
anything with delight, that should break the painful monotony of the
landscape. About a mile beyond is Ain Ghorab, the fountain of the crow
(Aquæ Regiæ?), near which are the ruins of a Roman position. It is
a copious spring near the left bank of the Merg-el-leil, which has
here a considerable body of water; the Arabs say that it is never
dry at this point, though its waters are absorbed by the thirsty
ground a very short distance lower down.
Two and a half miles further on we passed the remains of another Roman
town; its site is called Dhahar el-Baidha. We noticed no appearance
of inscriptions or ruins of any particular interest.
Near this spot we were met by the brother of the Sheikh Salah,
Khalifa of the Oulad Sendasini, a branch of the _Jelas_ tribe,
pronounced _Selas_; his own name is Ali Harioush ben Saidan, and
as the great people themselves appear to be always away somewhere,
he had come out to meet us in the name of his brother, and escort
us to our camping-ground at the north end of Djebel Trozza. Here
he had collected a number of the tents of his people for our
especial advantage, and he supplied all our wants with the most
lavish liberality. What words shall I use to express the delight
of those huge bowls of warm milk, awaiting us the moment we had got
out of our saddles? The heat had been overpowering for some hours,
and no fluid in nature could have been so grateful to us. Our good
host was delighted at our enjoyment of it, and repeated over and over
again that, if there was anything else we could suggest as likely to
minister to our comfort, he would have the country scoured in every
direction to procure it. We must indeed have been hard to please if we
had not been satisfied with his arrangements for our reception. Barley
and grass for the horses were already provided for them, and even a
further supply in bags for the next day’s march. A sheep roasted
whole, couscoussou, butter, eggs and honey, an abundance of dates and
excellent fresh bread, above all a continuous and boundless supply
of milk, formed a feast that even Hatim Tai might have set before
his guests. Our good host was very curious to see all we possessed,
and to know what I was writing in my note-book. I pleased him greatly
by telling him, that I was recording his name and the excellence of
his hospitality for the information of all future generations.
On the north end of Djebel Trozza, about 380 feet above the level of
the plain below, is a remarkable fissure in the limestone mountain
called by the natives _El-Hammam_, or the bath. It descends vertically
from a spacious recess or cave, to a depth of about twenty feet,
when it widens out into a chamber filled with hot vapour. We had
no means of testing its temperature, and indeed did not venture
to the bottom, but it cannot be much under the boiling point of
water. No water, steam, or fire ever issues from it, but the vapour
rises perpetually and appears to be merely heated air, without the
addition of any sulphureous gases. The natives have implicit faith
in its remedial effects, and come to it from great distances for the
cure of rheumatism, and other similar affections. The mountain is
comparatively dry and sterile, but it is not without a considerable
number of trees, the principal of which are wild olive, tamarisk,
kharoub and juniper. There appears to be no water near save what is
obtained from the Merg-el-leil, which flows near it. We saw great
numbers of red-legged partridges, and my companion delighted the Arabs
vastly by the facility with which he shot them on the wing. Our host
was a great sportsman himself, but I fancy he was more accustomed
to shoot his prey sitting than flying.
Alpha grass grows abundantly here, and indeed in many parts of
the country: but this was the only place where we actually saw it
being collected. This valuable plant, the _stipa_, or _Macrochloa
tenacissima_, appears destined to be the great civilising influence
in North Africa. Two railways are now being constructed in Algeria,
one by an English capitalist,[145] and several others are projected,
with the sole object of bringing down this precious fibre to the
coast. Tunis cannot compete with Algeria in this respect; still,
considerable quantities are annually exported from Susa, Sfax,
and other ports on the east coast of the Regency.
The plant grows spontaneously in isolated tufts on the most dry
and barren soil; it extends itself in concentric layers, so that the
youngest and best leaves are always outside, and therefore most easily
plucked. At present it is principally employed for the manufacture
of paper, and nearly all our British mills are being adapted to
make use of it; but there appears no limit to the number and variety
of manufactures in which it can be employed, either in its natural
state or in the form of _papier mâché_. Hats, mats, brooms, baskets,
&c., are made of the dried fibre, while a paste made from it has been
employed by opticians (for telescopes), manufacturers of artificial
limbs, shoemakers, tailors, house decorators, coopers (for making
casks), and it has even been suggested to employ it in shipbuilding.
With the alpha generally occurs the diss grass (_Empelodesmos tenax_),
which it greatly resembles, and which is the staple building material
of the country. It makes an excellent and impermeable thatch, but
the fibre appears not to be suited for papermaking.
Early on the morning of April 13, we started from our camping-ground.
Our host, and the two extra spahis who had been sent from Kerouan to
accompany us, rode with us part of the way, and after a hard day’s
ride of twelve hours, upwards of thirty miles, we arrived at a douar
of the Frashish tribe, some miles west of Djilma. The route lay along
a wide plain, more undulating and _accidenté_ than that from Kerouan,
but almost totally uncultivated. Many parts of it were covered with
brushwood, there were even groves of olive-trees in some places, and
all along the route at short intervals we observed ruins of Roman
stations, showing how extensive the occupation of the country had once
been. This is the great highway, if such a name may be applied to a
mere track, from Kerouan to the Djerid; and it is quite practicable for
wheeled conveyances, although there are one or two rather difficult
watercourses to be crossed.
We could not remain any time at Djilma; neither provisions for
ourselves nor forage for our animals were to be obtained; so after
a very cursory examination of the ruins we continued our route. The
modern Djilma is the ancient Chilma or Oppidum Chilmanense, which does
not appear to have played an important part in history; if it did, the
record is lost. The ruins are not very interesting, though they cover
a considerable extent of ground. The most important is a Byzantine
fortress, which, as usual, is built of older materials. There can be
no doubt that the modern name is merely a corruption of the ancient
one; nevertheless, the Arabs have a way of their own of accounting
for it. The water of the Oued Sbeitla, as we shall see further on,
disappear in the sand a little south of the ancient city. A holy
man undertook to make them reappear near Djilma, and on his miracle
proving successful all the people flocked to see it, exclaiming
in astonishment, ‘_Dja el-ma!_’ (the water has arrived!) There
can be no doubt as to the authenticity of this miracle, as the Oued
Djilma has contained an abundant supply of water ever since!
Our reception by the Frashish was by no means very cordial, but
after the usual amount of wrangling and threatening we got what
we absolutely required, food for our people and horses; our own
provisions we always carried with us. They also gave us some goats’
milk, very highly flavoured by the wormwood and other aromatic herbs,
which constituted their principal food, but by no means disagreeable
in taste.
Early on the morning of the 14th we started for Sbeitla, where we
arrived shortly after noon. The road passed along the crest of a low
range of hills, following the left bank of the watercourse running
between Sbeitla and Djilma, which is here quite dry. The country
is as barren as any we had passed through, but it is covered with
the remains of Roman posts and towns. One of the latter, now called
Meksour Mediouna, about a mile from our camping-ground, occupies a
very large area, and appears to have been a place of importance. Near
it, on the left bank of a tributary of the river, are the remains of
a wayside fountain, attached to which was another building, intended,
no doubt, to enshrine a statue, fragments of which, in blue stone,
are lying near it. This district, now so utterly barren and deserted,
must have contained a large and prosperous population. We did not
meet a single individual during our ride of twelve miles. Game is
very abundant here, and my companion shot a fair supply of partridges
and a lesser bustard or _poule de Carthage_.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 145: This railway, which leaves the main line at St. Barbe
de Tlelat, twenty-six kilometres from Oran, proceeds thence to
Sidi Bel Abbes. It was opened for traffic on June 10, 1877. It was
constructed entirely by Mr. Harding, of Paris, and was transferred
by him to a company only on the completion of the work.]