[Illustration: HOGGAR TUAREGS NEAR AHNET WELLS
These curious veiled people of the Sahara are said to have been
driven out of North Africa many centuries ago. They were forced south
into the desert, where they have ever since remained, seemingly
preferring this lonely existence to contact with a more civilized
world. The “litham,” or veil, covering the face is primarily
designed to keep out the choking desert sand.]
THROUGH TIMBUCTU
AND
ACROSS THE GREAT SAHARA
AN ACCOUNT OF AN ADVENTUROUS JOURNEY OF
EXPLORATION FROM SIERRA LEONE TO THE
SOURCE OF THE NIGER, FOLLOWING ITS
COURSE TO THE BEND AT GAO AND
THENCE ACROSS THE GREAT SAHARA
TO ALGIERS
BY
CAPTAIN A. H. W. HAYWOOD, F.R.G.S.
Royal Artillery
WITH 45 ILLUSTRATIONS & A MAP
LONDON
SEELEY, SERVICE & CO. LIMITED
38 GREAT RUSSELL STREET
1912
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I PAGE
Reasons for the journey — Selecting a servant — Preparations
— The Sierra Leone Railway 17
CHAPTER II
Bush scenery — A night at Bo — The Frontier Force at Daru —
Mendi and Kissy carriers — Cotton-growing — Secret societies
— Poro and Bundu societies — Marriage customs — The Liberian
frontier 23
CHAPTER III
Shooting in the grass-country — An unfortunate mishap —
Doubtful pleasures of a journey — Sources of the Niger — A
curious frontier rock — Bush fires — Bird life 34
CHAPTER IV
The Harmatan — Native burial rites — Koranko superstitions
— The Anglo-French frontier — Solitude of a Customs post —
A change of scenery — Smuggling — A change of carriers —
Intoxicating liquor — The Upper Niger — A splendid spectacle
— A good highway — Native music 42
CHAPTER V
Faranah — The Malinkés — Castes — Big game on the Mafou
River — Native methods of hunting — Trapping — Ground nuts
— The native trader — Kouroussa — Native types — French
gardens — Native dances — Beehives — Fruit 55
CHAPTER VI
Samory and the Sofas — The Sofa wars — Desertion of my “boy”
— Kouroussa and Kankan — Native horses — An inhospitable
reception — Kankan — Trade at Kankan — The rubber vine —
Native telegraphy — Personal adornment 67
CHAPTER VII
Hippopotami — Game in the Wasulu country — Lazy carriers — In
pursuit of elephants — Fetish haartebeest — “Red” elephants
— A fetish altar — Braimah’s juju — Charms and tests 78
CHAPTER VIII
Mamadu’s new hat — Tribal marks — Unreliable guides — A
lonely prospector — Bolting carriers — A local chief — More
trouble with carriers — Hunting eland — Sand-flies and mosquitoes
— The headman’s duty — Undesirable presents — Jomongonas
— A magnificent view — Jilingé — Gold — Superstition of
the River Fie — A Niger ferry — An unappreciated delicacy —
Fishing on the Niger 89
CHAPTER IX
Kob — A West African road — Characteristics of the Moors — The
influence of Islam — The French Soudan — Kangaba — Hospitality
— A picturesque market — Vexatious delays — African punctuality
— A new acquaintance — Uncomfortable marching — Shea-butter
— Its uses — A native toothbrush — Arrival at Bamako 106
CHAPTER X
Bamako — The Bambaras — An animated scene — The Kati Plateau
— Dinner with the Governor — Government House — Game in the
“Bend” of the Niger — The Senegal-Niger Railway — Bamako
market — The hotel 120
CHAPTER XI
Koulikoro — Niger Navigation Service — Rapids on the Niger —
The Hourst Expedition — An explorer’s death — Horse-breeding
133
CHAPTER XII
On a river launch — Salutations — Crocodiles — An evening
halt — Camping on the bank — Tobacco-growing — Cotton-growing
— Garrison mess life — Irksome travelling — An enlightened
ruler — An excellent shooting-ground — A holy city — Kadis
— Architecture — Sails of grass — Picturesque pilots — A
strike in the engine-room — Flat country 143
CHAPTER XIII
A land of inundations — River transport in the Macina Province
— The “King of Mopti” — Mopti — Prospects of the rice
trade — Shooting wart-hog — Native huts — The protection of
egrets — A lion as a pet — A dangerous joke — Scarcity of
wood — The white ant — The driver ant 157
CHAPTER XIV
Fulani cattle — Lake Dhebo — Duck shooting — Teal — A tough
bird — The Niger River winds — Towing a barge — Niafounké
— The edge of the Sahara — Stalking birds — Sheep-farming —
Developing the wool trade — Raided by a leopard — Ostrich-farming
171
CHAPTER XV
Game on the Issa-Ber — Hiring a canoe — A leaky craft — Borgou
grass — Fish tanks — Sebi — Tracks of lions — Good wildfowl
shooting — Tortures of a native saddle — Mamadu’s horsemanship
— A flat country — Fulani villages — Saraféré — Desert
winds — Niger canoes — Hardy hunters — Ancient fire-arms —
Lion shooting — The Fulanis 184
CHAPTER XVI
Land near the Bara-Issa — Tuaregs — A salt caravan — Stalking
hartebeest — Lake Niangaye — The village of Kanioumé — My
runaway horse — Tracking elephants — Elephants bathing — A
stampede of elephants — A wounded elephant — Cave dwellers —
Sandstorms and rifles 201
CHAPTER XVII
Bullocks — Pelicans on Lake Niangaye — Stalking ostriches —
Friendly Tuaregs — Lakes and swamps — By canoe to Timbuctu — An
intricate route — Horses of the Sonrhais — Kabara — Timbuctu
— A quaint desert city — A change of route — A steel canoe
— Yakubu — Explorers — Réné Caillé — Barth — Scenes
in Timbuctu — The Sonrhay empire — Mosques — Salt trade —
Saharan sirocco — Desert caravans 217
CHAPTER XVIII
Preparing to cross the desert — Articles for barter - My barge -
My new “boy” — My crew — Stranded — A miserable people —
“Cram-cram” — Borgou — Bamba — Under sail — A variety
of game — The defile of Tosaye — The “Oued Telemsi” — A
curious coloured clay — Gao — A lazy class — Mosques at Gao
— A perilous journey — Giraffe 233
CHAPTER XIX
Loading a camel — Water vessels — My camels — My caravan —
Nomads of the Sahara — Vegetation of the desert — Country of
the Kountahs — Line of wells — Rainfall — My tent — Gazelle
— Fowls of the desert — A trying march — Ill-used animals
— How to mount a camel — Moroseness of the camel — Vagaries
of the camel — An unpleasant feature — Uncomfortable riding
248
CHAPTER XX
An unreliable guide — Relief — Typical scenery — Game in
the “oueds” — A dreary scene — The effect of the sun — A
breakdown — Kidal — Reorganization — A veiled people — The
Iforas — Tuaregs and Iforas — Iforas as camel-masters — Adrar
— I abandon my bath — The value of dates — French couriers
— A solitary post — Relics of the Stone Age — Relics of
former nations 263
CHAPTER XXI
The camel’s reserve store — Variations of temperature — The
Sahara by moonlight — Halley’s Comet — Wells of Abeibera —
Tea in the desert — Difficult bargaining — Enduring donkeys —
Saharan game — A dry well — Missing camels — In Ouzel — An
indifferent boundary — Unpleasant recollections — A change in
the desert — Saharan shrubs — Welfare of the camel 279
CHAPTER XXII
The dreaded Tanezrouft — Camel saddles — The wells of Timissao
— A valuable plant — A night march — An improvised shelter
— Sandstorms — Enemies to sleep — Gloomy scenery — The
water supply — An exhausting struggle — The wells of Ahnet —
Instinct of the guides — Protecting the water-skins 294
CHAPTER XXIII
The Ahnet or Western Hoggar — A bad reputation — Tuareg
highwaymen — A salt well — A barren region — We reach Insalah
— A dramatic entrance — Colonel Laperine — Insalah — Its
importance — Resources — Artesian wells — Varieties of dates
— Pasturage — The streets 310
CHAPTER XXIV
Disturbing news — _En route_ for Algiers — A remarkable man —
Horses at Insalah — Hospitality of French officers — Slavery
amongst the Arabs — An unusual sight — A pathetic story — My
own valet and cook — A precipitous track — The “Great Erg”
— Hassy Inifel — An incompetent guide — Lost — A useful
camel-driver — A hospitable Arab chief — An unappetizing menu —
The dates of Ouargla — Touggourt — A ramshackle coach — Biskra
322
CHAPTER XXV
By rail to Algiers — A difficult project — The resources of
the Sahara 338
APPENDIX 341
INDEX 343
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Hoggar Tuaregs _Frontispiece_
FACING
PAGE
Barracks of the W.A.F.F. at Daru 24
River Moa, Sierra Leone 24
Baro Village 60
Native types at Kankan 74
M. Louis Novella at Sarafinian 100
A Senafou Native 100
Natives pounding rice at Tombola 108
The spread of Islam in the Western Soudan 112
The Railway Station and Hotel at Bamako 122
The Niger at Bamako 122
The Niger at Koulikoro 134
The Niger at Ségou 134
The Launch “Réné Caillé” 152
Steel Canoes on the Upper Niger 152
Mopti 160
A Captive Lioness at Mopti 166
Bambara Hunters 194
Canoes on the Bara-Issa 196
Women pounding rice 202
Fulanis at Bambara-Maaundé 206
Timbuctu 220
A scene outside the walls of Timbuctu 224
The departure from Gao 250
A Tuareg Herd, In Ouzel 254
The Wells of Tabankhor 258
A snapshot of the “King of Beasts” 258
My Kitchen in the Desert 264
The Sergeant of Tirailleurs 268
Méhariste Camels out at pasture 272
The Wells of Kidal 276
Sheep at the Wells of Bourassa 286
Tuareg hovels at In Ouzel 286
My Riding-Camel in the Sahara 290
My servant Musa in the Sahara 302
My Arab Guide Mahomed 306
Arab and Tuareg 312
Insalah Oasis 316
The Artesian Well of El Barka 318
The Market-place, Touggourt 318
The Spring of El Guettera 324
The Oasis of Ouargla 328
The Residency at Touggourt 332
Chamba Arabs at Touggourt 332
The Mosques at Ouargla 334
[Map]
THROUGH TIMBUCTU
AND
ACROSS THE GREAT SAHARA
CHAPTER I
Reasons for the journey — Selecting a servant — Preparations
— The Sierra Leone Railway.
AFRICA, like India, seems often to cast a spell over those who
visit it, and certainly at the end of 1909 I found myself under
this curious fascination. I had spent some years soldiering in West
Africa, and had often wished to explore the ramifications of the
Upper and Middle Niger, but the difficulty of obtaining sufficient
leave had been an insurmountable obstacle. My chance came at last,
however, when I found myself quartered at Freetown, the capital of
our British colony of Sierra Leone, and due for six months’ leave.
I determined to spend my furlough in a journey down the river from
its source, making shooting excursions at suitable points in its
basin, and directing my steps towards Timbuctu. From Timbuctu I
proposed to cross the Sahara Desert, striking almost due north for
Algiers. The strange tales I had often heard of this desert and the
curious wandering tribes who inhabit it, interested me and made me
wish to ascertain for myself the truth of them.
The first thing to be done was to get leave. In due course this
was obtained, and at the same time I was informed that the French
officials along my route had been told to offer me every facility
for my journey.
In the meantime I had not been idle, as I was well aware of the
time required before official sanction would be received. I had
calculated the kind and amount of stores necessary, and these with
my ammunition were on their way out from England.
In the Niger valley almost every kind of West African game is
to be found, including elephant, lion and giraffe. My armament
consisted of a ·303 magazine sporting Lee-Speed rifle, a ·450
Cordite Express and a 12-bore shot-gun. I took good care to be amply
provided with ammunition, not only for sporting purposes, but also
for self-defence, as my journey was not wholly without danger.
I calculated on getting a good supply of fresh meat by my gun,
and so my stores consisted chiefly of such articles as flour, tea,
jam and some soups. I reckoned that the journey would take about
five months, and had sufficient supplies to last me that time.
One of the chief difficulties was to find a servant who could
speak the requisite languages and who was willing to accompany
me to Algiers. In West Africa the language problem is always a
difficult one. Tribes are so numerous, and all speak different
languages. In many cases these languages bear not the slightest
resemblance to one another, and are exceedingly hard to acquire. By
a stroke of good fortune I succeeded in procuring a Susu native,
who had a fair idea of cooking for white men, and according to
himself, “saveed plenty all the talk master want.” This,
being interpreted into plain English, meant that he could speak
fluently the languages I required. Having had some experience of
the West African negro and his capacity for lying without turning
a hair, I took the precaution to put him to the test. He was made
to discourse at some length with a Malinké and a Bambara, these
being the two languages most necessary, and as he acquitted himself
fairly satisfactorily, I engaged him forthwith. After crossing the
French frontier these two languages were those most widely spoken
until I should enter the Sahara. Here only Tuaregs and Arabs would
be met with. I had a sufficient colloquial knowledge of Arabic for
practical purposes. Further, I knew that at the big French centres
I could always procure an interpreter if necessary; at the same time
I wished if possible to avoid having any dealings with these gentry,
as they have gained a not undeserved reputation for being first-class
rogues, who, in the name of their masters, extort presents from
the ignorant natives of the villages through which one passes.
In West Africa baggage is made up in loads not exceeding
sixty pounds, and is carried by native porters on their heads.
Consequently all my possessions had to be arranged in a manner
suitable for this kind of transport. Most West African “bush
paths” are not more than three or four feet wide at most, hence
carriers have to walk in Indian file; indeed, so accustomed are they
to this mode of progression that even where Government has built
wider roads, they can never be induced to walk otherwise than one
behind the other. As paths are usually so narrow, being enclosed on
each side by dense bush, loads, besides not being too heavy, must not
be too bulky. I had altogether fourteen carrier’s loads. My plan
was to follow the Sierra Leone Railway to its terminus at Pendembu,
where I arranged to pick up my carriers.
One of my chief difficulties was to arrange for money on the
journey. To carry a large sum, such as would be required for the
whole expedition, on my person or in my baggage, would be highly
imprudent, and only act as a tempting bait to the numerous thieves
and highwaymen who are always met with in these countries. There
was the further complication of requiring English and French money.
After some trouble I settled with a French firm at Freetown for
drafts payable at two different places on my route, and a further
draft to be paid at Marseilles. I was the more easily able to arrange
this as, after leaving Sierra Leone, the whole of my journey would
be through French possessions.
As it would be impossible for mails to reach me, I resigned myself,
not altogether regretfully, to being without letters for the next
five or six months. At last my preparations were complete, and on
the 6th of January I left Tower Hill Barracks to catch the seven
o’clock morning train from Freetown for Bo, where a halt is made
the first night. It was with feelings of joy at getting away from
civilization, and the delightful pleasure of knowing I should spend
the next few months in close contact with all the beauties of nature,
that I set forth that glorious tropical morning. It is somehow easier
to cast aside the gnawing cares of the world when one is alone with
nature. In tropical Africa nature is so beautiful that the most
unimaginative being can hardly fail to be stirred by her fascinating
charms and forget for the time the existence of sordid civilization.
The scene that met my eye at the station was a busy and amusing
one. Most of the people present were the so-called Creoles. These
people are the inhabitants of Freetown who have become civilized
more or less, and are fond of aping the European dress and customs.
The young men wear stiff collars and starched shirts with the
gaudiest ties and handkerchiefs imaginable, while the ladies vie
with one another in the brightness of the hues of their frocks. On
their heads they wear the most brilliant coloured handkerchiefs,
and this is the prettiest part of their dress. The crowd around the
little train is so great that it is only with considerable difficulty
that one is able to approach one’s carriage. Everyone is talking
at the same time, so the noise is deafening. It must be understood
that not one-tenth part of this crowd is going in the train, most
of them are only idle spectators. The departure of the train is
always a great excitement for the Sierra Leone native and invariably
attracts a large and fashionable mob. At last all preparations are
complete, the guard blows his whistle, those who are passengers are
unceremoniously bundled into the train, whilst the spectators are as
unceremoniously bundled out of the way, and amidst final good-byes
from the assembly on the platform we steam out of the station.
The babel of voices having ceased, comparative quiet now reigns, and
at last I have a chance of collecting my thoughts and observing my
fellow-travellers. We are three in my compartment, all going together
as far as Bo. Each of us is provided with an ample “chop-box,”
or luncheon-basket. In West Africa it is a well-established
maxim never to get separated from two articles: namely, one’s
bedding with mosquito curtain, and one’s “chop-box.” These
two things are most necessary to one’s comfort, if not to one’s
existence. Without the bed and mosquito curtain you will be devoured
by mosquitoes, with the almost certain result of a bad dose of
fever. Without the box of provisions one runs the risk of starvation.
One of my companions is a trader, who is going up-country to
investigate the advisability of starting a new store in a district
recently opened up by the railway. The Sierra Leone line has done
much to increase the trade of the colony and hinterland during the
past few years. Trade in palm kernels and ground nuts is brisk,
and the railway has quite as much as it can do to cope with the
goods traffic.
The other is a bank official going to Bo on some duty connected
with his bank, which has large interests in the protectorate.
The Sierra Leone Government Railway is a line of narrow gauge
running almost due east from Freetown for 220 miles. Its terminus
is at Pendembu, close to the Liberian frontier. Officially the
railway ends at Baiima, 212 miles from the capital of the colony,
the last eight miles being called a tramway, but practically
there is no difference between the railway and the tramway, and
both are of identical gauge. There is also a tramway running from
Boia into the Yonni country. Trains run three times a week in both
directions. Travelling is not comfortable judged by the standard
of English railways, the compartments are small, the seats of the
carriages are uncommonly hard, and the line is roughly laid. But
greater comfort will no doubt come in time, and it is an undoubted
boon for the traveller to have a railway of any description; in
the olden days these 200 odd miles used to take him fourteen or
fifteen days with carriers instead of only two.