PRESENT INHABITANTS OF BIRKEL. — FUNERAL CEREMONIES IN THE MAHOMETAN
BURIAL-GROUNDS. — NAME OF RAMESES II. OR SESOSTRIS. — DESCRIPTION
OF THE PRESENT STATE OF THE COUNTRY. — INDIGO MANUFACTORIES. —
THE SHAGEEA TRIBE. — ONE OF THEIR MELEKS. — PYRAMIDS OF NOURI,
DILAPIDATED STATE. — CURIOUS CONSTRUCTION OF ONE. — GENERAL
DIMENSIONS. — ANTIQUITY. — COMPARISON BETWEEN THE ANCIENT AND
MODERN BUILDINGS OF ETHIOPIA. — RETURN TO MEROUEH. — TURKISH
MANNER OF BEING PAID FOR SERVICES. — VOYAGE DOWN THE NILE. —
NUMEROUS VILLAGES. — SHAGEEA TRIBE. — INTOXICATION, LEARNING,
ETC. — VARIOUS VILLAGES AND ISLANDS. — EFFECTS OF THE CLIMATE
AND OTHER PECULIARITIES OF THIS COUNTRY ON THE CHARACTER OF THE
PEOPLE. — NOBLE MANNERS OF THE ARABS. — DONGOLAH AGOUS. —
PROBABLE SITE OF NAPATA. — NEGRO SLAVES. — EFFECTS OF THE CRUELTY
OF THEIR OWNERS. — ENCROACHMENTS OF THE DESERT. — CULTIVATION. —
PEASANTS.
The inhabitants of the village of Birkel have their burying-place
on the edge of the desert. Two women died while we were there. On
such occasions the females of the village assemble in the house of
the deceased, to cry and bewail her death. Generally, after two or
three hours, they carry the body to the grave. On their arrival at
the burial-ground, they assemble round the corpse, and make a low
melancholy howl, and the nearest relations, with dishevelled hair
and loud lamentations, perform a kind of lascivious but graceful
dance; not very unlike that of the almæ in Lower Egypt, but the
movements here are different. They do not, like the almæ, remain
fixed to one spot, but move forward rather gracefully, bending their
knees and back, and throwing up their bosoms, keeping time to the
clapping of hands and their wild _lululoo_, of which there are two
descriptions, one expressive of grief, and the other of joy. This
dance is not so very indecent as the Egyptian dance. When the body
is laid in the ground, stones are erected over the head and feet,
between which they make a narrow channel, as I mentioned before,
filled with small pebbles, generally of quartz, but invariably of one
colour. I asked of several persons an explanation of this ceremony;
but the only reply was, “It was the custom.” Burckhardt states
(page 269.), that a fakeer told him that it was a mere meritorious
custom; that there was no necessity for it, but that it was thought
that the soul of the deceased, when hereafter visiting the tombs,
might be glad to find these pebbles, in order to use them as beads,
in addressing its prayers to the Creator.
In the centre of the burying-ground is a large tomb of a saint: this
is also built of stone. These stones are all taken from the temples,
but they are generally without sculpture or hieroglyphics. On one
stone, however, I discovered half of the name of Rameses II. or
Sesostris. This is curious, and reminded me that Strabo[32] speaks
of a sacred mountain in Ethiopia, where there was a temple of Isis,
built by that conqueror; and Herodotus says that Sesostris, that is,
Rameses II., was the only Egyptian king who made himself master of
Ethiopia. My accidental discovery of this name, is, I think, strongly
corroborative of the correctness of these two passages: this may
be the mountain alluded to. That conqueror must have constructed
some edifices, otherwise I should not have found his name. The
temple of Isis may be the one excavated in the rock, and afterwards
adorned with sculpture, by Tirhaka; and the statement of Herodotus,
that he was the only king who subdued the Ethiopians, is, I think,
proved by the fact, that, with the exception of the one which _may
be_ that of Amunneith III., on the column of the great temple, this
is the only name I have found of an Egyptian king either here or at
the Island of Meroe. I begged the katshef who governed the district
to desire the peasants to take the stones that they required from
the mountain, urging that, as strict Mahometans, they ought not to
take them from Pagan ruins; but, unfortunately, there is no law in
the Koran by which this is forbidden. Here, therefore, is another
cause which will contribute to the speedy and utter destruction of
what still remains of this interesting city.
To give the reader an idea of the present state of fertility of this
country, notwithstanding that the desert has enormously encroached
on the cultivated land, the following particulars may not be
uninteresting:—The katshef of Meroueh commands as far as Wanly,
down the river, one day by land, about thirty miles; and up the
river as far as Berber, two days by land. Within this small extent,
over which only the banks of the Nile are cultivated, there are 1368
water-wheels, which pay to the government twenty dollars each, that
is, 27,360 dollars; besides which, the government gain considerably
by obliging the peasants to plant indigo, which they purchase from
them at twelve piastres the cantar. They have calculated that they
make 190 drachms of indigo from each cantar. Under the government of
Dongolah, there are five manufactories of indigo,—Meroueh, Handek,
Haffeer, Dongolah Agous, and El Ourde. The manufactory here produces
1846 okres[33] every year, and is now increasing. The peasants are
unwilling to cultivate this plant, as the labour is very great; and
they do not consider the price they receive a sufficient remuneration.
The Shageea who cultivate this district are less oppressed than
their neighbours: they are, as Burckhardt and Waddington have
remarked, considered the bravest of the Arab tribes. This warlike
race alone never bent their knees to the great Sultan of Sennaar. It
is impossible to convey to the reader an adequate idea of the power
these daring warriors once possessed. The name of a Shageea was
a host in itself. I have been repeatedly assured, that a single
horseman has often been known to alight at a peasant’s hut, order
the owner to hold his horse, whilst he entered into his very harem,
ate with his wives, and often, it is said, still more shamefully
abused his power. Death or slavery was the fate of the meleks of
the neighbouring tribes who dared to offend them. Mounted on their
dromedaries or horses, armed with lances, swords, and shields,
they scoured the province, sweeping away the herds, massacring
all who had the courage to resist, and carrying away men, women,
and children into captivity. War was their sole delight; the cry to
arms their most welcome sound. Mothers appeased the cries of their
infants by the sight of a spear; and the lovely maiden only yielded
her hand to the distinguished warrior. Their exploits are the theme
of many a song; and other tribes seem to have forgotten their wrongs
in admiration of the bravery of their oppressors. The blessings of
peace, agriculture, and domestic repose were considered irksome by
these proud warriors. They obstinately and gallantly resisted the
invasion of the Pasha, till they found it vain, with their lances
and sabres, to contend against fields of artillery and disciplined
troops armed with the musket. Understanding that the Pasha was going
to make war against Melek Nimr and the Shendyans, who were also their
enemies, they joined his troops, and gradually came completely under
subjection to him. The government, however, treats them with some
respect. As I have stated before, a Shageea regiment is still in
the Pasha’s service, and engaged in the war against the Negroes,
at the southern extremity of his kingdom.
[Illustration: Pl. 30.
A MELEK OF THE SHAGEEA TRIBE.
_On stone by W. Walton, from a Drawing by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
The ancient race of the meleks still exists, but the fortunes of
many are wofully changed. I took the portrait of one, an uncommonly
fine-looking fellow, who was constantly in the temple where I resided,
talking with my servants. (See Plate XXX.) His long gown, or shirt,
is called, in Arabic, _e’tobe_. The shawl, or _el melayah_,
is always put on very gracefully. Their sandals, or _nohel_, are
useful in walking on the sand, except when the latter is soft and
heated by the sun: they then afford them little protection, as their
feet constantly sink above the sole. As there was no barber in the
village, and I was told he had some skill in shaving, I allowed him to
officiate in that capacity; but most anxiously shall I avoid to have
my head again shaved by the son of a king. Never did I endure such
a scarification. His razor, one of the twopenny sort from Trieste,
was blunter than even a French table-knife; and he had no means
of sharpening it, but, according to the custom of the country,
on his bare arm. He drew blood four times, and scraped my head in
such a manner that it smarted for several hours afterwards; but it is
impossible to endure the wearing of one’s hair in this climate after
having once been accustomed to the luxury of having it shaved every
week; and having lost my penknife, I have been obliged to take my own
razor to cut my pencils. Travellers, in these unprovided regions, must
often have recourse to strange means of supplying their necessities.
Plate I. represents a Shageea with the dress of the desert—merely
a cloth around his waist: his colour is darker than the other, which
is accounted for from the life he leads, continually exposed to the
scorching sun.[34]
During our residence in the temple of Tirhaka we were often troubled
with wolves, attracted, I presume, by the smell of the meat, and
who made too free with our larder. Fatigued always by measuring
and drawing all the day under this burning sun, we slept too
soundly to detect the thief; indeed, the roaring of a lion would
scarcely have roused our Arab servants: but we had a guardian of
another description, whose instinctive vigilance proved fatal to
the intruder. The little monkey the Mahmoor of Berber gave me was
chained to, and had his bed among, a heap of stones in the corner
of the sanctuary where Mr. B. and I slept. The poor little animal,
frightened most desperately at the approach of so powerful an enemy as
a wolf, and, besides his bodily fear, having, of course, an interest
in the preservation of our larder, succeeded in rousing us by rolling
down the stones that were near it. It did this three nights together:
last night, one of my servants succeeded in shooting the thief.
[Illustration: Pl. 1.
_On stone by W. Walton from a Drawing by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._
CAMEL MAN OF THE ABABDE TRIBE.
SHAGEEA OF THE DESERT.]
_April_ 1. This afternoon we spent three hours in sailing eight miles
to the pyramids of Nouri. They are situated in a slightly elevated
part of the desert, a full half hour’s walk from the river. There
are traces of thirty-five pyramids, of which about fifteen only are
in any kind of preservation. These are not very interesting, except
as tombs, and from their imposing appearance, not being ornamented
with porticoes or hieroglyphic inscriptions. The pyramids are all at
right angles, and their direction is generally nearly the same. Their
size varies from 110 feet square to 20. (See plan, Plate XXXII., and
picturesque view, Plate XXXI.) There are eight above 80 feet square,
and four more above 70 feet square: their height is generally about
the same as their diameter.
Plate XXXI. is the most picturesque of three views which I made of
these pyramids; but the most remarkable for size does not appear in
this view. The plan will show that it measures at the base about
110 feet square. It consisted of three stages. Part of one having
fallen, discovers another pyramid underneath. They seem to have added
this second pyramid around the inner one, in order to increase its
size, or, perhaps, to make the body underneath doubly difficult to
get at. The Egyptian method of building pyramids with stages was,
I think, by first erecting a pyramid with a very acute angle, and
then building around it the first stage from the summit, and so on,
in like manner, as many as were required.
The pyramids are surrounded by the desert, which, I conceive, has
already covered the remains of several others. The waves of the great
Libyan ocean have probably swallowed up the traces of the city and
its temples, which, from the extent and imposing appearance of its
cemetery, must have been considerable. The interior of some of the
pyramids is of puddingstone, very much decomposed. The sandstone with
which these monuments are covered, and often constructed, is rather
soft, as is nearly all the sandstone in Ethiopia; which circumstance,
and also their very great antiquity, may be the reason, perhaps,
of the very dilapidated state of the ruins.
Close to these pyramids, and almost surrounding them, are the traces
of a canal from the Nile; which, according to my information, reaches
for a considerable distance into the desert. This circumstance proves
that the cultivated land extended much farther into the interior than
at present. Cailliaud supposed this place to have been the cemetery
of Gibel el Birkel; arguing that Thebes also had her tombs on the
opposite side of the river. But those of Gournah, and in the Valley
of the Kings, if not close to what formed part of the great city of
Thebes,—which, however, is very probable, from the numerous splendid
temples and palaces, of which there are still magnificent remains
on that side,—were, at all events, in the suburb, and exactly
opposite the great city, and not eight miles distant up the river,
as these are from Gibel el Birkel. Moreover, the tombs at Thebes
are on the western side, probably because the mountains on that
side are nearer to the river, and afforded greater facilities for
excavations than those of the eastern range. That the inhabitants
of Gibel el Birkel, therefore, should have chosen this place for
their necropolis, when they had space for hundreds on the spot where
her pyramids are now standing, or, at all events, might have erected
them, if they preferred it, immediately opposite on the western side
of the river, is an idea which no person who reflects on the subject
can entertain. They are most probably the tombs of another dynasty,
and of a city whose name may be among the many we meet with in the
itineraries. We may guess which of them it was; but such surmises,
without any proofs to support them, are entirely useless.
[Illustration: Pl. 31.
_On stone by W. P. Sherlock, from a Drawing by G. A. Hoskins Esqr._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
PYRAMIDS OF NOURI.
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
I could not help drawing a comparison between these pyramids and the
celebrated ones at Geezah. The latter, although in a worse climate
and more exposed situation, have evidently suffered far less from
the ravages of time. There is scarcely one pyramid here which is
not so dilapidated that its architectural beauty is almost entirely
lost. The tropical rains seldom, if ever, reach so far north as
this province; yet numbers of the pyramids are quite destroyed, and
others are mere masses of shapeless ruins, without a vestige of their
ornaments remaining. From their appearance I should conceive these to
be the most ancient ruins in the valley of the Nile: but there are no
hieroglyphics remaining, to give us the name of the city or its kings;
and no sculpture, from the style of which we might have a better idea
of the period when they were constructed. This necropolis is now more
a place for the philosopher than the artist: the city and its people
are gone. The splendid mausoleums of its kings are little better
than piles of ruins: the histories which they recorded are lost for
ever. The dreary terrible desert which surrounds them seems silently
devouring its prey, and many ages will not elapse ere this, the real
Typhon, will have swallowed up every vestige of its ancient grandeur.
I conceive it not improbable that this is the site of the ancient
capital of this province, which may have been destroyed in the
wars between the Egyptians and the Ethiopians, perhaps by the great
Sesostris; and the city at Gibel el Birkel may have dated from its
ruin the increase of her magnificence. Succeeding generations may
have found the site of Gibel el Birkel more advantageous, and the
favour of a new dynasty of kings may have enabled the new capital to
eclipse her rival on the southern bank. I mentioned, after crossing
the Bahiouda Desert, and arriving at the Nile, that the peasants
informed me of some ruins which are now covered by the desert. I
conceive the existence of these to afford further confirmation of
the former opulence of this country. I cannot suppose, for a moment,
that the city to which this necropolis belonged was so far distant.
It is melancholy to see such numerous vestiges of imposing and
splendid structures, demonstrating the power, magnificence, and
knowledge of the former inhabitants of a province whose present
possessors scarcely have sufficient ability to construct for
themselves habitable mansions. The hovels of the peasants are
miserable in the extreme. The castles of the sheakhs are better,
but the rooms which they contain are extremely rude. This part of
Africa was formerly harassed by continual wars of one tribe and
nation against another. The necessity of guarding against surprise
obliged them to fortify their habitations, and having models in their
vicinity of ancient fortresses of the Ethiopians, the princes gave
to their residences a somewhat more tolerable appearance.
_April_ 3. We returned to Meroueh this morning, and I received
a visit from the katshef and his suite. His professed object was
to enquire whether he could be of any service to me, but his real
aim was chiefly to receive half the pay of the boat (120 piastres)
which he had procured for me, to take us to Nouri, and thence to
Dongolah. I paid him the money as he desired, but he did not take the
trouble of giving it to the rais (the captain of the vessel), who,
poor fellow, of course, said that it was all right, as complaint
would only have procured him the bastinado. This is the usual way
in which the government remunerate themselves for any pains they
bestow in making arrangements for travellers.
We started at twelve, and passed, this evening, Kajjib, an old
Arab village, picturesquely situated on a rock. We stopped for
the night at the ruin of an old Saracenic castle, called Baheet,
of considerable size, with towers and a citadel. It has evidently
been of great strength, the walls being very thick; the inner part is
built of brick; the exterior of stones piled together, as roughly as
the enclosing wall of a field in England. The rocks are of sandstone.
[Illustration: Pl. 32.
_Drawn by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
PYRAMIDS OF NOURI.
_London. Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
_April_ 4. We have this day passed the Island of Shenderab at half
past seven; the Island of Manderab at eight, the village of Korti and
islands of Ingolass and of Onato at half past eight; the small village
on the western bank, called Ambicol, at ten; the Island of Sennat at
one; the village of Defur at three P.M.; Genati at half past three,
and stopped for the night at the small Island of Bishaba.[35]
_April 5._ At seven we passed the village of Debba el Dolib; or,
as it is generally called, Debba, the commencement of the road
to Kordofan, and the last village of Dar Shageea. With all their
faults, the Shageea are the most interesting of the Arab tribes
I have seen. Their manly appearance, extreme valour, and open and
frank and noble manners, are very engaging; but I am sorry to find
that they are addicted to intoxication beyond any tribe I have
met with, spending the greater portion of their earnings in bouza,
and particularly in the strong spirit of the country distilled from
dates. Burckhardt (page 70.) has justly extolled their courage and
good faith, and hospitality to strangers that have friends among
them: but his account of their schools and learning would scarcely
be applicable to the Shageea of the present day, who are too much
enamoured of the dance and the cup to submit to the _ennui_ of study.
At half past seven we passed the Island of Geri, and a village
called Kutti, on the western bank. At half past four P.M. we passed
a small island called Amduburgh, and stopped soon after at Tangus,
another small island. The wind being invariably against us, we have
scarcely made any progress, and that only by tacking. The river is
about half a mile broad in this part of the valley, and occasionally
even wider. There is scarcely any cultivated land, except on the
islands. The desert, generally, on each side of the river, presents
not an object to cheer the eye or relieve the mind. When the banks
of the river were sufficiently low to afford us an extensive view,
we saw only immense tracts of waste bounded by the horizon. The
peasants chiefly inhabit the islands, where they seem to have taken
refuge from the encroachments of the desert, being seldom able,
with their inadequate means, to resist its approach; but, as I have
before mentioned, there are still some villages on the banks, like
little oases, but not so beautiful. Notwithstanding some advantage of
their situation, and their feeble efforts to protect their fields,
year after year the Libyan and Nubian deserts are said to extend
their sway.
The gravity of the Arabs, who seldom laugh, and scarcely ever,
even under the influence of intoxication, give way to boisterous
mirth, must be in a great measure attributed to the character
of their country. Considering these people as living under a sky
which is ever the same, clear and beautiful, and accustomed to one
uniform landscape, the river, its islands, and surrounding wastes;
knowing few other nations, creeds, or customs; having ever before
their eyes these dreadful wildernesses; experiencing their horrors,
and feeling their destructive effects; it is not surprising that
we find them more grave than the inhabitants of southern climes in
general. Even boys have the carriage and demeanour of men. Neat in
their dress and simple in their manners, there is no affectation,
no dandyism. How ill-placed would such follies be in a region like
this! Natural and easy in their address, erect in their carriage,
they often display a calm and noble dignity of demeanour, which
I have never seen surpassed in any civilised capital. They salute
you courteously, and talk with gravity of your plans. There is no
feverish anxiety to shine in conversation, nor any obligation to
converse with you. After the first compliments, unless any of them
have enquiries to make, they seldom speak. Every day is equally
beautiful and unclouded, therefore the weather is rarely, if ever,
the subject of conversation; and we have not, as in Europe, the bore
of discussing its appearance twenty times a day.
_April_ 6. At six A.M. we passed Ahmoor, a small village on the west
bank of the river, and at nine we arrived at Dongolah Agous.
_Dongolah Agous._—After having seen that Shendy, Berber, and
Metammah, though the capitals of provinces, are but miserable places,
I did not expect to find Dongolah otherwise; still I could not have
conceived that a town once so considerable, the metropolis of a
large district, whose name so often occurs in history, would have
presented now so wretched an aspect.
Part of the town is in ruins. The desert has entered into its
streets: many of the houses are entirely covered with sand, and
scarcely an inhabitant is to be seen. One might have thought that
some dreadful convulsion of nature, or some pestilential disease, had
swept away the population. Part of the city is, indeed, remaining,
but until I entered the houses not a human being did I meet with. I
observed some houses in the town, of a superior appearance, having
divisions of rooms, galleries, and courts, and evidently belonging
to individuals once rich; but they are now almost all deserted. In
some of them that we entered I saw some good-looking women: the men
were idling away the day smoking and sleeping. Such is the scene of
desolation and inactivity which now presents itself to the traveller
at Dongolah. The mosque used by the inhabitants, until recently,
was a large building, which tradition represents as very ancient,
and as being built 200 years before the Hegira: but it is evidently
of a much more modern date. It contains some granite columns, of
bad workmanship, belonging to the early Christian age.
I asked whether the residence of the Turkish government at El Ourde
was the cause why the city was so deserted, but was told that that
circumstance had made little or no change. This was the proud reply of
poverty. I have been informed by others, that, before the Pasha’s
conquest, many of the inhabitants were in better circumstances, and
the town more populous, but that they are now scattered elsewhere:
many of them fled to Kordofan and Sennaar, on the approach of
the Pasha.
I conceive it not improbable that this is the site of Napata. Pliny so
distinctly places that city 100 miles lower down the Nile than Gibel
el Birkel, that I see no reason for supposing that immense extent
of ruins to be the remains of a town which he describes as so very
insignificant. Besides the distance agreeing so exactly with Pliny’s
account, the position of Dongolah Agous, as a military station, to
resist the arms of Petronius, would certainly be advantageous. The
desert and the present city may have covered the vestiges of the
temples Petronius destroyed.
I left Dongolah Agous at three, without having made any drawings of
the place, not conceiving it worth the delay. At half past three we
passed the large Island of Gadar; at four, Ullow; and, after passing
numerous villages and islands, we stopped for the night at Gemin,
a very small village.
_April_ 7. We passed this morning the village of Handak, situated on
the western side near the base of the river, and the small Island
of Marouerti, which resembles rather the ancient name of Meroe,
and must, I think, be a corruption of it. Names analogous to that
of the ancient capital of Ethiopia seem to be given indiscriminately
to villages on the banks and the islands.
I saw this evening a number of slaves going to Cairo. The
manner in which they were clogged, to prevent their escaping or
rebelling against their owners, was disgraceful and revolting in
the extreme. Each slave wore a clog made of a wooden pole, four
feet long, with a collar, of a triangular form, large enough to
admit his head: this triangular collar rests upon their shoulders,
and is so contrived with straps that it is impossible for them to
throw it off. When they walk, they are obliged to carry it before
them; and at night their hands are tied to the centre of the pole,
and their feet to the bottom of it. The owners of the slaves showed
me, with the malicious grin of fiends, the effects of the cords,
and the weight of the machine on the hands, necks, and legs of their
victims. They confessed that they were often obliged to free their
slaves entirely from this torture, in order to preserve their lives:
I saw several in this situation, who seemed to have suffered severely
from being previously loaded with this machine.
I attempted to reason with one of the owners; and urged, that,
as he was obliged to leave them free occasionally, and run the
risk of their escaping, he might as well do so always, and that
he would find it his interest, as many actually died from this
treatment. I told him he ought, as a good Mahometan, to adopt a
more humane method of securing them. He told me, that he could not
liberate them all at once; for they had recently threatened that,
if ever they had the opportunity, they would kill him, and dye a
red _tarboush_ (Turkish cap) with his blood. The slaves understood
this part of our discourse, and some laughed at this expression; but
in general they appeared in a dreadful state of apathy and torpor,
quite indifferent to the interest they saw me take in their situation.
They were all negroes, with high cheek-bones, triangular faces, eyes
sunk deep in the head, thick lips, complexion a cold bluish black
colour, an expression heavy and unpleasing, and without a spark
of talent in their countenances. They were continually demanding
fire. After the extreme heat of the day, when the sun has set,
there follows a degree of cold, which, though slight, and to me
most agreeable, is no doubt felt severely by the slaves, who are
quite naked, and accustomed to a hotter climate; and they feel it
more sensitively, having been exposed the greater part of the day
to the burning sun. We make very little progress, the wind being
always strong against us.
_April_ 8. We passed to-day the village of El Urub. Nothing can be
more tedious and uninteresting than this voyage: we have scarcely
seen any cultivated ground since we left the town of Meroueh,
except the islands; the desert has almost entirely overspread the
banks of the Nile; and where there was once, perhaps, a happy and
numerous population, a people acquainted with the arts, rich cities
and villages, now no other track is to be seen but that of the
timid gazelle, which finds a secure pasture on the bushy acacias
which on each side border the river. The glaring reddish yellow
sands have supplanted the rich cultivation, and waves of sand have
swallowed up the vestiges of the temples and palaces which adorned
the cities. Where were the numerous towns whose names we read in the
itineraries? Are there no monuments remaining of their magnificence,
no traces of their habitations? The vessel buried in the fathomless
deep leaves but fragments which are soon covered by the waters. Thus
the Libyan and great Nubian deserts, ever active and incessant in
their attacks, have concealed entirely from our view the little,
perhaps, which the hand of time, and more destructive ravages of
war and religious fanaticism, had spared.
“No trace remains where once thy glory grew:
The sapp’d foundations by thy force shall fall,
And, whelm’d beneath thy waves, drop the huge wall:
Vast drifts of sand shall change the former shore—
The ruin vanish’d, and the name no more.”—POPE’s _Iliad_, book vii.
The rocks are of sandstone. There are some in the centre of the river,
whose channel, at this season, when the water is low, the barks
dare not navigate during the night, which they would otherwise do,
as there is then seldom any wind.
Our cabin being only three feet high, we are obliged to lie on our
beds day and night. I find this much more fatiguing than travelling
on the camels. For myself, I should never have chosen this mode
of conveyance; but my artist was in such a bad state of health,
that he declared himself unequal to the exposure to the heat and
the slow fatiguing pace of the caravan.
_April_ 9. Wind still contrary: no variety in the scenery. I will
not fatigue the reader with a mere list of names of villages, but
must refer him to my map, in which they are all marked down.
_April_ 10. There was no wind this morning; and we should have
arrived at Dongolah at nine, A.M., had we not received a visit from
a French physician in the employ of the Pasha. To meet a European,
in this country, is an occurrence so agreeable, that we could not
resist spending half the day together.
Some of the islands in this district are very rich. I remarked, on
one, numerous sugar-canes; and, in several, a mode of irrigating the
land unknown in Egypt, and displaying more skill than is usual in the
Pasha’s dominions. The ground near the Persian wheels is very often
uneven, and cannot be levelled without considerable labour: they,
therefore, form aqueducts with stakes or pieces of wood from one to
three feet high, as may be requisite, and place on them the conduit,
which is made of earth. These aqueducts are extremely picturesque,
as well as ingenious, being generally neatly constructed, and covered
with grass. All the watercourses in this country are attended to with
great care. The peasants are invariably well clothed, and appear
in easy circumstances. I observe them occasionally assembled in an
evening, under the palm trees, smoking, and sometimes drinking a
cup of Abyssinian coffee, their greatest luxury.
_April_ 11. The wind being still contrary, and my patience exhausted,
I sent for camels from Dongolah, five miles distant. The governor
there, understanding that we were travellers, immediately sent us
some of his own dromedaries.
CHAPTER XIII.
VISIT TO THE GOVERNOR. — EXTENT OF HIS GOVERNMENT. — INDIGO. —
WATER WHEELS. — POPULATION. — TAXES. — PRICES OF PRODUCE. —
OASIS OF DONGOLAH, CALLED EL GAB. — ROUTE TO KORDOFAN. —
INFORMATION ABOUT THAT COUNTRY. — BANEFUL CLIMATE. — CAPTAIN
GORDON. — ARAB TRIBES OF KORDOFAN. — GENERAL APPEARANCE OF
NEW DONGOLAH. — THE BAZAAR. — CURIOUS USE OF OINTMENT. —
MERCHANDISE. — THE BAZAAR. — SLAVE MARKET. — COMMERCE CARRIED
ON BY BARTER. — CURIOUS MANNER OF EFFECTING SALES. — DONGOLAH
GOLDSMITH. — AUCTIONEERS. — VARIOUS ARAB TRIBES. — COSTUMES.
— WOMEN, THE ELEGANCE OF THEIR ATTIRE. — BREAKING OF THE
_RAT_. — GIRAFFES. — HASSANYEH TRIBE. — ELEPHANTS.
_El Ourde, or New Dongolah.—April_ 10-14. We arrived here at
two o’clock, and immediately paid a visit to Ibrahim Effendi,
the governor of this province. He is a man about fifty-five years of
age, and of the most unprepossessing appearance: he stoops to such a
degree, that his head nearly touches his knees. I am told that he has
no talent, but has attained this important situation entirely through
the intrigues of the harem. He has, however, the character of great
probity—a rare virtue among Turks; and is disliked by the Copts,
because he examines rigidly their accounts, and will not allow them
to trade and speculate with the public money. He is despised by the
Turks, because he does nothing for them, and lives in no style. He
has only one Mameluke to give him his pipe and wait upon him. I saw
no other servants, but observed that a few soldiers were brought in
to make a show and line the walls. On his divan there were only a
few officers, apparently of inferior rank, and certainly of a very
shabby appearance.
M. Martin, a French apothecary, stationed here in the employ of the
Pasha, very kindly pressed us to take up our abode in his house;
and we were glad of the opportunity of enjoying, for a short time,
a greater degree of comfort and cleanliness than we have been
accustomed to for several months. He also assisted me in finding
the persons best qualified to give me information.
The Mahmoor, the day after our arrival, paid me a visit, was very
communicative, and made himself agreeable, to the astonishment of
Monsieur l’Apothicaire, and in the evening he sent me a roasted
sheep; an attention, I understand, that he never was guilty of before
to travellers or natives.
This government extends from Abka[36] to Wady el Gamer, near
Berber. There are 5000 sakkeas (water wheels), which generally
irrigate from four to five feddans each when planted with grain. The
indigo requires more water, for they calculate three quarters of a
feddan of land to one wheel. They produce in this province, 10,000
okres of indigo. Each water-wheel requires four oxen, and four or
five men and children. The population may, therefore, be calculated
at about eight for each water-wheel; which would make 40,000 for this
district; and I conceive 10,000 may be added for those who cultivate
the land by the hand, merchants, servants, &c. Some of the islands
have been planted this year, for the first time, with sugar-canes,
which have proved to be excellent; but they planted them without
reflecting that they had no machinery ready to manufacture sugar with,
and no person who understood the business. As the sugarcane requires
a water-wheel for each feddan, they do not intend to plant them
again. The governor obliged the peasants and soldiers to purchase
the sugar-canes at a certain price, in order that the revenue might
not suffer from the experiment.
There are some portions of the banks of the river, and particularly
the islands, which are cultivated after the inundation, and irrigated,
when necessary, by raising the water from the river with buckets
and other simple processes. Land irrigated in this manner is taxed
according to the quantity and description of produce. Each water-wheel
pays to the government 20 dollars, 15 in money and 5 in produce; a
heavy tax, when we consider that formerly, when under their native
meleks, they only paid 1 dollar, a sheep, and two pieces of linen,
value 6 piastres each; in all, little more than a tenth of the
present tax.
The revenue of this government, after paying the various expenses,
salaries, and the troops of the garrison, is greatly absorbed by their
having to furnish camels to convey the different species of produce,
such as indigo and grain, and slaves, which are sent to Cairo. In
particular, 2500 camels are loaded with gum, brought annually from
Kordofan. It is purchased from the peasants there at the rate of
5 dollars the camel-load, which consists of three cantars of 150
rotles[37] each; and the government sell it in Cairo for 20 dollars
the cantar; that is, 60 the load: deduct about 10 dollars for the
expense of the journey, and also 5 for the purchase-money, there
remain 45 dollars clear profit for the Pasha, which, on 2500 loads,
is 112,500 dollars net. Elephants’ teeth are also purchased in
Kordofan for 16 dollars the cantar, and sold in Cairo for 80 dollars,
and often more.
The government, as I have before stated, take part of the taxes in
grain: the following is a list of the prices paid by them, compared
to the current prices in the bazaar or market:—
Government Prices. Prices in the Bazaar.
_s._ _d._ _s._ _d._
Barley 3 9 3 0
Dourah 3 9 3 0
Wheat 4 3 4 6
Maize 3 9 3 0
The price of mutton (fat, for cooking) in the bazaar, is 1_d._
per rotle.
_s._ _d._ _s._ _d._
The price of a sheep 1 6 to 2 0
The price of meat, per lb. 0 0¾ or 0 1
The linen cloths of the country,
particularly of the district of
Mahas, 24 piques in length, but
very narrow 2 0
Cotton, best kind (Belloe) per lb. 0 3
The dourah is sown before the rising of the Nile, and is cut in
four months; and afterwards they have another crop, but it is not so
good. The barley is sown after the Nile has retired, and is reaped
four or five months afterwards; wheat the same. The indigo plants
remain in the ground three years, and are cut three times each year,
with an interval of two months between each cutting. After dourah,
maize is planted, and after maize other kinds of grain.
Seven hours’ journey west of this place, amid the desert, is an
oasis called El Gab (the Wood), consisting of a forest of doums,
acacias, and some few date trees. It contains several springs, and
the Arabs send their camels thither in the summer to pasture on the
trees. This oasis has no antiquities nor traces of having ever been
inhabited; it extends, parallel with the Nile, nearly as far as Debba,
but, like all oases, is divided occasionally by the desert.
The caravans from this place to Kordofan, and on to Darfour,
enter the desert at Debba el Dolib, a village I mentioned in
descending the river from Meroueh. From Debba to Shambrick, five
days: the water there not always good; but on the road to Harazi,
five days, and thence to the capital, on digging to the depth of
two or three feet, and sometimes less, they never fail of finding
good water. Zaagsouee, eleventh day; Kadjama, twelfth day; the
residence of a katshef of Kordofan, Gouniah, thirteenth day; Mumat,
fourteenth day; Sherian-Abousieh, fifteenth day; Borah, sixteenth day;
Kordofan, or the capital, Ibazig, on the seventh day from Harazi,
and the seventeenth from the Nile, or Debba el Dolib.
I made repeated enquiries of both the Arabs and Turks, but did not
hear of there being any antiquities there. This journey would be
interesting for a naturalist, as they tell me that during the rainy
season there is a very great variety of birds: but it is then very
unhealthy. Ague and intermittent fevers are very prevalent. A French
physician, who had been stationed there some time, informed me that
during the rainy season he often took quinine in small quantities,
and conceived that, by that means, he had preserved himself from a
complaint which is so dangerous to Europeans.
The enterprising but unfortunate Captain Gordon fell a victim to
this climate.[38] I was told that he had visited several of the
mountain regions of Kordofan, and, to use the expression of the
Arabs, “had written down all the country.” He had commenced his
journey with the intention of endeavouring to discover the sources
of the Bahr el Abiad; but there was not the most remote chance of
his succeeding. Roustan Bey, who was then, and is now, the governor
of that country, would have allowed him to accompany his troops
in hunting for slaves in the neighbourhood of the White River. He
might have added something to our knowledge of the geography of the
country on that river; but to discover its source was impossible.
As a hint to future travellers, I should notice a mistake
which he made, from not being acquainted with the customs of the
country. Instead of making a handsome present to Roustan Bey of a
gold watch, or fire-arms, which he should have done, considering
the essential and extensive services he required, he gave him some
gilt ornaments for his wives: but the Turks having a great contempt
for any article that is not genuine, the Bey was naturally vexed
at a present which appeared to him so very insignificant. Captain
Gordon was not to blame, I understand, but his dragoman, for
this inauspicious commencement of their expedition. The Arabs and
Turks say that Captain Gordon died on account of having taken too
much physic. In a country where so much is left to nature, and the
medical art so little known, it is not surprising that his frequent
applications to his medicine chest, to relieve a severe attack of
intermittent fever, should have given rise to this report.
Before leaving Dongolah, this unfortunate traveller left a large
sum of money with a Turkish aga in whose house he lodged. When his
servant, after his death, returned to Dongolah, he called upon the
aga, and demanded his master’s property. The Turk, a notorious
scoundrel, proposed to the servant to divide the money and property,
and thus induced him to sign a certificate that his master had
left only a few old clothes, and no money. As soon as the Turk had
received this document, he refused to give any portion of what he
had promised to the servant; who, in revenge, accused him before the
government. I was not able to learn with certainty whether the money,
and, what was of far more consequence, his papers, ever reached his
friends. I purchased at Dongolah a piece of Newman’s Indian ink,
which formerly belonged to him.
I obtained from authentic sources the following information of the
different Arab tribes in the kingdom of Kordofan and its vicinity:—
_The Kababysh._ These Arabs are also found in the Bahiouda
Desert. They possess camels and horses, and transport merchandise
to Sennaar, Darfour, and to this place. Their chief is called
Melek Selim.
_The Buggara._ They possess flocks, and are occupied in hunting the
elephant and the giraffe. Moussa is their chief.
_The Benigerar_ have great abundance of horses and camels. They
are generally engaged in transporting merchandise, sometimes to
Darfour. They are often at war with the Kababysh.
_The Hammer_ are chiefly cultivators of the ground. They possess also
camels, and trade to Darfour, but do not come to this place. They are
occupied also in tanning the skins of animals, and the government
employs them in their hunting expeditions for slaves. Their arms
resemble those of the other Arab tribes,—the oval spear, the lance,
and sword. Hadji Merien is their chief or king, that is, melek.[39]
_The Hadowyeh_ are cultivators, and join the expeditions of the
government like the Hammer: they possess good dromedaries, and their
melek is Uhmar, son of Dowel.
_Messabouee._ Cultivators, and also assist the government in their
slave expeditions: their melek is Uhmar, son of Hashim.
_Danaglih._ Peasants of the country; cultivators.
_Konjarah._ A tribe from Darfour: the masters of the country, under
Magdum Selim, on the arrival of Roustan Bey, who killed their chief
in battle[40]: their present chief is Sultan Tema.
The province of Kordofan is exceedingly productive to the Pasha,
and so also would Darfour be; and ere now that province would
have been annexed to his kingdom, had not his ambitious views been
turned towards Constantinople. A desert, I am told, of five days’
journey separates the two provinces. He might extend his conquests
thither without any apprehension of interference from the European
powers. If the peace in Syria continues, and Mohammed Ali lives,
that country, notwithstanding the warlike and powerful tribes who
inhabit it, will soon form a part of the Pasha’s immense dominions;
and Europeans will be enabled to explore it with greater advantage
than our celebrated traveller Brown.
Dongolah, or New Dongolah, as I should call it, has far more the
appearance of a capital, than any place I have seen in Ethiopia. The
citadel is fortified with walls and towers sufficient to defend
it from the attacks of the Arabs, but not long against a European
army. There are a few pieces of cannon brought here by Ismael Pasha,
and there is generally a garrison of from 300 to 800 men, but most
commonly from invalid regiments, that have suffered by the more
unhealthy climates of Kordofan, Khartoun, and Sennaar, and are sent
here as fit for no other service. They have built an hospital, but,
although full of invalids, it is not yet finished,—the rooms are
without roofs, and the beds of earth.
There are several _cafés_ in the town, much better than I expected:
one is very handsome; large, airy, and furnished with a divan
covered with carpets. Here the lazy Turks kill the day: smoking,
seeing the people pass by, playing draughts and other games, and
drinking coffee and sherbet.
The bazaar is superior to that of Assuan. The articles for sale
consisted of different stuffs, silk, linen, and cotton; tarboushes
(red Turkish caps), shoes, glassware, cures for ophthalmia (some
of which seemed on examination to contain zinc); and a variety of
pipes, from the handsome Persian anguilles and long Turkish pipes,
with their amber mouthpieces, worth two or three pounds each, to
the humble pipe of the peasant, value threepence: coarse thread and
common needles; salt, from the mines of Selima, white and beautiful
like crystal; a variety of cases for amulets, such as the women wear
around their necks and the men on their arms (see the various plates
of costumes); coffee from Mocha and Abyssinia; loaf sugar, white and
brown; tamarinds from Sennaar and Kordofan; and a variety of arms,
sabres, lances, daggers, and pistols; and in every shop on sale,
spices and ginger, cloves, coriander seed, sandal wood, and a kind of
kernels, seemingly of cherries, which are said to come from Italy;
the natives extract oil from them. With the spices they make the
ointment which both males and females, particularly the latter,
use in this country to render their skin soft. I have seen them
sometimes almost naked, and smeared with this substance as if they
had been dipped in butter; and I have often seen the Arabs of the
desert place two or three pounds of mutton fat on their heads, and
walk on till the sun had melted it, when not only the head and face
were covered with the liquid grease, but it flowed in streams down
their backs. They consider their different ointments as particularly
conducive to health, especially after fatigue. There is an old custom
still kept up in the country. When an Arab or Turk arrives in a
village after a fatiguing day’s journey, he generally gets some of
the female slaves I have spoken of at Shendy, to rub him for half an
hour all over with this ointment. It is very pleasant and refreshing,
cooling and softening to the skin, which has been burnt and dried up
by the scorching winds of the desert. I also observed in the bazaar
common looking-glasses, and beads of glass and other materials.
There were several separate markets for slaves, men, women, boys,
girls, and eunuchs. Most of the latter are from Abyssinia. I am
informed that they are generally the victims of the brutality
of the Abyssinians of neighbouring states. Besides increasing
the value of their slaves, they appear to wish to imitate the
ancient Egyptians, whose cruelty in that respect is explained in
the triumphant procession on the walls of Medenet Abou, at Thebes. I
saw one extremely beautiful Abyssinian girl on sale for 150 dollars,
and for another not remarkable for her beauty 80 were demanded.
I observed a custom, which is peculiarly characteristic of this
district: the peasant girls, and also the men, bring from the country
small quantities of grain and other produce, which they exchange for
perfumes and spices for their hair and persons. This is conformable
to our European idea of remote and uncivilised people, carrying on
commerce simply by barter. They showed me in the bazaar some rudely
shaped pieces of iron, said to be the money of Darfour.
Some of the peasant girls buying spices in the bazaar were
very pretty. I told one, that had she been a slave I would have
purchased her. She laughed at my compliment, and replied, with great
_naïveté_, that, upon her conscience, she was no slave.
To make a purchase in the bazaar is sometimes rather difficult. I
asked one of the merchants the price of a pipe, which I thought of
buying. The man was confused, and could not make up his mind how
much he ought to ask; but, seeking to enhance its value by praise,
without replying to my question, he continued to extol its different
excellencies. The other merchants pressed him to name a sum. The
man was very much embarrassed, particularly as we had desired him to
state the lowest at which he could sell it, otherwise we should not
treat with him. It was only, however, when he saw me walking away,
that he could resolve to ask only twice the value of the article. It
is the custom here for the purchaser to bid, and not for the merchant
to name the price. If the offer does not equal his expectations,
he says, _Eftah Allah!_ “May God open your eyes!” or, “May
God improve your judgment!”
I went into a shop in which there was a shabbily dressed
common-looking fellow squatted on the ground, with a few miserably
rude tools before him, on a board. I conceived he might be a joiner,
and must confess I was rather surprised at finding that he was the
first goldsmith in Dongolah. They cannot work European gold. They
generally employ the gold of Sennaar, which is of a superior quality,
being pliable and malleable, like lead. This man told me that my
watch was not gold, for he had never seen gold so dark-coloured.
They have a custom here, as well as at Cairo, of selling merchandise,
such as clothes, &c. by auction in the street. The auctioneer walks
about, calling aloud the price. One makes an offer, and the man walks
on; another meets him, who likes the article, and bids higher. The
owner promotes the sale by giving occasionally a bidding himself.
The crowds in this bazaar, as compared with the deserted streets of
Berber, Shendy, and Metammah, and the variety of costumes worn by
Turks and Caireens, Fellaheen (or, as they are more properly called
here, Dongoloue), Bishareen, Ababde, Shageea, and other tribes,
formed a scene gay, and not unpleasing, particularly after the
solitudes of the desert.
The costumes of Dongolah are somewhat different, but, perhaps,
less remarkable, than any I have seen in Ethiopia. The women, when
they are married and have had children, have their hair dressed on
each side of their face, in three rows of ringlets, or tresses, the
lowest often reaching to their shoulder. The other females are only
permitted to wear two rows. The head-dress of the women of Shendy is
rather different: they wear their hair loosely projecting from each
side and behind, while on the top of the head it is quite flat. But
what is most extraordinary in the costumes of this country is the
inimitable grace and elegance with which their robes are adjusted,
often almost equalling the drapery of the ancients. Were it possible
to collect correct drawings of their almost innumerable methods of
folding their _melayah_, the large long piece of linen cloth which
forms their chief, and often only, covering, I question if such
drawings would be believed any thing else than copies of the Greek
and Roman draperies, or studies of ancient costume. A sculptor would
assuredly call them walking statues.
The young girls, before being married or having arrived at the age
of discretion, only wear the rat, the Nubian covering, composed, as
already mentioned, of thin thongs of the hide of the hippopotamus,
which reaches from the waist almost to the knee, and is coquettishly
ornamented with masses of silver, and a variety of shells and
beads. It is considered sufficiently modest in this country, where
no consequence is attached to the exposure of the body and limbs;
otherwise, so far as it extends, it forms an elegant and impenetrable
skreen. (See girl in Plate XXXVII.) The changing of this costume,
or breaking of their rat, upon their marriage, is rather a curious
ceremony, which I will presently describe; but when the rat is torn
merely on account of the advanced age of the girl, and not at her
marriage, only a sheep is killed, and she and her relations receive
the congratulations of their hungry friends.
Skins of animals are often exposed for sale in the bazaar, but they
are generally too ill prepared to be of any use for stuffing, often
wanting the most essential parts, such as the feet, and even the
head. Had I been half an hour earlier there, on the day of my arrival,
I could have bought for four shillings the skin of a giraffe. This
animal, only so recently known in Europe, is found in great numbers
on the road from Debba to Kordofan, between Sabrian and Gibel el
Arazi, and behind Kordofan, on the Bahr el Abiad, the territory
of the Buggara tribe. The government do not encourage the Arabs
to seek for them. On the contrary, without an express permission
from the Pasha, no Arab, Turk, or traveller is allowed to purchase
one. When the peasants catch them for the government, they receive
a remuneration of twenty-five dollars, which is considered very
handsome. Had I been provided with a permission from the Pasha,
I was told that I should have had little difficulty in procuring
one at that price. At the time of the _haref_ (the rainy season),
the Hassanyeh retire with their herds and camels into the mountains
and valleys, which afford ample pasture for their cattle for three
or four months. They protect themselves from the little rain that
falls with _shambries_ (tents made of goat skins). During this season
the chase also contributes to their support. When there is no rain,
which is very often the case, the sun, being then almost vertical,
produces a heat so excessive that the gazelles, giraffes, ostriches,
&c. are said to become much less capable of escaping pursuit than
during winter. The Hassanyeh then on their swift horses catch them
without much difficulty.
This tribe (Hassanyeh) is very extensive, and trade to Kordofan;
and great numbers of them in this neighbourhood convey merchandise
to Assuan. They are very fine-looking fellows, more grave in
their manners than even the Arabs in general. They wear their hair
plaited, and tight behind; differing, in this respect, from any other
tribe. (See Plate XXXIX., in which they are represented straining the
common bouza of the country through a straw funnel.) I have travelled
with several of them, and liked them exceedingly. In the same tracts
with the giraffe is found also the antelope, or, as it is called, the
cow of the desert (_buggera el Atmoor_), with straight and twisted
horns (see Plate XXXVII.); also gazelles in abundance. The elephant
is found in Abyssinia, and, it is said, also above Sennaar, in the
province of Fazoql, and in that of the Buggara, behind Kordofan. There
are a great many of the gemet cat in this neighbourhood. They have
small thin heads, long backs of a grey colour, with brown spots, and
a black streak along the centre. Some of them are eighteen inches
long, besides the tail, which measures twelve inches. The colour
of the latter is alternately grey and black. Mr. M. had several in
cages: when set at liberty in a room, they seemed to be very timid,
and one of them was rather savage. Their velocity is extraordinary.
[Illustration: Pl. 39.
THE HASSANYEH TRIBE.
_On stone by W. Walton, from a Drawing by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
CHAPTER XIV.
MARRIAGE AND OTHER CEREMONIES OF DONGOLAH. — CHARACTER OF THE
PEOPLE, THEIR HABITATIONS. — WOMEN, THEIR AMUSEMENTS. — ARAB
TALE. — GOVERNMENT OF DONGOLAH.
An account of the ceremonies of marriage, &c. in this part of
the interior of Africa may not be uninteresting to the reader,
as differing much from those we are accustomed to, and elucidating
the manners of the present inhabitants of Ethiopia. Though I travel
for the purpose of studying the remains of the ancient grandeur of
these realms, I omit no opportunity of observing the customs of the
present inhabitants, their condition and government.
The ceremonies of marriage vary in a slight degree in almost every
district of the valley of the Nile; but in no place are they more
curious than in the province of Dongolah. The nuptial ceremony
of every country appears singular in another. The Arab would be
astonished at the solemnity of our weddings, particularly at the
weeping which sometimes takes place, although, perhaps, he would
have no objection to the plum-cake; and, if impatient to possess
his treasure, would not dislike the marriage _sans façon_ by the
blacksmith at Gretna Green. Our customs would appear as strange
to him as even the following description of an Arab wedding to a
British reader.
As soon as a Dongaloue has collected a small sum, sufficient,
according to his condition, to defray the expenses of the fête, he
looks out for a girl suited to his taste. Having fixed his choice,
he sends two persons to make his proposals to her father, or whatever
relation has charge of her. When he is accepted, and the friends
on both sides agree to the wedding, he sends his intended bride a
variety of presents; the _gourbab_, or drapery of linen which they
wear around their waists, and also other pieces of wearing apparel,
shawls, and linen; and, besides these gifts, he sends her also money,
wood, and, according to his fortune, from four to forty ardebs of
grain. Accompanied by his friends, he then goes to the house of
the bride; her father meets him at the door, and in the presence
of the cadi, and of the relations and friends of both parties, and
of the fakeers of the village (men who can read and write a little,
and have the reputation of being pious Mahometans), the father gives
away his daughter, and the bridegroom receives the gift. “I give
you my daughter for wife:”—“I take your daughter for wife,”
is all that passes; the cadi and other witnesses of the contract then
invoke God and the Prophet to bless their union. In the mean time the
girls and matrons of the village are inside the house with the bride.
The cadi having witnessed the agreement and taken his departure,
the father of the girl invites the bridegroom into the house. A
curious scene then commences, which baffles description: the female
friends of the bride, having hid her in some secret room, as soon as
the bridegroom enters, rush upon him, and begin pulling him about,
and pinching him, often not in the gentlest manner. The husband hunts
in every direction for his bride; but her friends, first drawing him
on one side, and then on the other, and pinching him unmercifully,
fully occupy his attention, and prevent his making the discovery. At
length, worn out with fatigue, and having supported his character by
fighting as good a battle as he was able, he gives them a handsome
present of money to inform him where she is. Then commences another
ceremony—the tearing of the rat, or cincture, as I have already
mentioned. The rat, on this occasion only, is protected and covered
with folds of linen, tied and knotted in the most complicated
manner. The bridegroom endeavours to undo this Gordian knot, amidst
the laughter of the bride and her friends: but the latter are not
merely idle spectators; they commence again pulling him about, and
pinching him most maliciously. The bride also does not omit the
opportunity of giving him slily an affectionate pinch or two. At
last, he is obliged to purchase again the assistance of the girls;
and they generally make him pay dear. If his first present is not
sufficiently liberal, they continue tormenting him until he has
satisfied their expectations.
The women having taken off the covering that protected it, the
bridegroom seizes the rat, and tears it in pieces; the bride, on this
occasion only, has a piece of linen underneath; yet it sometimes
happens that the wicked bridegroom succeeds also in snatching away
this under-covering, and turns the laugh against his bride; this,
however, is considered here little more than a harmless jest.
For seven days they continue feasting and dancing. The bride generally
keeps her face covered during this time, but the bridegroom is
permitted to laugh and practise with her what we should call rather
rough jokes, as their chief amusement seems to be pinching. On the
seventh evening, the bridegroom conducts his bride to his house,
and another curious custom is practised. The male friends of the
husband and the female friends of the bride assemble around a large
board, on which a great quantity of grain or dates is placed. When
the signal is given, the parties commence a scramble, each striving
most earnestly to collect the largest quantity. If the women succeed,
the wife is to rule her husband; if the contrary, the husband is to
be master of his own house. If this ceremony took place in Europe,
the men, through indolence and politeness, and being engrossed
in various pursuits, not to say deference for the good sense and
peculiar talents of the fair sex in managing domestic affairs,
might gladly cede the greater quantity to the women; but here it is
considered too great a disgrace for a man to relinquish any portion
of his authority to his wife, to admit of such courtesy.
When they name their children, there is very little ceremony: four
days after the birth the name is given, and a sheep is killed for
the fête.
The ceremony of the circumcision of the male is also curious: it
takes place when the child is about four or six years of age. All
the friends and relations of the family assemble at the house
of the father, bringing with them presents according to their
means,—horses, oxen, cows, corn, money, &c. After partaking of
some refreshment, they walk in procession to the river, and all
the males bathe together. On their return to the house, the child
is placed on an angoureeb, and the ceremony performed. A bunch of
flowers is then placed in his hand, with scents, and the relations
and friends pass the one after the other, kiss and smell the bouquet,
and give the child as liberal a present as they can afford. There
is, generally, so great a mixture of persons on these occasions,
that these gifts vary from upwards of two pounds to one penny:
all, however, are expected to give as much as they can afford. In
Egypt they often postpone this ceremony until the child is twelve
or fourteen years of age; but in this country the family gain so
large a sum by it, that they seldom if ever delay it so long. For
the girls there is no fête: at most they merely kill a sheep. This
ancient ceremony probably had its origin in this country. Herodotus,
after mentioning that the Phœnicians and Syrians derived the custom
from the Egyptians, seems to doubt whether the Egyptians had it from
the Ethiopians, or the Ethiopians from the Egyptians.
I described a funeral at Gibel el Birkel in Dar Shageea. Here, also,
they sometimes dance on these occasions, but not often. It is an old
custom, and not considered strictly Mahometan. Both sexes are buried
on the very same day that they die, generally a few hours afterwards.
The contests which took place between the Arabs of the mountains and
the Berberene peasants, cultivators of the land, are suppressed by the
authority of the Turkish rulers; but their contempt for each other is
often displayed. When an Arab of the desert is oppressed by a soldier,
his first exclamation is, “Do you take me for a Berberene?” The
latter, in return, pride themselves on not being obliged to lead
the vagrant lives of the wandering Arabs. The peasants of Dongolah
are extremely honest: no bar nor lock is necessary, to secure the
door against the thief; nor is falsehood known among them. They
are always hospitable to the extent of their means. I never saw a
peasant sit down to eat, without inviting all that were near him to
take a share; and the poor and fatigued traveller is never refused
a night’s lodging and an evening meal.
[Illustration: Pl. 36.
_On stone by W. Walton, from a Drawing by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
EXTERIOR OF A DONGOLAH COTTAGE.
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
The inhabitants of Upper Nubia have been so many years accustomed
to the Turks, that white men are now no longer looked upon with
horror. Burckhardt tells an amusing tale, that, in the bazaar
at Shendy, he raised his turban, and showed his white shorn head
to a peasant girl, who, I suppose, had never seen flesh so white
before, and, terrified at the sight, exclaimed, “Um del Allah min
Shatan!”—“May God preserve me from the Devil.” This is one
of their favourite expressions; but the white man now incurs no risk
of having it so peculiarly applied to himself.
Most of the houses of the peasants are of mud, that is, the alluvial
soil of the Nile, mixed with cow and horse manure; the latter is
much used: straw is rarely added. Many of the houses in the country,
built of dourah straw, are extremely picturesque. The two views
(Plates XXXVI. and XXXVII.), taken from nature, will give the reader
a good idea of their construction, and also their inhabitants. The
lordly Turk is smoking on the only angoureeb in the house; one man
is grinding on a stone, for his lazy wife, whose business it is
considered to be, merely as much dourah as will suffice for their
mid-day and evening meal; and others are occupied in making and
drinking their favourite beverage the bouza. I have already noticed
the graceful style of the costumes both of the men and women; the
latter are often handsome, having fine forms and a good expression.
The wives are generally virtuous and gay: the dance is their favourite
amusement, but not so much indulged in here as in the province of
Dar Shageea. Their greatest delight is listening to the tales of
the country, which, though simple, are full of imagery, and have,
in the Arab language, a peculiar charm. A translation, I fear,
cannot give a full idea of their beauty. The following is a tale I
heard related by a little Ababde girl of thirteen; and even at an
earlier age their memories are stored with similar stories, which,
if any one had the disposition and the leisure to collect them,
would form a considerable and not uninteresting supplement to the
Thousand and One Nights.
DONGOLAH TALE.
“Amnah was the most lovely of the daughters of the Nile: fair as the
sand of the desert, the gazelle was not more elegant in form, or more
graceful in its movements. Her bust was beautiful, and her skin soft
and pliant to the touch. Her face was as the light of day; her eyes
were bright as the stars; her teeth whiter than the polished ivory;
and a lovely and ever-constant smile illumined her countenance. Nature
had done her utmost; Fortune equalled her rival in loading her with
its favours. Her necklaces were numerous, and of the finest gold;
and great was the weight of gold on her wrists and ankles. Her hair
was beautifully plaited, and decorated with the largest and rarest
pearls, and broad plates of gold above her forehead; and two large
and most precious ornaments set with diamonds hung gracefully from
her ears. Her rat (cincture) presented every variety of colour; the
skin of the hippopotamus was never cut so fine: it was ornamented
with the most curious shells and pieces of gold and silver attached
coquettishly in the most becoming manner; and the border of the rat
around her waist consisted of coral and pearls. From her waist to her
knees, only, this graceful ornament skreened her form; and there was
not one of the youths of the village and of the neighbourhood, who
had ever seen Amnah, who did not sigh and regret bitterly his being
unworthy that her rat should be broken for him. ‘The houries of the
paradise of the prophet cannot,’ said they, ‘be more enchanting,
endowed with such ravishing beauty, or such extraordinary talents.’
[Illustration: Pl. 37.
_On stone by J. Hamerton from a Drawing by L. Bandoni._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
INTERIOR OF A DONGOLAH COTTAGE.
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
“She was, at the same time, the gayest of the gay, and also
acquainted with all the learning of her tribe. Her father and other
travellers had related to her the history and customs of other
countries, and from them she had learnt the traditions and wars of
her native land. Every passage of the Koran was familiar to her;
and it was whispered she had devoted herself secretly to the study
of astrology (el ahlem el felek), and the more hidden sciences
of the Arabians. At midnight she was often seen alone, gazing at
the heavens; and for this reason the nomage she received for her
beauty and understanding was blended with a certain feeling almost
approaching to fear. Too beautiful, pure, and learned to be of this
world, she was considered by the ignorant peasants more as an angel
of light (melik e’ nour), than a frail inhabitant of earth.
“At the death of her father, after she had accompanied his remains
to the grave, and for some time had lamented his loss, Amnah, weary
of the constraint to which her sex subjected her, and anxious to
visit those scenes which she had so often heard described, left her
native village. The morning after her departure, at the entrance of
a small town, she observed an old man covered with vermin. ‘My
father,’ said she, ‘let me free you from those tormentors;’
and she began killing the animals, until suddenly the man fell
dead at her feet. ‘It is the will of God!’ she exclaimed, and
immediately dressed herself in his clothes, and pursued her journey.
“Thus disguised, and safe by the power of magic from detection,
she procured a dromedary swift as the wind, and visited the different
regions she had heard described; sometimes joining one caravan,
and sometimes another. The immense treasures on her person were
little diminished by this expense; when, one day, the people of
the caravan with which she travelled perceived a cloud of sand
approaching them, and shortly afterwards distinguished a troop of
horsemen at full gallop. Amnah and her companions urged on their
camels, but, finally, finding flight useless, they endeavoured to
hide themselves in a large well, which the heat of the summer had
dried up. But the horsemen had seen them enter, and, delighted to
have their prey secured, they offered to the young leader of their
band his choice, whether he would have for his portion the first or
the last of the persons whom they should find in the well.
“Their chief, named Mustapha, was only twenty-one years of age,
but renowned for his skill in the use of the matchlock, the sabre,
and the lance. His shield, of the hide of the hippopotamus, was almost
useless; for with his sabre he parried the blows of his enemies;
with a slanting cut of his Damascus blade, which his father, who
had travelled far towards the north, had brought him, he separated
the limbs of his foes, and even severed the iron chain. At the shake
of his lance all fled before him; and never was a matchlock in more
skilful hands. In form, he was the perfection of manly beauty and
vigour, and his mind was richly endowed, displaying a judgment beyond
his years, and greater presence of mind in danger than the oldest
warrior. The Koran he knew by heart, and his chief delight was in
listening to the traditions of his country. Young and generous,
he could never repress his indignation at the recital of the evil
deeds of the tyrants who had reigned over the land: his eyes kindled
with enthusiasm, and his cheeks glowed with pleasure and emulation
when they told him of the valorous exploits of his ancestors, their
generosity and hospitality. Like the rest of his race, much of his
time was spent in excursions against the tribes with whom they were
at war.
“Perceiving where the caravan had taken refuge, Mustapha, having
the first choice allowed to him, said, ‘I will take for my share
the captive at the extremity of the well: he who has most to lose
will have fled the farthest.’ His companions cast lots for their
portions. Some had young women, others young active male slaves;
all with some treasure. None were apparently so unfortunate as
Mustapha, who found at the extremity of the well Amnah disguised as
an old man, miserably clad, the picture of poverty. His companions,
with the freedom of friends, rallied him on the wisdom of his choice,
in the following lines, which one of them sang, and the others joined
in chorus[41]:—
‘Our chief, what wisdom he has shown!
God has blessed him with great judgment.
O, what a prize he has gained!
So young and so active a slave;
So splendid and costly his dress;
So sweet the scent of his body!
Our chief,’ &c.
‘He will lead your horse to the field;
Give you your lances in battle,
And ward off the treacherous blow.
Our chief, what wisdom he has shown!
God has blessed him with great judgment.
O, what a prize he has gained!’
“Mustapha bore good-naturedly the jests of his companions, and,
not wishing to appear to despise the gift of Providence, although
apparently useless, he led to his castle, as prisoner, the disguised
Amnah. On his arrival, he asked her what she could do: ‘Can you cut
wood?’ said he. ‘No,’ replied Amnah, ‘I have no strength:
see you not that my arm is shrivelled up with age?’ ‘Can you
carry it?’ said the chief. ‘No,’ she said, ‘my back is already
double; I should sink under the lightest weight.’ ‘Can you guard
the cows, or sheep?’ ‘Alas, no!’ replied Amnah, ‘they walk
too fast and far for me.’ ‘Can you clean the horses?’ ‘I
know not how.’ ‘Can you wash the sand for gold-dust?’ ‘My
eyes are not good enough.’ ‘You are too dirty to make bread. Can
you attend the geese?’ ‘I think I can,’ said Amnah; ‘at all
events, I will try.’
“Mustapha gave her for her companion a dumb youth, called
Yabebe. After some days, when Yabebe was bathing in the river,
Amnah took off her disguise, and showed herself, to the astonished
peasant, as the perfection of beauty, covered with gold and precious
stones, her hair ornamented with fine pearls and plates of gold,
and her earrings studded with diamonds: laughing, she sang to him
the following lines[42]:—
‘Open your eyes, Yabebe:
See! I am young and lovely,
Covered with gold all over;
My necklace of gold,
My earrings of gold,
My bracelets of gold,
And gold round my arms,
And gold round my legs,
Gold on my forehead,
And gold on my rat;
Pearls and silver also.
Open your eyes, Yabebe;
See, I am young and lovely,
Covered with gold all over!’
“The astonished peasant left the river, and Amnah, laughing,
resumed her disguise. On his return to the castle, the dumb youth made
signs to his chief that Amnah was a woman, beautiful, and covered
with gold. They surveyed her, and, not finding out her disguise,
beat the boy for his improbable falsehood.
“The day afterwards they were at the same river: Amnah threw aside
her disguise, put her ornaments together, and bathed herself, with the
lad, in the shaded stream. The peasant went first out of the water,
and unobservedly stole one of her rings. Amnah, having counted them,
found one missing. Yabebe denied having taken it. Amnah beat him,
but still he denied, and, escaping from her, fled to his master, and
gave him the ring, describing, by signs, that she had similar ones on
all her fingers, and was covered with gold and precious stones; that
she was a woman, and that her beauty was, as the mid-day sun (jemeel
mittel e’ shamps fel dohr), too powerful to gaze at. Mustapha sent
for Amnah, and, flying suddenly upon her, tore open the rags that
covered her, but fell senseless at the sight of such exquisite beauty.
“Great was the fête of the marriage, countless the camels and sheep
that were killed. The music was incessant for seven days and seven
nights, and they danced until they could dance no more. None, for
many years, saw the brilliancy of her face, being ever in her harem,
or closely veiled, when, occasionally, she appeared in public. The
fame of her beauty, knowledge, and goodness was spread through all
lands; the learned were anxious to converse with her; but none,
except her husband, had seen her face.
“One day her dearest son fell from a tree that he was climbing. His
cries reached the ears of his anxious mother. Without a veil,
without a garment, she rushed forth. The crowd, on seeing her,
fell as dead. They knew not if the effect was produced by magic,
or by the power of her exquisite beauty. At her touch her son was
restored; and, having clothed herself with a gourbab, and thrown a
veil over her head, the crowd recovered; but the tree withered from
that day: the branches decayed fast; the leaves fell on the ground,
and it no longer afforded shade.”
THE ANCIENT GOVERNMENT OF DONGOLAH.
The Meleks who formerly reigned here were of the Zebain, to which
tribe belong almost all these rulers, including Melek Tumbol,
Melek Nazr e’ Deen, and, in fact, all those from Sennaar to Wady
Halfah, with the exception of the meleks of the Shageea tribe. The
peasants under these chiefs were generally called by the names of
their villages, as those of Dongolah, Dongoloue, Korti, Kortie: but,
since the conquest of the Pasha, they are called Berberene; a name
derived from Berber. Sheakh Muktah[43], the most intelligent Arab
I have ever met with, being, like several in Upper Nubia, of the
race of cadis,—son after son the chief cadi,—and, therefore,
as pure a source of information as by tradition can be obtained,
informed me that all these peasants are of the great tribe of Ababja
from the Yemen, who came here in the reign of the fourth caliph
after Mahomet, and, finding the country inhabited by infidels,
drove some out, but forced the greater number to become Mussulmen;
and that thus the former inhabitants became blended with the Arabs,
and have not been distinguishable from them for ages. This is a
curious and highly interesting tradition, proving, historically,
almost, what might naturally be supposed: but I will say more on
this subject in my Historical Appendix.
The king of Sennaar held a doubtful and precarious rule over this
country, receiving, according to the character of her monarchs,
more or less tribute. The brave Shageea, alone, never bent the knee
to this king. Two hundred years ago, the Sultan of Sennaar, as some
call him, sent here a detachment of the tribe called the Funge,
to which he belonged, to keep this country under his subjection. A
great many of this race are still here, and they are considered
to be inferior only to the Shageea in courage. They are supposed
to be originally a colony of pagans, from the Bahr el Abiad, but
they have nothing of the appearance of negroes. They ruled over the
country 150 years. Ibrahim was the first, and he was succeeded by
his son Musnet: their united reigns lasted eighty years; they sent
considerable quantities of corn, oxen, and horses to Sennaar. The
descendants of Musnet enjoyed less authority over their subjects,
and the tribute to Sennaar was less regularly paid.
In the year 1782 the Shageea overthrew the government of the Funge,
and reigned peaceably in their stead, under three meleks,—Melek
Shouish, Melek Omar, and Melek Zebair. The account Burckhardt gives of
the treacherous conduct of the Mamelukes towards Mahmoud el Adalenab
is very correct, as far as it goes. Hadji Mahmoud Sheakh received them
with every mark of hospitality, ministered to all their wants, and was
in return barbarously murdered at Maraka, this very place which is
now called El Ourde, or The Camp. The following particulars of this
circumstance, which I received from the best sources at Dongolah,
may not be perhaps uninteresting to the reader. The Mamelukes arrived
at Captot; and Sheakh Mahmoud, the chief of the Shageea, descended
the river on the opposite side, with a numerous suite. He bade the
Mamelukes welcome to his kingdom, and informed them that, if they
wished for grain, he would furnish them gratis with any quantity they
desired. He told them, also, that whatever they asked for, which he
possessed, should be immediately sent to their camp; and if they
were anxious, as they professed to be, to proceed up the country
to Sennaar, he would supply them with provisions for the journey,
but if they chose to remain at Captot Marabat, they were welcome.
Four days afterwards, fifteen Mamelukes, or katshefs, as they are
called, rode up and stopped at the door of the house of the grand
Cadi Mahomet, having learnt that the Sheakh Mahmoud was with him. The
sheakh having come out to salute them, they complained that they had
no grain for their horses. The sheakh sent immediately for a bag
for each horse, and ordered his people to fill a boat with grain,
and convey it to the camp. The Mamelukes appeared still dissatisfied,
and would not dismount whilst their horses were feeding. But their
object was soon accomplished; for, as the sheakh approached the horse
of one of them, to arrange the bag of corn it was eating, and said,
“This is sufficient for your horses now, and I will send you as
much as you desire,” the Mameluke, who had his carabine on one side
of his saddle, without putting it to his shoulder, pointed it at
the sheakh, pulled the trigger, and wounded him in the breast. The
sheakh had scarcely drawn his sword a few inches from the scabbard,
when another fired a blunderbuss at him, containing six balls,
and he fell dead: another instantly separated his head from his
body, and they afterwards mangled the corpse in a horrid manner
with their sabres. The Cadi Mahomet, who was with him, was killed
also by a blow of a sabre, and a black slave, who was in attendance,
met a similar fate. Ten of the Shageea peasants, his servants, were
present at this murder, but being unarmed they could not attempt to
revenge the death of their chief, and therefore fled.
The Mamelukes remained nine years masters of the country. Including
the servants, they were about 600 in number. Many died here; the
remainder, on the invasion of the Pasha, went to Shendy, whence
they passed to Darfour, and thence to Bornou, Baghermi, Fezzan,
and Tripoli. Adouram Bey, one of their leaders, was killed near the
latter place; but their other leader, Marfou Bey, arrived in safety
at Tripoli.
I received the greater part of this account from the most authentic
source, Sheakh Muktah, my informant, being the son of the Cadi
Mahomet, who perished with the unfortunate Mahmoud. I ought to
mention, as some palliation of this treacherous breach of hospitality,
that it is said that the Berberene, weary of the Shageea, represented
to the Mamelukes that Sheakh Mahmoud was devising some plan to
destroy them, and therefore they may be said to have murdered him in
self-defence. The object of the Mamelukes was to possess the country;
and they were glad to avail themselves of this feeble excuse to
break the laws of hospitality. Great praise is due to the few who
accomplished the courageous and immense undertaking of crossing the
centre of Africa. Such a journey would immortalise any European,
but who would attempt it? At Darfour, Brown was detained a prisoner;
and in the kingdom of Bornou or Fezzan Hornemann lost his life.
CHAPTER XV.
DEPARTURE FROM DONGOLAH. — NUMEROUS VILLAGES. — ISLAND OF
ARGO. — RESIDENCE OF THE MELEK. — ARAB ACCOUNTANTS. — MELEK
TUMBOL. — EXTENT OF HIS TERRITORY. — ARAB MANNERS COMPARED WITH
EUROPEAN. — PHILOSOPHY OF THE ARABS. — THE MELEK’S DINNER. —
MILITARY FORCE. — GARDEN. — VISIT TO THE ANTIQUITIES. — NUMEROUS
VESTIGES OF ANCIENT TOWNS. — COLOSSAL STATUES. — REMAINS OF
A LARGE TEMPLE. — NAME OF SABACO, THE CONQUEROR OF EGYPT. —
ENTERTAINMENT OF AN ARAB SHEAKH. — RICHNESS OF THE ISLAND. —
INDIGO. — ETHIOPIAN FORT. — CATARACT OF TOUMBOS. — MUTILATED
COLOSSAL STATUE. — HOSPITALITY OF AN ARAB SHEAKH. — CHARACTER
OF THE INHABITANTS. — HIPPOPOTAMUS. — ALARMING INTELLIGENCE. —
REVOLT OF THE MAHAS. — DREADFUL CONSEQUENCES. — OUR PROVIDENTIAL
ESCAPE. — ARAB STORIES OF TRAVELLERS.
_April_ 16. We left Dongolah at three this afternoon, and, after
three hours’ march, stopped at Mecaurat. Our route has been on
the skirt of the desert, about half a mile from the river. I ought
to acknowledge here the civilities which we received from M. Martin,
a French apothicaire, in the employ of the Pasha, who showed us every
attention in his power, allowing to us a part of his house. I must not
forget, also, the kind attentions of his lady, an Abyssinian girl;
pretty, and, at the same time, kind and affectionate. In return for
a small mirror, which I gave her, she presented me with a Sennaar
dagger, with an ebony handle, ornamented with silver. I keep it as
a remembrance of “la bella Maria.”
_April_ 17. An hour and a half after starting, we arrived at a
government store-house: adjoining it were several cottages in
ruins. After ten hours’ journey, we arrived at Haffeer. The
following is a list of villages and islands between New Dongolah
and the province of El Mahas:—
East. Islands. West.
Meegasseer Kaptot
{ Gerada Wady Sais
{
{ Irse Mecaurat
Argo {
Island { Binne Binni
{
Affidab { Merouerti Quay
{
{ Boulinarti Muste
{
Bourgos { Attikarha Haffeer
{
Badeen. { Selinarti Serog
{
{ Magassar Coban
Ashlian Dakarti Akkidi
Toumbos Toumbos Hannek.
In the desert, at a distance, there are isolated hills, apparently
of sandstone. On arriving, we visited the katshef of Haffeer, who
received us very politely; the Mahmoor having spontaneously furnished
me with different letters for the officers in his government: one
for the melek of Argo and the katshef of Solib, &c.
At my request, the katshef immediately ordered a boat to be prepared
to convey us to the Island of Argo, which I was anxious to examine,
not only on account of its great extent, and the antiquities it
contained, but also because it is the only place in Upper Nubia under
the government of its rightful owner, who alone, of all the meleks,
possesses now a shadow of his ancient authority.
_April_ 18. An hour’s sail, with a fair wind, brought us to the
northern extremity of the island, where the village is situated in
which the melek resides. I went to his castle, which is fortified with
towers (see vignette), and protected on one side by a high wall. It is
capable of making some defence against an insurrection of the natives.
[Illustration: FORTIFIED HOUSE OF THE MELEK OF TUMBOL.]
[Illustration]
The court we entered first was filled with slaves of the melek, who,
I was informed, including male and female, amounted to upwards of 200,
living either in or around his residence. I ascended from the court,
by ill-constructed steps, similar to, but not quite so good as,
those we have in England for granaries, and entered into a divan,
or audience-room, which had quite the appearance, and was about the
size, of a small English barn. Around a part of the room was a divan
of earth, besides which there were four angoureebs, or cord divans,
covered with carpets and cushions. The roof is of a slanting form,
resembling that of a barn: the wooden logs of which it is made are
blackened by the smoke of the fires. The beams consist each of two
pieces of timber, which are supported and kept together, at their
junction, by a rough pillar that stands in the centre of the room. To
retain this in its place, and bind it to the beam, there are slips
of wood, about one foot long, on each side of the pillar, under the
beam; and on these the ancient Egyptian and Ethiopian ornament of
the globe and feathers is carved. It is more rudely executed than
the ancient, but still it is curious to find even a vestige of this
ornament in a modern Ethiopian habitation. The doorway, and, indeed,
the house altogether, is rudely constructed, but much stronger and
better than Arab houses in general. The appearance of the outside
is superior to that of the interior.
The melek was out when we arrived. The brick divan already mentioned
was partly occupied by his Arab accountants. In almost every village
there is a little school, or rather, I should say, hut, which is
used as such, and there are few of the peasants who have not made an
attempt to learn to read and write; but, to use their own estimate,
there is not one in a hundred whose knowledge extends beyond the
alphabet, and putting together a few words. There are very few who
can write, and none who know any thing of arithmetic. There are,
however, some few of the sheakhs and others, who, from their learning,
are called fakeers, and who are good Arabic scholars.
When we entered, the melek’s cash-keepers were counting the money
they were receiving from the peasants, and settling their accounts
with the assistance of their strings of beads. In this room, also,
besides the servants, there were several relations, brothers and
nephews, of the melek’s, but not distinguishable by their dress
from the other Arabs.
After we had waited a short time, Melek Tumbol arrived, attended
by about twenty of his people on horseback. The meleks whom I have
hitherto seen have been generally fine tall men, having often an
appearance really noble, and sometimes even majestic. The melek
of Argo, on the contrary, is the most diminutive personage I have
seen in the country: he has a good-tempered countenance, but, on
close examination, something cunning in his expression, and nothing
noble or imposing in his appearance. He was dressed simply as an Arab
sheakh, except that his clothes were of a finer quality. He wore a
long white fine cotton shirt, covering him from the neck to the feet,
with very long and wide sleeves. He had a fine white Souakim shawl,
with the usual red border hanging over his shoulder. His head-dress
consisted of the red cloth cap (tarboush), with one of the silk
Turkish handkerchiefs around it. He received us with the usual Arab
politeness, read the Mahmoor’s letter, and entreated me to make
his house my own. They presented us with coffee and pipes, in the
Turkish fashion, and also with sherbet.
The islands and villages on the eastern side of the Nile are under
his dominion; having belonged, according to his own account, from
time immemorial to his family. He has within his territory, 925
water wheels, besides the land on the banks, which is cultivated
after the inundation, and irrigated by hand labour.
When Ismael Pasha invaded this country, Melek Tumbol immediately
joined his party, and furnished him with provisions for the army. In
consequence of his services on that occasion, the Pasha has allowed
him to remain in the command of his territories, and given to him
the rank and pay of a katshef; and I am told he expects to be made a
mahmoor: he is rich in dromedaries, horses, and slaves, and allowed
to have ten water wheels gratis. His subjects have heavier taxes to
pay than formerly, but they may consider themselves fortunate in not
having inflicted on them the presence of their rulers. Not one Turk
or Arab soldier resides on his territory.
Before the arrival of the melek, I was amused with the conversation
of his servants. They spoke of his generosity as that of the greatest
prince; stating, that, when a peasant gave him a sheep or a goat,
he immediately presented in return a camel or a cow; and they added
numerous similar instances of generosity, which with the Arabs is
the noblest of virtues.
We told the melek that we wished to see the antiquities on his
island. He expressed his willingness to forward our views; but,
as they were four hours distant, and it was then late, he hoped
we would delay our visit until the morning. I was not sorry to be
thus obliged to pass the night with this chief, as I am always glad
of an opportunity of making myself better acquainted with the Arab
customs. There is something so simple and sincere in their hospitality
and manner of living, that, unintellectual as their society is, I
must confess it is not without its charm. The luxurious divan; the
tranquillising pipe; the grateful sherbet and delicious coffee; and
the ease and quiet of Oriental society, are not trifling enjoyments in
this clime, the scorching heat of which alone inclines man to repose.
This is not a country for brilliant conversation and animated
discussion: the former would be too great mental fatigue; and the
warmth and excitement which the latter sometimes occasions, if not
positively fatal, would certainly be extremely prejudicial to health,
when the thermometer is above 100° in the shade. The Turks sit on
their divans, and the Arabs on their angoureebs, and smoke the whole
of the day. There is not the slightest obligation to converse; they
sit and look at each other, and amuse themselves with their pipes,
thoughts, castle-building, or business.
Unless you keep them occupied with your enquiries, long pauses often
occur in the conversation, as if they were reflecting on what you had
said. One advantage of their society is, that the conversation flows
naturally, for not even the host considers any effort necessary to
keep it up. A man in this country is not considered stupid because
he has the sense not to talk nonsense. When any of them tell a tale,
or make an assertion, however improbable they may be, politeness,
aversion to discussion, and perhaps indolence, generally prevent
the others from disputing, or making any remarks upon it. When a
council is held upon subjects of importance, and each person is asked
for his opinion, greater harmony could not exist in any assembly:
the highest in rank expresses his sentiments on the subject first,
and the others almost invariably coincide with him.
If a peasant had enough to support himself and family, even in
a miserable manner, he would never labour to make himself more
comfortable, but spend his time in the enjoyment of idleness, sleeping
and smoking; he would, as the Berbers have been described as doing,
sit for hours together in the shade, in the same position, without
thought or care, with few ideas, and no wish to obtain more.
Their philosophy, however, is remarkable: scarcely an hour of
their lives is embittered with useless regrets. They are totally
free from that anxiety for the morrow which agitates Europeans,
and prevents the enjoyment of the present good, by their insatiable
thirst after greater happiness. An Arab never distresses himself, as
we too often do, with imaginary evils; he is the child of destiny,
and never torments himself with the apprehension of a misfortune
which, if it is really approaching, he believes it out of his
power to prevent. Niebuhr gives an extraordinary instance of their
philosophy.[44]
This temperament is certainly more suitable to the climate, than the
feverish anxiety, the angry passions, and restless ambition, which
drive content from the abodes of so many Europeans. It is true, the
Arabs are ignorant of the high intellectual enjoyments of literary and
scientific pursuits, and of the pleasures, luxuries, and refinements
of polished life; yet few, perhaps, will deny, that the man who is
contented under any circumstances, who immediately becomes resigned to
the caprices of fortune, who scarcely knows the meaning of the words
worldly care, and is unagitated by any regret for past pleasures,
or aching desire to obtain additional enjoyments, is possessed of
a certain degree of practical, and not useless, philosophy.
[Illustration: Pl. 33.
_On stone by W. Walton, from a Drawing by G. A. Hoskins Esqr._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
COLOSSAL STATUE IN THE ISLAND OF ARGO.
_Published by Longman, Rees & Co. April 6th. 1835._]
At twelve o’clock dinner was served up; and as the style
was different from any I had hitherto seen, and is that usual
with the kings of this country, a short description may not be
uninteresting. Two mats were laid on the floor, on which we were
invited to seat ourselves: they were rather hard, and not excessively
clean. The dinner was served in six large wooden bowls, and the
bread, which is made into thin light cakes, in elegant baskets of
coloured straw, manufactured in Sennaar. The dinner consisted of
mutton, fowls, bamia (Hibiscus esculentus), and an excellent omelet
in a smaller dish, prepared expressly for myself by the wives of the
melek. Raw onions, which are considered particularly healthy in this
climate, and which, being much milder than ours, are not unpalatable,
particularly after they have been soaked in water, were presented to
each of us. I dined on the omelet, the other dishes being liquid,
and so exceedingly hot, that I burnt my fingers in attempting to
taste them.
The melek sat down with us, but did not eat much; he dines always
in his harem. Of the latter I should say something _en passant_. I
was informed elsewhere that he has had twenty-one, or, as some said,
thirty-two, wives, all daughters or relations of other meleks. He
is said now to have only three. He has no sons, but two beautiful
daughters, unmarried, who, however, already take a share in the
government. My servant saw one of them on an adjoining small island,
where she resides with her slaves, and sends the produce to her
father.