Notes in North Africa Part 2

CHAPTER VII.

BONA AND ITS VICINITY.

Pa.s.sage to Bona.--State of Affairs on Board.--Bona.--The Lake Met.i.tza.--Ain Mokra.--Wild Duck Shooting on the Lake.

We bade adieu to B----, who had given us letters of recommendation to the Admiral, for a first-cla.s.s cabin to Bona--a thing difficult to achieve on board the steamers here, as civilians are only allowed second-cla.s.s accommodation, the state cabin being reserved for the use of naval and military officers, as the steamers on this line rank as men of war. The boat was much crowded with soldiers, sailors, and Arabs, and we had to share a most miserable berth with eight other occupants. We had arrived too late to procure cabin places, and were obliged to dine in an unsavoury den, reeking with pestilential odours.

Most of the Frenchmen grumbled loudly at the miserable accommodation afforded in return for their money. Steaming along past a fine coast, we reached Dellis about eight o'clock. I got Angelo to bring me my sheepskin and cloak, and preferred sleeping on deck to pa.s.sing the night in a locality which, for the horrors it contained, might have figured as a scene in Dante's "Inferno."

The gentle music of the sailors, swabbing the deck, awoke me next morning. I found we were off Bougie, a most beautifully-situated place, entirely surrounded by snow-covered mountains. Here are distinctly to be seen the ruins of the old wall supposed to have been built by the Vandals. A rather tedious day on board, but the occupation of watching the coast, which is very fine, varied the monotony of the voyage. We pa.s.sed Djigelli at about twelve, and Philippeville at nine in the evening, when I retired to rest, and, the Fates be thanked, it was in a fresh cabin.

There was a Jewess on board, a rather pretty personage, who slept in the same cabin with six men, most of them French officers, with a coolness that astonished me. Her husband was in the berth opposite her; she did not appear to feel the discomforts of her position, but chatted away gaily in Arabic and French throughout the whole pa.s.sage.

I don't think she quitted her berth once.

At half-past six on Sat.u.r.day, the 25th of March, came Angelo to announce to me that we were off Bona. This is a very strongly fortified place. We were rowed ash.o.r.e by Maltese boatmen, and, amid a great crowd and bustle on the quay, landed, and went to the Hotel de France. The proprietors were very civil, and a.s.signed us a room at the top of the house, looking out on the place. We sallied forth in quest of horses to take us to the market-place. An Arab, who spoke some very broken and dilapidated Italian, took us round the market and through the streets, shouting "Reel Ain Mokra!" Several Arabs came up and offered us their horses, but the steeds had such a forlorn look, that we declined the accommodation, and settled to start by carriage next morning.

Accordingly, on Monday, the 26th of March, we set out at five o'clock, on a most wretched morning. The vehicle was the most miserable locomotive contrivance I ever saw. Drawn by two horses, it pounded and churned along a most detestable road. We were obliged to get out several times, and in one place we stuck in the mud for twenty minutes. It was only by dint of putting our united shoulders to the wheel, that we succeeded in extricating our unhappy chariot from its stationary position. At length our eyes were gladdened by the sight of the defile which opens on the lake Met.i.tza, where Count Z----'s property is situated. Though of Polish origin, the Count is an Englishman, and has, I believe, been an officer. Right gladly we alighted from the carriage, and, loading our guns, prevailed on some Italian fishermen to take us out in a boat for a pop at the wild ducks which we saw flying about by hundreds, bagged a few, and then returned to find that the Count's keeper had come down, under the impression that we were poachers, with a firm determination to take us into custody there and then. The production of our letter of recommendation brought him back to civility, and produced an offer to take us out shooting; Count Z---- himself was absent in London.

There is an establishment here for the manufacture of oil from putrid fish, which agreeable occupation announced itself in the shape of such an overpowering odour, that I seized a gla.s.s of cognac, and fled precipitately, taking my way towards the caravanserai of Ain Mokra.

Poor old Nero, whom I had brought with me, got into a sc.r.a.pe here, and narrowly escaped being drowned. It appears that the putrid entrails of the fish are thrown into a kind of pond, which is thus filled with a slimy mixture resembling clay, and exhaling a most horrible odour when exposed to the sun's rays. Nero contrived, in some way or other, to slip into this delectable compound, and there he would have remained, had I not laid hold of him and pulled him out by main force. I at once had him washed and scrubbed, and even emptied some scent on him, but in vain; for days afterwards, poor Nero carried about with him a reminiscence of his odoriferous adventure, which rendered his absence most desirable to the comfort and well-being of his friends. I sallied forth about four miles from Ain Mokra, and lay in ambush for boars, but none appeared, and only shot some jackals--a very poor subst.i.tute for the n.o.bler game I had missed.

[Ill.u.s.tration: R. Pheney, lith.

M. & N. Hanhart, Impt.

SHOOTING WILD DUCKS NEAR AIN MOKRA, PROVINCE OF CONSTANTINE, ALGERIA.]

At five, next morning, I went out to shoot on the lake. I got Angelo to row a boat slowly among the reeds, and soon saw hundreds of wild ducks, teals, and large white birds of whose name I am ignorant; they looked to me like flamingoes. I could only succeed in bagging a few, as they were exceedingly shy, and made off as soon as the boat approached; moreover, the rushes were not thick enough to afford us an effectual concealment. As the miasma from the lake was sufficiently powerful to threaten fever, we returned to the caravanserai, where we breakfasted, and, after shooting a few quails, returned in our carriage, at one o'clock, to Bona. My driver, who sat beside me, was a very loquacious old soldier, who had served in the campaigns against the Arabs under Baraguay d'Hilliers and Youssouf, and been present at the capture of Milianah and Medeah. The Arabs, he said, never met the French fairly _en bataille rangee_, but always fired from ambush at the rear-guard, and in this way killed a great number of men. He described the conduct of the Arabs to their prisoners as very merciless. They never gave quarter, and frequently mutilated their captives; the women, in this particular, being more cruel than the men. I was informed, on my return, that the party who came out last year to shoot, had only killed four lions in as many months, though they had "all appliances and means to boot," and always kept several Arabs in their pay.

CHAPTER VIII.

ON TO TUNIS.

Algeria in general.--The Arabs and their Conquerors.--Antagonism between the Two Races.--Social Condition of the Arabs.--The Oasis steamer.--Arrival at Tunis.

On the 28th of March I left Bona in the steamer _Oasis_. The engine broke down shortly after leaving the port, and, as the sails were absolutely useless, we had the pleasant consciousness of drifting towards a lee sh.o.r.e; but in a short time the damage was luckily repaired, and we proceeded on our voyage.

The accounts I had heard of Algeria had not prepared me to find such a flourishing state of affairs as I really found to exist in the community. The colony possesses fine harbours, a magnificent soil, and a glorious climate; numerous towns, with good hotels, are springing up in the interior. It is true that many of the immigrants are not French, but the majority are of that nation; and all the inhabitants, after a few years, adopt the French manners and language. The non-Gallic population are chiefly Spaniards, Italians, Maltese, and Germans. I met only one party of English at Bona, where a community of eighteen souls have been brought over by a Mr. Vincent; they appear to thrive very well. I was told that Count Z---- intended establishing an English village near Bona.

From the general prosperity, I, of course, except the Moors and Arabs, who will never, I believe, adopt European civilisation; they seem to recoil from before it, like the wild beasts of their native deserts.

The French people certainly pointed out to me in the towns one or two _Europeanised_ Arabs, and laughed at the idea of their ever becoming "_Francais_." From what I saw, the natives merely adopted the vices without the good qualities of the dominant race. If to be civilised consists in sitting in the _cafes_, drinking absinthe, playing cards, and speaking bad French, I certainly saw one or two most unquestionable specimens of the Arab adaptability to Gallic impressions; but, with the exception of these brilliant results, I never saw the least token of intercourse between the Moors and their conquerors; indeed, each nation may be said entirely to ignore the existence of the other. The peculiarity of Mussulman habits, with regard to women, entirely precludes all prospect of a future mixture of the two races--such an amalgamation, for instance, as occurred in our own country between the Norman-French conquerors and the conquered Saxons. So well are the French aware of this impossibility, that I have seen the question of the expediency of utterly expelling the Mussulmans from Algeria gravely discussed in the French journals.

Another method proposed was, that the young Arabs who had attained the military age of from eighteen to twenty-two years, should be transferred to France, there to pa.s.s their period of service as infantry soldiers only, that opportunities might be found, during their "soldiering years," for instructing them in agriculture, and the rudiments of civilised education. This appears to me a sufficiently feasible plan; but I suspect that the Arab converts to civilisation would, on their return to their native land, quickly relapse into their old idle, roving habits, their primitive mode of life, and their inborn hatred of the infidel, whom they now regard as an instrument sent by Providence to inflict vengeance on the true believer for his apathy, and culpable neglect of his religious duties, including the propagation of his faith by fire and sword. Still, they believe the time to be approaching when every true son of the prophet shall "hae his ain" again; and it is past the power of mortal man to shake a Mahometan's trust and reliance on Destiny.

For the rest, the French behave with the greatest toleration towards all members of the Moorish faith, who are allowed to perform every rite of their religion, and polygamy even is permitted to prevail among the Mussulman population. At Bona, a very handsome mosque is being erected on the Grand Place by the Government. Tolerant themselves, the French refuse, with perfect justice, to suffer any display of bigotry or fanaticism on the part of the Mahometans towards the Christian community; the consequence is, that the mosques and other resorts of Mahometans are all thrown open to European visitors.

My dog Nero was a most decided favourite on board the French steamer, _Oasis_. Everybody was caressing and patting him, from the captain to the stewardess, rather a nice young female, from Germany, who took him under her especial protection, and looked after his creature-comforts in a way that must have aroused the most lively grat.i.tude in the canine bosom of the said Nero. Poor old dog! he seemed quite bewildered at the attention he received, not only here, but also on board the French man-of-war, the _Tartar_, where the French soldiers and sailors were crowding around him all day long, and overwhelming him with favours, in the shape of bits of meat, when they took their meals. A number of Arabs were sleeping about the deck. These children of the desert used to excite Nero's especial wonder. Whenever he was let loose, he was sure to be sniffing about among the prostrate figures, examining their faces and _bournouses_, and often waking them up with a start, to the intense delight of the French tars.

On our arrival off La Goulette, the only anchorage for ships, situated about eight miles from Tunis, by sea, and nine miles by land, we were greeted by a scene of the most tremendous confusion. All the feluccas were rowed by Arabs, and their shouting, swearing, and gesticulation exceeded all my former experiences of the kind, Stamboul not excepted. A little patience, and a good deal of backsheesh, enabled us to pa.s.s our baggage through the Douane; and we sent it on by boat to Tunis, whither we proceeded by land in a carriage, and a drizzling rain. Once on the way we stopped, at what the inhabitants term the "Carthaginian cistern," to take in some exceedingly dirty water, from a fountain of old-fashioned appearance. The carriage windows were closed on account of the rain--an arrangement which interfered a good deal with my view of the surrounding country. Twice only, before we arrived at Tunis, my companion, a Russian, opened the window--to spit!

On the first of these occasions, I got a glimpse of a large heap of immense stones, which were pointed out to me as the ruins of Carthage, and a grove of olives, looking dismal exceedingly in the drizzling rain. On the second occasion, I saw the lakes, and a solitary Tunisian sentinel. This soldier was dressed much in the Turkish costume, and I should scarcely have known him from an Osmanli, but that he wore the bra.s.s plaque in the front of his scarlet fez, instead of at the top.

As we approached Tunis, we became involved in an increasing crowd of loaded a.s.ses and mules; and, amid a great deal of screeching and shouting, we made our entry into the city, and drove to the Hotel de France, where we obtained such a complete view of an old wall, that it effectually prevented us from seeing anything else. The rooms, or rather holes, a.s.signed to us, were so miserable, that we tried the solitary opposition shop the place can boast--the Hotel de Provence--but found that here we should fare rather worse than in the Hotel de France. There was a third establishment--a tavern, rejoicing in the magniloquent t.i.tle of "Hotel of the Britannic Isles"--but as this hostelry was entirely occupied by sailors and Maltese skippers, we declined to avail ourselves of the "Britannic"

accommodation. There was a great crowd of rather miscellaneous company at the _table-d'hote_. One French female, whom, without offence to gallantry, I may be permitted to describe as the ugliest woman I met in my travels, excited my especial horror. This charming person actually amused herself, and disgusted her neighbours, by indulging, _across the table_, in an amus.e.m.e.nt generally a.s.sociated in men's minds with the chewing of tobacco! I discovered, however, that she was only a servant maid.

CHAPTER IX.

MARSA.

Angelo's Horsemanship.--The Bey's Palace at Marsa.--The Arabs and their Love of Tobacco.--The Friendly Moor at Camatte.

On the first of April I rode to Marsa, a little town on the seash.o.r.e.

Angelo's horse seemed rather fresh, and my servant was evidently no Centaur. He came up to me in an olive wood, where I made a halt for about five minutes. He was holding on hard by the mane, his trousers were up to his knees, and his face was horribly pale. On my asking him why he loitered behind so, he owned, with a dismal sigh, that he was half afraid of the horse. "Afraid of the horse, sir!" was poor Angelo's lament: "Very wicked horse, sir--fell from a horse, sir--at Scutari, sir--broke three ribs, sir--and in hospital five weeks, sir!"

I told him to be of good cheer, for the horse would soon be quiet after a good gallop; and, tying the horses to some olive trees, I bade Angelo wait for me by the side of a little hillock in the plain, where I could readily find him on my return, and went away into the forest with my gun. The ground was covered with long, thick, pointed gra.s.s, very wet with the dew. I saw some quails, and shot a few; then returned to where Angelo was waiting, and galloped on to Marsa. At this place, the Bey, and the princ.i.p.al inhabitants of Tunis, have summer residences, to which they resort for the sake of sea-bathing.

On the way, I encountered a number of Arabs, mounted on mules. The foremost shouted out to me in Arabic, as I pa.s.sed, asking me to stop and give him some tobacco. I understood the word "tobacco," which seems to have nearly the same sound in all languages, and knowing this request to be often a "dodge" on the part of the Arabs, who want an opportunity to rob, if not to murder, the traveller, I pointed to Angelo, who was following, about fifty paces behind me, with my gun, and shouted out that _he_ would find tobacco for them. They evidently understood my meaning; for they all set up a loud laugh, and my friend the tobacconist--or rather the tobacco-less--looked exceedingly "sold."

I found Marsa very prettily situated, opposite to the bay of Tunis, near the ruins of old Carthage. The Bey's palace is a handsome building. The English and French consulates are also well built. I proceeded to a small Italian _locanda_, to get breakfast; but the old lady, who seemed the presiding genius of the place, obstinately refused to let us have anything. "_Io han niente_," was her unanswerable argument. But I rather ostentatiously pulled out my watch, whose golden blink somewhat softened the old lady's mood, and caused her to remember that she might have certain eggs, and some bread, and salad, though a moment before she had been protesting that she had not even such a thing as bread in the house. Her son, a handsome young Italian, returned at this juncture, and we soon had an excellent _dejeuner_ of sausages, salad, spinach, omelette, and cheese, with very good wine and coffee. I went down to the seaside and bathed, first burying my watch and purse in the sand; for the Arabs have a weakness for occasionally coming down under such circ.u.mstances, and stealing one's clothes.

Past a ruined temple, down an avenue into Camatte, where I got an Arab to show me the way to a house formerly occupied by an Englishman.

Here, for a wonder, I met a Moor, who spoke very good French, and was very civil. He asked me how I liked Africa, and laughed cordially at my open avowal, that it was "_un peu bizarre_." After gathering a few delicious oranges for me in the garden, he took me into the interior of the house. I found it a most charming residence, with a deliciously cool marble reservoir in the centre, full of gold and silver fish.

I rode back by the margin of the lake, but saw only small game till I got to a large olive forest, where a jackal made his appearance. I gave chase, and, after a rattling gallop, lodged him among some cactus bushes, where I could get near enough to shoot him; and so back to Tunis.

CHAPTER X.

ABOUT BOAR-SHOOTING.

Sleeman.--The Oued el Ahwena.--Its Scenery and its Dangers.--Beauty of the Landscape on its Banks.

I started next day with the Umbra, who was remarkable for a long scimitar, and spurs nearly as long. Each time I put my horse to a gallop, he was under the impression that I wanted to ride a race with him, and went on at full speed, till I restrained his ardour. We arrived duly at Sleeman, where the Caid had everything prepared very comfortably for us. My friends B---- and F---- arrived later, in a carriage. We had a good Arab dinner, with the national kouskous, followed by a chibouk.

There was a river about six miles off, where boars were rumoured to make their abode. I rose early next morning, and, proceeding to this stream, hid in the thicket on the banks, while the Arabs beat the bushes. After waiting a long time, I managed to "pot" a wild boar, which came rushing past me at full speed. After this, the Arabs refused to beat the bushes any more, declaring that the dogs were tired, though the real reason was that they wanted their own dinners, so I was obliged to give up the sport and return. The wild boar was dispatched as a present to the consul.

[Ill.u.s.tration: R. Pheney, lith.