The Albert N'Yanza Part 11

The temple shot, and that behind the ear, are equally fatal in Africa as in Ceylon, provided the hunter can approach within ten or twelve yards; but altogether the hunting is far more difficult, as the character of the country does not admit of an approach sufficiently close to guarantee a successful shot. In the forests of Ceylon an elephant can be stalked to within a few paces, and the shot is seldom fired at a greater distance than ten yards: thus accuracy of aim is insured; but in the open ground of Africa, an elephant can seldom be approached within fifty yards, and should he charge the hunter, escape is most difficult. I never found African elephants in good jungle, except once, and on that occasion I shot five, quite as quickly as we should kill them in Ceylon.

The character of the sport must vary according to the character of the country; thus there may be parts of Africa at variance with my description. I only relate my own experience.

Among other weapons, I had an extraordinary rifle that carried a half-pound percussion sh.e.l.l--this instrument of torture to the hunter was not sufficiently heavy for the weight of the projectile; it only weighed twenty pounds: thus, with a charge of ten drachms of powder, behind a HALF-POUND sh.e.l.l, the recoil was so terrific, that I was spun round like a weatherc.o.c.k in a hurricane. I really dreaded my own rifle, although I had been accustomed to heavy charges of powder and severe recoil for many years.

None of my men could fire it, and it was looked upon with a species of awe, and was named "Jenna el Mootfah" (child of a cannon) by the Arabs, which being far too long a name for practice, I christened it the "Baby;" and the scream of this "Baby," loaded with a half-pound sh.e.l.l, was always fatal. It was far too severe, and I very seldom fired it, but it is a curious fact, that I never fired a shot with that rifle without bagging: the entire practice, during several years, was confined to about twenty shots. I was afraid to use it; but now and then it was absolutely necessary that it should be cleaned, after lying for months loaded. On such occasions my men had the gratification of firing it, and the explosion was always accompanied by two men falling on their backs (one having propped up the shooter), and the "Baby" flying some yards behind them. This rifle was made by Holland, of Bond Street, and I could highly recommend it for Goliath of Gath, but not for men of A.D. 1866.

The natives of Central Africa generally hunt the elephant for the sake of the flesh, and prior to the commencement of the White Nile trade by the Arabs, and the discovery of the Upper White Nile to the 5 degrees N.

lat. by the expedition sent by Mehemet Ali Pasha, the tusks were considered as worthless, and were treated as bones. The death of an elephant is a grand affair for the natives, as it supplies flesh for an enormous number of people, also fat, which is the great desire of all savages for internal and external purposes. There are various methods of killing them. Pitfalls are the most common, but the wary old bulls are seldom caught in this manner.

The position chosen for the pit is, almost without exception, in the vicinity of a drinking place, and the natives exhibit a great amount of cunning in felling trees across the usual run of the elephants, and sometimes cutting an open pit across the path, so as to direct the elephant by such obstacles into the path of snares. The pits are usually about twelve feet long, and three feet broad, by nine deep; these are artfully made, decreasing towards the bottom to the breadth of a foot.

The general elephant route to the drinking place being blocked up, the animals are diverted by a treacherous path towards the water, the route intersected by numerous pits, all of which are carefully concealed by sticks and straw, the latter being usually strewn with elephants' dung to create a natural effect.

Should an elephant, during the night, fall through the deceitful surface, his foot becomes jammed in the bottom of the narrow grave, and he labours shoulder deep, with two feet in the pitfall so fixed that extrication is impossible. Should one animal be thus caught, a sudden panic seizes the rest of the herd, and in their hasty retreat one or more are generally victims to the numerous pits in the vicinity. The old bulls never approach a watering place rapidly, but carefully listen for danger, and then slowly advance with their warning trunks stretched to the path before them; the delicate nerves of the proboscis at once detect the hidden snare, and the victims to pitfalls are the members of large herds who, eager to push forward incautiously, put their "foot into it," like shareholders in bubble companies. Once helpless in the pit, they are easily killed with lances.

The great elephant hunting season is in January, when the high prairies are parched and reduced to straw. At such a time, should a large herd of animals be discovered, the natives of the entire district collect together to the number of perhaps a thousand men; surrounding the elephants by embracing a considerable tract of country, they fire the gra.s.s at a given signal. In a few minutes the unconscious elephants are surrounded by a circle of fire, which, however distant, must eventually close in upon them. The men advance with the fire, which rages to the height of twenty or thirty feet. At length the elephants, alarmed by the volumes of smoke and the roaring of the flames, mingled with the shouts of the hunters, attempt an escape. They are hemmed in on every side--wherever they rush, they are met by an impa.s.sable barrier of flames and smoke, so stifling, that they are forced to retreat.

Meanwhile the fatal circle is decreasing; buffaloes and antelopes, likewise doomed to a horrible fate, crowd panic stricken to the centre of the encircled ring, and the raging fire sweeps over all. Burnt and blinded by fire and smoke, the animals are now attacked by the savage crowd of hunters, excited by the helplessness of the unfortunate elephants thus miserably sacrificed, and they fall under countless spears. This destructive method of hunting ruins the game of that part of Africa, and so scarce are the antelopes, that, in a day's journey, a dozen head are seldom seen in the open prairie.

The next method of hunting is perfectly legitimate. Should many elephants be in the neighbourhood, the natives post about a hundred men in as many large trees; these men are armed with heavy lances specially adapted to the sport, with blades about eighteen inches long and three inches broad. The elephants are driven by a great number of men towards the trees in which the spearmen are posted, and those that pa.s.s sufficiently near are speared between the shoulders. The spear being driven deep into the animal, creates a frightful wound, as the tough handle, striking against the intervening branches of trees, acts as a lever, and works the long blade of the spear within the elephant, cutting to such an extent that he soon drops from exhaustion.

The best and only really great elephant-hunters of the White Nile are the Bagara Arabs, on about the 13 degree N. lat. These men hunt on horseback, and kill the elephant in fair fight with their spears.

The lance is about fourteen feet long, of male bamboo; the blade is about fourteen inches long by nearly three inches broad; this is as sharp as a razor. Two men, thus armed and mounted, form the hunting party. Should they discover a herd, they ride up to the finest tusker and single him from the others. One man now leads the way, and the elephant, finding himself pressed, immediately charges the horse. There is much art required in leading the elephant, who follows the horse with great determination, and the rider adapts his pace so as to keep his horse so near the elephant that his attention is entirely absorbed with the hope of catching him. The other hunter should by this tine have followed close to the elephant's heels, and, dismounting when at full gallop with wonderful dexterity, he plunges his spear with both hands into the elephant about two feet below the junction of the tail, and with all his force he drives the spear about eight feet into his abdomen, and withdraws it immediately. Should he be successful in his stab, he remounts his horse and flies, or does his best to escape on foot, should he not have time to mount, as the elephant generally turns to pursue him. His comrade immediately turns his horse, and, dashing at the elephant, in his turn dismounts, and drives his lance deep into his intestines.

Generally, if the first thrust is scientifically given, the bowels protrude to such an extent that the elephant is at once disabled. Two good hunters will frequently kill several out of one herd; but in this dangerous hand-to-hand fight the hunter is often the victim. Hunting the elephant on horseback is certainly far less dangerous than on foot, but although the speed of the horse is undoubtedly superior, the chase generally takes place upon ground so disadvantageous, that he is liable to fall, in which case there is little chance for either animal or rider. So savage are the natural instincts of Africans, that they attend only to the destruction of the elephant, and never attempt its domestication.

CHAPTER VIII.

IBRAHIM's RETURN.

Ibrahim returned from Gondokoro, bringing with him a large supply of ammunition. A wounded man of Chenooda's people also arrived, the sole relic of the fight with the Latookas; he had been left for dead, but had recovered, and for days and nights he had wandered about the country, in thirst and hunger, hiding like a wild beast from the sight of human beings, his guilty conscience marking every Latooka as an enemy. As a proof of the superiority of the natives to the Khartoumers, he had at length been met by some Latookas, and not only was well treated and fed by their women, but they had guided him to Ibrahim's camp.

The black man is a curious anomaly, the good and bad points of human nature bursting forth without any arrangement, like the flowers and thorns of his own wilderness. A creature of impulse, seldom actuated by reflection, the black man astounds by his complete obtuseness, and as suddenly confounds you by an unexpected exhibition of sympathy. From a long experience with African savages, I think it is as absurd to condemn the negro in toto, as it is preposterous to compare his intellectual capacity with that of the white man. It is unfortunately the fashion for one party to uphold the negro as a superior being, while the other denies him the common powers of reason. So great a difference of opinion has ever existed upon the intrinsic value of the negro, that the very perplexity of the question is a proof that he is altogether a distinct variety. So long as it is generally considered that the negro and the white man are to be governed by the same laws and guided by the same management, so long will the former remain a thorn in the side of every community to which he may unhappily belong. When the horse and the a.s.s shall be found to match in double harness, the white man and the African black will pull together under the same regime. It is the grand error of equalizing that which is unequal, that has lowered the negro character, and made the black man a reproach.

In his savage home, what is the African? Certainly bad; but not so bad as white men would (I believe) be under similar circ.u.mstances. He is acted upon by the bad pa.s.sions inherent in human nature, but there is no exaggerated vice, such as is found in civilized countries. The strong takes from the weak, one tribe fights the other--do not perhaps we in Europe?--these are the legitimate acts of independent tribes, authorized by their chiefs. They mutually enslave each other--how long is it since America and WE OURSELVES ceased to be slaveholders? He is callous and ungrateful--in Europe is there no ingrat.i.tude?

He is cunning and a liar by nature--in Europe is all truth and sincerity? Why should the black man not be equal to the white? He is as powerful in frame, a why should he not be as exalted in mind?

In childhood I believe the negro to be in advance, in intellectual quickness, of the white child of a similar age, but the mind does not expand--it promises fruit, but does not ripen; and the negro man has grown in body, but not advanced in intellect.

The puppy of three months old is superior in intellect to a child of the same age, but the mind of the child expands, while that of the dog has arrived at its limit. The chicken of the common fowl has sufficient power and instinct to run in search of food the moment that it leaves the egg, while the young of the eagle lies helpless in its nest; but the young eagle outstrips the chicken in the course of time. The earth presents a wonderful example of variety in all cla.s.ses of the human race, the animal and vegetable kingdoms. People, beasts, and plants belonging to distinct cla.s.ses, exhibit special qualities and peculiarities. The existence of many hundred varieties of dogs cannot interfere with the fact that they belong to one genus: the greyhound, pug, bloodhound, pointer, poodle, mastiff, and toy terrier, are all as entirely different in their peculiar instincts as are the varieties of the human race. The different fruits and flowers continue the example;--the wild grapes of the forest are grapes, but although they belong to the same cla.s.s, they are distinct from the luscious "Muscatel;" and the wild dog-rose of the hedge, although of the same cla.s.s, is inferior to the moss-rose of the garden.

From fruits and flowers we may turn to insect life, and, watch the air teeming with varieties of the same species, the thousands of b.u.t.terflies and beetles, the many members of each cla.s.s varying in instincts and peculiarities. Fishes, and even sh.e.l.lfish, all exhibit the same arrangement,--that every group is divided into varieties all differing from each other, and each distinguished by some peculiar excellence or defect.

In the great system of creation that divided races and subdivided them according to mysterious laws, apportioning special qualities to each, the varieties of the human race exhibit certain characters and qualifications which adapt them for specific localities. The natural character of those races will not alter with a change of locality, but the instincts of each race will be developed in any country where they may be located. Thus, the English are as English in Australia, India, and America, as they are in England, and in every locality they exhibit the industry and energy of their native land; even so the African will remain negro in all his natural instincts, although transplanted to other soils; and those natural instincts being a love of idleness and savagedom, he will a.s.suredly relapse into an idle and savage state, unless specially governed and forced to industry.

The history of the negro has proved the correctness of this theory. In no instance has he evinced other than a retrogression, when once freed from restraint. Like a horse without harness, he runs wild, but, if harnessed, no animal is more useful. Unfortunately, this is contrary to public opinion in England, where the vox populi a.s.sumes the right of dictation upon matters and men in which it has had no experience. The English insist upon their own weights and measures as the scales for human excellence, and it has been decreed by the mult.i.tude, inexperienced in the negro personally, that he has been a badly-treated brother; that he is a worthy member of the human family, placed in an inferior position through the prejudice and ignorance of the white man, with whom he should be upon equality.

The negro has been, and still is, thoroughly misunderstood. However severely we may condemn the horrible system of slavery, the results of emanc.i.p.ation have proved that the negro does not appreciate the blessings of freedom, nor does he show the slightest feeling of grat.i.tude to the hand that broke the rivets of his fetters. His narrow mind cannot embrace that feeling of pure philanthropy that first prompted England to declare herself against slavery, and he only regards the antislavery movement as a proof of his own importance. In his limited horizon he is himself the important object, and, as a sequence to his self-conceit, he imagines that the whole world is at issue concerning the black man. The negro, therefore, being the important question, must be an important person, and he conducts himself accordingly--he is far too great a man to work. Upon this point his natural character exhibits itself most determinedly. Accordingly, he resists any attempt at coercion; being free, his first impulse is to claim an equality with those whom he lately served, and to usurp a dignity with absurd pretensions, that must inevitably insure the disgust of the white community. Ill-will thus engendered, a hatred and jealousy is established between the two races, combined with the errors that in such conditions must arise upon both sides. The final question remains, Why was the negro first introduced into our colonies--and to America?

The SUN is the great arbitrator between the white and the black man.

There are productions necessary to civilized countries, that can alone be cultivated in tropical climates, where the white man cannot live if exposed to labour in the sun. Thus, such fertile countries as the West Indies and portions of America being without a native population, the negro was originally imported as a slave to fulfil the conditions of a labourer. In his own country he was a wild savage, and enslaved his brother man; he thus became a victim to his own system; to the inst.i.tution of slavery that is indigenous to the soil of Africa, and that has NOT BEEN TAUGHT TO THE AFRICAN BY THE WHITE MAN, as is currently reported, but that has ever been the peculiar characteristic of African tribes.

In his state of slavery the negro was compelled to work, and, through his labour, every country prospered where he had been introduced. He was suddenly freed; and from that moment he refused to work, and instead of being a useful member of society, he not only became a useless burden to the community, but a plotter and intriguer, imbued with a deadly hatred to the white man who had generously declared him free.

Now, as the negro was originally imported as a labourer, but now refuses to labour, it is self-evident that he is a lamentable failure. Either he must be compelled to work, by some stringent law against vagrancy, or those beautiful countries that prospered under the conditions of negro forced industry must yield to ruin, under negro freedom and idle independence. For an example of the results look to St. Domingo!

Under peculiar guidance, and subject to a certain restraint, the negro may be an important and most useful being; but if treated as an Englishman, he will affect the vices but none of the virtues of civilization, and his natural good qualities will be lost in his attempts to become a "white man."

Revenons a nos moutons noirs. It was amusing to watch the change that took place in a slave that had been civilized (?) by the slave-traders.

Among their parties there were many blacks who had been captured, and who enjoyed the life of slave-hunting--nothing appeared so easy as to become professional in cattle razzias and kidnapping human beings, and the first act of the slave was to procure a slave for himself! All the best slave-hunters, and the boldest and most energetic scoundrels, were the negroes who had at one time themselves been kidnapped. These fellows aped a great and ridiculous importance. On the march they would seldom condescend to carry their own guns; a little slave boy invariably attended to his master, keeping close to his heels, and trotting along on foot during a long march, carrying a musket much longer than himself: a woman generally carried a basket with a cooking-pot, and a gourd of water and provisions, while a hired native carried the soldier's change of clothes and oxhide upon which he slept. Thus the man who had been kidnapped became the kidnapper, and the slave became the master, the only difference between him and the Arab being an absurd notion of his own dignity. It was in vain that I attempted to reason with them against the principles of slavery: they thought it wrong when they were themselves the sufferers, but were always ready to indulge in it when the preponderance of power lay upon their side.

Among Ibrahim's people, there was a black named Ibrahimawa. This fellow was a native of Bornu, and had been taken when a boy of twelve years old and sold at Constantinople; he formerly belonged to Mehemet Ali Pasha; he had been to London and Paris, and during the Crimean war he was at Kertch. Altogether he was a great traveller, and he had a natural taste for geography and botany, that marked him as a wonderful exception to the average of the party. He had run away from his master in Egypt, and had been vagabondizing about in Khartoum in handsome clothes, negro-like, persuading himself that the public admired him, and thought that he was a Bey. Having soon run through his money, he had engaged himself to Koorshid Aga to serve in his White Nile expedition.

He was an excellent example of the natural instincts of the negro remaining intact under all circ.u.mstances. Although remarkably superior to his a.s.sociates, his small stock of knowledge was combined with such an exaggerated conceit, that he was to me a perpetual source of amus.e.m.e.nt, while he was positively hated by his comrades, both by Arabs and blacks, for his overbearing behaviour. Having seen many countries, he was excessively fond of recounting his adventures, all of which had so strong a colouring of the "Arabian Nights," that he might have been the original "Sinbad the Sailor." His natural talent for geography was really extraordinary; he would frequently pay me a visit, and spend hours in drawing maps with a stick upon the sand, of the countries he had visited, and especially of the Mediterranean, and the course from Egypt and Constantinople to England. Unfortunately, some long story was attached to every princ.i.p.al point of the voyage. The descriptions most interesting to me were those connected with the west bank of the White Nile, as he had served some years with the trading party, and had penetrated through the Makkarika, a cannibal tribe, to about two hundred miles west of Gondokoro. Both he and many of Ibrahim's party had been frequent witnesses to acts of cannibalism, during their residence among the Makkarikas. They described these cannibals as remarkably good people, but possessing a peculiar taste for dogs and human flesh. They accompanied the trading party in their razzias, and invariably ate the bodies of the slain. The traders complained that they were bad a.s.sociates, as they insisted upon killing and eating the children which the party wished to secure as slaves: their custom was to catch a child by its ankles, and to dash its head against the ground; thus killed, they opened the abdomen, extracted the stomach and intestines, and tying the two ankles to the neck they carried the body by slinging it over the shoulder, and thus returned to camp, where they divided it by quartering, and boiled it in a large pot. Another man in my own service had been a witness to a horrible act of cannibalism at Gondokoro.

The traders had arrived with their ivory from the West, together with a great number of slaves; the porters who carried the ivory being Makkarikas. One of the slave girls attempted to escape, and her proprietor immediately fired at her with his musket, and she fell wounded; the ball had struck her in the side. The girl was remarkably fat, and from the wound, a large lump of yellow fat exuded. No sooner had she fallen, than the Makkarikas rushed upon her in a crowd, and seizing the fat, they tore it from the wound in handfuls, the girl being still alive, while the crowd were quarrelling for the disgusting prize.

Others killed her with a lance, and at once divided her by cutting off the head, and splitting the body with their lances, used as knives, cutting longitudinally from between the legs along the spine to the neck.

Many slave women and their children who witnessed this scene, rushed panic-stricken from the spot and took refuge in the trees. The Makkarikas seeing them in flight, were excited to give chase, and pulling the children from their refuge among the branches, they killed several, and in a short time a great feast was prepared for the whole party. My man, Mahommed, who was an eyewitness, declared that he could not eat his dinner for three days, so great was his disgust at this horrible feast.

Although my camp was entirely separate from that of Ibrahim, I was dreadfully pestered by his people, who, knowing that I was well supplied with many articles of which they were in need, came begging to my tent from morning till evening daily. To refuse was to insult them; and as my chance of success in the exploration unfortunately depended upon my not offending the traders I was obliged to be coldly civil, and nothing was refused them. Hardly a day pa.s.sed without broken guns being brought to me for repair; and having earned an unenviable celebrity as a gunsmith, added to my possession of the requisite tools, I really had no rest, and I was kept almost constantly at work.

One day Ibrahim was seized with a dangerous fever, and was supposed to be dying. Again I was in request: and seeing that he was in a state of partial collapse, attended with the distressing symptoms of want of action of the heart, so frequently fatal at this stage of the disease, I restored him by a very powerful stimulant, and thereby gained renown as a physician, which, although useful was extremely annoying, as my tent was daily thronged with patients, all of whom expected miraculous cures for the most incurable diseases.

In this manner I gained a certain influence over the people, but I was constantly subjected to excessive annoyances and disgust, occasioned by the conduct of their party towards the Latookas. The latter were extremely unwise, being very independent and ready to take offence on the slightest pretext, and the Turks, being now 140 strong, had no fear, and there appeared every probability of hostilities. I was engaged in erecting huts, and in securing my camp; and although I offered high payment, I could not prevail on the natives to work regularly. They invariably stipulated that they were to receive their beads before they commenced work, in which case they, with few exceptions, absconded with their advanced payment.

One day a native behaved in a similar manner to the Turks; he was, accordingly, caught, and unmercifully beaten. Half an hour after, the nogara beat, and was answered by distant drums from the adjacent villages. In about an hour, several thousand armed men, with shields, were collected within half a mile of the Turks' camp, to avenge the insult that had been offered to one of their tribe. However, the Turks'

drum beat, and their whole force drew up to their flag under arms outside their zareeba, and offered a determined front. I extract the following entry from my journal. "These Turks are delightful neighbours; they will create a row, and I shall be dragged into it in self-defence, as the natives will distinguish no difference in a scrimmage, although they draw favourable comparisons between me and the Turks in times of peace. Not a native came to work at the huts today; I therefore sent for the two chiefs, Commoro and Moy, and had a long talk with them. They said that 'no Latooka should be beaten by common fellows like the traders' men; that I was a great chief, and that if I chose to beat them they would be content.' I gave them advice to keep quiet, and not to quarrel about trifles, as the Turks would a.s.suredly destroy the country should a fight commence.

"At the same time, I told them that they did not treat me properly: they came to me in times of difficulty as a mediator, but although they knew I had always paid well for everything, they gave me no supplies, and I was obliged to shoot game for my daily food, although they possessed such enormous herds of cattle; neither could I procure materials or workpeople to complete my camp. The parley terminated with an understanding that they were to supply me with everything, and that they would put a stop to the intended fight. In the evening a goat was brought, and a number of men appeared with gra.s.s and wood for sale for hut-building."

The following day, some of my people went to a neighbouring village to purchase corn, but the natives insulted them, refusing to sell, saying that "we should die of hunger, as no one should either give or sell us anything." This conduct must induce hostilities, as the Turks are too powerful to be insulted. I am rather anxious lest some expedition may entail the departure of the entire Turkish party, when the Latookas may seize the opportunity of attacking my innocents. The latter are now so thoroughly broken to my severe laws, "thou shalt not take slaves; neither cattle; nor fire a shot unless in self-defence," that they are resigned to the ign.o.ble lot of minding the donkeys, and guarding the camp.

Latooka was in a very disturbed state, and the excitement of the people was increasing daily. Two of my men went into the town to buy gra.s.s, and, without any provocation, they were surrounded by the natives, and the gun of one man was wrested from him; the other, after a tussle, in which he lost his ramrod, beat a hasty retreat. A number of the soldiers immediately collected, and I sent to the chief to demand the restoration of the gun, which was returned that evening. I could literally procure nothing without the greatest annoyance and trouble.

My men, by their mutiny and desertion at Gondokoro, had reduced a well-armed expedition to a mere remnant, dependent upon the company of a band of robbers for the means of advancing through the country. Instead of travelling as I had arranged, at the head of forty-five well-armed men, I had a miserable fifteen cowardly curs, who were employed in driving the baggage animals; thus they would be helpless in the event of an attack upon the road. I accordingly proposed to make a depot at Latooka, and to travel with only twelve donkeys and the lightest baggage. It was a continual trial of temper and wounded pride. To give up the expedition was easy, but to succeed at that period appeared hopeless; and success could only be accomplished by the greatest patience, perseverance, and most careful tact and management of all parties. It was most galling to be a hanger-on to this company of traders, who tolerated me for the sake of presents, but who hated me in their hearts.

One afternoon some natives suddenly arrived from a country named Obbo with presents from their chief for the Turks, and also for me. Ibrahim received several tusks while I received an iron hoe (molote), as the news had already extended to that country, "that a white man was in Latooka, who wanted neither slaves nor ivory." The natives reported, that a quant.i.ty of ivory existed in their country, and Ibrahim determined to take a few men and pay it a visit, as the people were said to be extremely friendly. I requested the leader to point out the exact position of Obbo, which I found to be S.W. That was precisely the direction that I had wished to take; thus an unexpected opportunity presented itself, and I determined to start without delay. On the 2d of May, 1863, at 9 A.M. we left Latooka, delighted to change the scene of inaction. I left five men in charge of my camp and effects, begging Commoro the chief to look after their safety, and telling him that I had no fear of trusting all to his care. Savages will seldom deceive you if thus placed upon their honour, this happy fact being one of the bright rays in their darkness, and an instance of the anomalous character of the African.

The route lay across the park-like valley of Latooka for about eighteen miles, by which time we reached the base of the mountain chain. There was no other path than the native track, which led over a low range of granite rocks, forming a ridge about four hundred feet high. It was with the greatest difficulty that the loaded donkeys could be hoisted over the numerous blocks of granite that formed an irregular flight of steps, like the ascent of the great pyramid; however, by pulling at their ears, and pushing behind, all except one succeeded in gaining the summit; he was abandoned on the pa.s.s.

We were now in the heart of the mountains, and a beautiful valley, well wooded and about six miles in width, lay before us, forming the basin of the Kanieti river that we had formerly crossed at Wakkala, between Ellyria and Latooka.

Fording this stream in a rapid current, we crossed with difficulty, the donkeys wetting all their loads. This was of no great consequence, as a violent storm suddenly overtook us and soaked everyone as thoroughly as the donkeys' packs. A few wild plantains afforded leaves which we endeavoured to use as screens, but the rain-drops were far too heavy for such feeble protection. Within a mile of the river we determined to bivouac, as the evening had arrived, and in such weather an advance was out of the question. The tent having been left at Latooka, there was no help for it, and we were obliged to rest contented with our position upon about an acre of clean rock plateau upon which we lighted an enormous fire, and crouched shivering round the blaze. No gra.s.s was cut for the animals, as the men had been too busy in collecting firewood sufficient to last throughout the night. Some fowls that we had brought from Latooka had been drowned by the rain; thus my Mahommedan followers refused to eat them, as their throats had not been cut. Not being so scrupulous, and wonderfully hungry in the cold rain, Mrs. Baker and I converted them into a stew, and then took refuge, wet and miserable, under our untanned ox-hides until the following morning. Although an ox-hide is not waterproof, it will keep out a considerable amount of wet; but when thoroughly saturated, it is about as comfortable as any other wet leather, with the additional charm of an exceedingly disagreeable raw smell, very attractive to hyenas. The night being dark, several men thus lost their leather bags that they had left upon the rock.