The World and Its People Part 48

A Tarki of n.o.ble rank wears a high cap of red cloth decorated with large black ta.s.sels. His upper garments consist of a long white shirt bound about the waist by a broad red scarf, and a sleeveless blouse of some black material adorned with costly gold and silver embroidery. His lower garment is a pair of wide white Turkish trousers which reach to the instep. On his feet lie wears sandals made of goat skin. On his chest are small leather bags or metal cases; these contain amulets, generally large emeralds, of which rich deposits are found in the Sahara. Woven bands of leather fasten these bags or cases to his neck.

For weapons the Tarki carries a short dagger and a well-sharpened saber.

These are fastened to his arm by a copper bracelet. The hilts of these weapons are always in the form of a Latin cross, and are adorned with five nails of copper arranged to represent a cross. He wears a two-handed sword suspended from his neck by a strong cotton cord, ending in two large ta.s.sels.

When out on an expedition the Tuaregs plant their long iron spears, inlaid with copper, in the ground, whenever they stop for the night or to rest awhile, and take a squatting position beside them.

Two or three iron javelins carefully sharpened are always fastened to the back or pommel of the saddle of a n.o.ble Tarki. These he can hurl to a great distance with considerable skill. As a means of defense he carries an oblong shield made of antelope skin and large enough to cover his whole person. Firearms he scorns to use.

In appearance the Tuaregs are tall, slender, and well formed. In disposition they are grave, silent, impa.s.sive, and affect an indifference to their surroundings. In character they are proud, cunning, quarrelsome, and tenacious. They are very excitable, brave, and enduring, and no privation nor fatigue can dishearten them. In their intercourse with others their hatred knows no pity, their vengeance no mercy.

They are the terror of the caravans that cross the desert, where every living being is an enemy. Whenever a solitary man appears on the dim horizon, the caravan makes ready for battle. It never thinks of approaching a well without sending out an advance guard to see if it is safe to proceed.

In attacking a caravan the Tuaregs first send out scouts in advance.

These men are not armed, and under pretense of seeking food or by offering their services as guides, try to mingle with the caravan. Their object is to lead it to wells near which they know their warriors are lying in wait hidden behind sand hills.

Night is the time usually chosen for an onslaught, and generally at watering places a long distance apart. It is the custom for a caravan to stop several days at a well to allow the camels an opportunity to graze.

A herd may thus be a long way from the main part of the caravan, and it is at such a time, when the forces are divided, that the Tuaregs usually make an attack.

In their rough life and hard struggle for existence they have become veritable outcasts. They are Mohammedans in name only, and do not repeat the five daily prayers with their faces turned toward Mecca; neither do they take their daily ablutions in the sand, as the prophet required.

They use the Koran only when taking an oath, and are very faithful in keeping their pledges.

A curious custom, not unlike that which existed in the Middle Ages between the warrior knights and the religious orders, prevails; for the n.o.bles leave the duty of praying to the tribes that form the middle cla.s.ses. These tribes were formerly n.o.ble, but are now in a half-servile condition. They are excluded from certain privileges enjoyed by the warriors, to whom they pay heavy tribute in cattle, slaves, and dates.

Aside from this they enjoy perfect freedom.

The old men, the women, the children, and the slaves live in stone houses in villages and till the fields which surround them. Their lords dwell under leather tents and move from place to place, when necessary, to find fresh pasturage.

Should the French nation succeed in subjugating these brigand tribes of the Sahara, commerce in the desert will be as safe as that upon the sea.

There are two great branches of the African people, the Somal and Galla tribes, that occupy a large portion of Eastern Africa lying south and east of Abyssinia. These tribes are entirely distinct from the negro.

The Somal tribes occupy the country described as the great eastern horn of Africa, which terminates at Cape Guardafui.

Only a small portion of the country is known to Europeans. On the north it consists of a table-land, diversified by rugged cliffs as it approaches the coast, and by a wide maritime plain as it retreats from it. Inland this table-land stretches away towards the south in immense gra.s.sy plains. Great herds of gazelles, zebras, and antelopes roam over them; and the ostrich, giraffe, and elephant are found in large numbers.

The central section is famed as a grazing land for camels, ponies, cows, and fat-tailed sheep.

The numerous Somal tribes, through mingling with the Arabs, have become Mohammedan fanatics. They speak a mixed language, have tall, slight, agile figures, and in color they are slightly darker than the Arabs.

They have lips and noses almost Grecian in character, but woolly hair like the negro.

The Galla tribes occupy the immense tract of country, nine hundred miles from north to south, lying south of Abyssinia in the maritime region of East Africa. Somaliland is the eastern limit. Lake Rudolph is probably its western limit, though it may have an extension to the northwest.

The country is, for the most part, unexplored. It consist of a moderately elevated plateau, dotted with isolated mountain groups and affords ample pasturage for cattle, camels, and horses.

The Galla tribes are a tall, finely formed people, who have bright, expressive eyes, and a deep brown complexion. The tribes of the various sections differ widely in their characteristics. Those occupying the southern borders of Abyssinia are brave warriors and keen traders. They are either Mohammedans or professed followers of the Christianity of Abyssinia. The southern Galla tribes are all heathen.

Just southwest of the Galla country, between the snowy peaks of Kenia and Kilimanjaro and the eastern sh.o.r.es of Victoria Nyanza, is a wide plateau section. This is occupied by warlike nomads. They are feared all along the maritime region, for they plunder the Arab caravans which make their way inland towards the lake region in their journey from the coast. The coast tribes live in constant fear of these marauders and are always on the alert against their attacks.

The Portuguese claim all the coast line of southeast Africa from a point near Cape Delgado, for a distance of fourteen hundred miles southward to Delagoa Bay. This possession is know as the Province of Mozambique, and is under the control of a governor appointed by the Crown of Portugal.

He is aided by a small military force, mostly Portuguese convicts, and has almost unlimited authority in controlling the affairs of the settlements. The points along the coast actually occupied by the Portuguese are few and isolated.

On the mainland of East Africa we find a narrow maritime belt, ten miles in width, extending from the Rovuma to Ozi River. This is under the dominion of the Sultan of Zanzibar. Arrangements were made in 1888 and 1889 in which this coast line was to be governed by two companies, the one English, the other German.

Very recently the British East Africa Company made a formal transfer of all its territory to Great Britain. By the terms of the transaction the company surrendered its royal charter in return for the payment of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. England has thus secured an immense tract of territory, a million square miles, for a comparatively small sum.

The territory over which the British Government will now a.s.sume control extends about four hundred miles along the coast northward from Umba, situated at the mouth of a river of the same name. The southern boundary line runs in a northwest direction to the intersection of the Victoria Nyanza with the first parallel of north lat.i.tude. It skirts the northern sh.o.r.e of the lake and extends westward as far as the boundary line of the Congo Free State.

Its northern boundary begins at the River Juba. This boundary line extends from the intersection of the river with the sixth parallel, north lat.i.tude, to the thirty-fifth meridian, east longitude, which it follows to its point of intersection with the Blue Nile. The Congo Free State and the western watershed of the basin of the Upper Nile form the western boundary line.

Now that England has come into possession of so much East African territory, we may expect to receive much interesting information about the natives, as their land becomes open to civilization and commerce. A large part of East Africa must now become known to the world, and many improvements are to be looked for. A railway of six hundred and fifty-seven miles in length has at this early date been planned from Momba.s.sa to Lake Nyanza. No doubt this will in time affect the great caravan routes into the interior.

At present the most frequented routes lead in several parallel lines from two coast towns opposite the Island of Zanzibar, extending up through the countries of Usagara and the dry plains of Ugogo to an Arab settlement in Unyamwezi, at a distance of five hundred miles from the coast. From here several routes lead northward to the countries surrounding Victoria Nyanza. The main line, however, pa.s.ses westward to an Arab station in the country of Ujiji on the sh.o.r.es of Lake Tanganyika.

By means of a ferry across this wide lake the Arabs have extended their trade routes still farther west into the central country of Manyema.

Here they have an important trading station on the great Lualaba, or Congo, in the very heart of Africa, fully one thousand miles west of Zanzibar.

CHAPTER LXIX.

PEN PORTRAITS.

Our most interesting descriptions of the people of Africa have been derived from the annals of Egyptian history and from the journals and letters of the many explorers who have from time to time come in contact with them.

According to history the ancient Egyptians were red men. They recognized four races of men, the red, the yellow, the black, and the white. In subsequent ages they were so desirous of preserving this aristocratic distinction of color that they represented themselves in crimson upon their monuments.

The present inhabitants of Egypt range from a yellow color in the north to a deep bronze. One writer believes that the ancient Egyptians belonged to a brown race which included the Nubian tribes and to some extent the Berber tribes of Algiers and Tunis.

The record of the greatness of ancient Egypt is preserved in her works.

The pyramids, though but the ruins of their former grandeur, are the marvels of mankind. The river Nile, by means of enormous embankments, was diverted from its course to make a place for the old city of Memphis. The artificial lake of Moero was created to make a reservoir for the Nile waters. It measured four hundred and fifty miles in circ.u.mference. Its depth was three hundred and fifty feet, and it possessed subterranean channels, flood gates, locks, and dams, by means of which a sterile wilderness could be redeemed and changed into a fruitful valley.

The mason work of the ancient Egyptians was magnificent. In the casing of the Great Pyramid, we are told, the joints are scarcely perceptible, and not wider than the thickness of paper, and the cement so tenacious that fragments of the casing stones still remain in their original position, notwithstanding the lapse of so many centuries.

At one time the whole valley and delta of the Nile from the Cataracts to the sea was covered with temples, palaces, tombs, pyramids, and pillars, and almost every stone was covered with inscriptions.

The ancient Egyptians were the first mathematicians of the Old World and the first surveyors of land. They were the first astronomers, and they not only calculated eclipses but watched the periods of the planets and constellations. They were even aware of the rotundity of the earth, although Columbus has always been credited with being the first to discover this truth.

As early as the year 1722 B.C. the signs of the zodiac were in use among the Egyptians. A delineation of these signs was found upon a mummy case in the British Museum, and the date to which they pointed indicated the autumnal equinox of the year 1722 B.C.

These ancient Egyptians had clocks and dials for measuring time, and they possessed coins of gold and silver. They were the first agriculturists of the Old World, for history tells us that they raised cereals, and gave attention to the rearing of cattle, horses, and sheep.

They manufactured linen fabrics of so fine a quality that, 600 B.C., a single thread of a king's garment was comprised of three hundred and sixty-five fibers. They worked in gold and silver, in copper, bronze, and iron. The latter they tempered to the hardness of steel.

They were the first chemists, and manufactured gla.s.s and various kinds of pottery. Out of earthenware they made their boats, and manufactured vessels of paper, just as in modern times we make the wheels for railway cars out of paper. Their dentists understood the art of filling teeth with gold, and their farmers hatched poultry by means of artificial heat.

They were the first musicians, and used guitars, cymbals, drums, lyres, harps, flutes, etc. In medicine and surgery they had acquired such skill that, several hundred years before Christ the removal of cataract from the eye, a most delicate and difficult surgical operation, was performed among them. Their carpenters' and masons' tools were almost identical with those in use to-day.

All these facts of history tend to prove that ancient Egypt was a land peopled by an intellectual and refined race whose works live after them.